Chapter 44: Chapter 44

When I woke up, I became a national merit (1)

Behemoth sat down on his knees and laughed. His warmth felt nice because of the chilly autumn weather. Kleio sat with his back against the head of the bed, blinking his clouded eyes. When they barely reached some level of focus, the scene they revealed was rather odd. It was his bedroom at the far left of the second floor of the Asel mansion. His familiar room was now covered in colorful flower baskets.

‘What are these flowers?’

At that question, the bedroom door suddenly slammed open. The one who jumped in was a sturdy young man about two meters tall.

“Did you wake up?!”

The man immediately began to shout.

“…Who are you? What are you doing here?”

“Excuse me! My introduction was late. I am Swain Temple, a knight of the Royal Capital Defense Forces. I was dispatched as an escort for Kleio Asel. I’m glad you woke up!”

“There… Please speak gently. My head is still ringing.”

“Sorry! I’m happy the wizard is awake! I’ll bring in the other people. Please stay for a moment.”

Kleio stared out the wide-open bedroom door. Mrs. Canton and Dione soon appeared as if they were waiting as the knight named Swain continued to shout. He felt a bit sorry for both of them as it seemed they hadn’t slept much. Mrs. Canton called in the doctor, but there was nothing wrong with his body. He just felt slightly drowsy from sleep.

‘I’m not injured; it’s just muscle pain and ether exhaustion.’

After Kleio’s safety had been confirmed, Mrs. Canton went to prepare a meal, and Swain vanished to contact the palace. Dione came close to the bed and whispered to him quietly.

“The court and chief sorcerer of the Defense Force came one after another the first day. Just your ether has been worn out, but they had to see what happened. Those research wizards, their eyes were so happy to see the demon…!”

“But you brought me here.”

“Because Zebedee, the first to run to the field, brought you home to rest. After beating the others back, there was nothing more to do. Still, the Defense Force can’t let you go. Thanks to that, that knight was guarding your bedroom.”

“Everyone has suffered a lot in the past few days.”

“I’ll listen to your gratitude. I put the gemstones from the beast on that bedside table right there. They’re small, so I don’t think the knight noticed. If the royal wizards notice, they’ll definitely take them in the name of their investigation. Who knows when they would return it…”

“You did really well, Lady Dione.”

If the magical stone were taken away, he wouldn’t have been able to sleep at night.

“I have to thank you. It’s I who was safe thanks to you defeating the beast! But, I only have one question. The place where you ended the beast was the border between the city of Lundane and the provinces of Selva. Why did you do that?”

“To reduce the collateral damage… Even if I said that, would you believe it?’

“You’re not like that.”

“You’ve seen me properly.”

“Anyway, it’s blocked. All the wizards in the Defense Force are rallying excitedly, so the investigation won’t end soon.

‘Their behavior is exactly the same as the manuscript. It was a good choice to pull the demon away.’

Kleio smiled happily, knowing his land was safe. Dione, looking closely at his expression, smiled as if she noticed something.

“Did you even know it would be like this? The shield was working, but then you suddenly tried to lure the beast…”

“It’s difficult to give a definite answer, but your guess is mostly correct.”

“Ha. This is the partner I chose. Now, I’ll organize the new things that happened while you slept. First of all, those flowers were sent by the crown prince, some nobles, commoners, and neighbors.”

“It’s only been four days since the incident, yet it’s become this grandiose.”

“What are you talking about? You haven’t even heard yet?”

Dione quickly turned around, taking a stack of newspapers and weekly magazines from his desk, and spread them out on the bed. in the selection of articles, but the front page on each one was similar.

-Magic! Legend! Hero!-

-The magic of a new age, the hope of a new generation! A seventeen-year-old boy defeated the evil spirit-

-Who is the person who crushed the evil threat?-

As if touching a cursed object, Kleio grabbed the top newspaper carefully and immediately wanted to erase his memory of the article.

-Sir Swain, a knight of the Royal Capital Defense Force, said his magic was like a miracle. A giant spear fell from the sky and punished the evil. It can’t be described in writing…-

“Hahahah!”

The cat, who was looking through the newspaper as well while being embraced by Kleio, began to laugh. Kleio tried to roll up the newspaper in embarrassment as shivers ran through his body, but the cat’s paws were set on the page.

“Oh, is Behemoth reading the newspaper? Isn’t your master’s performance amazing?”

Kleio, caught between the cat and Dione, was forced to read the article.

-I looked inside the store where everyone was as still as a statue from fear as he jumped in front of the demon alone. He had such a determined look to defend the people in the café. It was such a heroic act that I can’t stop crying… (Mark Gileer, 46 years old, self-employed)-

The content was similar throughout the articles. Kleio’s ears began to glow a bright red. The café owner was definitely hiding behind the counter, so when did he see Kleio’s eyes?

‘Isn’t it possible to have some media arbitration committee crack down on this? Is there nothing like that?’

The public, who hungered for the incident after the long peace, seemed to be looking for fun in the appearance of the boy wizard who defeated the demon.

“Are you embarrassed now? You haven’t tasted the sweetest cream yet! Quickly read the article -Clarion-. It’s from an extreme republican magazine, so it’s rare to see it have the same opinions as the Lundane Standard.”

Dione, grinning, opened up a new magazine and pushed it towards him.

-Goodness of an unusual man – the life of the poor is also precious. A boy stood up for those who were displaced and were ruined by Gibril Blanche-

‘This is driving me crazy. I was protecting my land!’

This hadn’t been something he expected when he did it.

“How does it feel to wake up and suddenly be a celebrity?”

“I’ll get angry.”

“Anyone who wants fame and honor won’t find it, but those who avoid it can’t get away from it. What to do?”

“Well, that’s a good thing. People on the road won’t be able to recognize me with this illustration.”

The stunning pen drawing on the front page dramatically depicted the confrontation between a violent beast and a slim young man. In the picture, the young man, who wore a long robe and had a wand outstretched, was tall and good-looking.

‘They have a good imagination. I was wielding even this gross-looking.’

After a while, Kleio escaped from the cat’s grasp and folded up the newspaper. Dione continued to watch his disgusted expression with a smile.

“What will you do if you turn away? Now Kleio, you are a hero who dedicated himself to protecting the capital. When you leave the mansion, you will have to behave accordingly.”

“What’s the right behavior…?”

“Once you recover, you’ll have to thank everyone for these flowers and gifts.”

“I don’t want to do that.”

“Would you like to hear what will happen if you don’t?”

“I don’t. There won’t be a future.”

“Wouldn’t your father think differently?’

“Father?”

“There was this uproar, so of course he was contacted. He says he’ll be coming to the capital within the week!”

“I’ve something to say to you.”

“You won’t compliment me?”

‘Apparently, praise is an infectious disease.’

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Mrs. Canton served him porridge with figs and syrup, as well as a warm herbal tea. It was a meal that warmed his empty stomach. It was said that the chief wizard of the Defense Force used the [Cleaning] magic after the inspection, but he still felt uncomfortable having been bathed in the beast’s blood, so he made sure to take a warm bath. While washing, all the flowers and rubbish in his room were removed as per his request.

Feeling refreshed, Kleio laid down on his new sheets and rolled around with the mana stone in hand. According to the previous manuscript, it was the loot that should’ve gone to Arthur. Of course, he had no intention of giving it back.

‘Well, I think I can use half of it as intended and half of it for myself. Even if he doesn’t use all of it, it should be fine.’

He wrapped the gemstone in a handkerchief and placed it in the inner pocket of his uniform jacket. He thought he should buy a subspace wallet instead of a pocket.

‘And, this unique skill…’

While lying down, he looked at the back of his right hand and poured in ether. The square lines with that blue metallic color appeared on the back of his hand as Promise revealed a familiar string of words.

[Unique skill: Editor’s Authority (3/3)]

Soon, the ether escaped, and the marks faded along with the golden letters.

Editor’s Authority. The power that simultaneously seemed capable of changing everything and nothing. It was an imperfect power that could only be used to accomplish the author’s will. It was also the reason for Kleio Asel’s existence. Wealth and magic, then, although temporary, even fame… He couldn’t believe that the author’s will wouldn’t have interfered here. The more he received from the world, the heavier his heart became. It was like an order to work hard.

‘The author… If there is anything you want, attach a post-it note and let me know. I’m sure Arthur will become the king, but the rest is dark. What the hell did the author not like in the last manuscript?’

The task given to Kleio was both difficult and unclear. First of all, there was no way of knowing which changes were caused by the author and which were from the destruction caused by the instability of the manuscript. The manuscript had no clarifications or comments. He was the first interpreter of the manuscript, the one who had to guess and comment on the author’s intent. But a misinterpretation would drive the world to a literal catastrophe.

‘Well, there are roles like this. Whoa…’

Well, people would soon forget the boy who caught one beast since of what would happen next.

‘The good times will end too soon.’