Reincarnated as a Genius Prodigy of a Prestigious Family - Chapter 349

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Reincarnated as a Legendary Talent Genius of a Noble Family Episode 349

229. A Fighting Arena…

Knights are generally evaluated as starting to ‘decline’ around the age of thirty-five. Of course, their actual skills don’t really decline.

Their mana increases and their experience grows, but it should be called the reference point where physical abilities gradually deteriorate.

Of course, it’s true that their level rises as they age, but their basic stamina cannot compare to younger knights.

Baron Dionil was especially like that.

Over forty years of age.

Thanks to his long war experience, he had sufficient skill, but lacked stamina.

At least compared to Dane.

“Huff, huff.”

Baron Dionil finally collapsed after three consecutive sparring matches.

It had been about five days since the sparring between the two had begun.

“Can’t we rest for a day tomorrow?”

“Let’s do that.”

And when Dane readily agreed, Baron Dionil suddenly raised his upper body and trembled.

“You’ve been acting like it wouldn’t work until now!”

“I never said it wouldn’t work, Baron.”

“…”

Dane had been driving him relentlessly until now.

As if he were someone he’d never see again once these sparring sessions ended.

So he had no choice but to fight with all his might, but now he’d let him rest for a day?

“Rest is important, Baron. You looked so happy that I couldn’t bring myself to mention it.”

“…”

Happy, what nonsense.

Did his trembling body from fear and exhaustion look like that?

“And seeing that you have enough strength left to raise your upper body, it seems you still have some energy remaining.”

The moment he heard those words, Baron Dionil collapsed back down.

“I won’t fight anymore today.”

“Please do that.”

Dane chuckled and approached, handing him the water bottle that was nearby.

“Thank you.”

Gulp, gulp.

Baron Dionil emptied the water bottle refreshingly, then exhaled the breath he’d been holding and caught his breath.

Then he asked.

“That skill of yours is truly remarkable no matter how I look at it. What’s even more surprising is your stamina.”

“Father always emphasized the importance of stamina.”

Actually, more than that, he constantly advocated the importance of spear arts.

It was just appropriate to use Father’s name here.

“I see. As expected, it seems Count Sogress provided appropriate and rigorous guidance.”

Strictly speaking, the rigorous one was Mother rather than Father.

She gave ‘assassin’ lessons to a child not even ten years old.

Of course, it was fun.

Extremely so, at that.

He even excelled at it.

“Something like that.”

“Anyway, for five days… this is truly strange. I’ve never swung a sword this desperately even during wartime.”

That’s right.

The longest battle in the great war between Alteon and Drenik lasted three days.

That day when troops were deployed in succession, fighting continuously day and night without rest.

If asked to pick the most terrible moment of the war, Dane would choose that very battle.

“And… I feel like I’m alive.”

Baron Dionil turned his head to look at the practice sword he was still gripping tightly.

Actually, his pride was greatly hurt on the first day of sparring.

To drop his sword.

He was someone who was called a genius with outstanding talent and was once evaluated as a knight who would shoulder the Empire’s future.

For such a person to drop his sword so easily just because he’d gotten a bit older.

So for the past four days, he absolutely never let go of his sword.

In the midst of this, Dane asked a question.

“Do you now have a reason to swing your sword again?”

Baron Dionil was startled and raised his upper body again.

He immediately frowned and regretted it, but answered anyway.

“…How did you know I was trying to give up?”

“I wasn’t making such a guess. However, I was curious about what you would do after leaving this Imperial Palace.”

“Then what did you guess?”

“Rebuilding your family?”

“…”

Accurate.

But imagination and reality are different things.

All he had now was the salary he received while staying at the Imperial Palace and his somewhat decent swordsmanship.

With this, he couldn’t regain his former position.

Recovering his family members was even more impossible.

Most were dead, and his remaining son didn’t want to meet him now.

Perhaps Baron Dionil, who considered himself pathetic, was the one refusing to meet.

Dane spoke somewhat presumptuously at this point.

“That swordsmanship is a waste.”

At least in normal circumstances, it would sound like that.

But now it was a bit different.

“You said it’s a waste?”

“It’s much better than most knights, and your experience is incomparable.”

“But that’s all I am. Who would recognize a fallen noble with no honor left?”

“What if that honor were restored?”

“What on earth are you saying…”

“What would you do if that honor were restored and you could rebuild your family?”

Baron Dionil now moved his legs and slowly raised his body.

And looking directly into Dane’s eyes, he said this.

“If I could rebuild my family and bring back my only son by doing so, I would do anything.”

“Your will is firm.”

“I would do anything as long as it’s not rebellion.”

Seeing him add that qualifier since they were in the Imperial Palace, Dane smiled slightly and said this.

“Then would you work for me?”

“…You weren’t just saying that?”

“There’s nothing worse than getting someone’s hopes up with meaningless words.”

“…Hah.”

Baron Dionil had to struggle a bit to understand the meaning of what Dane had said.

Someone is telling me they’ll help me and create an opportunity to regain my honor.

But that someone is a fifteen-year-old boy.

Even though he’s the eldest son of a great noble family, what a minor noble who hasn’t inherited a title can do would be limited…

‘He doesn’t seem like the type to abuse his position or be intoxicated by his background.’

That’s why it’s even more confusing.

What on earth does he believe in to make such a promise?

No, more than that, I wonder how he could possibly make that happen…

Along with this, such a thought suddenly occurred to me.

If that were to happen, what would I need to do in return?

“What can I do for you?”

But this answer seems to have pleased Dane.

“That question about what you can do is very good.”

Usually, people focus on what the other party can do for them.

Baron Dionil is the opposite.

Paradoxically, it’s something he can say because he knows his current situation is pitiful.

“All I have left is my swordsmanship.”

“That swordsmanship is what I need.”

“…This swordsmanship?”

Let’s see, where would swordsmanship be needed?

‘Fighting arena?’

In major cities of the Empire, including the capital, there are fighting arenas where people fight people, monsters fight monsters, and people fight monsters.

Mainly a place where knights stripped of their titles or professional arena fighters hang out.

Fallen nobles often appear there too.

If you do well, you can make big money.

It’s not just the fighting arena.

There are also mercenaries.

Those who do anything for money.

Whatever it was, these were things Baron Dionil had imagined but naturally never intended to actually do…

“Wh-where do you intend to use my swordsmanship? I may have fallen and hold only a title in name… but I don’t want to do anything that would abandon my honor.”

Baron Dionil showed firm resolve.

No matter what, he was still a noble.

The moment he abandoned that honor, rebuilding his family would become meaningless.

How much hardship had he endured until now trying to protect that handful of remaining honor?

“I absolutely won’t go to a fighting arena…”

“Please take charge of factory security and guard duty.”

The two men’s words overlapped, and silence flowed for a moment.

“Factory security and guard duty…”

At words he had never even considered, Baron Dionil hesitated before asking.

“You want to entrust me with security work?”

“It’s more respectable work than a fighting arena.”

“…What kind of factory is it?”

“A pharmaceutical factory. It’s run by someone I know. It’s not the kind of place that produces drugs or secretly makes prohibited substances.”

That’s not what’s important.

For a noble’s dignity… security duty?

Such thoughts came instinctively.

To rebuild his family, he needed to restore his honor.

How much would security work help with that?

‘Is he mocking me?’

Anger flared up for a moment.

I thought we had grown close through several days of sparring, but this is the kind of proposal he makes?

Just as he was thinking that far.

“I’ll also try to find your son’s whereabouts.”

His son, Eil Dionil.

His only remaining family member.

Thinking of his son whose life or death he couldn’t even determine, Baron Dionil’s eyes wavered.

Honor.

Of course it’s important.

But considering that honor, what could he actually do outside this Imperial Palace?

‘Nothing.’

There’s nothing at all.

Work that could be done while maintaining noble honor had to be work befitting a noble.

But work that nobles can do requires a mansion, territory, servants, and needless to say, territorial subjects.

Therefore…

Now is not the time to worry about honor—

The facts he had been trying to ignore came flooding in.

“With Baron Dionil’s skills, it shouldn’t be difficult work…”

“I’ll do it.”

Baron Dionil seemed to have made up his mind as he took a deep breath.

“I’ll do whatever it takes. That seems like the fastest way for me to restore my honor.”

Dane grinned at those words.

An expression of complete satisfaction.

“You’ll be paid appropriately. At least, more than what you received here.”

For reference, Imperial Palace servants’ salaries are quite high.

Thanks to that, Baron Dionil had saved a considerable amount of money, but he had spent it here and there, so he didn’t have much left now.

Besides simple living expenses, it was due to his attempts to inquire about his son’s whereabouts and rebuild his family.

“Really?”

Eyes widening in surprise.

Being a son of the Sogress County, does he receive a lot of allowance?

No, no matter what, this isn’t something that could be resolved at the level of allowance money.

“You’ll understand the details when you go there. After leaving the Imperial Palace, please go to the first factory of ‘Otier Pharmaceutical’ on the outskirts of the capital.”

Otier Pharmaceutical.

I’ve heard of it.

After Count Altair’s business collapsed, it quickly filled that position, and recently it’s the pharmaceutical company that began distributing healing medicines for free through the ‘Grik Trading Company’.

“I’ll also be leaving the Imperial Palace soon, so let’s meet there then.”

Security chief of such a place.

I’m embarrassed for having thought of it as just a simple factory.

“There will probably be a lot for you to do. From organizational structure to security methods, and if you could handle training as well, that would be even better.”

“Of course. I’ll do my best within my abilities, no, even beyond that.”

Hope is visible.

Hope I never even thought of.

But there’s one more thing I’m curious about.

Why me?

“Wouldn’t there be suitable candidates other than me?”

“Of course there would be. You could find them anywhere if you looked. And also, there’s one useful person I have. Someone who worked in the shadows.”

“Ah.”

“But one person alone can’t manage all the factories. That’s all there is to it.”

Dane added while saying this.

“And there’s no one more suitable than you.”

“…Well, I’ll be.”

“Let’s think about what comes next after you get there.”

“Understood. Thank you. I should visit Count Sogress later to pay my respects.”

Dane, who had been smiling brightly, suddenly tilted his head.

“Wait, you said you’d do anything as long as it wasn’t illegal, right?”

“That’s… right?”

A strange uneasiness washed over me.

“As far as I know, the Fighting Arena of the Capital operates legally under strict management.”

“….”

Shudder.

My body trembled instinctively.

“I’m joking.”

“…Do you enjoy making murderous jokes?”

“Sometimes it’s not a joke though.”

“Ha, haha….”

No matter how I look at it, he absolutely doesn’t seem like a fifteen-year-old boy.

“Fighting arena….”

Just seeing him mutter the word “fighting arena” with such an intrigued expression proves that point.

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