My Disciples Became Scoundrels - Chapter 18

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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He still thought poorly of me. Gaspar looked down at me with obvious disdain.
“So why has Dein’s son come looking for me? Did that man leave you some message?”
“No. We heard you were seeking collaborators, so we came to offer our support. We’ll be useful.”
I didn’t lie and say Dein had spoken well of him. There was no need. Gaspar’s eyes grew colder still.
“You think I’ll accept you simply because you carry his blood? How arrogant.”
“It’s blood arrogant enough to warrant it, at least.”
At that, Gaspar’s face showed open displeasure.
“Pathetic. A fledgling Domus with no track record to speak of—three members total, one of them a worthless drunk—and you think there’s anyone who’d take you in?”
“Gaspar.”
I spoke his name quietly.
“Did you think we’d simply endure such insults because our Domus is weak?”
Cesare may gallivant about doing foolish things, but I’m the one who curses him for it. I couldn’t let another man’s mockery stand unchallenged.
“And what will you do if you don’t endure it? You came here begging for our aid, no less. Unless you’re prepared to grovel on your knees?”
Gaspar let out a derisive snort. Cesare glanced at me uncertainly, then tugged at my sleeve and whispered.
“Master. Let it go. That bastard’s not worth it.”
“You’re no bastard, and if we swallow insults like this, we’ll be insulted endlessly.”
I spoke with finality. I had a duty to protect my disciple’s honor and Balanus’s pride. And I also had a deliberate purpose—to provoke Gaspar.
“I heard Dein had a son and was curious enough to meet you. What a disappointment you turned out to be. Leave. I have nothing more to say to—”
“Is that how you lost your unrequited love to your father?”
Gaspar’s eyes went wide. So did Cesare’s and Jenia’s. A chill hung in the air for a moment before Gaspar spoke.
“What are you talking about? Whatever nonsense Dein may have spouted—”
“It’s a simple fact, isn’t it? In your younger days, every woman you harbored feelings for fell for Dein instead, didn’t you? Didn’t that sting?”
Gaspar’s pupils wavered with confusion.
“Impossible! Women used to chase after me in those days!”
“So I’ve heard. Word is you chased after quite a few women yourself—any woman would do, or so it seemed.”
As I kept scraping at his raw nerves, Gaspar’s face flushed crimson and he suddenly roared.
“You brat! You’ve got Dein’s poisonous nature, don’t you? That’s how you slandered me and stole my women!”
Though in truth, I’d never stolen anyone, and those women were never his lovers to begin with. I’d never even courted them.
“If Dein hadn’t had that pretty face—prettier than any courtesan’s—he’d have been utterly unremarkable! He just cultivated an image of being skilled with the blade, cold, yet tender with his disciples, and used it to seduce women! If I’d belonged to a White Jade Rank organization like Balanus, those other women would have recognized my true worth!”
He spoke without pausing for breath. Had he been harboring these thoughts all along?
At his words, Jenia tilted her head.
“So you’re saying Master Dein was handsome, strong, kind, and skilled?”
“—That’s what the women mistakenly thought!”
Gaspar shot back forcefully, then took a ragged breath.
“But all of that is in the past now. Our guild has grown far stronger, and Balanus has been destroyed.”
“Far stronger. I doubt that very much. We’re a more powerful Domus than the Twilight Sparrow’s Nest.”
Gaspar let out a contemptuous laugh.
“Anyone can talk.”
“You’re welcome to test it. I, as this Domus’s representative, can duel the guild master, or we can compete however you wish. Though there are two conditions.”
“Conditions?”
I’d provoked him this far. Now came the real purpose.
“If I win, you’ll hire Balanus as a collaborator. And you’ll apologize to Cesare.”
Cesare stared at me with wide eyes. Silence settled over the room for a moment before Gaspar spoke.
“Fine. But if you lose, you’ll bear the consequences too.”
“What consequences?”
“When you lose, you’ll abandon the name Balanus forever and never again establish a guild or Domus.”
He wanted to erase Balanus. Or perhaps he wanted to erase the very ground I stood on. He continued in a cold tone.
“Furthermore, you’re forbidden from romance and marriage alike. Better yet—sever all ties with women entirely. End Dein’s bloodline.”
I wondered if this explained why the Sparrow’s Nest remained Silver Rank. Perhaps my observation was prejudiced, though. Beside me, Jenia exhaled softly.
“Human inferiority complexes really do run deep.”
The conditions were somewhat absurd, but I nodded.
There was no way I could lose, so any condition was acceptable.
When I accepted so readily, Gaspar stared at me coldly.
“Leave. I’ll have someone show you to a waiting room. When the duel preparations are ready, I’ll send for you.”
We left the room at his abrupt dismissal. Following an attendant, we arrived at a shabby waiting room—though “waiting room” was generous; it was closer to a storage shed.
Jenia sat carelessly on a wooden crate and spoke.
“Was the bad blood between you and Gaspar really because of a woman?”
“That was the main reason.”
“Were there other reasons?”
“As swordsmen, we clashed over certain matters. It’s all rather complicated.”
We were the same age, both wielded swords, and we founded our respective organizations around the same time—his guild and my Domus.
The difference lay in our skill.
Whenever we sparred, I always won. And Balanus grew stronger and more famous faster than the Twilight Sparrow’s Nest.
Because of that, Gaspar seemed to harbor something like an inferiority complex toward me. Every time he saw me, he’d draw his blade and charge at me, always looking for a fight.
Throughout all this, Cesare had fallen quiet. He’d been silent ever since we stepped into the guild master’s office earlier. I nudged him lightly.
“What’s wrong? Cesare.”
“Nothing. It’s just…….”
He scratched the back of his head. Unlike his usual self, he looked somewhat dejected.
“I’m wondering if I’m dragging down Balanus. The guilds all refused because of me…….”
Rejected four times in a row, then subjected to verbal abuse from Gaspar—it must have been a shock. I watched Cesare quietly for a moment before speaking.
“You’re right that breaking contracts over drinking, assaulting employers, and showing up late isn’t good. Those are things you absolutely need to fix.”
Cesare’s expression fell. He’d made mistakes, certainly, but looking at him like that left a bitter taste.
“However, Cesare.”
I struck his back hard. Cesare jumped, straightening his spine in surprise.
“I know you’ve lived more fiercely than anyone and that you’re strong. In that respect, you’re already contributing plenty to Balanus. Yes, you have shortcomings, but you have strengths too.”
Cesare looked at me without speaking. He seemed both startled and relieved. Then, a slight smile crossed his face.
“So it’s all right to drink and cause trouble as long as you’re strong?”
“Drop and give me fifty.”
“Just joking, joking! I can never get away with anything.”
As we continued talking in the lightened atmosphere, an attendant came to fetch us, signaling that preparations were ready.
The Training Ground was a vast training area behind the building. Gaspar and his guild members were gathered there, all of them eyeing our arrival with undisguised hostility.
Gaspar spoke to me without a weapon in hand.
“A greenhorn like you isn’t worth my time, Dein. Come here, Cassian.”
At those words, Gaspar’s gaze turned to a young man, who stepped forward and took his place beside him.
Perhaps in his mid-twenties. He was tall with the refined features of a nobleman, well-built and with perfect posture.
From his bearing alone, he looked like a swordsman of considerable experience.
Was he bringing in his ace player? As I considered that, Gaspar threw an arm around the young man’s shoulders and grinned.
“This is my son, Cassian.”
I stared at Cassian in shock.
Gaspar had gotten married?
Had a child?
How?
Running the numbers in my head, the young man’s age didn’t add up.
Even when Gaspar was forty, he’d had no children. Even if he’d fathered a son right after my death, that boy would only be in his mid-teens.
Adopted, perhaps. He was remarkably handsome for Gaspar’s son, though.
“First one to land three strikes on a vital point wins. Choose your weapons freely. You can use a wooden sword or a real sword—it doesn’t matter.”
With that, Gaspar left the arena. But Cassian remained standing before me, studying me quietly before he spoke.
“I’ve heard the reputation of Dein Balanus. Any swordsman worth their salt knows that name.”
Maybe he was a decent young man after all. He glanced briefly at Cesare.
“If not for you, I wouldn’t have agreed to this duel at all. I have no desire to entangle myself with a Domus that harbors human garbage like this.”
“Excuse me?”
Cesare’s face flushed with anger, then he hung his head. His clenched fists trembled visibly.
“Crude and vulgar, aren’t you? Given what I’ve heard about you, that assessment is hardly unfair.”
I withdrew my earlier assessment of “a decent young man.” I stepped between Cesare and Cassian.
“We made an agreement that I’d receive an apology from the guild master if I win. Now it seems there’s one more person who owes me an apology.”
There was no reason to tolerate such insults. But there was also no point in petty bickering. A sword would settle this quickly enough.
Cassian’s expression remained cold, his hostility unmistakable.
“I may not be as skilled as Dein Balanus, but I don’t believe I’ll lose to you.”
He departed. Afterward, Cesare continued to seethe. I could see his lips pressed tight as he fought to contain his rage.
Jenia’s expression was neutral, but she looked angry. She rolled her eyes for a moment, then spoke to Cesare.
“Brother. Want me to go beat him up?”
“No. Don’t fight him.”
“Why not?”
“What he said wasn’t wrong. And I need to protect Balanus’s reputation…….”
I watched silently as my student swallowed his pride, enduring insults to preserve the honor of Balanus.
My student was protecting the reputation of my Domus.
Then it falls to me, his master, to protect his honor.
I turned to the attendant with a question.
“Where is the Restaurant in this place?”
He guided me to the Restaurant with a puzzled look, though he didn’t question it. After gathering what I needed, we returned to the Training Ground with perfect timing. Gaspar’s voice rang out.
“Both of you—step into the Training Ground!”
Cassian and I faced each other in the broad expanse of the Training Ground. His expression remained as cold as ever.
A glance told me he intended to use a Real Sword.
I drew from my pocket what I’d brought from the Restaurant. The onlookers murmured in confusion, and Cassian’s surprise was unmistakable.
“You’re going to fight with a Jam Knife?”
Exactly as he said. The Jam Knife I’d just retrieved from the Restaurant. I held it steady, pointed at Cassian.
“Yes. Unfortunately, they didn’t have a teaspoon.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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