Duke’s Son: Re

Chapter 35

The hands of the assassin, who had suffered a deep wound from the chest to the neck, trembled violently.

The amount of blood loss was alarming.

He instinctively pressed hard on his neck, but the sensation of hot blood welling up was unmistakable, only intensifying his fear.

“Gah!”

He groaned again, unable to avert his gaze from the boy’s pitch-black eyes.

He felt a sharp pain in his side. Even in his extremely agitated state, the pain was overwhelming. It seemed like another critical injury.

Yet, he couldn’t look away.

Kang Jaehyuk.

The young target, who was said to have been confined to his mansion all his life, was nothing like what he had expected.

Instead of being awkward, he was fierce and ruthless, resembling a beast.

He felt as though if he dared to avert his gaze, his neck would be bitten and devoured.

“Name.”

“…?”

“What’s your name?”

“Y- Yun Sangho…”

The moment he revealed his name, overwhelmed by fear, he instinctively felt that everything was over. He hoped only to preserve his life.

“Who’s behind this?”

“The Steel… The master family of the Steel Guild wants the Kang family’s mana technique. I didn’t mean to kill you… I just planned to secure your situation…”

Jaehyuk already knew his intention.

During the initial ambush, the assassin had stabbed him in the shoulder, not a vital point.

His left arm was in a cast, so the assassin must have thought that by disabling the right arm, he could easily subdue him.

‘Although I’ve already healed from my injuries.’

The broken arm had been healed as he leveled up during training.

He was in perfect condition. He merely kept the cast for visual deception.

‘The guild indeed acted rashly.’

The association and government were unlikely to target Jaehyuk while committing illegal acts.

With even the slightest justification, they could easily put someone behind bars, so there was no reason for them to act recklessly.

But guilds were different.

Especially lesser-known guilds, which had less to lose and tended to act indiscriminately.

‘That makes them easier to devour.’

Jaehyuk engraved the name of the bandit group daring to covet the Kang family’s wealth into his memory before pushing the dagger deeper into Yun Sangho’s side.

“Kkgh!”

Startled by the sensation as if his intestines were tearing apart, Yun Sangho couldn’t hold back his gaze and looked down.

The dagger embedded in his waist was familiar.

It was the epic-grade weapon he had purchased with a hefty sum a few months ago.

It was his prized treasure.

‘Why is that dagger in his hand…?’

He couldn’t have imagined that he would meet his end by his cherished weapon, leaving no time to resent the boy who killed him despite answering his questions.

‘This is nice.’

Grade: Epic
A dagger wielded by High Judge Alus during death sentences.
Sharp and durable, it decapitates the convict in one stroke.

‘It’s unlikely to break easily.’

Jaehyuk was satisfied with the power of his loot.

He had snatched the dagger when he deflected Yun Sangho’s initial ambush.

Snatching hilts.

The Kang family’s secret technique of stealing and using an enemy’s weapon against them encompasses the essence of their sword techniques. It was Jaehyuk’s specialty.

He rifled through the corpse and gathered the belongings before activating the Leech King’s Ring.

Hissss!

The pitch-black acidic poison dissolved the corpse.

The assassin targeting the Kang family’s bloodline was eradicated without a trace as if punished.

Jaehyuk checked the system message on the ground reeking of stench.

『You’ve defeated a B-rank player.』
『Your level has increased by 3.』
『An amazing achievement!』
『You’ve defeated a stronger player without a scratch.』
『All stats increased by 2.』

The regret over his slightly late awakening faded away.

Monster hunting during the day, and player hunting at night.

He had an environment fostering rapid growth, faster than others.

‘It wasn’t intentional, though.’

The unexpected re-evaluation and the timely blooming of his first skill had attracted a lot of attention.

Moths like the Steel Guild would keep coming at him without rest for a while.

Jaehyuk smiled faintly at that moment.

『The wraith Theodor of the senses your presence and awakens from a long slumber.』

– The sinister killing intent like a sharp blade… The mad specter of the sword has returned at last! Hehe! Hahaha!! Thank you! For you have fulfilled my wish, I shall keep my promise! I shall seek you as soon as I regain my strength and point my sword at you!

『Hidden Quest Triggered!』
『Theodor targets you.』

“…!”

The voice pierced directly into his mind, not his ears.

The mad laughter resonating in his head was infused with enormous mana.

Shaken by the shock, Jaehyuk leaned against a tree and quickly scanned his surroundings.

The forest was silent.

The voice that had been rampaging in his mind had also disappeared without a trace.

‘Named…’

Monsters, besides their rank, were classified as Normal, Elite, or Boss.

However, just as there were National Treasures among players, there were beings beyond the standard in the monster world.

Named.

Exceptional entities possessing thought, memory, and will like humans.

Judging by Theodor’s tone and force, he was undoubtedly a Named.

‘Who is this mad specter of the sword mistaking me?’

It seemed that he mistook the murderous intent I unleashed when killing someone….

‘For a monster to call a human a specter, they must be quite ferocious.’

At least it wasn’t Seol Soo-ah.

She would have achieved a state of mirror-like calm, befitting a National Treasure; the specter described by Theodor was likely part of some militant group or one of the professors tasked with advanced education.

Swallowing dryly, he opened the quest window.

Theodor will track you down once fully recovered.
“This time, your neck, not mine, will fall to the ground.”
Time left before pursuit begins: 120 days.
Quest clear reward: Theodor fulfills his contract.

“That’s hilarious.”

Why is he targeting me?

Despite the absurdity, he felt elated.

He didn’t know the details of the contract Theodor would fulfill, but the reward’s value must be immense for a Hidden Quest related to a Named.

‘I have one more reason to grow quickly.’

Though it varies by creature, Named monsters were powerful.

It was accepted that they overwhelmed similar rank monsters with high stats, intelligence, and unique skills utilizing accrued experience.

Frankly, discussing the odds of victory at the current point was impossible.

However, 120 days was a long time for Jaehyuk, who had just awakened.

‘I should hope the school remains unaware of Theodor’s resurrection until then.’

Outside of event periods, access to the Lion’s Castle is strictly prohibited for outsiders.

In short, the assassin who lost his life at Jaehyuk’s hands moments ago was likely an insider.

There might be more employees colluding with external guilds like him.

If they investigated the details of the Named’s resurrection, Jaehyuk would be in a difficult position.

Moreover…

‘I can’t let anyone take my prey.’

Jaehyuk hurried his steps.

He had raised his level by 6 today alone, on top of receiving achievement rewards.

He felt it wasn’t enough to move his body all night to adapt to his significantly increased stats.

***

“It’s always quiet here whenever we come.”

“It’s creepy with not even the sound of chirping insects.”

The twin siblings, standing on a lion’s head embossed on the castle gate, expressed their distaste.

They were young vassals of the Silla family.

Their abilities were outstanding, befitting their lineage that had served a renowned family for generations.

The only reason they had entered the Lion’s Castle while they should have been active as S-rank players was one.

“…”

It was because they had the duty to support the great heir of the Silla family.

As the girl with short, hippie perm hair approached and spoke next to Silla Kyung, who climbed onto the collapsed stage and surveyed the area.

“These are all recent traces.”

She pointed out every change to the stage since their visit a month ago, with faintly etched footsteps and spots where green blood had dried.

“It’s the trace of a Kang family martial artist advancing their true style.”

Silla Kyung had grasped the origin of the traces.

“Kang Jaehyuk collided with orcs during personal training.”

“Why does he train in such a gloomy place? It’s so far from the dormitory.”

“Weird taste.”

The twin siblings, showing curious expressions, examined the traces of high-level martial arts as they jumped down from the castle gate.

The cold-eyed girl with short hair showed ripples of competitiveness in her eyes.

Despite being old and damaged, the stage was made of Qinghai stone. It seemed unlikely she would leave such distinct traces even if she advanced her true style.

“He’s grown markedly since the Leech King raid. The bloodline skills of the Kang family must be extraordinary.”

“It’s still lacking compared to the greatness of Yaksha.”

Rumble…!

Silla Kyung’s body began to levitate gradually.

He applied part of the Silla family’s bloodline skills, which deal with nature.

The whirlwind swirling beneath him gnawed at the Qinghai stone of the stage, kicking up dust.

“Wow…”

“Our young lord has become stronger. If I go in there, we won’t even find any bones.”

The astonished twin siblings voiced their shock at the power of the whirlwind.

Hovering in the air, Silla Kyung faced the lion statue.

Last time he saw it, it was covered in moss, but now it was quite neat.

Would Kang Jaehyuk have cleaned the statue without any reason?

“Are you the ruler of this dimension?”

Silla Kyung, suspecting Jaehyuk’s actions, questioned the statue.

But the statue had no response.

It was the same as a month ago.

“… It’s unlikely to easily find a quest that hasn’t been solved for 200 years.”

Feeling both disappointment and relief, he hurried along with his party.

“We’ll head to the sea beyond the forest as planned.”

The Lion’s Castle was an island.

It was larger than North Gyeongsang Province in size and difficult to grasp since all coastal pathways were controlled.

Squaaawk!!

As soon as Silla Kyung’s party entered the black forest, having crossed the red line indicating restricted access, the shrieks of orcs echoed like a torrential blast.

***

“…”

Arriving at the collapsed stage, Jaehyuk expanded his sensory perception.

The foreign traces aroused his caution.

– Insolent ones were here.

The lion statue reassured him that no one was around.

“Insolent ones?”

– Four brats. Two of them, identical looking, insolently stepped on my head, and the other two had arrogant eyes, which I disliked.

‘That must be Silla Kyung’s party.’

Knowing the twins and arrogant eyes, it was clear who they were.

‘As I thought, they’re after the quest by enrolling.’

He had expected this. There was no reason for such monsters to attend school otherwise.

“You didn’t speak to them, did you?”

– Of course not. Unless it was the silver-haired brat alone, the other three brats were unworthy of conversing with me.

“Silver-haired brat? Are you attracted to him?”

– I could see traces of as much hardship as you in him. He seemed proud as well. Although his eyes didn’t seem particularly kind, that’s something to find out over time… He barely met the qualifications to converse with me.

“You haven’t forgotten the promise with me, have you?”

– Certainly. I am the proud ruler of this dimension. I never forget a promise.

“Right. Don’t utter a word to any other human until I complete the quest.”

– … How about slightly altering the promise? If you fail to complete the quest and fulfill my wish, it’s only my loss!

“You change your words too easily. Are you sure you’re that proud?”

– Grrrr…!

“By the way, who’s Theodor?”

– Theodor, you say?

The lion statue shuddered with disgust as if repulsively recalling something.

– That rascal, the Death Knight’s name, where did you hear it?

“A Death Knight?”

Jaehyuk felt a chill run down his spine.