novelraw Chapter 145 : Chapter 145
Chapter 145 : Chapter 145
Volume 2
Chapter 69 : Father and Mother
When the first pale light of dawn spilled down from the distant horizon, the storm of passion within the room finally came to an end as well.
Within the pink gauze curtains, Ann rested her head against Muen's chest.
A faint rosy flush, left behind by their earlier ardor, still lingered upon her bare skin.
Muen stroked the girl's smooth hair, savoring this rare moment of peace and tenderness.
"How are things back at the estate?"
"They are much the same as always. Nothing has really changed. It is just that after Master and Madam left, and with the young master away at school, far fewer people come to visit."
"That is a good thing. It is quieter."
"Mm."
Ann answered softly, then seemed to recall something.
"I have already sent young master's grades to Master and Madam, using the Duke's household's private courier channel. They should have received them by now. They will definitely be very happy."
"...That fast?"
Muen blinked in surprise.
He had not even had time to share the good news himself, and yet the Duke's household already knew about his grades?
"The academy sent the report card over. At first, I thought it was some sort of prank, but the academy's seal could not possibly be fake."
"I see..."
"You were amazing, young master."
"It was nothing special."
"Young master must not get arrogant. You need to keep working hard."
"Nonsense. I have always been a very low-key person, all right?"
"A person who dates two girls at once cannot exactly be called low-key."
"...A misunderstanding. Ahem, that was a misunderstanding."
Muen laughed awkwardly and stole a glance at Ann's lovely face from the corner of his eye.
When he found that her expression still had not changed at the mention of this matter, he finally let out a small sigh of relief.
It seemed that Ann really had changed completely.
Among the traits of a yandere, the madness had been thoroughly cut away, leaving behind only the shy sweetness of a young girl.
That put Muen in a much better mood.
If possible, who would not want a capable and beautiful maid waiting at home for him every day?
"Come to think of it, I have no idea how Father and Mother are doing."
...
...
At the Empire's border, on the Abyss battlefield.
A blood-red haze covered the sky.
Corpses littered the earth.
Amid the thick stench of blood and rot, two vast armies stretching across countless miles stood in opposition.
On the human side, the soldiers' armor had long since been stained black with blood, yet beneath the banners of the dragon-slaying sword and the radiant crown, they still stood straight and proud.
Hundreds of thousands of men remained silent.
Then, in the midst of that silence, a thunderous burst of laughter suddenly rang out.
Ignoring the attempts of his subordinates to stop him, a man whose beard was as thick and wild as a lion's mane leapt out from the central command tent.
His cold gaze swept over the sea of demon troops.
"Moshan, old ghost, get out here and fight me!"
The demon army stirred slightly, and then a gigantic figure as tall as a mountain slowly emerged from the drifting smoke and dust.
"Campbell, have you finally grown tired of living?" Grand Duke Moshan's voice rolled across the battlefield like war drums.
"Hahaha! So what if you became a Crowned One a few decades earlier than I did? What the hell are you so arrogant for? Today I will show you with facts that no matter how long a bastard turtle lives, it is still just a bastard turtle!"
"Insolence! You seek death!"
A violent aura surged skyward, directly tearing apart the dark clouds overhead.
Lorne Campbell threw back his head and laughed, utterly fearless.
A brilliant crown rose above his head, and the crimson figure of a mighty lion appeared behind him.
He suddenly took a step forward and, with his bare hands alone, charged at Moshan, whose greatest strength lay in his physical body.
BOOM.
Heaven and earth shook.
Invisible ripples spread outward like a hurricane sweeping across the battlefield.
The clash of those overwhelming forces tore an abyssal fissure straight through the center of the battlefield.
Within the spreading cloud of dust, Moshan narrowed eyes as large as millstones.
That blow had failed to give him the upper hand.
What was going on? Lorne Campbell had only stepped into the Crowned rank a little over ten years ago, so how could he already contend with an old monster like him, who had stood at this level for nearly a century?
No, his realm had not changed since their last encounter. What had grown stronger... was his momentum.
Moshan's heart tightened slightly. What had happened to make Lorne Campbell this excited?
Could it be...
That he had already stepped into Campbell's trap?
No wonder this fellow, who had been cowering like a turtle, had suddenly dared to come out!
Startled, Moshan rapidly spread his senses across the area around him.
But... he found nothing at all.
"Oh? You look very confused about why I suddenly came to pick a fight with you."
Lorne rolled his shoulders, still seeming unsatisfied by that earlier exchange.
His expression was alight with excitement, and the lion behind him looked ever more imposing.
"Since that is the case, I will tell you!"
Moshan immediately held his breath and listened for the answer.
"My son scored eighty on his exam!"
Lorne roared at the top of his lungs.
His lion-like shout echoed across the vast battlefield again and again.
At that moment, it was as if he wanted the entire world to hear what he had just said.
"..."
Moshan fell silent.
What had he just said?
He said his son had scored eighty on an exam?
Was that really something worth shouting to the heavens about?
Or was his grasp of the human tongue so poor that he had misunderstood something?
Perhaps Campbell had actually said something truly earth-shattering.
For example, that the Emperor of the Leopold Empire's son was secretly into men or something.
"Haha! Eighty! That is eighty! And it was even in Fundamentals of Magic, the subject my Campbell family is worst at! Back then, I did not even pass it!"
Lorne leapt again, smashing down toward Grand Duke Moshan like a falling meteor.
"Do you know how excited I am?"
"Do you know how happy I am?"
"Eighty! My son scored eighty!"
"My son scored eighty!"
"My son scored eighty!"
"My son scored eighty!"
One punch.
Another punch.
And another.
Lorne seemed to have endless strength, throwing punch after punch without pause.
The earth itself was battered into massive craters like the impact scars of meteors.
"Enough!"
Faced with Lorne's increasingly ferocious assault, surging like wave after wave of a raging sea, Moshan defended himself in utter disarray.
At last, as though he could no longer endure this damned broken record, he roared in fury,
"I know your son scored eighty, damn it! But can you not say anything else for once?!"
"Something else?"
Lorne froze for a moment.
He thought about it.
Then kept punching.
"My son got an excellent grade!"
"My son got an excellent grade!"
"Doesn't that make you mad? My son can get an excellent grade too!"
"...Damn your mother!"
Like some bull-headed demon minion driven half to death by a monk's endless chanting, Moshan swore viciously in his heart.
If he ever ran into this bastard's son in the future, he would definitely hack him into pieces.
How dare your damned son score eighty!
...
...
Campbell Territory.
Within the peaceful country manor, a gentle and graceful woman reclined on a lounge chair, reading the letter that had just been rushed over through the Campbell family's special courier channel.
This letter was identical to the one Lorne had received.
Yet after reading it, Muen's nominal mother, Noyas Campbell, was not as delighted as Lorne had been.
If anything, a trace of worry appeared between her still-beautiful brows.
"From three points to eighty points in just a little over a month... little Muen, have you been eating properly during this time?"
"I still liked you better when you were carefree."
Through the dense grape leaves, Noyas gazed at the clear sky.
One hand caressed the faint swell already visible at her lower belly as she murmured with tender concern,
"Did you hear that? In the future, do not learn from that older brother of yours, who suddenly changed so much. As long as you do not provoke the royal family or the Church, my Campbell family is not so powerless that we cannot let you grow up in happiness."