The Duke's Son :Re-Chapter 81

Jeong Ru-Han was taken aback when he recognized Kang Jae-Hyeok, who had suddenly appeared and started a fight.

What is he going to do?

He’d never spoken to Kang Jae-Hyeok, and he didn’t recall ever disparaging Kang Jae-Hyeok’s ability to beat the Class A students or criticizing his Kang family. frёeweɓηovel_coɱ

Jeong Ru-Han’s feelings toward Kang Jae-Hyeok could be described in one word: indifference.

No matter what type of person Kang Jae-Hyeok was, Kang Jae-Hyeok was merely the blood of a fallen aristocrat, whereas one day, he would be the de facto master of the Guardian Guild. To him, Kang Jae-Hyeok was a worthless bug he would never associate with in his lifetime.

But he just couldn’t understand why Jae-Hyeok was picking a fight with him now. Jeong Ru-Han asked bluntly, “There is no reason for you to show this attitude to me?” He found conversing with someone below his level very unpleasant. If there was any misunderstanding, he wanted to clear it up quickly and go their separate ways.

Jae-Hyeok wasn’t the type to waste words either. “There’s a guy bullying my classmate, so naturally, I’m going to get rid of him.”

“Bullying?”

“......”

Jeong Ru-Han and Park Hae-Rin were stunned. One found it absurd, while the other was surprised.

“You call yourself the noble blood of a ducal family, yet you lack manners.”

“The ones who don’t treat me like a noble are always the first to bring up my ducal family when it suits them. Seriously, whose tune should I dance to?” Jae-Hyeok made Jeong Ru-Han shut up at once. Then he saw Hae-Rin’s complexion and frowned. “Look at her pale face. If she goes with you, the minimum she’ll experience is an upset stomach, and the maximum is suffocation. So let go of that hand.”

Having had his pride stung, Jeong Ru-Han’s tone became unusually harsh, “Aren’t you a complete psycho?”

He also knew that Park Hae-Rin lost her energy and became passive when facing him. It was the result he’d intended for her, so of course, he knew. Since that day a few years ago, when she had believed in Jeong Ru-Han’s father and equipped her Initial Skill, she was destined to be controlled by Jeong Ru-Han.

“......”

As the atmosphere turned fierce, the bustling road quickly quieted down.

The gardeners tending the flowers and trees, the janitors sweeping the ground with brooms, and the students hurrying to class—they all stopped and turned to look at Jae-Hyeok. They belonged to the Guardian Guild and were Jeong Ru-Han’s shadow warriors.

It was a sight that would give anyone goosebumps. It turned out that the people in the area were acting while hiding their identities. Anyone would be appalled when seeing all these people reveal themselves and stare in unison.

However, Jae-Hyeok didn’t blink at all. Why does he have the shadows that should be attached to Park Hae-Rin?

On the contrary, he pointed out the sensitive question, “Wow, look at all these people. Someone might think that you’re the successor of the Guardian Guild?”

Right now, Kang Jae-Hyeok’s behavior was beyond being brave. He lacked common sense. Jeong Ru-Han thought, He’s been locked up in the mansion all his life, so he doesn’t know the world. Having figured out the person before him, Jeong Ru-Han warned, “Do you think that one of the top five guilds won’t confront the Kang family for the sake of reputation? You are mistaken. In today’s South Korea, the Kang family has no meaning or value. Get out of here if you don’t want to be killed like a dog.”

“...Go.” Park Hae-Rin also tried to dissolve the situation.

She had been like that since the first day they met. At that time, she’d relaxed the intensifying argument between him and Kim Jin-Myeong by calling for the class to proceed quickly. Jae-Hyeok hadn’t been certain then, but now it was clear. Park Hae-Rin had been helping him that day.

She continued, “I never asked you to help me. In the first place, we are just going to school together. Why are you trying to help?”

Her cold tone instilled even greater certainty in Jae-Hyeok.

“Hey, it isn’t just going to school. It’s a date.” Ru-Han smirked and placed his arm around Hae-Rin’s shoulder, pleased with how Hae-Rin had spoken to Jae-Hyeok.

“......”

Jae-Hyeok stared at Hae-Rin, who flinched as Jeong Ru-Han’s hand brushed hers, and slowly spoke, “I also never asked you to help me.”

“......!”

Having hinted at something only he and Hae-Rin could understand, he changed the subject. “Anyway! You know, today is the last day of the snowfield adaptation training, right? Come with me to the convenience store. You need to eat well to achieve good results.”

Jeong Ru-Han’s expression distorted. “This jerk... ” Kang Jae-Hyeok’s attitude of ignoring his warning and talking only to Hae-Rin made him furious.

Hae-Rin saw Jeong Ru-Han’s clenched fists and urgently said, “I have enough.”

“Sniff, sniff. It smells like boiled chicken breast and broccoli. With just that, you’ll be at a calorie deficit. Besides, what crazy person would bring a broccoli sandwich for someone to eat? Your taste buds must be at the level of Butler Hwang.”

“A mere bug dares to ignore me?”

Finally, Jeong Ru-Han snapped and threw a punch. He was a patient person, but he couldn’t stand the constant insults any longer.

Bang!

“......!”

Jeong Ru-Han’s eyes widened.

He hadn’t expected that his punch, fueled by emotion and thrown with full force, would actually be blocked.

He tilted his head as he glanced at Jae-Hyeok’s forearm, which felt as hard as a steel bar against his knuckles. He wondered, “I never heard that you were a tank?” He’d heard that Kang Jae-Hyeok’s specialties were swordsmanship, spearmanship, and physical fighting abilities, but... he was a tank?

Just as that crazy thought occurred to Jeong Ru-Han, he was grabbed by Jae-Hyeok and his vision suddenly spun.

Baaang!

“Cough!”

“Haven’t you heard? I’m a fighter.”

“Bull...!”

"Shut up. Park Hae-Rin, what are you going to do? Stop paying attention to this bastard and do whatever you want.”

Jae-Hyeok didn’t force Hae-Rin to do anything. He waited for her to make her own choice, even when it was something simple like stopping at the convenience store for breakfast.

“......”

Hae-Rin’s big eyes shook.

Kang Jae-Hyeok... Hae-Rin had known him for a long time.

That girl from eight years ago, the one who had been carefree and happy, had wanted to comfort the boy she’d witnessed on the news. However, years passed, and that girl had lost her happiness and forgotten about the poor boy.

When Hae-Rin had seen Jae-Hyeok belatedly enter Lion’s Castle, how surprised had she been? I wanted to comfort you, so why are you trying to comfort me?

Crack! Craaack!

There was a cracking sound in her mind, and a memory surfaced. The smile of the person that the girl trusted the most became a bit clearer. It resembled Jeong Ru-Han’s smile.

“Fuck! I will kill you!” Jeong Ru-Han screamed in frustration from where he had fallen on his back and was gasping for breath.

Jae-Hyeok was about to stomp on his jaw, only to slip back. The pruning shears thrown by the gardener passed in front of his nose, cutting off several strands of hair.

“Students shouldn’t be fighting. Haha.”

“Hey, us students grow up by fighting. Isn’t it ridiculous for an adult to intervene?”

“You sure talk casually.” The gardener brushed a hand over his overalls, and a pair of scissors appeared in his grip. “Stop making a fuss and back off. Don’t worry too much. If you do it now, I guarantee there won’t be any consequences.”

“What, does age give you a say? Is the hierarchy in the Guardian Guild no different from a neighborhood senior citizens’ center? Not only are the escorts serving the one bullying the successor, but they even dare to represent the whole guild in sparing me from repercussions? Crazy, this goes beyond rebellion. Isn’t everything backward?

“...Senior center?” The gardener’s fat cheeks trembled. His eyebrows rose and the impression he gave off suddenly changed. He looked like an angry Buddha. “Not even your father dared to admonish one of the five guilds!”

The gardener kicked off the ground with a thunderous roar. His fat body moved like lightning as he reached Jae-Hyeok and stabbed him with his pair of scissors.

So long as he didn’t kill Kang Jae-Hyeok outright, he could heal him with a potion. The rest could be settled with the influence of the Guardian Guild, so he didn’t hold back.

I need to help! Hae-Rin, who was suffering from a flood of memories, witnessed Jae-Hyeok’s crisis and came to her senses. She was so desperate that she reflexively activated her Initial Skill, which she had vowed she would never use without her father’s permission.

A pure glow appeared around her hands.

“Hae-Rin, you aren’t going to disappoint the master again, are you?”

However, at Jeong Ru-Han’s words, Hae-Rin’s mind clouded with panic, and the glow around her hands flickered before dissipating completely.

Hesitation and fear.

These were the deep-rooted wounds left by those who, under the veil of care, had led her to the brink and pushed—all while ensuring she’d incurred even her father’s wrath. But just who were those people? No—

“Ah.” Hae-Rin’s stress reached its limit. Memories, memories that young girl hadn’t been able to accept, now slowly resurfaced.

I don’t want to. She was scared. She was sad. She was afraid to remember. Bile rising, she covered her mouth and bent down.

“You look distressed. Are you sick? Indeed, you’ve been through a lot since this morning. It must be hard. Here, take a break from training today. I’ll explain it to your homeroom teacher.”

“I... don’t want to... ”

“Hae-Rin, you don’t have to try. I will do your part for you.”

“......”

“The most important thing is your health. Don’t forget that those who live under the Guardian’s name are all counting on you. Now, let’s go to the infirmary.”

Jeong Ru-Han grabbed Park Hae-Rin’s wrist and pulled her along.

Flop!

Just then, Jeong Ru-Han heard someone collapse behind him. It seemed that fool Kang Jae-Hyeok couldn’t hold on any longer. Why did that madman come forward in the first place? It was ridiculous, no matter how he thought about it. An ant fighting with an elephant was bound for trouble.

Jeong Ru-Han was inwardly snorting when his expression hardened.

“Jae-Hyeok!”

Park Hae-Rin, this doll he’d painstakingly trained all his life, had shaken off his hand.

“...What?”

Ru-Han just stared blankly as Hae-Rin turned around. Her unthinkable action caused his thoughts to freeze for a moment. But then, Jeong Ru-Han came back to his senses and laughed with relief, “Haha.”

Where Hae-Rin was running, the shadow warrior stood. Kang Jae-Hyeok’s blood stained his overalls as he reached out a hand to stop her.

Jeong Ru-Han smiled. Yes, Park Hae-Rin couldn’t escape. She was completely in his hands.

“Be care... ” The shadow warrior slowly opened his mouth before his eyes rolled back.

Thump!

That warrior, who looked like a giant tree, fell. The hand that Jeong Ru-Han had expected to stop Hae-Rin floundered in the air before following its owner’s body.

“Park Hae-Rin.” A boy with black hair stood over the collapsed shadow warrior. No wounds or bloodstains marked him, and the way he held his sword even looked relaxed. “Don’t stay around people who bully you.”

Silently, Jae-Hyeok made a wish.

I hope I won’t have to hand you a handkerchief one day.

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