At first, it was hard to believe.
Roman.
He had personally dealt with Blood Fang.
If it weren’t for Jonathan, the knight commander, reporting this, Baron Romero would have thought someone was insulting him.
"... I don’t know how to explain this situation, but one thing is certain: Young Master Roman seems to have changed. In front of everyone, he executed Ben Miles, the leader of Blood Fang. And when facing Count Lawrence, he confidently explained why he took such actions. That’s not the Roman we knew."
Jonathan wasn’t one to lie.
After hearing the details of what had happened, Baron Romero felt a glimmer of hope for his eldest son, whom he had long given up on.
‘Has Roman really changed?’
Baron Romero had three sons.
Among them, Roman was the sore spot.
A child who had experienced the hardships of commoner life alongside him, a child he had tried to protect and care for, only to see him go astray.
Every time he looked at Roman, his heart ached.
In the past, Baron Romero had invested heavily in securing the tunnels of the iron mines.
It was a task so crucial that his entire life depended on it, and he poured his heart and soul into it, spending entire days at the mines.
At that time, Roman was only three years old.
With unsteady steps, the toddler approached his father and handed him a small piece of candy.
It was so endearing.
Baron Romero, his face blackened from the mine work, laughed heartily and hugged Roman.
Perhaps that was why.
He wanted Roman to live happily.
Unlike his other two sons, Roman didn’t seem to excel at anything, so Baron Romero gave him plenty of pocket money, hoping he wouldn’t be looked down upon anywhere.
He never imagined that would be the start of Roman’s downfall.
Roman vented his frustrations through extravagance, and from then on, the term "Dmitri’s fool" was born.
Baron Romero was an inexperienced father.
He was heartbroken by his son’s waywardness, and even the marriage with Lawrence was a gift for Roman, despite the losses it incurred.
But now, they said he had changed.
He couldn’t help but hope.
The process didn’t matter.
Even if Roman had used his own wealth to hire people to crush Blood Fang, what mattered to Baron Romero was that Roman had taken the initiative to do something.
If his son showed even the slightest change, Baron Romero was ready to dedicate himself to him.
"Young Master Roman is here to see you."
Roman.
He appeared.
His calm expression was so composed that it was hard to believe a terrible incident had just occurred.
Instinctively, Baron Romero knew.
Roman had changed.
His gait, his demeanor, his expression—everything about him was different.
No, perhaps he had anticipated this situation from the moment Roman confidently raised his voice against him.
"So, you personally dealt with Blood Fang?"
The words slipped out.
Even though he instinctively knew, Baron Romero wanted to hear the truth directly from Roman.
The answer was simple: Yes or No. All Roman had to do was tell the truth.
Without hesitation, if he recounted what had happened, this matter would naturally be resolved.
And along with it, his father’s trust.
Roman could gain a lot.
But.
‘Exceeding expectations can backfire.’
The expectations for Roman were zero.
But if he showed even a one, people would be amazed.
And now, he had shown a ten.
This was a monumental event.
The future.
What should he do? Should he reveal himself, or should he hide?
In the martial world, standing out too much was dangerous.
If someone showed extraordinary talent, they would inevitably meet a tragic end.
Only those who could survive the attention of others were called masters.
‘I haven’t fully grasped this world yet.
Compared to my past life as Baek Joong-hyuk, Roman Dmitri is like an ant beneath my feet in terms of martial prowess.
Revealing myself too much wouldn’t be good for my safety.
What I need now is time to grow and understand this reality.
The reputation of Dmitri’s fool is perfect for buying me that time.’
He chuckled.
A rational decision.
He knew what was right, but from the moment he confronted Blood Fang, that premise had become meaningless.
Revealing himself.
Roman didn’t know how to hide.
"Yes, I did it."
Baek Joong-hyuk, the Heavenly Demon.
He wasn’t someone who could live an ordinary life.
Most people had a childhood where they were protected by their parents.
But Roman—no, Baek Joong-hyuk—was different.
When Baek Joong-hyuk gained enough strength to move, he was abandoned on the cold floor of a cave.
In the dark cave, the man who called himself Baek Joong-hyuk’s father said:
"You are the son of the Heavenly Demon. If you truly have the qualifications to succeed me, prove your worth and survive from the bottom. My son, I have twelve sons. If one of you dies, nothing will change. Even if all twelve of you die, I can always create more. So remember, the only way to prove your worth is to dominate."
The 12th Cave.
That was how the youngest, Baek Joong-hyuk, began his life.
It was brutal.
The children living in the cave didn’t care that he was the son of the Heavenly Demon.
They stole from each other and lived a life of survival of the fittest.
At that time, Baek Joong-hyuk was too weak.
His small frame made it difficult to compete with others, but he instinctively knew what he had to do.
To make his presence known.
Even if he was weak, he knew that by puffing himself up and showing his venom, he could dominate.
And so, in a fight with the strongest child, Baek Joong-hyuk smashed his head with a rock.
Blood dripped from the stone as he struck repeatedly, and the other children looked at him with wide eyes.
The king of the 12th Cave.
Baek Joong-hyuk’s position was set.
He always made his presence known and survived countless threats.
The Heavenly Demon was born through adversity.
If he hadn’t walked the thorny path, Baek Joong-hyuk knew he wouldn’t have risen to the position of the Heavenly Demon.
‘There’s no such thing as perfect preparation in this world.
In the reality I face, the only thing that matters is proving myself to the best of my ability.’
Baek Joong-hyuk’s life.
Attention was familiar, and ordinary life was far away.
But did he expect his new life to be ordinary? That was ridiculous.
The life he had lived had shaped him into who he was now, someone who couldn’t live an ordinary life.
Roman.
A new name.
He had no intention of hiding himself at all.
This incident required some explanation.
Based on the information he had gathered from Hans, Roman gave an answer that people could reasonably accept.
"Actually, I’ve been secretly training in swordsmanship."
"Why did you hide that? If you had told me, I would have fully supported you."
"I know. But there was a time when I was lost and couldn’t get my act together, so I couldn’t confidently ask you for anything. People call me Dmitri’s fool. I wanted to show that I could achieve something on my own, and even though it was self-taught, I’ve reached a certain level."
It was a vague answer.
That he had learned swordsmanship on his own.
It didn’t fully explain how Roman had dealt with Blood Fang.
"How did you handle Blood Fang?"
"From what I’ve investigated, Blood Fang isn’t a group with strong trust among its members. They started with loansharking, using threats and persuasion to form a loose organization, with a small leadership fully controlling it. They’re like a sandcastle, a ragtag group. I thought that if I cut off the head, the rest would collapse. So I lured them with false information and directly attacked Ben Miles."
"You lured Ben Miles?"
"Yes. Blood Fang has shown a clear pattern of behavior. When a powerful noble family targeted their members, they kept quiet, but when they clashed with weaker nobles, they always retaliated to maintain their reputation. It’s a bit embarrassing to say, but I’m known as Dmitri’s fool, aren’t I? I was sure they were targeting me. So I used myself as bait, and when their forces were scattered, I attacked Ben Miles and secured their leader."
"That’s a dangerous plan. If they were determined to take revenge, they could have abandoned Ben Miles and killed you."
Baron Romero’s heart sank.
Roman’s plan was extremely dangerous.
The thought that his son had gone through such an ordeal made Baron Romero’s eyebrows tremble as he struggled to hide his emotions.
Roman continued, "As you said, it was a dangerous plan. That’s why I thought that if you caught wind of my movements, the Dmitri knights would act. And that information would have been immediately passed to Blood Fang.
So let me ask you, Father. If you were a member of Blood Fang, in a situation where you didn’t know when the Dmitri knights would arrive, would you risk your life to save Ben Miles, the leader? The premise of this plan is that they’re a sandcastle.
People who formed an organization through threats and coercion wouldn’t risk their lives in a situation where they could regain their freedom."
It was close to the truth.
Roman had attacked Blood Fang.
There was no baiting.
He slaughtered the enemies filling the space and captured Ben Miles as he tried to flee.
After that, Blood Fang’s members abandoned Ben Miles.
As Roman had explained, in a situation where they didn’t know when the Dmitri knights would strike, they couldn’t afford to waste time.
A bit of truth and mostly lies.
Roman had explained the situation in a way that made sense.
If Dmitri’s fool had taken down Blood Fang through sheer force, it wouldn’t just be a matter of revealing himself—it could lead to suspicions about his very existence.
So he gave a realistic answer.
One that the other party could accept while not denying that he had accomplished this feat.
The explanation was over.
Baron Romero, who had repeatedly asked in disbelief, finally fell silent.
"My son."
He was moved.
Roman.
The sore spot.
The son he thought couldn’t do anything had shown such a calculated and decisive side.
Baron Romero hadn’t given up on his son.
This feeling now.
The actions he had taken, even slapping his son’s cheek to set him straight, revealed Baron Romero’s true heart.
"You’ve done something truly remarkable. Something no one in this area has ever done, and our son has accomplished it."
Perhaps it was the excitement.
He wanted to see his son’s changed self with his own eyes.
"Can I ask one thing?"
"Please, go ahead."
"I want to see your swordsmanship for myself. I want to see how my son has changed, what kind of swordsmanship you used to deal with Blood Fang. Knight Commander Jonathan, can you prepare a sparring match right now?"
"It’s possible."
The gaze turned back to Roman.
A father’s heart.
Roman understood completely.
If a son who had been called a fool had achieved something, of course, his father would want to see it for himself.
Roman nodded.
"Understood."
A new life.
Roman was grounded in reality.