Rinney was smiling brightly.

And the child sitting next to her was so tense she was practically frozen.

I looked at the stiff-looking girl and smiled softly.

So its you.

"Yes?"

"Flora."

As Id heard from Peter, she was a cute and lovable kid.

Brown hair tied in a ponytail.

She had bright eyes and a cute young face, but she had a very hard core.

She seemed to resemble her father.

It was fun. In various ways.

How do you know my name

For somebody with the rank of a count, its not difficult to find out your name. Besides, I have an acquaintance with your father.

R-, really?

"Yes."

In fact, I wasnt being completely truthful.

Peter had never mentioned his daughter's name.

Despite being from the dark world, he was meticulous about what he had to protect.

But I knew.

About Peter, and his daughter, Flora.

Of course I knew! Because these two were important nodes in the kingdom arc of the game.

Because I was the one to set them up that way.

Take it.

"What is this?"

An advanced skill art. Its a precious thing that even those training hard outside havent received yet.

The skill book originally came from the ruins of a now-extinct aristocratic family, which I chanced upon during my days spent wandering.

Id kept it inside the stigma and forgotten about it, but this time I took it out and rewrote it, pruning the unnecessary parts.

There was no specific name.

If I were to give it a name, I would call it Seven Stars Bell ().

You can think of it as pouring seven stars into a goblet.

It was quite advanced compared to its peers, so it could be said that it was a hard-to-find great art.

Because some truths Id realized while learning the Six Peak Flowers technique had been merged into it.

Why are you giving this to me?

Investment.

The difference between whether or not youve learned an advanced-level technique is the difference between heaven and earth.

If you learn the cycle and manipulation of spiritual power from an early age, you will become stronger easily.

And the purer your divine power, the stronger your strength.

Investment?

Think of it as me investing in your talent. It's not a problem for someone of my station to get you an admission into the academy."

All itd take was some money.

My pockets were full, and if I could spend some gold to change the fate of a child who would one day be called the Sword Demon, it was a cheap price.

"Really!?"

Count is a higher title than you probably imagine. It's not that difficult if I recommend you. Of course, after graduating from the academy, youll have to come under my control. It doesn't matter if you become a knight or a paladin."

If she could only become mine, how much would that be worth? One of the reasons for Carpes collapse in the future would be internal division.

The master of the sword Carpe revered, trying to destroy the kingdom with her own sword.

With the support of the empire, she slaughtered Carpe's paladins and knights, and blocked a Master at the end.

She ended up giving up her life blocking that Master, but Carpe also faced its end along with her.

The Sword Demon whod become such a catastrophe desperately seeking revenge, was the little kid now sitting in front of me.

Are you the highest in the Jervain family, Count?

Not yet, but I soon will be.

Id love to!

Good.

But I need to talk to Dad first. If I decide by myself Dad would be sad.

Youre a really filial child. Youre right. Such an importation decision shouldnt be taken by a child alone ignoring her parents. But Ill tell you this. You deserve it.

"Really?"

"Yeah. Rinney has confirmed your skills already. You may have lost to her now, but its not certain whod win by the time you both graduate from the academy."

I inflamed her childish expectations and incited her incipient rivalry with Rinney.

It wasnt particularly glorious to manipulate a little kid like this, but I had no choice.

You have to save people you can save.

Even if your father refuses Im not going to turn away my niece's friend. Feel free to come here to play anytime, and if you want, you can take part in the training, too.

"Really!? Then can I bring my friends too?

As long as it doesnt interfere with the troops training.

After watching Flora leave the office visibly excited, Rinney glanced at me with a worried face.

"Is this alright?"

"Its fine. We need to go slow and take our time. Rinney, make sure you befriend that child. Itll help a lot in the future.

I had to make sure that kid fell into my orbit. Who knew when or how my plan might collapse if we left her alone.

I just don't understand why. Do I really need to? Shes just a civilian.

Its necessary.

I dont know whats in your mind, Sir Count. You werent actually impressed with that kid, right?"

You may be better than her now, but things might really be different in four years.

Is that

My eyes dont notice useless things. Just like you have far sight, I can see the potential of a person. Youll have to work hard if you dont want her to catch up.

Is it Gods grace?

Something like that.

God's grace, bullshit. I didnt have anything like that.

It was just more convenient to agree because I didnt need to tack on additional explanations.

It was better to let her misunderstand it.

The moment I was about to leave

Rinney tilted her head and said, as if wondering.

But Bruns is useless.

Troubled by the sudden attack, I had to furrow my brows for a moment before finally answering.

Shut up. Ive got a lot of work to do, so you can go.

Rinney pouted her lips and quietly left the office.

A little girl almost left me dumbstruck. It's all because of Bruns."

And just to note, he was so useless even a little girl could see it.

Whens Cedric coming? I'm not going to carry this guy anymore."

But instead of Cedric, somebody else arrived.

A woman with dark purple hair.

Beatrice.

Its become quite a bit noisier since I saw you last. There are children, too. Who are they?

My nephew and niece.

Oho, and here I thought you had children.

I do have a child.

"Eh?"

Was it that surprising?

Her sullen face was quite pleasing to the eyes.

But, whats happened? I dont think the extraction process is over already?

I wanted to see Vivi. Where is he?"

Beatrice often came to meet Vivi if she had a chance.

As a follower of the Whip God, she seemed to like magical beasts.

He should be sleeping right now. Hes doing that a lot these days. He spends most of the day sleeping.

He was sleeping a lot and steadily growing up.

Whenever he woke up, I felt like his body had grown a little, so in time he might grow to match his mother in size.

You know, you always talk a lot when it comes to Vivi. Its cute.

Shut up.

Huhu.

More importantly, has there been any progress?

Yes, its going smoothly. Here, I brought a sample with me.

"Well?"

Truly.

The demonic energy was much fainter compared to the how the blood of the thunder wolf dragon had been originally.

The blood used to be a deep dark shade of red, but now a lot of the turbid energy had disappeared.

Another month or two should be sufficient to draw out the blood essence.

It was just a matter of time.

How are the horns looking?

Great. You can make anything with them. Smelt them into gauntlets, or even armour. Or do you want to feed them to a carcass? It might work.

Is that even possible?

An alchemists pursuit isnt that different from a paladin. Creating various artifacts is ultimately a study to make a stronger sword.

But its not sure to work?

Beatrice's lips rose up at the corners.

Life is a gamble.

Meaning she might fail.

If she succeeded, my sword might be upgraded, but if she failed

Raising the level of the sword is the same as raising the level of its soul. The extinction of the soul is the extinction of the sword Maybe itll shatter on the spot?

The risk was huge.

But it was also a very attractive proposal.

I have to think about it.

Its not something you can just do if you want to. It's still in the research phase. It's just a hypothesis right now, but I was wondering if itd be possible to upgrade the soul using dragon blood."

If the sword wasnt made with a pure human soul, but also had the soul of a thunder wolf dragon mixed in it, the possibility might be higher.

Youll need a sample for research, then.

Yes, I wanted to get your permission while Im here. Two birds with one stone.

How much do you plan to use?

Im thinking of trying it out on a spare carcass Two or three at least.

Two or three bottles of dragon blood essence, in exchange for a single bottle of research results?

The expenses were quite high.

But it was such an attractive proposition.

I couldn't help but nod my head.

If it were anyone else, I mightve told them to screw off, but Beatrice was the one suggesting it.

Because it was her, not some random alchemist Id found on the streets.

"Is it okay?"

Even for her, dragon blood was not a material that could be found easily.

She too wouldn't want to miss an opportunity like this.

Just, one thing still bothers me.'

Why kill Viole?

I couldnt be sure.

I didn't know what her scheme was, but I couldn't refuse her.

If it was something that could raise the level of a sword, it wasnt a waste of money by any metric.

If the Blue Thunderbolt Sword can become a vision sword, this much expense is nothing to speak of.'

Although it was now only a spirit sword, it was already powerful.

If it became a vision sword, Id be able to guarantee my life even in front of a Master.

What else do you need?

A carcass. The higher the grade, the better. The more data, the better. Can you give me one?

It wasnt a difficult request.

Seeing me nod, Beatrice showed a bright smile.

Beatrice.

Im listening.

There are conditions.

What are they?

Move your lab here.

Here? In this noisy place?

Ill give you the basement.

Itd only need to be soundproofed.

The front yard was indeed quite noisy, but the back yard didnt have that much noise.

Are you suspicious of me?

"No, I'm just trying to make you mine. After all, itd be convenient to have you nearby and check these guys data.

"Eh?"

It'd be annoying if someone else took her in. So I extended my offer of recruitment.

Anyway, I had no choice but to build up my own force within the Carpe Kingdom. For that, I became an inquisitor-captain, and I was now even training these useless inquisitors.

One way or another, in the near future

This kingdom is going to explode.

Scenario Quest

Civil War of the Carpe Dynasty

Progress 28%

28% progress for the outbreak of civil war.

Each time Callius captured and killed the corrupt nobles, this number increased.

Considering that itd been 20% before killing Artemion, the more you kill a noble of a high rank, the earlier the civil war will start.

It was getting more and more imminent the more Callius rampaged.

Because Im preparing too, bit by bit.

But the threat right in front of him had to be given priority.

"Peter."

"Ah! Sir Count. Were you here?

Peter was standing guard at the usual place. Callius smirked as he saw Peters loose and relaxed posture.

Is it time for your lunch yet?

Yeah, almost Count?

I havent eaten either. Shall we have lunch together? Im feeling a bit peckish.

Me too. Ill quickly go buy some lunch. Wait here just a minute!

No, you dont have to.

"Yes?"

I came to see you today. Lets go. I have a reservation at a restaurant.

To see me? Sir Count?

"Why? Can't I?"

Oh, no, I didnt mean that.

After a while.

Peter and Callius arrived at a restaurant frequented by the nobility.

Looks expensive.

Even after going inside, Peter was looking very uncomfortable, as if he thought he was sticking out in such a luxurious environment.

After choosing their food from the menu

Callius went straight to the point.

Hey, your daughter is a cute kid.

"Eh?"

Peter, whod been staring at the menu for a long time, couldnt hide his puzzlement.

Flora, wasnt it? Like you said, she really has a passion for swordsmanship, and shes smart to boot. She seems to have talent, too. Just like you said.

How, my daughters name

Im in charge of some children of my family, and they brought her to meet me after they became friends while playing. As we talked, I found out that she was your daughter.

The foolish impression Peter had been showing so far calmly subsided.

Only his expression changed a little, but the atmosphere was completely different.

Callius continued to speak, despite the subtly creepy feeling.

I told her to come and play often, so dont worry. Shes a bud that will one day bloom into a great knight.

"Is that so?"

Even though Callius was praising his daughter, the vigilance in Peters eyes didnt go away. Rather, the more Callius praised her, the steelier his gaze became.

"Thats right. I'm thinking of setting up a space for her in a corner of the house where she can train to her heart's content. And, well, the inquisitors are training right next door. She could learn a lot just by watching.

You dont have to

Its a shame that the Royal Academy isnt open to the public. Carpe hasn't come to its senses yet. It is the children, not the adults, who are the future of this country. Giving support to them is the cornerstone of the kingdom's revival What do you think?

You spoke powerfully, Sir Count.

Peter seemed to be thinking very deeply.

Callius lowered his gaze, away from the struggling form of Peter, and raised his knife and fork to cut the lamb steak.

It melted in his mouth after one bite.

The food was expensive.

But usually, although not every time, thats because the taste is worth the money invested.

Callius thought the same as he looked at Peter in front of him.

How are you going to react?'

Peter was just like this food in front of him.

If Callius paid the right price, would he be repaid with a commensurately great taste?

Would Peter maybe try to stab him, or grab him

Callius didn't know.

So

Are you tired of it yet? Assassination, I mean.

At that moment, Peter's hand holding the knife trembled.