The sun rose.
Surprisingly, Harun hadn't even bothered waking up even after all the mayhem during the night.
"Zzzzz."
"...."
And he's even snoring.
This is ridiculous.
Well, it's understandable.
It was his first time learning the mana cultivation method.
Moreover, it takes a lot of mental energy just to understand the more advanced ones.
"...Well, it's about time he showed up."
I glanced towards the entrance of the tent.
I expected more people to rush inside immediately after the commotion.
But there were no more ambushes.
"Well, I guess I should at least do a bit of preparation of my own."
"Mmph! Mmph!"
Suddenly, the pig who stayed up the entire night opened its dark-circled eyes.
I had just plunged a metal skewer into its neck.
Flap!
Just then, as if he'd been waiting, the minion boss, Ben-Hur, walked in.
"...What do you think you're doing?"
"You broke your promise."
Flinch.
Ben-Hur shudders slightly.
He had followed my gaze and seen what lay there.
In one corner of the tent, bodies formed a small pile.
"Take them and bury them. Any longer, and I think I'll start smelling like corpses."
"...Okay."
To my surprise, Ben-Hur did so obediently.
He moved all the corpses by himself, not even bothering to call in any help, lest he offend me.
And when he had finally cleaned up the last one.
"Just what did you do?"
He finally asked me, curious.
"You must be dying of curiosity, about who I am."
"...."
Ben-Hur went silent for a moment, then let out a long sigh.
"...Damn bastard. Looks like you've got a card up your sleeve."
"Hey, you damn minion boss."
"...?"
"Should I kill this pig?"
"...!"
Unlike before, I actually gave the hand holding the metal skewer more force than usual.
"Mmphhh!"
The sharp tip dug in with a "plop!" and blood flowed out.
At the same time, the pig started squealing again.
"...Do that, and you die."
"You're the one who made a mess and wanted to kill me in the first place, weren't you?"
"It won't be a simple death. I'll make sure your death is anything but quick. As painfully as possible. I'll grind your flesh off, piece by piece, sprinkle salt on your wounds, and throw your chunks of flesh to the dogs. You'll watch in agony, with your entire body burning with salt."
"Is that what you want me to do to your master?"
I reached out and gripped the dagger which I looted the night before.
"Mmmphhhh!"
The pig's head snapped up like a thunderbolt.
Its expression seemed to be scolding him for provoking me.
"Enough!"
"You bastards. So why act out when you were doing so well?"
Baaammm!
I punched the flailing pig in the throat and knocked him out.
There was something important I had to do now.
"Since you're the one who caused the mess, I have one more request."
"...This goddamn son of a bitch..."
I got straight to the point.
"From now on, I want you to stack all of your stashes, every last one of them, in that corner where the bodies were piled up earlier. By yourself, of course."
"What?"
Ben-Hur frowned, as if he hadn't expected such a demand.
"I've already checked with your young master about what you have. Don't even think about lying. If you leave anything out, your master will look exactly as you just described."
"...."
Ben-Hur remained silent for a long moment, then grinned wickedly.
"Do you really think you can take all our possessions and get out of here? Do you really think that's possible?"
"That's none of your business."
"...Hah, alright. Let's do that."
Muttering under his breath, Ben-Hur spun on his heel and left.
It's clear that the bastard has something else up his sleeve.
The sight of him made my blood boil.
'Not yet.'
I've regained the ability to wipe out his minions, but I have to be patient.
At least until they bring their stash to my doorstep.
"What are you doing? What's money worth to a dead man? Or is it for our afterlife?"
At that moment, Harun, who had woken up, whispered to me.
"Wipe the drool off the corner of your mouth."
"Oh." He wipes it off with his arm.
"And, didn't I tell you? You're not dying."
Pause.
Harun stops moving, still in the same position he was, wiping his saliva.
"Are you sure... we're going to live?"
"You will. Aren't you and I both working to death so we can live?"
Of course, in my case, I'm alive because I couldn't die.
An idiot who wasn't by his wife's side when she took her last breath and lost his only child.
I'm a good-for-nothing that deserves to die, but still has things to do.
If I died like this and went to the other side, I wouldn't even be welcomed by my family.
They would say, "Why did you come here after accomplishing nothing?" and criticize me even in the afterlife.
"Let go of your doubts about your life."
"Huh?"
"Whether it's to live or to learn something, it's all about willpower. If you think you can become a knight with such a weak state of mind, give up now. You'll never be able to do it."
"...!"
Harun's eyes widened in realization, and it was only then that all traces of sleep disappeared from his eyes.
"S-Sorry. I won't doubt it again."
Soon after, a determined gleam appeared in Harun's eyes.
He's still young.
He has talent, but he still has a lot to learn, starting with this mindset.
Aside from that, what I just said to him was also a promise to myself.
I will never go to my family's side until I have gotten my revenge.
Then, what do I need the most right now?
Skills?
They're definitely important.
But ultimately, I can't accomplish anything alone.
Not in a battle against a nation.
So what else do I need?
Influence, or power.
And the key ingredient for building power?
Money.
'A weak country on the periphery that no one cares about. This environment will help me in the future. Isn't it a great place to build a base away from the watchful gazes of others?'
One of my few weaknesses in my previous life was the fact that I had never made money by myself.
I simply sent the loot from the battlefield to my clan, and my financial vassal took care of everything.
Some of it went to the imperial treasury, and the rest was mine.
'...When it came to making money, that old man was quite something.'
Of course, whenever I spent all that hard-earned money at once, I was nagged until my ears scabbed over with cries of, 'Please, you'll be the death of me, my lord!'
'They're probably all dead, aren't they?'
I sighed inwardly and looked ahead again.
"So, do you think there's been some progress with the cultivation method I taught you?"
"Hmm. I'm doing what you told me to do, and I think I feel something warm in my stomach, or maybe I don't...."
"...!"
My eyes widened.
Of course, it's unlikely that he's already formed the bowl.
Even some geniuses take three years to make their first hole.
However, you can't ignore that 'feeling.'
For those geniuses, the timing of their mana awakening also varied depending on how quickly they got this feeling.
"Is that true?"
"Yep. Do you think I have some talent for this?"
"...."
In that sense, this Harun guy, his talent was much better than I had expected.
***
The week went by quickly.
Once I showed them my true colors, they kept their word.
"It's almost time to meet."
By now, the corners of the tent were piled high with treasures of all kinds.
There were hundreds of gold pieces alone, not to mention jewelry of a spectrum of colors.
A single gold piece was enough to feed a family of four for a year, so it was easy to see the extent of their evil deeds.
"Harun."
"Yeah?"
Harun, who had just been sweating inside the tent, turned to face me, sword in hand.
What I taught him was a certain knight's unique sword technique and a mana cultivation method.
In a fallen kingdom in the eastern part of the Empire, there existed a place called Arundel County.
The lord there was one of the best swordsmen I'd ever seen, ranking in the top three.
There was no force or variation in the way he slashed at his opponent's sword.
Only extreme speed.
Nevertheless, countless knights had sworn by the sword of Lord Arundel.
Of all the swords, I chose this one for a reason.
Harun entered this world at a relatively late age, fourteen.
By comparison, most children of knightly families take up the sword at the earliest age of five.
'The Arundel family's swordsmanship isn't difficult to learn, as it isn't as esoteric as many others.'
It simply required a natural physical talent and many, many times more effort than other sword arts.
It was perfect for Harun, who was a late bloomer.
Even if he could only reach the level of five stars, most knights would be no match for him.
"Just remember one thing. Draw two dots in the air, and connect them."
"Connect the dots?"
"Yes. At its core, Arundel swordsmanship is about finding the shortest path that exists, reaching your destination faster than anyone else, and taking the life of your enemy. The mana cultivation method is also centered around this principle."
"Okay! I get what you're saying."
"Good, now let's put it into practice."
"Sure! Okay! Into practice...!"
Suddenly, Harun's eyes widened.
"Wait. Practice?"
Flap!
Just in time. The minions rushed inside.
"I'm warning you, I can't protect you in a fight. That means you'll have to fend for yourself."
"W-Wait a minute. I've only been learning the sword for a week."
I know.
I know how hard this is.
But this kid has to do it.
Otherwise, Harun will die here today.
If he chooses to give up in vain, that's his fate, then.
On the other hand, if he survives this crisis, he can rise to become much more than he is now.
'I wish I had more time, but unfortunately, I don't have that luxury.
I'm sure that's what the pig said.
The education period would be a week at most.
After that, we would be sold to a noble family as high quality goods.
If knights from those families came looking for us, we would be in a lot of trouble.
That's why I asked for a week.
"Let's give them a fight. You'll have a hard time with a lot of them, but you're more than capable of winning one-on-one against those minions."
"...?"
By now, the minions were already inside.
"What did you just say?"
"...Pfft."
At this, the minions burst into laughter.
"Bwahahahahahaha!"
"What was that bastard talking about?"
"So what he's saying is, that plaything's going to beat us?"
I lift my frosty eyes to look at them.
"A few days ago, your colleagues were smirking like that, and they all died at my hands."
Flinch.
The minions fell silent.
"You bastard... What kind of tricks did you pull against our colleagues?"
"Tricks, my foot. They were less skilled than I am, which is why they crossed the Netherworld hand-in-hand."
"Crazy bastard. You expect us to believe that?"
"And so what if you don't? Are you going to test it out yourself?"
"...."
A stunned silence descends.
"Don't let your guard down, assholes. This is no ordinary kid."
"...Yes, boss."
"And...."
Ben-Hur looked at me.
"Release our young master, as promised."
"Promise? What promise?"
"What?"
"Didn't you already break that promise?"
Ben-Hur's face contorted ferociously.
"I seem to recall that's why I granted your additional demands?"
"They were, just as you said, simply additional demands. You made a mess, so we should start over. Don't you think?"
Ben-Hur smiled wryly, surprised at my guts.
"I knew it would end up this way, but it doesn't matter. I've gotten the green light from above."
"Green light?"
"All of you! Listen up. Worst case scenario, we're giving up on the young master!"
"...!"
My eyes widened at that moment.
Even the pig watching went wide-eyed.
Just then.
"Still not done?"
"Welcome, Sir Thomas."
A young man strode into the room, his eyes narrowed.
"That's him."
"What? He's a child!"
Thomas's face crumpled in a frown like a sheet of paper.
"So, you called me in here for that little brat?"
"Well, since the young master got held hostage...."
"No matter how you put it, you asked me for help because you couldn't even handle a single kid? You guys are even more hopeless than I thought, huh? Pieces of trash!"
"I-I apologize. We tried, too, but...."
"Forget it."
Having said that, Thomas brought his mouth close to Ben-Hur's ear and whispered.
"If that was a legitimate blood relative of my lord, and not a bastard, you'd be dead. It's a shame that the lord said he'd use this chance to deal with that troublemaker."
"I have... no excuses."
"You're aware, right? The only one reason the lord's been staying quiet all this time, though his blood is playing slave trader, is because he's a bastard, a worthless scrap that's not even worth his time."
"Y-Yes."
"But this time is different. I've heard that you've already been paid in full. What if you'd lost the slave, and Count Arsene complained that he'd been cheated out of his money? Do you think any of you would be able to die a peaceful death?"
Tremble.
Shaking, Ben-Hur quickly dropped to his knees.
Thud!
"If this goes well, I'll double your separate payment, Sir Thomas. Furthermore, I'll take responsibility and reserve the best female slaves for you, first and foremost."
"Ahem."
Immediately, Thomas let out an uncomfortable cough.
"What kind of person do you see me as? I'm a knight. What money? Women? Don't lump me together with you bastards...."
"D-Dignity fee! Shouldn't knights have a dignity fee, unlike us lowlifes? We have no honor, but you are true knights who live and die by honor!"
Thomas nodded, as if he had no choice but to accept his words.
"Very well, then. First, get that little brat out of here. I despise them more than anything in the world. Hostage-taking, racketeering, cowardly assholes who'll sell out their friends when the time comes. He was saying this and that to boost his friend's morale earlier, but they're the kind of scumbags who'll run away at the first opportunity."
Thomas clicked his tongue, then fixed his gaze on me.
"Hey, Ben-Hur. Keep this in mind. No man should do that. You're so young, and yet you're already running your mouth behind other people's backs."
"I-I understand."
Whether he did or not, the look in my eyes had already turned serious.
For a while, I studied the one who acted like he was teaching me a lesson.
I watched him a few times, and I was sure.
He had a different vibe from the others.
"That Thomas guy...."
There was no doubt about it.
He definitely knew how to use mana.
From time to time, there are clowns who are knights but don't act like knights.
Empty shells with no substance or real skills who acquired the title through money or their family's influence.
However, although this guy's character is garbage, his skills are real.
Then....
"...Interesting."
I made a thin smile, and took a big step forward.