Reincarnated as the Adopted Son of a Prestigious Swordsmanship Family Chapter 11 : Chapter 11

Chapter 11: Senu Degrate (1)

‘Captain. What Senu is practicing right now, isn't that the Sword Net?’

‘That's right.’

‘Was that sothing that could be learned?’

‘That's why I'm using it, isn't it?’

‘Damn it. How can you say it so carelessly? To that young kid.’

‘What's so young about her? She just looks young because she's a half-elf. You'll get killed saying that. She may look like that, but she's a Degrate. She's probably older than you, too.’

‘Isn't her mind young? She's the kind of kid who'd eat shit if you told her to, Captain.’

‘That's why it's a good thing if she succeeds.’

‘Eating shit?’

‘Stop with the bullshit.’

‘I'm saying this because I know she can't do it.’

‘Who says so? Senu?’

‘I'm the one saying it. She just blindly believes your words and keeps trying.’

‘You haven't even tried. You should practice it too. It's useful once you learn it. And it's easy once you get the hang of it.’

‘How can a person do that?’

‘I'm doing it, aren't I?’

‘Besides you, Captain. Other guys can't do it like that.’

‘Senu will probably be able to do it soon too. And I'm telling you, you just need to know the trick.’

‘I'm telling you, we can't learn that trick.’

‘I told you before. It's a matter of convergence. Think of mana as water, turn it into water vapor, then scatter that vapor to its limit…’

‘Stop! Stop! How am I supposed to do sothing our vice-captain and the Magic Tower couldn't do? I heard even that great princess couldn't do it.’

‘That's because they're all incompetent.’

‘I'm even more incompetent. Honestly, Captain. I can't be compared to you. What's the radius of your Sword Net right now?’

‘Usually, it's 100 ters. Why? Want to check the battle situation? Feeling uneasy?’

‘…How far can you sense?’

‘If I focus, up to 500 ters should be possible, right?’

‘And the targets?’

‘If I push myself a bit, I can even sense ordinary people, right? Why do you ask?’

‘Because you seem like a Doom Species, Captain.’

‘You can roughly sense it too if you focus.’

‘Damn it. We only notice when there's a flow of mana.’

‘I'm telling you, you all lack training.’

‘Don't say such things in front of Senu.’

‘I just did a while ago.’

‘Ah, whatever.’

‘But she's still weak, isn't she?’

‘I told you not to compare her to you, Captain. Go and tell her to stop practicing the Sword Net too.’

‘Why.’

‘Why? Why, my ass, how can a person manipulate mana to that extent?’

‘She's an elf.’

‘She's a half-elf! No, in the first place, to maintain that, how much mana control do you need…’

‘That's why you have to converge it as much as possible…’

‘Ah. I'm telling you, I can't do it!’

‘Just try it first!’

‘I said I can't, you son of a bitch!’

‘What? This bastard…’

‘What! Go on and hit .’

***

“It's strange.”

When the other participants returned to their lodgings.

“It's strange.”

Ael was furrowing her brow.

“What is?”

“The Selection Ceremony. It's supposed to end in a single day. Originally, there's only one event.”

“They said this is the first one held since the end of the war.”

“Still.”

Simurtr said it as if it was nothing… but in truth, it wasn't as if nothing was bothering him.

‘Sothing feels off.’

deoban's eyes from just before. That was what bothered Simurtr. They were so different from how they were when the first test ended.

‘Keeping in check.’

Yes, deoban's eyes held that within them.

“I think it's because of you.”

“?”

The quick-witted Ael guessed the cause. She looked at Simurtr and nodded.

“No way. He is not soone who would change a great cause for a personal matter. There must be circumstances we are unaware of.”

Jahar refuted Ael's words.

He judged that deoban, who prioritized the traditions of ctera, would never do such a thing.

“I'm telling you, those unknown circumstances are our youngest brother!”

Ael's face crumpled.

This brother of hers was just too dense.

“That can't be.”

“That's right. He must have felt sothing during the war.”

“Aargh!”

As even Simurtr sided with Jahar, Ael couldn't hold back and scread.

“I'm the one worrying, so why are you taking his side!”

“Not 'his side,' he's your older brother.”

“Brother, just shut up!”

“Here? That is a difficult request.”

“Hah. Please.”

Simurtr watched the siblings' quarrel and smiled.

It was very different from when they were facing the damned Selection Ceremony. They were acting their age.

“I'm leaving.”

There were things that bothered him, but he had no intention of telling these young siblings.

Whatever happened, it would be his problem.

“If anything happens, make sure to tell us!”

“That's right, little brother. We are on your side.”

If ctera had been involved in the betrayal, and he were to beco hostile towards ctera… which side would the siblings take?

Simurtr suddenly beca curious about it, but soon shook his head. It was a aningless delusion.

‘I've only spoken to them for the first ti today, after all.’

He just hoped that ctera was not involved.

That they only desired the honor of being a Hero Family.

‘Or that it was Gerehk's doing alone.’

If ctera were the enemy, if the siblings beca hostile, he would kill them without hesitation… but it wasn't like he particularly wanted to kill them.

“Whatever.”

Simurtr gave the siblings a cursory wave and headed for the west annex.

***

Hero Families.

The groups to which heroes belonged were called as such and praised in this current era of peace.

‘Then what about ctera?’

ctera had no hero. Gerehk, who was the Sword Master during the Doom War, had certainly played a major role, but he could not be called a hero.

‘And he croaked.’

In the empire, the prestige of ctera was second only to the imperial family. Along with the Ducal House of Basor, the master of the Magic Tower, it was a family that represented the empire.

However, after the Doom War ended, the number of ducal houses increased from just two to three. All existing ducal houses were now called Hero Families.

‘They would have been pushed aside if they hadn't borrowed my na.’

…It was truly embarrassing, and even I myself didn't think I was that great, but Exa Baperr of the Doom War was truly called a hero.

That fa was not sothing that ca about because of the additional achievent of death.

‘If that's the case.’

Though they boasted a thousand-year history, what was important was the present. A long-standing tradition did not prove strength. Without Exa, ctera would surely have been overshadowed by the other two ducal houses.

‘Of course, they're still being overshadowed even now.’

The one with the weakest influence was ctera.

Because unlike the other two Hero Families, their symbolic hero was dead.

But if they weren't a Hero Family in the first place, they couldn't even be compared.

ctera had borrowed Exa's na to stand on a more or less equal footing with the other Hero Families.

‘So… if it was just a ans to not fall behind the other Hero Families, if that's all it was, I can understand.’

I could let it slide as repaynt for the environnt I was given during my ti as an adopted son in my past life.

I could cover it as paynt for the goodwill I received from the swordsn of ctera, including Aran.

‘If that's the case, then ctera isn't so bad.’

If that was the only truth, then I quite liked ctera. I was confident I could welco the old-fashioned deoban with a smile.

‘If it was Gerehk's cri alone… that's fine too. That's enough. It ans ctera is not guilty.’

Isn't it better than being born into another Hero Family?

There could be nothing more terrible than being reincarnated as the child of an enemy….

“Asleep?”

Suddenly, a voice was heard.

Simurtr reflexively spread his Sword Net. It was a mistake he wouldn't have made in his past life. Because his mana was insufficient, he couldn't operate the Sword Net 24 hours a day.

‘I can't sense anyone.’

5 ters. There was no particular presence caught within it. But the source of the voice… was definitely within the radius.

Simurtr drew his sword and slightly shifted his position. He glanced at the ti. 1 AM.

‘It's not ram.’

There was one presence caught in the Sword Net. But that was in the next room. ram had gone to bed long ago.

“You're not sleeping.”

The voice was as clear as if spoken right in front of his eardrum. Yet, no presence could be detected.

This ant the owner of the voice far surpassed Simurtr's current level of achievent.

“What is it.”

Hostility… couldn't be felt. For now. Simurtr operated his mana as he answered. 4 rotations.

The maximum output he could currently produce. The amplified 4-star mana writhed throughout his body.

Creak. A sound of sothing misaligning was heard from within his body. His physical body could not handle the 4-star level. It was a body that could not fight for long.

‘As quickly as possible.’

The voice rang out again just as he made that judgnt.

“I have sothing to ask.”

A clear voice characteristic of a child. But it was not high-pitched and was stiff. No particular emotion could be gleaned from it.

“In that case, you should show your face when you speak.”

Simurtr furrowed his brow.

The unpleasant feeling of being played with seed to tighten his throat.

“Captain?”

The top of a head popped out from the shadow on the floor. With only its face out, it looked at Simurtr and asked.

“…What captain.”

The appearance of soone around 15 years old. Green hair… and green eyes that didn't easily show emotion. Simurtr unknowingly stamred.

“Just now. That was the Captain.”

“I an… what captain.”

“Captain of the Baperr unit.”

“Who is that.”

“Captain Exa. Am I wrong?”

“You've got the wrong person. Exa Baperr died a long, long ti ago.”

“…He was dead?”

“He died.”

At Simurtr's words, the girl lost her reply.

She darted her eyes around as if searching for sothing to say.

‘No wonder the shadows felt unkind.’

Simurtr secretly let out a sigh.

A young appearance. And that green color. It was the color symbolizing the bloodline of the Elf King.

‘Why did she co here?’

A half-elf, the head of Degrate, the Phantasm.

And… a unit mber from his past life. Senu Degrate.

It was called a unit, but the number of mbers was small enough to be counted on both hands. It was impossible to forget even if he tried.

“Why do you call yourself Baperr? This is ctera.”

“I'm an adopted son. I don't have any sense of belonging.”

“The Captain was like that too. He didn't like ctera. So I hate it too.”

“But in the end, his gravestone said ctera, didn't it?”

“I hate it.”

Senu leaped up. The rippling shadow disappeared, and she stood on the floor.

“Aren't you curious about my na?”

“You must be the Phantasm of Degrate.”

“How did you know?”

“You use shadows. A Phantasmal Ability.”

Ah. Senu let out a short exclamation.

“The Captain doesn't know.”

“I told you I'm not the Captain.”

“I'm not the Phantasm.”

“You're not?”

A wrinkle briefly ford on Simurtr's brow.

The Phantasm. It was a term referring to the head of the Degrate family. The head of phantasms. Considering Senu's contributions, there could be no one more fitting to be the Phantasm than her.

Belying their na as assassins, the Degrate was a rather cooperative group in the Doom War.

And among them, there was no Degrate who had perford as well as Senu.

‘Except for the Phantasm of that era.’

20 years had passed, but the lifespan of a Degrate was comparable to that of a long-lived species. Perhaps the Phantasm from the ti of the Doom War was still active.

“Yeah. I'm just a Degrate. And you're the Captain.”

Senu's finger pointed at herself, then soon turned towards Simurtr.

“I told you, I'm not.”

And then she got closer and closer. The distance beca a handspan, but Simurtr did not move away.

“This.”

She reached out her hand from up close. A green light flowed in all directions. The dark room was filled with green.

“What.”

“Sword Net.”

It was not simply to light up the dark room. The green that dotted the surroundings was taking on so kind of shape.

“This right now. It's the Sword Net.”

At a glance, it looked like a green mist. But Simurtr's face stiffened.

Just as Senu said, that shape right now… was identical to the structure of the Sword Net that Simurtr was currently deploying.

She had perfectly mimicked the shape of the mana spread out in a 5-ter radius, which was invisible to the naked eye, with green light and made it visible.

“Right? I know it too.”

Sword Net. The detection thod devised by Exa.

In truth, it was nothing more than a polished talent.

Innate affinity, operational ability, and control.

It was the result of honing such skills, closer to raising one's senses to the extre rather than a technique.

“What's that. I just expanded my senses. Because soone was secretly talking to .”

“It's different. It's dense.”

“It's because I'm sensitive to mana.”

“The Captain is like that too.”

The mory of teaching Senu the Sword Net soti in the past ca to mind. In fact, saying he 'taught' her was an embarrassing expression. It wasn't sothing that could be called a technique in the first place.

‘So she can do it.’

That unit mber, Urkel, is an idiot after all.

Contrary to that ignorant fool's expectation, Senu had succeeded. She was a Degrate, one who embodied the authority of elves, of phantasms.

Considering that the driving force behind that embodint was mana, there was no race more versatile in mana utilization than the Degrate.

‘But I can't sense her.’

She was right in front of him, but Senu still could not be detected.

On the other hand, Senu not only perceived the form of the concentrated mana of the Sword Net spread within a 5-ter radius, but was even mimicking it.

‘The difference is quite severe.’

At this point in ti, Senu was a powerhouse who far surpassed Simurtr. It was a fact he had already realized during the Selection Ceremony.

‘A lot… no, she might have grown stronger, but more than that, I've just beco too weak.’

I didn't want to admit it… but this was reality.

Aran. deoban. Senu. Every ti I t soone from my past life. Every ti I realized I had beco weaker than them, I keenly felt my reincarnation.

“It was pure white.”

“What was.”

“Your mana.”

“It's my constitution.”

“Isn't it the Star-Breaking Style?”

Star-Breaking Style.

At that word, Simurtr struggled to manage his expression.

The fact that Exa had inherited the Star breaker was sothing known by all who could be called his comrades-in-arms.

“No… what is that.”

“Our Captain is bad at acting.”

“I'm not the Captain.”

“Is that so?”

Senu stood on her tiptoes. Even then, their heights didn't match, so she used a shadow as a foothold to forcefully et his eye level.

“You're bad at it.”

“Anyone would be scared if a Degrate did this. An assassin is right in front of .”

“The Captain doesn't get scared. Ever.”

“Because I'm not the Captain.”

“……”

Senu stared intently into Simurtr's eyes.

He could see his own face reflected in her characteristically emotionless eyes. She should just say sothing, Simurtr thought. If he looked away here, he would just seem suspicious.

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“The Degrate are of half-elf blood. Elves are the clan of the Word Spirit.”

“So.”

“It ans I can read minds.”

Their noses touched. They were so focused that only each other's pupils were reflected in their retinas. At least, that was how Senu appeared.

“I'll ask again.”

After speaking, Senu did not blink.

She stared intently into his eyes, as if she would not move a muscle until she heard an answer.

“Captain. Right?”