The Curse of Being Hated Has Been Lifted

7 – Lingering Regrets of Life

“Oops! Just stopped your arm. Didn’t I?”

“Get lost.”

Logan’s tone became even sharper.

It was Logan who had become the object of everyone’s hatred overnight.

He hadn’t seen anyone pretending to be kind to him just a couple of times.

As always, to avoid getting involved in such useless matters, he had to be strong from the beginning.

“Don’t be prickly. I was just telling you what I really felt. Considering all the rumors about Asrian senior, the conclusion is quite clear, isn’t it?”

“So what? Do you have something to say?”

“Sometimes, my instincts strongly argue that my reason is wrong. I can feel it instantly when I see it. You are indeed trash.”

“Now that the conclusion is reached, get lost. Is there anything else to see?”

“Not immediately… nothing, in particular.”

The woman giggled softly.

Logan was taken aback by the strangeness that emanated from the slightly mad face overlaid with a sly smile.

“I’ll come back later. Being next to you clouds my judgment, and suddenly, I might attack you.”

The woman walked away, taking quick steps, gradually disappearing from Logan’s sight.

“Oh, right. My name is Arua Shoel.”

It was a family quite famous for their swordsmanship.

Despite the cursed bloodline with dreadful incompetence in management, they always made a name for themselves in the empire’s upper ranks with their remarkable sword skills.

“See you next time.”

“It seems that a storm has come and gone.”

Logan added Arashohel to the list of types of people he had encountered so far.

Though her true intentions were unclear, based solely on her appearance thus far, Logan concluded that she was a type of person he had never experienced before.

*****

Logan’s daily routine hadn’t changed much since his first year.

During class, getting chased out with all kinds of excuses was the default, and after the day’s work was done, he always had to do some additional job.

There were plenty of employers who didn’t pay well, like trash, but since Logan never worked for someone who seemed unlikely to pay from the beginning, he couldn’t accumulate money steadily.

It was only natural.

Because Logan was himself.

Just walking down the street, he would encounter all sorts of troubles, making it impossible for him to collect money.

“Logan Asrian, pay a compensation of 1 gold to the victim, Sariel…”

A deep sigh escaped from Logan’s lips.

“Who in the world has 1 gold just lying around?”

It was a sum of money that could cover the monthly living expenses of an average commoner.

If it was a compensation that Logan had to pay because he had truly committed a crime, no matter how large the amount, he would not hesitate to part with the money. But regardless of that, this incident was clearly the fault of the other party.

“It doesn’t make sense for the academy to extort money from students under the pretense of disciplinary actions.”

It was just one common female student running alone and accidentally bumping into Logan.

Unfortunately for Logan, that female student happened to be quite malicious, and eventually, nobody doubted her false statement that Logan abruptly pushed her and stomped on her with his foot.

“Tsk, take it and get lost.”

Logan tossed the money he had struggled to save up at the female student for a while.

He could have chosen not to do the cleaning work, but he was afraid of what might happen if he refused to pay the compensation.

Losing all the hard-earned money was truly heartbreaking, but having the money gave him some comfort, knowing that he could prevent such a disaster at least once.

It wasn’t about losing 1 gold due to bad luck, but about thinking that this money would be taken away like this someday.

“Will there ever be a bright day in my life?”

If it was last year, he would have laughed off this kind of hardship, but now, with the change of seasons, it seemed different.

Logan’s heart was troubled.

He had made up his mind to keep living for now, but sometimes it was hard to endure the feeling of being crushed.

No matter how hard he tried, every time he realized he was still in the same place, he couldn’t help but question the value of his own life.

“Master, how should I live…?”

He had lived without giving up, following the words of his master who had taught him the sword when he was young, but was it right to keep living even when his master had betrayed him?

– Cheolbuk.

When he threw a stone into the huge river that penetrated the system, it caused quite a stir.

The stone and Logan were no different.

They were both beings that would ultimately disappear when thrown into the water.

“Is it because it’s dawn?”

Useless sentiment began to dominate his body.

As he felt like he might really get sucked in if he kept staring at the river, Logan turned around and walked back to the dormitory.

Perhaps there wasn’t much time left after all?

With a bitter smile, Logan returned to the dormitory.

It was not a warm or spacious place, but it was the only place where Logan felt truly at ease.

Appearance was dirty, and rarely did strange students venture to Logan’s dormitory, located in a rather secluded corner of the academy. Therefore, when in this room, Logan could comfortably lie down as if he were in his own room.

*******

[Breaking News! The hideout of the worst witch, Stella, is confirmed!]

[The empire announced the confirmation of the hideout of Stella, referred to as the worst witch. An expedition has already been prepared, and within a week, they will raid Stella’s hideout…]

[Even if Stella escapes, it is estimated that the stronghold, painstakingly constructed over a long time, collapsing would diminish the prestige built up until now!]

It was a rare good day for Logan.

It was a day when people were immersed in different topics, not paying attention to him.

‘Today will pass quietly.’

It was always like that.

When a bigger issue than the hatred towards him arose, he could have a peaceful day for once.

Now that he had graduated, there was no longer the senior from his first year known as Logan’s ‘disciplinary officer,’ who used to visit him on such days.

‘Stella.’

Logan knew a lot about the worst witch, Stella.

He heard she was an incredibly powerful and wicked witch.

She casually massacred numerous people for the sake of amusement, turned people into monsters to wreak havoc on those around them, and created tragedies that made people cry by sowing misunderstandings and mistrust among humans.

Perhaps she was the only person who received more curses than Logan.

At least Logan didn’t have an expedition organized to punish him.

‘Maybe…’

Logan covered the hope that filled his mind.

“Stella, next, shouldn’t you be subduing Logan Asrian?”

“The crackdown? It feels like I’d die just by stomping on it a few times.”

Logan unfolded his notebook, using it as a substitute for the textbook, paying no attention to the loud voices around him.

To succeed, Logan, who couldn’t gain the trust of others, knew he had to enhance his abilities.

Despite being kicked out of lectures day after day, he always did his best to gain more knowledge.

Instead of paying attention to those who mindlessly chattered, he focused his ears on the voices of those who diligently studied, gaining knowledge in his own way.

Thanks to Anna, he had a method of avoiding classes without repercussions for a while, but now it was no longer an option.

“Starting this week, practical lessons will be included.”

Fortunately, Logan hadn’t been expelled from practical lessons.

“Ugh!”

-Thunk!

Logan, who was only skilled in swordsmanship, became a good target for other students.

“Why do you do this, Lord Astrian? Are you so cruel to the weak but submissive to the strong?”

Despite the insult from a lower noble, Logan had no words to say. His talent for mana was despicable.

In the first semester of his first year, he could overpower opponents with just his skills, but now, a year later, Logan was no different from a punching bag as others had grown significantly.

“That Logan guy is just a loudmouth.”

“He’s strong only against the weak and weak against the strong.”

Logan didn’t pay much attention to the sounds of mockery around him. It was a familiar sound, and there was no need to bother with it after hearing it countless times.

“Just hold on a little longer.”

Logan, lying on the floor with his body covered in wounds, heard a hallucination in his ears.

The hallucination was clear.

There was no one in this world to speak warmly to Logan.

Not even the generous priests of the forgiving sect,

nor the knights who sacrificed their lives to protect the weak and honor,

nor the beloved of a certain duke who had been close since childhood,

not even Logan’s own mother, who conceived him in her own body, had ever given him a warm word.

That’s why the voice he just heard must have been a hallucination.

The voice of the devil whispering to forcibly give Logan hope, who had lost all attachments to life.

However, Logan couldn’t ignore those words.

The hallucination was undoubtedly real, and the owner of that voice was undoubtedly his master’s voice.

“Stellatoval is imminent!”

“The Empire said they were advancing the schedule to reduce the possibility of Stella’s escape, but experts suspect that Gumseng advanced the schedule!”

Just 10 days after Logan started his second year, a big event began in the Empire.