I checked the information on ‘Brain Eater’ on my computer.
[Brain Eater]
[Incident Log]
1. March 9, 1037
2. July 3, 1037
3. August 5, 1037…
The perpetrator has killed a total of eight imperial citizens so far, the most recent being three days ago.
“Three days ago, then.”
That’s the day I killed that young Ezenheim.
Quite an interesting coincidence.
“Let’s move, for now.”
I got up and left the office.
In the first-floor lobby, I ran into Julian, who seemed to have just finished a mission. Green blood, still wet, was splattered on his armor, and Tiana was beside him.
Julian is a senior knight. He can take any knight he wants for any mission.
He was my superior, but this time, he didn’t choose me.
“Where are you going, Max?”
Julian asked indifferently.
“I’ve taken on a separate mission.”
He tilted his head.
“May I ask what kind of mission it is?”
“It’s ‘Brain Eater’.”
At my answer, Julian’s eyebrows twitched slightly.
He would know about Brain Eater too.
“Why bother? There’s a reason such old missions stay unsolved.”
Knights have records of their mission assignments and failures. Most knights don’t want to leave behind the blemish of failure. It reflects on their knightly careers.
“It means the difficulty is too high for a rookie to handle.”
“It’s fine.”
“……If you need any support, just say the word.”
“I will.”
After a brief conversation, Julian got into the elevator. Tiana, on the other hand, seemed to have something to say to me.
“Hey. Don’t you know what Brain Eater is?”
“I do.”
Eight victims in three years. A monster that would take four more lives in the next year.
Before my regression, Brain Eater had been active in the empire for a while before suddenly disappearing, leaving it as a cold case.
“For three years—”
“I know.”
I know Tiana. She’s the child of a minor noble family.
Before my regression, she was caught up in political strife, and her family was wiped out. Tiana herself became a fugitive.
I owed her a small debt. It was because the Ebenholz family had been the one to destroy her family.
“……Fine. Whatever. Do as you please.”
Tiana passed by me.
I left the Knights’ headquarters and drove to the scene.
The location of Brain Eater’s last crime was a secluded back alley in the capital. It was a narrow alley strewn with trash, and unknown graffiti covered the walls of old buildings haphazardly.
“Knight. You’re here.”
“Yes.”
“Here’s a look at the scene itself…”
At the very back. Beyond the police cordon, there were still unswept bloodstains.
──Wriggle!
As I approached the scene, the black fragment inside me reacted. It smelled its kind.
“……As expected.”
My suspicion turned into certainty.
This guy is also an Ezenheim.
I tapped the black thing near my collarbone and said,
“Remember this well. We have to follow this trail, so, ugh!”
Suddenly, the virus moved. It yanked me, and I fell to the ground.
Crash!
The asphalt hit my face. Filthy grime and dust stuck to me.
However, the virus was moving. It was slowly absorbing the waves of energy contained within this blood. Strange sensations seeped into my mind.
“K-Knight? Are you alright?”
The detective asked, bewildered.
“……It’s nothing.”
I quickly got up.
Thump— Thump—
I could feel the virus’s pulse.
This thing wanted to tell me something.
“Yeah. Where is it? Show me.”
I was willing to listen.
We are now in the same boat.
* * *
I used the faint energy waves emitted by the virus as a compass. The location was in front of a classic mansion in the capital’s traditional noble residential area.
“……Here?”
I looked up at the six-story, sprawling mansion and asked. The virus wriggled.
According to it, ‘Brain Eater’ was inside.
But this place—
“This is a place only nobles can live.”
Ezenheims are nobles of the Empire.
Is it possible?
It is not impossible. Status and origin are ultimately just paper and ink in the grand scheme of things; they can be manipulated at any time.
“……”
However, I couldn’t move rashly. Brain Eater had left no evidence after devouring eight people.
It was a meticulous creature.
Furthermore, the important thing was whether I could actually defeat it.
Jacob was young and inexperienced. The child in the park willingly accepted death. It was practically suicide.
If this Brain Eater was the ‘Pexi’ that Jacob mentioned, I needed to be extremely careful.
“I’ve confirmed it.”
The location had already been pinpointed, so there was no need to rush.
What I needed now was the skill to definitively kill Ezenheims. To cultivate such power, I needed ‘that person’.
Freya.
She was a much better instructor than I had expected.
Perhaps she could even become my mentor.
……No, I hope she becomes my mentor.
* * *
“Haa…”
I close my eyes.
I regulate my breathing.
Magic pulsates within my body with every inhale and exhale.
This is the Ebenholz family’s unique magic breathing technique, passed down through generations.
I’ve been practicing this breathing method since I was three years old.
I don’t even consciously think about it now. Like the act of breathing itself, I just breathe naturally as I was taught.
“Hoo…”
This is fundamentally different from modern ‘magic breathing methodologies’ that draw in external mana and circulate it within the body.
Ebenholz doesn’t concern itself with the outside. It focuses solely on refining internal magic to be cleaner, purer, and more dense.
This is because it is environmentally advantageous.
A tycoon who grew up drinking elixirs and pills like water and was surrounded by machines like magic training rooms or magic respirators doesn’t need to draw mana from the outside. They only need to use what’s accumulated internally, a very noble way of doing things.
Of course, the traditionalists of Ebenholz criticize this approach.
“It’s classic.”
My instructor calls it ‘classical’.
“Ebenholz breathing has subtle details. That’s why it can only be fully mastered in childhood, and if you miss that period, you can’t learn it. It also requires a lot of money. The amount spent on medicinal herbs for your body alone must be at least 50 million.”
The cost-effectiveness is the worst, but the cost is not an issue. While others achieve an efficiency of 100 for a cost of 100, Ebenholz aims for an efficiency of 130 for a cost of 5,000. They know the difference of that 30 very well.
I wiped away sweat and opened my eyes.
“But why do you know so much about Ebenholz?”
“A teacher is supposed to know a lot.”
She shrugged nonchalantly.
“Now, draw your sword.”
Magic breathing was just a warm-up.
My mentor presented a longsword. The blade width was similar to a regular sword, but its length reached 1.6 meters. It was the Ebenholz family’s greatsword.
“Ebenholz swords are fundamentally noble swords. They pursue fluidity rather than simple power. Therefore, they favor cutting.”
I gripped the sword. I assumed the stance from the Ebenholz manual.
“Just like in the manual. But your body’s too stiff. Don’t stand so straight. Hold the sword as loosely as you can. What do you think nobles are?”
“Why are nobles even relevant right now?”
“Because Ebenholz is the noblest of swords, you clueless fool. Now pay me more.”
“…”
I loosened my posture. My mentor frowned.
“No. That looks sloppy.”
“What do you want me to do?”
“Think about it. Do nobles always stand rigidly? Like an angry cat? No. Do they sway their bodies like beggars? No.”
I suddenly thought of my father, Sebastian.
He is formal but not stiff, stubborn but not obstinate. He is relaxed but not lazy, dignified but not arrogant. He is a person where contradictory elements are in perfect balance. If the soul had weight, it would have been tempered infinitely.
A person of high class.
A ‘true’ noble.
Could I also become that kind of person?
……I am his child.
Whether I like it or not, I am Ebenholz’s seed and Sebastian’s son.
Blood is thicker than water, and heredity cannot be defied.
Ebenholz, from which I once struggled to escape, has returned to me.
“Haa…”
Quietly, I released the grip on the sword.
I maintained enough pressure to not drop it.
My shoulders and elbows relaxed smoothly, but I was in a stance to fully feel the weight of the sword tip.
“……Yes. That’s it. Your posture and bearing are good, so the lines are living. Also, you don’t necessarily need to hold a greatsword with both hands. As long as you can control it perfectly.”
I lowered my left hand. I held the greatsword with only my right hand. The heavy weight spread through my entire arm.
“Now swing it. Don’t think of anything else, just think of one perfect cut.”
I swung the sword with all my might.
Swish—!
The greatsword cut through the air with a sharp sound. All my body’s strength was concentrated in a single swing.
Freya said.
“Idiot.”
“What is it again?”
“Swing it. While thinking of only one perfect cut. It’s too elaborate.”
“It takes effort to be perfect.”
“Tsk. You don’t understand.”
She shook her head.
“It can’t be helped. You just keep repeating it. Make sure you swing it at least ten thousand times a day. That is the first movement of Ebenholz.”
“How can I do it ten thousand times a day? My arm will fall off.”
“You can’t if you put in as much effort as you do. Always keep your mindset clear. Like a real noble, not a fake one. Strive tens of thousands of times to create a single perfect cut.”
“……”
“What are you staring at? Do it, you punk!”
Whoosh!
I swung the sword.
Whoosh!
I extended the greatsword into the air. As the sword moved, I felt like I was being pulled along with it.
Even in the past, this greatsword of Ebenholz was unnecessarily long.
Whoosh!
I quickly ran out of breath.
“Hah, hah, hah.”
My heart ached. All the muscles in my body screamed as if they would tear.
After about 300 swings, I collapsed.
“Get up.”
My mentor grabbed my arm and pulled me up.
“……Hmm.”
She touched various parts of my body and muttered with a wry laugh.
“Certainly. Recovery is quick.”
I frowned, but indeed, the fatigue and pain soon disappeared. My body felt light again.
It was probably the effect of the ‘magic core’.
Thank you.
“This is your homework. Until you can swing it about ten thousand times, there’s no next step.”
“……Yes. I understand.”
This person is strange. She seems to be slacking off, but it doesn’t feel amateurish.
Beep beep beep—
The usual lesson end alarm rang. Freya asked.
“Do you have any other plans today?”
“Yes. I have a real estate appointment. I plan to rest for a bit.”
“Hmm~ Really? You have a lot of money. I’m jealous.”
“Then I’ll be going. I’ll head out now.”
I tried to leave, but she blocked the training room door.
“What is it again?”
“Don’t kids these days offer any tokens of appreciation to their teachers?”
“……What?”
She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes.
“Hey, show some sincere respect for your teacher, dammit.”
“You get money from my father.”
“Are you a papa’s boy? You must have your own standards!”
“……”
I took out my wallet from my inner coat pocket. I handed her a few bills. Her face contorted. I took out three more. It improved slightly, but the creases remained. I just took out all the bills and handed them to her.
“Good. Well done~ Rest comfortably~”
Her smile was radiant.
Crazy bitch.
