Free Web NovelThe two dwarves, who had been busy coaxing and flattering the robed pushover, froze when an visibly irritated demon stepped out of the cabin.
“M-My lord, it’s nothing serious. Hehe...”
“Were we being too loud? We’ll leave at once!”
They were quick to read the room, but their efforts were useless. Ian’s foul mood had nothing to do with them.
“Hey. You. Come here.”
“Me? You mean me?” The robed merchant pointed at himself, still not realizing that the masked Ian was addressing him.
Demons were not exactly famous for their kindness. Conveniently, that meant Ian did not need to explain himself.
“I said, come here.”
“O-Okay...”
“The demon lord is calling you! Hurry up!”
“Move it before we all get dragged into this!”
The dwarves shoved the merchant forward. He stumbled, too bewildered to notice their kicks, while the dwarves themselves lost their footing and landed on their backsides.
“You called for me?”
“Go inside.”
Ian jerked his chin toward the cabin. The merchant looked confused, but obeyed.
Realizing they were about to lose their mark, the dwarves hesitantly spoke up.
“M-My lord, may we ask ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) why you need him...?”
“He’ll be serving me. Do I need to explain myself to you?”
“Hehe, of course not. It’s just that he owes us some money...”
“What?”
Ian’s displeasure was almost tangible.
Sitting on the bed, Keith thought Ian’s imitation of a demon was remarkably convincing.
It did not seem all that far removed from his usual demeanor, after all.
‘No. I must not entertain such irreverent thoughts.’
Keith pushed the wandering thought away.
Despite the commotion outside, he was not annoyed. After all, what he and Ian had been doing was a sacred act. When God’s agent was healing one of His servants, what room could there be for anything but gratitude?
Keith felt nothing.
Certainly not as though Ian’s touch on his lips had melted him, nor as though the strands of Ian’s hair slipping through his fingers had been exquisitely soft.
Such thoughts had no place during a sacred duty.
No one became excited while performing a holy rite.
Just then, the merchant Ian had brought inside pointed at Keith.
“Oh! It’s my regular!”
Keith, who had not yet put his mask back on and was still showing his human face, raised an eyebrow.
“An elf?”
“To meet here of all places! What a pleasant surprise! It must be fate!”
‘So it’s that merchant.’
Keith recognized him too.
He had met this peculiar elf during a mission some time ago. The merchant had gotten lost in a set of ruins, and Keith had escorted him out.
Back then, Keith had purchased a luminous pearl from the elf to use as a prayer medium, and it had helped resolve a particularly troublesome situation. Apparently, that single transaction had been enough for Keith to become the elf’s “regular.”
Suddenly, the sound of a sword being drawn rang out from outside.
SHING!
Keith quickly put on his mask and stepped out of the cabin.
There he found Ian, draped in Keith’s cloak, brandishing a sword as he intimidated the dwarves.
“......”
‘Well.’
Keith had no words.
Ian declared, “If you want to collect money from my servant, you’ll have to defeat me in a duel. Just so you know, I only started learning swordsmanship yesterday. You dwarves are supposed to be decent swordsmen, aren’t you? Surely you wouldn’t try to take my servant without even being able to defeat someone who’s only trained for a day.”
Since demons were notoriously fond of wagers, Ian’s challenge sounded perfectly natural.
Keith, however, knew that Ian was simply using the opportunity to test the swordsmanship he had learned.
Truly, he was an energetic person.
“And what exactly are the conditions for victory?” one of the more cunning dwarves asked.
“The first to drop his sword loses.”
“Well, if that is what my lord decrees, we have no choice but to accept.”
“We’ll give it everything we have.”
The dwarves exchanged a sly look and decided to attack together. They drew their swords and lunged at Ian at the same time.
Keith considered stepping in to assist him.
But to his surprise, Ian parried their strikes one by one. With a swift kick to one dwarf’s shin, he sent him sprawling, then deftly kicked the sword from his hand.
Against the remaining dwarf, Ian briefly locked blades with him, using the strength in his wrist to counter the dwarf’s grip. Then he swung his sword with enough force to knock the second dwarf’s weapon away as well.
“......!”
Ian had only begun learning swordsmanship yesterday.
Keith could confirm that beyond any doubt. He was Ian’s instructor, after all.
So how was he already this proficient in real combat?
An extraordinary talent, Keith thought.
Of course, Ian’s skill had nothing to do with talent.
‘Dump all the experience points.’
Ding!
[Swordsmanship LV.1 → LV.4]
Ding!
[Character]
‘Tyrant’ Ian (★★★★☆)
Reputation
Tyrant, Sickly, Strategist, Mentally Unstable,
Illegitimate Child, Savior, Womanizer, Aesthetician, Wise King
Skills:
Purification: LV.7
Horsemanship: LV.2
Archery: LV.6
Swordsmanship: LV.4 (+NEW)
‘Finally, something useful.’
Ian had gained some natural horsemanship experience on the journey to the Fairy Queen’s Kingdom, which had raised the skill to level 2.
The real reason Ian had provoked the dwarves was to test his swordsmanship. Understanding the limits of his control was essential before actual combat.
He could have sparred with Keith, of course.
‘Let’s not.’
Ian had no desire to experience another “both arms broken” status condition. Unlike in the game, injuries here actually hurt.
Having confirmed that he could handle dwarves with ease, Ian returned to the cabin in satisfaction.
“Well?” Ian asked Keith with a grin.
“For someone who just learned, you did well.”
“...Oh? Is there another standard?”
“For a swordsman your age, it is rather poor.”
“Don’t compare me to yourself!”
“Even compared to my squire, you’re lacking.”
“That kid is a prodigy!”
“If you had started training earlier, you might have surpassed my squire. What did they teach you at the castle?” Keith asked, almost pitying him.
“Uh... a variety of things.”
‘Judging by Ian’s reputation, probably womanizer antics.’
Ian avoided Keith’s gaze as he answered. After removing his demon mask, he flopped onto the bed. The movement made the cloak slip, exposing his bare shoulders.
The elf merchant scratched his cheek awkwardly as he looked between the two of them.
“Uh... did I interrupt something?”
“What? No! Could you stop saying things that sound like they make sense?”
Ian reminded himself that the elf was a five-star hero and adjusted his tone.
He still had no idea why this merchant kept showing up everywhere.
The merchant sighed theatrically and gave Keith a knowing look.
“My first regular can be a little dense. Back when he was trying to woo me, I don’t think he noticed how much his other subordinates hated it.”
“Woo?” Keith asked.
‘Woo?’ Ian thought.
He had been trying to recruit the merchant. Calling it “wooing” was a stretch.
“I’m rooting for you two. Even if my first regular is a notorious womanizer across the continent, it’s about time he settled down. And to think his partner is my second regular—it’s surprising, but I believe love conquers all.”
“Hold on... notorious womanizer? What are you talking about?”
“You don’t know? Everyone knows about Tyrant Ian’s womanizer reputation.”
“Womanizer?”
Keith’s gaze turned toward Ian.
He remembered what the mage had said when they departed, about letting Ian “enjoy his honeymoon.” At the time, it had seemed so unlike Ian that Keith had dismissed it as nonsense.
‘So that’s why you didn’t react?’
Ian had been calm after their intimate moments. Too calm. Comfortable, even.
Keith realized that might have been because Ian was supposedly experienced, and an inexplicable irritation stirred inside him. fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm
‘Sigh...’
Ian had always known the “womanizer” reputation would come back to bite him eventually.
Wait. Didn’t this guy already know about that? Why is he looking at me like I betrayed him?
“That’s all in the past,” Ian lied smoothly.
A “God’s agent” and a womanizer did not exactly go hand in hand, and he could not afford for Keith to abandon him now.
Ding!
[Keith now thinks you’re a womanizer.]
Ding!
[Keith distrusts you.]
“......”
Ian glared at the elf merchant.
“Love makes people stronger or weaker. I wonder which it will be for you two.”
The elf was spouting fairy-tale nonsense.
Keith asked, “So, how exactly did Ian ‘woo’ you?”
