Chapter 9: TBSL

Chapter 9

“Suddenly I’m in a really shitty mood. Should we just settle this with a fight right here?”

“Even after all these years, your crude way of speaking hasn’t changed.”

“I’ve gotten older, but I never grew up. Turns out you can still live pretty well without doing that. If you don’t like it, why don’t you teach me some maturity yourself?”

“You truly haven’t changed at all.”

If things continued like this, it felt as though swords or fists would start flying at any moment.

Feeling anxious, Sion lightly tapped the table to draw the two old men's attention.

“Sebastian, I believe I told you to stop.”

He spoke in a slightly cold tone.

Sebastian raised the corner of his eyes for a moment before immediately bowing his head and stepping back.

“…My apologies, Young Master.”

“And Lord Raido, regardless of the circumstances, this is still House Clausen’s castle. No matter how honored a guest you may be, shouldn’t you show at least basic courtesy?”

“What nonsense are you spouting, you damn brat?”

Even though he said that, Raido backed down as well.

Sion already knew that despite all their growling, neither of them truly harbored any ill will toward the other.

If they genuinely wanted to fight, they would not be wasting time arguing.

Both of them had terrible tempers and screws loose in their heads. The type of old men who would draw a sword or throw a punch the moment they were provoked.

“First of all, Sebastian. You used to be a member of the Royal Secret Guardian Knights?”

“That is correct.”

“Does Father know about that?”

“Of course. The Border Count has known for quite some time.”

“I see. Naturally, he should. If you had hidden your identity from the lord of this territory, that would have been a serious offense.”

“…And what do you think, Young Master?”

“You mean, what do I think about you hiding your identity?”

Tap. Tap. Tap.

As he tapped the table, Sion pretended to think it over.

Honestly, he did not care at all. But Sion Clausen had a reputation for being an obnoxious troublemaker, so he figured it would be better to act at least a little offended.

“To be honest, it doesn’t make me feel particularly good.”

“…I see.”

“But everyone has things they cannot speak about, don’t they? Me included, and you as well. I have no desire to dig into it, nor am I particularly interested in your past. So let’s just leave it at that this time.”

Sion waved his hand dismissively, signaling that he did not wish to discuss the matter any further.

Sebastian furrowed his brows slightly and fell into thought.

“Lord Raido, my refusal to become your disciple is entirely for your sake.”

“What kind of fresh nonsense is that?”

“Just as you said, I’m merely a brat who has accomplished nothing. Imagine if someone like me suddenly became strong after learning martial arts. Wouldn’t that seem suspicious?”

“…Well, that’s true.”

“You came all the way out here because you wanted to distance yourself from people who kept bothering you. I’d like to believe you have no intention of exposing your own whereabouts over a momentary whim.”

Raido clicked his tongue and nodded.

He was a man who had abandoned his position as Court Mage and drifted all the way to this remote border region for his own reasons.

There was no doubt that he wanted to keep his identity hidden.

“I want to learn from you too, Lord Raido. But I worry that doing so might bring you trouble. That is why I’m stepping back. So if I offended you, I hope you can forgive me.”

Sion’s words flowed as smoothly as honey, coating not only his tongue but even his lips and teeth.

Raido cleared his throat awkwardly and nodded.

They said a few well-chosen words could do more than pay off a thousand gold in debt—they could captivate a thousand people.

For the first time in a while, Sion felt grateful for all the years he had spent honing his silver tongue just to survive.

…Damn it, but it’s still a shame.

He had forgotten, but today had reminded him of one thing.

With this pathetic body, he could never become strong.

Unless the world turned upside down, he got struck by lightning, or underwent some miraculous transformation like Kim Yoohyun, everything involving mana was effectively impossible for him.

“But aren’t you going to explain it?”

Raido’s sudden question made Sion turn toward him.

“The real reason you rejected my offer. You say it was for my sake, but that can’t be all of it. You’re no saint. There’s no way someone like you would make such a big decision so quickly just because you’re worried about someone else.”

Should he tell him?

Actually, I’m a mana cripple. I can’t sense mana at all. Please save me, Lord Raido!

He wanted to say it.

But Sion shook his head.

Never reveal your weakness to anyone, not even family.

It wasn’t about trust.

There was simply no reason to hand someone your Achilles’ heel.

That left only one problem.

How could he give an answer that would satisfy both Raido and Sebastian at once?

“There’s no special reason. As I said before, I’ve accomplished nothing. I’ve simply lived off my parents’ status like livestock.”

“Young Master.”

“That’s why I want to accomplish something on my own. If I become strong, I want to do it by myself. If I grow, I want to find my own path, even if I have to suffer for it. That is why I refused your offer.”

“……!”

At Sion’s answer, both Raido and Sebastian visibly stiffened.

The immature heir of House Clausen—the brat who had always been nothing more than a spoiled child—was suddenly saying he wanted to become stronger.

He wanted to achieve something with his own hands.

It was an enormous change.

Or perhaps…

Maybe this was his true self all along.

Maybe he had simply worn layer after layer of masks to hide it from everyone else.

So Sion Clausen was this kind of person?

For the first time, Raido and Sebastian shared the exact same thought.

The fool they had dismissed as worthless had actually been hiding his true nature behind a carefully crafted act.

A chill ran down their spines.

To deceive people like them so effortlessly…

“…Young Master, if you’ll excuse me, I shall take my leave.”

“Very well, Sebastian. Get some rest, and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Sebastian left first.

Even as he exited Sion’s room, he glanced back at his young master.

Everything he had seen until now must have been nothing more than one of the young man’s many masks.

The realization made a small flame of anger rise within him.

Not anger toward Sion, but toward himself.

He had always prided himself on his ability to judge people.

Yet when was the last time someone had fooled him so completely?

Until yesterday, I was worried about the future of House Clausen after Lichten’s death. But not anymore. Sion Clausen… I thought he was nothing more than a worm, but it turns out he only let a single strand of himself show while hiding the real thing beneath the surface.

Thinking that things would become much more interesting from now on, Sebastian walked away.

Meanwhile, after Sebastian left, Raido also rose from his seat.

“You’re leaving?”

“Yeah. I don’t want to look at the face of the brat who cruelly rejected my offer any longer.”

“I told you, there were reasons—”

“Quiet.”

Raido began drawing a magic formula.

To the untrained eye, it looked like he was simply doodling with his fingers, but the formula was filled with calculations and principles that even skilled mages would struggle to comprehend.

“Let me ask you one thing.”

“I’m listening.”

“What do you think of my daughter?”

“…Excuse me?”

It felt as though a 180-kilometer-per-hour fastball had smashed directly into Sion’s head.

Caught completely off guard, he stammered helplessly.

Raido frowned deeply.

“When a man hesitates to answer a question about a woman, there’s nothing more pathetic than that! You may be good at hiding yourself and deceiving others, but that doesn’t mean it works in every situation, you damn brat!”

“S-Sorry! Sorry, sir!”

It sounded like an ordinary old man shouting.

But the killing intent hidden within his voice was sharper than any blade.

Sion snapped to attention and apologized first before desperately thinking.

As his silence stretched on, Raido decided to help him.

“If you don’t answer within five seconds, I’ll tear you into five pieces.”

This crazy bastard!

Judging by the look in his eyes, he would really do it.

So Sion blurted out the truth without filtering himself.

“I don’t know.”

“…You don’t know?”

“It’s a stupid answer, but I really don’t know. I don’t know how I should look at Lady Lucia. I don’t know what kind of feelings I should have for her.”

He fully expected to be cursed out.

Maybe even punched in the face.

Fortunately, neither happened.

“Ha… fuck. You really are completely insane.”

Holding his forehead, Raido muttered something under his breath before finishing the magic formula.

Then, before leaving, he looked at Sion and spoke.

“You don’t need to call her ‘Lady.’”

“…What?”

“I’m giving you special permission. You can call my daughter by her name, you damn brat.”

Whoosh!

Mana surged violently, and Raido vanished in an instant.

Silence filled the room after the storm had passed.

Sion looked around blankly before his legs gave out beneath him, causing him to collapse onto the floor.

“Haha… fuck, I’m screwed.”

His life had already diverged drastically from the original story.

He had met Raido, someone Sion was never supposed to encounter, and had even received an offer to become his disciple.

He had learned Sebastian’s true identity.

And those monsters were now looking at him with unusual interest.

He could not help but worry.

What if he got dragged into events even he knew nothing about?

But he could not afford to focus on an uncertain future while ignoring the pitfall right in front of him.

I’ll follow the general flow of the novel, but I’ll find my own way to survive. Sion Clausen originally existed only to torment Kim Yoohyun. Simply trying to live properly shouldn’t change the history of the continent or alter the story too much.

And even if his actions did change the plot—

He would simply say, To hell with it, and choose survival.

He had not come here to help the protagonist.

The reason he had been thrown into this absurd world was simple.

Survive.

He had no time to worry about anyone else.

One mistake, and he would die.

Just staying alive himself was already difficult enough.

“First, I need to figure out this weak body and this mana-deficient condition… Ha, fuck…”

Being unable to use mana was a fatal weakness.

In the original novel, Sion Clausen never overcame it.

To be fair, he had barely tried.

But people with absolutely no mana sensitivity were treated like patients suffering from an incurable disease.

How the hell am I supposed to overcome this? Should I start mana training now? Maybe even the slightest change will happen?

Today, he had survived by using his tongue.

Starting tomorrow, he would have to use his body.

Among all the villains in the story, Sion Clausen was infamous as the worst.

A rotten personality.

Disgusting pettiness and cowardice.

Pointless jealousy and filthy desires.

Because of that, Sion knew better than anyone what kinds of enemies he would face and how miserable his ending would be.

He did not want to die like that.

He did not want to live like such a pathetic fool.

He wanted to survive his own way.

Let’s do this. I’ll survive no matter what and live even better than the protagonist, you damn author.

Rustle—

Lichten, the Border Count, was reviewing reports and various documents related to the territory.

Suddenly, his eyes sharpened, and his hand moved toward the sword at his side.

“Relax. I’m not some suspicious bastard here for suspicious reasons.”

At Raido’s appearance, Lichten let out a sigh, removed his glasses, and stood up.

“Lord Raido.”

“It’s been a while, Lichten. Feels like it’s been about a year.”

“A year? It’s been well over three years.”

“Huh? Really? Ah, shit… Am I actually getting dementia?”

Lichten burst into laughter at Raido’s muttering.

Could an old man with dementia casually draw complex magic formulas and teleport through a castle protected by a grand magical barrier?

“What brings you here all of a sudden?”

“I have a lot to talk to you about.”

When Lichten offered him a seat, Raido flopped down onto the sofa and continued.

“It’s about your son.”

“…My eldest?”

“Yeah. The son you had with your late wife. Sion Clausen.”

“Why are you suddenly bringing up my eldest son?”

“How much do you think you really know about that brat… no, no. About that boy?”