<The Demon Lord of the Swordsmanship Family Chapter 75>
As befits someone who is truly passionate about meat, we devour it with the zeal of battle.
The ever-popular cuts of beef: ribeye, sirloin, chuck roll, short plate, and special melt-in-your-mouth parts.
Lastly, we finish off with the sweet and savory marinade series, eating heartily until we finally lay down our chopsticks.
“That was good.”
“That was delicious~.”
“Spring, come here. Let’s wipe your mouth. Say ‘woo woo.’ Good, isn’t it?”
“Fifteen servings seem just right. Not too full, and not too hungry.”
“True. Ten servings were a bit lacking.”
Now that our bellies are fairly full, it’s time for dessert — green grape sorbet — and conversation.
Oh, right, first things first.
“Apuwa, me.”
“Do you want me to call your friends?”
“Yeah!”
While ordinary kids might ask for a prism without a second thought, Spring is a little different.
She prefers playing with ‘friends’ over prisms — she likes it a hundred times more.
She smiled, swiped at the air, and a portal opened with a “ploop-ploop,” releasing four fairies.
“Baph!”
Baphomet appeared.
“Lang! Lang!”
That’s Asura.
“Hiiiiyuuuuung~.”
This one’s Chimera.
“Gung gung!”
The one barking like a dog is Fenrir.
They are fairy-like beings, though in truth, these are notorious Great Demons. But because Spring believes they’re fairies, we’ll call them fairies.
Spring heads over to Berrie with the four fairies. Judging by the size… it looks like doll play.
Soon, she pulls a doll as small as the palm of her hand from a bag. Yep, just as expected.
Spring takes her seat at one of the spots, and it seems like at least an hour-long affair. Thus, this marks the time for adult conversation.
The first to speak was Brother Ki-hyuk.
“I heard something interesting. It seems like the U.S. exchange delegation this time all have some ulterior motives.”
“Naturally.”
Sister Min-ji calmly continued eating her sorbet as she spoke.
“Proud America. Moreover, their delegation consists of the top individuals from each academy. Of course, they’re bound to have ulterior motives.”
“Right. Min-ji is smart.”
“Don’t tease me, and continue.”
“Hmm, yesterday, I talked with a friend in the U.S. …”
Brother Ki-hyuk from Optimum Agent, who handles support for the American side. Due to this, he has many acquaintances in the U.S., and last night, he spoke with a friend who was a sorcerer from ‘Georgina Palace.’
Georgina Palace specializes in healing, buffs, and white magic.
However, this Georgina Palace absolutely detests Elemental Palace. They see each other almost as sworn enemies, and they are relentless in trying to discover each other’s weaknesses. This is information obtained through such efforts.
“They said that the Elemental Master is investigating you.”
“Me? Are they talking about me?”
Pointing at me while naively asking in return.
“Yes, you, Park Ki-hyuk. This is a bit sensitive, so I made inquiries privately. It seems that it’s true that you’ve had your information gathered here and there. The magic you used… They’re also showing interest in Apocalypse, aren’t they?”
“Huh? Apocalypse? Why would they do such a stupid thing when there’s nothing to gain?”
“Can’t they copy it?”
“No.”
“Absolutely not?”
“Absolutely. It’s magic specifically created for me. Without me, it’s impossible to actualize.”
“Thank goodness.”
But this isn’t the end.
There’s more.
“More?”
“That’s right. While we weren’t looking, our little sibling has become famous.”
“Seriously? Where this time?”
“Gear School. They’re also paying attention to you there.”
“Because of Apocalypse again?”
“No, this time it’s because of artificial spirit stones. They seem to want to seriously trade about your artificial spirit stone manufacturing method.”
“Ah…”
That makes sense.
If it’s Gear School, it’s understandable.
You need an enormous amount of spirit stones to make a single War Armor. It’s on a completely different level from the quantity needed to refine normal artifacts.
I’ve experienced this firsthand.
How many spirit stones did Jin Yu-ri and I use when we made ‘Draconian’? No exaggeration, it was enough to fill a small truck.
I’ve asked several times why they are so obsessed with this highly inefficient equipment. Jin Yu-ri would only nod and mutter “That’s what War Armor is.”
I almost choked at that.
Anyway, our Lady Kim Yeon-hee mentioned that the most enthusiastic consumer base in the spirit stone market is the group or companies that make ‘War Armor.’ They take about 70% of the production.
People who are so hungry for spirit stones, naturally, would drool and get excited over my artificial spirit stones.
“Since they seem pretty serious, if you have any thoughts, maybe have a conversation.”
“Nah. I gave it as a birthday gift to Mother, so if anyone should talk, it’s her.”
“Hmm, Park Ki-hyuk does have a point.”
“Hold on.”
At that moment, the sister who had been quietly listening interrupted.
“Is there no possibility that the information is contaminated?”
“Hmm, it’s quite high. It’s possible this acquaintance also leaked the information intentionally.”
“Did they have an agenda?”
“Maybe?”
“Then, it means we shouldn’t believe it 100%.”
“Does it matter?”
“…?”
The sister was temporarily speechless at Brother Ki-hyuk’s confident reply. After eating a bite of sorbet, Brother Ki-hyuk smiled faintly as he spoke.
“Shouldn’t they be the sorry ones? Even if they try to approach us, it will be them making the first move. We already know this fact, and that’s an advantage for us.”
“So, knowing the intent is enough?”
“Yeah.”
Knowing the other party’s intent is the absolute basic. Depending on how well you stick to this basic, you can gain the upper hand in a fight.
Even if the method of acquiring this knowledge is questionable.
It doesn’t matter.
“Anyway, we’re in our own country. No matter how much they stir things up, we can handle it.”
The confidence of the strong.
Brother Ki-hyuk possesses this confidence. Moreover, he never loses it, no matter when or where.
“Of course, just because Brother Ki-hyuk said this doesn’t mean you should let your guard entirely down. You could still get hurt. What would Brother Ki-hyuk tell Mother if you get hurt? Do you understand?”
“I’ve already prepared. There is nothing to worry about. This guy is completely insane. Reflecting back, it’s ridiculous. Did you do that to a skeleton? Seriously.”
“Ho? What did you do to the skeleton?”
“No.”
“…Why are you not saying what Brother Ki-hyuk didn’t bring up?”
“That’s you asking to see it. If I show it to you, you’ll get excited and want to fight. And I’m too tired today.”
“Heh, Park Ki-hyuk is smart.”
Brother Ki-hyuk grins.
“Still, be careful. Don’t get unnecessarily involved. I don’t think you’ll lose, but if the opponent gets hurt too much, it could turn into a diplomatic issue.”
“Yes sir, don’t worry.”
“Hmph.”
“Why are you laughing?”
“It’s funny.”
Sister Min-ji glances at me and sneers.
“Does this guy avoid fights? Rather, I’d prefer to entrust fish to a cat.”
This sister?
“True, Park Ki-hyuk doesn’t avoid fights.”
Seriously, this brother too?
“Rather, it’d be better to have Mother ready a contingency plan.”
“That’s a reasonable point. Park Min-ji, indeed, is the brain of our family.”
This is getting embarrassing.
Could both of you possibly think I would get involved in kids’ fights? What exactly do you think of me?
However, in response to my protests, both the sister and the brother smirk.
“Want to bet?”
“What kind of bet?”
“How long you can hold back.”
“Fine, Brother will observe for a week. Our little brother must have at least that much patience.”
“This brother’s judgment is off.”
The sister raised her finger.
“Three days. You’ll cause trouble within three days.”
Sister Min-ji’s prediction sounds like a definitive judgment. I ignored it at the time.
Come on, no matter what, who am I to get involved in such things? I wouldn’t possibly wrangle with mere kids, would I?
But the very next day…
KOOOOSH!
“Kraaaah!”
I realize…
Our sister really knows me well…
*
BOOM!
The man kicks the door and enters the room.
A Caucasian, with brown hair, and nearly two meters tall, descendant of a well-known prestigious family whose name alone carries weight.
This man had nothing inherently bad about his natural talents. In fact, they were quite excellent. So excellent that merely breathing would allow him to enjoy wealth and fame in abundance.
However, outside of his natural talents, if you look past those alone…
The man, Chandler Murray, was a mess.
“Pfh! Phf! Phfking, William. Does he think he’s the captain?!?!”
He shoves chocolates recklessly into his mouth. An amount of chocolates that would make an average person feel dizzy, he shoves into his mouth.
“Huff! Who does he think he is to give orders to me?!”
He’s someone with a jealous nature and can’t stand seeing others succeed.
“I’m Chandler. I’m not someone that someone like you can command!”
Gobbling up.
He has resolved his severe inferiority complex through overeating, and his body is already damaged beyond repair.
“Ugly b*stard. I’m getting fat because of the likes of him.”
If things go well, it’s his fault. If things go poorly, it’s someone else’s fault. His self-justifications are strong.
“They’ll probably insult me again. The pig that sullies the family’s honor. Phfking, trash.”
Though he suffers from paranoia.
“Who cares? I’m me.”
He is what might be called a genuine fool who believes he’s cool.
He was so far gone that the Chandler family had already given up on him. If he hadn’t stood out for being of noble bl**d, he would’ve been ‘discarded’ a long time ago.
“I can’t do it. I need holy water to cleanse this dirty heart. I need to drink it.”
Here, the term ‘holy water’ refers to alcohol, i.e., liquor.
That’s correct. This person is also a severe alcoholic.
Still, thanks to the prestige of the Chandler family, there were always people around him.
“Hey, hey. Brother, what’s up? How about a drink today?”
“What? William told you to act restrained? f*ck!! Is William your mom? How long are you gonna s*ck William’s teat? Get lost, coward!”
“Yo man. Let’s go out. I’ll treat you to the full course tonight. Let’s enjoy the nightlife here. Come on~.”
He’s dirty, despicable, unlucky, someone you can’t stand to be around with…
But what can you do? He’s from the Chandler family.
Soon, a gang centered around Chandler Murray gathered.
They headed toward a club in Hongdae, a club found after one of them haltingly asked in Korean.
“Wow, Koreans are so nice. They even gave us directions. Hey, hey. ‘Thank you.’ They are smiling. Bye-bye~.”
“Whoa~ It’s 10 p.m., yet there are so many people. The signs are flashy, it’s different from the U.S.”
“Should we get in line here?”
“Are you kidding? Waiting here while standing? My legs would hurt to d*ath. What kind of a line is that?”
Hey! Hey!
Chandler stomped toward the door and grabbed the bouncer.
Activating his mana, he summoned an interpreter.
“Hey, bring the owner here.”
A club is still a club, right? With money, everything is possible.
Negotiating with wads of cash, the bouncer folded and let Chandler and his gang head to the third-floor VIP room.
“Let’s have some fun!”
“Order drinks, drinks. What’s the most expensive alcohol here?”
“I’ll go dance downstairs.”
“Come with me.”
The gang scattered in different directions, while Murray leaned on a terrace overlooking the dance floor, drinking beer as he gazed down.
“Anyone catch my eye?”
Alcohol, music, flamboyant lights, and more flamboyant women.
This was the space filled with everything he loved most in the world.
Here, you don’t need to put in effort.
No hardship, no obligations, nothing. Only pleasure abounds.
Whether drinking, cursing, or flirting with women…
A bit of money makes everything go away.
Isn’t that just delightful?
“Hey Murray! Aren’t you coming down?”
“I’m coming!”
He danced enthusiastically without a care for tomorrow.
He drank and chugged like there was no tomorrow. Lost in intoxication.
Then the incident happens.
“Huh?”
Through Chandler Murray’s drunken haze, a certain woman came into view. A cute Asian woman with a petite and delicate figure that fit perfectly into Murray’s ideal type.
Before Murray even fully realized it, his arm was already grabbing the woman’s arm.
“Hey! Let’s play!”
Drunk Murray had no brake pedal.
The woman screamed, a sound that was loud but oddly appealing. Smirking, Murray began to forcefully wrap his arms around her.
At that moment…
THUD.
A pressure felt on his hand.
Some guy had stopped him in his tracks.
“Who the hell are you?”
With a tilted head, Murray looked down—thinking that among Eastern people, he wouldn’t find anyone taller than himself.
But what he saw was a chest.
“…?!”
Slowly raising his head, the downward look turned to a level gaze, and eventually, even upward.
There, a man was looking down at him.
“Get the woman out.”
“Who says… kruuuh!”
The man’s hand tightened, and Murray twisted his body.
The woman stepped back, bowing repeatedly before disappearing into the club.
This situation—feeling like someone had taken away something that was his—switched on Murray’s internal trigger.
“Pfh… Pfh. Pfh! f*ck!!”
Crack! Crackle!
The atmosphere froze.
Seething with rage, the icy chill covered the floor.
Everything he touched froze, and using this, Chandler family’s bloodline succession ability ‘Ice Shift’ could also replicate tools made of ice.
“d*e, you son-of-a-b*tch!”
KWAH!
A circle of space around Murray iced over.
The walls, lights, doors—everything froze. And of course, the man became a living ice sculpture.
Murray looked with satisfaction at the scene he had created.
“Krukh.”
Such an insignificant person, yet causing agitation.
He felt slightly apprehensive about the aftermath, but he was from the Chandler family. What could this tiny country do to him?
Let’s keep drinking.
Feeling an overwhelming sense of superiority, Murray retracted his hand.
“What the heck. It’s not coming off.”
Had he accidentally grabbed and frozen it?
Struggling to twist his hand and arm, he found it wouldn’t budge. It wouldn’t come loose.
Why was this happening? Just as the suspicion crossed his mind, a cold sensation trickled down the back of his neck.
And, from above his head, a voice came.
“Finished?”
Looking up.
The man, Park Ki-hyuk, was smiling.
Smiling like a child happily facing a new toy.
“Is it my turn now?”
KOOOOSH!
“Kraaaah!”
