Chapter 218

Let me make this clear. The past four months have been hell for me. Someone who might as well be my grandfather beat me mercilessly with his insane fists, repeating over and over that he’d keep hitting me until I could defend myself. Once I could defend against attacks, he made me fight against multiple opponents, pitting me against armed dolls wielding spears forged by a master blacksmith who had reached divine levels of skill.

Did they let me rest when I got hurt? Of course not. That Spartan-like guy wouldn’t even think of it.

[“I’ll heal you. I can even revive a corpse if it’s been less than a minute since death. But if you die again, I won’t heal your lower half’s joystick, okay?”]

After that, I was taught how to fight dragons, giant beasts, giants, master swordsmen, and even sorcerers.

After completing training in 47 different fields, I received a white feather and a black feather as proof.

After returning from that twisted Spartan training under the now-darkened Master Gomon, Ares clung to me, crying and asking why I left him behind. Of course, after punching him a few times, I asked where Airi went. He said she headed to Lorcha’s mansion, so I went there, only to find…

Lorcha was riding on a giant black snake-like creature, targeting Airi, Glacia, and Camelian Peony.

I managed to defend against it using magic derived from knowledge I gained from my grandfather’s legacy, but… honestly, I have no idea what’s going on. If there’s ever a time for an explanation, it’s now.

“Seriously, I have no idea what’s happening. I’m not being sarcastic, I genuinely don’t know.”

I asked out of genuine curiosity.

“That damn woman has gone too far, Master.”

What line? Did she cross the 38th parallel and defect or something?

“…I hate to admit it, but Airi is right. She’s clearly gone mad. Even if she crossed a line, I never thought she’d go this far.”

What, did she cross the 38th parallel and try to steal a nuke or something?

“Lorcha, it’s not too late. If you break the contract now…”

What, did she make a deal with America to steal a nuke after crossing the 38th parallel? Seriously, explain it to me.

“……I won’t fight you. You’re someone I love, and I’d be in trouble without you.”

“No, explain it to me.”

Why won’t you explain? Why are you keeping it to yourselves, you nerds?

Lorcha gestured, and the black snake-like creature disappeared without a trace.

“Come with me. We don’t need money or status. We can just destroy the Black Round Table. They’ve lost most of their power. Our son wiped out most of their executives recently, and your former comrades nearly annihilated their branches. We just need to clean up the remnants. So let’s destroy it all and run away together. Don’t let them control you, forget about polygamy or whatever, and just come with me…”

Then, white doves filled the sky. Not just near Lorcha’s mansion, but the entire capital’s sky was filled with doves dropping strange cards before disappearing.

The cards were made of antique paper, with carefully handwritten letters containing shocking news.

[To the rotten nobles and knights who pride themselves on honor while committing atrocities: Your sins demand payment, but your crimes are so deep that no treasure can suffice. Thus, I, the thief Squar, will steal your country. On the night of the full moon, I will come with the shadows to claim what is yours.]

The handwriting and method were undoubtedly Squar’s. I had heard she was a traitor. It was shocking, but after Media’s betrayal, what else could shock me? Poor Werner, betrayed by his first love.

You should choose your first love wisely. My first love was kind, so that wouldn’t happen, you idiot.

Still, even if she betrayed us, I’ve been trained by my grandfather to handle all kinds of enemies. How to fight a thief… I didn’t learn that. This is the downside of rote learning. Or maybe my grandfather was just an idiot. Why did he even hit me?

Next time I see him, I’ll punch that closed-minded teacher in the face.

—

“Sigh… So that’s what happened with Lorcha.”

After hearing the whole story, I realized things were getting serious. Dark magic is essentially a contract with demons from outside the world to gain power. Of course, like people, there are good demons and bad demons.

Among them, Harpa—no, Halkas—was one of the good ones. But there were also demons like the king of demons sealed by Zick’s party, who was a total bastard. The demon Lorcha contracted with, Gaashegbul, was neither good nor bad, just a whimsical natural disaster.

“Sigh… I come back, and two headaches greet me. Lorcha made a contract with a demon, and now Squar’s causing trouble.”

Squar was undeniably strong. She wasn’t like Werner in his prime, with immense magical power, or Zick with his legendary weapons. She wasn’t born with the best lineage like Sister Melissa or Camelian Peony, nor did she have the Heavenly Demon’s ability to copy any skill. She didn’t even have Ricardo or Melchior’s steel-like physique.

She was just a simple orphan from the slums. A child abandoned by a succubus out of curiosity. If her master, the thief Raven, hadn’t taken her in, she would’ve died on the streets.

“But the reality is more complicated…”

Stat-wise, she was the weakest in Zick’s party. She only ranked first in speed… but in strength, durability, magic, attack power, and even stamina, she was dead last.

But stats don’t mean everything in battle. Her tricky skills and indispensable utility made her essential for every boss fight. Fans even joked that if a mobile version of this damn game came out, they’d reroll for Squar first.

Her Phantom Magic was incredibly annoying. Developed by her master, it was more like a curse than magic, distorting space, twisting objects’ movements, and even Zick found it troublesome.

“And now she’s coming to steal this country…”

This is why I hate thief characters. They’re all attention-seeking little thieves. They should all be caught and re-educated. Throw them in a camp and beat them with sticks until they stop their nonsense.

And no matter how much Squar was a good older sister to Werner, and no matter how much that memory still pains me, it doesn’t matter. Having witnessed the atrocities of the Black Round Table, I can’t forgive her as one of their members.

“Come if you want. I’ve been trained by Gomon, after all.”

I’ve learned everything there is to learn from Gomon. I’ve been killed and revived repeatedly for four months by his one-hit KO punches. Compared to that, space-bending magic or object-twisting magic is nothing.

I don’t need to know the exact countermeasures. I’ll trust the power my son left me and the knowledge my wet nurse passed down.

My son, who gave everything for the greater good, and my wet nurse, who saw me as her everything and even sacrificed her life for me.

I won’t let them down. I’ll make sure their sacrifices weren’t in vain.

And I won’t embarrass myself in front of my first love like this.