Duke’s Son: Re

Chapter 62

A red palanquin fluttered with golden tassels, impressively positioned without walls or a roof, showcasing its passenger. It was carried by none other than ‘students.’

The performance had surpassed being merely extravagant; it was reaching a point where issues of human rights needed discussion.

“Ban Heeyeol.”

Jaehyuk recognized the boy seated in the palanquin, and his gaze darkened.

The Ban family.

One of only five Count families in Korea.

They had produced S-rank players for four consecutive generations.

Many believed that a National Treasure of the Ban surname would soon emerge.

There was even speculation they might replace the fallen Kang family as heirs to the Duke title.

“Hmm.”

Ban Heeyeol also recognized Jaehyuk.

He straightened from the headrest, displaying a peculiar smile.

“Is that you, Jaehyuk? It’s been a while. Your face is as smooth as jade, and your stature has grown splendidly, just as I expected. Ah, you probably don’t remember me, right? You were so young when we last met.”

“No, I remember.”

“… Really?”

Jaehyuk’s cold reply made Ban Heeyeol’s impeccably drawn eyebrows knit slightly.

It wasn’t Jaehyuk’s audacious demeanor that irked him.

What bothered him was the fact that Jaehyuk remembered their meeting from ten years ago.

“A bold freshman dares to speak informally to the Vice President.”

One of the boys carrying the palanquin shouted.

The boy’s deeply tanned skin hinted he might be from a coastal area.

Ban Heeyeol rebuked him.

“How dare you raise your voice to someone from the Duke family?”

“But aren’t they just the Kang family?”

“The ancestors of the Kang family honored the nation and earned their dukedom, and that honor should shine forever. Even if their power has weakened, they should not be deprived of respect. Moreover, that kid and I have a past connection, so there’s no problem in speaking familiarly.”

“…”

Jaehyuk displayed an expression of surprise.

“Have you matured? I thought your character was unchanged, seeing how you still treat students as servants.”

“They’re my precious friends. Pulling a palanquin may be humble work, but treating people humbly is wrong. If this were the Joseon Dynasty, you’d be an adult now, yet you speak recklessly.”

“Ah, I see you’re still the same.”

The underlying absurdity in Ban Heeyeol’s logic hadn’t changed in ten years.

Jaehyuk felt that associating with him might once again lead to physical altercations like before.

‘How did someone like him become Vice President?’

Recalling rumors about the student council’s significant power, Jaehyuk already felt a headache coming on.

“Let’s stop chit-chatting… Lady Jang, how long will you remain silent as if you’ve swallowed honey? Didn’t I demand the immediate presentation of the criminal Baek Dojin before us?”

As expected.

From the moment he appeared, Ban Heeyeol continually provoked Jaehyuk.

“Why do you accuse Baek Dojin of being a criminal?”

Jang Yeonju didn’t hide her displeasure in her response, refuting Ban Heeyeol’s nonsensical claims logically.

“Why is student council approval needed for a contest for the shooting club president? The student council has no right to interfere in club internal affairs.”

“The student council controls club budgets, which includes the president’s activity expenses. The most important factor in determining the president’s activity budget is their capability.”

With a gesture from Ban Heeyeol, the students dressed in red uniforms slowly lowered the palanquin.

“Allocating the funds determined by Noh Junyeob’s abilities to Baek Dojin is a dishonor against the student council.”

Ban Heeyeol stood, revealing a robust physique under a thin duster.

A fierce gaze, thick eyebrows, and a high nose.

Everything combined to create a strong and upright impression.

His gaze turned toward the calendar hanging on the wall of the president’s office.

“And today also happens to be the day when the president’s activity budget is disbursed. If the change in the shooting club president wasn’t recognized in advance by the student council, taxpayers’ precious money would’ve been wasted wrongly enriching someone undeserving.”

“Your logic doesn’t follow.”

Jaehyuk tilted his head slightly.

“If Baek Dojin indeed became the shooting club president, doesn’t that mean he defeated Noh Junyeob? Doesn’t that more than qualify him to receive the activity budget? It’s not even enough; he deserves more support than Noh Junyeob. Why then is he being treated like a thief stealing budget?”

“Hmph.”

Ban Heeyeol snorted and gestured.

The bronze-skinned boy pulled out a piece of paper and displayed it.

A target sheet used for shooting practice.

“This is a target sheet used by Baek Dojin during practice, which shows evidence of missing all shots without even scoring 1 or 2 points, let alone 10 or 9 points. The student council found this proof by monitoring the shooting range overnight and searching the incinerator. Who would believe someone with such poor shooting skills defeated Noh Junyeob?”

“…”

Jaehyuk cast a questioning glance at Jang Yeonju.

‘Are you teaching Baek Dojin properly?’

‘… Yes. Noh Junyeob is teaching well.’

‘Then why is he like that?’

‘…’

As Ban Heeyeol continued arcing towards his persecuted conclusion, Jang Yeonju and Noh Junyeob exchanged uneasy looks.

Ban Heeyeol arrogantly declared to them, “Now do you grasp the situation? The student council is convinced Baek Dojin is just a front for someone else. We aim to secure him to investigate.”

“But the target sheet doesn’t have Baek Dojin’s name on it, right? You guys don’t really consider it conclusive evidence, do you? That’s why you’re cooking up this fabricated reason about activity fees to capture Baek Dojin.”

“If you want, we can proceed with proper procedures. But the shooting club wouldn’t want that.”

Ban Heeyeol turned to Jang Yeonju.

“If it gets out that Noh Junyeob has been dethroned, a flood of others would aim to take over the shooting club. Can you handle that?”

“… Noh Junyeob is still the shooting club president. I don’t know where you’re getting such ridiculous rumors.”

“Many have witnessed Noh Junyeob severely beating Baek Dojin. They said he threatened never to return to the shooting range again. Yet, only two days later, Baek Dojin began entering the shooting range again. It suggests Noh Junyeob suddenly started favoring Baek Dojin, but that doesn’t make sense, does it? The student council has perfectly grasped the temperaments of individuals holding president-level positions.”

Jang Yeonju tried to maintain composure, but it was useless.

The student council was comparatively accurate in deducing the shooting club’s situation.

“The student council wants to know about the protegee who defeated Noh Junyeob. Determining who surpassed in shooting the person heralded to lead Korea’s shooting scene is vital.”

“Why?”

“Because they could be a future threat to Korea’s shooting.”

Ban Heeyeol’s half-closed eyes glinted coldly.

Sensing the killing intent briefly flashing in his chilling gaze, Jaehyuk felt a shiver down his spine.

‘Could he be targeting Lauren?’

Currently, the only person the student council could target as Baek Dojin’s mastermind was Lauren.

Standing proximate to Baek Dojin included Kang Jaehyuk and Chae Dahui, but toppling Noh Junyeob’s shooting abilities was impossible for mere freshmen.

Especially since Jaehyuk’s level was only 10 during his recent re-entry exam.

Even standing openly next to Jang Yeonju did not put him under suspicion.

‘The student council….’

He heard that joining it was incredibly challenging.

One needed special prowess in force, intelligence, or status – it was a sort of royal club.

And there was a high probability of them harboring dangerous ideologies.

No ordinary organization would place a madman like Ban Heeyeol in a vice-presidential seat.

‘What to do?’

Ban Heeyeol had firmly decided his course of action.

Unconcerned with logic or justifications, he would undoubtedly bring Baek Dojin to the student council.

He would employ any means necessary until he secured the desired answers.

Conversely, the shooting club couldn’t resist aggressively. They had too big a vulnerability.

Just as Jang Yeonju was struggling, Jaehyuk spoke up.

“I’ll report it to the teacher.”

“…?”

Both Jang Yeonju and Ban Heeyeol, and every other student council member.

All were skeptical of what they just heard.

Facing their collective attention, Jaehyuk explained to Jang Yeonju, “Considering what Ban Heeyeol said, there’s no basis to treat Baek Dojin as a criminal right now, right? If they’re simply trying to fabricate charges because they think there’s some hidden mastermind, I’ll report this to a teacher to stop them.”

“But if we do that, it’ll be everywhere that the shooting club was taken down….”

“So what? According to the student council, there must be a monster so terrifying behind Baek Dojin that they could set up a useless muppet shooting club president. Until it’s revealed who stands behind him, others likely wouldn’t dare to meddle, scared of the unknown power.”

“I see….”

“The shooting club might even benefit by publicizing it themselves. Saying they were compelled by an overwhelming monster to appoint someone incapable of hitting the target as the club president. Who’d rashly target the shooting club then? They’d avoid becoming the monster’s target, fearing for their own safety.”

“Wait….?”

Sensing the shifting atmosphere wasn’t in his favor, Ban Heeyeol tried urgently to speak, but it was too late.

Jang Yeonju’s decision was firm, and a broad smile spread across her face.

That mischievous smile triggered a memory Ban Heeyeol had long buried.

That day ten years ago.

Before Kang Jaehyuk threw a kick, he had worn the same expression.

“You’re going to tell a teacher? That’s a joke, right….?”

Unlike a flustered Ban Heeyeol, the other student council members merely chuckled.

They dismissed the exchange between Kang Jaehyuk and Jang Yeonju as nonsense.

Naturally so.

Those who attended Lion’s Castle were players before they were students.

They wielded power beyond ordinary humans, irrespective of age.

Picturing them scurrying off to inform a teacher was not logically possible.

Yet the more extraordinary someone was, the more they defied common logic.

“It’s not a joke, though.”

“….”

The student council members finally caught on, eyes widening, witnessing Jaehyuk’s innocent gaze.

This kid.

He was just a naive brat despite his size.

“What’s wrong with you? No shame? Are you an elementary kid?”

“Yeah, I’m a kid.”

“A goo goo ga ga? What kind of lunatic….!”

Unable to hold back, the bronze-skinned boy rolled up his sleeves but stopped mid-action.

Jaehyuk extended his chin uttering those baby noises, showcasing defiance that he would tell on him if hit.

With the situation at a standstill, Ban Heeyeol turned his gaze outside.

“Noh Junyeob, if word spreads that you lost the president position, only your reputation will suffer. Let’s find a middle ground here. Just hand over Baek Dojin. You probably hate him too.”

The former shooting club president.

Leaning against the door, he shrugged his shoulders.

“Well, according to Kang Jaehyuk, the one who beat me was quite the monster. So in a way, I was more a victim of an extraordinary event than anything else. Will my reputation really suffer?”

“… Is it really Lauren? How’s it possible that someone with your title, the club president, was so easily outplayed by a foreigner?”

“Lauren my ass. When it comes to shooting, I’d never lose to him even if the sky tore apart.”

“…”

There was nothing but the bare truth.

Reading the sincerity in Noh Junyeob’s tone made Ban Heeyeol’s expression darken.

Could Baek Dojin’s backer be an even greater power than he imagined?

“Who is it?”

Could it be someone on par with the student council president?

After mulling over a few faces, he clicked his tongue and boarded the palanquin.

“This time, I came lacking preparation, thinking it was just a casual outing. Relay this to the person hiding behind Baek Dojin. Until their skills are verified by the student council, there won’t be any increase in activity funds. And further….”

Jang Yeonju, Noh Junyeob, and Kang Jaehyuk.

Those three faces were engraved clearly into Ban Heeyeol’s fierce eyes.

“You will pay for shaming the student council.”

“Gu goo ga ga.”

“Enough! A noble without shame or embarrassment…! Let’s go back.”

The palanquin carrying Ban Heeyeol departed.

Noh Junyeob, who had been quietly watching, shook his head.

“It’s surprising how the threat to tell a teacher worked. I thought the student council was beyond caring about teachers.”

“Precisely because it’s the student council, the threat worked. Their power comes from the teachers’ support, so they want to avoid clashing with teachers when possible. Of course, even knowing this, very few individuals could use it as effectively as he did.”

Tell a teacher?

The fact that the son of a duke, who overpowered Noh Junyeob in shooting, made such a statement was inconceivable.

Kang Jaehyuk prompted the two, who were looking at him with bewilderment.

“Just like I said earlier, senior Jang should look for request lists that can be solved within Lion’s Castle. Noh Junyeob, go back and teach Baek Dojin properly. How can you train someone to miss even a 1-point target?”

“It’s not my fault…sigh, alright, alright.”

Later on.

Members of the shooting club cheered upon hearing the slightly exaggerated rumor that even the almighty student council had retreated before Jaehyuk.

***

“Why did you back down so easily? What’s the problem even if he does tell?”

On the way back to the student council.

The bronze-skinned boy couldn’t hold back his words.

Among students, the student council’s power was nearly absolute.

Most alumni from the student council ended up in influential positions, garnering even the military force’s respect.

Despite the vice president stepping forward, they couldn’t achieve their intended goal against a mere club. Such humiliation seemed unfathomable.

What’s most important was remembering Kang Jaehyuk was a mere first-year student.

The “teacher” he referred to wasn’t a professor but a regular teacher.

Teachers were in no position to argue against the student council.

Kang Jaehyuk’s threats could very well have been ignored.

But Ban Heeyeol thought differently.

“Ten years ago, that day.”

“…?”

“Lady Seol Soo-ah was present too.”

That day ten years ago?

And Seol Soo-ah?

What was all this about?

The perplexed bronze-skinned boy received an explanation from Ban Heeyeol.

“It means not to underestimate the Duke’s son easily. Prematurely judging the power of nobles could lead to dire humiliation.”

He was aware Kang Jaehyuk was Baek Dojin’s team leader.

But he didn’t expect Kang Jaehyuk to shield not just Baek Dojin but also the shooting club entirely.

‘The demeanor of Jang Yeonju and Noh Junyeob toward Kang Jaehyuk….’

And the mysterious mastermind backing Baek Dojin.

Too many unexpected factors were tangled in the event.

‘Seol Soo-ah must have heavily influenced Kang Jaehyuk’s admission.’

The Ban family was aware of the connection between Yaksha and White Night.

Ban Heeyeol judged it highly likely Seol Soo-ah was involved in matters related to Jaehyuk.

‘If truly Kang Jaehyuk acts as Seol Soo-ah’s vanguard.’

Would the shooting club move against clubs dominated by factions from the association and military?

‘Well, we’ll find out.’

The gradually building tension made Ban Heeyeol smile.