The Legendary Rune Knight Returns

Chapter 8

Isabelle was one of the most popular fighters. It was not just due to her relation with the Low Quarter. Her grades were outstanding enough to place her among the top three, and her appearance was beautiful. Even Bruk had expressed his favor to Isabelle on several occasions.

But there she was, sitting across from the worst fighter, Kaelen, eating her lunch.

Isabelle, sitting with him? Except for those who were just in the same session as Kaelen, a majority of the fighters glared fiercely in his direction.

“I thought Seraphina had developed only two training methods. Assimilation and amplification. You mentioned ‘combating’ earlier. It’s the first I’ve heard of it.”

“Is that so.”

However, combating was also the most dangerous of the three methods. Kaelen cut a large piece of salted meat and scoffed it down. It was extremely delicious.

“At first, I thought you were just saying whatever came to mind. But from the trainer’s reaction, the answer seemed to be correct.”

“What are you trying to say?”

Isabelle hesitated for a moment, then continued.

“What kind of training method is combating?”

It was what Isabelle was most curious about. Kaelen replied lightly.

“What stage are you at right now?”

“I have reached three stars.”

Isabelle spoke humbly, but Kaelen was shocked and fell into deep thought. He then said with a nod.

“That’s pretty good for your age.”

At that moment, Isabelle felt as if she was speaking to a wise old rune master instead of Kaelen. But then she remembered his situation and looked remorseful.

“It seems as if you don’t have any grievances.”

“That’s right.”

Kaelen finished his meal in a flash, while Isabelle had taken a mere two bites of her salad.

“I’ll be going first then.”

“W-wait a minute. What kind of method is combating?”

“Refer to the book - what I know may not be certain. Anyways break is almost over."

Kaelen left the mess hall, the conviction behind his gaze bewildering Isabelle.

Afternoon session had begun. Bruk stepped onto the vacant lot, arriving early. Antony, who just stopped by the city healer, said.

“I heard that Goran will be alright. They say he’ll be up by evening.”

“What were his symptoms?”

“The trainer doesn’t know yet, but knowing him it was probably just rune essence exhaustion.”

“Hmm…”

Bruk was unsure. The other fighters were starting to gather.

It was almost time for the lesson to begin when Trainer Elara made her appearance. She was one of the few female trainers in the Low Quarter, but was unmarried even though she was over forty. Fighters who attended her classes at least once were well aware of the reason. She had an awful personality similar to Trainer Ulric and was not enthusiastic about this class. That last point was especially important to Bruk.

If Dio was the trainer in charge of today’s class, chances were high that he could not achieve his goal. He treated all fighters fairly. Perhaps there was no difference even in the way he treated the unparalleled genius Peran and Kaelen the disgrace.

But Elara was different. Bruk understood her personality well and had the confidence to use it to his benefit.

‘If it’s the Bruk family, things shouldn’t get too bad.’

Elara nodded, thinking of Bruk’s family.

‘But why hasn’t he showed up yet?’

He didn’t run away, did he? Bruk began to think so, but soon shook his head. Maybe the past Kaelen would, but not now.

Kaelen made it to the practical training field just in time. Bruk was anticipating the moment he would kill him. When he saw Isabelle accompanying him, his face hardened.

‘Isabelle Triznine? What was she doing with Kaelen?’

They seemed to be absorbed in conversation. What was even more surprising was Isabelle’s expression. She, who rarely displayed emotion, was now more animated than ever. She gestured as she talked, and her admiration showed clearly on her face. She was even giggling.

“…”

The very same Isabelle who would not spare Bruk a single glance despite his efforts to woo her.

Trainer Elara turned to Kaelen.

‘Kaelen Thorne, what could’ve happened to cause Master Dio to say that he would not be able to supervise the class?’

She was puzzled but did not care too much about it. Elara looked around then spoke in a bland tone.

“I see you’ve all gathered. Then, I’ll call roll. Ian Durite.”

Once she noted that there were no absentees, she continued with a nod.

“Today’s class will be a practical training session. You will all compete one on one. However, the match may be suspended at any time according to my personal judgment. Only 1-star runes will be allowed for the sake of fairness. Any questions?”

Bruk raised his hand.

“Speak.”

“How are you deciding the pairs that will compete?”

“The trainer in charge will decide. Don’t worry, I’ll match only those similar in level.”

With an expression devoid of any ill intent, Bruk spoke what was really on his mind.

“I’d like to be matched with Kaelen.”

“Kaelen?”

Elara was baffled.

“Aren’t you a 3-star, Bruk? You’re not on the same level as him, though.”

“I don’t think it matters since I can only use 1-star runes anyway.”

Elara knew that he was wrong.

For example, she was confident that even if all the fighters here attacked her at once, she would be able to overpower them with 1-star runes. In the same way how a first-class knight would overpower scores of fledgling soldiers.

Bruk, who will soon reach three stars, and Kaelen, who will show signs of rune essence exhaustion after carving just a few shots of the Rune of Strength…

The result would be obvious. Nevertheless, Elara was not going to fret about it.

‘If it’s the Bruk family, things shouldn’t get too bad.’

Elara nodded, thinking of Bruk’s family.

“I’ll allow it.”

Elara’s words caused an uproar among the fighters. Most of them had seen Bruk threatening Kaelen yesterday. Some even quietly disproved of Elara’s irresponsible decision.

“I have something to say.”

Kaelen raised his hand. Bruk laughed, guessing his intentions.

‘It’s too late to back out now, no matter what you say.’

Only a very small portion of the trainers did not need to be wary of the Bruks. Of those were Adelia and Dio.

“Tell me.”

“As far as I know, a lot of accidents occur during practical lessons. If someone were to be badly injured, would the other get punished?”

Elara focused on Kaelen, nodding inwardly.

‘So you’re already assuming you’re going to be the one getting hurt?’

Since it would be impossible to defeat Bruk by himself, he was asking if Bruk could be punished by the city’s rules. Kaelen’s intentions were clear, but she could not meet his expectations.

Elara firmly shook her head.

Dueling occurred frequently among those who studied runes in particular. He would have to accept the consequences of losing without arguing about it.

It was a sacred battle held to put a rune master’s authority and honor on the line. Even one’s house or parents could not interfere.

“This practical lesson has been conducted throughout the Low Quarter’s history. Kaelen, let’s say you lost your arm in a future duel. After the duel is over, would you resent your opponent and borrow someone else’s hand to plot revenge?”

“No.”

“Okay. That’s all I needed to know.”

Elara affirmed that he would not act according to her suspicions. He could not punish his opponent for the injuries sustained from losing the match. It would be different if he lost his life, but Bruk did not want to go that far.

‘I’ll help treat you if anything happens.’

If he was crippled, the Bruk family would not be able to avoid punishment, no matter how much power they had.

Bruk’s smile grew.

“As I said before, I will stop the match myself if your life is in danger. Any more questions?”

“None.”

“Then let the first match begin. Kaelen, Bruk, head to the practical training field.”

Kaelen and Bruk went to the nearby training field and faced each other, surrounded by the rest of the fighters and Trainer Elara.

“You’ve earned my praise for not running with your tail in between your legs.”

Bruk laughed aloud.

“You want me to tell you what I’m planning to do to you now? First, I’m going to crush your vocal cords so that you won’t be able to speak. Of course I’m not going to stop there. I’ll break all your limbs, too. I want to see you crawl, so your legs are going first.”

Bruk was not planning to go that far. But he threatened him like this as a bluff, attempting to draw out the look the original Kaelen would make.

Kaelen, however, asked without lifting an eyebrow.

“Can you even do that with 1-star runes?”

“That doesn’t matter. I’m going to use my family’s rune.”

His expressionless face he answered with irritated Bruk. However, Kaelen’s expression finally changed at the words “family rune.”

“Family rune. Only the direct lineage of a family who carries it can inherit it. You’re going to use that here?”

“Yeah. Pfft. Why, you scared?”

“…”

Bruk thought Kaelen’s face would have been filled with fear. Family runes were precious enough to be called a family treasure.

The family rune that most rune houses had was tightly veiled because it was considered the secret art of the family. But Bruk paid it no heed.

‘Family rune won’t make a difference.’

With the right conditions, even a 1-star fighter could use a family rune. It was one of the possible loopholes in the practical lessons.

Although a strict trainer like Dio wouldn’t have allowed it, it was clear that Elara wouldn’t be blamed.

“Begin!”

Elara’s voice resounded throughout the field. Bruk immediately used Stone Rage, the family rune of the Bruk family. This technique was used to pull rocks from the earth and bombard the target at once.

The size of the rocks could have been adjusted by Bruk. However, even if a rock the size of a fist was pulled, it would be enough to crush Kaelen’s vocal cords. Bruk sneered inwardly. The earth shook and many stones rose. Looking at it, Kaelen muttered.

“Rune of Strength.”

“Hahaha!”

Bruk couldn’t hold back his laughter. It was as he expected. After all, no one had ever seen Kaelen use anything other than the Rune of Strength. Nevertheless, he could not guess how he would use the Rune of Strength even in front of Stone Rage.

‘You should’ve surrendered when you had the chance, Kaelen Thorne!’

CRUNCH

“Kuagh…!”

Bruk writhed on the floor, not realizing what had happened.

‘Ugk…’

He felt terrible pain in his throat and tried to scream, but could not even do that. Were his vocal cords completely destroyed?

“It’s unbelievable how sh*tty you have to be to waste a family rune like this. The Bruk house certainly is special.”

If he was in his right state of mind, he would have vented his anger. But at the moment, Bruk was in tears from the pain. This was the first time he felt pain, who grew up under the halo of Bruks. Only then did Bruk understand what happened. Kaelen’s Rune of Strength broke through Stone Rage and smashed into his neck!

“What did you say again? That you were going to break my legs after my neck?”

Another Rune of Strength formed in front of Kaelen.

Bruk stared at the scene, his body limp.

‘S-Stop it! I give up! I surrender!’

He cried frantically, but there was no sound. Only a powerless whistle came out, and even that was too weak to reach Kaelen.

CRACK

‘Kuuagh…’

Bruk’s eyes rolled to the back of his head. He almost passed out. In fact, he wished he did. But the breathtaking pain kept his mind teetering on a thin wire.

‘I-I get it now.’

He remembered what Kaelen had asked Elara before the match. It wasn’t that he was worried about himself. Clearly, Kaelen wanted to know what would happen if he made Bruk a half-paralytic.

“Is it really that painful? Having your vocal cords ruined and legs broken?”

Kaelen was frighteningly indifferent. Bruk was afraid of the look on his face, but his voice terrified him more, sending shivers down his spine. It had a light tilt.

“You’re trash who doesn’t even deserve to be called a rune master. I’ll give you a little help in giving up your miserable dream.”

‘That, that’s enough…!’

If that happened, Bruk would be abandoned by his family. The past Kaelen had clearly shown how those who failed to use runes in rune families were treated.

The family rune would fall into the hands of his brothers, and he would have to live under the care of his family for his entire life.

Rune of Strength.

It was unbelievable that 1-star rune magic could be so petrifying. Bruk looked at the Rune of Strength, his eyes filled with horror.