The Return of the Talented Monopolist is Special

The next day, at the Pencel family’s dining hall.

Eugene, Golden Sword, Rauler, and his bodyguards were having a meal together.

In the midst of the meal, Eugene slapped Golden Sword’s leg.

“Stop swinging your leg, Golden Sword. What’s up with you today?”

“No…!”

Golden Sword placed his spoon down sharply and whispered in a voice only Eugene could hear.

“How can you hit the children right from the first day you come to the maternal side? What if you get kicked out after coming all the way to the North? Have you seen the weather outside?”

“Now you’re telling me not to fight when you’re already having a power struggle with the bodyguards?”

“That’s a completely different matter!”

Golden Sword had heard from Eugene just how important the trial of the lion was, so he had planned to quietly support Eugene.
But now that Eugene had beaten up the two direct grandsons, Golden Sword felt he had failed as a servant.

“That’s a load of nonsense. Just eat your meal. Nothing is going to happen.”

“How can you be so sure? In a large family like this, you must play politics, and politics start from neutrality. But now you’ve already made enemies…”

Rauler chimed in from the side.

“I’m a bit worried too. Sure, they started it first, but we don’t know what they’ll say once they start gossiping around.”

Eugene clicked his tongue lightly.

“What they say doesn’t matter.”

“Then what does? The Punishment Assembly might be held, you know.”

“Punishment Assembly, or whatever… never mind, just eat.”

Eugene waved his hand dismissively, signaling that there was no need to continue the conversation.

He knew that trying to explain would be pointless.

“Pencel is a thoroughly power-oriented family. There’s no way it’ll be an issue that I beat up the Ince brothers.”

Eugene was well aware of the atmosphere in the Pencel family, so he wasn’t worried at all.

Of course, there was a variable.

Sirius, the father of the Ince brothers, who would be Eugene’s second uncle, would not let this go easily.

But…

“Even if that happens, it will end with my grandfather.”

Eugene had felt Jade’s gaze in the training hall. He could sense it even through the window, and there was an eerie feeling to it.

The “witness” Eugene referred to was Jade, and Eugene was sure that Jade had seen the fight in the training hall.

“But how did you even do it?”

“What?”

“I heard from the attendant the Ince brothers brought that there were no contusions or fractures. They just said it hurt a lot.”

Moreover, Eugene had used a very unconventional method to beat the Ince brothers.

He only struck the blood vessels that didn’t carry mana through them.

As a result, he inflicted immense pain without causing any external or internal injuries.

“That’s a trade secret.”

“Hmm… So, is that why you’re so sure nothing is going to happen?”

“Something like that.”

There was no way this could be considered violence when they hadn’t even been hurt.

Golden Sword frowned.

“Don’t tell me you used that ‘hit only to hurt’ technique you sometimes used?”

“Something like that.”

“How ruthless…”

Golden Sword had often experienced Eugene’s technique, so he knew exactly what the pain felt like.

Rauler, looking as if it were nothing, gave Eugene a brief glance.

‘He’s definitely younger than me, but he’s far more experienced and at ease. I’m not someone who could teach him anything.’

Eugene’s ability to control his aura, his proficiency with both spear and sword, his overwhelming strength that had crushed the Ince brothers in one go, and his composure in not worrying about what comes next.

Even though he was younger, he didn’t seem like a younger brother at all.

Then, Rauler stopped holding his spoon.

Eugene noticed this and spoke up.

“Did you feel it too?”

There was something strange about the food.

“…This tastes…”

“Something’s off, right? Huh?”

“Yeah. Why does the tomato egg stir-fry taste like mayonnaise?”

Golden Sword chimed in from the side.

“I felt the same. There’s a flavor in this food that shouldn’t be here.”

“Speaking of mayonnaise, it reminds me of Gungwi and Tugi. I hope they’re doing well at home.”

“They’re fine, I’m sure. But what does that matter? Hehe… Golden Sword is the only one here in Pencel.”

Just then, the head butler of the Pencel family approached quietly.

“Lord Eugene, have you finished your meal?”

“Ah, you startled me.”

Cough, cough!

Rauler, startled, coughed, and Golden Sword stared at the head butler with a wary expression.

Eugene nodded.

“Yeah, I’m done. Can we leave now?”

“Please follow me.”

The three of them followed the head butler.

Eugene observed his movements closely. He walked normally, but not a sound of footsteps or breath could be heard.

He was a highly trained martial artist.

‘I encountered someone like this in my previous life too. He came to guide me for the trial of the lion, but once again, these people are on a different level.’

The head butler, likely due to his position, was emanating an aura even though he wore a light smile. Eugene could feel the pressure from him.

Golden Sword would likely be forced to yield in front of this head butler.

Eugene glanced at Golden Sword, and sure enough, he had a look of admiration on his face. Meeting high-level martial artists like this was one of the reasons Golden Sword had wanted to come to Pencel so badly.

Creak.

The three of them arrived at the main hall of the mansion and opened the door.

Inside, there were several boys, probably just over 12 years old, sitting around a round table.

There were 12 people, including Eugene and Rauler.

“Please take a seat at the vacant spots.”

The boys all turned their attention to Eugene and his companions.

They had likely heard that Eugene was the one who had beaten up the Ince brothers.

“Which one is Eugene, and which one is Rauler?”

“It’s probably him. He’s taller.”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

They whispered among themselves, thinking they wouldn’t be heard, but Eugene caught every word.

They were confused. They were looking at Rauler and mistakenly thinking he was Eugene.

Since Rauler was taller, they likely assumed he was the one who beat up the Ince brothers.

Eugene didn’t care about their confusion.

He walked slowly to an empty seat and surveyed the faces of those sitting around the table.

‘Leod.’

‘Garbanne.’

‘Juflo.’

‘That one I don’t think I even remember the name of from back then.’

Eugene smirked inwardly as he watched the kids who were glaring at Rauler, thinking it was Eugene. Rauler wore a puzzled expression.

‘There aren’t many who are worth remembering.’

Eugene only needed to remember the important people, the ones who could be useful later—either as enemies or allies. He planned to use the information about them when the time came.

In truth, only a few people mattered to Eugene.

First, the Ince brothers, who were glancing at Eugene.

Although they had been thoroughly beaten, they had shown some decent skills. For their age, 14, they weren’t bad.

If they passed the trial of the lion, they would likely be included in the group.

Then, there was Rauler.

Eugene had gotten a sense of Rauler’s abilities through a simple sparring match in the training hall.

Eugene’s judgment was simple.

‘Rauler is something to watch out for.’

Eugene had only briefly assessed Rauler’s skills in the training hall, so it wasn’t easy to fully gauge his true potential.

And lastly…

Eugene looked at the girl sitting right next to him.

Eldora Pencel.

She had long black hair and sharp eyes.

‘Eldora Pencel, the daughter of my third uncle, a prodigy who reached the 3-star level at the age of 12.’

She was a genius.

She had awakened her aura at the age of three, became a 1-star knight at the age of seven, achieved 2 stars at nine, and by the time she was 12, she had already become a 3-star knight.

As a direct descendant of the Pencel family, there was no child of her age who could match her in swordsmanship.

A 3-star knight could easily be described as someone capable of working as a mercenary.

The common belief was that 10 1-star knights could be matched against 1 2-star knight, and 10 2-star knights against 1 3-star knight.

‘That means I’d need at least 10 people to defeat Eldora Pencel, this girl.’

Eugene was currently at the 2-star level, so Eldora was definitely someone he needed to be cautious about.

Of course, Eugene had undergone years of intense training with Mukgwang, so it was hard to definitively judge his own strength.

Just as Eugene was continuing his thoughts…

“…Is something on my face?”

Eldora squinted and stared at Eugene.

“No, it’s nothing.”

“What?”

Eugene waved his hand, and Eldora shrugged as if she found it absurd.

‘In my previous life, I never interacted with Eldora. I failed the trial from the start, so there was no way that could have happened.’

“The head of the family is coming in.”

At the butler’s words, the kids who had been chatting suddenly went silent.

Ssssss…

A heavy aura could be felt from beyond the door. Eugene also sensed it and furrowed his brow.

Even though the person was still far away, the pressure was overwhelming.

Clack, clack, clack, clack.

The sound of heels clicking on the wooden floor echoed in the corridor, and it was strangely imposing, as if someone was coming to execute a judgment.

Of course, that wouldn’t happen, but…

“Ugh…”

“Cough…”

A few of the kids sweated coldly, overwhelmed by the aura from Jade. It was an instinctive feeling of threat.

Rauler and the Ince brothers were no exceptions.

Though they withstood it much better than the other kids, their heads lowered, and their expressions contorted, unable to hide their discomfort.

“Is the person coming the head of the family?”

Golden Sword, who had been standing behind Eugene, quietly asked. He too seemed to feel the pressure.

Eugene nodded, and Golden Sword muttered to himself.

“Pencel really is different from the rest…”

Clack, clack, clack!

Jade reached just in front of the door.

Creeeeak!

As the door opened, the heavy aura became even more intense. Raising one’s head felt like lifting a thousand pounds.

On either side of Jade were his second son, Sirius, and his third son, Clark.

Jade briefly scanned the children.

Everyone had expected them to lower their heads under Jade’s aura, but…

He paused.

His gaze stopped in the middle of the room.

There were two children who had lifted their heads.

Eugene and Eldora.

Both Eugene and Eldora had their eyes lowered, but their heads were clearly raised.

Jade stared at them for a moment, and a faint hint of interest appeared in his eyes.

Eugene also noticed Jade entering his line of sight.

He had to stand out from the others.

To catch the attention of a 10-star knight who had reached the level of a demi-god, Eugene knew he needed to do something different from the others right now.

His shoulders trembled, and his neck felt as if it might break, but he endured it.

‘This should be enough for the first meeting.’

Eldora, who was sitting next to him, also had her head raised, trembling slightly.

‘Eldora is certainly different.’

After briefly observing Eugene and Eldora, Jade finally moved his feet.

Step, step.

Jade slowly walked around to the right side of the round table and took a seat at the highest seat in the hall.

By the time Jade sat down, all the children, except for Eugene and Eldora, had not dared to lift their heads or speak.

The kids were drenched in sweat, and beads of sweat began to fall onto the round table.

“Lift your heads.”

*The return of the talent monopolizer is special*