Duke’s Son: Re

Chapter 31

“Do we really need a reassessment?”

The audience reactions were indifferent.

Kang Jaehyuk was, without a doubt, admitted through fraudulent means.

He wasn’t just a simple level 1 player; he didn’t even have a first skill. It was inconceivable that such a player had performed well in a C-rank raid.

So, what could be done about it?

The people did not wish for the expulsion of Kang Jaehyuk.

They had witnessed his talent.

He was a child who might benefit South Korea greatly in the future, and they supported him.

However, the association officials were relentless.

“Now that it’s confirmed to be a fraudulent admission, what gibberish is this? Lion’s Castle should immediately proceed with the reassessment and expel Kang Jaehyuk!”

“Exactly! We will handle the disposition afterward!”

Now was not the time to be swayed by public opinion; it was a time to remove Kang Jaehyuk from the public eye.

As those who quickly assessed the situation created a fuss, Jaehyuk grabbed the microphone from the host.

“But, you know.”

“Huh?”

“I didn’t fraudulently get admitted.”

Name: Kang Jaehyuk

Level: 10

He displayed his system window in the air, settling the situation swiftly.

He shared part of the information on his status window.

“Huh… What, what is this?”

“How did this happen?”

Level 10.

It was an exceedingly fitting number.

If a level 1 player contributed 20 percent in a C-rank raid, reaching about level 10 would be quite feasible.

“Performing admirably in a C-rank raid with just level 1 and without a first skill? Does that even make sense?”

“He is the one who slayed the Leech King. His swordsmanship had reached such an extreme level; surely it’s not impossible.”

“True enough, the Leech King is notorious for being sluggish and simple-minded. It’s not impossible to play him with skills. If Kang Jaehyuk hadn’t stepped in, that girl Chae Dahui would’ve completed the raid on her own.”

A consensus formed in the atmosphere.

At this point, even those who had openly shown hostility towards Jaehyuk were silent.

‘Is this the power of civilization?’

He had awakened, and the quality of life had shifted drastically.

With a single revelation through the status window share, it felt like a decade-long congestion had been relieved.

Smiling broadly, Jaehyuk revealed all the truth at that moment.

“In fact, I just had my awakening.”

“Hmm… quite a braggart he is.”

“Is his personality similar to Kang Hyun-ah’s?”

“Wasn’t his performance in the raid half-exaggerated, then?”

“Well, the Leech King only fell once, didn’t it? Normally, I heard it’s supposed to drop at least fifteen times….”

“……”

He didn’t get the reactions he was expecting.

Nevertheless, news poured in regarding Kang Jaehyuk.

For the first time in eight years, the Kang family was mentioned in a positive light.

A young boy had staged significant changes the moment he arrived in the world.

Thud!

A desk made of wood from another world, tougher than steel, split in half.

“The Kang family…!”

Ji Chunmyung, the association president, clenched his lips as blood rose in his eyes.

The strategy he had nurtured to completely bring down the Kang family had resulted in the worst possible outcome, and his rage peaked.

Kang Jaehyuk.

Just moments ago, the news screen kept displaying his image repeatedly.

Instead of the Kang family’s honor, it captured the young lad standing upon the fallen wave of the Leech King as if it were a grand scene from a movie.

Had the association not exerted pressure, news related to him would have been flooding all day long.

“Those rotten scoundrels!!”

Wasn’t it enough, worrying constantly about Kang Daesung suddenly returning, and now that young brat was worsening my mood too?

A prominent family.

A truly obstinate group.

They never easily crumble due to their pride, which transcends common sense.

Kang Jaehyuk was living proof of the hallowed strength of the famous families.

A mere 16-year-old boy.

He had grown up alone in a house surrounded by civic groups that loathed and cursed the Kang family and Yaksha.

Abandoned by siblings before he could even mature, he quietly kept company beside his father, who couldn’t awaken.

Ji Chunmyung knew it.

Jaehyuk’s past eight years had been a hell even adults would struggle to endure.

Yet, that boy endured.

Even in hell, he didn’t lose his dignity and conviction. He worked hard to bloom his talent, attaching a life support to the Kang family.

“Haa… Haa… Seol Soo-ah….”

What a masterfully planned trap.

‘This time, I acknowledge my defeat. I was too hasty. But you will lose something too.’

Jaehyuk stood out too much.

Ji Chunmyung was confident that he had surpassed even Seol Soo-ah’s intentions.

‘I bet you won’t be able to protect him.’

The wolves prying eyes would turn towards Lion’s Castle, targeting him, who had learned the Kang family’s swordsmanship and mana technique.

Originally, Lion’s Castle was an area collectively managed by numerous factions.

Not only the association and government but all sorts of guilds had planted eyes and ears.

A sneer appeared on Ji Chunmyung’s lips.

‘The Kang family and Kang Jaehyuk are merely on borrowed time.’

“Inconceivable you didn’t declare yourself unawakened even there. What was the concept?”

Yujin laughed while clutching her belly.

Jaehyuk, who had overwhelmed the audience with his courage and skill yet ended on an absurd note, amused her to no end.

“It wasn’t a concept; it was the truth.”

What, were people living all fooled?

As Jaehyuk frowned slightly, Dojin congratulated him.

“Congrats on obtaining the bloodline skill.”

The world had interpreted Jaehyuk’s radiant display as the blooming of a bloodline skill.

The intensity of the light pillar was far too dense.

Furthermore, Jaehyuk’s eyes reflecting light and the fallen wave faintly appeared golden, inviting misunderstanding.

“Thanks.”

Jaehyuk found no need to correct the misconception.

‘There’s no reason to expose my hidden card.’

It wasn’t about doubting Dojin, but there was a need to be wary of the gaze of others.

‘I am merely taking my first step. I need to be as cautious as possible until I grow sufficiently.’

Having grown up exposed to hostility for eight years, he understood his position.

“You’ve proven there was no admission fraud, and you’ve reclaimed your family’s honor by blooming the bloodline skill, so now there’s only success ahead!”

Dahui celebrated as if it were her own achievement.

The sincerity was felt from the purple eyes that shone straightforwardly as usual.

“Yeah, let’s do well together.”

Though such a simple act wouldn’t completely restore his family’s honor, Jaehyuk decided to relish today.

After parting with his companions, Jaehyuk walked down a desolate path.

Unperturbed by human touch, he parted the reeds-like undergrowth, crossed rivers and hills, and arrived at the ruins of a fort.

‘They really seemed intent on killing me.’

A perpetually quiet place.

Standing against the castle gate engraved with a lion’s head, his expression was cold.

Those who sat in the front row of the audience.

Individuals who fervently wished for the Kang family’s downfall had displayed blatant hostility and murderous intent toward Jaehyuk.

It was utterly ridiculous.

How dare they loathe me with such shamelessness?

‘Truth is….’

Those desiring the Kang family’s downfall were highly likely directly involved in the incident eight years ago.

They either facilitated the conditions allowing China and Japan to harm his father during the Gate Exchange Conference.

‘They must harbor numerous crimes, hence viewing the Kang family as a thorn. Otherwise, their attitude would be inexplicable.’

Power was essential.

Power to uncover the hidden truth and punish them.

Jaehyuk, releasing the suppressed murderous intent, began swinging his sword.

Even though he had awakened and unlocked the system, practicing wouldn’t increase his stats.

However, to fully utilize the existing stats, he must master and control his body completely.

Moreover, techniques were never perfect even after a lifetime of honing.

There was no reason to neglect training just because he had become a player.

‘Shall I check out the skill?’

Getting somewhat accustomed to Kang family’s acrobatics and swordsmanship, Jaehyuk deployed .

Swish!

The black-sheened sword withdrawn from its scabbard carved out two trajectories.

“Oh?”

The name “Two Sickles” led to skepticism, but it was a skill that turned a single strike into two.

The speed was so fast that the reality woven ora appeared instead of a mere sliced blade.

Moreover, the aura emitted was nearly double the strength of when Jaehyuk struck with all his might.

‘I understand why people are so obsessed with skills.’

A skill could realize physically impossible acts—a power to do so.

As he grasped the concept of skills precisely, Jaehyuk’s sword was enveloped by bright yellow lightning.

This was the effect of the Thunder Sword.

Unlike “Two Sickles” with a high attack power coefficient, it showcased power matching Jaehyuk’s stats.

Instead, being a passive skill, it had a notable advantage of consuming no mana.

‘It’s bound to electrify living entities as well.’

The most pleasing feature was the freedom of action.

Unlike ‘Two Sickles’, which forced a skill motion upon activation, the Thunder Sword merely shadowed Jaehyuk’s actions.

‘Though the activation rate is low, and timing adjustment isn’t possible, I much prefer it over Two Sickles.’

Active skills that enforced motion were not Jaehyuk’s preference.

The sense of his lifelong-trained body going out of control was agitating, and it made him susceptible to being seen through by enemies.

‘It’s better not to expose Two Sickles in front of others. Wait…?’

Motion enforcement might turn out to be beneficial.

Swish—!

Jaehyuk activated the skill midway through practicing drawing his sword.

Then, his arm, which was extending in a straight line, forcibly altered its trajectory, creating a skill motion.

“Ugh!”

Sabres of pain racked his arm as if it’d break.

However, a deep smile spread across Jaehyuk’s lips.

Observing the ora emerging on either side of the drawing trajectory.

‘I’ve got a rough idea of how to utilize skills.’

The training continued throughout the night.

He never ceased wielding the sword until he completely adjusted to the massively enhanced physique and grasped the application method of skills.

While transitioning from drawing to sheathing, Two Sickles deployed.

Crack!

An arm broke.

“Ugh… It’s been a while since I got injured during training.”

He thought he’d devised a crafty surprise angle to outmaneuver the opponent, yet his body couldn’t withstand the recoil.

It’d require boosting strength and agility by at least beyond 30 to robustly and flexibly fortify muscles and bones.

‘Until then, it should be reserved as a trump card. Huh?’

『The grueling training has surpassed the limits of your physique.』
『The grueling training has surpassed the limits of your mind.』
『The grueling training has further refined your techniques.』
『You have been surpassing the limits of your body and mind for 2,968 consecutive days.』
『Maintaining the current state for another 32 days will trigger the blooming of a hidden skill.』

‘So that’s how it’s been.’

Upon confirming the vividly emerged system messages, Jaehyuk nodded.

He understood it was thanks to breaking his limits daily that he achieved such rapid growth before awakening.

‘But would it matter even if I bloom a hidden skill?’

The second and third skill slots would be filled with skills learned from skill books.

He tore his clothes and roughly splinted his broken arm, turning his gaze.

“Now, let’s have a chat, shall we? Lion’s head.”

Even before his awakening, he could faintly sense its presence.

Now, he could precisely ascertain the origin of that presence.

-Young human, by what means did you break my curse, I ask for the 135th time. Hmmm? Did you just speak to me?

For the entire time, the lion statue had been noisily chattering away.