The Regressed Blood Knight’s Strategy

Chapter 87

Blata's ears drooped.

The usual sparkle in his eyes was gone, replaced by a hollow emptiness. The energetic Blata everyone knew was nowhere to be seen.

He was nestled in Rose Rehinar's arms, as still as a statue. He remained quiet.

Mikhail glanced at Blata and spoke.

"Is that fat cat okay?"

"I don't know. He seems pretty shaken up," replied Rose.

"Has he never been rejected by anyone before?"

"Who could ever dislike him? Everyone who sees him just wants to pet him."

Blata's behavior might be clumsy, but in terms of looks, he was top-tier.

Yet, Princess Charlotte had screamed directly at him.

Not only that, she even had a full-blown fit.

It was no surprise that Blata was in shock.

Kane looked over at Charlotte, who was standing a little distance away, fidgeting awkwardly.

She must have felt guilty for screaming at Blata.

‘Charlotte von Fresia. The Second Princess, and just like the Crown Prince, kept foreign powers from entering the empire. I never thought this stern woman would come to Rehinar.’

There was some history between them from when he was still Ray.

They had been forced into an engagement by King Hatzfeld.

But it was in name only. They barely saw each other, as she always refused any meetings.

It wasn’t a relationship built on love, and Ray didn’t care either way.

They were just using each other.

Honestly, if she had been a total stranger, he might have felt more attachment.

‘This is awkward.’

Knowing Charlotte’s fiery temper, he had no desire to get tangled with her.

Just then, Blata weakly called out to him.

"Kaneee..."

"What?"

"That human... seems to hate me. How could she be startled by me? Right?"

Their eyes met, Blata's filled with desperation, as if saying, 'Come on, comfort me, hold me!'

"Don't talk to me fatty. Let's go quietly."

"Nooo! I'm seriously upset right now—ugh, ugh!"

Kane shut Blata up by covering his mouth.

"I said, be quiet."

As Kane bickered with Blata, Charlotte, standing a bit away, called out to him.

"Excuse me..."

"Are you talking to me?" Blata questioned her

"Yes, you."

Kane frowned, glaring at Blata, then smacked him on the head.

"Ouch! Why'd you hit me?"

Kane figured Charlotte was only looking at him because of Blata.

He had hoped to quietly slip away to Rehinar, but it seemed like he couldn’t avoid a conversation with her.

"Do you have something to say?"

"Is that cat... yours?"

"He's not a cat. He's a tiger."

Charlotte’s pretty eyes widened in surprise.

"A tiger!?"

"If you're done asking questions, I’ll be on my way."

Kane tried to leave quickly, but Charlotte wasn’t finished.

"Wait a moment!"

"Do you have any other questions?"

"I want to apologize to the tiger... what should I do?"

"Since you’re afraid of cats, just keep your distance."

He didn’t listen to Charlotte’s answer.

Instead, he casually took Blata from Rose and left.

He figured Charlotte wouldn’t approach if he was with Blata.

Charlotte tilted her head at Kane’s cold behavior.

"Did I do something wrong?"

Sasha answered her muttering.

"He seems embarrassed."

"Why?"

"Because he met the second princess."

"So what?"

"He’s probably never had a proper conversation with someone as beautiful as the second princess."

"That can't be. If it’s about beauty, there’s Rose, and your sister Sara too."

Despite her elegant appearance, Charlotte was unexpectedly humble.

Her personality was the complete opposite of the first princess, Wendy von Fresia.

She didn’t think much of her own beauty.

"Well, we’re family. No matter how pretty my sister is, I find her annoying." Sasha said smirking.

"That’s not true... My brother thinks I’m pretty." Charlotte said in a tsundere tone

As the crown prince came up in Charlotte’s conversation, Rose, who had been silent, sided with her.

"My brother is the same. Only this clueless Sasha doesn’t understand Kane’s personality."

Charlotte completely turned away from Sasha and asked Rose.

"What do you think? How did he seem?"

"...Can I be honest?"

"Of course."

"He seemed uncomfortable."

"Uncomfortable around me?"

"Yes."

"What made him look uncomfortable?"

"Hmm, it felt like he wanted to leave."

"Did I do something wrong?"

"No, it just seemed like he wanted to keep some distance from the princess."

Charlotte wasn’t particularly offended by Rose’s words.

Instead, she became curious about Kane.

Every man she had ever met always wanted to talk to her at least once.

But Kane Rehinar was the only one who seemed to deliberately distance himself.

Naturally, she became interested.

"He’s an unusual person."

Charlotte glanced at Kane, who was walking ahead of the group.

It was intriguing.

He was someone Isaac, her brother, had shown special interest in.

Perhaps it was because Kane was the eldest son of the guardian family.

She kept finding herself drawn to him.

Especially because...

‘This is the first person my Moon Eye doesn’t work on.’

The fact that she couldn’t read him with her Moon Eye fascinated her to no end.

Suddenly, her brother’s words came to mind.

[When you go to Rehinar, it’ll be more fun than the palace.]

Now, she felt like she was beginning to understand what he meant.

* * *

The eastern gate of Rehinar opened, and the cadets from the Royal Military Academy murmured in surprise.

"That gate actually opens?"

"I heard you have to enter Rehinar through the south or north gates."

"Maybe they’re opening it because the second princess is here."

The eastern gate of Rehinar was almost like a forbidden zone, as it directly connected to the family's estate. Only the Emperor was typically allowed through. Of course, that rule had become outdated over time.

Since the blue merchant group’s trade, the eastern gate had been opened multiple times, as it was the quickest route to Phileac.

The cadets, unaware of this, looked on with fascination.

As they passed through the eastern gate, they were even more astounded.

"Wow!"

"I’ve never seen anything like this before."

"Another wall inside? Right in front of us?"

A massive second translucent wall blocked the cadets’ path. There was no visible entrance to this second wall. The hidden gate could only be opened by someone with Rehinar blood.

However, Kane had no intention of opening the gate for the cadets.

"Follow me," he instructed.

They followed the wall, which extended endlessly on both sides.

"Whoa!?"

"When did they build such a huge structure?"

"I thought this place was supposed to be in decline?"

"Was that a lie?"

Every cadet wore the same astonished expression. In front of them stood a majestic grand temple, located at the center of the territory. The well-maintained roads, glimpses of luxurious buildings, and most notably, Rehinar military academy, which was almost as grand as the one in the capital, left them speechless.

"I think I could study here."

"I’ll have to contact my father and get the rest of my things sent over."

"Me too…."

Seeing the Rehinar territory with their own eyes made the cadets reconsider. Although the other facilities weren’t as developed as the capital’s, the military academy was nearly on par.

"Hey, guys! Look over there!"

One cadet pointed to the western commercial area.

"What the…?"

"What is it?"

"Is that a Blood Tiger!?"

"Why is that mutated monster roaming around the territory?"

The cadets, terrified, backed away in fear. But then…

"Huh?"

"...The Blood Tiger is pulling a carriage…."

Something unimaginable was happening right before their eyes. A mutated monster was pulling a carriage in the territory? How was that even possible?

"It seems like only the western district is like that."

And at that moment, one of the Blood Tigers turned its head toward the cadets.

Then, it started charging straight at them.

"It… it's coming this way!"

The cadets hurriedly tried to draw their weapons, but in their panic, they couldn’t manage to unsheathe them.

"Aaaah!"

Some closed their eyes tightly, some ran, and others hid behind their instructor. Each reacted in their own way, terrified.

Sluurp!

Before they realized it, the Blood Tiger had already moved and was now on top of Kane, licking his face.

"Don’t do this right now. Your master isn’t in a good mood right now. Look."

As if it understood him, the Blood Tiger turned its head to look at Blata, locking eyes with him.

"Whimper!"

Its ears folded back, and it crouched low to the ground, covering its face with its front paws. The Blood Tiger was completely cowed by Blata’s empty stare.

"Go on."

At Kane’s calm voice, the Blood Tiger bolted away without looking back, its speed remarkable.

Kane glanced at the terrified cadets and said, "My pets don’t bite."

No one could easily believe him, but Kane acted as if nothing had happened and continued toward the Rehinar military academy.

Following behind him, Charlotte glanced around, utterly astonished.

‘There are many powerful individuals here, beyond just the Guardian Knights. What kind of place is this?’

The powerful mana she sensed through her Moon Eye came from various places, far more than she had expected.

From the east: Rehinar’s main estate, the grand temple at the center, and even from the military academy to the west—strong mana emanated from unexpected sources.

* * *

The training grounds of Rehinar Military Academy were filled with tension as a fierce-looking man, Joseph, stepped onto the platform and spoke.

"I'm Joseph Groll. From now on, I'll be your chief instructor. Let’s get along, soldiers."

He grinned at the cadets, showing his white teeth—a smile that looked wicked, as if to say, "Welcome to hell."

However, the cadets were still too confused to grasp the situation. They murmured among themselves as they watched Joseph.

"Did we get assigned a separate instructor?"

"Has anyone heard of his name?"

No one had. Even the escorts who had accompanied them to Rehinar didn’t know Joseph.

Charlotte, too, hadn’t heard anything from Isaac.

All she knew was that Kane had full authority over personnel decisions here.

There was one thing she could infer, though—Joseph was one of the individuals emanating powerful mana within Rehinar.

‘...Beginner-tier 6th class! He's on par with the head of the Royal Military Academy...’

And Joseph wasn’t the only one. One by one, other instructors stepped forward and introduced themselves.

First, a woman with short black hair came to the front.

"Nesily Schenberg, I’ll be in charge of the special operations class. If you want to join my class, be prepared to risk your life."

She wasted no time in intimidating the cadets.

"Elias Seager, I’ll be teaching history. Training is important, but neglecting knowledge of the continent is just as dangerous."

After the introductions, Charlotte found it hard to calm her racing heart. Nessily, in charge of the special operations class, was a knight in the beginner tier of the 5th class, while Elias, the history instructor, was a high-tier 4th class mage.

‘These instructors are of an even higher caliber than those at the Imperial Military Academy!’

Her heart continued to pound. The excitement and tension she felt at Rehinar surpassed anything she had experienced in the imperial palace.

Clap!

Kane clapped his hands, drawing everyone's attention.

"The rules are the same as the Imperial Military Academy. You’re allowed one outing per week, and dormitory curfews are strict. However, before the term starts, you have complete freedom to explore Rehinar. Just remember, if you leave the territory, you’re on your own."

As the acting head of the Rehinar family, Kane had the authority to oversee the academy. After his brief statement, he sent a secret message to Joseph with a subtle glance.

[Confiscate all the items the cadets purchased and brought in.]

[Won't they need basic necessities?]

[Rehinar will provide exactly what they need.]

[So, you plan to make them use only the authorized supplies?]

[You understand what I’m thinking, don’t you?]

[You're trying to steer them toward using our exclusive products to generate profit.]

[Yes, do what I say.]

[Understood.]

A smile crept across Kane's lips as he gazed at the hundreds of young nobles before him.

‘Welcome, you rich fools.’

The main source of revenue for Rehinar Military Academy was none other than these noble students.

They were pampered, used to comfort, and could never tolerate inconvenience—especially the young noblewomen, for whom cosmetics were as vital as air.

By exploiting their needs and overcharging for these items, Kane knew he could generate a significant profit.