The Hero Becomes the Duke’s Eldest Son

Chapter 152

The sun hung high in the noon sky.

In the training ground of the Frozen Branch Temple—better known as Aden and his group’s villa—Lowe was sweating profusely as he swung his sword diligently.

“Hup! Ha-ah!”

His sword cut through the air, slashing at an imaginary enemy with a flash.

Lowe’s sword brimmed with intermediate Sword Aura.

In the moment when the imaginary enemy’s balance faltered, his White Stone Transformed hand struck the enemy’s neck, severing its life.

This was Lowe’s unique combat style, a blend of single-handed swordsmanship and martial arts.

Lowe continued his training for a long time, his entire body drenched in sweat until his armor was soaked, before finally stopping.

Having finished his training, he sat down cross-legged on the spot and closed his eyes.

“Hoo…”

He concentrated his mind, organizing the insights he had gained from swinging his sword since dawn.

His swordsmanship was a new technique, modified to incorporate his unique Aura method, White Stone Transformation. Even Lowe himself saw many areas that needed improvement.

For this reason, he needed to continually train and refine it further.

‘Just a little more…’

A year ago, he had been a novice knight, anxious about being expelled from the duke’s house.

But following Aden on his pilgrimage had changed him.

He had experienced various types of sparring and battles with Aden and the group.

‘The dreadful poison, no, the elixir that Aden gave me was a big help too…’

With a smile that seemed strangely pleased, he recalled ‘Gehenna’s Breath’ given to him by Aden.

At first, it was a terrible poison that made him foam at the mouth and writhe in agony.

But since it was something Aden had given him for his growth, he took it a hundred times with unwavering loyalty.

Though he passed out all hundred times without enduring it even once, the effect was remarkable.

‘My Aura manipulation has become incredibly smooth.’

For a Mana Martial Artist, the smoother the Aura manipulation, the faster the growth.

As a result, Lowe, who had been a novice knight at the enhancement stage just last year, was now at the intermediate Sword Aura stage.

‘Just a little more…’

And now, he was on the verge of reaching a new stage, the advanced Sword Aura.

Sweating profusely, he pushed himself to not miss the opportunity for enlightenment that was right in front of him.

‘Just a little… more!’

However, there was something Lowe couldn’t know.

The realization he was facing now should have come at least ten years later.

Thanks to his talent and the fragments of enlightenment he had gained by watching Aden, an enlightenment beyond his reach had come early.

As a result, even though Lowe had barely reached the intermediate stage, his Mana capacity and skill were insufficient to grasp this enlightenment.

Ultimately, despite his efforts, he narrowly missed the realization that flickered before him today as well.

“Haa…”

Lowe sighed at the missed opportunity.

He shook off the heavy feeling on his shoulders, his regret only momentary.

Determination filled his eyes.

‘Yes, this won’t be the only chance.’

He was Aden’s guard knight.

But his level was still insignificant compared to Aden, who had reached the transcendent realm, the dream of all swordsmen.

Thanks to White Stone Transformation, he could hold his ground against an advanced Sword Aura knight, but it was still just a makeshift measure.

‘I need to get stronger.’

Resolving to grow stronger quickly to repay Aden for his grace, Lowe finished his morning training.

***

Meanwhile, while Lowe was making such resolutions, Aden was feeding (?) the flower.

The flower with a human face still made unpleasant cries.

However, its expression seemed filled with anticipation.

It flapped its blood-colored petals as if saying, ‘Feed me already!’

– Wuooh, Wuooh!

“Shut up. No food if you don’t keep quiet.”

– …

– Dragon Slayer, this flower seems to have a will of its own. Hmm, it is a very unpleasant flower.

“…You’re one to talk.”

It was like the pot calling the kettle black.

The curse, Curse, with a will of its own, had no right to speak.

Aden used Wraith Subjugation to summon a wraith.

“Wraith Subjugation, summon Warlock.”

Shururuk, a black mist emerged, taking the form of a hooded human.

– Aaaagh, urgh!

The summoned wraith groaned, clutching its head in pain from the sudden return of its intelligence.

– Where, where is this…? I was surely attacking the Slash-and-Burn Village…

The Warlock wraith looked around, confused.

This was Paragus, the warlock who had controlled bandits in Sedus County and whose life Aden had taken with Baalzebul.

But now, he was merely ‘fertilizer.’

Aden spoke to the flower with a human face.

“Here, eat.”

The flower grinned and opened its maw, filled with fangs, to bite into Paragus’s wraith.

– Kyaaaa! What is this! Save me, aaaaaagh!

Chomp, chomp, chomp!

The flower never let go of the wraith once it bit down, chewing it thoroughly.

Just like a snake swallowing a rat larger than itself, it moved its mouth to devour Paragus’s wraith.

And shortly after.

Burp!

The flower, having eaten the wraith entirely, let out a satisfied burp.

“Alright, are you full now?”

Aden clicked his tongue at the flower’s expression.

Then, the spirit of the 72nd Infernal Sword Andromalius praised Aden.

– Ooh! To make a wraith, already killed once, face a second death by consuming its soul! And to do so without blinking an eye! Truly fitting of the one chosen by the Demon Lord!

“Stop pretending to praise me or I’ll dunk you in the toilet.”

– Yes, sir.

It had been about fifteen days since Aden had concluded the incident with the Slaughter Cult’s Usurper Saintess at the Slaughter Tower.

During that time, Aden had fed the flower about twenty wraiths that had committed evil deeds in life, waiting for it to bear fruit.

‘The Slaughter God said it would surely bear ‘useful’ fruit.’

No matter how unpredictable and insane she was, she was still a god.

She wouldn’t write lies into the system.

‘The fruit borne by a plant from the divine realm… It must be extraordinary.’

Aden anticipated the fruit.

But his expression twisted in frustration.

“But it just keeps eating the wraiths and shows no sign of bearing fruit.”

After fifteen days without any change, he was getting tired of waiting.

However, no sooner had Aden spoken than something happened.

Burrurur!

The flower suddenly twisted and its petals flapped as it trembled.

Aden’s eyes shone with interest.

“Is it finally starting?”

– Oh, the fruit borne by consuming twenty wraiths… I am very curious.

– Me too, brother.

Soon, the red petals of the flower would fall and the fruit would…

– Uweeeck.

……spit out a single red, round fruit.

The fruit, covered in dark green liquid that looked like the flower’s saliva, had veins on its surface that throbbed as if alive.

“……”

– ……

– ……

Hmm.

Even though Aden had obtained the fruit he so desired, he remained silent.

Curse and Andromalius were the same.

Aden finally spoke with difficulty.

“……As expected of the chief deity of the Slaughter Cult. It’s anything but ordinary.”

-……Dragon Slayer.

“……What?”

-Do you really intend to eat this fruit-like fruit?

Aden fell silent again.

When he picked up the red fruit with his hand, he felt its sticky and unpleasant texture.

-You have obtained the ‘Low-grade Fruit(?) of the Human-faced Flower.’

……There was a question mark attached.

Even the system seemed unsure whether this was truly a fruit.

[Low-grade Fruit(?) of the Human-faced Flower]

A flower that grows in the divine realm of the Gods of Slaughter and Death, the Human-faced Flower. This is the fruit…… probably? It is an elixir distilled from the essence of the evil spirits that the Human-faced Flower consumed.

– Upon ingestion, it has a certain probability of awakening the consumer’s potential and permanently increases the consumer’s Mana capacity.

– The purer the evil soul, the higher the quality of the fruit.

“It’s incredibly disgusting, so don’t be surprised! Ahaha!”

The Low-grade Fruit of the Human-faced Flower.

The description was astonishing.

‘It can awaken potential?’

Potential.

As the term implies, it refers to a person’s latent talents or unawakened power that has yet to be realized due to their current lower state.

Most ordinary people live and die without fully utilizing their potential, and the same goes for Mana Martial Artists.

Yet, this fruit claimed to awaken that potential.

Additionally, it stated that it would permanently increase the Mana capacity.

‘If this is true, it’s indeed an extraordinary elixir…’

However, Aden’s expression became more complicated.

He looked at the fruit in his hand.

The veins on the red fruit’s surface twitched occasionally, as if alive.

Twitch, twitch.

After a moment of expressionless contemplation, Aden reached a clear and excellent conclusion.

“Let’s feed it to someone else first.”

It’s always wise to let someone else take the risk.

* * *

Aden quickly chose a test subject.

Since the one with the most talent but the lowest level among the group was the most suitable, the selection was not difficult.

“Sir Aden, you mean to say… if I eat this, I will be able to grow stronger?”

“Yes, that’s right, Lowe.”

When Lowe, staring at the fruit of the Human-faced Flower in his hand, asked, Aden gave the brightest smile he could muster.

It was the kind of benevolent smile a peddler might give to reassure someone when selling a cure-all medicine.

“This is a very special elixir from the Slaughter Cult. If you eat it, it will awaken your dormant potential.”

Lowe stared at the fruit in his hand without saying a word.

Twitch, twitch.

Even now, the fruit was disgustingly twitching, creating a nauseating display.

It exuded an aura of danger that was palpable.

Even crazed priests of the Slaughter Cult would probably back away, saying, ‘Ah, this is a bit much…’

Aden began to lose confidence that Lowe would willingly eat it.

– It’s impossible, Dragon Slayer.

‘Is it really impossible?’

Just as Aden was about to tell him it was okay not to eat it and reconsider the situation, Lowe spoke.

“If I eat this, will I become much stronger? Much stronger than I am now?”

“Uh? Oh, well. Yes, that’s right. As far as I know…”

“Thank you very much, Sir Aden, for giving me such a precious elixir.”

Lowe looked at Aden with what seemed like a grateful expression.

Wait, could it be…?

Before Aden could finish his thought, Lowe took action.

Gulp! The guy popped the low-grade fruit of the Human-faced Flower into his mouth and chewed it up.

“Ugh!”

His expression immediately twisted as if he was experiencing all the pain and suffering of the universe.

It seemed it was indeed as disgustingly unpleasant as the description suggested.

Gulp, but Lowe chewed it thoroughly and swallowed it without gagging.

‘Crazy, he actually ate it.’

– Ha, the human spirit of challenge is truly astounding, Dragon Slayer.

Lowe’s expression soon became blank after ingesting the fruit of the Human-faced Flower.

“Sir Aden, please excuse me for a moment.”

With that, Lowe sat down cross-legged on the ground.

Aden stepped back to avoid disturbing Lowe’s concentration and kept an eye on the surroundings.

Hooooo.

Aura formed a light shimmer around Lowe.

The power contained in the fruit gradually brought about changes in Lowe’s body.

About an hour later, while he was meditating to control his energy, Lowe spoke.

“Sir Aden.”

Lowe, who had been still as a stone, opened his eyes and stood up.

At that moment, Aden’s system sent a message.

-You have awakened the potential of the human, ‘Lowe.’

-The potential trait of the human ‘Lowe,’ ‘Knight’s Soul,’ has been awakened.

Potential trait Knight’s Soul?

Aden was puzzled by this unfamiliar term.

Swoosh.

Suddenly, Lowe drew his sword from his waist.

Swoosh!

Sword Aura formed on Lowe’s blade.

“Thank you once again, Sir Aden.”

Then, Lowe’s Sword Aura began to transform.

The intangible energy turned into tangible threads, wrapping around the sword.

“Thanks to you, I’ve become stronger.”

Lowe shed tears of joy.

Aura Threads.

This phenomenon, which only top-tier Aura Sword Masters, Semi-Masters, could display, was happening to Lowe.

Lowe, who had been an intermediate Sword Aura knight, had instantly become a Semi-Master.

“……Wow.”

Watching this, Aden could only say one word in amazement.

‘This is amazing!’

He had obtained a much more incredible lucky flower than expected.