"Ah!"

"… Don't move. Enough tedious talk. I told you my demands. You understand what to do if you don't want to die… right?"

"You… I'm the King of Sahaja…"

"So what?"

"Hii…"

I applied a little strength to the knife held to his neck. The skin tore and blood flowed from his vein.

The King perhaps understood he's seriously in danger from seeing his blood, as he said in a fl.u.s.ter.

"W, wait. Let's make a deal. If you serve me, I'll accept your demands. That's right. If you like, I don't mind restoring that village. If there aren't enough people, I'll give you as many orphans as you want. I'll do what you said if you raise a new Red organization from scratch. How about it? Then――."

"Don't compare Hiyumas to an a.s.sa.s.sination guild."

"Hiii!"

As the King listed his very convenient demands, I reached the limit of my patience.

I want to kill him. I want to apply just a little more strength to the knife on his neck and turn him into a corpse.

Then the enemy who destroyed my clan will be defeated. I wonder if my father and everyone will be able to rest in peace a little. Me too. My feelings should clear up a little.

Everything he says is nothing but a joke. There's no reason to keep alive the man who ridicules Hiyumas.

"You destroyed our clan. Because we didn't yield to you. Just because of that. And then to force the loyalty of the only survivor, me, you entrusted me to the Red guild. I won't let you say you forgot. I'll never forgive you. No matter what deal you offer, I won't, Hiyumas won't obey you."

"D, do you mean to oppose me! I offered you a great deal, and yet you intend to throw it away! I don't need you anymore. Palace guards…!"

"… Hey? Do you think I'll allow that?"

"Ah!"

I pinned him down so he couldn't speak. Since I was little, I'd had an unpleasant amount of knowledge about humans' weak spots drilled into me. It was simple to make him unable to speak. Something like that is the basics of torture.

Noticing he couldn't speak, the King turned pale in the twinkling of an eye.

I want to end his life - I endured such a violent emotion.

"Have you finally remembered that you are dealing with Red s.h.i.+nigami? I can easily kill you."

Hearing my words filled with bloodl.u.s.t, the pale-faced King desperately nodded.

"… Cancel the request and withdraw the army. If you accept these conditions, I won't kill you."

"Ah!"

For a moment he stopped moving, but probably realizing his life was irreplaceable, the King firmly nodded.

I further said into his ear.

"Immediately. If I confirm you cancelled the request and withdrew the army, I'll leave this room."

"I, I understand…"

When I allowed him to speak, the King called for guards.

While hiding in the shadows, I told the King.

"Let me tell you, it's pointless to have the called soldiers try to kill me. My blade will kill you first."

"…"

The King made a startled expression, but he nodded.

With an att.i.tude like nothing had happened, he informed the summoned soldiers.

"… Withdraw the troops headed for Wilhelm. I lost interest. It's enough for now."

"Ha? Even though they've departed already? It will take some time to withdraw them. Moreover, we've already declared war on Wilhelm…"

"Never mind that, withdraw them! Immediately!"

"Y, yes!"

"And tell that woman at Black that I cancel the request. I've had enough of that matter."

"…. Haa."

"If you understand, go."

"Yes!"

The soldiers saluted in response to the King's words and left the room.

"… Is this enough?"

"Yeah."

When the presences disappeared and I went out of hiding, the King scowled at me with a hateful face.

"An incompetent brute who only obeys his master would order me, an absolute monarch. You've gotten ahead quite a lot."

"What was that…?"

"It's the truth. Anyway, I did as you'd said. If you're satisfied, hurry up and leave. I feel sick. However, your master is quite a villain to directly target me. He's well matched for the s.h.i.+nigami."

"Ah!"

Master. As he insulted Princess, blood rushed to my head.

I drew near the King and again thrust a knife at him.

"―― I won't allow you to make fun of my master. Besides, I'm acting at my own discretion."

"Oh. Was it a lie that Hiyumas never disobey their masters? To come to such a place on your own… No, that's not it. Your master must've been unable to keep you under his control. After all he doesn't have the capacity to handle you. You misread your master. That's right, it's not too late. Come to me. I'll still forgive you everything."

"Ha?"

I got irritated.

Unforgivable.

He made fun of Princess, my master. He made fun of the way of Hiyuma. Everything he said was wrong.

The fury that I'd forcibly suppressed some time ago came back.

From the bottom of my heart I want to kill that man.

"… Will you kill me? Will a Hiyuma lie?"

"… You are the clan's enemy. n.o.body will blame me if I kill you here."

… I wonder if that's the truth.

While saying that, I became uneasy.

I wonder if everybody will praise me if I kill him here.

My confidence plummeted.

But I want to kill him. I want to kill the man who killed my father and everyone.

'―― n.o.body is watching now. It won't be known you did it. Besides, you made the army withdraw. Even if you kill him, it shouldn't pose any problem.'

s.h.i.+nigami inside me sweetly whispered to me.

It's exactly like that. If I kill this man now, there won't be evidence left that I did it.

Princess won't be inconvenienced.

Then, isn't it fine to kill him?

"―― Ah."

I put strength in my hand holding the knife.

At that moment, for some reason Princess's smile flashed through my head.

I swung the knife at the King - and stopped it at the last moment.

"Wha…?"

Perhaps overcome by fear, the King couldn't keep standing and collapsed on the spot.

Turning my back to the King, I said.

"Don't confuse me with you. I'll never forgive you. But I'm a proud member of Hiyuma clan. Hiyumas won't do something that will make them unable to face their master. No matter how unwilling I am, I'll keep the promise."

That's my answer.

If I killed this man, I'm sure I wouldn't be able to look Princess in the eyes.

I'd lose the right to see the smile of my master who told me she'd wait for me.

When I noticed that at the very last moment, I stopped.

"… I'm going home."

I have no business in this country anymore.

Sahaja isn't my country.

The place where I ought to be is Princess's - my master's side. I'm going home to Wilhelm.

"… W, wait."

The King called me to halt me in a trembling voice, but I didn't turn back.

I want to go home quickly. That's all I feel. Nothing more.