The Duke's Son :Re
Chapter 53

Chapter 53

A grave on top of a dark-rock coastal cliff.

It smells delicious.

A skeleton wearing black armor crawled out of the ground. In its eye sockets, twin orbs of purple light flared when it faced toward the island’s north side.

The aura of a Lord-class monster had appeared in that direction.

Good. He was bored by the slow recovery of his strength. Some mouth-watering prey would be nice.

To the snowfield I go.

***

Okay.Everybody is doing a good job.

The Class B students’ legs adjusted as they made their way through the blizzard; they were slipping less often, so the pace of the march increased.

They had gotten used to manipulating their mana in the cold.

Be it the bone-chilling cold, blizzards that blocked visibility, crevasses, slippery ice, avalanches, or monsters that struck unpredictably—the snowfield’s notorious threats didn’t distract the Class B students.

It was as Kim Jin-Myeong expected.

Last month, the students had accumulated experience in the swamp and desert.

Because of Jae-Hyeok’s persistent harassment... no, because of his guidance, the students had experienced several crises that tested them beyond the normal scope of the training.

In the process of using their resourcefulness and skills to overcome the crises, they learned how to quickly increase their concentration.

I am damn grateful, Kang Jae-Hyeok.

The students themselves were aware that they had grown thanks to Jae-Hyeok. Still, their abilities were a product of being bullied almost to death every day. They couldn’t help wondering if they should be grateful to him or not.

By the way, why is he so quiet today?Is he unwell?

There are times when that monster doesn’t feel well?

The students glanced at Jae-Hyeok.

It worried them that the person who should be moving around and pushing them into crevasses was quiet today.

They were happy and relaxed, but also anxious.

That’s right. Without Jae-Hyeok, the students were feeling comfortable in the snowfield's harsh environment.

They thanked God that Jae-Hyeok wasn’t going on a rampage.

They just hoped that Jae-Hyeok didn’t have any other plans.

“......”

The instructors’ gazes also frequently shifted to Jae-Hyeok.

“He is the only one who looks uncomfortable.”

“How disappointing. I expected more after hearing he had awakened a Bloodline Skill.”

“Isn’t there a reason why the Kang family fell? The Kang family’s Bloodline Skill can’t be that great.”

The training was proceeding so smoothly that the instructors ended up exchanging useless small talk instead of focusing on protecting the students.

The students in Class B were unexpectedly capable, and since today was the day the Troll Lord respawned, there were also no monsters present. The instructors started to understand the many Kim Jin-Myeong's chose to bring his students to the snowfield early for adaptation training.

“Ahat!”

“Are you okay?”

Of course, the students hadn’t adapted perfectly to the snowfield.

The snowfield’s grounds emitted a piercing chill—especially in certain areas that seemed to be the source of the cold; there, the ground was particularly slippery because the snow froze to ice on contact.

Lest they fell, the students needed identify between the snow-covered ground and the ice patches. However, it wasn’t easy to tell the difference through the haze of the blizzard.

When a student in front of the group slipped, five- or six students would fall like dominoes, and every time that happened, the march's overall pace slowed significantly.

“......”

On the other hand, Jae-Hyeok had taken a step back and maintained his speed at the back of the group.

He concentrated his mana in his optic nerves with the Kang family’s mana control technique, and his vision became extremely clear.

He’d strengthened his vision, just like he had done during his shooting duel against the manager of the Shooting Club.

The freezing air and blizzard engulfing the snowfield inflicted a status effect similar to Darkness, causing even Kim Jin-Myeong and the instructors to hesitate at times. However, Jae-Hyeok could see through the blizzard as if it were a clear day.

Jae-Hyeok was observing the features of the snowfield and memorizing them when something entered his field of view.

What’s this?

Around one kilometer ahead, he saw a large group of monsters moving.

There were many kinds of monsters, including yetis, white-tailed wolves, ice snails, and ice skeletons. Monsters of different types were usually hostile toward each other. It was strange to see them walking in a long procession as if possessed.

Jae-Hyeok knew what this migration phenomenon meant; he had experienced it in a gacha game called Player Manager, which he’d been pouring money into for a few years as part of his education.

A lord was born.

Among the monsters that had a tribal society, such as goblins, orcs, trolls, yetis, and ogres, kings were often born.

King’s had a strong, innate dominance over other monsters. So from the moment it was born, monsters surrounded it as soldiers.

Out of the lords that can be born among the monsters inhabiting the snowfield, is it a troll or a yeti?

Kim Jin-Myeong also spotted the monster migration after another five minutes of walking, and he stopped the march. “Let’s take a break here before continuing.” Kim Jin-Myeong didn’t appear particularly surprised, so he likely knew of the lord’s existence.

Jae-Hyeok clicked his tongue. A newborn lord wasn’t very strong. It was prey worth aiming for. But there’s just one problem...

The ownership of a lord belongs to the school.

Raids were probably one of the main sources of income for Lion’s Castle.

Lord-class monsters had the potential to grow to A-class at least, so it was likely that the school was waiting until the lord matured as much as possible before hunting it.

Jae-Hyeok gave up his greed. He wanted to avoid conflict with the school over a single monster. He could obtain many things from Lion’s Castle over the next three years; killing the newborn lord wasn’t worth risking expulsion from the school.

Above all, I will attract too much attention if I kill a lord by myself.

Killing a lord was on a different level from killing a pack of goblins alone. Jae-Hyeok sighed and let it go. I’ll leave the lord alone... and go after the mobs.

The snowfield was vast. There should be many groups of migrating monsters.

But I have to hurry up.

All the monsters were moving toward the lord’s nest. Once there, they would remain to guard and feed the lord until it was fully grown. That meant Jae-Hyeok’s only opportunity to binge experience would be in the next few hours, while the monsters were still migrating.

Jae-Hyeok stared at the blizzard while the students were taking a break. Then he called out to Kim Jin-Myeong, “Teacher.”

The other students’ faces paled.

Damn.

Is it finally starting?

They imagined a scene where Jae-Hyeok questioned Kim Jin-Myeong about why they were taking a break during training and why they were training in the first place if they had planned on breaking.

However, Jae-Hyeok said something unexpected. “I’m feeling bad. Can I leave early?”

“......?”

The students were stunned. He wanted to leave early because he wasn’t feeling well? Kang Jae-Hyeok was actually saying such a thing?

The instructors were also surprised, so surprised that they forgot to whisper when they spoke to each other.

“He’s going to leave during training even though he didn’t get hurt?”

“Although his family fell, he must’ve been spoiled living as an aristocrat.”

Kim Jin-Myeong glared at them and they hurriedly shut their mouths. Meanwhile, Kim Jin-Myeong fell into thought.

He knew that Jae-Hyeok’s current condition wasn’t normal. He was worried that Jae-Hyeok might be particularly vulnerable to the cold. However, the purpose of the terrain adaptation training was to help students adapt to difficult environments.

Students had to endure difficult training if they wanted to adapt to difficult terrain. Those who gave up once were quickly eliminated because each day’s training would be harder than the last.

However, this wasn’t just any person. This was Kang Jae-Hyeok. Kim Jin-Myeong knew Jae-Hyeok’s skills and personality clearly.

A senior instructor spoke up for Jae-Hyeok then, “He was breaking out in a sweat even before we started marching.”

“That’s right. He looked very bad when I saw him,” Du Bae-Su added.

The other students also looked at him anxiously, as if they wanted Kang Jae-Hyeok to be allowed to leave.

Kim Jin-Myeong nodded. “Alright, I will allow it. However, there will be additional classes if you can’t keep up with tomorrow's progress. Keep this in mind.”

“Thank you.”

“I will escort Jae-Hyeok. It’s a rough road. We can’t allow a student who isn’t feeling well go back alone.”

“Yes,” Kim Jin-Myeong agreed.

Jae-Hyeok said goodbye and left, followed by the senior instructor. The two of them quickly disappeared into the snowstorm.

The students, who had been on edge, finally rubbed their chests and felt relieved.

“I thought I was going to die of anxiety.”

“I can finally focus on training without worrying about what Ja-Hyeok’s going to do next or if he’s lurking in my blind spots.”

“?”

The instructors couldn’t understand the attitude of the students of Class B, who seemed to fear Kang Jae-Hyeok. From what they’d witnessed today, the other students should be better than him?

***

It’s around here.

The senior instructor was smiling widely as he took the lead in guiding Jae-Hyeok.

He could see the outline of a cave beyond the blizzard. It was an obscure yeti’s den that would be hard to find in the snowfield. The dozens of yetis had already been cleared from the cave, and it would remain empty for the next three months.

That was plenty of time to detain Jae-Hyeok and seize the Kang family’s sword- and mana control techniques. In fact, he would probably only need a day or two. How could this young master endure his torture?

The senior instructor was the former head of the Revolutionary Guild's personnel department. Dealing with a boy would be a piece of cake.

“We must’ve gone the wrong way. The blizzard is getting worse, so let’s take a break over there,” the instructor said, suppressing his laugh. He was overjoyed just thinking about the reward he would receive from the master of the Revolutionary Guild.

Ah, but should I go back to the Revolutionary Guild? Wouldn’t it be better to hook up with one of the top five guilds? No, even better, I’ll trade with an overseas guild.

Many countries wanted to steal other countries’ techniques, so he could expect government-level cooperation. If things went well, he could become a billionaire.

After Jae-Hyeok followed him into the cave, the senior instructor couldn’t hold back and burst out laughing, “Kukuk!Kuhahahat! Ahh... you must be surprised. I’m sorry.” He slowly drew his sword and looked back at Jae-Hyeok. “I’m just in such a good mood that I—” He paused.

Jae-Hyeok had one hand on the hilt of his sword while looking leisurely around the cave.

The senior instructor was confused: the boy’s expression was unexpectedly nonchalant even though he surely should’ve noticed something was wrong.

Is he too stupid to notice his situation? Just how stupid is he? He was laughing in a dumbfounded manner when Jae-Hyeok suddenly asked him a question.

“Will you be okay? For a burial site, this is really gloomy and rotten.”

“What?”

“Oh well, it isn’t my business where the trash is buried.”

Slash!

“Hup!”

The senior instructor’s eyes bulged as he barely blocked Jae-Hyeok’s attack.

Jae-Hyeok shifted their tangled blades aside and freed one hand. Smiling, he stepped in close as a silver dagger appeared in his hand.

The senior instructor felt a deep pain in his belly.

“Y-you bastard!”

This boy had moved to kill him without hesitation. The instructor’s eyes were bloodshot as he used his Skill.

A blood-red aura erupted from his sword. However, it was only half-formed when it flickered and extinguished. He was already dead.

Two Scythes Block a Cart.

Two scythe-shaped auras had appeared on the left and right of Jae-Hyeok’s hwando, piercing the instructor’s shoulder and destroying his heart.

[A B-class player was killed.]

[Your level has risen by 2.]

[Amazing achievement!]

[You have killed a player stronger than you without any injuries.]

[All stats have increased by 2.]

“It’s a good start.”

Jae-Hyeok shook the blood off his dagger, melted the instructor’s corpse with poison, and left the cave.