Chapter 43: Rebirth (3)

Ludwig looked at Richard with a smile.

Even if his youngest son had changed, he had changed far too much.

Whether in appearance or the aura he gave off, the phrase “worthy of notice” felt almost too small to describe it.

There was only one chance that could bring about such a transformation in an instant.

“Don’t tell me… you went through a complete rebirth?”

“Yes. Thanks to the Dragon Heart, I was able to grow even further.”

The family head’s eyes flickered.

“Are you saying you ate a Dragon Heart raw?”

“That’s correct.”

Richard nodded calmly.

There was no reason to lie.

“I’ll hear the details later.”

The family head shifted his gaze away from Richard and once again commended the Third Knight Order for their hard work.

The knights of the Third Order were deeply moved by his praise.

“Third Order Commander, report the damages.”

Polk knelt and reported.

“Five great dragon ballistae were destroyed. Aside from that, no significant damage.”

“And the casualties?”

The family head intended to hold a funeral for Gide and the others who had given their lives as the sword of Bartenberg.

However, Polk shook his head.

“There are no dead.”

“What?”

Impossible. No matter how small the dragon, there should have been casualties in facing one.

Hadn’t Gide himself entered a life-threatening trial?

“It’s all thanks to Young Master Richard.”

Richard had saved Gide’s life.

He had rescued the entire Order from a rampaging dragon and distinguished himself in many ways.

One astonishing story after another flowed from Polk’s mouth.

***

It had been three days since I returned to House Bartenberg.

I had become a celebrity overnight.

Yes—if I had to sum up the situation in one phrase, that was it.

“Ah, greetings, Young Master Richard!”

“Yes, good work.”

Feeling a heated gaze, I turned my head, and a knight flinched in surprise before bowing.

He looked exactly like someone caught staring at a beautiful woman.

Getting this kind of attention from a man was unpleasant, but…

It was all Polk’s fault for gilding my image in front of everyone.

The butler’s life was in danger, and I had rushed to save him.

When the knights trembled before a demon lord’s mana, I had been the first to display courage—the true blood of Bartenberg.

The dragon-slayer who had driven a sword into a rampaging dragon’s skull and eaten its heart raw, digesting it perfectly.

The torch that drove away darkness!

Those were the titles following me around.

The knights seemed to have erased from memory the fact that I was a scoundrel only a few months ago.

It was when this suffocating change felt overwhelming—

“Richard!”

“Moritz?”

My brother, who slightly resembled Huger, Moritz Bartenberg, blocked my path.

“Why did you call me? The family head summoned me, so just get to the point.”

We were not on good terms.

After I gave him a thorough beating in our last sparring match, he had gone out of his way to avoid me.

“Well… it’s just…”

Yet here he was, fidgeting in front of me, face flushed bright red.

He looked like some shy boy about to confess to his first love.

“What the hell…?”

“W-why are you reacting like that?”

I could tolerate stares from the knights, but not this behavior from him.

“I’m busy, so I’m going.”

“W-wait…”

If this was some new form of harassment, I almost wanted to applaud the creativity.

I left before he could grab me.

***

I arrived at the Third Knight Order’s quarters.

“Oh, Young Master! What brings you here?”

“Jack, call Huger.”

Ludwig had summoned me to his office earlier, but before that, I decided to introduce Huger, since I didn’t know when we’d see him again.

“Phew! So I can finally take off this robe?”

The orc, who had been more or less confined to the quarters, shouted in joy.

For an orc, wearing something as cumbersome as a robe was no doubt uncomfortable.

“Just keep your mouth shut.”

“Got it. From what I saw before, one wrong word and I’d be dead! Phew!”

Orc instincts, perhaps—Huger could tell Ludwig was a dangerous man.

“Wait here.”

I left Huger by the office door and knocked.

Knock knock—

“Enter.”

I stepped inside.

“I greet the family head.”

Piles of documents were stacked high on his desk.

After setting down his pen, Ludwig asked:

“How is Gide?”

“He has yet to regain consciousness.”

“I see…”

Tap tap—he drummed his fingers on the desk.

“Trials destroy the body. If you forcibly exceed your limits, the end is ruin.”

“I’m aware.”

“So how did you prevent the aftereffects? What did you find in the Demon Realm?”

His sharp gaze fell on me.

He was interested in how I had avoided the penalty of the trial.

If trials could be endured without side effects, it would be absurdly unfair.

In that case, magic users would stand no chance against warriors.

I stayed silent.

There was no reason to tell him.

The World Tree’s fruit only bore once a year, and it was my ace.

Revealing it to this unreadable man would be foolish.

“I assume the Dragon Heart was consumed in a similar way.”

Sharp as always—but I kept my mouth shut.

“Hmph, you keep many secrets.”

“My apologies.”

“Then let me change the question. When the sky shattered—what did you feel?”

A strange question.

What did I feel?

Why was he asking?

I tried to read Ludwig’s intent.

Then I remembered the faces of the knights upon arriving at Bartenberg—they had been just like everyone else’s, gripped by despair. Even Moritz had been the same.

The family head clearly hadn’t liked seeing his knights look so afraid.

My answer was decided.

“Disgust and revulsion. Enough to want to stab the monster’s eye peeking through the crack.”

“So you weren’t afraid of its mana?”

“If I had just trembled in fear there, none of us would have survived.”

It was a test—to see if I was just shiny on the surface, or if my long-hidden potential had finally bloomed.

Judging by his nod, I had passed.

“Indeed. If mana alone had scared you, you wouldn’t have been able to unlock your engraving.”

“That’s true.”

“A true warrior grows in the face of trials.”

He smiled in satisfaction—a rare sight.

“You don’t know it yet, but Vallach’s swordsmanship is extraordinary. Only he was my equal. Train even harder.”

His tone had grown more gentle.

I almost felt as if he were saying I was special.

“You may go.”

He dismissed me.

But I wasn’t done.

“Family head, I have a request.”

“What is it?”

I glanced at the document on his desk—[20th Battle Report of the Undead Legion.]

A battlefield where the First Knight Order and several noble houses were locked in combat.

The fastest place for me to grow, and the place I was most needed.

“I wish to join the battlefield with the Third Knight Order.”

I needed to secure my place there.

“Do you know what kind of battlefield it is?”

“The war against the liches who brought a dark omen to the continent.”

“After the abnormal phenomenon, their mana has grown even denser. The First Order and the allied forces are struggling.”

That made sense.

I imagined the situation: the First Order had found the enemy’s base, and it was larger than expected, prompting the nobles to hastily form an alliance.

Now, they were in a tense standoff, the demon lord’s mana thick in the air.

With confidence, I declared:

“I will go and end the war.”

Ludwig stared at me.

***

I left the office, Huger following close behind.

“Ugh, that ghost-like man! He already knew I was an orc!”

“You got permission, didn’t you? That’s enough.”

I introduced Huger to the family head outside, but he already knew about him.

Apparently, orcs have a distinctive aura, and he had decided not to make an issue of it as a form of tacit approval.

“By the way, aren’t you excited about going to such a bloody battlefield?”

“That’s just you.”

In the end, I got permission to participate in the battle.

The only thing bothering me was that I hadn’t discussed it with the Third Order yet.

“Pfft! Didn’t you say you’d follow any great human warrior? What’s the problem?”

He wasn’t wrong.

If they rejected me now, that would be disappointing, but I headed to their quarters with Huger, chatting along the way.

When I opened the door, Aaron was calmly drinking tea.

“Did the talk go well?”

“Aaron? Why are you here?”

“I was resting after training.”

He had originally belonged to the Third Order, so it made sense.

“Perfect timing. Gather everyone.”

At my call, the knights assembled quickly.

“Third Knight Order, all present!”

“I have something to tell you.”

I looked around—some had just woken up, others were sweaty from training.

Their appearances varied, but all their eyes were full of trust.

My sweet boys.

“I’m sure you’ve heard about the Undead Legion.”

The knights nodded.

“While we were busy dragon hunting, something big happened.”

“The liches, right?”

Clap!

I clapped to silence the chatter.

“The family head has given us orders. We depart in 20 days. Prepare quickly.”

Strangely, the atmosphere turned heavy.

Only Huger grunted happily like a pig at the thought.

The knights not only stayed silent—they started grumbling.

“You call yourselves knights and yet hate the battlefield?”

I frowned, but then they spoke.

“It’s not that we hate it!”

“As soon as we heard about the war, we guessed you’d volunteer.”

“We just knew it!”

“Because you’re our light!”

Then why the gloomy faces?

Aaron explained with a troubled look.

“Young master… the knights were expecting a feast.”

“Huh?”

“I may have let slip something about it… and they seem to have been looking forward to it.”

I rubbed my forehead.

So they thought I’d announce a feast, but instead, I gave them orders for battle—hence the protest.

“No dragon meat!”

“No feast!”

“What’s the point of living?!”

They slumped dramatically, making me sigh.

Apparently, they thought the battle meant canceling the feast.

“Idiots, we’re having the feast tomorrow, so stop whining.”

“Huh?!”

“Really?!”

I nodded.

As if I’d make them work without at least that much incentive.