Jobless Reincarnation: The King with a Mental Problem

Chapter 55: Little Pearls Fell From the Sea

Shouting won't do any good; it won't solve the problem and will only make Senis find out about it.

So what we need now is to stay calm.

I know this principle, but knowing it and doing it are not the same thing.

This is what it means to be so angry that you lose your mind. I'm just sitting quietly in my room, but sitting doesn't vent my anger. Instead, I get angrier the more I think about it.

And so they sat there until dawn.

When I heard noises coming from the living room, I went out of my room.

"Wow, I thought you were exhausted and needed to rest for a long time. I didn't expect you to get up so early."

The one who greeted me was Senis, who was preparing breakfast with Lilia.

"My little brother's massage last night was so comfortable that I went to bed early and had a beauty sleep. I feel so refreshed."

I am very good at lying, especially half-truths. I can lie in front of everyone without batting an eye.

Moreover, I had been mentally preparing for this for a long time last night.

After I finished speaking, I let out a big yawn.

"It's good that you two brothers get along." Senis said, handing me a towel to wipe my face. "You and Paul, really, getting up so early. If you're going to rest, then rest properly. You were clearly exhausted when you came back yesterday."

Is Paul awake too? That's good.

"Because we have a mission. When we came back yesterday, we ran into Uncle Roltz. He said that there seemed to be monsters in the depths of the forest where he often hunts, and we plan to go and take a look together."

I just wanted to go somewhere with Paul where no one was around.

"Isn't it a bit unnecessary to push yourself so hard?"

"Who knows when the monster will disappear? The earlier we go, the easier it is to track it down. Maybe we can find some valuable materials on the monster's corpse."

I wolfed down my breakfast while lying.

"I'm going to feed Mambo and Cavaracho. Tell Dad to hurry up too."

After saying that, I ran towards the stable.

I'm quite confident in my own acting skills, but I don't have that much faith in Paul's. If I hadn't discovered it, he might have been able to keep up the act, but at the dinner table with me, I don't believe he could act as nonchalantly as I do.

After I had almost finished preparing the two horses, Paul also appeared.

I handed Cavallaccio the reins, but he didn't dare look me in the eye at all.

Then the two of us decided to go out.

Then, before we left, Senis ran over and gave each of us a kiss.

I responded by looking directly at Senis's face.

As for Paul...

He still has that same stern face, but that's fine too. Let's just say he's too tired and hasn't recovered yet.

In the forest

When we reached the edge of the forest, we dismounted and continued on foot.

I led the way, and Paul followed behind.

We both remained silent for a long time.

Now we've reached a desolate place, and I can't bear it any longer.

"Mr. Paul?"

"Um......"

"Paul, the resident knight of Buena village, died fighting a tyrannical bear while protecting the children. What do you think of this reason? Can Senis accept it?"

"Huh?"

Before he could answer, I turned around and unleashed a mid-level wind spell—Shockwave.

An invisible force field exploded from his palm, compressing the air into a transparent wall that crashed into Paul's face.

Paul's pupils contracted slightly, and he instinctively raised his arm to block.

With a muffled thud, he was pushed back two steps, his boots carving two shallow furrows in the fallen leaves.

Paul looked up, his face filled with astonishment.

"you--"

"cut..."

I don't want to talk anymore.

My sword responded to him, and this time the speed of the swing was exceptionally fast. It was not a skillful strike like before, but a truly silent katana.

...Unexpectedly, it was at this time that I mastered battle qi and stepped into the threshold of the higher level.

Paul instinctively drew his sword to parry.

The crisp sound of metal clashing echoed through the forest, startling a flock of birds.

"You're insane!"

Paul, sword at his side, growled through gritted teeth.

I don't want to answer right now!

With a flick of the wrist, the second sword strike came down from another angle.

Paul parried with his sword, taking another step back.

I caught up and struck with my third, fourth, and fifth sword. Each strike was faster and heavier than the last. Paul's blocking became increasingly difficult, turning from simply "blocking" into "taking the hit head-on."

The force transmitted through the sword made my wrist go numb.

"you--!"

"Shut up!!!"

The sixth sword.

The sword grazed Paul's ribs, tearing his clothes and leaving a shallow bloodstain.

Paul, in pain, finally began to seriously retreat.

Has his expression finally turned serious?

That's right!

I caught up with him and fought alongside Paul again.

He gripped the sword hilt tightly, channeling his fighting spirit—this time, he held nothing back.

Paul's sword was so fast that its trajectory was almost invisible, leaving only a silvery-white afterimage.

The two swords clashed, sparks flying everywhere.

My arm jolted, and my thumb went numb.

And my sword—EA—has already been severed by Paul's Blade of Light.

But I have no intention of losing!

Battle aura not only improved my physical strength and reaction speed, but also greatly enhanced my ability to control magic outside my body.

I used the broken sword in the stance of the Water God Style to calmly defend against Paul's subsequent attacks.

The entire land became my weapon; a large number of homemade guns and rock bursts emerged from the ground and surrounded Paul from all sides.

A homemade gun thrust out from beside Paul's feet, forcing him to withdraw his sword to parry.

The musket was cut in half, but a second and a third one immediately emerged from different directions.

Paul dodged and weaved through the crossfire, his sword flashing as he shattered one crude gun after another.

However, the speed at which it is cut off cannot keep up with the speed at which it grows.

At this point, the rockburst bombs were also ready.

There were countless rockburst bombs, and this time there were no blind spots; they bombarded Paul from different directions.

There was no way to avoid it, but they still quickly made a judgment and chose to break through.

it's useless.

A shockwave struck Paul squarely this time, sending him flying.

Countless rock bursts struck him, and he only had time to protect his vital organs with his arms.

After this wave of attacks ended, he didn't even have the strength to hold on.

He lost his balance and collapsed to the ground.

I stepped forward and extended my hand.

It wasn't to pull him up, it was to grab his collar.

Then he punched him in the face.

Then I straddled him, clenched my fists, and punched him repeatedly.

There was no swordsmanship, no magic, only the most primitive and savage fists.

Paul lay there, motionless, letting the fists fall on his face.

Blood flowed from his nostrils, mixed with dirt, covering half of his face.

[Paul's Perspective]

Every single day of this past month, I felt like I was about to die.

That little bastard—no, I don't have the right to call him that now—Trevor, he's not even human.

I've seen adventurers, I've seen mercenaries who don't value their lives, but I've never seen anyone like him.

He was still a child himself, not even half as strong as me, but he could still hold on.

Whenever I was so tired that I wanted to lie down on the horse and say, "That's enough for today," I would turn my head and look at his calm face.

No need to say anything, just watch.

Seeing that he was still persisting, I couldn't say anything more.

Yes, he and I did all the work together.

He was the child that Senis picked up.

At first, I hated him because he would try to take Senis from me and look at me with disgust. It's really funny, I was actually jealous of a little kid.

Perhaps it's because he reminded me of my younger brother.

Like my younger brother, he is the kind of person who is smart and good at vying for favor.

Actually, these kinds of people are the most insidious behind the scenes. I was one of them...

No, I brought this upon myself in the past.

Later, Senis told me how to get along with this child.

"As the teachings of Millicents say, if you want someone to love you, perhaps you should first try loving them."

I tried doing it as Senis suggested, and he responded very well. To be honest, I felt quite accomplished.

I used to be the kind of person who waited for others to please me, but ever since I met Senis, I've become like this.

When I married Senis, I adopted him.

But now I feel... he's more like the master of this house than I am.

He was ridiculously intelligent, a true genius, and even turned my own son and Roltz's children into geniuses.

Now he fills his schedule to the brim to help me make money, taking on tasks, finding helpers, calculating profits, and even managing how much hay to feed the horses.

All I need to do is provide the physical labor.

I am his father, but I am like an ox being led around by him.

These thoughts kept popping up during those days. Every time they popped up, I felt ashamed, but every time they popped up, I also felt at ease—because he was there, I didn't need to use my brain or make decisions.

All I need to do is... follow him.

With a child.

Sometimes, watching his back, I wonder: What is he thinking? Doesn't he get tired? Doesn't he miss home? Doesn't he want to give up?

I've seen him tossing and turning at night, unable to sleep; I've seen him staring blankly at the campfire; I've seen him suddenly stop while brushing Mambo's fur and stare into the distance for a long time without moving.

But he never uttered the word "give up".

I don't know what's wrong with him. It's not that he doesn't get tired, but he just refuses to give up.

I'm afraid of him.

When the thought first popped into my head, it startled me. I, Paul Greirat—was afraid of him.

It wasn't that I was afraid of his sword, nor his magic.

I'm afraid of his... inhuman feeling.

He won't make mistakes.

He won't lose control.

He will not give up.

He would always complain, and when he encountered robbers, he would complain while coldly killing them all.

His body was exhausted, but his mind remained calm, even curious, as he observed his limits.

He was arrogant and disdainful of everyone; in his eyes, no one even deserved to have a name.

When he opened the bathroom door last night, I saw his expressionless face.

He just looked at Lilia and me, and then said, "Mr. Paul, get some rest. You have work to do early tomorrow morning, in the forest."

Mr. Paul.

He called me Mr. Paul.

Not Dad, not Old Man, not that stinky old man, not even Old Deng...

It's Mr. Paul.

He didn't seem angry at all, but he was terrifying.

In the morning, I didn't dare to look at him at all.

He continued to chat and laugh with Senis as usual, ate breakfast as usual, and fed the horses as usual.

He looked like some kind of inhuman monster, trying hard to disguise himself as a human.

When I led Cavallaccio out, he handed me the reins.

I didn't dare look at him, and he didn't look at me either.

We walked into the forest in silence.

When they reached a secluded spot, he finally spoke.

I responded.

Then he said, "Paul, the resident knight of Buena, died fighting a tyrannical bear while protecting the children. What do you think of this reason? Can Senis accept it?"

At that moment, I really thought he was going to kill me.

He spoke so calmly, as if he were talking about something trivial.

I thought he was going to greet me while using magic to cut me into pieces.

It's like dealing with bandits and monsters that block the way.

However, it was just a shockwave.

He didn't intend to kill me...

When his sword came down, I blocked it; my body moved on its own.

But I can tell that his sword is different now.

Faster than before, heavier than before.

He made a breakthrough.

At this critical juncture, when he most wanted to punch me, he broke through.

How ironic.

He didn't make a breakthrough while he was working hard to earn money to protect his family.

He tried to cultivate diligently day and night but failed to make a breakthrough.

He broke through his limits when he beat me up.

He was dominating me.

Because I felt guilty, I didn't dare to go all out.

But later, when I used all my strength, the sword I gave him was broken in two.

I......

What exactly did I do?

I thought it was over, but he used an even stronger magic trick, and this time I had no power to resist.

It's like when a child makes a mistake and is punished by an adult; the more the child tries to resist, the harsher the punishment becomes.

Countless spells struck my body, and the pain almost made me scream.

But I gritted my teeth.

When I collapsed on the ground, I didn't have the strength to get up.

I knew he was strong, but I never imagined he was this strong...

I thought he was going to finish me off.

Or he might stand in front of me, look at me with that calm gaze, and say something I'll never forget for the rest of my life.

But he didn't.

He walked over, grabbed my collar, and punched me in the face.

Then came the second punch, and the third punch.

He straddled me and punched me repeatedly. There was no sword, no magic, just fists.

They vent their anger like children fighting.

It turned out to be the case.

Looking back now, maybe he knew all along.

They know I'm a scumbag who can't control myself.

It's not that he doesn't make mistakes, it's just that those small mistakes are overlooked.

He's not without feelings; I can feel the anger in his fists right now.

He wasn't arrogant; he just couldn't see anyone except his family.

He's not incapable of losing control, he's just... too sensible.

He was so sensible that he suppressed all his anger, grievances, and disappointment, only releasing them in the quiet of the forest when he was sure he wouldn't hurt Senis.

He is human, yet he acts like a non-human being...

I was happy when Senis got pregnant.

But when Lilia came to me, I...did not refuse.

I don't want to blame everything on her, because she didn't pressure me.

She simply... appeared.

She appeared in the dead of night when I was so tired that I didn't want to think about anything.

Then I did something wrong.

I made a vow with Senis that we would love each other wholeheartedly for a lifetime. At that time, I sincerely hoped that she could be happy, that I could make her happy, and that we could live happily together until we grow old.

I lay on the ground, my mind filled with Senis's face.

Her smiling face as she wiped my sweat, her pregnant face as she busied herself in the kitchen, her eyes crinkling into crescents as she kissed Trevor's forehead.

What did I do?

Do I not love her enough?

If he truly loved her, how could he... how could he do such a thing?

I dare not think about it too much.

Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to face her.

He loved Senis more than I did.

An adopted child loves my wife more than I, her husband.

This thought was like a knife, stabbing into my chest and all the way down to my stomach.

I lay on the ground, letting his fists fall.

pain.

It hurts.

But I deserve it.