Chapter 387: Epilogue (2)

Krono Swordsmanship School.

It truly is the world's best training facility. Originally, its reputation surpassed that of some royal palaces, and thirty years ago, it soared higher, so many great heroes were born, and everyone was aware of the 27th Golden Batch.

Of course, not just anyone could enter. One needed a letter of recommendation from a person with fame in addition to their swordsmanship ability.

It doesn't end there. Talented people and other geniuses from throughout the continent will take part in another exam.

Some students drop out because they are having difficulty digesting the massive amount of training and exams. Some people are frustrated because others are more talented, and even if they pass all of the tests, they are only given the title of a prospective trainee. This made things feel more challenging.

Of course, Krono's 34th batch of trainees couldn't think too far ahead. The children who had just finished their evaluation were relieved that they had not been dropped, and they were proud of what they had accomplished and grateful for the opportunity to learn something for the next six months.

So they didn't like it.

A blonde boy named Kai suddenly transferred into the 34th batch which they had to work so hard for.

"How can he be so shameless?"

"..."

"Right. Does he think we will be afraid if he looks at me?"

A girl with silver hair, as if embracing the milky way, asked.

They are only 13 years old. Even though they were at the age where they should be in their parents' arms and making mistakes, they were mature and dignified. A body that has not fully matured but is constantly trained and full of confidence.

'If half of the orphanage kids were like them, things would have been comfortable.'

The problem was that the confident-looking kid didn't like him.

He could understand.

All the others enlisted in the 4th month, and he heard that they went through a mid-term evaluation a few days back. They felt like he was privileged to skip all that and come in the middle.

However, Kai passed tests of his own while coming here. He thought of the amount of training he got from the hero Ignet Crescentia.

'At first. Every day felt like I would lose my life. The trials were never-ending.'

"What? If you have something to say, say it!"

"Scared? Coward!"

"So what if you got support from Miss Crescentia? Korno is no place for the privileged. Someone like you shouldn't raise your head so shamelessly..."

Even as he was thinking, the girl continued with her scathing remarks. This is a place where everyone is treated fairly.

A guy like you shouldn't be here. These words didn't hurt Kai, who had been through hell since birth but couldn't stay silent.

Because of what Ignet told him.

Phew.

He sighed and stepped ahead. And in a low voice, no one but the girl could hear what he said.

"Your parents, I know them."

"...!"

"I don't know about the others, but I don't think you should be speaking about things like privilege."

"T-this! I-I came this far all on my own..."

He didn't listen. Kai turned around as if he had said what he wanted to and distanced himself from the girl. The girl was still screaming, but he didn't care, and she stopped. She was scared of her secret coming out.

'I have no intention of revealing what you are hiding, but...'

I won't say it, because it brings trouble for me too.

But it wasn't done. It wasn't just about the girl.

There were many friends of the silver girl, and most of them were looking at Kai.

The brown-haired boy, who didn't stop watching, strode toward Kai. He was taller than the others. And unlike Kai, he looked dignified.

And based on what he saw, he appeared ignorant, but his first words were unexpected.

"That one, is quite annoying."

"Uh?"

"About Elena. Ah, I am Darian Cox."

"... Kai."

"Haha, I already know."

Darian Cox reached out, and Kai accepted his handshake.

Darian was quite fine with the handshake and spoke of the silver-haired girl, Elena.

"Don't worry about that child. She speaks a lot about privileges and what is fair and unfair, she is quite a stuck-up one."

The brown-haired boy constantly complained, and Kai nodded. He did agree to a couple of the things he said.

It isn't particularly wrong for a noble to be born as a noble or the son of a wealthy family to enjoy life. Yet, Elena showed some weird dislike for someone she didn't have to mingle with.

'I don't know him well either.'

Kai wasn't sharp.

Still, he knew Darian liked Elena. However, he wasn't honest and would speak badly about her.

Why?

Kai thought. Why lie? Why have so many secrets? And the answer came. It was a situation where he was unable to find a solution by being sincere with his expressions.

'... when bald Jack kicked us.'

The bastard who beat children. Because of that, he had to see his friends die in pain.

Each time, Kai hid his feelings and showed a smile. If it was difficult, he would try to look expressionless.

'I don't like it.'

Kai looked at Elena in the distance. And then at Darian Cox.

Such a minor issue is a major issue in the lives of these children. Kai, who had been depressed for no apparent reason, smiled and accepted Darian's words.

"UH, right."

"..."

The noble boy stopped.

He stared at Kai, then said he would talk to him later, and walked away. Kai watched the child return to his group of friends and walk away. The boy, who had difficulty smiling, returned to his expressionless face.

'I want to head back.'

This isn't the right place for him.

It wasn't just Elena or Darian.

Both nobles and non-nobles. Everyone else appeared to be living better lives than him. Though he was aware that nothing was wrong with that, he pondered whether there was a good reason to get along with those who were different from him.

'Why did Miss Crescentia send me here?'

Because she was busy?

Or was she bothered by him?

He couldn't find the answer, but Kai was eager to return. He didn't mind doing her training, which hurt his bones every day; he thought it would be better.

Here in Krono, no one could understand him.

... a stranger appeared when the boy kicked a stone.

"Uh?"

Hearing Elena's voice, Kai bowed his head. Darian Cox, who was muttering in his group, looked at the hall's center.

A gentle and warm smile.

It wasn't soft, though. It was warm like a bonfire but with the sharpness of steel and the immense pressure of the vast earth. The sensation of flowing water was present, as was a sense of grandeur as if one were looking up at a massive tree.

And after some time.

The blonde swordsman moved in sync with the five enticing auras.

"...."

"..."

"..."

No one could take their eyes off of him. No child could take their eyes off the sword dance done by this man.

It was like a story told by an old man sitting on a bench in the shade of a tree, that was what this felt like, and it captured Kai's heart.

"..."

The five auras were ever-changing.

Sometimes, a large iron stake caused problems.

There were times when soaring flames could cover heaven and earth and other times when stagnant water gave off a foul odor. For some, the energy of the tree was the most pressing issue, while for others, the energy of the land was bitter.

Suffering and pain have no superiors or inferiors.

By comparing his misery to that of others, the boy became enamored with a sense of superiority.

Wooong!

Wooong!

The flow continued.

The energy of metal and fire.

The energy of fire and water moved around and paved the way toward encouraging each other.

The coexistence in which flames came from trees, ashes bloomed from fire, ashes to iron, iron to water, and water helped the trees grow. The sword didn't break, however. There could be times when weaknesses were shown, but it didn't stop. This wasn't an answer, but anyone could find their own answers through this.

'I know.'

Now he realized.

Why did he come here? Why did Ignet send him here?

Kai was already in tears.

The blonde swordsman finished his sword dance and smiled as he looked at the kids, who had various reactions to the dance.

"Nice to meet you; I am Krono's headmaster, Airn Pareira."

...

...

...

'It hasn't changed since then.'

It was a little far from the swordsmanship school, where the children could be seen; anyone who wanted to see them could do so from there.

Ignet, remembering her childhood, nodded her head.

She didn't have many fond memories before turning twenty, but Krono was a pleasant experience for her. Not only that, but it also aided her in her future planning. However, it did not last long.

Airn Pareira appeared by her side, and then Kirill Pareira appeared on a legendary being with all her beauty.

She left it at that moment she did it.

Ignet smiled and asked.

"Is it time?"

"Right. How did..."

"A feeling."

"Well, you are a sorcerer."

Kirill said, and Airn nodded.

There was no further conversation needed.

The three looked at each other, and the Griffin called Cherry and flew into the sky.

They were on their way to see a dragon.

No, a black cat

Airn closed his eyes and relived memories from fifteen years ago, recalling Lulu, who would soon awaken.

ED/PR Finale Note:

Fallen: Hello! Thank you all for accompanying us on this amazing journey with Airn and his friends.

I would like to thank Rynoh for giving me an opportunity to work on Reformation of the Deadbeat noble.

I would also like to thank both Rynoh, again, and my fellow Editor and colleague SoTheThingIs, Sottie for short, for encouraging me to try and finish the editing and pring for Reformation of the Deadbeat Noble.

I would now like to give thanks to our fantastic translator Ari, they're a great translator who I'd say is one of the cores of SDO, who allowed us to be able to read Deadbeat Noble.

Also extra shoutouts to the previous EDs for Deadbeat, it was fun to work with them as a pr. I wish them well and the best of luck for whatever projects they're working on irl.

This has been a pretty unreal experience for me. This series, I believe, was the first series that got me into the whole 'reading novels side' of the community. I usually just binged webtoons/manhuas/manwhas without thinking of trying out the original novel. The reason why I eventually decided to give the novel a shot was because I heard that the manwha had cut out alot of details from the novel. I became annoyed with the fact that I wasn't getting the full experience from the novel, I'd still recommend checking out the webtoon, though, because it has its own charms, but I digress. After some thought, I decided to try the novel out. It was a pretty interesting time, noticing the differences, and just overall adoring the story that was being told. I still remember some moments fondly, like how Airn formed his Golden Great Sword during his fight with Ilya and won the tournament in the land of proof, how Bratt finally became a swordsmaster, Joshua vs Airn, Ilya flying for the first time with the sky sword, Bratt surpassing himself, Ignet vs Judith, the journey to durkali and Airn realizing who the man in his dreams was, Khun vs Ian, Khun vs Carl, and Airn and Ilya at the ball and their first date. This series has had alot of fantastic moments and a really good message and story to tell, one that I believe is about self improvement and how we should view the world.

Eventually I somehow ended up becoming a pr after a flooding of screenshots for some series (Rest In peace Raga), and ended up on Mount Hua, Spear knight, then eventually to Deadbeat and Mumu, (I don't remember if it was in that order exactly).

I was a bit hesitant on how I should approach pring a series at first, it was new, and it ended up being pretty fun. Eventually things happened, staff rosters changed and here I am.

Thank you once again for being with us on this incredible journey, we'll meet you guys again if Deadbeat Noble gets any side stories!

Finally, I'd like to do a shameless plug for other series in the SDO line up. Specifically: Return Of the Mount Hua Sect, Return of the Unrivaled Spear Knight, Invincible Mumu, Hell's Handbook, Questioning Heaven, Desiring The Way and The Heavenly Demon can't live a normal life. Those series are pretty great, and the ones I'm keeping up with currently. Of course, you guys should make sure to check out all of the series on the site, they're all fantastic stories.

Until we meet again!