by Park Saenal
He was the strongest talent who could see through other people and felt a sense of alarm from Grid.
‘Grid was guarding against me. He must’ve received my location from Asmophel and has been monitoring me.’
It seemed that Grid was worried that Haster would go one step further by defeating Aura Master Hurent, which was why he had appeared when Haster was on the verge of victory.
‘This is a method of someone who keeps the highest position. It is truly scary…’
Haster got a grasp of the situation thanks to his reasonable (?) line of thought. Meanwhile, Hurent was disturbed by the situation. ‘Grid knew about me?’
Hurent was reminded that Piaro served Grid. It was likely that Piaro reported many things to Grid.
‘That’s right. Grid must’ve known that I’ve been a farmer in the Overgeared Kingdom for many years.’
In the first place, the Overgeared Kingdom belonged to Grid. There was little chance that Grid didn’t know what was happening in his country. He had even known that Haster and Hurent were fighting right now. Hurent got a strange feeling.
‘Grid, are you angry at your fields being ruined?’
In other words…
‘It means that he respects my hard work in the fields under Piaro… This polite attitude is a means of showing respect.’
Hurent’s heart thumped. Originally, Hurent had possessed no good feelings toward Grid. It was natural. He was an American, yet Grid had knocked him down in only five seconds. Due to Grid, Hurent—one of the strongest rankers in the world—had lost his reputation and went on wandering around for a long time. There had been times when he became depressed as he thought about how his life had been ruined by Grid. Hurent held a grudge against Grid and wanted to beat him someday.
Yet, at this moment, Hurent realized that those emotions were useless. Why?
‘Grid clearly knows that I am working in the Overgeared Kingdom… He knew that I would mature and look for him… Rather than kick me out, he has been watching me silently. Then when I experienced a crisis, he rushed to help…’
Grid didn’t dwell on the past.
‘The current Grid… How wide is your heart?’
Grid was definitely a person with a big heart. After all, there was a reason why Piaro served Grid. Enlightened, Hurent became ashamed of himself for being obsessed with the past. He wanted to beat Grid? Was this why Grid hadn’t appeared in front of him for the past few years?
Yes, Grid knew the truth. He had to know that Hurent had led the soldiers of the Eternal Kingdom to invade Reidan. Grid knew everything, yet he forgave Hurent. He just watched silently because he forgave Hurent. Then the moment when the fields got damaged like this, Grid ran over on his behalf. Despite this, Hurent was still obsessed with the past and wanted to get revenge on Grid…?
‘Pathetic.’ Hurent felt he was egotistic and selfish. ‘If Grid’s heart is like the sea, my heart is like a well. I am truly a small person.’
Hurent saw the entire truth. He was ashamed of himself and respected Grid. In the meantime, it had been silent for a while.
“So, who will pay the compensation?” Grid asked another question. His fields had been damaged due to a personal fight between outsiders! Grid couldn’t overlook it as the king of the Overgeared Kingdom. He knew the value of the blood and sweat that the farmers had shed.
‘I don’t know why Hurent is here or who Haster is.’
Grid didn’t wonder why they were fighting in his territory or why Piaro didn’t stop their fight despite being nearby. These were also secondary problems. There was an order to everything. Grid decided that the first thing to handle was the compensation issue.
“Of course, he will reimburse you.” Hurent pointed at Haster. “He is the one who damaged your field.”
“Hrmm…” Grid was slightly upset after hearing Hurent’s words. Grid definitely remembered Hurent. They had met in the past during the 1st National Competition. Hurent was the best American player who made him taste bitterness during the target processing event.
Despite having defeated Hurent in five seconds, Grid never belittled him. Grid was well aware of Hurent’s strength. What if Hurent had known about Pagma’s Swordsmanship, Restraint? Grid wouldn’t have been able to win so easily. At present, Grid vividly remembered Hurent’s insight. It had blocked Grid’s swordsmanship and the power of his aura, which dealt fixed damage regardless of target’s defense. The first time they met, Hurent had treated Grid like he was a child.
‘Now he is acting politely to me…’ Grid noticed that this was the power of etiquette. He acted politely first, so the older person had to be polite back. Grid felt proud.
Haster blushed. “I ruined the fields? Just because I stepped on two buds?”
That’s right. Hurent was the reason why the fields were damaged. He had misunderstood Haster and started a duel. Yet he was now holding Haster responsible? Haster felt wronged. He strongly rejected Hurent’s claim, “Hey Grid. Try acting like a man. I’ve already noticed your intentions. Didn’t you create this situation intentionally?”
Grid frowned at Haster’s shout. ‘This man continues to talk down to me.’
Haster was the opposite of the polite Hurent! Grid’s first impression of Haster was the worst. Hurent bowed and spoke using polite speech while Haster spoke nonsense. At this point, Hurent seemed like a great gentleman.
“Sigh… Yes… I’ll get the compensation from you,” Grid said. It was an extremely personal decision! Grid saw that Haster was the cause of the destruction and demanded an apology and compensation from him. “Haster? Be sure to reimburse me for invading the kingdom, making a disturbance, and causing material damage. Apologize to the farmers who have been working hard.”
“…You are still keeping up the pretense.” Haster’s convictions deepened. Now he was sure that he had fallen into a trap.
‘Yes, this was his plan from the beginning.’
Why else would the Aura Master be pretending to be a farmer? Wasn’t this the Overgeared Kingdom? There were no coincidences in this world. Haster believed that Hurent disguising as a farmer and then fighting him had all been planned out thoroughly. He thought that Hurent was a member of the Overgeared Guild who acted upon Grid’s orders.
‘It is to keep me in check and examine my skills…’
Grid tested Haster without even raising a hand. Was this the so-called power of a king?
Haster was shocked by the power of Overgeared King Grid and took a step back. “Okay. Grid, I understand you now. I have learned that accompanying Asmophel is poisonous, so I will do my class quests on my own in the future.”
“…?”
What was Haster saying? Why did he mention Asmophel’s name all of a sudden? Grid was bewildered. Haster jumped as hard as he could and kicked the air several times. It was close to acrobatics. Every time Haster kicked the air, his body propelled one meter forward.
“What?” Was Haster trying to escape paying compensation? Grid frowned and shouted, “Arrest him!”
Who was he giving the order to? Haster let out a ridiculing scoff in the air. He had already escaped the range of Grid and Hurent, and there were only farmers in the fields. The knights and soldiers of the Overgeared Kingdom weren’t present. Who could capture him?
‘Grid, I have been hit by you many times. I won’t lose my wariness again.’
He would show Grid that he wouldn’t bow down no matter what means and methods were used to contain him. Instead, he would grow and see the throne. Haster vowed this.
“…!?”
Then two pillars of fire rose and caused an explosion. It was the continuous manifestation of top fire magic. This was deadly for Haster, who had already received great damage from his battle with Hurent.
‘Kuk…! Who is it?’
There was a slight time difference between the two Fire Walls. Thanks to this, he got the chance to use Heroic Story. If he had been hit by the two Fire Walls at the same time, he would’ve died. Haster tu
rned his eyes toward the direction the Fire Walls came from.
“Gulp. Huh, he’s fine?”
“I am still lacking. My magic power is weak.”
The people speaking were farmers who were eating boiled potatoes.
‘This is ridiculous!’ Haster denied reality. The two high-level magic spells that threatened to kill him were cast by them? He couldn’t understand it at all.
‘In the end, they are like Hurent…’
Grid had disguised the powerhouses of his guild as farmers. Haster’s heart thumped as he ran away.
‘Grid, how far ahead did you look? What do you want to do after grabbing me like this?’
Grid was definitely a different existence from Kraugel. The combination of power, status, and insanity made Grid a difficult opponent. Fear settled deep in Haster’s mind.
“…” Grid felt a heavy sense of burden. It was due to Hurent, not Haster escaping. The man, who was at least 40 years old, was staring at Grid with sparkling eyes. Grid found it difficult to understand and felt uncomfortable.
Chapter 915
‘What are you up to?’
Grid was the person who previously beat Hurent in just five seconds. Consequently, Grid was able to anticipate that Hurent resented him for the aftermath of the ‘five seconds’ incident. Yet…
‘What is this?’
What was this loving attention?
‘I feel very uncomfortable.’
Seeing Hurent’s shining gaze, Grid felt burdened and turned away. It was an effort to wake himself up.
‘I have to think about it first.’
Grid judged this and opened his mouth to say, “Did you take the wrong medicine? Why are you looking at me with such eyes?”
He was wary. However, Hurent was trying to appeal to him with his eyes, so Grid couldn’t make any rash moves.
‘I have to grasp the intent behind his ways to understand what he is interested in.’
It was fine. He could do it. Grid had spent the last year trying to use his head! He encouraged himself, thinking he no longer had a stone brain.
“Huhuhut. There is no need to act. Oh, I am older than you. Can I speak in a more relaxed manner?”
As Hurent’s nonsense began, Grid fell into confusion.
“Act?”
It didn’t matter if Hurent spoke less politely, and it was strange to listen to an old man talk in a polite way the whole time anyway. Why did he suddenly say that Grid was acting though?
‘How am I acting?’
It felt like he was in front of a sphinx!
Hurent bowed to the baffled Grid. It wasn’t a perfunctory bow that would make others want to slap him. He bowed with deep respect. “Thank you for your care over the past few years. I am amazed and honored that despite knowing the intentions behind why I came to the Overgeared Kingdom, you observed me instead of disturbing me. I feel embarrassed thinking about the days when I was obsessed with getting revenge on you.”
“…???”
“I’m serious. Ordinary people wouldn’t be able to watch a competitor who can be a threat without being prejudiced about the past while also giving them new opportunities. Grid, I am fascinated by your boldness.”
“…????” Question marks continued to appear over Grid’s head. Grid was still feeling lost when Hurent showed a bitter smile and said, “You kept watching… I also thank you for being concerned about me fighting in the fields. Still, I feel it is somewhat bittersweet. I’m so weak that you defeated me in five seconds, and I can’t beat the farmers in this kingdom… It must’ve been difficult to see such a thrilling battle.”
“…”
This was crazy. Hurent wasn’t sane. It was obvious that this human was crazy.
Grid was watching Hurent…? He was considerate enough to give Hurent new opportunities… and he protected Hurent in the fight…?
‘Since when? Ah!’ Grid stared at Hurent like he was a madman before belatedly realizing that Hurent was wearing dirt-covered clothes and there was a straw hat at his feet. ‘…Is he the second Kraugel?’
Grid’s head was definitely working better than before. As soon as he heard Hurent’s story and confirmed the pattern, he gained a rough grasp of the situation. ‘This guy has been a farmer in the Overgeared Kingdom for the past few years and mistakenly thought I knew about it. He misunderstood my intrusion in the fight as an act to protect him.’
Did Grid have a constitution prone to causing misunderstandings? Why did people misunderstand his actions every time? Grid had a headache, but he also felt relieved.
‘Most of the misunderstandings went in a positive direction.’
If he had been misunderstood in the negative direction, how uncomfortable and frustrating would it be? That road was too dark to imagine.
“I will explain, Your Majesty.” Piaro quietly approached them at this moment.
“Tell me,” Grid gave permission.
Then Piaro started the long story. After Hurent led the Eternal army and invaded Reidan, Piaro saw his potential and took him in as a farmer. Since then, Hurent had been contributing to the agriculture of the kingdom… Piaro didn’t hide a single truth and explained everything to Grid, “Hurent’s aura is truly great. It is at a level that can cause an agricultural revolution. Since he became a naturalized farmer, the crop production has increased by 20%…”
“Naturalization? He isn’t an illegal?” Grid frowned as he listened. He was feeling more angry than disappointed with Piaro. “Does it make sense to take an enemy, who might hurt me, and make him work in the fields? Do you want me to be assassinated?”
Grid didn’t doubt Piaro’s loyalty. At the time of the Belial raid, Piaro had fought for Grid and risked dying without achieving his purpose of getting revenge on the empress. In particular, Piaro had given all the loot he acquired from Belial to Grid. Yes, Grid found it difficult to doubt Piaro’s loyalty. However, this time, it was hard to understand. Taking an enemy who wanted to harm Grid and placing him in the fields…? In the end, Piaro was raising his enemy. This was the part Grid couldn’t understand. It was a reprehensible action.
“…” Piaro shook his head. He couldn’t say anything because he knew why Grid was angry. Grid grew angrier because Piaro didn’t give an excuse. He had to interpret the silence as agreement. Fortunately, the misunderstanding didn’t deepen. It was thanks to the emergence of the potato lover—no, Bland who was more famous for being a farmer than a magic swordsman these days.
“King Grid, the person called Hurent was always under my supervision.”
“Bland.”
It had been several months since they last met, but Bland had a potato in his mouth like usual. Bland swallowed and explained to Grid in detail, “It was Piaro’s command. He told me to kill Hurent if I ever saw him take any actions with a different heart. It was a thorough preparation for Your Majesty’s safety.”
Piaro added, “It was also my personal judgment. Hurent is someone without the capacity to ambush a person. I am convinced that even if he did point his sword at Your Majesty, it would be in a fair fight. If that day came, I would run to Your Majesty and explain all the circumstances.”
At first, Piaro had only coveted the aura ability. Hurent’s ability to plow dozens of targets on the ground had room to grow to a level similar to Piaro’s. Piaro had no doubt that Hurent would grow into a person who would contribute to the Overgeared Kingdom’s agriculture, and Hurent met these expectations. Additionally, Piaro had been aware of the danger, so he stationed people around Hurent.
“I see… It was like this.” Grid was relieved after finding out the entire truth. The disappointment and anger that sprouted in him at the thought of his most trusted loyalist betraying him gradually disappeared. However, Grid still felt sad. Thus, he gave a warning, “In the future, don’t keep secrets from me. I want you to report everything that happens to me.”
“Yes, I understand. In the future, I will report to Your Majesty whenever I recruit a new farmer,” Piaro answered
energetically. His still solid loyalty could be seen. No, it had grown from before. He was grateful that Grid had helped him reunited with Singuled, his old friend. It was a harmonious atmosphere.
‘…I’m ashamed.’ Hurent stood alone and blushed. It was because he realized the reality of the situation through the conversation that went on between Grid, Piaro, and Bland. He was ashamed because he had misinterpreted Grid’s actions and even admired Grid.
‘I will be a fool for the rest of my life.’ Hurent became uneasy because he thought that Grid would laugh at him. He wanted to hide in a mouse hole.
“Do you have a grudge against me?” Grid suddenly asked Hurent.
Hurent glanced at Piaro and Bland before answering honestly, “It would be a lie if I said I didn’t have those emotions. Now that I think about it, I don’t hate you. I was defeated purely because I was weak. It is funny if I keep thinking it is unfair.”
“Hoh…? Your lost your honor because of me, but there are no hard feelings?” Grid was full of doubts as it was hard to believe.
Yet Hurent’s eyes were shining brightly. “Secluding myself from the world was the path I chose. I didn’t lose my place because I was defeated.”
“Did you seclude yourself to train?”
“That’s right. I wanted to beat you.”
“You said there was no grudge?”
“Yes. It is just the matter of a man’s pride.
“Hrmm…”
Grid was a special person. He had experienced both the lows and highs of life. He had lived the life of the weak, the poor, and the debtor as well as the life of the rich, the life of those envied by others, the life of a challenger, and the challenged. In the process, he had met all types of humans and had been treated differently by them. Sometimes, he had been downtrodden and stepped on, while other times, he had stepped on them or they had given him joy.
That’s right. Grid had a varied history. Setting aside his intelligence, he had a good eye for people. Grid could see that Hurent was an upright person. He could sympathize with Hurent since there had been a time when he also aimed for Kraugel. Thus, Grid made a suggestion, “I will give you a chance to get revenge. Let’s fight. Come on.”