Bullied but Popular

Chapter 38

38 – Count Cloud 5

“Ah, I remember.”

“Oh! Do you remember me?”

“No, goblins.”

“…is it?”

Ten years ago, Aren was attacked by goblins.

There were few monsters around Aren’s hometown, but it wasn’t without them.

As the season changed, monsters that couldn’t find food sometimes came over to other areas.

It was the case ten years ago, and Aren vaguely remembered the situation at that time.

‘But I said I used the shore?’

Aren first awakened to the gift a year ago, to be exact, when he first used the coast in the winter of 15 years old.

However, according to Count Gran, Aren had already awakened to the Gift.

‘Is it because I was too young to remember?’

No matter how much he pondered, no answer came out, so Aren stopped worrying and brought up the main topic again.

“Then, did you get engaged because I’m a high human?”

“What do you see me as?”

Count Gran said after drinking the wine.

“Do you think it makes sense?”

“What?”

“That a 7-year-old gore would risk it to save a girl.”

“It’s possible.”

“what?”

“Did I?”

“… Fuhahahahaha!”

Count Gran started laughing as the office went away, wondering what was so good about it.

When Aren covered his ears with his hands as if he was distressed by the loud noise, Count Gran stopped laughing and said with a smirk.

“Geukke, I said I picked a son-in-law well.”

“Not yet.”

“No, you will be my son-in-law. I promise you.”

“… yes…”

A joke?

Even Aren, the person involved, agreed to Count Gran’s confident voice.

Seeing Aren like that, Count Gran laughed and continued.

“Well, it was because I liked you, Aren. I have no intention of using my daughters for political affairs, and if possible, isn’t it the parent’s mind to send them to a decent guy?”

“… It is an honour.”

At Count Gran’s sincere words, Aren said with a slightly surprised expression.

‘You don’t look like an aristocrat these days.’

Perhaps, if he persuaded him well, he might be able to end his engagement to Tia.

If the parties really didn’t like it, Count Gran wouldn’t force her to marry for her daughter’s sake.

After thinking about it for a while, Aren had a question and asked Count Gran.

“But why Tia?”

“Why?”

“As far as I know, Cecilia’s sister isn’t even engaged yet.”

“Ahh.”

Count Gran had a tired expression on his face for a moment, then drank another glass of wine.

“Keuuumm, Cecilia can’t.”

“yes?”

“It must be true that they are not engaged.”

“why?”

Count Gran sighed and said.

“Well, isn’t Cecilia a beauty just because she resembles me?”

“… Exactly, oh my…”

“Maybe that’s why engagement applications piled up from the age of 15.”

“yes.”

“So I once asked Cecilia if there was a place you liked…”

“…?”

Count Gran paused for a while, then drank another glass of wine to see if the alcohol was strong.

“… By the way… She said she would marry the man who defeated her in a duel.”

“…???”

“I understood to some extent, I thought that I could not marry a man weaker than my daughter.”

“So what?”

“He knocked down about a hundred people.”

“Wow~”

Aren exclaimed with sincere admiration.

I knew that Cecilia was popular, but receiving over a hundred marriage proposals and defeating one hundred people was truly amazing.

It’s easy to say, but it was to defeat a hundred people and a hundred men.

In a way, it seemed like it could be called an achievement.

Aren opened his mouth in pure admiration.

“Isn’t that great?”

“…at first I was too…but think about it.”

Count Gran said after stiffening his expression.

“One hundred! No matter how many warriors there are in this country, honestly, few men can beat Cecilia now!”

“Uh… that’s right.”

“I would also like to have a son-in-law who is not too far behind my daughter in age, but in reality, that is close to impossible.”

“……”

Count Gran covered his forehead with his hand as if he were really serious and began to think seriously.

‘…Don’t you know about the gift yet?’

Cecilia has grown even more in this dungeon.

Now, there really aren’t that many Auror Masters left.

As a bonus, he even awakened as a high human.

I don’t know how strong Cecilia is now, but it’s almost impossible to marry her unless you’re at least an Auror Master or higher.

‘Is he really the strongest?’

When Count Gran thought too seriously, Aren began to think about the unknown guilt for a while.

‘… there is?’

As a result of thinking about it, there was someone who unexpectedly figured it out, so Aren told Count Gran, who was still thinking about it.

“Isn’t there one?”

“who?”

“Duke Nerestia.”

“……”

Hamel Nerestia.

At the young age of 20, he was an aura master, and at the age of 22, he was recognized for his performance and inherited the title of duke, and at the age of 25, he was the strongest sword recognized by everyone in Korea.

Count Gran, who heard Aren’s story, frowned and said,

“He can’t.”

“is it so?”

“Yes, Cecilia cannot be happy if she marries him.”

“Then I can’t.”

“……”

At Aren’s words, Count Gran kept silent and looked out the window.

His expression is frowned as he thinks of something, and even life flows from his eyes.

Then he suddenly made a gloomy expression and said, waving a wine glass.

“Well, at least he’s a potential guy.”

“You said you couldn’t be happy?”

“… As of now… that’s how it is.”

Count Gran took out the wine he had hidden in the office to see if he was drinking more, and tried to pour it again.

widely

“I’ll follow you.”

“OK.”

squeaking

Count Gran drank the wine properly poured by Aren and said.

“Cecilia and that guy are like older brothers and sisters.”

“You must have known it since you were little, right?”

“Well, there were times when I thought it would be okay if it was him, but now he is crazy.”

“why?”

“……”

When Count Gran tried to pour the drink again, Aren intercepted and poured instead.

“Isn’t that too little?”

“You drank too much.”

“Sheesh.”

Count Gran, who stared blankly at his wine glass for a moment, sighed and put the glass down.

“You must have had a lot to drink, I’m done talking…”

“If you’re in trouble, you don’t have to talk.”

“OK.”

Count Gran said as he stood up from his seat holding the wine bottle as he was about to put it away.

“Let’s just stop here for today. If this gets caught, your wife will scold you.”

“Kick, are you being caught?”

“Foot! Sounds like someone else’s story, right?”

Just like that, the moment Aren and Count Gran got up from their seats and were about to clean up the drinking party.

jump

“……”

momentary silence.

Lena Cloud suddenly enters the office and stares at the wine bottles on the table.

Then he raises his gaze and roars at the two men standing awkwardly.

“What are you doing right now!!!”

“Suck!”

‘People in this family are amazing at shouting.’

That day, Aren was scolded by Lena Cloud all day long.

***

“… Whoa.”

Cloud is Aren’s room in the mansion.

Aren was sitting in the middle of the room practicing mana exercises.

“Now I’ve absorbed everything.”

Aren rose from his seat and looked around his body on the shore.

“… I think this is enough to be an expert advanced level?”

Aren looked at the glass bottles scattered on the table, amazed at his transformation.

“Well, it’s thanks to the Seven Blood Wine that my father gave me.”

***

Cloud gymnasium a week ago.

“I have something to give you.”

“…?”

Saying that, Hans took out a black box from his bosom and held it out to Aren.

“What is it?”

“……”

Hans silently opened the box and showed the contents.

click

‘… This.’

The enchanted glass bottle was filled with dark red liquid.

Although seemingly ordinary, Aren could tell by looking into the shore that this liquid was no ordinary substance.

‘The energy was mixed.’

As Aren stared at him curiously, Hans began explaining about the liquid.

“It’s called Seven Blood Wine.”

“Seven bloods?”

“Simply put, it’s an elixir made by an alchemist.”

“Hoo?”

Hans said that and handed out the seven-blooded wine to Aren.

“You drink.”

“Isn’t it precious?”

“You’re precious.”

Hans smiled and said.

“My dad made it by collecting ingredients in the past.”

“Did your father make this?”

“To be precise, I only gathered the ingredients and made a request to the alchemist.”

“Why did you make this?”

Hans, though noble, was by no means affluent.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t afford it, but he didn’t have enough money to make such an expensive elixir.

In response to Aren’s question, Hans spoke calmly.

“I made it to become an Auror Master in the past.”

“But why would you like me? Would you like to try it now?”

“… I was going to, but I changed my mind.”

“why?”

“You were born when I made this.”

“…?”

While Hans was still on active duty, he sought out and gathered ingredients for seven-blooded wine in order to approach the level of his close friend Gran.

However, each material was too precious and most of the materials were in a dangerous area, so several years passed without completion.

In the end, I was able to get the last ingredients only after getting married, and while preparing the basics before completing and consuming the seven blood wine.

“aaagh!”

Aren was born.

“The moment I first saw you, the seven blood wine didn’t seem very precious.”

“I see, the father loves his son so much that he passed down the Seven Blood Wine.”

“……”

Hans, who was talking quite seriously, put the seven-blooded wine into the box with a grim expression when his son spoke smirkingly.

“Come to think of it, this is…”

“Father’s love, thank you.”

When his father tried to take the seven blood wine again, Aren quickly took the seven blood wine and put it in his pocket.

Hans smiled at his son as if he was dumbfounded and returned the wooden sword to its original place.

“That elixir has too strong ingredients, so you’d better avoid drinking it all at once.”

“Isn’t it good to eat these all at once?”

“If you’re confident not to vomit, do as you please.”

After saying that, my father puts on a serious expression to see if he has any last words.

“I’ll tell you one last time, but with the princess…”

“Please stop.”

***

“Whoa… I should have listened to my father.”

From noble mtl dot com

Aren emptied all the water bottles he had prepared in advance and threw himself on the bed.

hair stone

“Whoa~ One effect kills me, uh~ I feel bitter inside.”

In order to perfectly absorb the energy of the seven blood wine, Aren took one shot of the seven blood wine and practiced the technique all night long to soothe a sore stomach.

Despite staying up all night, his body seemed to be full of energy rather than tired, but Aren’s mind was weak and he rested as if he died in bed.

smart

“Come on in.”

“Aren Deepus, it’s time for breakfast.”

While Aren was rolling in bed, the maid from Cloud came and informed Aren that it was time for breakfast.

“Aren, today is the day you enjoy breakfast at the restaurant.”

“I’ll be right there.”

Normally, if you live in a mansion this large, breakfast is served in your own room, but today was the day the Cloud family gathered together and had breakfast.

“Ego, let’s go.”

Aren, who simply washed his face, headed to the restaurant wearing a simple outfit.

“Ha~ah, my body is fine, but my mind is tired.”

As I walked down the hallway yawning, I saw a woman talking to Aren.

“Does it feel like it’s your own home?”

“hmm?”

Tia, whom we met in the hallway, looked at Aren’s outfit and said as if she was dumbfounded.

“Hello Tia.”

“Hello Aren… are you ignoring me?”

“Why again?”

Aren said with a tired expression.

“Me huh? Helping you with your training huh? Sharing the treasures you got from the dungeon huh? Your father drinking partner huh huh? I’m done!”