I'll Smash Everything with Passive Skills-Chapter 81: 0. The Duke (3)

"A bet. Or you want a deal."

"It's somewhat similar."

Veris was significantly younger. However, the Sword Saint did not scold him.

"It's a virtue that a strong person should have."

The Sword Saint smiled willingly.

In fact, he was well aware of how absurd it was for Veris to suddenly come and demand a spar that felt like a real battle.

"Then, what should I wager?"

The Sword Saint stroked his chin.

The gray in his beard seemed to testify to the years he had lived.

"I don't see anything in particular that you need."

After pondering for a while, the Sword Saint eventually shared his thoughts openly.

"Martial arts, sword, background, talent... It seems like you lack nothing."

Unlike the people he had seen before, the Sword Saint was quite accurately piercing through Veris's essence.

"It's true that I don't particularly need anything."

Veris replied calmly.

What he needed.

The reason Veris lived in the academy like a hermit without showing any particular desire.

It was because he had no needs.

Wealth, fame, power, strength, and so on...

Some would risk their lives to obtain just one of those. To such people, Veris would indeed appear like a hermit.

"Ah."

At that moment, Veris let out a small exclamation.

As the Sword Saint's gaze turned to him, Veris quickly spoke.

"If you lose to me, please come to the academy."

"To the academy?"

The Sword Saint looked at Veris with a questioning expression, struggling to understand ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) the unexpected words.

"You know about the recent series of terrorist attacks by the Demon Cult, don't you?"

"I'm already aware. It's something you've been doing excellently."

"...In the future, there may be events that I won't be able to manage."

"Hmm. Is that so?"

Only then did the Sword Saint seem to grasp the intention behind Veris's words.

"For example, you're saying you would like me to be the one protecting this academy?"

"Exactly."

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"Hoho! Isn't that too big a condition to wager?"

The Sword Saint laughed heartily. It seemed he found Veris admirable for weighing the pros and cons in front of the most famous Sword Saint in the empire.

"If it's inconvenient for you, we can just forget about it."

But Veris was not someone who would back down easily either. His negotiation power was on a different level compared to a student enrolled in the academy.

In the end, the Sword Saint had no choice but to raise his hands in surrender.

"Oh dear, at this rate, I won't even break even."

"..."

"Alright. I'll accept your proposal. But if I come to the academy..."

The Sword Saint recalled someone.

A bald dean, who was a former administrative officer from the capital where the royal palace was located, and was regarded as quite capable.

It was said that his position had diminished recently. The reason was simple.

He was not originally from the academy, and the series of terrorist attacks by the Demon Cult had caused a division among the professors.

What would happen if the Sword Saint came to the academy in such a situation?

Perhaps many professors and the royal family would instead elevate him as the new dean.

"It doesn't matter."

The relationship between Veris and the current dean of the academy was strictly business.

What the dean thought of Veris was something he himself did not know, but Veris was not foolish enough to throw away an important card for him.

"If that happens, it would be interesting."

The Sword Saint closed his eyes and thought.

These new students, who were referred to as the 'Golden Class,' were not ordinary.

Starting with the Saintess, the princess, the siblings from Haruen, the elven swordswoman, and finally Veris.

Was that all? Recently, the reckless grand duke from the neighboring country, Gallia, had also taken a position as an invited professor.

To add a little joke, their level surpassed that of a considerable number of kingdoms.

"Do you have a specific desire?"

"Pardon?"

"What you desire seems to resemble the appearance of a lord preparing against external threats."

Unlike Grand Duchess Evangeline, the Sword Saint was not merely a brute with overwhelming strength.

He was probing Veris's intentions.

"...That's not incorrect."

"Oh?"

"I do not believe this era is a time of peace."

"...!"

Veris answered without hesitation. The Sword Saint looked momentarily surprised.

"In my judgment, the Demon Cult is a threat we face directly."

"Ha, ha ha... Are you really a student?"

The Sword Saint thought again.

Regardless of the power he possessed, the Veris sitting in front of him seemed to harbor a feeling quite similar to his own.

"Tell me, young man."

"Yes."

"Are you married?"

The Sword Saint realized that he was losing his conviction in the face of Veris's unexpectedly impressive demeanor.

The question from the Sword Saint, which had completely changed from the previous atmosphere, left Veris bewildered.

"Married? I have a fiancée, but not yet."

"Is that so?"

The Sword Saint appeared unusually pleased. Seeing Veris's puzzled expression, he burst into laughter.

"I have a daughter of marriageable age. She's a first-year student at the academy."

Veris quietly nodded.

Though he hadn't explicitly mentioned it, he knew that his late-born daughter was Delia from B-Class.

"She's a very cute girl. Sometimes, her noble background shows through, but her character is exceptionally kind."

The Sword Saint suddenly began to boast about his daughter.

Veris looked at him with a face that seemed to say, "No way."

"I'd like to set a condition as well. If you lose to me in our spar, you will marry that girl."

It was a thunderous demand from the Sword Saint.

Just as Veris was about to say something...

"Um... Your Excellency."

"Hmm? What is it?"

A subordinate of the Sword Saint, who had been quietly waiting at a distance from the table, approached.

He whispered something into the Sword Saint's ear, and in an instant, the Sword Saint's face turned pale and then red.

"What, what did you say? That guy was there?" In disbelief, the Sword Saintstared blankly at Veris.

Veris could vaguely understand what that implied.

*

"I hate bald heads. I hate bald heads."

The honey liquor of Hessen was a drink with quite a strong alcohol content.

However, the surprising thing was that those drinking the honey liquor did not feel the intense alcohol.

Right now, most of the girls sitting in the mansion were like that.

"..."

The disaster unfolding before his eyes left the Sword Saint speechless.

At first glance, they did not seem like ordinary girls.

But.

"I hate bald heads."

The problem was different.

His daughter, who was embarrassed by the results she received from the entrance exam, was sprawled out in a drunken stupor at a stranger's house.

The Sword Saint's face was flushed red upon seeing that.

"W-what is this!"

"..."

"Ha, ha. It seems you're just as surprised."

Having witnessed his late-born daughter's disgrace, the Sword Saint glanced at Veris.

Veris was equally astonished.

He had suggested that the girls hold a modest party at the mansion, and that was why he had allowed it.

But he had never heard that the modest party would turn into a drunken debauchery.

Thud!

"Ugh?"

A touching reunion between father and daughter did not occur.

The Sword Saint immediately strode over to the table and grabbed Delia by the nape of her neck.

Like a little kitten, Delia dangled from the Sword Saint's thick hand.

"Uncle."

"W-what did you say?"

"You look like my dad. Hehe."

"Oh my head."

In the midst of it all, Delia was saying whatever came to her mind. The Sword Saint was holding the back of his neck.

"..."

Meanwhile, Veris looked around.

He hadn't been gone for long.

But the heavily intoxicated girls had their heads buried on the table or were breathing evenly in their respective rooms, accompanied by the sound of snoring.

"Haah."

Veris was at a loss for words at the sight of the disastrous living room.

As he let out a small sigh, the Sword Saint spoke to Veris with an embarrassed expression.

"Ha, haha. Young people should be more vigilant, shouldn't they?"

The Sword Saint's voice was filled with pity for having witnessed his daughter's disgrace.

Veris nodded with a sour expression.

"Uncle who looks like my dad. I don't want to marry a bald head. I'll marry someone handsome."

"Hey, get a grip!"

"..."

It seemed that a lot of time would be needed to have a proper conversation.

*

"Ouch."

A sharp pain settled in her head. Beatrice rose with a small ache.

She felt nauseous. Her head was spinning, and she craved a cool glass of water.

Swish.

As she looked around, the tidy room came into view.

The room was filled with a sweet scent. It was needless to say that she knew who the owner of this room was.

"Ah."

Instantly, her face turned red. It was still late afternoon, and darkness had not yet fallen.

Thus, the room was very well lit.

"Are you awake?"

"...Yes!"

Beatrice realized that she was not alone in the room.

Right next to the bed where she had been lying, a girl with pink hair was breathing evenly.

There was also a man sitting in the center of the room, looking at her with kind eyes.

"...I'm sorry."

Beatrice, recalling that she had gotten drunk and lost her memory, apologized.

Hehe.

"It's fine. Delia was taken away by someone. Arwen and Cecilia are sleeping in the other room."

Beatrice, her face flushed, quietly nodded.

She got up from her seat and looked around.

The window was open, perhaps for the sake of the girls who were full of alcohol.

It should have felt like the hot and humid air of summer.

But the room was filled with a cool, pleasant breeze.

"..."

It was not hard to guess that Veris was the one who had created that refreshing atmosphere.

"Here, drink some water."

"Yes..."

Before long, Veris brought over a cool glass of water. Beatrice accepted the cup obediently, like a baby bird being fed.

'Perhaps...'

Feeling her tension ease with the cool water, Beatrice recalled.

The drunken girls were sleeping soundly.

'This is my chance.'