Chapter 14 -----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: How to Survive as the Second Son of a Magical Noble Family
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This was tantamount to letting my family know I was still in a precarious position at school.
Since the school uniform was custom-ordered directly from the family, any damage to it would inevitably reach their ears.
If it were Luca, he wouldn't report the reason for the damage. And naturally, neither would I. No need to drag the family into it unnecessarily.
'…Of course, if they had any sense at all, they'd figure out why the uniform was ruined right away.'
Even so, there was no need to worry about matters of honor.
Thinking that the family would fly into a rage because tormenting a member of Ascanien was an insult to them would be a grave mistake.
I wasn't really part of that group, and everyone knew it.
'Thanks to persistently treating the kid possessed by a demon—without any progress, mind you—while feeding him, clothing him, and enrolling him in a top school,' the Ascanien image had only improved.
In short, everyone in the empire saw Luca and Ascanien as separate entities.
Even as they tore into Luca relentlessly, if they ever met the 'real' Ascanien, they'd bow their heads without a second thought. There were plenty like that.
So there was no concern about the family stepping in. I only needed to think about what would reach my brother's ears.
If he found out about this...
'He'd grin from ear to ear.'
Maybe I should make him happy for a bit.
I tossed off my jacket.
"Hey, you threw it on the ground so we'd step on it, right?"
Thud—!
Someone stomped on the jacket hard. Dust kicked up from the careless kick.
"Hahaha!"
"Hey, do it properly."
The other students snickered and cheered.
'…Sigh…'
For some reason, it left a bad taste in my mouth. Watching them kick someone else's clothes and genuinely rejoice together like that, I started to get a vague sense of existential dread about where the hell I even was.
More than anything... the certainty that the family wouldn't intervene unless this spread widely was something only Luca, raised in that house, could possess.
Sure, they could treat Luca like a bug because they saw him apart from Ascanien, but crossing into physical trouble was an entirely different level.
The reason Luca hadn't faced outright bullying so far was precisely because he bore the family name—allowing the family to apply 'nominal' punishment or pressure on an institutional level.
'Which means... these guys...'
They couldn't see even one move ahead.
It was astonishing in itself that these thoughtless idiots hadn't laid a hand on Luca until now.
"Hey, but this punk isn't reacting at all."
Buoyed by the cheers, the guy strode forward and grabbed my collar.
"You do what we say, and now you're supposed to react too?"
"...What..."
A flicker of confusion crossed the face of the student gripping my collar.
No matter how you looked at it, this wasn't the guy they knew.
Last year, the moment they'd called me here, I would've gone pale as a ghost, looking ready to drop dead any second.
'…I thought he was just pretending to be tough.'
Could he keep up the act in a situation like this?
I figured once he grabbed the collar, he'd drop the facade and show his true sniveling colors.
The hand clutching my shirt clenched harder.
I widened my eyes and leaned in close to his face.
"You'd feel like you won if I squeezed out some tears here, right?"
"You little..."
"Then you'll never win in your life."
His eyes crumpled at my sneer.
His hand moved to the wand at his waist.
Thud—!
"Ugh!"
"Hey, we said no noise!"
His attack sent me crashing into a distant wall.
The surrounding students yelled in panicked voices, not expecting magic to come into play.
"It's fine, it's too far to be heard."
The guy spat irritably on the ground and loomed over me.
Pain shot through my shoulder, followed by a growing headache.
I clutched my head and glared at him.
'They don't know when to quit.'
Seeing them worry about the noise in this situation, the rest weren't exactly normal either.
Should I just use magic? I could seal their mouths with divine power anyway, so it shouldn't be a big issue.
'No.'
That was a last resort.
I slowly regained my bearings and stood up.
Satisfied that his attack had cornered me adequately, he regained his initial nonchalance, a smug smile spreading across his face.
"Look at those eyes. Don't you know about the mess on your side a few days ago? Take a page from Leo and that blue whatever hunter. Oh, wait—no, take it from me first, punk."
I cocked my head, doubting my ears.
Unfortunately, he didn't repeat himself.
'XX... What the hell did I just hear...'
The surrounding students burst into laughter, oblivious to my reaction.
"This punk's just spouting nonsense."
"Hahaha, if you copy me, his eyes'll rot, XX."
The guy smirked at his friends' words and shoved them aside.
"I'm telling you. Hey, why don't you follow through with actions too and turn your life around? We all saw through it anyway."
"What."
"You wanna be like Leo or whatever, right?"
'Hm?'
Publicly, Leo and I had zero connection. It was a stupid conjecture, relying entirely on subjective judgment from start to finish, without a shred of evidence.
'He probably doesn't want anyone below him rising in rank.'
I'd already surpassed them in family status by miles. If I got my act together and lived right, even without magic, there'd be plenty of room for a shift in hierarchy.
In the end, this mess was their way of keeping me out of the 'normal' category by any means.
"While you were pretending to be normal, Leo was out in the wilds with other mages, beating down demon spawn. That's what it takes to be normal, got it?"
"Hey, think about it—Leo and this guy going to the same school? Their levels just don't match, XX."
"Obviously, this punk can't even use magic."
The laughter shook my ears.
I lowered my head and clenched my fists. Nails dug into my palms.
'I hadn't even considered this.'
I had no idea how I was supposed to 'copy' myself. In that moment, I missed the long hair I'd cut off. Unable to control my expression, I sighed and furrowed my brow.
"...While I was out of line, he contributed to society. That's what you're saying."
At that, one student twisted his brow sympathetically before snickering.
"You get it right. Know your place. We feel bad for you. Of course you wanna be like Leo, but you'll never catch up. Instead of that..."
Irritated, I flicked my hand dismissively.
"Yeah, just live like before. Let's say you're right. Maybe I don't have Leo's talent."
"It's not 'maybe'—you just don't."
"Fine, true. But..."
I smiled at that and nodded.
"That doesn't mean I'm going back to how things were. Especially not after hearing this from you all."
"...Oh yeah?"
The student pulled a menacing face and stepped closer.
"You still don't get it."
"Hey, hold up. It's empty here and echoes, so keep it quiet."
"Shut it. I'm finishing this now."
He signaled another student to fetch his bag from afar.
"You wanna change that badly, huh? Can't be helped. Live hard then. But... let us help you out with one thing."
"No thanks. You won't be helping."
At that, a student behind him looked skyward and sighed.
"This punk's a pain right to the end..."
"Enough. Lucas, you know your magic runs on blood, right?"
"You still believe that crap?"
"You were flicking out spells in the first week. Then you went back to standing around like an idiot... You have no idea how much it hurt us to watch. Now you're not even drinking blood like the other Pleromas, and you can't use magic."
"Mind your own business."
"Nah, it's not that—it's friendly concern from your classmate."
"Don't need it. No matter what you do, I can't use magic."
I shook my head to wrap it up.
In that instant, three students around him seized my arms. My balance toppled in a flash.
"...!"
"Don't need it? Hilarious. You don't know till you try."
Caught off guard, I bit my lip hard.
'Should I shake them off with magic?'
I had countermeasures, so using magic wouldn't be a total disaster. Just blast them and shut their mouths?
No. Best to avoid magic if possible.
But...
'That depends on what they do.'
If it's just a moderate beating, I can wait it out. Anything more, and all bets are off.
Then, the guy grinned and pulled something from his bag.
"What's that supposed to mean—can't use magic no matter what? We'll make you use it somehow. We're just helping your way. If only crap magic comes out, that's your fate, whatever."
He spouted nonsense and cackled, holding a squishy lump.
I squinted and examined it.
"What the..."
The moment I realized what it was, words failed me.
Some indeterminate rodent—rat or rabbit?—hung limp in his hand.
"You recognize it, huh."
I eyed the creature dubiously.
Why this? It wasn't like he brought it to let me study some mystery animal.
Then, an absurd hypothesis flashed through my mind. I tore my gaze from the rat and slowly shifted to him.
The student met my eyes, flashed a vile grin, and shoved the limp rat right in my face.
Snickers rose from those holding my limbs, but they faded from my awareness.
"Eat it."
"..."
"Brought it just for you, nice and fresh. Saw a rat pup scurrying in the dorm hallway."
They weren't right in the head. I wondered how anyone could even conceive of this against another person.
From the looks of it, the rat-like thing wasn't even corrupted. Just a normal, healthy critter they'd caught wandering around.
It appeared clean, but utterly motionless. No matter how long I stared, it showed no sign of stirring.
"Didn't kill it."
He shrugged innocently and smirked.
"You have to kill it. Like last year."
"...Last year? Hilarious. Forgot that's the rumor you spread?"
"It's true anyway. Change your eye color first, then talk."
The claim that absorbing others' mana turns your mana red was pure Pleroma nonsense. I glared at them coldly.
The student shoved the rat right up to my nose.
"I just feel bad for you. People gotta know their place. That way they don't get hopes up. Giving up first and accepting reality is the wisest path—why don't you get that?"
"How about you cut it out."
"Nope."
In a flash, he grabbed my jaw. Weight pressed down on my restrained arms.
"Scared we'll confirm you really can't use magic? Don't worry. Eating it alive might be different. Who knows? You might suddenly get good."
"That'd be fun if it worked."
"Mmph...!"
'Are they insane?'
These punks actually planned to make me eat this. My heart pounded wildly. One student grunted as I kicked his leg. Amid it all, the creature's body heat seeped into my lips.
"We're helping you use magic, right? Let's test that rumor ourselves."
A sleazy smile curled the student's lips.
In that instant, a red flash blazed like a spotlight.
Boom—!
"Argh!"
"What?!"
The student clutched his dust-covered face and yelled. The sudden light left an afterimage, blurring my vision. The ones holding my arms groaned and rolled on the ground, hit by the splashed magic.
I broke free, panting as I fought to steady my shaking vision.
"...I wonder who the real Pleroma-like scum are. Who's looking at who..."
"What the hell?!"
"'Helping you use magic' meant helping like this? It sure worked..."
I snickered, scooping up a handful of dirt and stones from the ground.
Then I seized the collar of the student holding the rat.
"Head up. Open your mouth before I pry it."
"Wh-what..."
The student stammered, eyes darting between my face and the dirt in my hand, not grasping why I had it.
He frantically looked to his friends around. I followed his gaze, scanning them, then crushed his jaw like I'd shatter it.
"Don't look away. Gotta get human tonight and head out."
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