There Are No Bad Young Ladies in the World - Chapter 139



＜ 4 Stars (4) ＞

I remember the first time I opened my eyes in a corner of the slums. It was the moment Derek’s journey began.

Without any warning, he was thrown into a harsh environment where he had to scrape by to survive. As he struggled to endure, a question naturally etched itself into young Derek’s mind.

It wasn’t a profound question, nor did it help him in any way to survive, but… it was something everyone mutters to themselves at least once.

Why do we live?

It was a trivial question that the boy, chewing on a crumbly rye bread, pondered as he sat in a corner of the street, looking up at the sea of stars in the sky.

It was a cold street.

There were so many beggars on the ground that no one passing by paid any attention to Derek… but Derek was clearly looking up at the sky with his bright eyes.

*

– Bang! Crash!

The figure of Derek, who had risen, disappeared in an instant.

Grand Duke Beltus frowned and looked around. In that brief moment, Derek used illusion magic to erase his presence and hid himself in the surroundings to catch Grand Duke Beltus off guard.

He was already a seasoned mercenary.

He instinctively knew that engaging in a pure physical fight with a grandmaster-level mage was suicidal.

No matter how much Fine had already half-destroyed him, Grand Duke Beltus was a 5-star mage responsible for an entire family. To defeat him, one had to use every trick in the book, not just pure magical skill.

Battlefield coordination and improvisation were Derek’s specialties.

Grand Duke Beltus, having roughly grasped this fact, immediately cast a defensive spell over his entire body as soon as Derek’s figure disappeared.

He didn’t know where or how the attack would come. The only certainty was that as long as he didn’t allow a critical hit in some strange way, Grand Duke Beltus would never be overwhelmed by him.

– Whoosh!

Beyond the broken outer wall, Derek’s fireball flew in.

However, any magic below the 2-star level could be neutralized and disappear just by a single glance.

Grand Duke Beltus had the ability to control magic with just his gaze.

It was a method unique to Grand Duke Beltus, something even seasoned wizards could not easily master.

It is a characteristic commonly seen in those who have reached the realm of 4-star level or higher. The level of handling magic with one’s own interpretation is something that cannot be approached with ordinary talent.

– Snap!

However, Derek’s intention was to draw the gaze of such a Grand Duke Beltus.

Derek, who had leaped out from the debris, approached Grand Duke Beltus with his sword drawn. His leap was so fast that by the time one blinked, Derek’s sword was already thrust right in front of him.

– Clang!

However, the 2-star level combat magic ‘Protective Wall’ had the power to offset physical impact compared to the caster’s magic.

The sword, blocked right in front of Grand Duke Beltus, was trembling.

“Do you think you can defeat me with such petty tricks?”

– Bang!

The ‘Light of the Empire’ held by Grand Duke Beltus began to shine again.

In an instant, the shockwave that was implemented blew Derek away, pinning him back against the wall. Dust rose, and Derek had to cough in agony.

However, Derek got up again and widened the distance.

Was it an escape? Or was he trying to lure him in? It was unclear, but Grand Duke Beltus had no choice but to chase him.

Grand Duke Beltus had already sensed it. If he did not kill that monster here and now, there was no telling how he would grow in the future.

Even in front of a 5-star wizard, he kept thinking endlessly to catch him off guard, changing and improving the way he utilized magic, continuously attempting to turn the tables.

His sensitivity to magic itself was decent, and his growth rate was so fast that it could not be considered ordinary.

Who could doubt it? That monster harbors the potential of at least a 5-star rank.

It was a great fortune to encounter him at a moment when he, still a 3-star mage, had hit the wall of growth and was momentarily stagnant.

If the opportunity to uproot him has come, he must be uprooted.

Thus, Grand Duke Veltus crossed the corridor, chasing after Derek.

– Kwaaak! Paak!

Derek cast confusion magic, scattering all sorts of illusions.

Though doppelgangers created by confusion magic appeared behind him as he fled, Grand Duke Veltus, who was also proficient in detection magic, was not deceived at all.

Arrows flew, and swords embedded themselves, but he paid no heed. He had anticipated that they would all vanish the moment they touched his body.

Thus, Derek crossed the half-destroyed second-floor corridor and flung open the door leading to the stairs attached to the outer wall.

– Hwoong

However, what appeared in front of the outer wall stairs was… a giant demon. The sight of its enormous face pushing forward was pure terror.

The demon of hell, moving under the command of Grand Duke Veltus, had already arrived, knowing that Derek would flee here.

Its eyes glowed, and soon a giant fist flew and struck.

– Kwaaang!

Swept away by the impact, Derek rolled on the floor once. Breaking through the dust, he madly dashed down to the lower floor.

“How delightful it is to see you running away!”

Grand Duke Veltus, wielding his magic, floated and chased after Derek, who was running towards the lower floor.

Even if he had to abandon everything else, he was determined to kill Derek right here and now. With that single-minded determination, he charged at him.

– Pababak! Pak!

Derek, who had thrown himself into the first-floor corridor, rolled his body and crossed the corridor once more.

The second-floor corridor was almost half-destroyed from the battle between Derek and Grand Duke Beltus, but the first-floor corridor still somewhat resembled the luxurious mansion of a noble family.

Of course, the carpet on the floor was dirtied with footprints from the rampaging monsters, and all kinds of furniture were scattered across the floor.

– Clang! Bang!

Then, the windows of the long corridor shattered all at once, and bat-shaped monsters poured in.

It was impossible to count how many summons Grand Duke Beltus had under his control. Each one was enveloped in magical power, yet they all seemed to be controlled in perfect unison.

When Derek fired the second-tier combat magic ‘Fireball’ down the corridor, they all began to burn and disappear. However, the number of monsters pushing in far exceeded those that were burning away.

As Derek drew his longsword and cut down the monsters one by one, Grand Duke Beltus finally appeared on the opposite side.

He had floated in through the window.

“Your words were all grand, but you were busy running away disgracefully. Here, I will end your life…”

– Bang!

Before Grand Duke Beltus could finish his sentence, the ceiling collapsed.

Startled by the sudden attack, he tried to deploy defensive magic, but he couldn’t deflect all the debris from the collapsing building.

‘An ambush… reinforcements…?’

The entrance to the mansion was blocked by an Arch Lich.

At this point, there shouldn’t have been any enemies capable of joining the fray. However, amidst the debris falling from the second-floor corridor, there were clear traces of magical power.

But, when he looked up, there was no one there. Only then did Derek’s eyes fall on the staff he had drawn.

‘Footsteps’

The staff, crafted by a transformation artisan from the northern Rochester territory, had the ability to re-manifest a spell after a certain time delay once it had been used.

The fireball Derek had unleashed in the second-floor corridor was not aimed directly at subduing Grand Duke Beltus.

By borrowing the power of ‘Footsteps,’ he had re-manifested the fireball with a time delay to collapse the building’s foundation.

By casting the spell with a time delay, he lured Grand Duke Veltus to the first-floor corridor, causing him to be buried under the building’s debris.

– Crackle! Bang!

Of course, the falling debris alone could not subdue Grand Duke Veltus. His protective magic was already at a high level, capable of withstanding such weight.

However, his attention had to be drawn to the second floor.

That brief gap.

In a situation where the outcome is decided in a split second, even the slightest gap can lead to irreversible results.

The moment Grand Duke Veltus realized and turned his gaze back to the front, Derek had already drawn his sword from its sheath and was closing in on Grand Duke Veltus.

His movement was like lightning. The speed of his approach, without any hesitation, showed that it was all planned.

In that moment, which lasted a hundredth of a second, in the fleeting instant that felt as if time had stopped… Grand Duke Veltus’s brain began to accelerate.

Even with the madness of necromancy eroding his mind and his body at the peak of exhaustion… this master-level magician never let go of his thoughts.

The falling building debris. The approaching Derek.

If he had to defend against one of them first, it had to be the latter.

Instinctive reflexes. Despite his old and venerable body, and having been away from the battlefield for a long time… that combat sense surged through his entire body once again.

If he blocked Derek’s attack, he wouldn’t be able to stop the falling debris.

However, Derek would also be buried under the debris and suffer damage.

Rather than allowing a one-sided attack, it was better for both to be buried.

Thinking this, he was about to unleash a shockwave towards Derek.

– Whoosh!

But the moment Grand Duke Veltus’s magic touched him, Derek’s figure, who had drawn his sword and closed in, dissolved into magic and disappeared. ─It was an illusion spell.

In this extreme situation, this madman had mixed in another feint.

Predicting even the unexpected, responding to responses… The ability to see one step ahead is an indispensable skill for a duelist.

Was it just to prevent Grand Duke Beltus from defending against the falling debris by responding to the illusion?

Grand Duke Beltus realized the intention belatedly and turned his gaze back to the second floor to block the debris.

– Thud!

However, Derrick took one step further.

A sword was protruding from Grand Duke Beltus’s shoulder. Grand Duke Beltus widened his eyes and looked behind him.

Even if he were to be buried in the debris, it would be fatal, but Derrick went a step further and thrust the sword into his body once more. The blow from behind was impossible to counter.

In this situation, Derrick himself would also have to be buried in the falling debris.

However, rather than just burying Grand Duke Beltus… he could inflict a much more significant fatal blow.

If he could take the bone, he would give up the flesh.

The gambling spirit of this blood-soaked young mercenary was different from that of a high-ranking noble with much to lose.

“You… crazy… b*stard…”

Blood gushed out from the pierced shoulder.

– Crash! Bang!

The debris from the second floor collapsed on the two of them.

*

– Rustle

The sound of dust falling on the pile of rubble was heard.

The collapsed debris penetrated the ground of the corridor, digging down to the basement.

Starlight seeped in through the broken ceiling, and a presence emerged from beneath the collapsed debris.

– Crack, Thud! Boom!

Duke Veltus, who had a wound on his shoulder, groaned as he lifted his body.

Blood was flowing profusely, and his legs did not move as he wished. His luxurious noble attire was covered in dust and blood, and his battered body creaked.

However, he was still alive. Somehow, the protective magic he had cast managed to shield his limbs.

– Crack! Thud!

But as soon as he emerged from the pile of debris, his knees gave way.

The madness of necromancy threatened to overturn his mind again, and the veins throughout his body surged with heat.

His body was shattered, and his magic was nearly depleted. The mansion was collapsing, the gathered army was considerable, and even the monsters were rampaging.

In this extreme situation, Duke Veltus’s blood flow accelerated.

He had to endure and somehow overcome this crisis to take one step closer to the ambition he had harbored.

Thinking only of that, he gritted his teeth and endured. That was how Duke Veltus had accumulated power.

“Cough, gasp… gasp…”

He smelled grapes.

It was the underground wine cellar. The debris that had collapsed from the first-floor hallway had finally reached the basement.

Broken wine bottles littered the floor, and wine leaking from the oak barrels soaked the floor like blood.

The red liquid flowing down his hand—was it blood or wine? Or perhaps a mixture of both?

He couldn’t tell, but he had to hold onto his sanity.

“Gasp, cough… ugh…”

Duke Veltus swept his bangs back with his grape-scented hand and clutched his bleeding shoulder tightly.

His vision was becoming blurry. He punched his own face to hold onto his fleeting consciousness.

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– Boom!

– Crash

However, there was another figure who broke through the debris and stood up behind him.

There was no need to distinguish who it was. It was the monster that had fallen underground with him.

Red eyes gleamed through the white hair. Wine stained the tips of his boots, and blood was smeared all over his face.

One of his nails was broken, and a large scar remained on his left eyebrow, possibly crushed by the debris. The sword was nowhere to be found.

However, the man didn’t care and jumped down from the debris, striking Duke Veltus in the face.

– Thud!

“Ugh!”

Duke Veltus slid and fell to the ground, but somehow managed to draw out his magic and release a shockwave at Derek’s feet.

– Thud!

A situation pushed to the limit.

Despite this, the magic from his fingertips summoned a sword, stabbing Derek’s shoulder and thigh. The blow was effective, piercing right through Derek’s body.

Blood gushed from his body, and he groaned as he rolled on the wine-soaked floor.

“You… damn b*stard… do you know who I am…!”

Just summoning a few swords made him cough up blood.

Each spell clung to his lifeline.

Even at such an extreme, the zombie-like man did not stop moving.

He pulled out the embedded sword, glared with wide eyes… and soon rushed forward, grabbing Duke Veltus by the collar.

He slammed him to the ground, picked up a sword rolling on the floor, but Duke Veltus tripped him.

-Crash! Bang!

Derek, lying on the floor, tries to get up somehow, but he has reached his limit.

Grand Duke Beltus raises the corners of his mouth and tries to get up again, attempting to pick up the sword that had fallen to the floor, but Derek throws a nearby stone at him.

– Thud!

The sharp stone hits his hand, leaving a deep wound.

As Grand Duke Beltus staggers again with a groan, Derek, barely managing to stand, pushes him over with his shoulder.

– Thud! Thud!

He climbs on top of him and punches his nose several times. Blood splatters, and a dislodged molar rolls on the floor.

However, as Grand Duke Beltus, who was being beaten senselessly, barely manages to summon his magic, he pushes Derek away.

He kicks Derek, who has fallen again, in the stomach, stomps on his thigh, and raises his blade again to finish him off.

Blood splatters, and wine spills.

Red liquid flows out from the broken oak barrel.

The brawl at the very bottom is not much different from what was often seen in the slums.

However, the two men are already well-established nobles.

Grand Duke Beltus, with trembling hands, picks up a dagger, but Derek, who suddenly rises, grabs his wrist.

However, Grand Duke Beltus does not let go of the dagger. With trembling hands, he tries to stab Derek somehow, but Derek also blocks the movement with the strength of his tightly clenched hand.

Derek’s nails dig into Grand Duke Beltus’s wrist, and blood drips down.

Grand Duke Beltus grits his teeth and screams, but his body no longer moves as he wishes.

“Die. Die! You damn… Die…!”

“…”

Two men face off over a single dagger.

At that moment, Derek, with his eyes wide open, speaks.

“I guess… you don’t have the strength to use magic anymore.”

“…”

“That’s unfortunate.”

At that moment, a shiver runs down the spine of Grand Duke Veltus.

This madman, even in this extreme situation where their lives are at stake, was observing and absorbing Grand Duke Veltus’s magic.

– Bang!

At that moment, a first-class combat magic ‘Shockwave’ flew into Grand Duke Veltus’s abdomen.

Grand Duke Veltus was thrown back, crashing into a barrel of wine and rolling on the ground.

Wine, seeping from the barrel, soaked his shoulder.

His pupils, trembling, slowly rose from the river of blood, towards the young wolf.

That man is a lunatic.

He had risen to this position solely out of a desire for magic, and it was impossible to know the source of his zeal that rivaled his madness.

“Cough… cough… cough…”

Derek, too, barely managed to stand, coughing as if his body wouldn’t move as he wished.

He staggered several times, his feet slipping, forcing him to rise from the beginning again.

Even so, he stood up completely without changing his expression.

In his hand was a dagger.

The man staggering towards him was the reaper who would end Grand Duke Veltus’s long journey.

As the reality of the situation sank in, the tips of Grand Duke Veltus’ toes began to tremble more violently.

“You, you madman…”

“…”

“Why, why are you so obsessed… with magic…?”

Derek’s cold gaze turned towards Grand Duke Veltus.

Grand Duke Veltus tried to move his battered body somehow, but even the wine pouring over his shoulders felt unbearably heavy.

“Magic… was just a means of advancement for someone as lowly as you, wasn’t it…?”

“…”

“Then I’ll do as you wish. Take my hand… I’ll show you what real power is…”

The smell of death lingered.

It was so pungent, more fishy and intense than the scent of grapes filling the wine cellar.

Grand Duke Veltus’ keen sense of smell did not miss that dreadful fear. With trembling hands, he somehow pushed against the floor and spoke to Derek.

“If you want to learn magic… I can help you reach the highest levels… I am the master of Veltus…”

“…”

“Your skills and talents have already been sufficiently… sufficiently proven. Your courage and decisiveness… You possess the qualities of a ruler… Trust me and take my hand… I’ll lead you to the highest heights…”

“Why are you so obsessed with magic?”

Derek staggered and slowly approached.

– Clang! Clang!

He dropped the dagger he was holding. The dagger rolled helplessly on the floor, buried in the river of wine.

Soon, Derek’s hand was imbued with magic.

Is he still able to use magic? Duke Beltus clicked his tongue in disbelief.

After scraping the bottom of the barrel for magic, all that remains is sheer willpower.

Only by drawing out all the strength of the body with superhuman willpower can a person reach the next level.

This is what Beltus had shown throughout the battle.

Not bound by the magical system established by Adelbert, but roaming above it and touching the essence of magic.

Clashing swords and colliding magic several times… The presence that touched the man’s senses seemed to flicker in his memory.

It’s unbelievable that he still has the energy to draw out magic.

He had already suffered several fatal injuries, his body was covered in wounds, and his bleeding was severe. Nevertheless, he was trying to draw out magic of a level higher than the first or second star.

From here on, he might have to sacrifice his life. Everything in the world comes with a price.

However, Derrick, without hesitation, scraped the bottom of his energy… trying to manifest everything he saw, heard, and felt.

─Is it a revolving lantern? Or a daydream?

Come to think of it, he was always looking up at the starry sky. In the corners of the slums, on the streets of taverns, on the roadside, in the barony.

The people beside him might have been different, but the scenery he saw always felt the same.

Each time, the people who were beside him often asked similar questions.

An old man in the slums asked, “Derrick, why do you learn magic?”

A boy eating crumbly bread answered, “Just to make a living.”

A fallen noblewoman wandering the tavern streets asked, “Derrick, why do you work so hard to learn magic?”

The boy, who was starting to look like a mercenary, answered, “To become stronger.”

An old exploration-type wizard who had been through many hardships asked, “What do you intend to do by learning magic like this?”

The man, who had begun to make a name for himself as a renowned magic teacher, answered, “Because it’s fun.”

The answer was different each time. It couldn’t be helped.

As I grew older, matured, managed to make a living, became somewhat stronger, and my environment improved.

The reasons for striving towards higher levels of magic varied each time, but the result of moving forward was always similar.

In that context, answering the question of Grand Duke Veltus wasn’t particularly difficult. There was no need for a lengthy explanation.

When asked why I was so obsessed with magic, it felt like the answer had been decided long ago.

When I woke up on the streets of the slums, thrown into a cold world with no standards or guidelines to follow… That naive boy thought, why should I live?

By then, I might have already realized.

To live well, it’s good to be obsessed with something.

A life without a reason to live or an ambition to achieve has no driving force.

So, I decided to be obsessed with magic.

So, when asked why I was so obsessed with achieving magical success, there was no grand answer.

“Just because.”

That was all.

Grand Duke Veltus’s eyes widened.

A fear, as if facing an incomprehensible being beyond understanding and cognition, climbed up his back.

When humans feel the approach of death, they tend to burst into tears. He gritted his teeth and tried to find a way, but there was no apparent solution.

– Crackle, pop! Whoosh!

In Derek’s perception, the system of magic intertwined and soon shone.

The magic power at the tip of his arm was familiar. And he intentionally shattered that familiarity.

3-star combat magic ‘Freeze’. The sensation of magic flowing for its manifestation was familiar, but… he forcibly twisted and distorted it, reflecting the methods of illusion magic and summoning magic.

On top of the rules set by Adelbert, when you look straight at the essence of magic… you see a new landscape that you have never seen before.

The exhilaration that flows through your entire body when you reach the end cannot be imitated by any extreme drug.

– Crackle, Pop!

It feels like your whole body is burning and electricity is sparking.

Using magic of this scale with a body that has reached its limit, you instinctively feel that there will be aftereffects.

However, you cannot stop now that you have come this far.

Derek’s eyes glowed with a strange light, and the magic power that emanated from him began to cover the underground storage.

At that moment, Grand Duke Beltus felt an unknown chill.

Then, in an instant, with a huge roar, Derek’s magic power erupted.

“It’s gotten much colder. Is it winter?”

Pine, who had just emerged from the forest, was stretching.

She was thinking of stopping by a nearby village to borrow a horse and return to the Ravenclaw Barony – such a brazen thought she was having.

Seeing her so relaxed after causing such a commotion at the Beltus mansion, it was clear that she was not a normal person. Even she felt a considerable amount of credibility in the saying that there are no normal people among 6-star wizards.

As she walked through the clearing under the moonlight, she glanced at the distant view of the Beltus mansion.

The sight of that hellscape, filled with rampaging spirits and covered in monsters, was quite to her liking. She wondered when she would be able to rampage like this again.

However, the appearance of the Beltus mansion had changed quite a bit since Pine had left.

The moonlight was bright.

The main building of the Beltus mansion, revealed under the moonlight, was completely frozen.

“Now it’s somewhat bearable.”

4-star combat magic ‘Large-scale Space Freezing’.

The magic that stopped not only the periphery but the entire battlefield was something that could only be seen during the Great War of the North.

At that time, it was used by Melverot, and war magic was always of such an enormous scale.

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“ ♬ ♩♪”

Humming a tune, she left the mansion behind.

Pine walked leisurely across the clearing and disappeared into the darkness.

The sight of the ice mansion revealed under the moonlight looked quite beautiful.

Considering the horrors that were happening inside, it was indeed an ironic sight.