Ch. 238
“Tenebra, was it? I guess you don’t care if you never see that beautiful sword again?”
Since it’s a sword, is this a hostage situation with an object instead of a person?
I was threatening him with something that was as good as destroyed. First, I needed to get out of this damned grip.
“It’s a family treasure, but you brought it out, so it must be a once-in-a-lifetime sword for you, right? People say swordsmen cherish their swords more than their lovers. Is that really true?”
“……”
“If you want your precious thing back, you’d better do as I say. Starting with putting me down. Gently.”
Rovenin glared at me like he wanted to tear me apart on the spot, and his hand on my collar tightened. He was holding me up by the scruff of my neck with just one hand, but with that kind of strength, it was obvious my clothes would rip soon. It hit me that with that same grip, snapping my neck would be nothing to him.
I knew all too well that I’d picked the worst possible nemesis.
The difference in physical ability was so overwhelming that once he grabbed me, I ended up like this in an instant.
The fact that Rai, who could bat away flying arrows, couldn’t stop this hand was downright despair-inducing. And he was merciless.
He shook me without the slightest restraint, and my already loose collar tore wide open.
My collarbone ended up clearly exposed through the ripped fabric, but neither Rovenin nor I cared; we were too busy locked in a battle of will. Ash, however, was different.
“Stop! Stop, stop!”
The kindest person I knew finally snapped.
He was almost screaming. Rovenin and I both froze in surprise that it really was Ash’s voice, and we stopped growling and turned to look.
Only then did I realize how much of my hair had been cut off.
“Honestly, isn’t this too much? Why are you both only thinking about yourselves! Why! What’s in your heads! You don’t listen when people talk to you!”
“He started it first……”
“You ignore everyone who worries about you! All you do is cause trouble! You jump in first, get hurt, fight again, cause more trouble, and then act like you don’t know anything! You just keep repeating the same irresponsible behavior, not fixing a thing! Why do you live like that! You’re both the same!”
Who was it? Who had made Ash this angry?
Still dangling in midair, I glared at Rovenin as if to blame him.
“With that much power, why can’t you do better than this! Even if you can’t use it for others, at least don’t use it the wrong way! You! Is that why you became strong? Is that why you pursue power, is that what you’re trying to…… I’m asking what you’re doing it all for! You’re not animals! You should listen when people talk! Is there no respect in those heads of yours at all?”
The hand fisted in my collar slowly lost strength.
“It’s because of you. You stupid fighting dog.”
“It’s probably because of you. You did something my sword.”
“Who started it first?”
“Tenebra.”
“……Fine. Temporary truce.”
Before I knew it, I was back on the ground and free.
I rubbed my stinging neck and watched the Sword energy fade from Rovenin’s other hand.
Then I gave him a subtle kick, and maybe because there was no killing intent behind it—or because Ash was suffering like a parent who’d failed at raising his children—he didn’t dodge, just looked down at me with a thoroughly annoyed face.
“What are you doing?”
“Calling a temporary truce. I don’t want to see Ash cry, so let’s stop here.”
“……The sword?”
“Be grateful to Ash.”
“The sword……”
I was acting generous, but the truth was that the moment that sword came to my throat, a realization had hit me like a lightning strike: my chances of winning weren’t just low, they were close to zero.
It wasn’t that I was backing down because I was scared of him. It was a tactical retreat.
[Master…… you can fool yourself, but you can’t fool me!]
[Hey! I’m someone who survived even a Dragon’s lair! Who do you think I’d be afraid of, Rovenin or whoever?]
[……Okay! You need at least a bit of a mental victory!]
[I’m telling you, it’s not that!]
[Congratulations on your victory, Master!]
I’d just survived a life-threatening situation, but I only felt dirtier for it.
Even when I was trying to please Magi and survive, I hadn’t felt this humiliated.
‘Why do I hate it so much that there’s a human out there overwhelmingly stronger than me?’
[I know Master values life. Your own life.]
[Who cares about other people’s lives.]
While I was grinding my teeth, Rai, who had hurried over, clung tightly around my waist.
[But Master, aren’t you someone who’d rather die than lose your pride?]
[If I die, I’m actually dead. I need to stay alive to plan for the future. Do you have a problem with me wanting to live?]
[Of course not! You misunderstand. How could you think that of my love…… I want to see Master painting the walls with poop.]
[I have no intention of showing you that.]
[Anyway, I know that redhead is a hindrance to Master’s longevity plan!]
[In more ways than one.]
He was a threat not only to my mental health, but also a massive threat to my body.
I rubbed the spot near my neck that felt like it was bruising, then pushed my hand into my hair, which had been rustling nonstop, and pulled.
A handful of cut hair came out. After repeating that a few times, a little pile of gleaming golden hair had formed at my feet.
My hair, which I’d grown down past my waist, piled up quickly even if only a little fell out, and since it had been completely severed by Sword energy, it wasn’t surprising.
The place where Rovenin had threatened me with Sword energy was right by my carotid artery, and since it had been sliced off from there, I’d have no choice but to trim it into a bob, at least.
I ran my fingers over the cut ends, but strangely, I wasn’t all that angry.
Because normally, the artery beside those hairs should have been severed instead.
Honestly, if Ash hadn’t been there, I would have been done for. An emperor really is the answer to a madman.
“Geenie! Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?”
“I’m not.”
Ash rushed over like he’d just dragged apart two dogs locked in a vicious fight, and his eyes were fixed anxiously on me, the only one whose neck had nearly been torn out.
He looked like he wanted to check the spot I kept rubbing, worried something might be wrong.
“See, I’m fine.”
When I moved my hand away to show him, he relaxed a little at the lack of blood, but he seemed more heartbroken over the clumps of hair on the ground than I was.
I seized the moment and let my eyes sparkle.
“My hair……”
“Ash, can’t you have him executed?”
“……Geenie.”
“My hair, that I’ve been growing for ten years, ended up like this. Do you know how annoying it is to comb and manage this length every day? Well? Isn’t that enough of a crime?”
“Not even close.”
“Can’t you do something with the power of love?”
“……I can’t.”
“Tch.”
“Please don’t make such frightening jokes.”
Given what a monster the opponent was, I’d thought it would be faster to borrow the power of authority than to kill him myself.
It was a little disappointing that Ash wasn’t a woman-crazed tyrant at times like this.
I was sad about my hair, but not devastated.
Traveling with hair that long was a hassle, so I’d seriously considered cutting it several times, and when I was at the academy, I often wanted to cut it then too, but Mia and Iruze had always stopped me.
That was one of the few aristocratic habits I’d kept.
I didn’t cherish my hair. It would be more accurate to say I found it annoying.
Hair long enough to feel heavy was only good for dressing up at parties and had no other use whatsoever.
What disgusted me was that this had happened because of Rovenin, not by my own choice.
“But, Geenie. Is it true?”
“What is?”
“Can you really restore Tenebra?”
“Uh…… well, maybe?”
Even at my uncertain answer, Ash’s face visibly brightened.
Meanwhile, Rovenin, who’d been shoved far away by Ash, was glaring with open suspicion.
[Master, why are you selling snake oil! You know you can’t put it back!]
[I thought so too…… but what if it’s just the ingredients?]
[Well…… I guess?]
[See, there’s no such thing as impossible in my dictionary.]
[If it’s just the raw materials, anything’s possible. But the problem is that the processing and refining techniques that turn the metal into a sword are beyond my scope. No matter how closely I spit it out, it’ll just be a long metal lump compared to the original sword, right? It can’t be the same sword!]
Rai often whined that he wasn’t a Spirit of craftsmanship.
I knew that much by now.
[That’s fine. I know a good blacksmith.]
[Not just anyone can handle this, you know. It’s filled with Dragon bones, so it doesn’t melt easily. Humans can’t work it at all. Only races tough enough to stick their hands into lava can handle it. At the very least, the dwarven chieftain……]
[Or a Dragon.]
[Ah, that idiot! Right. He could do it. He’s a Dragon, after all.]
Magi, the only Dragon I knew, happened to have a hobby of making weapons. Swords were his specialty.
[But will Magi even help?]
[If he doesn’t help, then that’s that. I’ll just end up being a liar…… Hey, but why are Dragon bones counted as metal? Now that I think about it, that’s weird. Shouldn’t they not be absorbed by you in the first place?]
Then this whole mess wouldn’t have happened.
[Have you forgotten? You can absorb Dragon Hearts too. Actually, the bones, claws, and hearts of Dragons are closer to metal than to living matter. That’s why they’re often used as weapons. And their shells…… Dragons are like incarnations of nature, so their entire bodies are made from the strongest parts of nature.]
[Incarnations of nature?]
[To put it simply. Their bones being metal is the same as metal coming from nature.]
[That’s the first time you’ve said something that complicated in a while.]
[Dragon flesh and blood are also pure Mana, so if you eat them, your Mana increases. Did you know? It’s like eating Mana herbs!]
[……They have that kind of effect? I didn’t know.]
My neck, which had been strangled tight by my collar, was slowly swelling. If I was unlucky, I might not be able to speak tonight.
I rubbed it as I listened to Rai babble.
What a body with nothing to waste.
[That’s because there’s no race that can eat Dragons, the strongest beings in the Middle realm. In ancient times, the demons hunted them…… but that’s impossible now, right? Dragon meat amplifies Mana! Next time you see Magi, ask him to chop off his tail.]
[What? That’s disgusting!]
[The tail grows back. And you like meat.]
[I don’t know. Magi’s not some kind of salamander……]
It was a little tempting, since it was good for Mana, but I couldn’t eat a friend…… Except that bastard did try to eat me first, didn’t he?
Maybe I should eat his tail.
If it meant I could beat Rovenin, I couldn’t exactly refuse.
[But if humans eat Dragon meat wrong, their Mana explodes and they die. It’s important to consume the right amount, you know.]
[……Why do you always tell me the important part at the end.]
[Even if humans just handle Dragon Hearts, they often go berserk and lose their minds, right? Master, you can use Mana safely because I, a Metal Spirit, am refining the Dragon Heart for you. I’m like a Magic wand Rai.]
[Can I get a refund on that wand?]
“……Geenie, Geenie? What are you thinking so hard about?”