Chapter 20: Divine Power (3)

“Hah.”

Ludwig parted his lips in surprise.

Even when they were ambushed by mages, he hadn’t been this startled.

The mana his own son had boldly sent through his body—

It was imbued with a sacred energy and filled Ludwig with vigor.

No—more than just vigor—it actually enhanced his physical abilities.

‘Power… it’s surging.”

Clenching his fist tightly, he stared down at his own hand.

Even though Ludwig had always possessed strength that could shake the heavens, what he felt now… was even stronger.

This shocked him deeply.

Ludwig Bartenberg—the strongest knight on the continent.

Since reaching the pinnacle, no elixir or artifact had been able to improve his power.

It was like pouring a cup of water into the sea—it made no difference.

But the divine energy circulating through his body now? It was different.

Not a drastic change, perhaps—but definitely a noticeable improvement.

“Is this your trait?”

A mana trait—a phenomenon so rare it appeared only by the slimmest chance.

And his own son, the headache he’d carried all this time, Richard, possessed it?

Under Ludwig’s gaze, Richard opened his mouth.

“Yes. I’ve named it Divine Power.”

He smiled faintly.

“Can you feel the physical enhancement?”

“Yes. Without a doubt.”

With the patriarch’s confirmation, Richard became more certain.

The buff effect of Divine Power:

It raised a target’s abilities by a fixed percentage—regardless of whether the target was weak or overwhelmingly strong.

That alone made it immensely valuable, especially given how difficult it was for top-tier combatants to grow any further.

The more he thought about it, the more incredible this trait seemed.

“When did you become able to use mana?”

“Not long ago.”

Ludwig looked down at Richard.

The mana—no, the Divine Power—within his son was minimal.

Clearly, he had only recently begun to accumulate it.

“Why didn’t you say anything earlier?”

“To be honest, my mana insensitivity was only fully cured today. Until now, it had merely been improving little by little.”

Ludwig didn’t bother to ask how the supposedly incurable condition had been healed.

‘He’s hiding something…’

He could tell something was off.

After all, Richard was his son—he knew his personality.

Richard had desperately tried to cure his condition, testing every elixir he could get his hands on.

Yet now, despite gaining the ability to sense mana, he hadn’t said a word about it?

Even if Richard had changed from before, Ludwig couldn’t trust him entirely.

‘It’s more believable that he had mana dullness all along… and only pretended to have mana insensitivity.’

If Richard had been faking it his entire life… then that made sense.

A memory popped into Ludwig’s mind—reports from knights about Richard’s training.

Even if you generously assumed that mana insensitivity could be miraculously cured, gaining talent out of nowhere was simply unrealistic.

Was he not a bird that couldn’t fly… but one that chose not to, hiding enormous wings?

“Tch.”

Gide, unaware of any of this, had risked his life to go after a dragon.

Ludwig couldn’t understand his son, who had hidden himself all this time.

Still, he had no intention of interrogating him.

“Things are about to get interesting.”

He decided to observe a bit longer before choosing a successor.

The mark engraved on Richard’s hand, twisted and unusual, solidified his thoughts.

“Father,” Richard said.

With unusually bright, blinking eyes, it was clear he was about to ask for something.

“I’ve finally obtained equal footing with everyone else… but I fear I may have started too late.”

“Equal footing, you say…?”

Ludwig scoffed.

Today, even Ludwig was surprised at how expressive he was being emotionally.

“You, a trait holder, are saying that?”

He had a good idea what Richard was after—probably asking for some elixirs to help him catch up.

Still, saying they were on “equal footing” was a stretch.

Traits weren’t something you could downplay so easily.

Especially not a trait like Divine Power.

“Only after being cured did I realize how pitifully little mana my heart contains…”

“You talk too much.”

Ludwig, like Vallach, didn’t like long-winded talk.

So Richard got to the point.

“Please get me some elixirs. And while you’re at it, a good weapon too. Oh, and during the Snowfall battle, my guard Aaron’s favorite spear broke.”

He spit out his request like a machine gun, then smiled sheepishly.

Doing something like this before the family patriarch? Unimaginable.

Still, Richard pushed on with a straight face.

‘Come on, I should at least be able to ask for this much. I’m way behind my siblings anyway.’

He was born with a golden spoon—might as well eat gold with it.

Asking for Aaron’s replacement spear was maybe a bit too much, but…he really did want to get him something good.

He gulped and observed Ludwig’s reaction.

Fortunately, Ludwig didn’t seem offended.

In fact, he looked… amused.

Among his four children, none had ever spoken to him like this.

Usually, they just cowered before his reputation.

As a cold and iron-blooded knight, he didn’t mind that—but sometimes it felt a bit lonely.

“How bold. You even ask on behalf of your guard.”

Despite his words, his tone wasn’t harsh.

“Aaron is my man. I just wanted to get him something good.”

“Hmph. Fine. I’ll contact the dwarves.”

Richard silently celebrated.

“However, I won’t get you elixirs.”

“Huh?”

Just when everything was going so well…

Richard blinked, confused.

‘Of all things… I thought at least the elixirs would be guaranteed?’

A son who had just overcome mana insensitivity—surely the best gift would be elixirs?

He could understand not getting a weapon, but… this?

Ludwig continued calmly.

“Gide went to get a dragon heart. For you.”

Richard’s mind reeled.

“A dragon heart? Wait… you mean the dragon heart?”

The supreme elixir, packed with ultra-pure mana, so potent it had to be consumed over time?

And Gide had gone to get that? For him?

Richard’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“He saw you had finally come to your senses. So he came to me and declared—he would go slay a dragon.”

“To cure your condition,” Ludwig added.

Richard almost grabbed his forehead.

‘What the hell?! That old man… has he forgotten how old he is?’

He couldn’t help but frown.

A dragon isn’t just some stray mutt—they were monstrous beings, fitting of their fearsome name.

“Why didn’t you stop him?”

“It was his choice and his resolve. I respected it under the name of duty.”

“Tell me. Where is Gide now?”

“Gide and the 3rd Knight Division have gone to the Hobson Mountains.”

The Hobson Mountains—far northeast of Bartenberg.

‘That mountain range…’

Richard sighed in relief.

According to his information, a young dragon lived there.

Still, even a newborn dragon could devour elite knights with ease.

Richard resolved to go find Gide and stop him.

“You intend to stop him?”

“Yes.”

Ludwig kept a straight face as he replied, almost like it was someone else’s business.

“Too late. He’s already begun his Tempering. He’s given himself four months to prepare.”

Richard bit his lip.

‘Tempering, huh…’

If Gide finished it, he might have a real shot at killing a dragon.

But still—he was too old.

Even if he survived, his life would be greatly shortened.

His days as a knight would be over—if he even made it out alive.

“Tempering” was a process where one risked life itself to gain strength.

Mages called it “brainless hammering.”

You train without sleep, eat only rations, and put every ounce of your will into each swing.

It wasn’t something a normal person could survive.

But if completed, it gave you power beyond your current tier— at the cost of horrible side effects.

“I can’t just sit back and watch.”

“You know that forcibly interrupting the tempering will break the mind.”

Even with Ludwig’s warning, Richard’s eyes burned with resolve.

“I have a way.”

If he was going to do this, he’d do it all… get the dragon heart and save Gide, too.