Chapter 246

Rod had encountered countless human figures during his long wanderings.

Among them were some as benevolent and kind as saints, while others were even worse than demons.

Also, it wasn’t the case that good people always did good deeds, nor that bad people only engaged in wickedness.

The funny thing was when a person with a wicked nature committed evil deeds, they were still revered.

Although, in their own twisted way, they believed they were doing something malicious, a tiny sliver of conscience in their hearts somehow transformed it into an act of kindness.

Seeing that was ludicrous enough. Anyway, it made Rod realize there were all sorts of people in the world.

In the grand scheme of things, the distinction between good and evil meant nothing, as it only materialized through actions. Humans were merely beings that had slightly evolved from beasts.

The countless wars that erupted were ultimately a result of desire, which boiled down to basic survival issues. Most conflicts arose from the need to eat and live.

Because of that, Rod had detached himself from the world and lived leisurely. At some point, he had even earned the title of Sword Saint.

He had initially entered the Academy hoping to spend a comfortable twilight of his life, but that notion quickly came crashing down.

“Is it that you can’t stay quiet, and so thorns sprout in your mouth?”

“Nope.”

“Or is there someone holding a knife to your throat and threatening you?”

“Nope.”

It was all due to one troublemaking wildling. The most eccentric type among all the people he’d met thus far.

Even Rize wasn’t a wildling but a civilized person. But right in front of him was Sivar, the young man with red eyes, who had come from the wilderness.

That alone was enough to pique Rod’s curiosity, but unfortunately, that curiosity led him down a path of hardship.

“Seriously, why on earth did you pull this stunt?”

“…Boredom?”

“Ugh… Oh dear…”

It was so bad that even a healthy body from training was starting to show signs of disturbance. He could feel his blood pressure rising vividly.

It was almost better when he was coughing from withdrawal symptoms. The addiction had vanished, but now he had stress-induced gastritis.

Rod was even surprised when Godin, the one marked as a spy, genuinely expressed concern about what was happening. Sure, he was still slipping him poison, but he at least delivered the gastritis medicine on time.

“Dean. You know Sivar causes trouble, but he means no harm, right?”

“Ugh…”

At Eli’s earnest defense, Rod let out a sigh. Honestly, he didn’t really agree with that statement.

All that pampering was probably why Sivar was running amok. But the moment he voiced that concern, he felt like he’d be treated as a stubborn person.

‘This is why adults all seem so stuck-up.’

Parents say that scolding their children is meant for them to stay on the right path.

Rod, who had never been a parent, couldn’t really understand that, but it had started to resonate with him recently.

As Eli said, Sivar harbored no malice. He was simply curious, like a cat, and ended up causing trouble.

Scolding him made Sivar feel wronged, and Rod felt like bursting.

“…Dean. This incident is my fault for not managing things properly. So, I hope Sivar and Jane aren’t punished separately.”

“Oh. Right. You were here too.”

Looking back, Godin was also involved in this mess. While he couldn’t believe that Godin had assisted, Rod took his eyes off Godin and turned to Jane, the student with blue hair and blue eyes.

He had heard that Sivar had invested in her, and Rod felt a strange sensation.

‘What’s going on? It’s like all unique people are gathering here.’

Looking at the people around Sivar, they each had their distinct characteristics.

First off, Luna, who had begun opposing demons, was no small feat, and Eli was also an extraordinary student in many ways.

Then there was Kara, who had been despised as a barbarian, and now had become very close, as well as Grace, the lady of the Duke’s family, with whom he had started cohabiting.

Lastly, the student right in front of him. If he looked at what this student had invented, it was truly bizarre.

He had no clue what kind of potential they saw in it when they invested, but at least when looking at the object, it seemed legit.

‘And all of them are girls.’

The most bizarre part was that nearly all of them were female. Throughout his life, Rod had seen countless people who were popular among the opposite sex.

But most of those encounters hadn’t been pleasant. The moment one felt jealousy, it turned into a love quarrel, and ultimately, it ended in bloodshed.

It might still be too soon for such things now, but outwardly, it seemed all peachy.

Perhaps they all took into account that Sivar was a wildling lacking common sense. That was at least one relief.

‘If only he wouldn’t cause incidents along the way…’

He felt uneasy. He couldn’t help but wonder what would happen if Sivar became aware of love.

Without a well-rounded education — since his sense of common sense hadn’t clicked in yet — they couldn’t even provide proper guidance. Even though nearby individuals were helping, it still felt insufficient.

Just the students entering the Academy had gone through basic education. They could use at least two languages.

On the other hand, Sivar could understand others’ words, but he only knew the common tongue. There was no need to explain basic education.

‘Yeah. It’d be better to just break stuff.’

It always came to the same conclusion. Destroying buildings was better than harming people with malicious intent.

Despite being thrown into the harsh environment of the wilderness, Sivar still had a good heart.

That was precisely why Rod could only forgive him every time. Sometimes he would scold him hard, but that was the extent of it.

“Phew… If it’s you, Godin, then this time I’ll let it slide, but… you must accept at least a salary deduction. Although the Grand Magic didn’t activate, you certainly flew high.”

“Thank you for your leniency.”

“Did you say Jane? I won’t bring up your invention either.”

“T-thank you!”

“Dan!”

Regardless of the forgiveness, there would be measures taken. Rod pointed sternly at something.

His finger was aimed at the steel boots and gloves. They had briefly gone haywire due to overheating but had returned to their original state.

They didn’t even need repairs; they looked perfectly fine. Their durability was exceptionally robust.

“From now on, these are confiscated.”

“Huh?”

“That, that’s…!”

At the term “confiscated,” both Sivar and Jane, unsurprisingly, reacted negatively.

Especially Jane’s response was fervent; it seemed the thought of having her incredible invention taken away was the cause.

“P-please! Not the confiscation! Please forgive me just this once!!”

She bowed her head down, her voice trembled with emotion.

Rod felt flustered. He was simply trying to prevent Sivar from causing more trouble, but the reaction was over the top.

It seemed she was truly attached to the items she created. There were indeed some people like that.

“Hey, don’t be so dramatic. It’s just a confiscation in name. I’m merely ensuring Sivar can’t play around with them. You’ll get them back.”

“R-really?”

“Yeah. If it’s Sivar, he’ll definitely end up playing with them, so just wait until things settle down. I’ll return them in a week.”

“Th-thank you! Thank you so much!”

At Rod’s words, Jane once again bowed deeply, expressing her gratitude. An emotional person in many ways.

“Tsk…”

On the other hand, Sivar clicked his tongue in disappointment. Rod chuckled at that remark.

It seemed he really intended to play with them. It was predictable—too predictable.

“And Sivar.”

“Yes?”

“You must come here immediately after class ends.”

“Training?”

“No.”

Rod smiled as he pointed upwards. The ceiling, which Sivar had blown a hole in.

It hadn’t been long since it had been repaired. As Sivar looked up, Rod quietly began to speak.

“You’ll be repairing the ceiling. Gotta save some money, you know.”

“But I don’t know how.”

“Hey, you’ve got good dexterity. I’ll give you a rough idea, and you can try it out.”

“… …”

Sivar stared blankly at Rod with a neutral expression.

It was an unreadable face, yet Rod could see right through his feelings.

“Don’t make that face saying, ‘I didn’t gain dexterity for this.’ It’s your responsibility.”

“… …”

As soon as he said that, Sivar started feeling his own face, as if checking whether his inner thoughts were revealed.

Seeing that, Rod couldn’t help but chuckle. Strangely, he could decipher exactly what Sivar was thinking.

The neutrality of his expression made it overly evident. In many ways, it was simple-minded—if simple-minded at all.

“Since it’s late, everyone should head back. I’ll take care of this.”

“Thank you, Dean.”

“No need for thanks. Just be careful not to cause any more trouble. The Grand Magic hurts a lot.”

After the troublemakers left, Rod found himself alone. He looked up at the ceiling.

His mind felt as cluttered as the hole in the ceiling. He had just gone through a lot of effort to fix it now he had to do it again.

Aside from that, he never imagined Sivar would fall from the sky like that. Rod gazed at the confiscated steel boots and gloves.

‘Are those really capable of flying? Hmm…’

Rod gently tugged at his mustache. A habit of his surfaced whenever he got intrigued.

Then, he spread out his magic widely in the now-quiet atmosphere. It was an action for detection purposes.

Sivar and his group were far away. Noticing that one of them was missing meant they had likely split up along the way.

“Hmmm…”

Might as well wait quietly until nightfall. Rod covered the hole in the ceiling with cloth and began tidying up.

Dust and all sorts of debris lay scattered around, making cleanup a necessity. Occasionally, he turned his gaze toward the boots.

‘I sure am whimsical.’

Once the cleanup was finished, Rod waited until there were no signs of life. Then he stealthily took the boots out back.

It was shrouded in deep, pitch-black darkness, where nothing could be seen, yet there was no issue with visibility.

Clink—clink—

Finally, Rod donned the boots. Surprisingly, they fit perfectly.

Once he had fully equipped the boots, he next grabbed a sword. A blade that reflected the moonlight, radiating a clear hue.

‘Just giving it a test run.’

There’s a saying:

‘Just once.

Men remain boys, even when they grow up.’

Whoosh!

Like fireflies shimmering in the night sky, a faint light flickered in the backyard.

******

“Confirmation of Red Magic usage.”

In a dark space, a hunter knelt ominously, reporting. It was a crucial report.

At that, the demon halted, turning its head. In its blue, glowing eyes flickered a subtle yearning.

“Is that true? You confirmed the usage of Red Magic?”

“Indeed.”

“How did you verify it? Was the child truly using it?”

The demon’s voice carried an unmistakable excitement. It felt as though everything that had been bottled up was now pouring forth, fulfilling its wish.

The hunter lowered his head further and explained the situation.

“Y-yes. I confirmed the target soaring high in the sky firing Red Magic.”

“…What? Say that again.”

“The target soaring high in the sky fired Red Magic.”

“… …”

The blue demon blinked in disbelief. At first, it wasn’t clear what was being said.

But the details mattered little. The first thing to ascertain was whether the target had truly used Red Magic.

“Are you sure it was that child? You checked thoroughly, right?”

“Yes. Even though it was at the Academy, I could see it clearly because it shot into the sky.”

“… …”

Although it was hard to believe, he had to accept it. The hunter would never report false information.

He had most likely reported what he truly saw with his own eyes. The blue demon nodded and moved on.

“Alright. Then, what else is noteworthy?”

“The Sword Saint.”

“The Sword Saint?”

“Yes.”

“Why the Sword Saint? Did he perhaps die?”

That was the most anticipated part. If the Sword Saint had perished, the invasion could be hastened.

After the Saint, he was the most troublesome opponent, having been weakened through various schemes. Even a Sword Saint would have found it hard to withstand.

“That’s not the case. Rather…”

“Rather?”

“At night, he was soaring through the sky wielding his sword.”

“… …?”

Did I hear that wrong? The blue demon cocked its head.

The reaction was that of hearing something outrageous. The hunter confirmed with a glance at the demon before reiterating.

“You didn’t hear me wrong. The Sword Saint was definitely floating in the sky swinging his sword.”

“… …You mean he was flying, not just walking in the sky?”

If he was walking in the sky, it would be completely understandable. Did not the masters of the East do that as if it were second nature?

Rod was a person who could manipulate space easily. Walking in the sky was nothing remarkable for him.

However, only the Saint Rize and the monsters of the East could truly fly. Thus, it was only natural to have suspicions.

“Yes. He was declaring light from his legs while flying in the sky.”

“… …”

The blue demon simply couldn’t believe it.

“I saw it clearly.”

Thus, the hunter stressed again.

---