The Son-In-Law of the Magician Is a Transcendent Sword Master - Chapter 42

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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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Chapter 42

 

“Renia, what on earth is going on.”

 

I hastily shoved the barrier stone under the blanket as I answered. Fortunately, Renia didn’t notice the barrier stone I had been holding in my hand.

 

“More importantly, let’s air this place out first. What is this smell? Did you roll around in some sewer? At least wash up before lying on the bed. If Sheril had been here, she would have nagged you endlessly.”

 

Renia frowned as she opened the window. The cold night air drove out the foul smell that had lingered in the room.

 

Only then did Renia sit on the edge of the bed and set down the tray she had been carrying on the bedside table. On the tray were two steaming teacups and cookies.

 

“The Rodel Council prepared this for the welcome party a little while ago, but I snuck some out to eat with you. You said you haven’t even had dinner yet, right?”

 

“…Well, I didn’t have an appetite.”

 

“What’s wrong with the kid who usually eats like he’s possessed?”

 

Renia’s eyes, which had been teasing, suddenly became crescent-shaped. She stared at me intently.

 

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

 

“Hmm… Your expression looks bad.”

 

“…”

 

“What did you talk about with Father earlier? Did you get scolded?”

 

“No. I actually got praised.”

 

“Then why do you look so depressed?”

 

“Do I look depressed?”

 

“Hmm… At least that’s how it looks to me.”

 

As I kept my mouth shut for a moment, Renia munched on a buttered cookie and said.

 

“So, who is Demian? Is he someone you met recently?”

 

“…It’s nothing.”

 

“For it to be nothing, Reagan, you looked pretty upset?”

 

In that short time, Renia had grasped my state of mind and even noticed that the cause was a person named Demian.

 

Renia’s intuition is always sharp.

 

That wasn’t an exception even now that I had returned to the past.

 

I gave a bitter smile in surrender and told her the truth.

 

“It’s the name of an Imperial Magic Association investigator.”

 

“That person you talked about today? Did something happen?”

 

“Nothing… happened. Not yet.”

 

Not yet.

 

But in a few years, that bastard will call himself the Archmage King and turn the Empire into a burning hell.

 

Even if I told young Renia this fact, it would only cause her worry. It’s not the right time yet.

 

I decided to give her a vague answer.

 

“He’s just an unpleasant bastard. The arrogance typical of mages was piercing the sky.”

 

“Haha. Are you talking about our brother?”

 

Renia nodded casually and laughed. Then she picked up a teacup, blew on it, and handed it to me.

 

The moment I reluctantly took the teacup, Renia firmly grasped my wrist. Then her left hand swept inside my shirt.

 

A sudden attack. I couldn’t shake her off since I was holding a cup filled with hot tea.

 

“Renia, what are you doing all of a sudden. Men and women should maintain proper distance…”

 

“What kind of old man talk is that. I’m checking if you have any wounds on your body.”

 

Ignoring my resistance, Renia undid a couple of shirt buttons and carefully examined my collarbone, chest, and stomach.

 

Her white fingers brushed over my unmarked skin. My body stiffened involuntarily at the ticklish yet strange sensation.

 

After examining me for a while, Renia finally seemed relieved and withdrew her hands with a sigh.

 

“You’re fine.”

 

“I told you. Not a single scratch.”

 

“I heard from Uncle Valen earlier. You fought that monster-like mercenary alone. Brock also said you two were stuck together slashing at each other! Do you know how dangerous that was?”

 

“Isn’t it fine since I won? And I really don’t have any injuries, so don’t worry.”

 

“Victory isn’t what’s important! If you had gotten hurt…”

 

“If I had?”

 

When I asked back, Renia scrunched up her face.

 

“…I would have given Uncle Valen a thorough scolding.”

 

Definitely.

 

That sounded like something Renia would do.

 

Even in my previous life, when I returned injured, she would go find the healer or commander and nag them until the tent shook.

 

As I was nodding in understanding, Renia was suddenly glaring at me with narrowed eyes. I obediently said what she wanted to hear.

 

“I’m sorry. I won’t act recklessly from now on.”

 

“That’s a promise, right?”

 

Along with the word promise, she extended her pinky finger. I unconsciously drew in a breath.

 

Though she hadn’t even reached adulthood yet, she was already identical to Renia from my memories.

 

I gave a bitter smile and hooked my finger with Renia’s. However, instead of shaking our fingers, she was staring intently at my face.

 

“There’s that expression again.”

 

“…What?”

 

“Reagan, you made that expression while looking at me again.”

 

At Renia’s words, I touched my face. I felt my slightly twisted lips.

 

“That expression?”

 

“Yes. That expression. The same one you made when you first met me.”

 

“…First time?”

 

In this life, I first met Renia at the graveyard. On the anniversary of her mother’s death, Renia had visited the cemetery, and I had repelled the Black Mages’ attack that targeted that opportunity.

 

Why was she suddenly bringing up our first meeting?

 

“You told our father, didn’t you. That you fell for me at first sight.”

 

“I did… say that.”

 

“That’s a lie.”

 

Renia stated firmly. She puffed out one cheek as if somewhat displeased and didn’t let go of the hand gripping my shirt.

 

“You didn’t fall for me at first sight.”

 

“What do you mean…”

 

“I can tell just by looking at that expression. Reagan, when you look at me, you’re thinking of someone else.”

 

“…”

 

I was speechless.

 

Renia’s violet eyes were seeing right through my inner thoughts.

 

It was the same in my previous life. She always had an uncanny ability to find the flaws and emotions I wanted to hide.

 

At this point, making excuses would be meaningless.

 

“…You really are too perceptive.”

 

I gave a bitter smile and raised both hands in surrender.

 

“You’re right. Saying I fell for you at first sight was a lie.”

 

When I admitted it, Renia’s eyes filled with disappointment. The hand that had been gripping my shirt also slowly loosened. Her fingers, having lost their destination, wandered in the air before firmly grasping the bed sheet.

 

“I thought so. Yeah.”

 

Renia murmured. The girl who was always confident now had the face of a hurt child.

 

Perhaps that’s why. Without realizing it, I said something completely out of character.

 

“…Renia, shall I tell you an old story?”

 

“What kind of story?”

 

“Well, it’s like a very long dream.”

 

“…I’ll listen.”

 

Renia sat leaning against the headboard of the bed. Thanks to her letting go of my clothes, I could also start the story in a comfortable position.

 

“It’s a story from when I lived as a lowly mercenary.”

 

“That mercenary group you were in?”

 

“Something like that.”

 

I fixed my gaze on the moon outside the window and traced through my memories of my previous life.

 

“While living like a mayfly, I met a bold noble young lady.”

 

“A noble young lady?”

 

“Yes. She was the daughter of a fallen noble family. She suddenly extended her hand to me.”</Human: Continue with CHUNK 2 of 3 from Chapter 42.

Renia’s eyes widened in surprise. I chuckled softly and continued my story.

 

“I don’t really know why, but I found myself taking her hand as if enchanted.”

 

The bombardment of the battlefield. The smell of blood. And even amidst all that, Renia’s golden hair that shone brightly.

 

I still remember all of it vividly even now.

 

“That young lady was quite peculiar. She couldn’t sleep if her bed was uncomfortable, she’d nag at the drop of a hat, and she was so reckless. Even when she was the one about to get hurt, she’d scold the man instead.”

 

“What a troublesome person.”

 

“Exactly. She really was troublesome.”

 

Renia listened to my story without even realizing that she was the protagonist of that tale.

 

As I was chuckling, she asked.

 

“So? What happened to them? Did they live happily ever after?”

 

“No.”

 

I shook my head.

 

“They had a long farewell.”

 

“They broke up.”

 

“Yes. Very far apart.”

 

Perhaps sensing that it meant death, Renia murmured.

 

“…How should I put it, that’s quite a mature story.”

 

“A mature story…”

 

“Yeah. Really. Reagan, you’ve lived quite a mature life.”

 

Renia gave a bitter smile.

 

The moment I saw that face, the desperate smile that Renia had shown me even as she was dying, pierced through by the Archmage King’s magic, flashed through my mind.

 

‘Certainly.’

 

The expression I’m making now must be that expression she mentioned.

 

‘Damn it.’

 

I thought I wasn’t soft enough to get sentimental over those memories.

 

Strangely, whenever I stand before this girl, I end up saying too many unnecessary things.

 

“…Anyway, that’s all there is to it. What I missed when looking at you was probably the shadow of that young lady.”

 

“Does my face resemble that young lady’s?”

 

“Yes. Very much so.”

 

“My personality too?”

 

“Like two peas in a pod. Stubborn, bold, and charming.”

 

At my last words, Renia’s cheeks flushed red. She cleared her throat and turned her gaze away.

 

I looked straight at Renia and said.

 

“But Renia, don’t misunderstand.”

 

“…”

 

“Even if I thought of that young lady from the past when I looked at you, that doesn’t mean I see you as a replacement. I’m looking at you who’s right in front of me now.”

 

I was sincere.

 

The Renia of the past has already departed. She’s just a mirage shining faintly beneath the surface of consciousness.

 

The person I must protect and be with is this girl who’s breathing in front of me right now.

 

“Ah, hahaha.”

 

Renia widened her eyes for a moment, then burst into laughter.

 

“Well, of course I know that.”

 

“You knew?”

 

“Of course. Reagan, you’ve already saved me twice. At the graveyard and at the Hunting Festival. And you’ll continue to do so. I don’t think you can risk your life based on simple duty or longing alone. I can tell that you cherish me.”

 

Renia jumped down from the bed and stood in front of me.

 

She placed her hands on her hips and puffed out her chest.

 

“And it’s the same for me. I didn’t fall for you at first sight either, Reagan. It’s a draw between us.”

 

“…”

 

Renia put on a deliberately haughty expression and acted proud. Just as I was about to chuckle at her childish demeanor.

 

“So, I’m going to try to fall for you from now on.”

 

Renia raised her index finger and poked my chest.

 

“Reagan, you too. Try to fall for the current me, the woman named Renia Erahan von Benheim, not that young lady from the past.”

 

“…”

 

“There are still two years left until I come of age, right? We have plenty of time. So until the day we officially hold our wedding ceremony, whoever falls first wins.”

 

Renia’s eyes were full of mischief, but her tone wasn’t entirely playful.

 

Bold yet confident.

 

Perhaps this disposition is Renia’s greatest weapon and the reason I’m so firmly captivated by her beyond even life itself.

 

“…Alright. I’ll try.”

 

When I nodded, Renia smiled brightly against the backdrop of the night sky.

 

A sweet buttery fragrance tickled my nose.

 

* * *

 

The dim underground prison.

 

Listening to the regular dripping of water, the black mage Calus let out a deep sigh.

 

“Haah…”

 

It had already been three days since the black mage outpost in Mist Valley was completely suppressed.

 

Calus was temporarily imprisoned in Rodel’s underground prison.

 

“Damn it…”

 

Calus sighed as if the ground would cave in. Though he had roughly expected to meet such a fate from the moment he became a black mage, he never thought it would be this miserable.

 

“To betray my comrades and even get caught.”

 

Though he said it was to survive, the fact that Calus was a traitor was an undeniable truth. If this fact reached the black mages imprisoned in Grave, he would surely be beaten to death. And that wouldn’t be all. His corpse would be torn apart too.

 

It was all because of that brat. Calus gritted his teeth.

 

“Reagan… was it? That little punk…”

 

Just as he was ruminating on his hatred for Reagan.

 

The sound of clicking shoes could be heard from outside the bars, and soon a man entered the underground prison.

 

He was a figure with black hair and red eyes.

 

“Are you Calus?”

 

“…Who are you?”

 

“I’m Damian Carius, Chief Investigator of the Magic Association. I’ve come to hear your statement.”

 

The Imperial Magic Association.

 

That name was no different from the grim reaper to black mages. But what was there to fear when he was already captured?

 

Calus remained sitting in his dazed position and looked up at the investigator, Damian.

 

“What business does a hunting dog of the Magic Association have with me?”

 

“Ah, there’s no need to be so hostile. I’m an ally.”

 

“An… ally?”

 

Calus tilted his head.

 

A Magic Association investigator calling himself an ally. Even appeasement tactics had their limits. Just as Calus was about to sneer.

 

Flash.

 

Black mana rose from Damian’s palm.

 

Though Calus was only a 3rd-tier mage, he could certainly grasp the overwhelming density of that mana. Not only that, the mana Damian drew out contained a special power.

 

That was…

 

“Black magic?”

 

“Yes. I’m a black mage. Just like you.”

 

Calus’s mouth fell open. Why would an investigator who hunts black mages use black magic?

 

“I told you, didn’t I? I’m an ally. And the reason I came here is because I have a proposal for you.”

 

Damian took out a key and opened the cell door.

 

Suddenly freed, Calus looked up at Damian in bewilderment.

 

“…I heard you were subdued by Reagan von Benheim. And that you betrayed your comrades because you couldn’t withstand the threats.”

 

Damian lowered his posture. His lips curved into an arc.

 

“I’ll give you a chance to make amends. How about it? You don’t want to be dragged to Grave like this, do you?”

 

“…Ma, make amends?”

 

“Yes. I’ll turn a blind eye to betrayal. I didn’t expect loyalty to begin with. That’s just the nature of Black Mages, isn’t it.”

 

Calus blinked, then suddenly came to his senses.

 

This investigator, no, this Black Mage was throwing him a lifeline.

 

At this rate, he would die without a doubt. There was no reason to refuse. Calus nodded vigorously.

 

“Good. Then, this is a gift from me.”

 

The next moment, black mana gathered at Demian’s fingertips. Incomprehensible mana. Even Calus, who had some knowledge of black magic, couldn’t even begin to fathom what that spell was.

 

This is dangerous. Calus hastily opened his mouth.

 

“W-wait! Let me think…!”

 

―Thunk.

 

Demian’s index finger pierced through Calus’s mana core.

 

That was his last memory.

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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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