Surviving a Shounen Manga

The royal palace, which hadn’t had many quiet days lately, was lively once again.

“Do you think that’s a sensible thing to do?”

“We have to act!”

As if a surreal prophetic dream come true, the same scenes as at the last meeting were repeating once again.

Some people got angry, and others restrained them.

The same words came and went, like:

What cheek! How do we teach them a lesson?

However, there was one difference. The target. A cheeky human had to be taught a lesson this time too, but the subject was different.

“To throw something like that at us!”

“Thankfully there were no casualties! If it didn’t pass over us…”

“That squat-jawed bastard! We absolutely can’t let him off.”

Some of the more quick-tempered people came forward to demand his punishment.

All of them were from the ‘warhawk faction’.

And,

“Still, it’s a bit difficult to forcefully bring in and punish somebody who’s already entered the Warrior’s Path, and even passed the preliminary round.”

“Besides, nothing big happened at the proving grounds. If we’re supposed to ignore all past sins of the participants, how can we take issue with something so trivial? Sounds like overkill to me.”

Those who dissuaded them, coincidentally, were all from the ‘coalitionist faction’.

In general, the more radical ‘warhawk faction’ people were used to making a bit more noise, but the the ‘coalitionist faction’ were being particularly strident in their opposition today. This was probably because, unlike the previous case of ‘Princess Thermis’, public opinion about Squatjaw wasn’t that bad. He was now a famous name on the streets, in fact.

And the fact that Minister Tamar, the nominal head of the ‘warhawk faction’, wasn’t speaking up much, also contributed to this situation. Seeing such an unusual appearance from their leader, even members of his own faction had doubts in their hearts.

“Why so anxious? He just picked up and threw a rock, did he cause any trouble? Or are you so afraid that you now want to go arrest the man who’s the hottest topic in the capital? Really, you… tsk tsk.”

“Trouble?! If he’d caused a bit more trouble, the entire arena would’ve been destroyed! And who’s afraid! I’m taking about arresting a blasphemer, not because I’m afraid of him or anything!”

All of them were now retired from active duty, but they’d all walked the Warrior’s Path in the past. The boiling atmosphere didn’t show any signs of calming down easily.

Just then,

“It’s true that the Warrior’s Path is a sacred ritual of our Skull Empire, but that doesn’t make it a sanctuary for sinners. If you’ve done something wrong, shouldn’t you be punished for it?”

Someone quietly spoke up.

Surprisingly, it was Royal Teacher Bataar, a member of the ‘coalitionist faction’.

At his remarks that didn’t seem to fit his political leanings, everyone else shut up and started paying attention.

“Of course, this old man doesn’t think he’s done anything particularly wrong… but if there are people who still think his intentions are impure, it’s not out of the question to summon him here for an interrogation.”

“Huh…”

“But…”

While the murmurs were about to intensify little by little –

Bataar spoke again.

“Hear me out just a little longer, please. You all must be well aware that this old man had gone to pursue Princess Thermis at the first prince’s request. Not only to the Mainin Kingdom, but even to Westland. Although I had to come back empty-handed in the end… Anyway, on the ship returning to Eastland, I’d seen him. That Squatjaw. Prince Nergui and Minister Tamar were also on the ship.”

At that, everyone quietly nodded their heads.

It was a well-known fact.

“Of course, you know the overall shape of things, but not the exact details of what’d actually happened on the ship. I’ll tell you an anecdote. That Squatjaw, he once had a fight with an S-class adventurer while on board the ship.”

Then,

“Whoo, an S-class adventurer?”

“What’s their name?”

“Are they active in Eastland?”

Some people expressed their curiosity.

High-ranking adventurers were subjects of curiosity wherever they went, so this was no surprise.

“This old man doesn’t know. I think there are probably other people here who know more about him, but…”

The eyes of everyone present turned towards him. Because Bataar, who’d stopped speaking, glanced at him.

Yet Nergui only smiled back indifferently and stayed quiet.

Then someone ran out of patience and asked.

“What was the result?”

“It was one-sided. No, even calling it one-sided is inappropriate. It was… overwhelming. That Squatjaw was able to subdue an S-class adventurer with just one finger.”

The reaction to this news was the same for both factions.

They all gulped, silently.

“Anyway, the gist of what I’m trying to say is this. If one makes a mistake, they have to pay for it. However, those of you who wish to summon and interrogate him and issue a reasonable punishment, will have to prepare properly. It won’t be child’s play.”

…

As the silence that settled in the hall grew longer,

“Excuse me, I’ll be going first.”

Nergui stood up.

He’d come out to see if there was any possibility to move the army, but it was clearly a waste of time.

Besides, Squatjaw’s target was none other than himself. Just before he’d thrown the rock, their eyes had met. Those eyes, reminiscent of a wild beast.

To be honest, to say he wasn’t nervous would be a lie. What kind of a man could directly throw that elephant-sized rock at somebody else in front of such a large audience? It was at a level where you’d have to wonder if he was even human.

Still, it’d been a bit funny. To see both the factions struck dumb.

‘… They’re making such a fuss over nothing.’

As he left the conference room and walking towards his bedroom –

He saw a servant come scurrying in haste.

“What is it?”

“Some people have come to see you.”

The man looked somehow frightened.

The report, too, was vague. It was basic to report the visitor’s identity and purpose of coming.

“What’s it about?”

“I don’t know, sir. I’m very sorry!”

“Are you apologizing? It’s just the limit of your ability. Where are they?”

“I asked them to wait in the garden. That’s the only place I could keep them where there’d be few people…”

“Let’s go.”

Nergui headed straight for the garden.

Very quickly,

“There, there they are.”

He was able to meet the visitors.

There were two. A very fat man, and a very thin one.

When they saw Nergui, they bowed their heads, and slowly approached.

“Who are you?”

“Would you like to clear away the surroundings first?”

Despite being wary, Nergui complied.

If they’d had any intention of harming him, they would’ve attacked already.

“… Fine.”

As soon as the servant left at Nergui’s command, the thin man spoke up.

“Ash-Devouring Serpent.”

A momentary gleam flashed in Nergui’s eyes.

Ash-Devouring Serpent.

Among the assassin groups he’d entrusted with the quest, it belonged to the highest level.

And it was the only one that’d returned the quest completion reward.

A strange smile appeared on Nergui’s lips.

“Ash-Devouring Serpent… what’s that? Are you two old-timers then snakes, not people?”

“We’re an assassination squad. I don’t like wasting time, so I won’t go into details. Both you and I know that you’re our client, Fourth Prince. We investigate the client quite carefully before accepting a mission.”

“Oh, is that so?”

“It’s a little against the rules, but I came here because I have something to ask.”

Well, it didn’t seem like bluffing would work.

“Yeah, well. Actually, I also wanted to meet you guys at least once. The only ones conscientious enough to return the money… is that what passes for integrity for your type?”

“It doesn’t matter what you think.”

“Hmm, but why are you here?”

“There is something I wanted to ask. Because it might be quite disruptive to our work.”

“What?”

“Have you hired any other assassins?”

“… Other assassins?”

Nergui was a little perplexed by the question.

He had no idea about the details, but from the context, he could guess that another assassin group had gotten involved, one that could pose a problem even for these high-level assassins.

“If there are people aiming at the same target, we need to know. It might cause confusion otherwise.”

“… The only assassins that I’ve currently hired are you. Assuming, of course, that the quest will continue. Although, my personal retinues are moving too, though they’re not assassins. Are you sure you don’t need their information?”

Naturally, he wasn’t lying. But the thin man didn’t change his expression. He just shook his head lightly as if that was inconsequential.

“… Is that so?”

“What is it?”

“I’ve seen some familiar faces.”

“Who?”

“Have you ever heard of a group called the ‘Tamers’?”

It was an unfamiliar name.

“Never.”

“Looks like you really don’t know.”

The slender man then added a brief description of the ‘Tamers’.

They were a new force who’d appeared in Eastland only about two or three years ago. All information about them, including the actual name of the organization, the number of members, and the location of their headquarters, was hidden behind a layer of fog. They were called the ‘Tamers’ because all the members of the organization practiced taming ‘divine beasts’.

“Divine beasts? You mean… the legendary…?”

“Yes. They don’t seem to be as powerful as the legends say, but they certainly do have a special feel to them. In the end, we can’t know for sure.”

“… Divine beasts, huh.”

The thin man also added that although it was not an organization that specialized in assassinations, they did similar things from time to time, so the two organizations had encountered each other occasionally on the field.

“Are they here, now?”

“Yes. I still haven’t figured out their purpose. So, I came to ask if you’d hired them, Sir Prince.”

“No, not at all.”

The slender man nodded at Nergui’s answer.

“Alright. Then we will proceed.”

“Are there any other distractions? For example, what about my personal servants?”

The thin man shook his head indifferently.

“It’s fine.”

“… Is that so?”

Nergui grinned and muttered.

To think that this cheeky rake-thin man didn’t show the slightest hesitation…

‘He failed, but he’s still so cocky, completely disregarding the guy he’s chasing after.’

Then, as Nergui was about to turn around, the thin man spoke up again as if he’d suddenly remembered something.

“By the way, can we proceed with the quest as it is?”

“…?”

Nergui thought about the intent behind the question for a moment, then nodded.

“Yeah.”

The reason for reconfirming this was naturally clear.

Everybody knew. Killing the princess would no longer benefit the ‘war’. It’d only get in the way. To wage war, the princess had to give up on the test first.

But,

“Sure. The order stays the same.”

Nergui didn’t care.

War had never been his true purpose from the beginning.

“Kill her.”

A vacant lot near the hotel.

“Whoo…”

I took a deep, long breath.

I was getting a little nervous as I waited.

Because what was coming next was so high on the difficulty scale that the ‘rock-lifting’ earlier might as well be playing with dolls in comparison.

I quickly started stretching.

Of course, my current body wasn’t weak enough to be riddled with pain if I suddenly put it under a workout. Still, according to the modern real-life perspective, which was still buried deep inside my head, stretching before strenuous exercise was essential.

“Whoof, whoof…”

While I was stretching my arms and legs like that –

“… So you’re here.”

A hoarse voice came from afar.

The voice I’d been waiting for.

When I turned around, the red-eyed princess was glaring at me with a vicious expression.

“So you came, ghost gramps.”

“You son of a bitch! What a big mess you’ve made! Throwing a rock at the nobles! Ha ha ha ha!”

“Oh, that… it was nothing much.”

“So you want to throw one at me next, huh? Do you still remember, that I am the Bayar Khan?!”

“Yeah, yeah, so you’ve said.”

“Ka ha ha ha! This cheeky bastard!”

I glanced at him as he walked closer.

Hmmm.

There were three main reasons why I’d dared summon this talkative and ferocious ghost.

First, because I couldn’t waste even a single moment of this precious leading point of view.

The Warrior’s Path was taking two days off after the preliminary round, then another day off after the first and second rounds, and then would come the finals.

In other words, there was a day off now that the preliminaries were over. So instead of wasting my time, I needed to do something interesting.

So the confrontation with this ghost grandpa could be quite a worthwhile content. With his unique looks, distinctive personality, and above all, strong power.

I might even be able to raise the author’s favourability a little bit by introducing him. He must’ve been a carefully set character, but he couldn’t even appear in the original.

If the author had any conscience, he should at least say thank you.

Second, because I’d made a promise a while ago. To have a bout.

And I was frankly curious. The aura I could feel right now was also amazing, but from what I’d heard here and there, the achievements of that ghost called Bayar Khan had been quite impressive in life.

Like expanding the empire’s territory five times compared to before, destroying over a hundred kingdoms, and almost building the first unified empire in Eastland… that made you think of Genghis Khan.

And what caught my attention above all was the anecdotes about his incredible ‘power’.

Like winning a tug of war against a thousand people, or carrying back two giant elephants on his shoulders after going out hunting, to even ‘throwing’ the materials for a raft from the mainland to an uninhabited isolated island, to help people who’d been stranded there… his record was chock full of such absurd things.

It made me feel like I should try him out once.

Third and last, because I had some things to work on.

Actually, before this Warrior’s Path, I’d gotten some background shopping done.

This was partially to prepare for possible attacks and to pass the hurdles easily, but above all, it was to look ‘cool’ while fighting.

Of course, they weren’t that great. I couldn’t learn any new unique abilities in the first place.

To give some examples, [Three Weapons Expert], [Martial Artist Who Barely Learned This and That], [Street Fighter with More Wins than Losses], and [Woodcutter Who’s Learned to Sharpen His Axe].

I knew that these backgrounds contained hidden traits such as ‘weapon skills’ and ‘combat sense’, but I didn’t know how they actually worked.

So, I needed to test them out before the finals.

Of course, using that ferocious ghost as a test piece… would’ve been impossible for anybody else.

Therefore,

“Ka ha ha ha! Now it’s too late to cry and pray. Don’t get upset, you cocky Squatjaw.”

“Yeah, yeah, so we doing this or not?”

I faced the princess who radiated a vicious force.

‘Haah…’

I’d felt it once before, but it was still some tremendous momentum.

That aura was reminiscent of a huge mountain.

Within it a fighting spirit burnt like fire, and those red eyes blazed with ferocious bloodlust.

The strength that naturally and effortlessly radiated from the princess’ form, made even me tremble.

But, of course –

“Come if you’re ready, old geezer.”

There was no thought of defeat in my head.

When a character other than the protagonist takes the lead role of a chapter, he has only one absolute duty.

To support the story on his back.

Because carrying the chapter is his significance.

Even if it was just a practice match, I could never lose. There’d be no second chance once I disappointed the readers.

‘Haah… shall we do it?’

While I was so firmly determined,

“Ka ha ha ha! You’re still one arrogant bastard. Alright then… let’s go, little Squatjaw!”

Bayar Khan, in the form of the princess, flew towards me.