The Son-In-Law of the Magician Is a Transcendent Sword Master - Chapter 128

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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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Chapter 128
The next morning, Renia unsurprisingly suffered from a terrible hangover.
“…Reagan, I’m so dizzy….”
Wrapped in blankets like a cocoon with only her face poking out, Renia retched pathetically—a sight reminiscent of a baby bird stretching its beak beyond the nest’s edge.
The difference, however, was that Renia was an adult woman, not an infant, and every sound of her suffering was entirely self-inflicted.
“That’s why you should’ve exercised some restraint while drinking. Yesterday I watched you accept every single cup they offered and drain it.”
At Aconia’s succession ceremony party yesterday, Renia had guzzled alcohol until dawn.
Without exaggeration, she’d emptied every glass placed before her.
My attempts to dissuade her—suggesting she drink moderately and retire early to sleep—fell on deaf ears. In fact, I couldn’t even be certain the thoroughly intoxicated Renia had heard me at all.
“But everyone was laughing and making merry. How could I not drink? Besides, that wine was so sweet and tangy—I had no idea it was so potent.”
“Renia, this is all your karma.”
“…You drank with me too, Reagan. You actually drank more than I did. Why are you perfectly fine?”
Renia grumbled petulantly, and I shrugged.
Unlike mages, swordsmen can regulate their intoxication even after consuming large quantities of alcohol. It’s a technique made possible by being simultaneously a 6th Rank Mage and a Sword Expert.
“Ugh… that’s cheating.”
After handing Renia a glass of water and stepping out of the tent while she continued moaning, Saya Aconia was waiting outside as if she’d been expecting me.
Instead of the loose-fitting white robes she’d worn yesterday, Saya now wore a black robe embroidered with a scorpion motif—clearly the formal vestments of Aconia’s Head.
“…Good morning, Head.”
After offering a proper morning greeting, Saya nodded somewhat stiffly, as if the title felt unfamiliar to her. Then she looked at me with a meaningful smile—one that was decidedly suspicious.
“What is it?”
“Nothing happened the night before?”
“What are you talking about?”
“A married couple drinks heavily and shares a bed together, yet nothing occurs? Isn’t that rather strange?”
Saya was clearly harboring a significant misunderstanding.
She apparently believed that Renia and I had engaged in some passionate activity in the tent last night.
“I’m afraid you’re mistaken. Renia naturally sleeps very deeply—on nights when she drinks, she wouldn’t wake even if a bomb exploded right in front of her. Besides, I don’t become intoxicated.”
“…Hmm.”
Saya frowned at my response.
“You certainly know a great deal about your wife, Reagan. I heard you’ve been married less than a month.”
“Well….”
It’s thanks to my previous life’s experience.
Renia had originally enjoyed alcohol quite a bit, and she’d gotten along especially well with Valen.
Except during the final years when the Imperial Palace collapsed and the war situation became dire, Renia had indulged in drinking whenever she had time to rest. Soothing and comforting an intoxicated Renia had always fallen to me.
Looking back now, it might have been Renia’s own way of forgetting her pain.
‘…No, that must have been it.’
An 8th Rank Archmage couldn’t possibly fail to control her intoxication.
Ultimately, Renia drank to become drunk, and she became drunk to forget.
Now that I think about it, Valen—who drank constantly in my previous life—had said something similar.
– When you drink… well, at least you’re not afraid of tomorrow.
In this life, I would ensure that Renia never turned to alcohol for such reasons.
“…That expression.”
Saya’s voice pulled me from my reverie. She continued, studying my face.
“A distant, wistful smile, as if gazing into some far-off place.”
“…What?”
“Just as Renia mentioned yesterday. I can tell at a glance. Were you thinking of the past again?”
“….”
Seeing how both Renia and Saya reacted similarly, it seemed my expression whenever I recalled my previous life was remarkably transparent.
Feeling oddly embarrassed by the teasing, I changed the subject.
“Regardless, what were you and Rashek discussing at dawn?”
“…What?”
“You left the camp for a while in the middle of the night, and came back much later. I wondered if you’d met with Rashek.”
“…You noticed that?”
“My senses are quite keen.”
Saya let out a long sigh.
“Lord Reagan… you are truly perceptive. As you guessed, I stepped outside and spoke with Lord Rashek for a time.”
“What did you discuss?”
“Though Aconia and Maelern currently despise one another… I expressed my desire to narrow that rift in the future. As the next head of my house, I made a sort of pact with him.”
“Is that all?”
“Is that all…? What do you mean by that?”
“A man and woman, both intoxicated, meeting in secret in the dead of night—surely there was more than just talk.”
I returned the very words Saya had directed at Renia and me moments before.
At that, Saya’s ears flushed slightly. Given her naturally pale complexion, even this hint of embarrassment became quite visible.
“…Lord Reagan, you are quite mischievous….”
Saya murmured, her head bowed in shame. My suspicion seemed to have struck true.
After all, they had fought side by side against formidable foes, their backs pressed together. Having received the debt of saving each other’s lives, how could feelings not blossom?
Eventually, Saya abandoned her denials, her shoulders sagging as she whispered quietly.
“…Lord Reagan, I would appreciate it if you kept this matter secret from the other Aconia mages.”
“Of course.”
The heir of Maelern and the head of Aconia had shared a secret rendezvous in the night.
Should the other Aconia mages learn of this, Saya, having only recently assumed her position as head, would face considerable complications.
As I nodded, Saya gazed out over the camp with a bitter smile.
“Truly… much will change in the days to come. As time passes… it will.”
“…You say the same thing as Rashek.”
At my words, Saya shrugged.
In the end, the hatred between houses, too, would fade with the passage of time.
I was quietly savoring that thought when—
Crash!
The gate to the camp burst open roughly. All eyes turned toward it. There stood Rashek, disheveled and gasping for breath.
“….”
The atmosphere turned cold in an instant. Even if Saya, as head of Aconia, welcomed Rashek, her subordinate mages held a different view.
Rashek was well aware of that fact too.
Which meant he had a reason to suddenly appear at the camp in broad daylight like this.
“Rashek, what’s the matter?”
“This is serious, Reagan. It’s strange for me to say this, but….”
Rashek caught his breath before speaking, as if expelling the words.
“Maelern’s combat mages… they’re heading this way.”
“….”
Just moments ago.
I had said that hatred fades with time.
It seemed that only Aconia’s mages resented that fact.
* * *
Saya, Rashek, and I hurriedly left the camp.
After advancing through the blackened forest for several minutes, we encountered a group that was heading toward us.
The mages were all dressed in green robes. Unlike the uniforms of Benheim or Iridia, these were sleeveless robes designed for mobility in the jungle.
“…Rashek, do you know who they are?”
“The Bokryeongdae. They’re the elite mages of the family… Maelern’s greatest military force….”
In other words, they held the same standing as the Rune Sentinels in Benheim.
According to Rashek’s explanation, the Bokryeongdae mages were all 4th or 5th Rank cultivators. The leader at the front even emanated the distinctive aura of a 6th Rank.
“Did they come here looking for a fight?”
“…Probably. It seems they intend to attack Aconia.”
At Rashek’s murmur, Saya’s face twisted with rage.
“…Those Maelern bastards… day after day… how dare they threaten Aconia Territory….”
Just as Saya stepped forward, unable to contain herself, Rashek raised his hand to stop her.
“Leave this to me, Saya. I am Maelern’s heir. I will persuade them to turn back.”
Rashek stepped in front of the Bokryeongdae mages and shouted.
“By the authority of Rashek el Maelern, the legitimate heir of Maelern, I command you! Bokryeongdae, halt at once!”
The word of the heir carries no small weight in Maelern.
An order from the future head of the family. Even the elite of Maelern had no choice but to obey.
Yet despite Rashek’s command, Maelern’s combat mages did not stop.
“Did you not hear me! I told you to stop at once!”
Rashek shouted again, but to no avail. Eventually, he changed his approach, singling out the commander of the Bokryeongdae at the front.
“…Sharkan Maelern! Stop this instant! If you take even one more step, I will punish you with the full authority of the heir!”
But Sharkan, the Bokryeongdae commander whose name was called, shook his head with an awkward expression.
“Young Master, I apologize. But… I too am merely following orders.”
“Orders? From whom!”
“….”
Sharkan did not answer, but by now Rashek likely had some idea.
There was only one reason why Maelern’s mages would ignore their heir’s command.
And that was….
“Rashek.”
A deep, resonant baritone voice cut through the air as a man emerged from among the Beast Face Society mages.
“You abandon the family without permission, and here you are playing house with these people?”
Bronzed skin identical to Rashek’s, short-cropped hair contrasting with a thick, unkempt beard.
I recognized the face as well.
Just two years ago, I had encountered this man at the Grand Mage Council gathering held in Orelion.
“Father….”
Rashek muttered the words with a hollow expression.
* * *
Kashar El Maelern.
Head of Maelern and king of the southern mages.
Yet within the Great Mage Alliance, the perception of Maelern was decidedly unfavorable.
Even Steren, renowned for his affability, harbored disdain for Maelern’s mages, and Rosaline Blair, the Archmage of Thorn Tower, treated them as reckless troublemakers.
Kashar’s temperament as the family head accounted for more than ninety percent of the reason Maelern received such treatment.
“Rashek, have you lost your mind?”
True to form, Kashar’s face twisted the moment he laid eyes on Rashek, and he began to berate him.
“The heir of Maelern abandons the family on a whim and prowls through the Southern Forest as though it were his own home. Do you truly intend to drag Maelern’s honor through the dirt? And furthermore….”
Kashar’s gaze shifted to Saya, who stood directly beside Rashek.
“Dallying with a woman from Aconia. How pathetic. This matter is not something to be overlooked lightly.”
“….”
“Rashek, do you truly believe you have the right to represent the bloodline of Maelern?”
Kashar fixed Rashek with a glare, his hands clasped behind his back. A 7th Rank Grand Mage could infuse killing intent into a mere glance.
Rashek, meeting that gaze directly, seemed crushed by the overwhelming pressure, his body trembling.
“…I will give you one last chance. Return to my side at once, Rashek. As the heir, I will show some leniency.”
“…Father, what do you intend to do with Aconia?”
“Aconia conspired with Black Mages and unleashed Chimeras upon Maelern’s Domain. They will face judgment for this.”
“That’s not true! They are innocent victims who suffered at the hands of the Chimera Sorcerers!”
“I did not ask for your opinion. If I, as the family head, say it is so, then it is.”
Hearing Kashar’s brazen words, I grasped the general situation.
‘…How transparent this scheme is.’
Kashar El Maelern must have known the circumstances of the Southern Forest better than anyone.
The Beast Face Society controlling the Southern Forest, synthesizing Chimeras using wild spirits as raw materials, kidnapping Aconia’s mages—all of it.
The reason he did not intervene directly was that he expected the Chimera Sorcerers, who had long been a thorn in his side, to eliminate Aconia for him.
After that, he could simply dispose of the Chimera Sorcerers.
But when Rashek and we intervened and his plan fell apart, the family head himself stepped forward.
To frame Aconia with false accusations of conspiring with Black Mages and annihilate them entirely.
It was contemptible, nauseating.
For one who claimed to be the leader of the southern mages to collude with Black Mages—and to use Chimera Sorcerers as hunting dogs, no less.
“Step aside at once, Rashek. My patience ends here.”
Kashar spoke with killing intent laid bare, yet Rashek trembled and held his ground.
Watching him, I exhaled softly and stepped forward, placing myself before Rashek.
Fortunately, Renia—who would normally restrain me—was currently indisposed with a hangover.
Thus, I was free to speak my mind without anyone holding me back.
“Hey, Rashek.”
“…Reagan?”
Rashek turned toward me, and I casually draped a hand across his shoulder as I continued.
“You know, we made a mistake. We thought we’d killed all the Chimeras, but there’s still one left. Wouldn’t you say?”
My sudden remark hung in the air like a heavy silence.
Rashek, Saya, the Bokryeongdae mages, and even Kashar stared at me with bewildered expressions.
“Reagan, what are you talking about? A Chimera…?”
Rashek asked.
I paid no mind to the flood of stares and replied.
“Look over there. There’s another human-sized Chimera.”
I raised my hand and pointed at Kashar.
Everyone gasped in shock.
Understanding my words, Kashar’s temples suddenly bulged with veins.
“You… are you calling me a Chimera right now?”
“Your reaction says it all. You’re lower than a beast.”

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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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