This Bastard is Too Competent

Ian pulled out the [Small Subspace Ring].

Originally, it should have been returned to the king right away, but he was currently its temporary owner as a reward for defeating the gatekeeper.

He said Ian could use it until the Battle of Ranking.

That wasn't the point anyway.

‘Something must have gone into the ring back then.’

The skin and bones of the three-headed hound were now being handled with rapt enthusiasm by royal craftsmen. Ian got a portion of it, but now he had only one interest.

The red orb.

‘Maybe it's the relics that the monster swallowed.'

No, it better be.

At that thought, Ian immediately opened the subspace.

But right at that moment.

Zap!

"Ugh!"

His hand bounced off.

It was like what he experienced in the trial. 

At that moment, he felt a certain will.

[You're not ready to have us yet.]

[If it wasn't for that dog, we wouldn't have gotten this far.]

“!”

Ian opened his eyes wide at the unfamiliar voice. 

‘Ego Sword?’

Ian flinched but soon realized the identity of the voices. 

‘As expected, the relics of the First King are there.’

In fact, the cloak he got was shining as if it welcomed its brothers.

However, the relics of the First King were rejecting Ian's touch.

[There is only one reward. You can't get us by underhanded means.]

[Now that we have come out, we will go out into the world.]

Ian's brow furrowed at the remark.

Without these guys, the plan would go awry.

‘The royals will by no means go easy.’

In the first place, winning against the Second Prince was only possible because several things coincided.

‘If I had not been vigilant and worn all the magic tools, I might have suffered instead.’

The knights and the royals could not easily deal with these relics.

They were special skills and weapons from the trial handed down only to the royals. It was because they were picky with <Oath>. 

‘The Second Prince has the Sword of Domination coupled with excellent military arts.’

Although he didn't use it when fighting Ian, the Sword of Domination that could take control of his opponent was quite troublesome.

If it were not for the power of <Faith>, Ian would have been beaten by him.

It wasn't just the Second Prince.

The First Princess with her unidentified power and the Sword of Ice.

The Third Prince who possessed genius swordsmanship skills and the Sword of Storm that was even acknowledged by the king.

The Fourth Prince with mysterious movement skills and the Sword of Lightning.

The Second Princess with outstanding stealth ability and the Sword of Abundance.

It was no coincidence that Kaistein was the one the knights pledged their <Oath> to back in the old days.

His brothers each possessed such outstanding abilities in their respective fields.

Moreover, they were equipped with the magic tools obtained from the ancient ruins.

‘In order to defeat such people, I need more relics of the First King.’

In the <Battle of Ranking>, he could legally steal his opponent's belongings, but in other words, they could also steal all his belongings.

But then.

[However, I'll give you a chance.]

“!”

[You are the only descendant of Kaistein who found us.]

[Some of us want to follow you. If you find who they are… we will all be your strength.] 

[But if you don't find them, you don't deserve us. We will leave you alone.]

Ian smiled with interest. 

In other words, they wanted him to gamble.

[There will be no hint. Luck is a part of the skill of a lord.]

Ian looked at the items. The first thing his eyes set on was the helmet.

‘Protecting my head during battle is a top priority.'

Head was the strongest and the weakest part of the human body. If hit right, he would lose consciousness and fall prey to the enemy.

But there was a reason Ian didn’t think of choosing it in the first place.

‘If it’s the skill of the First Princess, the head is not the problem; my body will be cut at once.’

Then again, Ian had his eye on the armor. 

Armor was the best survival tool of everlasting value.

Moreover, the armor of the First King, who once stood at the front of battlefields, must have an excellent defense.

Of course, in that sense, the shield was also good.

‘If I can stop my sister's blow, I can counterattack.'

If it could be handled properly with the royal treasure sword, a perfect counterattack would be possible.

And lastly, the pair of shoes.

Its defense was the weakest, but unlike the other items, it had the advantage of being something he could always carry.

And after a moment passed.

[Have you made your choice?]

"Yeah. Armor would be great."

Ian said so and put his hand in the subspace.

Then the relics laughed. 

[Fufu, that's a good choice. Take it out. Then let us see the result of your foolish choice…]

Shhh.

And at that very moment, Ian took out the [Shoes] from the subspace.

[What? You said you liked me!]

"It's a lie. I have been thinking about the shoes."

[!!]

From the start, Ian was aiming for the shoes. According to past research, shoe-type relics were very useful among ancient relics.

In particular, there were some shoes whose stories were only passed down as legends.

[Fire Charge] that sparked fire with every step taken.

[Air Jump] that allowed the wearer to run in the air.

[Dash] that enabled instantaneous moves.

What if the shoes of the First King were on equal footing with such great things?

In addition, the cloak had been telling him from the beginning. It was flapping wildly as if giving a hint.

The cloak was just flapping in the closet, so Ian wasn't sure if it was the armor or the shoes, but he just needed to check.

‘Well, the helmet and the shield are strangely hostile to me, though.’

And at that instant, the shoes of the First King in Ian's hand became small. It shrank to the size of Ian's feet.

The relics seemed to be displeased.

[Sheesh. I can’t believe you get the answer right. You're so cunning!]

[But promises are sacred. It seems like you don't have the right to use us yet, but we won't leave and will stay in this place for now.]

[Well, who knows if you can use us before the ring returns to the king.]

Ian smiled as he grabbed the shoes.

However, before he could confirm the ability of the shoes.

Plop.

His body couldn't stand it any longer due to the accumulation of fatigue.

So, Ian fell asleep, hugging the shoes tightly.

***

The next morning.

The attendants assigned to the guest dining room couldn't believe their eyes.

"Surely he was a serf… wasn’t he?”

"He was. That's what I heard."

They were in disbelief as they saw Ian having a meal by himself.

Although it was not a formal dinner because it was a personal mealtime, the royal family still had to maintain royal etiquette. Royal etiquette was much more difficult and complex than aristocratic etiquette.

However, everyone was surprised not to hear a single clinking sound.

"How can he eat so quietly at that age?”

“I know, right? He is also very handsome… and once he becomes an adult, he will meet a lot of young ladies…"

“Uh-oh!”

The maids of the royal palace, who had been working for decades, were startled by Ian's sharp gaze.

It wasn’t without reason.

‘I can't believe that's here.’

He was staring at the scented candle in the corner of the dining room. 

It was the same scented candle that gave off a strange scent in his room. But in the dining room as well?

‘Something is strange.’

Ian didn't mind it because it was a common item in the palace, but he started to notice it because he didn't like the smell.

‘It seems like it was there in the past…'

Of course, his memory was not accurate. 

He stayed in the same room for the legitimation ceremony in the past, but he did not remember the structure of the room at that time.

However, it didn't seem to be everywhere he went.

Ian frowned, eventually feeling uncomfortable.

‘I'll have to find out.’

But who should he ask? 

An attendant?

Ian soon shook his head when he saw the attendants whispering at him.

He still couldn't trust them.

‘There is only one reliable attendant.’

Sure enough, a familiar face entered the room.

"I brought it as you asked me to."

A handsome attendant brought something with a silver tray with great discontent.

He was Karan, the third son of Duke Garcia.

Ian grinned at what he brought.

“Seems like they have it.”

"Yes. I had a hard time bringing it from the royal treasury."

What Ian ordered Karan to bring were none other than small pills. 

He asked him to find the pills for his weakened strength from defeating the hound with <Faith>. Unlike in the past, he had been officially acknowledged, so it was possible to get it. 

At Karan’s gaze urging him to eat quickly, Ian smiled and asked.

"Have you tasted it?"

"Of course. There was no poison."

“Isn’t it supposed to be the servants’ job?”

Stifling his anger, Karan raised his eyebrows.

“Hey, how could you look at me and say things like that? I have checked it myself.”

"Okay okay. But there is dust in the bowl. I guess you didn't clean it? Who is in charge?”

"Ugh! Really!"

It wasn't Karan who screamed this time. 

A man who was also taking care of Ian right now. It was Garcia's second son, Heinley.

And Ian took care of the two very well as servants.

Ian gestured with his chin.

"What are you doing? You're not going to wash it? Did the Duke tell you to do this?"

In the end, Heinley couldn't get angry at him and went out with the bowl.

However, Ian's eyes, which seemed to be sick of people including him, changed.

"So, how is the situation?"

"Well, as expected, the nobles are in a state of panic. I think the factions will be divided according to the rank of the Battle of Ranking. It’s just…”

"Just?"

"The nobles' movements are unusual because of your performance."

It seemed that Ian's performance sparked a fire on the nobles’ feet. 

Ian put down the tableware and whispered to Karan.

"Then I'll ask you one more thing."

"Don't tell me you're going to make me clean the bathroom this time."

Karan, who was now forced to be his attendant, turned white.

But Ian laughed.

"This scented candle, please do some research secretly. Will it be too hard for Garcia’s third young master?"

Karan was dumbstruck.

He couldn’t believe Ian entrusted this task to the son of the great Duke Garcia.

But this was Duke Garcia’s order. As Karan grumbled, he took the scented candle.

"Who do you think I am? I will finish what takes a year for veteran informants to complete in a week."

And right when Ian came out of the dining room, the waiting servant approached him.

"We have just been informed that the cleaning is done. We'll take you to the new palace."

Ian was interested.

"Oh? So, where do they say my palace is?”

“It’s called Crystal Palace.”

What? Where?

Ian stopped for a moment.

It was only natural.

Crystal Palace was the former residence of King Eloin when he was a prince. He even ascended the throne there after defeating his other brothers.

It was literally the same as announcing the next successor.

Ian didn't expect the king to give him such a great place.

And Heinley, who had washed the bowl and brought it back, had his mouth gawking as if he couldn’t believe what he just heard.

Karan looked at his brother pathetically, then whispered to Ian.

"The situation is a little bad. The prince is in danger."

"So what?"

"You must gather the nobility and build up your power. Garcia will help you."

"Will Garcia do that?"

“The nobles are definitely on the move now to discuss the punishment of the prince who severed the Second Prince’s arm. Just make sure we deal with it before the <Battle of Ranking>.”

Karan remembered what Duke Garcia said.

“Don't take your eyes off and stay sharp. And don't ever let Lavaltor snoop around.”

His expression was as if he would not even forgive his own child if he ever failed.

Because of this, Karan was going to thoroughly assist Ian as the Duke ordered and win his favor.

But Ian kept walking.

"I'm busy right now. Let's think about Garcia's help while training. Nathan must be waiting."

Karan tilted his head at his words.

“Sir Nathan? I'm sure Sir Nathan won't be there even if we go.”

“What do you mean?”

"As far as I know, Marquis Adeles called him, so he left for a while."

"What? Without telling me?”

"I don't know why, but he said it was urgent. He will talk about the details after he gets back."

Ian furrowed his brow. 

It was about time he would bring up the talk about the Second Prince soon.

‘If the nobles are really moving to beat me…'

The first thing to do was rope in Lavaltor or the nobles who could cover it up.

***

Meanwhile, around the same time, the Royal First Knight Order's commander office.

Two letters were opened in front of Duke Lavaltor.

One came from Ian, the Seventh Prince. And the other one was sent by the Second Prince.

And now, Duke Lavaltor was grimacing at the correspondence he had just read.

At that expression, Lavaltor's eldest son Fiosen opened his mouth with a serious expression.

"Father, what is the letter about?"

“…”

Instead of answering, Duke Lavaltor scrunched his forehead.

Bang!

"Father?"

Fiosen looked at Duke Lavaltor in confusion.

Just what on earth was written in the letter for him to have such a ferocious look on his face?

However, Duke Lavaltor seemed unusually furious.

"You shameless bastard…"

At the intense bloodthirst, Fiosen gulped nervously.

‘Which side are you looking at? Is there anything wrong with the Second Prince's letter?’

But Duke Lavaltor seemed very displeased. Grinding his teeth, he told Fiosen.

"Follow my instructions from now on.”

"Yes, Father."

The Lavaltor began to move.

But before that, there was something to do.

Rip.

The duke tore up one of the letters.