Chapter 166: Zombie (5)

It was the day of Louis’s sword inspection.

Kendrick and Tania, who had been carried home by the twins, remained unconscious until late that evening.

Once the sun dipped below the horizon, Kendrick quietly slipped out of the house.

His destination: the small school Louis had built for them when they were younger.

Ever since childhood, this place had been their sanctuary whenever they felt troubled or needed solace.

Creak.

Kendrick flinched as he opened the schoolhouse door and spotted someone inside.

“…Huh? I was wondering where you’d gone.”

In the corner of the room, Tanya was curled up with her knees drawn to her chest.

Just like Kendrick, Tanya found peace within these walls whenever she felt stressed or distraught.

Upon seeing him standing there, Tanya chided gently through gritted teeth.

“…Here, close the door quietly.”

Following his sister’s reprimand, Kendrick entered and shut the door behind him. Then he squatted down next to Tanya in a similar corner.

No one spoke for what seemed like an eternity.

When the setting sun’s glow slowly disappeared from the window, Kendrick finally broke the silence.

“…It’s over.”

“Yes.”

“The teacher’s friends are quite formidable, aren’t they?”

“They certainly are…”

This was the first time—aside from Louis, their guru—that they had experienced such a crushing defeat at someone else’s hands. Although they hadn’t amassed numerous experiences before, they still knew. They knew where their abilities currently stood. In both the village and nearby towns, there was no one who could compete with them. Because of this, a touch of arrogance had begun to creep into their minds.

That pride had been shattered to pieces by today’s overwhelming defeat.

Along with it, his admiration for Louis had skyrocketed.

Kendrick muttered, his voice tinged with awe and curiosity:

“I can’t help but wonder… Who is our teacher? To face off against such formidable opponents and never falter, not once. When we return from this journey, do you think we can be as strong as him?”

“Tanya…”

“What?”

“Isn’t that something you should be worrying about after the teacher decides to take us along? Idiot!”

With a helpless scolding, Tanya buried her head in her knees.

Only then did Kendrick grasp why his sister had come here, playing out this scene.

While he had sought this place to wallow over today’s defeat, Tanya…

Was she fretting because she feared the teacher might not choose us?

At this moment, Tanya didn’t care about her sense of defeat. The only thing on her mind was what would happen if Louis didn’t choose her after losing this assignment evaluation.

Kendrick tried to console her. “Hey, why are you fretting so much?”

”…What do you mean?”

“Don’t you know our teacher yet? He must have been aware from the start of the gap between us and the others, and anticipated this outcome. So there’s no need for concern over our loss.”

Instead of feeling comforted, Tanya regarded Kendrick with scorn. “How can you be so thick… Don’t you understand our teacher?”

“Are you calling me…!”

“Have you ever seen our teacher engaging in unnecessary actions?”

”…No, I haven’t.”

“Then why would he have us do a match with such an obvious outcome?”

“Well… could it be to teach us some profound lesson?”

“Profound lesson? Our teacher? You think he’d waste time on something so unproductive? He’d be the type to say ‘You figure out your own epiphanies!’”

“Umm… you’re right.”

Kendrick blinked, taken aback by his sister’s rebuttal.

No matter how he thought about it, her argument made sense. Even if he considered it ten times… given their teacher’s personality, she was undoubtedly correct.

He hesitated before asking, a perplexed look on his face, “So then… why do you think our teacher had us do that match?”

“If I had to guess, I’d say…”

“Say what?”

Kendrick swallowed hard as he awaited her next words.

“That must have been our test.”

“Huh?”

“Remember what our teacher said? he’d grant our wish if we didn’t harm a hair on Je’s head.”

“Oh, right.”

“That was the test. No matter how difficult, didn’t our teacher want to see us succeed? But we…”

“…failed the test miserably?”

“Yeah… Even if our parents gave us permission, it’s ultimately our teacher who’ll bring us along. If we don’t meet her standards…”

“G-Given our teacher’s personality, he definitely won’t bring us!”

Tanya’s words made sense.

No, the Louis Kendrick knew would have undoubtedly done just that.

Of course, if Louis had overheard their conversation…

What are you talking about? I only bet on you so I could use you two for my practical purposes!

…he would have said.

However, misunderstanding the situation completely, Kendrick’s face paled.

“W-What should we do now?”

“I don’t know… Do you think I’d be in this mess if I did?” Tania shot back angrily before burying her face between her knees again.

Seeing this, Kendrick followed suit, stuffing his face between his own knees.

“Haaah…”

“Haaah…”

The air in their small school was thick with the sighs of the Flame siblings.

Just then…

“What are you doing here?”

The school gate swung open, revealing two pale faces peeking in. Upon seeing them, the flame siblings sprang to their feet.

“Oh, friends of our teacher…?” Kendrick stumbled over his words, suddenly blanking on their names.

The twins beamed at his fluster.

“Kani.”

“I’m Khan!”

“Ah, right! Khan… Kani…?”

This time, it was the form of address that stumped him. How should they refer to their teacher’s friends?

While the flame siblings fretted, the twins entered the school, scanning their surroundings as they spoke.

“What are you doing here? Roy sent us to find you.”

“He wants to take you to dinner.”

Tania, sensing an opening amidst their casual chatter, nervously interjected.

“Um… Khan? Kani?”

“Why?”

”…Is this trip with our teacher only for other students? Won’t we be left behind?”

“What?”

The twins raised their eyebrows at the crestfallen expressions of the flame-clad brother and sister.

Suddenly, they exchanged a peculiar look.

“Hmm… I wonder?”

“You think we won’t be taken?”

“T-That…”

Seeing the darkening faces of the flame siblings, the twins inwardly snickered.

Louis may have constantly berated them as the “larcenous twins,” “damned twins,” or “twins who only know how to fight,” but even Louis acknowledged their unique strengths.

Ever since they were young, the twins possessed a strange intuition and an uncanny ability to gauge other people’s reactions. Their acting was particularly exceptional, especially when it came to putting on a show of tears…

At this moment, the twins’ peculiar senses and intuition were in full swing once again.

The twins flashed a confident grin at the anxious Flame siblings.

“Don’t worry too much.”

“Yeah, there’s no need to fret.”

“Huh?”

“If Louis won’t budge, we’ll try to persuade him.”

“For real?”

“It won’t be easy, though… You know how prickly Louis can be, right?”

“Absolutely!”

“Of course!”

The Flame siblings nodded fervently.

Seeing their eagerness, the twins puffed out their chests proudly and declared:

“Still, Louis does listen to me when it comes to Khan!”

“Really? He listens to you?”

“Well, not always, but he does give me some attention!”

“Do you realize how big of a deal this is?”

“Yes!”

“Of course!”

The Flame siblings’ nods doubled in speed.

In their eyes, the twins were already heroes for simply daring to express an opinion to Dokbuljungun, their strict teacher.

“Look, you just have to trust me! I… I kinda like you guys, you know.”

“I like you too. Let’s give it our all!”

The twins’ confident voices seemed to ignite a spark of hope in the eyes of the Flame siblings.

Tania grasped Kani’s hand enthusiastically.

“Um… Kani-ssi?”

“Yeah? What is it?”

“Can I call you ‘Sis’?”

“T-then I’ll call you ‘Boss’! Khan boss!”

Taken aback by the sudden change in address, the twins blinked before responding with bright smiles.

“Sure!”

“Sounds good!”

The Flame siblings’ eyes brimmed with admiration as they gazed at the twins.

Of course, the twins didn’t bother informing Louis separately. They knew he was already considering taking the brother and sister along, even without their input.

That night…

“What are you doing? Didn’t you say you want to come along?”

“Huh?”

“Huh?”

“Pack your bags quickly. We’re leaving tomorrow morning. If you’re not properly prepared, I’m leaving without you!”

“B-But seriously?”

“Hooray!”

The Flame siblings cheered at Louis’s announcement that he would take them on a trip.

Standing next to Louis, the twins wore sly smiles. The Flame siblings’ admiring gazes intensified towards them.

Thank you so much! Khan-nim!

Kani-oppa, you’re the best!

It’s nothing, really!

Just a small favor!

Meanwhile, oblivious to what had transpired between the twins and the Flame siblings, Louis leaned towards Fin and whispered:

”…When did they become so close?”

“Who knows…?” Fin shrugged helplessly.

The bewildered duo could only exchange mystified glances, wondering about the peculiar bond forming between the two pairs of siblings.

After a moment of silence, Louis reached a conclusion.

“We seem to get along with people like us quite easily.”

“That might be true.” Fin agreed with Louis’s assessment.

The next morning…

“I’m off…”

“Stay safe and take care of yourself.”

“I’ll listen to my teacher!” Kendrick and Tania bid farewell to their parents as they packed for their trip.

Once everything was settled, Louis’s group stood at the edge of the river.

Tania, who had never seen a magic circle before, asked, “What are those?”

“It’s a spell formation for long-distance teleportation.”

“Wow…”

Although Louis had been able to teleport without relying on a spell formation up until now, moving five people at once—even six if Fin joined them—was inevitably burdensome. Moreover, since this particular teleportation would take them quite far away, Louis put extra effort into meticulously drawing out the spell formation.

Kendrick, observing this with wonder, asked, “So… where are we going?”

Louis grinned at his question. “Have you heard this saying before, Kendrick?”

”…No, should I have?”

“Zombies always win!”

”…What does that mean?” Not only Kendrick, but Tanya, the twins, and Fin also looked puzzled.

Zombies? It was a term they had never encountered before.

Seeing their confusion, Louis kindly explained, “In simple terms, it means if you persevere long enough, you’ll eventually reap significant rewards.”

”…Huh?”

They had asked for directions, but Louis’s answer seemed utterly unrelated. Amidst their puzzled looks, Louis just chuckled.

Heh-heh-heh, I’ve been a zombie for a mighty 250 years now. It must be ripe enough by now.

As Louis thought about his one-centimeter potion, his heart began to race with anticipation.

Soon, he began infusing the crystal with attribute power.

Chiiim…

The crystal glowed brilliantly, filling the room with light.

Kendrick and Tania waved at their parents outside the crystal, just as they had seen them do earlier.

“I’ll be back!”

“I’ll see you later!”

In that instant, the entire world seemed to be bathed in light.

Fwooosh!

The figures of all five of them vanished into thin air.

“They’re gone.”

“I see…”

Lia and Aaron, who had been guarding the spot where their children had stood for some time, left, pushing their feelings of sadness aside. They hoped their children would have an opportunity to see, experience, and learn much on this journey so they could grow safely and make it back home.

Meanwhile, as Louis and his companions embarked on their journey, a change was taking place in a cave within the Spring Continent, where faint light seeped through.

Suddenly—

A dot, about the size of an adult’s fist, appeared in mid-air.

Zwip.

The spot began to move, emitting a strange noise.

Zwip-zwip.

It was similar to how the ‘Monarch of the Abyss’ was formed last time, but this time the process was several times slower and more intricate. The dot started slowly drawing a picture in the air.