Chapter 16

Chapter 16
## Chapter 16
The dust swirled on the platform as the servants entered all at once. The duel was over, and it was time to clean.

Among them, Diella was clearly the one who needed the most help.

Her small body had crossed the platform at full speed, and now, bruised from the fall and devoid of magic, she was a mess. Seeing her cough and cry provoked not anger, but only pity.

Seeing Diella in that state, Leigh was left speechless.

“Ah… ahh…”

Her sobs and the way she clutched her wounds were truly pitiful. It was supposed to be a ceremonial magic duel between nobles, but Leigh had never foreseen such an outcome.

“I… I am so sorry…”

Just as he was about to speak, Leigh stopped. Was he going to apologize? To poor Diella, who seemed mocked even by the heavens?

But the Diella he saw during the duel was very different from the one he knew.

Had she changed?

He wasn’t entirely sure what exactly had changed, but at the very least, he knew that Diella had sincerely wanted to prove her worth through this duel.

The result was not favorable, of course, but sometimes the process itself holds more meaning. That was why Leigh could not mock or scold Diella as she lay there crying.

There was an indescribable glory in those who challenge themselves with everything they have. To ridicule that lightly would be shameful. Leigh stood there for a long time, not knowing what to say…

“I will accompany you to the inner rooms. You must receive treatment first.”

With the help of the servants, Diella finally pushed them aside and stood up on her own. Then she approached Leigh, her eyes still red and swollen from frustration.

But a loss was still a loss. Diella bowed her head silently to Leigh and passed by him alone.

Leigh could only watch, his eyes wide.

Tap, tap.

Then Diella descended from the platform and headed toward Dereck, who had been silently observing the duel among the servants.

She stopped right in front of Dereck, who remained motionless, her body bruised. A smear of blood ran down her cheek, and her blonde hair and ruffled dress were covered in dust.

The girl had been crying moments before, but now she tried to maintain the dignity befitting a noble. Complaining and wailing in front of a commoner was unseemly for someone of her status.

A noble lady must always be proud and elegant. Diella had always been like a proud and distant cat. A wild and proud cat always walks along the fence, even in the dust.

Thus, although her lower lip trembled, the girl spoke in a low voice.

“I lost.”

Her emotional shield, forged with nobility and authority, contained the torrent seething in her heart. Even so, she had to press her hands against her chest to keep the emotions from overflowing bit by bit.

“I am sorry.”

The girl offered a brief apology. The other was a commoner. She had accepted Dereck’s teachings and had stood on the platform to demonstrate them, but she had been utterly defeated and had cried in shame.

She only apologized for that.

Dereck remained still, watching her, and after a moment, he said slowly:

“It’s okay.”

“…”

“It’s okay to lose.”

Dereck was not one to beat around the bush. Because of that, every word he uttered carried weight.

“Life is full of losses sometimes.”

Upon hearing those words, the dam holding back her emotions finally broke, and the girl wept, choked by sobs.

Surrounded by servants who rushed to heal her wounds, she cried and cried.

***

Thud.

Miriela, followed by several servants, walked toward the platform in the garden. With fists clenched, she moved forward with a firm step, her face flushed with heat.

And her anger reached its peak upon seeing Diella bruised and sobbing.

“Diella!”

Miriela quickly passed the servants attending to Diella, who was being taken to receive treatment. She knelt down to examine Diella’s wounds.

They were not serious injuries, but the thought of possible scars unsettled her. Heedless of the dirt staining her dress, Miriela hugged Diella tightly.

“Oh… Diella… You’ve been through so much… It’s okay… You can rely on me now…”

“Mother…”

“First we must treat her wounds. Go with the servants and receive medical attention immediately.”

With that, Miriela let go of Diella and turned her glaring gaze toward Dereck.

Her eyes shone with a contained fury.

Miriela approached Dereck and grabbed him by the collar.

“You… do you even understand what you have done?”

“…”

Dereck remained motionless, hands clasped behind his back, his blood-red eyes narrowed.

“Do you think you’ve done something great? A first-tier spell? Those are learned gradually, even if late. You have taught the noble daughter of House Duplain, who should be a lady of haughtiness, the most sordid and shameful depths. You do not comprehend the gravity of this.”

“…”

Slap!

Miriela’s hand, driven by fury, struck Dereck. He turned his face to look at her, his cheek swollen, but she showed no remorse whatsoever.

All the nearby servants swallowed hard, breaking into a cold sweat.

Miriela’s fury seemed to permeate the air around Dereck.

“What could someone like you, who rose from the very bottom, know of noble culture? Do you understand how dangerous the social circles of Ebelstain are, like an ice field? It is a place where creatures who are above the clouds gather. You couldn’t understand how desperate life is there, tainted by the filth of the sewers.”

“…”

“There is a world that common people like you can never understand. A world where one must maintain courtesy and dignity, demonstrate excellence through magic duels, and defend the values that deserve protection. A world… that someone of your humble origin could never understand.”

Slap.

Clenching her teeth, Miriela slapped Dereck again. He remained calm, hands still behind his back.

“For Diella… I would do anything. To cast a plague like you out of her life would be nothing. I will use any means necessary…”

Stomp, stomp.

It was at the peak of Miriela’s fury when Grand Duke Duplain descended from the platform, revealing himself.

The servants gathered there bowed their heads in respect. The Grand Duke of Duplain, lord of the duchy, walked among them with a stern countenance, hands still clasped behind his back.

To common people, he was such an imposing figure that they could only bow before him. His arrival plunged the area into a deathly silence, and only one person dared to raise their voice in such an atmosphere.

“You! You saw the duel, didn’t you?! All of this… is the work of this fool! If you have a tongue, speak…!”

What happened next stunned everyone present.

Slap.

A deathly silence, as if time had stopped, took hold of the place in front of the platform. The servants, and even the nobles, were stunned. Only then did Miriela realize she had been slapped. Her trembling eyes reflected her inner anguish.

Only after feeling the sting on her cheek did she realize that her husband, who still maintained a stern expression, had struck her.

“Do you not see who is being more reckless here?”

“You… What… What is this…?”

Miriela, with trembling lips, turned and spoke again. Everyone around her was sweating from nerves. As a noble lady of an aristocratic house, she had never experienced such a hard blow. No one dared to do such a thing.

But, in reality, there was one exception.

Once she recognized this undeniable fact, her mind fell into chaos.

“You… Why…? That man is nothing more than a commoner, an insignificant mercenary from the slums. You know well the nobility of Duplain.”

“Yes, you are right. He is nothing more than a wandering mercenary from the slums, a man who dishonors the name of House Duplain.”

“Then… why…?”

“However, he is our daughter’s tutor.”

At those words, Miriela’s eyes widened. The Duke’s stern expression remained, but it was evident that something had changed within him.

“What father in this world would treat his child’s tutor this way?”

If the Duke of Duplain, ruler of the duchy, had made a firm decision, no one could object. The slap shook Miriela’s heart.

As the Duke passed her, Miriela’s knees buckled from the shock, and the nearby servants rushed to support her. The Duke of Duplain did not look at her; instead, he walked toward Dereck, hands still behind his back, as his footsteps resonated.

This was not the same figure who wrote in his study, but the Duke himself, flanked by numerous servants, making a solemn bow, surrounded by an intimidating aura.

In a low voice, he spoke to Dereck.

The words that followed made all the servants doubt what they were hearing.

“There are many ways to love a child. Please, forgive us with humility.”

“…”

Even Dereck, who always maintained his composure, blinked in disbelief, as if he hadn’t expected it. That the Duke of a realm would offer an apology in that manner was unimaginable. Even more so because the one receiving it was simply a commoner from the street.

“No, no.”

“Then, there are things we must discuss in private. Come with me to the reception hall.”

With that, the Duke crossed the stunned crowd and returned discreetly to the mansion.

As he walked, all the followers gathered at the site bowed their heads.

***

When Dereck entered the hall, the Duke of Duplain was reviewing documents on a gold-carved sofa. His posture—legs crossed, chin resting on one hand—was as familiar as ever.

He was a man so busy that even this brief break had to be dedicated to work. Managing this vast duchy was no easy task.

As he entered, he looked at Dereck, then looked away and gestured toward a chair in front of him. It was an informal invitation to sit.

Dereck bowed in silence and then took a seat.

Rustle, rustle.

For a while, only the sound of pages turning filled the room. Then, suddenly, the Duke asked, almost as if throwing the words:

“Speak if you have something to say.”

“…”

The Duke directed those words to Dereck as if he were testing him. It was an invitation to speak first if he had anything on his mind.

But Dereck had nothing more to say. He was a man who preferred to prove his worth with deeds rather than words.

“I don’t have much to say.”

“Good, that’s fine.”

The Duke of Duplain seemed to appreciate that quality in him, as he showed no signs of displeasure. Then, tossing the documents onto the table, he stroked his chin and said:

“For the record, I don’t particularly like employing common people like you.”

“I know.”

“However… credit must be given where credit is due.”

The Duke’s dry eyes turned toward Dereck.

“You are competent.”

The Duke was neither too emotional nor too cold in his dealings. It seemed to be his way of leading people.

“A ruler is someone who employs capable people and grants them credit based on merit.”

“I was promised a reward.”

“Do you mean the financial price Aiselin offered?”

Only a noble could consider fifteen gold coins from Aidel cheap. Ironically, the man in front of him was a noble among nobles. When Dereck closed his eyes tightly, the Duke of Duplain let out a dry laugh.

Then, with his usual steady voice, he said:

“You have taught Diella an excellent first-tier spell. But achievements like that are not enough to survive in the harsh noble society.”

“That may be true. But not many in Duplain could guide Lady Diella as well as you. Now that she has tasted magic, she will advance even further.”

“What my daughter needs is not a magic tutor, but a mentor.”

There was firmness in the Duke’s voice.

“But my eyes are not deceived. You have great ambition, an ambition that someone of humble origin should not even dare to dream of.”

“…”

The Duke’s eyes, trying to understand Dereck, flickered. He had spent his life judging and analyzing people. He soon realized that Dereck dreamed of surpassing the third level, aspiring to reach the fourth and beyond.

“I am well aware of how humiliating that is for the proud nobles of Ebelstain. However, since you have achieved something, I will turn a blind eye.”

“…”

“However, if you harbor such intentions, you will not be able to remain long in a noble house like this. I already know you are ready to depart for Ebelstain at any moment. Perhaps you were always destined to be a wandering mercenary.”

“That is true.”

“I understand your ambition, but even so, I want you to continue teaching Diella for a little while longer.”

As the world of magic reached higher and higher levels, Dereck’s value also subtly changed.

The Duke of Duplain understood it perfectly: he knew exactly what to offer to keep a wanderer like Dereck tied to the noble mansion.

“The highest domain permitted for commoners is three stars, isn’t it? Do you aspire to reach that level?”

“…!”

“Of course, at this point, it is a reckless goal. But even so, you want to lay the foundation, don’t you?”

Observing Dereck’s reaction, the Duke snorted and pulled a small silver key from his pocket, tossing it indifferently onto the table in front of Dereck.

“Do you know what this is?”

“No.”

“It is the key to the underground archive, accessible only to direct descendants and high-ranking officials of House Duplain.”

With his chin resting on his hand, the Duke spoke in a low voice.

“There, three-star spellbooks, valued at hundreds of gold coins, are scattered as if they were worthless.”

At that moment, Dereck’s eyes could not help but shine.

The Duke of Duplain was a man who, more than anyone, coldly and accurately understood what was needed to keep Dereck within the walls of the noble mansion.