I was once a mercenary.
To be precise, I was more of a wanderer.
And though I lost much in that life, I also learned a great deal.
“Is there a way to legally strike a noble?”
Back when I was roaming the mercenary underworld, I posed that question to a seasoned veteran.
We were in a tavern street, returning from a mission on the frontier.
I had been cast out from my family, my body wrapped in bandages, when a passing priest offered to heal me.
“A noble? Why do you ask such a thing suddenly?”
“It’s… just a personal matter.”
He glanced at my disheveled state and seemed to grasp the kind of ordeal I had been through.
At my age, having fallen to the mercenary life and wandering from place to place, I had seen many who had suffered at the hands of nobles.
Even those who acted arrogantly and wreaked havoc would cower and grovel in front of nobles, a sight I often found hard to comprehend.
After all, they had nothing left to lose.
So why grovel so obsequiously?
This curiosity led me to wonder.
How to exact revenge on nobles.
“I’m not sure what answer you’re seeking, but the nobles around here are relatively moderate. They don’t go around killing commoners without reason.”
“…Isn’t it normal not to kill commoners without reason?”
“They don’t kill, but nobles can take a life for merely making eye contact, or for spilling tea or mud on their clothes. That’s what it means to be a noble, that’s their status.”
“What if… despite the difference in status, there’s someone you must take revenge on?”
“Realistically, it’s better to give up. Unless you’re reborn or regress.”
“…Does it require regression?”
He looked at me as if I had asked something obvious.
“Why do you ask such an obvious question? That’s the nature of the status difference.”
“Well… if you’re determined to strike back at nobles… there might be a way, but know that it’s impossible for you as you are now.”
“…?”
“No matter how much we mercenaries have nothing to lose, there’s one thing we must never lose.”
“What’s that?”
“Our lives.”
“…Isn’t that the same even if you regress?”
“What I mean is, it’s the only thing of equal value we all possess.”
“Nobles are mostly immune to our threats, but that one thing can reach them.”
“And that is…”
“Staking each other’s lives.”
“And since nobles usually have much to lose… it’s easy to gain the upper hand… but using that is another matter.”
He finished the conversation as he tied the bandage.
“If you have the courage to use the upper hand you’ve gained.”
///
“Wouldn’t it be better for the second son to act with a bit more integrity?”
“…”
“You mentioned punishment, didn’t you?”
A cold voice echoed through the room.
I stood before him as he sat back, nose bleeding. Despite the piercing gazes, I continued with what I had to say.
If you’re so great…
“…then step down.”
Amon was trembling, his eyes fixed on me.
He struggled to get up, pulling a wand from his back pocket.
Whoosh,
A fireball, clearly intended to burn me to death.
Amon wiped the cold sweat from his brow, his voice laced with a sneer.
“You… are hastening your own death! Well, I kept you alive because you were useful as a target….”
Before he could finish, I slapped him across the face.
“How dare you…”
Smack-
Amon’s head snapped to the side.
The sound of his teeth grinding followed.
Trembling with rage, Amon looked up at me, but unlike before, my expression remained impassive. I simply stared at the extinguished flames.
His magic had been dispelled mid-cast.
“…!!”
Dispel.
Forced magic cancellation.
To unravel a spell so thoroughly, there needs to be at least a 10-level difference.
Thus, Amon was still in denial about what had just happened to him.
But.
Amon was nothing more than a greenhouse flower.
His combat experience was virtually zero.
In contrast, Yujin had grown like a weed in the mercenary underworld.
The moment he realized this difference, a primal fear took hold.
“Can’t you use magic without a wand?”
It was almost laughable in retrospect.
I grabbed him by the collar, yanked him up, and took the wand from his hand.
A luxurious wand with a red gem.
This alone could buy several mansions.
“A level 1 magic user… shut your mouth.”
“Who said I can’t use it?”
No matter what the fallen whelp said, it had no impact.
Like a defeated puppy barking, it couldn’t even elicit a smirk.
The room was engulfed in a chilling silence.
Even the sparkling chandelier seemed to tremble under the tension.
“…Huh? Without a wand? Are you kidding—”
He tried to cling to his last shred of dignity, his pride as a mage, but…
“Bloom.”
I quietly raised my hand, negating his claim.
The air in the room shifted.
The candles on the walls flickered as if in a breeze, then one by one, they extinguished.
The room plunged into darkness. Everyone except me gasped in surprise.
“Shall I show you to make you believe?”
As soon as I spoke, a flame ignited at my fingertips.
At first, it was a thin wisp of fire. Dancing between my fingers, the ember quickly grew, engulfing my surroundings like a sun.
Red and golden flames swirled in the air.
The intense heat filled the room, and shadows danced within the inferno.
A flower of flame illuminating the entire room.
In the blink of an eye, the fire spreading from my hand lit up the room.
The flames grew hotter, threatening to consume everything.
The fire, drawing a dazzling hexagram, grew until it was right in front of Amon.
The servants could only watch the spectacle in silence.
The flames reflected softly off every bookshelf, table, and face in the room, as if burning away all their doubts.
That day, the stigma that followed me vanished.
I waved my hand, and the flames dissipated like mist.
Darkness reclaimed the room, but within that darkness, their silence spoke of a terror beyond mere stillness.
After my flames disappeared, they were left in a pitch-black space where they couldn’t even see each other’s faces.
Only their breathing could be heard in the dark.
As tension filled the air, I slowly raised my hand.
A soft flick of my finger broke the silence.
“Tick.”
At that moment, all the extinguished candles in the room burst to life simultaneously.
The crackling flames rose from the wicks, their golden light piercing the darkness and illuminating the entire room.
“Now, who among you dares to say ‘it’s impossible without a wand’?”
“…Shut up.”
“No, actually… isn’t it the other way around? It’s you who can’t use magic.”
“Relying on tools… even simple magic is beyond your capability.”
As I walked around the room, the candles seemed to follow my words.
I stopped at the doorway and turned back.
“Next time, come back after improving your skills.”
With that, I flicked my finger one last time.
This time, the candles gently extinguished.
Darkness swallowed the room again, but no one dared to speak.
It was madness.
An act so beyond reason that it could be summed up in one word.
A mere commoner.
A man who was at best a leeching son-in-law, a magic target.
And not just any man, but the second son, who had not only laid hands on him but also threatened and mocked him.
Even cutting off his limbs and throwing him into a dungeon wouldn’t be enough.
Yet Yujin left the room as if nothing had happened.
At the mansion’s dining table.
A voice broke the unusual silence.
“Did he really do such a thing?” Yujin…
“…Yes.”
Yuria, who had been sipping tea, paused abruptly.
She put down the daily paper and glared at the servant.
“…Magic, you say.”
Seeing the servant’s troubled expression, Yuria maintained her composure.
It was a habit she had when flustered.
After a long pause, the servant began to recount what had happened.
“…There was a clash between Yujin and Amon.”
“You mean they came to blows.”
“…Yes.”
Yuria bit her lip.
Yujin had seized upon the talk of divorce and gone straight to confront him.
It seemed things had escalated.
‘…That man… No wonder he skipped dinner…’
‘…I need to save him.’
“So, how badly was he hurt?”
“…He wasn’t seriously injured.”
“That’s not the point. How bad?”
“His nose was slightly fractured, and he suffered minor burns… When he woke up, he was furious, saying it was impossible, shouting…”
It seemed Yujin hadn’t gone too far.
He wasn’t the type to show mercy, but perhaps this time he held back.
Regardless… I need to visit Yujin.
I can’t avoid it this time.
I couldn’t hide my concern for him, even a little.
It even showed on my face.
“…I need to go to Yujin’s mansion.”
“Why there…?” Huh?
“Isn’t Yujin there? Or is he in a nearby infirmary…” Of course.
Yuria’s gaze froze.
Because the second son, who had been absent from the dining table, appeared.
However…
The eyes of those who saw the second son’s condition widened in shock.
Amon’s face was wrapped in bandages, and one eye bore the marks of a burn.
“…Wait, the injured one is…”
“Amon… sir.”
Yuria’s brow furrowed.
“…What happened… no, why?”