30 Years After Reincarnating, It Turns Out This World Was A Rofan?!-Chapter 254: The Obvious Story He Wants to Hear (2)

"Wow, what is this...!?"

Derrick, who had just been whipped on his calves until they were burning, was too stunned to even feel the pain of what seemed like a burn injury. His state was one of pure disbelief.

And it was no wonder.

"Why is the composition so clear and active? Just the raw blood itself seems to be packed with nutrients, doesn't it?"

"...That’s a bit creepy, you know?"

"......."

It wasn’t a joke. Derrick, experimenting with the tiny amount of blood he had extracted, was like a mad scientist using various tools to run tests. He even had a flush of excitement on his cheeks, making him appear utterly insane.

In response to this, Derrick said:

"I-it’s just that I was surprised! I-I didn’t mean anything by it, really..."

He explained as though trying to defend himself, but the more he spoke, the quieter his voice became, as if he was reflecting on how strange his own actions were. Realizing how bizarre he must seem, he cleared his throat several times and quickly changed the subject.

"By the way, about your blood, Instructor..."

"Huh? Are you changing the subject now?"

"N-no, that’s not it. There’s something you should know, Instructor. It seems all the demonic elements you were supposed to have inside you have disappeared."

"...?"

"No, I mean, they might have never been there to begin with."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you were... human."

"???"

Ihan tilted his head in confusion, not understanding, and Derrick scratched his cheek, as if gathering his thoughts, before trying to explain in more detail.

"You’ve mentioned before that, as a child, you were given the blood of a troll and a noll by a magician, right? Thanks to that, you gained the troll's physical strength and recovery abilities, and the noll’s heightened senses like smell and touch."

"Right?"

This wasn’t new information to Ihan, and he had never questioned it. The enhancements to his body after surviving experiments and trials were the reason he had made it through and gotten stronger. His abilities had been beyond ordinary human capacity.

But...

"What I’m saying is that this story is wrong. Look at this. This is an analysis of your blood, mixed with the troll’s and the noll’s."

Derrick showed him something resembling a diagnostic kit.

"See? It came back negative for any demonic elements."

Derrick explained that if there were any demonic traits in the blood, it should have shown a positive result for hybridization.

"..."

Ihan blinked in surprise. He had expected this to be a small, harmless experiment, but now the facts he thought he knew were being overturned, and he was left feeling confused.

However, Derrick continued to push the truth on him without any regard for his confusion.

"So, what this means is that you were never a demonic creature with human traits. Genetically, you’re just... human."

"...Does that even make sense?"

There was a lot implied in that statement. Derrick was questioning how he could explain his exceptional recovery and heightened senses, and to that, he replied.

"‘Evolution,’ that’s how."

"What?"

It was an absurd, almost incomprehensible answer, but Derrick spoke with complete seriousness.

"This is just a hypothesis, but maybe your body evolved in response to surviving the experiments when you were young. I heard you were really determined to survive, right?"

"Was I?"

"You had a strong will to survive, and over time, your body evolved to withstand the demonic traits it had to fight off. Others couldn’t endure the experiments and died, but you survived and evolved, pushing through unbearable pain with sheer willpower."

"......"

"I know, I know, it sounds like a theory from some pseudoscience, so don’t give me that look..."

"I’m not glaring, I’m just thinking. Even if your hypothesis is true, it doesn’t explain everything about my abilities. For example, I’m particularly sensitive to troll blood potions, and I’ve received a lot of help from them. How do you explain that?"

Ihan thought he had come up with a sharp question, but Derrick answered without hesitation, as if waiting for it.

"This is where the theory of evolution comes in."

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"...What?"

"Do you know? Evolution isn’t just about one thing. It can also be about the imitation of genes."

"......."

"In other words, your cells might have adapted and imitated the demonic elements in order to survive, fighting off the demonic traits to protect you."

"...Interesting stuff."

Despite hearing such theories, Ihan couldn’t bring himself to fully believe it.

After all, evolution in such a short time frame seemed impossible, didn’t it?

"Ah, maybe ten years isn’t such a short time after all?"

Remembering that he had been a test subject for a long time, Ihan started to wonder if Derrick’s theory could actually hold some truth. As if to give him a final push, Derrick added:

"By the way, do you know? Trolls and nolls are super cute when they’re babies. But when they mature, they undergo a drastic transformation."

"......."

"Got an idea yet?"

"Wait, are you saying...?"

Ihan, now half-laughing, half-remembering his own youthful looks, couldn’t help but smile.

"Yeah, when I was younger, I was told I was pretty cute."

‘Maybe it wasn’t just from the training...?’ Ihan thought, starting to listen more carefully to Derrick’s words.

Now, there was a little bit more credibility to the theory.

"That’s why it makes sense that you don’t have many traits related to demons. If you truly had demonic elements, things like berserker tendencies or demon transformations should have shown up."

"Hmm, so does that mean I’m just a regular human?"

Not a modified human?

"Of course, you’re not a regular human. You’ve evolved, after all. If we had to put a label on it... mutant?"

"......."

"To make it simple, you’re like a mutant. In a way, you’re even more fascinating than any mysterious race, don’t you think?"

"......."

"So, about that... can I take some more blood? Your blood might actually be even more valuable than troll blood."

"Bang your head."

"Pardon?"

"I said bang your head. Do you want me to say ‘headbutt’ for you?"

"...We’re on a gravel road."

"So?"

"......."

"Proceed."

"Pro-proceed..."

Derrick muttered to himself as he prepared to obey, tears welling in his eyes. Ihan clicked his tongue in exasperation.

"This guy really messes up even when things are going well."

Some people can pay off huge debts with a single word, but this guy, Ihan thought, was the type to run up a debt just as quickly.

***

Taechang was definitely a lucky guy, that much was clear.

"I finally get to properly thank you, even if it’s a bit late. Thank you. I could never thank you enough."

"Thank you, Instructor."

"Haha, we meet again in less than half a day."

"...Mhm."

Due to the unexpected visit from a guest—or more precisely, the homeowner—any further expression of gratitude was postponed. It was a bit of a letdown, so the best Ihan could do was give Taechang a little “lesson” in the form of a "headbutt" and then leave him standing off to the side.

He couldn’t really go swinging a club around in front of guests, could he?

"Cough..."

The clever Taechang, who had been sneaking glances like a little wolf, made the wise choice to clear his throat and distract the attention toward himself. He certainly had a good sense of timing.

As for the other adults:

"This will make for a good training session."

"Are you training the neck? Our family’s swordfighters often do that too."

True to the swordsmanship family he came from, they quickly took a more positive and matter-of-fact view, losing all interest afterward.

"Ugh... Why is there no normal person around here?"

Taechang mumbled to himself, but Ihan lightly ignored his grumbling and turned to the other two.

"Why are you two here? You’ve got a thousand things to do."

Ihan spoke bluntly, but beneath the words, he was genuinely wondering what had brought them here. After all, they had tons of responsibilities: restoring their fallen mansion, managing half-bloods, surveying the damage to their family, and reporting the incident to the royal family.

They were too busy to be paying him a visit. So why were they here now?

"Well, we thought this might be our last chance to properly thank you."

Felicia said, her tone unusually serious. The two men nodded in agreement.

But to Ihan, it felt a little... off.

"I feel like I’ve heard that a hundred times already..."

This wasn’t a joke. He had been drowned ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) in gratitude, far more than anyone could possibly bear. For example, when Felicia, that woman, had been revived:

"Thank you! I’m so, so thankful...!"She’d cried rivers of tears, grateful beyond measure. It was heartwarming at first, but the following events quickly turned into a headache.

"Thank you, thank you...""I’ll consider you a lifelong benefactor!""This is just a small token of my appreciation..."And then came the others—the servants of Offen, one by one, coming to express their thanks. Some even kneeled before him. To Ihan, it was more of a burden than anything else.

‘How can I feel at ease when people much older than me are acting like this?’

It was like a leftover bit of Confucian values messing with his mind.

But, at the same time, it would be rude not to accept the gratitude. After all, it wasn’t just about saving the family—it was about saving their reputation and preserving the revered swordmaster and grand scholar of their clan. That alone was a huge weight off his shoulders.

The last five days were spent more or less being pampered in the mansion. Offen insisted on showing their gratitude, but instead of actually fixing things, they kept feeding him, looking after him, and treating him like a guest.

"How can we not properly thank our savior? A noble should never fail to honor their benefactor, no matter the cost! Honor is more important than life or wealth!"This was a heartfelt plea from one of Offen's older servants, and for the past five days, Ihan had been well-fed, well-cared for, and his skin was practically glowing from all the pampering.

‘Three square meals a day, just perfect.’

He didn’t even have to worry about gaining weight because they kept offering him dessert and late-night snacks.

And now, here they were again, the three of them, back to express their thanks. It was already starting to feel like too much.

"Heh, you look like you’re getting annoyed."

"I told you, just do the first round of thanks and get it over with."

"How could we? No matter how much we thank you, it will never be enough."

"..."

"I swear, I’ll make a promise to you. Even if the kingdom turns against you, Offen—no, I personally, will help you. I will stake everything on it."

"...Wow."

The last exclamation didn’t come from Ihan. It came from Taechang, who was still receiving his "headbutt" punishment. The sound was full of awe.

It was no wonder. After all, he had just been granted the power to summon an aura user.

It was a position so powerful that even kings might envy it, and it was clear everyone would be envious of it.

But...

"Please, keep your thanks to yourself. I don’t need it."

"?!!"

The person in question, feeling almost as though he were a priceless relic, tried to return the gratitude as if he could. Felicia, clearly moved, was even starting to tear up.

It was a strange scene, as Ihan stood there, both grateful and exhausted by all the attention.