Conquering the Academy with Just a Sashimi Knife (Novel) - Chapter 114 - Spear Saint Richard de Muir (1)

Chapter 114 – Spear Saint Richard de Muir (1)

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Translated by Jinmu

Read only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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Tap, tap.

The sound of shoes echoed through the tranquil corridor. The source of that sound was Abel.

With a slightly tense face, she advanced one step at a time. Toward the room where Kang Geom-ma was staying.

‘If I’m going to return it, now was the only time, while Grandfather was out.’

Her grandfather rarely went out. He said it was because he did not want to be separated from his lovely granddaughter, but……

Abel knew that, in truth, it was simply because he found it troublesome.

Of course, the fact that he loved her, his granddaughter, was an unvarnished truth, almost to an excessive degree.

It had already been four days since Kang Geom-ma came to stay at Castle Sigurdr. Yet the chance to talk with him never quite came. The reason was her grandfather, that fool for his granddaughter.

He had lectured her on `boys and girls from the age of seven should not sit together.` She did not know the exact meaning of the old Korean proverb, but she interpreted it broadly to mean that she should keep men at a distance.

Suddenly, the Sword Emperor’s added words came back to her.

-Little one, you must never trust men. Especially hot-blooded teenagers, they require the greatest caution, and men who chase after women were even more to be avoided.

“Oh, Grandfather, really, how much longer are you going to keep treating me like a child! Do you think I wouldn’t know something like that?! I can handle that much just fine!”

-Hoho, of course you did, you did indeed. Whose precious granddaughter were you, after all? But Abel, remember this. The truly dangerous ones were not those blatant types.

“Then what kind……?”

-The kind of man who offers kindness without intention.

“What? Why would someone who offers kindness be the most dangerous? Shouldn’t that sort of person be praised instead? …Or do you mean I should stay on guard because I can’t know what thoughts he might be hiding inside…….?”

At that question, her grandfather slowly shook his head.

-Thoughtless kindness without cause gives rise to misunderstandings. And when that happened, people naturally start gathering around that person. Among those people, of course, would be members of the opposite sex too. Yet the one giving the kindness didn’t even realize that fact. I hear university students nowadays call that sort of person `totally clueless.`

“Ah……”

She had never expected the words `totally clueless` to come out of her grandfather’s mouth. She had been about to ask back, but seeing his self-satisfied smile, she kept her lips shut.

Instead, Abel carved into her mind the danger of knowledge only half-understood.

-But little one, did not worry. So long as this grandfather of yours remained alive and sharp-eyed, no man would even come near our Abel.

To close the conversation, her grandfather hammered the point home.

-Mm. Unless, perhaps, you brought me a man stronger than this grandfather of yours, but while I was alive, did you really think such a thing could happen? As you know, your grandfather was the strongest, hahaha!

Abel smiled bitterly. Her grandfather had driven in a final stake, saying that unless someone stronger than she was appeared, she should not even dream of romance.

‘Romance, huh……. Well, it’s not something that had much to do with me anyway.’

It was better to swing a sword one more time than waste time on something like that. Thinking so, Abel hugged the rabbit blanket tightly to her chest.

The rabbit blanket Kang Geom-ma had covered her with on Avalon Island. Thanks to Abel’s meticulous care, the fur shone with a soft sheen.

Abel smiled faintly and brushed the fur smooth. Thinking of it as the last time, a bit of regret bloomed.

‘Still, I’ve already decided to return it.’

Repeating that to herself, Abel continued walking. …But when she thought about it again, the category her grandfather had called the `most` dangerous-

‘A man who offers kindness without intention……’

Wasn’t that Kang Geom-ma?

A hot-blooded teenager, someone who offered kindness regardless of who it was, someone who threw himself in to save others, and someone around whom members of the opposite sex gathered again and again at all times.

Every single thing fit one person perfectly: Kang Geom-ma.

Most of all, even the part about him being completely oblivious.

Abel’s gaze dropped to her arms on reflex. This thing she had used as a stand-in blanket all this time, too, was one piece of evidence of Kang Geom-ma’s thoughtless kindness.

“……”

All at once, her cheeks puffed up in irritation. But almost immediately, the emotion subsided again. Abel covered her forehead and let out a deep sigh.

“Why am I acting like this too……”

It felt childish.

This distracted way she was getting over something so trivial.

The way she felt some strange sense of superiority just from the fact that she and Kang Geom-ma were staying under the same roof……

She hated the fact that Kang Geom-ma was making her feel this way.

Not a lot, just… a tiny little bit?

As she kept walking, sunk in stray thoughts.

Before she realized it, she had arrived at the door to the room where Kang Geom-ma was staying.

It was her own house. And yet it felt unfamiliar.

She hesitated over knocking.

`Maybe I should just go back?` But the days when Grandfather left the house were rare.

“Hoo-.”

After letting out a long breath.

Knock-knock-knock.

Abel knocked three times.

“……”

The response she got back was complete silence. It would have been natural to open the door at least out of curiosity over who it was, yet what came back was a perfectly clean act of ignoring her.

For a moment, Abel blanked out. Then she soon shook her head.

‘He must think I’m Shail.’

Clearing her throat with a small ahem, Abel knocked again.

This time, there was a response.

Thud, thud, the sound of feet on the floor came closer.

In that brief instant, Abel quickly looked over her clothes.

She immediately smoothed down a single wrinkle caught in her top.

Bang.

The moment the door opened, Abel’s body stiffened.

She only barely raised her eyes and looked up at Kang Geom-ma.

Seeing his face up close again after four days filled her with a great sense of gladness.

She stared fixedly at him. Her tactless heart knocked against her ribs from the inside.

A brief silence. Kang Geom-ma opened his mouth.

“…What? Why are you here?”

Abel, who had been standing there with her mouth half open, gave a small start.

‘Right, I came to return the blanket. I just need to hand this over and leave.’

Holding that inner voice inside her mouth, she finally parted her lips.

“I-I had something to return.”

“……?”

“And I also had something I wanted to say……”

Contrary to the resolve she had made, her mouth moved of its own accord.

“…Could I come in for a moment?”

* * *

I was surprised by Abel’s sudden knock only for a moment. She said she had something to say, so I let her in for now. …But.

“……”

This wasn’t a figure of speech, the air was so awkward it really felt hard to breathe. Even more than when I meditate with the Sword Emperor.

Abel sat lightly on the edge of the bed, keeping her gaze fixed on the corner of the ceiling.

And then thirty seconds passed like that.

She merely kept fidgeting with her interlocked fingers.

Blankly. At this rate, there was no sign this silence would end, so I opened my mouth first.

“What was the thing you said you were returning?”

It felt as though a question mark popped above Abel’s head. Only then did her gaze stab toward me.

“Th-this. I came to return this.”

“Ah, that.”

The thick blanket tucked in Abel’s arms. No wonder it looked familiar.

It was the rabbit blanket I had tanned with my own hands during the deserted island survival training. I had forgotten its very existence completely, so seeing it like this made me oddly glad.

It looked like she had taken good care of it too, with the fur still glossy and smooth. I showed my gratitude with a smile.

“I had forgotten all about it, but thanks.”

“Y-yeah.”

“That aside, didn’t you say you had something to talk about?”

At those words, Abel’s shoulders trembled. Then she fidgeted with her fingers and rolled her eyes about. It looked as if she were choosing what words to say.

After staying silent for a long while, she finally opened her mouth.

“…If your time is free tomorrow afternoon, would you go somewhere with me?”

“Where?”

When I tilted my head and asked back, Abel flared up.

“Hey! I asked first! Are you free tomorrow or not?!”

“…After meditating in the morning, I don’t really have any plans for the afternoon.”

Abel looked straight at me with bright, wide eyes. Scratching the back of my neck, I went on.

“I’m free.”

“……!”

Her golden eyes widened as big as oil lamps.

Was that really such a surprising thing, me saying I was free? Then again, she probably assumed I spent all day sparring and training with the Sword Emperor. There was no way she’d imagine that I was holed up in an underground room meditating.

‘And if I keep doing nothing but meditate like this, I really might end up with paralysis in my lower body, so I need to walk around a bit.’

She asked.

“Then what time do you want to head out tomorrow?”

“Since it’s a rare chance, how about we head out around four and have dinner too? We came all the way to Switzerland, so I’d like to eat out at least once.”

Abel’s face seemed to brighten all at once, then she quickly composed her expression again. She nodded.

“T-then let’s do that. I heard a famous sushi place just opened in Geneva.”

Coming all the way to Switzerland just to go to a sushi place was a bit much……. Since we were here anyway, we should try local food.

“Is there no famous Swiss place or something instead of sushi?”

“Huh? Why? Do you hate sushi?”

“…No, it’s not that I hate it… it’s just that I ate it with my club members not that long ago. And things are expensive here anyway, so if we’re going to eat, I’d rather try different kinds of food.”

“By club members… Saki?”

Abel said Ryozo’s family name in clipped fragments. Her brows had narrowed tightly, and her tone had gone cold.

‘…Are the two of them not on good terms?’

I’ve already spent a good four months in academy life. By now, I’d seen no small number of female cadets whose relationships had gone from friendly to broken.

Maybe the reason Ryozo had asked for reassignment to Wolf Class was because of that sort of thing. It was a fairly plausible line of reasoning.

Scratching my temple, I replied.

“Not just her. Speed Weapon and Chloe were there too.”

“…By Chloe, you mean that red-haired girl?”

“Yeah, that’s right. Chloe and I have similar tastes when it comes to liking fish, so that’s why we went to the sushi place.”

“……”

Abel’s expression hardened even further. Something seemed to have rubbed her the wrong way, but as someone who had never dated in his life, I had no way of understanding a girl’s psychology.

“Hmph.”

A crisp little snort. Abel handed me the blanket. Or rather, to be exact, she threw it at me.

Walking briskly toward the door, she turned her head only halfway.

“Anyway, come out to the front gate on time tomorrow.”

Abel spat out those final words. Her tone had softened a little, but her voice was still cold. I nodded dubiously.

Bam!

The door shut with an irritated slam. I stared blankly in that direction for a moment, then muttered.

“…It’s still kind of awkward with her. Is it because our first meeting was like that……”

I let out a sigh. The rabbit fur gleamed faintly in the breath that escaped.

It really made me feel again just how well she had taken care of it.

A faint laugh slipped out.

* * *

At the same time, at the official residence of the President of Switzerland.

“Ugh… when exactly are you going to get here.”

A certain man paced outside the office door. His name was Alain, the chief secretary and President Gaines’s closest aide.

Alain tapped the face of his wristwatch over and over with his fingernail. Impatience clung to the tip of his finger.

Step, step.

Footsteps came from the far end of the corridor. Alain lifted his head. At the same time, delight flooded his face.

“Sword Emperor! You came.”

“Formalities can wait. Explain the situation first.”

“…It is exactly as was reported to you. That man suddenly came and immediately asked the President who the person was that you had brought with you, Sword Emperor…….”

The furrow between the Sword Emperor’s brows deepened. At that reaction, Alain waved his hands frantically and quickly added.

“B-but the President kept his mouth shut. Even when his collar was grabbed, even when the buttons on his shirt were torn off, he only smiled and refused to say a word. Then that man got angry, shouting, ‘You’re afraid of Nibelung, but you think de Muir is easy to bully, is that it?!’ And after that…….”

Alain lowered his head deeply. The Sword Emperor patted him on the shoulder.

“That is explanation enough. I will handle the rest myself.”

“I know you dislike being dragged into this sort of matter, so thank you for coming.”

“Come now, this man. How can you say something so disheartening when you’ve all gone so far out of your way for my convenience? Since I am here now, don’t worry.”

Alain sniffled faintly. The Sword Emperor glanced at him once, hardened his expression, and then opened the office door.

Creeeak. The sound of the hinges grinding together. At once, fighting spirit surged out through the crack in the door like a tidal wave. It was an enormous pressure, as if it were crushing down the whole surrounding area.

“Huh-”

The inside was an even greater spectacle.

With an oval round table at the center, sturdy men were lined up in rows on both sides.

The Federal Chancellor, ministers from various departments, the Speaker of the Upper House, the Speaker of the Lower House. They were political leaders in and of themselves. And yet……

“Gghhhhhk.”

They had planted their foreheads on the floor and thrust their rear ended up high, forming triangles with their bodies. It was what was known as `wonsan bombing.`

“……”

The Sword Emperor widened his eyes and stared directly at the far end of the round table.

A great man sitting with his chin propped up, gripping a spear shaft.

Arrogant to no end. Yet that very arrogance was part of what symbolized the man.

The Spear Saint, Richard de Muir.

He wore the face of a king of beasts and a body packed with ferocious muscles.

The Spear Saint bared his teeth and greeted the Sword Emperor.

“It’s been a long time, Nibelung. Has it not been almost ten years?”

The Sword Emperor firmly gripped the hilt of his sword. Then he spoke in a low voice.

“What sort of disgraceful spectacle is this, coming to another man’s country like this? And since when have we been close enough to exchange warm greetings?”

“Kuhahahahahahahahaha!”

The Spear Saint suddenly burst into loud laughter. The corners of his mouth drew all the way up to his ears.

“You lost one arm and came back hotter-blooded than before. Back in the old days, you were so prim and proper you seemed like a woman.”

“……”

The veins at the Sword Emperor’s temples surged up.

Step.

The Sword Emperor stepped into the office.

“You’ve grown old enough to rot, Richard, and yet your tongue has grown longer than any housewife’s.”

Kiiiiing.

Then he drew his sword.