Chapter 18

**Being the Brother of a Hero, Chapter 18**

**Chapter 18: Monster Hunting (4)**

"Huh. This has gone way too far."

Taera's words, accompanied by a brilliant white aura, sank heavily into the basement.

Perhaps overwhelmed by the absurd weight of those words, a thud was heard, followed by the sound of Dirailla fainting and collapsing.

"……"

Shane did not blame Dirailla for this. The aura Taera emitted was indeed overwhelming.

For Dirailla, who had yet to fully mature internally, it was undoubtedly a formidable opponent.

"To dare speak of a cat, you must be quite skilled. And it seems you already know our true identities."

"Creatures that reek of half-baked trash aren't exactly common, so it's not a difficult guess."

"Heh heh heh, half-baked trash… You're quite good at provocation. I can't even remember the last time someone dared to speak like that in front of me."

"What's there to fear in front of an old cat?"

"Then let's see if you can handle this old man's sword. I hope you survive. There's much I need to hear from you."

It had been a long time since he faced an opponent who could rouse such intense passion.

It wasn't just the provocation from Shane that angered him. It was also the fact that Salier, whom he had nurtured for a long time to tame the underground city, had died in vain.

The turmoil the underground city would face as a result.

The empire had neglected the underground city because they could exert a certain level of influence, but now a significant stake had been brutally destroyed.

Enraged by this, Taera began to channel the full power of the White Lion's aura from the start.

Soon, the white aura that had been emanating from his entire body began to concentrate in the sword he held, eventually condensing into a single point.

A terrifyingly refined energy.

That single strike likely contained enough power to destroy the entire mansion in one go.

However, Shane remained calm even in the face of such overwhelming power.

In fact, behind the mask, his eyes were filled with greed.

"Even if it's just the residue of an aura, the destructive power it contains… Yes, I want it."

"……?!"

The moment Shane spoke, Taera felt an unprecedented sense of dread, something he had never experienced in his life.

This was not just the tension of facing a powerful enemy.

It was an instinctive warning that he should not even draw his sword, a first in his life.

Was it because he couldn't see any openings in the enemy?

No.

He was a Master of the Third Rank, a superhuman. He could easily distinguish between the real and the feint in the enemy's movements.

Yet, his instinct was strongly warning him not to draw his sword, more precisely, not to use the White Lion's aura against the being in front of him.

But Taera trusted his countless experiences more than his instincts.

'Whatever trick you're using… it's just a trick.'

Yes, it was just a trick.

Having dealt with countless enemies as a royal knight, he had seen many who used absurd tricks, and he had always felt the warning of his instincts.

But he overcame those crises and crushed his enemies thanks to the White Lion's aura and his sword.

Finally, when all the energy was concentrated in Taera's sword:

"……?!"

The immense power, capable of splitting a mountain, vanished like pollen scattered by a gentle breeze.

Taera's face was filled with shock at the unbelievable situation, while Shane's lips curled into a smirk behind his mask.

* * *

After regressing, Shane spent his free time introspecting his inner self.

The reason was to guard against corruption and to find a way to use the corrupting power that his organization had wielded in his previous life.

Through this introspection, Shane achieved considerable results.

One of them was understanding the principle of corruption.

The principle of corruption was surprisingly simple.

It involved giving 'self-awareness' to the emotions a person possesses.

'In my case, it was like creating an embodiment of jealousy within my body.'

This self-awareness, once given to the emotion, endowed it with physical force, allowing it to influence reality.

The power of emotion.

This ability, which Shane named 'Origin,' was fundamentally different from the conventional manipulation of mana.

Moreover, since it used emotion as the source of power, it was an unlimited and unrestricted force as long as the emotion existed.

'That's why humanity was helpless against it.'

Thus, having understood the principle of corruption, Shane began to ponder other issues.

To use the power of emotion without going through the process of corruption, Shane had to solve two problems.

One was the lack of a channel to release the physical force of the emotion, and the other was the safety of the emotion to be used as the Origin.

After much deliberation, Shane found a solution to both problems.

First, the channel was effectively replaced by a dark spirit that fed on others' emotions and grew stronger.

The traces of a decayed tree spirit that Shane had destroyed, and the 'Source of Mana' he brought from the academy.

The spirit created from these two materials was born solely for Shane, by Shane, making it the perfect tool to channel his emotions outward.

However,

'The second problem, the emotion to be used as the Origin, was not something I could decide quickly.'

The power of jealousy.

Unlike the emotions of other legion leaders, Shane's 'jealousy' was uniquely powerful but also unstable.

It had even overshadowed Shane's own consciousness, nearly driving him to the brink of death.

'If I use jealousy recklessly, the spirit might consume me.'

Moreover, Shane, who had eliminated all his jealousy towards Klein, did not want to revive that emotion.

'In the end, I have to use a different emotion…'

Various emotions surfaced and subsided in Shane's mind.

How much time had passed?

After much contemplation and deliberation, one emotion emerged.

An emotion that was close to jealousy but could immediately fill Shane's lack of power.

It was 'greed.'

* * *

"What, what…?"

"Hmm, indeed."

Taera's eyes trembled as if an earthquake had struck, witnessing the impossible.

As he was about to swing his sword, the surroundings completely changed.

What was this?

"Teeth…?"

The place was still a basement, but it was no longer a basement.

The walls, once made of ordinary bricks, were now filled with sharp teeth and writhing tongues, and the floor was a swamp of darkness that clung to his ankles.

Stunned by the grotesque and revolting scene, Taera heard Shane's calm voice in his ear.

"It's not entirely satisfactory, but for now, this is as far as I can go."

Shane raised one hand demonstratively.

"How, how…!"

On Shane's raised hand, the pure white aura that Taera had honed his entire life was burning brightly.

And it was even more brilliant than any aura Taera had ever seen!

"It's impossible…."

Shane, who had been looking at the aura, clenched his fist to contain the power and then turned his gaze back to Taera.

Taera, with a look of betrayal, as if the world had betrayed him.

Shane gave him a faint smile.

"Even if you're just half-baked trash, you still had some use."

"What…?"

Confused by the incomprehensible words, Taera was suddenly startled by a giant mouth opening from the dark floor.

Taera tried to summon his aura, sensing the danger, but:

"No, no! Why isn't the aura…."

The White Lion's aura, which had always followed his will, was now betraying him.

Before he could fall into despair, the giant mouth swallowed Taera whole in an instant.

* * *

"Ugh?!"

When did he lose consciousness?

Dirailla, opening her eyes as if in a seizure, instinctively looked around.

The familiar ceiling pattern and the subtly soft bed.

This was undoubtedly her dormitory room.

"Was it a dream…?"

"There's no way."

"Kyaa!!"

Hearing the voice, Dirailla jumped up from the bed, looking around in a panic.

A figure soon emerged from the darkness beyond the window.

"You, you…!"

"Are you feeling better?"

"It wasn't a dream, then."

A shadow fell over Dirailla's face as she faced Shane, the masked man standing in the flickering darkness.

"To think you would still consider it a dream after experiencing that. Or do you wish it was a dream? Either way, it's not a good idea to escape reality."

"Gr…."

Shane's words, which hit the core, made Dirailla groan.

He was right.

Dirailla had hoped it was a dream.

She didn't want to see the dark side of humans.

It was a natural defense mechanism.

"Now, wait a moment. How did you escape from there? There was definitely…."

"A mixed-breed cat came in."

"R-right! That was the Judgment Knights, right? The royal knights!"

"Yes."

"How did you escape… sir? From that impossible monster…."

"There was no need to escape."

"Excuse me?"

"If I couldn't handle a single mixed-breed, I wouldn't have come to save you in the first place."

"…What exactly are you?"

Dirailla was confused.

The Judgment Knights.

They were a name revered in the empire.

During the Great War, they protected the empire from countless crises and were celebrated as the emperor's right hand.

Each of them possessed power far beyond that of ordinary knights.

A clear example was their aura.

Their auras were not just made of mana but were said to possess something more.

Even among Third Rank Masters, the difference in power between a regular Third Rank knight and a Judgment Knight was immeasurable.

He killed one of them?

"Believe it or not, you'll find out soon enough."

"…?"

Thinking further questions would be futile, Dirailla changed the subject.

"What happened to the people in that mansion?"

"They no longer exist in this world."

"Ah…."

Dirailla's face showed a hint of concern.

"Why?"

"Was the boy also… dead?"

"…Interesting. You're worried about him despite knowing what he did?"

"I wouldn't say worried, but…."

He was a child. Dirailla knew what had happened in that mansion and what the boy she had taught had done.

She didn't feel sympathy for the son of Count Salier.

It was the fundamental bitterness of a child dying, and one she knew well.

In fact, the first person Shane killed when he entered the mansion was the son of Count Salier.

By killing him and recovering his soul, Shane had shattered Warden's spirit.

"…In many ways, it's the same as before."

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing."

Before the regression, Dirailla, despite numerous betrayals, still had the will to trust others.

Not just humans, but other races as well.

Shane didn't entirely dislike this weak side of Dirailla.

In this life, Dirailla was not an enemy of humans but needed to fight on their side.

"Can I ask one more question?"

"What is it?"

"Why did you save me, risking such danger?"

"Because you're worth it."

"Worth…?"

"You'll understand someday. You don't know the talent you possess yet."

"…."

Talent.

Dirailla was curious about what talent she possessed but didn't ask.

She didn't think the person in front of her would tell her, and if it was her talent, she needed to discover it herself.

"I'll come back someday. Until then, behave well."

"Again? But…."

"What is it?"

"It's a silly question… but… what should I do now…?"

"…."

Shane understood what Dirailla was thinking.

She seemed fine for now, but she had just been kidnapped.

She had shared the terrifying emotions in the basement.

While she hadn't reached the point of hating humans, her distrust was deeply ingrained.

Dirailla was still alone, a weak girl with no one to rely on.

"If you can't trust others, you need to find someone."

"Excuse me?"

"Someone you can trust, based on your own judgment."

"…!"

Shane's words made Dirailla's eyes widen.

While it might seem cliché, it was a precious lesson she had heard from her most important person.

She never expected to hear such words in a similar situation.

Dirailla could only nod, unable to say anything else.

* * *

"You all know that the rank examination is in four months."

The eyes of the cadets lit up at the words of Benjamin, the head professor of the Command Department.

The rank examination, which determines the rank (品階) in the empire, is a test that can be applied for after the age of 20 or in the fifth year of the academy.

Naturally, it was the most important test for all cadets, as the rank determined their social status.

"Unlike the external rank examination, the academy's rank examination is based on department scores. Of course, you will also need to take a separate test that suits your aptitude."

Especially in the Command Department, the scores are highly valued in the rank examination, so even if you make a mistake in the written test, the evaluation score is so high that you can easily pass.

It's not for nothing that the Command Department is the most elite department in the academy.

"So, you should know that finding a partner for the dungeon ability evaluation score is an important task."

"Yes!"

"We understand!"

From the moment they enter the Command Department, they are given the authority to freely enter and exit dungeons.

With this in mind, the cadets, their hearts full of excitement, answered in unison, while Shane began his calculations among them.