The Mage’s Nemesis Has Reincarnated - Chapter 20

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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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The Natural Enemy of Mages Has Been Reincarnated – Episode 20
Luna listened intently to her fiancé’s words.
“We provoke Zeke into starting a fight first by needling him.”
“A fight?”
“The boy is only fifteen, isn’t he? He’ll certainly take the bait from even a simple provocation.”
“I see.”
Theo Baldor was twenty years old, four years Luna’s senior.
Perhaps because of this, his perspective was broad and his intellect sharp.
“That’s a brilliant idea. How do you come up with such clever schemes?”
“Heh, I do possess considerable wit. That’s precisely why I’ve reached the Fourth Circle at this age, wouldn’t you say?”
“Truly, I chose my man well, didn’t I? Hehe.”
At Luna’s praise, Theo’s mouth spread into a wide grin.
“We shouldn’t delay—let’s execute this plan at once. Where is this Zeke fellow?”
“Follow me. I saw him with my brother Peter in the Annex just a moment ago.”
Theo nodded and followed Luna toward the Annex.
The servants they passed on the way greeted them both, but neither acknowledged them.
It revealed much about how they regarded the household staff.
“Ah, there he is.”
“He’s conversing with someone?”
“That man is the captain of our family’s Guard Knight Order. He’s an expert-level aura practitioner.”
“Hmm, is that so?”
Theo’s eyes gleamed at Luna’s explanation.
They held the predatory glint of a beast that had spotted its prey.

* * *
I was conversing with Raker, whom I had encountered by chance.
“Young Master. Are you feeling alright? I heard from Dalton that he strangled your neck.”
“Ah, that? I’m perfectly fine.”
I touched my neck once, but not because it hurt.
It was a gesture to demonstrate that I was unharmed.
However, Raker seemed to interpret it as me soothing a wound.
Judging by the pitiful way he was looking at me.
“It’s late, but allow me to apologize on his behalf. I never should have hired a mercenary of such character in the first place…”
“Why are you apologizing, Raker? That man’s character was rotten to the core.”
“Regardless, it happened because I made a poor judgment in selecting personnel. I’m truly sorry.”
“It’s fine, really.”
I waved my hand dismissively, but Raker’s expression remained dark.
“Don’t worry about it. It’s all in the past, isn’t it?”
“It hasn’t even been a week. Yet here you are, looking completely unbothered…”
Raker trailed off and closed his mouth.
In that moment, he realized his own misstep.
‘Appearances aside, he must be deeply troubled inside. For someone his age, these were far too shocking events.’
At fifteen years old, I had nearly been assassinated by my own brother and came within moments of being strangled to death.
These were cruel experiences for a young master who had spent his days reading in the Magic Library.
‘Yet he shows no sign of distress whatsoever. I’ve felt it before, but his mental fortitude truly is remarkable.’
It wasn’t just mental fortitude.
When Alex was apprehended, I had personally disguised myself as an assassin to extract evidence.
It was something that ordinary courage could not accomplish, yet I had done it.
‘Wisdom, mental fortitude, and courage all combined. He’s truly extraordinary in every way. Such a person should be rising as the heir and achieving great success…”
Unfortunately, I had not inherited the talents of a Prestigious Magic Family.
With Peter and Russell in the picture, the position of next family head was beyond my reach.
Feeling that the world was unfair in many ways, Raker changed the subject.
“By the way, Young Master. How is your training progressing?”
“Training? What do you mean?”
At my question, Raker’s eyes widened.
“Talent awakening, of course. What else could there be?”
“Ah, that? Unfortunately, I haven’t made any progress.”
“You haven’t been learning Aura, have you?”
It was a question asked out of mere suspicion, but Raker didn’t know.
That I would feel a pang of guilt at this.
“Come now, how could that be? I’ve been making efforts all this time.”
“Haha, of course. You asked me about the principles of Aura last time, so I was just wondering.”
“Even if I wanted to learn, I can’t. Born into a Prestigious Magic Family, if I were to learn Aura, I’d be laughed at by everyone around me.”
“That would be the case. Since I’m an Aura user myself, I wouldn’t oppose you learning it, but given your position, you can’t ignore the eyes of those around you. If you don’t give up, a path will surely open for you.”
“Yes, thank you for your words….”
“How absurd is this? A mere Guard Knight offering counsel to a Duke’s scion?”
Zeke, who had been about to nod at Raker’s advice, turned his head.
A blonde man with unruly hair was approaching.
Luna was clinging to his side.
‘Is that… Luna’s fiancé?’
I had already heard that Luna was engaged to the second son of the Baldor Family, ranked fourth among prestigious magic families.
I’d also heard he frequented the Duke’s Mansion as if it were his own home, but this was my first time meeting him face-to-face.
As Zeke stared blankly, the fiancé’s brow furrowed.
“Why are you staring like that? Don’t you know who I am?”
“Could you be from the Baldor Family…?”
“I am Theo Baldor, second son of the Baldor Family.”
“Ah, it’s an honor to meet you.”
Though I greeted him politely as was proper for a first meeting, his response came with a click of his tongue.
“Tsk tsk, even a passing servant knows this, yet you alone remain ignorant. They said you were holed up in the Magic Library, and it seems they were right.”
“Holed up? Isn’t that rather harsh for a first meeting?”
“What?”
Theo’s mouth fell open, apparently not expecting Zeke to talk back.
“Ha! No matter how prestigious the McLafflin Family is, the youngest son shouldn’t dare look me straight in the eye and talk back to his future brother-in-law. This is outrageous.”
“I find it rather outrageous myself.”
“Well, what can you expect from someone taking advice from an Aura user like that?”
Watching Theo glance dismissively at Raker while Luna chimed in beside him, I could discern their intentions.
‘It seems they want to publicly humiliate me.’
I had sensed it before—Luna despised me.
So this baseless provocation was her way of expressing it.
‘It appears she’s using Raker as bait….’
Though I had done nothing wrong, I felt sorry that he was caught in the crossfire simply by standing beside me.
But it seemed Raker wasn’t content to remain silent either.
His eyes were wide open as he glared at Theo.
“Young Master Theo. I must ask you to refrain from making disparaging remarks about Aura users.”
“What?”
“I am well aware that Aura users fall short compared to mages. However, our Guard Knight Order is fundamentally composed of Aura users, and we train daily to protect the family. I humbly ask that you acknowledge our efforts to some degree.”
In other words, he was asking for recognition of his hard work.
His pride had been wounded by the blatant disparagement of Aura users, but I thought he was being somewhat hasty.
‘He’ll definitely escalate this.’
Sure enough, Theo snorted derisively and glared at Raker.
“How presumptuous. You’re just a Guard Knight Order captain hired by the family, yet you dare talk back to me?”
“….”
“And what did I say that was wrong? Everyone knows Aura users are far inferior to mages!”
“I merely meant for you to think kindly of us, nothing more….”
“I don’t want to hear it!”
Theo Baldor screamed like a madman, seizing on the opening as expected.
“You can judge a master by observing his servants—and seeing how the Guard Knight Order’s commander talks back to his superiors, I can well imagine what kind of man your father-in-law must be!”
“Speak carefully, sir. Father-in-law? We are merely betrothed. The marriage has not yet taken place, has it?”
“What? You lack even basic courtesy, you fool….”
Theo Baldor was about to fire back, but Zeke McLafflin’s words came faster.
“There are no courtesies owed to one who has insulted our family.”
“What are you saying? Insulted the family?”
“You just said one can judge the master by observing the servants. By that logic, observing Alex McLafflin, who attempted to assassinate his own brothers, we can infer the character of his siblings—and indeed, of our father, the family head himself, can we not?”
“…Ah?”
Theo Baldor suddenly realized it.
He had made a catastrophic slip of the tongue.
“Since you have disparaged our father as one incapable of properly educating his children, how can this not be considered an insult to our family?”
“Ah, no, I merely….”
Having carelessly misspoken and been caught in his own trap, Theo Baldor’s face flushed crimson and then pale.
“I, I never meant any such thing.”
“Raker surely felt the same. He certainly had no intention of instructing or insulting you, young master. So let us clear up this misunderstanding.”
“Ugh….”
Theo Baldor let out a groan of distress.
To rid himself of the stigma of having insulted a family, he had no choice but to swallow his pride first.
“Ah, very well. I was mistaken.”
“Thank you for saying so, young master. I too apologize for any words that may have caused misunderstanding.”
Raker offered his apology, but Theo Baldor’s mind was elsewhere.
He could only curse Raker and Zeke inwardly.
‘Damn it, I actually bowed my head to these idiots first…!’
He had intended to use Raker to crush his opponent, but instead found himself the one forced to yield.
His pride could not help but be wounded.
‘Blast it, I underestimated him based solely on what Luna said. How did it come to this?’
He had heard the man was a fool whose talents had never blossomed, but now it was clear he was no ordinary opponent.
To turn a single careless remark into a weapon that placed the other party in such a difficult position.
Theo Baldor bit his lip hard.
‘My planned provocation won’t work on him.’
Looking at Zeke’s serene expression, which showed not the slightest sign of distress, it was clear he was not the type to lose his composure easily.
He wished he himself had remained calm instead.
‘This won’t do. I must retreat before I’m drawn in further….’
Theo Baldor was about to withdraw and abandon his plan, but Zeke McLafflin had no intention of letting him go.
He had cast the bait.
“You said earlier, young master, that Aura users cannot prevail against mages.”
“Y, yes, I did.”
“Then what if the two of us were to spar?”
“A duel?”
“There’s a Training Ground nearby. I thought you could spar with Raker and see who’s stronger—an Aura user or a mage.”
‘Look at this guy.’
A hollow laugh escaped from the twisted corners of Theo Baldor’s mouth.
Zeke’s intention was painfully obvious.
‘So he thinks he can humiliate me by making me fight that guy, and I’ll just fall for it?’
No matter how strong mages were, the opponent was an advanced-level Aura Expert.
You’d need to be at least a 6-Circle mage to stand a chance, but I’m only a 4-Circle. How could I possibly compete?
It was a fight I couldn’t win.
“Listen, future brother-in-law. It’s not a bad proposal, but if you’re going to suggest an opponent, at least choose properly. How am I supposed to spar with an advanced-level Aura Expert when I’m only 4-Circle? If you’re going to match me with someone, it should be someone of similar rank.”
“Is that so? What about me, then?”
“What?”
“I think I could beat my future brother-in-law.”
“What did you just say?”
Seeing Zeke’s smirk, wrinkles formed between Theo Baldor’s brows.
“Are you seriously suggesting a magical duel with me right now?”
“No. I’ve been learning swordplay lately since I have nothing else to do. You use magic, and I’ll use the sword. How about it?”
“Ha, haha!”
At the absurd proposal, Theo Baldor burst into laughter despite himself.
It was no different from a child challenging an adult to a fight—how could it not be ridiculous?
‘Being looked down upon by someone who hasn’t even learned Aura or magic. This is pathetic.’
Even as hollow laughter bubbled up, a subtle anger simmered beneath the surface.
I wanted to repay the humiliation I’d just suffered, no matter what.
My pride had already been wounded once, after all.
“Haha, it’s an amusing proposal, but how could I possibly use magic against someone who hasn’t even learned Aura? I should match you fairly too.”
“How so?”
“I won’t use magic either. I haven’t learned swordplay, but with the weight class difference, isn’t that fair enough?”
“That works for me.”
Though I said this, I was far from being a fair person.
My mind was already filled with plans to win using magic.
‘I’ll secretly cast Strength and Haste on myself. I’ll wrap my body in Mana Skin to make it solid.’
After all, the opponent was just a brat who couldn’t even sense magical power.
There was no way he’d notice if I buffed my own body.
‘You dare challenge me just because you’ve learned a bit of swordplay? I’ll have you crawling on the ground before we even start.’
As I glared with burning eyes, Zeke smiled knowingly.
Unaware of the fate that was about to befall him.
“Then shall we head to the Training Ground?”

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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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