Reborn As Noble

The White Shirooni stood tall—ominous, still, precise—its hand resting on its katana like a statuesque guardian from another age.

Javier smirked.

"Command: Training Mode."

The puppet's eyes flickered.

"Command received. Training Mode: Activate.

Power adjustment—core limit engaged.

Barrier activated.

Power output—10%."

Liana tilted her head. "Young master? What's with the percent?"

Javier rolled his shoulder with a grin. "Just watch."

With a flick of his hand, he summoned his own samurai armor from storage—glossy black plating, crimson trim, gold accents—and strapped it on quickly with practiced movements. Then came the oni mask and helmet. The transformation was complete.

In mere seconds, the cheerful young noble vanished.

In his place now stood the Unknown Demon.

"Command: Battle mode in ten seconds."

Javier's voice, now deeper and slightly muffled under the mask, sent a tremor through the air.

The puppet responded with a mechanical hum.

"Training Mode confirmed.

Combat Initiation in: 10… 9… 8…"

Liana slowly stepped back. "You're really going all out this early in the morning, huh…"

Javier cracked his neck, katana in hand.

"Let's see how my new creation handles against its master."

"7… 6… 5…"

Liana crossed her arms, lips twitching into a smile. "Just don't get yourself knocked out again, young master."

"…4… 3…"

Javier slid into a low stance.

"Ready?"

"…2… 1… Begin."

With a burst of white light, Shirooni vanished—appearing directly in front of him in the blink of an eye. Katana drawn.

Their blades met with a sharp metallic spark—Javier grinning beneath the mask.

Javier vanished in a blink—no sound, no trail—only to reappear behind the White Shirooni like a flash of death.

His katana sliced horizontally.

But before the strike could land, Shirooni vanished just the same.

CLANG!

Their blades met mid-swing behind Javier. Sparks flew. Pressure exploded outward.

Liana's eyes widened. "Wha…?"

She couldn't even follow it properly. The speed—was inhuman.

A blur of metal.

A blur of flame.

Shirooni's katana now blazed with fire, the blade igniting in a spiral of glowing red heat. The training mode was limited in power, yes—but not in technique.

Javier grinned behind his mask.

His posture relaxed, footwork light.

Liana stood frozen as the winds whipped around her, grass flattened beneath their steps. Shock danced in her chest.

"Th-this is only ten percent power…?"

Each clash echoed like thunder. Each dodge, each counter, so fast it left streaks in the air.

But what truly shocked her, was the smile hidden behind Javier's oni mask.

He was enjoying this.

Genuinely, deeply, joyfully enjoying it.

"A spar like this… once in a while… feels good," Javier murmured as his katana caught flame from Shirooni's, sparks trailing behind every step.

"Alright! Let's improvise!" Javier shouted, his voice echoing through the open field.

He raised one hand mid-clash, blocking a burning slash from Shirooni's katana with his own.

"Command! Power output—twenty percent!"

A mechanical chime responded instantly:

"Command received. Output: twenty percent. Activating."

A subtle hum pulsed through the air.

Suddenly—

Shirooni's presence intensified. Its aura flared.

Its flaming katana roared brighter, its feet dug into the earth, and then vanished.

Blinking forward mid-strike, faster than before.

Javier caught it, his own katana vibrating from the sheer force.

Shirooni launched a barrage of mid-range magic attacks between its slashes. Blazing orbs of fire, sharp wind blades, a piercing arc of lightning.

Javier's smirk widened.

"Now that's what I'm talking about!!"

He spun through the barrage, parrying each spell with exact precision—deflecting fireballs mid-air, splitting wind blades with his katana, redirecting lightning with a twist of his mana flow. Sparks and afterimages filled the air.

He leapt, rolled, kicked off a boulder, and brought his blade down hard.

Their blades locked again, shockwaves rippling outward like miniature explosions.

"Wooo!! This is FUN!!"

The field burned, cracked, and glowed with residual mana.

Meanwhile…

Gloria had just finished drying her hair, her maid outfit perfectly neat as always. But something felt… off.

The house was too quiet.

She looked around. The bed was empty. No sign of Liana. No sign of Javier.

Her eyes narrowed behind her glasses.

She stepped out onto the main street—and noticed something strange.

Dozens of dwarves were gathered silently along the stronghold walls, eyes wide, mouths slightly open, pointing toward the open plains beyond.

"…?" Gloria raised a brow and walked up the slope.

She made her way slowly, elegantly, past murmuring dwarves who barely noticed her presence.

Then she saw it.

In the distance—

A demonic figure clad in white armor and a red oni mask was clashing violently with a figure she recognized immediately.

Her young master.

"…"

Her grip tightened.

From this distance, she couldn't tell it was a puppet. Only that it was fast—powerful—and fighting Javier with deadly intent.

Her expression didn't change, but her eyes sharpened.

Without a word, Gloria reached behind her back, summoned her Warhammer.

Mana surged around her, crackling softly like gentle thunder.

Then—

She vanished.

The next moment—

She appeared between them. Her warhammer effortlessly blocked a flaming slash aimed at Javier's side.

The sheer impact sent shockwaves backward, scattering debris.

She stood there calmly, her soft amber eyes fixed on the masked attacker.

With a smile that could freeze a volcano, she tilted her head.

"Ara~"

Javier blinked. "Ah. Gloria?"

"My my~ how dare you attack my young master~?" Gloria smiled sweetly, her glasses glinting with quiet menace.

The Shironii paused, its blazing katana still raised.

But it was already too late.

Without a chant or warning, Gloria's mana flared—thick, heavy, precise.

She vanished.

The ground cracked.

In less than a blink, the white-armored Shironii was slammed down—its entire body pinned and driven deep into the earth by Gloria's warhammer, coated in a glowing layer of defensive aura.

The puppet twitched—sparks flickering as it tried to process the sudden mana assault.

Then—

A blur of strikes followed, each faster than the last, each infused with perfect mana control—smashing the puppet into a crater.

Javier stood there, jaw half-open.

"…Ah…"

Dust settled.

The Shironii twitched one last time… and deactivated, its glowing eyes flickering out.

Gloria adjusted her glasses, stepping off the cracked earth.

"Ara~ I thought it was a real demon." She turned calmly to Javier, smiling with zero remorse. "Care to explain, young master?"

"…My puppet…" Javier whispered, dead inside.

( End Of Chapter )