ALL NOVEL
Chapter 86
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Kawaii]
Chapter 86: The Secret Club (2)
[[Chapter 84 was posted incorrectly, it was supposed to be 85, please re-read chapter 84 again, it’s fixed. For this error, we’ll compensate with an additional chapter.]]
***
“I will follow Your Highness’s orders!”
James John cried out loudly. He looked incredibly reliable.
On the other hand, Damien looked tired. He already has a headache with educating the prince. He didn’t want unnecessary conflicts.
“I am Damien Haksen, Your Highness’s swordsmanship instructor. I have no intention of causing harm, so step aside.”
“No! That’s a lie! Don’t be fooled! What kind of violent thug is a swordsmanship instructor!”
Oliver shouted as if having a fit. Damien spoke briefly to the prince.
“Your Highness, I will extend it to three hours.”
At this, the prince’s eyes widened significantly.
“Damien Haksen?”
As Damien revealed his name, Jamem’s eyes lit up.
“Could it be the famous Damien Haksen I’ve only heard rumors about?”
“Probably.”
“Hahaha, it’s an honor to meet the famous person I’ve only heard rumors about. I was curious about your identity anyway!”
Damien couldn’t help but sigh at that.
“Hey, why don’t we just sit down and have a drink instead of all this?”
Damien said, patting James John’s shoulder. James John’s face stiffened at the gesture.
“Don’t touch me…”
James grabbed Damien’s wrist. However, something was off.
No matter how hard he tried, Damien’s hand didn’t budge from his shoulder.
“I said sit down.”
Damien exerted force through his hand. James found himself involuntarily sitting back in his chair.
“This, this mothe–…!”
James tried to rise again. But he couldn’t push away Damien’s hand pressing on his shoulder.
“Ugh!”
James exerted all his strength. His eyes were bloodshot. Yet, his body didn’t even twitch.
‘He’s stronger than I thought.’
Damien thought as he looked down at James John, who was writhing in pain.
In general, Knights had much greater physical strength than ordinary humans due to the mana they contained within their bodies, which transformed their physique.
By the time they reached the mid-class level, they could take down beasts with pure physical abilities without even using mana.
Such a Middle Class was being driven back by strength alone. Thanks to Allecto’s Royal Jelly.
At this point, a sense of defeat dawned on James’s face. He realized the gap between him and Damien.
“Sir James! Stay strong!”
“That guy’s gonna be knocked down in no time!”
However, the nobles belonging to the ‘Real Men’ started cheering without realizing James’s inner turmoil.
In fact, it was inevitable.
Whoever James John was, he was a significant figure even among the mid-class knights affiliated with the capital.
From their perspective, James would appear stronger than Damien, who had just become a mid-class knight.
“Dammit!”
James couldn’t shake off the expectations of his companions. He felt the need to demonstrate something, even if it was just for his pride.
James uses his mana. Power surged through his entire body.
No matter how strong Damien’s physical strength had become, he couldn’t match the power of a mid-class knight who wielded mana.
James leaped up and immediately swung his fist towards Damien.
“I’ll completely smash your face in!”
Damien easily dodged the punch and then struck James’s abdomen with his fist.
“Ugh!”
James’s body was pushed back against the wall. As his back hit the wall, he toppled forward.
“Cough, cough.”
Foam dribbled from his mouth. His eyes were already glazed over, possibly from being knocked unconscious.
“If you don’t want to end up like him, how about clearing out of the room?”
Damien pointed at James as he spoke. Members of the ‘Real Men’ hastily fled outside.
“You should take him with you.”
In response to Damien’s words, a few members returned and carried James John out.
Thus, only Damien and Oliver remained in the guest room.
“Well then, Your Highness, shall we have a serious discussion?”
Oliver’s face turned sullen as he realized that his last defender, James John, was no longer with him.
***
Damien took a seat on an empty chair.
“Your Highness, please have a seat for now.”
At Damien’s words, Oliver stiffened and took a seat a few feet away.
“So, what exactly is this gathering about?”
“It’s, um, about the Real Men… Nobles from the capital… periodically… gather to share friendship… in such gatherings.”
“Seems like a group of cowards despite the name.”
Oliver snapped at Damien’s words.
“Don’t insult my friends, even if you insult me!”
“Is there anyone else among them besides James who stood up to protect Your Highness?”
At Damien’s words, Oliver remained silent.
After listening, it seemed true. Despite always claiming loyalty, there was only one person who tried to stop Damien among them.
“Who arranged this place?”
“The owner of this tavern provided it… The appointment time is also set by the owner… When good drinks and women are arranged, the owner sends a message…”
Having heard the story, Damien clicked his tongue in disapproval.
“Your Highness, I’m deeply disappointed. You broke our agreement and came here to drink like this.”
“Sir D-Damien! P-Please spare me! I won’t do it again! So…!”
Damien poured liquor into two glasses. He placed one in front of Oliver.
Oliver looked at Damien with a face that seemed to say, ‘What’s this?’
“Have a drink.”
Damien first raised the glass to his lips. Oliver cautiously drank, keeping an eye on him.
“Cheers.”
Despite the situation, the liquor was enjoyable. Having just one glass felt too unsatisfying.
“Would you like another drink?”
Oliver extended the glass, watching Damien’s reaction. Damien poured another drink.
Oliver downed his second glass. As the alcohol spread through his body, he gained a little courage.
“A-Are you not angry?”
“I was planning to be.”
Oliver’s face turned contemplative at those words.
“But come to think of it. Your Highness has been through a lot these past two days.”
Through a lot.
At that word, Oliver blinked his eyes repeatedly.
Yes, he had suffered. He had suffered a lot. He had suffered to the point of death.
When was the last time he heard or even experienced, such words?
It felt strange to hear Damien acknowledge it like this.
“You’ve worked hard all this time, so I think it’s okay to relax a bit today. So, have another drink.”
Oliver extended the glass again. He downed a third.
“Your Highness, if you want more drinks, just let me know. I can’t permit it every time, but occasionally, I’ll turn a blind eye.”
“R-Really?”
“Yes, but you can’t drink in places like this. And no bringing women along either. It’s just about drinking sensibly.”
The prohibition on women caused Oliver to hesitate once more.
Alcohol and women.
Both were indispensable in Oliver Apple’s life.
But even with those two, something was missing. That’s why he kept searching, perhaps without knowing what he truly desired.
“I don’t seem to get a response.”
“Ah, I understand! I’ll do as you say!”
“You must stick to it.”
Damien offered the bottle again. Oliver Apple accepted and drank.
“Sir Damien… C-Can you repeat what you said?”
“What do you mean?”
“Y-You said I worked hard.”
Oliver asked, trying to conceal his embarrassment. Damien replied nonchalantly.
“You did work hard. You put in a lot of effort studying things you weren’t familiar with.”
At Damien’s words, Oliver squirmed uncomfortably.
He realized it for the first time.
How good it was to be acknowledged by others.
***
Following a lengthy night of drinking, Oliver Apple succumbed to unconsciousness, sprawled out on the couch in a state of utter oblivion.
“I don’t understand why weaklings like him insist on drinking so much.”
Damien muttered as he finished the remaining liquor. It didn’t taste very good.
He was only drinking forcibly to company Oliver.
“Why did I used to like this tasteless stuff so much?”
It was when Damien let out a wry smile and mumbled to himself.
“May I come in?”
A woman’s voice came from outside. Damien set down the glass and said.
“Feel free.”
“Thank you.”
As the door opened, a woman entered. She wore a red dress that suited her remarkably well.
“Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Carmen, the owner of this establishment.”
Damien scrutinized the woman who introduced herself as Carmen. She didn’t seem like your typical tavern woman. She exuded elegance, yet lacked something to be called noble.
“You don’t seem like an ordinary tavern owner.”
Carmen smiled in response to Damien’s comment.
“This tavern is just a side business; I have a main profession.”
“Main profession?”
“I manage ‘Green scent’.”
The term ‘Green scent’ made Damien look at her with surprise. He had heard of the term ‘Green scent’ a few times in his past life. It was a dark underworld organization that spread throughout the Apple Kingdom, not limited to the capital.
Their organizational power was meticulous, and their influence was so significant that many nobles were in league with the Green scent.
“You’re quite a formidable figure.”
“Only you, Sir Damien.”
Carmen said with a smile.
“So, why did you arrange such an event? It must have cost a lot to prepare for the gathering.”
The drinks here weren’t something you could easily obtain. Even the food they brought to share was all made with top-quality ingredients. Emptying out an upscale tavern of this size would undoubtedly incur massive losses.
“I wanted to lead a noble gathering centered around His Highness the Crown Prince. It would be very helpful if I could manage those connections.”
“You’re just answering obediently?”
“There’s nothing to hide.”
Carmen said casually. Damien looked at her with an amused expression.
“It seems too easy for you to agree.”
Despite being the center of the gathering, if the Crown Prince were to be absent, Carmen would suffer significant losses.
Yet Carmen nodded without a hint of discomfort.
“I may not know much, but I know a little about survival.”
Damien chuckled at Carmen’s words.
It was true. If a refusal came, Damien had intended to turn the Green scent upside down for the day.
“I hope you keep that promise.”
Damien suddenly said, as if he had just remembered to support the prince.
“By any chance, are you also running an underground market?”
The underground market.
It was a market where illegal items like stolen goods or drugs were traded.
Because it was an illegal market, not just anyone could run it. Only organizations as large as Green scent could manage it.
“Yes. Is there something you need?”
Damien needed only two things right now: elixirs and mana cultivation techniques.
Despite significant physical growth from consuming Allecto’s Royal Jelly, his mana remained the same. He urgently needed elixirs to increase the capacity of his mana.
Mana cultivation techniques were also indispensable. To regain the level of his past life, Damien needed to develop a mana cultivation technique that suited him.
Ideally, he needed to acquire many high-level mana cultivation techniques.
“I’d like to participate in the auction at the next underground market.”
Among illegal items, particularly valuable ones were consumed at auctions held within the underground market.
Perhaps Damien didn’t know if he would find the items he needed.
However, unlike the regular underground market, not just anyone could participate in the auction at the underground market.
Only those with close ties to the Green scent and deemed trustworthy could access it.
“If Sir Damien desires it, I’ll send an invitation for the next auction.”
But thanks to Damien’s direct encounter with the boss of the Green scent, he could easily obtain an auction pass.
“I appreciate it.”
Damien put Oliver on his back and stood up from his seat.
As he stepped outside, he realized that the sun had already risen.
***
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Kawaii]