Report
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Peptobismal]
[Proofreader - Max]
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Chapter 9
Zeke went up to the top floor where the Platinum Floor's exclusive lounge was located.
He was guided by a servant to the lounge, where Reina Draker was already seated.
Behind Reina stood several upperclassmen who followed the Turunn Clan.
Seeing that, Zeke scoffed inwardly.
'Do they think they're cartel members?'
To Zeke, it looked like child's play.
At Reina's gesture, the Turunn Clan cadets stepped back.
Zeke sat opposite Reina.
"I apologize. My family members are a bit... eccentric."
Reina had grown out her shaved head from the Cradle days into a short-cut.
Wearing the Draker cadet uniform and the gloves symbolizing a pure-blooded awakening, she looked like the epitome of a Draker knight.
'Amazing.'
Zeke sensed the energy emanating from Reina and realized that she had already opened her lower dantian and begun aura cultivation.
Once again, Zeke felt that the Draker Clan was a den of monsters.
"Why did you call me?"
Zeke asked Reina directly.
He hadn't refused the invitation out of curiosity about the Flash Knight, who was the strongest among the knights of his generation in his past life, but he didn't want to waste time on trivial matters.
Just then, the servants started bringing in the prepared food.
Plates piled with thick steaks were placed in front of Reina and Zeke.
"Let's talk while we eat."
Zeke was slightly surprised to see the massive amount of steak placed in front of Reina.
'Is she going to eat all that by herself?'
He wasn't a small eater himself, but Reina's appetite was beyond common sense.
She tore the bloody steak into chunks and shoved them into her mouth.
She finished a whole piece of steak in an instant.
Reina, seeing Zeke staring at her eating instead of touching the steak in front of him, asked,
"What's wrong?"
"No, it's nothing. So why did you call me?"
Reina wiped her mouth with a napkin and looked at Zeke.
"Zeke Draker. I won't beat around the bush. Accept the sponsorship of the Turunn Clan."
Accepting sponsorship meant becoming a member of the Turunn Clan.
Zeke clicked his tongue at Reina's words.
"You called me just to say that? I'm disappointed."
"It's not easy to graduate from the academy without a sponsor clan. Especially if you're aiming for Valhalla."
Valhalla.
It was the highest educational institution located in Atlas, the largest city in Midland, the heart of the Central Continent.
Like the academy they were currently in, Valhalla was also run by the Draker Clan.
Valhalla was the best knight training institution, and just entering it guaranteed one's future.
Over 70% of the knight commanders in the kingdoms located in the Central Continent were from Valhalla.
And not all Draker descendants could enter Valhalla.
Only the best of the best could enter.
Zeke looked at Reina and said,
"Did you think I wouldn't be able to enter Valhalla because I don't have a maternal clan to give me pocket money?"
The direct descendants, including Zeke, were all half-siblings with different mothers.
In the case of Abel Draker, the second son, his mother was from the Siemens clan, so he was sponsored by that clan.
Similarly, while other direct descendants had powerful families backing them, Zeke had no maternal clan to support him.
His mother had died of illness when he was young, and there was nothing he could learn about her, as if she didn't belong to any noteworthy clan.
Therefore, it was impossible for him to receive support from any faction related to his mother.
Knowing that Zeke had no sponsor clan, Reina was the first to offer the support of the Turunn Clan.
Reina continued speaking as she chewed and swallowed her steak.
"The Turunn Clan's sponsorship wouldn't be a bad offer. Unless you already have another clan to support you."
Reina wasn't wrong.
The Turunn Clan was one of the main retainer families of the Draker Clan.
The Power of Turunn.
The Knowledge of Siemens.
The Wealth of Valdec.
As one of the three families supporting the Drakers, the Turunn Clan's power would undoubtedly be of great help to Zeke's growth.
But Zeke firmly refused Reina's offer.
"No. It's the same with any clan. I don't feel the need to be sponsored."
Reina, who had been continuing her meal, was surprised and stopped at Zeke's blunt refusal.
She hadn't expected Zeke to refuse her offer.
Seeing Reina like that, Zeke recalled his memories of the Turunn Clan.
'If I get involved with the Turunns here, I could be tied down for life.'
Another way to describe the Turunn Clan was the Tenacity of Turunn.
With their unique organizational skills and unwavering loyalty, the Turunn Clan never let go of a target once they set their sights on it.
There was a reason why the Turunn Clan had been in charge of the Draker’s infamous pursuit unit, the 'Chase Squad,' for generations.
For Zeke, who wanted to graduate from the academy quickly, take what he needed from Valhalla, and leave the Draker Clan, the Turunns were more like chains that would bind him than reliable sponsors.
'I'm curious about the Turunn Clan's secret techniques, but even if I learn them, I'll lose more than I gain.'
Reina, who had already finished the steak on her plate, looked at Zeke and said,
"You never cease to amaze me, Zeke Draker."
"There will be more surprises in the future."
Zeke got up to leave but then stopped.
He turned to Reina and said,
"Reina Draker, let me give you some advice out of goodwill."
Reina looked at Zeke.
"Your current swordsmanship is too rigid. In my opinion, your strength isn't in brute force, but in the flexibility that comes from your uniquely resilient body. There's no need to force yourself to be strong like other men. If you utilize your flexibility, you can become several times stronger than you are now."
Reina stared blankly at Zeke's words.
Zeke was the first person to give her such direct advice, even though she had been known as a genius since childhood.
Zeke, having given his advice, left the lounge.
Reina, left alone in the lounge, finally came to her senses and pondered Zeke's words.
"I was conscious of other men?"
It was something she had never thought about before.
The Turunn Clan was symbolized by strength.
So Reina had simply followed that clan tradition.
'No, maybe I was unconsciously aware of it.'
A genius was different.
Reina acknowledged her shortcomings as soon as she recognized them.
She quickly grasped the opportunity to become stronger.
She looked at the entrance of the lounge where Zeke had disappeared.
'Zeke Draker. What do you see with those eyes?'
* * *
The next day, the first classes of the academy semester began.
The class Zeke was assigned to was called the 'Special Class,' where the most outstanding elites were gathered.
He walked around the campus, looking around.
'Ha, it's been a while.'
In his past life, this place was filled with only bad memories, but after coming back as a pure-blooded awakened, this place felt like heaven.
'As expected, it's good to have power and authority.'
Unlike the place where ordinary students took classes, the Special Class had its own separate building.
He had never been to this place in his past life, so he climbed the stairs with curious eyes.
He saw the Special Class building as he reached the top of the stairs.
'So that's the building.'
It was smaller than the building for ordinary students, which accommodated thousands, but considering it was a building exclusively for the Special Class, which had only a few hundred students, it was enormous.
Just as Zeke was about to enter the building,
"Zeke Draker."
A voice called out to him.
Zeke turned around.
"Owen."
Owen Siemens was there with a few other students.
Judging from their uniforms, they were wearing badges symbolizing the Siemens Clan.
It seemed they were cadets belonging to the Siemens Clan.
They glared at Zeke with wary eyes.
Zeke scoffed inwardly.
'Already forming cliques? This damn family is rotten to the core, even the kids.'
Looking around, most of the Special Class students, whether in small or large groups, had formed their own factions.
The only one alone was Zeke.
Owen approached Zeke.
He slowly opened his mouth.
"I invited you to dinner yesterday, but you didn't reply. Did you not receive the message?"
Zeke said to Owen,
"No, I received it."
Owen asked in a calm voice,
"Then why didn't you reply?"
Zeke replied,
"You're a funny guy. Do I have to reply to every single dinner invitation you send?"
At Zeke's sharp retort, one of the upperclassmen from the Siemens Clan stepped forward.
He was a guy with muscles bulging beneath his uniform.
"That seems quite rude to the young master's kindness."
Zeke said to him,
"Who are you?"
The guy frowned and said,
"Huh. A new student doesn't know me? This is..."
Zeke didn't want to waste any more words and simply turned around.
It was then.
Whoosh!
A hand strike flew towards Zeke.
He reflexively reached out and caught it.
Woong!
'Aura?'
The hand strike was imbued with aura.
Zeke blocked the strike with his hand, then used Quick Step to retreat.
"How's that? Feeling a bit more alert now?"
The upperclassman who had thrown the hand strike said confidently, loosening his hand.
"My name is Durban Roswell. Here, I'm called Durban the Slasher. I'm the one who will teach you some manners on behalf of Master Owen."
'Durban the Slasher?'
He wondered why a student who wasn't even a knight was using a title.
Zeke looked at Owen, who was standing behind Durban, with disbelief.
Owen, far from stopping Durban, was observing Zeke's reaction.
'So this is how you're going to play it.'
He didn't like the way Owen was scheming behind the scenes, typical of the Siemens Clan.
Zeke clenched his fist and said,
"I'm your manners injection today. Brace yourselves."
Zeke's figure vanished in an instant.
Swish!
Zeke weaved through Durban's guard and closed in.
Durban saw Zeke's fist flying towards his abdomen and smiled confidently.
'How cute. A freshman's punch.'
Durban focused his aura on his abdomen.
His steel-like abs, reinforced with aura, became as hard as an iron plate.
It was obvious that a freshman's punch would shatter against it.
Whoosh!
'Huh?'
Durban doubted his ears.
The sound was strange.
Zeke's fist, which had cut through the air, landed squarely on Durban's abdomen.
Crash!
Crack!
"Gah!"
Durban felt as if his entire abdomen had been ripped out.
Zeke's attack, now in full swing, didn't stop.
He used Quick Step to close the distance and then spun to the other side, delivering a low kick to Durban's thigh.
Whoosh!
Crash!
The same sound as before rang out.
"Ugh..."
Durban collapsed, unable to stand from the impact that sent his thigh throbbing.
Zeke's attack was so fast that Durban couldn't even attempt to protect his thigh with aura.
Durban's face turned pale blue.
"Is it... broken?"
Zeke approached the collapsed Durban, clenching his fists tightly.
Durban waved his hand in panic.
"W-wait!"
But it was Durban who had started the trouble in the first place.
Zeke had no reason to hold back for his sake.
"Durban, the 'Slasher'? What a load of crap!"
With Durban's ribs cracked and his thigh bone shattered, Zeke stomped on him mercilessly.
Owen and the other senior cadets stood silently, merely observing Zeke's brutal assault.
After thoroughly beating Durban, Zeke pressed hard on his injured leg.
"Aaaagh!"
Durban's screams echoed throughout the special division's training yard.
The other cadet groups nearby watched the scene with interest.
Zeke turned to Owen and said,
"Who's backing Durban the Slasher? Hurry up and come out—I'm busy."
Owen glanced at the fallen Durban before turning his head away.
He addressed Zeke with a cold tone.
"Zeke Draker, you're becoming insufferably arrogant."
Zeke scowled at him, his expression filled with disdain.
"Save it, you pompous old geezer."
Owen stared at Zeke intently for a moment before silently leading the other senior cadets from the Siemens group into the special division's building.
Durban, abandoned, lay groaning at Zeke's feet.
Clicking his tongue, Zeke watched Owen's retreating figure.
"Those Siemens bastards—every last one of them is unbearable."
By now, Durban was crawling away, dragging his legs behind him.
Seeing this, Zeke casually approached and delivered a swift kick to Durban's side.
"Aaaagh!"
Durban's scream once again reverberated across the training yard.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Peptobismal]
[Proofreader - Max]
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