The Legendary Rune Knight Returns

Chapter 7

It would be meaningless to show his anger here. Kaelen was a fighter while he was a trainer. If he stooped to his level, his authority would only plummet. Ulric smiled and clapped his hands.

“Good, good. All right. Some things are more important than class. I’m sure you wouldn’t waste all that time. Certainly, you’ve got plenty to show for it.”

“Thank you.”

“In that case, let’s stop with the idle chatter and begin.”

Ulric opened and skimmed through the textbook. With a smile, he said.

“Kaelen, here’s a question for you.”

The fighters held their breath. Ulric’s questions were notorious for being tricky. He never asked questions that could easily be guessed. Moreover, the punishment for not answering correctly was severe. In addition to docking grades, there were times when fighters had to stand until the end of class. To make matters worse, Ulric’s target was Kaelen, who had never even attended his lessons before.

“What were the three artifacts used by the Rune Knight King, Sir Cadmus?”

Kaelen did not reply. The fighters thought the question was distasteful. The Rune Knight King Cadmus was the greatest rune knight in history, yet most of the Low Quarter’s rune-oriented fighters knew him only as one of the Great Rune Knight Roric’s companions. Some even had no clue who Cadmus was. Of course, it was not that he was omitted entirely from “The History of Rune Carving.” Rather, his mention only encompassed a mere three lines, as he had walked the path of a knight.

Of course, the information about which artifacts he used was left out altogether. Ulric leered.

“What’s wrong, Kaelen? Didn’t you spend all that time accumulating knowledge that you couldn’t find in my class? Or is it that you thought the achievements of a rune knight were not even worth your time?”

Kaelen remained silent. Just as he began to answer, a fighter seated in the back spoke for him.

“I object. As far as I know, the Rune Knight King Cadmus has no place in the history of rune carving.”

For a moment, Ulric was silent. If it weren’t for her blood ties to the city’s official Rune Guild, Isabelle Triznine would have been chased out of the training ground in a more terrible way than Kaelen.

She had always interfered with his sessions in every aspect.

Ulric replied smugly.

“Cadmus was the first person to develop a method that used rune essence to enhance physical abilities. Although his pursuit was different, no one can deny his advancement of rune carving.”

“But Cadmus was a knight who used rune essence solely to train his body. Such a person cannot be considered a rune master.”

That was true. Isabelle’s knowledge was far ahead of her peers and was no less than a trainer’s. But a sly smile still remained on Ulric’s face.

“Then are you choosing to ignore everyone who walks the path of a rune knight, Isabelle?”

“… That is an outlandish interpretation.”

“Oh, that may be. However, whether or not rune knights should be considered rune masters is still a major debate in the academic community. It’s a sensitive subject that can sometimes lead to a contest of pride between learned societies. While it’s important to voice your opinion, do pay more attention to your remarks. If you want to succeed as a rune master, that is.”

“But…”

“The one I asked was Kaelen, not you, Isabelle.”

Isabelle bit her lower lip. She disliked Ulric to begin with and thought he was repulsive. He was the worst sort who enjoyed tormenting the weak for his own satisfaction. She was also well aware of his lecherous gaze that would often sweep her body.

Even now, Ulric thought he was being discreet, but Isabelle could tell. She felt horrible as he ogled her, as if a thousand insects were squirming over her entire body.

Ulric’s eyes narrowed as he noticed the look on Isabelle’s face.

‘What a shame. If it weren’t for her relation to the Rune Guild…’

Kaelen, who remained silent throughout the whole exchange, finally replied.

“The Blazing Blade’s Gauntlet, the Warlord’s Girdle, and the Ghostwalker’s Charm.”

“…”

Ulric’s eyes widened while Isabelle gazed at Kaelen in astonishment.

“Am I wrong?”

His memory was hazy, though Kaelen left that part out.

“That is… correct.”

“What a relief.”

There was an uproar among the fighters. Kaelen answered the questions with ease even though they were meant to be nearly impossible to guess. But it would be even stranger if he did not know. The Great Rune Knight Roric and his companions were very close. Those four were like family to each other. From their favorite foods to their most trivial habits, he knew them all.

As Kaelen reminisced, his expression dimmed for a moment. Ulric became solemn at once.

“This was just a warm-up. I’ve still got more questions for you, Kaelen.”

“Alright.”

Kaelen was rather pleased with the situation.

‘Unbelievable.’

Ulric openly gaped at Kaelen. His attention was absorbed in the book as if he was not the least bit interested in what Ulric had to say.

‘He answered everything correctly?’

Since the question about Cadmus, Ulric had asked about five more questions. All of them were difficult enough to baffle even the top fighters. The last two especially, since they could only be answered by trainers in a specialized field.

Kaelen did not immediately respond. Before answering, he would remain silent as if he was reliving old memories. His silence would last anywhere from a few seconds to a solid minute.

But whatever left Kaelen’s mouth ended up being correct. Ulric was at a total loss.

Is this really Kaelen Thorne? He was told that his grades were not bad. However, whenever Kaelen looked at him, Ulric would shrivel like a mouse in front of a cat.

Kaelen’s eyes were aglow with each answer he gave, while Ulric’s voice gradually withered. Eventually, he could not make a single sound and could only stand still.

‘Even though he should be the shame of the Low Quarter!’

The past Kaelen would have turned beet-red by now. But what about the current Kaelen? He was not cowering in the least. He was neither reddening nor stuttering. Instead, his eyes were lucid and his voice was full of vitality. Ulric was very familiar with these types of people. Only those who had strong self-confidence carried themselves that way.

Like Master Dio and Master Adelia!

‘Impossible!’

How could Kaelen be in the same league as the two most distinguished faculty members of the Low Quarter? Ulric immediately withdrew his line of thought.

‘That was good.’

Meanwhile, Ulric’s barrage of questions was a great stimulus for Kaelen. Memories that he thought were long forgotten re-emerged and set off a chain reaction.

Ulric would have never dreamed of such a thing, but the harder his questions became, the more helpful they were to Kaelen.

Kaelen truly did not care if he was wrong. Rather, that was what he hoped for to some extent. He wanted confirmation that rune magic hadn’t regressed for 500 years. But it never came.

Not one field of rune magic had made even an ounce of progress. How absurd. It was especially laughable to call the era when rune magic shone the brightest 500 years ago the “Light Ages.”

“Was there anything else you wanted to ask?”

Ulric was rendered speechless by Kaelen’s question. For a while, he could only gnaw at his lips until his eyes lowered to the textbook.

“…Page 131.”

Ulric could not hide his humiliation. He had just admitted defeat during his own session.

Before long, it was time for the lesson to end. Ulric glowered at Kaelen then took his leave.

‘I should go eat lunch at the mess hall.’

As Kaelen recalled the especially delicious meal he had there, his mouth began to water. Ever since his escape from the abyss, eating became very enjoyable.

Kaelen rose from his seat and realized that the fighters around him had been watching him for some time. Many appeared hesitant to speak. Kaelen had already been targeted by Bruk. Very few of them were in a position to be able to ignore Bruk’s warnings.

“Are you going to the mess hall?”

One of them was Isabelle. The power of the Rune Guild was much greater than that of Bruk. She looked directly at Kaelen with an irresistible curiosity burning in her seemingly tranquil gaze.

‘He seems like a completely different person.’

Isabelle knew Kaelen. The Triznine family was an esteemed family of rune masters. When she first heard that a fighter from the streets was admitted, she had expected a tremendous talent.

But then Isabelle’s expectations were soon shattered. It was safe to say that Kaelen had no talent at all. If it weren’t for his grit, he would not have even been allowed to attend the Low Quarter’s fighting pits.

That kind of Kaelen had changed overnight. The cowardice that plagued his every step vanished. He was no longer subservient to Bruk and his crowd when they tried to toy with him.

He was not even intimidated by Ulric’s deluge of questions, and instead answered them with ease.

Kaelen swept past her and kept walking. For a moment, Isabelle was dazed.

‘Am I being ignored?’

At least, it was her first time being ignored since entering the Low Quarter. Panicking for a moment, she hurriedly chased after Kaelen. This time, she stood right next to him and spoke more clearly.

“Kaelen Thorne.”

Only then did Kaelen spare Isabelle a glance, rolling his eyes.

“Are you talking to me?”

“Yes.”

“I didn’t know. I’m heading to the mess hall.”

Kaelen did not slow down even when answering her. Naturally, Isabelle turned to pursue him.

“About the last question that Trainer Ulric asked.”

The last question. What was it again? Kaelen, thought it over and soon came up with the answer.

“Seraphina’s three training methods?”

“Yes, that one.”

While talking, they arrived at the mess hall. Kaelen took his lunch after exchanging his meal ticket and sat down. Isabelle set her tray across from him.

The surrounding people stirred up at once.