Chapter 10. I Threw a Stone at the Duke's Family (2)
Vince Ashuhalt's steps were exceptionally heavy after watching Arisa and the Mercenary King's spar until the end.
Originally, he was on his way to his eldest brother Veron's office to report on the supply status of the northern border, but the afterimage he witnessed at the training ground persistently dug into his mind.
'A vertical slash that cannot be blocked without Aura. Is that possible?'
Vince opened and closed his hand, reflecting on that sensation.
To him, who had stepped into the Expert realm, Aura was as natural as air.
He had believed that destructive power exceeding the physical limits of muscles was only completed through Aura, the materialization of mana.
But the man just now ignored the laws of strength Vince knew.
With only the alignment of bones and precise twisting of muscles, he attached overwhelming acceleration to the sword's trajectory.
With just that, he created the power of swordsmanship used by those above Novice level.
'Damn it, does that make sense.'
In short, it was outside common sense.
The main building of the Ashuhalt Duke's residence, in front of the eldest son's office located at the highest point.
Vince stopped for a moment in front of the giant black iron door and adjusted his clothes.
Because the man beyond this door, despite being his brother, was an existence who presented a crushing pressure on the soul whenever faced.
'Veron Ashuhalt.'
The next head of the family and the de facto commander of the Northern Knights.
Already a 'Complete Expert' who had completely mastered the realm of a knight, he was a strong man who could confront the monsters and barbarians of the North head-on, the only one within the family besides the Duke.
Knock knock—
"It is Vince, Brother."
"Come in."
The voice leaking from inside was low and heavy.
As soon as he opened the door and entered, what stung the tip of his nose was the smell of old paper, a cold metallic scent, and the pressure emitted by Veron's unique Aura.
Veron was buried in a pile of documents stacked high on the map across the desk.
Although there were separate administrators for the Ashuhalt family and the Duke gave the final approval, the majority of the family's practical affairs only ran through this eldest son's hands.
"This damn administrative work is more terrible than the battlefield. Wait a little, Vince. I just need to process this report."
Veron didn't slow down his pen movement.
Vince sat on the sofa prepared on one side of the office and waited quietly.
On Veron's desk, along with the deployment map of the border guards, there were barbarian chess pieces with bizarre patterns drawn on them.
'He has a lot of work.'
It was a scenery befitting the office of a commander hardened by running through numerous battlefields himself.
The scratching sound stopped, and Veron finally put down his pen.
He rotated his stiff shoulders once, then rose from his seat and approached Vince.
"Ugh, feels like my body is stiffening. Sit. Let's have a cup of tea."
"I've already been sitting for a long time, Brother."
"Haha, right. Sorry for making you wait so long."
"Not at all."
Veron poured steaming tea into the teacups himself.
His attitude towards his younger brother was unexpectedly unpretentious for one of the strongest men in the North.
But he couldn't hide all the murderous glint lingering deep in his eyes.
Veron spoke to Vince first.
"It's rare for Brother to call me first, what is the matter?"
"Does an older brother need a reason to see his younger brother?"
"I know well that's not it."
At Vince's question, Veron's impression sharpened instantly.
"Hmm… Seems I haven't paid enough attention to my younger siblings."
"I won't say that's not true."
"Hahahahaha! That is why I like you."
Veron laughed heartily, took a sip of tea, and murmured in a low voice.
"Disquieting movements have been detected in the North."
It was a short sentence, but the aftermath of those words was enough to shake Vince.
Vince stopped his hand trying to lift the teacup.
North.
It meant the land across the giant wall Ashuhalt had guarded for generations, filled with permanent frozen soil and death that refused human footsteps.
"Surely the barbarians beyond the wall aren't trying to move south again? or are the beasts of the forest going berserk?"
Veron clicked his tongue.
"If it were just that, would I have called you?"
"Then?"
"Intel has come in that both are moving."
"What? That can't be…."
Vince asked back as if puzzled.
Barbarians and beasts are natural enemies that cannot coexist.
In the barren North, they have survived by hunting each other.
But for the two to move south simultaneously was something against the laws of the natural ecosystem.
"According to intel, the northern barbarians are gathering troops by tribe units, and following their movement path, beasts are moving south forming packs as if chased by beaters. Isn't it too strange to see as a coincidence?"
"...Are the paths not overlapping?"
"Right, as if someone cleverly planned the board."
"...."
A strange smile hung on Veron's lips.
It was not fear, but the smile of a born warrior anticipating the flames of coming war.
"Now, what should you do?"
Vince answered without hesitation.
"I will immediately increase the training intensity of the Knights and the Wall Guards. I will also convey to Sister and other siblings that it is an emergency."
"Huhu, that is exactly why I called you before Lien. Because I can communicate with you without superfluity. If it were Lien, isn't it obvious she would hold onto me for hours talking about family pride or whatever once she opens her mouth."
"Sister Lien would be really upset if she heard that."
Veron shuddered as if genuinely fed up.
"Ugh, keep it absolute secret. She has a talent for nagging people over trivial things."
"I will decide after watching Brother do."
"This rascal, where did you learn social life!"
Veron laughed heartily and tapped Vince's shoulder.
Vince was about to get up from his seat, but suddenly recalling Danel's appearance at the training ground earlier, he added a word to Veron.
"Ah, by the way, Brother. About Lorraine."
As soon as that name came out, the temperature of the office seemed to drop below zero instantly.
The smile disappeared from Veron's face, and a terrible coldness took its place.
"Why bring up the name of that talentless trash. Do not dirty my ears."
Vince swallowed a sigh inwardly.
'He is such a generous and kind brother to me, yet merciless only to Lorraine.'
Vince continued calmly, realizing anew how those without martial power are treated in the Ashuhalt family.
"Lorraine has taken in a mercenary guard. He is a man called 'Mercenary King' in the North."
"Mercenary King? I haven't seen a decent guy among those carrying such grandiose nicknames. Nor could Lorraine possibly handle such a person."
"They say the nickname stuck because his request completion rate is overwhelming rather than being a real king of mercenaries. I checked him myself, and he was an ordinary person unable to use a handful of Aura. However…."
"However?"
Veron's eyebrow twitched.
It was rare for a cool-headed knight like Vince to attach a proviso like 'however.'
"I saw a trajectory in the sword he wields that I simply cannot understand with common sense. Honestly, just that one vertical slash seemed to surpass our family's swordsmanship."
Veron's eyes shone sharply.
"It's been a while since I've seen you talk nonsense."
Vince said calmly without changing his expression.
"Do I look like a guy who talks nonsense to you, Brother?"
"...."
Veron fell into thought for a moment.
Vince was the younger brother he felt most comfortable with and trusted.
A cherished brother who spoke little and didn't lie.
"So… what do you want to do?"
"I don't know. I just told you."
"Silly…."
Veron put down his teacup for a moment and fell into thought.
"To think such an interesting toy entered under Lorraine. This is really like the plot of a novel I'm reading these days. Was it 'The Shadow Knight Protecting the Frail Duke's Daughter'? The title itself lacked reality, so it was perfect for killing time. Hahaha!"
Vince smiled bitterly, flustered by his brother's unexpected hobby.
"Brother… do you read such novels?"
"You should read sometimes too, Vince. It's the best for cooling a head soaked in paperwork. It's full of things like the romance of chivalry that can absolutely never exist in reality. Just like Lorraine's situation now. How can writings written by losers who can't escape such situations not be fun."
Veron laughed unpretentiously, but Vince didn't like that laugh at all.
"I will take my leave. I will immediately spread the news about the North you mentioned."
"Right, work hard. The blizzard will soon bring the smell of blood, so sharpen your sword well too."
"I will keep that in mind, Brother."
Click—
The door closed and silence returned to the office.
As Vince's footsteps faded, Veron buried his body deep into the sofa.
His gaze stayed not on the northern horizon outside the window, but on the seat where Vince had been sitting.
'A vertical slash that even Vince couldn't block without Aura….'
Veron lifted his giant hand and grasped the thinly trembling air.
Vertical slash is the beginning and end of swordsmanship.
Simple, but therefore a technique where the user's talent and life are projected most nakedly.
Especially among swordsmanship families, there were only a few places on the continent that staked the family's fate on just one vertical slash, taking the bizarrely overwhelming 'One Cut (Il-do)' as their essence.
Among them, a family with a bizarre nature where the Aura operation method was unique, looking like 'twisting muscles' to those who didn't know the secret technique.
'Surely… did they survive the purge in the West 10 years ago?'
The memory of the purge that dyed the continent in blood 10 years ago flashed through Veron's mind.
'Surely not. That family's swordsmanship isn't something easy enough to use without Aura.'
Veron quietly repeated the name of that family in his mouth.
"...Piace. That can't be. That cursed family… I've been reading too many novels."
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