บท 4: The Girl in the Red (2)
The dusky moonlight streams through the windows of a vehicle on Reinhafer Street.
A deep male voice breaks the silence.
The voice belonged to the patriarch of House Reinhafer. It was Theo von Reinhafer.
"So. Knox's demeanor has suddenly changed?"
"Yes."
Standing beside him, listening, was Theo's loyal servant, Rodwell. He was the family butler, and the longest-serving member of the House of Six.
He reported daily, as was his routine, on the behavior of the House's people.
Along the way, he passed along the details of Knox's life.
Thanks to him, Theo had heard the whole story.
From his son's sudden appearance on the stage, to his picking up a sword, to the fact that he had the audacity to voice his opinion to Rodwell, who usually wouldn't even approach him.
It was interesting for Theo.
After all, Knox had been the youngest son, the one who had been glazed over.
The one who couldn't even make eye contact with himself, much less Rodwell and my brothers.
That attitude changed overnight?
"Not only that, but at the dinner table, he said, 'I'm going to beat my brothers. 'I'm going to beat my brothers.'
I probably wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it.
The youngest, who was glazed over. It was the first time he had ever spoken up.
He wouldn't do something like that unless he had a hand to back it up.
It was a strange thing to do if you weren't interested.
So Theo had no choice but to give the following instructions.
"Got it. Rodwell, keep an eye on Knox."
* * *
A few hours ago, after the family meal was over.
The Hartz and Allen twins glared at me, then clicked their tongues and disappeared.
I quickly rose from my seat and headed back to my room. I needed to organize my work for tomorrow.
Back in my room, I first jotted down information that I could use in the future on a piece of parchment, making sure I had a clear picture of the current situation and if there were any tricks or hidden pieces that I could use right away.
This would give me a shortcut to make my weak Knox grow faster.
Looks like I'm in for some busy days.
With that thought, I gave myself a quick wash and threw myself into my fluffy bed. Even in this rotten world, a bed is warm and cozy.
With that thought, I drifted off to sleep.
* * *
The next morning, I was back at the training grounds.
However, I'm not holding my wooden sword like yesterday, and I'm running over and over again on the nearby dirt path.
I don't know why.
This is because my biggest problem yesterday was stamina.
After exactly three swings of the sword, my weak flesh began to scream. My weak flesh started screaming after exactly three swings of the sword, which earned me a few laughs from the vassals, maids, and butlers.
It was definitely not a good experience.
'I need to get my stamina up quickly somehow.
Even a wooden sword weighs quite a bit by default.
With such a young boy's body, and with only 2 stamina, it shouldn't be that easy for me to wield a sword.
Of course, I have the [Sword and Martial Arts Genius] trait…
"Each genius trait has its own flowering conditions.
Moreover, I'm currently suffering from the penalty of the [Time-bound] talent, so my growth in physical strength is twice as slow as the others.
Unfortunately, if I don't build up my stamina now, I'm going to be in a lot of trouble later on, and my body is going to be rotten.
Then you're out of the main story, and you're out in a year.
"Huh… Huh… Huh…."
I'm running across the floor and my vision is blurring.
I haven't even gone a few laps yet, and I'm gasping for air like this…
It's the [Time Limit] trait.
"You're out again today…."
"That's right… What's wrong with him?"
"I heard that he's having a duel with Master Harts and Master Allen over the right to enter Elidane Academy."
"What? Is that true? Did he or didn't he abstain?"
"I don't know. That's what I heard."
"Well, that seems like a bit of a gamble... No matter how you slice it, Master Knox can't win...."
I can hear it all.
Again, every time I step onto the stage, I feel the eyes on me. The staff seemed unfamiliar with my presence on the practice field.
I'm not sure if the other brothers do this when they practice, but…
At least I don't think so.
"Hah…hah…huh...."
After running precisely three and a half laps, my body stiffened. My body has been telling me that I can't go any further.
But I can't rest now. I have to keep going.
I have to get stronger and more fit to fight the twins. And to survive the Elder Academy.
For [Genius of Swordsmanship and Martial Arts], the opening condition is... minimum health of 4 or more.
There's a solid reason why I'm running like hell around the track right now.
[Health stat increased by 0.1!]
To be honest, most guys with this trait start the game with over 4 health to begin with.
It's just that I don't. Damn, thanks to this snowball effect, I've gone from a whopping 2 health in a month.
"Or is it 1.9 now?
I ask, a chuckle escaping my lips in disbelief.
Surely I'll die if I keep running like this.
In less than a year.
However, there's no problem.
Naturally, I'll use the old man's trick.
"Master, it's… I've brought the things you mentioned…."
The voice of Rona, the mansion's maid, called out. I turned and gave her a cold look before taking the items she handed me.
"Now you're being useful."
In the manner of the family's famous bastard, I gave Rona credit. I looked over the items and smiled.
[The Golem's Core], the [Trident's Poison], and the [Remembering Fairy's Spring Water].
All of them were precious, but not often sought after by people. They are all shunned for being poisonous or tricky to handle.
But I know how to use them properly.
Add to that the [Rapid Physical Growth Scroll], and I'm all set.
Rona was nowhere to be seen. She's still afraid of me. At this point, I'm already worried about what Knox did to her before.
But now was not the time to dwell on such trivial matters.
"Weakness curse. We need to get rid of it first."
When it comes to stamina, there's no way to increase it other than steadily over time.
There are ways to accelerate my speed, but right now, that's out of the question.
The first thing I need to do is remove one of my negative traits.
That's the Curse of Weakness.
'With the Curse of Weakness, the growth rate of your health is halved. You can see this by the fact that I've been running like hell and only gained 0.1.
By default, the initial stat is Inner Lunatic, which is slightly easier to obtain.
A newbie perk, if you will.
But even so, I ran like hell, and my stats increased by 0.1. This was a difficulty level that was way over the top.
You know, Inner Lunatic is a game where it's hard to raise a stat in a few months, but that's part of its charm.
'Cutting your health growth rate in half is the same for the time-limited trait..., which means I have to work four times as hard as everyone else to get the same stats.'
Furthermore, considering that units with the [Limitless] talent can only raise their health to a maximum of 15, I was forced to rely on doping and artifact power.
Right now, the [Curse of Weakness] and [Time Limit] collaboration is showing more synergy than I thought it would, and in a negative way.
Shit.
"Huh… Huh… Huh...."
I continued to think while out of breath.
Fortunately, there are quite a few different ways to get rid of [Curse of Weakness], one of the worst traits in the game, right up there with [Nuisance].
The catch is that no matter which method you use, your other stats will be permanently lowered by 1. The equivalent of at least a few months of hard work is wasted in a split second.
But I'm an Inner Lunatic. I've seen it all before and know how to avoid the [Curse of Weakness].
The best is to use a special elixir to improve your constitution.
The ingredients that Rona has now brought with her are necessary for this.
"For now, let's move."
Too much snow was not good for me. I quickly moved out of the room and into the cold storage room.
The first thing I did was to shake some of the poison into my mouth.
"[Threeheaded Poison]. It's a terrifying poison that temporarily makes the drinker 1.5 times stronger but kills them instantly. However, it is of little use to me as a deceased person."
I quickly popped the golem's core into my mouth.
Of course, there are side effects. Like the fact that it petrifies the user for two hours and prevents them from waking up?
Well, that's nothing compared to the venom of the three-headed snake. At least it won't kill you.
"Mmm… that's not good.
The essence in the small red sphere mixes with the unswallowed Samdusa poison, and the composition begins to change.
[Hidden Piece manifests].
[The poison and the golem's core react].
"Alright, this is it.
Typically, golem cores are used to petrify humans to temporarily boost their defenses or create other artificial golems.
But I mixed the two to create a new effect.
Strengthening the body and removing the [Curse of Weakness].
That is the proper way to use this item.
[Special effect triggers].
[The poison of the Three Heads is diluted].
[Talent (Negative) 'Curse of Weakness' is removed].
The Curse of Weakness vanishes without any penalty. It was the best I could do for the departed.
However, I did not stop there, and after removing my robe, I took out the [Fairy Spring Water] I remembered and poured it into my body.
[The petrifying effect of the golem's core disappears].
The [Fairy Spring Water] I remember was an artifact that had the effect of restoring a person to more than their original state, and it was an artifact that had the setting of being too expensive to be commercialized.
About twenty times the price of a commercially available potion. However, its effectiveness was so poor that it was frankly a joke.
It was the kind of thing you'd call crazy to buy, but I knew it was more efficient than any other item.
The reason is simple. When the [Golem's Core] and [Fairy Spring Water] react, it adds one short-term trait to the player.
[The golem's core reacts with the fairy spring water you remembered].
[The Hidden Piece is manifested].
[The user is temporarily granted the talent 'Blessing of Growth'!]
Blessing of Growth.
The name alone suggests something sinister.
I opened the status window for a moment to see the newly applied talent.
__________________
[Basic Info]
Name: Knox Von Reinhafer
Gender: Male
Age: 14
Race: Human
Primary Element: Darkness
Achievements: None
[Traits].
Positives: [Genius with Swords and Martial Arts] / [Genius with Mana Sensitivity] / [Insight] / [Master of Memorization] / [Steel Mentality] / [Master of Smoke] / [Blessing of Growth (NEW)]
Neutral: [Manifestation of Darkness]
Negative: [Time Limit] / [Nuisance] / [Cold Hands and Feet] / [Possession]
[Stats]
Health: 2.1
Magic: 9
Luck: 7
Will: 10
Charm: 25
[Skill] – Active Skill: Time of Genius
*The player's remaining lifespan under the [Time of Genius] talent is 1 year.
__________________
[Displays new trait!]
__________________
[Talent (Positive)]
Blessing of Growth
Doubles the user's stat growth rate until their Health stat reaches 5.
__________________
As expected, we see a new talent.
It was a passive of sorts that only applied for a short time. A skill that doubles the growth rate of your health stats until they reach 5.
With this, I could at least get my health up to 5 without taking a timeout penalty. That's about as good as it gets for me right now.
In addition, the Blessing of Growth talent had one more effect.
[The first application of Blessing of Growth increases the player's Health by 0.5!]
That's right, upon first acquisition, it would permanently increase your health by a whopping 0.5.
I can't help but smile.
That left me with 1.4.
Ouch.
On top of that, I used the [Rapid Health Growth Scroll]. This is a scroll that has the short-term effect of doubling your health.
As a result, I was able to gain health stats twice as fast as before.
"Phew. Now the real fun begins."
If I just keep running every day until I die, something will happen.
With that thought in mind, I went back out onto the field.
The workers who had been waiting out front kept an eye on the warehouse, and as soon as I walked out, they started sweeping as if they had always done so, without a broom.
I thought about giving them a piece of my mind, but decided against it, not wanting to bother them.
Right now, the most important thing is to keep running.
Why, they say physical strength is national strength.
* * *
Talia von Steiner.
For days, the youngest daughter of House Steiner had twisted her red hair and watched a boy run through the training grounds.
A kid who had been running to death for days, at a subject similar in size to herself, and a subject weaker than her.
"How did such a weakling agree to fight the brothers of House Reinhafer…?"
"…Miss, you must not disparage the youngest son of House Reinhafer. It is not polite behavior...."
"No it is not!"
Talia said in an indignant tone.
Indeed, in her eyes, there was nothing in her heart to criticize Knox for running.
She just didn't like his inefficient running, his ignorant training without even holding a sword.
He'd even turned down offers from other vassals of the house to give him sword lessons.
If it were the Steiner Family, they would never allow such a weakling to train.
First of all, they wouldn't allow him to duel in the family line, and even if they did. It wouldn't end with just a good beating.
What kind of guts did that frail boy have to say that at a dinner with the head of the family?
How was he going to win against his own brothers?
I'd even heard that Knox had a reputation as the family bastard. He was said to have never fought, to have declared that he would never learn swordsmanship.
As a would-be knight herself, Talia didn't think much of him.
A sword is not something to be wielded lightly.
But now was different. Talia stared at Knox, her red eyes glittering.
Now she didn't even think about it.
Snow-white hair, lavender eyes. His graceful posture and delicate physique, even when he was working himself to death.
Everything about him piqued her curiosity.
"No! Emma, I have to go for a minute!"
"Ah, miss!"
With that, Talia took off like a bullet, heading straight for Knox.
Emma, her maid, let out a deep sigh. There was nothing she could do to stop Talia when she looked like that. All she could do was watch.
I just hope she doesn't get into trouble…
As Knox prayed, he heard Talia's crisp, clear voice.
"Hi! I'm Talia."
"...What can I do for you? I think I've heard your name before."
The answer that came back from the boy was shocking.
Talia was surprised that he could react that way even though he knew who she was.
Even if it was House Reinhafer….
She herself was the second daughter of a prestigious duke.
It wasn't like the youngest son, the lowest in the hierarchy, could be ignored.
Nevertheless, Knox was not pleased with herself.
'He must be surprised that I'm so pretty… Yeah. That's what it is…!
Talia composed herself and tapped Knox's shoulder again.
Knox stopped, his body drenched in sweat, but he didn't seem too offended.
Talia was a young knight herself, and it wasn't uncommon for her to come back from training sweaty.
"You said Knox, didn't you?"
"Yes."
"I heard you're fighting with your brothers for the right to enter Eldain in a month."
"And?"
Talia's fair brow creased slightly at the oddly short answer. The hand on my shoulder tightened involuntarily.
"Are you trying to challenge your brothers to a fight because you really think you can beat them?"
"Yeah."
"Just because you can run like that? You think that's possible? Maybe I can help you with something...."
"I'm not interested, so why don't you go away?"
Talia took a step back, shocked by the cold tone.
"Uh, how could you say that…!
Having been raised as a Forbidden Jade Leaf in her family, Nox's words came as a shock to her.
'Don't come near me…!
Not even the maids who bathed her in the dirt as she trained day in and day out had ever said such a thing.
"You, you…! I asked you to help me, and you talk to me like that! Forget it, you're on your own!"
As she stormed off, Knox could only shrug.
Meanwhile, no one else in the room knew.
Knox's words to Talia. That everything he did was just to keep her at a distance.
"Hah… it's a twisted way to go."
He muttered to himself and went back to drying off.
Just like the first time he'd crash-landed, he was stuck.
The kid who was going to kill him in the future approached him first.
What was the point of being friendly with her here in the first place…
Knox was frustrated, but he had nowhere to go to vent his frustration, so he continued to run in silence.
I don't know. Let's just live in the moment.
With that mindse
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