Regressor of the Fallen Family

Episode 36

“Who has come to visit?”

“Well… It’s a man named Logan McLean. He came without an appointment and insists on speaking with Your Excellency, pushing quite aggressively for a mention.”

Upon hearing this, Felix’s expression notably hardened, and the knight witnessing this also wore an increasingly stern look.

“I apologize! I will send him away immediately.”

“No, let him in.”

“…Excuse me?”

The knight’s eyes widened at the unexpected response.

* * *

With a low voice reverberating, Logan was able to enter the modest-looking office.

Unlike the usual aristocratic offices filled with paintings, pottery, and lavish decorations, this one was furnished with simple pieces.

A handsome middle-aged man with a golden beard that reached his chin sat by the window through which sunlight streamed, his friendly eyes notable.

As soon as Logan saw him, he bowed his head.

“I’m honored to meet the Sword Sage. I am Logan McLean, the eldest son of the McLean clan.”

“McLean? Isn’t that the territory in the southwest? What brings the son of that region all this way?”

The voice that matched the stately appearance.

He looked about forty or fifty but that was due to his powerful aura suppressing his aging; in truth, he was nearly seventy, an old sword sage.

Felix Esperanza, respected as the strongest sword sage in the Kingdom of Grandia.

As Felix’s solemn gaze fixed upon Logan, he remembered the warning voice of Philip before coming here.

– Anyway, I’m not going. Absolutely not! If something happens to you, Logan, I’ll pretend I know nothing. You got that?!

Philip hadn’t understood Logan’s confidence about seeking out the Sword Sage.

To put it dramatically, what Logan intended to do was akin to knocking on the door of one of the kingdom’s most powerful and superhuman figures and saying – Are you perhaps impotent? And did you steal my goods yesterday? Hehe.

…That was essentially the plan.

– You’re just inviting trouble. We could have ignored the whole thing… If things go wrong, we’re screwed!

Although Philip wasn’t really wrong to worry.

But if that man truly was the Sword Sage, then this was an opportunity that Logan couldn’t miss.

The chance to form a good connection with one of the country’s highest authorities.

Such a chance was certainly worth taking a gamble on.

‘I don’t have to bring up yesterday’s incident. If he truly is the Sword Sage and the rumors are true, then…’

Logan had a way to fix it.

Philip might think it was just another tall tale, but the effects of the remedy were unquestionably real.

Of course, the two doses he had taken the previous day would not have been enough to see a proper effect.

‘The problem is figuring out whether the thief from yesterday was really the Sword Sage…’

Even facing him directly, Logan still had no absolute certainty.

After all, who could comprehend why a man of Sword Sage’s stature would personally carry out such an act?

However, the mere fact that Sword Sage Felix agreed to meet with a no-name countryman at the drop of a hat added to Logan’s confidence in his assumptions.

And Logan had come with the perfect gift, assuming all his conjectures were correct.

“It is an honor to meet you. And this is…”

No sooner had Felix finished speaking than Logan quickly retrieved a box from his pocket.

“I’ve recently started a business in the capital, and on the way to see you, I brought this gift.”

Despite it seeming customary to offer a reply, Sword Sage remained silent.

Felix observed Logan and the box without any discernible emotion in his eyes.

However, Logan, undaunted, walked confidently towards him.

“The product I sell is called Imporik, a tonic. Its effectiveness is proven through various nobles, and it’s already guaranteed to be an excellent drug for men.”

“…Is that so?”

Felix’s voice, deep and discharged, was unmistakably uninterested.

Yet, Logan’s following words caused a slight tremor in the Sword Sage’s blue eyes.

“But such things are hardly necessary for a superhuman like Your Excellency. Hence, I prepared a more special item.”

Upon seeing this, Logan silently cheered within.

‘I was right!’

His indifferent expression was probably due to the ineffectiveness of Imporik.

Given the way Imporik worked, it naturally made sense.

The flesh of the monster Karok contained toxins, and the cost-effective antidote mitigated its toxicity without harming people.

However, a slight toxicity remained, mixing with the flesh’s composition to act both as an aphrodisiac and a remedy for sexual dysfunction.

This function was so powerful that, in that particular area, it even seemed to have restorative effects.

But what if it met a superhuman or a user of aura?

That minute level of toxicity would have had no impact on such a sturdy constitution.

Hence, the solution was simple.

‘Concentrate the toxin to an extreme degree.’

Click.

Logan, smiling, opened the lid of the small box.

“This is the very…”

Inside was a pill, ornately wrapped in gold leaf.

“A special limited edition.”

“Mmm.”

Felix let out a single, complex sigh.

Little did he know, the “special limited edition” was merely fifty pills condensed into one, with gold leaf as nothing more than fancy packaging.

‘I had my share of hardships swallowing it…’

The agonizing pain in his stomach and the part of him that refused to settle.

Recalling the hardships he endured through self-experimentation just before coming here made Logan briefly break into a sweat.

Had it been an average person, they would likely have died when, even as a possessor of the Force Core, he had struggled so much.

‘But for an aura user…’

He doubted the toxin would cause any internal pain.

At that point, only the effectiveness would remain.

The miraculous effect wrought by the flesh of a monster, a creature not fully understood even in his previous life.

This gave Logan the confidence to extend the offer.

“It may not catch your eye, but please consider it a token of my concern for Your Excellency’s health.”

“That’s all you seek? Nothing more?”

“If you have any wishes, feel free to voice them.”

This seemed to suggest hidden implications, but Logan’s response had no hesitation.

‘Bringing up last night’s incident or making demands would spoil everything.’

Now it was enough merely to continue the connection with Sword Sage Felix.

Logan bowed his head with such a thought.

“Hmm…”

Even as he bowed, he could feel the Sword Sage’s perturbation.

A moment of silence passed, long enough despite its brevity.

“Huff, huff. Since it’s for my health, I’ll gratefully accept your gift.”

It was the moment when Logan’s fists clenched with resolve.

‘I’ve passed the first hurdle.’

They had tacitly acknowledged each other’s knowledge about the previous night’s events, and yet had avoided discussing it, establishing a fresh connection instead.

What was left was merely to wait for the result.

“If by any chance you find satisfaction after trying it, please mention it to me. I am willing to supply as much as you need, always maintaining strict ‘confidentiality’.”

Even as he took his leave, Sword Sage’s expression did not seem utterly positive.

But…

The Sword Sage’s messenger looked for Logan the very next day.

* * *

Same place, same time, a different day brought a Sword Sage with a much brighter expression.

Logan smiled at the striking contrast to the previous day’s mood.

“What do you desire?”

Before Logan could even introduce himself, Sword Sage Felix opened with an astonishing prompt.

“…Excuse me?”

“Do you wish for something? Within my capabilities, I will grant any request.”

Sword Sage’s voice conveyed an eagerness that almost felt too friendly.

Caught off-guard by the unexpectedly proactive approach, Logan hesitated briefly.

The Sword Sage was still vividly recalling the unusual sensation from that morning.

‘The effect is… present. Still.’

As an accomplished martial artist and master of the life-giving force, the aura, he could tell with certainty.

This strange drug had given his long-unresponsive body a positive stimulus.

And he could imagine what change might follow from this stimulus.

With roughly thirty more uses…

‘I can be restored!’

Each thought made his clenched hands tremble with the anticipation of resolving deep-seated regret and long-held resentment.

He didn’t need to maintain emotional equilibrium cultivated over decades of training—not when his heart was racing with the joy bestowed by hope.

So, how could he not be grateful for the young man before him?

‘He didn’t even bring up my mistake…’

An insightful young man who had come to him on the slimmest evidence, without showing his intent and instead presenting a gift.

Plus, the outstanding sword skill he had observed the other day surpassed what one could expect for his age.

Truly, he was a promising young talent worthy of “miraculous elixir.”

“Such generosity is overwhelming. Please tell me why—at least.”

Being humbled, even with such talent, was commendable.

‘Marvelous!’

Felix, who always had a soft spot for extraordinary youths, felt even more gratified.

“Ha-ha! I guess I was too eager. Well, the gift you presented yesterday has shown the possibility of healing my longstanding pain. Therefore, I wish to repay you.”

Yesterday’s gift. The mention of the drug’s effect would normally have been embarrassing.

Especially so for someone with a social status like Sword Sage.

However, the countenance he wore as he said it shone genuinely bright.

Looking at Sword Sage’s expression, Logan gained another assurance.

‘The rumors appear to be true, indeed.’

Truthfully, Logan, while selling Imporik, held a disdainful view of the nobility that crazed over it, believing that only those with promiscuous lives or intentions would purchase the drug.

Yet, he had to acknowledge anew that there might indeed be legitimate therapeutic uses.

“Very well. Do you have any requests for me? Speak frankly.”

Snapped back from his momentary reverie by Sword Sage’s pressing voice, Logan’s sense of reality returned.

‘The Sword Sage is capable of many things.’

The range of things that the man could do was enormous, even by simple reckoning.

It was a huge windfall, and at that thought, Logan’s fists clenched again.

‘But this is too much in return for just supplying Imporik.’

That’s why he couldn’t simply seize this opportunity without restraint.

Logan subdued his elated heart to calmness.

His aim was a lasting connection with Sword Sage Felix.

A figure who maintained a paramount aristocratic position even after internal strife.

Also, the kingdom’s mightiest sword during the war against the empire, halting an imperial army of a hundred thousand with merely his knights for over a week.

What Logan sought was the person himself: Sword Sage Felix, the highest aristocrat and the most powerful aura user in the current kingdom.

Therefore, it was…

‘There’s something I thought I’d ask for, as insurance.’

To lay the groundwork for an ongoing connection, it was best to show a willingness to take a calculated loss.

On his way there, Logan had considered a proposal he now brought forward.

“If you insist… Would it be possible to obtain an unused sword manual?”

“…What?”

Sword Sage questioned his own hearing at the request.

“Perhaps you misspoke about an intermediate-level sword manual?”

“I mentioned an unused manual. It could be low-level. However, it would be preferable if it came with a confirmation from the Duke.”

“Huh?”

The request seemed utterly absurd to Sword Sage.

Not least because the vast chasm between basic sword skills that train the body and lay the foundation, and intermediate-level sword skills used by aura users, was beyond description.

Had he asked for an intermediate-level sword manual, Sword Sage would have comprehended.

Though he couldn’t teach the secret techniques of the Esperanza knights, among the manuals he had collected were several quite decent intermediate-level sword techniques.

But low-level ones?

‘Almost any favor or request for money would have been acceptable. Disappointing, yes, but…’

This was beyond what Sword Sage had fathomed, an unimaginable request.

Yet, somehow, it didn’t displease him.

“…Why?”

“I simply wish it as a testament that our McLean family has connected with the Sword Sage.”

“Haha, a connection, you say.”

For Sword Sage, that sounded as absurd as it gets.

Owning one of his sword manuals wouldn’t create any special relationship.

After all, many had learned from the sword manuals he had accumulated or perfected, with his touch evident even on the Grandia Kingdom’s sword technique, deemed the foundation for all kingdom knights.

Based solely on a sword manual, near every knight in the country had the right to call themselves his disciple.

So for him, it was more about feeling apologetic than anything else.

“Rather than that, I’ll pass on a suitable intermediate-level sword manual. If you want, I can even teach you personally.”

An exceptionally generous offer, and Logan seemed momentarily affected before he responded again.

“If it’s about intermediate-level sword skills, I believe our McLean family’s technique isn’t lacking either.”

It was an empty boast.