The Second Son of the Marquis Wants to Laze Around-Chapter 58: Useless is Glitching

The next day in the Valmont Camp.

Commander Gareth summoned all the newly recruited elite knights for a formal gathering. Standing tall before them, he pointed at the dense, looming forest behind him—the infamous Dry Forest—while the recruits stood in neat rows, silent and attentive.

With a commanding voice, he informed them that their training would take place inside that forest. For the next month, they would train and grow together as a unit. The recruits would be divided into smaller teams and tasked with subjugating monsters as part of their practical training.

There were exactly fifty-six new elite recruits in total, and among them was Leon. As expected, Gareth split them evenly into six teams, labeled from Team A to Team F.

Once the teams were established, the senior knights distributed small magical communication devices to each team leader. These crystal-like devices glowed faintly and could be used to send out distress signals if they were ever lost or faced serious danger.

"And one last thing " Gareth said, his voice stern and firm. "Do not wander too deep into the forest. Don’t let your pride get the better of you. Know your limits as a team—not just as individuals."

After his final warning and once all preparations were complete, the teams began their march into the Dry Forest, one after another, vanishing into the thick shadows of the trees.

....

....

Hours passed.

Commander Gareth remained outside, standing in the same position as before, arms crossed as he monitored the situation closely using a map device that scanned the teams location. Beside him, Raven sat lazily atop a rock, her blue eyes glowing faintly—an indication that her skill "Link Connection" that was currently active. Through her tamed birds scattered across the forest, she was watching the teams from above, sharing their vision in real-time.

"How’s it going?" Gareth asked, his eyes still fixed ahead.

"They’re doing okay... pretty well, actually," Raven mumbled, her tone sluggish as usual. Her glowing eyes continued to track the teams through her birds’ shared sight.

"Teams A, B, C, and E have already encountered a few monsters and managed to take them down with decent coordination," she reported casually. "Team D is currently in the middle of a fight with four Level 3 monsters."

Gareth nodded. "And Team F?"

"They haven’t fought anything yet. They’re just... creeping silently through the forest, moving deeper and deeper," she said with a raised eyebrow.

Upon hearing this, Gareth’s expression stiffened slightly. He immediately thought of Team F’s leader—Leon. Gareth was well aware of the young man’s exceptional talent. A former adventurer, Leon had far more experience than most of his peers. Despite only being a Level 3 Awakener, he could already hold his own against someone like Kristoff. His instincts, battle sense, and leadership qualities were nothing short of genius for his age.

Still, talent could be a double-edged sword.

Gareth silently hoped Leon wouldn’t get overconfident and drag his less-experienced teammates into trouble. It was one thing to be strong alone, but leading a team required patience, strategy, and awareness of everyone’s limits.

Right then, Raven’s voice changed.

"Hmm? Looks like they’ve finally encountered a big one," she muttered, blinking slowly. "Oh yeah... that’s definitely a big one."

"What is it?" Gareth asked, turning his head slightly.

"Red fur, long horns... it’s a Red-Horn Bear."

Gareth’s eyes widened slightly in surprise. "That’s a Level 4-tier monster."

"Yep," Raven nodded. "But... weirdly enough, they’re not attacking it. They’re just hiding—taking cover behind bushes and trees."

Hearing that, Gareth let out a quiet breath and smiled.

"Smart," he murmured. "Charging in headfirst would’ve been reckless. Looks like they’re trying to come up with a plan. That’s definitely Leon’s doing."

Just then, the sound of footsteps approached from behind. It was Kristoff.

Gareth turned toward him with a curious look. "Where’s the young master?"

Kristoff scratched the back of his head with an awkward chuckle. "Well... his personal maid said he won’t be training today. He’s apparently still tired and not feeling well."

Gareth raised an eyebrow. That didn’t quite add up. From what he had heard at the Valmont estate, the young master’s illness was supposedly cured after his Awakening.

’Is he really still sick?’ Gareth wondered silently.

Something didn’t feel right. He couldn’t help but doubt whether Eren’s "Sloth" condition was temporary... or if his so-called illness was something deeper—even after becoming an Awakener couldn’t fix.

Raven, who had been eavesdropping with interest, tilted her head. "Didn’t that kid look perfectly healthy though? What’s the deal with him?"

Unlike the staff in the Valmont household or the nobles from the Aisman Kingdom, not many people were aware of the truth behind Eren’s "fake" new illness. Raven, a mercenary from outside the kingdom, was clearly one of them.

Kristoff frowned slightly. "You haven’t heard about the second son of House Valmont? His reputation? His condition?"

Raven blinked. "Nope. Should I have?"

Kristoff sighed. "You were assigned to attack him. Shouldn’t your client have filled you in?"

But Raven just shrugged, her expression indifferent.

"I was only given the mission details, not a background check," she replied, holding her palms up. "Back when I was hired to attack your convoy, all I was told was the travel route. The client simply wanted me to stage an ambush—make it look like a random monster attack on the road."

She gave a nonchalant laugh as she leaned back. "I didn’t even know who I was attacking at the time."

Both Gareth and Kristoff gave her a deadpan look. That ambush had indeed been convincing. If it weren’t for Gareth’s skill that could detect hidden presences, they might’ve actually believed it was just a freak accident. But Gareth had sensed the unnatural behavior of the monsters and quickly pinpointed Raven’s hiding spot.

"You don’t need to know," Gareth said coldly, turning his gaze back to the forest.

Raven gave a playful smirk as she teasingly poked Gareth’s arm with her finger.

"Oh~ come on, don’t be like that. You’re my master, and that kid is your master—so technically, he’s also my boss, so shouldn’t I also know more about the boss too?" she said with a mischievous tone.

Though she still harbored fear and a bit of dislike for the boy after being threatened, humiliated, and forced into submission multiple times, she couldn’t deny one thing: he had spared her life. Not only that, he offered her a job, which she eventually accepted—perhaps reluctantly at first.

Besides, she was well aware of the Valmont family’s reputation. Being the wealthiest and most influential noble house in the Aisman Kingdom, working under them wasn’t a bad deal at all. In fact, it might be the smartest choice she had ever made.

Gareth glanced at her from the corner of his eye, giving her a skeptical look but saying nothing. When he didn’t respond, Raven let out a small sigh and shifted her attention back to her bird’s shared vision through her Link Connection skill.

"By the way, when do I get paid?" she asked casually, breaking the silence again.

Gareth had already told her before that he wasn’t fond of the typical ’master-slave’... thing. Instead, he told her to think of him as her commander and herself as his personal subordinate. He even promised she’d get a proper salary once he submitted a report to Marquis Valmont and made her officially hired.

"..."

But instead of answering her question, Gareth simply turned around and left, heading straight back to his tent. Raven frowned slightly, left behind with Kristoff, who looked equally confused.

.....

.....

.....

Five days passed just like that.

The camp remained active with a strict rotation of guards maintaining shifts around the perimeter. The new elite knight recruits continued their training every day, venturing into the forest in their teams. Some stayed behind to practice swordplay and sparring sessions with senior knights in the open field. Mealtimes were spent together at long wooden tables, sharing laughter and food like a proper brotherhood.

However, there was one thing that left everyone puzzled: the whereabouts of the young master.

Despite the passing days, Eren had not once left his tent. Instead, he had Marie, his personal maid, bring his meals to him directly. He left orders to not be disturbed under any circumstance. The entire camp began whispering about him. Rumors spread quickly—some believed the young master was still sick; others said he was afraid to join the training, or perhaps he was just as lazy here as he was rumored to be in the mansion.

But then again... they all remembered the shocking scene when the supposedly young master defeated a Level 3 Troll on his own. And many saw or heard about his dual against the d’Armand’s knight. That memory alone kept the gossip from becoming disrespectful. Still, curiosity grew among the elite knights, as most of them were eager to see him training with them and fight monsters.

At one of the outdoor dining tables, a group of knights were deep in discussion. One of them, who had been assigned to guard Eren’s tent, leaned in and said in a hushed voice, "I heard some strange noises coming from the young master’s tent at night."

"What kind of noises?" another asked, clearly interested.

"I’m not exactly sure what it was. But it sounded like... small screams, yelling, random explosions, even breaking things."

He wasn’t the only one who had heard it—his partner on duty did too. Thanks to their enhanced senses as Awakeners, the sounds were quite clear.

The knight tried to describe the noise, struggling to explain the weird mix of unfamiliar voices, strange words, and even what he described as "moaning" sounds. His vague and bizarre explanation only made the others more confused and suspicious. Speculations flew in every direction about what exactly the second young master was doing in that tent.

...

Meanwhile, inside the large and luxurious tent, Eren lay sprawled on his plush bed, holding a game console while watching an anime fight scene play out on its screen. Animated characters flew through the air, exchanging blows and shouting exaggerated attacks.

For the past five days, he had been binging one show after another. He hadn’t played any video games, or do any quests. This unusual behavior was starting to make the system a bit concerned.

[Master... when are you going to start your plan?] Useless asked, its mechanical voice sounding somewhat impatient.

"Hmm? Start what?" Eren replied lazily, not even taking his eyes off the screen.

[The plan to search for the hidden dungeon.]

Useless clearly remembered the goal for coming here: to find the hidden dungeon trial mentioned in the Valoria Legends—the Aberration Dungeon.

"Oh, that? I’ll do it tomorrow," Eren replied casually, waving the idea away like it was an afterthought.

[...]

–glitch

Useless’s screen glitched with static for a moment, clearly in frustration. That was the same exact line Eren had repeated every single day for the past five days!

Watching him waste time on his favorite shows instead of moving forward with their mission drove the system insane.

Realizing its master wasn’t going to budge anytime soon, Useless decided it would start searching for the dungeon on its own the next day—whether or not Eren decided to get serious.

’Tch! What a lazy master...’ it thought, muting itself in Mute Mode so he can’t hear it.

...

...

The next morning.

Useless hovered in front of Eren’s face, its screen displaying a deadpan expression—if it had one.

[Master. What are you doing?] it asked flatly.

Eren glanced lazily at the floating screen while adjusting his training gear.

"Isn’t it obvious? I’m getting ready to go look for the dungeon," he replied with a look that screamed, are you blind or something?

[.....]

–glitch!

Useless glitched again, visibly feeling more irritated.

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