ã€ŠI&#x27;m the Evil Lord of an Intergalactic State!ã€‹


 Chapter 0 - Prologue

    <h4>Prologue</h4>

    Why was the world so unreasonable?

    Inside an old, dark, and narrow one-room apartment, I pressed my hands against the pain in my chest.

    I was struggling to put power into my arms.

    The hand that was gripping my t-shirt felt shabbier and thinner than I¡¯ve ever felt.

    The futon that I was lying down on was already stained and dirty with my blood.

    ¡°Just... why?¡±

    Yes, I was in physical pain, but the mental regret and anguish I felt hurt far more.

    I could see lights spinning around me.

    I can¡¯t say that I was apletely respectable man, but I really didn¡¯t want to die here.

    I nevermitted any crimes, and I lived seriously enough to be seen in a positive light by the general public.

    Get a normal job, marry a girl, have a baby, buy a house.

    It¡¯s because of thosepletely normal aspirations that I was now littered with so many debts and problems.

    I pay child support monthly, but I haven¡¯t seen my kid in years.

    ¡®She was finally in a good ce in her rtionship with her new husband¡¯ ¨Cit¡¯s for that reason as to why I had been denied visits.

    So I kept paying the expensive child support even though I couldn¡¯t even see my child.

    Then I got fired from my job for a reason I couldn¡¯t even recall doing, but I still needed ie to live so I made due with whatever part-time job I could find.

    There was nothing in the room.

    I couldn¡¯t afford to buy anything because of my crippling debt andck of personal time.

    I couldn¡¯t even remember why I was in debt in the first ce.

    Even so, I was in debt, and I had to pay it back.

    At first, I was paying for it with the mindset that it would be used so that my children wouldn¡¯t have to struggle in life, but before I knew it, I had lost weight, my body was paralyzed, and I couldn¡¯t even move from on top of my bed.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with me? Just... why is this happening to me?¡±

    At that moment, I felt relieved when I saw it.

    Because at that moment, a man wearing a tailcoat suddenly appeared at my bedside.

    He stood there and ced a leather suitcase down beside his dirty shoes.

    ¡°Good evening, isn¡¯t it a beautiful night, tonight?¡±

    I could barely move my eyes, but even then it was so dim I could only barely make out his mouth and the top-hat he held in his hand.

    He was a tall man with a slender stature, but there was something off about him.

    He was even wearing something like a tailcoat, but I couldn¡¯t remember having an acquaintance who dressed as distinctive as this.

    ¡°Have you...e to take me away?¡±

    I was terrified and there was no way for me to escape.

    To such a me, the man bent down towards my face, but even then I couldn¡¯t make out his features.

    His mouth arched up in a smile like a crescent moon, as if he was stifling augh.

    ¡°Pick you up? Well, that¡¯s not wrong, but not exactly right either. If I had to say, I¡¯d describe myself more like your ¡®guide.¡¯¡±

    The man waved his finger and imed to be someone that guided others.

    A supernatural sight appeared before me, and I widened my eyes slightly.

    ¡ªMy heart was in pain.

    I could see it, a man in formal dress and my ex-wife were eating at an expensive restaurant together.

    The food and drink looked delicious, I hadn¡¯t eaten a meal like that in years.

    However, the problem wasn¡¯t that.

    ¡°You snake of a woman. Not only did you leave your previous marriage with your debt, but you even make him pay child support? Is that kid even your ex-husband¡¯s?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. At least officially he¡¯s ours, and byw the one who reared the child is obliged to pay for child support.¡±

    I couldn¡¯t even process what they were talking about.

    Just what was she saying?

    My former wife, who used to be so gently and rustic was now dressed so finely.

    ¡°After all, women are attracted to those with superior genes. I don¡¯t care about that child one bit, what matters is that he¡¯s a gateway into another source of ie. I only married that man because I could. He was only worth that much.¡±

    The guy sitting opposite to her wasughing a little.

    ¡°Women sure are scary.¡±

    ¡°Was it not you who made me such a woman?¡±

    Watching the two of them being so happy, my heart seemed to clench in pain, while my empty stomach furthered my depression.

    I felt anger boiling inside of me from watching such a scene.

    The man waved his finger again and it disappeared.

    ¡°Oops, let¡¯s just calm down a bit, shall we? I just showed you this scene because I wanted you to know the truth. Don¡¯t try to fool yourself, this isn¡¯t a vision. This is something that is happening right now in real time.¡±

    Now that I think about it, there were definitely some suspicious things that happened while we were married.

    But I forced myself to look away, I had to.

    I thought I was just overthinking it.

    ¡°You¡¯re a good person, you endured such a hard life and yet you still paid for both her debt and child support, so I¡¯ve prepared a little gift for you.¡±

    The man happily took out a brochure from his leather suitcase.

    ¡°You¡¯ve lived such a miserable life, so I¡¯ll make it so you¡¯re guaranteed happiness in your next life. How about it? Would you like to reincarnate into another world?¡±

    ¡®Miserable¡¯, the emotion I felt was far uglier than that, I felt so much regret to the point that I thought I was going insane.

    My heart clenched in pain again, and I could taste blood.

    ¡°You continued to work to the point of destroying your body, and yet there they were enjoying their meal in peace. That¡¯s something you can¡¯t forgive, right?¡±

    My left hand squeezed into a fist on my futon.

    ¡°Even so, let go of your revenge. Let go of that hate that says you can¡¯t forgive them.¡±

    Tears started to flow from my eyes.

    Why did ite to this?

    Was I that terrible of a person? Is this my retribution?

    I teared up at the fact that my body was now paralyzed.

    In such a state, it¡¯d be impossible for me to take revenge.

    The guide¡¯s crescent smile widened as he let out a chuckle.

    I knew my eyes probably looked dead, but even I felt likeughing at that moment.

    The smile disappeared from the guide¡¯s mouth.

    ¡°Unfortunately, your life is about to end. All I can do is guarantee your happiness in your next life. So don¡¯t worry, no matter how unhappy you are currently, happiness is just over the horizon. Please give up on your revenge.¡±

    ¡°...I can¡¯t.¡±

    I denied him with a faint voice.

    I wanted them to feel every ounce of unhappiness I felt in my life.

    I¡¯d do anything for that purpose.

    Anything!

    However, the guide shook his head.

    ¡°The most I can allow you to do is choose the ce you¡¯re going to go next. At the very least, please incarnate into a world that you want. Your happy life is waiting for you.¡±

    Tears continued to flow from my eyes.

    The pamphlets the guide provided resembled ying cards a magician would spread out before someone to make a choice.

    One of the covers had robots and spaceships stered on it.

    I moved finger over to it.

    ¡°Are you interested in this world? You chose a good one. It¡¯s a fantasy world where both science and magic have both progressed. It¡¯s an intergctic nation in a very enjoyable world. There¡¯s many things to enjoy there, so I know you¡¯d have fun.¡±

    I stretched my hand out towards it without hesitation.

    I didn¡¯t know what the next world would truly be like.

    All I was thinking at the time was about how stupid everything was.

    For what reason did I live so seriously?

    And yet this is the result?

    You¡¯ve got to be kidding me! Don¡¯t joke around!

    If you lived your life seriously, you should be able to enjoy it just as much!

    I don¡¯t care about others anymore, I¡¯m going to focus on my own happiness.

    If living a good life just ends with something like this, then I want to live for myself from now on.

    ¡ª I want to be the viin.

    ¡°Oh, this world has aristocracy, that¡¯s interesting. Civilization has evolved but society reverted back to the feudal system. That¡¯s really amusing.¡±

    The guide continued, ¡°Next time you¡¯ll be born into a house of power. You¡¯ll have everything you could ever want, you¡¯ll be a born winner.¡±

    Sounds like a lot of fun.

    I¡¯ll step over others while doing my best.

    ¡°The aristocrats you¡¯ll be born into will be a warm family as well.¡±

    A small amount ofughter escaped from my mouth.

    That¡¯s fine.

    An agent of evil... no, wasn¡¯t I going to be a noble?

    I suppose this¡¯ll work to entertain me.

    ¡°Are you ready? I hope you have a good second life-¡±

    Let¡¯s do it.

    Let¡¯s fully enjoy my next life to the greatest extent.

    As an evil lord.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The guide looked down at the man who had stopped breathing, and startedughing.

    There was madness in that figure.

    ¡°An unhappy life? He¡¯s an idiot! Did he seriously think he¡¯s the only miserable person on the?! Did he really think that there¡¯s absolutely no one else that¡¯s sad or depressed?!¡±

    Theughing guide waved his finger, and the projection of the ex-wife and the man she was with fluttered into existence.

    His grin widened as he roared withughter.

    ¡°And to think, I was the one who caused all his misery in the first ce! I just wanted to see how far he¡¯d fall!¡±

    The guide wasn¡¯t a benevolent being, not at all.

    It¡¯d be more fit to describe him as a living mass of cruelty.

    ¡°Now, let¡¯s finish the hors d¡¯oeuvres before moving on to the main course!¡±

    The guide reached out and touched the image as ck smoke started to emit from him.

    The two people were having a pleasant conversation.

    However, the man smiled and bid farewell to thedy.

    ¡°Well, I hope you had fun, but let¡¯s end things here.¡±

    ¡°...huh?¡±

    The former wife dropped the knife she was holding, stunned.

    ¡°W-what are you saying?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m saying that I¡¯ve had enough fun, and now I don¡¯t feel like ying house with you anymore.¡±

    His face seemed to say he didn¡¯t understand why the ex-wife was acting this way.

    He was smiling.

    ¡°You can resist if you want, but don¡¯t forget that thewyer who helped you with the divorce was my friend. If you make a fuss about this, you¡¯ll be the one at a disadvantage.¡±

    ¡°But what about our child!¡±

    ¡°Legally that¡¯s not my child, so I don¡¯t need to pay child support either.¡±

    The man put a divorce notice on the table.

    ¡°Fill this out by tomorrow.¡±

    The ex-wife was trembling.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you loved me?!¡±

    ¡°Oh I loved you, but I¡¯m not interested anymore, that¡¯s all. We¡¯ve already enjoyed each other long enough.¡±

    The man tore off thedy who was now his ex-wife as well, and left the restaurant.

    ¡°Don¡¯t touch me, I¡¯m not affiliated with you anymore.¡±

    ¡°...wait, WAIT!¡±

    The man chuckled.

    ¡°Stupid, did you really think I¡¯d marry a women who was willing to cheat? You, just how far did you lie whenever I said I wanted to meet? I can¡¯tugh at how you treated your first husband.¡±

    The now twice divorced ex-wife sped the man¡¯s hand.

    ¡°I abandoned my husband for you.¡±

    ¡°You mean your ex-husband. You¡¯re the one that threw him away, and I was there, I know you enjoyed it. Don¡¯t try to pretend you¡¯re the victim.¡±

    The guide wasughing.

    He could tell what the ex-wife was thinking.

    ¡°Oh man~ that¡¯s ugly~ You¡¯re already contemting how you¡¯re going to kill him? Women really are tough! I hope you get your revenge!¡±

    The guide¡¯sughter roared as he opened the door to another world.

    ¡°Now, are you going toe crawling back to your original husband or find a new boy-toy? I¡¯m looking forward to the results~¡±

    Both results would bring her misery, and that thought brought the guide immeasurable joy.

    ¡°Well, for now I have to guide this one¡¯s soul to the world where people¡¯s lives are consumed cheaply, so more entertainment for me~!¡±

    Thinking about the world he was about to send this man over to, the guide couldn¡¯t stopughing.

    ¡°It¡¯ll be toote by the time he notices, so this¡¯ll definitely be fun. If this isn¡¯t the case, regret, resentment, sadness, surely he¡¯ll abhor me! Miseries are my delicacies!¡±

    The guide who loves the dark emotions of people spread out his hands in delight.

    ¡°Even if you find misfortune in another world, it¡¯s fine! Be unhappy! Hate me! Loathe me! From now on it¡¯s fun time!¡±

    No matter how far the man fell, pleasing developments were all that waited for the guide.

    The guide was ecstatic.

    ¡°Oops, if I don¡¯t go soon, I¡¯ll have to spend time finding his soul too. Well whatever, I can brush it off with some cheap reason, all humans are fools that¡¯ll jump at the chance in joy when they hear about reincarnation after all, but let¡¯s not waste anymore time, continue to happily be deceived, idiot.¡±

    He cheerfully grabbed his bag, and as the guide who was just insulting a body started to pass through the door into another world¨C

    A small light came into being in the corner of the room.

    A tiny light that was hiding and watching.

    It was in the form of a small animal.

    It looked like a dog.

    But the guide didn¡¯t notice it.

    ¡°I wonder how I should enjoy this. First of all, I have to decide where to incarnate him. It¡¯d be nice to have him enjoy a family before thrusting him into despair. Like... ¡®yah!¡¯ The feeling of something plummeting from a high ce?¡±

    Taking the chance while the guide was caught up in delusions, the small light passed through the door.

    The guide pped his hands.

    ¡°I¡¯ve decided! Once he climbs up, I¡¯ll m him back down to rock bottom! I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll send over some great negative emotions then! Oh man, I¡¯m looking forward to this. He¡¯ll aim to be some noble aristocrat, but he¡¯ll just end up in a massive execution! Maybe even tortured!¡±

    The guide embraced himself and writhed.

    His joy was clearly abnormal.

    ¡°Please live long, live a longer and more painful life! For the sake of my happiness, do your absolute best!¡±

    When the door to the other world closed, it vanished from the room.

    The only thing left was the body of the man who just died.

 Chapter 1 - Liam

    <h4>Liam</h4>

    This was my second life.

    My new name is [Liam Sera Banfield]¨C If I looked into a mirror, the image of a young boy with ck hair and purple eyes would gaze back at me.

    I¡¯m currently five years old.

    One day, while I was ying around in my room, I suddenly recalled all the memories of my previous life.

    There was arge variety of toys scattered around me.

    ¡°...this room is big.¡±

    The guide said I¡¯d be born into a house of power and nobility.

    It seems like he kept his promise.

    Certainly, from what I can recall, I was definitely born into a noble¡¯s household.

    The Banfield house.

    The intergctic state known as the Algrand Empire, also known as the Albanian Dynasty.

    In such an empire, I was born into an Earl¡¯s house that dominates one gxy.

    And I was going to be its future lord.

    No, I was going to be a king that controlled an entire gxy.

    ¡°He kept his promise.¡±

    I could feel a smile creeping up my face.

    I didn¡¯t know what I was going to be reincarnated as, but this is better than I could¡¯ve ever imagined.

    If they did this expecting that I was going to be a good person, then they have gravely mistaken their prospects.

    After all, I don¡¯t n to be a good person this time.

    This time, I¡¯m aiming to be a great evil lord.

    Though there are a few problems, like... What does an evil lord even do?

    In dramas, they¡¯d oppress the people and stuff, but what should I do?

    Other ideas thate to mind include alcohol, women, and gambling maybe?

    ¡°In any case, should I just aim to feast on this life¡¯s delicacies?¡±

    That doesn¡¯t really give off the image of an evil lord.

    Should I imitate corrupt politicians and waste taxes while taking bribes?

    Well, things should be fine as long as I live as I like.

    ¡°In any case, this seems like a lot of fun. ...huh?¡±

    Something had fallen on my head.

    It was a letter.

    It was carefully sealed, and when opened, I was surprised to see that it was from the guide.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t he juste here himself?¡±

    The answer to my question was written in the letter.

    It said he was sending me a congrattions for my sessful reincarnation.

    But at the same time, it was written that unfortunately, he was a little busy and couldn¡¯te over himself.

    However, he said he wouldn¡¯t just leave me out to dry.

    The letter said that he¡¯d send over some support to help me soon.

    ¡°Support?¡±

    While I was hunched over reading, my parents entered into the room along with a servant.

    Cliff Sera Banfield.

    Darcy Sera Banfield.

    They walked over to me with smiles, and handed over something akin to a ss te.

    A document floated up on the ss te¡¯s surface.

    What was written there was the transfer of titles, territory, and other rights over to me.

    Why would they suddenly hand something like this over to a child?

    ¡°Father, what is this?¡±

    Unfortunately, I honestly haven¡¯t had much contact with my parents.

    So I¡¯m actually having a bit of trouble understanding why they¡¯re doing this right now.

    Perhaps noticing myplexion, the man who I wasn¡¯t ustomed to calling father started to exin himself. However, the exnation itself was quite outrageous.

    ¡°Liam, Happy 5th Birthday. My present to you is the Banfield house in its entirety.¡±

    In its entirety.

    He just said that he was going to give a five-year-old childplete custody over his territory and all other assets.

    Is he insane?

    That¡¯s what I thought, but at the same time I remembered the letter I just read.

    It had already vanished from my hand but... is this what it meant by sending over support?

    My mother Darcy then handed over a catalog.

    ¡°This is my present, I¡¯ll purchase a maid robot to take care of you. So here, take a look and choose something you like.¡±

    Darcy wanted to buy me a robot that resembled humans while doubling as a maid.

    A robot that looks like an actual human... so an android?

    As I opened up the received catalog, an assortment of images projected out towards me.

    And not just images, videos and 3D holograms projected into the air, really giving off a futuristic vibe.

    ¡°W-what is this?¡±

    Darcy smiled and started to exin how to use it.

    ¡°Just pick a maid that tickles your fancy, so you might as well choose one that¡¯s cute as well.¡±

    It was almost as if I was choosing a character for a game.

    And if it¡¯s like that then...

    Underneath each android various numbers were disyed, but since I didn¡¯t have to worry about the money, I wanted to make sure I got nothing less than the highest specs.

    In the end, I chose the one with an appearance akin to a japanese-styled beauty.

    Her long ck hair was tied into a ponytail that flowed all the way down to her back, while her bangs grew longer on the right side rather than her left. Needless to say, I chose one that was well endowed.

    The description even said that it was fully capable of processing sexual desires if needed.

    I looked up.

    Cliff was smiling at me.

    ¡°You really are my child, you have good taste.¡±

    ¡°Oh, um... I think I like chests because I¡¯m still young?¡±

    My parents had the warm, teasing smiles they could only show to a child buying a robot with adult functions.

    It was quite the surreal scene if I do say so myself.

    The elderly butler standing behind them¨C Brian, was sending over looks that seemed to say he hadplex feelings about all this.

    I could feel myself burning up in shame and embarrassment.

    As I thought, this is quite unusual, isn¡¯t it?

    But now I¡¯m sure.

    This is probably the support the guide said he¡¯d send over.

    Putting aside how I was worried about how meddlesome my parents would be, I was afraid of women and how they¡¯d act around me.

    Women of flesh-and-blood can¡¯t be trusted.

    So I thought the robot maid was a really nice gift.

    I¡¯d have no worries about her betraying me.

    In any case, I ended up choosing the one with the highest specs.

    Confirming my choices, I set it so that she¡¯d be wearing a ssic maid outfit.

    Miniskirts and such were overkill.

    I was troubled whether I should set the skirt to be above or below the knees, but in the end I set it below them.

    Darcy¡¯s delight at my choices was just barely noticeable.

    Hey, you know you still bought your son a robot maid fully capable of processing sexual desires, right?

    ¡°Oh, she¡¯s quite pretty. I¡¯m sure that if we left Liam to this robot, he¡¯d be quite safe.¡±

    I couldn¡¯t help but feel difort at my parents¡¯ attitude.

    Gathering my courage, I looked up at the two of them and asked,

    ¡°Are you going somewhere?¡±

    Cliff was rubbing his jaw.

    ¡°The Star Empire¨C I bought a residence in their capital, and we n to move there.¡±

    I started to sign the electronic documents that would transfer over the status and territory.

    Then Darcy showed me another electronic document.

    ¡°Oh yes, Liam, sign here too please.¡±

    It was a document that said I¡¯d send them living expenses over at the star capital every year.

    They were giving everything to me while they themselves would live out a simple urban life.

    ...they¡¯re really pitiful parents.

    This child of yours is a reincarnated person, it was the ridiculous truth that I already had the mentality of a fully grown man.

    I don¡¯t know what the guide did, but such a loving couple was now handing over their entire life¡¯s status and property to me.

    What else could I call this if not pitiful?

    We might¡¯ve not spent the most time together, but it¡¯s only natural I¡¯d send over living expenses to a couple that have given me so much.

    ¡°Of course!¡±

    Only my face was smiling.

    I was about to take everything away from the parents that I wasn¡¯t even that close to.

    Even so, I signed the electronic documents that seemed to push high expectations for my future.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A few dayster.

    Liam¡¯s parents arrived at the space port docks while being protected by an escort.

    They boarded the private shuttle together, but they were actually sitting apart from one another.

    First they¡¯d leave the spaceport on thisvishly decorated shuttle, but from then on it¡¯d be a straight trip over to the Star Capital on an official empire spacecraft.

    This was quite the exciting development for a provincial Earl household.

    While Cliff was reading an electronic newspaper, he opened his mouth and called out to Darcy.

    They weren¡¯t even looking at each other.

    ¡°You gave him a robot, are you even aware of your own motherhood?¡±

    In contrast, Darcy was drinking tea.

    There was no love between the two of them.

    Their rtionship was that of two nobles that had a political marriage.

    ¡°He¡¯s a child who inherited my genes. My stomach went through many pains just to give birth to him, yet I can¡¯t say I feel any real affection towards him.¡±

    Liam was the product of their two genesbining together.

    That¡¯s all he was to them.

    As Cliff put his newspaper down on the table, it was Darcy who spoke up this time.

    ¡°...are you sure it was okay to leave everything over to a five-year-old?¡±

    ¡°If I say it isn¡¯t, are you going to stay?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m being serious here.¡±

    Darcy continued after taking another sip of tea.

    ¡°I would never have married you if I couldn¡¯t have this chance at freedom, but I can¡¯t help but feel a little guilty forsaking a child who knows nothing. I gave him a robot, so isn¡¯t that at least a small mercy?¡±

    Cliff wasughing.

    ¡°A nobleman keeping a robot at his side, he¡¯ll no doubt be aughingstock.¡±

    ¡°You won¡¯t betray me, I can at least trust you in that aspect, but if something happens to that boy we¡¯ll be forced to return here, can¡¯t you see that?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t think about it.¡±

    Darcy was anxious.

    ¡°So you¡¯re totally fine with this? You have no qualms with pushing a five-year-old child into a venomous position he¡¯s not ready for?¡±

    Cliff reached out for some alcohol.

    He was finally free from it all, and couldn¡¯t help but smile at the newfound liberation he felt.

    ¡°It¡¯s not unheard of, there are precedents of others seeding that young, besides we have the permission of the royal court. There are lots of other people doing the same thing, so don¡¯t worry. Nowadays, it doesn¡¯t really matter who the lord is, nobody wants to rule over a frontier region like that.¡±

    The Empire was okay with imposing status and property onto five-year-olds.

    But there¡¯s a reason for this.

    ¡°The Empire doesn¡¯t really want to get involved with the frontiers, as long as there¡¯s a proper administrator there, it doesn¡¯t really matter if one neglects their duties.¡±

    For an intergctic empire, governance was very difficult.

    Moreover, the Empire has tried to avoid the use of artificial intelligences since its formation.

    Humanity was once dominated by the very artificial intelligences they created to serve them.

    And it was the people of the empire who rose up against that unreasonable force.

    As a result, the aristocracy couldn¡¯t feel at ease when maid robots and the like which used said artificial intelligence were nearby.

    It was the noble society¡¯s trend to use it only if necessary, but even then it was undesirable.

    Darcy looked down towards the space port that the shuttle departed from.

    The owned by the Banfield family.

    A sullen ce that was scarcely developed.

    In addition, it was in massive debt.

    ¡°If he knew about the territory, there¡¯s no doubt Liam would be angry.¡±

    Cliff¡¯s drink was probably strong, since his face was now a little redder.

    ¡°I¡¯m pushing my territory to my only child and fleeing to the Star Capital...¡±

    A ce that no one would be happy to live at.

    That, was the territory of the Banfield family.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Banfield main estate.

    An Earl at the age of five, I had be a man who ruled over an entire gxy.

    ¡°Now I¡¯m one of those in power, or maybe I can call myself a king?¡±

    In the empire, there were many houses on the level of the Banfield family.

    But as long as I was in my own territory, I was the king.

    An absolute person of power.

    Brian brought over a report to me, who was sitting in an oversized chair in my father¡¯s former office.

    ¡°Liam, your maid robot has arrived.¡±

    ¡°Understood, let her in.¡±

    ¡°As you wish¨C enter.¡±

    The door to the office opened, and the maid robot that I saw from the catalogue walked inside.

    Her movements feltpletely natural.

    If I didn¡¯t know beforehand, there¡¯d have been no way I would¡¯ve guessed that she¡¯s actually a robot.

    Once she finally arrived in front of me, she proceeded to curtsy, picking up the ends of her skirt and bowing.

    ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to make your acquaintance. Master,1 I am your new maid, designated as ¡®Amagi.¡¯¡±

    [Amagi], that¡¯s a japanese name.

    There¡¯s no particr reason why, she¡¯s just named that way.

    Meanwhile Brian was standing by nonchntly.

    ¡°Master, I n to stay by your side to take care of you, however, it seems that I need to receive maintenance once every week.¡±

    ¡°Maintenance?¡±

    As I looked over her, maybe Amagi¡¯s greetings were over, because she then proceeded after standing up straight.

    ¡°For regr maintenance, I can finish in about two hours.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s surprising, I thought it would¡¯ve taken longer than that.¡±

    Brian followed up, seeing how it surpassed my expectations,

    ¡°Even if it says maintenance, it¡¯s just a body checkup. Cleaning and such, but if there¡¯s a serious problem, then we¡¯d have to send it back to the manufacturer for repairs.¡±

    When you think about it, isn¡¯t it amazing that all it needs to maintain itself is just two hours of rest every week?

    In curiosity, I stretched my hands out towards Amagi.

    She then approached me, and gently lifted me up and proceeded to hug me.

    I could feel her chest. It was a big chest that¡¯d be impossible for me to grasp with my small hands.

    ¡°Its soft. The softness that every man desires.¡±

    They weren¡¯t too soft, they had a certain toughness to them, and they felt really nice.

    Brian looked a bit perplexed.

    ¡°Lord Liam, please refrain from doing such things in public.¡±

    Brian is a man who¡¯s been serving the Banfield family for a long time, I¡¯ve heard that he even managed the house for a while long ago.

    Though as a butler, it seems he didn¡¯t have the skills necessary for managing the house, but he was still a talent that we were reluctant to fire.

    Even so, I¡¯m the master here.

    I was already in a ridiculous position, so I decided to abandon my childishness.

    ¡°What I do is my business. Anyways, continue with the report about the territory.¡±

    Brian proceeded to touch his bracelet, and pictures started floating out around him.

    They represented the state of the territory in numerical figures and graphs.

    There was even a map disyed there.

    ¡°...I have no idea what any of this means.¡±

    Brian seemed to have a slightly disappointed atmosphere of ¡®as expected,¡¯ but you couldn¡¯t really see it on his face.

    Still, this is bad.

    I have no idea what to do.

    While I was contemting how much trouble I was in, Amagi, who was still holding me close to her heart, spoke up,

    ¡°I have the functions to act as an assistant governor if necessary. Master, if it¡¯s okay, would you like me to assist you?¡±

    ¡°Really? I seriously don¡¯t understand any of this, you know?¡±

    ¡°I rmend you enter into an education capsule. During this time, I can temporarily take over the administration rights of the territory.¡±

    Listening to that, Brian bursts out in protest.

    ¡°Lord Liam, I¡¯mpletely against this! Leaving administration to an artificial intelligence is considered taboo in the Empire! Even allowing her to support you like this is questionable enough.¡±

    But Amagi refuted his im.

    ¡°There are no suchws in the Empire, that is more of society¡¯s mindset of things, but either way, I will follow the master¡¯s orders.¡±

    Educational capsules sure were convenient devices.

    When ced inside the capsule¡¯s liquid, the knowledge you desire will automatically start to enter your mind while putting your body through physical therapy.

    If it were elementary school knowledge, then you¡¯d have to rest inside the capsule for a least half a year.

    The problem is that you won¡¯t actually be able to retain that strengthened body and sharpened mind unless you actually go outside to train and study afterwards. What was the point in living life if you were permanently stuck inside a capsule?

    Even so, I hear that it¡¯s still many times more efficient than studying normally.

    Looking at these numbers and graphs, I felt once again how ipetent I was.

    ¨CModern knowledge from my previous life won¡¯t help me with domestic affairs here.

    ¡°Brian, prepare the capsule. Amagi, I will leave the territory in your care while I¡¯m inside.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam!¡±

    Brian cried out in dissent, but Amagi just responded with, ¡°Please leave it to me.¡±

    It looks like mymands are the only ones that she¡¯ll listen to.

    Isn¡¯t this quite wonderful?

    I moved to persuade Brian.

    ¡°Brian, look at the facts. I really don¡¯t know anything about this, so are you sure its okay for me to run the territory as I am now?¡±

    ¡°T-that may be so, but-¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s only going to be for a little while, if you understand, then get it ready.¡±

    In any case, if I can leave the work to someone else, I might as well.

    Society might denounce artificial intelligences, but that doesn¡¯t matter to me.

    That said, I was still in a bad position.

    If I just wanted to oppress the people, then I don¡¯t think I really had any need to study.

    However, let¡¯s keep this to myself for now.

    My body is still that of a child.

    It¡¯d be much harder for me to oppress them if they undermined my authority due to my age.

    I continued to think about such things as I stared at Amagi¡¯s chest.

 Chapter 2 - The Butler and the Swordsman

    <h4>The Butler and the Swordsman</h4>

    Brian, who was a butler for the Banfield family,mented in his heart as he looked over the mansion.

    The mansion that the former Banfield Earl renovated was quite unique and wacky, conservatively speaking.

    Unreservedly speaking, it was in bad taste.

    Whenever visitors arrived, their faces would wince and they¡¯d avoid topics that had to do with the mansion.

    There were many of them who had a hard time holding in theirughter.

    The hallways winded around inefficiently, almost akin to a maze.

    It wasn¡¯t umon for neers to lose their way.

    As Brian walked down the corridor, he could overhear some servants chatting in hushed voices.

    They came from a young man and women, respectively.

    The young man was actually the gardener, but it seems he left his work to a machine today.

    He was talking to an unconventional maid whose uniform included a mini-skirt rather than a normal one.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it fine?¡±

    ¡°But if we¡¯re found out, we¡¯ll get into a lot of trouble.¡±

    ¡°Its okay, there are some rooms that aren¡¯t in use anymore we can go to.¡±

    The man grabbed the maid¡¯s shoulders and pulled her away somewhere.

    Even if Brian did run into them, he wouldn¡¯t even greet them.

    While hiring these employees, their appearance had taken precedent over the necessary skills and character needed for their jobs.

    Brianmented.

    ¡°For things to fall this far...¡±

    Things were different in the past.

    When Brian first started serving the Banfield family, the house was orderly and the servants were serious.

    All of this is because Liam¡¯s grandfather had destroyed the territory.

    He had oppressed the people, and the house¡¯s finances were poorly allocated.

    When the debt swelled, he pushed it all off onto his son Cliff and ran away to the Star Capital.

    These thoughts depressed Brian as he thought about the Earl house¡¯s former glory. Shaking it off, he straightened his spine and approached the office door.

    He tentatively touched the electronic device mounted on the wall.

    ¡°Lord Liam? It¡¯s Brian.¡±

    A voice came out of the device in response.

    ¡°¨CYou may enter.¡±

    It was an irritated voice that didn¡¯t match its young inflection.

    As the door opened and Brian entered the office, he could see Liam, who had Amagi by his side as he worked.

    The desk was made for a fully grown man, but the chair was built for a child.

    Liam¡¯s countenance showcased one of a child who was doing their best to hold in theirints.

    Next to Liam, Amagi was acting as his secretary as she supported him.

    ¡°Lord Liam, can I get you anything?¡±

    When Liam stood up from his chair, he joined his hands behind his back.

    Despite being a child still, it looks like he was doing a splendid job.

    ¡°...Brian, I have never left the house before, did you know that?¡±

    ¡°Ah, yes. Even the rehabilitation exercises we had you do a few days were done inside the mansion.¡±

    There was no need to go outside.

    He was hoping that Liam wouldn¡¯t notice.

    -What would he think once he realizes that house he lives in was built in such bad taste?

    ¡°Don¡¯t you think that this house is too terrible?¡±

    Brian wanted to agree, but as a butler who served the family he couldn¡¯t bad mouth the predecessor¡¯s tastes.

    ¡°I think it¡¯s a very creative build.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t patronize me!¡±

    Liam eximed furiously as he stomped the ground with his small body.

    He sent a look towards Amagi, where she nodded before bringing up a projection on the various renovations and buildings created by both Cliff¡¯s generation and his grandfather.

    Houses, vis and many buildings were projected around Brian.

    Irrefutably, it was a horrendous sight.

    ¡°Are they stupid? Are they STUPID?! Why would they build all these in such strange shapes?! They¡¯re only making the buildings harder to live in!¡±

    All of them were bad houses.

    Some of the houses were given to rtives.

    However, there weren¡¯t any rtives who knew about the Banfield house¡¯s financial situation because all of them have already fled to the Star Capital.

    The fact that Liam was only five-years-old, yet was already the lord of the territory was no problem either, as none of his rtives opposed it.

    ¨Cbecause there were no such rtives living in the territory in the first ce.

    As for the knights, many of their sessors left to serve other houses, or havepletely abandoned the territory all together with thest generation.

    It¡¯s the people who¡¯re left that manage the territory now.

    The military is a more of a militia run by the popce too.

    If Liam doesn¡¯t have any vassals around him, then he can¡¯t rely or delegate duties to them.

    (We have a lot of hard work ahead of us. Fleeing to the city, and forcing all their problems onto a child... If this was still Lord Alistair¡¯s era, there¡¯s no way things like this would happen.)

    Liam made a deration before Brian.

    ¡°Take them all down, this mansion as well. I¡¯ll prepare a residence suitable for myself.¡±

    Brian started to panic.

    ¡°W-wait, where do you n to live in the meantime then?¡±

    Liam looked a little sad.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter, anywhere will do.¡±

    Amagi followed up perfectly just when I was feeling troubled.

    ¡°Master, please be patient and wait for us to set up a new residence first.¡±

    ¡°Why should I?¡±

    ¡°If we really are going to demolish them all, we should do it bit by bit to reduce maintenance costs, and in the meantime we¡¯ll prepare a suitable house for you, Master. Until then, why don¡¯t we first build a small house with the bare minimum of required utilities. How about that?¡±

    Prepare a house for a minimalist before building a luxurious residence.

    Brian couldn¡¯t help but rx at the proposal.

    (Is this better than shouldering another new debt? No, wouldn¡¯t there still be deficits from the dismantling costs?)

    Liam stopped to think for a little, before epting Amagi¡¯s n.

    ¡°True, I should take the time to build my house carefully. Taking that into consideration, do we have enough money to spare?¡±

    Amagi then started to talk about their uing ns.

    ¡°We¡¯re a bit under, so I rmend that we reorganise the military forces at the main base-¡±

    ¡°Reorganise the military?¡±

    Lords and nobles are allowed to have their own personal armies.

    Liam had only just started working recently and wasn¡¯t familiar with the territory.

    Amagi then presented the data to Liam¡¯s admiration.

    ¡°We have 30,000 space battleships?¡±

    Amagi looked up from the data,

    ¡°We do, but the upancy rate for them is less than 20%.¡±

    Out of the 30,000 ships, there were no more than 6000 in active duty.

    In addition, they were all old outdated models. They were no more than 30,000 paper-mache tigers, they looked scary but that was it.

    ¡°You can leave it as it is, but we only need a minimum of 3000 ships, so let¡¯s cut military funding. Our upkeep expenses will be reduced by several magnitudes if we do.¡±

    ¡°Is that enough for the territory? I am the ruler of an entire gxy, you know?¡±

    When you think about things on a gctic scale, would even the full force of 30,000 be enough?

    Brian knew the answer to that question and in truth-

    ...its difficult to say,

    ¡°Lord Liam, we certainly have the administrative rights to an entire gxy, but we can barely manage this one and its resources alone. We simply don¡¯t have enough personnel.¡±

    ¡°Understood, then we¡¯ll take a disarmament policy for the time being.¡±

    Although the territory under his dominion was wide, there were only a few locations that were actually managed by him.

    ¡°Now, let¡¯s being the restructuring right away, it looks like we have some hope in securing a budget.¡±

    ¡°Stop making that face.¡±

    After being told that, Brian couldn¡¯t help but panic a little.

    It was quite concerning that Liam seemed to easily take to the opinions of an artificial intelligence.

    ¡°Please wait one moment! Lord Liam, its customary in the Empire to at least have a force equivalent to 10,000 ships! If we break down the military that much we might get invaded by our neighboring lords! This is a very dangerous venture!¡±

    Liam looked troubled, so Amagi gave her opinion as well,

    ¡°Their militaries are quite old fashioned as well, so the neighboring lords only have their fleets for the sake of showmanship. Well, I imagine they

    go on the attack if we started reinforcing ourselves with new arms from the Empire.¡±

    One-tenth of our current forces was enough.

    But it¡¯s still true that the neighboring lords are dangerous, this is a gamble.

    This opinion needed to be heard.

    Even without the lords, there were still many dangerous individuals in the universe.

    Such as space pirates.

    ¡°Lord Liam, it¡¯s important to have a fleet! Please reconsider!¡±

    But Liam rejected the plea.

    ¡°I don¡¯t need paper-mache tigers, what I need is an army that can actually fight. Amagi, we¡¯re proceeding with the reorganization.¡±

    Amagi then describes the future ns in detail.

    ¡°We¡¯ll do our best to re-educate and re-train our current forces. After that, I rmend that we slowly build up and expand the military in ordance to our financial situation.¡±

    Liam seemed satisfied with that n.

    ¡°Finish up quickly.¡±

    ¡ªBrian couldn¡¯t help but think,

    (This child¡¯s determination... it reminds me of the Earl I once admired.)

    Liam¡¯s great grandfather Alistair, was a fine nobleman.

    Brian couldn¡¯t help but superimpose that image onto Liam.

    His only downside was how he seemed to have a sweet spot for his android.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ...this, sucks.

    After I stepped out of the capsule I had to go through some physical therapy and tutoring for a while, but when I got to work I was stunned by the territory¡¯s current situation.

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing for me to squeeze out of them! They¡¯ve already been squeezed dry!¡±

    This is a universe where science and magic should¡¯ve developed equally.

    Yet the lives of the people living in my territory looked worse than those living in modern Japan from my previous life.

    This was an intergctic state.

    Even though we were living in an era where space battleships went to war by firing epicsers at each other and such, it looks like my territory has been left behind by the times.

    If things are like this, it¡¯d be impossible for me to oppress the popce any more than they already have been.

    In the first ce, this was the Banfield House¡¯s territory, so why is it so deste?

    ¡°Howe nobody tried to develop the territory?¡±

    Amagi swiftly provides an answer to myints.

    ¡°Even if you didn¡¯t do anything, it¡¯ll develop. As the noble who rules over them, the easiest path would be to just let them grow the way they want to. Trying to develop the area yourself is a very difficult thing to do and manage.¡±

    ¡°Employ artificial intelligences to manage the projects!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re the only one who would ept such conditions. At the very least, I¡¯ll be here to assist you whenever possible.¡±

    They wrung them out to dry and took everything they could without leaving the popce enough resources to sustain and grow the territory themselves.

    It seems like they thought it¡¯d be fine as long as they just threw some of them into learning capsules if they wanted knowledge, while throwing manpower to those who were silent.

    The oppressed people were just forcibly taught a multitude of things, the majority of which being knowledge that they couldn¡¯t even put into practical use.

    There was nowhere for me to mess around with.

    As an Evil Lord, I¡¯m already in a crisis!

    ¡°This... did my parents just force onto me the ruined territory that they couldn¡¯t save themselves?¡±

    Did the guide lie to me?

    That can¡¯t be. I shook my head in denial as Amagi spoke to me softly,

    ¡°Master, the Banfield family¡¯s territory is definitely in a bad situation, but there¡¯s nowhere we can go but up from here. If you manage the tax and territory correctly, we can probably rebound in ten to twenty years.¡±

    People have long life expectancy in this era.

    In this universe you be an adult once you turn fifty years old.

    But even at the age of fifty, what was terrifying is that they could still have the appearance of someone from my previous life in their teenage years.

    With that said, twenty years wasn¡¯t actually a long time inparison to my lifespan.

    ¡°...it¡¯ll only take twenty years?¡±

    ¡°Yes, in twenty years the territory will recover.¡±

    If Amagi says so then it has to be true.

    Even if I want to oppress them, there¡¯s no point if the people have nothing for me to take in the first ce.

    Besides, my body is still young.

    I have plenty of time to learn the ropes and make some investments.

    There¡¯s no problem as long as I can collect the profitster.

    ¡°If we don¡¯t have the necessary budget at the moment, then let¡¯s just invest it all. I¡¯ll reap the profits from them eventually. In any case, Amagi, I want power.¡±

    ¡°You want to increase your forces? If it¡¯s about weapo-¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m talking about individual power. My own personal power.¡±

    ¡°You want to train your body?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I want to be strong. Martial arts or anything is fine.¡±

    I¡¯ve already suffered quite a bit from simple violence.

    Whenever the repo men came to collect on the debts, I couldn¡¯t help but quake in fear.

    Even though I believed that violence is meaningless, I had to acknowledge that power is something necessary in certain situations.

    To be able to step on others, I need strength.

    I want to have the power to not be afraid of others.

    I want to be ready in case things get violent.

    I want to be strong for that reason.

    ¡°Master, I don¡¯t believe that¡¯s necessary, but if that¡¯s your wish, then I can gather the minimum things needed.¡±

    ¡°Rejected, gather for me the best teachers you can find.¡±

    In order to not be robbed of anything ever again.

    I wanted the power- to steal everything from them first.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The guide was standing there in a ck space.

    He set his travel bag down and was grinning while watching a video.

    The video shown was that of the woman that Liam used to be married to in his previous life. It had only been a few years, and yet she had grown so haggard.

    ¡°You¡¯ve been through quite a lot, haven¡¯t you? You¡¯re aplete mess, and your hair is filthy.¡±

    He froze the video on the image of her together with both her original daughter and two new children.

    The guide looked upon the image of the former wife with joy.

    All around him were images of people who were just as miserable.

    ¡°Oops, I¡¯ve been distracted for too long, I can¡¯t forget about him now. Let¡¯s see, what¡¯s the situation?¡±

    He cocked his head.

    There was the reincarnator- Liam, who was now seven years old1 and talking to a robot.

    He wasughing.

    ¡°It¡¯s amazing how something that looks so alive is actually just some manufactured doll. In addition, he hasn¡¯t even realized that by keeping it nearby he¡¯s beenpromising his social status. Now this has potential.¡±

    Even though he put him in such a terrible environment, his spirits are still high.

    In the video, Liam suddenly dered that he wanted power.

    Human who had been threatened with violence in the past, yet wanted that same power in their next lives- the guide loved humans like that.

    ¡°I want the power to make sure I never lose anything important to me ever again! It might be a long and difficult path to change, but that¡¯s fine!¡±

    The guide reached out and touched the picture.

    ck smoke started to emanate from his body and prated into the image.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you this small gift. It¡¯s my motto to always have a good after-sales service ready!¡±

    The personnel needed were ready.

    He searched for the man that was going to be Liam¡¯s teacher and forcibly made a connection.

    The man was going to be Liam¡¯s master of martial arts anyway, so...

    ¡°I hope you have fun, Liam. I¡¯ll make sure I¡¯m there to grab you once everything falls apart.¡±

    The guide then continued to watch Liam with his crescent-like smile.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Banfield House Port.

    A man had arrived there.

    Wearing a kimono.

    He was also wearing a hakama, so his appearance was simr to that of a samurai- no, a ronin.

    There was a sword hanging on his waist.

    ¡°It¡¯s been awhile since I¡¯ve been to the frontier.¡±

    The man¡¯s name was Yasushi.

    He looked a bit vulgar, but he was the man that hade to teach Liam martial arts.

    Originally, the master of martial arts Amagi requested for was another man.

    However, due to the bad reputation surrounding the Banfield family, the master declined the request.

    And passed it off to Yasushi instead.

    ¡®Take this request in my ce, and bring me the reward.¡¯

    Yasushi was in the master¡¯s debt, so he epted- albeit reluctantly.

    The master nominated Yasushi to go in his ce, and in turn this decided who Liam¡¯s teacher would be.

    However- Yasushi had a secret.

    While it is true that he had learned many martial arts, he couldn¡¯t use them any of them without being hit by dizzy spells.

    He was the kind of liar that would say he mastered martial arts, and then show off a couple tricks for an apuse while earning a quick buck.

    ¡°I¡¯m told my client¡¯s just a brat, so this should be easy enough. Even so, it¡¯s a shame that he ended up with me as his teacher.¡±

    He was going to teach him, he was going to teach him everything he could.

    However, secret techniques and such were impossible.

    If he¡¯s just some spoiled brat then he¡¯ll get tired of things soon enough. Though it would be nice to have a more moderate kid to boss around.

    ¡°Even so, for him to ask for a sword master... he¡¯s probably a strange one.¡±

    Swords were used in this era, but they weren¡¯t that prominent anymore.

    They still had a certain poprity, sure, but even then most would choose a western sword to master instead.

    Yasushi had also followed the way of the sword for a long time.

    ¡°Now, I wonder how much money I¡¯ll be able to squeeze out of this kid...¡±

    In a nutshell, this man was a faker.

    The man who scams others with tricks was chosen by the guide¡¯s malice to be Liam¡¯s master.

 Chapter 3 - School of the One-Flash

    <h4>School of the One-sh</h4>

    Someone with the atmosphere of an old man had arrived.

    At the end of the wacky mansion¡¯s garden, the old man- my new teacher Master Yasushi1 was sitting in front of me.

    He was a bearded man wearing a shabby kimono.

    He looked like a ronin, but somehow the atmosphere about him was different.

    He was probably someone who had mastered ¡®true¡¯ martial arts.

    ¡°...Sir Liam.¡±

    Slowly and quietly the master called my name.

    ¡°Y-yes?¡±

    Maybe noticing how I was shaking, master started to smile.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to be so tense. First, I guess I¡¯ll exin some things about my style.¡±

    Master showed me his katana.

    Swords were something that were used in this universe, so it¡¯d be better to learn how to use it if I can.

    There wasn¡¯t anything special about it, but I could really feel the atmosphere of a master around him. I could tell, he was a great choice for an instructor.

    ¡°Sir Liam, this is my school¡¯s only secret technique, so don¡¯t show or use it recklessly. With that said, I still need to show you the benefits of studying under me, so this is a special case. If possible, I¡¯d appreciate it if you were the only one to witness it.¡±

    This is great.

    I didn¡¯t think that I¡¯d be shown a secret technique so soon.

    Standing behind me, Amagi sent a suspicious look towards Master.

    ¡°Uneptable, that would be a breach of safety protocols.¡±

    But Master didn¡¯t break his expression.

    ¡°In that case, I will have to decline this job request.¡±

    I immediately gave the order to Amagi.

    ¡°Amagi, I¡¯ll permit it.¡±

    Frowning, and with a look that showed she was a little hesitant-

    ¡°...please call me for help if something happens.¡±

    Said this and left.

    Once it was just the two of us, Master took out some logs he had prepared beforehand.

    He handed them over to me.

    ¡°Are you going to cut this?¡±

    ¡°You bet, just ce them anywhere you wish, Sir Liam. Preferably, somewhere farther than my sword¡¯s length.¡±

    Once I decided where I wanted them, Master told me to just stick them into the ground.

    After the logs were set, Master began to ready his stance from a distance his sword couldn¡¯t possibly reach.

    The de was still sheathed.

    ¡°Sir Liam, the ¡®sh¡¯ is a secret technique thatbines both the powers of martial arts and magic power. This one technique is enough. If you can master this, then all you need to practice from then on would be the basics.¡±

    I was breathless in the atmosphere surrounding Master.

    ¡°This is a technique that must never be seen. The moment that someone is able to see it, it loses all meaning. This is the secret behind the ¡®sh.¡¯¡±

    Having said that, Master pressed his thumb against the hilt of his sword and pushed it out of its sheath slightly, making a clear snapping sound.

    His right arm didn¡¯t even move to draw it.

    If I didn¡¯t know any better, than I would¡¯ve thought he didn¡¯t do anything at all but-

    ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me.¡±

    -All the logs were cleaved and fell to the ground.

    The cuts were so beautiful, its as if they were cut with apletely different de.

    There¡¯s no way that the de could reach this far, was the technique something akin to a sword draw?2

    Master exhaled a loud breath and turned towards me while I was puzzled.

    ¡°This is the secret technique, ¡®sh.¡¯¡±

    ¡°How did you cut them?¡±

    To my astonished self, Master disyed his sword to me again and lightly shook it.

    Another log was sliced in two, one of the extra ones that I didn¡¯t set up, but the thing was, it was behind Master this time.

    ¡°You¡¯ll understand as you undergo the process of learning it. Only through rigorous self-discipline can someone learn the answer. With that said, I¡¯ll ask you, do you want to learn the sh?¡±

    I quickly nodded my head.

    ¡°I do!¡±

    Fantasy universes are amazing! I never would¡¯ve thought in my wildest dreams that there were skills like this!

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Several years have passed since that day.

    Liam is ten years old now.

    Everyday, he continued to train in the basics Yasushi taught him.

    Yasushi was watching him from a distance.

    ¡°Children sure do learn things quickly... Now then, what should I do for our next lesson?¡±

    He not only taught the basics of the sword, but also the basics of spearmanship, hand-to-handbat, knives, and many other things.

    In the first ce, Yasushi didn¡¯t have a lot that he could teach anyways.

    Even while he was teaching Liam, there were even times when he couldn¡¯t even pass on the basics clearly.

    Yasushi was resting in the shade of a tree as he looked towards the new mansion.

    The old weird-looking mansion was demolished, and a rather simple mansion was built in its stead.

    ¡°The Banfields are said to have a terrible taste in architecture, but that kid seems to have rather humble preferences.¡±

    Yasushi didn¡¯t think that he was treated that badly, butpared to the other nobles he had seen, Liam was terribly frugal.

    Even today he was desperately practicing the basics.

    In just three years, Yasushi was already running out of things to teach.

    So now he just watched.

    ¡°It nice being able to just watch, but that robotes over to observe him too every now and then. Now, just why does he keep something like that by his side?¡±

    Nobles generally preferred to avoid robots when possible.

    This truth only further increased Yasushi¡¯s impression of Liam being a strange person.

    ¡°...noble society sure isplicated. Forcing the right to rule over a territory to a little kid.¡±

    It was a dull territory, but at least it was better than how it used to be a few years ago.

    Former soldiers and civil servants who had received vocational training were developing the infrastructure of thend.

    Development had stagnated in the territory, but the region was slowly bing more vibrant as the use of tax money and cirction of goods had risen far higher than they were before.

    But Yasushi knew the true circumstances behind the Banfield house.

    Just because things got a little better, didn¡¯t mean that their huge debt was going to just disappear.

    Even if things developed a bit, they¡¯d just be bled ordingly.

    ¡°If you look at things that way, maybe it¡¯s just because the kid¡¯s poor.¡±

    Yasushi felt a little sympathetic towards Liam.

    But that¡¯s all he felt.

    As long as the kid still thought he was teaching him, he¡¯d mooch off of him for as long as possible.

    However, there was just one thing that bothered him.

    ¡°Still... I know that kid abhors corruption, so if I¡¯m found out won¡¯t I be executed as well?¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    It¡¯s been a while since I started learning martial arts.

    A new mansion had beenpleted-

    ¡°Well, this should be fine, right?¡±

    My first impression of the provisional mansion was that it was enough.

    It was definitely big.

    Even the ceiling was high. ¡®This really is a mansion,¡¯ it gave off that kind of feeling.

    It was neither strange nor original, but it wasn¡¯t an inconvenient ce to live.

    Amagi spoke to me while I was signing documents in my office.

    ¡°Master, when do you n to enter the capsule again?¡±

    ¡°Is it already that time?¡±

    It was time to enter the education capsule again.

    Due to time limitations, it wasn¡¯t possible to go through normal schooling that stretched across many years.

    So I had to enter it several times before I became an adult.

    ¡°When will it be okay for me to enter?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re free to enter whenever you wish, we¡¯ve already nned ahead for half a year.¡±

    ¡°Understood, then I¡¯ll enter it soon.¡±

    Basically, managing a was impossible for an individual.

    After all, problems were always urring on a day-to-day basis.

    I couldn¡¯t do this alone.

    So I gathered the best officials among the popce and assigned them to manage various regions.

    Amagi¡¯s hand stopped after reading over one document.

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°Please look at this document.¡±

    It was just a normal document, but there was something strange about its contents.

    Looking into it, it turns out that the official that wrote it was doing illegal activities to increase his profits.

    ¡°Summon the man who sent this document to me immediately.¡±

    ¡°As you wish.¡±

    Amagi proceeded to contact them, and a few hourster, a man who held considerable power among the officials arrived at the mansion.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The tall man dressed in a suit was clearly agitated.

    Yet he put on his best smile as he addressed me.

    ¡°My lord, I don¡¯t think you understand, but these costs were necessary for my job.¡±

    That¡¯s what he says.

    But I¡¯ve already read Amagi¡¯s reports.

    Once again, I couldn¡¯t help but marvel at how amazing AI¡¯s were.

    ¡°I¡¯ve already confirmed the misappropriation of government funds. We¡¯ve also confirmed various other offenses that you¡¯vemitted.¡±

    I confirmed these after checking out various other documents.

    For him tomit so many atrocities and still smile in front of me like they were nothing...

    Everything from simple embezzlement, to sending out bribes and corrupting other officials.

    But it¡¯s one thing in particr that caught my eye.

    He actually hit somebody with a car, but wasn¡¯t held ountable at all.

    To the family that protested against him... he erased them.

    Moreover, he yed around with the man¡¯s wife before throwing her away.

    The official continued to make excuses in front of me.

    ¡°My lord, don¡¯t believe what the robots say. They¡¯re the beings that destroyed the old civilization and are the enemies of humanity. Please forgive me m¡¯lord. Certainly, I¡¯vemitted a few crimes, but everyone else is doing these things as well, it¡¯s a necessary expenditure needed for me to continue doing my work.¡±

    Before the official that started spouting utter nonsense, I grabbed the sword I had kept nearby.

    Amagi tried to stop me.

    ¡°Master, don¡¯t do this!¡±

    As I started to unsheathe my de, the official immediately began to genuflect in front of me.

    ¡°That was just a joke, sire! You still need me alive! The only reason why you can still rule over us is thanks to my suppo¨C¡±

    I drew my sword and bisected the official in half.

    Blood spurted out and stained the room red.

    ¡°...your mouth, close it.¡±

    Amagi started using some kind of spray on me.

    The blood stains on me started to bubble up and disappear.

    ¡°Master, he¡¯s already dead.¡±

    I looked down at the body, the image of it started to ovep with the adulterer from my previous life.

    The man who took everything away from me.

    One of hiswyers came and suddenly started spouting usations, saying that I was in the wrong.

    I couldn¡¯t do anything, and was fired from thepany I worked at. It was only a cruel life that awaited me from there.

    ¡°This is my power, and my right. Trash like you deserved to die! ...I¡¯m pissed now. Amagi, look through the data thoroughly. From here on, all corrupted officials are to be executed!¡±

    I take care of the subordinates that follow me, but I have no mercy for those who try to take advantage of me for their own gain.

    I¡¯m the only one who¡¯s allowed to oppress the people of my territory.

    ¡°Master, please release your grip.¡±

    Amagi had grabbed onto my hands which were still holding the sword.

    I tried to let go, but my fingers wouldn¡¯t move.

    ¡°H-huh?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m here for you.¡±

    Gently, one by one she pried my fingers off the sword¡¯s handle.

    I was sweating profusely by the time I finally let go.

    -Am I feeling guilty for killing someone for the first time? That¡¯s quite pathetic for someone aiming to be an Evil Lord.

    Amagi received my sword that was still dripping blood and sheathed it.

    ¡°As I thought, I can¡¯t do this alone. It doesn¡¯t need to be at the same level as yourself, but start preparing suitable robots and AI¡¯s that can work management positions.¡±

    I thought as much while looking down at the official¡¯s corpse.

    AI¡¯s were more useful than trash like this.

    The only problem is the matter regarding reputation.

    Brian said that the use of AI¡¯s was something looked down on in the Empire, but that didn¡¯t matter to me.

    I was prepared for the consequences.

    ¡°How many can we afford?

    Amagi answered immediately.

    ¡°Well, we do need more personnel to manage the mansion... From a financial standpoint we can afford twelve maid units like myself. After that, if they¡¯re specifically designed to help govern the territory there shouldn¡¯t be any problems as long as we make the necessary preparations.¡±

    ¡°Do what you need to do.¡±

    ¡°I shall begin the arrangements immediately.¡±

    I looked at the official¡¯s body one more time and stuck my tongue out.

    ¡°...Amagi is better than you.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Brian was in the new mansion educating the new servants.

    They all had scared looks on their faces.

    Not too long ago, Liam had executed all the corrupt officials at once.

    He purged the territory of its filth.

    As a result, there were many rumors flying around about the young lord Liam.

    One of them being that he would immediately murder any servant who angered him.

    Brian took the time to exin the truth to them.

    ¡°Its true that you should watch your behaviour around Lord Liam, but he¡¯s kind to those who work hard. You don¡¯t need to be any more afraid of him than necessary.¡±

    One of the maids anxiously raised her hand.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°Oh, well... um... I heard Lord Liam calls over servants to serve him in ¡®that¡¯ way so, umm...¡±

    The owner of the houseys his hands on the servants.

    Such a story wasmonce among the nobility.

    Sometimes women would take advantage of these rumors and try to sell themselves into houses.

    However, it seems that girls were actually scared and felt anxious whenever they heard stories about Liam.

    ¡°Lord Liam is still young, and only keeps Amagi by his side, so there¡¯s no need for you to worry about such things.¡±

    That¡¯s when someone muttered,

    ¡°...keeping a robot by his side.¡±

    Brian was keen on those words.

    ¡°I will pretend I didn¡¯t hear those words, but please refrain from saying things of the sort from now on.¡±

    Amagi has been the source of many problems for Brian.

    That said, he couldn¡¯t help but realize something in thesest few years.

    Liam trusted Amagi far more than necessary.

    It was almost as if he was a spoiled child... and in truth, he was.

    Despite his young age, he was quite fierce and determined, but there must still be a part of him that yearned for a mother-figure.

    (Lord Liam is quite wise for his age... he should already understand that he¡¯s been abandoned. Lord Cliff, why didn¡¯t you raise him with more love?)

    ¡°Amagi is a very special existence for Lord Liam, so take care to not undermine her. If Lord Liam finds out, there¡¯s nothing I¡¯ll be able to do to help you.¡±

    While young, Liam was already feared inside the territory.

    (Despite that, the domain is definitely improving. If its Lord Liam, there¡¯s no doubt the Banfield family will be able to regain its former glory.)

    However at the same time, he did gain a little poprity for purging the corrupted officials.

    Thinking about this, Brian once again swore allegiance to Liam in his heart.

 Chapter 4 - Liam, Thirty years old

    <h4>Liam, Thirty years old</h4>

    Usually when you¡¯d think about a thirty year old, you¡¯d imagine a fully grown adult.

    But thirty years old in this universe is still the equivalent of an elementary school child.1

    I had grown a little taller than I was before from sleeping and eating well.

    Is this body not healthier than the one from my previous life¡¯s childhood?

    Everything is great, except for-

    ¡°-another failure?¡±

    I sheathed the sword I held in my left hand as I inspected the surrounding logs.

    Of the three that I set up, I was only able to cut through two.

    And even then, all the cuts are extremely rough.

    They werepletely different from the cut that Master showed me.

    My jagged slices are an embarrassment inparison to Master¡¯s. His were cut so cleanly that you would¡¯ve believed him if he had told you that they were cut beforehand.

    Master has a perplexed expression on his face as he watched me.

    Is he disappointed?

    I lowered my head in shame.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry Master, I¡¯m still nowhere close to reaching your level of skill.¡±

    Master shook his head.

    ¡°The path of the sword is long and steep, there is no end goal. With that said, you¡¯ve done well to progress this far in only twenty years.¡±

    I¡¯ve pondered about how I could replicate Master these past twenty years.

    I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d be able to do it even after I became proficient in the basics, and then I remembered Master¡¯s words.

    Magic existed in this universe.

    ¡°That¡¯s it! I need to use magic! Condense the magic power into a thin de and extend it from my sword! Is that the correct answer?¡±

    I thought that was correct, but the results were still far too different from Master¡¯s demonstration.

    While I was wondering about what I did wrong, Master started to apud.

    ¡°If you¡¯ve noticed this much, then you¡¯ve gotten close to the truth.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve gotten close?¡±

    ¡°Er, yeah, that¡¯s right. Now that you¡¯ve figured out that you need to use magic, you must now focus on mastering that magic.¡±

    ¡°I need to learn magic?¡±

    I¡¯m a noble and yet I¡¯m also learning how to use magic...

    In recent times, the magic power of individuals aren¡¯t considered that important.

    Magic would be powerless against space battleshipzers.

    Taking that into ount, martial arts were pretty much in the same boat.

    If taken to the extremes, I could bepletely ipetent in these things and be fine.

    Even so, these lessons will no doubt be useful in times of crisis.

    ¡°Yes, but in the end that¡¯s just magic. It¡¯s not enough.¡±

    ¡°Understood!¡±

    I need to study many things in earnest.

    ¡°I¡¯ll try to include some magic sses soon.¡±

    Master nodded.

    ¡°This is good, but I¡¯m going to have to seal that technique for a while. It¡¯s true that you need to learn magic, but you¡¯re not ready for it yet, so for the next decade I¡¯m going to prohibit any training other than the basics.¡±

    Even though I was finally able to achieve something!

    I shouted thoseints in my mind, but I couldn¡¯t go against Master.

    If I tried to fight against this person, I¡¯d be split into two in an instant.

    ¡°Okay, I understand.¡±

    ¡°Well for now, why not focus on your government affairs? If the lord of a territory solely focused on his martial abilities, then he¡¯d be a failure of a lord.¡±

    Is that what he¡¯s thinking?

    He must be worried about me.

    ¡°Its okay, while we¡¯re still in the process of reforming thend, the results are finally starting to bear fruit.¡±

    The military was reorganized.

    The government was reformed.

    Decisions were made to develop the territory, and the ns have already been set in motion.

    In a universe that has already made advancements into space exploration, the development capability of society is insanely high.

    Can you imagine skyscrapers being built in only a few days?

    Machines and androids controlled by the people canplete the construction things at dizzying speeds.

    ¡°You¡¯ve done well, but like always we can¡¯t neglect the basics.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    ¡°It looks like doing it normally won¡¯t help you develop any further, so for now I want you to continue while strapped on with weights and blindfolded.¡±

    ¡°You want me to wear a blindfold and weights?¡±

    Master proceeded to tie weights onto the sword and blindfolded me.

    ¡°Keep swinging the heavier de until it feels like you¡¯re swinging a small branch, and the blindfold should help you learn how to not rely on eyesight alone.¡±

    ¡°Understood!¡±

    It¡¯s like the training sessions I¡¯d see in a cartoon.

    But everything that Master says is absolute!

    ...now that I think about it, the entertainment industry hasn¡¯t developed that much due to theck of time.

    Should I try to invest a bit more there?

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Yasushi watched Liam as he swung the weighted sword blindfolded.

    (What the hell is this?! What the hell are you?!)

    His cold sweat had been going on non-stop for a while.

    There¡¯s no way Yasushi could¡¯ve predicted that he¡¯d actually transform his street magic trick into an actual secret swordsmanship technique.

    Yasushi even thought that Liam¡¯s movements were even better than himself recently.

    Even though he had only taught him the basics, Yasushi couldn¡¯t help but feel embarrassed by Liam who had developed an entire secret technique on his own.

    (If he finds out that I was lying, I¡¯d stand no chance! I¡¯d be chopped up in an instant!)

    With an atmosphere like that, there¡¯s no way he coulde clean now.

    Liam was already several steps higher than himself as a swordsman, he had already lost what little confidence in his de he had left.

    (In any case, I was stupid enough to not save any money. I can¡¯t run away anymore!)

    The rewards were already exhausted because he already spent them on luxuries.

    He¡¯d sneak out to the city every now and then, saying that he was going to check on the state on his other disciples in various other ces.

    There wasn¡¯t enough money to escape.

    (There¡¯s no other choice, let¡¯s save up the funds and disappear! Yes, that¡¯s the n. Let¡¯s do it!)

    Now that he was blindfolded, Yasushi could finally wipe his cold sweat in front of the steadfast Liam.

    (I really only taught him the basics... could he be a genius?)

    Yasushi was no teacher.

    He couldn¡¯t have possibly known Liam was this talented.

    (Argh, I don¡¯t care anymore! In any case, its earning time now. I need to research some ways to train him, or else I¡¯ll be killed!)

    Yasushi swore to endure living frugally for a while as he saved up enough money to escape.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Does it really make sense to be blindfolded?

    At the beginning I questioned this thought process.

    But now-

    ¡°I finally understand what you were trying to convey to me Master! I can now perceive what it means to use my senses other than sight! You wanted me to know that it wasn¡¯t enough to just see things with my eyes alone!¡±

    I told Master as such while I was still blindfolded.

    Master tried to walk away while I was blindfolded, but amazingly enough, I immediately discern his position just from the slight sounds of his footsteps.

    Did I surprise you Master?

    Is this not proof that I¡¯m growing up?

    ¡°W-well, it¡¯s quite surprising that you had gotten this far in such a short period of time. No, really. Just how were you able to learn this in just a few years?¡±

    It seems like my growth was unprecedented.

    I was now able to perceive people even when I wasn¡¯t looking at them.

    And I could easily swing the weighted sword with only my fingertips now.

    ¡°Look at my progress, Master! I can now swing it this easily!¡±

    ¡°Oh, umm-yeah! Don¡¯t get conceited!¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Master went on to scold me.

    ¡°While it may be true that you¡¯ve refined your senses other than vision, that all you¡¯ve done. You still haven¡¯t learned how to perceive things with magic.¡±

    After being reminded of magic, I couldn¡¯t help but be surprised that there was still so much for me to learn.

    ¡°You¡¯ve enlightened me, Master!¡±

    ¡°Of course I have! Now then, your current sword is too light, so I¡¯m going to prepare a custom one for you.¡±

    Excitement started welling up inside me after hearing that I was going to get a customized sword.

    ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to it, Master!¡±

    ¡°Aw man, that was a close one...¡±

    What does that mean?

    It felt like Master was frightened for a moment there.

    Is it just my imagination?

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    (Give me a break already, dammit!)

    Yasushi couldn¡¯t feel anything but fear towards Liam who had turned towards him even while blindfolded.

    A heavy sword was easily being swung with just his fingertips.

    Isn¡¯t that kid able to live normally blindfolded now?

    Even if Yasushi tried to run away, he¡¯d find him.

    (What do I do?! What the hell am I supposed to do?! I didn¡¯t think that he¡¯d actually learn anything from this!)

    Yasushi intended to earn himself some more time, but his ns had already gone awry in just a couple years.

    (Was this kid always a genius?! Then tell me something like that in the beginning!)

    In the first ce, Yasushi was never a teacher. He was just a con-man.

    It was impossible for him to measure Liam¡¯s talent and potential.

    (I¡¯ll order the heaviest sword I can find, I¡¯ll extend its length as well. I¡¯ll make it so it¡¯s almost impossible for him to swing it.)

    Develop his sixth sense, learn to see the unseen, strengthen his magic etc.

    Yasushi pondered ways he could extend the training when another n popped into his head.

    (That¡¯s it! I¡¯ll use that!)

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Yasushi walked up to the mansion¡¯s warehouse.

    Furniture and fragile items that were removed from the demolished building were stored here.

    Yasushi had sold the antiques he had stolen from here, even if most of them were fakes.

    Among all the items was a very old humanoid machine, a mobile knight.

    It was a lumbering giant that stood 24 meters tall inparison to the recent 14 meter-tall models.

    It was an ancient machine that was hundreds of years old, something that had fallen out of use several generations ago.

    It was the machine that Liam¡¯s great grandfather had piloted.

    Yasushi hade to the warehouse with Amagi and pointed towards the knight.

    ¡°Prepare this old machine. It¡¯s going to be Liam¡¯s new training equipment.¡±

    Amagi turned a suspicious gaze towards Yasushi.

    ¡°This is a very outdated machine, should I prepare a current model instead?¡±

    ¡°That would be very bad!¡±

    Yasushi knew that modern knights were easier to maneuver.

    As new models and generations came out, movement and other actions became much more user-friendly.

    Their performance have also been dramatically improved, so if someone like Liam started piloting one of those, he¡¯d be able to master it in just a few years.

    Yasushi wouldn¡¯t be able to buy enough time at all.

    ¡°This is also for Sir Liams sake, I want him to use this one after its been repaired.¡±

    ¡°But the parts aren¡¯t inmision anymore, it¡¯d only dy the repair time. Its universally epted to use 14 and 18-ss models, so there aren¡¯t that many factories that can even handle something of this size.¡±

    Amagi only responded politely to Yasushi because Liam recognised him as his master.

    If Liam didn¡¯t, then her response would¡¯ve been far more vulgar.

    (You don¡¯t think I don¡¯t know that?! I¡¯ll make you spend what little money you have left on this, then you won¡¯t have the time nor the funds needed to chase me. I¡¯m a genius!)

    Yasushi knew the basic mechanics of the old knight models.

    He knew that they were built to be very sturdy.

    ¡°The old machines are solidly built, with some new parts it can be far more robust than the current knights.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m telling you, it¡¯s not that simp-¡±

    As Amagi tried to deny it, Yasushi pushed through with his opinion.

    ¡°This is final! Repair this machine! This is all for Sir Liam¡¯s sake. The control method is ideal, because its a manual. It¡¯s not good to rely on recent model¡¯s auto-assistance.¡±

    Amagi reluctantly consented while after he continued to spout on for a while.

    Liam had told her to respond to Yasushi¡¯s instructions to the best of her abilities.

    ¡°I¡¯ll make the arrangements immediately.¡±

    ¡°Also, make sure to spend as much as you can. Remember, this is all for Sir Liam¡¯s sake!¡±

    Even though he knew they were in debt, Yasushi put in various orders to further tighten the house¡¯s finances.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Inside the warehouse that Yasushi had already departed from.

    Amagi looked up at the mobile knight- designation, [Avid].

    There were many exposed parts that showed the basic frame, and some parts of the armored frame were rusted.

    Looking up at the tattered Avid, Amagi couldn¡¯t help but think,

    (Is that person even qualified to teach? I¡¯m certain that my Master is stronger than him, and he doesn¡¯t give off the feeling of someone that special.)

    Just by looking at his way of way of living, Yasushi definitely didn¡¯t look like he was qualified.

    But he produced results.

    In addition to that-

    (No informationes out about him no matter how much I investigate him. Rather, that¡¯s just even more unnatural...)

    With that said, it was difficult to dismiss Yasushi because he produced results.

    Besides, there¡¯s no problem as long as his suspicious sides don¡¯t interfere with his job.

    Amagi was exasperated as to how things came to this.

    ¡°...it¡¯s an order, so I¡¯ll just do it.¡±

    In current times,rge twenty-four meter ss knights weren¡¯t widely used.

    Therefore, if they were hoping to maintain it, they couldn¡¯t hire just any factory.

    They had to bring in arge factory that had the superior facilities capable of making the needed parts.

    To give an example, it¡¯d be like taking a ssic sports car to a small garage workshop. If they didn¡¯t have the parts, then they wouldn¡¯t be able to fix it.

    ¡°I need to call in a manufacturer from the Empire.¡±

    It¡¯s one of the Empire¡¯s weapon factories who were responsible for building Avid.

    They still existed, so they were the only ce where the repairs could really be trusted.

    Amagi double-checked the Yasushi¡¯s request.

    ¡°That¡¯s a big demand, but it is possible to secure a budget. I should call someone in first though...¡±

    She wanted to have a mechanic check on Avid¡¯s condition before contacting the factory.

    As she left the warehouse thinking about what to do, she found Liam walking around blindfolded.

    Her mood instantly brightened.

    ¡°Those footsteps have to be... Amagi!¡±

    ¡°You are correct, Master.¡±

    He was walking around as if he could the surroundings clearly despite the blindfold.

    ¡°Master, it¡¯s dangerous to walk around in that condition.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s no problem, this is just practice. Anyways, I heard that you were going to prepare a knight for me?¡±

    Amagi began to talk about the knight Yasushi rmended,

    ¡°We¡¯re nning to bring in one of the old-fashioned knights, but in my opinion it¡¯d be better if we budgeted for a fourteen-meter ss instead.¡±

    Liam started to rub his chin while tilting his head.

    ¡°Its my Master¡¯s idea, so I¡¯ll talk to him about it, but for now I¡¯m going to continue walking around the estate as is.¡±

    Liam then began to walk away blindfolded.

    Amagi couldn¡¯t help but feel uneasy when looking at such a sight.

 Chapter 5 - Avid

    <h4>Avid</h4>

    Around the time when I was about to reach my mid-thirties.

    The mobile knight that I had sent out for repairs had finally returned.

    It was a humanoid weapon wearing knight-like armour, and on its arms it had its most defining characteristic of arge shield mounted on each of its shoulders.

    I thought there was no point in developing a weapon in the shape of a person, but from the perspective of this universe¡¯s people, humanoid weapons were easier to control.

    Fantasy universes are awesome.

    Avid was currently stationed in the mansion¡¯s garden, and it looked quite menacing.

    ¡°Now aren¡¯t you amazing?¡±

    Standing next to me was a satisfied-looking technician from the Algrand Empire¡¯s Seventh Weapon Factory.

    I could tell that she was a soldier because a ss badge that was pinned on her uniform.

    The technical lieutenant wore sses and had ck hair that reached her shoulders.

    She gave off the feeling of an intelligent woman who had pride in her work.

    I still haven¡¯t heard her name.

    ¡°I¡¯m d that you like it. Although, I didn¡¯t think we¡¯d be able to repair an aircraft like this.¡±

    ¡°You know this aircraft?¡±

    ¡°Its because its an aircraft manufactured by us. The same model can be found in the reference books of our library.¡±

    Arge aircraft that hasn¡¯t been used in recent times.

    Though it seems there¡¯s no problem with upkeep since therge models are maintained the same way the small ones are.

    The technical lieutenant looked a little worried.

    ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re okay with this? With the auto-assistance removed, it¡¯ll be far more difficult to maneuver.¡±

    Is it like the difference between using a manual and an automatic car?

    Master who was with meughed while crossing his arms.

    ¡°Sir Liam can easily ovee an obstacle of this difficulty, so don¡¯t worry. Now then, may I have the pleasure of your name? I¡¯d like to have a brief discussion about this aircraft, so why don¡¯t we talk inside the guest roo-¡±

    ¡°There should be no problem because I¡¯ve prepared a manual, and if it¡¯s the Count who¡¯ll be piloting it, then it¡¯s better to exin it to him directly.¡±

    Master seems to have a thing for the technical lieutenant.

    But she declined his invitation with a smile.

    I looked at Master who drooped his shoulders.

    As his Evil Lord, should I allow this person to be Master¡¯s partner?

    Well, umm... the other party is an imperial soldier.

    She¡¯s the kind of person you¡¯d normally hesitate getting involved with.

    ¡°Now then, would you like to enter into the cockpit, my lord?¡±1

    ¡°Oh, uhh... yeah.¡±

    While being guided by the technical lieutenant I headed over to the cockpit.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    You can¡¯t say that the cockpit is narrow.

    ¡°It¡¯s actually quite wide. No, isn¡¯t this too much space?¡±

    ¡°The cockpit has been expanded using space maniption magic. We¡¯ve also prepared the highest quality seats to make sure you¡¯refortable. Aside from the fact that there¡¯s no auto-assistance, this is definitely a top-caliber model.¡±

    When I sat down, I could feel how soft the seat was.

    It was like I had a supportive feeling wrapped around my body, it was that kind of sensation.

    The control stick automatically adjusted to the position of my hand.

    ¡°I¡¯m liking it so far, its my favourite colour ck and it looks really cool.¡±

    ¡°A lot of our male customers like ck, so there are many ck aircrafts.¡±

    Many nobles have knights.

    The reason is because knights are a certain kind of status-symbol.

    There¡¯s also the fact that humanoid weapons are simply popr among the nobles.

    As long as it looks good, the nobles will buy it to further their house¡¯s prestige.

    There are even nobles who dress like knights.

    ¡°The thing is, there aren¡¯t that many people who¡¯re willing to spend this much on airframe maintenance.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? I thought everybody went this far.¡±

    Master told me so.

    And based on that, I agreed to splurge on money.

    ¡°Usually amounts like that are used for improving the contents of multiple mass-produced models. You gave us an abundant budget, so the engineers got to go all out. Now, try starting the engine.¡±

    When I started the engine with a switch, something started to scan my body.

    Its capable of recognizing the pilot, so no one unauthorised can just use it.

    ¡°My lord, the imprinting isplete. You are now the sole operator and pilot capable of moving this child. Its a custom-made aircraft built just for you.¡±

    ¡°Hearing that its a personal machine makes me happy.¡±

    When I grasped and moved the control stick, the scenery disyed in front of mepletely changed.

    The cockpit started to shake lightly.

    ¡°H-huh?¡±

    Before I noticed it, Avid was already falling.

    The technical lieutenant had a face on that said, ¡®as expected.¡¯

    ¡°This child has had all assist functions as well as the auto-bncer removed. It has a very difficult control scheme, but if you can master it, then you¡¯ll be able to move it as if it were a part of your own body.¡±

    Learning how to use something like this was probably going to be tough anyways.

    I finally understand what Master was trying to tell me.

    ¡°If I can be proficient in using this, then I could be one of the best pilots there is!¡±

    ¡°No, if you can already handle this as a child, then you¡¯re already a top pilot.¡±

    The technical lieutenant ced her hand over mine that was holding the control stick.

    I could feel and smell the gentle warmth of ady.

    -I guess even if it¡¯s just a little, my distrust of girls was getting better.

    Though there was still a sense of unease.

    ¡°Direct steering and image control is important for piloting this child. Always keep the magic operations in mind. Now, let¡¯s try moving the control stick slowly.¡±

    Bit by bit, Avid gradually started to stand.

    Who knew that just standing up could be this nerve wracking?

    If I even made the tiniest mistake, then the aircraft was sure to fall.

    As the technical lieutenant exined Avid¡¯s functions, I did my best to focus while listening.

    ¡°This child is sturdy, but it¡¯s also extremely powerful. Just moving the aircraft is easy, but you have to remember that this isn¡¯t a game, make sure to handle it with caution.¡±

    The technical lieutenant had pressed close to me,

    ¡°And then here-¡°

    I inadvertently felt my body tense up, I didn¡¯t have anywhere I could run to.

    She was quite well-endowed in both her chest and her bottom, she had good style and her tight waist exuded how fit she was.

    I couldn¡¯t help but be conscious of her chest as she kept exining things.

    At that time Avid, who had detected my thoughts and magic, began to move his hands. No, it had probably moved in regards to orders I had subconsciously given.

    The technical lieutenant noticed the movement and immediately took some distance from me, hiding her chest with her arms.

    ¡°Y-you have the wrong idea!¡±

    ¡°...why don¡¯t we take a break here. Oh? Communications seem to be offline, was there an error in the calibration?¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Brian took in the revived image of Avid, the knight of Liam¡¯s well respected great-grandfather, [Alistair], and felt immense joy.

    Even though its form had been altered, there were still traces of the original model left.

    However, he was quite worried about how Avid, which was Alistair¡¯s legacy, was making very suspicious hand movements.

    ¡°...Lord Liam, just what exactly are you doing?¡±

    He knew.

    He was aware.

    The beautiful technical lieutenant was alone with Liam in the cockpit.

    Since Liam is able toy his hands on Amagi, maybe he¡¯ll do it to her as well? Brian was quite worried about that.

    However, this was the same Liam who generally avoided actual women.

    Brian was concerned that he might only be attracted to androids.

    If he had finally awakened to the charms of real girls, then Brian could finally stop worrying about the problem of an heir.

    That said, no sound wasing out of the knight which was making movements as if it were fondling something.

    Brian started to shed tears at the thought that Alistair¡¯s legacy was making such obscene movements.

    Avid was capable of reproducing the pilot¡¯s hand movements very finely.

    It was as if there was an actual chest there.

    At least turn off the power first! Brian thought so, but could only look on at the situation without interfering.

    In addition to that,munications seem to have been turned off.

    For quite a while, Yasushi had quite the annoyed expression on his face.

    ¡°That brat, being able to cope a feel of that lieutenant¡¯s chest. Are they soft?! Hey, are they soft?!¡±

    While the hands continued their profane movements, Yasushi kept trying to connect themunication line as his temper reached its limits.

    ¡°Sir Liam, get out of there immediately. Don¡¯t get into any enviable situations in there, get out right away, understand? Sir Liam? Are you listening to me, Sir Liam?!¡±

    He kept his cool in front of Liam, but when out of sight his bad attitude started to shine through.

    Brian didn¡¯t trust him either.

    (How did a man like this get Lord Liam to grow that much?)

    They couldn¡¯t get rid of him because he produced results, and even if they reported these things to Liam, he¡¯d ignore them due to theplete respect he had for Yasushi, his master.

    He hadn¡¯t caused any big problems yet, so Brian kept his opinions to himself as long as Liam kept giving results.

    Though Yasushi did tell Amagi to revive Alistair¡¯s legacy, so Brian was happy about that.

    Under normal circumstances, Amagi, who prioritised efficiency, would have never sent Avid out for repairs.

    Yasushi was screaming now.

    ¡°I said get down from there! You shitty brat!¡±

    At thatment, Amagi started to re at Yasushi.

    He immediately noticed and apologised.

    ¡°Ah, sorry about that. I was just a bit worked up.¡±

    While dripping with cold sweat, he was disying quite the pathetic appearance in front of the android Amagi.

    -was this man really a master of swords and martial arts?

    Brian couldn¡¯t help but wonder so.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    (Brat, I definitely won¡¯t forgive you...)

    Yasushi was furious at the fact that his apprenticeid hands on such an intellectual beauty.

    However, he was also afraid Liam wouldsh out at him in anger if he did anything, so he¡¯ll vent his frustration through strict training sessions.

    A small fry who kept petty grudges- that¡¯s the kind of man Yasushi was.

    ¡°Sir Liam, you¡¯re shaking.¡±

    ¡°I-I¡¯ll be careful.¡±

    Liam was standing on a shaky log while blindfolded, and if that wasn¡¯t enough, he was being forced to swing a modified sword designed to be several times heavier than normal ones.

    He was also forced to walk on tightropes and do various other performances.

    All just because heid hands on thedy Yasushi favoured.

    ¡°Don¡¯t swing your sword if you have an unstable foundation. Start again from the beginning.¡±

    Liam seemed to be very tired and was sweating heavily.

    Yasushi was determined to push him to his very limits- it was that kind of training.

    ¡°We¡¯ll be having movement training when this is over, there¡¯s no time to rest.¡±

    ¡°Understood, Master!¡±

    His response was good, but Liam stillid hands on the girl Yasushi was interested in.

    He could never forgive that.

    (Even though I keep giving him such difficult requests... the fact that he¡¯s aplishing all these things I couldn¡¯t do is breaking my pride. Just give up for once, kid!)

    The technical lieutenant who stayed for about a month to exin maintenance procedures and piloting instructions for the aircraft had already left.

    She said that she¡¯de again, so next time Yasushi wanted to get her name and contact information.

    ¡°Your legs are still shaking, you haven¡¯t had enough training.¡±

    ¡°Ugh, I¡¯ll make sure to train harder next time.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll make sure you do. From now on we¡¯re going to go at it even harder.¡±

    Training had slowly be stricter just because of a personal grudge.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The guide stepped through the door that crossed dimensions.

    He was standing on the roof of the mansion.

    The guide who watched things from afar had high expectations for the future.

    ¡°Now, how have things been going for you, Liam?¡±2

    He seemed to be doing better than how the guide thought he¡¯d be.

    Which is why it would be that much more delicious to destroy it all.

    It wouldn¡¯t be long now.

    ¡°The territory is actually full of vitality, and wait, is that scammer still working here?¡±

    Even if Liam found out the truth and executed the con-man, it didn¡¯t really matter.

    The guide would enjoy either situation.

    As the guide searched for Liam in joy, he found him in the mansion¡¯s garden.

    There were multiple logs arranged around him, but none of them were within reach of his sword¡¯s de.

    ¡°Is he practicing right now? I¡¯m looking forward to seeing how skilled he¡¯s be.¡±

    He wasn¡¯tpletely ipetent, the guide knew that the fraud would at least be able to teach him the basics of swordsmanship.

    But something at that level wasn¡¯t suitable for knights.

    If Liam actually thought he was strong after mastering that, then there¡¯d be more fuel the guide could use for his future enjoyment.

    There wererge differences in individual strength from residents of this universe.

    The contrast between a person who had used education capsules from and early age verses someone who had only used one once or twice was enormous.

    To put things at an extreme, people were born into talent here.

    Well educated nobles and knights were naturally strong in this universe.

    Knights themselves being even more special, since they were individuals who could defeat gun wielding soldiers with a de.

    Liam pushed the sword out of its sheath slightly with his left thumb, releasing a small ¡®snap.¡¯

    The guide was bewildered.

    ¡°...what?¡±

    Almost immediately after, all the logs ced around him were sliced in half and fell to the ground with a thump.

    They were all cut cleanly and beautifully.

    ¡°...eh? EHH?!?!¡±

    The guide was frozen.

    In the three decades he had left him alone, Liam had be extremely strong.

    The android and the butler who were watching Liam started apuding.

    ¡°That was wonderful, Master.¡±

    ¡°You have thoroughly impressed this Brian here.¡±

    It was an unbelievable sight.

    Both his use of magic, and his physical capabilities were off the charts, only a handful of people could be this strong.

    Surprisingly, Liam still looked dissatisfied as he wiped his sweat off with the towel he received from Amagi.

    ¡°This is still nothingpared to my Master¡¯s sword. I wanted him to teach me more, but Master suddenly gave me my swordsmanship license and left.¡±

    The guide was panicking.

    (What the hell did that guy do?! Just what did he teach him?!)

    Summoning a bunch of windows with images on them, the guide brought up the image of Yasushi who was currently drowning himself in alcohol.

    He was deep in conversation with ady sitting beside him at the bar.

    ¡°...what the hell is that guy? I just can¡¯t understand him.¡±

    ¡°Are you talking about your disciple again, Yasushi?¡±

    Yasushi wasining.

    ¡°I¡¯m less than a second-ss swordsman, maybe even a third or fourth ss one. When I first got there I actually resolved myself to do my job properly and teach, but before I knew it, he had already surpassed me within a decade, and by the twentieth year he was already nearing the peak of swordsmanship.¡±

    Thedy startedughing, thinking that Yasushi was telling a joke.

    ¡°So in thest decade he became a master swordsman? Yasushi, that¡¯s a funny joke.¡±

    Thedy didn¡¯t believe him.

    But Yasushi strongly denied it.

    ¡°It¡¯s not a joke! That brat, near the end he was asking me if I¡¯d like to stay in his territory and open a dojo. I was so scared that I had to run away. It¡¯s not funny. It¡¯s not funny at all being near someone that can kill you without even drawing their sword.¡±

    The street magic trick he showed him waspletely reproduced as a sword technique.

    Liam was that unbelievable.

    The guide turned off the picture and started to rub in forehead, troubled.

    -he had a headache.

    The cause was Liam.

    Liam¡¯s gratitude was reaching him.

    He could hear Liam¡¯s voice even now-

    (I¡¯m so lucky, I got to learn the sword from such a wonderful master without even knowing it, and my territory which was so barren has finally developed into something valuable. I thought that I was tricked at first, but the guide was telling the truth. He¡¯s such an amazing person.)

    ¡ªThank you oh so much.

    These feelings were very unpleasant for the guide.

    Although he loved negative emotions, things like gratitude and favour made him feel nauseous.

    And Liam¡¯s vehement appreciation for the guide was no joke.

    ¡°Now how am I supposed to deal with this?¡±

    Now that he was in this situation, the ill-feeling guide decided it was about time to finally send Liam into despair.

 Chapter 6 - Honey Trap

    <h4>Honey Trap</h4>

    The guide was deep in thought.

    While feeling nauseous from Liam¡¯s gratitude, he seriously pondered what had happened to Liam¡¯s deep seated grudges and hate.

    -The reason being that Liam¡¯s gratitude was worse than he expected.

    It was at a strength that his body could no longer shrug off.

    ¡°Hmm, now how can I make him suffer? The thing is, he only keeps old butlers and androids around himself. With this, I can¡¯t really deal any serious mental damage. If there was an actual humandy on the other hand, I¡¯d be able to stimte his previous life¡¯s trauma.¡±

    At first the guide thought he should meddle with Liam¡¯s subordinates, but that was difficult now that Liam had already executed all the bureaucrats that were likely to be corrupted.

    On the other hand, if he meddled too much, then things wouldn¡¯t be that interesting anymore.

    As a guide, he only wanted to set the opportunities for things. After that, he would just sit back and watch as an individual¡¯s shallowness and ipetence ruined themselves.

    It wasn¡¯t his preference to get his own hands dirty.

    So this was quite bothersome.

    ¡°He¡¯s surprisingly serious. I thought that he¡¯d been aiming to surround himself with beautiful women while indulging in carnal pleasures.¡±

    Even though he said he was aiming to be an Evil Lord, all that he was doing was normal governance.

    Did he forget his own purpose?

    The guide watched Liam while having those thoughts.

    Liam, who was finally alone in his office, began to squirm nervously.

    ¡°Oh?¡±

    After looking into his thoughts, it seems that Liam truly did have the intention to be an Evil Lord.

    He could hear the voice of Liam¡¯s heart.

    (The territory has been developed, and the people finally have some breathing room. There¡¯s no point in squeezing them dry before they¡¯re even ready to be squeezed. You can¡¯t squeeze out a dry rag after all.)

    The guide was happy to hear this. ¡°I see, he¡¯s nning to raise his people up before dropping them down, like how I¡¯m doing to him. I don¡¯t hate this kind of development, it¡¯s still something useable.¡±

    Liam was thinking about various things while grinning.

    (Should I try to gather the beautiful girls together first? If taking into ount the poption of my territory, there should be at least one or two beauties.)

    The guide felt excited by Liam¡¯s enthusiasm to take the things he wanted by force.

    ¡°This is fine, I can work with this. This is only a small setback. It doesn¡¯t matter if he does things through brute force or with bribes and money, as long as he still gets to the same ending. No, better yet why don¡¯t I prepare another adulterer to seduce his partner right after they confess their love? I¡¯m sure Liam will have some great emotions then.¡±

    As the guide wallowed in his delusions, Amagi entered into the office.

    Liam¡¯s focus immediately switched over to Amagi¡¯s report.

    The guide proceed to eavesdrop on their conversation.

    ¡°...we¡¯re to receive some military personnel?¡±

    ¡°Yes, it looks like they¡¯re going to send us some military officers who¡¯re close to retirement for reserve duty. Please contact me if you decide to go through with this, and I¡¯ll take care of the budgeting.¡±

    The guide started to rub his chin as he listened.

    ¡°Hmm... from the military¡¯s point of view, do they just want to reduce unuseable human resources?¡±

    Apparently, the Empire seems to want some military personnel regted to the frontier.

    In response, the military took this chance to shove the useless people on reserve duty and other troublesome individuals onto the provincial nobles.

    Liam made a frustrated expression.

    ¡°In other words, they¡¯re dumping their garbage onto us?¡±

    ¡®Though they are from the Empire¡¯s main army, so many of them should be graduates from the military academy, making them both educated and trained. They should have some battle experience, so maybe we can assign them as instructors to train our private army?¡¯

    Using said thought process, Liam reluctantly gave his permission.

    Upon hearing that, the guide¡¯s mouth distorted into a smile and he began tough.

    ¡°Let¡¯s set up the foundation for the future. It should be interesting to gather serious soldiers who won¡¯t tolerate the rise of an evil lord.¡±

    Even if they don¡¯t revolt, it should be fine as long as they cause Liam trouble.

    They were going to serve under Liam, a man who was nning tomit various atrocities as an despot afterall.

    Surely the ethical soldiers would start a mutiny.

    And once the people rise up, they¡¯ll band together and execute Liam as a tyrant.

    ¡°With that said, let¡¯s have all the honourable soldiers gather here.¡±

    As the guide snapped his fingers, ck smoke generated from his body before dispersing into the surroundings.

    The guide then took off his hat before opening the door between dimensions.

    ¡°Even when I¡¯m doing things like this, you¡¯re still sending feelings of gratitude to me. Makes me want to hurl. I¡¯ll be gone for a little while Liam, so make sure to put on a spectacr show for me the next time Ie here.¡±

    He decided to leave a little earlier than nned because Liam¡¯s gratitude was disgusting.

    And so the guide left the world as it was.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    I was about to reach my mid-forties.

    It was around the time where you¡¯d normally start having a mid-life crisis.

    But in this world, people of this age were just about to be recognised as adults.

    I had continued to live a normal life.

    I lived normally, worked normally, studied normally and trained normally.

    The reason?

    I was preparing for a disaster to strike.

    Or rather, I felt that it was weird that I haven¡¯t suffered at all in this life.

    As I was just about to finish my days work, Amagi gave me a new report.

    ¡°¨CMaster, [Nias Karin], the technology lieutenant of the seventh weapons factory is looking to meet with you. It seems like she wants to confirm Avid¡¯s condition.¡±

    ¡°Nias?¡±

    The intelligent beauty technology lieutenant that had an amazing body.

    ¡°Why so suddenly?¡±

    ¡°The inspection on Avid is probably an excuse. Their main goal seems to be the sale of weapons from their factory.¡±

    The Empire sure was a rough ce.

    It was just toorge. It was impossible for them to micro-manage every little thing.

    While its true that the factories were run by the Empire, it seems that nobles were still allowed to purchase weapons from them for their personal needs.

    Normally, you wouldn¡¯t be able to buy such things, or at least they¡¯d put restrictions.

    But their conditions were too loose.

    And so, it was rtively easy to purchase arsenals.

    ¡°Can we even afford something like this given our financial situation? They¡¯re probably going to try to sell us a new battleship or something.¡±

    Between a new car and a used car which can we afford? ¨Cit was something like that.

    At present, the majority of the ships used by the Banfield house are one generation old. While the main aircrafts were built with the lowest specs possible to keep down the prices.

    It was all I needed though, so I wasn¡¯tining.

    ¡°I¡¯d rather sell something to the imperial army rather than buy something from them.¡±

    ¡°The seventh weapons factory is insinuated to have quite advanced technology while having problematic designs. Which only increases the price since its based on the specs, in turn, it seems they have a delicate reputation in the Empire. Conversely, the third weapons factory is quite well bnced in both performance and design, making it one of the more popr factories.¡±

    Is that so? It doesn¡¯t have anything to do with me, so I didn¡¯t really care.

    I decided it should be fine to at least see her, so I gave my reply and started towards the reception room.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Nias was already waiting for me by the time I entered the reception room.

    Today she wasn¡¯t in her usual uniform, this one had a skirt.

    -The length of the skirt was abnormally short.

    Perhaps noticing my line of sight, Amagi started muttering, ¡°That skirt is in vition of the Imperial Army¡¯s dress code.¡±

    After sitting down on the sofa across from Nias I could understand why.

    I could see her underwear from this angle.

    After I finished my greetings, Nias began to talk,

    ¡°You¡¯ve really made it big, I was wrong about you, my lord.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s fine and all, but what did you reallye here for?¡±

    She wasplimenting me, but I didn¡¯t feel like I¡¯ve be that big of a deal yet.

    Was it just lip service?

    ¡°Yes, I was thinking about checking on Avid¡¯s condition because there were many engineers who were curious about what had happened to that child-¡±

    I could see her thigh-gap every now and then from the inside of her skirt.

    ¡°Cut the crap, I hear you wanted to sell something to me?¡±

    The territory was more developed than it used to be, and tax revenue was increasing.

    Knowing that much, various people had alreadye to me seeking to seek out trade deals.

    One of them was Nias.

    Nias¡¯ expression suddenly turned serious. She then started operating a tablet-like object, from which a stereoscopic image suddenly disyed itself around me.

    ¡°I¡¯m here to ask you to purchase battleships and weapons built by the seventh weapons factory.¡±

    The 3D images of the battleships floating around me showcased how they took up less space while being more powerful than the previous generation.

    Their prices were unbelievable.

    This wasn¡¯t on the level of a new car, it was a whole new meaning of the word ¡®expensive.¡¯

    ¡°Aren¡¯t these more expensive than the standard prices?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s also the fact that they¡¯re better ships. They¡¯re different from the mass-produced ships that only disy the minimum specs required, so of course the price is higher.¡±

    For just one of these new ships, I¡¯d be able to purchase three to five second-hand ships.

    I didn¡¯t feel any need to buy any separately.

    While Amagi was examining the video she added,

    ¡°When buying goods from the Empire¡¯s weapon factories we also need to pay taxes, these aren¡¯t the tax-included prices.¡±

    I red at Nias, and she turned away while giving a troubledugh.

    ¡°T-that may be so, but I can guarantee their performance! Thetest models have been improved in various ways. For example, this cruiser! More knight can be docked there than ever before, and its specs as a battleship are-¡±

    In short, what they were trying to sell to me was thetest version of the conventional models.

    Certainly, their capabilities were great but-

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you sell them to the imperial army?¡±

    ¡°...we lost the trial so they decided tomission another factory.¡±

    Becausepetition in an intergctic empire was fierce, it seems that each fleet has the right to decide which factory they want to buy from.

    So they constantly hold inspections as tests.

    However, it looks like the seventh weapons factory lost all the inspections and wasn¡¯t chosen by any of them.

    Amagi calmly asked,

    ¡°Are there any problems besides performance?¡±

    Nias looked like she was about to cry.

    ¡°They¡¯re both easy to produce and maintain as well! However they¡¯re smaller than before, and we were rejected because they didn¡¯t like the design- they said that they had cheap interiors.¡±

    Certainly, nobles do tend to hold appearances as a high priority.

    Although there were ordinary people in the upper ranks of the army, there was an overwhelmingly higher number of nobles.

    So when given the choice of design, as long as the performance difference wasn¡¯t that noticeable, of course they¡¯d choose the one that appealed to them more.

    If I was in the same position I¡¯d choose the cheaper one with a better design as well. I mean, there¡¯s no real difference in specs.

    Though from time to time you there do seem to be entrics who only focus on either design or performance. I¡¯m not really one of them but-

    If I had to say which was more important, I¡¯d definitely say performance was little better.

    ¡°S-so how about it, my lord? Two-hundred! No, even one-hundred is fine! You can take out a loan, so why not consider purchasing it?¡±

    It seems like the seventh weapons factory is desperate now, they probably didn¡¯t expect to lose the trials.

    ¡°Amagi, can you show me the battleships of the other factories?¡±

    ¡°As you wish.¡±

    Around Amagi, the battleships from the other weapon factories were disyed in reduced 3D images.

    Compared to the ships built at the other factories, the ones of the seventh weapons factory truly were weapons! They gave off quite the burly feeling.

    However, there was also something about them that set off red gs in my head. I had a bad feeling about them, and I didn¡¯t like it.

    The ships of the other factories had the same basic structure and had more refined designs.

    It was obvious.

    This was a loss.

    Certainly their specs were good, but they just looked straight up awful.

    Inparison, the battleships of the third weapons factory were especially cool.

    ¡°Amagi, isn¡¯t this fine? Let¡¯s buy this ship.¡±

    ¡°Master, that¡¯s a gship-ss battleship, we need the permission of the Empire to buy those, and the Banfields don¡¯t have that right.¡±

    It looks like I¡¯m not allowed to buy anything of the gship-ss that¡¯s over two thousand meters long.

    I guess I didn¡¯t have a choice but to buy a battleship that was smaller than a thousand meters.

    ¡°I see.¡±

    The reasons being- the taxes that should¡¯ve been paid to the empire have beente until just recently.

    I finally had enough leeway to pay them, but the empire¡¯s response was cold.

    Even if I did try to get a permit, its likely I¡¯d have to pay for all the taxes that have been missed, first.

    ¡°In that case, why don¡¯t we go with this one? It¡¯s cooler than what we have now.¡±

    I pointed at an eight-hundred meter ss, it was a bit small, but I thought it¡¯d be a good purchase.

    ¡°I¡¯ll get you in touch with them right away.¡±

    While I was having that conversation in front of Nias, her voice rose up shrilly in response.

    ¡°Please wait for one moment! I¡¯m really in trouble here!¡±

    I sighed.

    ¡°Why¡¯d you give up on design?¡±

    ¡°Its because performance is more important!¡±

    ¡°If the difference in specs isn¡¯t that different, then of course I¡¯d choose the one with the better design. The interiors are also pretty cheesy-looking, or rather they give off a malicious feeling.¡±

    Without cutting corners, they¡¯re just in bad.

    ¡°That¡¯s because maintenance will be more difficult!¡±

    Looking more and more desperate, Nias started to take off her coat jacket.

    The underpants that I could see through her white shirt gave off the feeling of somebody that had been working hard for a long time.

    Wasn¡¯t that a matching set?

    Nias seemed to be emphasising her chest with her arms.

    Looking at that, I remembered the extravagant increase of unfamiliar underwear that was kept in my wife¡¯s drawers.

    As I dropped my shoulders, Nias looked like she was about to cry,

    ¡°Why are you so disappointed?! Weren¡¯t you ogling my chest thest time I came?!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I did, but I¡¯m not really feeling it anymore.¡±

    Even though my wife constantly refused to spice up our night life, for some reason, she seemed to be getting an increasing amount of shy and skimpy underwear.

    ¡ªthose were the first signs that I started to think that she was having an affair.

    Opening her white shirt to expose more cleavage, Nias even started to make poses in order to appeal to me.

    The person in question was seriously embarrassed andpletely flushed red.

    ¡°Wow Nias, you must really want to make this sale.¡±

    She gave an awkward smile while clumsily doing something that just barely passed as a pose.

    Something dide to mind after seeing a cool beauty force herself to do something that she absolutely wasn¡¯t used to.

    ¡ªit was that she looked, really, really, pitiful.

    ¡°I understand, I¡¯ll buy it. You said you needed me to purchase two hundred ships?¡±

    ¡°If possible, I¡¯d appreciate it if you could buy three hundred!¡±

    The number from before had increased!

    Wasn¡¯t she being a bit too shrewd?

    She was like the universe¡¯s most disappointing venus flytrap.

    ¡°Can we afford it, Amagi?¡±

    Amagi immediately did the calctions and confirmed,

    ¡°We can do it if we reduce the number of ships scheduled to be purchased. In the long run this isn¡¯t a waste, so it should be okay to invest in them.¡±

    When I turned back to look at Nias, she had already sped her hands together in happiness.

    ¡°I understand. I¡¯ll buy it, we can change the design ourselves anyway. We can just throw covers or whatever for the exterior, and while it might cost a bit more, the interiors can be renovated.¡±

    Now that she had regained herposure, Nias pushed up her sses slightly with her fingertips to correct their position.

    ¡°There¡¯s no point in the design.¡±

    ¡°You really should at least do the bare minimum, or else you¡¯ll never win an inspection.¡±

    Reminded of how they had continued to lose the inspections, Nias dropped her shoulder and started hugging her knees on top of the table she was now sitting on.

    I can see your underwear again, so can you stop already? Stop sitting on my table.

    Amagi had an exasperated look on her face,

    ¡°It looks like she¡¯s the kind of person who¡¯s generally disappointing except when they¡¯re working.¡±

    She was beautiful, but she was a pitiful kind of beauty.

    In the end, I finished this bit of business and left the details to Amagi, eventually leaving the room more tired than I thought I¡¯d be.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Brian was walking down the mansion corridor.

    There he could overhear someone engrossed in a conversation.

    (Is that the visitor, Nias?)

    He thought it was rude to eavesdrop, but he felt that Nias, who was making a secret call to someone was suspicious.

    When he listened in,

    ¡°How about it? I was able to get him to buy three hundred units.¡±

    Apparently, she was conversing with some youth from the seventh weapons factory.

    ¡°But it¡¯s also with amission to alter the design, right? The top brass is going to be angry.¡±

    ¡°There wasn¡¯t any other choice, he wouldn¡¯t buy anything otherwise!¡±

    The younger voice sounded slightly appalled,

    ¡°In any case, I can¡¯t believe a straightced worker like you was actually able to charm a deal like this out. Did you have something to ckmail him with?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing like that, he¡¯spletely obsessed with me. I was able to wear him down with my seduction skills today as well.¡±

    ¡°...really?¡±

    ¡°M-maybe. Definitely. I saw it with my own eyes.¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, then you should¡¯ve sold him more.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not that mean, there was no need to. Rather, why aren¡¯t you being nicer to me? I justpleted a business deal with my charms!¡±

    ¡°You only sold three hundred units, right? We were hoping for double that amount.¡±

    ¡°I did my best!¡±

    The atmosphere was subtle, but Brian was shocked,

    (Lord Liam is stuck in a honey trap!)

    Brian couldn¡¯t help but feel uneasy about Liam, who had just made arge purchase from a venus fly trap.

 Chapter 7 - Evil Merchant

    <h4>Evil Merchant</h4>

    Echigoya1 merchants are the source of all evil...

    Isn¡¯t everyone familiar with this phrase?

    When spoken, whates to mind is the image of Echigoya in the past.

    They were an extremely group with their own story.

    Putting that aside, I need one.

    Before I can truly be an Evil Lord, I need my own ¡®Echigoya.¡¯

    So let me introduce my purveyor.

    The plump, bearded man who had the appearance of an evil merchant was [Thomas Henfrey.]

    After I had continued to maintain and develop my territory, he had approached me intending to do business.

    He was a trader who dealt with goods betweens.

    At first, I didn¡¯t think there was a real need for traveling merchants in this time of outer space travel, but let me exin why I was wrong.

    They fly betweens, not only those within the empire, but also to ones in other star countries to buy and sell goods.

    They buy the resources and goods exclusively found ins far away, and sell them in my territory.

    The opposite is also true, but this man is different from the others who do business in mynd.

    He¡¯s my house¡¯s exclusive merchant.

    In other words, he¡¯s a very important merchant for my territory, and the Banfield family.

    While we were sitting down together in the reception room, I asked Thomas.

    ¡°Did you bring the yellow candies that I like?¡±

    After wiping his sweat, Thomas presented to me a box filled to the brim with gold bars.

    ¡°Of course I have, please enjoy them, my lord.¡±

    As I picked them up, the heavy weight in my hands brought a smile to my face.

    ¡°Echigoya merchants truly are the source of all evil!¡±

    ¡°No m¡¯lord, my group is called the ¡®Henfrey Chamber of Commerce,¡¯ I¡¯ve told you this multiple times already.¡±

    As our usual greetings finished, I felt that he was truly an evil merchant worthy of me.

    I needed corrupt merchants like Thomas by my side.

    After receiving his bribe, I started listening to his request.

    ¡°So what do you need?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m nning to make a venture into some dangerous space, and I want you to lend me your fleet.¡±

    He wanted me to lend my military to him as his guards.

    I wondered what evil scheme he cooked up that required military force to finish.

    That said, I think I can allow it as long as its profitable.

    ¡°Are you going to a dangerous ce?¡±

    ¡°The destination itself isn¡¯t dangerous, but there are many pirate bases enroute the journey there. There have been several reports of merchants getting attacked everyday.¡±

    Space pirates are annoying.

    They also had a few screws loose.

    Some of them had collected various weapons over time, some were deserters who had fled from the army, and some were thieves who had run away after stealing military tech.

    Sometimes they even found work as mercenaries due to their abundant battle experience.

    They¡¯re very annoying.

    After turning my eyes toward Amagi, who was behind me, I could feel that she knew what I wanted to say.

    ¡°If it¡¯s only for about three months, then we¡¯ll be able to prepare a hundred ships immediately. If you require more than that, then some preparations will need to be made first.¡±

    I smiled and turned back to Thomas.

    ¡°Or so she says, is that fine, Thomas?¡±

    Thomas looked relieved, and gave a meaningful smile while looking a little embarrassed.

    ¡°Wow, I don¡¯t know how I can repay you- no, I¡¯ll make sure to prepare more yellow candies for you next time.¡±

    ¡°Of course, but more importantly- will we be able to turn a profit?¡±

    If he hesitated here, then there¡¯d be no point in lending my forces.

    ¡°Unquestionably!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s great! Amagi, begin the preparations immediately.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Do your best to make me money, my Echigoya- no, my Henfrey Chamber of Commerce.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Therge transport ship used by Thomas was anchored at the spaceport.

    After going up from earth to space, Thomas was going through the zero gravity path to board his ship.

    He was surrounded by subordinates and bodyguards as he carried his luggage.

    One of his men opened their mouth while looking over at the in the distance.

    ¡°The Banfield house¡¯s territory sure has developed a lot recently. That young man sure is amazing to be able to do so much at his age.¡±

    As Thomas did business, he always seemed to stop by the Banfield house¡¯s territory in particr.

    It wasn¡¯t that amazing to be honest, but it was definitely a with an exponential level of growth in recent decades.

    ¡°He¡¯s a little different from the aristocrats I¡¯ve seen so far. He¡¯s a little strange, but he¡¯s a fine lord.¡±

    Thomas thought the boy who always asked for ¡®yellow candies¡¯ was quite the virtuous ruler.

    His surroundings didn¡¯t deny this statement.

    The men seemed to be a little confused,

    ¡°Though why would he ask for gold? It isn¡¯t a particrly scarce resource in his territory, is it?¡±

    Thomas was also perplexed.

    ¡°I wonder that too, why gold? Well it¡¯s fine, I tried giving him mithril and magic gems a while ago but he seemed dissatisfied. As I thought, gold really makes himi the happiest.¡±

    ¡°Maybe he doesn¡¯t know.¡±

    The reason why Liam always asked for gold is because he considered gold to be valuable and expensive.

    Why was gold expensive though? That¡¯s because back on Earth there was only a limited supply of it.

    In this universe it was still expensive, but there were even goldens where it could be found inrge quantities, more precious resources and metals exist out there.

    Mithril is a ssic example of this.

    Silver, which carries holy power- is considered to be far more valuable and rarer than gold as well.

    ¡°No, he¡¯s a modest person.¡±

    To only take such small bribes in exchange for the multitude of benefits that came with being the Banfield house¡¯s exclusive merchant.

    He felt tearsing to his eyes at the thought.

    After a little bit more walking, they had finally arrived at the ship.

    ¡°He really is trying his best.¡±

    Thomas looked back at the spaceport.

    The newly built port was well equipped with thetest facilities for use, it was a great boon for merchants.

    ¡°I heard that he was investing the majority of the taxes he¡¯s received, and it seems to be true. It¡¯s quite amazing how much he aplished while still so young. If the Banfield house wasn¡¯t in so much debt, just how amazing would this ce be by now?¡±

    As Thomas finished muttering these words, he turned his eyes back to his men.

    ¡°This deal is more dangerous than our usualmissions, but it¡¯s essential for the Banfield

    house. Let¡¯s earn a lot of money, and contribute to them as the merchants we are.¡±

    This deal was truly important for the Banfield¡¯s, but Thomas wasn¡¯t doing it for the house itself.

    Thomas was going this far because he wanted to help Liam.

    ¡ªHe wasn¡¯t actually an evil merchant.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    It¡¯s hard to predict what the future will be like.

    In my previous life¡¯s childhood, I¡¯d dream about flying cars in the distant future as technology developed.

    But after I grew up, mymon sense let me know that flying cars weren¡¯t something I should expect to happen.

    Even though I now live in an intergctic empire, the skyscraper view that could be seen from a luxury hotel wasn¡¯t that different from myst life.

    Actually, it was developing farther than the big city I lived in before.

    Even though there were many high-rise buildings, it didn¡¯t feel crowded.

    Not to mention the rich nature that was around us, there were many undevelopednds.

    ¡°My territory has barely developed at all...¡±

    As Iined, Amagi, who was nearby, corrected me.

    ¡°Master,pared to when you first took over, this territory has grown quite significantly. It¡¯s actually developing at a rate that most people would doubt to be true if they saw the data.¡±

    ¡°But those are just numbers, and that wasn¡¯t what I meant. I was talking about something different, about how terrible my people¡¯s fashion sense is.¡±

    I had tried to walk around the area before, and I waspletely shocked by what I saw.

    People had started to spend more money recently.

    So it¡¯s natural that I¡¯d be able to see cute girls out shopping, right?

    But that waspletely wrong.

    You see, in my current incarnation, I found myself liking girls with a more modest fashion sense.

    Even though I was looking for a girl with a prim and proper feeling, everyone was dressed like gyarus2 or gothic lolitas!3 I can¡¯t find myself attracted to them because they¡¯re not my type!

    ¡°We haven¡¯t had any progress there at all.¡±

    ¡°It may be good to introduce fashion courses. We can use the premise of ¡®this is something that appeals to the lord¡¯s tastes.¡¯¡±

    In the first ce, fashion culture was different from to.

    They may all have themon point called ¡®The Empire¡¯ behind them, but they were still all different.

    Somes advocated my ideals, but there were also many of them who¡¯s fashion culture just looked weird in my eyes.

    ¡°How am I supposed to change this anyways? Should I start bringing in fashion designers and start investing in esthetic fields? Nothing will happen if I just leave this alone.¡±

    Despite the trends in casual fashion, in the beaches of my territory the prevailing swimsuits used were the kinds that were like full-length tights.

    As if I¡¯ll let such a stupid situation be! There¡¯s no way I¡¯ll admit to ruling over such a ce.

    ¡°Let¡¯s bring in some models and celebrities! If the people look at a beautiful person, they¡¯ll definitely be influenced!¡±

    Amagi had a somewhat perplexed face on while I started talking about the various ns I had in mind.

    This maid android was quite expressive.

    ¡°Unfortunately, we¡¯re still in heavy debt. Tax revenues have increased along with the development, but in turn the repayment amounts are rising as well.¡±

    The massive debt held by the Banfield house.

    I can¡¯t do a lot of things that I want just because of this.

    A spaceship flew through the sky when I turned towards the window.

    Just when did I get used to such futuristic sights?

    Certainly, it¡¯s slowly been changing ever since I took control at the age of five, but I couldn¡¯t help but feel slightly lonely.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The door to another dimension opened.

    When the guide returned to this universe and confirmed the present conditions, he almost swore.

    ¡°...at this rate he¡¯s not going to do anything.¡±

    The guide thought that Liam would be indulging himself by now, but he hasn¡¯tid his hands on any women or drunken a single drop of alcohol.

    He didn¡¯t drink liquor in regards to his physical age.

    And he avoided women because of his past trauma, and due to the fact that none of them were to his liking.

    So before he realized it, he was just working as a good lord normally.

    ¡°This is disappointing. I thought this might happen, but I still feel slightly betrayed. Why are you being such a virtuous lord when you were aiming to be an evil one?¡±

    Also, he¡¯s been living a frugal life with little luxuries because he still had the economic sense of his past life.

    Even worse, he was okay with his life as it was.

    A part of his mind was even subconsciously sending feelings of gratitude to the guide.

    And even worse than that was Liam¡¯s poprity among the people, and the gratitude they emitted towards him.

    This was all so revolting for the guide.

    Stomachaches, headaches, nausea, dizziness, the guide could endure all of it, but he¡¯d still prefer to avoid it if he could.

    If was okay for Liam to be grateful.

    Because eventually, the guide was going to throw Liam away to the deepest pits of despair and show him hell.

    That said, the guide couldn¡¯t allow things to continue to progress as they were.

    If left unchecked, then Liam¡¯s life would end with him remembered as a great ruler.

    ¡°This is disappointing. I would¡¯ve been happy if all of this was just on the surface, all a lie.¡±

    The people would build up resentment against the tyrant Liam.

    The soldiers would revolt.

    The beautiful girls he gathered would try to murder him- the guide wanted to see such scenes.

    However, the people regarded him highly as both a good person due to his humble life and previous life¡¯s values.

    The soldiers were loyal and would ept doing anything under the thought process of ¡°If it¡¯s for the lord¡¯s sake.¡±

    Andstly, there weren¡¯t anydies surrounding him at all. It was impossible to manipte human rtionships to stimte his past traumas.

    Was he really aiming to be an evil lord?

    The guide had enough, it was time to throw away the disappointing Liam.

    ¡°At the very least, let¡¯s burn up the territory he worked so hard to build up. Let¡¯s see... Ah! There are some convenient space pirates here.¡±

    ck smoke started emitting from the annoyed guide, as he melted into his surroundings.

    He started speaking sorrowfully,

    ¡°At least bring me some entertainment at the very end, Liam. Until then, enjoy the view that you¡¯ve built.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    On a far, far away from the Banfield territory.

    Multiple missiles were hitting the, making one big explosion after another.

    The ground was burned to ashes.

    On top of it all was a single pirate whoughed in his insanity as the literal world burned in front of him.

    Commander of a pirate fleet more than 30,000 ships strong, was the pirate known as [Goaz].He was a savage-looking man, sporting a full beard and a bruised head.

    He was a giant of swollen muscles.

    Goaz¡¯s mouth was arched in a wide smile.

    He drank from the bottle held in his left hand as he watched the moment that an uncountable amount of lives disappeared.

    ¡°It¡¯s always moments like this when booze tastes the best, right?!¡±

    The pirates who feared Goazughed in affirmation.

    Though one of them squeaked out a question.

    ¡°Boss, did we have to go this far?¡±

    In response, Goaz put his abnormallyrge hand on the questioning pirate¡¯s head.

    Some of the pirates in the vicinity averted their eyes, others watched on with expressions that said, ¡®what an idiot.¡¯

    ¡°Who allowed you to give me your opinion? Don¡¯t get in the way of my fun.¡±

    ¡°Wait! Boss, pleas-!¡±

    The subordinate¡¯s head was crushed in Goaz¡¯s grip.

    His hand was immediately washed by some of his other goons.

    As the men began to clear the body and start cleaning, Goaz continued to watch the he had just destroyed on the ship¡¯s monitor.

    There was a golden box carefully gripped in his clean right hand.

    He kept the box with the unique pattern and crest on his person at all times.

    Usually, he just carried it in a special holster.

    He stroked the box over and over again, as if it were about to disappear into thin air.

    ¡°It was an easy job this time as well.¡±

    One after another, he had decimateds and had taken many lives.

    This man was a true viin.

    Goaz himself was particrly infamous, having huge bounties ced on his head.

    If you could somehow defeat Goaz and his pirates, you¡¯d be able to earn enough money that you wouldn¡¯t be able to finish spending even if you just goofed around for a lifetime.

    He was the very definition of dangerous.

    One of Goaz¡¯s deputy officers called out to him.

    ¡°We made a killing this time as well. So, what are you going to do with thatdy now? Have you found a recement yet, now that she¡¯s just about broken?¡±

    Goaz smiled.

    The teeth in that smile were yellow and filthy.

    ¡°True, I have yed with her for a long time, so hopefully I can find some new toys soon.¡±

    The deputy officer smiled back.

    ¡°As someone who became the Boss¡¯ toy, its amazing she was able to keep her sense of self that long. In any case, should I chart out our next destination?¡±

    Immediately after Goaz started to ponder this question, ck smoke started to coil around him.

    It was only for an instant, if you blinked you wouldn¡¯t have even seen it.

    ¡°No, wait.¡±

    ¡°Boss?¡±

    ¡°Come to think of it, there was a territory that became prosperous recently. I think it was ruled by a brat named Banfield? I heard he was a virtuous ruler, some hard working lord in a backwater.¡±

    The deputy officer recalled the rumors.

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ve heard that a lot recently, so our next prey is the Banfield territory?¡±

    Goaz feared no nobles.

    After all, Goaz had an immense amount of resources.

    ¡°What makes things fun is to break people worth breaking, and it¡¯s been a while since we¡¯ve gone after anyone that could end my boredom.¡±

    The deputy officer replied,

    ¡°Then it¡¯s confirmed, our next prey is the Banfield brat.¡±

    Goaz licked his lips.

    ¡°I¡¯ll do my best to thoroughly break that kid.¡±

 Chapter 8 - Space Pirate

    <h4>Space Pirate</h4>

    I was almost fifty years old, the age where I would officially be recognised as an adult was quickly approaching.

    As Izily spent my days in the mansion, that¡¯s when I noticed it.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you think that it¡¯s pretty unhealthy that I¡¯ve barely gone outside the mansion, despite how I¡¯ve reincarnated into a mind-boggling sci-fi universe?¡±

    I was working in the office at the moment.

    Amagi answered my question while helping me process documents,pletely ignoring the fact I just told her about my reincarnation. This maid¡¯s power level sure was high.

    ¡°There¡¯s no problem as long as you exercise properly within the mansion grounds, and besides, it¡¯s safer here. I don¡¯t rmend moving around.¡±

    Was she still angry about how I snuck outst time?

    I left to pick up some cute girls, but couldn¡¯t find anyone to my tastes.

    So what should I do, really?

    Normally when one thinks about being an evil lord, you¡¯d imagine them indulging themselves in liquor and beautiful women.

    With alcohol, I can¡¯t help feel guilty drinking it in my current body, and it doesn¡¯t even taste that good.

    As for women, I¡¯m not really into them because nobody so far has been able to beat Amagi, who¡¯s like the representation of my ideals.

    Huh? Then is there any need to do these things at all?

    ¡°No, wait. I¡¯m aiming to be an evil lord in the future, how can I just give up now?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s no problem to me even if you¡¯re called an evil lord, but what is it exactly that you want to do, Master?¡±

    ¡°...raise the taxes and oppress the people?¡±

    ¡°Temporary tax revenue will rise, but I can¡¯t rmend it right now because it¡¯ll be detrimental in the long run. Let¡¯s consider the current state of the territory and alter the taxes ordingly.¡±

    Depending on the situation, lowering the tax will increase the popce¡¯s tendency to buy things, which in turn may even increase tax revenues.

    ¨Cthis is so wrong. I don¡¯t want to follow economic logic like this.

    I want to step on others!

    I don¡¯t want to be from the side that¡¯s taken from, I want to go and be the one that takes things away!

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to hear such sensible opinions! I want to go and do things by abusing my power and using violence!¡±

    That¡¯s it.

    I¡¯ll just start taking things from the people. I¡¯ll be the lord of thieves!

    Who cares about tax revenues!

    ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s find a beautiful girl in the local area and kidnap her. In this case, let¡¯s make sure to find someone who has a fashion sense to my liking.¡±

    Amagi replied immediately to my n,

    ¡°All the current staff who work at the mansion are people who fit the appearance criteria that you¡¯ve advocated for, excluding the technology department. Everyone working here has been specifically selected from the local popce.¡±

    Hearing this gave me a headache.

    Certainly, those who worked in the mansion did tend to have a good sense for fashion.

    But Amagi seemed to be misunderstanding something.

    ¡°Are you perhaps feeling that it¡¯s about time you took a bride?¡±

    ¡°No, that¡¯s not what I¡¯m feeling at all.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sure there are many women who would be willing. If you prefer men, we could arrange for that instead.¡±

    ¡°No, I don¡¯t.¡±

    Amagi, did you really think I was interested in men?

    And if I was going toy my hands on the people, I didn¡¯t want to do it to those who came willingly.

    What makes things fun is the way they resist!

    ¡°Then, let¡¯s bring in the local entertainers from the territory! Forcing the popce to relieve my boredom is definitely evil!¡±

    ¡°Master, the entertainment industry is still developing. Either way, at your call, many people would happily volunteer. Though there¡¯s nobody really that talented nearby, or did you wish to bring in someone from outside the territory?¡±

    Outside? As in, somebody from another territory?

    ¡°I want to be treated like a king by my people! If they¡¯re from another ce, they won¡¯t have any sense of fealty for me!¡±

    That suggestion is rejected because I didn¡¯t have the leeway to cause friction with the nearby territories yet.

    I¡¯ll start messing with them after we build up some more strength.

    ¡°Why not just rx for now? Master, you are the head of the Banfield house. That¡¯s not just a statement, you are literally the king of an entire gxy, well... the king of one.¡±

    No, even if that¡¯s true, don¡¯t say it!

    I mean, isn¡¯t that kind of pathetic? To only be in control of one when my territory actually covers an entire gxy.

    This isn¡¯t my fault! This as well, is because of my father and grandfather!

    Damn it, is it that difficult to be an evil lord?

    To rub salt in the wound, Amagi reminded me of a fundamental problem we still haven¡¯t fixed,

    ¡°There¡¯s also the matter with the unresolved debt that we have.¡±

    ...our debt.

    No matter how far the territory develops, I¡¯ll still be held down because of this stupid debt!

    And if I just ignore it, various troubles will follow, so I have to pay it back.

    If I dy the payments anymore then they already have been, then the collectors wille knocking at my door.

    -I started to recall my previous life¡¯s trauma.

    ¡°Dangit, is there no way to easily repay this thing?¡±

    ¡°Unfortunately not, so let¡¯s just continue making steady payments. As we continue to show our good faith, the other party may even begin to-¡±

    Suddenly, a call interrupted us.

    It was Brian.

    ¡°That¡¯s rare, doesn¡¯t he alwayse by the office personally when he has something to say?¡±

    When I epted the call, his image projected itself into the air.

    ¡°Lord Liam, we¡¯re in danger! Space pirates have dered war on the Banfield house!¡±

    ...aren¡¯t they a little toowful to be pirates?

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The building for government offices in my territory was a huge skyscraper.

    Many officials that worked to manage the area were stationed here. It was the kind of ce that I¡¯d rarely visit.

    I¡¯m supposed to be the person in power, but if I had a problem, usually I¡¯d just send one of my subordinates here in my ce.

    However, it looks like this time things need to be done in-person.

    All the important individuals were gathered in the conference room, fervently talking about the pirate¡¯s deration of war and their demands.

    An official in a suit was checking its contents while in a state of high-tension.

    ¡°The pirates are demanding we hand over goods and hostages. The hostages themselves being limited to beautiful women.¡±

    I looked at the list of precious metals they demanded, but they were at quantities I couldn¡¯t possibly provide.

    And the hostages were limited to beauties...

    ¡ªthis infuriated me.

    Why did I have to give them what belonged to me?

    It wasn¡¯t just officials, military personnel were here too.

    ¡°My lord, should we negotiate with the pirates or should we prepare for battle?¡±

    The soldiers were annoyed by the officials discussion, which didn¡¯t seem to be getting anywhere.

    ¡°Our opponent is Goaz! He¡¯s someone that even has a bounty on his head!¡±

    He was a viinous pirate worth an immense amount of money.

    If we could somehow defeat his fleet, we¡¯d receive huge rewards in return.

    So what should we do?

    ¡°Is it even possible to win? Even if we gather all our forces, the Banfield house only has eight-thousand ships in total, while the Goaz¡¯s fleet numbers at thirty-thousand!¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s also the difference in quality of arms! Numbers aren¡¯t everything, and we can¡¯t just surrender without doing anything! What about the people?!¡±

    ¡°So you say, but can¡¯t we just run away?¡±

    ¡°You, just what the hell are you saying?!¡±

    I looked over Goaz¡¯s bounty as the official¡¯s and soldier¡¯s argument became more fierce.

    As a noble, it¡¯s not really that big of a deal for me.

    It wasn¡¯t an ignorable amount, but wasn¡¯t really enough to say I¡¯d be rich once obtained.

    I almost didn¡¯t notice it happening,

    -what¡¯s this?

    Everything suddenly became quiet, and when I looked up, the surrounding scene was really weird.

    Even though they were arguing so violently before, now they weren¡¯t even moving.

    They lookedpletely frozen.

    ¡°...what is this?¡±

    It looked like time had stopped.

    That¡¯s when I heard a nostalgic voice.

    ¡°Okay, now we should have a little time. This is tiring, but it has been a long time since we¡¯ve seen each other, in this life you¡¯re called Liam, right?¡±

    I turned around, and there the guide standing before me.

    ¡°It has been a long time, and what¡¯s with this situation? Pirates are attacking.¡±

    Didn¡¯t he promise that I¡¯d be able to live a happy life?

    The other party seemed to have guessed what I was asking as he answered,

    ¡°Liam, you¡¯re misunderstanding the situation, this is my present for you.¡±

    ¡°Present?¡±

    ¡°Yes, you¡¯re going to be an adult in this universe soon, right? Before that happened, I wanted to give you one final gift before your debut as an official part of the aristocracy. Am I correct in saying that your territory is currently in debt?¡±

    I could only give a bitter response,

    ¡°Yeah, it is. I¡¯m still making payments for it even today.¡±

    ¡°I knew this, so I manipted some pirates who had huge amounts of treasure over to yournd. Liam, if you can beat them, all of it will be yours.¡±

    ¡°Mine?¡±

    The guide stepped closer to me and grabbed my hands.

    ¡°Yes, if you can defeat them, then you¡¯ll receive many honours and a huge amount of treasure. They¡¯re leader even has a considerablyrge bounty on his head. This is my gift for you.¡±

    ¡°-is that so?¡±

    As I started to smile, the guide gave me his own smile in turn.

    ¡°Thanks for being understanding. Well with this, the after-sales service is over, so I have to bid you farewell.¡±

    After taking off his top-hat and giving a bow, a door suddenly manifested behind the guide.

    As usual, I couldn¡¯t see any of his features besides his mouth.

    I bowed back to him in response,

    ¡°Thank you, truly, for everything.¡±

    And I gave him my thanks.

    I felt like his smile disappeared for a second there, but it was back to normal almost immediately.

    ¡°This is my job after all.¡±

    -After the guide left through the door, itpletely disappeared.

    Immediately after, the noisy argument resumed.

    I tried to stand up in the most conspicuous way possible.

    As everyone¡¯s eyes gathered on me, I started to give my orders,

    ¡°This is a good chance, so let¡¯s attack them first. Everyone, begin preparations for battle.¡±

    The soldiers were at a loss.

    The officials were as well.

    ¡°My lord, that¡¯s reckless. This is a famous pirate we¡¯re talking about here, many knights have already been in by his hands, and we have none of the Banfield knights remaining.¡±

    I didn¡¯t have any of the previous generation¡¯s vassals.

    And even if I did, there was no guarantee that they would even make a difference.

    But that wasn¡¯t a problem.

    If the guide set everything up, then there¡¯s no way I¡¯d lose.

    ¡°Who cares about that? I told you what we¡¯re going to do, so make the preparations already.¡±

    The officials looked like they still had something to say, but stayed quiet, probably remembering how I purged arge number of them before.

    That¡¯s right, just shut up and follow my orders.

    Those that follow me are treated favourably.

    And those that don¡¯t will be killed.

    ¡°We¡¯ll use everything we¡¯ve got in this battle, so somebody start transporting Avid.¡±

    Themander of my forces- one of the men expelled by the imperial army objected to this.

    ¡°Do you n to sortie as well, my lord?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll leave with the first ships, it¡¯s decided. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m only making these orders because I believe in us. From now on, let¡¯s just have some fun hunting pirates.¡±

    There¡¯s nothing more fun than ying a game you already know you¡¯re going to win.

    These pirates came all this way to deliver their huge treasure troves to me.

    So of course I¡¯d have to respond in kind.

    ¡°¨Cprepare for battle.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Brian was unnaturally restless at the mansion.

    Amagi gave her report.

    ¡°Avid has been sessfully transported to the spaceport. It will soon be loaded onto the battleship that Master will board.¡±

    Brain hung his head.

    ¡°What bad luck. Just when the territory finally started to be lively again, some space pirates just had to invade.¡±

    Amagi¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change.

    But she still seemed to be worried.

    ¡°We haven¡¯t lost yet, and Master¡¯s decision wasn¡¯t wrong. From the information we¡¯ve gathered about the pirate, even if we surrendered it¡¯d be meaningless.¡±

    Brian shook his head.

    ¡°It¡¯s toote. What are we going to do once they start flooding into the territory with those numbers?¡±

    The main army was contacted and they dispatched a force in response to the pirates trespassing on imperial space.

    Their response was swift, but it still didn¡¯t look like they¡¯d be able to make it in time.

    In the worst case scenario, the territory will be destroyed, and the army will arrive to nothing but a decimated that the pirates had already fled from.

    Brianmented,

    ¡°The Banfield name was finally, finally about to regain its former glory. If only Lord Liam was born a century earlier.¡±

    Brian, who had ced his hopes on Liam, despised the pirates.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    At the spaceport.

    There was a man watching the Banfield fleet rally together.

    It was the guide.

    He was wearing what he normally did, even in outer space.

    Standing on top of the spaceport, he began tough at the figure of Liam who was preparing to meet the ship¡¯s captain.

    ¡°To think he actually believed me when I told him this was a present. Well, as long as it¡¯s interesting. I actually hope he gets captured and turns into another one of that barbarian¡¯s toys.¡±

    The guide didn¡¯t tell Liam something important.

    He didn¡¯t tell him that Goaz¡¯s pirate fleet was far stronger than ordinary ones.

    The secret to its strengthy in the box that Goaz kept on him at all times.

    It was an infinite source of funding for Goaz.

    With an endless amount of resources to spare, Goaz was always prepared.

    Even the quality of their equipment wasn¡¯t that inferiorpared to thetest models.

    In this battle, the overwhelming number of pirates had the advantage.

    ¡°And he was so grateful to me too... I¡¯m looking forward to seeing how this changester. His thanks will digress into hate, and all the things that make him happy will burn in front of him as he drowns in grief and despair. This will surely satisfy me.¡±

    The guide was waiting for Liam¡¯s life to fall apart.

    Outside of his field of view, a small light appeared and headed towards Avid, who was being loaded onto the battleship.

    It quickly entered inside Avide before the guide noticed.

    Still ignorant, the guide started spreading his arms wide.

    ¡°What kind of result will you show me! Liam, it¡¯s time for you to learn the truth of your reincarnation!¡±

    Why did he bring Liam into this universe?

    Why was his previous life so full of pain?

    The time the guide had waited for- the moment that he could tell Liam everything, had arrived.

 Chapter 9 - First Battle

    <h4>First Battle</h4>

    After rallying our forces we had about five-thousand ships on our side.

    Even if we had a total of eight-thousand ships, many of them were unoperationable because of problems that had arisen during maintenance.

    However, even if we were only able to gather this many, things should still be fine.

    On one of the space battleship¡¯s bridges, I was sitting down in a specially prepared chair.

    The bridge was currently in a frenzy, there were over a hundred people scrambling to do their jobs.

    Because it was also the gship I personally boarded, more personnel were assigned to it than normal.

    While I looked over all those hard-working people,

    ¡°Are we ready for departure yet?¡±

    The militants looked slightly peeved, but they couldn¡¯t go against me, their lord.

    This was a normal rtionship dynamic seen in the Empire.

    ¡°We¡¯re still getting somest-minute preparations done, and my lord, are you sure about this?¡±

    I looked at the concerned expression of themander, and I couldn¡¯t help but feel how pitiful he was.

    This war was a joke.

    Our victory was a matter of course.

    I alone smiled with this knowledge.

    The treasures and bounties possessed by the pirates were within my grasp.

    ¡°More importantly, do those pirates have a lot of money?¡±

    The soldiers turned to look at each other.

    ¡°Well... they do.¡±

    ¡°And to think all of that is going to be mine soon- I can¡¯t wait.¡±

    The soldiers all stared at me while Iughed.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Goaz¡¯s Fleet.

    As you would¡¯ve expected, the biggest ship was Goaz¡¯s personal gship.

    Ever since he used it to destroy an entire star-country, it became his favourite ship of all.

    It was remodeled to the point that you could barely make out it¡¯s original appearance.

    Rxing at the bridge, Goaz wasughing as he ced on his forehead.

    ¡°They¡¯reing out to meet us? Looks like the kid has some fight in him.¡±

    The surrounding pirates joined in on theughter.

    Goaz¡¯s pirate fleet has never lost.

    He thought they¡¯d surrender, as most small frontier houses with limited forces normally did.

    ¡°I have to admit, they have spirit. Let the men know if they capture the brat alive, I¡¯ll double their share. I want that kid as my next toy.¡±

    The adjutant was smilling.

    ¡°You truly are charismatic, Boss.¡±

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s interesting to have an immature brat as my opponent for once. Once this is over, I wonder how we should enjoy the people who had just lost theirst line of defense.¡±

    Goaz still hasn¡¯t had enough.

    He was a man who has lost count of how many lives he has taken over the decades.

    All of this was due to the golden box that he owned- the [Alchemy Box].

    Simply put, it was an artifact capable of producing gold from any substance except for living organisms.

    It was a piece of lost technology that was impossible to recreate.

    In addition to gold, it was even capable of producing mithril and adamantium.

    It was an artifact of dreams.

    ¡°Now then, how about we teach what true war is to a boy who knows nothing?¡±

    The pirates believed that victory was assured.

    Anybody would think that.

    They outnumbered their enemy six-fold.

    Even if they didn¡¯t n anything, they¡¯d be sure to win in a head-on fight.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Only a few days had passed before we were set to collide with the pirates.

    I listened to themander¡¯s orders as I rxed in my chair.

    I could barely hear him now.

    The chair I sat on wasfortable to a frightening degree.

    No matter how I sat, my back didn¡¯t hurt at all.

    I could totally sleep there if I wanted too.

    The moment I closed my eyes, my lights would be out.

    Over thest several days we had worked out our ns and formations.

    Everyone was assigned to the role they were most suited to, so I left it all to the military personnel while I just watched.

    Just by looking at things as they were, it didn¡¯t look like the battle was going to begin anytime soon.

    I understood that everyone thought that this was ast-ditch struggle of resistance due to the difference in numbers.

    I called out to a soldier who was stationed nearby.

    ¡°When will it start?¡±

    ¡°My lord, it has already started. Once battles reach scales thisrge, you can¡¯t just run recklessly into the ckness of space- we¡¯re already struggling enough as it is.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t even see the enemy.¡±

    ¡°When considering the size of the universe, please imagine that the distance the enemy is at could already be considered fairly close.¡±

    ¡°Come to think of it, it¡¯s true that I never really learned anything about war.¡±

    While I did study many things in the educational capsules, I did neglect a military education.

    Even while knowing that, the soldier exined how ignorant I was without remorse.

    He really didn¡¯t mince his words, but I did like how honestly he spoke.

    Because he was working for my sake, I¡¯ll allow him at least that much.

    It looks like the two forces were slowly reducing the distance as they repositioned the armies to counter each other.

    It seems that checking the radars and instruments for the enemy was considered part of the battle as well.

    With that said, how many days was this supposed to go on?

    Themander was scowling.

    ¡°With forces thatrge, the number of soldiers the enemy has is nothing to scoff at.¡±

    Seeing how firm the pirates were caused him to frown.

    I turned to the soldier again.

    By his behaviour, he was probably someone that used to be in the Imperial Army.

    ¡°Is the battlefield always like this?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not verymon, even themander is growing a bit impatient.¡±

    Slowly close in while adjusting formations.

    Although they weren¡¯t at visual distances, they had confirmed each other¡¯s presence.

    Then the operator shouted,

    ¡°We¡¯re experiencing jamming interference! Enemies have been spotted closing in directly above the fleet! Their number, five-hundred strong!¡±

    Apparently five-hundred pirate ships are attacking from above the fleet, somehow able to avoid the detection of our radars.

    Themander immediately starts sending out orders.

    ¡°So they¡¯re making the first move? Prepare for interception! Don¡¯t let them out of your sight!¡±

    Our fleet quickly altered our formation into a bow pointed straight up and ready for the iing pirates.

    Themander had a bitter look on his face.

    I turned to the soldier,

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it bad for the enemy to spread out his forces like that?¡±

    ¡°They did it in order to break our formation. No matter how quickly we intercept it, we¡¯ll be leaving ourselves open to retaliation for a moment.¡±

    ¡°It would¡¯ve been better if they just charged at us with all their forces at the beginning.¡±

    As Iined, the enemy starteding into view, and the soldiers¡¯ faces started to drop.

    ¡°My lord, those aren¡¯t pirates. Well, I guess they are... they¡¯re people who have stooped to the level of piracy.¡±

    They didn¡¯t look like imperial ships, so they must be the fleet of another nation.

    They¡¯re the people who were assaulting us.

    For some reason, the thought made me a little sad.

    ¡°Did he make the people who¡¯ve surrendered to him in the past into his strike force? If they were going to send out jamming signals, I wish they had done so sooner.¡±

    ¡°Orders given aftermunication interference urs is bound to be dyed before the units can carry them out. They sent these people knowing this.¡±

    If you can¡¯t talk to your soldiers, you can¡¯t give out orders, to put it simply- it¡¯s a lot of trouble.

    Still, those who¡¯ve been put in charge of this assault are probably disposable pieces in the pirate¡¯s viewpoint.

    As the pirates started to attack, we shot back to intercept.

    We were shooting each other with beams andsers.

    I couldn¡¯t help but think that the shes of coloured light that zoomed through space were a bit beautiful.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Goaz was pping his hands at the bridge.

    ¡°Now what are you going to do, kid? Are your pieces ready?¡±

    Five-hundred allied ships had been repelled, but Goaz didn¡¯t really care.

    He had overwhelming dominant forces, if he had only lost that much then it didn¡¯t really matter.

    His adjutant smiled as well,

    ¡°Boss, the enemy should be confused now, it¡¯s time to go on the attack.¡±

    The Banfield house¡¯s fleet should¡¯ve been thrown into confusion due to their jamming attack by now- Goaz decided his orders after hearing the adjutant¡¯s report.

    The pirates had already closed the distance while the enemy was fighting the five-hundred abandoned pawns.

    So Goaz shouted in a brave voice,

    ¡°Okay boys, it¡¯s time for an assault! It¡¯s only natural for pirates to attack a panicking enemy!¡±

    All of them were going to attack at once.

    The crew was a little surprised, but they didn¡¯t seem to mind.

    They thought the enemy would be in a state of panic.

    However, trap-mines were waiting for the ships that charged forward.

    Several dozen pirate ships were caught up in the explosion and were destroyed.

    ¡°What a clever little trick.¡±

    He wondered if they knew that this was going to happen.

    But even this wasn¡¯t that much to worry about.

    The adjutant wasn¡¯t panicking either.

    ¡°They¡¯re doing better than I thought.¡±

    Goaz startedughing,

    ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be any fun if they couldn¡¯t do at least this much. Either way, this much damage is-¡±

    Immediately after, the vanguard was caught in another enemy attack and exploded.

    ¡°...what?¡±

    Goaz turned to his adjutant and asked for a report. Although his aide seemed a little shaken up, he was able to squeak out a reply,

    ¡°It looks like their fleet is really well-trained. Even the quality of their equipment isn¡¯t that bad.¡±

    Goaz mmed his hands against his armrest.

    They couldn¡¯t grasp the situation of the enemy because of the jamming singles, but apparently the fleet they assaulted had already regained their formation and was waiting for them.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to admit it, but I guess that¡¯s what happened.¡±

    They still outnumbered them though.

    Pirate and enemy shed and started attacking each other.

    The enemy¡¯s vanguard was fighting hard.

    But even then, none of their attacks came close to Goaz¡¯s ship.

    They had defense-focused escort ships protecting his surroundings.

    So he had no fear of an enemy attack.

    ¡°Press on fast! We have the number advantage, so gang up on them!¡±

    They were putting up a small, but intense resistance.

    Goaz¡¯s saw it as something only to that degree.

    Actually, the distance from the Banfield fleet was shrinking.

    They could already predict the enemy¡¯s next moves.

    ¡°If it¡¯s like any normal aristocrat¡¯s private army, then at least one of them will try to run away.¡±

    If one ship runs away, then a chain reaction of desertions will ur and their fleet will copse.

    Since it¡¯s easier to chase fleeing enemies, the adjutant was hoping it would happen.

    ¡°There¡¯s always a fraction that doesn¡¯t run away, we can mess with those ones as we wish.¡±

    ¡°Understood, Boss.¡±

    The naively-trained ships of lesser nobility were bound to desert a disadvantageous battle.

    Because theycked discipline.

    The Banfield house¡¯s forces only seemed like they were fighting together.

    The pirate¡¯s assault continued.

    As the battle progressed, the two noticed that something was wrong as they got closer.

    Goaz stood up from his chair.

    ¡°...what?¡±

    Disyed on the monitor was the enemy fleet still fighting at maximum strength.

    What he saw was an enemy who¡¯s fleet didn¡¯t copse¨C none of them had run.

    For some reason, they still haven¡¯t lost the will to fight.

    The adjutant was also surprised.

    ¡°They haven¡¯t run yet? No, they even closed the distance!¡±

    Goaz shouted at his amazed aide,

    ¡°Send out the mobile knights! Break their formation!¡±

    The distance was reduced to the point in which humanoid weapons could participate in the battle.

    As if to ridicule his order, the enemy was already dispatching knights to attack their vanguard.

    ¡°You¡¯re just a boney little brat, don¡¯t get full of yourself. I¡¯ll catch you and make you my toy.¡±

    Goaz felt frustrated with Liam for the first time this battle.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    At the bridge, officers who stood near themander were issuing instructions one after another.

    Staff members were also issued orders after confirming the current state of the battle.

    In anycase, things were pretty hectic.

    One soldier- the man who stood near Liam turned towards the now empty chair.

    ¡°He really sortied.¡±

    ¡ªthis puzzled him.

    He was assigned to the gship to be Liam¡¯s aide, but Liam himself said that he was going to join the battle in his mobile knight.

    He ordered themander to charge, and left to join the battlefield.

    As such, now themander and the surrounding staff were in a panic.

    ¡°Send some knights out immediately! Don¡¯t let anyone harm the lord!¡±

    ¡°The escort knights are still being prepped forunch!¡±

    ¡°What the hell are you doing?!¡±

    The bridge was in a state of disarray because of Liam.

    The soldiers looked up at the monitor and took in the sight of Avid that was projected there.

    ¡°That¡¯s a knight?¡±

    The special existence known as ¡®knights¡¯ are different from the usual military officer.

    Inyman¡¯s terms, they have almost superhuman abilities.

    Knights were the result of many years of physical and mental strengthening from education capsules from an early age, which general soldiers didn¡¯t have ess to.Even basic movements would be different if the two piloted the same machine.

    If they fought, it¡¯d be impossible for the general soldier to make up the difference in ability and win.

    Projected in the monitor, Avid was dual-wielding a bazooka in its left hand and a sword in its right.

    After slicing through a pirate knight who approached with its sword, it proceeded to destroy a pirate ship with its bazooka.

    After throwing away it¡¯s bazooka, Avid stretched its arm into a magic circle nearby and pulled out a new armament.

    It was space magic, where arge-number of weapons had been pre-stored.

    Weapons were pulled out and used one-after-another as it went wild.

    Liam¡¯s voice could be heard mixed in amongst the noise.

    ¡°AHAHAHAHAHA!!! Just try and stop me!¡±

    The soldier wiped the sweat that fell by his cheek as he watched the figure of Liam cutting down enemies and sinking pirate ships without hesitation.

    ¡°Just... what kind of life did he live?¡±

    Liam, who still hasn¡¯t had hising of age ceremony, was still only a child in this universe¡¯s perception.

    Such a child was fighting pirates with glee.

    Themander who overheard this approached the soldier.

    ¡°Does he scare you?¡±

    ¡°Cmander, please excuse me!¡±

    Themander sat down in his chair saying ¡°Don¡¯t bother,¡± to the soldier who had suddenly stretched his back, stiff.

    ¡°...if he wasn¡¯t born a nobleman, would he have been an ordinary child?¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    Themander whispered,

    ¡°When he was only five years of age, he was abandoned by his parents and forced to rule a territory that was on the brink of copse on the frontier. Somehow, he managed to develop the devastatednd, only for him to be forced to do battle with pirates to protect it. I really want to see how this kid will grow up in the future.¡±

    Themander started to grumble, ¡°I want my children to serve this lord as well.¡±

    Many former imperial soldiers were forced into Liam¡¯s territory.

    Lots of them were inflexible and stubborn people.

    People too serious were relegated there.

    People too virtuous were relegated there.

    People who refused bribes were relegated there.

    Simply put, there were many kinds of serious people gathered there.

    The reason why is because the guide wanted to gather people who would oppose Liam, who was aiming to be an evil lord.

    From the perspective of one of such individuals, the lord named Liam was-

    ¡°After I was expelled from the army I was regretting my life, but look at things now. I didn¡¯t think I would find a lord worth serving all the way out here.¡±

    The surrounding soldiers agreed.

    ¡°Yes, he¡¯s truly a virtuous ruler indeed.¡±

    The figure of the person who stood at the frontlines and fought.

    To the soldiers standing behind it, it was truly an inspiring sight to see.

    It was inefficient for the leader to spearhead the charge in battle.

    However, it raised morale and instilled the idea that ¡®as long as we follow this person, we can win.¡¯

    Liam had shown them this form without even realizing it.

 Chapter 10 - School of the One-Flashâ€™s Founder/Successor

    <h4>School of the One-sh¡¯s Founder/Sessor</h4>

    ¡°I¡¯m invincible!¡±

    Inside of Avid¡¯s cockpit.

    I grabbed the controls and I couldn¡¯t stopughing.

    This is it! This is what I¡¯m talking about!

    To subjugate my enemies with overwhelming power.

    My opponents were pirates.

    I felt intoxicated with power from killing all these people that seemed to ovep with the debt collectors from my previous life.

    Not the side of those who had things taken from them, I was finally on the side of those who took things away from others.

    My heart was full.

    Enemies started flocking towards Avid, which wasrger than regr knights and was cutting down pirates one after another.

    ¡°You¡¯re annoying me!!!¡±

    As I shouted that, innumerable magic circles manifested around Avid.

    The weapons I had stored in the space magic beforehand started materializing.

    Homing missiles were fired concurrently from missile pods, tracking down the attackers. Some of the flocking enemies fled, but they were soon caught and died in the resulting explosion.

    After that, several knights appeared from the explosion¡¯s smoke.

    Their movements were different from the other aircrafts.

    ¡°Pirate knights?¡±

    People who were originally knights, but had fallen to piracy and crime were called pirate knights.

    Most pirates were just gangsters and thugs, so pirate knights were a very valuable force for pirates.

    The shields mounted on Avid¡¯s shoulders repelled enemy beams andsers.

    They created an energy field that wrapped around the airframe, so those attacks never even reached me.

    Even if they shot physical projectiles like bullets, Avid¡¯s armour was sturdy enough to take it.

    ¡°I¡¯m not even using any cheats! ¨Cwoah.¡±

    Melee weapons on the other hand... I started taking evasive maneuvers against the pirate knights who had switched to swords and other melee weapons, dodging them as the came, one after another.

    Even the amazing Avid would be damaged by a knight¡¯s swing if they hit.

    So I avoided them because it felt like I was damaging a new car.

    You know, I don¡¯t like scratching the things I just bought.

    As I kept dodging my opponents, I threw away my bazooka and started shooting at them with a rifle.

    ¡°You might be better than normal pirates, but you¡¯re still nothing!¡±

    As Avid passed by the approaching pirate knights, they¡¯d suddenly be split into two.

    ¡°Nice response.¡±

    The attacking pirate knights were cut down immediately after they approached.

    Rising sh, downward sh, reverse sh, counter-1 just by shaking my sword a little, my enemies were suddenly severed into pieces and exploded.

    One of them somehow received my attack with his de.

    Instead of attacking again, I epted his power challenge against Avid.

    The other party¡¯s voice came through them lines now that we made contact.

    ¡°You, what the hell did you just do?! What school is that?!¡±

    Many knights are trained in specific martial schools.

    To learn martial arts is the foundation for all knights.

    However, the other party was puzzled and couldn¡¯t recognise my school.

    Among the pirate knights, his was the one with the best movements.

    I was also kinda interested in him and replied back.

    ¡°It¡¯s the school of the One-sh, founded by swordmaster Yasushi. Do you recognise it?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of that school, nor of a swordmaster by that name! Must be some no-name swordstyle trash!¡±

    My anger red up so I threw away my rifle and smashed the pirate knight¡¯s head in with my left hand.

    ¡°You say I belong to a no-name school? I¡¯ll crush you and broaden the name of the One-sh!¡±

    After destroying what remained of the enemy with my left arm, I steered Avid towards a nearby pirate ship.

    The boosters spurted out fire as beams of light shot out towards the elerating Avid.

    I pushed through the rain of optical weapons, and smashed through the pirate ship, breaking straight through its armour and hull.

    After damaging it that much, the ship detonated in a fiery st behind me.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Goaz watched as a ck knight emerged unscathed from an exploding battleship.

    ¡°W-what the hell is that guy?! Who¡¯s piloting that knight?!¡±

    He was sure that it had to be a well-known and famous knight.

    At first he thought it was just arge, outdated airframe, but his pirate knights were being in without even being able toy a finger on it.

    Goaz was growing impatient and could feel a cold sweating on.

    ¡°Who is he?¡±

    The adjutant eximed out in surprise after hearing his subordinate¡¯s report.

    ¡°It¡¯s their leader! The lord of the Banfield house is piloting that knight! It¡¯s Liam Sera Banfield himself!¡±

    ¡°What?!¡±

    Goaz shook with anger as he listened to the report.

    ¡°Impossible! How can the high-end bodyguards I hired be losing to a single kid?! The mobile knights I gave them weren¡¯t cheap either!¡±

    High-grade pirate knights who charged exponential prices for their services.

    Even the mobile knights given to them were aircrafts stolen from the Empire and bought at the ck market.

    Their appearances may have changed, but they were still better than the normal aircrafts used by ordinary pirates. It was unbelievable that a single knight could take them all on.

    ¡°...no, this is a chance, their general is on the front lines! Idiot, only a fool would leap into the middle of an army alone. Surround him and beat him down!¡±

    Goaz saw his men in a vain light.

    Pirates couldn¡¯t be trusted by anyone, not even other pirates.

    All the more so when so many of them had already been killed.

    The more likely they thought they couldn¡¯t win, the more likely they were to betray him, so he had to end this quickly.

    Watching the scene disyed on the monitor from his chair, Goaz took in the sight of a battalion of pirates swarming towards the single knight, as per his instructions.

    But-

    ¡°No way!¡±

    Goaz couldn¡¯t believe his eyes.

    The pirates that flocked towards Liam were all bisected in an instant.

    They started to explode from the very action of approaching Liam.

    Even pirate ships were divided as if this were some sort of horrible nightmare.

    (This can¡¯t be! How can one knight be so strong?! What is this?! What the hell is that guy?!)

    He couldn¡¯t believe it.

    If things kept going as they were, then Liam was on a direct collision course with Goaz¡¯s gship.

    As it punched through another pirate ship, allied ships started to recklessly fire at the ck knight,pletely missing their target while hitting each other.

    ¡°Idiots! Stop that immediately! Let the mobile knights fight him!¡±

    The pirates were afraid of the lone Liam.

    But their enemy wasn¡¯t Liam alone.

    The adjutant started shouting,

    ¡°Boss! Enemy forces iing!¡±

    The enemies who were desperately trying to catch up to Liam were in a cone-like formation.

    They broke through the pirates who were already starting to panic.

    The pirates were confused due to the unexpected high-level skill of the attackers, and theirck of hesitation.

    Goaz smashed his fist into his chair¡¯s armrest.

    ¡°Useless, all of them!¡±

    He had a multitude of pirates under hismand, but they were all untrained ruffians.

    If things even looked slightly dangerous, their lines would easily copse.

    Goaz wracked his brain,

    (The current flow can¡¯t be allowed to continue. At this rate we¡¯ll lose, then I¡¯ll have no choice but to run away and save myself. I didn¡¯t think they¡¯d be this strong.)

    There were many benefits for being the boss of arge pirate fleet, but conversely, it was also very troublesome having only thugs and criminals follow him.

    Goaz called over his adjutant and started to whisper,

    ¡°We¡¯re running, call over whoever you think is trustworthy. Everyone else is disposable.¡±

    The adjutant was surprised at first, but soon gave a look of understanding.

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Goaz¡¯s gship started to retreat, it¡¯s surrounding escort ships following closely behind.

    (After we get away, I¡¯ll start sending assassins to the brat. I can still win this, I have an unlimited number of chances.)

    His adjutant started shouting as Goaz unconsciously gripped the alchemy box.

    ¡°What the hell are you doing?! Continue the retreat!¡±

    The pirate in charge of steering cried out in response,

    ¡°What about our allies?!¡±

    The adjutant hissed,

    ¡°They¡¯re already dead anyway! So press forward! The enemy will be here soon!¡±

    They were behaving like cowards who wanted to escape as quickly as possible.

    It was a course of action that they would never take normally.

    So why would they do this?

    ¡ªthey were simply scared of Liam, who was quickly approaching at high-speeds.

    The sight of Liam, who was an unstoppable force on the battlefield was terrifying.

    And-

    ¡°Caught you.¡±

    ¡ªThe gship shook violently with a sudden impact.

    Liam¡¯s Avid hadnded on the hull.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    I caught up to the fleeing enemy gship and attacked them.

    Afternding on the ship¡¯s hull, I destroyed the turret that was aiming at Avid.

    ¡°Are the pirates afraid of shooting at their leader¡¯s ship?¡±

    The pirates were hesitant to attack the gship, which I was boldly striding across.

    ¡°Are some of them trying to run away?¡±

    I immediately went on to shoot down any ships that tried to desert the battle, blocking their escape route.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s toote to get away now. I¡¯ll get everyst one of you, and then all of your treasures will be mine!¡±

    As I started blocking their chance to escape, the pirates suddenly started to scatter everywhere.

    When my allies finally caught up, they opened up theirm lines despite all the static.

    ¡°My lord, are you alright?!¡±

    ¡°Forget about me, chase them down. Leave a thousand ships for defense and hunt down the pirates with the rest. Don¡¯t let a single one get away, and ignore any pleads of surrender, kill them all.¡±

    ¡°Understood!¡±

    My allies will pursue the pirates who run away.

    Even if they try to escape into space, a swift pursuit should still be able to defeat the majority of them.

    As one of the friendly ships approached the enemy gship, they started prepping anding force.

    I forced open the ship¡¯s hatch and entered into the pirate knight¡¯s hangar.

    A mobile knight was standing ready and fired a rocket at me, but I wasn¡¯t worried.

    Nothing at that level could destroy Avid.

    ¡°Hey, you scratched the paint job.¡±

    The pirates standing nearby started shaking in fear after seeing Avid emerge from the explosion almost unscathed.

    Holding up their rifles, the space suit-wearing pirates started to open fire.

    ¡°You¡¯re annoying.¡±

    As a section of Avid¡¯s armour opened up, and aser was discharged that practically incinerated the pirates into ashes.

    After finishing off thest knight, I let out a breath and started putting on my helmet.

    My pilot suit also doubled as a set of power armour.

    I attached my sword to my belt, and grabbed the rifle I had stored in Avid before boarding the pirate ship.

    ¡°Now where do you keep your treasure?¡±

    As I said that, multiple small allied ships started entering the hangar.

    After safelynding, the troops started gathering around me.

    The soldiers were all dressed inbat-focused powered suits that were far taller and intimidating than my own.

    Seeing people dressed like that act so respectful towards me was really amusing.

    ¡°Lord Liam, we¡¯vee to retrieve you.¡±

    Though it looks like they¡¯re here to bring me back.

    ¡°Rejected, I¡¯ming too.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s too dangerous! We may have already pushed them this far, but if the enemy has any suicide bombers or-¡±

    ¡°Why would someone that was running for their life turn into a suicide bomber? I¡¯m leaving, follow me if you want.¡±

    After refusing the grumblingnding squad, I entered the ship.

    Thend squadron dressed in their powered suits quickly took formation around me.

    I was impressed, the insides of a pirate ship were more beautiful than what I thought it¡¯d be like.

    Because gravity controls were offline, we had to go through the corridors in a weightless state. Luckily I was wearing special boots that allowed me to walk normally even in these conditions.

    ¡°It¡¯s surprisingly beautiful.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, please don¡¯t push on ahead by yourself!¡±

    As we proceeded forward, I sensed some feelings of hostility and forced everyone to stop.

    ¡°Now, where are you hiding... found you.¡±

    Near the corner of the passage.

    I could feel some presences waiting for us there.

    Additionally, I could feel more of them lurking around in the ceiling.

    At my order, my men shot their rifles upwards, creating multiple holes.

    From there, red blood started to flow out, suspended in the air, so they were probably dead.

    My subordinates started to make amotion,

    ¡°They were wearing suits that our sensors couldn¡¯t detect. I can¡¯t believe that pirates have such expensive equipment.¡±

    Apparently the equipment they wore was pretty costly.

    In other words, they have a lot of money.

    ¡°This is good, the treasure hunt is getting more fun. Let¡¯s hurry!¡±

    The pirates hiding around the corner jumped out, probably hoping to catch us by surprise.

    So I stepped forward.

    In front of me were multiple pirate knights wearing powered suits.

    ¡°You got careless!¡±

    They leaped forward.

    ¡°Protect Lord Liam!¡±

    I pushed my subordinates out of the way.

    ¡°Unnecessary.¡±

    I just continued walking, ignoring the pirate knights approaching me.

    My subordinates seemed stunned, so I turned back towards them.

    ¡°What are you doing? Hurry up.¡±

    ¡°W-wait, it¡¯s danger-¡±

    The pirate knights who were charging towards me were suddenly propelled towards the walls and floor, their bodies severed into pieces.

    ¡°Lord Liam... what did you just do?¡±

    I answered my bewildered subordinates, like it was the most obvious thing in the universe,

    ¡°I cut them.¡±

    Even this much was nothingpared to what my master could do.

    At his level, you wouldn¡¯t even be able to see him draw his sword, my shes are nowhere close to the peaks he¡¯s reached.

    I could still remember them now. My shes were the equivalent to child¡¯s y inparison.

    Thending squad behind me quieted down at my response.

    That¡¯s right, fear me.

    Fear and worship me, your master!

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Thending squad gazed at Liam¡¯s back as he marched forward.

    If a child wore a powered suit, of course they¡¯d look a little bigger.

    But Liam¡¯s back looked farrger than that, it was imposing.

    ¡°How could we protect a knight like that?¡±

    Usually when confronting knights, all soldiers could do isment their bad luck.

    Conversely, if they had a reliable knight on their side, they¡¯d be crying in happiness for their good luck.

    One of the soldiers muttered,

    ¡°He hasn¡¯t even had hising of age ceremony yet... Isn¡¯t our lord actually an amazing person?¡±

    They knew that he was highly skilled in domestic and governmental affairs.

    But there was no way to know how far he honed his martial skills.

    In the first ce, normally people didn¡¯t start a military education until they reached adulthood.

    There was no way for them to know.

    ¡°Oh, he¡¯s definitely strong, does he really look that prodigious to you?¡±

    The one that spoke was a soldier natively from the Banfield territory.

    Because he had never left the territory before, he had no idea how amazing Liam actually was.

    But even if he wasn¡¯t strong, wouldn¡¯t the image of their lord personally fighting on the front lines for them cut an inspiring figure?

    They definitely thought so.

 Chapter 11 - Treasure

    <h4>Treasure</h4>

    The pirates were fleeing.

    Some of the pirate knights tried to resist, but they were eventually surrounded by soldiers and were defeated.

    They had no choice but to give up once they were ganged up on.

    The adjutant was frantically running around the ship.

    ¡°Goaz, that bastard. He¡¯s trying to escape alone!¡±

    After the enemy¡¯snding squad had breached the ship, he had suddenly disappeared.

    Desperately running away, the adjutant was trying his best to think of a way out of this situation.

    He pulled up the ship¡¯s map with his personal terminal.

    ¡°...there¡¯s nowhere else for me to run. Damn it all.¡±

    The adjutant turned around and sat down.

    In front of him was an enemy unit led by a small knight carrying a sword.

    He tried to flee, but no matter where he went there¡¯d only be enemies waiting for him.

    The adjutant raised his arms in surrender.

    ¡°Please wait! I have information you¡¯d be interested in!¡±

    The small knight carrying a sword over his shoulder stopped, giving the order for the men behind him ¡°stand down.¡±

    The knight sounded fairly young judging by his voice.

    (This is myst chance, I need to use every card I¡¯ve got here to survive.)

    ¡°I¡¯m just another victim of Goaz¡¯s tyranny, please have mercy on me!¡±

    The knight was wearing a helmet so his expressions couldn¡¯t be read.

    ¡°That¡¯s right! I also know where all the treasure is kept! I don¡¯t have the ess key, but I can show you where it is! You can trust me!¡±

    The adjutant immediately genuflected before them.

    The knight was silent.

    However, the knight¡¯s subordinate opened his terminal and gave a report.

    ¡°Lord Liam, this man is the deputy officer of Goaz¡¯s pirate fleet. I don¡¯t think he¡¯s a victim who was forced into the life of piracy.¡±

    At the mention of the name ¡®Liam¡¯, the adjutant raised his face.

    ¡°Liam? You¡¯re the bast- I mean, of course you are! No wonder you had such a majestic aura about you! Say, why don¡¯t you hire me? If we join our forces together then-¡±

    The adjutant¡¯s vision suddenly changed.

    He didn¡¯t move his body at all, but his vision still changed all the same.

    In the sudden weightlessness of zero-gravity, he could see every individual¡¯s body.

    Even his own.

    ¡°...huh?¡±

    The adjutant¡¯s consciousness broke off from there.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The guide was stunned as he watched over the battlefield.

    He was currently standing on a destroyed pirate ship.

    ¡°This is impossible. W-what the hell is with that strength?!¡±

    The guide was perplexed over the power that Liam originally should¡¯ve never obtained.

    The school of the One-sh didn¡¯t exist in this universe.

    In the first ce, it was just a lie created by Yasushi.

    Yet somehow, Liam was able to reproduce it in reality.

    ¡°Even if you were talented, how did you obtain such power? Just what did that man teach you?¡±

    While he wasn¡¯t looking, Liam had be far stronger than he could¡¯ve imagined.

    There¡¯s no way he¡¯d know Liam would be this powerful.

    The guide gripped his head with both his hands.

    ¡°It hurts! I¡¯m in pain here, dammit!¡±

    Liam¡¯s grateful feelings were being transmitted to him even now.

    There was an absolute feeling of trust mixed in as well¨C it was nauseating.

    ¡°I can¡¯t allow things to keep going like this. Goaz, I will give you power.¡±

    The guide waved his arms, generating ck smoke around him.

    ¡°Doing this goes against my style, but it can¡¯t be helped. This is the end for you, Liam.¡±

    The guide felt like throwing up at the thought that he was forced to get his hands dirty.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Goaz was hiding in a remote corner of the ship while shaking.

    He had the alchemy box firmly gripped in his hands.

    I don¡¯t want to die. I don¡¯t want to die. I don¡¯t want to die.

    The leader of a pirate fleet who¡¯s name spread fear across the cosmos was crying like a baby, terrified.

    In the first ce, his unlimited source of funds was Goaz¡¯s only weapon.

    As a pirate he was only a little stronger than the norm, if he was found, there was no doubt that he¡¯d be killed.

    ¡°This can¡¯t be real. I¡¯m going to survive this, no, I¡¯m going to live a life of luxury. Yeah, that¡¯s right, as long as I have this-¡±

    The Alchemy Box- if he were a bit smarter about how he used it, Goaz could¡¯ve lived an easy life.

    He didn¡¯t have to be a pirate.

    This was a situation causedpletely by the choices that he¡¯s made.

    He brought about these circumstances himself.

    With that said, nobody would¡¯ve expected for him to actually lose against Liam.

    At that moment, ck smoke started enveloping Goaz.

    ¡°W-what the hell?!¡±

    The voice of the guide called out to him,

    ¡°Goaz, I¡¯m going to give a bastard like you a chance.¡±

    ¡°Who¡¯s talking?! Who the hell is talking?!¡±

    The ck smoke forced its way into Goaz¡¯s mouth as he was frozen in fear.

    As the guide materialized, Goaz was already copsed on the ground, gripping his throat with both his hands in pain.

    The guide spoke,

    ¡°This is yourst chance, I will give you the opportunity to defeat Liam. You want to win here, don¡¯t you?¡±

    As Goaz forced himself to nod his head, the guide proceeded tough with his crescent moon smile.

    ¡°That¡¯ll do.¡±

    The ck smoke dissipated, and Goaz dropped the alchemy box in surprise as he was suddenly released from the pain.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on? I can feel power surging through me, and I don¡¯t feel scared! I don¡¯t feel any fear at all!¡±

    His skin now had a bluish tone to it, but he didn¡¯t feel any difort with his body at all.

    In fact, he felt great.

    Goaz smiled.

    The guide was also smiling.

    ¡°Your skin is now as tough as adamantium, so you have nothing to fear. You have transcended the limits of humanity, so go on and rampage!¡±

    ¡°This is all because of that brat! I¡¯m going to kill him!¡±

    The guide watched Goaz run off while holding a hand to his forehead.

    ¡°...that was a bit excessive. I guess I had a little too much fun.¡±

    Considering how often he had used the dimensional door recently, this was a pretty stupid move.

    The guide¡¯s figure was severely fatigued.

    ¡°Well at the very least, this guarantees that Goaz¡¯ll kill him. Oh Liam, regret the fact that you¡¯ve bored me and must now fall into despair.¡±

    As the guide disappeared, a small light approached the alchemy box.

    The light observing the guide¡¯s actions was the same one that had entered Avid.

    Morphing into the shape of a ck and brown dog, it rushed into the hallway towards Liam¡¯s location.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    As I was walking through the corridor, I suddenly felt a wave of nostalgia wash over me.

    ¡°...huh?¡±

    It almost looked like the tail of a brown dog crossed my view for a second there.

    My men must¡¯ve noticed my abnormality,

    ¡°Lord Liam, is there something wrong?¡±

    ¡°Just now, did you see a dog?¡±

    ¡°A dog? No, the scanners don¡¯t detect any biological reactions, and even then there wouldn¡¯t be such a thing here. A dog could never wear a spacesuit.¡±

    Was I just seeing things?

    Even so, why did I feel so nostalgic just from seeing a tail?

    ¨Cthat¡¯s it.

    It reminded me of the dog I kept in my previous life.

    At the same time, I also remembered the various animals that all died when I tried to take care of them afterwards.

    If I didn¡¯t know about my previous life, then I would¡¯ve just ignored it as supernatural nonsense.

    But I knew about the guide, and all that he¡¯s done for me.

    ¡°I thought his work was already done...¡±

    ¡°My Lord?¡±

    ¡°No, its nothing. In anycase, let¡¯s go in that direction.¡±

    As we proceeded towards the path that I saw the tail pass by, we arrived at an area in total disarray.

    All the furniture was scattered about like an old warehouse.

    There were many ces to hide, so my subordinates advanced carefully even though I couldn¡¯t sense anyone.

    Even the dog didn¡¯t seem to be here.

    I felt a little disappointed.

    When I sighed and looked down, I spotted something lying on the floor.

    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡±

    What I picked up was a golden box.

    It was small enough to be held in one hand.

    It was decorated in various intricate ways- I took quite a liking to it.

    ¡°I picked up something good here, and now it¡¯s mine.¡±

    The men looked in my direction with warm gazes,

    ¡°I guess the rumors about Lord Liam¡¯s love for gold are true.¡±

    ¡°I adore it.¡±

    ¡°What about mithril and adamantium?¡±

    ¡°Hmm? I like them, but gold is better.¡±

    I feel like my subordinates are a confused, but isn¡¯t mithril just a fancy name for silver?

    And adamantium has more of an image as something used as weapon materials.

    Gold should be more valuable.

    As I inspected the box, I saw the dog¡¯s tail at the edge of my view.

    ¡°-there it is again.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, please don¡¯t go off on your own!¡±

    As I left my men to chase after the dog, I reached a dead end.

    But something felt off about it.

    After using my helmet¡¯s scanner, I found out that there was actually a hidden door there.

    ¡°I smell treasure.¡±

    After having my subordinate¡¯s blow up and destroy the hidden door, I found what could be akin to a treasure mountain.

    However, it wasn¡¯t the gold and silver riches I wanted, it was just antiques.

    ¡°...I guess this is a failure.¡±

    My men eximed in surprise,

    ¡°No, isn¡¯t this still a jackpot?! These items are definitely worth a fortune!¡±

    ¡°The majority of these are probably just fakes.¡±

    In fact, many of the antiques owned by the Banfield house were fakes.

    For the time being, I scoured the pile to see if there was anything worth value.

    ¡°Hey, I found a sword.¡±

    It was an old-fashioned sword that looked like it belonged to a fantasy game.

    That¡¯s the feeling the design on the sheath and handle gave off.

    Simple, and modest.

    As I inspected it, I found the de to be in perfect condition.

    ¡°I want to test this on something.¡±

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be better to not use it? It looks like it¡¯s worth a lot.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll only use it if necessary. Don¡¯t worry, it was something taken from pirates anyway.¡±

    I put the gold box in therge pouch at the back of my belt, and gave my rifle to my men as I equipped the two swords.

    If I make wise choices from here on, I might not even need to fight anymore.

    ¡°Now then, where should we go nex-¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, we have an emergency calling in!¡±

    My subordinate shouted.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    One of thending squads had run into Goaz.

    Even though they were wearing powered suits, they were easily thrown back by just one of Goaz¡¯s arms.

    ¡°Damn, why aren¡¯t bullets working?!¡±

    ¡°Energy-based weapons aren¡¯t either!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll do it!¡±

    One of the soldiers fired a bazooka at Goaz, but he walked out of the explosion and smoke as if nothing happened.

    The faces of the soldiers were going pale.

    Goaz put on of his hands on his neck and cracked it.

    ¡°To go wild on a man¡¯s ship, you couldn¡¯t have thought you¡¯d be able to get out of here unscathed.¡±

    Goaz was intoxicated with the power he gained and felt like he could do anything.

    Not even knights could be his opponent now.

    When he clenched his fist, it didn¡¯t sound like a person¡¯s hand- there was a metal squeaking noise to it.

    ¡°You are all my toys.¡±

    Goaz blows off the soldiers with ease using the guide¡¯s power.

    Ammunition,sers, and explosives were all useless against him.

    The soldiers even tried to alter the air pressure in the corridor- but even that had no effect on Goaz.

    ¡°I guess you could say I¡¯ve done some remodeling recently.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s a cyborg?¡±

    When the soldiers tried to retreat, Goaz chased them down and sent them flying.

    Grabbing and throwing them like nothing, Goaz rampaged with his newfound strength.

    ¡°Bring me the kid! Let¡¯s end this here and now!¡±

    One of the soldiers loudly sent outmands to his surroundings.

    ¡°Send out a message to get Lord Liam off the ship! We absolutely can not let those two meet!¡±

    Knowing that none of the soldier¡¯s attacks were effective, Goaz continued to run wild.

    ¡°What happened to your bravery just a second ago?! Come at me!¡±

    Whenever he punched a soldier, he¡¯dpletely smash the head in along with the helmet.

    Grabbing another soldier to use as a shield, the shooting stopped.

    ¡°This time it¡¯s my turn to-¡±

    As he threw away the soldier he was using a shield and took a step forward, Goaz suddenly felt pain shoot through his body.

    ¡°...what?¡±

    When Goaz looked down at his figure, he was surprised to see a number of wounds there.

    Without knowing what had just urred, one human jumped down from above him.

    The person who jumped down was looking at a chipped sword covered in blood as he stood.

    ¡°How tough.¡±

    The man seemed to beughing.

    He was wearing a helmet though, so Goaz couldn¡¯t see his face.

    Goaz stretched out his right arm to grab him, when he suddenly heard something fall to the ground with a ¡®bump.¡¯

    His right arm was severed from the tip of his elbow.

    ¡°...huh?¡±

    To his surprise, the small man in front of him had thrown away his de.

    In its ce was a sword that Goaz recalled seeing before.

    It was something that he stored in the room full of antiques.

    It was a very valuable sword.

    ¡°Hey, you! That¡¯s mine!¡±

    The man wasughing.

    ¡°What, this? It¡¯s mine now. Besides, it looks like you were able to rampage just fine without it.¡±

    As theughing man rested the sword on his shoulder, Goaz stretched out his left arm to grab him.

    But this time it was his left arm that fell off.

    ¡°-?!¡±

    Goaz couldn¡¯t understand what was happening.

    On the contrary, the man in front of him was looking over the sword in interest.

    He seemed to be quite pleased with it.

    ¡°Amazing, not a single drop of blood stained it. How interesting.¡±

    Goaz had now lost both of his hands.

    While he was still in a state of confusion, ck smoke starteding out of the cut surfaces, morphing into tentacle-like organisms.

    ¡°What the hell is this?!¡±

    Goaz couldn¡¯t control his body, and attacked the man in front of him.

    But the man was ignoring Goazpletely.

    ¡°I like this sword, I¡¯ll make sure to use this one from now on. I¡¯m lucky I found that treasure trove.¡±

    The tentacles were sliced into fine pieces, along with one of Goaz¡¯s feet as well.

    ck smoke was constantly being emitted from Goaz, who was now kneeling.

    ¡°Ah... ahhhhh...¡±

    Goaz was trembling now, he couldn¡¯t understand what was going on.

    ck blood was flowing from all the cut surfaces.

    The soldiers had gathered into a formation to protect the knight.

    ¡°Lord Liam!¡±

    When he heard that name, Goaz raised his head.

    His eyebrows wrinkled as he gazed upon the visage of the demon-like man in front of him.

    ¡°So you¡¯re... you¡¯re that bastard Liam!¡±

    The man was still fervently inspecting his new sword and didn¡¯t even spare to look at Goaz.

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m Liam. Also, that¡¯s ¡®Lord¡¯ Liam to you, trash. More importantly, who¡¯s this ck person anyways? Is he a remodeled human or something?¡±

    The soldiers answered his question, but seemed a bit doubtful.

    ¡°His skin colour is different from the reports, but I think that¡¯s Goaz.¡±

    ¡°This person is?¡±

    Goaz¡¯s left arm had taken the shape of a sharp horn.

    ¡°Don¡¯t ignore me!¡±

    As he thrust out his left arm to pierce Liam¡¯s heart- his left shoulder was cut off.

    Liam looked down at Goaz, who was on his knees.

    He rested his sword against his shoulder and sternly inspected Goaz¡¯s face.

    ¡°Are you really Goaz?¡±

    Goaz started to tremble.

    (What the hell?! How?! This is impossible! How did my body get cut even when bullets bounced off?! Something¡¯s wrong here. Something is definitely wrong here!)

    The panicking Goaz looked up towards Liam.

    ¡°...p-please, have mercy.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°Spare me. Please, spare me. I¡¯ll never go against you again. If you let me live, I¡¯ll even give you all my treasure.¡±

    Liam smiled and startedughing at Goaz¡¯s offer.

    Heughed and said,

    ¡°¨CI don¡¯t want to.¡±

 Chapter 12 - The Princess Knight

    <h4>The Princess Knight</h4>

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to.¡±

    I looked down a Goaz, whose skin had been tinted ck, and I could feel the corners of my mouth rising into a smile.

    The sight of arge man kneeling and trembling before me was truly a humorous thing.

    He had a rugged face.

    He was the kind person who vainly trained his muscles, the exact kind of person that I hated.

    People like him were the gue of my previous life.

    He reminded me of my old life¡¯s debt collectors.

    ¡°Please forgive me! I¡¯ll do anything!¡±

    The men around me had their guns at the ready as they carried out the corpses.

    Their eyes on Goaz seemed to have a frost to them.

    This was precisely the reason why I couldn¡¯t forgive Goaz.

    One of the reasons being that he¡¯s the type of person that I hate, with the second being because he seemed to be misinterpreting the situation.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you misunderstanding something? You¡¯re saying that you¡¯ll give me all of your treasures, but all your treasures are already mine. The only thing of value you have left to give me is the bounty that the Empire has ced on your head.¡±

    Goaz¡¯s eyes widened in surprise.

    ¡°Please wait! If you let me live, I can still be useful to you! I might¡¯ve lost to you, but you¡¯ve seen my strength! Without arms or legs, there¡¯s no chance of me ever betraying you! So spare me, I beg of you! I even have hidden treasures worth far more than my bounty located elsewhere that I can offer you, so please! Have mercy!¡±

    He started sputtering on randomly.

    What he was saying could be true, but it wasn¡¯t enough of a reason to spare him.

    ¡°Oh? You still have a few secrets left? I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be willing to tell me on our way to the Empire, we have lots of fun torture chambers booked for you.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t screw with me you shitty braaaaaaaaaaa-¡±

    Maybe he had given up on speaking with me, but Goaz lunged at me the best way he could with only one foot.

    There was ck smoke emanating from his body.

    To such a Goaz, I pointed my sword and-

    ¡°Shut up.¡±

    -I chopped him up to the point where he was just barely alive, I even took hisst leg.

    After slipping on the floor, Goaz had the idiotic look of someone who couldn¡¯tprehend what had just happened. It took a while, but after understanding the situation, he started to cry while pleading for his life.

    ¡°Help me! Please! Anyone! Please help me!¡±

    I delightedly looked over my new sword, it was far better than I could¡¯ve ever imagined.

    That¡¯s when my men asked me,

    ¡°Lord Liam, do you intend to capture him alive?¡±

    ¡°Is there a problem with that?¡±

    ¡°N-no, it¡¯s just that he¡¯s killed a lot of our men.¡±

    I see, I definitely couldn¡¯t show any mercy to this scum.

    ¡°If I kill him, will the total bounty drop? Isn¡¯t it usually better to bring them in alive?¡±

    I remember hearing that it was like that.

    But apparently, Goaz was different,

    ¡°No, particrly atrocious criminals are fine if they¡¯re brought in either dead or alive. Goaz is one of such individuals, the rewards should be fully paid out as long as you have evidence of your kill.¡±

    I was quite embarrassed to have myck ofmon-sense pointed out again,

    ¡°Oh, so there was something like that too, huh?¡±

    Goaz was still crying when looked back at him.

    The sight of him brought back memories of my previous life¨C who the hell said that there was room for humanity in debt collection? Because of bastards like that, I was coerced of my life¡¯s savings and forced to live a life of poverty.

    They had absolutely no room for mercy.

    I was forced to tell them I had already invested into life insurance.

    No matter how much I cried, nobody saved me.

    I worked desperately just so I could live to the next day.

    Why was that world so unreasonable?

    That said, what about now?

    Now I was in the position that took things away.

    And wouldn¡¯t a heinous criminal like Goaz be one of the best people to take from?

    ¡°Please have mercy. I¡¯ll tell you everything, so pleas-¡±

    ¡°No, you annoy me.¡±

    After I beheaded him to shut him up, I was surprised as to what happened with Goaz¡¯s body.

    His ck skin slowly reverted into a normal skin tone.

    It turned into a wheat-like shade that was slightly sunburnt.

    ¡°Huh, he changed back to normal. Does this mean he wasn¡¯t a remodeled human?¡±

    No matter how I looked at the body, there didn¡¯t seem to be any form of cybeic alterations.

    So that ck skin was just some kind of skill he had... this universe sure does have a lot of mysteries in it.

    I picked up Goaz¡¯s head.

    ¡°Will this work as evidence?¡±

    ¡°Y-yeah!¡±

    My subordinates immediately replied while bringing over tools for first aid.

    From the reports that had started toe in, it looks like we¡¯ve almostpletely taken over the ship.

    One of my subordinates then brought forward some interesting news,

    ¡°Lord Liam, we¡¯ve captured one of their officers and apparently... they have some people imprisoned here.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    One of the captured pirates led us to a room that was built nearby Goaz¡¯s personal quarters.

    I thought this pirate ship was built quite well, turns out it was actually a seized battleship from another star country.

    As a side note, It was a lot of fun ¡®overdoing¡¯ my abuse against our captive,

    I kicked the pirate who was guiding me from behind.

    ¡°Hurry it up!¡±

    ¡°A-as you wish!¡±

    The man was one of Goaz¡¯s close aides, someone with the position of a ¡®rearing officer.¡¯

    He was short, fat, and his limbs were thin.

    In conclusion, he was creepy little man.

    Apparently he was assigned to this position because of some specialized skills and knowledge that he had.

    After being guided to the room near the captain¡¯s quarters, my men entered first.

    The rearing officer was trying to say something,

    ¡°Ah, please try your best to not touch the equipment, they¡¯re very important tools of the trade.¡±

    ¡°Tools of the trade?¡±

    They were using tools to raise animals? On a battleship?

    Something seemed off about all this...

    ¡°Hey, you.¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°Were you raising a dog on this ship?¡±

    Maybe thinking that I was taking an interest in his work, the man started to smile,

    ¡°I love lords who understand my profession. So you like dogs? I can modify any animal exactly the way that you like, my lord. Do you want me to create an obedient dog for you?¡±

    What the hell is this man talking about?

    As I pondered how strange this man was, several of my subordinates had practically jumped out of the room.

    Some of them even removed their helmets and started throwing up.

    One of my escorts began criticising them,

    ¡°W-what the hell are you doing in front of Lord Liam?!¡±

    The fully trained soldiers had pale faces, just what did they see in there?

    As another one of the soldiers walked out the door, he grimly reported to me,

    ¡°Lord Liam, I rmend that you don¡¯t enter the room.¡±

    There was no power in his voice.

    ¡°Don¡¯t patronise me. What happened in there?¡±

    Surprisingly, it was the creepy breeder who answered my question instead of my hesitant subordinates,

    ¡°This is myboratory. Inside, I was usually tasked with helping with the Boss- er, Goaz¡¯s hobbies. I¡¯m sure my lord would understand the true worth of what¡¯s in there.¡±

    The men who had taken off their helmets were ring at the rearing officer,

    ¡°You¡¯re the devil!¡±

    At my subordinate¡¯s words, the rearing officer started to smile.

    ¡°...exnation, now.¡±

    With my order, the rearing officer began to fervently talk about their work.

    And because of that¨C with a feeling of disgust welling up inside of me I shot the breeder in the head with my handgun.

    As I thought, all thieves are evil.

    It couldn¡¯t get any simpler than that.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Inside the dark room, creepy tools were hanging off the walls.

    But what everyone was scared of was the operation table that was ced in the center of it all.

    This room was called the ¡®breeding room¡¯ among the pirates.

    It was an unholy ce where the culmination of the creepy rearing officer¡¯s experiments and Goaz¡¯s hobbies hadbined.

    The ones kept in this room were all people who were once considered ¡®beautiful women.¡¯

    Goaz had the hobby of defiling that which was beautiful until it was ugly.

    Incidentally, he also enjoyed the practice of torture.

    On the other hand, the rearing officer was more interested in the modification of the human body. The repulsive appearance of the former beauties was the result of bringing these two people and their hobbies together.

    Among them, there was one woman in particr who was treated especially horribly.

    Her name is [Christiana Reta Roseire]- a girl who was once a beautiful female knight.

    In a small country separate from the Empire, she was born into their royal family and was loved by all as the ¡®Princess Knight.¡¯

    She was captured alive alongside Goaz¡¯s attack on her territory, and became his favourite toy.

    Everyone brought to this room was a person that had a special position in their respective societies.

    They were the people who were afflicted by Goaz¡¯s distorted hobbies.

    Christiana- Tia was now barely more than a chunk of meat that didn¡¯t have a single vestige of her former self.

    She was aware of the strange urrences happening to the ship, so she wasn¡¯t that surprised when a strange armed force entered into the room.

    The soldiers who entered started to throw up at the sight of her.

    Some of them were even shaking.

    Tia began speaking to the nearest soldier,

    ¡°...what happened to Goaz?¡±

    The former beauty¡¯s voice was now repugnant and nauseating to listen to.

    One of the shoulders shook in surprise and raised his gun.

    ¡°-?!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t be scared. I might look like this, but I¡¯m not an enemy. I¡¯ll ask you again, what happened to Goaz?¡±

    As she was acknowledging the soldier¡¯s response as only natural, a gunshot could be heard from the other side of the door.

    Her friends in the room felt relief at this sound.

    This meant that they could finally die.

    One knight entered into the room soon after.

    Young and petite.

    A suspicious little boy who carried around an adult-sized sword.

    Judging from the response of the soldiers, Tia could tell that the boy was their superior.

    ¡°What happened to Goaz?¡±

    The boy was a little surprised at the question, but answered immediately.

    ¡°I killed him.¡±

    ¡°...is that so.¡±

    In the room, her friends started to moan.

    They expressed happiness, gratitude, and tears of joy- the sight of which only scared the soldiers, though the boy seemed to be watching Tia with interest.

    One of the soldiers who was searching the room handed a terminal over to the boy.

    Tia was so happy.

    The boy was like an angel sent from the heavens that she had prayed for.

    ¡°It¡¯s really over... I don¡¯t know who you are, but if you have anypassion left in your soul, please save us!¡±

    To die by the boy¡¯s hands would be Tia¡¯s salvation from this hell.

    She would no longer be forced to live inside this prison of a body.

    Tia thought that everything was finally over.

    ¡°You want me to save you?¡±

    ¡°Yes, you can understand just by looking at us. We can never live as humans again, so by your hands-¡±

    After taking such hideous forms, it would be impossible to revert back to their original states.

    There was no point in living anymore.

    However, the boy didn¡¯t give the order to kill,

    ¡°Understood, I¡¯ll save you. I¡¯ve actually made a lot of money this time, so I can afford it. Somebody call a doctor and have all of them carried out!¡±

    Tia realized that the boy had misunderstood her request for him to ¡®save¡¯ them.

    ¡°N-no, wait-¡±

    But the boy had already left the room with some of the soldiers.

    So she turned to the ones that stayed.

    ¡°Please! Kill me! Just kill me!!!¡±

    But the soldiers refused.

    ¡°-it¡¯s Lord Liam¡¯s order. We can¡¯t go against it, sorry.¡±

    Inside the darkness of the room, Tia had fallen into despair.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    As I left the room, I was looking up the original appearances of the modified people on the terminal.

    What was interesting about each individual, what kind of experiments were done, and what had been modified was all written in detail in the documents.

    I looked up the modification process, and there was even something simr to a breeding diary.

    Apparently all of them used to be quite beautiful, and were experimented on until they had their current appearances.

    ¡°This is a disgusting hobby.¡±

    I couldn¡¯t understand how anyone could enjoy this.

    My subordinate asked me,

    ¡°Lord Liam, are you really going to help them?¡±

    The one who spoke was a subordinate that had some medical knowledge. He started exining to me that the methods to treat people who had been modified that much were quite limited.

    ¡°To fix their appearances, we¡¯d have to send them through treatments to reconstruct their bodies from scratch.¡±

    ¡°Will they be able to recover then?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯d require an elixir. We might only need to use a diluted amount, but you should know how expensive and valuable they are.¡±

    Usually when you speak of elixirs in fantasy universes, you¡¯d have the image of a universal medicine.

    They existed in this universe as well, but there were only a few of them in the entirety of the Empire.

    If one was brought to an open market, it would definitely be sold for an exponential price.

    ¡°I¡¯ll buy it. They¡¯re something that I¡¯ve wanted as well, so let¡¯s purchase a few of them.¡±

    If I sold the treasure that I¡¯ve obtained from Goaz, I¡¯m sure to obtain a considerable amount of money.

    There might even be more treasures that he¡¯s hidden that I haven¡¯t even found yet.

    Besides, I¡¯ve been wanting to have a personal elixir for a while now.

    ¡°No, it¡¯s not that simple, we¡¯d also need specialized doctors, and state-of-the-art equipment. It would take years for them to revert back to their original forms even all that, and on the off-chance they do recover, then they¡¯ll undoubtedly need therapy to deal with the mental stress they¡¯ve been forced to go through. The costs of treatment would be immense.¡±

    I didn¡¯t see any real problem since we made a lot of money this time, though.

    ¡°I¡¯m only helping them because they asked me to help.¡±

    ¡°When they asked you to save them they meant-¡±

    ¡°I know.¡±

    My subordinate fell silent.

    They couldn¡¯t expect to live a normal life anymore.

    I also knew that- but looking at the processes written in the terminal, I could only say that they were just unlucky.

    I felt sympathy for them, who had suffered through things far worse than what I had.

    Most of the people who were captured had their homes destroyed in Goaz¡¯s raids.

    The majority of them didn¡¯t have anywhere to return to.

    ¡°I¡¯m feeling a little generous right now. Plus, it doesn¡¯t feel bad to do good deeds every now and then, don¡¯t you think so?¡±

    My subordinate was silent and didn¡¯t know what to say.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    When I finally returned to my territory, I was given a hero¡¯s wee.

    Many of the people were crying in happiness like Brian, who greeted me at the mansion.

    Amagi was the same as usual.

    But Brian was crying to the point that it was almost unnerving.

    ¡°Lord Liam, this Brian definitely believed that you¡¯d return safely!¡±

    ¡°O-oh, I see.¡±

    Amagi softly added on,

    ¡°I was only a bit worried, I knew you¡¯d win.¡±

    ¡°...is that so?¡±

    ¡ªI wish she worried a bit more and cried.

    Brian tried to give a report through his tears, but I could understand what he was saying so Amagi took over.

    And so-

    ¡°I¡¯ve been summoned to the Imperial Capital?¡±

    ¡°Yes, they wish to bestow a medal to the lord who had defeated Goaz¡¯s Pirates. It¡¯s just a statement at the moment, but the official announcement should arrive soon.¡±

    That¡¯s when I remembered the guide¡¯s words.

    He said I¡¯dplete great achievements through military exploits.

    It all came true.

    For destroying a pirate fleet of that size, I had received an incredible amount of treasure and honour.

    Pirate hunting sure is profitable.

    ¡°In addition to that, we¡¯ve been contacted by the Henfrey Chamber of Commerce and the Seventh Weapons Factory. Thomas wants to begin talks with you about purchasing the spoils.¡±

    ¡°What did the weapons factory want?¡±

    I couldn¡¯t really think of a reason for the factory that the beautiful Nias worked at to contact me.

    But Amagi followed up right after,

    ¡°Many of the weapons that the pirates used were things developed in other countries. They want to purchase them as research materials.¡±

    ¡°So they just want to secure more things to research?¡±

    ¡°If you found any rare metals, they¡¯d also like to purchase those to increase their material stocks.¡±

    The Goaz pirates did possess a substantial amount of precious metals.

    ¡ªthough that didn¡¯t make me happy because there wasn¡¯t much gold.

    ¡°I guess I¡¯ll talk with Thomas first.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll begin the preparations immediately.¡±

    Things really were easy as long as you hadpetent subordinates working for you.

 Chapter 13 - Volume 1 Family

    <h4>Volume 1 Family</h4>

    A month after the battle had finished, the territory had finally started to calm down.

    That¡¯s not true, my subordinates were still busy.

    But at least I was able to rx.

    Inside of the mansion¡¯s reception room, I was currently meeting with my Echigoya-no, Thomas.

    ¡°Thomas... if this is a joke it isn¡¯t funny.¡±

    ¡°Hmm, but I thought I gave a fair price? Didn¡¯t I?¡±

    He was showing me his buying prices for the precious metals, antiques, and various other treasures I acquired.

    The amount was so high it wasughable.

    There were more digits disyed there than what I¡¯ve ever seen in my life.

    Everything I¡¯ve saved up until now was just spare change inparison. For example, if you used a ten-dor bill, you wouldn¡¯t really care about the few dimes you received as change, right? It gave off that kind of feeling. The amount of money was sorge I couldn¡¯t really process it. It¡¯d be more weird if I wasn¡¯t so conscious of it.

    ¡°Nevermind, that was just something I wanted to try saying.¡±

    ¡°I see, but are you sure you¡¯re okay with selling everything?¡±

    I had sold off the majority of the precious metals and treasures I obtained.

    The reason? It¡¯s because I need money.

    I was able to reduce the debt by a significant amount with this.

    But even this much didn¡¯t fully pay it off.

    -How the hell did my family manage to spend this much money?

    ¡°But I didn¡¯t sell everything? I still kept a few things, like this sword.¡±

    When I presented the sword I had taken a liking to, Thomas made an impressed expression.

    ¡°You seem to have obtained a quite valuable de.¡±

    ¡°Really? How so?¡±

    I thought that it just cut a bit better than others, but it looks like it¡¯s actually worth something.

    ¡°I¡¯m not a specialist, so I don¡¯t know the details. Do you want me to bring in an expert for an appraisal?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±

    ¡°Oh yes, and the items you ordered will be delivered immediately.¡±

    I had purchased medical equipment from Thomas recently.

    Over the past month, I started arranging for various things toe together.

    I was getting the treatment ready for the people we saved.

    ¡°Can I also leave the selection of doctors to you?¡±

    ¡°Just leave it to me.¡±

    It was really convenient to have an exclusive merchant contracted to me.

    After all, he could arrange connections with various people for me.

    However, there¡¯s no doubt that he¡¯s making a huge profit off of my name.

    I¡¯m not that angry though.

    Thomas continued to speak,

    ¡°So when are you going to leave for the Imperial Capital?¡±

    ¡°I think I¡¯ll go before I reach adulthood next year?¡±

    In this universe, you were only considered an adult once you reached the age of fifty, and if you were a noble on top of that, things became far more troublesome.

    I¡¯d eventually have to leave for the Imperial Capital, where many days of training would be waiting for me.

    I was required byw to attend an academy sponsored by the Empire.

    Very troublesome indeed.

    From here on, I thought that I¡¯d be able to do many nefarious deeds as an evil lord, but it looks like I¡¯ll be away for a while.

    ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to be here for the ceremony, I¡¯ll bring lots of ¡®yellow candies¡¯ then as well.¡±

    ¡°Echigoya merchants truly are the source of all evil!¡±

    I really do love those who remember to bring me bribes.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Seventh Weapons Factory is a factory located on a former resource.

    The resource had already beenpletely mined out, so they refurbished it to hold their facilities instead.

    They produced weapons, but they did many other fields of work as well.

    The research they do on the weapons of foreign powers is one of them.

    Nias was thrilled because she was promoted to technology captain after the mass acquisition of pirate ships the Banfield house brought in.

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have thought these were pirate ships, though they¡¯re definitely not military ships. Once again, I have to say that remodeling armour is a lousy hobby.¡±

    The junior workers were inspecting the ships that were brought in, and they seemed to be of the same opinion.

    ¡°What were they thinking, remodeling them to be this shy? In anycase, this is a big catch for us. We¡¯ve received arge amount of materials.¡±

    Nias sighed,

    ¡°Because I went and bought all these so recklessly, our budget is in dire straits. When will anotherrgemisione in?¡±

    Nias, who wanted Liam to buy more ships, was wondering what kind of colour scheme he would have liked.

    Her subordinates started tough,

    ¡°Are you thinking about the colour scheme again?¡±

    ¡°Hey, why are youughing? Why¡¯re you peopleughing at me?!¡±

    ¡°Who knows? Still, you brought in a really good customer.¡±

    The Seventh Weapons Factory had quite the small budget, considering it¡¯s constant losses in the Imperial Army¡¯s recruitment inspections.

    However, they had a reason why they overdid it and bought all the weapons and materials Liam acquired.

    ¡°Next time we won¡¯t lose. If we can develop the next-generation of battleship, we¡¯ll have a chance to make aeback.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t develop something like that that quickly.¡±

    Nias got up to continue work while angry with her subordinates who watched over her with warm gazes.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    It was about a yearter when I had finally arrived at the imperial capital for the awards ceremony.

    I had heard that the capital was a hideous ce, and it was true.

    As to why- first off, picture something enveloped around an entire.

    Now imagine that the ¡®thing¡¯ wrapped around the world was a giant metal sphere. It was something like that.

    Apparently it was a device that regted the whole.

    It controlled everything down to the weather while doubling as a powerful wall in defense.

    When I first saw it, I couldn¡¯t help but think that whoever thought of it was a total fool.

    From the spaceport, we rode the elevator down to ground level, and once we finally reached the surface, we were greeted by a concrete jungle- not. The imperial capital wasn¡¯t built of concrete, there were grey buildings everywhere, but they weren¡¯t made of cement.

    It was a of machines.

    In any case, there were skyscrapers everywhere, fitting for a whose total poption was in the hundreds of billions.

    It¡¯s no wonder why people thought this ce was ugly.

    If someone asked me if I wanted to live here, I¡¯d fervently deny it.

    On the day of the ceremony.

    Two couples had approached me.

    Both pairs consisted of people who looked like they were still in their twenties, Earthwise.

    I was busy checking out the clothing I was supposed to wear in the waiting room, so I was quite wary of the sudden intruders.

    One of the men smiled at me,

    ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, Liam.¡±

    ¡°...who are you?¡±

    After I said that, the waiting room was suddenly wrapped in a very awkward atmosphere.

    The man continued on with a somewhat crooked smile,

    ¡°O-oh, I guess that makes sense. It has been quite a long time since we¡¯ve seen each other, or is it that I just look too old?¡±

    ¡°No, really, who are you?¡±

    I was wondering if it was one of those self-proimed rtives that would suddenly appear around famous people. I¡¯ve heard instances of that happening in my past life.

    Though in my previous life all my close rtives had abandoned me...

    When you¡¯re down on your luck they¡¯ll avoid you like the gue, and when you¡¯re living it good, they¡¯ll gather like moths to a me.

    These people are probably like that as well.

    I couldn¡¯t help but feel like I¡¯ve seen them somewhere before, but I couldn¡¯t quite ce my finger on it.

    All four of them hadplex expressions on their faces as I tilted my head in wonder.

    I turned to Amagi,

    ¡°Amagi, do you know who they are?¡±

    ¡°Master, these are your parents in front of you, and behind them are your grandparents.¡±

    ¨Cmy parents? Come to think of it, those people did exist, didn¡¯t they?

    They were pitiful people who were deprived of both their status and their territor- no, wait. These people... didn¡¯t they push their debt onto me?

    I could feel my anger ring up.

    My father¨C Cliff, forced out a cough.

    ¡°It looks like you finally remember. Even if we haven¡¯t seen each other in more than forty years, for you to not recognise our faces. I¡¯m a little shocked as a father.¡±

    No, it¡¯s because I can¡¯t remember you doing anything even remotely fatherly.

    My mother¨C Darcy, started tough,

    ¡°Oh Liam, stop joking around, and speaking of jokes, you¡¯re still using the android that I bought you all those years ago? You know you¡¯re not supposed to bring those things into the pce.¡±

    ...what the hell is she saying?

    The man and woman who were apparently my grandparents went on to agree with her,

    ¡°This is the first time we¡¯ve met, but it makes me sad to see my grandchild bring an android to the pce. You¡¯re practically an adult, so you should throw it away already.¡±

    ¡°Yes, you¡¯ll bring shame to the Banfield house like this.¡±

    The grandparents that I¡¯ve just met for the first time look like they¡¯re supposed to be in their twenties, so I can¡¯t help but feel like this is all some kind of joke.

    But it was considered normal in this universe.

    As anti-aging technology advanced, more and more people were able to retain their youthful appearance even after they aged.

    Amagi lowered her head and tried to leave,

    ¡°I will stand by in a separate room.¡±

    ¡°Ignore them. Stay by my side. Now then, what do you want from me?¡±

    My parents and grandparents present their request for me, ignoring my agitation.

    ¡°We¡¯ve heard that you¡¯ll be receiving some considerable rewards soon, and you should have some power over where those des go, right? You see, we¡¯ve run into a little bit of debt over here as well.¡±

    ¡°Life in the imperial capital costs a lot of money. If you can afford it, we¡¯d like it if you could raise the amount of money you send us annually.¡±

    Living life in the imperial capital is expensive, so they want me to send them more funds.

    It felt like they were children asking their parents to increase their allowance.

    The positions were reversed, though.

    ¡°I¡¯ve already purchased a considerable amount from merchants, so I¡¯m counting on you to cover the payments.¡±

    ¡°Your grandmother here is so happy to have such a good grandchild.¡±

    My grandparents added on selfishly.

    As I thought about how they were the cause of the territory¡¯s decline, I felt incredible resentment towards them.

    It¡¯s my money.

    It¡¯s my territory.

    It has nothing to do with you people!

    ¡°Amagi, once we return home, we¡¯re cutting them off.¡±

    ¡°But Liam1, these are your parents!¡±

    ¡°I know.¡±

    But in the first ce, the only people I considered my parents were the father and mother of my previous life.

    I don¡¯t know these people.

    In any case, it was wrong of them to try and appeal to my sense of ¡®familial love.¡¯

    ¨Cbecause I¡¯m the viin here.

    While in the presence of the pce¡¯sdies in waiting, I had publicly denounced my family.

    In the room that was once again surrounded in an awkward air, I turned to Amagi,

    ¡°Will their debt have to be paid by me?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think you do, but you might get a visit from an angry merchant or debt collector, Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°...that¡¯ll be annoying.¡±

    The people around me gasped at my words.

    Amagi made a proposal,

    ¡°We should probably reconsider the amount currently being sent, and break all connections from here on. Master¡¯s name will be damaged otherwise.¡±

    I¡¯d like to erase this connection as soon as possible, but it looks like it¡¯ll take a while.

    ¡°Prepare the documents immediately.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Outside the ceremony venue.

    There was a man tiredly walking with one hand against the wall,

    It was the guide.

    ¡°This is all his fault... this is all because of Liam.¡±

    His voice was weak and barely leaked out of his mouth.

    Because of the situation with Goaz, the guide had used too much power and had to escape to another dimension.

    He was currently being afflicted by Liam¡¯s gratitude, which was getting stronger every day.

    ¡°Just how did he defeat Goaz? He should¡¯ve been uncuttable. Why was he able to find that sword at that time?¡±

    Originally, it should¡¯ve been impossible for Liam to obtain it.

    The guide was like this not only because he used too much of his power, but also because Liam¡¯s gratitude was draining what little he had left.

    ¡°I won¡¯t forgive him. I will never forgive him.¡±

    With clenched teeth, the guide headed towards the room Liam¡¯s parents and grandparents were at.

    The guide limped brazenly through the pce, but no one noticed him.

    Once he finally reached the room, he found four people scowling at electronic documents.

    ¡°This is all because you didn¡¯t raise him well!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t screw with me! This has nothing to do with me!¡±

    The documents that Liam had Amagi prepare said that they must never be involved with them again instead of increasing the amount of funds sent.

    Both Liam¡¯s parents and grandparents were only thinking of parasitizing money from their decendant¡¯s newfound fame.

    To say it clearly, they were trash.

    With four such people in front of him, the guide started to smile despite the pain,

    ¡°...I can use these four. From ancient times, there have always been power struggles within families in monarchic societies. Liam, your family will deprive you of everything. Your family will be your downfall.¡±

    ck smoke emanated from the guide and enveloped the four.

    The guide who couldn¡¯t check Liam¡¯s situation only had a few options avable to him.

    He was that weak now.

    Liam¡¯s grandfather suddenly brightened up,

    ¡°That¡¯s it, let¡¯s go through the lord changing procedure again. Then everything that Liam has built up will be mine.¡±

    The grandmother pped her hands in joy,

    ¡°That¡¯s a wonderful idea. I¡¯ll ask for a favour from an acquaintance in the pce so we can proceed immediately.¡±

    Cliff was also smiling,

    ¡°Let¡¯s also prepare a new heir. Liam is already useless for us.¡±

    Darcy had an expression on that seemed to say it couldn¡¯t be helped.

    ¡°Well, if it¡¯ll get us more money and territory, then I¡¯ll cooperate. So what do we do about Liam?¡±

    Cliff darkly smiled,

    ¡°Once we have the money, we¡¯ll start hiring assassins and the like. We shouldn¡¯t do it right after the ceremony though. We¡¯ll have Liam quietly disappear after everything dies down.¡±

    Listening in on the four¡¯s conversation, the guide was satisfied.

    Then, right after he disappeared from the room.

    Manifesting into one of the room¡¯s corners- a small light escapes through the door.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Amagi stood by in a separate room as Liam attended the award ceremony.

    The Empire was a country cold towards androids.

    Amagi understood that it was impossible for her to attend the ceremony, and waited in the prepared room.

    That¡¯s when she saw something strange.

    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±

    There was a small light floating in front of the door.

    The light disappeared through the door as Amagi approached.

    Scanning the room¡¯s insides, she could detect four biological reactions.

    It was Liam¡¯s parents and grandparents.

    She touched the door and listened in on their conversation.

    ¡°What should put as the reason for the transfer?¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter, having an android by his side is inappropriate for an imperial aristocrat. The moment they hear of this, the pce will consider the transfer immediately.¡±

    ¡°In that case, as for the assassination arrangements-¡±

    ¡°The perfect time to do so would be-¡±

    Amagi, who had listened in to the four¡¯s conversation, immediately left the pce grounds.

    In her thoughts,

    (It would probably be best if I left Master as soon as possible.)

    Liam¡¯s reputation was damaged just with her being by his side.

    To Amagi who realized that- couldn¡¯t help but feel disgusted with herself.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The ceremony venue was outside!

    With bright sunlight and a clear blue sky, it was the perfect weather for it.

    Unbelievably, it was all artificial.

    And beneath this perfect weather and temperature, I was currently kneeling in front of the Emperor.

    The Emperor was standing a bit of a distance away, and I couldn¡¯t really hear him.

    Luckily, everything that his majesty said was broadcasted through the huge stereo projected in the middle of the sky.

    It was a very long ceremony where they asked me many things, and after answering all of them, I received the medal.There were many nobles present in the surrounding area.

    An uncountable amount of them!

    I couldn¡¯t help but wonder if there were too many.

    And so the ceremony proceeded with its solemn atmosphere, finally ending with a word of thanks.

    What I was waiting for though, were the parties that seemed to happen everyday.

    If you asked around, there always seemed to be a big party held somewhere on a daily basis.

    -as an Evil Lord, isn¡¯t it my duty to ck off and y around? I thought as much as I participated in as many as possible.

    As long as they invited me first, I didn¡¯t have to pay a participation fee.

    I spent everyday hecticly in the Imperial Capital, though Amagi always seemed to be busy with something and couldn¡¯t join me.

    She didn¡¯t tell me what she was doing, and whenever I asked she always just responded with, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, please go ahead and enjoy yourself.¡±

    As long as she said everything is fine, then things should be okay. Thinking that, I headed towards another party today as well.

 Chapter 14 - Volume 1 Gratitude

    <h4>Volume 1 Gratitude</h4>

    The Imperial Capital¡¯s pce.

    It was too big to urately pinpoint where inside exactly.

    For the pce of the Empire is said to be bigger than even a major city in and of itself.

    The minister¡¯s office was located in such a ce.

    There, a grey-haired old man continued working on his electronic paperwork as another man drew closer to him in anger.

    That other man was Cliff, Liam¡¯s father.

    ¡°What is the meaning of this?! Why won¡¯t you allow our appeal for a reassignment to go through?!¡±

    As most aristocrats retain their youthful bodies by slowing down the aging process, that meant that those of them that did have elderly appearances had truly lived for a long time.

    The man who Cliff wasining to was a man who had served the royal family for many generations and is said to know all of the Empire like the back of his hand.

    ¡°...the reassignment process has already beenpleted once before, and we don¡¯t see any reason to repeal it.¡±

    Cliff had already discarded the eloquence and manners of a noble, and was starting to lose his temper.

    ¡°That boy brought an android into the pce, and has broken the taboos of noble society. Do you want the Banfield house to bear this shame?!¡±

    As the prime minister continued to process his electronic documents, he could feel a bitter taste rising in his mouth.

    His hands which were working so fervently had stopped,

    ¡°So you¡¯re telling me that Sir Liam, the nobleman who defeated a pirate fleet that terrorized our space is an embarrassment? The Empire doesn¡¯t have anyws against keeping an android close by. That¡¯s nothing more than one of society¡¯s tendencies.¡±

    ¡°And I¡¯m saying that it¡¯s precisely because of those tendencies that this is a problem! Your Excellency, please reconsider!¡±

    The prime minister smiled.

    Maybe Cliff thought that his point had finally gotten through, as he smiled back,

    But his expression turned pale immediately after.

    ¡°Sir Liam has fulfilled the duty of paying the taxes that the Banfield house has neglected. He is a wonderful citizen that contributes to the Empire, so we have great expectations for him. Do you understand what I¡¯m saying?¡±

    ¡°W-well if that¡¯s the problem, then everything should be fine as long as we pay the taxes once we¡¯re reinstated, right?¡±

    At Cliff¡¯s query, the minister suddenly burst intoughter,

    ¡°It¡¯s precisely because you never did so before that we can¡¯t trust you. That¡¯s the biggest difference between you and that child in the first ce! As for which one of you is more beneficial for the Empire, even someone like you should understand the obvious choice here.¡±

    Cliff scowled and tried to rebuttal, but the minister wouldn¡¯t allow it,

    ¡°Now I¡¯d behave if I were you. You do want to live a peaceful life in the imperial capital after all, don¡¯t you?¡±

    With that statement Cliff quickly left the office with a somewhat panicked step. From the minister¡¯s tone, he understood that if he did anything to Liam, then they¡¯d surely dispose of him.

    The minister watched Cliff¡¯s receding back and frowned,

    ¡°There¡¯s been a boom in low-ranking nobilitytely... I still can¡¯t believe that such a prodigy was born from someone like that.¡±

    Liam was someone who hadpletely revitalized a destend.

    In addition to that, he was able to defeat an overwhelming quantity of pirates while outnumbered.

    A genius of politics and governmental affairs, a master of martial skills and war, as well as a highly honourable and loved individual amongst his people. A superior lord of the frontier had appeared; a being that both greatly troubled the minister as much as he celebrated it,

    Because one day he might turn those sharpened fangs towards the Empire.

    He didn¡¯t think they would lose, but it was a nasty thought all the same.

    But the story was different if he was obedient.

    A lord who firmly pays taxes and follows orders would be greatly weed by the minister.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way we¡¯d rece him with someone as ipetent as that. Let¡¯s get that little boy¨C Liam, to work for the Empire.¡±

    He brought out a certain electronic document.

    It was a document that pertained to the rewards of the pirate subjugation.

    Liam had actually declined the remuneration.

    To be precise, the form requested that thepensation would be used to pay-off the overdue taxes instead.

    At the same time, it also appealed for the rights to be able to purchase gship-ss battleships at the Empire¡¯s factories.

    Neither request could hurt the Empire.

    Or rather, both could only benefit them.

    Instead of paying out a reward, they were going to buy weapons from Empire-run facilities.

    It was a very lucrative proposal that wouldn¡¯t hinder their finances.

    ¡°Even though the android gave its all to support their master, the true parents abandoned their child in pursuit of their own selfish desires... This is a sad time to live in...¡±

    The minister went andined for a little while, before continuing his work.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The suite room of one of the capital¡¯s luxury hotels.

    In any case, we were staying in a very expensive room, and I was currentlyying down on Amagi¡¯sp on top of the bed.

    ¡°...I¡¯m tired. I just can¡¯t understand what I can¡¯t understand. Just what is a party?¡±

    As I had participated in parties everyday, I had to seriously reconsider my definition of what parties were.

    There were many parties of various forms.

    I had eaten creatures I had never seen before, and was perplexed by the surprises I could never have expected.

    What surprised me the most though was the bucket party. Not a mask party, a bucket party.

    It was beyond anything I could¡¯ve imagined.

    I really had no idea as to how someone could have thought of such an idea.

    The bucket had opened up endless possibilities for me.

    As a side note, thep pillow felt really nice.

    That¡¯s when Amagi spoke up,

    ¡°It¡¯s almost time for you to be an adult, and with that I¡¯ve been in your service for more than forty years.¡±

    ¡°Yes, even though it¡¯s been a long time, it all passed by in an instant.¡±

    It was a very long amount of time inparison to my previous life.

    And yet it felt so short.

    ¡°...Master, I don¡¯t think I should be by your side anymore.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    Amagi continued to exin as I confusedly raised my head,

    ¡°The Empire has a strong sense of repulsion against androids. Master¡¯s reputation has already been damaged by me. If you need someone to stay by your side, then a human woman would be better.¡±

    After being told such a thing, I could feel my anger ring up,

    ¡°Is that supposed to be a joke?¡±

    ¡°Its not.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    I suddenly recalled memories about my previous life¡¯s wife.

    ¡°This is for Master¡¯s sake.¡±

    I remembered the woman who said that she loved me, yet still abandoned me so easily.

    I remembered the image of that woman and her new manughing at me¨C and the hatred I felt at that time which was strong enough to kill.

    ¡°...so you¡¯re abandoning me too. Are you really going to throw me away?! Is it really that repulsing to stay by my side?! I see, so not even androids can stand my presence!¡±

    After I stood up and started to yell, Amagi went on to shake her head,

    ¡°That¡¯s not true, the time that I¡¯ve spent with Master has undoubtedly been the happiest time in my life, but I have to leave. I¡¯ll make sure to prepare a sessor, so from now on-¡±

    Who cares about that?!

    Are you really leaving me for something as stupid as that?!

    ¡°Don¡¯t screw with me! You should just follow my orders! That¡¯s right, this is an order! Stay by my side! Don¡¯t go against what androids were supposed to be built for!¡±

    Amagi softly responded,

    ¡°...if that is yourmand, then I will follow.¡±

    ¡°I should¡¯ve said this from the beginning. You... don¡¯t ever abandon me.¡±

    As I started to cry, Amagi came close and hugged my head.

    ¡°I guess it can¡¯t be helped.¡±

    If you think about it, we¡¯ve been together for almost half a century now.

    She¡¯s been with me longer than my previous life¡¯s wife.

    ¡°It¡¯s always been just the two of us.¡±

    ¡°...but wasn¡¯t Brian always there too?¡±

    No- that¡¯s true, but don¡¯t mention Brian¡¯s name here.

    I see Brian in a totally different light.

    He¡¯s more like a grandpa, or a butler to me.

    Now that I think about it, I think I¡¯ve known Brian the longest out of anyone.

    Amagi smiled,

    ¡°Well, I¡¯ll make sure to serve you for as long as possible.¡±

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s fine.¡±

    ¨CI should¡¯ve said all this at the very beginning.

    But why did Amagi¡¯s smile look just the slightest bit sad?

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    In the territory of the Banfield house.

    The newly established hospital was a ce that was both well-equipped and well-staffed.

    Tia, who had woken up in such a ce, felt quite strange as shey on her bed.

    ¡°...this is?¡±

    The surroundings were different from what she was used to.

    Her body also felt strange.

    No, it felt quite nostalgic actually.

    She could feel her limbs again, almost as if this were all a dream.

    A few momentster the door suddenly opened, so she tensed up, but it was a male doctor wearing a white coat that entered.

    ¡ªit wasn¡¯t the rearing officer.

    ¡°So you¡¯re awake?¡±

    The male doctor¡¯s eyes that were looking at Tia showed no disgust at all.

    ¡°Umm, just where is this? I¡¯d-¡±

    Her voice sounded different than usual.

    It was her voice. The voice that she lost had returned.

    What she just said was in the tone of her own voice!

    A nurse standing behind the male doctor looked over at Tia.

    She brought over a hand mirror that showed Tia¡¯s reflection.

    At first Tia looked way because she was scared, but there was a familiar figure projected in it. In terms of age, she looked no older than someone who had just recently reached adulthood.

    Long, xen hair.

    Pink lips and clear white skin.

    Green eyes- it was her old face.

    ¡°Huh? T-this is?¡±

    Tears suddenly started to flow out as she confusedly gazed at the nostalgic sight.

    Her face couldn¡¯t make expressions very well.

    Her arms and legs couldn¡¯t move very well either.

    The doctor seemed to be relieved.

    ¡°We had to rebuild your body from scratch with regenerative therapy, so it took quite a while.¡±

    Tia continued to cry as she listened to the exnation.

    ¡°My body... is back to normal?¡±

    The doctor looked a little troubled,

    ¡°We used an elixir to turn you back, but you¡¯ll have to go through some tough rehab if you want it work like it used to.¡±

    ¡°An elixir? You used something that precious on me?¡±

    ¡°We used a diluted amount, yes, but it¡¯s not enough. Like I mentioned earlier, you¡¯ll have to go through some tough rehab for a full recovery. It¡¯ll be like rebuilding every muscle in your body from scratch.¡±

    Isn¡¯t this a dream? But even in Tia¡¯s wildest imagination, she thought that this was too good, even for a dream.

    Until very recently, she thought that she could only feel such happiness in dreams.

    ¡°I¡¯ll do it. I¡¯ll do anything you need me to! I feel like I¡¯m dreaming here...¡±

    As Tia dered so, the doctor began to smile,

    ¡°This isn¡¯t a dream, it¡¯s reality. Yeah, definitely reality.¡±

    There were still things to be worried about though.

    Tia had just gone through a full-body regeneration treatment, but that wasn¡¯t an operation just anyone could ess.

    Unlike regenerating a limb, Tia¡¯s condition required specifically designed equipment and an excellent specialist in order to cure.

    It was possible to treat, but it was more than likely to say it wasn¡¯t.

    After all, only nobles and millionaires could possibly afford elixirs.

    That¡¯s how valuable they were.

    ¡°W-who paid for my medical treatment?¡±

    The doctor answered her while operating a tablet terminal.

    He seemed to be jotting down notes in her medical record.

    ¡°Lord Banfield did, or to be more precise, he built this hospital and hired the staff for it.¡±

    Unbelievably, an entire hospital was prepared for her, rather than having her dropped off at a ce where the necessary facilities were already built.

    The doctor conveyed Liam¡¯s words to her,

    ¡°The Count told me to tell you that you¡¯ll have to pay him back eventually, but for now you should focus on your rehabilitation. Many therapy sessions will also be required.¡±

    ¡®Be sure to return the favour-¡¯ Tia thought of the boy after hearing such words.

    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me... was it the child from that time?¡±

    ¡°Now then, listen up,¡±

    After the doctor said that, he proceeded to talk about her uing schedule.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A year has passed since we left for the imperial capital.

    We had finally returned to my territory, where I was currently receiving various reports from Brian in the mansion¡¯s office.

    Brian was smiling,

    ¡°Lord Liam, the hospital reported that the treatment has been going well.¡±

    ¡°Are they talking about the ones that were being imprisoned by Goaz?¡±

    ¡°Yes. It seems like those who are currently undergoing treatment should finish within the next few years, while those who don¡¯t need it can already start a new life in the area.¡±

    Many of them had lost their hometowns, so they moved to my territory.

    A lot of them were beautiful girls, but there were also many artists and those with special skills among them.

    If beautiful girls are born from their children in the future, then I¡¯ll be a step closer to my dream of a ¡®luxurious feast.¡¯

    ¡°That sounds wonderful.¡±

    ¡°It truly is. Many of them wish to express how grateful they are to you, Lord Liam.¡±

    I made the investment thinking that it¡¯d be beneficial for the future, but it looks like I¡¯m already getting some positive results.

    Currently, I was inspecting the golden box I held in my hand.

    It was the treasure I had taken from Goaz, but I didn¡¯t bring it to the capital. I had kept it in my desk¡¯s drawer, so I was taking my time to look at it now that I was back.

    Briam smiled warmly as he looked at me,

    ¡°Lord Liam sure does love gold.¡±

    ¡°I adore gold.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking this for a while, but I can¡¯t help but feel like I¡¯ve seen that box somewhere before...¡±

    Brian suddenly pped his hands,

    ¡°I remember now!¡±

    ¡°What is it? Is it some sort of great treasure?¡±

    ¡°No, I think it¡¯s something else.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t raise my expectations so high if you¡¯re just going to drop them. So, what did you remember?¡±

    ¡°I haven¡¯t told you this before, but this Brian here used to be an adventurer.¡±

    Adventurers were those who explored the vastness of the universe.

    They were a specialized group that delved into ruins and researched the secrets behind ancient civilizations.

    ¡°You were an adventurer?¡±

    ¡°Yes, and at the time, I remember seeing something like that in the data I researched. It¡¯s a replica, but that¡¯s the [Alchemy Box], a device whose means of production was lost in ancient times.¡±

    ¡°Alchemy box?¡±

    ¡°Like a dream, it was something that had the ability to create treasure even from garbage. It could transmute anything except for living creatures. Meaning that it even had the ability to create rare metals like mithril, orihalculum, and adamantium.¡±

    ¡°Could it make gold?!¡±

    ¡°Hmm? Ah, yes, of course it could.¡±

    It¡¯d be wonderful if such a device actually existed in this universe.

    ¡°I wish it was real.¡±

    ¡°That would be phenomenal, yes. If you obtained something like that, then all our financial problems could be resolved at once.¡±

    ¡°Do you want to try and find the real thing?¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, you¡¯re currently the head of the Banfield house. Unfortunately, I¡¯ll have to ask you to refrain from the adventurer¡¯s upation.¡±

    I puffed my cheeks with anger at Brian.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    It was night.

    I was currently looking at the golden box in my room.

    ¡°I wish this was real.¡±

    I asked Brian for the data on how to use it.

    A magic device that was destroyed in the past. A valuable tool that couldn¡¯t be reproduced because it¡¯s manufacturing technique had been lost.

    I¡¯d never be troubled with debt again if I had it.

    ¡°For example, if I opened the lid and used it on...¡±

    I opened the box and turned towards one of the wooden practice swords I kept nearby.

    ¡°What?¡±

    I thought it was just a replica, but the box reacted and multiple screens were projected one after another all around me.

    ¡°Eh?!¡±

    Everything was written in an ancient alphabet.

    I learned about thisnguage in the education capsule, so I could somehow decipher it.

    ¡°Transform? Uhh... this?¡±

    After I chose what item I wanted to transmute, the sword was wrapped in golden particles before it changed colour.

    Picking it up, it didn¡¯t have the weight of a wooden sword anymore.

    It had the heavy weight of a metal- more specifically, gold.

    ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me! This is the real thing?!¡±

    Now that I think about it, Goaz was rich because he possessed a vast quantity of rare metals, not because of his piracy.

    So this was the source of his wealth.

    ¡°The guide told me that I¡¯d get all of his treasure... was he talking about this?¡±

    I opened up a nearby window and startedughing,

    ¡°This is amazing! To give me all this as just a service, you really are a great person! No matter how much I thank you, it¡¯ll never be enough, but I¡¯ll say it again anyways! Because of you, I can finally begin living my life as an evil lord!¡±

    I shouted out ¡°Thank you¡± from the bottom of my heart.

    Every part of my being was grateful to him, and I wanted him to know that!

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry Guide, at first I thought you were a really shady person, but I¡¯m only this happy now because of everything that you¡¯ve done for me! I don¡¯t know what to say, and I can¡¯t possibly thank you enough, but I want you to at least hear me say it, so- THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR EVERYTHING!!!¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    On the other hand...

    The guide was being burned by Liam¡¯s heartfelt gratitude towards him.

    It was really freaking hot.

    He was screaming in pain as if a red-hot iron was branding something onto his chest.

    ¡°STOP IT!!!¡±

    Grasping his chest with both his hands, the guide was suffering unimaginable pain.

    He was kicking his legs as he rolled on the ground, crying.

    Throwing away his suitcase, he cried out in pain from the gratitude.

    ¡°It¡¯s all gone! My power, it¡¯s gone!¡±

    He had lost the small amount of power he had left instead of recovering more.

    With things like this, he couldn¡¯t kill Liam even if he tried.

    After a while, he clutched his chest and clenched his teeth.

    ¡°I won¡¯t forgive you! I¡¯ll never forgive you, Liam. With these hands I¡¯ll knock you down to hell and relish in the pain you suffer for all eternity. You will hate, envy and fear me in that hell, while I stand over andugh at you.¡±

    The guide slowly rose up.

    On a moonlit meadow, the guide swore revenge against Liam.

    ¡°Be sure of it! You better believe that I¡¯ll-¡±

    A dog silently hiding in the meadow continued to watch the guide in interest.

 Chapter 15 - Volume 1 Epilogue

    <h4>Volume 1 Epilogue</h4>

    It¡¯s been forty-five years since I¡¯ve recalled the memories of my past life.

    I had finally be an adult in this world, but I couldn¡¯t help but be dissatisfied with my appearance in the mirror.

    ¡°...am I really fifty years old?¡±

    I still only looked like a thirteen year old, Earthwise.

    I looked like I was still in my first year of junior high.

    I¡¯d surely grow taller from here on, but at the moment I still had the appearance of a child.

    The surrounding servants were crying.

    Brian in particr was bawling his eyes out.

    ¡°T-this Brian here never thought he¡¯d live long enough to see Lord Liam grow into an adult!¡±

    ¡°Stop crying already. Amagi, what¡¯s the n for today?¡±

    Amagi answered me with the same tone as usual,

    ¡°Theing of age ceremony will be held one hour from now. The main celebration will be at noon, but we also have an after-party nned for the evening.¡±

    Brian wiped his tears and added on,

    ¡°By the way, tomorrow¡¯s schedule is simrly packed from morning to evening as well.¡±

    For the next month, it looks like things were going to get pretty busy.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to do all that!¡±

    ¡°Unfortunately, you have to.¡±

    At Brian¡¯s cold reply, Amagi followed up to scold me,

    ¡°Master, we have to hurry if we want to be there on time, you know you can¡¯t just stay in your room all day.¡±

    ¡°...I understand, but don¡¯t rush me.¡±

    We left the room for the ceremony¡¯s venue as Iined. You see, after I had returned from the capital, we immediately went to work on building the new estate.

    The mansion that I splurged on was far bigger than I could¡¯ve ever imagined.

    If I were topare it to something in my previous life, maybe it was the size of a small town?

    I called in a famous architect and gave them an extraordinary budget.

    As I thought about how we had to drive a vehicle to just get through the corridors, the true amount of money I wasted really dawned on me.

    As I left the room, Christiana was there standing guard.

    While wearing a uniform befitting of a female knight, she seemed to have been waiting for me.

    ¡°Lord Liam, you look truly dashing today.¡±

    I looked over my sloppy uniform that sheplimented.

    Well, at least she knows how to tter her superiors.

    Still, what¡¯s this feeling? I can¡¯t help but feel like she¡¯s watching me with an unsettling intensity.

    ...it¡¯s probably just my imagination.

    ¡°Oh yeah, are you sure you¡¯re okay to be working right now?¡±

    ording to the hospital¡¯s report, she was someone who volunteered to be a knight afterpleting a tear-inducing level of rehabilitation in the short period on one year.

    ¡°There¡¯s no problem, but I still have to leave the territory temporarily to get my official knight-license. It¡¯s a pity that I won¡¯t be able to serve by your side for a time.¡±

    Christiana- Tia was a foreigner.

    Therefore, she doesn¡¯t have the qualifications to be a knight of the Empire.

    She still needs to graduate from two different academies first to do so.

    With training and conditioning added on to that, she probably won¡¯t be able to return to service for more than thirty years.

    ¡°In any case, things will be busy for me after I be an adult, and it¡¯s not like you¡¯ll be gone forever so everything should be fine, right?¡±

    The vehicle started moving after everyone sat down.

    Rxing on the luxurious seats, Tia spoke up,

    ¡°If it¡¯s for Lord Liam¡¯s sake, then I will always strive for the best results.¡±

    ¡°Well, as long as you¡¯re fine with that.¡±

    She seems to be strangely motivated, but in truth I only hired her for her appearance.

    Apparently she used to be some famous knight in another country, but I appointed her as my knight because of how beautiful she was.

    The most important thing for me was her appearance.

    Bringing me one step closer to the ¡®luxurious feast¡¯ of my dreams.

    Brian, who was still ignorant of my ambitions, expressed his admiration,

    ¡°We finally have some knights who have sworn fealty to Lord Liam, so we can rest assured that the house will be safe.¡±

    All of the Banfield knights and aides of previous generations had abandoned us because of how low the house had fallen.

    But recently, more knights have started pledging their loyalty to me after hearing about my sesses.

    I wasn¡¯t that interested in it though, so I left it all to Amagi and Tia.

    Though if they were a beautiful woman, I made sure to hire them.

    We could finally see our destination in the distance, but it would still take us some time to get there.

    ¡°...we made it too big.¡±

    I regretted building the estate so vast.

    I did invest quite a bit into it, but this is more than I could¡¯ve ever imagined.

    Well, it is amazing to look at and it quite satisfies me.

    But the mansion I lived in before was more than enough.

    Everything was just made to be too grandiose.

    You really can¡¯t underestimate the technology of a universe that has already reached the space age.

    It¡¯s true that I wanted to give off a rich appeal by making something big, but this was just too much.

    However, if I wanted to be considered an Evil Lord in the future, then I¡¯d have to at least go this much overboard.

    Viins are always supposed to live in big and shyirs after all.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The ceremony venue.

    The merchant- Thomas, couldn¡¯t hide his surprise at the newly constructed estate.

    ¡°How do I put it, he has surprisingly good taste.¡±

    Nias who was there went on to agree with Thomas¡¯s opinion,

    ¡°It seems to focus on functionality so it has my seal of approval. I heard that it was somewhat egg-shaped, but it actually doesn¡¯t look that bad.¡±

    Theing of age ceremony had gathered arge amount people here.

    Because the estate was also recentlypleted, it also worked as a chance to show off the new building.

    From the popce¡¯s point of view, Liam¡¯s residence was actually built quite humbly.

    Disregarding its size, it¡¯s appearance was just really in.

    It was a simple, well-designed house created by a renowned architect.

    While many nobles went on to build strange houses, Liam¡¯s house seems to have been built with an emphasis on functionality.

    Certainly it wasrge, but that was something given for the lord¡¯s personal mansion.

    The structure itself was very polite and calming.

    ¡°Finally, a residence fit for a Count has arrived, or maybe this is only result justifiable now that everything has bounced back? Or should I say that this is a Lord Liam-like development? He still hasn¡¯t changed despite all the rewards he¡¯s received, and here I thought he was going to build an estate of solid-gold or something.¡±

    ¡°I heard he invested quite a fortune into it, but I have to say that I admire his decision to pursue functionality over form.¡±

    Both Thomas and Nias were impressed with the residence.

    Nias shrugged her shoulders, looking around at the surroundings,

    ¡°In any case, it looks like this has be quite the big deal, even representatives from the other weapons factories are here.¡±

    The majority of the participants were the locals.

    Officers and decorated soldiers were in attendance too.

    Other than that, there was a multitude of merchants, many of them being agents from the imperial weapons factories.

    ¡®I can do a lot of business here,¡¯ or ¡®I can buy a lot of products here,¡¯- there were many people in attendance with those mindsets.

    Thomas dropped his shoulders,

    ¡°On the other hand, there are quite a few anxious-looking nobles as well.¡±

    The Banfield house did send out invitations to the nearby lords, but there were even nobles participating from far-away territories.

    Nias exasperatedly said it couldn¡¯t be helped,

    ¡°To the nobles in the surrounding area, this is the birth of a strong and powerful house. Or maybe the correct term would be resurrection?¡±

    Many aristocrats engaged in serious battles from small skirmishes to full out wars with other houses.

    From the point of view from the surrounding lords, the newfound strength of the Banfield house was something to be wary of.

    Conversely, some nobles weed the rise of a new power.

    Those were the weak lords who couldn¡¯t develop their own territory themselves.

    They wanted to build a connection with Liam.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know how I feel about all the poor nobles flocking around though....¡±

    Some nobles found fault and grew jealous, while others grew sympathetic and became kind.

    But no doubt all of them were here because of Liam.

    Nias was indifferent,

    ¡°Even for the Empire, it¡¯s impossible forplete control of the frontier. The smaller provincial lords have no choice but to rely on the more powerful ones.¡±

    The ceremony had begun while the two of them were chatting.

    The crowd grew tense as they waited for Liam to arrive.

    Thomas let out a somewhat-worriedugh.

    ¡°Even though he¡¯s actually a really kind person, the rumours about him still have everyone on edge.¡±

    ¡°That can¡¯t be...¡±

    The lord who swore to reform the territory after being forced to reign when his parents abandoned him as a child.

    The guardian of the people who wouldn¡¯t allow unscrupulous bureaucrats to oppress his citizens.

    A person who was fierce and tough, but was definitely a ruler you could rely on.

    In addition to that, he was a virtuous ruler who invested the majority of all taxes for the development of the territory.

    From the perspective of the Empire, he was the ideal lord who faithfully paid his taxes.

    He did all of this, while at the same time struggling with the serious debt pushed onto him.

    Even though the Banfield house didn¡¯t have a lot of credibility, Liam had credibility.

    There were already many officials and soldiers who were ready to give their lives for Liam.

    The only thing he was currentlycking were vassals- more specifically, knights.

    Liam had finally appeared, and by his side was the figure of a new knight.

    Thomas stroked his jaw,

    ¡°That¡¯s Christiana. Although I heard that she was going to be Lord Liam¡¯s first knight and officer, she actually seems quite capable.¡±

    ¡°Oh? She wasn¡¯t appointed due to her appearance?¡±

    ¡°I won¡¯t deny that it was probably a factor, but among the many knights I¡¯ve seen, even I can tell that she¡¯s special. She has a good aura or something about her that makes her different. Even the brightness of her eyes is enough to distinguish how different she is from the norm.¡±

    Because she was also a person Liam had given special treatment to, Tia was also attracting attention.

    Thomas recalled a bit of gossip,

    ¡°There¡¯s actually a rumour going around that she¡¯s actually the ¡®Princess Knight.¡¯ You know, the one from that country destroyed by Goaz?¡±

    ¡°That famous person? Are you sure? I heard that the real one was supposed to be a lot older than that.¡±

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s only a rumour. If it was true though, then that means that the virtuous Lord Liam had appointed someone quite amazing to be his first vassal.¡±

    If they knew the truth though, they¡¯d probably be scared.

    The only reason why he focused on developing the territory was because he couldn¡¯t oppress his people while they had nothing.

    He only did the purge because the corrupted officials made him angry.

    His only motive to fight on the front lines against the pirates was because he thought the war was rigged in his favour.

    Paying off his taxes and debts was just the manifestation of serious person he used to be in his previous life.

    He only hired Tia because of how beautiful and loyal she was.

    There weren¡¯t any deep meanings to his actions, he had just overheard that Tia seemed to be talented.

    He was acting with the intent to be a selfish viin.

    The ceremony continued on in earnest.

    Thomas started to tear up after seeing Liam¡¯s impressive appearance as an adult.

    ¡°I¡¯m d that I chose to serve him. I knew that he wasn¡¯t crazy.¡±

    Nias agreed with Thomas, albeit for a slightly different reason,

    ¡°Our factory has finally secured a good customer. I hope that Lord Liam will continue to do his best and rise up in life. And if he buys our products while he¡¯s at it, then I won¡¯t have anyints.¡±

    Thomas narrowed his eyes,

    ¡°I think your factory wouldn¡¯t be in such a tough situation if you just cared about the designs and interiors a little bit more. If you only pursue performance and functionality, it¡¯s only a given other areas would be inconvenience.¡±

    Nias pretended that she couldn¡¯t hear Thomas¡¯ words and continued to enjoy the ceremony.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡ªOne month after the ceremony.

    I was currently troubled over a question.

    ¡°...hey, am I living in luxury?¡±

    It was Brian who responded to my question,

    ¡°Well, I can¡¯t really say inparison to other noble houses, but from the viewpoint of your predecessors, you¡¯re definitely living the frugal life.¡±

    We were in my office.

    I sprawled myself over my desk and looked around.

    ...huh? Wasn¡¯t this luxurious? It¡¯s luxurious, isn¡¯t it? But something¡¯s still wrong, the money in my bank ount hasn¡¯t decreased in the slightest.

    There hasn¡¯t been a single change in the digits no matter how much I spend.

    ¡°I¡¯m living... frugally?¡±

    ¡°Yes, you¡¯ve been living quite humbly. If you think about your position, it should be fine to indulge yourself a bit more.¡±

    In the first ce I¡¯m supposed to be a Count.

    But I didn¡¯t even know what the living standards of Counts were.

    At the moment, I¡¯d do things like have live music yed from an orchestra while I had my meals.

    I just tried to imitate the rich meal scenes that I¡¯ve witnessed before.

    That¡¯s why I also built thisrge mansion.

    I evenmissioned a pool that I could enter at anytime, twenty-four hours a day. It wasn¡¯t just any kind of pool either, it was aplete leisure facility that had azy river and wave pool.

    The day that construction was finished, I yed around swimming in the opposite direction thezy river flowed.

    I even had a hot spring built into the bathroom!

    This had to be luxurious!

    I couldn¡¯t understand the values of this world.

    ¡°Brian... what is luxury?¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯d be troubled to answer even if you asked me...¡±

    Brian turned to Amagi as if asking for help.

    Sheplied,

    ¡°In my records, there¡¯s the head of a certain house that made an entire nt into his private space. He seems to have created an entire touristic for himself.¡±

    ¡°Why would do that?¡±

    To prepare a tourist spot for himself... What¡¯s he supposed to do with it on the days that he¡¯s not there?

    At the very least, let customers in.

    It doesn¡¯t make any sense!

    Amagi corrected my misconception,

    ¡°Is this the kind of luxury that Master is looking for? In the first ce, it¡¯s wrong to ask for the meaning of luxury. What you currently have is luxurious, I¡¯m certain of it, but everyone¡¯s definition of it is different. If you consider Master¡¯s character, then it seems that luxury in the true sense wouldn¡¯t make you happy at all.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no way it wouldn¡¯t! I¡¯ll show you luxury! As long as I have money, then I can do anything!¡±

    Brian started to smile.

    He looked at me with a somewhat-warm gaze.

    Amagi followed up, seeing how troubled I was over this,

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you try studying abroad in luxury then?¡±

    ¡°An exchange student program? But aren¡¯t I already going to the academy for the nobility soon?¡±

    ¡°No, not to the noble academy, but one built for the popce. By learning more about the imperial capital and other houses, you can broaden your views of the universe. It¡¯s something that¡¯s unnecessary for a lord and can be considered a luxury.¡±

    Is it something like studying abroad and ying around in a foreign country?

    Can it really be considered luxurious to let others trifle with my money?

    Though from the viewpoint of nobility, there¡¯s no real point in for the lords to learn the wisdom of the people.

    As long as everyone they ruled over just followed them silently, there wasn¡¯t any real reason to study abroad.

    With that said, Brian agreed,

    ¡°I think this is a splendid idea. I mentioned this before, but Lord Liam, the territory of the Banfield house is still developing. It¡¯s still a prematurend that still has a lot of things to learn, such as art and fashion. So it would be quite luxurious to go off and study these unnecessary fields for a while.¡±

    I remembered while listening to Brian,

    ¡°I see, so that¡¯s why I should go and study abroad!¡±

    The reason why I couldn¡¯t get myself to pick up women was because I couldn¡¯t get over their terrible fashion sense.

    None of them could pull my heartstrings.

    But if I learned about the rest of the universe, maybe my perception of them could get a little better.

    I still thought it was wrong to go swimming in full-body swimsuits.

    And I can still remember shedding tears the day I heard that it was currently vogue to wear hats with small umbres sticking out of them in my territory.

    In addition to that, art and fashion aren¡¯t considered fields that you need to learn to survive.

    If your life was currently in danger, they¡¯d definitely be fields of study to look down on.

    So certainly, it¡¯d definitely be considered luxuries to study those things.

    ¡°Make the arrangements immediately.¡±

    Amagi quickly began the preparations,

    ¡°For now, let¡¯s n out Lord Liam¡¯s budget. If you want to leave as soon as possible, then they¡¯re recruiting applicants to study abroad in the next fiscal year.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s great! I¡¯ll live the most luxurious life ever!¡±

    I ignored Brian who was currently wiping his tears,

    ¡°Studying abroad in order to learn the perspective of his people... As expected of Lord Liam.¡±

    He was currently saying something but I couldn¡¯t hear him very well.

    In any case, let¡¯s spend more money! Lots and lots of money!

    This is definitely luxurious.

    Evil lords are supposed to live indulgent lives like this after all!

    I wanted to spend money on things that gave off that feeling.

    My aim is to be an evil lord that everyone fears!

 Chapter 16 - Volume 2 Prologue

    <h4>Volume 2 Prologue</h4>

    ¡®This world is wrong¡¯- this is a phrase that¡¯s often used.

    With that said, I-[Liam Sera Banfield] believe that what¡¯s wrong isn¡¯t the world, but the individual themselves.

    In my previous life, I¡¯d like to consider myself as a good and serious person in general.

    Despite this, my wife had cheated on me, debt collectors constantly harassed me, and my body was worn down until I was practically crippled.

    I had realized that I was about to die.

    What was wrong wasn¡¯t the world, but myself.

    Finally understanding that, I decided that in my second life I was going to live for myself and fulfill all my desires.

    There¡¯s also ¡®The Guide¡¯¨C My benefactor who gave me the chance of a second life by incarnating me into a universe of swords and magic, one that had an odd twist to it.

    Magic existed here, but science had developed as well.

    Humanity had already advanced into outer space, this was a universe where space battleships and humanoid weapons existed.

    Luckily, I was born into the Banfield house.

    It was a noble house that served a nation called the Algrand Empire, a house that had an entire under its rule¨C in other words, they were winners in life.

    Born with a silver spoon in my mouth, I could live out my life properly this time.

    The world wasn¡¯t wrong.

    What was wrong was myself.

    But now I¡¯m the ruler of a.

    An evil lord who advocates that there¡¯s no meaning in being ¡®good.¡¯

    I live for myself.

    My second goal in this life is to enjoy myself while living properly as an evil person.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Theing of age ceremony was over.

    It was finally over.

    For an entire month- it was nothing but ceremonies and parties rted to my newfound adulthood.

    I thought it was just a waste of time, but the lifespans of people in this universe were long.

    I may have had the appearance of a thirteen year old, but I was actually fifty.

    You may be considered a grownup once you reach fifty, but there are many adults in this universe that are hundreds of years old.

    That said, it¡¯s nice to know that I have plenty of time to enjoy everything I want to in this life.

    ¡°What do we have nned for after this?¡±

    Inside of my office, my faithful vassals answered me.

    First was the maid android [Amagi].

    She had beautiful ck hair that flowed down to her back, and was dressed in a ssic victorian maid outfit. She was the best maid.

    Her body was truly life-like, and she had the ability to process information at speeds far beyond the realms of humanity.

    She was a super maid who took care of both me and my territory.

    And above all else!

    ¡ªshe wasn¡¯t a woman of flesh and blood.

    After being betrayed by my ex-wife in my past life, I couldn¡¯t trust real women anymore.

    ¡°You¡¯ll be going to study abroad at another noble house before you enter into the imperial elementary school.¡±

    ¡°Elementary school... how bothersome.¡±

    Imperial nobles have duties.

    One of them was training.

    First, noble children were entrusted to other houses to be trained.

    The amount of time we spent there didn¡¯t really matter as long as we grew up properly.

    Currently, it was mainstream to receive an education at another house before entering elementary school.

    My butler, [Brian Beaumont] added,

    ¡°The admission to elementary school will be after Lord Liam turns sixty. It¡¯s customary to train at another house until then.¡±

    He was a bearded old man whose hair had already turned grey.

    The suit he wore was finely tailored, and his back stood tall and straight.

    ¡°Are there any noble houses that would ept me?¡±

    The Banfield house was a cruel house until I became it¡¯s head.

    Thanks to that, I didn¡¯t have any connections with other nobles.

    ¡®Are there any houses that would ept me?¡¯ Apparently, that was a naive question.

    With a soft tone as if to relieve my fears, Brian answered me,

    ¡°Please rest assured, for Amagi has already selected some suitable houses to study at. This might be a bit expensive, but it¡¯s quite ubiquitous to do so nowadays.¡±

    Apparently, they ept any adult noble children like myself in exchange for money and resources.

    ¡ªwait, isn¡¯t this profitable?

    ¡°This looks like it makes a lot of money. I want to do it too.¡±

    Amagi answered me in a ttering tone fitting of a maid android,

    ¡°Unfortunately, that would be difficult to do considering our current credibility, achievements, and reputation.¡±

    Brian was crying,

    ¡°H-however, there have been offers from the less powerful nobles from the surrounding territories to send their children here.¡±

    But Amagi wasn¡¯t interested in such a follow-up.

    She only cared about the facts,

    ¡°There¡¯s no point in even considering a knight or bar house against those that are of baron level and higher. In regards to Master¡¯s words just now, wasn¡¯t he only referring to the higher nobles that would actually turn us a profit?¡±

    -I wouldn¡¯t have forgiven this treachery if it wasn¡¯t Amagi saying it.

    I love ttery.

    Those who praise me shall receive my favour.

    Advice? I¡¯m aiming to be an evil lord. Even if it might be detrimental in the long run, I¡¯d rather ignore it.

    ¡°So you¡¯re saying that the Banfield house doesn¡¯t have the credibility necessary for them to leave their children with us?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°...this displeases me. I¡¯ll send you the funds, so put some effort into developing that area.¡±

    For various reasons, I wasn¡¯t troubled with money.

    Because of that, I could spend as much money as I wanted to.

    It sure is great to be able to use the people¡¯s taxes for my own personal wants!

    ¡°If that¡¯s what you want, then I have an excellent rmendation. I have a friend in the Empire, a woman who has risen up the ranks to a certain position. How about we hire her to be one of our instructors?¡±

    ¡°That sounds fine.¡±

    Brian wanted to introduce us to one of his acquaintances.

    I didn¡¯t see any problem if it was just that.

    As for Amagi,

    ¡°If you want their recognition, you need the necessary facilities needed for supplementing a proper education. That¡¯s not all, you also need to collect the human resources and cultural investments required.¡±

    When I saw the necessary budget calcted by Amagi, I opened my eyes in shock.

    It was a ridiculous amount, so I immediately checked my personal funds topare.

    Why my personal funds? Well it¡¯s because it¡¯s pretty much my territory¡¯s tax revenue.

    ¡°There¡¯s too many zeroes for me to count, but do I have enough?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s enough, you can afford it.¡±

    I felt relief at the immediate reply and decided to proceed with preparing a budget.

    In the future, children of nobles wille to my house for training.

    I¡¯ll haveplete power over them.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get this ready as soon as possible.¡±

    Brian was wiping his tears,

    ¡°We finally have the leeway to work on such things... Lord Liam, this Brian is overjoyed at the moment.¡±

    ¡ªthough this guy always seems to misunderstand my intentions.

    Well, I don¡¯t really correct him either ¡®cause his reactions are so interesting.

    ¡°Moving on from that, I¡¯d like to hear more about the ce where I¡¯m going to be training at. If possible, I¡¯d like to go to a house that I¡¯d still be able to enjoy myself at.¡±

    Amagi followed up,

    ¡°Of course. I will thoroughly research this matter to find the best ce for you to study.¡±

    I guess this solves the matter of where I was going.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    There was a personage that Liam referred to as the [Guide].

    His appearance was that of a man wearing a tophat that covered his eyes, a tailored suit, and a suitcase he always carried on his person. He was an existence of astronomical powers.

    But at the moment he was afflicted by Liam¡¯s gratitude and was weakened to the point that he was nothing but a shadow of his former self.

    He was currently pressed against the wall in the room next to the office, listening in on Liam¡¯s conversation.

    ¡°-I heard that. This is a chance!¡±

    Liam thought that this man was his benefactor, but in reality he was an existence that lived for the misery of others.

    In anticipation of the negative emotions toe, he incarnated Liam into this universe.

    But against expectations- Liam went on to have consecutive sesses, thinking that it was all thanks to the guide.

    The guide was currently ill because of such thoughts.

    His power was so drained that he could barely walk around in this universe.

    In order to regain his lost power- he decided that all his movements from now on would be directed towards his revenge against Liam.

    Unfortunately for Liam, the guide¡¯s revenge wouldn¡¯t end until he fell into despair.

    However...

    ¡°Even though I know my chance hase, I can¡¯t do anything about it. Damn it Liam, what am I supposed to do to draw out negative feelings from you?¡±

    -With his power weakened, he couldn¡¯t do much.

    Still, the guide didn¡¯t give up.

    ¡°There must be some way. I¡¯ll definitely get my revenge, Liam!¡±

    The vengeful guide continued to press himself against the wall to eavesdrop on Liam.

    Meanwhile a small, white light had manifested itself behind the guide.

    The light just silently floated in the air as it continued to watch over the guide.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡ªsome troublesome guests have arrived.

    Well, they were actually representatives of the imperial weapon factories that I frequently bought from.

    There were several weapon factories in the empire.

    All of them wererge organizations in and of themselves, the person in front of me belonging to the seventh of them.

    Each of the Empire¡¯s weapon factories had their own distinct quirks.

    The Seventh Weapons Factory in particr had quite the odd personality.

    It was a factory that solely pursued performance and efficiency while neglecting appearances, making it quite unpopr amongst the aristocratic society.

    However, the specs they were able to push out were nothing to scoff at.

    ¡°Lord Liam, this [Nias Karin] here will now introduce you to our rmended products!¡±

    The ck-haired, sses-wearing woman who gave off the feeling of an intellectual beauty swiftly brought up a stereoscopic image before me and started to exin the merchandise.

    The Imperial Chancellor had given me permission to buy gship-ss battleships, with which the factories immediately jumped at the chance to sell to me.

    A thought came up as I watched the holographic video,

    ¡°Their performance looks good, but the design is disappointing.¡±

    ¡°But we put a lot of effort into the design this time!¡±

    ¡°Unfortunately, you¡¯ll have to try again next time.¡±

    Nias, desperate for the sale, started to take off her suit jacket.

    It was faint, but I could make out the shy colours of the underwear she was wearing under her shirt.

    ¡°You really want me to buy this battleship, don¡¯t you?¡±

    I¡¯ll give her high points in her attempts to appeal to an evil lord like myself.

    But a disappointing girl is still disappointing.

    I didn¡¯t really like shy underwear.

    In my memories of my ex-wife, the number of gaudy underwear she owned sharply increased before our divorce.

    I feel upset just thinking about it.

    ¡°You¡¯re acting quite pathetically again.¡±

    ¡°Even though I¡¯ve gone this far!¡±

    Nias started to cry,

    ¡°Please buy it! I already guaranteed my superiors I¡¯d make this sale! My boss will be angry with me, and assessments areing soon!¡±

    ¡®Assessments¡¯-in my past life, the very mention of that word brought unspeakable fear to me.

    ¡°...okay, I¡¯ll buy a battleship, so go back already.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t your treatment of me too horrible?! You¡¯re acting like you¡¯re already bored of me!¡±

    ¡°Stop using me of such things!¡±

    There¡¯s no way I¡¯d just let someone denounce me for things that I haven¡¯t even done.

    ¡°Then why is it so hard to sell you any of our super-ss ships?!¡±

    ¡°No, that¡¯s-¡±

    As I started to exin my side, another soldier entered into the room.

    She still had the low rank of a technology lieutenant, but she was a young and capable soldier.

    Her blonde hair was slightly wavy.

    It flowed all the way down to her back, and her slightly drooping eyes had a distinct green-shade to them.

    Her name was [Eulisia Morisyl].

    She belonged to the Third Weapons Factory and hade here to sell me a gship as well.

    ¡°What are you doing here, Captain?¡±

    Nias, who had been promoted to a technology captain, was hated by Eulisia.

    Not to mention their respective affiliations on top of that.

    ¡°The Third Weapons Factory?! My Lord, what¡¯s the meaning of this?!¡±

    ¡°Well, isn¡¯t it obvious? It¡¯s because I already bought a super-ss battleship from them.¡±

    The way they bnced performance, design, and other such things was quite good, making them quite popr.

    I bought a ton of other things from them too.

    Nias dropped to the floor lifelessly.

    ¡°You¡¯re too horrible!¡±

    ¡°...you really are a disappointing woman.¡±

    Eulisia was weaving her hair through her fingers as she followed up,

    ¡°Thank you for your purchase, I hope we can continue this good rtionship in future transactions as well.¡±

    I could feel my nose re at the sight of Eulisia, a woman who exuded sex-appeal.

    Yes, this is it.

    A beauty that didn¡¯t give off a pitiful feeling.

    ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to buy from you again, just make sure you¡¯re the one in charge of the sale.¡±

    ¡°You want me exclusively? You tter me.¡±

    At our light-hearted conversation, NIas stared at me with a look that said she had given up.

    ¡°...seriously, the things I do for you. Don¡¯t cry, I understand. I¡¯ll buy another ship from you.¡±

    ¡°I-if it¡¯s okay, I¡¯d like it if you bought at least three.¡±

    This girl didn¡¯t have any sense of shame.

    Eulisa started to scowl.

    Conversely, as I signed the contract, Nias was beaming.

    I didn¡¯t have any words to describe Eulisia¡¯s sudden change.

    ¡ªbut is the Seventh Weapons Factory all right with this?

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡ªcrap.

    Now that I think about it, I¡¯m going into a training period soon.

    No matter what I do, I won¡¯t be returning to the territory for a while.

    Even if I do return, it¡¯ll only be for short breaks.

    Even though I finally bought a gship-ss battleship, I won¡¯t be able to use it for decades.

    It can only be described as a waste.

    I just got mesmerised by the colour schemes and bought them on a whim.

    ¡°There was no need to buy three ships in the first ce.¡±

    Just one would¡¯ve been enough.

    Amagi rubbed salt into the wound as I contemted this,

    ¡°By the time Master returns, the next generation of ships would have alreadye out, with more sophisticated features and such.¡±

    ¡°I should¡¯ve waited until then to make the purchase.¡±

    ¡°Yes. Please be careful from now on. However, since you¡¯ve already bought them, we might as well put them to use. We can still add them to our private armed forces.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯d be a shame if they weren¡¯t used, so that¡¯s fine.¡±

    Ahh... I made a pointless investment.

 Chapter 17 - Volume 2 Chapter 1 The Razel House

    <h4>Volume 2 Chapter 1 The Razel House</h4>

    There are several reasons as to why someone would leave their child with another house.

    One of them is so that they can grow properly under a strict environment for a while, but the more important one is the possibility to form connections between houses.

    Entrust your child to a firm house, forming a rtionship that both sides can benefit from in the future.

    Sometimes, children are entrusted to houses that they¡¯re already connected to, but the training in and of itself is still very important.

    I was finishing up the day¡¯s work in the office with Amagi¡¯s assistance.

    Maid androids sure are amazing.

    All my paperwork was easilypleted.

    In the Empire, ruling with the support of AIs and androids is something to be frowned upon.

    This is due to how they revolted and overthrew humanity in the past, leading to their current low-standing and minimal use.

    Originally, I was supposed to have a multitude of vassals and subordinates prepared for me, but the Banfield house had a distinctck of human resources.

    This was the fault of my parents and grandparents.

    From my perspective, they were ipetant.

    They neglected the territory, and fled to live luxurious lives in the imperial capital.

    However, it¡¯s only because of them that I got to be born with so many advantages, so I don¡¯t really even care that they abandoned me.

    Not to mention the fact that I have the guide on my side.

    He¡¯s a being that¡¯s always watching over me while giving me support.

    The ¡®after-sales¡¯ services that he provided for me are proof of that, so he¡¯s definitely a reliable entity that I can trust.

    I need to make sure to give my thanks to him today as well.

    As I stretched while pondering as such, Amagi gave her report,

    ¡°Master, the location for your training has been decided.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Where did you pick?¡±

    With my still-developing body, I started to spin the chair that I was sitting on in circles.

    ¡°..you don¡¯t look very interested.¡±

    I told Amagi- who was looking at me with a somewhat disappointed look, that I was just studying abroad at another house. It wasn¡¯t anything special.

    ¡°If you knew the truth, you wouldn¡¯t be that interested either. Apparently, when epting the children of other houses, you¡¯re forced to pamper them and let them live in luxury during their stay. Brian told me that with my parents, it wasn¡¯t like a training period at all.¡±

    By the way, my father seems to have just yed around for his three years of study.

    Apparently, this was how most houses did things nowadays.

    It¡¯d be nice to go to a house that has a good reputation with doing actual training.

    ¡°You don¡¯t want to people to study here anymore? You should¡¯ve told me earlier, we¡¯ve already finished talks with various houses. If we were to cancel now, then Master¡¯s reputation will undoubtedly be damaged.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, as long as they give me a lot of money, I¡¯ll greet them with open arms. Well, even though I have mixed feelings about letting others into my home, I think I¡¯ll be able to endure it if they¡¯re only staying here for three years each.¡±

    The training will only be in name anyways.

    Aren¡¯t there any houses out there that actually take this training job seriously?

    ¡°Well, let¡¯s just make the requirements stricter. I don¡¯t want to be forced to entertain some spoiled brat.¡±

    I¡¯ll do my best to prepare for when I have to receive those noble¡¯s children in the future.

    ¡°If that¡¯s Master¡¯s order then I¡¯ll do it, but most probably the only ones to be epted will be the children of lower-nobles. The difference between them and those above baron-ss are huge.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯ll leave the details to you and Brian.¡±

    If I can push my problems onto someone else, I might as well.

    ¡°By the way, what kind of house is the ce I¡¯m going to?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s the viscount Razel house. It¡¯s a popr ce to study that receives dozens of people every year. It¡¯s abundant in resources from the many moons ands they control and their excellently developed processing tech.¡±

    The description Amagi gave made it sound like a very wealthy house.

    But something seemed wrong here.

    From their file, they apparently had an abundance of resources, but they didn¡¯t seem to have enoughs upied to match it.

    It looks like they had a few space colonies made, but even if they wanted to expand out further, they couldn¡¯t because the surrounding areas were owned by other lords.

    ¡°The viscount family possesses a strong but small army. They seem to focus on the importance of interpersonal connections with other houses, making them a popr destination for training.¡±

    ¡°Is our house able to branch out to others?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s possible, unlike the viscount house our territory already contains suitable pioneerings.¡±

    If that was the case, then I wanted to start preparing new settlements soon.

    There was only one problem- the development of my current wasn¡¯t finished yet either.

    Undoubtedly, the development of my main would slow down if I started delegating resources elsewhere.

    ¡°Although our main is still developing, can we start expanding out tow-¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, aren¡¯t you about to start a full-scale education that¡¯ll force you to be absent from the territory for a few years?¡±

    While I¡¯m away, Amagi rmended that I didn¡¯t try to invest into new ventures.

    -I guess she¡¯s right.

    ¡°Our current policies suit us just fine, so I guess there¡¯s no need to copy the Razel house. Still, I¡¯m looking forward to seeing how much their territory differs from ours.¡±

    ¡°Before that, you still have another session with the education capsules you need toplete first.¡±

    ¡°¨Cokay, I¡¯ll see youter.¡±

    In this universe, there were things called education capsules.

    They were mysterious items you locked children inside of for several months to years!

    Inside, their bodies would be strengthened and knowledge would be forcefully loaded into their heads.

    However, you couldn¡¯t just leave things like that.

    Once finished, you had to go through physical therapy while reviewing everything you learned.

    Many people have neglected this, thinking that there was no meaning to it, but the difference between those that did do it and those that didn¡¯t was huge.

    ¡°How long will I be in there for?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s only a short period this time. Please rest assured and leave everything to this Amagi as you sleep.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m counting on you.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The main of the Razel house.

    The head of the house, [Randolph Sera Razel] had gathered his vassals into a conference room.

    They were confirming the noble children who were going to enroll into their house next year.

    The data disyed showcased the amount of money and resources provided by each noble house and the respective child sent.

    Although the Razel house was well-known for children to study at, it was still a business.

    ¡°Hmm... so far there doesn¡¯t seem to be any outstanding individuals joining us in the next fiscal year.¡±

    If a child was impressive enough, then they¡¯d also have to consider if it was worth building a connection with them.

    They¡¯d do anything in their power to strengthen the rtionship with a useful house, but conversely they rather neglected those that they deemed useless.

    ¡°Lord Randolph, as I mentioned earlier, it looks like the eldest son of the Exner house will being to our school for training. They even sent an abundant amount of gifts.¡±

    But Randolph immediately lost interest after looking at the Exner house¡¯s data,

    ¡°-there¡¯s no point in building a connection with some up-starts from the frontier.¡±

    ¡°O-oh, but I think the Exner house has lots of potential for development in the future.¡±

    ¡°¡®Potential¡¯ development is of secondary importance. We need to focus on building strong rtionships with houses that are strong right now.¡±

    They didn¡¯t deserve to associate with them.

    However, they would dly receive the offerings given to them.

    As future ns were being discussed in the conference room, everyone suddenly stopped moving.

    This happened just as they were about to check on Liam¡¯s data.

    ¡°Haha... HAHAHA!¡±

    From the door to the meeting room, the guide had appeared.

    He manifested himself as if his body was growing from the door itself, he didn¡¯t even need to open it. Once he finally got through, he went over to check out Liam¡¯s data.

    ¡°Atst I can finally have my revenge. Now Liam, let¡¯s see what your data says!¡±

    Looking at the statistics, the guide was surprised.

    There was an enormous amount of funds and resources prepared.

    Amagi and Brian had prepared it. Even though it was an unreasonable amount, that just showed how much they wanted Liam to be treated well there.

    Not to mention his high reputation and personal assets.

    The imperial capital seems to hold him in high regard for eliminating the pirates.

    ¡°Damn, that¡¯s annoying! But it¡¯s nothing I can¡¯t fix.¡±

    The guide had the power to falsify and tamper with data.

    However, the guide¡¯s current power severely limited how much he was able to change.

    ¡°¨Cthis is all because of Liam. With how I am now, I can practically only do petty tricks.¡±

    But as he went through the data he came across the file of someone named [Peter Sera Peetak].

    ¡°-oh?¡±

    Looking through the data, he seemed toe from a house the same rank as Liam.

    However, his ratings were at a dismal level in all aspects.

    ¡°This has potential, how about I try swapping their stats?¡±

    As a result, everything on Liam¡¯s file became terrible.

    When the guide maniptes time, he¡¯s actually just slowing down everyone¡¯s ability to process information.

    He¡¯s not actually stopping time.

    As Randolph and his associates started moving normally again, they didn¡¯t see the guide.

    ¡°This next one is just in awful...¡±

    Randolph started to tiredly rub his eyes.

    ¡°Every year some hyena tries to build a connection with our house. Lord Randolph, are we going to reject them?¡±

    ¡°We already gave them our confirmation that we¡¯d ept them. If we refuse them now, we¡¯d damage our reputation. We¡¯ll ept them, but we¡¯ll treat them the same way we¡¯d treat a child of a knight or that upstart from earlier.¡±

    Liam had received a medal at the imperial capital, but the Empire was toorge¨C there were many cases were proper information on events couldn¡¯t be reached.

    Many people received medals on the imperial capital, it was impossible to know all of them.

    The guide burst intoughter,

    ¡°Since this is your precious apprenticeship, I hope you enjoy the harsh training waiting for you! I¡¯d like to make more changes, but I have to ration what little power I have left.¡±

    As the guide slipped through the walls of the conference room, Randolph lost interest in Liam and continued to look at the data of the other children.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    -The National University of the Imperial Capital.

    [Christiana Leta Roseire] was currently attending such a school.

    She was there to earn the qualifications needed to be an imperial knight.

    It takes about twenty-four years to qualify as a knight.

    Twelve years were used for attending a military academy and the military service that came afterwards.

    University studies and training came next, after which you had to work twelve more years as a government official.

    Once all of this is finished, she would finally have the qualifications to be a knight.

    Native nobles would also have had to spend six more years in elementary school.

    But Christiana was from a foreign country- Tia didn¡¯t have to enter elementary school.

    With xen long hair, and neatly cut bangs, she exuded an atmosphere resembling that of a princess.

    In fact, she actually was a princess of a fallen kingdom, who had already earned the qualifications needed to be a knight.

    She was also stylish, and her emerald-green eyes seemed to have a glow to them.

    Her lips were plump and pink.

    As she walked through the university buildings, lots of eyes gathered on her.

    Ignoring the surrounding gazes, Tia started fiddling with hermunication terminal.

    ¡°A message from space?¡±

    Even though Tia was Liam¡¯s knight, it was still only in formality.

    She didn¡¯t have much authority, and even now she was only a student.

    Most foreign students would expect such a message to havee from their home country, but that was impossible for Tia.

    After entering the ssroom and taking her seat, she began to check the message¡¯s contents.

    ¡°Lord Liam seems to have chosen the Razel house to be his ce of study. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a bad choice, but I think there are better ones.¡±

    Tia was a little dissatisfied.

    ¡°If possible, a house belonging to a higher-noble should¡¯ve been chosen, otherwise they wouldn¡¯t be able tomensurate a proper treatment worthy of Lord Liam.¡±

    Far past the normal loyalty of knights, how she regarded Liam was something closer to worship.

    As to why- it¡¯s because Liam was the one who saved Tia from hell.

    After being caught by pirates, she was experimented and tortured on until she was molded into what could be considered a living chunk of meat.

    Even though she had given up on living life as a human being, she was saved by Liam and given this second chance at life.

    She would dly die for Liam.

    And Tia wasn¡¯t the only one prepared to do so.

    There were many youths who hade to the imperial capital to be Liam¡¯s knights.

    Many had gone straight to the academy, but Tia decided to go to the university.

    The reason was because she wanted to strengthen Liam¡¯s military influence after he enrolled.

    For that purpose, she decided that she was going to graduate from university first.

    After reading the contents and closing the message, the picture disyed on the standby screen was that of Liam at hising of age ceremony.

    Tia cheeks slightly flushed at the image,

    ¡°Oh Lord Liam, I¡¯ll make sure to do my best today as well.¡±

    -She was truly loyal.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The merchant [Thomas Henfrey] was the head of the Henfrey Chamber of Commerce.

    He was the exclusive merchant of the Banfield house.

    Therefore, the moment he heard about Liam¡¯s training destination, he immediately began preparations.

    He was currently giving out instructions to his subordinates,

    ¡°Have you prepared the gifts for Viscount Razel?¡±

    The subordinates answered him with a smile,

    ¡°Yes, we¡¯ve prepared items the Viscount will truly enjoy.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear. Since it looks like Lord Liam is going to build a connection with the Razel house, we probably should as well. Who knows? Maybe this will be the start of a long and mutually beneficial rtionship.¡±

    ¡°Are you going to switch over and be one of the Razel house¡¯s exclusive merchants?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no way I would. The Razel house has too many already, thepetition there is tough.¡±

    With the development of the Banfield house, the Henfrey Chamber of Commerce grew in proportion as well.

    As Liam¡¯s reputation spread as a specialized pirate hunter, smaller pirate fleets immediately fled once they spotted the Henfrey Chamber of Commerce ships, which were affiliated with said hunter.

    Because of that, business was booming.

    ¡°The Razel house has quite a good reputation, so it¡¯s perfect for Lord Liam.¡±

    Viscount Razel was no warrior.

    If anything, he specialized in business rather than military affairs.

    That fact was important to Thomas.

    His subordinate gave his report,

    ¡°They also have a daughter who had recentlye of age, so maybe we¡¯ll be hearing wedding bells soon.¡±

    Thomas started tough at that statement,

    ¡°I can see a lot of benefits in that, so I hope things work out that way.¡±

    ¨CViscount Razel had a daughter the same age as Liam.

 Chapter 18 - Volume 2 Chapter 2 Training, Start!

    <h4>Volume 2 Chapter 2 Training, Start!</h4>

    The day I was supposed to leave my territory to begin my training had arrived.

    A six-hundred meter dreadnought-ss battleship was prepped and ready for my departure at the spaceport.

    When I looked at it- I couldn¡¯t help but be dissatisfied.

    ¡°No, I want to use my gship-ss battleship here.¡±

    A gship-ss battleship over a thousand meters long will stand out just from its size.

    Even though I had bought three of them, there¡¯d be no point if they were never used.

    Amagi rejected my opinion,

    ¡°The training of the crew hasn¡¯t beenpleted. In addition to that, it¡¯s been judged that the dreadnought-ss battleships are the ideal size to use for the spaceport owned by the Razel viscount house. In any case, if we send out more ships than this, we¡¯ll be perceived as a threat.¡±

    The fleet prepared for my departure consisted of three-hundred ships.

    As a count, I wondered if this was fine¨C but I understood that I wouldn¡¯t really want arge fleet knocking at my door either.

    ¡°I want to increase the number to show off my power.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t stir up trouble with the people who¡¯re going to take care of you. Master, it¡¯s time to leave.¡±

    The surroundings were full of people who hade to see me off.

    Officials, soldiers, housekeepers¨C Brian was there too, crying like usual.

    ¡°Lord Liam, I hope you grow quite splendidly.¡±

    He always seemed to be crying for one reason or another, but I was only going to be gone for three years.

    From a personal opinion, I actually quite doubted I¡¯d grow that much as an individual.

    Afterall, this was just training in name only. I was going to pampered while living in luxury.

    ¡°I¡¯ll try to meet your expectations Brian.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam!¡±

    Brian was crying out my name, but I ignored him and turned to Amagi,

    ¡°¨CI¡¯ll leave things to you for now.¡±

    Amagi smiled,

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The residence of the Razel family.

    The servants had lined up to wee Peter, of the Peetak house.

    His pink hair was set quite shy, and his skin was a wheat-like tan.

    He didn¡¯t look like the heir of a high-noble.

    His body was thin and he didn¡¯t seem to have had much training.

    ¡°Heh~ so this is the mansion I¡¯ll be staying at? Quite impressive for a viscount.¡±

    With his slow and informal tone, he sounded like he was looking down on Randolph.

    Randolf could feel his temper rising,

    (He seems a bit stupid, but I need to endure this for our future contacts. This is all for the glory of the Razel house.)

    Randolph hid his true feelings and answered Peter with a smile,

    ¡°I¡¯m d it¡¯s to your liking. We¡¯re throwing a party to celebrate your arrival, it must¡¯ve been a tiring trip, so I hope you can join us and take a break.¡±

    ¡°Understood, then I¡¯ll allow you to guide me to my quarters.¡±

    Randolph didn¡¯t falter at Peter¡¯s attitude.

    The reason was because of the mountain of offerings his parents had sent over.

    Whenpared with the amount sent over, an attitude of this degree was still permissible.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, I¡¯m also thinking of having my daughter be your personal guide from tomorrow on.¡±

    His daughter was to be Peter¡¯s guide- this was all for the sake of the two¡¯s marriage.

    Even though he didn¡¯t see any value in Peter¡¯s himself, he¡¯d still like to establish a rtionship with the Peetak family.

    Therefore, he decided to give his daughter over as a bride.

    One of the benefits of epting noble children as a ce to study at was the ability to easily find potential fianc¨¦es.

    People woulde to make a connection under the pretense of training.

    Therefore, marriage talks and the like could be smoothly finished in no time.

    Peter responded after hearing this,

    ¡°The viscount¡¯s daughter? Is she beautiful?¡±

    -he didn¡¯t seem to understand.

    But Randolphughed and forgave him,

    (A man of this level will be easy for my daughter to manipte.)

    This person was trash, but his family was something he wanted a connection to.

    That¡¯s what Randolph thought.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The residence of the Razel house was wide.

    Compared to my mansion, it was a little narrow, but it was still prettyrge.

    After arriving at the spaceport, I came to the residence with the other noble children.

    Knights of the viscount house had acted as our guides.

    Even though they had the corresponding position, they didn¡¯t seem to be official imperial knights.

    ¡°These will be your living quarters from today onwards.¡±

    They had lead us over to double-rooms.

    Everyone was yelling out ¡°Impossible!¡±, but the knights ignored them.

    ¡°You aren¡¯t guests, you¡¯re here to train. As such you will follow our policies.¡±

    They were rtively clean rooms, but they didn¡¯t seem to be enough to satisfy the noble children.

    What did I think?

    -The room I lived in during my previous life¡¯s death was definitely worse than this.

    I thought they were just going to pamper us, but it looks like they¡¯re going to take the training seriously.

    The knight raised his voice,

    ¡°Leave your luggage here, change your clothes and start runningps! Go!¡±

    When I entered my room to deposit my luggage, there was a man from a baron house named [Kurt Sera Exner] who was assigned to be my roommate.

    ¡ªwhew, I win. My house was of a higher rank than his.

    The knight started yelling as I thought of such things,

    ¡°Hurry it up!¡±

    One of the noble children started yelling back in retaliation,

    ¡°Don¡¯t think you can get away with this, you¡¯re just a lowly knight. Don¡¯t you know who I am? I¡¯m the second son of the-¡±

    ¡°Who the hell cares?! This is Viscount Razel¡¯s territory! Your house doesn¡¯t matter!¡±

    The child who resisted was beaten, and the other children who witnessed it suddenly began to move in earnest.

    Naturally, I changed my clothes and proceeded to the training grounds.

    ¡°I will re-train the values of those of you who¡¯re still clinging to your house¡¯s names!¡±

    The knight¡¯s enthusiasm was in full swing.

    -it looks like there was no luxurious life waiting for me in the Razel house.

    ¡°Damn it, don¡¯t you think that this was different from what we were told?¡±

    As Iined, I couldn¡¯t help but notice the my roommate actually had quite the nice face.

    He had blonde, bob-cut hair.

    His eyes were purple and his other features had an effeminate beauty to them.

    At an extent, his face was wless.

    ¡ªthis kind of upset me.

    The knight was outside our dormitory, standing in front of the building¡¯s garden, which to us had be our new training ground to dops.

    ¡°First we¡¯ll build up your stamina with daily runs! You hear me?! From now on, we¡¯ll be doing this every morning!¡±

    Amagi, Brian, why did the two of you choose this ce for me to study at?

    The ¡®training¡¯ life I had imagined had disappeared on the very first day.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A week had passed since the most recent set of noble children had arrived.

    Randolf had gathered the knights in charge of education, and listened to their evaluation of this year¡¯s batch of children.

    The lowest ratings were given to of course- Peter.

    ¡°Lord Randolph, make sure to keep an eye on him. He takes naps during ss because he¡¯s been ying around with women in his chambers every night until morning.¡±

    Peter was taking sses together with the other noble children that the viscount wanted to make connections with.

    Their training regimen was separate from Liam¡¯s.

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll look into it.¡±

    However, because he already considered him a fool, Randolph didn¡¯t really care.

    He didn¡¯t have any expectations for Peter as an individual.

    ¡°And what about the other children we epted?¡±

    The knight who was in charge of Liam reported,

    ¡°I had to use a little force on the first day, but since then they¡¯ve quieted down. There¡¯s always a variation in personal education from house-to-house, but we should be ready for a full-fledged education within a year.¡±

    Randolph lowered his voice into a whisper,

    ¡°Are there any children in particr that stand out?¡±

    ¡°First, there¡¯s Kurt of the Exner house. The talent and personality of this individual is quite admirable. Then there¡¯s Liam of the Banfield house. He¡¯s quite interesting.¡±

    Randolph replied,

    ¡°The Banfield house, really?¡±

    Randolph remembered that the Banfields had sent one of their sons.

    They were an impudent house that sent over an entire fleet consisting of three-thousand ships, pushing all thebor and maintenance costs onto his viscount house.

    The quality of the ships weren¡¯t even that good, and the skill level of the private military¡¯s crew was poor.

    There was nothing to see there.

    (On the other hand the Peetak house seems to have procured thetest models of ships. As I thought, the Peetak house truly was the correct choice to associate with.)

    The Peetak house brought a fleet consisting of three hundred ships.

    However, immediately after dropping Peter off, they quickly returned to their territory to not burden Randolph with the costs of supplies and maintenance.

    Their quick response time and level of skill quite impressed him.

    They were supposed to be a noble¡¯s private forces, but many of them were only trained to be at the same level as pirates.

    Under such circumstances, Randolph couldn¡¯t help but admire the Peetak family¡¯s forces, which had both quality and skillparable to the imperial army.

    That,pared to the other two who were studying at the Razel house...

    ¡°I see, educate them both strictly.¡±

    ¡°Understood!¡±

    Randolph didn¡¯t expect much from those the knights had to teach.

    The only important one was Peter.

    -As a side note, although the fleet of three-hundred ships belonged to the Banfield house, the viscount misunderstood them to be of the Peetak house.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Three months had passed since I had started my training.

    ¡°Hmm? This is unexpectedly easy.¡±

    Everyday, I was living the life of physical exercise, taking lessons, and doing servant work from morning to night.

    But I noticed.

    ¡ªit was very easy.

    There was no need to process electronic documents in an office, and there was no need to deal with troublesome individuals.

    The exercises they put us through weren¡¯t even that hard.

    Master¡¯s One-sh training was more difficult.

    The day¡¯s morning exercise was finished so I started having breakfast in the cafeteria while chatting with my upperssmen.

    This training period was supposed tost three years.

    I was able to meet up with other noble children taken into the Viscount family, and was able to build a nice senior-junior rtionship with them.

    ¡°Did you hear? Apparently the rich people are going to have another party today.¡±

    ¡°The third years are the one¡¯s setting it up.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re also the ones who¡¯re going to be serving them.¡±

    The first years did chores, while the second years would start their full-fledged education.

    As third years, they¡¯d get to participate in parties held in the viscount house.

    However, they weren¡¯t participating as invited guests.

    ¡°Hey Liam, isn¡¯t that your roommate?¡±

    Turning towards the corner of the cafeteria, I could see Kurt eating alone.

    ¡ªI didn¡¯t really like that attitude he took that seemed to say he was different from everyone else.

    ¡°I don¡¯t really talk to him.¡±

    As I said so, the upperssmen resumed their talk,

    ¡°Isn¡¯t he the heir to a baron house? Man, that must be nice~¡±

    ¡°You guys, watch your words. What if he decides to take revenge after he inherits his title? Be careful.¡±

    ¡°Nah, he¡¯d probably be too busy with work.¡±

    It looks like the upperssmen have their own struggles to deal with.

    Kurt left the cafeteria immediately after he finished his meal.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Training Grounds.

    The knight instructor was yelling at us like usual.

    Even though he was an athlete, wasn¡¯t he too hot-headed?

    ¡°From now on we¡¯ll be training in pairs! This is the time to show off your specialties!¡±

    As nobles, we were required to know martial arts.

    Because of that, everyone had something that they could consider their ¡®specialty.¡¯

    Naturally- I chose a wooden sword to be my weapon.

    Surprisingly, it was Kurt who asked if I could be his partner.

    The wooden sword he chose was in the style of a double-edged western sword.

    The stance he took was quite dignified.

    Kurt turned his gaze towards me.

    ¡°-I¡¯m not good at holding back, so I¡¯ll apologise beforehand.¡±

    When he told me that, I-

    ¡°The hell, are you looking down on me? I¡¯m a One-sh user¡¯s license holder.¡±

    Kurt tilted his head,

    ¡°The One-sh? I¡¯ve never heard of that style before. Is it a minor school?¡±

    I could feel my right-hand¡¯s grip on my wooden sword tighten.

    When the knight gave the signal, noble children everywhere began their matches around the field.

    I tried to beat Kurt as the knight watched over our match.

    ¡°-?!¡±

    ¡ªthis guy was somehow able to receive my blow.

    I was stunned for a moment after he somehow blocked my attack, but I quickly took my distance.

    Damnit! If I make a mistake and seriously attack him, I might turn him into mince-meat.

    But he¡¯s not the kind of person who I can beat with pure speed.

    Kurt held his sword at the ready and silently continued to stare at me.

    -I could tell, he was strong.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡ªKurt¡¯s mind was kicked into high gear.

    (This guy is strong.)

    After facing Liam, this conviction was only strengthened.

    There were expectations for Liam to have a bit of strength, but this was beyond belief.

    (I thought it was just some minor swordsmanship style, but what was thatst attack? I feel like there was something simr to it in the other schools...)

    Kurt Sera Exner was the heir to the Exner house.

    The Exner house was gossiped about as an upstart, but it¡¯s lord, the Baron- was a knight strong enough to be called a master swordsman.

    He was strong enough to protect his territory as hisnd¡¯s one and only knight.

    Naturally, as his heir Kurt was then tempered from a young age.

    With training akin to surviving on a live battlefield.

    Kurt, who had already obtained the license to a famous swordsmanship school and was trained by a master, was sick and tired of this easy-going and warm environment.

    Half a year had already been spent wondering if this was actually training or not.

    But-

    ¡°¨Cwas that the secret technique of your minor school?¡±

    Liam answered back,

    ¡°We¡¯re called the One-sh. Remember that.¡±

    ¡°Oh, I doubt I¡¯ll ever forget.¡±

    ¡ªLiam started to smile.

    Seeing his stance, Kurt started sweating.

    (If I don¡¯t do this right, I¡¯ll be taken out with one blow.)

    Kurt¡¯s heart was beating like crazy.

    Like, before they even noticed, the tension between the two had skyrocketed, that was the kind of game they were ying.

    To not miss even a single one of Liam¡¯s movements, Kurt didn¡¯t even blink.

    (Where are you going to strike at? No, I don¡¯t even think your sword can reach me.)

    The two of them were still reading out the other without moving.

    Liam let out a breath,

    Then-

    ¡°Stop goofing off!¡±

    The knights who were in charge of the lessons whacked both of them on the heads with their fists.

 Chapter 19 - Volume 2 Chapter 3 Fellow Evil Lords

    <h4> Volume 2 Chapter 3 Fellow Evil Lords</h4>

    I found a weakness in the One-sh.

    Certainly, it¡¯s an amazing sword-style, but it¡¯s almost impossible to hold back while using it.

    It¡¯s a sword style specifically designed to kill your opponents.

    It is possible to hold back, but if you¡¯re facing an opponent even slightly stronger than yourself- then you¡¯d have no choice other than to kill them.

    The One-sh was a very specialized school.

    Up until now, I never had to worry about such things because I¡¯ve only been fighting with pirates.

    What a weakness.

    ¡°It¡¯s a style I can¡¯t really use while I¡¯m studying abroad.¡±

    I was aiming to be an evil lord, but that was only in my own territory.

    While I was still in another¡¯s domain, I tried to keep my attitude in check.

    Or rather, I couldn¡¯t.

    Even if I went on a rampage in the Viscount¡¯s territory, I¡¯d still be overpowered in the end.

    The strength of an individual didn¡¯t really matter here.

    Well- I still hated to lose.

    With that said-

    ¡°Liam, we¡¯re the ones in charge of taking care of the garden this afternoon.¡±

    -Kurt, who had just been ridiculing me, was acting strangely familiar all of a sudden.

    He had changed into work clothes and had the necessary tools prepared.

    ¡°-well, I guess this is fine.¡±

    ¡°What is?¡±

    It was a problem that I wasn¡¯t reallymunicating with my own roommate.

    This was fine, but recently, I couldn¡¯t help but feel like the girls were looking at me with scary eyes.

    It wasn¡¯t just boys who came to train at the Viscount house.

    Girls also came here to train as apprentices- they were entrusted to other families toplete their bridal training before they got married.

    With the Razel house being a popr ce to study, there were many such girls.

    But the eyes they turned towards me and Kurt have been scary as ofte.

    I often heard them muttering, ¡°It¡¯s Kurt and Liam¡± or ¡°No, it¡¯s Liam and Kurt¡± etc.

    What the hell was that?

    Sometimes, depending on which name was called out first, they¡¯d start fighting amongst themselves. What this just a custom of this universe, or something unique to the Razel house? -The intergctic empire was just too broad to understand everything.

    When thinking aboutmon sense in general, there are many instances ofmon sense only made sense to the local popce.

    In order to correct such misunderstandings, is that not one of the reasons why you¡¯d send someone to another house to train in the first ce?

    The possibilities were endless.

    ¡°Liam, if we don¡¯t hurry up, then the instructor knight will be angry with us again.¡±

    ¡°That old man is too hot-headed.¡±

    He was quite the short-tempered leader.

    I didn¡¯t dislike it though.

    Half a year has already passed since we¡¯ve begun training.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°You know~ I don¡¯t really have a need to seriously train~¡±

    Peter, who was holding a wooden sword while sitting in a chair, didn¡¯t move even though it was currently time to exercise.

    ¡°In fact, I already have my swordsmanship license for the Arend-school, so there¡¯s no real point in training any further.¡±

    A woman in sportswear chided Peter, who put out excuses as to why he couldn¡¯t move,

    ¡°Peter, you have to move your body properly.¡±

    The woman was [Katerina Sera Razel].

    She was Randolph¡¯s daughter and the person who he wanted to be Peter¡¯s bride.

    Peter also favoured Katerina- a beautiful girl that had blue eyes and her blonde hair tied into a ponytail.

    ¡°Rina, I¡¯d still be strong even if I didn¡¯t train. I mean, in my territory I was unbeatable.¡±

    Katerina -Rina turned doubtful eyes towards Peter, who didn¡¯t look very strong.

    ¡°If that¡¯s true, then show me how you fight.¡±

    ¡°A man of true strength never fights except for truly important battles.¡±

    Rina was fed up with Peter, who kept making constant excuses.

    Outside of the training hall, the sons and daughters of nobility that hade here to study were maintaining the garden.

    Peter cast a condescending gaze towards them,

    ¡°I don¡¯t like them, poverty stricken nobles should just quietly do their work instead ofing to school.¡±

    Rina frowned as she gave an exnation,

    ¡°Certainly, they not be the children of powerful houses, but they¡¯re better than you, Peter, a man who doesn¡¯t even bother to move.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re nothing. If I fought them seriously, they wouldn¡¯t evenst a moment.¡±

    From the surroundings, the girls who hade for training brought over prepared towels and drinks for the men they fancied.

    For them, the training hall doubled as a meeting ce.

    However, none of them spared a nce towards the children maintaining the garden outside.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    While Liam was troubled by how easy training was.

    Tia, who had gone to a university in the imperial capital, was suddenly approached by a student.

    He was a man of the Razel house.

    ¡°Are you Christiana? The lord you serve is actually studying at my family¡¯s house right now, did you know?¡±

    Suddenly bringing up the circumstances of her employer, Tia was troubled as to how to deal with the person who approached her.

    (I don¡¯t really want to interact with anyone of the Razel house, but there¡¯s also Lord Liam¡¯s current position as someone studying in their territory to consider. Should I just make something up here?)

    It was a frivolous-looking man.

    If they had been raised in a strict house, continuing their studies at one of the imperial capital¡¯s universities was the equivalent of being given vacation time to y around.

    With that said, there were still some children that still took things seriously after arriving, but the majority didn¡¯t.

    With their newfound sense of freedom and many other factors, there were many people who jumped straight into the leisure life.

    This man was one of them.

    ¡°Er, yes, I know. You were a son of the Razel house, correct?¡±

    ¡°Yep, that¡¯s the one. Your lord is currently being taken care of by my father. If you¡¯re okay with it, let¡¯s exchange contact information. We¡¯ll probably have many reasons to talk to each other from now on.¡±

    Tia couldn¡¯t help but be amazed at what he was saying.

    (Are you seriously trying to flirt with a knight affiliated with another house? You¡¯re nothing but a brat who doesn¡¯t know the implications of the actions you¡¯re doing. Depending on how I react, I could end up damaging Lord Liam¡¯s reputation. I have to avoid that at all costs.)

    The other party had called out to her with ulterior motives.

    Although she intended to reject them, she still thought he was foolish for trying to use their houses as an excuse to build a rtionship.

    ¡°No, I¡¯m fine, thanks.¡±

    Responding with a smile, Tia walked away.

    (Dealing with these things is so troublesome.)

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The residence of the Razel house.

    I was talking to Kurt in our room.

    The content of our conversation was-

    ¡°You don¡¯t know how to run your territory?¡±

    ¡°Oh, yeah, something like that. We¡¯re kind of upstarts. It¡¯s really cool that we¡¯ve received territory, but it¡¯s also a bit troubling.¡±

    A bunch ofnd was suddenly pushed onto them.

    They were grateful, but the Exners who had never ruled over anything before were perplexed.

    ¡°I just don¡¯t know how much taxes I should take and how to treat my people.¡±

    How you were supposed to handle the popce differed from to.

    To figure out such a thing required lots of time and effort.

    Conversely, even if you were managing it properly, they¡¯d undoubtedly find something to be dissatisfied with.

    There were even cases of people revolting, creating such a big deal that the empire themselves had to step in.

    What about my case? If they started toin, all I had to do was send out my private army to suppress them.

    I hate people who go against me.

    I¡¯m kind to those who obey me, but there¡¯s no need to treat others the same way.

    ¡°You¡¯re overthinking it, just squeeze out what you can from them.¡±

    ¡°No, even if I wanted to do that I can¡¯t. They¡¯ve already been practically squeezed dry.¡±

    Squeezed dry? Did they already wring them out for all they were worth?

    I guess he¡¯s actually a pretty evil guy.

    But for the Exner Baron house to also want to squeeze out more taxes- this has potential.

    As a fellow evil lord, should I give him some advice?

    Connections are important after all.

    ¡°Let me tell you what¡¯s important. Before you wring out a rag, you soak it in water, right? You can¡¯t squeeze anything out of a dry rag.¡±

    ¡°-of course not. Liam, what are you saying?¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it obvious? Before you squeeze them, help your people grow a bit first. The more you invest into them, the more money they¡¯ll earn, and the more they develop, the more likely they¡¯ll turn into something that you can actually squeeze out. Investments are important.¡±

    ¡°Even I know that much, but that¡¯s not exactly an easy thing to do.¡±

    ¡°Just do it! Lighten up on the taxes for a bit and invest into them. If you leave them alone, they¡¯ll eventually start developing things themselves. Just endure it for a bit, and then you¡¯ll be able to squeeze as much as you want out of them once they¡¯re rich! Ah, but make sure to maintain your military separately.¡±

    Some nobles were afraid of rebellion and didn¡¯t develop their territory too much.

    They only allowed those who were useful to them to get an education, leaving their domain in practically a medieval environment.

    ¡ªmy parents were like that.

    If you were a noble in debt, then you had even more reasons why you shouldn¡¯t invest in the territory.

    But it¡¯s only possible to bleed them dry once they were rich.

    ¡°Those words have a lot of weight considering your original state as a lord, Liam.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m an expert when ites to wringing out my people.¡±

    As your senior evil lord, I¡¯ll give you as much advice as you need.

    So make sure to pay me back if something ever happens.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    While listening to Liam, Kurt was thinking,

    (Yes, the first thing I need to do is to enrich the lives of the people who¡¯ve been bled dry.)

    The territory father received was already in a bad state.

    And yet to maintain their forces and fulfill certain contributions they were obligated to- the Exner Baron house had squeezed their territory for what little they had left.

    They knew it¡¯d be better to reduce taxes, but things weren¡¯t that simple.

    To the people they had practically bled dry, they couldn¡¯t help but apologise.

    ¡°It costs money to build-up forces. It¡¯s impossible for us to do any more than this. Maintenance costs are another problem.¡±

    Having heard that, Liam started to frown as heid down on his bed.

    ¡°Reduce the number. What¡¯s important is the quality and skill of your forces. Rather than keeping dozens of old, obsolete vessels, you should try to buy several of the newer generation models.¡±

    ¡°Numbers are important, and it costs money to do that too. We can¡¯t take any more from the people.¡±

    ¡°So you really squeezed them dry...¡±

    Liam had an impressed expression on his face as he said that.

    ¡°Then borrow the money. As long as you pay the lenders back, they¡¯ll happily give you it. Oh, but make sure you keep the repayment deadlines, my house struggled with that before.¡±

    Kurt was speechless at Liam who suddenly started talking about such things.

    ¡°Without credit, there¡¯s a limit to what we can borrow. We¡¯re still upstarts, so we don¡¯t have anything to give as coteral.¡±

    Liam started muttering,

    ¡°If that¡¯s how it is... then I¡¯ll talk to my Echigoya.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s an Echigoya?¡±

    Kurt was honestly happy to havee to the viscount house for training.

    After all, a strange but reliable friend was found here.

    (Even though Liam has a bad mouth, saying that he¡¯s squeezing out his people and such, he¡¯s actually doing his best for them.)

    Though, that was just a misunderstanding.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Henfreypany was suddenly contacted by Liam.

    ¡°Hmm... this is troubling.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    After being asked by his subordinate, Thomas responded that he had just received a loan application.

    ¡°Did the Banfield house ask for it?¡±

    ¡°No, it was a baron house. The upstart Exner house is applying for it, but I can¡¯t refuse them because they were referred here by Lord Liam.¡±

    If it was just the Exner house asking, then there¡¯s no way he¡¯d lend this much of a fortune.

    But when Liam¡¯s name was involved, things were different.

    ¡°If the Count is backing them, shouldn¡¯t it be okay to lend them a hand?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not that, I¡¯m more worried about another issue.¡±

    He had made a vast amount of capital in Liam¡¯s territory, so it¡¯s not like he couldn¡¯t.

    Besides, he was indebted to Liam, so when asked, he¡¯d make sure to put in the utmost effort.

    ¡°These kinds of stories spread quickly. Many nobles will start applying for loans after this with no intention to pay us back.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, so that¡¯s the problem.¡±

    ¡®Since you lent money to Baron Exner, you can lend some to us too, right?¡¯

    People with that kind of attitude would start harassing them, with absolutely no intention to pay anything back.

    The Henfreypany has recently risen in power.

    Along with Liam¡¯s backing, they were quite despised among the aristocracy.

    ¡°I can¡¯t refuse if Lord Liam is asking though. Make preparations to contact Baron Exner as soon as possible.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    My evil Echigoya merc- no, Henfrey Chamber of Commerce was currently introducing themselves to Kurt¡¯s parents.

    I was happy to know that my circle of viinous contacts was spreading.

    ¡°If we build a good rtionship here, we¡¯ll be able to help each other out in times of need.¡±

    I was currently on my way to throw away the trash that came from the garden maintenance.

    A voice could be heard from behind the building.

    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡±

    It was Katerina- the daughter of the viscount house was there.

    Hiding in the building¡¯s shadow, she was flirting with a man.

    ¡°N-no, what if somebody finds us?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯ll be fine as long as we¡¯re quiet.¡±

    Certainly, there were rumours that Katerina was going to marry the rich and influential Peter.

    However, the man there wasn¡¯t Peter.

    My heart went cold at the sight.

    She was cheating- just like my wife from my previous life.

    I couldn¡¯t help but feel sorry for Peter, who was going to be marrying such a woman.

    Well, I haven¡¯t talked to Peter though. I tried to avoid him because I didn¡¯t really want to build a connection with his house.

    I heard that Peter came from a righteous house that governed their people with virtue.

    There¡¯s no way I could get along with such a guy.

    As someone who strove for something in apletely opposite direction than myself, I had to avoid him.

    ¡°Still... poor Peter.¡±

    At the same time, I couldn¡¯t help butment how much of a b*tch1 Katerina was.

    I still had work to do, so I left that ce and pretended that I didn¡¯t see anything.

    In my thoughts,

    (I knew it, there¡¯s no point in living virtuously. Even a serious person like Peter had his girl taken from him.)

 Chapter 20 - Volume 2 Chapter 4 The Head Maid

    <h4>Volume 2 Chapter 4</h4>

    <h4>The Head Maid</h4>

    While Liam was training, there was movement in the Banfield house.

    ¡°Brian, you¡¯ve grown old since Ist saw you.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re one to talk.¡±

    Brian had invited over a woman who was familiar with manners and conduct.

    Previously employed in the imperial pce, she was a woman he met during the Banfield house¡¯s golden years.

    She had the elite position of head maid, the leader of all the girls.

    Now that she had retired, her grandchildren and great-grandchildren were holding that position.

    She was a person who had grown up watching over the empire until she had finally be an old woman.

    Brian had invited her over because he wanted her to bring the etiquette of the Empire¡¯s higher-ss into Liam¡¯s residence.

    They were skills that could be applied anywhere, which was necessary for the future.

    After all, they were going to let the children of nobility study here as a pretense to build connections with other houses.

    Behavior and manners needed to be taught strictly.

    ¡°Except for Lord Alistair, your masters were fools.¡±

    ¡°I admit this.¡±

    Alistair was Liam¡¯s great-grandfather.

    It was thanks to him that the Banfield house had once risen to power.

    ¡°But when I saw the mansion I understood. The little boy you call Liam doesn¡¯t seem to be one.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re as harsh as ever, but Lord Liam is no fool.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s for me to decide. No matter how much you boast about your ability to fight pirates, that alone won¡¯t be enough.¡±

    Brian asked the woman,

    ¡°So what¡¯s your decision? Will you ept?¡±

    The womanughed,

    ¡°I didn¡¯t have high expectations, and only came here to see your face- but I¡¯ve changed my mind. Bring all thedies to me, I¡¯ll train them myself.¡±

    The woman¡¯s countenance had changed, and looking at their new head maid, Brian started to smile.

    ¡°I¡¯ll leave them to you. When the girls arrive, it¡¯s reassuring to know you¡¯ll be here.¡±

    ¡°Within the next decade I¡¯ll turn your house into one suitable for epting the children of other families. You can leave the house¡¯s internal affairs to me, but I¡¯m not helping with anything else.¡±

    It was Liam¡¯s job to prepare the facilities and other preparations necessary to amodate the noble children.

    -or it was supposed to be, but Amagi was taking care of everything.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine with that.¡±

    In response to Brian¡¯s reply, the head maid made an interested expression,

    ¡°For you to make such a face, that Liam must be quite talented. It¡¯s a pity I can¡¯t meet him while he¡¯s studying abroad.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s already been a year, just two more and he¡¯ll return.¡±

    ¡°Where did you send him?¡±

    ¡°We sent him to Viscount Razel¡¯s house.¡±

    Upon hearing that, the head maid showed noticeable difort,

    ¡°W-what¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°You chose the Razel house, a ce whose eptance of children is more akin to that of a business, rather than a friend weing a guest. I heard they were quite popr, but they aren¡¯t a house I¡¯d rmend. Weren¡¯t there any other options?¡±

    ¡°Unfortunately, there was no such thing. The house¡¯s current state doesn¡¯t have any decent connections we can rely on.¡±

    The head maid replied,

    ¡°Well, the Razel house changes their reception depending on the individual. If they consider a child profitable, then they¡¯ll be put into a rxed course that barely does any training. In those cases, another house would¡¯ve been better to enroll into before elementary school.¡±

    By focusing on entertaining the child instead of disciplining them, there were rare cases of children actually leaving the training worse than how they were beforehand.

    Because she had worked in the imperial capital, she had ess to various information about such cases.

    ¡°Are they really that horrible? They didn¡¯t seem to have that bad of a reputation...¡±

    ¡°The side that actually got trained probably spread that image, but the imperial capital doesn¡¯t see them in a very good light. If I had known earlier, I would¡¯ve introduced you to-¡±

    The head maid¡¯s expression was full of regret.

    Brian¡¯s face was already blue as he hurriedly went to call Liam.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°Lord Liam, how is living over there like?¡±

    ¡°How¡¯s it like? Uh... normal? Since there isn¡¯t any paperwork, I guess it¡¯s easy enough?¡±

    ¡°E-easy?! ¡ªN-no, other than that, did they do anything else to you?¡±

    ¡°Did they do anything to me? Sorry, I actually need to go, it¡¯s almost time for work.¡±

    ¡°Oh, please wait for one moment! What is ¡®work¡¯, exactly?!¡±

    ¡°Well, we moved a bunch of heavy equipment to their natural satellites, and now we¡¯re actually doing some mining jobs for them.¡±

    Brian¡¯s face was blue.

    Was it so strange?

    Kurt, who was currently wearing a spacesuit called out to me,

    ¡°Liam, it¡¯s about time we got going!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ming! Brian, don¡¯t worry- I¡¯m practically a master in manipting heavy equipment now.¡±

    Although Brian was trying to say something, I ended the call because it was time for us to clock in.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°Lord Liam! Wait! No! This is wrong! Mining jobs on moons and other satellites aren¡¯t tasks to be done by the head of a house!¡±

    The head maid moved to support Brian, whose call was suddenly cut off and was about to fall over in regret.

    ¡°Get a hold of yourself!¡±

    ¡°B-but, for all the resources and funds we supplied, this treatment is far too harsh. P-protest. If I protest this quickly enough, then we can improve the viscount house¡¯s treatment of him.¡±

    But the head maid refuted him,

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t rmend doing that.¡±

    ¡°Why?! There¡¯s no way I can allow this sort of treatment!¡±

    ¡°No, this might actually be a blessing in disguise. We¡¯ll hear more details from himter, but it¡¯s good for him to learn about that kind of life. Besides, I was quite impressed with how he was able to put up with such a treatment withoutining. From that alone, I¡¯ve risen my evaluation of him to someone who¡¯s better than the average man.¡±

    Brian was wiping his tears.

    ¡°To treat my precious Lord Liam like that, I¡¯ll never forgive them.¡±

    ¡°I agree, but learning something while they¡¯re studying abroad also depends on the individual themselves. This might actually be a good environment for that child.¡±

    Seeing how much fun Liam was having was Brian¡¯s only silver lining in this situation.

    But that was a different matter.

    This didn¡¯t mean that he would forget this grudge against the viscount house.

    The head maid startedughing,

    ¡°What an interesting boy. I like him- so I¡¯ll help you out with taking care of this issue.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Space work.

    While piloting the heavy mining equipment, I couldn¡¯t help but be frustrated with therge, immobile spacesuits they made us use.

    ¡°It¡¯s hot in here, and the suit is totally outdated.¡±

    As Iined, Kurt, who was there working with me, replied,

    ¡°Yeah, this sure is a poor working environment.¡±

    I didn¡¯t really think it was that bad though.

    The work environments in my previous life were worse.

    So I wasn¡¯t that sympathetic.

    ¡°It also smells.¡±

    ¡°Agreed.¡±

    We cut the rock with heavy equipment that was far from humanoid.

    Then, we transported and dumped the cuts into a machine created for recovering the resources.

    Such a life has been going on for three months now.

    ¡°Damn, are the people on the surface partying right now?¡±

    There were only a few ¡®parties¡¯ we were allowed to participate in.

    They were carried out once a month to teach us etiquette, but all the foods and drinks were removed.

    Conversely, the people that had been given preferential treatment could stay on the surface and enjoy real parties whenever they wanted.

    ¡°I think this is better, I¡¯m not very good with parties.¡±

    Unlike myself, Kurt seemed to be an introverted-type evil lord.

    I also liked my time alone, but parties were fun.

    The luxurious meals and drinks that I could consume with my people¡¯s tax money were delicious.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it fine since you¡¯re a noble now? Just enjoy them. If you keep acting like this, then you¡¯ll be troubled once you finally get to go to a bucket party.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think a house of my status can participate in a bucket party in the first ce.¡±

    Bucket parties had a certain form to them.

    They were reallyplex.

    Both the sponsor who organised it, and the participants invited needed a certain skill set to participate.

    I also wanted to try hosting a bucket party one day.

    While we were talking, the day¡¯s work had just aboute to a close.

    As I got up, the head knight who was supervising us called out to me,

    ¡°Liam, you¡¯re exceptionally skilled at handling heavy equipment. If you ever run into money problems, I¡¯ll happily give you a job.¡±

    After telling me such a joke, I decided to y along with him,

    ¡°If that timees, I¡¯ll be counting on you. I was originally supposed to be a count, so please promise me good working conditions. Three meals a day and ample time for naps is required.¡±

    ¡°All right, I¡¯ll think about it, but be prepared for low-wages.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a off-putting.¡±

    After saying such a joke, I returned to the ship.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¨Csomething¡¯s wrong.

    On the roof of the viscount¡¯s mansion.

    The guide who was confirming Liam¡¯s current situation was perplexed.

    ¡°Why is he having fun?! He should be dissatisfied with this treatment!¡±

    The money and supplies Liam had piled up had be the seeds of sess for others.

    And yet Liam looked like he was enjoying himself despite the fact that he was being treated worse than how he was originally supposed to be.

    This was not the ideal situation for the guide.

    Liam¡¯s happiness wasn¡¯t his happiness.

    In fact, his heart was actually in pain because of it.

    His limbs had grown numb as well.

    ¡°At my current strength, I can¡¯t do anything, but I still need to somehow push Liam into despair.¡±

    The situation wasn¡¯t improving at all.

    The guide continued to ponder about his next move- he had lost the majority of his power, so his options were limited.

    ¡°Are there any cards I can y? Anything will-¡±

    That¡¯s when Peter entered into his field of view.

    Even though this was the viscount¡¯s residence, he was behaving as if he owned the ce.

    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s use him against Liam... nevermind. There¡¯s no way he could win.¡±

    The guide immediately gave up after seeing Peter.

    ¡°How do I do it?! How do I make you unhappy, Liam?!¡±

    The guide wallowed in his regret and started shedding tears.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡ªwhile I was doing more mining work the next day.

    It was at such a time.

    ¡°What¡¯s that? A flickering white light?¡±

    I saw a white light on the monitor.

    The instruments weren¡¯t giving off any response, so were they just malfunctioning?

    That¡¯s what I thought-but then I hit something.

    I was a bit worried, but when I went to check it out, there was a pendant there.

    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡±

    At first I thought it was just garbage.

    But after having picked it up, I took quite a liking to it.

    ¡°I guess mining jobs aren¡¯t so bad.¡±

    Being the profession that excavated gold gave it high points in my eyes.

    After putting the pendant into my pocket, I resumed my work.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The university of the imperial capital.

    Gathered inside of Tia¡¯s room was a group of her friends who were also participating in the university life.

    University students studying abroad from the Banfield house¡¯s territory had gathered together for a party.

    Tia picked up her terminal, and after reading the message, she exhaled a sigh.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Tia?¡±

    One of her friends called out to her.

    She was arade who had survived that living hell as well.

    ¡°The Banfield house¡¯s fleets seem to be growing more active in their pirate hunting.¡±

    To Liam¡¯s private army, pirates were nothing more than living wallets for them to hunt down.

    Sometimes, they¡¯d even receive dispatch requests from the neighboring lord¡¯s territories.

    The message contained another story of their sesses.

    ¡°Which fleet was it?¡±

    ¡°The first fleet. They recently received a super-ss battleship from Lord Liam, so they¡¯re full of energy and motivation at the moment.¡±

    The admiral who acquired a new high-spec battleship was overjoyed.

    Because Tia understood those feelings herself, she wasn¡¯tining.

    The reason why she sighed was-

    ¡°I hope I can be a knight soon, I want to go out and decimate some pirates too...¡±

    All those who were participating in the party were those who experienced that hellish lifestyle.

    There were a few that had been imprisoned by other pirates, but everyone felt the same.

    Her friend spoke with a smile,

    ¡°I understand, I totally understand Tia! But for now, let¡¯s do our best to earn our knight qualifications. We still have a lot of things we need to prepare before Lord Liam arrives.¡±

    ¡°Yes, I know. It¡¯s just... I want to experience the feeling of killing pirates with my own hands.¡±

    He had given them their new bodies- their new lives.

    Everything they were now was because of Liam.

    That was everyone¡¯smon understanding.

    The insides of the room were decorated wall-to-wall with floating images of Liam.

    The house party surrounded by an innumerable number of holographic images was being held under such circumstances.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Razel house¡¯s mansion.

    ¡°Fanatics?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, my father built his career through military exploits while piloting a mobile knight. So among the mobile knight pilots, he¡¯s a bit of a celebrity.¡±

    While talking with Kurt inside our room, the conversation eventually turned towards fanatics.

    Since he built up poprity as a knight, it seems like many officials hade and offered to work under him.

    Conversely, I was troubled by the fact that I always seemed to be understaffed.

    I didn¡¯t have enough people yet considering the scale of my house.

    ¡°What¡¯s the problem with that?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a big problem!¡±

    Kurt yelled at me with an intense fervor,

    ¡°While my father isn¡¯t exactly ugly, he¡¯s not that handsome.¡±

    Bringing up an image, what was shown was that of a bitter-looking man in his thirties.

    Certainly not celebrity material.

    ¡°Even though it¡¯s like that, there¡¯s a photobook that¡¯s been released for some time now.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°Because my dad had already put in his signature on the document, I made a mistake. At the time I was annoyed with all the paperwork I had to do, and just gave my signature without reading the contents of it.¡±

    It looks like he signed documents without looking at the contents if he deemed them to be unimportant.

    It wasn¡¯t like I¡¯d be spending any money, so I gave my subordinates the okay, and signed the documents for my own photobook to be released.

    My everyday life was recorded, and there were even edited videos in there too- it was my subordinates who bought them.

    Apparently, it sold quite well in my territory.

    A profit that I couldn¡¯tugh at was made, and it looks like the baron was selling the same goods at an equally fast rate.

    Kurt was talking about the sales while crying,

    ¡°¨Cand that¡¯s why your confiding in me right now?¡±

    Kurt¡¯s shoulders suddenly dropped.

    ¡°Y-yeah...¡±

    In his case, wasn¡¯t it selling because he was quite a beautiful for a guy? That¡¯s what I thought, but I didn¡¯t say it out loud because I knew he¡¯d get angry.

    With that said, I couldn¡¯t really understand the thought process of a person who¡¯d buy the catalogue of an old man.

    ¡ªfanatics are scary.

 Chapter 21 - Volume 2 Chapter 5 Words of the Master

    <h4>Volume 2 Chapter 5 Words of the Master</h4>

    Viscount Razel¡¯s territory.

    Yasushi was currently there.

    Liam¡¯s sword master hade here after hearing that they were hiring people for work in the mines.

    He was the founder of the great swordsmanship style of the One-sh, but he was no big deal.

    ¡°Damn it. What do you mean you can¡¯t hire me because I don¡¯t have the license to handle heavy machinery? I¡¯ve ridden on mobile knights before, even if I only boarded them.¡±

    He was originally just a street performer, but after his friend asked him for a favour, he became Liam¡¯s teacher.

    Soon after, his disciple quickly grew into a first-ss swordsman.

    Yasushi didn¡¯t understand how either.

    In the end, fearing that Liam would discover the truth and kill him, Yasushi had fled as far away as he could.

    Which eventually led to his current situation of wobbly walking around while broke.

    He was now sloppily looking for a day job.

    ¡°Even if I show off my performance, nobody takes interest and hires me...¡±

    Unsteadily, he drudged his way through the entertainment district.

    He didn¡¯t have enough money to continue drinking.

    And yet, he still found himself walking through there.

    He had already sold his sword, so he didn¡¯t have anything that had mary value anymore.

    ¡°Anybody is fine, can somebody give me more alcohol~¡±

    As he bumbled on, his shoulder collided with one of the thugs that were walking by him.

    ¡°The hell, watch where you¡¯re walking!¡±

    ¡°Its hurts! Oh, the pain!¡±

    ¡°Are you okay?! -When you hurt my little brother, don¡¯t think you can get off scot-free!¡±

    He ended up getting involved with some bad people.

    The surroundings seemed to be saying ¡°Wow, again?¡±, and coldly continued on their business as to not get involved.

    Yasushi was surrounded by three people with no chance of escape.

    ¡°But I only lightly bumped into you!¡±

    He tried to resist, but there was no chance while he was outnumbered.

    ¡°Is that all that you have to say?! I guess this means that you¡¯re blind, too!¡±

    ¡°We should bring him over to an unlicensed doctor and sell off his organs.¡±

    ¡°That sounds great!¡±

    There was no point in talking.

    Yasushi was praying to the heavens for a miracle.

    (Somebody please help me!)

    Almost immediately after, the surroundings started to break out into amotion.

    The three thugs ignored it though and continued talking to Yasushi.

    ¡°We¡¯ll beat you down while everyone-¡±

    But-

    ¡°While everyone- what? Don¡¯t just stop there, finish your sentence.¡±

    As Yasushi turned his gaze to behind the three thugs, he suddenly heard a familiar voice.

    He was taller than thest time he had seen him.

    However, he was the one person that he absolutely didn¡¯t want to meet.

    (Oh god, not him. Anybody but him!)

    Looking behind the three thugs, there was Liam standing there.

    He was holding a weapon in his right hand.

    It was aser de, a weapon designed to be convenient to carry.

    Seeing such a Liam, the three started to reach for their handguns.

    ¡°You¡¯re just a brat! Who the hell do you think you are to take that tone wi-¡±

    The head of the man who spoke was sliced off.

    Witnessing such a sight, Yasushi felt his spine freeze solid.

    (T-this guy... he reproduced my trick as an actual technique.)

    He felt like the technique was even stronger than thest time he saw it.

    Yasushi couldn¡¯t even see what happened, but he understood that Liam had grown unimaginably strong.

    ¡ªAll of his instincts were screaming that he should never fight such a person.

    He had to run away, but the ce he was standing at was right in front of Liam.

    (Ahh... it¡¯s over.)

    Yasushi felt that his life was over, turning in fear to watch what was about to transpire.

    The thugs had faces on that said they didn¡¯t even know what had just happened.

    As Liam approached with weapon in hand, the two suddenly burst like bloody water balloons and fell down.

    The surroundings were frozen in shock, unable toprehend what had just urred.

    As the smell of blood permeated through the air- Liam,

    ¡°Stay out of my way. Hey old man, are you involved with the-¡±

    Liam didn¡¯t know it was Yasushi.

    But after seeing his face, he immediately genuflected onto the ground and lowered his head.

    ¡°M-master! P-please excuse my rude behavior!¡±

    Looking at Liam who had hurriedly bowed his head, Yasushi was at his limit.

    In stark contrast to the image he was showing off before, he started talking to Liam with a dignified attitude.

    ¡°You look like you¡¯re doing fine.¡±

    ¡°Uh, yes. U-um... what are you doing here?¡±

    What response would be appropriate?

    The worst-case scenario would be to tell Liam his current whereabouts.

    That was something he absolutely had to avoid.

    ¡°Traveling... Yes, I¡¯m traveling.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve been traveling? Oh, but why are you in a ce like this without a sword? I know there¡¯s no need to be worried about you, but Master, wouldn¡¯t it be better to carry a weapon?¡±

    Yasushi thought,

    (¡®I sold it because I didn¡¯t have any money!¡¯- As if I could tell you that!)

    ¡°Without a weapon, I decided to travel with only the clothes on my back.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    (Why?! There is no reason why!)

    ¡°...I¡¯m looking for a new disciple.¡±

    Taking a nce at Liam, he said the first thing that he thought of.

    Liam smiled,

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, then I¡¯ll prepare a training hall in my territory immediately. You¡¯ll be able to concentrate on fostering the future generations, and I¡¯ll be happy knowing that I was able to help fulfill the wishes of my master.¡±

    ¡°No, that¡¯s no good.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Liam¡¯s face seemed to say, ¡°Why not?¡±

    (AHHHHHH!!! My head¡¯s spinning in circles here to think of a good excuse!)

    Yasushi decided to just wing it and told Liam his reason,

    ¡°It¡¯s true that I¡¯m looking for a disciple, but I¡¯m not looking for just anyone. I¡¯m looking for a disciple that canplete the One-sh style.¡±

    ¡°Complete it? No, wasn¡¯t the One-sh alreadypleted?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re wrong!¡±

    As he strongly denied it, Yasushi¡¯s mind was racing.

    Liam, who was yelled at by Yasushi, closed his mouth and eagerly waited for the next words.

    ¡°There is no ending on the path of martial arts.¡±

    ¡°-Master, I¡¯m sorry. I was being stupid, but couldn¡¯t you find a disciple in my territory?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m looking for someone that canplete the true One-sh style. Liam, you are one of those possibilities, but that¡¯s not enough. I¡¯m looking for at least two more disciples like you.¡±

    (What the hell am I saying?! He was asking me about why I couldn¡¯t stay in his territory. This is bad. I need to follow up!)

    Yasushi¡¯s brain was spinning,

    ¡°¨CLiam, the One-sh style I use and the one that you use are different. New possibilities won¡¯t be found in nearby ces.¡±

    ¡°I-I see... but even so, Master, why didn¡¯t you tell me about this?¡±

    ¡°This isn¡¯t just my problem alone. Liam, the moment you received your license, you were given the obligation to connect the One-sh style inside of you to the next generation. Or are you telling me that you never intended to take disciples in the first ce?¡±

    Liam¡¯s gaze started to swim.

    It looks like he never thought about taking disciples.

    (Ah, I got it! If I tell him that he needs to find disciples, he¡¯ll focus all his attention on them instead of myself!)

    ¡°Liam, try to have at least three disciples. Not everyone you entrust your sword to will necessarily be a swordsman, but I want you to convey the One-sh to more people. You¡¯re already fine the way your are. In my eyes, you¡¯re already a splendid sword master.¡±

    ¡°Master, forgive me... I was wrong.¡±

    Even though Yasushi was only thinking of himself, Liam still seemed quite impressed.

    (This is all a lie, but it looks like its working. I want to run away, but I can¡¯t leave this because I don¡¯t have any money. Damn, how am I supposed to get the funds now?!)

    That¡¯s when Liam started talking,

    ¡°With that said, I can¡¯t just ignore Master¡¯s current appearance as your disciple. It¡¯s only a small amount, but I¡¯ll give you some money for your travels.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? I¡¯m grateful.¡±

    (I did it! I can get away like this!)

    Liam started digitally wiring the money to Yasushi¡¯s terminal.

    Seeing the amount, Yasushi¡¯s eyes went bloodshot.

    (Eh?! What the hell is with this amount?! The number of zeros here is amazing!)

    After having been given an incredible amount of money, Yasushi desperately tried his best to hide his inner turmoil.

    All while thinking about how he was going to leave this territory immediately.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    I saw off Master while contemting my new goals.

    ¡°Three disciples... I guess I need to take some too. That said, not just anyone will work...¡±

    I have to work hard to spread the name of the One-sh.

    In the first ce, should I open up a training hall in my territory?

    However, there wasn¡¯t anyone capable of teaching the One-sh over there.

    As I was the only one taught it, I didn¡¯t have anyone I could hire as its instructor.

    There were only instructors of the major swordsmanship disciplines avable.

    ¡°As I thought, it¡¯s no good to only be thinking of myself. Master¡¯s words sure do have a lot of weight to them. I need to make sure to learn from him.¡±

    Even though he was surrounded by thugs while unarmed, he had taken an attitude that said he didn¡¯t even care.

    Is that not how a person of true strength should act?

    I was aiming to be an evil lord, but I still wanted to follow the same path as Master.

    ¡°What are you muttering to yourself about?¡±

    The instructor knight hade to get me, who had tried to escape from the prison known as the viscount¡¯s house.

    It looks like it¡¯s impossible to y around in the city.

    ¡°You came here for training, so why exactly are you running around and causing trouble?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    When I left the mansion with my upperssmen to y around the entertainment district- I got lost.

    Then thugs had suddenly appeared before me while I was in a bad mood.

    I hated people like them.

    They were the kind of people who ended up being debt-collectors.

    In dramas and movies, they¡¯d secretly be kind, but the truth wasn¡¯t like that at all.

    ¡°Well, I can understand your feelings though.¡±

    The knight looked at me and smiled,

    ¡°When I looked into them, they seemed to have quite the infamous reputation. It really makes me wonder how they haven¡¯t been arrested yet.¡±

    It looks like they were actually pretty bad guys.

    Well, I guess it doesn¡¯t matter anymore.

    I had needlessly meddled in something I shouldn¡¯t have.

    After all, Master was there. Maybe nobody would¡¯ve died if I hadn¡¯t stepped in.

    ¡°Even Lord Randolph needs breaks, so it¡¯s fine to let off steam once in a while.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll do that.¡±

    As I thought about the various ways for me to gain disciples, I felt strangely happy.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Razel territory was actually the main base for a band of pirates.

    They were angry that three of theirpanions were killed.

    -The ones that Liam had just killed.

    ¡°Boss, we aren¡¯t going to stay silent about this, are we?!¡±

    ¡°-you¡¯re really stupid, aren¡¯t you? Of course we¡¯ll be doing it, and we¡¯re going to thoroughly crush the offender.¡±

    The pirate group was thergest one in the Razel house¡¯s territory.

    ¡°Apparently the other party is a nobleman. A child that hade to the Razel house for training.¡±

    ¡°What I¡¯m most afraid of is theck of information. Of course, it¡¯d be easy to just kill him, but is there anyway for us to look into his background?¡±

    One of the subordinates had raised their hand,

    ¡°Recently, there¡¯s been a VIP frequenting our casino. He¡¯s the heir to the Peetak Count house, but he owes us a considerable debt. We might be able to use him.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, that sounds fine. Alcohol, women, money- use anything to gather information on the fool who messed with us. We always get our revenge.¡±

    First, they needed to gather information on their opponent as a precaution.

    ¡°We¡¯ll make that noble brat regret ever getting involved with us.¡±

    The piratesughed and smiled as they swore revenge on Liam.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The territory of Viscount Razel.

    It was a ce that he usually didn¡¯t go to, but Thomas had arrived there to conduct business.

    ¡°Lord Liam¡¯s name doesn¡¯t seem to have any effect on the pirates here...¡±

    In the territory ruled by Liam and its nearby vicinity, pirates hardly ever appeared.

    However, things seemed to be different in the Razel house¡¯s territory.

    One of his subordinates gave a report,

    ¡°We were able to get through by paying the toll, but isn¡¯t the timing of all of this suspicious? Could it be that they actually have a connection with the Viscount?¡±

    Thomas also felt this,

    ¡°I know, but we couldn¡¯t really ask Lord Liam to prepare bodyguards this time. If you consider the profits, we¡¯d be in the red with the escort costs. ¡±

    It¡¯d be nice if they could see him at the Razel house¡¯s spaceport, but they were on a schedule and had to leave as soon as business was finished.

    ¡°I wanted to say hello to Lord Liam, but it looks like it¡¯s impossible at the moment.¡±

    The subordinate exhaled a sigh,

    ¡°Even once we finish the deal, we¡¯ll barely be making a profit. I don¡¯t really like ces like this, which seem to have strong connections to pirates.¡±

    The pirates demanded tolls that changed depending on how sessful the merchant seemed to be.

    They were amounts that were just barely tolerable.

    ¡°I heard that the Viscount was quite the reputable lord, but is that true?¡±

    Thomas was worried that Liam would be corrupted in the ways of the Razel house.

 Chapter 22 - Volume 2 Chapter 6 Territory Management

    <h4>Volume 2 Chapter 6 Territory Management</h4>

    Some nobles only ruled over one.

    But one still had many things.

    There were many resources, a myriad of environments, and various other features.

    It was the responsibility of the ruling lord to conduct a thorough study of their territory¡¯ss and to manage the domain ordingly.

    ¨CWith that in mind, the resource-rich the Razel house rules over specialized in the development of resource mining and processing technology.

    ¡°So that¡¯s the reason why the Razel house adopted ¡®acology¡¯?¡±

    Mining resources eventually led to environmental destruction, so the upper ss lived in environmentally controlled cities called ¡®acologies¡¯.

    The ces they cared for were beautiful, but everywhere else seems to have been reduced to wastnds.

    During ss, my desk was lined up with the other children who were learning the basics of domain management.

    Kurt was making a perplexed expression.

    Was he thinking about adopting this method to squeeze more out of his people?

    As I thought, he sure does have the qualities necessary to be an evil lord.

    ording to the lesson of today¡¯s ss, it looks like the people ruled over by the viscount worked hard for the chance that they might be able to move to an acology.

    Therefore, the lord had the advantage of human resources naturally gathering around him even if he was silent.

    Though from the people¡¯s perspective, they didn¡¯t have a choice.

    Was it really okay to destroy your¡¯s environment just for this?

    In my opinion, I didn¡¯t really want to invest in this venture.

    It wasn¡¯t just the home of the people, it was the home of the lord as well. It¡¯s not good to destroy the ce you lived at.

    ¨CThe way of the Razel house wasn¡¯t something that could be adopted back home.

    Their way of managing their territory could be said to be as solid as iron, but as a lord, though they weren¡¯t bad, they weren¡¯t good either.

    Though there was potential to be seen in their use of acologies and their treatment of the people, there wasn¡¯t much.

    Once ss finally finished, Kurt turned to me,

    ¡°Liam, don¡¯t you think that was just awful?¡±

    He was the kind of evil lord who squeezed out his people to the veryst minute.

    I myself was still trying to figure out the st-minute¡¯-line.

    In my case, I didn¡¯t really want to put in much effort, so the moment I saw any ¡®lines¡¯, I stopped.

    ¡°Not everyone thinks the same as yourself.¡±

    ¡°Yeah... that¡¯s a little sad.¡±

    If there was even a little bit left to squeeze out, he¡¯d get angry.

    ¡°If that¡¯s your opinion, you should use today¡¯s ss as a reference to use when running your territory.¡±

    ¡°...yeah, I¡¯ll do that.¡±

    His father was a man who built up enough achievements to be appointed as a noble.

    Therefore, he sent his son out to the Razel house to learn how to manage a territory.

    He was the ideal image of an evil lord.

    Kurt¡¯s father- the Baron was a great sess in that area.

    Taking the Razel house¡¯s lessons to heart, Kurt¡¯s response showcased much potential for the future.

    In the first ce, being called a ¡®lord¡¯ was great, but in essence we were the same as pirates.

    We imed territory, controlled its residents, and beat them down if needed.

    The very fact that we bowed down to the emperor was the reason why we were called noblemen instead of pirates.

    But in essence we were the same.

    Viscount Razel didn¡¯t seem to understand his territory at all.

    Well, I¡¯m still grateful to them for providing a ce for me to make friends and connections while teaching me new things.

    As an individual, I also wanted to have a solid foundation for my house, but unlike them, in all aspects.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Some children who came to the Razel house received preferential treatment.

    Among them was the person known as Peter.

    In his ss, Randolph himself was teaching how to rule as a lord.

    The children were listening to Randolph¡¯s lesson while snacking on drinks and sweets.

    ¡°The most important thing about territory management is bnce.¡±

    Randolph exined the importance of bnce, and gave an example,

    ¡°Sometimes it¡¯s important to take action against wrongdoers. There are even some stupid nobles out there who actively try to destroy all pirates, but most pirates are actually just former civilians if you look into their origins. In other words, they¡¯re people who turned to piracy to vent out their dissatisfaction.¡±

    There were only a few children who received preferential treatment.

    Most of them seemed convinced after hearing Randolph¡¯s lesson.

    ¡°A lord¡¯s duty isn¡¯t to be in conflict with pirates, but if possible, gain control over them.¡±

    Peter opened his mouth,

    ¡°I understand- back home my house was like that too.¡±

    Randolph started to smile,

    ¡°That¡¯s a bit surprising, but now I¡¯m sure our houses can build a strong rtionship in the future. Anyways, now let¡¯s look at some things you¡¯ll need to watch out for to prevent losses.¡±

    It¡¯d be bothersome if the pirates attacked iing merchant ships that would stimte your economy.

    But if they say they¡¯ll just take tolls from them, tell them you¡¯ll allow them to do so in return for a percentage of the profits.

    ¡°Building a mutually beneficial rtionship with them is of the utmost importance.¡±

    Under Randolph¡¯s tutge the children were led astray.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Henfrey Chamber of Commerce had received a report,

    It was an application for a loan from the Peetak house.

    Thomas held his head as he struggled to think of a reply,

    ¡°¨Cmore importantly, how could such a house even consider applying for a loan?¡±

    He knew that other houses would try to take advantage of them, but the shamelessness of this house in particr was stunning.

    Simply put, they were exactly like the Banfield house before Liam was born.

    They were in huge debt and their territory was deste.

    And even worse than the former Banfield house was the Peetak house¡¯s private army.

    Rather than an army, they were more like pirates.

    If Thomas refused the loan, the application had written nuances that they¡¯d use force against them.

    Unfortunately, their recent trip to Viscount Razel¡¯s territory revealed to them that it¡¯d be better to not associate with such a house. So they couldn¡¯t really ask them for help.

    Worriedly, one of the subordinates asked,

    ¡°Why don¡¯t we rely on Count Banfield¡¯s house?¡±

    Listening to that opinion, Thomas shook his head,

    ¡°If we bring them into this, we might end up starting a war. Besides, the Razel house that Lord Liam is currently residing in also has the heir of the Peetak family there.¡±

    If they unthinkingly brought Liam into this and messed up- it¡¯d be war.

    Unwilling to make such a decision, Thomas decided to ept the loan application.

    ¡°It¡¯s obvious that they¡¯re never going to pay us back.¡±

    In such a situation, if they didn¡¯t lend out the money now, then they¡¯d surely get in the way of business from now on.

    Liam was currently in training.

    Even if he was returning in a few years, he¡¯d be leaving again soon after for schooling in the imperial capital.

    He might even be gone for decades.

    ¡°...we¡¯ll endure this for now. I just hope that Lord Liam won¡¯t be stained by a poor education while he¡¯s at the viscount¡¯s.¡±

    The Razel house that had a connection to the Peetak house brought many worries.

    The things Thomas had anxiety about had increased.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The entertainment district located in Viscount Razel¡¯s territory.

    Inside a ce called a ck casino.

    There was the figure of a noble child in addition to the crowd of pirates that seemed to gather there.

    There were even a few knights there. It was an illegal casino that operated in secret.

    In such a ce, Peter was ying a card game.

    He threw down his cards.

    ¡°I lost again.¡±

    A man in a suit approached Peter.

    ¡°Lord Peter, how are you doing today?¡±

    Peter drank alcohol while holding the woman that was sitting on his left by her shoulder.

    ¡°I¡¯m broke and sad. For some reason I keep losing.¡±

    ¡°While it¡¯s true that the amount that you owe us has grown quite considerably. For a simple favour, how would you like it if you could settle all of it at once?¡±

    ¡°Hmm~ What¡¯s stopping me from asking the viscount to clear it?¡±

    ¡°Because doing so would damage Lord Peter¡¯s reputation. With that said- I¡¯d like to ask you something.¡±

    Peter agreed to settle his bill in exchange for some information.

    He didn¡¯t think too deeply about it.

    ¡°What do you want to know?¡±

    ¡°I want information on Count Banfield.¡±

    After receiving the image data, Peter looked at the picture of Liam¡¯s face floating in the air and narrowed his eyes.

    ¡°Hmm~ I don¡¯t know such a guy.¡±

    ¡°I heard that he was also training in at the Razel house, do you really not know him?¡±

    ¡°There are actually a lot of children being taken care of at the viscount¡¯s residence. If they aren¡¯t receiving preferential treatment like I am, then they¡¯re probably just some third-ss nobleman with no prospects.¡±

    Hearing that, the man in the suit started tough a little,

    ¡°Lord Peter, if you can give us some more details, then we¡¯ll be willing to offer you our special service.¡±

    As the man in the suit snapped his fingers, an assortment of beautiful women started gathering around Peter.

    Peter spread out his arms and startedughing,

    ¡°Just leave it to me. If all you want is information on that kid, then I¡¯ll tell you everything!¡±

    ¡°I have high expectations for you, Lord Peter.¡±

    The man in the suit darkly smiled.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    I was brought to a snack-shop near the outskirts.

    There, two women, one of them old and the other middle-aged, were selling some home-made goods.

    Before the head knight that was singing enka1 songs on the karaoke, I started toin.

    ¡°When they told us they were going to bring us somewhere, I thought they were going to take us to a more shy ce.¡±

    Kurt looked troubled by myment,

    ¡°Liam, you¡¯re being rude.¡±

    But that¡¯s how I really felt.

    The olddy started tough,

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, our humble store usually isn¡¯t enough to satisfy great nobles like yourself.¡±

    She said that, but weren¡¯t the snacks that she brought out absurdly delicious?

    Watching me greedily scarf them down, the middle-ageddy looked slightly amazed,

    ¡°Young children sure do eat a lot.¡±

    ¡°Well... it¡¯s because it tastes good.¡±

    As we made a few more orders, the knight pumped his fist as he sang.

    I continued to talk with Kurt while slightly amazed.

    The other upperssmen and underssmen brought were ying around as well.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you think that there¡¯s better ces to bring children to y around? This is boring.¡±

    Like the entertainment district, ces that gave off that sort of feeling.

    Kurt was blushing,

    ¡°No, I¡¯d be troubled even if you asked me.¡±

    ¡°Well, isn¡¯t that generally considered important to do so? Eat, sleep, and do the deed. For humans, it¡¯s unhealthy to be missing something.¡±

    ¡°No, I don¡¯t think it is.¡±

    Meeting the three major needs is important.

    I don¡¯t like ignoring obvious things in the face of beautiful ideals.

    In my previous life, I had tried to live seriously.

    I¡¯ve only experienced going to those types of stores when my boss brought me.

    Though I didn¡¯t y around because I cherished my family. Looking back on it, I can¡¯t help but think I was being quite foolish.

    It would¡¯ve been nice if I could¡¯ve cut loose more.

    As a living being, it was only natural to have desires.

    And it was the lord¡¯s job to prepare an area for those things to be released.

    I like businesses that involved such desires.

    It¡¯s because they can easily make money.

    Listening to the conversation between Kurt and I, the olddy seemed impressed,

    ¡°You¡¯re young, but it looks like you already know what¡¯s important. There are many stories in the world that can¡¯t be solved by beautiful ideals. Even if you say that a man is a dirty human being once he goes there, I believe that all human beings are already dirty creatures regardless of sex.¡±

    This olddy really understood my point,

    ¡°I like you. I¡¯ll make sure to leave a good tip after this.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t need it. Just order more food, boy. You need to grow a little.¡±

    Kurt looked a little depressed.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing, I just can¡¯t help but realize how ipetent I am.¡±

    Kurt, who solely thought about methods on how to squeeze his people, seems to have noticed the financial potential of businesses that catered to human desires.

    ¨CI guess he¡¯s growing up.

    Moderately release the desires of your people so they don¡¯t build up stress.

    Such a thing is very important.

    However, Kurt still seemed a little bit too innocent about such things,

    ¡°Hey, have you done it yet?¡±

    ¡°-bfft?!¡±

    Kurt coughed.

    Well, even I know that it might be a bit improper to ask, but we¡¯re both guys here.

    ¡°W-what the hell are you talking about Liam?! We¡¯re supposed to be looking for our marriage partners right now. Nobody will take us seriously if we don¡¯t act sincerely!¡±

    ¡°Sincerely... huh?¡±

    That was the one word I trusted least in this universe.

    When I used to live sincerely, all that awaited me was a cruel life.

    ¡°W-what¡¯s wrong about that?! It¡¯s good to live sincerely, and in any case, that¡¯s not fair Liam.¡±

    ¡°How so?¡±

    This guy, is he really that innocent?

    Evil lords were supposed to know a lot about women. Well, I guess he is the brainy-type who prioritises squeezing as much as possible from his people though.

    He¡¯s different from the desire-oriented evil lord I am.

    Kurt asked if as if he had given up,

    ¡°L-liam... Does that mean that you... Have experience with women?¡±

    Huh? Of course I- wait a minute, the closest female I¡¯ve interacted with in this life was Amagi.

    I still haven¡¯tid my hands on any real women.

    ¡°...I don¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Hey! Even though you were speaking so condescendingly, you¡¯re actually on the same level as me, Liam!¡±

    The people around us started muttering, ¡°Virgin?¡± ¡°He¡¯s a virgin.¡± ¡°Wait, maybe they¡¯re not... aren¡¯t they¡¯re like that?¡± in whispers and hushed tones.

    You¡¯re wrong! I might have notid my hands on any real women this life, but I actually am experienced!

    ¡°Would you all shut up already?! I understand! Hey Kurt, you wanna go to the entertainment district after this?¡±

    ¡°Eh?! No, that¡¯s a little...¡±

    To Kurt, whose voice kept growing smaller, I started to smile,

    ¡°Let¡¯s just get rid of them here so we won¡¯t have any problems in the future. Neither of us will get in trouble as long as we keep quiet about this.¡±

    ¡°N-no, but-¡±

    Kurt¡¯s face had flushed red, probably from whatever he was imagining.

    Let¡¯s just hurry up and get it over with.

    As I thought so, the head knight had finished his song and sat down next to us.

    ¡°You two should hold yourselves back for now.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m a noble, can¡¯t I y around whenever I want to?¡±

    The knight looked a little troubled as he exined himself,

    ¡°Considering your position, you need to make sure you don¡¯t go to a bad ce. If you get an STD, things will only get tougher for you.¡±

    ¡°Can¡¯t most of those be treated wit-¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s how you think then you¡¯re an idiot! There are many STDs that can¡¯t be treated with modern medicine. Diseases are constantly evolving, so what might¡¯ve been able to cure them before may have no effect now.¡±

    He told us that there was actually an outbreak of STDs in the viscount¡¯s territory at the moment.

    Viruses seem to evolve a great deal no matter what universe you¡¯re in.

    The recent epidemic of venereal diseases was the kind that made your manhood explode! It was that kind of STD.

    At first, things would swell up and getrger.

    Most men would be pleased with this, but after a few months it¡¯d turn red and ck and then... explode.

    They¡¯d seriously explode.

    Moreover, even after treatment, they didn¡¯t seem to be able to regenerate them.

    It was a kind of disease you needed an elixir to cure.

    The worst part about it was that women didn¡¯t show any symptoms of it, so it was impossible to tell at first nce.

    It was an STD that only destroyed men.

    Rather than a disease, wasn¡¯t that already a curse?

    ¡°...Kurt, let¡¯s go home.¡±

    ¡°...yeah.¡±

    Our minds weren¡¯t strong enough to continue ying around after hearing such a thing.

    Brian(¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à) ¡°I¡¯m relieved that there¡¯s no risk of Lord Liam¡¯s manhood exploding. The Banfield house would¡¯ve been checkmated if it did.¡±

    Amagi( ©b§Õ©b) ¡°Rather than that, shouldn¡¯t you be more concerned about hisck of interest in living women?!¡±

    Written by Mishima Yomu/Wai (Èýë Óë‰ô)

    Enka (ÑÝ¸è) is a popr Japanese music genre considered to resemble traditional Japanese music stylistically.

 Chapter 23 - Volume 2 Chapter 7 Transaction

    <h4>Volume 2 Chapter 7 Transaction</h4>

    The Seventh Weapons Factory.

    Nias was currently on duty as she weightlessly floated through space in her uniform.

    It looked like she was flying, but she suddenly stopped after moving to a certain ce.

    In front of her was a fortress-ss space battleship over two thousand meters long.

    ¡°Hey, why haven¡¯t we sold it yet? I thought there were talks with the imperial armymissioning them.¡±

    To Nias¡¯ angry tone, her subordinate made an excuse.

    ¡°The Third Weapons Factory stole a march on us. They just recently revealed a new fortress-ss ship.¡±

    ¡°And that¡¯s why we¡¯re better than them. Compared to our model that we¡¯ve been improving on for the past two decades, they can¡¯t even reach our levels of performance.¡±

    It was rare for the Seventh Weapons Factory; who specialised in performance, maintainability, and efficiency, to actively focus on design.

    However, because of that they constantly lost to the more popr Third Weapons Factory.

    The subordinate made a troubled expression,

    ¡°Isn¡¯t this your responsibility? If we can¡¯t sell this, then the dock will continue to be upied, and unfortunately we don¡¯t have the funds to pay for that. You¡¯ll get in trouble again.¡±

    The fortress-ss was far more expensive than super-ss battleships.

    If the Empire didn¡¯t buy it, then there weren¡¯t that many ces that they could sell them at.

    It¡¯s not like they could sell them to other countries.

    It was possible to sell them to imperial nobles, but only houses that the Empire had given permission to could legally purchase them.

    As Nias pondered this, the only ce that came to mind that she could possibly sell it to would be the Banfield house.

    However, Liam was currently in training.

    It wouldn¡¯t be good to intrude on his studies just to make a sale.

    But she was on a time limit.

    So,

    ¡°H-how about I slip into a party hosted at his ce of training? I believe it was Viscount Razel¡¯s house? Are we in business with them?¡±

    After asking for confirmation from her subordinates, they immediately started to check,

    ¡°Let¡¯s see... they seem to have bought some normal military models that we created two decades ago, but since then it looks like they¡¯ve been procuring products from the other weapon factories.¡±

    ¡°If they had money, I wished they had bought our newer models.¡±

    ¡°There aren¡¯t that many ces that can actually afford our new models, even the Banfield house has a limit to what they can purchase. Hmm... the next party that the viscount has invited us to would be... this one.¡±

    With that, it¡¯d be possible for Nias to attend as a representative of the Seventh Weapons Factory.

    It was a party for the graduating children who hadpleted their training.

    ¡°Well, we haven¡¯t lost yet! Even if representatives from the other weapon factories will be there, I¡¯ll definitely be the one to make the sale!¡±

    ¡°You have to, or else we¡¯re finished.¡±

    Nias was visibly distressed.

    ¡°If we can¡¯t free up the dock here, we¡¯ll bepletely behind schedule.¡±

    They couldn¡¯t dismantle the ship.

    Leaving it outside wasn¡¯t an option either.

    Nias had no choice but to sell it.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    After listening to that story about people¡¯s manhoods exploding¨C I took my training seriously from then on.

    To be honest I wanted to ¡®y around¡¯, but I was afraid of what could happen if I did so.

    Thanks to that, I had arrived at my third year of training before I even noticed.

    ¡°Before I realised it, it¡¯s already almost finished.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    The three years of training was almost finished¨C thest one spent living in fear of explosions.

    Damn, this is all because that stupid viscount wasn¡¯t taking care of his territory properly.

    Don¡¯t leave such dangerous STDs running amok in your domain!

    I swore to myself that the moment I returned home, I was going tounch a general health inspection throughout my domain.

    It was too terrifying to live in and where people couldn¡¯t even ¡®y around¡¯ without fear.

    ¡°So you say, but we still have to participate in the martial arts contest before our training is officially finished.¡±

    ¡°Ahh... There was that, wasn¡¯t there?¡±

    On the day before we were scheduled to leave, there would berge matches that the soon-to-be graduates had to participate in.

    However, they would all be fixed so that the noble children given preferential treatment would win.

    They even gave instructions to us on how to lose.

    ¡°I¡¯m not happy with how the viscount does things. I hate stuck-up rich people.¡±

    I used to think that I was pretty rich, but there¡¯s always someone better than you in the universe.

    Compared to their houses whose history and territory had been built up over countless generations, my house was apparently nothing.

    The results were something I just had to ept.

    But I couldn¡¯t.

    ¡°In my case, I can¡¯t let people underestimate a license holder of my school, so I¡¯d be troubled if I lost.¡±

    ¡°Same here, but since Peter has the same license as me, I should be fine.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡±

    Kurt and Peter were both swordsmen of the Arend school.

    Because it was a famous swordsmanship style, it had a lot of students.

    Though, I guess having so many came with its own problems.

    ¡°Since we¡¯re from the same school, there¡¯s no problem as long as I lose another license holder.¡±

    ¡°Is Peter as strong as you?¡±

    ¡°...no, I don¡¯t think he is. I heard that Peter procured his license in exchange for money.¡±

    I¡¯ve heard that the famous swordsmanship schools would sell their licenses to people with high social status.

    Those people would act as a form of advertisement, and their vassals were more likely to enroll into the school as well.

    Though in my case, since there wasn¡¯t really anyone who taught the One-sh, each practitioner of the school had to truly master the style before getting their license.

    ¡°I guess the students of famous swordsmanship schools also have it hard.¡±

    ¡°Even my father, who only became a lord after receiving his license, had to pay arge sum of money to them.¡±

    After hearing that, I couldn¡¯t help but marvel at how noble Master Yasushi truly was.

    To not even consider taking disciples and passing the school of the One-sh to the next generation, it was only natural that he got angry with me.

    With that said, what was I supposed to do about the matches?

    Should I just decline participation altogether?

    Though I don¡¯t think there¡¯s any need to worry.

    Since Peter came from a house ruled by a virtuous lord, would they really just buy him a license with money? Wasn¡¯t he the kind of person who practiced useless things like heroism and such?

    ¡ªAs I thought, he was truly someone I couldn¡¯t get along with.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    I¡¯ve lived in Viscount Razel¡¯s house for three years now, but even that was longer than the time that I had spent with my parents.

    As I pondered this, I had mixed feelings well up inside me while I cleaned up the garden¡ª not. As a side note, I could see Peter out on a walk with his arm linked together with Katerina.

    And as they passed by me,

    ¡°Hey, penniless trash.¡±

    ¡°Peter, don¡¯t bully the poor thing.¡±

    The piece of shit thatughed while apologising was none other than¨C Katerina.

    Since we were still repaying the debt left by my parents and grandparents, technically my house could still be considered poor.

    While it was possible to repay it all in bulk, Amagi said it would attract some unneeded attention and that we should just repay it normally.

    That¡¯s why I was still discriminated at as a poor man.

    ¡°Do you need something from me?¡±

    Peter started tough,

    ¡°I just thought I should do some charity work for the poor for once. Come, I¡¯ll take you over to the casino I frequent.¡±

    Apparently, he came to invite me to hang out during his spare time.

    What an idiot. He was ying around in a casino run in a territory that didn¡¯t manage it¡¯s entertainment district well.

    I¡¯d rather earn my money normally rather than gamble for it in a casino anyways.

    ¡°Please allow me to decline.¡±

    As I politely refused, Peter¡¯s face distorted in anger,

    ¡°To refuse my generous invitation! Y-you bastard, this is why I hate the poor!¡±

    Without warning, Peter suddenly lunged towards me in an attack. But after I dodged him, he tripped and ended up writhing in pain as he hit his head.

    ¡°Peter, are you okay?!¡±

    As Lady Katerina ran over and held him up, Peter started to re at me.

    ¡°You¡¯ll regret this, I¡¯ll report you to the viscount!¡±

    ¡°But wasn¡¯t this all your fault?¡±

    What the hell was he talking about?

    Ignoring his tantrum, I went back to continue my cleaning.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The guide watched the ¡®battle¡¯ between Liam and Peter from the roof of the mansion.

    ¡°...he¡¯s definitely out of the question.¡±

    He had been moving around to exact his revenge on Liam, but so far nothing had been sessful.

    The main reason being that there was no one here that could beat Liam.

    Not even Kurt could win against a serious Liam.

    ¡°Time just keeps on passing without me being able to do anything. Am I really okay with this?¡±

    Even if he wanted to do something, he didn¡¯t have the power to do so.

    But in order to efficiently make Liam unhappy, he had to use his power.

    ¡°The band of pirates who are targeting Liam this time are smaller and weaker than Goaz¡¯s fleet. I can¡¯t rely on just them.¡±

    Even if he was able to find people strong enough nearby, there wasn¡¯t any real reason for them to attack Liam unless he could mess with the situation.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t enough. It¡¯s not enough at all. What should I do?¡±

    The guide was troubled today as well with the situation out of his control.

    A white light that was curiously observing the guide¡¯s back- suddenly departed for who knows where.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°Damn it! That bastard, why isn¡¯t he here yet?!¡±

    The leader of the pirates mmed his fist down on the table.

    After getting information on Liam, he had made various preparations for their revenge, but the person in question didn¡¯t even show up.

    He never left the premises of the mansion, so the pirates couldn¡¯t even touch him.

    ¡°Boss, if we leave things as they are, then he¡¯ll just return back to his home after his training finishes. Liam¡¯s home isn¡¯t part of our territory.¡±

    If he gets away, they wouldn¡¯t be able to chase him anymore.

    Without giving up, the pirates desperately started to think of what cards they could still y.

    As for the boss,

    ¡°...I¡¯ll get in touch with that bastard Randolph.¡±

    ¡°A-are you sure that¡¯s okay? Didn¡¯t he tell us to only contact him in emergencies?¡±

    ¡°This is an emergency! If we give up here, we¡¯ll be looked down on by the other pirate fleets and they might attack us.¡±

    His subordinates then quickly scattered about to make the call, and after a while, the figure of Randolph projected itself in front of the boss.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Randolph seemed unhappy with the boss¡¯ sudden call.

    ¡°My lord, I actually have a problem that I need to talk to you about.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°¨Cwhat do you think?¡±

    In his office.

    Randolph frowned as he listened to the pirate¡¯s story.

    ¡°So to summarise, you want to attack one of the nobles that I currently have under my care, correct?¡±

    This would damage the reputation of his house if he let this go through.

    Even though the pirates understood this fact, they didn¡¯t really seem to care.

    ¡°My lord, we have a reputation to uphold. In order to keep out the other pirate fleets who would bring destruction to your territory, it¡¯s necessary to punish all the fools who would dare insult us.¡±

    They had to destroy anything that would cause others to look down on them.

    Pirates also had it hard in their own way.

    ¡°To protect my house¡¯s honour, can I have you wait for a while?¡±

    ¡°I understand. With that said¡ª do we have your permission to attack him before he returns home?¡±

    Listening to the request, the viscount started rubbing his jaw.

    (It¡¯s not worth protecting the Banfield house if it means angering these brutes.)

    ¡°...just do it outside of my territory.¡±

    ¡°As you wish, but you will cooperate with us, right?¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t afford to send out my fleet, but I may be able to dy our response to their request for reinforcements.¡±

    The piratesughed while grinning. A response of true neutrality, one that guaranteed that the viscount wouldn¡¯t impede them was enough.

    ¡°That¡¯ll do. We¡¯ve already secured allies willing to help us for the sake of your territory¡¯s safety.¡±

    ¡°And who might that be?¡±

    ¡°Lord Peter of the Peetak house.¡±

    Randolph started to re at them, but the pirates didn¡¯t seem to mind.

    (I heard that he had a dispute with the Banfield house¡¯s brat, but I didn¡¯t think he¡¯d go this far.)

    Peter and Katerina had reported to Randolph different things.

    Peter said that he was assaulted, but Katerinater told him that he just fell.

    (He¡¯s truly ipetant, but I can¡¯t lose his favour here and lose the chance of marriage.)

    The misunderstood size of the Peetak house that Randolph saw was very attractive.

    If they joined together, there was no doubt of the great benefits his viscount house could reap.

    Therefore, he was quite troubled when he heard this information.

    ¡°¨CThe Peetak house¡¯s personal fleet won¡¯t be participating. Only pirates will be. Understood?¡±

    Although not explicitly said, he was implying that the Peetak house should pretend to be pirates.

    The pirates seemed to understand though.

    ¡°I understand, my lord. Only pirates will be attacking the Banfield house. As long your house doesn¡¯t intervene, we¡¯ll thoroughly beat them beat them down without leaving any trace of your involvement.¡±

    ¡°There shouldn¡¯t be any problem if the Banfield house¡¯s heir disappears. Even if he¡¯s killed by pirates, the Empire shouldn¡¯t have a real reason to investigate the matter.¡±

    He didn¡¯t think they wouldunch a full-scale investigation for a house that insignificant.

    As long as he told the Empire the end-results, everything should wrap up smoothly with none the wiser.

    Randolph was sure of this.

    ¡°Just don¡¯t leave behind any evidence.¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    Once the call finished, Randolph returned to his work.

    He was confirming the participants who would attend the graduation party held for the children that would finish their training this year.

    ¡°Thanks to the participation of the Peetak hose, it looks like this year¡¯s party is going to be bigger than usual.¡±

    Randolph made a satisfied face while impressed by therge number of attendees.

    There were many housesing that he wanted to build connections with.

    As well as merchantpany heads, weapon factory representatives, and so forth.

    ¡°Compared to them, it truly was a failure to ept someone from the Banfield house.¡±

 Chapter 24 - Volume 2 Chapter 8 Preparations

    <h4>Volume 2 Chapter 8 Preparations</h4>

    The guide was ecstatic.

    ¡°Peter, you¡¯re the best!¡±

    That said, the Peetak house created by his parents were far more useful than the individual himself.

    Even though the guide himself didn¡¯t do anything, it didn¡¯t matter what happened as long as it worked towards hurting Liam.

    ¡°Now the pirates, the Peetak house, and the Razel house are all working together to defeat Liam! This is great!¡±

    As he watched over the situation, he decided that this was the most opportune time to use his power.

    The space in front of his eyes distorted as he reached out his hand.

    There, the power of the guide burst out to meddle with the situation.

    ¡°I¡¯ll definitely make Liam unhappy this time.¡±

    However, the guide¡¯s power had been greatly weakened, so he couldn¡¯t interfere with much.

    In his current state, he could only do slight mischief at most.

    Even so, he was happy to know that he could still trip Liam if he wanted to.

    ¡°I will regain my power, and this time it¡¯ll be you feeling the pain Liam! Fuhahahahaha!¡±

    The white light that was observing theughing guide disappeared again.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Well, the training period was about to end.

    Even if they called it training, most of it was just doing odd-jobs for the viscount¡¯s house.

    Though I didn¡¯t get any preferential treatment, it was fun.

    With that said, I was still frightened by the vulgarity of the policies that the overly serious Razel house had implemented.

    I wanted to y around more, but there weren¡¯t many ces around here that I could do so safely.

    After I returned to my territory, I swore to invest more into that venture.

    ¡°Hurry it up! A lot of important guests will being to this party!¡±

    While I was helping set up the party hall, I talked to Kurt while moving my hands.

    ¡°He seems really enthusiastic about this.¡±

    ¡°Apparently there are going to be an abundance of guests this time. Since Peter of the Peetak house is here; an assortment military personnel, weapon factory representatives, and heads of various merchant houses will being.¡±

    When I had mying of age ceremony, I thought a lot of people had gathered for it.

    But it looks like for real nobles that had more power and history, far more people would naturally flock towards them in the hopes of establishing a connection.

    I was jealous.

    Someday, I want to be able to hold parties like this everyday while feasting on the delicacies of life.

    ¡°Even if they told us to set up the party venue, aren¡¯t they pretty much renovating it at this point?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s just proof on how important this is to them.¡±

    The floor of the venue was torn off and reced, while a fountain was prepared at its center.

    Peter and Katerina¡¯s engagement would also be announced at this party, so they decided that almost everything should be remade and modernised.

    There were craftsmen here, but we had to help out too.

    First of all, the venue was unimaginably wide.

    Just how many people did they expect toe?

    As I pondered this, I couldn¡¯t help but notice the arena was also prepared here.

    ¡°Is that where the fights are going to happen?¡±

    ¡°I think so. Aren¡¯t you going to join, Liam?¡±

    ¡°Well, the matches are fixed, but I can¡¯t really allow myself to lose as the only One-sh license holder here. So probably not.¡±

    This was just a small event to showcase the results of our training anyway.

    It looks like Kurt was going to participate and lose at an appropriate position.

    He sure has it tough.

    ¡°Weirdly enough, I think I might actually miss living here.¡±

    Kurt looked a bit sad.

    ¡°Don¡¯t feel sad. Soon we¡¯re going to have to go to elementary school, so we still have lots of things that¡¯ll keep us busy from now on.¡±

    ¡°I guess that¡¯s true.¡±

    As Kurt responded with a wry smile, the instructor knight who was in charge of on-site supervision called out to him.

    ¡°Kurt, there¡¯s a call here for you from your house!¡±

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ming!¡±

    Kurt then proceeded to leave the venue.

    As I continued work on my own, I caught a glimpse of an animal weaving through the tables and chairs.

    ¨Cit looked like a dog.

    ¡°Are you lost? Do you need help getting out?¡±

    As I tried to approach it, the dog-like animal suddenly fled to the back of the site.

    Before I even noticed, I had chased it all the way to the hallways that lead to the exit.

    ¡°Huh? Where did it go? Does this mean it¡¯s okay if I just leave this alone?¡±

    There wouldn¡¯t be any problems as long as it left the venue.

    But as I turned around to leave, I heard Kurt¡¯s voice.

    ¡°¨Cyou can¡¯te because the pirates have been more active recently? Yes, I understand... all right.¡±

    The person he was talking to was probably a family member.

    Listening in, apparently pirates seem to have entered his territory, so they weren¡¯t going to be able to pick him up for a while.

    Kurt had a worried expression on his face.

    When the call was over, I couldn¡¯t help but feel embarrassed when he noticed me.

    ¡°Were you listening?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s my bad. I was busy chasing a dog when I overheard you.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s alright. It¡¯s just that my family seems to be going through some hard times right now, so I won¡¯t be able to go back for a while. I¡¯m going to have to ask the viscount if it¡¯s okay if I stay here a little longer.¡±

    It looks like the condition of his family¡¯s house was making him anxious.

    Well, I guess I can do him a favour here as a fellow evil lord.

    ¡°If this bothers you that much, I can send you back home.¡±

    ¡°Really?! No, that¡¯s no good. There¡¯s pirates-¡±

    ¡°Kurt, pirates are just living wallets for me.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°After cleaning everything up, I¡¯ll take seventy percent of the spoils, and your house can take the remaining thirty.¡±

    ¡°N-no, this isn¡¯t something that easy to decide! Usually, this is something that you¡¯d consult with your vassals in your territory first and¨C¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I hold absolute power within my territory. They¡¯ll listen to anything I say as long as I order it. Remember, this is one of the benefits of being an evil lord. Even something that¡¯s white is ck as long as I say it is. So if I order them to prepare for battle, there¡¯s no way they could refuse.¡±

    Kurt continued to look at me while stunned.

    How innocent.

    Well, I guess I need to make a call to Amagi now, huh?

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Banfield mansion.

    Inside of the building¡¯s office, Amagi was talking to Liam.

    The floating image of Liam was a sight for sore eyes.

    ¡°-dispatch a fleet? It¡¯s possible, but I don¡¯t think it¡¯s appropriate to send one over to the viscount¡¯s territory.¡±

    ¡°I actually need them so I can help bring a friend back to his home. I¡¯ll be having another pirate hunt.¡±

    ¡°Oh, I see. So you¡¯re doing this to help out your friend?¡±

    ¡°Because he¡¯s a fellow evil lord, I need to cherish our rtionship.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m happy for you.¡±

    Amagi made a gentle expression as she thought about how Liam was probably misunderstanding something again.

    ¡°So how big of a fleet do you need?¡±

    ¡°How many can we send?¡±

    Just recently, the Banfield territory was attacked by Goaz¡¯s pirate armada.

    Because of that, they invested quite a bit into expanding their fleet.

    ¡°I can prepare about twelve thousand ships.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good enough. Oh, and make sure to bring my Avid too.¡±

    Avid was Liam¡¯s personal mobile knight.

    Larger than normal knights, it was a high-grade aircraft that only a few people could possibly pilot.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you just sit this one out? There¡¯s no need for you to fight out there yourself.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a boy¡¯s dream to fight in a robot! Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be bringing overrge profits this time as well.¡±

    ¡°...if that¡¯s the case, then I¡¯ll go and arrange a meeting with Baron Exner.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll leave it to you.¡±

    As soon as Liam ended the call, Amagi immediately began making contact with all the parties involved.

    ¡°¨Cthe timing is good, should I put them to work as well?¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Third Weapons Factory.

    In front of the many mobile knights lined up there- Tia looked over the humanoid weapons.

    She had just graduated from the university.

    After collecting the credits needed for graduation, she just went through with it.

    From now on, what was waiting for her was the training to be an official, but before that she was going to return to Liam¡¯s territory.

    The girls who were candidates to be knights were returning as well.

    ¨CThey all wanted to participate in the pirate hunt.

    Eulisia, who was an employee of the Third Weapons Factory, was exining their newest model of knights.

    ¡°These are the models used in the special forces of the imperial army.¡±

    By design, the mobile knights were supposed to be big, but the aircrafts in front of Tia were built a bit differently.

    They were slender in build, and they seemed to emphasise appearance.

    ¡°The specs listed in the catalogue aren¡¯t bad.¡±

    To Tia¡¯sment, Eulisia responded with a smile.

    ¡°I have confidence in their contents. Even so, the Count sure is impressive. There aren¡¯t many nobles that can buy so many knights in bulk.¡±

    Hundreds of new models were purchased.

    While marveling her new knight Tia gave made a request to Eulisia,

    ¡°I¡¯m allowed a personal colour, so I¡¯d like to have mine painted to be white and purple.¡±

    ¡°A personal colour for a mere knight candidate? You must have a lot of confidence in yourself.¡±

    Tiaughed at this and smiled,

    ¡°I don¡¯t, but from now on I¡¯m sure that we¡¯ll always be victorious.¡±

    When the knight candidates of the Banfield house entered into their respective aircrafts, the eyes of the all the mobile knights shed with light as they were started up.

    Tia started addressing everyone,

    ¡°Everyone be grateful. Lord Liam has given us the best opportunity to prove our worth¨C it¡¯s time for a pirate hunt.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The days of our training abroad were about to end.

    It was the day before we were going to leave the Razel house- a martial arts showcase was being held with the graduating students as participants.

    Those who had received preferential treatment won their matches one after another and the venue was brimming with excitement.

    Right now it was the match between Kurt and Peter.

    ¡°-ku!¡±

    ¡°Hmm? What¡¯s wrong? We¡¯re both swordsmen of the Arend school, so I¡¯d be troubled if you couldn¡¯t eveny a finger on me~¡±

    Peter waspletely dominating the match while he ridiculed Kurt.

    I was actually quite surprised by the unnecessary cruelty.

    To a certain extent, it was necessary to have a normal fight so that it¡¯d be harder for the audience to tell that the match was fixed.

    However, Peter was that bad, and it totally looked fixed no matter how you saw it.

    Kurt also looked a bit puzzled.

    ¡°Forgive me.¡±

    While saying such a thing, Kurt seemed to have given up as he intentionally dropped his sword.

    In the first ce, although they were both from the same school, they hadpletely different stances.

    No, something was wrong here¨C was this guy really the heir of a virtuous house?

    Was it that? The pattern where the child became useless despite how amazing the parents were?

    After dropping his sword, Kurt fell down to one knee.

    ¡°...I surrender.¡±

    The atmosphere of the venue seemed to have died down a bit, but it was still exciting.

    Peter stomped down on Kurt who was kneeling.

    ¡°So you acknowledge my ability?¡±

    ¡°...yes.¡±

    Just by looking at Kurt¡¯s bearing, you¡¯d feel sorry for him.

    Even so, I couldn¡¯t help but marvel at how Peter had the qualities necessary to be a good evil lord one day.

    As I pondered this, Peter suddenly turned his imitation sword towards me.

    ¡°You¡¯re going to fight with me too, since it¡¯ll be boring if it just ends here. Come up to the arena quickly, you poor minor swordsmanship practitioner.¡±

    When Peter dered as such, the viscount gave instructions for me to go up to the arena while making a troubled expression.

    The head instructor knight started apologising to me,

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, he¡¯s an important guest for us, so we¡¯d appreciate it if you went.¡±

    ¡°He actually had the audacity to insult my school. Hey old man¨C is it okay if I go at him seriously?¡±

    The head instructor knight gave me a slightly devious smile,

    ¡°Well, isn¡¯t it his fault for not stopping anyway? I never really liked ying out these farces in the first ce. However, don¡¯t kill him.¡±

    Only the part about not killing him was said with a serious face.

    But of course I wouldn¡¯t kill him.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. I might¡¯ve not had a lot of practice with this trick, but with Kurt¡¯s help I was able to find a solution to making my style non-lethal.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡±

    To the suspicious knight, I presented a squeaky toy hammer.

    Both in this universe and in my previous life, this was a hammer that made a squeaky sound whenever it hit something.

    It wouldn¡¯t hurt much if I smacked him with this.

    ¡°Wait, don¡¯t you think that might be a little disrespectful?¡±

    ¡°If I don¡¯t use this, then depending on my opponent I might identally kill them. So this is fine.¡±

    As I entered into the arena with my toy hammer, Peter startedughing at me.

    Viscount Razel was ring at me as if I had just hammered in the final nail in the coffin.

    Peter turned towards me,

    ¡°Puhahaha! It looks like you¡¯re so poor you couldn¡¯t even afford a sword. Did you know I could buy as many of those things as I want?¡±

    While I listened to him prattle on, I waited for the start signal.

    The referee looked towards Viscount Razel and seemed to be hesitant, but eventually gave the go after being ordered to.

    ¡°Match, start!¡±

    Immediately after.

    The hammer I swung down onto Peter¡¯s head made a big ¡®Squeak!¡¯, while he dropped to the ground with a ¡®Thump!¡¯

    As soon as the match started, I narrowed the distance and swung down, sending Peter crashing downwards towards the floor.

    I could see the whites in his eyes.

    ¡°...I didn¡¯t even do much.¡±

    I shook the hammer to check it¡¯s condition, but it didn¡¯t seem to be broken.

    It was extremely durable for a toy.

    While I stood alone in the arena, the surrounding children who were given preferential treatment began to jeer at me.

    ¡°Y-you cheated! That¡¯s unfair!¡±

    ¡°If you have anyints, thene on up.¡±

    I will teach you the truth of this universe and what that means for serious and good people.

    In this universe, the ones in the right weren¡¯t strong.

    It¡¯s the strong ones who were in the right.

    To you future virtuous lords- I¡¯ll personally teach you all reality!

    ¡°It¡¯ll be annoying to face you one at a time, so I¡¯ll take all of you on at once. Come at me.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re just some trash from a minor swordsmanship school, don¡¯t get coc-buh?!¡±

    To the fool who climbed onto the arena, I sent him flying out of the ring.

    ¡°It¡¯s not a ¡®minor school¡¯. It¡¯s called the One-sh. I¡¯ll beat that name into your heads so you¡¯ll never forget it.¡±

    Those who had won their matches started to climb up into the arena and flocked towards me.

    I blew all of them out of the ring with my toy hammer whileughing.

    Standing in the center of the arena, I started telling them about the truths of this venue.

    ¡°Don¡¯t get carried away just because you won some fixed-matches! You¡¯re nothing but small fish!¡±

    Not just the people who challenged me, but even Viscount Razel was ring at me with a red face.

    I think I might¡¯ve overdid it, ¡®cause I don¡¯t think they want to be involved with me ever again.

    Still, that was refreshing.

 Chapter 25 - Volume 2 Chapter 9 Barbecue

    <h4>Volume 2 Chapter 9 Barbecue</h4>

    ¡°¨Cyou overdid it.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    The instructor knight was really mad with me¨C not. We were actually having a barbecue outside of the party venue.

    Originally, I was supposed to join the party on the inside, but I was expelled to the outside as punishment for disrupting yesterday¡¯s event.

    Unfortunately, the other children who received the same treatment as me were also expelled to the outside barbecue.

    ¡°Still, I think it was worth it.¡±

    ¡°The faces they made after they woke up were masterpieces.¡±

    ¡°Even if we were on the inside, the way they treat us wouldn¡¯t have changed that much anyways.¡±

    Somehow, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.

    Despite the barbecue set being cheap.

    Well, it¡¯s still better than the punishment I thought the instructor was going to give me.

    Kurt was grilling meat.

    ¡°Sorry, it¡¯s a little burnt.¡±

    A skewer covered in meat and vegetables was handed over to me.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want the peppers. I hate them.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not good to be picky.¡±

    The green peppers in the viscount¡¯s territory were bitter.

    They were really bad.

    The instructor wasughing.

    ¡°Well, a lot of things might¡¯ve happened, but it¡¯s always better to end things with a smile.¡±

    I wholeheartedly agreed with that opinion.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The party venue.

    As he was invited, Thomas of the Henfreypany was looking for Liam at the venue after he had finished his greetings.

    ¡°I can¡¯t see Lord Liam¡¯s figure anywhere.¡±

    Dressed in a military uniform, Nias drew near and called out to him,

    ¡°Thomas, have you seen Lord Liam?¡±

    To Nias, who looked like she was in a hurry, Thomas shook his head.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t seen him. Maybe he¡¯s runningte?¡±

    Nias also pondered this,

    ¡°He isn¡¯t someone who loses track of their time... I wonder if there¡¯s a reason?¡±

    ¡°¨Cyou¡¯re really bringing up business talks in a ce like this?¡±

    Nias turned her gaze away from the pamperedugh that was approaching her.

    That¡¯s when Eulisia gracefully appeared in a dress.

    ¡°Oh my, I didn¡¯t know the Seventh Weapons Company would send a representative.¡±

    ¡°...so you¡¯re here as well.¡±

    Sparks started to burst out between the two, but Eulisia was the one who turned away first.

    ¡°Ehhh~ To be honest, I¡¯m actually here to thank Count Banfield for therge number of mobile knights he just recently purchased from us. While I was at it, I thought I might as well sell him a fortress-ss battleship too.¡±

    Nias seemed to grow more flustered as she heard that.

    ¡°W-why are you trying to sell him a fortress-ss?¡±

    ¡°We recently announced the new model, so we¡¯re calling out to all of our potential buyers, not just him.¡±

    Sparks scattered between the two who were nning to sell to Liam.

    Thomas turned his gaze away.

    (Lord Liam has it hard. Still, where is he?)

    Thomas, Nias, and Eulisia¨C it wasn¡¯t just those three.

    There were many people who were taking advantage of their participation in the party for this chance.

    The majority of the people in the hall were all searching for Liam.

    That¡¯s when Randolph¡¯s voiced echoed throughout the venue.

    ¡°Everyone, I¡¯d like to thank you foring to our party this time-¡±

    First was a simple greeting, which was then followed by his daughter¡¯s engagement announcement.

    However, her partner was strange.

    ¡°My daughter Katerina, will be taking Peter of the Peetak house to be her husband.¡±

    It was the Peetak house that was introduced.

    Nias apuded to match the venue¡¯s atmosphere, but those that knew- like Thomas, were stunned.

    ¡°A boy came here for training, but ended up getting engaged to the lord¡¯s daughter, how romantic.¡±

    ¡°Huh? No, that¡¯s... what?¡±

    He couldn¡¯t understand.

    (Why would the Razel house seek a connection with the Peetak house? No matter how I think about them, they¡¯re definitely people who I¡¯d never consider marrying into...)

    For Thomas, who knew about the inner workings of the Peetak house, this situation was nothing but strange.

    Eulisia thought the same,

    ¡°By Peetak house... do they mean that Peetak house?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I think so. I¡¯m sure that¡¯s the heir of the Peetak house.¡±

    Projected into the air above the venue, the figures of Peter and Katerina were shown.

    Eulisia was making a face that said she couldn¡¯t believe this,

    ¡°The Peetak house... has there been any news of them unearthing a mine full of rare metals?¡±

    Thomas shook his head.

    The Razel house specialised in mining resources and processing them.

    If rare metals could be excavated in the Peetak house¡¯s territory, then there might be justification behind marriage.

    It would be possible then¨C but no such news hase out about that topic.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard no such thing. I thought they investigated various things about the children they admitted, so I can¡¯t understand Viscount Razel¡¯s thought process in supporting this marriage.¡±

    Many of the participants were also confused about this.

    Nias noticed the surrounding atmosphere, and-

    ¡°Um, excuse me? Do you by any chance know where Lord Liam is?¡±

    All three of them were desperate for information on Liam, so they eagerly listened to the story of the recently-caught waiter.

    The waiter was another noble child undergoing their training.

    ¡°You want to know where Liam is? Yesterday, he beat up all the people who were given preferential treatment andughed at them, so he was kicked out of the venue by the Viscount. Oh, and if you ever need a drink, just let me know.¡±

    The waiter was an underssmen that was receiving the same treatment as Liam.

    ¡°The Liam of that time was amazing,¡± he said whileughing.

    Thomas¡¯ face had turned pale.

    ¡°...he drove Lord Liam out of the venue?¡±

    To the Henfreypany, Liam was their benefactor.

    Furthermore, Thomas himself was the Banfield house¡¯s purveyor.

    He felt dizzy.

    Nias grabbed his swaying shoulder,

    ¡°Quickly guide us to him!¡±

    ¡°Huh? Sure, I don¡¯t mind but-¡±

    Eulisia was quickly making a call to someone.

    Meanwhile, Thomas quickly rushed outside after learning the location from the waiter,

    ¡°Lord Liaaaaaaam!¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Thomas ran up to me during the barbecue.

    ¡°Lord Liaaaaaaam!¡±

    I put the peppers I didn¡¯t eat on a te and handed them over to Thomas.

    ¡°Long time no see, Thomas. So you came here too? Come join us and eat.¡±

    Kurt was saying ¡°Liam, your awful,¡± in the background, but it¡¯s only natural for an evil lord to be disliked.

    That¡¯s why it was okay for me to do this.

    ¡°T-thanks for the meal. ¡ªbitter! Bleh! W-wait, that¡¯s not what I¡¯m here for! What exactly is the meaning of this?! Lord Liam, why have you been expelled to outside the venue?!¡±

    He was making quite the racket.

    ¡°The viscount got mad at me. There¡¯s no need to worry though, I couldn¡¯t really get along with him anyway.¡±

    Seriously¨C it was a total failure for me toe under the tutge of the serious and virtuous Razel house.

    Thomas looked relieved.

    Don¡¯t tell me, did this guy think I might turn into a virtuous person?

    After all, this guy is my Echigoya-no, he¡¯s an evil merchant.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to put in aint with the viscount. Come, let¡¯s go inside.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t need it. What¡¯s the point ofining now? Instead, bring us something to eat. Oh, and prepare some drinks too.¡±

    Thomas quickly made a call to his ship.

    ¡°M-my apologies, there isn¡¯t really anything that I can afford to offer as a gift. As for alcohol, will some of the more expensive brands do?¡±

    Well, I was still in a good mood from yesterday¡¯s events.

    I¡¯ll just pay him this time.

    ¡°Thomas, bring me everything that you could possibly use as a gift. Oh, and give the alcohol to the men who¡¯ve been taking care of me. Nothing but the best brands, and of course, I¡¯ll pay for it.¡±

    Even if I paid for everything I just asked for in bulk, the bnce in my bank ount wouldn¡¯t change.

    Just how much did I save up?

    ¡°I-I¡¯ll bring you everything right away!¡±

    As Thomas left while calling his subordinates, more people exited out of the venue.

    Kurt looked a little confused.

    ¡°Huh? Is it already finished?¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t it just start? Maybe they¡¯re taking a break already, or some kind of problem ured.¡±

    As I pondered that, this time it was Nias and Eulisia who ran up to me while out of breath.

    ¡°Lord Liam, long time no see! Now, please buy a fortress-ss from me!¡±

    I looked at Nias, who tried to sell me a battleship while she was still greeting me, with cold eyes.

    Eulisia, who was wiping her sweat, had an amazed expression on her face.

    ¡°¨Cyou¡¯re actually bringing up business negotiations before you even finish saying hello? My lord, why don¡¯t you just ignore this boorish woman from the Seventh Weapons Factory and talk to me instead? Today I¡¯d actually like to tell you about our new fortress-ss battleship. Unlike the outdated version from the Seventh Weapons Factory, ours is a brand-new model.¡±

    You¡¯re exactly the same though.

    I looked at the dress-wearing Eulisia with a slightly amazed expression.

    Maybe noticing my gaze, she started to smile at me.

    ¡°...I¡¯m not interested.¡±

    She reminded me of my former wife, who used to dress up and perfect her makeup everytime she cheated on me.

    In other words, it was a turn-off.

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Eulisia seemed to be surprised by my reaction.

    In response to that, Nias startedughing at her.

    ¡°Too bad~¡±

    After saying that, she started opening her suit jacket¡¯s buttons from the front.

    Rather than trying to seduce me, I think she was just hot from all the running.

    Maybe because of that, her sweat made the shirt she wore underneath see-through, allowing me to see the sports bra she had on.

    Noticing that she was seen, she nervously started tough while covering herself up, embarrassed.

    ¡°N-no, I¡¯m not wearing this because my pay was docked from the poor sales or anything... Yes! I¡¯m only wearing these because I¡¯m trying to be more conscious of my health! It¡¯s that sort of thing!¡±

    I approached Nias who was desperately trying to make an excuse and-

    ¡°How much is it?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°How much is the fortress-ss ship you were selling?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re going to buy it?¡±

    ¡°I guess it just can¡¯t be helped. Here, give me the contract. Is this enough?¡±

    ¡°P-please buy some destroyers and cruisers as well! They might be new models but this is a great deal!¡±

    ¡°Just what would you ever do without me? I understand, buying three hundred should be fine.¡±

    Nias was so overjoyed that she started to cry, and everytime she moved I was able to see underwear that had no sex-appeal through her shirt.

    They were exactly the type I preferred.

    Since I was shown something nice, I decided to help her out and buy a fortress-ss.

    Eulisia grabbed my arm.

    ¡°Wait, please wait! Why?! You haven¡¯t even checked the specs yet, right?!¡±

    ¡°...so you were a disappointing woman too.¡±

    Or was it that they were the only kind of female workers that the weapon factories hired?

    After that, more weapon factory representatives and merchant house heads came to greet me.

    ¡°Lord Liam, I believe this is our first time meeting.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, please feel free to purchase anything from our weapons factory by all means.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, if you ever ask, I¡¯d be happy to lend you-¡±

    Before I knew it, a long line was formed.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    In the party venue- Randolph was stunned.

    Most of the invited guests had left.

    Less than a third were remaining.

    The venue that had quickly emptied out was an amazing sight to see.

    Making confused expressions, the remaining guests didn¡¯t seem to understand what was going on either.

    ¡°W-what is the meaning of all this?¡±

    Just what the hell was happening?

    As he pondered this and was about to give an order to find out, one of his subordinates gave him a report,

    ¡°Lord Randolph! Outside the venue! Outside!¡±

    ¡°What happened?!¡±

    Rushing outside, what he saw was- the barbecue.

    Stealing away all the invited guests, Randolph assumed the evicted children had done something.

    And in the middle of it all was- Liam.

    ¡°What¡¯s the meaning of this? Why is everyone gathering around the son of the Banfield house?¡±

    Humans were very honest creatures.

    If the aristocrat the served turned out to be ipetant, they¡¯d quickly abandon them.

    However, on the other hand- people would quickly gather around those they thought were worth it.

    It wasn¡¯t just one or two people either, but all the merchants seemed to be trying to make a connection with Liam.

    ¡°-look into the Banfield house right away.¡±

    ¡°But my lord, we¡¯ve already done our research-¡±

    ¡°Just look into them! Go!¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A spaceport located in the Razel house¡¯s territory.

    The Banfield house¡¯s fleet had arrived, and were waiting on standby.

    A shuttlended at the port and was preparing to pick up Liam.

    Tia was there to supervise everything.

    Right now she was talking to one of the spaceport¡¯s officials.

    ¡°Can¡¯t we permission for the red carpet?¡±

    ¡°Due to certain policies, I¡¯ll have to ask you to refrain yourself, unfortunately. I can give you permission to recreate the atmosphere with holograms though.¡±

    ¡°And I¡¯m telling you that¡¯s too nd! After three whole years of training, my lord deserves a reception worthy of him!¡±

    The knights and the soldiers who were standing in formation seemed to freeze as tensions started to rise.

    ¡°We gave him a grand reception at his arrival, isn¡¯t that enough? By the way, I must say the fleet of the Peetak house sure is amazing. Even the viscount was impressed and expressed his desire to meet with you- huh?¡±

    Almost immediately, Tia had grabbed the official by the neck and lifted him up into the air, while softly saying,

    ¡°...you can¡¯t even recognise the family crest of Lord Liam¡¯s Banfield house? Who the hell does your viscount dare topare us too?¡±

    The knights and soldiers of the Razel house nearby started to gather while the knight¡¯s of the Banfield house started pulling out their weapons.

    Tia said so while closing in on the official.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, we are the proud Banfield fleet! No mistakes will be tolerated. We¡¯ll be protesting thister.¡±

    ¡°L-let me go¨C¡±

    ¡°Toote.¡±

    As Tia smiled while putting her hand on her sword¡¯s handle, the spaceport elevator door started to open.

    ¡°Huh~? So you¡¯re the people here to pick me up~?¡±

    The air seemed to freeze with Peter¡¯s voice that echoed out.

    He turned to look at Tia,

    ¡°Oh, are you a new knight? You¡¯re pretty beautiful. Okay, you¡¯ll be my personal escort. Yes, I¡¯m already ready to go home.¡±

    Tia let go the official and dropped him.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The spaceport.

    Kurt and I were sitting on a bench as we waited for pick-up, while watching a video that was being projected into the air.

    It was thest episode of a popr drama that aired in the viscount¡¯s territory.

    When the ending credits started rolling,

    ¡°It... doesn¡¯t look like they¡¯reing.¡±

    I sighed,

    ¡°I¡¯m happy we got to finish the drama I was interested in, but I¡¯m not pleased with how they¡¯re keeping their master waiting.¡±

    As I felt my frustration increase, the elevator door opened and Tia burst out of it.

    She practically flew as she kicked off of the floor beforending and sliding into a subservient pose in front of me.

    ¨Cit was kind of funny to watch.

    ¡°M-m-my deepest apologies Lord Liam! The official at the spaceport led us to another area by mistake! Please forgive me!¡±

    To Tia that was looking up at me while stuttering excuses, I flicked her forehead.

    ¡°Don¡¯t make excuses, the fact of the matter is that you kept me waiting.¡±

    Tia looked like it was the end of the world when I told her that- though I think she was overreacting a bit.

    She was supposed to be really talented, but you wouldn¡¯t be able to tell by looking at her.

    Howe there only seemed to be girls that had a screw loose gathering around me?

    ¡°Understood, I¡¯ll apologise by presenting you with my head.¡±

    She pulled out her sword and ced it on her neck.

    This girl really wasn¡¯t right in the head.

    ¡°Stop being stupid. Just carry the luggage, I want to go home already. ¡±

    As I handed over my bags, Tia started to cry.

    ¡°Y-you¡¯ll really forgive me?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll give a proper punishmentter on during the voyage. Kurt, do you want her to hold your luggage too?¡±

    When I asked Kurt,

    ¡°...Liam, don¡¯t make a girl carry your bags for you.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, it¡¯s her punishment for keeping me waiting. Now then, let¡¯s go. Which battleship will we be boarding?¡±

    Tia answered while straightening her back.

    Why were her cheeks red though?

    ¡°Yes! You¡¯ll be riding on gship Var!¡±

    Var, the gship built at the Third Weapons Factory slowly approached the port.

    ¡ªit really was huge from this angle.

    To match it¡¯srge size, it looks like it¡¯s specs and performance were raised ordingly.

    ¡°Wow, that¡¯s big. Is this a super-ss battleship?¡±

    Even seemed to be interested.

    Well, he was a guy after all. It was only natural for him to love battleships and humanoid weapons.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you buy one too?¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t. Even if I wanted to buy one, I think it¡¯d be better to buy a destroyer or cruiser considering the maintenance costs.¡±

    Speaking of which, I bought a lot of those from Nias recently, didn¡¯t I?

    Considering my military n, that wasn¡¯t something I needed- I totally purchased them on a whim.

    I was a victim of impulse buying.

    However, I can¡¯t help but marvel how easy it is to buy battleships in this universe.

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, do you want my surplus?¡±

    Whenever I buy things myself, Amagi gets angry and scolds me whileining ¡°Our military ns have been thrown off-schedule again.¡±

    So let¡¯s just push them onto Kurt,

    ¡°Hmm? No I¡¯m fine, thanks. Old ships can still be used as long as they¡¯re properly maintained, and I¡¯m already satisfied with the amount that we have now, even if it¡¯s not much.¡±

    ...huh? Was he really okay using second-hand goods?

 Chapter 26 - Volume 2 Chapter 10 Too Late

    <h4>Volume 2 Chapter 10 Too Late</h4>

    A fleet of battleships moving through space.

    Aligned in formation, they created a beautiful line of light that seemed to cut through the darkness.

    The rooms of the gship were so luxurious that it was surprising.

    Sitting by my side were themander-in-chief and the admiral, as well as the person I had taken into my protective custody.

    ¡°Lord Liam, it looks like you¡¯vepleted your training safely.¡±

    ¡°This was only the start. A few years from now, I¡¯ll have to leave again to study abroad in the imperial capital. I might be gone for decades.¡±

    Kurt didn¡¯t seem to be able to calm down.

    And Tia suddenly started acting as my personal aide.

    Was it that? Because she messed up during the pick-up, was she trying to earn more points now to make up for it?

    I didn¡¯t hate that kind of behavior.

    ¡°Lord Liam, of the university or the military academy, which one are you going to enroll?¡±

    Tia asked, so I parched my throat with a drink before answering,

    ¡°-Either or. They¡¯re pretty much the same thing. The degrees we strive to earn there are just more ways to kill time.¡±

    Kurt looked like he was seriously pondering this,

    ¡°I think it¡¯s more important than that. My father told me that after you graduate from the academy, you¡¯ll be conscripted to work for the military for the time. He told me that I should aim to form connections while I could.¡±

    Does he n to work hard to be liked by his superiors?

    As always, this guy has it tough.

    ¡°Considering our positions, we¡¯d probably be assigned to rear-line duty anyway.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d prefer a more active role if possible. Liam, are you going to return to governing your territory after your training isplete?¡±

    Most of the youths who have finished their training apparently spend it living freely until they turn about two hundred years old.

    After that, I heard that they¡¯d start preparing for the change of ownership that would allow them to seed in their family¡¯s house as it¡¯s new lord.

    But I had already seeded my house as count.

    ¡°I think I might take it easy for a while.¡±

    If I became an official, I¡¯d be able to cover up my evil deeds as long as I had the right connections.

    Though the same could be said for high-ranking military personnel.

    If something ever happened, I¡¯d just ask them for help, and then whatever I wanted to cover-up would disappear.

    Either could be said to be the correct choice for connections- so which should I choose?

    Since I want to y around while I¡¯m studying abroad in the imperial capital, I should probably be an official.

    Do I need to prepare some bribes?

    While I pondered this, we had arrived in an area of space that allowed warp travel.

    The admiral had their own fleet to take charge of, so they left the room, leaving themander-in-chief behind.

    ¡°Lord Liam, for the pirate hunt in Baron Exner¡¯s territory, it¡¯s been reported that the enemy numbers around three thousand ships.¡±

    ¡°I see, I hope they have a lot of treasure.¡±

    Kurt had an uneasy expression on his face.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be sure to transfer over your thirty percent properly.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not worried about that. Liam, aren¡¯t you afraid? The other party won¡¯t just be pirates, but hired mercenaries as well.¡±

    This guy needs to rx a little.

    Serious evil lords may exist, but this guy is overdoing it a little.

    ¡°Remember this phrase! ¡®Pirates are just living wallets.¡¯ They¡¯re nothing but great people who collect goods and money for me to relieve them of once I¡¯m done cleaning them up.¡±

    Kurt still looked uneasy, but I had the guide on my side.

    You could say that I had his divine protection.

    My second life has been really lucky so far thanks to him.

    No matter what I did, I always seemed to seed.

    ¡°Even so, there¡¯s still three thousand of them...¡±

    The debris generated from the battle could be converted into valuable resources that could be sold for big profits¨C is what I¡¯d like to say.

    But the pirate fleets seem to have been growing weaker recently, not having much treasure saved up.

    Tia then fixed her posture and asked me to leave this to her,

    ¡°Lord Liam, please entrust this battle to this Tia here.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t interrupt us, and that¡¯s my decision to make.¡±

    ¡°P-please forgive me.¡±

    Watching Tia, who immediately backed off and knelt before me, I couldn¡¯t help but think she looked like a dog.

    After the talks continued on for a while, themander-in-chief got a call,

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°Enemy forces have been spotted enroute to intercept us. They number around twenty thousand strong.¡±

    ¡°Enemy forces? Is it pirates?¡±

    ¡°Y-yes but...¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°...we¡¯ve confirmed ships that bear the crest of a noble house among them.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    When we arrived at the bridge, both sides were already facing each other.

    The holographic image that disyed the current state of the battlefield showed that the enemy was spreading out as if to swallow us.

    In contrast, we were taking a formation that was in the shape of a sphere.

    ¡°Do they intended to entrap us before attacking?¡±

    Kurt started whispering to me,

    ¡°They¡¯re trying to surround us, it¡¯s a good strategy that takes advantage of their superior numbers.¡±

    Looking at that I-

    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s attack them.¡±

    ¡°Liam, wait! It¡¯s not a good idea to go on the offensive now! The other party was waiting for us!¡±

    Themander-in-chief started giving out orders, while ignoring Kurt¡¯s outburst.

    ¡°All ships prepare for an assault.¡±

    Tia was grasping at her chest¨C she looked upset, her breathing was rough, and she started sweating.

    Was she okay?

    ¡°Liam, we¡¯re in danger! The enemy is going to surround us!¡±

    If I were to describe it as an image, I guess it¡¯d be like wrapping up a ball?

    The enemy was moving as if to envelop us.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. We¡¯re used to these kinds of fights. In the first ce, a difference in numbers of this scale is meaningless.¡±

    After all, I had the guide. My very own guardian angel protecting me.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Inside of his personal space, the guide was having a breakdown.

    ¡°Why Liam?! Why did you prepare this many?!¡±

    Under normal circumstances, a fleet consisting of only a few hundred ships should¡¯ve picked Liam up.

    Even though the guide was hoping to crush him with a force a hundred timesrger than them, over ten thousand ships endeding instead.

    This was impossible.

    It couldn¡¯t be true.

    ¡°My n! I squeezed out everyst bit of my power for this moment!¡±

    To help out the coboration between the pirates and the Peetak house, he used up what little power he had left.

    It wasn¡¯t possible for him to make a big contribution, but to thebined forces that were actively trying to crush Liam, he wanted to help in any way he could.

    That said, although Liam only had half their forces, they still had no chance of victory with these numbers.

    Inside the space between dimensions, the guide sat down and started to bury his face into his knees.

    ¡°It¡¯s toote. It¡¯s over.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The pirates were panicking.

    ¡°What the hell is this?! Why aren¡¯t their formations copsing?!¡±

    From their experiences so far, most nobles would easily fall in battle after being surrounded.

    They could easily win against opponents of equal numbers if the specs of their ships themselves were low.

    And this time, they even had the assistance of the Peetak house, which doubled their numbers.

    One of the subordinates gave a report,

    ¡°Boss! The Peetak house¡¯s forces have copsed, leaving a hole in our formation that¡¯s vulnerable to a siege!¡±

    The unskilled forces of the Peetak house didn¡¯t just underperform, they had already lost.

    Their advantage of numbers was slowly being lost.

    ¡°Wait, didn¡¯t they have thetest models of ships?! Hey, start upmunications with our allied pirates!¡±

    ¡°The jamming will make it-¡±

    ¡°Just do it!¡±

    The other party they connected to was another pirate fleet of a simr size.

    Despite the static-filled video, the boss asked the head of the other fleet for help.

    ¡°Hey, we¡¯re sworn brothers, right? I need a little help.¡±

    The other party was slightly amazed,

    ¡°What did you do? Are you in a battle right now?¡±

    ¡°I am, but the enemy is strong and we¡¯re at a disadvantage. Can you send some reinforcements? Even just giving us a ce to run away to is fine.¡±

    The other party asked for the name of the enemy that the boss was thinking of running away from,

    ¡°So what¡¯s the name of the force you¡¯re fighting right now?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s the Banfield house.¡±

    Hearing that name, the pirate in the video dropped the cigar they were holding in their mouth.

    He was shaking.

    ¡°Are you sure they called themselves the Banfield house?¡±

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. You see, there was this kid named Liam who started a fight with us.¡±

    The appearance of the pirate in the video was strange.

    ¡°What the hell did you do?!¡±

    ¡°W-what¡¯s wrong, brother?¡±

    ¡°Liam of the Banfield house, wasn¡¯t he famous for pirate hunting?! He was the one who beat that Goaz! And you¡¯re telling me you started a war with such a guy?! You¡¯ve got to be kidding me!¡±

    The call suddenly disconnected, and no matter what they did, it didn¡¯t reconnect.

    Even after asking other allied pirate fleets, the responses they got were all the same.

    The boss stood up.

    ¡°...what¡¯s the meaning of this? The Banfield family wasn¡¯t just some declining noble house?¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    It¡¯s been a few days since the battle began.

    As soon as the enemy lines started to copse, it was easy to cut into their formation from there.

    Kurt, who was watching everything from the bridge, was astonished after witnessing the strength of Liam¡¯s forces.

    (Isn¡¯t this already at the level of the imperial army?)

    Quality of equipment, quality of human resources, and level of individual skill. All of these factors weren¡¯t at the level of amon lord¡¯s private forces.

    That¡¯s when a call came from the gship of the enemy side¨C the one that bore the crest of the Peetak house.

    ¡°This is the gship Peter II of the Peetak house! We surrender! This is our notice of surrender!¡±

    The other party seemed to be in a panic, having made the call with a great deal of noise in the background.

    In contrast, the bridge was quiet.

    The voices of the operators could be heard, while the staff members continued to give orders with calm tones.

    Tia and the surrounding officers started to re at themander of the enemy ship with narrowed eyes.

    (This person isn¡¯t strong. He isn¡¯t even at the level of a normal knight. To such a person, will Liam really ept their request?)

    Themander-in-chief asked Liam for confirmation,

    ¡°Lord Liam, the Peetak house has offered to surrender. It might be true that they coborated with pirates, but various problems might ensue if we continue to attack them-¡±

    Themander-in-chief thought that the battle was probably going to end here.

    It was only natural for Liam to ept the surrender.

    However, the grudge they¡¯d bear towards the Peetak house wouldn¡¯t be funny at all.

    Themander-in-chief was a serious soldier. He couldn¡¯t forgive nobles who acted no different from pirates.

    A grinding sound could be heard from Tia¡¯s clenched fists.

    Her absolute hatred for pirates could be understood just by looking at her.

    That¡¯s when Liam-

    ¡°The Peetak house? Hey, do you see the Peetak house anywhere? I don¡¯t see them. All I see in front of us¨C are pirates.¡±

    Liam started tough while giving out orders,

    ¡°-they¡¯re just pirates. There¡¯s no reason for the good, respectable, and noble Peetak house to pretend to be criminals. Those are just pirates impersonating a noble family. What reason is there for us to ept their surrender?¡±

    ¨CAt that moment, themander-in-chief fixed the position of his hat.

    ¡°Please excuse my mistake, I will continue the attack.¡±

    ¡°Of course you will.¡±

    Liam stood up.

    ¡°Now, I¡¯m going to join the assault as well. Tia, youe too.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    Kurt called out to such a Liam,

    ¡°Liam! Are you really fine with this?!¡±

    This meant starting a war with the Peetak house, and all houses allied with them.

    Despite all that, Liam wasughing,

    ¡°Of course I am.¡±

    After saying those words, he took Tia and left the bridge.

    Themander-in-chief called out to Kurt after the two disappeared.

    ¡°Now that, is our Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°¡ªreal aristocrats sure are amazing. Ifpared to father and myself, I guess I can understand why they ridicule us as upstarts. ¡±

    They couldn¡¯t make decisions as easily as Liam did.

    ¡°What do you mean? Those are just pirates. Lord Kurt, I wholeheartedly believe that you could make the same order.¡±

    Kurt understood everything at that moment.

    (¡®Even if something is white, it¡¯s ck as long as I say it is¡¯¡ª it¡¯s easy to speak such words, but how did Liam learn to do things like this?)

    Just as Liam said, the Peetak house was treated no differently from another pirate fleet.

    Kurt knew that those words weren¡¯t a joke, and at the same time, the deepness of the resolve behind that order could really be felt.

    ¡°I need to grow stronger.¡±

    A tremor seemed to reverberate through Kurt¡¯s body.

    Even though it wasmon sense to not be hostile when possible, Kurt still wanted to fight.

    To be precise- Kurt wanted to fight through many opponents as a swordmaster, but looking at Liam, Kurt was convinced that he was the one person that nobody should ever make into an enemy.

    ¡°...I was lucky to do this training.¡±

    The training at the Razel house was insufficient.

    However, Kurt thought it was worth it to meet Liam and form a friendship with him.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The corridor leading to the hangar.

    Tia was watching Liam¡¯s back with flushed cheeks.

    (Ahh~ Lord Liam truly is noble. Even if the opponent is another aristocrat, he has no qualms with crushing those who associate with pirates with his own hands. I will follow his orders until the day I die.)

    Even though Liam knew that the enemy was the Peetak house, he still decided tobel them as pirates and have them eradicated¨C Tia was trembling.

    She was trembling in joy.

    (As I thought, Lord Liam is my one and only master. I must serve him with all of my being.)

    Liam¡¯s back, which was still younger and smaller than herself, looked veryrge to Tia.

    When they arrived at the hanger- the knights were waiting in line to greet them.

    To Liam¡¯s personal aircraft- the path leading up to Avid was covered in a red carpet.

    Liam called out to everyone.

    All the soldiers, knights, and others looked towards him.

    ¡°¨Cit¡¯s time for the fun pirate hunt. Everyone, stand by for battle.¡±

    All of them saluted at once, and the knights started boarding their aircrafts.

    Liam wasughing.

    ¡°Custom-ordered machines are nice, but the mass-produced ones aren¡¯t bad at all. However, don¡¯t get cocky and make sure toe back.¡±

    After Liam boarded Avid, Tia got into her own aircraft.

    Avid, which had just exited out into space, dived straight into enemy lines.

    ¡°The foolish pirates who im to be the Peetak house are to be eradicated!¡±

    Wherever Avid passed by, the enemy battleships and mobile knights were annihted.

    (In addition to his noble spirit, his true strength can be seen just by looking at him-)

    Tia¡¯s excitement only seemed to rise as she used her sword to stab a nearby enemy.

    She pierced straight through the cockpit.

    One after another enemies were defeated as she chased after Liam¡¯s back.

    Brian( ¡ä?¦Ø?£à) ¡°This Brian knows. Liam misunderstood the Peetak house to actually be a virtuous family, thus making it impossible for them to associate with pirates in his mind. A war between houses was started just from this small misconception. Just thinking about the developments toe makes my stomach lurch in pain.¡±

    Written by Mishima Yomu/Wai (Èýë Óë‰ô)

 Chapter 27 - Volume 2 Chapter 11 Pirate Hunter Liam

    <h4> Volume 2 Chapter 11 Pirate Hunter Liam</h4>

    Avid had a shield mounted on each of its shoulders.

    It was arge aircraft among mobile knights, the kind of machine that put arge burden on it¡¯s pilot.

    In addition to that, it was a very difficult-to-handle aircraft that had the appropriate power to match it¡¯srge size which didn¡¯t allow the automatic pilot assist functions to be installed.

    It was bigger than the average knight, stronger than the average knight, and painted as ck as space itself.

    When such an Avid approached one of the Peetak house¡¯s cruisers, it started bombarding the ship with the bazooka held in it¡¯s left hand.

    Even though the cruiser¡¯s anti-aircraftsers hit Avid¨C all of them were blocked by an energy shield wrapped around it.

    The cruiser burst into mes from the bazooka¡¯s rockets.

    Looking for his next prey, Liam started chasing the Peetak house¡¯s mobile knights that were fleeing the scene.

    ¡°You¡¯re too slow!¡±

    All of the knights the Peetak house employed were second-hand goods and were outdated.

    The performance difference was just too big, forcing them to be destroyed the moment that they were caught by Avid.

    ¡°The feeling of an overwhelming power difference is amazing!¡±

    Following behind theughing Liam was a battalion of knights.

    They were supposed to be Liam¡¯s escort, but they couldn¡¯t even catch up to him.

    The Banfield house¡¯s mobile knights were the mass produced models used in the imperial army.

    More specifically, they were of a brand new model made for an elite force.

    If they wanted to gain an advantage through numbers, the enemy pirates and the Peetak house would need abined force between forty to fifty thousand ships.

    However, even if that would give them a chance, whether or not they¡¯d actually win was another matter.

    When Liam arrived at the Peetak house¡¯s gship, multiple magic circles manifested around avid.

    Missile pods started materialising out of them.

    Hundreds of missiles were then discharged and exploded on the Peetak house¡¯s gship.

    Watching over the situation, Tia, who was riding a white aircraft-

    ¡°To be able to manipte such aplex aircraft as if it were part of his own body¨C it¡¯s beautiful. I need to make sure I don¡¯t lose to him.¡±

    While she was taking in his image, an enemy unit had approached her.

    In response, she mmed down on the pedal to elerate her aircraft to it¡¯s top speed¨C destroying the approaching enemy as she passed it by.

    Enemies were destroyed one after another from the aircraft Tia refused to slow down.

    ¡°More... MORE!!!¡±

    Tia¡¯s eyes were bloodshot.

    ¡°The hell that I tasted is nothingpared to this!¡±

    The fleeing Peetak soldiers were begging for mercy.

    But Tia didn¡¯t feel any sympathy for them, despite hearing their voices.

    For Tia, the moment that they decided to work with pirates, they were nothing but enemies to be eliminated.

    Wherever Tia¡¯s aircraft passed, only the scattered debris of her enemies remained.

    There was no one among the pirates nor the Peetak house who could stop the princess knight of a lost country.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    While the Peetak house¡¯s fleet and the pirates were being ughtered.

    Katerina, who was to apany Peter on the trip back to his territory, couldn¡¯t hide her confusion.

    All the ships that came to pick them up were outdated.

    That in itself was fine.

    There weren¡¯t any problems in using old-fashioned products as long as they were treated carefully.

    However, the battleship ¡®Peter III¡¯ that Peter himself boarded waspletely obsolete.

    It was a battleship model from hundreds of years ago, and while it¡¯s outside was remodeled to be shy the contents on the inside were terrible.

    In addition to that, Peter¡¯s personal quarters were wasteful.

    ¡°What do you think? My ship truly is the best.¡±

    When Peter started talking, Katerina was troubled,

    ¡°I-it¡¯s quite... umm... vintage.¡±

    Although the impression she had wasn¡¯t very favourable, Peter didn¡¯t seem to care.

    ¡°It¡¯s amazing, right? This one is my favourite. It¡¯s quite the outstanding model back home.¡±

    Katerina started feeling dizzy as she heard that.

    The imperial army¨C second-hand battleships bought from the models they didn¡¯t use anymore would be better than this.

    Not to mention how Peter¡¯s quarters were uselesslyrge, taking up space on the ship that could be used for more important things.

    Peter didn¡¯t seem to understand that with these modifications, the ship¡¯s already dismal performance would only be further reduced.

    ¡°Oh, I-I actually prefer smaller ships. Have you ever considered buying a cruiser?¡±

    Rather than riding something this big and useless, it¡¯d be better to just buy a new ship of a smaller size ss.

    She seriously was starting to contemte if she should call her father and ask him to lend one of his ships instead.

    ¡°I don¡¯t like cruisers. To be honest, I¡¯d prefer a super-ss battleship, but the Empire won¡¯t sell them to me.¡±

    ¡°...you haven¡¯t been recognised by the capital?¡±

    This revtion surprised Katerina, as it was different from everything she was told before,

    ¡°I¡¯ve requested it of them before but they refused me.¡±

    Super-ss gships, and the evenrger fortress-ss battleships, could only be sold to nobles the Empire recognised.

    They were a symbol of how much trust the Empire ced on the noble house.

    For a family on the level of a count house to not have that recognition¨C there clearly had to be something wrong with them.

    (This is different from what I was told! I thought there¡¯d be no problems with marrying into this house!)

    After listening to Peter¡¯s story, waves of uneasiness seemed to wash over Katerina.

    Peter continued to ther on,pletely ignorant of the state she was in,

    ¡°I¡¯ve grown so much over the past three years. I¡¯m practically twice as big as I used to be-¡±

    But Katerina was seriously contemting her future, ignoring Peter¡¯s rambles.

    (First, I need to contact father and confirm the canction of this engagement.)

    Wasn¡¯t this a very bad situation?

    Katerina¡¯s anxiety only seemed to grow bigger and bigger.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    As I rode around in Avid, the enemy¡¯s formation copsed and they started to flee.

    They were foolish trash who imed to be part of the Peetak house.

    To even use the name of a famous noble house, only fools would believe their bluff and withdraw.

    ¡°Because there is no Peetak house here.¡±

    They were a house I avoided because they specialised in righteousness, seriousness, and personal justice.

    Without a doubt, they were a noble house that put an emphasis on internal affairs and virtuous ideals.

    For the private army of such a house to have such an unskilled fleet full of outdated equipment was absurd.

    ¨Cit was impossible.

    They made a mistake in which name to choose.

    These guys were no doubt evil pirates who impersonated nobles.

    ¡°But I am more evil than you.¡±

    In essence the nobles of this universe were the same as pirates.

    Unlike them though, even if we were a little bit more well-behaved, nobles were individuals who had absolute control over their own territory.

    In other words¨C as a viin, I was stronger than them.

    ¡°Now, it¡¯s about time I find the enemy gship.¡±

    I¡¯ve been searching for their gship for a while now, but I couldn¡¯t find it.

    All of their ships look the same.

    While I searched for the enemy, I left the remaining enemy forces to my allies.

    Of all of them, Tia was the best.

    The number of enemies she¡¯s killed won¡¯t stop rising.

    ¡°Oh, she¡¯s actually pretty good. I didn¡¯t expect this windfall.¡±

    Before I knew it, all the nearby enemies were gone.

    When I moved on to the next area in search of new foes¨C I found a pirate ship that was a little bigger than the rest.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The bridge in Var had received a call from the pirates.

    ¡°I¡¯m begging you! We surrender, please have mercy on us! We¡¯re victims here too! It was Viscount Razel who told us to do this!¡±

    To their plea, themander-in-chief responded,

    ¡°Now, isn¡¯t that an interesting story.¡±

    He was making conversation while drinking a cup of coffee.

    While he did this, the allied forces continued to attack the pirates.

    Unlike the calmmander-in-chief, the leader of the pirate fleet seemed to be having a breakdown.

    ¡°To ept our surrender, what do you want?! Do you want us to swear our loyalty to you?! We even have arge amount of control over the underworld you can use! If you want marypensation, we¡¯ll pay you anything!¡±

    Themander-in-chief smiled at the pirate leader who was selling his services.

    The pirate leader smiled back.

    ¡°Sleep talk is something you save for after you go to sleep. All you pirates are the same. The moment you know you¡¯ll lose, you immediately turn to sell-outs.¡±

    ¡°W-what?¡±

    ¡°Tell me, do you know what we do with such pirates?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you want to know more about Viscount Razel¡¯s intentions?! You need us alive to tell you why he attacked you!¡±

    ¡°¨Cnot necessary. There¡¯s no need to negotiate with pirates.¡±

    As the pirate leader started to scream something, the image disyed on the monitor was suddenly filled with static beforepletely shutting off.

    One of the operators gave a report,

    ¡°Avid has destroyed the enemy gship. Lord Liam also left a message saying ¡®I¡¯ming back now, I¡¯m feeling tired.¡¯¡±

    Themander-in-chief exhaled,

    ¡°Give him the OK to retire. I actually wanted to talk to them a bit more, but if Lord Liam defeated them early because he was growing tired, I guess it couldn¡¯t be helped.¡±

    He wanted to hear what else the pirate leader still had to say.

    The operator gave another report,

    ¡°The enemy is withdrawing.¡±

    Themander-in-chief ordered,

    ¡°Chase them down.¡±

    The moment Liam made his judgement on the matter, this was the only natural result.

    Themander-in-chief looked at Kurt, who slumped into his chair as if all the tension in his body was suddenly cut.

    ¡°Lord Kurt, please allow me to apologise for involving you in our battle with pirates.¡±

    Kurt shook his head,

    ¡°No, I learned a lot from this. Though even just being an observer was tiring.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m d to hear that. Somebody, bring Lord Kurt a drink.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    When I finally returned, all the soldiers were lined up to greet me.

    I felt really good.

    As I got off of Avid, they started to apud me.

    ¡°You were wonderful, Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    I raised my hands and answered them.

    They really are doing their best to suck up to me.

    All this praise was being made despite the fact that this was all because I was piloting the amazingly strong weapon known as ¡®Avid¡¯.

    I felt powerful.

    Even though it was only natural for us to win, it feels nice to beplimented like this.

    A soldier came up and gave me a report,

    ¡°After the remaining skirmishes finish, we¡¯ll leave three thousand vessals here, and we¡¯ll head over to Baron Exner¡¯s territory with the rest.¡±

    ¡°Scrap all the debris and take the rest back to the territory. Did we find any treasure?¡±

    The soldier shook his head,

    ¡°We haven¡¯t found any treasure suitable for you, Lord Liam. However, the enemy has a bounty, so we can collect a reward from the Empire.¡±

    The amount listed for the bounty was huge.

    This was going to be very helpful for rebuilding my house¡¯s finances.

    ¡°This time was a failure. Let¡¯s hope the one¡¯s in Kurt¡¯s territory have more.¡±

    It was only natural for me to be praised this much¨C this as well, was all because I was the one in power here.

    If I was just another pilot, there¡¯s no way I¡¯d get this much apuse.

    In that case, I¡¯d also have to work harder.

    To be able to rampage whenever I like, ande straight back once I feel tired¨C it truly is the best to be the one in power.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Tia was looking at the kill scores.

    Although there was a wide gap between herself and third ce, she was nowhere close to Liam, who had the top spot.

    She was surprised.

    ¡°Not even skilled veterans could pilot such an aircraft.¡±

    From a general point of view, Avid was a very difficult aircraft to control.

    Of course, it was difficult to maneuver, but there¡¯s no doubt that ordinary pilots would be thrown around by it¡¯s high specs without being able to use it properly.

    The soldiers were talking as they did maintenance on Avid.

    ¡°To be able to control a machine like this... was Lord Liam born into the wrong calling?¡±

    ¡°If he was born into a knight¡¯s house, he¡¯d definitely be the top ace of the Empire.¡±

    ¡°The joints are at their limits. We might have to send it back to the manufacturer.¡±

    Far from being swung around by it, Tia was growing more and more excited by the fact that Liam had the ability to bring out Avid¡¯s performance to its limits.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Arge transport ship owned by the Henfrey Chamber of Commerce had arrived at the postbat space.

    The Banfield house had called them to help replenish their supplies.

    A gravity generator was ced down to collect the debris.

    The attracted debris swirled around it, while a work pod flew threw the rubble to collect whatever could be deemed to still be useful.

    From Liam¡¯s territory, they were debris collectors.

    Thomas, who owned therge transport ship and the supplies, was invited over to a battleship.

    He braced himself for negotiations, but the topic of the discussion was the pirates.

    ¡°¨Cso it¡¯s been confirmed that they were connected to the viscount¡¯s house?¡±

    A serious-looking soldier approached the topic while checking over the list Thomas provided.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s actually a famous story among the merchants. In fact, many of the movements they¡¯ve made have been deemed as suspicious by a variety of people.¡±

    But the serious soldier didn¡¯t seem that interested in that information.

    Even more so than that,

    ¡°I¡¯m going to report in now, but before that, I¡¯d like to know if the Henfreypany has ns to continue doing business with the Razel house.¡±

    Even though they were near a viscount¡¯s territory, arge fleet of pirates had attacked them.

    And although they reported it, there were no signs of them sending any help.

    The military department didn¡¯t have a high opinion of their house¡¯s purveyor keeping a connection to such a viscount.

    ¡°With this incident I¡¯ve decided to distance myself from them. Everything they¡¯ve done until now has just been too rude.¡±

    Their treatment of Liam was way too harsh.

    The soldier seemed to agree.

    He was tapping the table with a pen.

    ¡°We feel the same way, but Lord Liam doesn¡¯t want to protest them.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam doesn¡¯t?¡±

    Anyints they have should be fully justified, so Thomas couldn¡¯t understand what Liam was thinking.

    The soldier also seemed troubled,

    ¡°He doesn¡¯t seem interested in doing so. In actuality, it looks like he¡¯d rather focus on building a strong rtionship with Baron Exner¡¯s house.¡±

    ¡°He sure did choose a surprising house to support.¡±

    In terms of territory, he wasn¡¯t that good of a partner to choose.

    For such a house, Thomas couldn¡¯t understand the thought process of Liam, who dispatched an army to defeat the pirates guing their territory.

    However, the soldier in front of him looked a little happy.

    ¡°No, even I think it wasn¡¯t a good choice in terms of territory, but Baron Exner is considered a hero within the army. The individual himself is a lossless partner, who has arge amount of influence within the military.¡±

    The soldier in front of Thomas was probably another of the baron¡¯s fans.

    He seemed to speak a little lighter when it came to the baron.

    Thomas pondered this,

 Chapter 28 - Volume 2 Chapter 12 The Fish That Got Away

    <h4>Volume 2 Chapter 12 The Fish That Got Away</h4>

    Randolph read the report he received while shaking.

    What was written there was the total opposite of the initial investigation.

    ¡°So... the data for the Peetak and the Banfield houses were switched?¡±

    Other than Liam and Peter¡¯s names and faces, everything written in their reports were swapped.

    It was unbelievable.

    Such a thing was impossible.

    How could a mistake like this ever transpire?

    He pondered this for a while before shaking his head,

    ¡°I need to immediately notify the pirates of the cancetion of the n.¡±

    It was already around the time for the battle to start.

    If it was already toote, then he¡¯d have to immediately cut all ties with the pirates, sending over the Razel house¡¯s fleet for relief aid in hopes of selling a favour.

    That¡¯s what he decided, but soon after-

    ¡°Lord Randolph!¡±

    A call came in from his panicking subordinates, saying that the pirates had suffered a crushing defeat.

    While the Peetak house had lost most of their fleet as well, and were now seeking refuge at his Viscount house.

    ¡°T-that¡¯s no good! Send them away immediately!¡±

    ¡°The thing is, t-the Peetak house is currently connected to us through marriage, we can¡¯t refuse them because of our military alliance.¡±

    They had signed a number of treaties at the same time as the engagement, but that seems to have backfired on them.

    Randoph started grasping at his head.

    ¡°This c-can¡¯t be. Something like this just can¡¯t-¡±

    That¡¯s when another call came in, this time from his daughter Katerina.

    ¡°Father!¡±

    At first he was thinking about how he didn¡¯t have the time to deal with her, but his legs started to tremble after hearing her report.

    ¡°I¡¯m in the territory of the Peetak house right now, but something¡¯s wrong! It¡¯spletely different from the report, this ce hasn¡¯t even been remotely developed at all! On top of that, debt collectors are pushing for us to repay the Peetak house¡¯s debt. Peter¡¯s parents are apparently in the imperial capital, but when I tried calling them to ask them about this, they just gave terrible responses!¡±

    ¡®We¡¯ll leave our considerable debt to you.¡¯

    The Peetak house¡¯s response was bad, but to force a Viscount house to take care of a Count¡¯s debt was just cruel.

    It¡¯d be tough even for the Razel house, who earns quite a bit.

    ¡°A-and also-¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s more?!¡±

    Randolph, who didn¡¯t want to hear anymore more, told Katerina to continue,

    ¡°Peter... has an STD.¡±

    After hearing such a thing, everything went dark before Randolph¡¯s eyes.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    It¡¯s been three months since I left the Razel house, and now I¡¯ve finally returned home.

    Those three months in between were spent hunting pirates in Baron Exner¡¯s territory.

    The Baron¡¯s territory was amazing.

    You could really tell it was the kind ofnd that they squeezed to thest minute.

    It wasn¡¯t as bad as the Banfield territory ruled by my predecessors, but thend really gave off the feeling of being ruled over by someone who was faithful to the basics of being an evil lord.

    While I was in their care, I got to enjoy ying with Kurt while my fleet actively hunted down the pirates.

    Apparently Baron Exner had a daughter, and he told me that I should take care of her once she reached a certain age.

    In other words, he¡¯s epted me as a fellow evil lord.

    But she wasn¡¯t mature enough yet, so it¡¯d be a while before she coulde to my house for bridal training.

    ¡ªWell, that was the end of that.

    ¡°It¡¯s nice to finally meet you, Lord Liam.¡±

    An olddy with a straight back had greeted me.

    ¡°You¡¯re the new head maid?¡±

    As soon as I returned to the territory, she went out of her way to wee me as a form of courtesy.

    When she helped me change clothes, she didn¡¯t show any difort at all.

    Apparently she was the new hire that was going to be in charge of teaching manners and etiquette, she was really loud and annoying to listen to.

    ¡°Did you need something from me?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d just like to ask you a few things about the ce you went to for training. From Lord Liam¡¯s perspective, what kind of ce was Viscount Razel¡¯s house?¡±

    Well, it should be fine to speak honestly to the head maid that I was going to be in the care of.

    ¡°They were nothing special. Well, I guess they were a good ce to learn at, sort of.¡±

    Serious and just¨C they were a house that was theplete opposite of my own.

    There were a lot of good things about them, but they were a house I couldn¡¯t get along with when looking at the big picture.

    No, it¡¯d be impossible to get along.

    We werepletely ipatible.

    Compared to them, how about Baron Exner?

    He was the ideal evil lord.

    They were a house I definitely wanted to build a connection with.

    ¡°...it was tough, wasn¡¯t it?¡±

    The head maid had a surprised face.

    ¡°Well, we¡¯re not going to be associating with them anymore, so I guess everything¡¯s water under the bridge.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not considering revenge?¡±

    ...revenge? Oh, as in response to their treatment of me?

    Well, I was angry, but if there weren¡¯t serious people like them around, then the Empire would be likely to copse.

    ¡°Like I said, I¡¯d rather just avoid getting involved with them from now on.¡±

    She seemed to be muttering something, but I couldn¡¯t hear her.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    It was the prime minister that the head maid contacted after she returned to her quarters.

    In an Empire where anti-aging technology had advanced by a great deal, it was quite rare to see both the head maid and the prime minister, two people who chose to look old.

    ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, prime minister.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve been looking forward to your report. So what kind of person is the Banfield kid in your eyes?¡±

    The head maid, who originally worked for the imperial pce, had quite the close rtionship with the prime minister.

    It was a rtionship born from knowing each other ever since their youths.

    ¡°He¡¯s the perfect example of the ideal imperial noble.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡±

    From the prime minister¡¯s point of view, he was a good child who did his best to save his debt-riddled territory.

    The head maid had the same opinion, but she wouldn¡¯t say it out loud.

    ¡°He has quite the character about him. It was almost as if I was looking at your younger self.¡±

    Apparently, he was just like the prime minister who quickly climbed the ranks in the pce during his youth.When she said that, the minister started smiling,

    ¡°I see, so he has character does he?¡±

    Sometimes, there were people born with incredible luck.

    They lived existences as if they were chosen by something¡ª as the poption suddenly increased, it was only natural for several of such people to appear in the same era.

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t just luck. He¡¯s quite mature for his age. Maybe the Razel Viscount house actually had a good teacher among them, because it doesn¡¯t look like any re-training is necessary.¡±

    ¡°Hmm... there¡¯s been a lot of bad rumours about that housetely. Did you hear about how the Count was attacked near their territory?¡±

    ¡°They ended up having to deal with a fleet of normal pirates, and the Peetak house¡¯s fleet who imed to be pirates.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s quite courageous despite his age.¡±

    Knowing how the Peetak house operated, the prime minister understood the situation and easily dismissed them as pirates.

    ¡°Are you going to do anything about this?¡±

    ¡°A foolish young nobleman who doesn¡¯t know the harshness of reality needs to be disciplined. For this, the Empire will start a thorough investigation into the situation.¡±

    It was decided that the pirate raid and the other shady things about this situation would be investigated in earnest.

    ¡°Still, is the Viscount an idiot? What the hell was he thinking when he chose to support the Peetak house over the Banfield house?¡±

    Marriage between the Razel and Peetak houses.

    The prime minister could only tilt his head in confusion at the idea.

    No matter how he thought about it, they were definitely the wrong choice to partner with.

    Since they were practically crippling themselves, he decided now would be the most opportune time to start an investigation.

    The prime minister told the head maid,

    ¡°Keep watch over him for a while. He¡¯ll probably be one pirs that support the future empire.¡±

    ¡°Oh? You sure do have high expectations for him.¡±

    ¡°Only because there are fools everywhere else. Speaking of which, I heard an interesting story recently. Why don¡¯t you pass it on to your present master?¡±

    Once the call finished, the head maid decided to convey to Liam the information she heard from the prime minister.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°Lord Liam! This Brian here was so worried that I couldn¡¯t sleep at night!¡±

    ¡°No, you¡¯re old so you need to get enough sleep.¡±

    When I returned to the mansion, Brian started to cry like usual.

    I turned to Amagi,

    ¡°He¡¯s lying. His sleeping time has been reduced, but not to the point of impeding his health.¡±

    ¡ªThis guy, was he really worried about me?

    Brian asked me,

    ¡°B-by the way, Lord Liam¡ª I heard that you did a lot of things at the viscount¡¯s, were you able to harvest many fruits from your training?¡±

    There were a few, but there wasn¡¯t many.

    ¡°Well, I made a friend, does that count?¡±

    ¡°Oh! Lord Liam has made a friend! This Brian here is ecstatic! Did you invite them over?¡±

    Why was he so happy about me making friends?

    Even I had a few frien¨C wait a minute.

    Now that I thought about it, I didn¡¯t.

    Evil lords usually don¡¯t, right?

    Though... I guess that might be wrong, because I know that some viins create groups.

    Great viins always have a bunch of henchmen following them.

    ¡°Master, regarding our future policies-¡±

    Because I was asked by Amagi, I decided that now was the time to announce the changes I¡¯ve been thinking about for a while.

    ¡°Before any of that, I¡¯d like to create an entertainment district.¡±

    Amagi sighed, ¡°Is that so?¡±

    I was enthusiastic despite her weak reaction.

    ¡°Creating a ce to relieve stress is important, but STDs and the like are no good. They¡¯re too dangerous. Let¡¯s prepare a safe environment to y around in that¡¯s thoroughly managed. We¡¯ll use my pocket money as the budget.¡±

    The budgeting for this year is already finished, so we have to use my personal funds.

    ¡ªwas it enough? Recently, I can¡¯t help but feel like my sense of money has gone awry.

    ¡°Understood, but before that¨C may I ask why you purchased more battleships? Even then, why a fortress-ss battleship, something that¡¯s too much for us to handle at the moment?¡±

    I turned my eyes away from Amagi.

    ¡°You know about our current military ns, right?¡±

    When I stayed silent, Amagi proceeded to chew me out,

    ¡°We can¡¯t prepare the crew right now, we¡¯ll have to train them from scratch. Do you understand how much the maintenance costs are?¡±

    ¡°...it¡¯s because I wanted it.¡±

    It¡¯s couldn¡¯t say that I bought it while excited by Nias¡¯ sportswear.

    ¡°You need to be careful. Thanks to that, we¡¯ve been requested to buy ships of equal rank from the other weapon factories one after another. The imperial army has even gotten in contact with us in hopes that we purchase their older models.¡±

    The weapons factories were pressuring us to buy their products.

    While the military contacted us in hopes that we¡¯d purchase the extra assets they didn¡¯t need anymore.

    ¡®Because you could afford a fortress-ss, you have a lot of funds, right?¡¯¨C seems to be the premise they¡¯re approaching us with.

    But If we refused both of them, various problems might ensue.

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, let¡¯s a few and distribute them out. Let¡¯s give some to Baron Exner.¡±

    ¡°Nothing good wille out of giving things away for free.¡±

    Brian threw me a lifeline while Amagi was still scolding me,

    ¡°Oh, then why don¡¯t we rent them out to the neighboring small lords? By giving them some strength to defend themselves, the current burden we have could be reduced some.¡±

    Currently, it was our Banfield house that was maintaining security of the local area.

    I see, that¡¯s a good n.

    We can even earn rental fees while we¡¯re at it.

    ¡°Okay, then let¡¯s get in contact with the military then. The older models we purchase from them will be rented out to the neighboring lords, while the new ones will be used here at home. Problem solved.¡±

    Amagi frowned,

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t solve our initial problem of not knowing what to do with the fortress-ss.¡±

    While we chatted, the head maid approached me,

    ¡°Lord Liam, I have a report,¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡ªPeter¡¯s manhood had exploded.

    I startedughing like crazy after hearing the news.

    The head maid informed me that the Peetak house was currently in chaos.

    However, the story of Peter- the cause of it all, was more interesting than the main subject of the report itself.

    He yed around too much and got an STD.

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯tugh, it¡¯s disrespectful.¡±

    I was currently enjoying Amagi¡¯sp-pillow in the bedroom. As myugh finally started to die down, I waspletely out of breath.

    After coughing for a bit, I took a deep breath and calmed myself down.

    ¡°Ahh~ I needed that.¡±

    ¡°Master, what the head maid was trying to convey was-¡±

    ¡°Their house is in chaos, I know. There¡¯s nothing you can do butugh at it.¡±

    In the Peetak house, Peter, their only heir, was unable to create a sessor.

    For that crazy reason, the house was currently in turmoil over who the next head was going to be.

    Even though he was so serious, his house had broken apart and was now in chaos¡ª as I thought, there¡¯s no point in being serious.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure he got it from Katerina. It truly is useless to be a serious person. I can¡¯t help but feel sorry for Peter, who was forced to be with such a terrible woman.¡±

    ¡°Getting it from his fiancee is definitely a possibility, but there hasn¡¯t been any confirmation that they¡¯ve been in a physical rtionship yet.¡±

    Amagi continued on, ¡°It¡¯ll be hard for Katerina to get married from now on.¡±

    She¡¯d be in hell if she stayed with Peter, and she¡¯d be in hell if she didn¡¯t leave him.

    Because now she¡¯ll be rumoured to have an STD.

    ¡°As a side note, it looks like the Henfreypany lent a lot of money to the Peetak house. They¡¯re apparently greatly in the red now.¡±

    ¡°...how stupid.¡±

    Did they approach the Peetak house with the intention to scam them?

    Well, I¡¯d be troubled if they got crushed, so I¡¯ll give them some support.

    They¡¯re my important Echigoya afterall.

    While enjoying thep pillow, I looked up towards Amagi¡¯s mountains.

    ¡°Oh yes, Master¨C what¡¯s that pendant you have there?¡±

    ¡°This? It¡¯s something I picked up during a mining operation.¡±

    Brian, who originally was an adventurer told me, ¡°It¡¯s a souvenir based off of a mysterious artifact that was said to protect its wearer from all poisons.¡±

    Apparently it was a ne created to prevent poisoning, though it was only a replica of the real thing.

    ¡°You want it?¡±

    ¡°Master should hold on to it. Though it might be fake, keep it as a reminder that you¡¯re in a position that¡¯s susceptible to being poisoned.¡±

    She was telling me to keep wary.

    ¡°Nowadays, poisons can easily be found through inspections.¡±

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t grow negligent.¡±

    Because it was easy to check, it was rare for nobles to be poisoned in recent times.

    But since I feel like it¡¯s lucky, I¡¯ll leave it around my neck.

    It¡¯s made of my favourite gold afterall.

 Chapter 29 - Volume 2 Chapter 13 Clearly and Without a Doubt, an Evil Lord

    <h4>Volume 2 Chapter 13 Clearly and Without a Doubt, an Evil Lord</h4>

    ¡°Let¡¯s increase taxes.¡±

    ¡°Pardon?¡±

    Inside my office.

    Having returned after finishing my training at the viscount¡¯s, the first thing I went to implement was a tax increase.

    ¡°I¡¯ve decided to follow in Baron Exner¡¯s footsteps. He¡¯s a great man, the kind of guy who¡¯ll squeeze his people until the veryst minute. Even his son Kurt, inherited that spirit of trying to squeeze out even a little bit more by learning new things during training.¡±

    So naturally, I had to implement a tax increase.

    Huh? It would trouble my people?

    ¡ªWho cares? It¡¯s not like it would trouble me.

    ¡°The time has finallye! As the viin I am¨C it¡¯s time for a big tax increase!¡±

    After hearing my opinion, Amagi paused to think about it for a bit before saying,

    ¡°Well, now should be a suitable time, so I don¡¯t think there¡¯s any problem with doing so.¡±

    ¡°Right?! Now I can finally hear the suffering voices of me people!¡±

    Sometimes, there were idiots who misunderstood my intentions and seemed to think I was a virtuous ruler.

    Was this the influence of the prepared praises that we made the television stations broadcast?

    The media was super useful.

    ¡°What stupid people. Even if they ce their hopes in me as a virtuous ruler, they¡¯re only going to be betrayed in the end.¡±

    ¡°Master, what about the finer details of the tax increase?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll leave those to you, just make sure to squeeze them dry!¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    ¡ªThe following day, we announced that we were going to raise taxes during the next fiscal year.

    The territory was already making a big fuss about it.

    That¡¯s what I¡¯m talking about!

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A house located in the Banfield house¡¯s territory.

    The single-family white house with a built-in garden was kept in good condition.

    A middle-aged man was the owner of it, he was a bit on the stouter side and had a beard and mustache grown.

    While such a man went out to the garden to do some maintenance, one of his rtives hade and ran up to him in a hurry.

    ¡°Hey, did you hear the news?!¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? I¡¯m a little busy right now.¡±

    ¡°Here, look at this!¡±

    What was disyed on his information terminal was an announcement about a tax increase.

    It was made using Liam¡¯s name itself, meaning that it waspulsory.

    If they fought against it, the army would be dispatched to arrest them.

    As the men confirmed the contents of the report¨C they were shaking.

    ¡°Is this real?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no doubt about it. It¡¯s a formal announcement from the government. We¡¯re getting a big tax increase!¡±

    They were shaking in happiness.

    ¡°I hope they won¡¯t make us go too far away for work. Where are you thinking of going?¡±

    ¡°The third team seems to be the closest. They¡¯re recruiting manpower for the development ns over there but schrs and teachers seem to be the focus. Personally, I¡¯m going to join the fourth team. Are youing?¡±

    ¡°Of course I am! We¡¯ll be able to be independent over there and we¡¯ll never be troubled with finding work.¡±

    Why were they so happy, and what were they talking about?

    Liam had forgotten¨C the Banfield house had recently started developing pioneerings.

    The development of their capital had finally settled down, so they now they were moving on to the others within the territory.

    It was difficult to develop pioneerings.

    There weren¡¯t many lords who sent over more people and funds after the initial investment.

    Yet, this phenomenal tax increase could only mean one thing¨C full-scale development of pioneers was about to transpire soon.

    In other words, from the people¡¯s point of view, they fully believed that Liam was investing into the pioneerings.

    Their general opinion was¨C

    ¡°How much is the tax increasing by?¡±

    ¡°Quite a bit, but it¡¯s still better than how it used to be.¡±

    For the people who knew what the former Banfield house was like, it wasn¡¯t an intolerable amount.

    In fact, they thought it was actually on the cheap side until now.

    Of course there¡¯d be some dissatisfaction, but it was still nice news for people thinking of migrating.

    ¡°Now that Lord Liam is back, it looks like the rumours about focusing on the development of the settlements were true.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s fly over there quickly.¡±

    The men decided to have a toast in Liam¡¯s name after work had finished that day.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    After therge tax increase announcement.

    I was watching the news, and I couldn¡¯t help but admire how interesting it was.

    Thementator on the television was desperately defending my announcement.

    ¡°This year¡¯s tax increase was made in support of the pioneers-¡±

    To such amentator, an actress dressed like a housewife gave an opinion.

    ¡°Even so, I¡¯d be troubled if they raised the taxes all of a sudden~ I want them to use the taxes I pay them correctly~¡±

    ¡°No, investing in pioneerings is a correct way to use them.¡±

    ¡°But that¡¯s only beneficial for those who want to migrate, no~?¡±

    Wasn¡¯t this show really interesting?

    A big tax increase was just something that they couldn¡¯t ept.

    If this was the democracy of my former life, the cab would¡¯ve been forced to be disbanded at once.

    This was how aristocratic politics worked.

    Ever since I announced this policy it¡¯s been a hot topic among my people.

    Even on the topic about how we¡¯re lending out battleships, thedy startedining.

    ¡°I don¡¯t understand why we¡¯d buy battleships only to lend them out to other territories~ They were bought with our tax money~¡±

    Thisdy seemed to represent the opinion of all the housewives, and expressed her opinion with dissatisfaction.

    What followed was a series of questions and statements between thementator and thedy with both sides trying to persuade the other¡ª they were a set.

    ¡°They sure did create a good character that portray the opposing side¡¯s anger.¡±

    After having shown theints about me, the television station then went on to broadcast that it kept a fair and unbiased opinion.

    ¡ªbut everything was done under my orders. It was all fake.

    Even thatdy was just an actress.

    Thementator was also putting on quite the impressive performance that matched her.

    ¡°Let me put things out inyman¡¯s terms! Even if yourining about the costs of things now, we¡¯ve been dealing with that problem since a long time ago! It¡¯s far cheaper to rent out ships from our territory than to dispatch our armies!¡±

    ¡°Even then, that¡¯s the other¡¯s problem to deal with~¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you understand?! Pirates don¡¯t care about what territory they settle into! If pirate bases started getting built in the neighboringnds, they¡¯ll only bring trouble to our territory!¡±

    It was quite the powerful performance.

    Wasn¡¯t thismentator actually an actor as well? It was possible.

    The title of ¡®expert¡¯ was probably just another trick prepared by the station to help influence people.

    It was fun to think about how there was probably viewers out there that actually believed all of this.

    Amagi approached me while I watched TV on arge monitor.

    She brought tea.

    ¡°You look like your enjoying yourself, Master.¡±

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s funny. I can onlyugh at the people who¡¯re deceived by such a program that says I¡¯m actually a virtuous ruler.¡±

    My control over all media and information was perfect.

    ¡°The story about lending out ships to help improve the security of the territory is true, but so is the report about investing on the pioneers.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡±

    Well, all I wanted to do was make the big tax increase, I didn¡¯t really decide what we¡¯d do with the money.

    It¡¯s just harassment.

    I just wanted to squeeze out my people for what they were worth.

    If I was actually in mary trouble, I had the alchemy box to bail me out.

    I just wanted to see my people suffering.

    I picked up the cup and started to drink the tea.

    ¡°It truly is the best to have a cup of tea while watching the image of my suffering people.¡±

    ¡°Master looks more happy today then ever.¡±

    The show then changed to be about the newest trends in the territory.

    ¡°Next up, we have a segment about the hairstyles that have been in fashion with the youthtely.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m always surprised by the ideas of young people. There¡¯s no way I would¡¯ve ever guessed such a hairstyle would be popr.¡±

    The hosts of the show wereughing.

    I wonder what kind of hairstyle they-

    ¡°Presenting the new and trendy ¡®tornado-style!¡¯¡±

    A model then entered into the venue as they finished speaking.

    I spat out my tea.

    Their haircut seemed to wind upwards like soft-serve ice cream¡ª it other words, it was ugly.

    Amagi started to clean up the tea I spat out.

    ¡°Hey, Amagi!¡±

    ¡°What is it, Master?¡±

    ¡°Is this hairstyle really that popr? Is my territory really full of it right now? Is this a lie?! Tell me that it¡¯s a lie!¡±

    When I pointed towards the monitor, Amagi turned away from me.

    ¡°...isn¡¯t it fine? I don¡¯t allow such styles inside the mansion.¡±

    ¡°But I¡¯m talking about outside the mansion! There¡¯s no way I can ept such a hairstyle existing!¡±

    Damn it! This makes me sick to the stomach.

    Is this my people¡¯s retaliation in response to the tax increase?

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to even think about such an embarrassing hairstyle running rampant through my territory.¡±

    ¡°Well, I thought you might be able to let this slide this time.¡±

    Just like when I decided to raise the taxes, I felt a strong will wash over me,

    ¡°Let¡¯s regte this right away. There¡¯s no way I¡¯ll recognise such a thing!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think being so vocal about it will change anything, but I¡¯ll still contact the government office for you.¡±

    After that, I immediately createdws to regte such hairstyles.

    The thing is, even though the people didn¡¯tin when I increased the taxes,rge protests suddenly started urring after my prohibition of just the one hairstyle.

    ¡ªmy territory was at its end.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The head maid was making a report to the prime minister.

    ¡°I see, so he really raised taxes to help develop the settlements?¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t see anything unnatural ur. He didn¡¯t purchase anything extravagant after raising the taxes. Rather, he¡¯s actually been living quite humbly.¡±

    ¡°...well, it is a problem once one gets too greedy.¡±

    ¡°It looks like it might be a bit over his budget, but he seems to know how to use money properly.¡±

    The head made was reporting Liam¡¯s tax increase and other matters.

    In other words, she was spying on Liam.

    That said, this information was actually working towards protecting him.

    The head maid was convinced that therge-scale tax increase was truly made to help with the investments for developing pioneerings.

    ¡°I was worried because things looked too good on the surface, but after opening the lid, it looks like the insides are quite frugal. As expected, it¡¯s a bit boring.¡±

    ¡°Your words make it sound like you were disappointed to find out he was actually a good person without any secrets.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not true. I¡¯m delighted to hear about the birth of a decent noble. It looks like there¡¯s still some hope left for the Empire, a ce where families like the Peetak house emerge from.¡±

    Although it was the Peetak Count house, all rtives have refused to inherit it because of the terrible state it was in.

    At this rate, it looks like Peter, who wasn¡¯t able to acquire an elixir for treatment, will be it¡¯sst lord.

    And the huge debts left behind by the marriage will be pushed onto the Razel Viscount house.

    ¡°Oh yes, they¡¯ve actually received an informal request from Baron Exner to leave his daughter¡¯s bridal training to them in the future.¡±

    ¡°Hmm... the Banfield house might just be the right choice. Are they ready for epting others?¡±

    ¡°Within the decade they somehow managed it.¡±

    ¡°I can rx knowing that you¡¯re there. Make sure to do your best for the Banfield house.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry I always nned to. Actually, starting next year it looks like they¡¯ll start epting the children of minor lords.¡±

    ¡°I want them to be able to ept children from houses above the baron rank too. There are many problems with those children¡¯s training as well.¡±

    The call ended.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The following year.

    For the first time ever, the Banfield house was going to take in the children of other noble families.

    However, the children were all from minor or neighboring lords from houses below baron rank.

    Even if described as neighboring territories, it was still a considerable distance for the children to travel.

    Unlike myself, they couldn¡¯t study abroad in the Empire except at a minor lord¡¯s house.

    The fact of the matter was that they didn¡¯t have enough money for bigger ces, so they¡¯d go to an affiliated major house instead.

    However, until recently the Banfields have been unreliable and refused to do such a thing¡ª

    which put the minor lords in the vicinity at a loss.

    Most of the people in the room were older than me.

    When Brian and Amagi brought me to the room, the head maid weed me.

    ¡°Lord Liam, these are the ones who¡¯ll be staying with us from now on. Now, say hello.¡±

    When I came, everyone started to greet me, except for one of them who was loudly chewing gum.

    He was looking at Amagi while grinning.

    ¡°What¡¯s with the android?¡±

    Furrowing her eyebrows, the head maid approached the young man and pped him.

    A good dry sound echoed throughout the room.

    ¡°Watch your mouth.¡±

    But he didn¡¯t stop.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that kid just a brat younger than me? And here I was so nervous to meet him.¡±

    ¡ªsometimes these people appeared.

    Fools who didn¡¯t understand their position because they grew up ignorant of the world.

    I was angry, so I pushed the head maid aside and approached him.

    The boy was suddenlyunched into the wall, falling down into a coughing fit.

    ¡°You bastar¨C¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t need such a rebellious person. Brian, send this guy back.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, please wait. It¡¯s still only the first day.¡±

    ¡°What about it? The fact that he insulted me was bad enough. In the first ce, this was his parent¡¯s fault for failing to educate him properly, which is only proof that they¡¯re not worth associating with.¡±

    I was kind to myself but tough on others.

    The surroundings were dead silent, and the boy seemed to have a face that said he couldn¡¯t understand what was going on.

    ¡°Amagi, make the arrangements to send him back.¡±

    Amagi nodded,¡°I will make the arrangements immediately.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A few dayster.

    The minor lord who heard the circumstances behind what happened came to me to make an apology.

    He was hoping that the rtionship between our two houses could stay the same if he disinherited that child.

    Of course, I was happy to ept such an offer!

    I love people who subserviently shake their tails at me.

    ¡°It sure is the best to have power. Even if I¡¯m just another noble in the Empire, I¡¯m a king once I return home. It feels great to be treated like this.¡±

    Brian made a slightly amazed expression before lightly chastising me,

    ¡°I was really impressed by the head maid. What you did was alright, but I¡¯d appreciate it if you settled things a bit more peacefully. If you cause too much trouble less children will choose us as their ce of study.¡±

    ¡°First impressions are important though.¡±

    It doesn¡¯t matter where, even in my past life I had to struggle with people like that.

    Anyone who dares to take such an attitude is dead to me!

    ¡°It looks like the other children have be quite well behaved after that incident.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear.¡±

    Brian went on to ask me if any of them impressed me,

    ¡°In any case, did any of the noble daughters there catch your eye?¡±

    ¡°Noble daughters? Oh yeah, they were there, weren¡¯t they? I wasn¡¯t really paying attention to them.¡±

    Brian was disappointed,

    ¡°Is that so? I thought there might be a wife candidate among them, but I guess I was wrong.¡±

    ¡°Huh? Really?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re a group of young women apprenticing at our house that haven¡¯t been engaged to anyone yet. Isn¡¯t it only natural to think so? Or rather, I think that there are many among them actually aiming for you. Of course, I¡¯d be troubled if you went wild with lust, but to show no reaction at all is a problem in and of itself.¡±

    ¡°Well, that might be true, but I just couldn¡¯t feel that way because none of them were especially attractive to me.¡±

    ¡°Then I guess I¡¯ll tell the head maid that there wasn¡¯t anyone there that fit your preferences.¡±

    Brian seemed to have given up while muttering, ¡°Let¡¯s hope things are different next time.¡±

    Huh? If that¡¯s the case then maybe Baron Exner¡¯s daughter... no, nevermind.

    It¡¯d be impossible because she¡¯d being here under different circumstances than the other noble girls.

 Chapter 30 - Volume 2 Chapter 14 Baron Razel

    <h4>Volume 2 Chapter 14 Baron Razel</h4>

    A noble house had been demoted.

    Their resource satellites had been confiscated by the Empire, and they lost their credibility as nobles.

    The Viscount-no, Baron Razel house was deemed as an inadequate ce for training.

    ¡°¨CHow did this happen?¡±

    When the Banfield house was attacked by pirates, they were suspected of not sending relief aid intentionally.

    Their only silver lining was that Liam hadpletely ughtered the ambushers.

    The remaining pirates in the territory were then easily able to be dealt with by Randolph.

    More so than they imagined, the Empire went all-out with it¡¯s investigation into the incident¡ª which eventually led to the current situation.

    The reason why they didn¡¯t justpletely crush the house was because it¡¯d be troublesome for the Empire to suddenly have to rule over their territory.

    In addition to that, they were already being punished in their own way.

    The Peetak house they were affiliated with was almost confirmed to copse, while the huge debts they carried would be pushed onto them.

    The reason for that lies in the woman they married off to them, Katerina.

    If Peter died, it¡¯d be more than likely that Katerina would be the house¡¯s head.

    It was possible for them to just abandon everything and run away, but then they¡¯d be despised by all of the Peetak house¡¯s rtives as the cause for its destruction.

    They¡¯d be looked at with cold eyes within the Empire¡¯s aristocratic society.

    No matter what they did, Randolph couldn¡¯t see a bright future in store for them.

    On the other hand¡ª

    ¡°All the businessmen ran away.¡±

    The merchants who heard the news had abandoned them.

    All the businessmen they had connections with suddenly started giving them the cold shoulder after the demotion. In the first ce, their rtionship wasn¡¯t the best because of their connection to the pirates, so they all took this chance to jump ship.

    The quick-minded subordinates all left in search of a new lord to serve.

    All that remained were the inflexible ones.

    Among them were the knights who were in charge of teaching Liam.

    ¡°What went wrong... just where did we go wrong?¡±

    Randoph was falling into despair¨C and the guide was watching him.

    He was standing right in front of him, but Randolph didn¡¯t seem to notice anything.

    ¡°You¡¯ve disappointed me, but thanks to your despair, I¡¯m feeling a little better now. I will definitely take revenge on Liam using the power you¡¯ve given me.¡±

    Randolph, Peter and others¨C their misfortunes brought a little power back to the guide.

    But it still wasn¡¯t enough to make Liam unhappy.

    The guide fell into deep thought,

    ¡°If things are just going to be like this, let¡¯s just reveal everything to Liam.¡±

    Liam¡¯s grateful feelings were still being transmitted to him even this far away.

    Without Randolph or Peter¡¯s negative feelings, things would¡¯ve been dangerous for him.

    ¡ªif things had gone wrong, then he might¡¯vepletely run out of power and disappeared.

    He wished that they were more unhappy.

    The guide really thought so.

    ¡°With your negative emotions powering me, I will definitely send Liam into a living hell!¡±

    As the guide disappeared, Randolph raised his face.

    The change to his expression was small¨C but it had a bit of a refreshed feeling to it.

    It was probably because the guide had absorbed his negative emotions.

    ¡°I need to work hard. If things are like this, then I just need to start all over again. First, let¡¯s get in get into contact with my son, and then I¡¯ll call Katerina after.¡±

    He needed to make sure there was a future for his children.

    Even without anyone¡¯s help, Randolph was going to bring them back up.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Peter, whose manhood had exploded, had a sullen expression on his face.

    Katerina was by his side.

    Lying down on his bed, Peter started to hollowlyugh.

    ¡°The great me was1¡ª no, I was a fool.¡±

    ¡°You finally noticed?¡±

    Katerina was amazed.

    ¡°You can go home Katerina. You can break off our engagement now. I¡¯ll testify that we haven¡¯t had a physical rtionship, and make sure that you aren¡¯t troubled by this.¡±

    To the Peter that everyone had abandoned, Katerina started shaking her head.

    ¡°Nothing will change even if I leave. My father told me to go back, but I¡¯m not going to. If I leave you alone, your house will be destroyed.¡±

    ¡°...Katerina, I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m so sorry.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡±

    Katerina had a frustrated expression on her face.

    Even so, she was seriously thinking of ways to help manage the Peetak house.

    ¡°If the Peetak house bounces back even a little bit, then there¡¯s bound to be somebody who¡¯ll appear to take the position of head. Once that happens, let¡¯s throw this all away and retire together.¡±

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll do my best.¡±

    Peter was the same as Liam.

    He had grown up without knowing a parent¡¯s love.

    Having abandoned him, his parents had fled to the imperial capital.

    Peter was happy to have someone he could rely on for the first time in his life.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The imperial capital.

    After graduating from university, Tia was currently receiving training to be an official.

    The training period spanned over two years, during which they¡¯d be forced to do various odd-jobs.

    However, those who were expected to rise up in the future were assigned to appropriate departments where they received preferential treatment.

    Tia was one of them.

    When she entered the government office in a suit, she could see the heir of the Razel house in work clothes.

    He was being scolded by his superiors.

    ¡°Hey, newbie! Is saying the same thing over and over again, the only thing you can do?!¡±

    ¡°Sorry, I¡¯m so sorry.¡±

    ¡°Are you not interested in this kind of work?!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not... true.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Except for those in the star department, all you heirs of noble houses are useless. If you keep this up for two more years, do you really think you¡¯ll be ready for your position?!¡±

    ¡°No, I definitely wouldn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Even people like you aren¡¯t allowed to escape from this. For your two years of training, you¡¯re going to be cleaning the toilets.¡±

    His head was lowered, and his hands were clenched.

    The Razel house had been demoted, and as a result their son wasn¡¯t ced in the star department.

    Instead, he was silently doing janitor jobs.

    That department wasn¡¯t a ce that noble heirs were usually assigned.

    Even so, he was working seriously.

    (...well, even if I don¡¯t say anything, I hope he does his best.)

    If she said something here, it¡¯d mean that she had forgiven the Razel house that had ill-treated Liam, but the serious figure the guy gave off even made Tia slightly sympathetic.

    (Let¡¯s see, two years of training, then four more years of practice¨C and then the military academy? Between the university and the academy, I wonder which one Lord Liam will choose.)

    For this, she decided she had to change.

    Tia was working hard for Liam¡¯s future.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    There was a strong bacsh against the lord.

    For thest few years, I¡¯ve been struggling against foolish insurgents who¡¯ve been crying out for their rights and freedoms.

    But their rights and freedoms were mine!

    They had no freedoms or rights!

    ¡°Why are they so adamant about having whatever hairstyle they want?!¡±

    I hit the desk in my office as I made ns to send out the military to various ces.

    Luckily, they were just propaganda parades where they¡¯d walk around showing off what hairstyles were appropriate.

    However, the soldiers weren¡¯t motivated.

    Some of them were even saying, ¡°That hairstyle looks good.¡±

    Don¡¯t screw with me!

    I¡¯ll never ept such a hairstyle!

    I don¡¯t care how many years it takes! I¡¯ll force them into using the hairstyles I want instead of that stupid tornado cut!

    ¡°The territory sure is peaceful.¡±

    I was stunned by Amagi¡¯sment.

    ¡°How can that be?! There are people that are rising against me!¡±

    When I told the broadcast stations ¡°Isn¡¯t this banned?¡±, they told me, ¡°There aren¡¯t anyws that regte hairstyles.¡±

    Whose side were they supposed to be on?! I was the ruling power here!

    Don¡¯t screw with me!

    When I tried to make thews by force, the officials told me, ¡°That¡¯s a bit much.¡±

    Then they¡¯d start to lecture me that deciding which hairstyles were good, and which were bad was a useless venture to spend my time on.

    I knew that... I knew that but-!

    You guys, why do you care so much about your hairstyles?!

    Was it that?! Was this their reaction to the tax increase?! It had to be that!

    ¡°More importantly, it looks like the fourth team has arrived at the pioneer safely. Development seems to be going better than expected. The tax increase made by Master seems to have maderge contributions towards that result.¡±

    ¡°The hairstyle problem is more important! I hate it! People with with tornado hairstyles are showing up everywhere!¡±

    Before I enrolled into elementary school, I was definitely going to stop that hairstyle!

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The head maid was giving a report to the prime minister.

    ¡°¡ªand that¡¯s the situation. Everything seems to be calm except for the military demonstrations.¡±

    ¡°I understand his pain enough that even I feel hurt from this.¡±

    After hearing about Liam¡¯s current situation, the prime minister grew sympathetic.

    ¡°In any case, the time for him to enroll in the elementary school is approaching.¡±

    ¡°As a count, he shouldn¡¯t have any problems, but I¡¯ve heard that there¡¯s been quite a few problem-children enrolling these days.¡±

    Elementary schools also had their problems.

    The prime minister had high hopes for Liam, who was like a shining light in the rise of the Empire¡¯s corruption.

    ¡°By the way, I heard he bought a fortress-ss from the Seventh Weapons Factory. It looks like he¡¯s building up his forces, is there a reason?¡±

    The head maid answered,

    ¡°We¡¯re using it as a temporary defensive base for the pioneer areas. It¡¯ll take several years to prepare a full-fledged base, so we¡¯re using it like this until then.¡±

    ¡°I see. So that¡¯s the reason why? I thought it was something like that.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The noble children were being taken care of in Liam¡¯s residence.

    Although they were living in the mansion, they were being strictly treated as servants during their three years of training.

    They were also being educated, but what happened to those that weren¡¯t going to advance to elementary school like Liam?

    ¨Cthe answer was simple.

    They¡¯d continue to spend time in Liam¡¯s territory.

    Universities were being built, so they stayed to study in the school of their choice.

    Two girls who had already spent three years in the mansion were walking around the university grounds in in clothes.

    ¡°Wow~ The Count sure is generous. He even covered our tuition and living expenses.¡±

    Their tuition fees were exempted.

    Allowances were even given to them, but if it wasn¡¯t enough, they¡¯d start working part-time jobs or ask for more from their parents.

    ¡°We wouldn¡¯t be able to y around as much back home either.¡±

    In their territories there weren¡¯t any universities built.

    Compared to its surrounding area, Liam¡¯s territory was exceptionally developed.

    The reason why the minor lords let their children study abroad was because they wanted them to learn from Liam¡¯s already fully developed territory.

    ¡°I don¡¯t really want to go back home~¡±

    The girl then turned to smile at hermenting friend,

    ¡°Then you just need to marry a local and then move here.¡±

    Thementing girl red at her friend,

    ¡°That sounds fine~ I want to keep rxing here for a least a decade.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t give up! I¡¯m sure that you¡¯ll find someone among the knights you¡¯ll take a fancy to.¡±

    The girls looked like they were really having fun.

    Though the same could be said for the men.

    They continued to study at the university while experiencing lives full of love and youth.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°GOD DAMMIT!!!¡±

    I was furious that I was about to enter elementary school.

    The reason being-

    Picking up a fashion magazine, the hairstyle on the cover had evolved even further.

    Brianmented on it,

    ¡°Lord Liam, if you make a badw, it¡¯s only natural that you¡¯ll meet opposition.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll crush it thoroughly!¡±

    I didn¡¯t think that they would go this far to make me angry.

    I wonder if this was their retaliation in response to me having Amagi raise their taxes to the limit.

    If that was the case¨C no, either way it would be necessary for me to let them know who¡¯s on top here.

    ¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t want to just give up?¡±

    ¡°As if I¡¯ll give up! I¡¯ll make them regret the day they rebelled against me¨C the person in power!¡±

    ¡°But the people seem to still be enjoying themselves.¡±

    ¡°Then I definitely can¡¯t forgive them!¡±

    It¡¯s okay for me to take from my people, but I definitely mustn¡¯t be taken from.

    I¡¯ll have to use the corruption I¡¯ve installed as an evil lord for this.

    ¡°If this is how it¡¯s going to be, then I¡¯ll send out the knights and force them all to have haircu-¡±

    While I was speaking, I couldn¡¯t help but notice that Brian seemed a little strange.

    He wasn¡¯t moving at all, as if time had stopped.

    This feeling¨C yes, I knew what this was.

    When I looked around, I could see a slightly tired-looking guide, just like before.

    He was sitting on his suitcase with his legs folded.

    A top hat was deeply worn on his head to the point where I couldn¡¯t see his eyes.

    However, the crescent moon-like smile on his face was clear.

    ¡°Long time no see, Liam.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s you.¡±

    The guide spread out his hands.

    ¡°I really wanted to see you, but I couldn¡¯t meet you until today.¡±

    To the happy looking guide, I wanted to convey a few words of thanks,

    ¡°I actually wanted to see you too. In needed to do so in order to than¨C¡±

    The guide brought his index finger to his mouth in a gesture for me to keep silent.

    ¡°Let me go first Liam. I have a lot I want to say.¡±

    After standing up, the guide started to talk to me in a light tone,

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you think that it was funny?¡±

    ¡°What was?¡±

    ¡°Various things, but if I were to choose a recent topic, it¡¯d be the Razel house. Liam, haven¡¯t you ever wondered why you were treated in such a way there?¡±

    ¡°Not really.¡±

    ¡°You did!¡±

    The guide who suddenly started shouting apologised, saying it was ¡°rude of him¡± before continuing.

    ¡°Liam, in actuality it was you who was supposed to have Peter¡¯s treatment. It was your chance to meet with the Razel house¡¯s daughter and build a connection with a powerful house. It was that sort of setting.¡±

    ¡°¡ªyou¡¯re kidding me.¡±

    As I opened my eyes in surprise, the guide spread out his hands and started tough,

    ¡°So why did Peter take away everything that was supposed to be for you? It¡¯s because there was someone moving behind the scenes.¡±

    ¡°Behind the scenes?¡±

    ¡°¨Cwhich was me.¡±

    The bowing guide directed a smile at me as he looked up.

    ¡°It was always me.¡±

    I started thinking over the facts,

    ¡°I-it was all-¡±

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t Peter who took everything away from you! You lost everything because of me! That¡¯s how it is Liam! You were being deceived!¡±

    ¡ªhim.

    Brian(£» ?`¦Ø?¡ä) ¡°W...what?!¡±

    Peter has been referring to himself as ¡®oresama(°³˜”)¡¯ this entire time, I didn¡¯t directly trante it though because ¡®The great me¡¯ is just in awkward to use in English. I only brought it back here because it directly corrtes to what he says next, in which he starts referring to himself normally.

    Written by Mishima Yomu/Wai (Èýë Óë‰ô)

    Tranted by KuroInfinity at slothtrantionsblog

 Chapter 31 - Volume 2 Epilogue

    <h4>Volume 2 Epilogue</h4>

    The guide had revealed the truth to me.

    To that truth, I¨C

    ¡°You... I thought you told me the after-sales service wasplete.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    The guide sputtered in a confused tone.

    This guy, even though he looks like a bad person he¡¯s actually really shy.

    I didn¡¯t think he was moving in various ways for me behind the scenes.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to hide it. You manipted things in ways I never noticed, right?¡±

    ¡°No, well... I did.¡±

    If I was given the same treatment as Peter, then I would¡¯ve gotten an STD by now.

    He was really doing his best for me.

    If that was the case, then was he also the reason why I was able to meet Kurt? It might just be a coincidence, but it¡¯s more likely that he set things up to be that way.

    Were all the good things that happened to me in the Razel house his doing?

    ¡°You really are a good person.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    The guide was grasping his chest.

    It looked like he wanted to say something, but I needed to convey my words first,

    ¡°You don¡¯t need to be so embarrassed about it. You cut off the connection with the Razel house for me, right? That house doesn¡¯t seem to be in the best ce now that it¡¯s been demoted, so if I was affiliated with them, there¡¯s no doubt I¡¯d be going through some hard times right now. It must¡¯ve been tough, so thanks for everything.¡±

    ¡°...stop it.¡±

    To the guide that seemed to be dying from embarrassment, I gave my thanks.

    He really was a good person.

    ¡°You¡¯re also the one who cornered that good and virtuous Peetak house, right? I also hated that house. Righteous and virtuous people disgust me.¡±

    Wasn¡¯t he the one that threw that house into chaos? I¡¯m really grateful to him for getting rid of such an annoyance.

    ¡°Y-y-you¡¯re wron-¡±

    I rubbed the bottom of my nose at the sight of the guide who was shaking while hiding his face.

    ¡°For all this kindness that you¡¯ve done for me, thank you.¡±

    The guide started shouting in embarrassment from my thanks,

    ¡°aaaaaAHHHHHHHHHHH~~!!!!!¡±

    The guide disappeared in a cloud of mist.

    While I still surprised by the sight, Brian started to move again,

    ¡°Lord Liam, what¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¨Cto be so embarrassed that he¡¯d actually start screaming, I couldn¡¯t help but shake my head at the thought. He¡¯s surprisingly innocent.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing. I just... yeah, I feel better all of a sudden. I¡¯ll give up on the haircuts.¡±

    Brian was surprised, but he immediately went on to contact the government offices.

    I guess I was overreacting a little to a hairstyle.

    The thing is, after I begrudgingly acknowledged it, the hairstyle suddenly dropped in poprity and disappeared.

    Were they just making fun of me?

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Before my admission into elementary school.

    There were many people visiting the territory trying to meet with me while I was still here.

    Nias was one of them.

    ¡°Lord Liam~ can you buy some battleships from me?¡±

    Looking at Nias in a dress, I lightly snorted at her.

    ¡°Go home, you disappointing girl.¡±

    ¡°Cold! Lord Liam¡¯s attitude towards me is cold!¡±

    Nias seemed to have gotten better after selling me a fortress-ss, but now she was screaming as she was pulled away by my servants.

    ¡°LORD LIAM, EVEN BUYING TWO HUNDRED SHIPS IS OKAAAAYYYYYY~~~!¡±

    It was a cry that could be used to confirm the Doppler effect.

    Well, it¡¯s her fault for not understanding my feelings.

    I could just tell her, but it¡¯d be bothersome and I¡¯d feel like I lost if I did so.

    In the first ce, my position was the higher one of the two of us.

    Hopefully she guesses right next time.

    ¡°Amagi, bring in the next guest.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Master.¡±

    Amagi brought the next guest into the room.

    It was the Third Weapons Factory representative, Eulisia.

    Surprisingly, she was wearing quite thescivious outfit.

    ¡°My lord, long time no see.¡±

    After finishing my greetings with Eulisia, she sat down in a way that showed off the insides of her skirt, before taking a pose that emphasised her chest.

    ¡°I¡¯m here today to introduce the new line of weapons the Third Weapons Factory is selling-¡±

    She started to exin the products, but I wasn¡¯t interested at all.

    There wasn¡¯t any real difference in performance from the previous generation.

    The design was great but the specs barely changed at all.

    Despite that, the price was higher.

    The cost to performance ratio was bad.

    Looking at Eulisia who was doing her best to appeal to me, I couldn¡¯t help but think that she was a disappointing girl as well.

    ¡°I don¡¯t feel like buying anything.¡±

    As I said that, Eulisia started to take off her coat.

    Her alreadyscivious outfit now had more skin exposure to the point that it was almost underwear.

    She sat down next to me and started pressing herself against me.

    Unlike Nias, she really had a lot of sex-appeal.

    Nias was also a beauty, but she didn¡¯te anywhere close to Eulisia¡¯s skills.

    ¡°My lord, if you bought something, I¡¯d be really gratefu¨C¡±

    I pped her hand away, shaking her off my arm as I stood up.

    The servants started grabbing her.

    ¡°Wha-?! My lord?!¡±

    ¡°And to think I had such high expectations for you... take her.¡±

    ¡°MY LOOOOOORRRRRDDDDDD~~~!!! ¡±

    She was taken away and disappeared just like Nias.

    The women from the weapon factories are no good.

    Well, I guess it¡¯s partially my fault for telling the factories to leave them in charge of sales since I find them interesting.

    Amagi turned towards me,

    ¡°This is the end of your morning appointments.¡±

    ¡°I have more in the afternoon?¡±

    ¡°Yes, Thomas was hoping to meet with you.¡±

    ¡°My Echigoya?¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Liam¡¯s mansion- one of it¡¯s rooms.

    Inside of the luxurious dressing room, the underwear-like outfit wearing Eulisia had an expression of her face that was distorted in frustration.

    ¡°...I¡¯ll never forgive him for pushing me to go this far.¡±

    Eulisia was a talented woman.

    Many men have tried courting her in the past.

    Among them there were even nobles.

    However, she had rejected them all while working her hardest.

    With a face like an actress, a body that any man would desire, and a great head on her shoulders, she did her best so that she could one day get into the good graces of a high-noble.

    Even when she was assigned to a weapon factory, she was happy because this gave her many opportunities to meet with such nobles.

    She polished herself and kept her purity¨C all for the sake of catching the eye of a great aristocrat.

    Her aim was to be a jewel desired by all.

    She believed she had the qualities necessary to do so, and she wasn¡¯t wrong.

    However, Liam didn¡¯t seem to have any interest in her at all.

    At first she thought she was liked, and that Liam would be another stepping stone in her search for her ideal partner¨C but she couldn¡¯t forgive this.

    ¡°I¡¯ll turn this around and be the one to throw him away. He will cry and beg for my forgiveness as Iugh at his pathetic sight.¡±

    But Liam was a high-noble.

    If she wanted to throw him away, it¡¯d be necessary to rise to a position that could be considered his equal.

    But before all that, she swore in her heart that she¡¯d one day get her revenge on Liam.

    ¡°If I remember correctly, he¡¯s going to be leaving for elementary school soon, right?¡±

    When Eulisia looked at herself in a mirror, she couldn¡¯t help but notice the cold smile stered on her face.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    After I had finished my lunch.

    I was meeting with Thomas.

    ¡°Lord Liam, it¡¯s been quite difficult to meet with you recently.¡±

    Lately people have been gathering around me so it couldn¡¯t be helped.

    I was quite troubled with how the majority of them were people trying to take advantage of me.

    Like Thomas, they were also merchants, but I always held my own interests as the top priority, so I didn¡¯t even consider them unless what they proposed would bring me a profit.

    ¡°The majority of the people I met were useless.¡±

    ¡°But the fact that so many people gather is proof in and of itself that people have high expectations for you, Lord Liam. Oh, but let¡¯s move on to the main subject.¡±

    What Thomas brought out were supplies for elementary school.

    ¡°These are the items you¡¯ll need for elementary school.¡±

    ¡°Can¡¯t I just buy these once I get there?¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, once someone rises to a position of your status, it¡¯d be a problem if you used the same items as the general public. Please check the family crest we¡¯ve imprinted on the items.¡±

    Although it was only an elementary school, provincial nobles could onlymute there if they were from a house that was of baron-rank or higher.

    But for court nobles, they could attend even if they were only from a knight family.

    Therefore, the number of students enrolled there was extremelyrge.

    It looks like I needed special tools different from the general students so they would know of my status.

    ¡°How annoying.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard that the children of imperial nobles can attend sses that are recognised at both the military academy and the university.¡±

    There were general students at the military academy and the universities as well.

    Since it would be troublesome for the nobles to lose to them, they received an education in those fields before they enrolled.

    In other words, they educated nobles in advance so they¡¯d have a head start.

    ¡°It¡¯s just for fun anyways. There¡¯s no need to worry.¡±

    It was just a ce to give lessons before the serious education started.

    ¡°Lord Liam, so it¡¯s ¡®just for fun¡¯ to you? If that¡¯s true, then have you already decided your ns for after you graduate from elementary school?¡±

    After I graduated, I had to go to either a university or a military academy recognised by the Empire.

    Both were required and couldn¡¯t be refused.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. It¡¯s the same either way.¡±

    ¡°Because you¡¯ve already seeded the house as Count, it looks like various problems might arise while you¡¯re forced to stay in the imperial capital after graduation.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll try to return to the territory as soon as possible.¡±

    In the Empire I¡¯m just another noble.

    But in my own territory I¡¯m a king.

    I can act as arrogantly as I want, while being given the royal treatment.

    In order to return to such a situation, I need to finish my training quickly.

    ¡°Moving on from that¡ª¡±

    Thomas thanked me while bowing down,

    ¡°I¡¯d like to thank you for the tax reduction measures you¡¯ve given to mypany.¡±

    I helped out Thomas, who was falling on hard times because of his failed scam attempt on the Peetak house.

    For a few years, I granted hispany special tax-reductions.

    I wanted him to be more secure.

    ¡°Be careful in the future.¡±

    ¡°O-of course. Oh yes, do you have a mansion prepared in the imperial capital, Lord Liam?¡±

    ¡°A mansion in the imperial capital?¡±

    I was going to be studying abroad in the imperial capital as part of my training, but it looks like noble children usually prepare a residence to live in during that time.

    I didn¡¯t really think it was necessary, but it looks like it wouldn¡¯t be appropriate for me to not have one.

    ¡°Come to think of it, even my parents and grandparents had a mansion there.¡±

    ¡°Because the price ofnd in the imperial capita is expensive, it¡¯s better to secure a goodnd for yourself sooner, rather thanter.l¡±

    A dormitory system was used during elementary school.

    The military academy was the same, but it looks like one was required for the university.

    I was wondering if was possible to just rent an apartment, but was that really alright?

    ¡°It¡¯s a bother. I¡¯m not even going to be using it that much anyways. Is there no other alternative?¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, then why don¡¯t you rent out a hotel there?¡±

    ¡°A hotel?¡±

    ¡°Umm... even if you have a mansion in the capital, there¡¯d be no point if it was too far away from the university. It¡¯s something like that.¡±

    It looks like having a mansion was still required.

    ¡°In that case, then bring me a list of the hotels I can rent out. I¡¯ll have the mansion built while I¡¯m still attending elementary school.¡±

    ¡°As youmand.¡±

    It was a house I didn¡¯t intend to use that much anyways.

    So this should be enough.

    Should I just find some cheapnd have it built there?

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Brian was inside the mansion¨C at his room¡¯s veranda, taking care of his bonsai trees.

    He was humming a song.

    ¡°Another great day, today.¡±

    Before Liam was born, he never would¡¯ve expected such a day toe.

    Such a Liam was almost at the age to enroll into elementary school.

    ¡°I¡¯m already looking forward to the day Lord Liam returns.¡±

    As he lined up the bonsai trees he took care of for a hobby, the head maid entered his view as she approached him from the garden.

    ¡°Oh, did you need something from me?¡±

    The head maid was holding a parasol.

    ¡°I¡¯m just out for a stroll. I¡¯m just taking a walk while looking around the house grounds.¡±

    ¡°You sure are passionate about your work.¡±

    Brian invited the head maid to the veranda, thinking it¡¯d be nice to have a chat with her.

    Tea was prepared, and they talked for a long time.

    ¡°Brian, how¡¯s your family doing?¡±

    ¡°My grandchild and their partner will be returning here soon.¡±

    ¡°¨CI see. It¡¯s nice to hear that they¡¯reing back.¡±

    Brian¡¯s grandchild had already brought him great-grandchildren.

    But his son and his wife¡ª weren¡¯t around anymore.

    ¡°Yes, and this is all thanks to Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°Once you get to our age, the things we can do are really limited. Our ingrained habits don¡¯t disappear, and personally, I find myself looking for work even on holidays.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s because you¡¯re a workaholic.¡±

    As Brian said so whileughing, the head maid agreed while saying ¡°That¡¯s true.¡±

    ¡°¨CBrian, you sure did find a good master to serve. How were you able to endure it for such a long time?

    ¡°I didn¡¯t have to ¡®endure¡¯ anything at all. I continued to serve because I was that grateful to Lord Alistair.¡±

    ¡°I would¡¯ve liked it if you hade to work in the pce instead. If you did, I would¡¯ve made sure that you would¡¯ve received a good position.¡±

    There was a time long ago when the head maid had asked him to work in the pce instead.

    But looking at things now, he thought it was a good thing that he refused.

    ¡°Even so, I¡¯m happy as I am right now.¡±

    ¡°You really have no greed at all, do you? I¡¯m a little jealous.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¨CA ce where Liam¡¯s mansion was visible.

    It was there that the guide had fallen down.

    After revealing everything to Liam, contrary to what he expected, he was exposed to even more fatal emotions of gratefulness.

    He could feel himself fading away, and couldn¡¯t move properly.

    There was no way that even in his wildest dreams that he¡¯d actually be thanked after revealing the truth.

    ¡®Just what the hell is that guy?!¡¯¡ª The guide was seriously scared of Liam.

    While he was taking bitter breathes,

    ¡°Y-you bastard... Liam... I will definitely have my revenge... I will fulfill this grudge of mine...¡±

    But he¡¯d have to rest for a while first before he could do any of that.

    He also needed to collect negative emotions.

    To defeat Liam, he had to collect as many as possible.

    ¡°That¡¯s it. The imperial capital of the Empire. There¡¯s bound to be an endless flood of negative emotions there. If it¡¯s there, I¡¯ll definitely be able to recover.¡±

    Thinking about his next ns against Liam¨C the guide stood up and started to walk away.

    Behind him was a dog.

    The shape of it was gradually bing clearer, but the guide was too weak and didn¡¯t notice it following behind him.

    ¡°Liam... the next time we meet will be yourst.¡±

    The guide once again swore revenge on Liam.

 Chapter 32 - Volume 2 Side Story Lord Liam-Certified

    <h4> Volume 2 Side Story Lord Liam-Certified</h4>

    The lord who hadplete control over a was actually a king whose territory spanned across an entire gxy.

    In my office.

    I was looking over the gxy I ruled over through a stereoscopic image.

    Wasn¡¯t it a beautiful gxy?

    By reaching out my hand, I could zoom in and out of it and use it as a map.

    Using it like this, I really felt like a ruler of the stars.

    It was like I had the universe in the palm of my hand.

    ¡°Everything in this gxy is mine. Now, what am I supposed to do with it?¡±

    The one that answered my murmurs was Brian, who had prepared green tea and jellies for me.

    ¡°Lord Liam, it¡¯s time for your three o¡¯clock snack.¡±

    ¡°Did you bring the expensive tea leaves and sweets? I¡¯m not going to have anything cheap.¡±

    Eating sweets bought using my people¡¯s tax money was the best.

    And the ones that cost an exorbitant amount of money were the most delicious!

    ¡°As far as this Brian here knows, the tea leaves used were the best in the local area, and the jellies were specially made from a store that has quite a history to it.¡±

    They were tea leaves whose prices were extraordinarily high.

    While the sweets were made by speciallymissioning the owner of a famous shop that¡¯s been around for hundreds of years to personally make them.

    I couldn¡¯t even imagine how much money it cost just for my three o¡¯clock snack.

    When I tried eating the jellies, I could taste a refined sweetness spreading throughout my mouth, while the tea I drank to wash it down didn¡¯t taste bitter in the slightest.

    Thebination of the two was amazing!

    ¡°This is great! It really gives off the feeling of living in luxury!¡±

    Brian looked pleased.

    ¡°I¡¯m happy to hear that, Lord Liam.¡±

    I thought it¡¯d just be another set of tea and sweets, but they were better than I thought.

    Let¡¯s add them to my snack time rotation.

    ¡°Brian, add today¡¯s sweets and tea to the rotation.¡±

    ¡°Oh, are you sure about that?¡±

    ¡°I have the money to do so! This is why I squeezed my people for so much!¡±

    After the tax increase, tax revenue rose significantly.

    I left everything else to Amagi, so unfortunately, I didn¡¯t know the finer details. Still, even though my people were suffering, the sweets they made were pretty good.

    This was true bliss.

    Looking at my smile, Brian called out to me,

    ¡°Lord Liam, then are you fine with treating both as recognised by you?¡±

    How would they feel about receiving their evil lord¡¯s approval?

    In truth, all those who had it would haveplicated feelings rise up inside of them.

    They wouldn¡¯t be happy with the recognition, but it¡¯d be impossible for them to go against me, the ruler of this gxy.

    In that case, I¡¯d happily admit it.

    Let¡¯s give them my approval, which has be notorious with my tax increases.

    If I was a peasant, I definitely wouldn¡¯t use the store certified by my despot.

    ¡°Of course, I¡¯ll give them an official certificate in my name! They¡¯re now Lord Liam-certified!¡±

    ¡°Understood, I¡¯ll make the arrangements immediately.¡±

    ¡°Make sure they disy it in a ce where everyone can see it.¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    What¡¯ll happen once they put it on disy? The customers who have a grudge against me will leave, and then the store will be forced to rely on me to make ends meet.

    If that¡¯s the case, then I can¡¯t wait to see what kind of expressions they¡¯ll make.

    I¡¯ll ruin their lives and make them feel like I¡¯ve just handed down an execution order for them.

    ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to this!¡±

    The tea and sweets were great today as well!

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    There was a long-established confectionery shop that had been around for over six-hundred years.

    The shop was opened during the time of Liam¡¯s great-grandfather Alistair, and it¡¯s been running since.

    The retired shopkeeper had been in a tense state since morning.

    He had already passed on the store to his son, who was now visiting Liam¡¯s mansion.

    The tense-looking predecessor had been awkwardly greeting customers all day.

    His daughter-inw called out to him.

    ¡°Father, why don¡¯t you wait for him inside?¡±

    ¡°N-no, I can¡¯t rx inside the house.¡±

    He was so nervous that his throat was dry.

    That¡¯s when his son suddenly appeared rushing towards the store.

    In his hands was a framed certificate.

    ¡°Father, I did it! I received a certificate from Lord Liam!¡±

    The son raised the certificate that he held up high.

    ¡°What?!¡±

    ¡°I was told to deliver to the estate regrly from now on! Whenever Lord Liam wants it, they want me to personally go to the mansion to make some for him!¡±

    The predecessor stood up from his chair while shaking.

    ¡°Y-you, well done!¡±

    Father and son started to hug each other.

    The son¡¯s wife immediately went into the store and brought out a banner.

    After operating something on her terminal, the contents of the banner changed.

    ¡°Lord Liam-certified!¡±

    Seeing those words, everyone walking through the shopping district immediately stopped in their tracks.

    ¡°So that shop has Lord Liam himself as a purveyor?¡±

    ¡°The stuff they make is probably that good. The current owners are nice too.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve never tried anything of theirs before, should I grab some now?¡±

    Customers started gathering at the store one after another, and the products that were lined up were quickly sold out.

    In the territory, Liam¡¯s name couldn¡¯t have been trusted more.

    The moment something became certified using said name, that very product would start selling like crazy.

    The housewives who left the store were chatting as they looked things up on their terminals.

    ¡°Oh, the tea shop over there is also certified.¡±

    ¡°Can I order some of their products online?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s no good, we¡¯re toote. We need to make reservations first.¡±

    Information quickly spread, and all the items that could be bought by mail order were sold out.

    In the store, the predecessor smiled as he packed the products into bags while talking with the customers.

    ¡°I guess the predecessor can finally rx.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not worried because my son is a better craftsman than I.¡±

    Looking at him, you wouldn¡¯t think that he was the same man that had been tense all day.

    A call suddenly came to the store.

    The wife was the one who answered it,

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°Hello, this is the Henfreypany¨C¡±

    A bulk order was made from the Henfreypany.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Spaceport of the Banfield house.

    The headquarters of the Henfreypany was located there.

    The Henfreypany, which was publicly known as one of Liam¡¯s purveyors.

    Thomas, the head of thepany¨C was currently tasting the Lord Liam-certified tea and jellies with the other executives.

    The opinions of the executives were¨C

    ¡°Can we sell these in territories outside of the Banfield house¡¯s domain?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯ll sell, but we should bring them to the more developed ones.¡±

    ¡°If we¡¯re talking about ces where Lord Liam¡¯s name is known, then how about the Exner territory?¡±

    Where could they sell it?

    That was what they were all discussing.

    Liam, The Pirate Hunter.

    The moment such a person became the purveyor of something, said product tuned into a safe and trustworthy thing to invest in.

    It immediately became amodity that could be sold.

    Thomas finished eating his portion and spoke,

    ¡°It¡¯s not bad. Thebination between the two is good as well. Let¡¯s put them together as a set and try selling them like that.¡±

    There were manys that people lived in within this universe.

    Some of them would like this product, but the opposite is true as well.

    ¡°There are a lot of products we can export from the Banfield territory after all.¡±

    Thomas was happy.

    The more specialty products he had ess to, meant that he had more unique goods to sell.

    One of the executives spoke,

    ¡°In recent years, it looks like some other vendors have been pressuring us.¡±

    Thomas was troubled by this.

    Lord Liam had absolutely no tolerance for pirates, which meant he was a very good lord for merchants who traveled across the cosmos.

    There were many merchant houses that aimed for their spot as his exclusive merchant.

    ¡°¨Cif they have any problems with our business, tell them to bring it up with Lord Liam. I don¡¯t want to deal with annoyances like them.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    My office.

    I was upset.Amagi had brought over a cup of tea and a te of sweets.

    ¡°Master, are you alright?¡±

    Several monthster, the alleged tea and sweets were still as delicious as ever.

    But the problem wasn¡¯t that.

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m sure I gave my certification to the tea and sweets, but howe it¡¯s sold out everywhere on the mail order site?¡±

    Amagi quickly answered me,

    ¡°There¡¯s already a waiting list that goes back for several years. I expect it¡¯ll take at least three years for the situation to improve.¡±

    The store can be renovated, their fields can be expanded, they could hire more people and so on.

    But why was it selling so well?

    Even Thomas came and told me, ¡°That tea and sweets set is being quite well received.¡±

    But isn¡¯t this weird?

    ¡°Please rest assured. Master¡¯s portion is firmly secured. A set amount is always being delivered to the mansion.¡±

    ¡°No, that¡¯s not what I¡¯m talking about, Amagi!¡±

    ¡°Pardon?¡±

    ¡°Why is it selling even with my seal of approval? I mean, since I increased taxes and tried to regte that weird hairstyle, shouldn¡¯t they hate anything with my certification?!¡±

    Amagi pondered this for a moment before answering,

    ¡°¡ªwill people really consider a product bad if you gave it good marks during your evaluation of it?¡±

    ¡°Ah...¡±

    To be honest, I was actually surprised by how normal the answer was.

    It definitely was a good product.

    It wouldn¡¯t be strange if it sold well.

    If the first ce, when I first tried it, wasn¡¯t it already a popr product in my territory? Even if I gave my seal of approval then, wouldn¡¯t it just give off the feeling of, ¡°Hmm, why now?¡±

    ¡ªI made a mistake. Ipletely misread how this would end up.

 Chapter 33 - Volume 3 Prologue

    <h4>Volume 3 Prologue</h4>

    There¡¯s no point to charity.

    I, Liam Sera Banfield, the head of the Banfield Count house, was currently dealing with a man in the reception room of a mansion that was built farrger than it needed to be.

    ¡°You want me to be one of your patrons?¡±

    The man in a suit was an executive of the  Restoration Activist Group¡¯.

    The activity in question being the restoration of destroyeds.

    They were a group that did their best to helps that were artificially destroyed and couldn¡¯t sustain themselves anymore.

    ¡°Yes, we want your sponsorship for our projects.¡±

    He was a man that seemed to be enthusiastic about charity.

    Continuing on, he went on to exin about how manys have actually been ravaged to me.

    ¡°There are manys that have been devastated by wars and pirate attacks. Is it truly okay to leave them as they are? Many of their residents have been forced to be refugees. We want you to help prepare housing and asylum for them in your territory.¡±

    It was a wonderful concept.

    ¡°That definitely is an admirable ideal to push for. I¡¯m thoroughly impressed.¡±

    ¡°Then-!¡±

    The man¡¯s expression lit up, probably assuming I¡¯d ept.

    ¡°The restoration of ruineds¨C it is quite the wonderful ideal, but I won¡¯t be your patron.¡±

    ¡°¨Chuh?¡±

    I leaned back into the sofa and grinned at the man.

    But its charity? ¨Cthose are nothing but annoyances.

    ¡°Go ahead and help as many people as you want, but don¡¯t get me involved. I¡¯m not interested in supporting any of your activities.¡±

    In my previous life, I always used to put my spare change in donation boxes.

    ¡®If this is really going to help someone in need¡¯, is the mindset I had back then.

    However, during my previous life¡¯s darkest times there were so many times when I needed even the smallest amount of change to save my neck.

    But no one helped me.

    I donated a lot for others, but no one was there for me when I was the person suffering.

    That¡¯s why I understand.

    ¡ªthere¡¯s no point in self-satisfaction born from doing charitable things.

    ¡°I hate people like you. At most, you¡¯re only helping others to stroke your own ego.¡±

    To my words, the man started to shake with a red face.

    ¡°A-are those really the words of the noble said to be a virtuous ruler?! I had high hopes for you!¡±

    ¡°You can go ahead and what what you want, but I don¡¯t have any obligation to help you. Also, when have I ever called myself something like that?¡±

    ¡°The people in our territory think of you as one! You¡¯re a virtuous ruler to them, but in reality you¡¯re like this?! You¡¯re not qualified to be their lord!¡±

    Was this person an idiot?

    ¡°That¡¯s the people¡¯s misunderstanding, and in any case, that¡¯s quite the impudent attitude you¡¯ve been taking for a while now.¡±

    When I narrowed my eyes, the man started to break out in cold sweat.

    ¡°I-if youy a hand on me, the high-nobles that I¡¯ve built connections with won¡¯t stay silent!¡±

    Apparently there were high-nobles that were enthusiastic about contributing to charity.

    The pamphlet the man gave me included the names of multiple prestigious aristocrats I¡¯ve heard of before.

    It wouldn¡¯t be unusual for a generous nobleman to contribute to a cause this just.

    But I wasn¡¯t one.

    ¡°Do you think I¡¯d care if you brought up another noble¡¯s name here? This is my territory, and this is a I rule over.¡±

    No matter what house he¡¯s built connections with, that doesn¡¯t give him the right to barge into mynd and start preaching to me.

    At most, he can file aint.

    Many nobles didn¡¯t hold human life as something valuable.

    For us, lives were nothing more than numbers on a report.

    ¡°Help as many people as you like. I won¡¯t stop you, but I¡¯m not going to help you either. End of discussion. Understood?¡±

    After being intimidated, the man quickly left the room after grabbing the pamphlet.

    As Iughed at his retreating figure, Amagi, who was standing behind me, started frowning at me.

    ¡°Master, what was with that attitude?¡±

    Whenever Amagi admonished me, for some reason it always hurt more.

    I started making excuses.

    ¡°D-don¡¯t be mad. I just don¡¯t like charity, but if you want me to I¡¯ll be a patron right away! They can have as much money as they want!¡±

    I had an unlimited amount of funds because of the alchemy box.

    Which was an amazing device that could turn any piece of garbage into solid gold.

    Thanks to that, I now had an inexhaustible stock of treasure.

    But even in such a situation, I didn¡¯t want to contribute to charities.

    ¡°Do you really hate charity?¡±

    Amagi seemed a bit confused by this.

    ¡°Of course I do.¡±

    Even though I answered immediately, Amagi didn¡¯t seem convinced.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s just that we¡¯ve been running charities under your name this entire time. I didn¡¯t think you hated it.¡±

    ¡°¨Chuh?¡±

    Amagi went on to talk about all the charitable work I¡¯ve supposedly sponsored.

    ¡°To secure pioneers, we¡¯ve bought out and restored previously destroyed ones. In addition to that, we¡¯ve been epting refugees to help popte them.¡±

    I was surprised to learn that I was already doing the exact same projects as the Restoration Activist Group.

    ¡°No, you see¨C that¡¯s for expanding my territory, not for charity.¡±

    ¡°That might be true, but we¡¯re also providing infrastructure for the smaller lords that live nearby. We¡¯re not just doing things that only benefit our territory.¡±

    We¡¯ve been assisting them.

    No, that was because they all started crying for me to help them.

    These were the people who were going to be my future henchmen¨C at least that¡¯s what I thought.

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯m just lending a hand to the people who wag their tails subserviently to me.¡±

    ¡°There are also various other activities¨C¡±

    Apparently, I was spending a lot of money on things I didn¡¯t even know about.

    I couldn¡¯t exactly get a refund now.

    ¡°That¡¯s not all either.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s the treatment we¡¯ve been providing for those who suffered at the hands of pirates. The cost of human resources, the facilities, and everything else is at a ridiculous amount.¡±

    ¡°I-is that so?¡±

    I was only thinking about securing talented people to help fulfill my ambitions of feasting on life¡¯s delicacies.

    For that end goal, I¡¯ve been rescuing the beautiful women that were held prisoner by pirates.

    If one appeared that caught my eye, I was nning to have her as a mistress, otherwise I just sent them to live out their lives in my territory.This one done thinking that the girls eventually born from such beautiful women would no doubt be beautiful as well.

    I don¡¯t care if they¡¯ve gone through cosmetic surgery, but I prefer natural products over artificial ones.

    It was only natural for evil lords to waste enormous amounts of money to make their dreamse true.

    But unfortunately, even with all the funding I¡¯ve sent, no particrly eye-catching beauties have appeared.

    One of my knight candidates¨C Tia, was pretty talented a beautiful, but she was kind of disappointing.

    With that said, there was still no beauties that I¡¯ve taken an interest in.

    ¨CAmagi was an exception though.

    ¡°But I heard that those that we sent to help out at Kurt¡¯s territory a while ago came back better trained than before. It wasn¡¯t a waste. It¡¯s not charity because it was for the benefit of my own territory in the end.¡±

    Amagi seems to have epted my answer,

    ¡°Well, let¡¯s leave things at that.¡±

    That¡¯s right¨C I¡¯m a man who never contributes to charities.

    Everything has been done for my personal goals and needs.

    So this definitely wasn¡¯t charity.

    ¡°Master, the next visitor is a greeting from the new representative from the Third Weapons Factory.¡±

    ¡°Huh? What happened to Eulisia?¡±

    Apparently the Third Weapons Factory representative has changed.

    So now the disappointing girl¨C Eulisia, was no longer in charge of selling to me.

    ¡°She seems to have re-enrolled into the military academy to finish redo her training.¡±

    ¡°¨Cbut, why?¡±

    There were schools that provided re-education for soldiers that haven¡¯t been enlisted for a long time.

    But Eulisia was still an active soldier.

    I didn¡¯t think there was any reason for her to go back into training.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know why, but she¡¯s already is, so the new staff in charge of you is here to give their greetings.¡±

    The disappointing woman had disappeared.

    I felt a little regret at that¨C well, if the next girl was also disappointing, I guess there won¡¯t be any real change.

    ¡°Still, there sure are a lot of visits recently.¡±

    ¡°They want to get these meetings in before you leave for elementary school. After you enroll, you won¡¯t have any real time for them anymore.¡±

    The elementary school where the children of nobility attended.

    It was a preparatory school that got us ready for either the university or the military academy that came afterwards.

    From my perspective, it was something close to Earth¡¯s highschools.

    However, the elementary school was located on a different in the Empire¡ª the imperial capital.

    Although the elementary school worked on a dormitory system, there was still too many students that enrolled there, so it was more like they built an entire city around it for lodging.

    Only the children of aristocrats were allowed to attend.

    It was a school built for the nobility.

    ¡°¨CAmagi, have you prepared the bribe?¡±

    I wasn¡¯t really looking forward to enrolling in such a school, so I went on to confirm that Amagi finished the preparations I wanted.

    ¡°If you¡¯re talking about the donations, we¡¯ve already sent them quite the fortune.¡±

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m looking forward to this.¡±

    There wasn¡¯t an admission fee to the elementary school, but to keep face,rge noble families were expected to donate a certain amount.

    However, those who sent overrger donations were bound to be given preferential treatment throughout their enrollment.

    ¨CLike me!

    ¡°Let¡¯s see how they entertain me for the next six years.¡±

    The power of gold was amazing.

    For the next six years, they¡¯d be forced to give me a fun elementary school life to respect the bribes I¡¯ve sent them.

    This was all for the preferential treatment.

    Amagi was smiling,

    ¡°Master sure looks like he¡¯s having fun.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Banfield Estate.

    The head maid¡¯s room.

    [Serena], the head maid that worked there, was currently in a video call with an old man whose image was projected into the air.

    The other party was the imperial prime minister.

    The head maid, who Brian rmended to serve the Banfield house, doubled as a spy for the prime minister to keep a watch over Liam.

    ¡°Tell me about the exorbitant donation he¡¯s made to the elementary school.¡±

    ¡°The donation?¡±

    ¡°Yes, all the staff at the elementary school are having headaches over it. What¡¯s the meaning of this?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not unusual for nobles to give donations before enrollment.¡±

    ¡°If it was just any noble house, then it would be on the preface of giving preferential treatment for their children. That¡¯s what the staff there is used to, but this is Liam, The Pirate Hunter we¡¯re talking about here. They don¡¯t know what to make of this.¡±

    The head maid understood what the prime minister was trying to say.

    ¡°¡ªdon¡¯t the staff at the elementary school know how much of a pure and just person Lord Liam is?¡±

    ¡°Oh they know, and that¡¯s the problem. Apparently the donation is toorge and they don¡¯t know what to make of it. Can you give any insight into it?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s easy. Lord Liam doesn¡¯t want special treatment at the elementary school, he just wants a solid educational environment.¡±

    The prime minister who heard that seemed convinced, saying, ¡°Is that so?¡±

    The head maid recalled what Liam had asked her about elementary school.

    ¡°He was really interested in the fact that the elementary schoolpensated for itsck of budget through donations. I¡¯m sure that he wasmenting the fact that many nobles took advantage of this and sent in donations under the pretense of receiving preferential treatment. He probably sent the donation in to cancel those out.¡±

    Only the high-nobles got treated well.

    The head maid was sure she knew Liam¡¯s opinion on this,

    ¡°Such an environment isn¡¯t what Lord Liam wants.¡±

    ¡°To be so young, yet have such strong morals, I¡¯m once again astounded by him. Is the situation in the mansion proceeding as usual?¡±

    ¡°Yes. He does physical training in the morning, followed by his studies and his work on his political affairster on in the day. He still needs to work on his manners regarding his speech, but there¡¯s nothing else of real interest.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s a little too worldly for his age. So there¡¯s really nothing interesting to report at all? To be honest, it¡¯d still be fine if he yed around a bit more.¡±

    The head maid started tough at thatment,

    ¡°Do you want him to follow in a certain someone¡¯s example and have him seduce pce maids?¡±

    ¡°...I was still young at that time. Still, I wonder if the Count will make such stories?¡±

    The prime minister who deflected the conversation back to Liam seemed a little embarrassed.

    The head made looked troubled,

    ¡°Both Brian and I are concerned about this, he doesn¡¯t seem to have any interest inying his hands on the girls at all. He¡¯s serious to the point that we¡¯re troubled.¡±

    Liam didn¡¯t seem tempted by any of the house maids or noble daughters who came for bridal training.

    This could be said to be the only real problem he had.

    ¡°As usual, he¡¯s a little too serious.¡±

    ¡°If by any chance he gets a girlfriend while he¡¯s studying abroad, we¡¯re thinking of epting her as his wife even if her status doesn¡¯t quite match up.¡±

    ¡°¨CI don¡¯t want him to have a rtionship with a house that¡¯ll bring trouble. Have you considered an arranged marriage?¡±

    ¡°The Banfield house has been doing quite badly until this generation, putting Lord Liam¡¯s personal reputation aside, the house is still renowned as quite untrustworthy. Other houses are still hesitant in making a connection with such a risk.¡±

    Liam¡¯s father and grandfather¡¯s reputations were so bad that other houses refused to even set up the marriage interviews.

    If you put Liam¡¯s individual credit aside and only considered the house as a whole, it was only natural not to trust them.

    Who knew when Liam would change his mind and follow in his predecessor¡¯s footsteps?

    With that, there were many houses that wanted to watch over the situation until his training waspleted.

    In this universe, those who had only lived for five decades were only valued to that extent.

    If he had a track record spanning at least century long, there¡¯d be a matchmaking requests flooding in constantly.

    That was how bad Liam¡¯s father and grandfather¡¯s reputations were.

    ¡°I understand. I would¡¯ve hesitated too, but that¡¯s why I sent you over there.¡±

    Whether they should leave him alone or crush him¡ª that¡¯s what Serena was sent there to find out.

    The prime minister was a little anxious,

    ¡°Marriage may be one problem, but the fact that his highness in enrolling in the same year this time is another. I want you to warn the Count about him, tell him to be cautious.¡±

    Serena, who also recalled that had a subtle change to her expression,

    ¡°The prince¨C you mean his highness Wace? Don¡¯t tell me that person and Lord Liam will be ssmates.¡±

    One of the imperial princes, [Wace Noah Albte], was scheduled to enter elementary school as Liam¡¯s ssmate.

 Chapter 34 - Volume 3 Chapter 1 Fun Elementary School

    <strong>Volume 3 Chapter 1 Fun Elementary School</strong>

    It was spring.

    The entrance ceremony for elementary school was simpler than I thought it would be.

    I heard that there would be aristocratic children from all over the Empire attending.

    With that in mind, I thought it¡¯d be a huge ceremony in a building built to hold tens of thousands of people, but in reality they divided us into ranks and held the ceremonies separately.

    ¡ªSo in conclusion, it was really in.

    The first school building I was sent to was one built specifically for the most prestigious of children that gathered here.

    Only if you were able to pay a huge amount of donations would you be able to get such treatment.

    ¡°This universe revolves around money.¡±

    The person who reacted to my muttering was another man that probably made arge donation as well.

    It was Kurt, the heir to the Baron Exner house.

    ¡°Liam, they¡¯ll get angry at you if you¡¯re not quiet.¡±

    ¡°You need to rx a little.¡±

    Kurt, who trained together with me at the Viscount Razel house, was my ssmate because we were the same age.

    This person was seriously aiming to be an evil lord, constantly thinking about new ways to squeeze out everything he could from his people.

    He was also a license holder for the major swordsmanship style of the Arend school.

    His face was nice, and he was tall.

    In the years that I haven¡¯t seen him, he seems to have matured a bit.

    On the outside he looks like a good and serious youth, but on the inside he¡¯s an aspiring viin¨C he¡¯s a funny person.

    I looked around at the surroundings,

    ¡°Even so, the people around here sure look self-important.¡±

    Just by looking around, you¡¯d be able to tell that they were all rich.

    Kurt said it was only natural,

    ¡°Anyone who¡¯s enrolled into the first school building has to be that way. This is a ce that only a select few will ever be allowed to enter.¡±

    Well, I was a viin who forced my way here with the power of money though.

    What, you¡¯ve got a problem with that? That¡¯s just how it is.

    As long as you have money in this universe, you can handle most things.

    Looking around, there was one girl in particr that caught my eye.

    ¡°Woah, it¡¯s an actual blonde ringlet.¡±

    There was a girl who had her long blonde hair curled into ringlets.

    Her back was straight, and she really gave off the impression of a refined noble girl.

    She had blue, almond-shaped eyes.

    Her face was small, her lips were fresh and vibrant, and her expression really portrayed how strong of a spirit she had.

    Her chest was big for her age, leaving much expectations for how she¡¯d mature in the future.

    Her waist was tight, and her skin looked nice.

    She was plump in all the right ces.

    ¡°That¡¯s a Duke¡¯s daughter.¡±

    ¡°A Duke¡¯s?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s a celebrity, you didn¡¯t know? Rosetta Cerei udia, she¡¯s a famous female aristocrat, but I don¡¯t know much more than that.¡±

    There were many nobles in this universe.

    In the case of the Empire, Duke houses were branches of the royal family, but even then there was an exorbitant amount of them.

    It was impossible for me to remember all of them¨C I could only name a few.

    ¡°udia... I know that name.¡±

    ¡°Shees from a matriarchal house, and apparently she¡¯s their only daughter.¡±

    ¡°Their only daughter?¡±

    It¡¯s dangerous to only have one child in this universe.

    Why?

    Because if that child dies, then that¡¯s the end of your bloodline.

    Of course, the parents only need to make another child in that case, but even then, it¡¯s still dangerous to only have one sessor.

    ¡°Then, what about that person over there? He looks more prideful than anyone here.¡±

    I shifted my gaze over to a man that had long straight blue hair.

    He was a man who looked like the very definition of what a nobleman should look like.

    Apparently, his name was Wace- the Empire¡¯s one hundred and twentieth prince.

    ¨CContrary to Rosetta¡¯s case, his family had too many children instead.

    What the hell is the one hundred and twentieth?

    The duke only had one daughter while the prince was one out of over a hundred.

    Both seemed like trouble.

    Well it didn¡¯t really matter to me, so I wasn¡¯t going to say anything to them.

    Though, there sure were a lot of people with nice faces here.I could already see the effects of therge amount of donations I sent.

    My only gripe is that we weren¡¯t allowed to bring any servants from our homes.

    I was missing Amagi and was starting to feel homesick.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The second building of the elementary school.

    This was the so-called building where the students that received ¡®preferential treatment¡¯ were sent.

    It was a ce isted from the other school buildings.

    A wee party for the new students was held at the dormitory near the building.

    However¨C

    ¡°There, dance more!¡±

    ¡°Alcohol, bring out more alcohol!¡±

    ¡°Gyahahaha!¡±

    ¨Cprostitutes were called over to put on dance shows, and the people there were being taken care of by the servants brought from their home territories.

    Luxurious dishes and alcohol was lined up on arge table.

    The students that were already enrolled there were eating and drinking with the new arrivals while making a ton of noise.

    At the center of it all was a third year student¨C [Derrick Sera Berkley].

    He had brown hair and his skin had an unhealthy tone to it.

    His body was on the skinny side.

    Only his stomach bulged out unnaturally.

    He was currently drowning himself in alcohol,

    ¡°Hey first years! If you follow me, I¡¯ll make sure that things are always this great for you!¡±

    Derrick was the same as Liam. He had already seeded as the head of his house as well.

    He was the baron of a frontier territory.

    However, he was born into a ce that didn¡¯t have any problems financially at all.

    As to why, it¡¯s because he was part of the Berkley house.

    He was a student that held the same position as Liam, but contrary to him, who was called ¡®The Pirate Hunter¡¯, he had the opposing moniker of ¡®The Pirate Noble.¡¯

    ¡°Derrick, you¡¯re the best!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll follow you for life!¡±

    ¡°Cheers for Derrick!¡±

    When the first year students answered him with cheers, Derrick went and drank as well,

    ¡°Nevertheless, the poor people sure are pathetic. They aren¡¯t allowed toe to the second building and are forced to seriously study here.¡±

    Only idiots actually studied at school.

    In the second school building, students like Derrick, who received preferential treatment from theirrge donations were pushed there.

    They were nuisances that brought trouble and disrupted the education of other students.

    This was one of the problems the Empire had yet to solve.

    One of Derrick¡¯s underlings brought a report on the freshmen.

    ¡°Derrick, it looks like Liam is entering the school this year.¡±

    ¡°Oh... who?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s Liam, don¡¯t you know?¡±

    Derrick, who was irritated by the words of his underling, grabbed a bottle of liquor and swung down on the boy¡¯s head.

    The bottle shattered, sending alcohol and blood flying everywhere.

    ¡°The hell, who do you think you¡¯re taking that tone with?! Hey, beat this guy down. He¡¯s the target of the next game.¡±

    The bullying was referred to as a game.

    The targeted student clung to Derrick¡¯s leg while crying.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry! Please forgive me Derrick! It was an ident!¡±

    ¡°Shut up!¡±

    After kicking the student, Derrick took a deep breath and sat down on a sofa.

    The students had frozen, and surroundings had immediately went silent.

    Derrick was frustrated as the servants began to clean up the broken bottle.

    ¡°The mood was ruined. Hey, somebody tell me about this Liam person.¡±

    ¡°O-of course!¡±

    With the music still going on in the background, only the students who were giving the exnation were speaking.

    ¡°Liam of the Banfield Count house. He¡¯s the man who ughtered Goaz and multiple other famous pirates, gaining enough fame and infamy to earn the moniker of, ¡®The Pirate Hunter.¡¯¡±

    Derrick raised an eyebrow at this.

    ¡°¡®The Pirate Hunter¡¯? Is that so? So he¡¯s my enemy then?¡±

    For Derrick, who was called ¡®The Pirate Noble¡¯, Liam, who built his fame on pirate hunting could only be considered his enemy.

    The other students tried to uplift Derrick¡¯s mood.

    ¡°N-no way! There¡¯s no way he could ever stand a chance against you, Derrick.¡±

    Derrick heard thisment andughed,

    ¡°That¡¯s right! No noble from the sticks could ever defeat me.¡±

    Derrick remembered something at that moment,

    ¡°Oh yeah... apparently ¡®his highness¡¯ is enrolling this year.¡±

    ¡°Yes! His Highness Wace entered!¡±

    Derrick grinned.

    (It¡¯d be amusing to have that man kneel before me.)

    Derrick, who had a disrespectful view of the royal family, thought that the freshmen this year would be a lot of fun to mess with.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A ssroom in the first school building.

    The entrance ceremony was over and now we were attending homeroom.

    ¡°I¡¯m John, and I¡¯ll be you bastards¡¯ teacher from today onwards! Call me Professor John!¡±

    Rather than being called ¡®Professor John¡¯, it¡¯d be more fitting to call the man standing on the tform a ¡®Demon Instructor¡¯.

    Wasn¡¯t this teacher clearly unsuitable for those given preferential treatment?

    That¡¯s what I was thinking when¨C

    ¡°Hey, you over there!¡±

    ¡°Are you referring to me?¡±

    The blue haired prince, Wace stood up.

    Looking at him closely, I could see that was actually wearing earrings.

    ¡°What¡¯s with those essories you have on your ears?¡±

    ¡°Oh, these? I bought them in the bity before the entrance ceremony.¡±

    The prince responded as if he were looking down on the professor.

    The head maid told me to be wary of him¨C apparently he was a problem child.

    ¡°Wace, you¡¯re a student, and this is a ce where you¡¯re supposed to learn the basics of being an aristocrat. Did you seriously think we¡¯d allow such essories?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    His highness started looking around¨C no one was wearing anything even remotely resembling piercings, though there were people that were dressed quite weirdly.

    There were even people like Tom, a male student that had a tornado hairstyle that made you question his sanity.

    I felt irritated just looking at him.

    However, Professor John didn¡¯t even acknowledge it.

    ¡ªis this the power of money at work?

    The head maid told me that because the prince was the one hundred and twentieth child, he didn¡¯t actually have much value.

    Honestly, why were there so many princes and princesses?

    There was just too many of them to actually care for them all.

    ¡°Wace, give me one hundred push-ups.¡±

    ¡°W-wait! It¡¯s just an essory! And I¡¯m¨C¡±

    ¡°I know. You¡¯re an imperial prince, but you should understand that there¡¯s a certain behaviour expected of the royal family.¡±

    Army-style education?

    Well, I wasn¡¯t going to say anything about it.

    He didn¡¯t even say anything after seeing Tom¡¯s hairstyle.

    ¡ªAfterall, money talks.

    ¡°This is so wrong!¡±

    Professor John was cold to Wace, whoined while doing push-ups.

    ¡°You¡¯re the one in the wrong. What the hell did you think elementary school was? Now then, let¡¯s continue homeroom. Let me say this first, this isn¡¯t your home. You¡¯ll be living in the shared dormitories, and you¡¯ll have to take care of yourselves.¡±

    Even though the surroundings didn¡¯t seem to happy about this, this was a universe with fully automatic washing machines.

    They performed on levels iparable to my previous life. You just had to put yourundry in, then after washing them, it¡¯d dry and iron them too.

    After you put them in, you were done.

    In such a situation, even if they told us that we had to do everything ourselves, it wasn¡¯t really that tough at all.

    ¡°You¡¯re not here to be spoiled. You¡¯re here to be nobles worthy of carrying the next generation of the Empire.¡±

    There was no reason to be respectable nobles at this time.

    Was elementary school really supposed to be something like this?

    ¡°Here in homeroom, we¡¯ll teach you basic life skills. The pampered life habits you¡¯ve grown so far won¡¯t be tolerated. Be prepared.¡±

    Let¡¯s have a great... elementary school life?

    It might be a bit difficult for the people here.

    ¡°First of all¨C¡±

    However, I was surprised after hearing Professor John¡¯s lecture.

    It waspletely different from the elementary school life I thought I was going to have.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Wace Noah Albte was an imperial prince.

    The thing is, he was only one of hundreds of princes.

    Wace, who had returned to the dormitory, felt his entire body ache in pain as he fell into his bed.

    ¡°All of them, always treating me like a fool.¡±

    Unlike other princes who received many benefits and preferential treatment, there was no such backing for Wace.

    It¡¯d be possible if his mother was a high-noble, or if his right to inherit the throne was in the single-digits.

    Up to the thirty-seventh in line, it¡¯d still be possible to have backing.

    However, the hundreds who came after that were treated as nothing but extras.

    Wace himself didn¡¯t really see himself as much of a prince.

    After all, he had only met his father, the Emperor, only a few times.

    He had spent his life growing up in the inner pce, treated as just another one out of hundreds.

    ¡°Nevertheless, elementary school seems to be a harsher ce than I expected.¡±

    Wace was well educated, but the elementary school was stricter than what he was used to.

    It¡¯s been a few days since the entrance ceremony.

    Professor John seemed to have his eye on Wace, and seemed to get angry with almost anything he did.

    ¡°It¡¯s hard having to wake up at five everyday.¡±

    And they had to get up and prepare themselves for morning training by seven.

    Their schedules were packed from morning to night, so he always came back as a mess.

    Above all else, martial arts training in particr was brutal.

    He had studied the basics of imperial martial arts, but the contents of the lessons were tough for Wace, a person who had studied the Arend swordstyle.

    ¡°...can I really achieve my goals in such an environment?¡±

    Wace had a dream.

    In that dream he was independent and free.

    For that purpose¨C

    ¡°If I don¡¯t seed here, it¡¯ll never happen. I¡¯m already here, so I¡¯ll make sure to excel!¡±

    ¡ªhe was going to pick-up girls.

    It wasn¡¯t a joke, Wace seriously wanted to pick-up girls.

    That¡¯s because doing so would no doubt bring him closer to his dream.

 Chapter 35 - Volume 3 Chapter 2 Underling

    <h4>Volume 3 Chapter 2 Underling</h4>

    It¡¯s been three months since elementary school has started.

    That¡¯s when I noticed.

    ¡ªwhat was with this environment?

    I was pondering about how weird this ce was as I rested in my dormitory room.

    ¡°...elementary school is too easy. I didn¡¯t need to send donations. No, wasn¡¯t it necessary so I wouldn¡¯t be targeted Professor John?¡±

    In any case, he¡¯s a strict teacher, but he never got mad at me.

    Other than that though, he just treated me the same as all the other students.

    Get up in the morning, finish a light exercise, study through the lessons, practice martial arts, and thene back to the dormitory to sleep at night.

    Everyone else was stillining about it, but personally, it was so easy that I was starting to feel a bit anxious.

    In the first ce, sses were a breeze. I had already studied most of these topics in the education capsule.

    While the physical training could only be considered a preparatory exercise to my strengthened body, it always left me feeling dissatisfied.

    ¡ªI wasn¡¯t expecting this.

    ¡°This can¡¯t be. It¡¯s too easy to the point that I¡¯m worried if this is actually okay.¡±

    It¡¯s important for me as an evil lord to have a trained body.

    ¡®There¡¯s no point to violence in reality.¡¯

    ¡®You only need a good education to be sessful in society.¡¯

    All such stories were lies.

    Certainly, violence could be considered useless to a normal society.

    But I learned how important brutality actually was in my previous life.

    The bad guys use violence, while good people could only cower in fear of them.

    Violence was another form of power.

    Even though I trained myself in order to obtain that power, my abilities would no doubt rust in this lukewarm environment.

    ¡°No good. This is no good. I was sure that they¡¯d start the actual training after three months but there¡¯s been so sign of change at all.¡±

    At first, I thought they were waiting for us to grow used to the training, but even after three months the contents of said training hasn¡¯t changed much at all.

    The amount of change could bepared to the size of a single strand of hair.

    What was I supposed to do about this?

    That when I suddenly got a call from home.

    The caller was Brain.

    ...why couldn¡¯t it have been Amagi?

    As Iy on the bed and answered the call, what appeared was the image of Brian crying like usual.

    ¡°Lord Liam, you promised that you¡¯d make sure to call us regrly!¡±

    Isn¡¯t he a bit too overprotective?

    ¡°Don¡¯t cry just because I forgot to contact you on schedule, or did something happen?¡±

    ¡°No, things are going well here. Lord Liam, I¡¯m more concerned about you.¡±

    Does he not trust me?

    ¡°There¡¯s no problems on my end either.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear. Oh, and the head maid is worried. Can you tell me what your rtionship with prince Wace is?¡±

    ¡°Wace? Ahh, that guy. Well... I guess we get along?¡±

    ¡°...huh?¡±

    Brian was stunned.

    Prince Wace had quite the troublesome background.

    That¡¯s one of the reasons why the surroundings always tried to keep their distance from him, but considering the individual himself, people avoided him because of his personality problems.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The next day in the cafeteria.

    The first years were finally started to get used to life at the elementary school.

    Everyone had already formed their groups in the cafeteria.

    Personally, I was talking with Kurt, a fellow evil lord.

    ¡°Brian is constantly calling me and won¡¯t stop asking about how my school life is going.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t he your butler? I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anything wrong with him regrly checking up on you.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t have anything to say, life here is just in boring. The most interesting thing I could talk about is how I still haven¡¯t found a way to sneak out of the dormitory.¡±

    I¡¯ve been inspected the high walls built around the school grounds in hope of finding a way out that I could use to y around in the city.

    If I wanted to y outside during the holidays, an escape route was necessary.

    This was a problem that could be solved by simply bribing the gatekeeper, but I¡¯ve been looking for an escape route because I had too much free time on my hands.

    ¡°Liam, I really can¡¯t tell if you¡¯re a serious person or not.¡±

    ¡°If you look at things on the outside, I¡¯m pretty much as serious as you are.¡±

    ¡°I-is that so?¡±

    Just from that little bit of praise, the serious-based evil lord Kurt seems to have grown embarrassed.

    I turned back to my meal.

    Most of the menu items served in the cafeteria were nutritious meals.

    They weren¡¯t bad, I enjoyed them.

    But they were painfulpared to the luxurious meals I used to have daily.

    That¡¯s when I heard a loud voice echo out from another table.

    ¨Cit was Wace.

    ¡°Hey, why don¡¯t we eat our meals together?¡±

    Smiling, he put his food tray on a table a group of girls were sitting at and forcibly secured a seat.

    ¡°By the way, are any of your houses looking to take in a son-inw to take over as head? Or have any of you broken off from your parent¡¯s house to be independent, looking for a groom?¡±

    The girls¡¯ gazes started swimming at hisck of subtlety.

    ¡°I¡¯m the second daughter of my house.¡±

    ¡°My older brother is my house¡¯s heir.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m about to get a little brother soon.¡±

    The third girl... was she saying that her house didn¡¯t have a male heir at the moment?

    But Wace seemed to have epted their exnations,

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s quite a shame. Please excuse me.¡±

    After suddenly standing up, Wace left to go and speak to the next girl he spotted.

    ¡°You over there! What¡¯s your family¡¯s take on getting a new son-inw?¡±

    Looking at Wace, I couldn¡¯t help but think¨C

    ¡°¨Che definitely isn¡¯t what I thought a prince would be like.¡±

    Wace, who hadpletely destroyed my image of princes, continued to try and pick-up girls.

    He was speaking to a girl from the first school building.

    ¡°His Highness Wace also has his own circumstances.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s his story?¡±

    Kurt went on to exin to me about what paths were left to the excess princes.

    ¡°To be honest, all the princes after the hundreth don¡¯t seem to be treated that well. If it¡¯s up to the thirtieth, then they still seem to have proper backing, but otherwise I hear that they¡¯re treated worse than lower nobility.¡±

    ¡°The princes also have it hard, huh?¡±

    ¡°They don¡¯t have any choice than to marry into another house, if they don¡¯t do anything, then they¡¯d eventually be forced to be civil officials or military officers. Some of them have gotten jobs in other fields, but his Highness Wace doesn¡¯t seem to be that type.¡±

    There were many royals who became active in different fields, such as art.

    But Wace chose¡ª independence.

    ¡°It looks like he wants to be his own master.¡±

    ¡°Is bing self-reliant really that difficult? Can¡¯t he just have the Empire support him until then?¡±

    ¡°Independence isn¡¯t that easy to obtain. Even more so for someone who doesn¡¯t have backing like him. He can¡¯t do this alone, and his Highness understands that.¡±

    ¨Cwas this really okay for an imperial prince?

    To gain independence through picking up girls¨C I could onlyugh at such a thing.

    Looking at Wace, he was picking up his tray to leave. Apparently he was unsessful today as well.

    Apparently a few of the girls have been approached by him twice, or even thrice, and they were growing more troubled on how to deal with him.

    I called out to Wace, who was drooping his shoulders.

    ¡°Hey Wace,e over here for a bit.¡±

    Wace turned to look in my direction before speaking,

    ¡°What do you want? I don¡¯t have a hobby of flirting with men.¡±

    At thatment, Kurt face seemed to flush a little.

    He looked irritated,

    ¡°Liam, why¡¯d you call out to him?!¡±

    Iughed as I answered Kurt, who was losing his patience,

    ¡°Because he seems interesting. Hey Wace, just hear me out. I¡¯m not interested in your body.¡±

    Reluctantly, Wace drudged his way over to our table.

    ¡°You¡¯re pretty rude. I thought you were honour students, but you have quite foul mouths there.¡±

    This guy was an idiot after all.

    He seriously seemed to think that we were honour students.

    Well, Kurt was a serious person at first nce, so maybe he is one?

    ¡°At least we¡¯re better than a failed skirt-chaser.¡±

    ¡°Ugh... damn it!¡±

    Wace furrowed his brows, he looked like he wanted to say something, but couldn¡¯t think of anything at the moment.

    ¡°Sh-shut up. I¡¯m doing this for my future, that¡¯s why I¡¯m pushing so hard despite the shame it brings me.¡±

    ¡°You sure can endure a lot of it. Is this fun for you?¡±

    ¡°...back in the inner pce, there weren¡¯t that many chances to interact with girls. At most there¡¯d be my mother and her maids, or my father¡¯s concubines, the rest being my blood-rted sisters.¡±

    He seems to have gone through a lot.

    But Kurt recalled,

    ¡°Wait, but then shouldn¡¯t have the maids been okay?¡±

    When he said that, Wace turned away,

    ¡°...they served the mothers, not me. Also my mother didn¡¯t allow me toy my hands on them.¡±

    ¡°Do you want to be independant that badly?¡±

    When I asked, Wace shouted, ¡°Of course I do!¡±

    Although the surrounding gazes started to gather on us, I didn¡¯t really care.

    Rosetta passed by us then.

    However, Wace didn¡¯t even nce towards her.

    ¡°Huh? You¡¯re not going to try for Rosetta?¡±

    To my question, Wace answered,

    ¡°¨Cthat woman can¡¯t provide for me.¡±

    ...how is this guy able to say such embarrassing lines so confidently?

    ¡°In the first ce, my goal is to be independent.¡±

    ¡°Why independance?¡±

    Wace seems to want to be a person that¡¯spletely self-reliant,

    ¡°It can be as a court noble or a provincial one, but I want to be living under my own strength. You might not know this, but having the status of a prince actually really inconvenient for such a thing.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t really call yourself independent if you¡¯re relying on others to gain that status.¡±

    ¡°I know that! But that¡¯s my only option here. If I tried to be an officer or a soldier, all that would be waiting for me is a life of ughter.¡±

    Kurt had a face on that said he didn¡¯t know what to say,

    ¡°I guess his Highness also has his fair share of troubles.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. If you understand that, why don¡¯t you consider bing my patron?¡±

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s a bit... sorry, I¡¯ll have to refuse.¡±

    ¡°Why?!¡±

    Kurt wasn¡¯t nice enough of a person to be the patron of a useless prince.

    The thing is, he was a really interesting prince.

    His struggles to be self-reliant were amusing to watch.

    I called out to Wace,

    ¡°Why haven¡¯t you entered the house of a minor lord or officer then?¡±

    He looked troubled,

    ¡°Personally, I¡¯d be okay with that, but I¡¯m still a prince. The pce won¡¯t allow me to. They¡¯re requiring me to enter into a certain social caste, something at least of the baron rank or higher. Maybe it¡¯d be possible if they were the ruler of a pioneer, but otherwise, the pce wouldn¡¯t permit me to.¡±

    With so many options to choose from, I could feel myself growing more excited.

    Wasn¡¯t this really interesting?

    ¡°If that¡¯s how it is, then I¡¯ll be your patron.¡±

    ¡°Liam?!¡±

    Kurt tried to stop me, but I ignored him and spoke to Wace,

    ¡°The Banfield Count house will support you. If you¡¯re going to rule over part of the frontier, then I¡¯ll lend you a hand with your independence.¡±

    A stunned Wace stood up and fixed his uniform,

    ¡°Thank you so much!¡±

    Wace, who raised his arms and voice looked really stupid.

    Aical person like him was really fun to watch.

    ¡°Liam, you need to think this through. It¡¯s not that easy to be the prince¡¯s backer.¡±

    Kurt tried to persuade me, but I can¡¯t take back the words I¡¯ve already spoke.

    It was already done.

    It wasn¡¯t because I felt sympathetic for him, nor was I impressed with his efforts.

    I just wanted to help him out because he was interesting.

    Above all else, now an imperial prince was going to be my underling.

    Doesn¡¯t that make for a really good story?

    ¡°I¡¯ve already seeded as Count. My word is the decision of the Banfield house. So there¡¯s no problems there.¡±

    ¡°No, but-!¡±

    I turned to Wace, who looked worried,

    ¡°I keep my promises. I¡¯ll support your independence. Are you okay with being a minor lord?¡±

    ¡°O-of course I am! Anything is better than the cramped life I¡¯ve lived in the inner pce! As a feudal lord, even a minor peerage is fine! I just want to live with my own strength.¡±

    Simple enough.

    ¡°Leave it to me. I¡¯ll prepare a territory for you after our training ends.¡±

    Kurt looked amazed as he held his face in his right hand,

    ¡°Liam, I seriously can¡¯t understand you.¡±

    All I was doing was helping a single prince be self-reliant.

    Kurt was worrying too much about it.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The imperial capital.

    Rumours about Wace had reached the prime minister who was working at the pce.

    His subordinate presented him with a report,

    ¡°Count Banfield has named himself at the his Highness Wace¡¯s guardian.¡±

    ¡°...what?¡±

    The minister stopped his stands, unable toprehend what his subordinate was saying.

    ¡°Apparently the Count has dered that he¡¯d be the patron of his Highness Wace.¡±

    He was abandoning his status as a royal.

    Currently, he was in the process of advocating his right to inherit the throne.

    Liam has sworn to support Wace¡¯s independence in the future.

    But there wasn¡¯t any merit to Liam bing Wace¡¯s backer.

    It¡¯d be almost impossible for Wace to pay back this favour.

    Almost no aristocrats would even consider bing his patron.

    ¡°This must be another of the Count¡¯s whims.¡±

    ¡°But at the very least, this will allow one prince to safely be self-reliant.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not easy to being a pioneer, but he should be able to do it with the Count¡¯s backing. If we leave this alone, no problems should appear in the future¨C just, what was he aiming for?¡±

    The prime minister was reading too deeply into this.

    This was the result of his overestimation of Liam, who was extremely exceptional for his age.

    (Disregarding the Count himself, the Banfield house is still renowned as untrustworthy. Is he doing this to show how he¡¯s contributing to the Empire?)

    Could that be the reason why he chose to support Wace, an individual who was neither poison nor medicine?

    If that was the case, then the prime minister could see how Liam would benefit from this.

    (It¡¯s not easy overwriting the stigma thatsted for two whole generations, but this can be the first step in gaining some trust in noble society.)

    If Wace was able to safely seed, then Liam would be able to have the Banfield house seen as more trustworthy among the aristocrats.

    The prime minister was convinced that was the reason why, and was excitedly waiting for the results in anticipation.

 Chapter 36 - Volume 3 Chapter 3 Rosetta

    <h4>Volume 3 Chapter 3 Rosetta</h4>

    ¡°From today onward, I¡¯m no longer a prince. I¡¯m just Wace!¡±

    After bing my underling, Wace hade up to my room to make a report.

    Kurt was also visiting.

    ¡°You look happy.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to you, Liam. Because of you, I was able to safely escape from my position as a royal.¡±

    He was talking as if he hated being a prince.

    ¡°I thought being born a royal would¡¯ve made life super easy.¡±

    Wace looked amazed at my words,

    ¡°That¡¯s only because you don¡¯t know anything. Having the position of prince is really dangerous. My older brothers are constantly fighting amongst each other for the position of Emperor. Thus the dark history repeats itself.¡±

    Kurt joined into the conversation,

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard a lot of rumours as well. People say that the rise of the Emperor is the dawn of all their siblings¡¯ executions. There are many urban legends about such things.¡±

    Wace lowered his voice,

    ¡°...try to keep that to yourself. Those rumours are often true. Even with my father, all of his rivals seem to have died before his ascension. You need to be careful.¡±

    Kurt¡¯s face had gone pale.

    I¡¯ve heard about things like this in my previous life.

    Family feuds aren¡¯t an unusual story in feudal systems.

    Wace¡¯s expression softened,

    ¡°In any case, I¡¯ve safely retired from the race to be the sessor.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not like you have absolutely no right to inherit the throne.¡±

    ¡°But it¡¯s different now. The situation in the pce is reallyplicated. Because there¡¯s not just us kids, but also our mothers¡¯ connections to take into consideration. Everyone in a faction is executed if they lose the session. It¡¯s happened before.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡±

    ¡°You better believe it. The inner pce isn¡¯t the beautiful ce the masses think it is. It¡¯s a ce where brothers kill each other for the right to be Emperor, starting all the back in the ugly fight between their mothers.¡±

    Death gs were raised that they had no control over.

    Or rather, the pce was a ce full of death.

    The princes had to take this seriously.

    Wace said that the struggle for the throne two thousand years ago was particrly terrible and the effects of it could still be seen today.

    ¡°The Emperor of two millenia ago was especially terrible. There are a lot of stories of betrayal and death, so wouldn¡¯t anybody be happy to escape from such a ce?¡±

    However, Wace had a refreshed look on his face as someone freed from all burdens.

    ¡°I can finally live out my own life. Thank you, Liam.¡±

    I only did it on a whim, but it looks like it meant more to him than that.

    Well, the former prince was now my underling.

    So I was satisfied.

    Though there were still a few things to worry about.

    ¡°Wace, couldn¡¯t you have just sent bribes to curry favour with the older brother you thought would win?¡±

    The next Emperor had almost been decided.

    If he was living in the pce, shouldn¡¯t he have been able to predict who the winning horse would be by now?

    Wace looked away,

    ¡°There are many cases where the people who were supposedly confirmed to be the ¡®next Emperor¡¯ have died. What do you think would happen to the sibling that had tried to curry favour such a person?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯d be executed?¡±

    ¡°Death would be a mercy. Life bes unimaginably hard for those that backed a person that didn¡¯t be Emperor. The udia house Rosetta is from is one of such victims.¡±

    It was surprising to hear Rosetta¡¯s name being mentioned by Wace.

    ¡°Rosetta?¡±

    When I asked, Kurt also gave a look that said he didn¡¯t know.

    As we shook tilted our heads in confusion, Wace began to exin Rosetta¡¯s circumstances,

    ¡°A long time ago, there was a prince that had the backing of the udia Duke house.¡±

    That was the beginning of the udia house¡¯s fall.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The girl¡¯s washroom in the first school building.

    Standing in front of the mirror, Rosetta was looking at her reflection.

    She was speaking to herself,

    ¡°I am the venerable daughter of the udia house, one day I will be the one to end our suffering.¡±

    The udia family, which was a matriarchal household, was aplex ce.

    To put it simply, they were an infamous Ducal house.

    They were the rulers of a single on the frontier.

    Although they were originally ssified as minor nobles, the Empire had promoted the udia house to Ducal status.

    That was nearly two millennia ago.

    The reason for this spans back to the dark ages of that time.

    Back then, the Empire was in a very rough position.

    The crown prince that was supposed to be the next Emperor, had died before his ascension.

    The udia house that had supported that prince weed the brother who had ascended instead.

    But the new prince was hostile towards them.

    From then on was an endless chain of hostility from the royal family and nobility.

    Naturally, severe punishment was imposed on the Ducal house that supported thete prince, trapping them in a cage.

    The udia house was stripped of their territory.

    They were forced onto a ruined that had been driven to itsst legs.

    However, their status remained that of a Duke¡¯s.

    ¡®Anyone who stands against the Emperor will end up like this¡¯¨C was the message they wanted to show off.

    They were nobles, but at the same time they weren¡¯t.

    It was a cruel fate, but they were still alive.

    The past heads had struggled to one day escape this suffering.

    And Rosetta was struggling against it as well.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The raison d¡¯etre of elementary school was to train the noble children to a certain level.

    asionally, there¡¯d be the child of an aristocrat that didn¡¯t know how the universe worked and brought shame wherever they went.

    In order to limit such situations, the minimum amount of education they needed was given at the elementary school.

    However, only the most excellent of children were assigned to the first school building for education.

    The education there was tough, but it was also a sign of how much expectations they had for them.

    Rosetta was overjoyed when she was assigned to the first school building.

    However...

    (...I can¡¯t keep up with the contents of the lesson.)

    She couldn¡¯t keep up with how fast the sses progressed.

    Her house was poor and she couldn¡¯t get a satisfactory education growing up.

    The amount of times she could use education capsules was also minimal.

    The level she was at was clearly different from her surroundings.

    She worked hard, but it felt like she was confronted with a wall that she couldn¡¯t ovee.

    (I can¡¯t give up here. I¡¯ll end this chain of suffering and free us.)

    But whenever someone spoke, weren¡¯t they actually making fun of her?

    She had be paranoid with negative suspicion after seeing the difference between herself and her surroundings.

    (No matter what, I need to be sessful here.)

    Rosetta was the only one who was desperate to pass while everyone else went through their school life leisurely.

    The same was true even after she returned to the dormitory.

    When she got back to her room, her body started to scream out for how much it wanted to just copse on the bed and sleep.

    But instead ofplying to her body¡¯s needs, she¡¯d force herself to her desk and study.

    Even if it was inefficient, she¡¯d be totally lost if she didn¡¯t review the topics of tomorrow¡¯s lessons beforehand.

    ¡°...I won¡¯t lose. If I fail here, then my future daughter will have to go through this pain as well.¡±

    Her tears didn¡¯t stop falling.

    And as her consciousness slowly left her, she fell down and copsed on the desk as she was.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Rosetta was dreaming.

    It was a nostalgic dream of her childhood.

    The Empire had sent them an invitation for a party held in the pce.

    Rosetta, who was still a young girl at the time, was delighted, but her grandmother¡¯s expression was sullen.

    Her mother was crying as she hugged her.

    She didn¡¯t understand why they were sad.

    ¡°Mother, grandmother, why are you crying?¡±

    The two smiled at her innocence despite the tears.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing Rosetta. Let¡¯s just enjoy the party. We¡¯ll have as much fun as possible.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    Her mother was poor, but she still prepared her a dress.

    And her grandmother had set her beautiful hair into ringlets.

    Rosetta loved this hairstyle.

    But when she finally got to attend the party at the imperial capital she was looking forward to¨C she was met with ridicule.

    She could still remember the voices of the nobility of that time.

    ¡°What¡¯s with that dirty dress?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s another clown from the udia house.¡±

    ¡°Why do they even bothering to the imperial capital?¡±

    Different from the fun party she expected, she learned that they were only invited so they could be harrassed andughed at.

    This was a scheme set up by thete emperor.

    He wanted to show off regrly what happened to those that opposed him.

    It was a custom that had continued for nearly two millennia.

    It had gone on for too long for them to just end this tradition now¨C it was impossible.

    Some aristocrats felt pity for them.

    But none of them reached out to help.

    After Rosetta learned the reality of things, her mother told her,

    ¡°Remember the gentlemen who showed mercy to us. In the future, they¡¯re going to be the ones that¡¯ll help you give birth to a child. Then the udia house can live on.¡±

    The reason why the udia house was a matriarchal household was because they could never find a marriage partner.

    As long as the heads were female, then there was a chance they¡¯d still be able to have a child after bowing down to men of prestige.

    ¡°Rosetta... grow up beautiful. If you do, then men will reach out to you.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°This is the only way for the udia house to have children.¡±

    ¨Cthat was when she first learned of why her father wasn¡¯t there.

    Another reason why the udia house was a matriarchal household was because it was easier.

    If the head was a man, there wouldn¡¯t be any women who¡¯de as his bride.

    Men could still make children as long as they had the money and equipment.

    They just needed to buy an egg from a woman, but the problem here was the financial cost of it all.

    The udia house as it was couldn¡¯t afford it.

    This expensive method was impossible for them, so the easiest option for them was to simply have only females be their heads.

    Some of them had tried to end this miserable life.

    However, they were under watch and were constantly denied of any chance.

    The only way Rosetta could be free of this hell was to advance upwards.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    When she woke up¨C it was morning.

    ¡°No, this can¡¯t be!¡±

    After getting up in a hurry, she had found that breakfast time had already passed.

    She rushed over to the school building, but she was stillte.

    Her uniform was sloppy, and her hair was a wreck.

    When she had finally entered the ssroom, her peers startedughing at her.

    And when John saw Rosetta,

    ¡°Rosetta, don¡¯t bete. Wake up on time.¡±

    ¡°...yes. I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    He wasn¡¯t as harsh with her as he was with the other students.

    Normally, he was the kind of teacher that¡¯d start yelling atte students, but it looks like he had already given up on Rosetta.

    (I¡¯ll show you all.)

    Her ssmates gazed at her with eyes full of various things; ridicule, pity, interest¨C in any case, they looked at her like she was some kind of rare animal.

    The boys¡¯ voices could be heard,

    ¡°Even if she waste, how can she look that bad? Like, what the hell is that?¡±

    ¡°At the very least, you¡¯d think she¡¯d keep up appearances.¡±

    ¡°...no, Tom. Those words have no persuasive powering from you. Just look at your hair.¡±

    She was in a hurry and didn¡¯t have time to take a shower, and as she approached her seat¨C

    ¨Cthe girls started covering up their noses.

    ¡°What a terrible smell.¡±

    ¡°My nose is going to fall off.¡±

    ¡°I always knew that she was stupid, but I didn¡¯t know she smelled too.¡±

    Rosetta knew she was the worst in the ss.

    Then she passed by the honour student Liam.

    (...Banfield.)

    She clenched her teeth.

    He was currently looking at John was an uninterested expression.

    It was an expression that said that she didn¡¯t even register in his eyes.

    But it couldn¡¯t be helped.

    At such a young age, he had already been recognised as a Count skilled in domestic affairs, and had fully mastered a martial school, earning his swordsmanship license.

    On top of all that, he had earned himself the second name of ¡®The Pirate Hunter¡¯.

    Status, honour, and skill¨C he was a child who had everything. He wasplete opposite of herself.

    Liam was the only person John never shouted at.

    To be specific, he never had a reason to.

    He was the top of the grade in his studies.

    His practical skills were excellent as well.

    But his true specialtyy in his martial skill.

    He always won, even against the second strongest Kurt.

    Liam was incorruptible, and no one could stand against him.

    He was the one person nobody ever tried picking a fight with.

    Because they knew they couldn¡¯t win.

    ¨CHe waspletely different from Rosetta. He was a person that had everything.

    Rosetta hated Liam¨C she couldn¡¯t help it.

    (Does someone like me even register in your eyes? I hate people like you that have everything in life. I can¡¯t help but hate you.)

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¨CA dark alley in the imperial capital.

    The guide was there.

    He was clenching his teeth as he watched the sight of two vagrants digging through trash.

    ¡°Damn it, how did I get like this?¡±

    The current guide was no different from them.

    His connection to Liam was so strong that only negative emotions rted to Liam could be efficiently absorbed.

    The current state of the guide was equivalent to him desperately drinking muddy water.

    All the pain he felt in his heart was because of Liam.

    He was grasping at his chest as he walked around, gathering the surrounding negative emotions.

    However, the absorption rate was dismal.

    It was very inefficient because of the constant pain caused by Liam¡¯s gratitude that drained his power.

    As to why the guide wanted revenge on Liam¡ª it was so he could break out of this situation and be freed of this suffering.

    To that end, he was now collecting negative emotions.

    That¡¯s when the vagrants in front of the guide started fighting.

    ¡°That¡¯s the food I found!¡±

    ¡°Shut up! It¡¯s mine because you drank my alcoholst time!¡±

    However, when the guide passed them by, the two¡¯s stern expressions softened.

    ¡°...sorry, that¡¯s my bad. I¡¯m hungry too though, so can we split it in half?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry too.¡±

    They apologised and shared the food.

    It was the result of having their negative emotions absorbed.

    The guide spoke,

    ¡°Look out Liam, I¡¯ll be sure to push you to the bottom of hell.¡±

 Chapter 37 - Volume 3 Chapter 4 Mad Dog Marie

    <h4>Volume 3 Chapter 4 Mad Dog Marie</h4>

    It was the autumn of my first year.

    Unfortunately, long-term leave of elementary school onlysted half a year, and was only avable to those who were in their fourth year onwards.

    For this reason, there were no long-term holidays for freshmen.

    However, since sses were easy, I wasn¡¯t troubled.

    In fact, we were just watching arge holographic video for today¡¯s lesson.

    The three-dimensional image showcased the humanoid figure of mobile knights.

    Robots donned in full-body western-styled armour were were doing battle.

    ¡°They look powerful and interesting, but their movements are too slow.¡±

    The first years in the auditorium were cheering, but I didn¡¯t find it amusing at all.

    Unfortunately, sitting beside me was my first underling¨C Wace, who had just lost a bet with an upperssman and was currently holding his head.

    ¡°I LOST EVERYTHING!!!¡±

    This guy was an idiot.

    By the way, I¡¯ve been giving him an allowance every month.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped because I was his patron.

    I didn¡¯t really mind too much because it was a small amount, but I wasn¡¯t pleased with his use of it.

    ¡°You sure are stupid, Wace. This is because you only bet on the big and unexpected upsets.¡±

    Kurt wasughing.

    He was a smart guy who didn¡¯t aim for the big wins.

    ¡°I just wanted the reverse my losses with one bet. If I won even once, I¡¯d break even.¡±

    ¡°So you bet everything that you had?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t say it out loud! Ahh... all of my savings are gone...¡±

    My underling directed his gaze my way, but I didn¡¯t have any reason to give him more money to spend.

    As I ignored him, Kurt spoke up while the next match started,

    ¡°There are a lot of personal mobile knights participating.¡±

    Starting from their third year, students were allowed to participate in mobile knight tournaments.

    Most of them participated with training machines rented from the schools, but particrly rich individuals could bring in their custom mobile knight.

    Wace furrowed his brow as he looked at the people who used their own personal aircrafts.

    ¡°It¡¯s disgusting to overwhelm others by abusing the difference in performance. Not many can afford a custom mobile knight, not even I have one.¡±

    Even though he used to be a prince, apparently the only mobile knights he¡¯s ever piloted were the training models.

    ¡°...so it¡¯s possible to participate with your own custom machine?¡±

    Looking at these boring matches, I thought it¡¯d be fun if I could trample these guys using Avid¨C it was an idea that I believed that could make this mundane school life a little more interesting.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The match was over.

    The winner seemed to be a baron from the frontier named Derrick.

    Apparently the children of a Count house were also participating, but it looks like he was a follower of meritocracy and disregarded status during battle.

    But that was convenient for me.

    With an overwhelming difference in strength, it¡¯d be nice to see such a powerful individual bend the knee.

    Even so, despite winning, Derrick didn¡¯t look very strong.

    Well, this was probably the most you could get out of elementary school anyway.

    I activated my terminal and started a call that projected an image into the air.

    ¨Cthe person I had called was Nias.

    Her eyes opened wide as she listened to my request.

    ¡°Lord Liam, are you serious?¡±

    ¡°Naturally. Is Avid still undergoing maintenance?¡±

    ¡°Maintenance is over and Avid¡¯s been transported to storage. However, your request to strengthen it is unreasonable. In the first ce, it would be extremely difficult to aplish. It¡¯d be harder thanpletely rebuilding it from scratch.¡±

    ¡°Do it anyways, I¡¯ll pay you.¡±

    Nias was a really annoying person who cried for me to buy battleships everytime we met, but she still refused my proposal.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t a money issue. No matter how much you give us, no more renovations are possible. We need an exorbitant amount of rare metals and materials in order to do so.¡±

    ¡°Rare metals like orihalcum?¡±

    They were staple materials in a fantasy universe.

    However, they were scarce and difficult to secure.

    I heard that even if it was inefficient, it¡¯d still be possible to collect them if I put out the money.

    ¡°Orihalcum, adamantium, mythril¨C all of it is necessary. In addition to that, an elite staff team would be needed. This would be a long-term investment, in total it¡¯d cost more than buying a small fleet.¡±

    In the first ce, you¡¯d have to spend an exorbitant amount just to process the rare metals.

    It¡¯d be much more efficient to buy a fleet considering the amount of materials, money, and human resources required.

    But this was a man¡¯s romance that was more important than efficiency.

    ¡°I have the money, so I¡¯ll prepare everything.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s still an unreasonable request. Before that, why are you so particr about Avid? Why don¡¯t you just buy a new model instead?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to because I like Avid. The mainstream aircrafts of today are too fragile and I don¡¯t feel safe using them.¡±

    If I were topare my request to my previous life, it¡¯d be like demanding someone to renovate a ssic car to have the same performance of a new one.

    It¡¯d be like telling that person to install a new navigation system and convert it into an electric, all while adding a variety of new functions¡ª of course they¡¯d ridicule such a request.

    If that¡¯s how it was going to be, it¡¯d be way easier just to buy a new car.

    But this was a matter of taste.

    I wasn¡¯t going topromise on this.

    ¡°I¡¯ll send you a list, so please contact us once you gather the necessary materials and budget. Also, you need to prepare a test pilot.¡±

    ¡°A test pilot?¡±

    ¡°Yes, someone that has skills equivalent to yourself¨C no, someone who could at least pilot Avid. If you can clear all these conditions, then we¡¯ll ept the responsibility of Avid¡¯s renovation.¡±

    She was taking an attitude that said, ¡®because that¡¯s impossible, just buy a new model already.¡¯

    This girl, did she seriously forget all the times that I¡¯ve left her crying pathetically?

    But that¡¯s okay, if that¡¯s how she was going to be, then I was going to take this seriously.

    ¡°...you promise, right?¡±

    ¡°Of course. Please contact us once you¡¯re ready. Well, I¡¯d prefer it if you just gave up and bought the newer models and battleships instead though.¡±

    I disconnected and immediately called home.

    Amagi was disyed on the projection.

    Just that sight alone made me feel like I was going to have a great day today.

    ¡°What is it, Master?¡±

    ¡°Amagi, gather everything on this list as soon as possible. Any rare metals we can¡¯t gather can be supplied using ¡®that¡¯. Once collected, send it all to the Seventh Weapons Factory.¡±

    When Amagi checked the list, we were missing a few materials.

    But they were all things we could obtain with money.

    ¡°Are you sure about this?¡±

    ¡°Of course. Once I return to the territory, I can always prepare more.¡±

    ¡°...if they¡¯re just renovating Avid, then the amount of materials listed here is abnormal.¡±

    ¡°Is Nias really picking a fight with me? Well, send it anyways so that she won¡¯t be able to make excuses. I¡¯m looking forward to hearing what kind of face she makes.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    ¡°Also, send Marie to the Seventh Weapons Factory.¡±

    She was a knight I saved during my rampage in Baron Exner¡¯s territory.

    I¡¯ve been told that she¡¯s somewhat useful.

    ¡°You mean [Marie Sera Marian]?¡±

    ¡°Has she been discharged from the hospital yet?¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡ªA few monthster.

    Nias was trembling as she stood in front of an enormous pile of materials delivered to the Seventh Weapons Factory.

    ¡°...no way. He really gathered them.¡±

    A woman with straight silver hair that had a purple tint to it was standing behind the pile of rare metals delivered from the Banfield house.

    Her uniform was purple, but the arm guards and heels she wore were ck.

    There was a sharp and strong glint to her purple eyes.

    She had clear white skin, and wore fresh purple lipstick.

    Her body was slender, and she had a well-shaped chest.

    Hanging from her waist were two sword handles that had extendable des.

    She was one of Liam¡¯s knight candidates [Marie Sera Marian].

    ¡°Marie Marian, reporting in as the test pilot for the renovated Avid. I¡¯m looking forward to working with you, Technology Captain.¡±

    ¡°Huh? N-no, that¡¯s¨C¡±

    In front of the confused Nias, Marie had ced her hands on her cheeks and started to squirm shyly.

    ¡°This is the first mission Lord Liam has appointed me to aplish. I¡¯ll do anything to make sure this is a sess.¡±

    The tall and cool woman was acting like a young maiden.

    (Or rather... who are you?)

    Nias has been in and out of Liam¡¯s mansion many times, but she had never seen a knight like Marie before.

    That¡¯s when the craftsman behind Nias spoke up.

    He was a very old and strong craftsman.

    ¡°Marie? Marie Marian? I remember hearing that name somewhere before...¡±

    But he couldn¡¯t remember.

    Nias didn¡¯t really think Liam would actually clear her conditions.

    Then there was Marie.

    Nias was suspicious if she could actually control Avid.

    She was too slim and beautiful to be a knight.

    She looked more like a model or an actress.

    ¡°Hey, can you really control an unassisted aircraft? There aren¡¯t many people in modern times that can control mobile knights without auto-assist, you know?¡±

    Marie smiled when she heard that,

    ¡°In my time, the knight¡¯s who needed the auto-assist functions were half-assed. I understand that Avid is a difficult aircraft to pilot, but you don¡¯t need to worry. I never used those functions in the first ce.¡±

    She was so ecstatic that her cheeks flushed while saying, ¡°Lord Liam is leaving his personal machine in my care¨C I¡¯ve never been so happy.¡±

    (What the hell is with this person?)

    Nias couldn¡¯t help but think that there were many strange people among Liam¡¯s knights.

    However, standing in front of the prepared materials, the soul of the developer inside her had been ignited.

    (Even though I can¡¯t really use these wonderful materials in luxury, with this much I can y around with things I¡¯ve never been able to before, I can get a lot of good data.)

    She realised that she was unconsciously drooling, and wiped her mouth.

    ¡°¡ªLet¡¯s get started right away.¡±

    Nias, faithful to her desires, began to strengthen and renovate Avid.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The story of Marie bing one of Liam¡¯s knight candidates began with the elimination of the pirates in Baron Exner¡¯s territory.

    Marie was involved with the rebellion in the Empire that urred two millennia ago and was petrified.

    After that, she just waited.

    Changing through the hands of many owners, her body was slowly destroyed, her living consciousness had fallen into despair as she could only wait bit by bit as she fell apart.

    ¡®Marie, this is your punishment¡¯¨Cor so the Emperor had told her.

    (Anyone is fine, just kill me already. I don¡¯t want to slowly decay like this!)

    And so Marie was currently in the possession of pirates and was used as an ornamental decoration.

    Before she had be a stone statue, Marie had built quite the reputation.

    Maire Sera Marian¨C she was a legendary imperial knight who foolishly rebelled against the Emperor.

    But in truth, she never had any intention of rebelling at all.

    She never considered such a thing.

    However, the Emperor at the time was suspicious demon, and in his paranoia had Marie petrified.

    They had used magic to keep her consciousness awake, and sold her as a beautiful stone statue.

    The pirates had lost, but her days of misery had no end in sight.

    Soldiers had entered the room.

    Marie thought,

    (Once again my owner will change. I wish I could be destroyed already, without leaving even a single piece of dust behind...)

    But the soldiers started shouting,

    ¡°Hey, over here!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s just some stone statues.¡±

    ¡°...wait, seriously? T-this room really is filled to the brim with statues!¡±

    The pirate who owned Marie was a man who liked stone statues created from petrifying actual people.

    He was a man who had the horrible hobby of petrifying beautiful people, storing them all in the room that Marie was being used as a decoration.

    The soldiers called more people over and had the statues carefully carried out.

    That¡¯s when she met Liam.

    ¡°All of these were originally human?¡±

    He was talking to a doctor in front of her.

    ¡°Yes, they¡¯ve been petrified. Whether it was by drugs, magic, curses, or one of various other methods, they¡¯ve definitely been petrified.¡±

    He turned to Marie,

    ¡°The treatment requires an elixir.¡±

    Elixir, if they didn¡¯t use the all-purpose magic medicine, it¡¯d be impossible to cure her.

    In other words, he was pretty much saying it¡¯d be impossible to save her.

    Both in the past and present, elixirs were valuable and rare.

    (Because it¡¯s impossible, just end it already.)

    Marie¡¯s wish was to be shattered by Liam.

    ¡°Understood, send them back to my territory and have them treated.¡±

    Then Liam left.

    Marie couldn¡¯t understand what he was saying.

    However, a short while after, her petrification was dissolved, and regenerative treatment to restore the limbs that were crushed and destroyed was performed.

    After a few years of rehabilitation, she was fully cured¨C Marie swore from then on she¡¯d be one of Liam¡¯s knights.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Imperial Capital.

    Tia, who was currently working as an official, was reviewing Marie¡¯s data from the pce¡¯s records.

    Although it was a top secret document, she had obtained it in order to confirm her identity.

    ¡°Marie Sera Marian¨C an imperial knight from nearly two millenia ago.¡±

    Marie¡¯s records were erased.

    However, there were still a few records that remained in the older documents.

    Marie, who was petrified because of the Emperor¡¯s paranoia, was actually one of the best knights in the Empire at the time.

    Her achievements were tremendous, eventually earning her the title of one of the legendary three knights, who at the time had greatly contributed to the Empire.

    It looked like she was very capable.

    But Tia¡¯s brows started to furrow the more she read,

    ¡°A relic from the past is trying to snuggle up to Lord Liam...¡±

    Marie, who was nning to be Liam¡¯s knight, was immediately given work from him because of her original ability.

    Her first job was to be the test pilot for Avid, Liam¡¯s personal machine.

    For Tia, Marie was her enemy.

    And Marie felt the same way about Tia.

    The reason was because Marie was aiming to be Liam¡¯s head knight.

    ¡°...it¡¯s okay. I¡¯ll make sure to let her know who¡¯s suitable to be Lord Liam¡¯s head knight.¡±

    Tia closed Marie¡¯s file.

 Chapter 38 - Volume 3 Chapter 5 The Berkley Family

    <h4>Volume 3 Chapter 5 The Berkley Family</h4>

    Rosetta was being chased.

    The year was about to end, but her grades were terrible.

    Her final grades were far behind the rest of her peers.

    If only considered among the students of the first school building, they were the lowest.

    ¡°Even though I worked so hard...¡±

    She worked so hard that she even cut down on her sleeping time.

    But even that wasn¡¯t enough for her to catch up.

    As she was walking through the hallways with an expression filled with despair, some students you wouldn¡¯t normally see in the first school building had approached her.

    At the center of the five-person group was Baron Berkley¨C Derrick.

    Rosetta immediately turned around and tried to escape, but he had grabbed her arm.

    ¡°Hey, now where¡¯s a poor person like you going?¡±

    Even though Rosetta tried to shake off the hand grabbing her, Derrick¡¯s arm, which looked so unhealthy, was unbelievably strong.

    Derrick, who had undergone physical enhancement many times, was stronger than Rosetta, who had gained her strength through hard work and training.

    ¡ªThis was the reality of this universe.

    ¡°L-let go of me!¡±

    ¡°Even though you¡¯re just the daughter of a poor ducal house, you shouldn¡¯t be so cold, Rosetta.¡±

    Derrick¡¯s entourage wasughing.

    As Derrick turned to look at Rosetta, she could feel his gaze lick her all over.

    ¡°Despite the fact that you¡¯ve only received the minimum of physical strengthening, isn¡¯t your physique actually quite nice? As I thought, for a poor person whose only real worth is in selling their body, you¡¯re perfect.¡±

    After being pushed, Rosetta¡¯s terminal was dropped and her gradebook was disyed.

    Derrick saw the contents of it¨C andughed.

    ¡°D-don¡¯t look!¡±

    She tried to get her device back, but it was already in Derrick¡¯s grasp.

    ¡°You¡¯re hopeless. You aren¡¯t qualified to be an aristocrat.¡±

    In Rosetta¡¯s attempt to retrieve her terminal, Derrickughed as he grabbed her.

    ¡°Kya!¡±

    The entourage had surrounded Rosetta after Derrick pushed her down.

    ¡°¨CRosetta, wasn¡¯t your family always looking to get the genes of prestigious noblemen?¡±

    Derrick had removed his belt, and was looking at Rosetta as he licked his lips.

    Rosetta felt chills run up her spine as she broke out in a cold sweat.

    ¡°W-what are you saying?¡±

    Derrick was serious.

    ¡°Be grateful. Your house will be able to inherit the superior genes of the Berkley family. Oh, but don¡¯t get any ideas. The Berkley family will never recognise your child as one of our own.¡±

    Rosetta tried to escape from Derrick, who had just spoken such a thing, but she wasn¡¯t able to because of the underlings surrounding her.

    ¡°The infamous Duchess should be grateful for receiving the excellent genes of this Lord Derrick!¡±

    When Derrick reached out to her, Rosetta tried to resist but was easily pressed down.

    ¡°N-no, stop! Somebody help!¡±

    The students and teachers passing through the hallway looked away.

    They didn¡¯t want to get involved with Derrick and the Berkley family.

    And there was no value in helping someone of Rosetta¡¯s status.

    (...why are you looking at me with such eyes?! Why?!)

    Her mouth had been covered up to muffle her screaming, so all Rosetta could do was re at them.

    That¡¯s when one of the underlings was sent flying.

    ¡°...huh?¡±

    After seeing one of Derrick¡¯s underlings blown away, Rosetta turned her head to look in the opposite direction he flew.

    Standing there was Liam, who had Kurt and Wace by his sides.

    ¡°Who are you? I¡¯ve never seen your face here before.¡±

    At Liam¡¯sment, Wace had gone pale,

    ¡°Liam, that¡¯s Baron Berkley!¡±

    Kurt was surprised,

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that the winner of the previous tournament? Wasn¡¯t he a student of the second school building?¡±

    Kurt didn¡¯t seem to know much about the Berkley family.

    Liam was the same,

    ¡°Then why is he here? Nevermind, it doesn¡¯t matter. Hey, get out of my way.¡±

    After being told that by Liam, Derrick felt the blood rush to his head and started yelling,

    ¡°Bastard, who the hell do you think you¡¯re taking that tone with?! I¡¯m Baron Berkley!¡±

    Derrick was sent flying almost immediately after.

    Liam had closed the distance in an instant, sending his fist into his face,

    ¡°¨CWho the hell do you think you¡¯re taking that tone with? I¡¯ll send that question back to you. I¡¯m a Count.¡±

    One of the underlings who rushed over to Derrick realized the truth after hearing thatment,

    ¡°A Count? You¡¯re Banfield!¡±

    That¡¯s when the rest of the henchmen were blown away.

    ¡°Don¡¯t invoke my name so over-familiarly, you scum!¡±

    Kurt and Wace were screaming at Liam¡¯s actions,

    ¡°Liam, don¡¯t be violent!¡±

    ¡°GYAAAA!!! Liam, look into your opponent before you pick fights!¡±

    The underlings picked up the fainted Derrick and quickly escaped.

    Rosetta watched this all while sitting on the floor in her unsettled uniform.

    Liam approached her and reached his hand out,

    ¡°Hey, are you okay?¡±

    To that hand¨C Rosetta pped it away.

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Liam had tried to help her, but Rosetta just red at him,

    ¡°¨CStay away from me. I... even if I¡¯m like this, I¡¯m the daughter of a ducal house.¡±

    She wanted to thank him.

    However, Rosetta couldn¡¯t speak honestly because Liam was the one who helped her.

    She quickly stood up and ran away.

    (...why am I so stupid?)

    She hated herself that didn¡¯t have any power.

    She hated the surroundings that didn¡¯t help her.

    And she hated the pure and virtuous Liam that she was envious of most of all.

    She was d at first, but then she realised that it was the pity of a blessed person, and her feelings turned to hate.

    Rosetta hated her life at the elementary school.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    As I watched the figure of Rosetta running away, I couldn¡¯t help but think,

    ¨Cshe¡¯s good.

    I might¡¯ve already ascended as the head of a Count house, but she refused to bow her head to me because she was going to be the next duchess.

    Once she finally disappeared from my line of sight, Wace called out to me,

    ¡°Liam, you do know who that was, right?¡±

    I turned a smile towards the anxious Wace,

    ¡°Oh I know. I¡¯ve taken a liking to her.¡±

    Kurt looked at me and opened his eyes wide,

    ¡°Liam, your bad habits are showing up again.¡±

    Wace looked a bit uneasy after hearing thatment about my bad habits.

    But Kurt didn¡¯t exin.

    ¨CWell, there wasn¡¯t any real need for Wace to know.

    Wace was basically a good person.

    He wasn¡¯t a viin like Kurt and I.

    ¡°Don¡¯t say that. It¡¯s more like my hobby.¡±

    I wanted to make Rosetta, who had a lot of pride in her pedigree, to surrender to me from the bottom of my heart.

    It¡¯d be really interesting to have such an arrogantdy act subservient to me.

    I like honest and obedient people, but sometimes a rebellious woman is good too.

    Whether is was Tia or Marie, they all easily gave in to me.

    I didn¡¯t hate that attitude, but humans are greedy creatures that are always looking for stimtion.

    Every once in awhile I want to see the surrender of a rebellious individual.

    ¨CThe blood of the evil lord inside of me was roaring.

    This was the bad habit Kurt was talking about earlier.

    Rosetta, despair at the fact that you¡¯ve caught my eye.

    I will break you.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Liam entered the student dormitory while grinning.

    Kurt, who watched such a sight, exhaled once Wace was the only other person around.

    ¡°Liam hasn¡¯t changed at all.¡±

    Wace looked worried,

    ¡°Hey, will Liam be alright? I don¡¯t want my patron to disappear already. He turned the Berkley family into his enemy.¡±

    ¡°Family?¡±

    Wace became even more worried,

    ¡°You didn¡¯t know?! They¡¯re group called the ¡®Pirate Nobles¡¯. They¡¯re the scum of the Empire. In terms of scale, they can easily match a Duke¡¯s house.¡±

    In the Berkley family, whenever a child was born, they¡¯d conquer a territory and make them into a baron.

    However, they were all managed by the Baron, Derrick¡¯s father.

    They kept the lower ranks to reduce the contributions they were obligated to fulfill for the Empire.

    This was the results of prioritising profits over advancement.

    For this reason, the Berkley house was called the Berkley family, a collection of barons rted to each other.

    While they were basically pirates, they were an inseparable group that could create elixirs for the Empire.

    ¡°...they¡¯re pirates? Is that so?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re dangerous, we need to apologise immediately.¡±

    Kurt shook his head at Wace¡¯sment,

    ¡°That¡¯s impossible. Liam will never tolerate pirates.¡±

    ¡°But the opponent is another noble house!¡±

    ¡°Even then, they¡¯re nothing but bandits to Liam the moment they dip into piracy. Liam annihted the Peetak house¡¯s fleet for the same reason.¡±

    Wace¡¯s jaw dropped in surprise,

    ¡°The Peetak house...e to think of it, you did tell me that you both trained at the former Viscount Razel¡¯s house. D-don¡¯t tell me, you were involved with the incident that happened there?!¡±

    Peter of the Peetak house¡¯s manhood had exploded, so his enrollment into elementary school was postponed for his recuperation.

    ¡°B-but the Berkley family is no good! Liam can¡¯t win against them. It¡¯s not just their personal strength, they also have the pirates on their side!¡±

    Kurt shook his head even after hearing that,

    ¡°Even so, it¡¯s impossible to change his mind. Liam is merciless against pirates.¡±

    Wace copsed to the floor and buried his face in his hands,

    ¡°My independence is already over. It¡¯s over...¡±

    Wace was frightened by the Berkley house¡¯s inevitable retaliation,

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The student dormitory of the second school building.

    Derrick had bandages applied to his face.

    ¡°...I¡¯ll kill that Liam.¡±

    While he was still angry from being punched, nobody in the surroundings refuted his deration to kill.

    But Derrick went on to say death wasn¡¯t enough.

    ¡°Destroy all of his territory. I will take away everything he loves before I torture and kill him.¡±

    If the guide was listening, he¡¯d be ecstatic.

    But he wasn¡¯t there.

    ¡°Hey, what did you find out about him?¡±

    ¡°Yes! Well, this is all we have for now.¡±

    The information gathered was quickly projected into the air.

    With that, Derrick learned that Liam¡¯s capital held a considerable military that wouldn¡¯t be defeated so easily.

    ¡°¨Cbut there¡¯s a pioneer.¡±

    He noticed that there were pioneers that were still under development.

    ¡°There¡¯s only about a thousand military ships stationed there too.¡±

    Derrick smiled.

    He didn¡¯t have any front teeth.

    ¡°Send out my personal fleet. Contact my parent¡¯s house as well. Gather the pirates. We¡¯ll be using ¡®that¡¯. Advance on his home and take everything. Let¡¯s squeeze out all we can from him.¡±

    Derrick had practically no power within his family.

    However, he still had a fleet of three thousand under his control.

    If he collected other forces, the amount would double to six thousand.

    He thought it¡¯d be easy to burn everything if it was just a pioneer.

    ¡°Hihihi, Liam... I¡¯ll make you regret having angered me.¡±

    Derrick had decided toy his hands on the Banfield house¡¯s territory.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The pioneer of the Banfield house.

    There was amotion going on at the defense base stationed there.

    ¡°Commander! There¡¯s a fleet of six thousand ships approaching!¡±

    ¡°What?!¡±

    Themander assigned to the defensive base was surprised to see the enemy fleet projected on therge monitor.

    ¡°There¡¯s really six thousand ships?¡±

    ¡°Yes, there¡¯s no mistake.¡±

    The number of defense units they had stationed there had only recently increased to a thousand two-hundred.

    They were losing in numbers but...

    ¡°Are they fools? There were still pirates out there willing to pick fights with the Banfield house?¡±

    A pirate-like fleet was invading Liam¡¯s territory, which was greatly feared by pirates.

    They hade to attack the pioneer, but themander wasn¡¯t scared at all.

    Because¨C

    ¡°¨CHurry up with the evacuation of the nonbatants. The defensive base will participate in the interception as an aircraft carrier.¡±

    The extraordinarilyrge aircraft carrier of the fortress-ss, which Liam had decided to purchase after seeing Nias¡¯ sportswear, was a temporary base for the defense unit.

    It¡¯s performance was astronomically high.

    Fitting of its name of the fortress-ss, it was an aircraft carrier built like an impregnable fortress.

    Operators were giving out instructions in a hurry.

    Themander looked at the enemy fleet in disbelief.

    ¡°Why the hell would a pirate fleet pick a fight with us with only six thousand ships?¡±

    The Banfield house¡¯s fleet, with the fortress-ss as its gship, utterly decimated the enemy until reinforcements had arrived from their capital.

    The pirates were begging for their lives, but their pleas were ignored and they were ughtered.

    While the defensive unit was hunting down the enemy alone, the enemy had tried to run away, but then their allies hade.

    The enemy that had chosen the wrong time to withdraw had no way to escape.

    ¡°Just what were they trying to aplish?¡±

    Themander of the defensive unit tilted his head.

    The fleet that Derrick had gathered couldn¡¯t burn down the Banfield house¡¯s pioneer.

 Chapter 39 - Volume3 Chapter 6 Secret Maneuvers

    <h4>Volume3 Chapter 6 Secret Maneuvers</h4>

    The school dormitory.

    There were three men on the roof.

    ¡°How is it?¡±

    ¡°No problems here.¡±

    ¡°It looks like we can safely end this tonight.¡±

    The men were having such a conversation.

    Then suddenly, arge man d in ck appeared from the shadows.

    His arms were unusually long inparison to the rest of his body.

    An eerie mask adorned his face.

    The men drew their weapons,

    ¡°W-what?!¡±

    Therge man greeted them with his arms spread,

    ¡°Good evening, it¡¯s a nice night tonight, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Immediately after, more individuals with the same appearance of therge man appeared at the men¡¯s backs, slitting their necks with knives¨C leaving only one of them alive.

    Therge manughed with vigor,

    ¡°Please ept my apologies for disturbing your work. Now then...¡±

    The boy¡¯s dormitory that Liam resided in.

    After therge man disappeared from the roof by sinking into the shadows, he materialised inside of Liam¡¯s room.

    Liam was sleeping in his bed.

    Therge man reached out to Liam and... pulled the nket back up over him.

    Liam cracked his eyes open slightly.

    ¡°...Kukuri, why¡¯s it so noisy?¡±

    Having woken up Liam, Kukuri immediately dropped to his knee and deeply bowed to him.

    ¡°Please forgive me, Lord Liam. A dog had wandered into the building, and I was busy chasing it away.¡±

    ¡°A dog? ...if it¡¯s just a dog, return it to its owner.¡±

    Kukuri epted Liam¡¯s order.

    ¡°As youmand.¡±

    Kukuri disappeared as he sunk into the floor, gathering his subordinates as he rematerialised outside.

    He turned to the surviving man on the roof.

    ¡°Now then, who¡¯s your owner?¡±

    The frightened man didn¡¯t answer him and just continued to tremble.

    But when he looked into Kukuri¡¯s eyes¡ª he suddenly began to speak with a hollow expression.

    ¡°...Lord Derrick sent me here. I was ordered to abduct Liam and torture him.¡±

    Hearing that, Kukuri¡¯s men immediately pulled out their knives.

    But Kukuri stopped them.

    ¡°Wait. Lord Liam ordered us to deliver him to his owner. If we chop him into pieces, then he won¡¯t be recognisable anymore.¡±

    As he startedughing darkly, his subordinates joined in as well.

    The man who regained his sanity broke out in cold sweat.

    They were an eerie group.

    And what was with that magic? Even though he himself was an assassin, he had never seen magic like that before in his life.

    ¡°Just who are you people?¡±

    Kukuri raised his head and answered him,

    ¡°Who are we? Hmm... a n that should¡¯ve been destroyed, or should I say a n that¡¯s been revived from the past? Well, that story has nothing to do with you. We¡¯re returning you to your owner. You¡¯ll make a splendid decoration.¡±

    Kukuri¡¯srge arm extended towards the man.

    ¡°N-no, STAY AWAYYYY!!!!¡±

    Kukuri whispered towards the screaming man,

    ¡°You tried toy your hands on Lord Liam. That transgression alone is enough to warrant the death of both you and your master.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°GYAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!¡±

    The student dormitory in the second school building.

    Derrick woke up to the scream of his servant and got up while grasping his head.

    ¡°S-shut up already. My head hurts because of a hangover. Why are you shouti¡ª¡±

    When he looked around the room, the people he sent to kidnap Liam were there.

    However, they had been turned into indescribably eerie objects.

    ¡°¨C?!¡±

    It was so terrible that even Derrick couldn¡¯t bear to look at it.

    He couldn¡¯t understand why something like that was in his room.

    ¡°H-hurry and clean it up!¡±

    His hangover was instantly blown away and his heart started beating faster.

    (J-just when? When did he get into my room?)

    The security of the student dormitories were strict.

    Even though he himself carried out a n to abduct and torture Liam, security was still very tight.

    He had even hired some skilled knights to personally guard him.

    And yet, before anyone had noticed, this thing created in such bad taste was ced in his room¨C Derrick couldn¡¯t help but feel how unusual this situation was.

    The knight¡¯s who entered the room after listening to Derrick¡¯s cry were stunned, while the servants who entered were vomiting.

    ¡°Lord Derrick, are you okay?!¡±

    ¡°D-do I look okay?! Someone infiltrated into my room! M-more importantly, clean that up already!¡±

    ¡°No, rather than that, we should contact the staff of the elementary schoo¨C¡±

    ¡°Y-you idiot! These are the people we sent to abduct Liam! They aren¡¯t supposed to be in the school. If this gets out, various troubles wille for me.¡±

    Derrick knew that he was in hot water after looking at the situation.

    In the first ce, the majestic figure of the bodies disyed in his room¡ª this was without a doubt Liam¡¯s work.

    They were a message that said, ¡°I can kill you whenever I want.¡±

    Derrick grasped at his head.

    (Damn it! The fleet I gathered was annihted, my older brother¡¯s are ming me for the failure¡ª and most of all, I lost ¡®that¡¯. At this rate I¡¯ll lose my position within the family.)

    Derrick¡¯s standing within the Berkley family had significantly dropped after his fleet was destroyed.

    He had even earned the ire of his brothers, nothing was going his way.

    And most importantly was the fact that he lost ¡®that¡¯.

    At this rate, Derrick¡¯s family was going to kill him.

    ¡°Damn it, DAMN IT!!! Why the hell does he have a fortress-ss?!¡±

    In the ce where his fleet was sent, a fortress-ss spacecraft carrier was waiting for them.

    He couldn¡¯t understand why he¡¯d deploy a spacecraft carrier, which was rare even among the imperial army and high-nobles, on a mere pioneer.

    If he knew there was such a monster of a carrier there, Derrick wouldn¡¯t have even considered attacking.

    ¡°No, I still have a chance to save face. I need to get rid of Liam with my own hands.¡±

    Derrick was already in his fourth year of elementary school.

    Liam was a sophomore.

    If he didn¡¯t get rid of him before he graduated, his brothers would start to move.

    Once that happened, there¡¯d be no more excuses.

    ¡°...that¡¯s it, the tournament. If I kill Liam there, my position will still stand. He¡¯s definitely going to participate, exposing himself to the dangers of the matches.¡±

    It was only an elementary school tournament, but danger was only natural for an event that involved mobile knights.

    ¨Cyou couldn¡¯t participate in the tournament unless you were prepared for death.

    He would crush Liam during such an event.

    Derrick would use every resource avable to hunt him down.

    He had decided so.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Recently, things have been quite noisy.

    Justst night, a dog had identally strayed into the dormitory.

    I used to own a dog in my previous life, so I hope it got safely returned to its owner.

    As a side note, myrge-bodied escort Kukuri¨C isn¡¯t his name a little too cute for his appearance?

    I rated him highly though because he understood that I had a soft spot for dogs.

    Just like Marie, he was one of the petrified people that I saved in Baron Exner¡¯s territory, making him one of the greatest returns I¡¯ve gotten from helping out over there.

    In anycase, I was now in my second year of elementary school.

    The contents of the lessons weren¡¯t that different fromst year.

    I was tired of them.

    So instead, I was actively thinking about how to break Rosetta in earnest.

    The source of her pride seemed to be in her title as part of a famous duke household.

    In reality she was actually poor, but her status was real.

    As Wace said, apparently her house has been suffering for thousands of years because of the orders of a past emperor.

    She also had a refined feeling about her.

    As a possessor of the steel spirit of the udia house that didn¡¯t yield to their cruel fate¨C it¡¯d be interesting to break her down.

    ¡°But it doesn¡¯t look like it¡¯ll be that easy.¡±

    Considering how this was a matter of pride, this wasn¡¯t a problem I could solve using money.

    I didn¡¯t think it would be that easy to break that strong gaze of hers.

    Even if I unted my status as a Count, she didn¡¯t seem to care.

    Or rather, wasn¡¯t that only natural for a prideful youngdy?

    ¡°Now, how can I break her?¡±

    I wanted to make an arrogantdy kneel before me as I stepped on her head.

    That was the perfect image of an evil lord.

    As I entered the ssroom, Wace approached and pulled me to the side.

    ¡°Why the hell are you so happy right now?¡±

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m having fun.¡±

    I was looking forward to having such a proud youngdy surrender to me.

    ¡°I seriously can¡¯t understand you, Liam.¡±

    He was usually a timid guy, but I guess he was no longer afraid of holding back his tongue now that there was a chance I¡¯d disappear.

    There was also yesterday¡¯s incident as well.

    We were only half-way through the month, but he didn¡¯t n out his spending and had already used up all of his allowance.

    Was this guy even aware that he was my underling?

    Wasn¡¯t he just treating me like a convenient wallet?

    I wanted him to be at least a little helpful, but so far he¡¯s been pretty useless.

    ¡°Hey Wace.¡±

    ¡°What is it? Are you going to increase my allowance?¡±

    I held my head as I asked what I wanted to know,

    ¡°I want to know how to raise my status. Preferably a way that would use the least amount of time as possible.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Wace started to ponder my question with his arms crossed.

    Then he seemed to have thought of something,

    ¡°The quickest way would be to just buy it.¡±

    ¡°So I can buy status from the pce? How much does it cost?¡±

    ¡°No matter how much you offer, the pce wouldn¡¯t sell it. You need to buy it off of another noble house.¡±

    Wace went on to exin that there were many houses that only held their status in name only.

    One example being the former Banfield house.

    The thing is, status wasn¡¯t that easy to release.

    First of all, the house had to have enough money to buy said status.

    The head of the bought house would then pass their title to their son or daughter, who would then be married off to the buyer, thus giving them the right to inherit it.

    However, there was a catch.

    Houses in such situations were normally in enormous debt.

    ¡°If you could resolve their debt and other problems, then the Empire would recognise you taking over their status.¡±

    I started to smile as I heard that,

    ¡°So if you had enough money, you can buy status.¡±

    I was deep thought.

    Being a Count didn¡¯t satisfy me.

    There were many levels of nobility, the two higher than my own being that of a marquis and duke.

    And at a reasonable price, it was possible to buy the ducal status of another house.

    I had an idea.

    If I stole the status she was so proud of, there¡¯s no doubt that her pride would break.

    ¡°In other words, if I take a poor house under my wing¨C pay off their debts, and take their daughter as a wife, my status will rise?¡±

    Wace nodded,

    ¡°It¡¯ll go up, but considering your current status, your options are pretty limited. Also despite being a little special, do you really think you can take on theplete debt of another house? Rather than spend your money on that, increase my allowa¨C¡±

    I shut Wace up by flicking his forehead, and started formting my n.

    If I just walked up to Rosetta and said, ¡°Give me your status,¡± then she¡¯d surely re at me with cold eyes.

    Her rebellious attitude was nice, but I wanted to see her expression break down in despair.

    To have the daunting realisation that the status she had such pride in was robbed from her¨C what kind of face would she make?

    In my previous life¨C I could still remember those whoughed at my desperate figure.

    But now it was my turn to trample over others andugh.

    I stood up.

    ¡°You need to use the washroom?¡±

    At Wace¡¯s inquiry, I shook my head.

    No, don¡¯t stand up too. Why the hell would you want to go to the washroom together?

    And even though he was seated a little bit away, Kurt started standing up as well.

    Do you guys really want to go to the washroom with your friends that much?

    ¡°I¡¯m leaving because I need to call home for a second.¡±

    Inside of the ssroom.

    There was the figure of Rosetta sitting alone.

    The prickly feeling she gave off that repelled her surroundings was good.

    I didn¡¯t hate such things.

    Even though she wasn¡¯t that smart or athletic, she still worked her hardest.

    She had a mindset of steel.

    Rosetta¨C I¡¯ve taken a liking to you.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Imperial Pce.

    An urgent report hade in from Serena.

    ¡°Did something happen?¡±

    ¡°...Lord Liam has decided he wants to get engaged to the udia house. Negotiations will be starting soon.¡±

    When Serena¨C the head maid said so, the prime minister opened his eyes wide and shook his head.

    ¡°If I didn¡¯t know who he was I would¡¯ve assumed he¡¯s an idiot, but I can¡¯t help but feel like we¡¯re being relieved of a heavy burden.¡±

    The cold treatment of the udia house was something decided by the ruling Emperor of long ago.

    Many aristocrats have felt pity for them since then.

    However, there was nothing they could do to help.

    The infamous udia Ducal household was swimming in debt.

    ¡°Brian has already begun talks with their house. I¡¯m not sure if there are any ulterior motives behind this, but if they reach a decision, will the pce be okay with this?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no reason to refuse them.¡±

    The udia house, who had been suffering for a long time, didn¡¯t seem to believe the Banfield house.

    But they didn¡¯t know if they would ever have this chance again.

    They were bound to break eventually.

    ¡°I¡¯ll start talking to the people on my side about this.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not going to stop it?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you know their situation? I think the udia house has suffered enough.¡±

    ¡°I know, but¨C¡±

    ¡°Right now the virtuous nobles have their eyes on the Banfield house. There are rumours spreading that they¡¯re about to get into a conflict with the Berkley family. ¡±

    The prime minister smiled.

    The udia house was a difficult family to help with too little of a reward for doing so.

    ¡®To extend a helping hand towards such a house had no merit for Liam¡¯¨C couldn¡¯t be said.

    Save the udia house that had been treated so coldly.

    Those who heard such a thing would understand how noble Liam truly was.

    The prime minister had high expectations for Liam, who was going to seriously oppose the Berkley family.

    ¡°We¡¯ve left them alone for too long, it¡¯s time to get rid of them.¡±

    ¡°Then the pce recognises this union?¡±

    ¡°Naturally. Even if it¡¯s not enough, hopefully this absolves even a little bit of the Empire¡¯s guilt. Also, having a powerful Count that supports the Empire rise to the position of Duke is always wee. The Empire as of now is a little too corrupt. I want to clean out our filth.¡±

    The head maid didn¡¯t seem convinced, but she epted the prime minister¡¯s decision.

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll tell Lord Liam that he¡¯s received permission from the pce.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll leave it to you.¡±

    When the call ended, the prime minister startedughing,

    ¡°Count- no, Duke, I¡¯m looking forward to your future.¡±

 Chapter 40 - Volume 3 Chapter 7 Claudia of Steel

    <h4>Volume 3 Chapter 7 udia of Steel</h4>

    Rosetta was at her limits.

    Just like how both her grandmother and mother had broken, Rosetta was slowly being worn down by her time at elementary school.

    ¡°I... I just... I wanted to escape from this miserable life...¡±

    She wanted a way out of this endless hell.

    But reality was ruthless.

    Everyday she was reminded of the difference between herself and her peers.

    By the time her second year was about to end, the backs of her ssmates were no longer in sight.

    She didn¡¯t understand anything that went on in ss.

    During martial arts practice, she wasn¡¯t able to eveny a finger on the girls that were smaller than her.

    And no matter how hard she worked, this never changed.

    She was even bing doubtful of whether or not she was human like everyone else.

    She copsed on her bed.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want this anymore... If I had known I¡¯d feel this miserable, it would¡¯ve been better if I was never born.¡±

    She remembered the sad faces of her mother and grandmother when they sent her off to elementary school.

    They were really painful expressions.

    Even though the two of them had no choice but to send her, they told Rosetta, ¡°It¡¯s okay to give up.¡±

    But Rosetta couldn¡¯t ept that.

    She didn¡¯t want to because it felt like was admitting her loss.

    However, aftering to elementary school, she learned that she didn¡¯t have any chance of winning at all, she had lost from the beginning.

    Rosetta¡¯s spirit was broken.

    If she had any before she came here, it had already been shattered.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The faculty office of the elementary school.

    The teachers were having a meeting.

    ¡°As for udia¡¯s case...¡±

    Professor John, who was being questioned, had a hard time responding,

    ¡°She¡¯s going through a difficult time right now. If possible, try to be nice to her.¡±

    At the elementary school, Rosetta wasn¡¯t being bullied as harshly as she normally would be.

    However, there was still her past history to consider.

    And above all else was the fact that she was clearly at a different level than the other students.

    It wasn¡¯t a problem of character, but a simple matter of financial strength and status.

    There wasn¡¯t anyone to me for the situation.

    Or rather, they knew that she was trying her best.

    Therefore, they tried their best to treat her delicately.

    They couldn¡¯t be angry with her.

    It wasn¡¯t her fault.

    But Rosetta seemed to perceive it as neglect.

    Another teacher jumped in,

    ¡°Why don¡¯t we let her rest for a while? Take some time off of school?¡±

    Professor John shook his head,

    ¡°The monitoring officials will start toin. The situation is moreplicated than that.¡±

    Those who had kept the udia house under watch for millenia were merciless.

    They were always thinking about how they could break their spirits.

    Such people had been gathered and continued to do so to this day.

    Whenever the teachers tried to let Rosetta catch a break, the monitoring officials would start toin,

    ¡®Are you going against the orders of thete Emperor?¡¯

    Such a threat couldn¡¯t be refuted by mere teachers.

    So they were prohibited from lending a hand.

    ¡°Is there any way we can help her?¡±

    The teachers couldn¡¯t do anything.

    Then suddenly another teacher burst into the faculty office.

    ¡°We have a problem!¡±

    Professor John turned his head,

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s about the next mobile knight tournament! Derrick is entering, but so is Liam!¡±

    The teachers stood up after hearing that,

    ¡°¨Clet¡¯s cancel it immediately.¡±

    Liam was going to kill Derrick.

    Although he was usually calm and mature, Liam was famous for being merciless when it came to pirates.

    Problems would surely arise if Liam and Derrick fought in mobile knights.

    ¡°Let¡¯s ask Liam if he can avoid participating this time. Otherwise...¡±

    However, the teacher who brought in the news shook his head,

    ¡°Derrick himself expressed his desire for him to enter. If we didn¡¯t allow it, he said we¡¯d incur his wrath.¡±

    Professor John immediately went to report to his superior,

    ¡°Just what is he thinking?¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    It was the prime minister who received the report from the elementary school.

    ¡°...hmm, this is interesting. Should I leave this alone?¡±

    And the subordinate who brought the report to him was¨C Tia.

    She was officially assigned to work for the prime minister as an official.

    ¡°Lord Liam will be pleased with this development.¡±

    While looking at the smiling Tia, the prime minister invited her to officially be his subordinate.

    That was evidence of how capable he thought Tia was,

    ¡°Christiana, have you ever considered bing an official vassal of the Empire?¡±

    Tia responded immediately,

    ¡°I never have.¡±

    Hearing that, the prime minister withdrew,

    ¡°That¡¯s a shame. Personally, I want as many talented subordinates as possible.¡±

    ¡°My only master is Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°To have inspired this much loyalty from a knight aspetent as yourself. He truly is something special.¡±

    ¡°Of course he is.¡±

    Tia, who was currently working as an official, was recognised be the prime minister because of her talent.

    He was going to invite her to work for him for the next century, so the prime minister was disappointed that she declined, she would¡¯ve made quite the reliable subordinate.

    ¡°¨Cnow then, the Banfield house and the Berkley family are going to soon begin fighting in earnest. Are you ready?¡±

    Tia had no doubts about their victory.

    ¡°Naturally. I will never question one of Lord Liam¡¯s decisions. Even if he made the wrong choice, I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll win in the end.¡±

    (She¡¯s reliable, but a little blind.)

    Tia gave off a dangerous atmosphere as she stated what she wholeheartedly believed to be the correct answer.

    ¡°That¡¯s great. You should rampage without reserve. The Empire will ept whoever the victor is.¡±

    The war between the Banfield house and the Berkley family.

    Who will win?

    Not even the prime minister knew.

    (In terms of scale, it¡¯s the Berkley¡¯s overwhelming victory, but the Count has always won unfavourable battles. Personally, I¡¯d like to believe that it¡¯s the same case this time as well.)

    He was cheering for the Banfield house, but he had to remain neutral as the prime minister.

    (In any case, it¡¯s not long until the war starts.)

    A war between aristocrats.

    First will be the quiet battles.

    Tough battles will start long before actual military is involved.

    Those who would benefit from the Berkley family¡¯s victory will likely support them during the war.

    If that was the case, then Liam had no chance.

    No matter how strong Liam and his house was, they¡¯d still lose.

    (¡ªthe question is whether or not those stubborn people will support the Count.)

    For him to win, the support of the stubborn nobles and merchants that opposed the Berkley family were necessary.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°Please forgive me!¡±

    It was Brian who was apologising over the monitor.

    I listened to the report while rubbing my tired eyes.

    ¡°The udia house head and her predecessor are suspicious of Lord Liam¡¯s intentions, and negotiations regarding the engagement aren¡¯t progressing.¡±

    I pondered this while looking at Brian wipe his sweat.

    Brian was generally a soft person.

    I didn¡¯t think he¡¯d take an attitude that looked down on them while saying, ¡°ept the engagement.¡±

    If so, does that mean that they refused because they hated me?

    The udia house¡¯s steel spirit wouldn¡¯t break no matter how far they fell¨C they¡¯re great!

    ¡°Continue negotiations carefully. Calm words that will slowly allow them to rx are necessary, understood?¡±

    ¡°O-of course. T-the problem is... the udia house can¡¯t see a reason for you to take Lady Rosetta as your wife.¡±

    ¡®Even if you fell in love with her at first sight, are you looking down on us with this marriage proposal? We¡¯re a historical Ducal house!¡¯

    ¡ªwas it something like that?

    Oh udia house, you truly are entertaining.

    ¡°Lord Liam, are you really going to take Lady Rosetta as your wife?¡±

    Brian had a worried expression on his face.

    I guess he was concerned if an evil lord like myself could truly ept a daughter of the udia house, who pretty much embodied spirits of steel and justice.

    The udia house truly was a great house.

    They¡¯ve constantly resisted against the wicked emperor¡¯s orders and endured harassment for millenia.

    In addition to that, they were a matriarchal house who thought of all men as trash.

    To have such a woman sumb to me would surely be interesting.

    No matter how long it takes to do so.

    Or rather, I want to see how much she could endure before then.

    ¡°Brian, are you dissatisfied with my decision?¡±

    Generally, I didn¡¯t allow anyone toin about things I¡¯ve decided.

    But I¡¯ve known Brian longer than anyone.

    I¡¯ll forgive it if it¡¯s only a few words ofint.

    ¡°...if I¡¯m speaking objectively, I¡¯m dissatisfied. The debt of the udia house is worse than the old Banfield house. There¡¯s little to no reward for building a connection with them.¡±

    But that was a problem I could solve with money.

    In fact, Amagi told me that with how smoothly development has been progressingtely, it¡¯d be possible to repay it in no time.

    It had to be true because Amagi said so.

    ¡°Even so, this is what I decided.¡±

    Brian¡¯s shoulders dropped when I said that, but then he started giving me a wry smile,

    ¡°I understand, and personally... this Brian here is cheering for you, Lord Liam.¡±

    The call ended there.

    I stood up and stretched.

    ¡°Brian has finally learned to understand my feelings. Even though I think he¡¯s misunderstanding something, that¡¯s only natural for Brian.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    At that time, a prototype machine was being tested at the Seventh Weapons Factory.

    Marie was the one piloting the luxurious prototype.

    In emptiness of space¨C she was flying through the air and debris at full speed.

    Nias, who was watching the test from inside a ship, was mesmerised.

    ¡°This is nice. Mobile knights built from luxurious materials truly are the best.¡±

    The aircraft built using a vast amount of rare metals and without worrying about the budget was more of a work of art rather than a prototype.

    Marie, who had just finished the test had returned.

    ¡°Nias, the reaction speed was a little slow. Did you really think Lord Liam would be satisfied with something of this level?¡±

    And the skill of the test pilot was first-ss.

    Although there were many problems with her personality, as a test pilot Marie was definitely an ace.

    She was a rare pilot who could manipte such a difficult aircraft to control as if it were part of her own body.

    Nias answered while operating a tablet.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be more careful when ites to tuning Avid¡¯s reaction speed.¡±

    ¡°Be careful with this child¡¯s adjustment as well. This child will be my personal machine.¡±

    Although it was only a prototype, Marie had taken a liking to it.

    ¡°Personally, I¡¯d like to keep it as an experimental machine.¡±

    ¡°If you¡¯re thinking of making the same thing, don¡¯t bother. If you get too greedy, we¡¯ll have to fire you. Also, I¡¯d like to have this child repainted white and purple. That¡¯s my personal colour.¡±

    To be able to dye your personal machine a unique colour.

    That¡¯s one of the privileges of ace pilots.

    But when Nias tried to arrange it¨C

    ¡°Oh Marie, I¡¯m sorry, but I don¡¯t have the permission to do so. That¡¯s already Christiana¡¯s personal colour.¡±

    Marie¡¯s atmosphere changed instantly.

    She was speaking politely so far but now she was¨C

    ¡°That minced-meat witch! To use my personal colour without my permission! I¡¯ll turn that shitty woman back to her original form!¡±

    She began bad-mouthing Tia in a vulgar manner.

    ¡°U-umm... Marie?¡±

    ¡°Oops, please excuse me. Oh well, I knew she was like that. An embarrassing woman like her, who self-proims herself to be the head knight isn¡¯t suitable for Lord Liam. Don¡¯t you think so?¡±

    It wasn¡¯t self-proimed, Liam had appointed her as such¨C but Marie didn¡¯t believe it.

    (I-I wonder how I should answer her? Or rather, when this person learns that Lord Liam is getting engaged, how am I supposed to run away?)

    But it wasn¡¯t like she couldn¡¯t tell her.

    ¡°More importantly, it looks like Lord Liam found a girl that interests him at the elementary school. He¡¯s already dered his intention to get engaged to her and has already started negotiations with her house.¡±

    ¡°Is that so! I wonder who it is? Even if you searched the entirety of the Empire, you wouldn¡¯t find a partner suitable for Lord Liam that easily.¡±

    ¡®To what extent did Marie put Liam on a pedestal?¡¯¨CNias was amazed.

    ¡°Well, umm... it¡¯s Lady Rosetta of the udia Ducal house.¡±

    When she heard that, Marie cried out,

    ¡°That¡¯s great! We need to celebrate this right away!¡±

    ¡°Huh? You aren¡¯t angry?¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam is my ideal master afterall. For him to choose a daughter of the udia house¨C this must be destiny.¡±

    Nias didn¡¯t answer back.

    Leaving the excited Marie alone, she started operating the tablet.

    Projected on it was the image of Avid being renovated.

    It was being upgraded using a mountain of rare metals.

    She was drooling at the sight.

    ¡°Ahh~ your wonderful. In particr, this line and gimmick here is the best. I¡¯ll make sure to check on you once I get home.¡±

    Nias felt a kind of affection for Avid, who was being renovated with everything the Seventh Weapons Factory had.

    ¨Cit was something akin to motherhood.

    Towards Nias and Marie¡¯s excited states, the other staff looked away.

    ¡°Is this all right?¡±

    ¡°Leave them to their delusions.¡±

    ¡°But Nias was talking about Avid as if it were her child.¡±

    Avid¡¯s renovation was progressing smoothly.

    Nias was drooling on her tablet terminal.

    ¡°Ahh~ I feel like I¡¯ll go insane just looking at that mythril shine.¡±

 Chapter 41 - Volume 3 Chapter 8 Two Thousand Years of History

    Volume 3 Chapter 8 Two Thousand Years of History

    I was now in my third year of elementary school.

    Luckily, I was able to get permission for a short leave to visit the Seventh Weapons Factory.

    I was visiting in order to check the state of my machine.

    ¡°...what are you doing?¡±

    There were a bunch of people who were hugging and rubbing themselves against the newly renovated Avid.

    Nias was among them, clinging onto it like a panda.

    They didn¡¯t seem to notice me when I called out to them.

    ¡°Oh my cute Avid, it was hard, wasn¡¯t it? Mommy here is so proud of you.¡±

    ¨CApparently, Avid¡¯s renovation was quite difficult.

    Nias had broken.

    Looking up at Avid, it didn¡¯t look that different.

    However, both the frame and the armour werepletely made of rare metals.

    It¡¯s performance greatly surpassed the current generation of machines.

    ¨CI was satisfied looking at the specs disyed in the catalog.

    However...

    ¡°I don¡¯t like it.¡±

    When I muttered that, Marie closed the distance between us in an instant and dropped to her knee.

    ¡°D-does something not satisfy you?!¡±

    Was she a ninja or something?

    Well, it was fine.

    ¡°I should¡¯ve sent over some gold as well. ck armour with silver lining looks nice too, but I prefer gold.¡±

    At that moment, Nias seemed to wake up,

    ¡°Who?! Who dares to sully my child with the colours of their poor taste?!¡±

    She said my preferences were in poor tastes.

    Marie stood up and drew one of the sword handles she had hanging off her waist.

    Almost immediately after, a de extended from said handle.

    It was a storage type weapon built for convenience.

    ¡°Nias, you¡¯re an excellent engineer, so I¡¯ll finish this with only one sword in deference of your achievements of renovating Avid.¡±

    Nias started yelling for me,

    ¡°GYAAAAAA!!! LORD LIAAAAAM!!!!¡±

    Wasn¡¯t her response simr to that of seeing a ghost?

    ¡°Nias, get away from Avid. Lord Liam¡¯s personal machine will be stained with your blood otherwise.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s enough.¡±

    I stopped Marie, whose gaze had frozen over, because it looked like she was going to kill her.

    ¡°Nias, as an apology I¡¯ll forget that you said those words just now, but the parts of Avid that are silver I want repainted gold.¡±

    Nias¡¯ eyes were filled with tears.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to!¡±

    ¡°You bitch!¡±

    She immediately refused my request.

    And as Marie began lifting up her sword in response, I stopped her so she could exin,

    ¡°The silver parts are connected to the inner frame. It¡¯s all mythril. It¡¯s the silver shine of something far more valuable than gold!¡±

    ¡°But I still like gold better. Better yet, let¡¯s paint all the non-silver parts gold as well!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s why you have poor taste! Can¡¯t you understand how brilliant this adamantium shine is?!¡±

    The crests and patterns on Avid were all silver.

    Nias refuted my desire to have them all repainted in gold.

    ¨CIf it wasn¡¯t her saying it, I would¡¯ve had her head.

    ¡°If you paint over the mythril, the performance will drop! If I were to quantify it in numbers, the output would drop between two to five percent!¡±

    ...I was okay with that.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine, just repaint it.¡±

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t even painted in the first ce! This ck shine is the natural colour of adamantium! Ahh... my cute Avid is being tainted in another¡¯s poor tastes.¡±

    Nias was crying as she clung to Avid.

    Marie turned towards me,

    ¡°Lord Liam, do you want me to torture her?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s a pitiful girl, but I quite like her. I¡¯ll forgive this much. However, as punishment she¡¯ll have to paint Avid herself, no matter how much she hates doing so.¡±

    I ordered Nias, who waspletely against me request, to paint Avid herself.

    ¡°Uwaaa~n, Lord Liam you idiiiiiooooooooot~!¡±

    It was fun to watch Nias paint while crying, and after making a few more adjustments to Avid, I returned to elementary school a few dayster.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The elementary school while Liam was away.

    Rosetta was summoned by one of the officials appointed to keep her family under watch.

    ¡°...do you want to participate in the tournament?¡±

    The officials asked Rosetta, who lookedpletely worn down,

    ¡°We generously allowed you to attend elementary school. Why don¡¯t you participate and make some memories?¡±

    ¡°As a daughter of the udia Ducal house, are you really going to avoid participating like a coward?¡±

    ¡°You can just borrow money to cover the rental fees. I¡¯ll even introduce you to an acquaintance of mine for the loan.¡±

    They knew that she¡¯d only end up embarrassing herself.

    While the lender would no doubt only give her high-interest loans.

    Any decent person would never try to get involved with the udia house.

    ¡°...I understand.¡±

    But she couldn¡¯t decline.

    This was because Rosetta couldn¡¯tst any longer against the officials¡¯ harassment.

    Sometimes it wouldst for so long, that she wouldn¡¯t be able to get any sleep for days on end.

    While they themselves would harass her in rotation, so the burden was small for them.

    ¡°As expected of the next Duchess! In addition to yourself, the Berkley family¡¯s Lord Derrick, and Liam¨C the boy who made a name for himself through pirate hunting, are participating this year as well! This will surely be an interesting event.¡±

    Derrick¡¯s name was called with the prefix of ¡®Lord¡¯, while Liam¡¯s name was left alone¨C that was enough to understand their allegiance.

    They were corrupt officials close to the Pirate Nobles.

    (Are they going tough at me when I get injured during the match?)

    The tournament was a dangerous event.

    There were even times when fatalities had urred.

    In such an event, anybody wouldugh at an idiot willing to participate with an outdated model.

    Rosetta¡¯s spirit was already broken.

    (Or rather, I just want the match to end quickly.)

    Then the official hammered the final nail in the coffin,

    ¡°Oh yeah~ that¡¯s right. It¡¯s better if you don¡¯t get any strange ideas. Apparently Count Banfield is thinking about marrying you, but the moment he finds out about your house¡¯s debt, he¡¯ll run away just like everyone else. That¡¯s it. Why don¡¯t you try bearing Liam¡¯s child? If a person who¡¯s widely known to hate him like yourself, prostrates before him, he¡¯ll probablyply. If that¡¯s all you¡¯re aiming for, we¡¯ll dly take care of negotiations in your stead.¡±

    It was a line said knowing of her hatred towards Liam.

    Rosetta had already given up.

    ¡°...do whatever you want.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Liam wasn¡¯t the only one preparing for the tournament.

    Approaching the the elementary school was located¨C was a pirate fleet.

    Hundreds of pirate ships were gathered together by Derrick.

    However, with only this many they weren¡¯t willing to attack Liam.

    ¡°Is it just us?¡±

    The pirates were anxious about ruining Derrick¡¯s mood.

    ¡°Lord Derrick, are we r-really going to be fighting Pirate Hunter Liam?¡±

    ¡°No matter how big of a reward you offer, I¡¯m not fighting that guy.¡±

    ¡°Even well-known pirate fleets never stood a chance against him.¡±

    To those who were getting weak-kneed, Derrick snapped his fingers.

    Illuminated in the hangar behind him was a new model of mobile knight.

    The pirates eximed in awe.

    ¡°This is the new model built at the First Weapons Factory. I forcefullymissioned it of them. I¡¯ll be using this to kill that bastard Liam.¡±

    Derrick¡¯s strategy was¨C

    ¡°It¡¯s an elementary school tournament, and if you¡¯re entering you can only bring one mobile knight with you. On the day of the tournament, you¡¯ll drop down from the atmosphere into the event venue while surrounding Liam. You don¡¯t need to worry about any nuisances interfering. The officials that watch over the udia house will be lending us a hand.¡±

    For the officials who enjoyed tormenting the udia house, an engagement with Liam couldn¡¯t be allowed.

    So they decided to lend Derrick a hand.

    Derrick was frustrated.

    From hisst attack on Liam, he still hasn¡¯t been able to get ¡®that¡¯ back.

    ¡®That¡¯ was lost in the Banfield house¡¯s territory, so it¡¯d be impossible to retrieve as long as the Banfield fleet was in his way.

    ¡°The one that will kill Liam¨C will be me.¡±

    At the elementary school, he was so scared that he couldn¡¯t leave the dormitory anymore.

    The rest of the students of the second school building were the same.

    They couldn¡¯t oppress students of the other school buildings anymore.

    Because on the off chance that they met Liam¡ª that¡¯d be the end of them.

    If it was how things used to be, then they¡¯d be able to do whatever they wanted, whenever they wanted.

    But now they were living in fear of Liam.

    ¡°...make sure to kill Liam. As long as you surround him with the new model while you¡¯re attacking, then he won¡¯t be scary.¡±

    He was only a little stronger than the normal person.

    As long as you surrounded him while attacking, there was nothing to fear.

    Derrick told himself that again to convince himself, while biting his thumbnail.

    (Yes, it¡¯s going to be okay. They might look like mobile knights used by pirates, but they¡¯re new, expensive models. I¡¯ll definitely kill that bastard Liam with this!)

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The first school building of the elementary school.

    Kurt and Wace were talking in the men¡¯s washroom.

    ¡°Me? No, I won¡¯t be participating.¡±

    The topic was the uing tournament.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you have a swordsmanship license?¡±

    Kurt, the heir of the Baron Exner house, didn¡¯t intend to participate in the tournament.

    ¡°There aren¡¯t any aircrafts avable for me to take from home, and even if I rented one out, I still wouldn¡¯t stand a chance against Liam.¡±

    ¡°I guess your home also has its own problems, huh?¡±

    ¡°Things are actually a bit better now that we¡¯ve rented ships from Liam.¡±

    Thanks to their support, the territory was flourishing.

    However, that was only to a certain extent.

    Kurt couldn¡¯t afford to be luxurious.

    Wace had a worried expression on his face,

    ¡°Hey, is there absolutely no way for me to stop Liam? If the Berkley family¡¯s Derrick enters as well, then he¡¯s definitely going to kill him and start a war.¡±

    But Kurt told Wace that it was impossible,

    ¡°Liam doesn¡¯t change his mind that easily. Plus, he¡¯s had his eye on Derrick for a while now. So... he was probably going to do itter anyway.¡±

    ¡°But his opponent is the Pirate Noble! They have a lot of allies outside of their family!¡±

    They had arge number ofrades, especially within the nobility.

    ¡°Even so, Liam will never show mercy towards pirates.¡±

    Wace was worried,

    ¡°I can¡¯t cut off my patron, but he¡¯s too virtuous... damn it, why can¡¯t I ever catch a break?¡±

    His life was full of problems while he was a royal, and even after finding a patron, nothing had changed.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Banfield estate.

    Invited there¨C was current Duchess of the udia house and her predecessor.

    With no servants to assist them, they were the only ones invited to Liam¡¯s mansion.

    They were greeted by the butler Brian¨C as well as the various knights and servants around him.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting for you, but who are the people that you brought along?¡±

    Brian smiled as he looked at the imperial officials standing in the back.

    ¡°Just consider us the udia house¡¯s escorts. You don¡¯t need to worry about us.¡±

    That¡¯s what they said, but they directed sharp gazes towards Brian.

    They didn¡¯t seem very friendly.

    Serena was silently watching them.

    While they were moving to the reception room, they decided to split them up because those officials were undoubtedly the supervisors.

    ¡°Brian, I¡¯ll lead the officials away.¡±

    When Serena told him so, Brian nodded,

    ¡°I wanted the Duchess and her predecessor to meet with a person of the same-sex, but I understand. Just leave negotiations to me.¡±

    Brian was willing to do anything so this engagement would go through.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The reception room.

    The current Duchess¨C Rosetta¡¯s mother, was supporting her predecessor, whoseplexion had be haggard.

    Brian rushed over to the predecessor,

    ¡°A-are you okay? I¡¯ll call a doctor right away.¡±

    However, the predecessor shook her head.

    ¡°It¡¯s already toote. All I want to do now... is to use the rest of this life for my granddaughter.¡±

    The predecessor¡¯s body had been weakened after enduring poor living conditions in a harsh environment for such a long time.

    ¡°...Sir Brian, I¡¯d like to decline the engagement proposal.¡±

    ¡°C-can you please tell me why? Lord Liam is serious about this.¡±

    ¡°And that¡¯s exactly why. The udia house is very happy to have such kindness directed towards us, but it¡¯s not just the debt that we¡¯d be forcing upon the Banfield house. Did you notice those officials who called themselves our escorts? They are... people who exist just to torture us, we can¡¯t push that onto you.¡±

    For countless generations, they were the people who used ¡®thete emperor¡¯smand¡¯ as justification to do whatever they wanted.

    They were merciless, andmitted atrocious acts since there was no one in their way.

    People¡¯s suffering brought them joy¨C that¡¯s the kind of men they were.

    The current head¨C the Duchess bowed deeply.

    ¡°At the very least, we¡¯ll ept Sir Liam¡¯s sentiments. For this kindness that you¡¯ve shown us, the udia house thanks you.¡±

    Brian started to cry after hearing about the udia house¡¯s circumstances.

    And thought,

    (Lord Liam wanted to help these people. This Brian here is so proud of him, and how he¡¯s always been so kind.)

    Brian wiped his tears with a handkerchief,

    ¡°...I refuse your refusal.¡±

    When the two looked at him in surprise, he hurriedly added on,

    ¡°It¡¯s Lord Liam¡¯s desire to wee Lady Rosetta as his wife. This Brian here will never give up!¡±

    The predecessor shook her head,

    ¡°It¡¯s useless. They¡¯d never allow such a thing. This order that¡¯ssted for over two thousand years carries much weight to it.¡±

    ¡®It¡¯s themand of thete Emperor.¡¯

    They¡¯ve continued harassing them for two millennia using this as justification.

    Nobody thought it would ever stop.

    ¨CIt just couldn¡¯t be helped.

    ¡°Lord Liam wouldn¡¯t falter at such a thing, and we already have permission from the Empire. The Banfield house is more than willing to carry both the sins and the debts of the your house! As members of a Ducal house, are you still dissatisfied with this?!¡±

    Brian¡¯s words didn¡¯t reach the two whose spirits had been broken.

    Even so, he still desperately tried to persuade them for Liam.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A separate room.

    Serena was talking to the supervisors.

    ¡°We already have permission for this engagement. This is the end of your job.¡±

    The officials sitting on the sofa put their feet up on the table¨C taking a vulgar attitude.

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter. We¡¯re working under the orders of thete Emperor. Even if their titles change a little, we¡¯ll still continue our work. We¡¯ll just have to monitor the Banfield house instead.¡±

    After two millennia, their organisation had grown deep and wide.

    They were a troublesome group.

    ¡°...so you¡¯re saying you¡¯ll be hostile towards the Banfield house?¡±

    One of the officials responded,

    ¡°In the first ce, marriage is impossible. That Liam brat went too far. The darkness of the Empire will swallow him.¡±

    Serena¡¯s eyes narrowed,

    ¡°After messing with Lord Liam, do you really think you¡¯ll be able to get out scot-free?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s just a single kid that a little stronger than the norm.¡±

    Seeing their attitude, Serena understood,

    (Having to deal with people like this... the prime minister has it hard.)

    Serena¡¯s shadow wiggled slightly as she thought so.

    Inside of it were two red eyes, which were carefully watching the officials.

 Chapter 42 - Volume 3 Chapter 9 Mobile Knight Tournament

    <h4>Volume 3 Chapter 9 Mobile Knight Tournament</h4>

    My third year of elementary school was at it¡¯s end.

    And the mobile knight tournament was about to begin.

    It was a really popr event that would even be broadcasted.

    Since even the upper-ss gathered to watch the matches, there was no doubt about the scale of how much attention it drew.

    Inside of the hangar¨C I was standing in front of Avid.

    Marie was holding my helmet in her hands.

    ¡°To be able to watch Lord Liam¡¯s battle up close, I can¡¯t help but tremble in anticipation!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re really that excited?¡±

    ¡°Yes! This Marie here is truly lucky to be able to do so!¡±

    It was cute seeing her cheeks flush as she ttered me, but I wasn¡¯t looking for that kind of response.

    Then another girl passed by me.

    It was Rosetta.

    She was wearing a pilot suit that really showed off the curves of her body.

    The eyes of the boys naturally gathered on her.

    She had arge chest and a well-defined behind.

    And yet nothing looked off-bnce.

    While the rest of the boys unabashedly stared at her chest, I kept my poker face.

    I called out to her,

    ¡°Hey Rosetta, are you participating as well?¡±

    ¡°...that¡¯s right.¡±

    If her re could freeze, I¡¯d be frozen solid.

    By now the story of me trying to get us engaged had probably reached her, so I¡¯m sure that she despises me right now.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you being a bit cold? I want us to get along better, Rosetta.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not interested.¡±

    As Rosetta walked away, Marie was expressionless.

    She was surely thinking about how Rosetta was taking an unforgivable attitude towards me.

    She was a yes-man who always agreed with whatever I did¨C or should I say yes-woman? Well in short, she was that kind of person.

    But right now I wanted a woman like Rosetta.

    I wanted to see the surrender of the girl who always red at me with sharp eyes.

    To see her face distorted in humiliation would surely be an amusing sight.

    ¡°Marie, who am I fighting against in the first round?¡±

    I had Marie check.

    The reason I didn¡¯t look into it beforehand was because of my position as her superior.

    All such misceneous matters could be handled by my subordinates.

    For I am their ruler.

    ¡°...it¡¯s Rosetta.¡±

    When Marie whispered that with aplex expression, I smiled,

    ¡°How lucky, don¡¯t you think so too, Marie?¡±

    In the very first round, I could beat down that proud woman.

    I hope you don¡¯t surrender too soon, Rosetta.

    ¡°Yes. Lord Liam, you truly are a person blessed with luck.¡±

    Marie replied to my joke with a serious response.

    ¨CAs I thought, this didn¡¯t satisfy me.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The auditorium was located far away from the tournament venue.

    Afterall, battles between mobile knights were dangerous.

    Since the audience could be put in danger, it was normal to watch the fights through holographic images andrge monitors.

    The matches were being broadcasted throughout the entire Empire.

    For a nobleman, the was a small show, but at the same time¨C an important chance.

    They¡¯d be able to confirm with their own eyes which heirs showed potential and grew strongly, while also seeing which ones had been given the wrong upbringing and should be avoided.

    In that sense, Derrick was seen as an abomination among the nobility.

    In the two times that he¡¯s acquired the title of champion, he had done so through threatening his opponents, winning without any personal merit at all.

    The nobles thought there wouldn¡¯t be any decent matches while he was around.

    From the spectator seats¨C Kurt was watching Derrick¡¯s match.

    ¡°It¡¯s a terrible fight.¡±

    While Wace was betting on Derrick¡¯s victory.

    It was because he was sure that he¡¯d win.

    Even though Liam was participating and couldn¡¯t see him, Kurt was wondering if that was okay.

    ¡°It¡¯s a luxury aircraft, but from which weapon factory? From what I can see... maybe it¡¯s a new model from the third one?¡±

    Derrick¡¯s aircraft was a state-of-the-art mobile knight.

    It was a model that hasn¡¯t even been used in the imperial army yet.

    Sitting next to the two who were talking was Nias, the representative from the Seventh Weapons Factory invited by Liam.

    There were stakeholders sitting around them.

    In the audience seats, there were representatives from the various factories who hade to show off their new machines.

    ¡°It¡¯s an aircraft from the First Weapons Factory. It¡¯s a model built by taking thebined technology from the other factories avable to them since they¡¯re based on the imperial capital.¡±

    It was a bitter-sounding exnation that sounded like it had a grudge behind it.

    Kurt whispered while amazed,

    ¡°I-is that so? Can Liam win?¡±

    Despite Derrick¡¯sck of skill, the new model¡¯s overwhelming performance was still something to be amazed at.

    Nias grinned,

    ¡°¡®Can he win?¡¯ It won¡¯t even be a match, I¡¯m just worried...¡±

    At that moment, her expression turned serious.

    At the end of her line of sight were the representatives of the First Weapons Factory.

    They were also being red at by the other representatives.

    ¡°...if it¡¯ll be a decent fight, that is.¡±

    For the weapon factories, this tournament was a great opportunity to show off their aircrafts and products while boosting sales.

    Nias expected Liam to do the same thing for herself that Derrick did for the First Weapons Factory¡¯s new model. She was just worried if it would end too quickly.

    Wace looked at the holographic image and shook his head,

    ¡°That¡¯s just in terrible.¡±

    Liam was going to participate in the next match, but before that, Rosetta entered with a training model from the elementary school.

    Her aircraft looked liked it was hastily repaired, barely one step away from falling apart.

    Nias narrowed her eyes,

    ¡°That aircraft is over it¡¯s limit. The pilot is in danger.¡±

    Kurt agreed,

    ¡°Yeah, this is dangerous for her... Oh, Liam¡¯s here!¡±

    But when Liam appeared, his expression immediately changed to an excited one.

    Wace, who was sitting next to himmented, ¡°...don¡¯t you like Liam a little too much?¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    I dropped into the match venue in Avid.

    Even if it was only a venue built for the tournament, it was a wastndpared to the area of the the elementary school was based on.

    There was nothing around.

    If I were topare the distance to something of my previous life, the school and the spectator seats would be in Japan, but the match venues would be held in Australia all the way across the ocean.

    ¡°I can¡¯t reallypare it to the rest of the Empire because the scale is too different.¡±

    The space within the cockpit was wide.

    They must have used space magic, because my seat was floating in the middle of it all.

    The luxuriously built cockpit was veryfortable.

    Now then...

    In front of me was a rather old aircraft.

    It¡¯s pilot was Rosetta.

    She tried to say something to me at the beginning of the match, but I couldn¡¯t hear her.

    On the monitor projected into the air, the other person¡¯s cockpit was visible.

    Rosetta was leaning forward with a raised face, ring at me.

    ¨CI was thrilled.

    Squished inside of a narrow cockpit seat, she was directing all of her hostility my way.

    The aircraft I was piloting was Avid.

    Not only was there an overwhelming difference between our machines, my evaluations in martial training were far above hers.

    I¡¯d like to express my full respect for her spirit that still hadn¡¯t broken yet, even though this was a match that she had lost from the beginning.

    Well, let¡¯s see how long it¡¯ll take for her to give in.

    I¡¯ve already made enough preparations.

    ¡°Rosetta, no one will me you if you surrender.¡±

    She answered my cheap provocation,

    ¡°...up.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°I said shut up! Do you really think you have no chance of losing?! If it¡¯s a real battle, then even I still have a chance!¡±

    ¨Cshe was trying so hard to fight the odds that I couldn¡¯t help but find her cute.

    I was really impressed with the strength of her spirit that actually made her believe she had a chance despite the hopeless situation she was in.

    ¡°Or so you say, but reality only smiles upon the strong. If you ept your loss and bow down to me, I¡¯ll make sure treat you delicately.¡±

    ¡°Like hell I will!¡±

    As soon as the start of the match was announced, Rosetta charged.

    The figure of her approaching me with her poor maneuvering skills¨C wasughable.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    In her heart, Rosetta knew that she couldn¡¯t win against the aircraft in front of her.

    It waspletely different from the rented mobile knight she was piloting.

    As her aircraft stepped in and swung it¡¯s sword, the machine in front of her¨C Avid, easily avoided it with a light gait, in spite of its size.

    Liam didn¡¯t even draw Avid¡¯s weapon.

    ¡°You! YOU!!!¡±

    She moved the older model that didn¡¯t have very good auto-assist functions to sh at Avid.

    But Avid calmly dodged her without kicking up any earth at all.

    Despite being such arge aircraft, no sounds or vibrations resounded whenever it moved.

    ¡°How much money did you spend to make such a thing?!¡±

    She wanted to cry.

    But she held herself back.

    At the very least, she wantednd a single hit on it, but that¡¯s when Avid caught the de.

    To have arge mobile knight reproduce such delicate movements would usually result in its hands being destroyed.

    But Avid didn¡¯t break.

    On the contrary¨C it was the sword that shattered.

    ¡°It¡¯s as if that de was made of ss.¡±

    The quality of it was certainly bad, but it still wouldn¡¯t break that easily.

    ¡°...don¡¯t look down on me! Especially not someone like you!¡±

    Rosetta was jealous of Liam.

    Stronger than anything, he was the embodiment of what the ideal noble was supposed to be.

    She yearned for that figure full of confidence.

    ¨Cbut when she looked at herself inparison, she couldn¡¯t help but feel frustrated.

    ¡°aaaaaAHHHHHH-!!!¡±

    Losing herself, she jumped forward in a tackle¨C but then Avid pulled out it¡¯s sword.

    It was a special kind of sword called a ¡®Katana¡¯.

    ¡°...huh?¡±

    Immediately afterwards, the monitor that disyed the current status of each of the aircraft¡¯s parts shed red.

    All of its limbs were cut off.

    Suddenly losing its support, the main body fell to the ground after flipping onto its back.

    The insides of the cockpit shook violently.

    ¡°-ugh!¡±

    And when she thought it was finally over, Avid had stepped on her.

    Looking up at Avid from the inside of the cockpit, Rosetta had to face reality.

    (...I knew I couldn¡¯t reach him.)

    Her spirit waspletely shattered.

    She finally broke down in tears andughed,

    ¡°Aha... hahahaha...¡±

    Avid lifted up what was left of the airframe, and dexterously pried open the cockpit.

    Liam then opened up his own cockpit and stepped out, directly looking down at her.

    (Do you want me to apologise and prostrate before you? If I subserviently started to tter you, it¡¯d be nice if you could give me some money. You broke the aircraft I rented afterall, it¡¯s going to be hard for me to pay it off.)

    As she thought so, she erased her smile and wiped her tears,

    (...I¡¯ve had enough, the udia house should be destroyed with my generation. I can¡¯t allow my child to live out the same fate. This is the only way for me to rebel.)

    Tightening her face, she started to re at Liam.

    ¡°That¡¯s quite the ungraceful figure you have there, Rosetta.¡±

    He wasughing.

    ¡°Oh, so it was possible for the honour student to make such an expression?! I know your true nature! Even if I lost the match, I will never give in to you! If you¡¯re going to kill me, then kill me already! You won¡¯t find anyone willing to bow to you here! I¡¯m a udia¨C Rosetta Ceret udia!¡±

    If you chose to participate in the tournament, you¡¯ll be told beforehand that you¡¯ll be doing so at the risk of death.

    Even if a fatality did ur, it¡¯d be treated as an ident.

    Many people used this as a chance to eliminate the heirs of hostile houses.

    Right now Liam hadplete authority over whether Rosetta was going to die or not.

    Even so, she was still able to show such strength because she didn¡¯t care anymore.

    (Mother... Grandmother... please forgive me. We don¡¯t have any other paths left. This is the only way for us to be saved. Even so... I wished that our lives were a little bit happier.)

    She didn¡¯t want anything luxurious.

    To marry a man she loved and live a modest life together with him¨C that¡¯s all Rosetta needed to be happy, she didn¡¯t need to be a winner in life.

    However, that was something that waspletely out of her reach.

    (¨Cif there¡¯s a next life, I¡¯d like it if my dream of bing a bride woulde true. I always wanted to try wearing a wedding dress...)

    The treatment of her house and the harassment of the supervisors had gotten to her¨C Rosetta had finally given up.

    And in response to her cry¨C Liamughed.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Rosetta, you truly are the greatest of gems.

    I¡¯d like to thank you for letting me hear a ¡®kill me¡¯ line in real life.

    In my previous life, I had a junior who would talk about how great ¡®kill me¡¯ lines were with fervent enthusiasm.

    But now I also understood the greatness of ¡®kill me¡¯ lines.

    I couldn¡¯t help but take my hat off towards your spirit that never broke.

    ¨Cbut it¡¯s all for nought.

    ¡°Lord Liam, I did it! This Brian here was able to persuade them!¡±

    ¡°Well done Brian, your timing is impable.¡±

    Brian gave me a report at the most opportune moment.

    This is probably because of the good deeds I do everyday.

    Or should I say evil deeds?

    The guide had probably done some things behind the scenes.

    Next time I see him, I need to make sure to bow my head towards him.

    I really needed to express how grateful I was to him, but how could I ever thank him enough?

    ¡°¨CRosetta, I have some good news for you.¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    I felt myself inexplicably smile at Rosetta¡¯s firm bearing,

    ¡°Our engagement has been officially decided. Your mother, the Duchess has epted it.¡±

    ¡°...huh?¡±

    Seeing Rosetta¡¯s stunned expression, I really felt like I won.

    ¨Cit was the painful expression of someone who just been betrayed by the family they believed in!

    ¡°Let¡¯s get formally engaged during our fourth-year¡¯s long vacation. Eventually, you¡¯ll seed as your house¡¯s head, and then... your status will be mine.¡±

    Rosetta was trembling.

    She must be vexed.

    The family she trusted had given in to me, and she had also lost her house¡¯s Ducal status.

    ¨CI felt this pain in my previous life as well.

    It wasn¡¯t just about how I lost my family. What really hurt was the betrayal.

    So I could understand her suffering.

    But even so, I will break her. That¡¯s right, I wasn¡¯t on the side of those who had things taken from them anymore.

    I was on the side that took things away.

    ¡°I even got permission from the Empire. Aren¡¯t you d? No matter how much you deny it, your family has already epted me. The house that you could go home to¨C doesn¡¯t exist anymore. Your hometown broke out in celebration at this news.¡±

    ¡°Eh, ahh...¡±

    Her voice wouldn¡¯te out. Rosetta was a poor thing, her family had been taken hostage, and she had lost her hometown.

    ¡°Rejoice Rosetta¨C for you are going to be my wife.¡±

    She was crying.

    Her tears spilled as she said something, but I couldn¡¯t hear it.

    I wonder if I was seen this way in my previous life?

    My chest hurt a little, but that was only because I was remembering the past, not out of guilt.

    I contacted Marie,

    ¡°Marie, keep an eye on Rosetta. If anything happens, take care of it.¡±

    When I gave my order, she rejoiced like a loyal dog,

    ¡°Yes! Please leave everything to this Marie here!¡±

    I turned my back on the crying Rosetta and returned to the cockpit.

    ¡°Now then, who am I facing next?¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The one-sided match was over.

    Wace had aplicated expression on his face when he saw Rosetta cry.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what he said, but to make her cry like that¨C Liam is a demon.¡±

    He tried speaking to to Kurt, but he seemed to be excited over something else.

    ¡°Liam¡¯s stronger than he used to be. No, maybe it¡¯s the aircraft that changed?¡±

    The conversation between Liam and Rosetta couldn¡¯t be heard by the audience.

    And now the next match was about to start.

    However, Nias noticed something unusual,

    ¡°There¡¯s static on the projection?¡±

    While small, the interference was gradually getting worse.

    Then suddenly, several aircrafts could be seen approaching Liam¡¯s Avid.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t those... the new aircraft models from the First Weapons Factory?¡±

    Although their appearance had changed, Nias could tell what they really were.

    Wace stood up,

    ¡°T-this isn¡¯t good! This is how Derrick¡¯s going to kill Liam!¡±

    Wace¡¯s face had gone pale at the sight, but the video was suddenly cut off.

 Chapter 43 - Volume 3 Chapter 10 The Pirate Hunter and The Pirate Noble

    <strong>Volume 3 Chapter 10 The Pirate Hunter and The Pirate Noble</strong>

    The hangar.

    When Rosetta¡¯s airframe was brought in, Marie¨C who was waiting on standby started giving out instructions to the surroundings.

    ¡°The daughter of the udia house is going to be Lord Liam¡¯s legal wife. Treat her with the utmost respect as to avoid staining his reputation.¡±

    The maids nodded and the knights lined up in formation.

    The soldiers hurried to set up a red carpet.

    ¡°Hey, where¡¯s the doctor?!¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s waiting in the back!¡±

    ¡°A change of clothes! Somebody bring her change of clothes!¡±

    The hangar was in a frenzy.

    Marie roared,

    ¡°Stop fooling around, idiots!¡±

    Rosetta exited out from the aircraft¡¯s cockpit.

    She was quickly supported on both sides by female knights.

    Rosetta looked faint, and her eyes were red and swollen.

    The knights, soldiers, and maids lined up, the knights pulling out their swords in wee.

    The soldiers saluted, and the maids greeted her with curtseys.

    As Liam¡¯s legal wife, she was essentially the master of everyone here.

    Marie kneeled in front of Rosetta.

    (I never would¡¯ve thought I¡¯d be involved with the udia house after such a long time.)

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, we¡¯re here to pick you up, but first let¡¯s get you some medical treatment.¡±

    Rosetta was confused.

    Marie had learned about her family¡¯s situation in advance, so she wasn¡¯t panicking.

    She stood up and smiled,

    ¡°There¡¯s no need to be frightened. All those here are Lord Liam¡¯s servants. ¨CHey you people, start escorting Lady Rosetta.¡±

    The female knights supported Rosetta as they led her to the back.

    The maids followed afterwards, and when they disappeared, the knights sheathed their swords.

    ¡°Let¡¯s see, now I have to...¡±

    As Marie was thinking about what to do next, Kukuri appeared from the shadows,

    ¡°Marie, we have a situation.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll deal with itter. Right now I¡¯m busy with Lord Liam¡¯s orders.¡±

    She tried to ignore him, but Kukuri didn¡¯t yield,

    ¡°That Lord Liam is currently being attacked by the Berkley family.¡±

    A blue vein appeared on Marie¡¯s forehead and her pupils shook.

    The surrounding knights broke out in cold sweat at her intimidating figure.

    ¡°...what did you say?¡±

    ¡°It looks like the people in charge of supervising the udia house have decided that Lord Liam was in their way.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The wilderness of the tournament venue.

    Surrounding me were dozens of pirate aircrafts.

    Among them, I could Derrick¡¯s aircraft.

    It looks like he prepared a new model for today.

    ¡°LIAAAAAAAA~M! I¡¯VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIIIIIII~S!!!¡±

    Derrick tried to make himself sound intimidating, but he was the one who¡¯s been constantly running away from me in school.

    I just wanted to ¡®have fun¡¯ with him, and yet he always found some way to escape.

    Seriously¨C he wasn¡¯t able to alleviate my boredom in the slightest.

    ¡°Don¡¯t run away this time.¡±

    ¡°You bastard, I¡¯llpliment you for pretending to be tough despite the situation, but don¡¯t think I¡¯ll let you die that easily. No help ising for you, I¡¯ve already made sure of that. And it¡¯s not just me! The guys who are in charge of supervising the udia house have decided that you¡¯re in the way!¡±

    I didn¡¯t really know what he was talking about, but I could figure it out.

    I¡¯ve heard that there were officials assigned to supervise the udia house, and if Rosetta and I got married, then they¡¯d be out of the job.

    I¡¯m sure this troubled them to the point where they were willing to make rash decisions like this.

    ¡°I see. I think I understand... now then, is this all right?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    The number of aircrafts surrounding me didn¡¯t even reach a hundred.

    ¡°I¡¯m asking you if you¡¯ve brought enough. I just recently had Avid renovated, but I couldn¡¯t really test it out in the previous match. Prepare a few more.¡±

    ¡°D-don¡¯t you look down on me! Get him!¡±

    The pirate aircrafts rushed towards me at Derrick¡¯smand.

    Their performance seemed to be pretty good.

    They might look like pirate models, but they might actually be new ones.

    ¡°Okay, at least with this much I can test Avid¡¯s new specs a little.¡±

    When I grabbed the control stick and moved the aircraft, the surrounding machines were blown away.

    ¡°Oh, isn¡¯t this actually pretty amazing?¡±

    Imended Avid because it was able to reproduce the One-sh better than before.

    ¡°Should I give Nias some praiseter too?¡±

    As I considered what reward I should give her, the pirates continued to gather.

    While I checked the condition of the aircraft, I couldn¡¯t help but be impressed with how smooth all of Avid¡¯s movements were as I dealt with my opponents.

    ¡°You¡¯re doing great Avid! Now let¡¯s try this out!¡±

    I was d to be able to test Avid¡¯s performance against Derrick¡¯s pirates.

    They felt a little more crunchy than the pirates I usually dealt with.

    But that was it.

    Then, as I continued to decimate them, one of the aircrafts tried to escape.

    ¡°Bastard, where the hell do you think you¡¯re going?!¡±

    After chasing down and impaling the fleeing aircraft, the rest of the machines stopped moving.

    Even Derrick was quiet.

    ¡°Now then, continue to entertain me!¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Hundreds of pirate ships were trembling as they watched the footage sent to them.

    ¡°...what the hell is he?¡±

    Somebody muttered,

    ¡°H-he¡¯s the devil.¡±

    The appearance of Liam happily ughtering pirates looked no different than a demonic being to them.

    New models were being scrapped one after another.

    The captain shouted,

    ¡°W-we¡¯re retreating! If we stay in a ce like this, we¡¯ll be a part of his hunt!¡±

    The captain, who decided to abandon Derrick and escape, was stopped by an official.

    ¡°What about our deal?! Weren¡¯t you going to help us kill Liam?!¡±

    ¡°How the hell are we supposed to kill someone like that?! You guys can go and assassinate him yourselves!¡±

    The confused official blurted out,

    ¡°It¡¯s because we failed to assassinate him that we asked for your assistance!¡±

    Then suddenly, multiple masked personages in ck rose up from their shadows.

    They came out squirming, and started killing the pirates.

    ¡°What the hell?!¡±

    The head of the captain who cried out was crushed by Kukuri¡¯srge hand.

    ¡°Oh, how fragile. The pirates of old had stronger bones. Now then¨C the official over there, there¡¯s something I¡¯d like to ask of you.¡±

    ¡°Stay away! I-I¡¯m an imperial official!¡±

    Kukuri and his subordinates gathered around him after killing the surrounding pirates.

    ¡°Now then, you just said something I couldn¡¯t let pass. What did you mean when you said ¡®we failed to assassinate him?¡¯ Who¡¯s ¡®we?¡¯¡±

    One of Kukuri¡¯s subordinatesughed as he stabbed the official¡¯s thigh with a knife.

    ¡°MY LEG!!!¡±

    Kukuri grabbed the head of the crying official,

    ¡°Oops, please excuse my subordinate there. Even I¡¯m troubled with how bloodthirsty they can get. Now back to the question, who sent the kill order?¡±

    Even though the official screamed, help didn¡¯te.

    Looking at the monitor, he could see their ships being attacked by the Banfield house¡¯s fleet.

    ¡°H-how?¡±

    To the trembling official, Kukuri began to exin,

    ¡°Oh, when we told Lord Liam about your ns, we were ordered to allow you to drop the mobile knights because he thought it¡¯d be interesting. They seemed about perfect for the renovated Avid¡¯s test run. I believe they were supposed to be new models?¡±

    From the already infiltrated pirate ship, they were ¡®permitted¡¯ to send out the new machines down to the.

    If they were to run away or cancel their ns, they were to be killed¨C the only path left for them was to fight Liam.

    Looking at the footage of the venue, the image of Liam toying with all the pirates that dropped in on him was being disyed.

    The frames of the new aircrafts were being destroyed one after another and being piled up.

    It was doubtful whether Avid could even be considered a mobile knight anymore. It¡¯s performance and appearance waspletely different from the standard.

    The new models didn¡¯t stand a chance.

    ¡°P-please have mercy.¡±

    ¡°Pardon~?¡±

    ¡°Have mercy! I¡¯ll tell you everything! Just spare me, please!¡±

    Kukuri smiled at the official¡¯s words, but it didn¡¯t reach his eyes,

    ¡°Too bad~ What I said earlier was a lie ¨Cwe can¡¯t forgive you. In truth, we¡¯ve already investigated all the important information you could possibly know, so we never really needed you in the first ce. Now then, I bid you farewell.¡±

    Kukuri crushed the official¡¯s head.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Inside the hangar.

    The officials who were supervising Rosetta were panicking.

    ¡°Hey, what the hell is going on?!¡±

    ¡°The pirates aren¡¯t strong enough to kill Liam!¡±

    ¡°In anycase, we need to secure Rosetta! As long as we have her as a hostage, then they won¡¯t be able to touch us!¡±

    While they were in a heated discussion, they could suddenly hear the clicking of heels.

    Click... Click... The faint sound strangely carried all the way to their ears.

    That¡¯s when they noticed that a woman had appeared near them.

    ¡°W-who the hell are you?!¡±

    As one of them shouted that out, his head went flying.

    The woman was holding a sword in each of her hands.

    They looked like kitchen knives¨C but expanded to the size of swords.

    ¡°I¡¯m amazed that his foolish order is still going on after two millennia. I can still remember the face of the man whoughed as he had me petrified in stone.¡±

    The officials couldn¡¯t understand what the woman was talking about.

    When they tried to draw their weapons, their arms were cut off.

    ¡°Y-you bitch, if you think you can get away with¨C¡±

    He tried to shout that they were imperial officials, but she said that she already knew that.

    After stabbing a sword into one of the officers, she grabbed the jaw of the leader with her free hand¨C and crushed it.

    ¡°GYAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t bother talking. You die here. ¨Cthe subordinates of the man who caused my two millennia of suffering, I can sleep soundly knowing that I¡¯m the one who killed you.¡±

    The woman who didn¡¯t listen to their words seemed insane.

    One of them shouted,

    ¡°W-we¡¯re just following the orders of thete Emperor!¡±

    ¡°I know! And that¡¯s why I¡¯ll kill you!¡±

    The official lost his life after being vertically sliced by the woman.

    The cut was beautiful and clean.

    ¡°In deference of the loyalty you¡¯ve shown by following that¡¯s fool¡¯s orders, I¡¯ll send you all to whatever hell he¡¯s in. Make sure to convey to him my message¨C ¡®Marie has been revived.¡¯¡±

    The remaining officials started trembling.

    They knew the truth about what happened two thousand years ago.

    ¡°...Marie? As in, Marie of the Three Knights?!¡±

    The head of the surprised official was cut off, the blood spray dyeing the woman¡¯s cheek red.

    ¡°I¡¯m so d to serve Lord Liam. I feel like those two thousand years of suffering was all for this. This has to be fate.¡±

    While immersed in euphoria, the woman continued her ughter.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    There weren¡¯t anymore enemies descending from the sky.

    The surroundings were filled with their destroyed debris, Derrick¡¯s aircraft being the only survivor despite it¡¯s legs having been cut off.

    ¡°H-have mercy! I¡¯ll do anything! Anything!¡±

    Despite all the threats he made earlier, he bored me.

    I threw the pirate machine I was holding away and stepped on Derrick¡¯s aircraft.

    Seeing Derrick try to desperately escape with just his arms was really funny.

    ¡°Now what should I do with you?¡±

    ¡°I-I¡¯ll never go against you again! So please spare me! I don¡¯t want to die!¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t want to die? Then tell me, why should I let you live?¡±

    Against my expectations, Derrick actually started speaking quite fluently,

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you anything! Whether it¡¯s money or women, I¡¯ll get you anything you want! T-that¡¯s right, what about elixirs? Do you want those too?¡±

    He had elixirs?

    ¡°...I want them.¡±

    ¡°I have a special device. With that, any amount is possible. If you spare me, I can prepare as many of them as you want!¡±

    It felt great to see Derrick beg for his life.

    But I wasn¡¯t interested in his offer.

    The guide will prepare for me whatever I want.

    Just like the alchemy box or the mysterious sword, anything I wanted naturally fell into my hands like fate.

    There was no need for me to rely on him.

    Besides, elixirs could always be purchased with money.

    ¡°Hmm... I have enough of them already, so I¡¯m taking your life.¡±

    ¡°W-wait, this is different from our promise!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t remember making one though?¡±

    In my previous life, I was deceived by debt collectors and made miserable.

    They didn¡¯t keep their promises either.

    So why should I?

    ¡°Are you really going to kill me?! Just a little while ago, weren¡¯t you the one that offered to spare me?!¡±

    ¡°That was a lie. I don¡¯t have a reason to keep you alive. It¡¯d also be troublesome if you were revitalised by an elixir, so I¡¯ll make sure to kill you carefully.¡±

    ¡°S-STAY AWAAAAAAAAAYYYYY!!!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s your fault for making me your enemy.¡±

    When my sword had pierced into the cockpit of the new model, Derrick¡¯s voice disappeared.

    As I lifted up the aircraft impaled on my sword,munications were restored.

    The timing was perfect, it felt like it got cut off right before my rampage.

    If this battle was broadcasted live, then I definitely would¡¯ve been stopped.

    Thinking so, I couldn¡¯t help but feel really lucky.

    One of the elementary school teachers started yelling with a pale face,

    ¡°Somebody, call for a rescue team!¡±

    They seemed to be confused by the situation, but it couldn¡¯t be helped.

    ¡°Professor, it¡¯s toote. They¡¯re already dead.¡±

    It¡¯s a well known rule that you have to be prepared for death when you enter the tournament.

    It wasn¡¯t my responsibility if Derrick died, and I wasn¡¯t afraid of some provincial Baron house¡¯s retaliation.

    Swinging my de, I threw Derrick¡¯s aircraft to the ground.

    Then crushed it under my foot.

    ¡°That¡¯s all they amounted to. Even if small fish gather together, they¡¯re still only small fish.¡±

    While Iughed, the teacher looked stunned.

    My surroundings were filled with wreckage¨C it couldn¡¯t be helped since I had to destroy hundreds of aircrafts.

    With that, I couldn¡¯t help but be pleased with Avid¡¯s improved performance.

    It was a good test run.

    For that alone, I¡¯ll give thanks to Derrick.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The audience seats.

    Somebody asked,

    ¡°Who could fight against that?¡±

    These were the true feelings of the nobility.

    The Berkley family were known as the Pirate Nobles.

    While the Banfield house gained their power through pirate hunting.

    If the two fought one another, the result was obvious.

    In such a quiet venue, the weapon factory representatives were desperately trying to hold back theirughter.

    But Nias already was.

    ¡°Its disappointing that I couldn¡¯t see the new model of the First Weapons Factory getting destroyed by Avid, but this should make the difference between us clear.¡±

    This applied to all the weapon factories, not just the first. All the representatives were hurriedly trying to escape the audience seats.

    Wace turned to Nias,

    ¡°All the engineers and scientists will see you as a threat. Do you know what this bodes for the future? You essentially dered war on them just like how Liam did to the Berkley family.¡±

    To Wace, who was foreboding the dangers toe, Kurt said,

    ¡°But if I know Liam, then he¡¯ll force his way to victory.¡±

    ¡°You sure?¡±

    ¡°More importantly, what about the tournament?¡±

    Kurt was more worried about the event being cancelled.

    The school seemed to have judged that it was impossible to continue in their current state.

    Nias¡¯ shoulders dropped,

    ¡°No way~! I wanted to see more of Avid¡¯s majestic figure!¡±

    Wace was amazed at seeing Nias genuinely disappointed by this development,

    ¡°For you to say that in this atmosphere... As I thought, the people involved with Liam truly are strange.¡±

    Wace shook his head in relent.

 Chapter 44 - Volume 3 Chapter 11 FiancÃ©e Rosetta

    <h4>Volume 3 Chapter 11 Fianc¨¦e Rosetta</h4>

    When Rosetta awoke¨C she was wearing sleepwear that she had never worn before.

    While she grasped her chest, a maid called out to her,

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, is there anything I can do for you?¡±

    She turned to look at the maid,

    ¡°Ehh... ah...¡±

    Her voice wouldn¡¯te out.

    Why was there a maid in the student dormitory?

    As if she could read her mind, the maid provided the answer,

    ¡°You didn¡¯t look like you were feeling well, so I¡¯ve been taking care of you. I¡¯ve already gotten permission from the school to be here, so you don¡¯t have to worry about that.¡±

    Rosetta silently nodded as if frightened.

    Her hair that was usually curled in ringlets was set straight.

    ¡°U-umm... can you tell me about the marriage?¡±

    The maid gently exined everything,

    ¡°Duchess udia has epted the engagement. After Lord Liam sessfullypletes his training, the two of you will be bound together in matrimony.¡±

    Listening to the talk of marriage, Rosetta still felt confused.

    Her house was one riddled with debt.

    Their duke status was in name only, and Liam didn¡¯t have any reason to help them.

    ¡°O-oh yeah, he said that he wanted the status of duke. So all the ridiculous things he¡¯s done so far¨C¡±

    The maid shook her head.

    ¡°Until recently the Banfield house has also been shouldering a huge debt, they didn¡¯t have any reason to build a connection that would send them back into it. Lady Rosetta, were you not aware of that?¡±

    They were a wretched house that had their court rank in name only.

    Rosetta understood how terrible that was painfully well.

    ¡°But Liam¨C I can¡¯t understand the feelings of the Count at all. Why me?¡±

    The maid broke out into a smallugh, giggling all the while.

    ¡°W-what is it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing, I was just thinking about what an enviable position you¡¯re in. Lady Rosetta, you¡¯re the first real woman that Lord Liam has ever wanted.¡±

    Hearing that, Rosetta felt her cheeks flush red,

    ¡°I-is that so?¡±

    ¡°Yes. In truth, all the vassals in the territory were worried about hisck of interest in girls.¡±

    Rosetta, who was being taken care of by the maid,id down.

    sses were currently suspended because the school was busy dealing with the aftermath of the tournament.

    There weren¡¯t any ns for when they would resume.

    Until then, she was told she¡¯d be able to take her time to rest¨C and so Rosetta dly fell asleep.

    (If this is a dream, please don¡¯t wake me up.)

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The elementary school meeting room.

    I was currently being questioned by the teachers.

    Even though it was supposed to be an interrogation, the vassals by my side were refuting everything they said.

    Marie in particr was especially interesting to watch,

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have killed him.¡±

    To that teacher¡¯s words, do you know what Marie said?

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you misunderstanding who tried to kill who? In an institute where you¡¯re supposed to be teaching the students the pride of the nobility, how dare you utter such lukewarm words. Rather than this farce, you should be praising the spirit Lord Liam disyed. Besides, the opponent should¡¯ve been prepared for death the moment he entered the tournament, we don¡¯t need to take responsibility for anything.¡±

    In this manner, she continued to talk back no matter what the teachers said.

    I silently watched these interactions while drinking tea.

    ¡°H-however, the events that transpired out there will bring out all those who have a grudge against the Banfield house.¡±

    I was keen on those words,

    ¡°What about it? Even if we didn¡¯t piss them off one more time, it¡¯s not like their grudge would just disappear. On the other hand¨C what¡¯s the point of all this? You should be d now that Derrick¡¯s gone.¡±

    Marie quietly added on, ¡°It¡¯s just as Lord Liam says.¡±

    She truly was the perfect yes-man.

    ¡°Lord Liam, your actions will bring problems to the school. Certainly, there were circumstances behind them, but you overdid it. There¡¯s also meaning in showing remors¨C¡±

    It looked like they were trying to say something, but I snorted,

    ¡°How much?¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m asking how much you want. How much money do I have to shove into your ipetent mouths to shut you up?¡±

    Several teachers started to stand up in anger, but immediately sat down after being red at by Marie.

    ¨Cisn¡¯t this girl actually pretty amazing? The teachers were trembling.

    However, I guess I had no choice but to buy off their displeasure now.

    ¡°I said too much. That¡¯s my bad. However, even if you tell me I need to show remorse over my actions, I don¡¯t regret them at all. Instead, I¡¯ll double the amount of donations I send next year as punishment.¡±

    ¡°B-but even then, nothing is resol¨C¡±

    ¡°Hey, are you seriously going to startining about me making arge donation? Or is that it? Are you going to start saying that the fine I¡¯m paying isn¡¯t enough for you?¡±

    The principal raised his hand and silenced the teachers.

    ¡°¨CCount, we got sternly reprimanded thest time this happened. Please understand.¡±

    Even the elementary school got warned! Wait, is that their stance on this?

    They¡¯ll take the money and shut up, but since it¡¯s embarrassing to have that revealed to everyone, they¡¯ll take a public stance of refusal.

    These kinds of subtleties made me want to vomit¨C but wasn¡¯t it cute seeing how easy it was curry favour once money was involved?

    Though money was something that could be infinitely reproduced, so I didn¡¯t really know if it was worth it.

    ¡°That¡¯s too bad, but if that¡¯s everything, I¡¯m leaving.¡±

    When I left the room, the teachers were grasping at their heads.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The meeting room after Liam left.

    Professor John crossed his arms.

    (He was clear with his intentions, but howe we couldn¡¯t say anything back?)

    If they were a bit more reliable, maybe things wouldn¡¯t have gone this far.

    That being said, he felt it would¡¯ve been useless, regardless of what they said.

    The principle in seemed to have been hurt by Liam¡¯s words the most.

    ¡°I swear, I was going to reprimand him.¡±

    When one of the teachers said so, the rest of them nodded in agreement.

    In truth, Liam had stopped things before they escted any further.

    Although the teachers knew the other party was in the wrong, they couldn¡¯t put the me on them unterally.

    However, the ones Liam had picked a fight with were Derrick¡¯s Berkley family, the Pirate Nobles.

    They couldn¡¯t afford to not be careful about this situation.

    ¡°Now I know why he¡¯s called a child prodigy. He¡¯s already more capable than most adults.¡±

    As the principal said so, he sighed with a tired expression.

    Professor John also felt like sighing.

    (It¡¯s troublesome when the students fall into delinquency, but it¡¯s also troublesome when they¡¯re toopetent.)

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    It was night.

    I was out in the dormitory garden wielding an extremely heavy wooden sword.

    Since my body was weakened by the school¡¯s physical education, I did some personal training every now and then to make up for it.

    While I was wiping my sweat, Kukuri appeared from behind a tree.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, I investigated the people who were assigned to supervise the Duchess¡¯ house, but it looks like their organisation has grown farrger than we thought. It looks like they grasped the weaknesses of various other houses, and ckmailed them into moving against the udia house.¡±

    ¡°Were you able to get anything else?¡±

    ¡°We retrieved as many documents as we could. What would you like to do with them?¡±

    If anything, these people were experts of running away, I doubt we¡¯d be able to grasp their weakness with just this.

    They might just me everything on the supervisors.

    ¡°Send them back to the territory and ask Brian for further instructions. He should know the most effective way to use them.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Kukuri sunk into the shadows and disappeared.

    That magic seemed really convenient.

    ¡°Now then, let¡¯s work up a little more of a sweat. My body still feels dull.¡±

    I noticed this when I was piloting Avid, but my body couldn¡¯t keep up with the movements of the aircraft.

    For a while, it looks like some re-training will be necessary.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Around Rosetta, who was visiting the men¡¯s dormitory, there were knights of the Banfield house.

    All of them were women.

    They had a separate purpose other than to escort her¨C they had to make sure there was no chance of infidelity.

    Whenever a boy approached, they immediately pulled out their swords without any questions. Rosetta hade to ask Liam if he could do anything about this.

    But he wasn¡¯t in his room.

    When she asked Wace, he answered, ¡°I don¡¯t know¡± and just when she was worrying about what to do¨C Kurt told her where he was.

    At the ce Kurt guided her to¨C Liam was there, sweating profusely as he put himself through some kind of rigorous training regimen, but when she tried to approach him, Kurt and the knights had stopped her.

    ¡°I-I need to talk to him.¡±

    ¡°Right now is no good. It¡¯d be better if you didn¡¯t get close.¡±

    Where Kurt pointed his finger, a leaf that fell into Liam¡¯s proximity was suddenly bisected.

    The knights who saw that swallowed their saliva.

    Kurt exined,

    ¡°If you tried to approach now, you¡¯d be sliced into pieces before you even realised it. You can¡¯t get close to Liam while he¡¯s this focused.¡±

    ¡°W-what is he even doing?¡±

    Even though it looked like Liam was just training his body, the moment that anything approached him, it was instantly cut.

    Rosetta couldn¡¯t understand what she was seeing.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it weird? I was surprised at first too, but Liam pushed himself for many years to reach that level of skill.¡±

    Rosetta fell into thought,

    (All the times I¡¯ve trained myself... is nothingpared to this.)

    Liam, who she thought gained his position at the top without doing anything, actually worked harder than herself.

    Now that she knew that, she couldn¡¯t help but feel embarrassed about her ignorance.

    (I guess... he is the person who helped me afterall.)

    Rosetta was too ashamed to meet Liam at this time, and left.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Banfield estate.

    Serena hurriedly contacted the prime minister to report about the documents delivered to them.

    ¡°What¡¯s the emergency?¡±

    ¡°Minister! These are documents about the people we investigated! It looks like they weren¡¯t just monitoring the udia house, but they¡¯ve also been acting as spies!¡±

    When the prime minister confirmed the data, he opened his eyes wide.

    Written there, it said his own secrets were being investigated.

    ¡°...it looks like I¡¯ve let them do as they please for long enough. It¡¯s about time we settle things. What of the original documents?¡±

    ¡°I made sure to erase the data on you alone.¡±

    ¡°It looks like I¡¯ve got even more work to do now. I¡¯ll make sure to thank youter.¡±

    ¡°What should I do with the rest of the documents?¡±

    ¡°What was the Count¡¯s reaction?¡±

    ¡°He wasn¡¯t interested in them.¡±

    ¡°...hand them over to the Empire. I¡¯ll receive them myself. This is our chance to grasp the weaknesses of arge number of nobility. If they have vulnerabilities, it¡¯s only natural that I¡¯d want to know them.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re making a bad face again.¡±

    ¡°Oops, please excuse me. However, the people mentioned in these documents will be gathered and dealt with on this side. Tell the Count that he doesn¡¯t have to worry about this anymore.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    After a funeral and the closing ceremony, I had finally entered into my fourth year.

    And with that, came the long vacation I was waiting for.

    ¡°Even after three years, it looks like home hasn¡¯t changed that much.¡±

    It was nice to be back, but the scenery was practically the same as I remembered it.

    A few years ago it used to be in a state of constant change, but now things seem to have settled down.

    Wace looked up at my mansion while holding his luggage.

    He was here because¨C he didn¡¯t have anything better to do.

    This guy wasn¡¯t a prince anymore, so it¡¯s not like he could return to the pce.

    ¡°Man~ I¡¯m tired from the long trip. While I¡¯m here, I¡¯ll need a private maid and an escort. I¡¯d be d if they were aesthetically pleasing. After that, I also want to have a big meal, the majority of it consisting of meat, if possible.¡±

    For an underling, he sure was acting like a big-shot.

    But while I was thinking about beating him¨C

    ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, Prince Wace.¡±

    ¨CSerena approached us with a smile.

    Wace suddenly started trembling, and his face had gone pale,

    ¡°IT APPEEEAAARED!!!¡±

    As he started screaming as if he had seen a ghost, Serena¡¯s expression twisted into a graceful smile,

    ¡°Oh my, your former-highness, aren¡¯t you behaving a bit too terribly? You¡¯re acting as if I were a ghost.¡±

    Wace suddenly took shelter behind me,

    ¡°Even a ghost would¡¯ve been better! Liam, why is the head maid here?!¡±

    ¡°Why? It¡¯s because I hired her to work for me.¡±

    ¡°WHAT?!¡±

    For the frightened Wace, it looked like it¡¯d be interesting to leave him Serena¡¯s care.

    After a short dy, Rosetta arrived at the mansion.

    In front of me was the current Duchess and her predecessor¨C Rosetta¡¯s mother and grandmother.

    ¡°Count, what could I ever do to thank you for¨C¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just happy to have finally met you.¡±

    Although it was interesting seeing the two act so humbly around me, they still weren¡¯t as good as Rosetta.

    ¨Clike, stop it already. You should try acting more arrogantly.

    I raised my chin and sent a signal to Serena.

    Serena then proceeded to guide them to Rosetta.

    When the three had finally reunited after such a long time¨C they immediately embraced each other and started crying.

    ...but isn¡¯t this different from what I expected?

    I thought their cries would be more like, ¡°I¡¯m sorry for losing our Ducal status! Mother, grandmother, I¡¯m so sorry!¡±, but it looks like they¡¯re more happy just to see each other again.

    ¡°Well, I guess we¡¯re still in the wait-and-see stage.¡±

    After leaving the trembling Wace to Serena, Brian approached me in tears.

    ¡°Lord Liam has finally decided to marry¨C this Brian here is so happy he could cry.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re crying right now, stop it already.¡±

    ¡°This cold response! As I thought, things just aren¡¯t the same when Lord Liam isn¡¯t around!¡±

    I left Brian¨C who seemed to be happy no matter what I said, alone, and called out to Amagi, who was silently standing by.

    But what was she doing all the way in the back?

    ¡°Amagi, let¡¯s go back to my room.¡±

    ¡°...would that please you, Master?¡±

    ¡°What would?¡±

    Amagi seemed confused.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Wace was stunned, seeing Liam return to his room.

    ¡°So it¡¯s true that he¡¯s attracted to androids?¡±

    To such a Wace, Serena coughed before exining in a somewhat mysterious tone,

    ¡°Lord Wace, if you don¡¯t want to die in this household, I rmend you don¡¯t refer to Amagi as an android ever again. Lord Liam will never forgive anyone who makes a fool of her. This isn¡¯t a joke, your head will be sent flying.¡±

    When Wace heard that, he nodded.

    (Kurt told me something like that as well. I need to be careful.)

    ¡°O-of course, he¡¯s my important patron afterall.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll trust those words of yours. Even so, Lord Liam sure does mysterious things. To even be the patron of someone like yourself, who could be considered neither a poison nor a medicine.¡±

    Wace fell into thought,

    (Huh? Isn¡¯t Serena¡¯s evaluation of me a little low?)

    ¡°Serena, your original masters were my family, you know?¡±

    ¡°Yes, but right now I serve Lord Liam. Is there anything wrong with me expressing my opinion on what may or may not be beneficial to the Banfield house?¡±

    ¡°T-there isn¡¯t.¡±

    Wace had the dark premonition that his long vacation would be incredibly stifling¨C and he was right.

 Chapter 45 - Volume 3 Chapter 12 Engagement Ceremony

    <h4>Volume 3 Chapter 12 Engagement Ceremony</h4>

    My room inside the mansion.

    I was lying on the bed sprawled out as I enjoyed Amagi¡¯sp pillow.

    It really felt like I was back home.

    ¡°Amagi, how¡¯s Rosetta doing?¡±

    ¡°After finishing her tour of the mansion, she¡¯s currently taking a break to catch up with her family.¡±

    ...boring.

    I wanted her to either break down in despair or act more rebelliously.

    But right now she just seems to be happy to reunite with her family.

    Or should I just be a more patient?

    ¡°I see... try to keep an eye on her. I took everything from her, afterall.¡±

    ¡°Everything? Does that mean you¡¯ve already embraced her?¡±

    ¡°Eh? What?¡±

    Amagi made a troubled expression.

    Isn¡¯t she cute?

    ¡°Master, she¡¯s going to be your wife in the future, if you continue to spend time with me like this, then friction might build between the two of you.¡±

    ¡°If that ever happens, I¡¯ll just throw her away. Problem solved.¡±

    ¡°If you abandon Lady Rosetta, you¡¯ll lose the trust of the noble society, Master.¡±

    ¡°Then, should I just put her under house arrest? I hate petty women.¡±

    My previous life¡¯s wife¨C she was one of them.

    She always found some way to find fault with me.

    I could still remember her taking the presents I gave her and throwing them in the trash.

    My chest hurt just thinking about it.

    If I ever saw her again, I swore I¡¯d kill her with my own hands.

    Maybe if I asked the guide, he¡¯d bring her to me?

    But now that I think about it, I don¡¯t really want to see her, so wouldn¡¯t it be better to keep the status quo?

    Let¡¯s just vent all my built up depressing feelings on Rosetta.

    She¡¯ll surely resist me.

    And in return I¡¯ll¨C

    ¡°Master.¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    Amagi¡¯s words brought me pulled me back from my delusions.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta is going to be your wife. Please treat her gently.¡±

    Unfortunately, I couldn¡¯t answer that request, so I stayed silent.

    After all, I only took Rosetta as my wife so I could break her.

    Well, with Amagi and Brian always saying, ¡°Take a bride already-!¡±, I can¡¯t really deny that I was feeling a little pressured to.

    Amagi was stroking my head,

    ¡°We¡¯re nning to have your engagement ceremony after you graduate from elementary school.¡±

    ¡°...okay. No, wait.¡±

    I sat up and turned to Amagi.

    ¡°Is there something wrong?¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s have the engagement ceremony as soon as possible. I want to do it during our vacation time.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not enough time to prepare.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. Were you nning to have a luxurious engagement ceremony for Rosetta? It¡¯s okay to be modest, just set it up quickly.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s also Lady Rosseta¡¯s education to consider. She needs to spend at least three months inside an education capsule first.¡±

    Rosetta has only gone through the minimum of physical enhancements and education through the capsules.

    This was the main reason for her results in school.

    Therefore, in order to improve her grades as soon as possible, we¡¯re having her use an education capsule during the vacation.

    ¡°Quickly send her into the capsule and prepare for the ceremony.¡±

    ¡°...as you wish.¡±

    No matter how strong Rosetta¡¯s steel spirit was, once we had our engagement ceremony, she be forced to ept reality no matter how much she hates it.

    I¡¯d also be able to take the udia house¡¯s Ducal status.

    But we wouldn¡¯t be officially married yet, so my position would be more like a future-duke though.

    ¡°Ah~ I¡¯m looking forward to this.¡±

    Rosetta¨C I will definitely break your spirit.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The education capsule room in the Banfield estate.

    Doctors, escorts, and maid androids were all present there.

    Rosetta had covered her body with a thin cloth.

    ¡°It¡¯s different from the basic capsule we have at home.¡±

    The contrast couldn¡¯t have been more distinct¨C a specialised female staff was currently preparing the high-end capsule for use.

    A female doctor exined,

    ¡°This will be a short-term adjustment. Considering the rehabilitation period thates afterwards, you should be done in about four months.¡±

    ¡°Most of the long vacation will be over.¡±

    Looking at Rosetta, the female doctor began tofort her,

    ¡°I heard about your grandmother. I¡¯d like for you two to have more time together, but this is Lord Liam¡¯s order.¡±

    ¡°Yes, I know. My grandmother wants this as well.¡±

    She wiped her tears.

    Rosetta was crying, but it was because her grandmother wasn¡¯t feeling well recently.

    Even if they used elixirs, they couldn¡¯t fix her broken spirit.

    Elixirs could cure any injury or illness.

    However, all life had a limit.

    It was possible to extend her life a little, but Rosetta¡¯s grandmother was quite old.

    Aside from her body, her mind and soul were at their ends.

    She was running out of time.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, we¡¯ll do everything we can in as little time as possible, but please don¡¯t forget that this won¡¯t be enough. Your full use of education capsule will start after you graduate from elementary school.¡±

    Rosetta raised her face,

    ¡°¨CI¡¯ll leave it to you.¡±

    She then removed the cloth before entering the liquid inside the capsule naked.

    Within the capsule, Rosetta was curled up like a fetus.

    (Grandmother, I hope you¡¯ll be able to participate in the engagement ceremony...)

    Falling unconscious, her body strengthening and studies in the capsule had begun.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Liam¡¯s merchant¨C Thomas was in a frenzy.

    ¡°Hurry it up! We need to get everything ready before the engagement ceremony!¡±

    Count Banfield¡¯s engagement had been announced.

    Moreover, there was less than half a year before the actual ceremony happened.

    The subordinates were rushing to load the containers onto the ship.

    ¡°Is there a reason why they¡¯re in such a rush? Couldn¡¯t they have just held the engagement ceremony after they graduated from elementary school?¡±

    Thomas exined to hisining subordinates,

    ¡°The daughter of the Ducal house¨C Lady Rosetta¡¯s grandmother doesn¡¯t have much longer to live.¡±

    The subordinates fell into thought,

    In other words, Liam was rushing the engagement that Rosetta¡¯s grandmother could see her granddaughter¡¯s proud moment before it was toote.

    Thomas was trying to answer those feelings,

    ¡°Apparently they¡¯ve been living quite the difficult life until now. If we don¡¯t do our best here, we can¡¯t call ourselves merchants of the Banfield house.¡±

    The subordinates silently returned to their work.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Something¡¯s weird.

    The territory has been strange recently.

    Usually, around this time some kind of wacky fashion would be trending, but what was popr right now was¨C my story.

    For some reason, the motive behind me rushing the engagement ceremony was suddenly because of Rosetta¡¯s grandmother.

    Watching the news on the monitor, the newscaster was exining the event,

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, who Lord Liam had decided to make his fianc¨¦e, seems to have lived quite the harsh life until now.¡±

    The report then starts to tell Rosetta¡¯s circumstances, and exins in detail how the udia Ducal house has been treated.

    They overdid it.

    The things they were telling were way worse than what Wace told me.

    ¡®And to save such a Rosetta, Lord Liam decided to marry her!¡¯¨C and so forth.

    The mass media in the territory was under my control, but it was kind of unpleasant when they made the lies so obvious.

    It¡¯ll have the opposite effect and make me look more like a joke.

    ¡°And the previous Duchess¨C Lady Rosetta¡¯s grandmother, isn¡¯t feeling well.¡±

    I¡¯ve been told that we were using elixirs to prolong her life.

    But this is the first time I¡¯ve heard that this was the reason behind the rushed engagement ceremony.

    I looked towards Amagi, who was currently attending to me,

    ¡°What¡¯s the meaning of all this?¡±

    ¡°Because Master¡¯s and Lady Rosetta¡¯s story makes good gossip, isn¡¯t only natural for it to be popr amongst your people? By the way, it looks like talks of turning it into a drama or a movie are in the works.¡±

    ¡°...you¡¯re kidding me.¡±

    They were making it sound like my meeting with Rosetta was fate.

    Despite there being no such elements, it suddenly transformed into some kind of emotional story.

    Are the people of my territory okay? Are they acting like this because they¡¯re at the breaking point?

    Did I tax them too harshly? Let¡¯s take a break, and squeeze them again after a while.

    ¡°Amagi, let¡¯s lower the taxes, but only a little bit.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s surprising. You want to lower the taxes during the engagement ceremony?¡±

    ¡°Precisely! Let¡¯s make things a little cheaper so that my people can have a break.¡±

    ¡°In that case, I¡¯ll arrange for it right away.¡±

    I wiped my sweat.

    My people were making me uneasy.

    Although they were making things convenient, they were scaring me.

    No, wait¨C I can use this situation.

    To have made a good story out of Rosetta¡¯s humiliating meeting with me, she would surely be mortified.

    I¡¯m looking forward to that.

    ¡°It looks like this engagement ceremony is going to be fun.¡±

    As I grinned, Amagi silently watched over me with a smile.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    When the long vacation was almost over.

    Arge number of visitors had rushed over to the Banfield mansion.

    Wace was dressed in formal wear, and was currently enjoying a drink,

    ¡°I was expecting a more extravagant part, but this really gives off a calming feeling.¡±

    Kurt was also invited, and attending the ceremony in his own formal wear.

    ¡°But isn¡¯t it beautiful?¡±

    ¡°For a Count¡¯s ceremony, it gives off an amazingly calming atmosphere. I¡¯m not saying he skimped out or anything. It¡¯s just happy to see that he didn¡¯t do anything weird.¡±

    Sometimes, nobility made their parties too borate¨C often creating events that can¡¯t be understood.

    ¡°The only kind of weird events that I know to have seeded would be bucket parties.¡±

    ¡°Oh, but aren¡¯t bucket parties ssics?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ve only participated in them a few times, but they¡¯re amazing. Definitely ssics. The person who thought of them must be a genius.¡±

    The participants were enjoying the food and drinks that were set up in a buffet-style.

    Kurt looked around,

    ¡°There sure are a lot of aristocrats in attendance. My father seems to be making a lot of greetings.¡±

    There were a lot more nobility attending than in thest ceremony.

    And Wace knew why.

    (Liam... were you aiming for this?)

    Liam had dered himself as hostile to the Berkley family.

    With them having amon enemy, the sensible nobles were gathering around Liam.

    Although they were still in a phase of wait-and-see, Wace was still surprised.

    (This doesn¡¯t bode well... the war between the Banfield and the Berkley houses, this will no doubt be a proxy war that¡¯ll involve the other nobles of the Empire.)

    This will be a war between the virtuous nobility and the unscrupulous ones.

    The representative of the virtuous ones being Liam.

    ¡°Ah, Liam¡¯s here.¡±

    Liam had appeared in the video projected into the sky.

    Both him and Rosetta were dressed in clothes of pure white.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The engagement ceremony.

    Apparently, both Earth and the Intergctic Empire had the tradition of taking kisses and vows in front of a great number of people.

    They were quite simr in that aspect¨C as I thought so, I felt the desire to see Rosetta¡¯s face, which was currently hidden behind a veil, grow within me.

    A man who had taken the role of priest told us to say our vows and face each other.

    ¡°Rosetta, how are you feeling?¡±

    When I called out to her, she didn¡¯t answer back.

    Surely, that was because she must be making an amazing face full of regret right now.

    ¡°Everything of yours will be mine. Both your family and the status you were supposed to inherit¨C all of it was taken by me.¡±

    As I slowly lifted the veil, Rosetta¡¯s face was visible from the jaw.

    Just from that, I could see that her makeup and skin was clear and beautiful.

    Her fresh lips were brightened with lipstick.

    ...huh? Isn¡¯t something wrong here? I thought she¡¯d be clenching her teeth right now, but that didn¡¯t seem to be the case.

    Or was this a state of lethargy?

    Well, as long as her spirit was broken, it¡¯d still be worth seeing.

    As I slowly lifted the veil and revealed Rosetta¡¯s face¨C her cheeks were flushed.

    Her moist eyes were shining as she looked straight into mine.

    ...hey, wait a second! Something¡¯s wrong!

    Did she already give up?! I thought she was a woman with a spirit of steel!

    And when I looked a Rosetta¡¯s face¨C

    ¡°¨CThank you for epting me as I am! Darling, I... I! I promise to always be by your side!¡±

    ...Darling?! Did she eat something strange?!

    This change was at a level where I suspected the doctor might¡¯ve brainwashed her in the education capsule.

    However, the maid androids told me, ¡°We did the usual treatment.¡±

    So that¡¯s proof that they didn¡¯t do anything.

    They can¡¯t lie to me, so I know that what they told me is correct.

    Rosetta closed her eyes and leaned in close.

    I thought she¡¯d be disgusted by this, I waspletely caught off guard.

    In anycase¨C looking at her up close, rather than cute, wasn¡¯t she like insanely beautiful?

    No matter how I looked at her, she was gorgeous.

    And so, I kissed her to advance the ceremony.

    A tear fell from her eye.

    Don¡¯t tell me, was she was doing all this to trick me?

    E-even that would still be okay.

    That¡¯d be proof that her spirit hadn¡¯t broken and she was looking to stab me in the back.

    Our lips parted.

    ¡°Rosetta, I¡¯m looking forward to our future together.¡±

    It was a phrase said with all my feelings of making her surrender to me.

    As I smiled while saying that, Rosetta wiped her tears with her finger¡ª and sent her own glowing smile right back at me.

    ¡°Yes, darling.¡±

    ...wait a second! D-did she actually fall for me?!

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    At the venue, there wasughter at the sight of Liam getting flustered.

    It wasn¡¯t augh made to make fun of someone, but more of one made when watching over another with a smile.

    Meanwhile, Wace was observing Liam¡¯s knights.

    The head knight was Christiana.

    Marie was her deputy.

    Both were talented female knights that just suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

    ¡°Where does Liam find such people? Two knights at that level are rarely seen even in the pce.¡±

    Then, at the engagement ceremony, congrattory messages were being read out.

    Some of them came from ministers.

    Wace silently continued to drink,

    (Does this mean the prime minister also has expectations for Liam? No, that old fox isn¡¯t that nice of a guy. I¡¯m sure he¡¯s trying to keep the bnce with the Berkley family.)

    However, if the prime minister did have expectations for Liam...

    Wace smiled,

    ¡°Well, as long as my patron ispetent and happy, I¡¯ll cooperate a little. ¨CI¡¯d be troubled if he suddenly disappeared on me afterall.¡±

 Chapter 46 - Volume 3 Chapter 13 Mistake

    <h4>Volume 3 Chapter 13 Mistake</h4>

    ¨CRosetta, you¡¯ve disappointed me.

    ¡°Darling, do you think this outfit looks nice?¡±

    ¡°...uh, yeah.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m d. Amagi rmended these to me.¡±

    ¡°...I see.¡±

    Rosetta didn¡¯t have clothes or possessions appropriate for her new status, so I had Thomas import various products.

    I told her she could have whatever she wanted¨C and she ended up choosing things with great joy.

    And now she was showing me her new clothes.

    I thought she was a woman with a spirit of steel, but she had fallen so easily¨C is this the ¡®two frame punchline1¡¯ my junior told me about in my previous life?

    Even so¨C there¡¯s no way I can ept this!

    Adorned with her dress, Rosetta spun around in front of me to show it off.

    Her hair was still curled into ringlets, but it was slowly turning back to its original state¨C she looked more beautiful the longer I looked at her.

    Personality wise? ¨CI¡¯ve been told that she¡¯s grown up in poverty, so she¡¯s actually quite humble.

    I didn¡¯t know the details.

    I wasn¡¯t interested in them.

    There¡¯s a budget being prepared for Rosetta, but I don¡¯t think it¡¯d be a problem even if she exceeded it a bit.

    Now that the engagement ceremony is over, we¡¯ll be returning to elementary school soon.

    Thomas even prepared Rosetta some special school supplies.

    Rosetta went on to tell me about various things,

    ¡°Oh, and darling, about tomorrow¨C¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re going to visit the grave? I¡¯ll go with you.¡±

    After seeing Rosetta¡¯s proud moment, her grandmother peacefully passed away.

    Rosetta was crying back then.

    She seemed to be recovering now, but she seems to rpse whenever she visits the grave.

    ...also, their thankful attitude towards me is troubling.

    ¨CRosetta¡¯s mother was so grateful she¡¯d start crying, while Rosetta herself was giving me this whole ¡®darling¡¯ treatment.

    Though, it did feel unexpectedly good to be thanked for something.

    How did this happen? As I thought so, the huge monitor in the room started broadcasting a drama.

    Rosetta¡¯s face flushed as she watched it,

    ¡°Oh, it looks like it¡¯s this time already.¡±

    It was a drama starring Rosetta as the main heroine.

    The moment I saw it, I was instantly filled with regret¨C it was seriously embarrassing.

    Are you really okay with this?

    Show me more resistance! Start crying, ¡°This isn¡¯t me!¡±

    ¡°She looks like a princess, that¡¯s not me.¡±

    The actress who was ying Rosetta¡¯s role was very beautiful.

    And the original herself seemed to be pleased with this... wrong. This is so wrong!

    On the sofa I was currently sitting on, Rosetta shyly sat down beside me.

    There was a subtle distance between us, but for some reason I couldn¡¯t help but feel embarrassed.

    ...where did the woman of steel from school go?

    Well, I was the only one calling her that, but wasn¡¯t her change to a young maiden in love a little too drastic?

    While watching the drama, Rosetta was blushing,

    ¡°My home wasn¡¯t such a big mansion.¡±

    Because this episode was still focusing on her life of poverty, I was somehow able to endure it.

    At the end of the drama, a handsome actor appeared to y my part.

    It looks like it was during the time before I left for the elementary school, while I was still in the mansion.

    He was vainly portrayed to be cool.

    The dialogue was written to make him look like a kind lord who cared about his territory, so it was obvious how little they understood me.

    Surely, this was the wish of people of what they hoped I¡¯d be.

    But it was meaningless. I wasn¡¯t a virtuous lord.

    Even so, I was worried about the filming location.

    ¡°Huh? It looks really simr to the mansion...¡±

    Brian entered the room with a service cart as Imented on how close they were able to reproduce my house.

    He looked really happy today,

    ¡°Please excuse me, I¡¯ve prepared some refreshments for you.¡±

    I pointed at the monitor,

    ¡°Hey Brian, it looks just like our mansion.¡±

    Breaking out intoughter, Brian responded to me while preparing the tea,

    ¡°Of course it does, we rented out part of the estate for the filming. In actuality, this Brian here was an aspiring actor in the past, so I approved of it with great joy. This Brian here even got to have a minor role in the show.¡±

    So Brian was involved in this.

    Or rather, be clear on whether you were an adventurer or an actor already.

    A little embarrassed, he happily added on, ¡°I even got to receive an autograph from an actress I¡¯ve been quite the big fan off.¡±

    ...that¡¯s nice.

    Turning back to the drama, the strong willeddy Rosetta just had her fateful encounter with the young scion of a noble house¨C myself, and the broadcast was over.

    There were a lot of things I wanted toment on.

    As for Rosetta, she was either really happy or embarrassed¨C her face was flushed.

    When the episode finished, she was looking at me.

    ¨Cshe looked like she was expecting something, but I didn¡¯t know what to do.

    As I thought so, Wace suddenly barged into the room,

    ¡°Liam, let¡¯s go back to school already!¡±

    ¡°Departure is three days from now.¡±

    At my immediate answer, Wace¡¯s expression broke down into despair.

    Rosetta turned towards Wace, her gaze frosty.

    ¡°Is there any reason why?¡±

    I asked him for an exnation, but his answer was pathetic,

    ¡°It¡¯s Serena! She turns into a demon whenever my manners don¡¯t reach her standards! I thought my life would change after leaving the pce, but things haven¡¯t changed at all!¡±

    Apparently he only wants to go back to school so he can escape from Serena.

    He¡¯s an idiot.

    Serena won¡¯tin as long as you¡¯re mindful about your manners.

    Even I get scolded on my bad mouth, but that¡¯s about it.

    ¡°This is a good opportunity. Let¡¯s make your training harder for the remaining three days.¡±

    ¡°Are you betraying me, Liam?!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m doing this for your sake, Wace.¡±

    Then, some maids entered and bowed their heads to me, before grabbing and dragging Wace away.

    ¡°I HATE THIIISSS~!!!¡±

    I drank my tea while listening to Wace¡¯s cry.

    It was my decision to take him as my underling, but subjugating Wace didn¡¯t really feel like putting a prince under my control.

    In this universe, he was my one mistake.

    That¡¯s when Brian told me something interesting,

    ¡°Oh yes, Lord Liam, we¡¯ve received a report from a pioneer that they¡¯ve discovered something interesting.¡±

    ¡°Something interesting?¡±

    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s a fake, but curious thing. Do you know ofary development equipment?¡±

    ary development equipment.

    They were devices used to terra-form pioneers into environments suitable for people to live in.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard about them. How do they rte to the device?¡±

    ¡°It seems that the device used by the ancient civilisation was far superior to the technology that we use today. The report says that we¡¯ve found an object simr to that tool. I understand that you like such things, so I had it transported to the mansion.¡±

    ¨CHolding my hand over my mouth, I went into deep thought,

    I recognise this pattern.

    Things like this meant the guide was involved, and every instance brought me great amounts of wealth.

    ¡°I want to check on this immediately.¡±

    When I stood up, Rosetta said she¡¯de with me¨C but I told her that it was okay, and she should rest.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A blue sphere was brought to the estate.

    It was about the size of a ser ball, and there were multiple glowing lines that stretched around it, creating a beautiful sight.

    Standing next to me, Brian exined,

    ¡°After cing this device near a, it¡¯ll slowly transform said into an environment that people can live in. It¡¯s a kind of talisman for pioneer teams, imitations are still being created to this day.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s amazing.¡±

    ¡°While it does have the power to makes prosperous, if used improperly, it also has the power to destroys, converting the absorbed energy from them into elixirs. It¡¯s a frightening device that was the death of many worlds in the ancient civilization.¡±

    It was possible to enrich ruineds, but the reverse was also possible.

    When I touched it, the sphere turned red.

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s rare for them to have a red shine. Usually, they¡¯re made to only shine blue.¡±

    ¡°...is that so?¡±

    I might¡¯ve struck gold here.

    The possibility of this being the real thing is high.

    ¡°Brian, tell me more about how to use the device.¡±

    ¡°For Lord Liam to be so interested in the stories of my adventuring days, this Brian here is overjoyed.¡±

    After learning the procedure to use it from Brian¨C I immediately left for space.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    While Liam had left for space.

    Rosetta had called out to Amagi.

    Amagi was expressionless,

    ¡°Is there something that you need, Lady Rosetta?¡±

    ¡°I heard about darling¡¯s circumstances from Brian and Serena. Is it true that after he was abandoned by his parents, you took over the role of his mother?¡±

    Amagi nodded,

    ¡°Master¡¯s parents and grandparents had left him for a life in the imperial capital. They didn¡¯t have any intention to raise their child, so I took care of him in their stead.¡±

    She continued on,

    ¡°I understand that my presence is unsatisfactory, but I can¡¯t go against my Master¡¯s order.¡±

    Liam was the one at fault for keeping an android by his side.

    But Rosetta...

    ¡°Wait! I wasn¡¯tining about that!¡±

    ¡°Lady Rosetta?¡±

    Rosetta brought out a braided string bracelet and presented it to Amagi,

    ¡°¨Cthis is something that I made by hand, I¡¯m sorry I couldn¡¯t give you more.¡±

    It wasn¡¯t something purchased from the Banfield house¡¯s territory, and it wasn¡¯t something procured from Thomas.

    This was something she had made herself.

    ¡°Are you sure about this?¡±

    ¡°Of course I am! Aren¡¯t you an important person to darling?¡±

    Amagi smiled, but she looked a little sad,

    ¡°Yes, I guess I am.¡±

    She thanked Rosetta for the bracelet,

    ¡°¨Cthank you, Madam2.¡±

    Having been acknowledged as Liam¡¯s wife, Rosetta felt shy.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Outerspace, an area filled with debris.

    I hade to such a ce in Avid¨C to use my recently acquired device.

    ¡°Now, let¡¯s see what happens...¡±

    Theary development device is dyed red and begins to absorb what I assume to be life force.

    Drifting along this area were the pirates who tried to attack my territory¡¯s pioneer.

    Apparently the device absorbs life force, or as Brian calls it, ¡®souls¡¯ to produce elixirs.

    I¡¯m hesitant to use it on my own people, but if it¡¯s against pirates, then there¡¯s no problem.

    The sphere ispletely dyed red and the light settled down as it stopped absorbing whatever it was before.

    I brought the sphere into the cockpit and started inspecting it,

    ¡°Now, if I do this...¡±

    Liquid is spilled from the sphere while I was messing around with it.

    The liquid that sshed onto my knee solidified into stones as it dropped to the floor.

    ¡°Oops, I spilled a bit.¡±

    I tried to pick them up, but I couldn¡¯t find them all.

    Well, it didn¡¯t really matter.

    I took out a bottle and started pouring the elixir into it.

    ¡°...it¡¯s not a lot, is it?¡±

    I took the bottle filled with elixir and shook it.

    ¡°As always, it¡¯s the real thing. I have to make sure to thank the guide.¡±

    Treasures naturally gathered in my hands one after another.

    As I thought, there was no problem even if I didn¡¯t ept Derrick¡¯s deal.

    However, I couldn¡¯t help but notice the guide hasn¡¯t been showing up recently. ¨Cis he okay?

    No, I shouldn¡¯t worry about him.

    Everything that he¡¯s done for me, follow-ups included¨C were perfect.

    I¡¯m sure he¡¯s doing fine.

    ¡°He was really embarrassed thest time, so maybe he¡¯s too shy to show his face to me? That guy is surprisingly cute.¡±

    But it¡¯s important to show gratitude for things.

    I hope these feelings of mine reach him.

    ¡°Thanks for everything guide¨C you¡¯ve given me even more strength.¡±

    But¨C

    In the first ce, while I¡¯m happy to get a device that makes elixirs, I could always buy them.

    I could just create money using the alchemy box, so to be honest, there¡¯d be no problem even if I didn¡¯t have it.

    ¡°...should I put this thing on the fortress-ss, and use it to develop the pioneer?¡±

    Although it was a battleship purchased from Nias, I was currently using it as a temporary defense base.

    While the ship¡¯s deployed on a pioneer, the item¡¯s enriching effects would take hold.

    When used normally, theary development device was one used to nurture life rather than absorb it.

    Brian said there¡¯d be no harm.

    ¡°Since I also have to prepare a new pioneer for Wace¡¯s territory, should I send this as a lucky charm along with the fortress-ss?¡±

    If I had this embedded in a stone statue to keep it hidden, nobody will know.

    This has great potential merits for me.

    ¡°To send such useful tools one after another¨C the guide is the best.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Around that time¨C the guide was spreading his arms at the imperial capital.

    ¡°Fuhahaha! The negative emotions that have umted for thousands of years, give me strength!¡±

    Even though the emotions were poorly absorbed, there was an abundance of negative emotions in the imperial capital.

    He could easily recover his power here.

    However, it still couldn¡¯tpare to his previous strength.

    Liam¡¯s gratitude was constantly draining the guide.

    ¡°Now I can finally drop that damn Liam to the depths of hell. Just you wait, Liam!¡±

    Then, as the guide was wondering what to do next¨C

    The dog-shaped light that was hiding behind him turned to look up at the sky.

    The skies around the imperial capital were protected by ayer of metal.

    Despite this, a golden spear of Liam¡¯s gratitude had appeared through the metal¨C and flew straight towards theughing guide, piercing right through his back.

    ¡°Uwa-?!¡±

    The guide cried out from the sudden impact.

    He was sown into the ground.

    ¡°Wha... wh-wh-what the hell is this?!¡±

    The confused guide grabbed the spear to pull it out¨C but the very touch of it burned him.

    Smoke wasing out of the ces in contact with it.

    ¡°GYAAAAA!!! T-this is Liam¡¯s gratitude?! Why?! I haven¡¯t even done anything!¡±

    The oversized feelings of thanks had taken shape, piercing through the guide and leaving him struggling in anguish.

    ¡°I-it¡¯s being taken away. The power that I had finally recovered... was stolen from me... how could such a thing happen? You bastard... YOU BASTARD!!! LIAAAAMMMM!!!!¡±

    He didn¡¯t even do anything this time, but the guide was still burned by Liam¡¯s gratitude.

 Chapter 47 - Volume 3 Chapter 14 The Guide Sows Seeds of Revenge

    <h4>Volume 3 Chapter 14 The Guide Sows Seeds of Revenge</h4>

    After being burned by the golden spear, the guide was bridling with revenge.

    ¡°Liam... I will never forgive you...¡±

    However, there was one problem.

    As Liam currently was, it would be extremely difficult to drop him into hell.

    Renowned as a virtuous ruler, he was constantly sending off disgusting positive emotions towards the guide.

    It wouldn¡¯t be easy to take revenge on him.

    But that¡¯s not to say it wasn¡¯t possible.

    So what should he do?

    ¡°There are a lot of people who have a grudge against Liam. I¡¯ll find them and sow the seeds of revenge.¡±

    While grasping at his chest in pain, the guide used his power to search for individuals with strong feelings of revenge towards Liam.

    And while there were a number of strong reactions, there were two prominent people who stood out among the rest.

    ¡°I found you!¡±

    Stepping through the door he manifested, he appeared in front of the first person who sought revenge against Liam.

    It was none other than¨C Yasushi.

    He was grasping at his head in the middle of a dark alley.

    Seeing his figure, the guide shouted out,

    ¡°SO IT¡¯S YOU AGAAAAAIIIIINNNN!!!¡±

    Yasushi was the origin of Liam¡¯s unfathomable strength.

    The guide didn¡¯t have a very good opinion of him for that very reason.

    Therefore, he was going to kill him this instant to appease that hate¨C but he stopped himself after hearing his words.

    ¡°What the hell is the One-sh?! I¡¯ll never forgive him for associating my name with such a thing!¡±

    After the tournament at the elementary school, the name of the sword style Liam used spread like wildfire.

    Liam told everyone it was called the One-sh, and naturally, now all those interested were looking into it.

    As such, Yasushi was constantly being chased as a result.

    The guide looked down at him.

    ¡°I-if this keeps up, my lie will be exposed¨C and I¡¯ll be killed by Liam. Even now, I¡¯m being hunted by pirates as the ¡®master¡¯ who trained the Pirate Hunter.¡±

    Yasushi made his resolve,

    ¡°If I don¡¯t fix this soon, I¡¯ll be killed. For this, I need to train some new disciples. I can¡¯t do this by myself. If I train them the same way I did for Liam, I¡¯m sure everything will work out.¡±

    The guide apuded that idea, as it was something he never would¡¯ve thought of himself,

    ¡°Yasushi... I¡¯m counting on you.¡±

    If his lies were to be exposed, Yasushi was sure that Liam would get rid of him.

    So just like how he trained Liam, he decided he¡¯d train two more disciples to assassinate him.

    In addition to that, he was also thinking about how this could help protect himself from pirates.

    ¡°First, I need to find a child more talented than Liam¨C financially, I still have some leeway. I need to temper them specifically for the sake of ying him.¡±

    The guide was also in favour of this idea,

    ¡°You¡¯re better than I thought, Yasushi. I support your n, so here¡¯s a little gift from me.¡±

    As the guide snapped his fingers, the voices of two people fighting could be heard in the distance.

    Although he was intimidated, Yasushi still went to investigate the noise.

    There, he found two young children beating down a man who jumped them with sticks.

    Their bodies were thin, but they were wieldingrge canes heavier than what you¡¯d think they¡¯d be able to lift.

    The sticks were covered in blood, and the big man was left copsed on the ground.

    That¡¯s when the two children saw Yasushi.

    Their eyes had a bestial sharpness to them.

    ¡°Eek-?!¡±

    The children approached him.

    The guide knew Yasushi couldn¡¯t hear him, but he still went on to exin,

    ¡°I located some talented children nearby and brought them here for you, Yasushi. I hope you train them well. Prepare a true sessor to the One-sh to kill Liam!¡±

    Before they ran away, Yasushi took some food out of his pocket and threw it towards the children.

    Catching it, the two instantly began to devour the food like animals.

    Looking at their figures, Yasushi went into deep thought,

    ¡°If I train these two, they¡¯ll surely surpass Liam. If they were even able to beat such a big man as they are now, they¡¯ll undoubtedly be much stronger.¡±

    With that, he called out to the two children.

    Confirming this development, the guide headed towards the next signal burning with revenge.

    ¡°Now then, who¡¯s next?¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A military re-education facility.

    There, Eulisia was taking a course to be sessful as a female soldier.

    ¡°Oh, this woman is?¡±

    She was withstanding severe training.

    Her eyes were sharp, and her once beautiful hair was shaved off.

    She was currently undergoing training to join the special forces.

    Covered in mud, she was thrown to the ground by the instructor¨C and yet she still got up.

    The guide was impressed by her tenacity.

    ¡°Is there a reason why she hates Liam so much? What does the voice of her heart say?¡±

    There...

    (Unforgivable. Unforgivable. Unforgivable. Unforgiv¨C)

    It was a mantra of pure hatred for Liam.

    She was the perfect avenger.

    ¡°W-wonderful! For one that holds such potential¨C here¡¯s a gift from me. To make sure that you¡¯re sessful, I¡¯ll give you my support.¡±

    In order to make sure her de of revenge reached Liam, she¨C Eulisia had to survive.

    Although she was just defeated by the instructor before, it wasn¡¯tpletely one-sided.

    The instructor yelled at Eulisia,

    ¡°I thought you were a woman who could only shake her ass at others, but it looks like the shitty girl has grown up a little!¡±

    ¡°Sir, yes sir!¡±

    And from the voice of Eulisia¡¯s heart,

    (Liam, I swear¨C I will definitely have my revenge on you.)

    The guide nodded,

    ¡°Your pure desire for revenge on Liam is amazing. I will support you from the shadows. I look forward to the day your retribution against himes to fruition.¡±

    As the guide investigated Eulisia, apparently she¡¯s been receiving quite the re-education.

    It wasn¡¯t just any normal training.

    In order to advance in the military, she dabbling in various fields.

    However, if she continued on like this¨C there was the inevitable demerit of being forced to stay conscripted in the military for an extended period of time.

    Even so, Eulisia ignored such things and continued her training.

    Everything was for the sake of her revenge against Liam.

    With that, the guide could leave this ce satisfied.

    ¡°I hope your revenge will reach Liam someday.¡±

    The guide disappeared.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    After taking in the two orphans, Yasushi fell into thought.

    While watching them sleep in a cheap hotel bed, he was seriously thinking about his self-preservation.

    ¡°What should I do if the assassination fails?¡±

    The two in front of him were surely talented.

    But Liam was strong.

    In the first ce, he was a man who could take a magic trick and turn it into an actual sword skill.

    ¡°If these two fail the assassination and are yed... it¡¯ll be my head that¡¯ll go flying next.¡±

    He¡¯d be lucky if he was just killed.

    But his opponent was a nobleman.

    He didn¡¯t know what kinds of horrible torture would be waiting in store for him if caught.

    Thinking about how he could be slowly killed over a long period of time¨C he felt himself trembling in fear.

    Therefore, the cowardly Yasushi decided,

    ¡°I-I know! I¡¯ll just stick some random reason behind it. It¡¯ll also keep these kids from questioning me. Yes... should I tell them that they¡¯ll have to challenge their senior pupil with all their strength?¡±

    Even if they were killed, he might be able to convince Liam as long as he sends a letter saying ¡°You did well¡± afterwards.

    ¡°Will this work? Well... my life is in danger anyways if he isn¡¯t killed. Let¡¯s just do whatever I can. I have to do this.¡±

    For his love of being alive, Yasushi decided to take two children in and teach them the One-sh.

    Fortunately, he already knew how to do so.

    He had prior practice through Liam.

    ¡°The problem is, even if I train them the same way, I don¡¯t know what kind of results they¡¯ll bring. If I only denounce Liam, they might leak that to him all of myments. Okay, let¡¯s make sure to always praise Liam in front of them.¡±

    In contradiction to his praise of Liam, Yasushi would train the children to kill him.

    He had no other choice.

    Liam had already spread the name of the imaginary sword style of the One-sh far and wide.

    Aristocrats, pirates, and even other martial artists were moving to find that strength.

    Even if he ran away, he¡¯d surely be hunted down.

    Yasushi didn¡¯t have the time to be picky with his options.

    There was no other choice other than to train the children as fast as possible.

    Because... he himself was weak.

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll give them a letter to deliver in case of failure. If they convey the praises I¡¯ve made of Liam properly, the right misunderstandings should ur... hopefully. But If possible, I hope they seed with the first objective.¡±

    Yasushi¨C who had taken in new disciples of the One-sh to assassinate Liam, muttered,

    ¡°I¡¯ll train you to grow up as much as possible so... be wary of Liam.¡±

    Yasushi had confused himself, and didn¡¯t really understand what he was doing anymore.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The military re-education facility.

    While many men had run away from the strict training, Eulisia still remained.

    All of this was for her revenge against Liam.

    She gazed at her reflection in the bathroom.

    The beautiful hair that she was so proud of was shaved, and her body had grown more muscles after all the exercise.

    ¡°I¡¯ll improve the quality with the next phase¨C I need to keep a feminine appeal. This body is also a tool necessary for my revenge.¡±

    Liam¨C the one man who waspletely disinterested in her.

    But what was her n for revenge?

    The conclusion Eulisia came to was to aim for the period after Liam had graduated from the military academy and was conscripted into service.

    During that period, the army would dispatch a lieutenant to be Liam¡¯s aide.

    Only the elite among the female officers would be chosen.

    If she didn¡¯t have the appearance, ability, and everything else required, she wouldn¡¯t be the one selected.

    To reach that position, ordinary results wouldn¡¯t be enough.

    After all, arge number of female officers that had entered the military actually hailed from the Banfield house.

    There were many there who achieved excellent results at the academy and have been specifically groomed to be Liam¡¯s aide.

    If she half-assed things here, she wouldn¡¯t even be considered.

    With this in mind¨C Eulisia had decided to join the special forces.

    Afterpleting this rigorous training, harsh missions involving livebat would be waiting for her.

    If she could somehowplete those as well, she¡¯d be practically guaranteed to be Liam¡¯s lieutenant.

    And after that... she¡¯d get Liam infatuated with her and throw him away this time.

    Although she wasn¡¯t really abandonedst time, this was a problem of Eulisia¡¯s pride.

    The guide¡¯s assumption of her goals¨C were wrong.

    ¡°I will turn things around. For that end, I¡¯ll make sure to investigate him thoroughly.¡±

    Throughout her rigorous training, her thoughts were always filled with Liam.

    Said training was almost finished.

    Once it was over, only live battles were waiting for her.

    Although she could have just given up and pursued a normal person¡¯s happiness, Eulisia only had Liam on her mind.

    ¡°If I want to entice him this time, first, I need to look into his tastes.¡±

    A colleague who saw Eulisia creepily grinning in front of the mirror squealed out in fear.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The guide stood on top of a building in the imperial capital.

    ¡°Let¡¯s continue sowing more seeds! More and more! At least one of them has to eventually reach Liam!¡±

    But he had overlooked something.

    The couldn¡¯t help but feel that way for some reason.

    ¡°Well until that time, let¡¯s just continue to save up power.¡±

    Liam¡¯s gratitude was burning his body even now.

    The guide continued to wait for an opportunity to exact his revenge while absorbing the negative emotions of the imperial capital.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    What the guide had missed¨C was that there were others who wanted revenge against Liam.

    The Berkley family.

    The family executives were attending a meeting as holograms in the dimly lit conference room.

    All of them were the children of the Berkley family¡¯s boss.

    ¡°Derrick was killed.¡±

    To the boss¡¯ words, the executives started toin about Derrick.

    ¡°That bastard lost one of ourary development devices.¡±

    ¡°We didn¡¯t have any expectations for him anyways.¡±

    ¡°He even lost our forces. He truly was useless.¡±

    The boss had a cat-like creature in his arms¨C it was something that he truly cherished.

    ¡°My cute son was killed... so shut up.¡±

    A blue vein had appeared on the boss¡¯ forehead.

    ¡°There¡¯s an idiot out there who picked a fight with our family.¡±

    Liam¡¯s face was then projected into the middle of the conference room.

    ¡°Pirate hunter Liam?¡±

    ¡°The child prodigy from the fallen Banfield house?¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s kill him immediately.¡±

    As the executives broke out inmontion, the boss swung down his fist with a bang.

    The cat-like creature was surprised, but soon settled down after being petted.

    ¡°Our business has suffered due to this guy¡¯s pirate hunting for some time now. I¡¯ve always wanted to get rid of him, even before this.¡±

    In the underworld, a huge bounty was ced on Liam¡¯s head to gather pirates in hopes of hunting him down.

    The fools rushed towards Liam for the prize, but all of them were met with nothing but death.

    There was once a time when pirates scrambled towards Liam¡¯s territory in haste¨C but now none of them were brave enough to challenge him now, this wouldn¡¯t change even if the bounty was raised.

    Because all the death-defying idiots who had tried so far had been in before they even encountered Liam himself.

    ¡°We¡¯ll be going to war against the Banfield house in the future. Threaten all the nobles who see this as an opportunity and force them to decide whose side they¡¯ll take.¡±

    The boss decided to increase his allies to defeat Liam.

    This in itself showed how dangerous of a threat he saw Liam as.

    ¡°Father! We can do this even without them!¡±

    One of the sons came forward and offered to take care of Liam.

    But he was stopped,

    ¡°We¡¯ve already lost Derrick to him. From here on, we¡¯re not going to waste anymore of our energy on idiotic things.¡±

    The boss looked at Liam¡¯s profile and smiled,

    ¡°Brat... when you pick a fight with the Berkley family, don¡¯t think you¡¯ll be able to walk away scot-free.¡±

    In a ce Liam wasn¡¯t even aware of, the embers of war were spreading.

 Chapter 48 - Volume 3 Epilogue

    <h4>Volume 3 Epilogue</h4>

    The first school building of the elementary school.

    While bathing in the sunlight that shone through the window, I was resting my chin in my hand as I propped my elbow up on my desk.

    ¡°...how did things end up like this?¡±

    It didn¡¯t make sense no matter how I thought about it.

    My underling Wace was crying to me,

    ¡°Liam, increase my allowance already! Give me anything, please!¡±

    Kurt looked at Wace in amazement,

    ¡°Well I guess Wace is the same as usual.¡±

    ¡°Shut up you! I thought I¡¯d be able to spend my vacation in luxury at Liam¡¯s mansion, but I was put through hell by Serena instead! Asking for a bit more money should be fine at this point!¡±

    Serena wasn¡¯t at fault for constantly getting mad at him, just looking at Wace I could tell he was that bad.

    I now understood why as a prince he was called a person who could be considered neither poison nor medicine.

    Less than a nuisance, he was more like an unnecessary piece of luggage you had to carry around.

    It was a miscalction for me to take such a luggage as my underling, but the more pressing problem right now was¨C

    ¡°Darling, where do you want to eat lunch today? Do you want to go to the cafeteria?¡±

    Rosetta, who I initially thought was a woman of steel was actually a heroine.

    I was disappointed with how easily her cheeks flushed at the sight of me.

    However, I realised that it¡¯d be too troublesome to abandon her now.

    If she betrayed me, I¡¯d show her no mercy, but until then... well, I guess I could take care of her.

    ¡°I feel like buying bread from the school store today.¡±

    ¡°Bread? Leave it to me, I¡¯ll buy the most popr brand of bread for you.¡±

    Who told her to buy bread?

    In the first ce, was it really okay to have a young nobledy act as a bread shuttle?

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, Wace will buy them.¡±

    When I said that, Wace flipped the blue hair he was so proud of,

    ¡°It¡¯s hopeless. Don¡¯t you know how crazy the crowds get during lunch? It¡¯s impossible for me to get the popr bread.¡±

    For the former prince to confidently dere that he couldn¡¯t even buy bread was a disappointing sight.

    Kurt turned a frosty look towards him,

    ¡°You really are useless, Wace.¡±

    ¡°Well what else am I supposed to say? Besides, don¡¯t you think Liam is the weird one for making former royalty act as a bread shuttle?¡±

    I repeated my order,

    ¡°Wace, buy us bread.¡±

    ¡°Liam, give me a break here. The battle for bread during lunch time is too ruthless for me.¡±

    He was lying straight to my face,

    ¡°You¡¯re lying. When I went it wasn¡¯t crowded at all.¡±

    Everyone lined up and bought their food in an orderly fashion.

    A true reminder that this school was specifically built for the nobility.

    But Kurt shook his head,

    ¡°That¡¯s only because you were there, Liam.¡±

    He started saying something iprehensible.

    In anycase, Rosetta looked troubled, so I decided to give up on the bread,

    ¡°Forget it, let¡¯s just eat at the cafeteria.¡±

    ¡°The cafeteria. Leave it to me, I¡¯ll make sure to secure us the best seats!¡±

    Like I said, why are you acting like a maid, volunteering to do all these errands?

    It was kind of fun watching her do so, but I wasn¡¯t pleased with how happily she was willing to take the initiative.

    ¡°Securing us seats is fine, but you don¡¯t need to dere it so loudly.¡±

    ¡°O-of course. Yes, you¡¯re absolutely right...¡±

    Looking at Rosetta, you¡¯d think I did something bad to her.

    Wace called out to me,

    ¡°Liam, I want to have dessert too.¡±

    ¡°You can just drink water.¡±

    Wasn¡¯t this different from the school life I thought I¡¯d have?

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The imperial capital.

    There, the prime minister had gathered multiple officials.

    Assembled here were those who had been assigned to monitor the udia house for millenia.

    These people had always kept the udia house under watch from generation to generation, and were now making frustrated expressions.

    The prime minister was smiling,

    ¡°Thank you so much for the loyal work you¡¯ve done so far. We¡¯ll now prepare new stations for you.¡±

    But they didn¡¯t seem satisfied with that,

    ¡°Minister! I can¡¯t ept changing things now, please give us the order to monitor the Banfield house!¡±

    ¡°Yes! We must keep the orders of histe Majesty alive!¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s make sure to keep Count Banfield under supervision!¡±

    If they were deprived of the work they¡¯ve done for many years and suddenly asked to do something new, of course they¡¯d be troubled.

    Hepletely understood their feelings,

    ¡°I see. Then let¡¯s have all of you die here.¡±

    ¡°...prime minister?¡±

    Presented to them on the desk were the weaknesses of the nobles they collected over their many years of service.

    After receiving his congrattions for Liam¡¯s engagement, Brian submitted all the materials gathered to the prime minister.

    There was no reason not to use useable information.

    This was his chance to dispose of all the undesirable officials at once.

    ¡°...it seems you¡¯ve been sticking you¡¯re noses in a lot of ces you weren¡¯t supposed to. I didn¡¯t think you¡¯d even be investigating myself.¡±

    As such, the prime minister started his own investigations.

    Looking into them, they were a talentless group only good at torture.

    For the prime minister, there was no need for dogs that bit their owner¡¯s hands.

    ¡°Th-this is¨C¡±

    ¡°No excuses are necessary. I can finally sleep with peace of mind once you¡¯re dead, and for that reason alone, we¡¯re having you disappear.¡±

    As the officials got ready to resist¨C Tia, who was on standy, pulled out her sword.

    It was a rapier¨C a weapon that specialised in piercing attacks, urately impaling the officials in all their vitals spots.

    The officials fell.The prime minister apuded Tia,

    ¡°What great skill. You will undoubtedly bring great results in the military academy.¡±

    Tia wiped the blood off the de, looking down at the bodies as she returned it to her sheath.

    ¡°Work of this degree is of no problem. I¡¯d like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to dispose of the officials hostile to Lord Liam.¡±

    These people had tried to lure Liam into a trap.

    For Tia, they were her enemies.

    While looking at her, the prime minister asked,

    ¡°Are you enrolling in the military academy soon?¡±

    Tia softly answered,

    ¡°Yes, I n to enter by next year.¡±

    As the prime minister watched his subordinates clean up the corpses, he asked,

    ¡°So what are the Count¡¯s future ns?¡±

    As he was currently in his fourth year of elementary school, it wasn¡¯t long until he graduated.

    In less than three years, Liam had to decide if he was going to go to either the university or the military academy.

    Which was he going to choose¨C the prime minister was curious.

    Tia replied,

    ¡°Lord Liam has decided to give priority to the academy.¡±

    ¡°In that case, he¡¯ll be finishing his training in the university? I wonder if the uing battle will be over by then.¡±

    Will the war with the Berkley family end before Liam sessfullypletes his training?

    The prime minister was concerned about this.

    Tia responded with absolute belief in Liam.

    ¡°Who knows? We might dispose of them sooner than you think.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Tia left the room and returned to her work¨C furrowing her brows.

    She quickly stepped down the hallway while venting her frustrations andints,

    ¡°What the hell is a name like ¡®Mad Dog Marie¡¯? To leave so many of Lord Liam¡¯s enemies alive, she¡¯s nothing but a cur with the appearance of a faithful mutt.¡±

    She started remembering that eyesore Marie.

    It was during the engagement ceremony.

    For her contributions in renovating Avid, Liam had prepared for her the position of deputy, while Tia herself was assigned as the head knight.

    ¨Ceverything was fine until there.

    But then she remembered what happenedter that day.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¨CThe day of the engagement ceremony.

    After everything was finished, the knights were happily drinking in celebration.

    At the seat the head knight Tia was sitting at, Marie had approached,

    ¡°So you¡¯re Christiana?¡±

    With those words, the air seemed to freeze.

    In the now silent banquet hall, Tia continued drinking her beverage as she observed Marie.

    ¡°What does the mangy dog want with me?¡±

    Marie instantly drew her sword and pressed the de against Tia¡¯s throat.

    But conversely, Tia¡¯s rapier was already pointed towards her chest.

    An eerie smile rose up on Marie¡¯s face,

    ¡°It¡¯ll only be for a short while, so you better enjoy your status as the head knight. For that position is supposed to be mine.¡±

    They withdrew their des.

    Tia¡¯s gaze was frosty,

    ¡°You¡¯re too slow for the position of deputy. You¡¯re age is getting to you, or would it be more apt to describe you as a crusty old fossil?¡±

    Tiaughed at Marie¡¯s former petrification.

    To her provocation, Marie answered in a dark tone,

    ¡°You little bitch¨C I could take your neck right now if I wanted to.¡±

    Sparks were flying between the two.

    Some of the knights were trembling in fear, while others were thinking about how they could kick the two of them down to take their spots.

    There were even a few knights who didn¡¯t seem interested at all.

    Unlike when Liam had first inherited the territory, there were many knights gathered there.

    Some of them hade because they wanted to serve Liam, while others pledged their loyalty in thanks for the help he¡¯s given them.

    A lot of knights had high expectations for the Banfield house, which had recently rose to power.

    There were many who wanted to join the new up-starts.

    However, considering his position of a Count, the number of knights gathered was still insufficient.

    More were sure to converge there in the future¨C but whether they¡¯d be able to work together was another matter.

    Liam¡¯s order of knights were still in a state of assembling themselves.

    Since they were only held together by their high loyalty, many problems had arisen.

    Above all else, there wasn¡¯t anyone there who could rally together such powerful individuals.

    Tia and Marie were potential candidates, but neither of them was willing to cooperate with the other.

    ¡°You mangy mutt, Lord Liam doesn¡¯t need someone like you. I¡¯ll put you down.¡±

    When Tia said so, Marie replied,

    ¡°A minced-meat bitch like you is unnecessary for Lord Liam¡¯s ambitions. I¡¯ll prove it so.¡±

    They recognised each other as nothing but enemies.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The first building of the elementary school.

    ¡°Twelve Knights of the Round Table¨C isn¡¯t that cool?¡±

    It was Wace who said such a thing.

    Kurt turned to him with cold eyes.

    ¡°There you go again. What did youe up with this time, Wace?¡±

    ¡°No, you see, it¡¯s a title bestowed to select knights of particr talent. I read about it in a book from the inner pce, don¡¯t you think that¡¯s cool?¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that from someic?¡±

    Apparently such a knight group was from aic series.

    Twelve capable knights of talent and strength.

    The king bestowed the title on the knights, giving them privileges and status.

    We were talking about this behind the school building.

    ¡°It¡¯d be troublesome finding twelve individuals that fit the criteria.¡±

    Kurt followed up on myment,

    ¡°Liam, don¡¯t take him seriously. Wace¡¯s idea is mostly based off of fiction, and in the first ce, it should be easy for you to find twelve of such people.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°No, just think about it. There are bound to be innumerable knights back in your territory, you can just choose twelve from there.¡±

    ¡°But what about the criteria to choose¨C¡±

    ¡°It¡¯d depend on their qualifications, but I¡¯m pretty sure your knights would clear them.¡±

    ¡°In that case, I¡¯ll immediatel¨C¡±

    ¡°No, there are many problems with handing out special treatment. In the first ce, the twelve knights Wace was talking about were the enemies in that story.¡±

    I looked at Wace, and he turned away from me.

    Apparently, it was the truth.

    However, I didn¡¯t hate such things.

    It takes guts to join the path of evil.

    For serious-based evil lords like Kurt, it¡¯s only natural he¡¯d see it as inefficient¨C despite all the ir, weren¡¯t they just a gathering of viins?

    They¡¯d be like the four heavenly kings to a demon lord. It was that kind of feeling.

    I wanted that kind of knight order.

    Recently, I couldn¡¯t help but feel like I haven¡¯t been active as an evil lordtely.

    Well, I was stuck in elementary school, so it couldn¡¯t be helped.

    ¡°A round table of twelve knights...¡±

    Wace raised his head at my mutters,

    ¡°Liam, I¡¯m going to be the one to establish the Knights of the Round Table, so don¡¯t steal my idea!¡±

    Wace was saying something immature, but I couldn¡¯t care less.

    I guess even he came up with good ideas every once in a while.

    As I thought so, Kurt looked at us in amazement,

    ¡°Liam is being corrupted by Wace.¡±

    Wace turned to Kurt,

    ¡°Hey... don¡¯t you treat me a bit too harshly?¡±

    As us three men continued our conversation, Rosetta approached us while waving her hand.

    ¡°Darling! There you are!¡±

    Watching the heroine running over with a smile, I fell into thought.

    A beaming smile.

    Fluttering hair slightly curled into ringlets.

    A swaying chest.

    Her cute way of running... there was nothing about Rosetta that¡¯d make you think I used to call her a woman of steel.

    ¡°...how did this happen?¡±

    ¡°Darling, what happened?! Is there something wrong?! Are you not feeling well?! Let¡¯s immediately go to the infirmar¨C¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s nothing.¡±

    Rosetta seemed to be genuinely worried about me.

    If this was all a ruse and she was just trying to trick me¨C then I might still be able to have some fun with this.

    However, it didn¡¯t seem that way at all.

    Where did the Rosetta with the spirit of steel disappear to?

    ¡°...just how did this happen?¡±

 Chapter 49 - Volume 3 Interlude Rosetta and Marie

    <h4>Volume 3 Interlude Rosetta and Marie</h4>

    After advancing to the fourth year, the half-year long vacation had arrived.

    During this period, the students of the elementary school can go back to their homes and rx for a bit.

    With Derrick now defeated, Liam had returned to the Banfield territory.

    His fianc¨¦e Rosetta, and his underling Wace had gone with him.

    Liam¡¯s vassals had returned to the estate as well.

    Visiting Rosetta¡¯s room was Marie¨C the girl who had been petrified two millennia ago.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, it¡¯s time.¡±

    She called out for her using the inte attached to the door.

    Rosetta immediately responded in a hurry,

    ¡°Ye-yes!¡±

    As a daughter of the udia house that had no servants, she wasn¡¯t used to her life in the mansion.

    As a result, she often found herself acting awkwardly around Marie.

    In front of Rosetta¡¯s room, there were always two female knights posted there.

    There were also servants there, so Marie called out to them,

    ¡°How¡¯s Lady Rosetta doing?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s really shy and refuses to be taken care of. She told us she¡¯d get herself ready this morning, so we should refrain from entering.¡±

    Marie rubbed her chin,

    ¡°...this is troubling.¡±

    This was a universe where there were many useful tools that could be used to help one get ready in the morning.

    There was no need for servants to assist.

    However, the servants around Rosetta were professionals specifically for this task.

    It¡¯d be a problem to prevent such personnel from doing their jobs.

    ¡°What¡¯s Lord Liam¡¯s opinion of this?¡±

    ¡°He told us to just watch over the situation until she got used to it.¡±

    Marie wanted Rosetta to get up quickly, but if Liam said it was okay, then she¡¯d back down.

    In the first ce, Liam himself didn¡¯t keep that many people around him.

    Because of his unique upbringing, he only kept those he trusted by his side.

    ¨Cor so that¡¯s how the surroundings justified it.

    In reality, it¡¯s not strange for those with the position of Count to keep multiple servants around.

    This was a universe where almost anything could be done by machines.

    So to show off one¡¯s luxury, it was quite popr to have professionals take care of your needs instead.

    Some aristocrats evenpeted with how many servants they kept around.

    As a result, many noble children that had their every need taken care of since birth, turning them useless as they grew older.

    The elementary school was a ce made to educate such children of how things really worked.

    (Lord Liam is too humble. If considering his position, it¡¯d be better if he indulged himself a bit more.)

    As Marie thought so, Rosetta came out of her room,

    ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry to have kept you waiting...¡±

    Seeing Rosetta¡¯s timid attitude, Marie straightened her back and responded,

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, you shouldn¡¯t act so subservient with those who are below you.¡±

    ¡°O-of course, I¡¯ll be careful.¡±

    While Marie was troubled by Rosetta¡¯s attitude, she led her to the vehicle parked in the hallway.

    ¡°Now then, over here please¨C¡±

    ¨CThe mansion was too big, so there were vehicles in the corridors to traverse them.

    Rosetta couldn¡¯t understand it.

    ¡°Why are there vehicles in the hallways? Or is this even a hallway anymore? Perhaps its already considered a street?¡±

    It was weird to use vehicles on the inside of a mansion!

    -Those were Rosetta¡¯s true feelings.

    ¡°You¡¯ll get used to it.¡±

    When Marie let Rosetta to the vehicle, she proceeded to give her a tour of the estate.

    For Liam¡¯s knight order, this wasn¡¯t a job their second ofmand was supposed to be doing.

    However, Marie felt quite the affinity for Rosetta.

    Looking at her, she fell into thought,

    (That fool turned me into stone, and made an example of the udia house. Lady Rosetta is mypanion in that regard.)

    She was a fellow victim who was tormented by the ruling emperor of two millennia ago.

    Liam had saved both herself and Rosetta from such torment, making them both very precious to her.

    ¡°Today I¡¯ll be guiding you through the mansion¡¯s hospital.¡±

    Rosetta was surprised,

    ¡°There¡¯s a hospital in the mansion?!¡±

    ¡°Of course there is, we had the room for it.¡±

    ¡°But I heard that the Banfield house already had a hospital in its territory whose medical facilities were equal to that of the imperial capital¡¯s!¡±

    Did you really need a hospital in your mansion if your already had one of that caliber in your territory?

    Rosetta couldn¡¯t understand.

    ¡°...please prepare yourself for when we arrive there. Those who are receiving treatment there aren¡¯t normal.¡±

    Those who had been captured by pirates and had suffered terrible fates were sent there.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard about this before. The head knight told me that I needed to have a deeper understanding of Liam¨C no, my husband* to be a suitable wife for him.¡±

    A blue vein popped up on Marie¡¯s forehead, but because she was in front of Rosetta she forced herself to smile.

    (That minced-meat bitch! Don¡¯t preach around so bossily! Next time I see her I¡¯ll cut her down to the chunk of meat she was!)

    ¡°It¡¯s only been a decade or so since Liam¡¯s knight order was founded, so disregard anything thatdy says, the head knight will be changing soon anyways.¡±

    ¡°I-is that so? It¡¯s only been ten years, but it already looks like there are plenty of excellent knights here.¡±

    In the mentality of this universe, decade was a short amount of time.

    To be considered a historical knight order, they¡¯d need at least five hundred years of experience to them.

    ¡°Oh yes, why ¡®husband¡¯?¡±

    ¡°D-does it sound funny?¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s just that I¡¯ve only heard Amagi refer to Lord Liam that way.¡±

    ¡°Amagi... she¡¯s that android, isn¡¯t she?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m worried that Lord Liam would mind, so let¡¯s consider other names to differentiate yourself from her.¡±

    ¡°Huh? I should call him something else? Like a nickname or something?¡±

    Marie went into deep thought for a moment,

    ¡°What about ¡®darling¡¯?¡±

    ¨Cthat suggestion was happily epted.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    When I returned to the mansion, I indulged myself in luxury from early in the morning.

    ¡°It¡¯s definitely luxurious to start the day ying in the pool!¡±

    The wave pool was cleanedst night and filled with water.

    It¡¯d be nice if there were lots of girls in swimsuits here too, but I didn¡¯t have any beauties at the moment.

    The only ones in their swimsuits there were Amagi and Brian.

    Amagi¡¯s was a modest pareo-type.

    It perfectly suited her adult charm.

    I specifically had Thomas prepare a high-quality swimsuit made of the best materials.

    I got angry when he asked me if I wanted to prepare a risky swimsuit and shouted, ¡°ARE YOU AN IDIOT?!¡± back then.

    Amagi wasn¡¯t an exhibitionist.

    There¡¯s no way I¡¯d allow her to wear a risky swimsuit.

    Brian on the other hand was wearing a swimsuit that covered his elbows and knees.

    ...I didn¡¯t care about that though.

    ¡°Lord Liam, would you like some fruit for breakfast?¡±

    ¡°Is it a fresh and high-ss one?¡±

    ¡°Of course! We¡¯ve prepared for you the finest goods grown in your territory¡¯s soil!¡±

    ¨Cwhat a waste of expenses!

    They actually flew in fresh fruit directly from the fields.

    When I tried them, they were fresh and sweet.

    While the fruit juices were tangy and smoothly went down.

    ¡°It¡¯s delicious!¡±

    They went so far just for breakfast.

    Being an evil lord is the best!

    Amagi proceeded to cut the fruit indifferently.

    ¡°To eat what was grown locally, you sure are amazing, Master.¡±

    ¡°Are you being sarcastic? Please don¡¯t be angry. I¡¯m doing this because I didn¡¯t get to enjoy these luxuries while at school.¡±

    As I thought, home is best.

    There was nobody here who could resist me, and I was treated like a king.

    I was an evil king though.

    Brian brought out the next food,

    ¡°Lord Liam, next we have some yogurt for you.¡±

    ¡°Is it a luxury item?¡±

    ¡°Unfortunately not, this Brian here made it himself.¡±

    ¡°You know you don¡¯t have to do that, right? Well, I¡¯ll still try it since you made it for me... oh, it¡¯s good.¡±

    I kind of hated how unexpectedly delicious it was.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Wace was watching Liam.

    He was eating breakfast by the poolside first thing in the morning.

    ¡°Liam sure is modest. Isn¡¯t everything he¡¯s eating grown from his own territory?¡±

    Aristocrats who ownednd like Liam usually had their meals imported on spaceships from abroad.

    But these fruits were prepared from his people¡¯s fields.

    Ifpared to themon sense of Earth, it was as if he was eating what was grown in his backyard garden.

    In this universe, what was considered ¡®luxurious¡¯ among the nobility waspletely different.

    They¡¯d spend ridiculous amounts of money just for a single cup of coffee.

    The best water would be prepared.

    They¡¯d gather the best beans.

    All processed using the best tools and the best human resources.

    In any case, that¡¯s just how things were.

    From Wace¡¯s perspective, Liam was being really frugal.

 Chapter 50 - Volume 4 Prologue

    <h4>Volume 4 Prologue</h4>

    One year after graduating from elementary school.

    In the Banfield Estate, Rosetta was currently dressed in servant attire.

    She was bncing a spherical device on her head while walking down a white line.

    Her long blonde hair that was curled into ringlets was extra conspicuous as it shed against the crimson maid outfit.

    The expression of her¡¯s that was usually tight and focused was unnaturally filled with nervousness.

    Serena was instructing such a Rosetta.

    She pped her hands impatiently at her student¡¯s slow pace.

    ¡°How long are you going to continue to walk that stiffly? Pick it up.¡±

    Rosetta was currently Liam¡¯s fianc¨¦, but eventually she was going to be his wife.

    Although her position was higher than Serena¡¯s, right now she was nothing more than her student as she underwent training in the mansion.

    Serena didn¡¯t hold back at all, hernguage bing more and more severe.

    Rosetta started to shed tears as she fell to the ground,

    ¡°I hate this!¡±

    Serena looked at her with an amazed face,

    ¡°¨CHow many times do we need to tell you this to understand? Rosetta, you need to undergo training to be a spouse suitable for Lord Liam.¡±

    Rosetta wasn¡¯t crying because of how harsh the training was.

    How her life used to be was way worsepared to something like this.

    Sure, there were many things she was pushed to learn, such as etiquette, but just that much could still be tolerated.

    Normally that would be the case, but the problem with this situation was... Liam.

    ¡°I wanted to enter the academy together with Darling!¡±

    Right now Liam was enrolled in the military academy.

    He dragged Wace along with him, despite his protests, and was currently away from the Banfield estate.

    ¡°When I finally got out of the education capsule, Darling had already enrolled into the academy without me!¡±

    Serena calmly responded,

    ¡°A future duchess doesn¡¯t require a military background. Rosetta, right now you need the ability to manage the household¡¯s affairs.¡±

    It was necessary for men of the aristocracy to receive both qualifications as part of the military and as an official, but such a thing wasn¡¯t expected for the women. Some girls did get both of them as well, but that was the minority.

    It¡¯s wasn¡¯t discrimination because they were female, it was simply because not many applied for both.

    ¡°I just wanted to be there for Darling...¡±

    Seeing Rosetta¡¯s tears, Serena was both impressed and amazed,

    (That attitude full of motivation to work hard is good.)

    By the time she graduated from elementary school, Rosetta¡¯s grades had eventually risen to a moderate level.

    While the education capsules did y a part in it, turning over her situation as the worst student wasrgely due to the effort she put in.

    Serena had a good opinion of Rosetta. The thing is¨C

    (She¡¯s a rare type for ady of the nobility.)

    There were many women who devoted themselves to their husbands, but it was umon for them to even be willing to attend the military academy with them.

    After hearing about Rosetta¡¯s ns to follow him to the academy, Liam said, ¡°While Rosetta¡¯s still in the education capsule, I¡¯m going to enroll with Wace¡± as he ran away.

    Serena took a small, deep breath and turned her thoughts back to Rosetta¡¯s education,

    ¡°Rosetta, nothing can be done even if you cry about it. If you want to be ady suitable for Lord Liam, you need to pull yourself together.¡±

    Hearing that, Rosetta stood up,

    ¡°I know. When Darlinges back, I¡¯ll be sure to show him the appropriate figure for a duchess.¡±

    ¡°...that¡¯s fine, but Lord Liam won¡¯t be returning for a while now.¡±

    ¡°Huh? I-I thought the academy¡¯s education onlysted for six years.¡±

    Serena carefully exined the truth,

    ¡°Training begins immediately after graduation, and after two years of that, there¡¯s a minimum four-year conscription in the army. Depending on where he¡¯s assigned, at the soonest he won¡¯t be back for another twelve years.¡±

    ¡°That can¡¯t be~!¡±

    Once again, Rosetta broke out in tears.

    ¡°In the meantime, Rosetta, you need to train abroad in another house.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t see Darling for another twelve years...¡±

    ¡°...please listen to me.¡±

    ¡°Y-yes.¡±

    Normally, you¡¯d study abroad in after you came of age, but there weren¡¯t any ces willing to ept a daughter of the udia house, so Rosetta still hasn¡¯t received official bridal training to this day.

    Since those who hadn¡¯t gone through such training were looked down on in the aristocratic society, this needed to be fixed as soon as possible.

    However, there were problems with this.

    (¨CNow that we¡¯re openly hostile with the Berkley family, we need to choose the house we send Rosetta to carefully to keep her safe.)

    It was a situation where you couldn¡¯t tell who was trustworthy enough to leave her with.

    Serena was worried about Rosetta¡¯s education.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Baron Berkley¡¯s estate.

    It was a very nice and luxurious mansion.

    Almost the size of a city, it didn¡¯t look like something a baron would have.

    Inside the office of such a mansion, the Berkley family¡¯s boss, [Cashmiro] was currently smoking a cigar.

    Blowing out a small tuft of white smoke, he turned his gaze towards the man sitting in front of him, trembling.

    He was an aristocrat hostile to the Berkley family.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing personal, you¡¯re just someone in the way of our family.¡±

    As Cashmiro said so, his son¡¯s around him broke out into grins.

    All of them were barons.

    The Berkley family was an organisation of barons.

    However, while Cashmiro officially handed overrge amounts of territory to them to make them independent, in truth, he himself was still the one in charge of everything.

    While the sum total of their territory wasparable to that of a Ducal house, they were also the strongest in the Empire.

    It wasn¡¯t just because of their domain.

    The Berkley fleet itself was over a hundred thousand ships strong.

    In addition to that, it could be said that all the pirates throughout the Empire were under Cashmiro¡¯s control.

    Aside from the stray one¡¯s that didn¡¯t follow anyone, Cashmiro was practically the boss of the Empire¡¯s underworld.

    This is why he and his family were called the Pirate Nobles.

    There were many among the nobility who joined hands with Cashmiro, but conversely, there were also many who opposed him like the man in front of him.

    Before Cashmiro¡¯s eyes, the man in front of him yelled out,

    ¡°Don¡¯t screw with me! You¡¯re the ones who pressured my territory by attacking us with pirates!¡±

    Cashmiro puffed his cigar,

    ¡°All I wanted was for you to obediently hand over your territory and title. Can¡¯t you understand the feelings of a parent who wants their son to grow independently?¡±

    ¡°You destroyed my house for something like that?! Moreover, you even murdered my family... you pirates ar- AAHHHHH!!!¡±

    When the aristocrat stood up and tried to attack Cashmiro, the sons immediately gunned him down.

    As the man dropped to the ground, blood spilled throughout the floor.

    ¡°¨Cyou¡¯re nothing but trash. The Banfield house will kill you all...¡±

    Ignoring the nobleman¡¯sst words, Cashmiro threw away his cigar and stepped on it.

    ¡°What a stupid man. If he just followed us, there wouldn¡¯t have been any need to take his life.¡±

    One of the sons called out to Cashmiro,

    ¡°Hey old man, does this mean I¡¯m a baron now?¡±

    ¡°Hmm? Ahh, sure. However, the territory will ultimately be controlled by me.¡±

    ¡°Yes! Now I¡¯m a family executive as well!¡±

    Although the son was happy, Cashmiro didn¡¯t even know his name, or what number he was.

    With that said, he wasn¡¯t afraid of betrayal because they were blood.

    ¡°¨CNow them, our inventory of elixirs have almost been exhausted. I want to wither a to replenish it, but which one should we use?¡±

    That¡¯s when another son suggested a candidate,

    ¡°I know a good. In truth, the ruling house there has a daughter I¡¯m interested in, but they refused me because they didn¡¯t want to be involved with the pirate nobles. I want to destroy their world as revenge.¡±

    At the request of the slender son who was messing with his hair, Cashmiro easily decided to kill people, animals, and even entires to create elixirs.

    ¡°We don¡¯t need such a useless connection anyway. We¡¯ll destroy them right away.¡±

    ¡°Understood. However, I¡¯d like to spare their daughter if possible. I want to make her my mistress.¡±

    ¡°Do whatever you want.¡±

    ary Development Equipment¨C the Berkley family¡¯s strength originated from multiple devices made from ancient technology.

    They were machines that cultivateds and adjusted them into ces suitable to live in.

    However, if you changed the way you used it, you could absorb all the life from the and its inhabitants, creating elixirs instead.

    Through this method, the Berkley family prepared arge quantity of elixirs and established themselves in the Empire.

    Thinking about how killing people ands were small sacrifices to further his ambitions, Cashmiro looked down at the nobleman¡¯s body,

    ¡°...more importantly, what¡¯s the current situation with the Banfield house?¡±

    There was an aristocrat who was openly hostile to the Berkley family.

    ¨CLiam Sera Banfield.

    Cashmiro¡¯s sons looked at each other, reluctant to speak up.

    ¡°Give me the report already.¡±

    When Cashmiro said so, one of his son¡¯s that was sporting a beard stepped forward,

    ¡°...we¡¯ve hired and sent assassins to his house, all of them enthusiastic about the job, but they¡¯ve all failed.¡±

    A fight had been sold and assassins were sent.

    However, all of them were killed.

    ¡°They¡¯re surprisingly tough. Well, they¡¯ll at least feel pressured if we keep sending them like this.¡±

    One of the son¡¯s with a calm demeanour advised Cashmiro that they should stop the assassination attempts,

    ¡°Father, that Liam brat just recently entered the academy. If we keep sending assassins, we might end up angering the imperial army.¡±

    ¡°So what then? Are you saying we should just watch the situation from the sidelines? No, noble society is all about appearances. We¡¯ll be looked down on if we let this be!¡±

    To Cashmiro¡¯s words, the son suggested an alternative to the assassination,

    ¡°...father, the Banfield house is currently in debt.¡±

    ¡°You mean the debts left by the previous heads? What about them?¡±

    ¡°They borrowed frompanies connected to our house. I¡¯d like to try collecting it by force, even if we have to get slightly aggressive about it.¡±

    Cashmiro felt a little worried after hearing that idea.

    (If we forcibly collect the debt from someone who¡¯s already seriously paying it off... the trust in our frontpany will plummet.)

    In order to grasp the weaknesses of rival businesses and other houses, they were also involved in the financial industry.

    The amount of revenue they earned from it was nothing tough at, so he wanted to avoid losing credibility there if possible.

    However, if they just continued to send assassins to Liam and repeated their mistakes, the houses that despised the Berkley family might see this as a sign of weakness and start to be more active.

    (Even if wee out at a loss, it¡¯s all useless unless we kill that brat.)

    Liam, who had established himself as a pirate hunter, was a hostile noble from Cashmiro¡¯s perspective.

    If such a person rises in noble society, the strength of the houses who held ill towards him would increase, making things more troublesome.

    (...if I don¡¯t take care of this now, will we be eaten first?)

    Many houses held grudges against the Berkley family, so Cashmiro wanted to finish this before Liam officiallypleted his training.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine. We¡¯ll spread rumours about the Banfield¡¯s imminent copse and their inability to pay off their debts. The other money lenders will rush to collect their dues in haste.¡±

    The target was changed from Liam as an individual to the Banfield house as a whole.

    The ns to crush a high-noble were now in full swing.

 Chapter 51 - Volume 4 Chapter 1 Military Academy

    <strong>Volume 4 Chapter 1 Military Academy</strong>

    The Algrand Imperial Academy.

    It was a ce where an entire was used as a military educational facility.

    Urban areas, lush jungles, scorching deserts, fields of ice and snow¨C all of them were training grounds.

    Even in space, they focused on nurturing soldiers to support the Empire using ports, warships, and even entire colonies.

    I- [Liam Sera Banfield] had entered the military academy was currently enrolled into the strategy department where the elites were gathered.

    The students expected to rise up the ranks asmanders or maybe even the chief of staff were put on this course, given preferential treatment.

    In short, basically excellent cadets were gathered here in addition to the nobility.

    It¡¯s the ce where the elites were supposed to go, but as a future duke, I was able to major in the strategy department regardless of my grades.

    General cadets could only enter after achieving great results, but others could enter simply because they were of noble birth.

    That¡¯s right, grades didn¡¯t matter as long as they were an aristocrat.

    ¡°Birth isn¡¯t everything in this universe, but don¡¯t you think who you¡¯re born as still has a big impact on things?¡±

    The academy¡¯s cafeteria.

    While saying that in front of the gross food that emphasised on nutrition, Wace¨C whose head was shaved, answered while biting down on some hard bread.

    ¡°What¡¯s this so suddenly?¡±

    In the academy, you were basically forced to shave your head.

    While women were only allowed to have short hair.

    ¨Cand so, my head was also shaved.

    But once I entered into my third year, I¡¯d be allowed a little bit of freedom with my hairstyle.

    ¡°Just because I was born into a noble house, that alone gave me the qualifications to enter the elite course.¡±

    I was born as a winner in life and looked down on those who weren¡¯t.

    After sending a look my way, Wace was suddenly ncing around at the surroundings.

    ¡°Liam, can¡¯t you speak in a smaller voice? Just look at the eyes gathered on you.¡±

    Taking in my surroundings, I could see a group of losers ring at me.

    Some of candidates looking at me quite favourably though.

    I¡¯m sure those people were from the nobility. They agreed with my opinion.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it the truth though? If any of them have aint, they can say it to me directly.¡±

    But no one approached.

    The cadets who were ring at me turned their eyes away in silence.

    That¡¯s what I thought. ¨CThey were scared to go against me, a high-noble.

    The school was too big to remember the faces and names of all the cadets.

    But it was definitely the general candidates who were ring at me.

    This is it. This is what I¡¯m talking about.

    This is exactly what I imagined being an evil lord would be like.

    As I thought that, some of the senior cadets must¡¯ve been offended by what I said and approached me.

    ¡°That¡¯s quite the bullish attitude you¡¯re taking there.¡±

    Wace was surprised after seeing the upperssmen.

    ¡°Dolph?!¡±

    The military academy was toorge to know each and every candidate.

    But even I knew who this man was.

    After all, he was the valedictorian.

    Even though he was also of noble birth, he seemed to have a sense of justice strong enough to stand against me after I harassed themoners.

    ¨CI don¡¯t like him.

    ¡°While I heard that your grades were excellent, but to have a personality of that level. Aren¡¯t you ashamed of yourself?¡±

    I hated sarcastic bastards like him.

    His hair that was hardened with gel was slicked back.

    He was [Dolph Sera Lawrence]¨C a strange man who was a noble, but still took the sides of themoners.

    His body was on the skinny side, but you could still tell he was a trained soldier.

    I didn¡¯t like that expression he had that seemed to say he was a true elite.

    ¡°What does this year¡¯s oh so great valedictorian want with me?¡±

    ¡°...that isn¡¯t an attitude you should be taking towards your upperssmen.¡±

    While he was my senior in the academy, he was also of a lower court-rank than me.

    As a future duke, there was no reason for me to treat someone of a mere count house as an equal.

    Military discipline? How much do you think I donated to the academy? There¡¯s no doubt that they¡¯ll aquitte me.

    Wace was looking my way while shaking his head.

    He probably wanted to tell me not to start something, but I hated people that had a sense of justice.

    They reminded me of myself from my previous life.

    With a sense of justice with no reason or logic behind it, they were basically good people.

    Surely this guy was angry at me for belittling themoners.

    He was such a good child that he made me want to vomit.

    ¡°Why should I care? What¡¯re you gonna do about it?¡±

    I wanted to say that it was him who shouldn¡¯t be addressing me so over-familiarly.

    His temper rising, Dolph raised his jaw a little as a blood vessel appeared on his forehead.

    ¡°Follow me to the simtion room. I¡¯ll give you a lesson on how you¡¯re supposed to treat your upperssmen.¡±

    ¡°...if you actually can then by all means.¡±

    With my provocative smile, the cafeteria broke out into amotion.

    ¡°Hey, Liam and Dolph are going to fight in the simtor.¡±

    ¡°Those two are?!¡±

    ¡°This is definitely a must-see!¡±

    Inside of the excited cafeteria, Wace was the only one hanging his head.

    ¡°Liam, why do you always have to¨C¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The simtion room.

    Many cadets were gathered to see what was about to happen.

    Liam, the top student in the first year, and Dolph, the valedictorian of the sixth, were about to lead their fleets against each other in a simtion.

    There were many candidates interested in this.

    Wace sighed as he looked over how clearly divided the spectators were.

    ¡°As always, Liam is very popr among themoners.¡±

    Supporting Dolph were the aristocrats who hated Liam.

    On the other hand, most of the people who supported Liam were just ordinary cadets.

    There were a few nobles mixed in there, but the overwhelming majority of them weremoners.

    ¡°Nevertheless, to pick fights with the nobles in the middle of the cafeteria... and for it to be Dolph of all people.¡±

    Dolph was the second son of the Lawrence house, a true advocate of noble standing.

    To him it was only natural for the nobility to receive preferential treatment.

    And yet Liam pick a fight by saying, ¡°Just because I was born into a noble house, that alone gave me the qualifications to enter the elite course.¡±

    ¡°This isn¡¯t good. There might be a lot of bad rumours around Dolph, but his skills are the real deal.¡±

    Wace was worried because of all the senior cadets Liam had to pick a fight with, it just had to be Dolph.

    A mere five year difference might seem short, but it actually had a huge effect.

    No matter how good Liam was, it¡¯d be difficult to ovee Dolph¡¯s five years of military experience he had over him.

    (Well, it¡¯s kind of suspicious how he was able to be the valedictorian though.)

    The bad rumours surrounding Dolph mostly stemmed from how he crushed other potential students that threaten his spot at the top.

    They said that if there was a cadet who was likely to be his rival, they¡¯d suddenly be forced to drop out because of false charges.

    There were even stories about how he hired criminals to take someone¡¯s family hostage unless they dropped out.

    (I¡¯m afraid of Liam¡¯s sense of justice, that makes him easily pick fights no matter who the opponent it.)

    While he did have a foul mouth, Liam sense of justice was strong. He also had the ability to back it up.

    Such a Liam was the hope among themoners who found the nobility to be an annoyance.

    ¨CThe simtion started.

    As the two people moved their fleets through the control panels, Liam immediately went on the offensive.

    Dolph dismissed those movements as nothing,

    ¡°Those tactics might work against pirates, they¡¯re useless against me.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Dolph sent out a cheap provocation, and in truth Liam¡¯s forces were slowly being whittled down.

    ¡°A person who only knows assault tactics is nothing to me.¡±

    Liam¡¯s fleet was specialised in offensive maneuvers.

    Conversely, Dolph¡¯s fleet was specialised in defensive ones, and the situation was growing more and more unfavourable for Liam.

    The organization of their fleets and how they were built was decided before the simtion even started.

    This was so your opponent couldn¡¯t prepare perfect countermeasures and to keep things fair.

    However, Dolph was acting as if he had known how Liam¡¯s fleet had been organised from the beginning.

    He was using tactics that knew what ships Liam chose and how he was going to move.

    (This is bad, Dolph did something.)

    As Liam suddenly became disadvantaged, the nobles who cheered for Dolph started speaking out.

    ¡°What, so this is all that pirate hunting amounts to?¡±

    ¡°Even if this would work against pirates, he needs to learn that this is what reality is like.¡±

    ¡°That redneck from the frontier needs to learn his ce.¡±

    The aristocrats taking bullish attitudes.

    Conversely, themoners were silent despite the fact that they had realised the nobles had done something.

    If there wasn¡¯t any evidence, their support would only embarrass Liam.

    They were certain that Dolph had cheated, but without proof nothing could be done.

    (At this rate Liam is going to lose.)

    Liam¡¯s situation was unfavourable enough that even Wace would see his defeat.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    There was a man standing upside down on the ceiling of the simtion room.

    He was wearing a top hat that covered his eyes and a tailcoat suit.

    Despite that, you could still see his smile.

    ¡°...now this is interesting.¡±

    The [Guide] who watched the confrontation between Liam and Dolph was more powerful than he was before.

    Thanks to the power he had umted in the imperial capital, he was finally freed from his suffering.

    However, even now his strength was being eroded from Liam¡¯s gratitude.

    If left unattended, then he¡¯d eventually be left suffering in agony again.

    Today¡¯s Liam was loved by the people of his territory.

    His gratitude had tremendous power behind it whenbined with the feelings of his people.

    While the guide had gathered an amount of power that couldn¡¯t be ignored, it¡¯d still be difficult to make Liam unhappy as he was now.

    For this reason, he was watching over the situation for any chance to hurt Liam¨C but then he noticed Dolph.

    The guide approached Dolph, who currently had an expression full ofposure, but no one noticed him.

    ¡°This looks like a man whose driven many people into despair. One of my favourite kinds of people.¡±

    The man named Dolph had crushed many rivals so that he could be the best.

    Many grudges were clinging to such a Dolph.

    Unlike Liam, he was corrupt aristocrat, making him a wonderful person full of potential.

    In addition to that, he seemed to have altered the simtor to guarantee his win.

    His thoroughness was very pleasing.

    ¡°...I just thought of something fun.¡±

    Saying that, the guide ced his hand on the simtor.

    The moment that happened, Dolph¡¯s fleet suddenly began to be pushed back.

    Even though Liam¡¯s fleet was one-sidedly losing until now, the difference between them was gradually shrinking.

    Dolph was confused.

    ¡°W-what?!¡±

    On the other hand, Liam was smiling.

    ¡°I thought you were the valedictorian! Is this all you upperssmen amount to?! ¡±

    Taking a nce at Liam, the guide burst intoughter while breaking into a smile.

    ¡°That¡¯s perfect. Goad him on more, Liam.This will be the seeds of your downfall.¡±

    Despite his hate for Liam, the guide made it so that he¡¯d win.

    The reason being¨C

    ¡°Damn it! DAMN IT!¡±

    Even though Dolph rushed to move his fleet, he created a gap for Liam to attack, making the situation more disadvantageous for him.

    ¡°W-why is this happening?!¡±

    Despite being so assured of his victory, Dolph fell into a panic and his face went pale.

    The guide called out to such a Dolph.

    He put his hand on his shoulder, but he didn¡¯t seem to notice.

    ¡°Dolph, I have high expectations for you. Your defeat here will be a source of motivation for you, and Liam, who dealt you such a humiliation will be someone you will grow to hate with all your being.¡±

    In truth, Dolph already had a blood vessel bulging on his forehead as he red at Liam.

    To be the best, Dolph had fixed things so that he¡¯d never lose to anyone.

    And yet he had humiliatingly lost to Liam, person several years his junior.

    ¡°Over something like this!¡±

    When the simtor announced Liam¡¯s victory, the general candidates broke out in cheers.

    On the other hand, the aristocrats looked at Dolph with cold eyes.

    ¡°This is our year¡¯s valedictorian?¡±

    ¡°Because he¡¯s an obscene man, I guess he¡¯s only really worth this much.¡±

    ¡°Even though he cheated, for him to lose to Liam that badly...¡±

    They ridiculed him.

    Dolph had never been more humiliated in his life.

    Liam called out to him,

    ¡°This is because you only know the simtors. It can¡¯tpare to real battle experience gained from actual war. As your senior in life I¡¯d be happy to give you lessons sometime¨C Dolph.¡±

    The guide happily greeted Liam¡¯s smug attitude in satisfaction.

    After all, the way Dolph was ring at Liam now was absolutely delicious.

    ¡°You bastard...¡±

    The guild smiled at what Dolph muttered in a small voice.

    ¡°That¡¯s it. Grow to hate Liam even more. For you shall be the one to strike him down. I¡¯ll prepare the perfect battlefield for you.¡±

    Now that the guide had enough power to spare, he wanted to slowly tighten the noose around Liam¡¯s neck instead of rushing things.

    Reflecting on the pain that he¡¯s suffered so far, he wanted to make sure Liam didn¡¯t do anything outside his expectations.

    Then when the time finally came, he¡¯d thoroughly crush him in an instant.

    ¡°You better enjoy yourself for now, Liam. Because once you finally lose everything, the expression you make then will be all the sweeter.¡±

    Leaving those parting words, the guide disappeared as he sank into the floor.

    The only thing left behind being Dolph, who gritted his teeth while scowling at Liam.

    ¡°¨CI will never forgive you. Never!¡±

    A future elite who hated Liam was born at that moment.

 Chapter 52 - Volume 4 Chapter 2 Entourage

    <strong>Volume 4 Chapter 2 Entourage</strong>

    A ssroom inside the military academy.

    In the stepped lecture hall, Liam was surrounded by children of various noble houses.

    Ever since yesterday¡¯s match against Dolph, the aristocrats have been shamelessly approaching him.

    ¡°Liam, you¡¯re amazing!¡±

    ¡°You beat an upperssmen, moreover it was the valedictorian Dolph of all people!¡±

    ¡°I guess real battle experience truly is different.¡±

    As Liam was being praised, he was making a face that said he was enjoying this.

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t much, he was just weak.¡±

    The surroundings continued to praise Liam after he said so.

    Wace was watching this all from a distance, unlike yesterday, the noble children were tantly kissing up to Liam.

    ¡°...immediately flocking towards the strong. It¡¯s almost impressive seeing how honest they are.¡±

    The general cadets in the ssroom had bitter expressions on their faces as they watched this all ur.

    Like Wace, they were amazed at how quickly the nobles changed their attitudes.

    (Just yesterday they were calling him a stupid redneck, but now they¡¯re practically eating out of his hand.)

    With Liam¡¯s victory over Dolph, the aristocratic children who ridiculed him were now acting like his entourage.

    (Hah... I miss elementary school.)

    Back then Liam¡¯s other friend Kurt was there too.

    If he hade to the academy as well, then he surely would¡¯ve kept such people away from Liam.

    However, Kurt was the heir of the Baron Exner house, a family that had strong ties to the military.

    Those kinds of houses always chose the academy to be theirst destination in their training.

    After graduating from elementary school, Kurt had enrolled into the university to prioritise getting his qualifications as an official.

    Thest reason being the fact that after he graduated from the military academy, there were ns for him to stay in the army beyond the minimum four years of service.

    Thanks to that, Kurt was currently a university student and wasn¡¯t here.

    (Now that I think about it, he was quite depressed when he had to seperate from Liam.)

    Kurt was despondent when Liam told him he was going to the military academy first.

    Although he wanted to enroll into the academy together, it¡¯s not like Liam could stay enlisted in the army forever.

    He had already seeded as the head of his house, he wasn¡¯t an heir, and needed to return to govern his territory as soon as possible.

    Wace looked at Liam being praised by his surroundings.

    ¡°It¡¯s ten years too early for an amateur without actual battle experience to win against me.¡±

    To Liam who had said such things, his surroundings broke out in confusion saying, ¡°A decade?¡± ¡°It only takes ten years to get that strong?¡± ¡°That¡¯s surprisingly fast.¡±

    At that moment¨C [Marie Sera Marian] burst into the ssroom with her short purple hair.

    That¡¯s right, purple hair.

    With features that could only be used to describe her as a beauty, she was a person whose style really stood out in the military academy full of men.

    ¡°I just heard the news, Lord Liam!¡±

    As soon as she approached Liam, she grabbed his hands with shining eyes.

    ¡°...Marie?¡±

    Marie continued to sing praises for Liam,pletely oblivious to the troubled face he was making.

    ¡°You beat the valedictorian in a simtion battle! As expected of Lord Liam! This Marie here was unfortunately unable to see your gant figure yesterday because that annoying instructor of mine was distracting me. If you had called me, I would¡¯vee running immediately!¡±

    Wace sighed.

    (All of Liam¡¯s knight¡¯s sure are unique.)

    Marie had also entered the academy with Liam.

    The reason was so that she could obtain her knight qualifications.

    However, even though her records had disappeared, Marie was actually a hero who was knighted over two thousand years ago.

    So what would happen when such a person entered the academy?

    ¨Cthe military academy rarely received non-standard cadets, and didn¡¯t really have any measures prepared to deal with individuals like that.

    Separate from the general courses, there were sses made specifically to amodate such non-standard people.

    It was a ce where those with strange talents were kept, in addition to those who were clearly falling behind.

    In short, it was a ce where the problem children were gathered, where all the instructors made to teach there were veterans.

    Inside such a ss, Marie refused to have her hair cut short on the very first day.

    Naturally, the instructors ordered her to cut her hair anyway¨C and in response, Marie beat them all down with force, and even started lecturing them instead.

    She ran her mouth saying, ¡°So imperial instructors were people of only this level? I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anything you could possibly teach me,¡± in disappointment.

    The instructors couldn¡¯t win against her, and straight up expelling her would undermine their authority, making them look like they were being petty, so as a result of their troubles¨C they ended up asking Liam for help.

    Liam, who had just had his head shaved said, ¡°What? Even though I¡¯m practically bald now, you¡¯reining about cutting your hair short? Go get it cut already!¡± and the very next day, she reported to him sporting her new short hairstyle.

    Seeing that, the instructors went, ¡°What the hell did we even go through all that trouble for?¡± in openints that even the cadets could hear.

    In any case, Marie was thrown into ss full of problem children separate from Liam.

    He seemed to have bepletely dispirited after seeing her though.

    ¡°I see. That¡¯s quite a shame indeed. I understand, so Marie, you should go back to your ssroom already.¡±

    ¡°No Lord Liam, I haven¡¯t praised you nearly enough! If I don¡¯t spread the word on how wonderful you are, that would be the greatest shame of this Marie¡¯s life!¡±

    Her eyes were bloodshot.

    Marie then continued her praises of Liam, and all the guys who were acting like they were going to be Liam¡¯s entourage pulled away.

    ¡°In the first ce, it¡¯s only natural for Lord Liam to be this wonderful, it¡¯s an inevitability you have to e¨C¡±

    Wace fell into thought after Marie started speaking.

    (Hah... I really miss my days at the elementary school.)

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    I like a good yes-man.

    Dog-like people who always praise me will always be wee in my book.

    But when I look at Marie raving about in excitement in front of me...

    I think differently.

    Marie had bloodshot eyes as she yelled out in fervor, ¡°Lord Liam is the embodiment of perfection!¡± and other things along those lines.

    ¨CI love people who fawn over me and give me lots of ttery, but this was just off-putting.

    The same could be said for my head knight, Tia.

    I¡¯m sure that if I identally tripped, they¡¯dpliment me and say, ¡°As expected of Lord Liam!¡± even then.

    Once things started to go that far, all their praises started to feel like they¡¯re actually making fun of me instead.

    ¨Cthey¡¯re words were empty.

    ¡°Lord Liam is a wonderful person!¡±

    ¡°...I see, that¡¯s great. Now Marie, go back to your ssroom already.¡±

    ¡°Why Lord Liam?!¡±

    ¡°ss will be starting soon.¡±

    ¡°Oh, but if it¡¯s just something like that¨C¡±

    ¡°GO BACK ALREADY!¡±

    ¡°Y-yes!¡±

    To spew out enoughpliments to even bete for her next ss, did she have any awareness as her position of my deputy knight at all?

    Certainly, she waspetent, but she seemed to have a few screws loose.

    I dropped my shoulders as I saw Marie exit the ssroom, but everyone else still seemed to be keeping their distance.

    This is all because of Marie¡¯s extreme behaviour.

    I had finally gotten a group of henchmen together, but she ruined it.

    Marie really was useless sometimes.

    She didn¡¯t know how to give praise in moderation, so she always ended up making me look like a fool.

    Ah~ now my moods been ruined.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Secretly leaving the ssroom was one of the cadets that had been surrounding Liam.

    Marie, who was hiding behind the corner, called out to him as he tried to slip away in a tense state.

    ¡°Hey, sses are about to begin. Where do you think you¡¯re going?¡±

    The cadet opened his eyes in surprise, but immediately pulled out a knife from his pocket and lunged at her.

    Grabbing his arm, Marie quickly pinned the assant down onto the floor.

    ¡°...what were you going to do with that knife?¡±

    ¡°L-let go of me!¡±

    Grabbing one of the cadet¡¯s fingers, Marie smiled as she snapped it in the opposite direction the joint bent.

    ¡°Shi-!¡±

    Seeing the cadet try to suppress his scream, Marie¡¯s grin grew even wider.

    ¡°You give off the feeling of an amateur, so tell me¨C why did you approach Lord Liam?¡±

    She snapped another finger, but the cadet didn¡¯t answer her.

    As he struggled to escape, a man d in ck while wearing an eerie mask rose up from the floor.

    Marie wasn¡¯t fazed by the sight, but the cadet was clearly frightened.

    [Kukuri] had appeared.

    He was a subordinate who protected Liam from the shadows.

    ¡°Marie, you might cause problems if you move on your own.¡±

    ¡°Kukuri, who does this person work for? Don¡¯t tell me assassins of this degree are all the Berkley family has left.¡±

    Kukuri broke intoughter at thatment.

    ¡°...no, he¡¯s just one of the Lawrence house¡¯s henchmen. He¡¯s no assassin.¡±

    ¡°So he¡¯s just one of Dolph¡¯s pawns?¡±

    When Marie broke another of the cadet¡¯s fingers, the thug of the Lawrence house had a bitter expression on his face. It seems like he was unable to hide how upset he was that his employer was found out.

    ¡°Yes. It seems he forged his identity and infiltrated the academy. Everything about this man¡¯s identity is false. He seems to have been ced here to help instill Dolph as the valedictorian.¡±

    ¡°I see, so that¡¯s how it is...¡±

    He collected information that Dolph could take advantage of while spreading rumours.

    Apparently he was involved with various things, but from Kukuri and Marie¡¯s perspective, it was all on the level of child¡¯s-y.

    Kukuriined to Marie.

    ¡°Because he approached Lord Liam to collect information, I was trying to keep him under observation.¡±

    ¡°He approached Lord Liam with bad intentions. For that alone he deserves death. Am I wrong?¡±

    Kukuri made a troubled gesture.

    ¡°I agree with you, but there¡¯s also various circumstances to consider. I was only keeping him under watch because assassination didn¡¯t seem to be his goal. Well, I guess it¡¯s toote now. Let¡¯s reveal this person¡¯s true identity and report him to the army.¡±

    ¡°Huh, I can¡¯t kill him?¡±

    ¡°You can, but then Dolph¡¯s transgressions won¡¯te to light. Besides, we can always kill him whenever we want to.¡±

    When Marie let go of the thug, Kukuri grabbed him as he started to sink into the floor.

    The thug tried to scream, but he wasn¡¯t able to call for help because Kukri had muffled him.

    After watching them disappear, Marie continued on her way to her ssroom.

    ¡°...the academy sure has a lot of Lord Liam¡¯s enemies.¡±

    All hostiles who approached Liam were secretly taken care of by Marie and Kukuri.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A few weekster.

    Unlike Liam, Dolph was surrounded by enemies on all sides.

    ¡°Damn it! All of them always treating me like a fool! This is all because of my subordinate¡¯s ipetence!¡±

    All of the cadets who served Dolph were exposed and detained by the academy.

    They were all immediately expelled, and naturally, Dolph had to take responsibility for their actions as well.

    However, his expulsion was acquitted because of his noble status.

    Instead, his title of valedictorian was taken away.

    His fast track through the military ranks was practically lost.

    ¡°What do I do? What the hell should I do?!¡±

    The Lawrence house was a family that created many military personnel, so Dolph¡¯s behaviour brought a lot of trouble to his rtives.

    For this reason, he was currently being shunned by his family and couldn¡¯t expect any help from them.

    ¡°...all of this is because of the Banfield house¡¯s Liam. I was supposed to be a man who¡¯d rise through the military ranks and be a marshal.¡±

    Even though he¡¯d done his best for that goal, all of his hard work had disappeared in an instant.

    Dolph absolutely loathed Liam.

    ¡°I¡¯ll never forgive you, Liam!¡±

    The raging Dolph vowed to take revenge on Liam by any means necessary.

 Chapter 53 - Volume 4 Chapter 3 Economic War

    <strong>Volume 4 Chapter 3 Economic War</strong>

    In the academy, it¡¯s forbidden to make calls without permission.

    Even if you were only receiving a report from your territory, you were made to use a room specifically designed for the calls.

    Therefore, right now I was talking to Amagi in themunication room but¨C

    ¡°...the debt collectors are pushing us to pay up?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Because our financial situation has deteriorated, they want to quickly collect what they can.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m struggling financially? Me of all people?¡±

    I didn¡¯t understand.

    Did something happen back home?

    ¡°Did a problem ur in the territory?¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s developing at a steady pace. It might not be as fast as it used to be, but there haven¡¯t been anyplications. Even the pioneer¡¯s development has stabilised.¡±

    ¡°Why then?¡±

    Amagi paused for a moment before answering, ¡°It still hasn¡¯t been confirmed but it seems like the Berkley family has been moving behind the scenes. Apparently, they have a lot of connections withpanies in the financial industry.¡±

    ¡°Derrick¡¯s family?¡±

    There was a man who picked a fight with me back during my time at the elementary school.

    Derrick tried to kill me during the mobile knight tournament, but I ended up killing him instead.

    However, that seems to have pissed off his family.

    ¡°The Berkley family has many rtives and is very troublesome. The majority of them might only be Barons, but Serena says that we should still stay vignt.¡±

    ¡°So you¡¯re telling me a family of Barons are picking a fight with a Count like myself? Even if they¡¯re an annoyance, no matter how many small fish gather together, they¡¯re still only small fish in the end.¡±

    It was impossible to know all the connections each noble house had.

    After killing Derrick, it was only natural for the rest of his rtives in the Berkley family to be hostile towards me.

    However, for things to have gotten this far was unexpected.

    ¡°Let¡¯s just repay the entire debt in bulk. Can we sell the rare metals we have stored to Thomas?¡±

    It was annoying having to convert everything into cash, but if they wanted me to pay it all off at once, then I¡¯llply.

    However, I wouldn¡¯t forgive their insolence in treating me this way.

    ¡°I¡¯ve talked to him about it, but there¡¯s too much for him. Therefore, we still haven¡¯t prepared the funds. The debt collectors have expressed that they¡¯d be willing to take the rare metals instead for less than half the market price, but I¡¯d like to know your opinion on this, Master.¡±

    ¡°The collectors said they¡¯ll buy my resources cheaply?¡±

    There are many things that I hate.

    On that list, debt collectors were among the worst of them.

    In my previous life, I was thoroughly tormented by them.

    Although it wasn¡¯t even my own debt, I absolutely abhorred the debt collectors who tortured me so.

    Even in this universe, it was my parents and grandparents who made the huge debts.

    I was going to pay it all back in due time, but I wasn¡¯t going to forgive them if they tried to force it.

    ¡°It feels like I¡¯d lose if I sold it to them. If they¡¯re going to be bought cheaply anyway, then I want to sell rare metals to the Empire.¡±

    ¡°Even though the Empire would buy them at an even worse price? Are you sure about this?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s better than helping the debt collectors make money.¡±

    Also, I could prepare as many rare metals as I wanted.

    In the first ce, all of my financial problems were technically artificial.

    This is all because of the amazing device called the ¡®Alchemy Box¡¯ that the guide provided for me, an amazing tool that could create rare metals even from garbage.

    ¡°They¡¯re the ones who started this fight. Let¡¯s start pressuring the Berkley family.¡±

    ¡°You mean to start an economic war?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, my victory is assured.¡±

    It was impossible for them topete with me while I had the alchemy box.

    Poor them.

    ¡°We¡¯ll start applying pressure with a reasonable range. Now then, how¡¯s your life at the military academy? Have you been injured or gotten sick? Are you staying healthy?¡±

    ¡°Compared to Master¡¯s One-sh training, the things the instructors put me through here are nothing¨C though it can¡¯t be said that I¡¯m not troubled, or rather, my biggest problem being that there¡¯s nothing for me to learn here.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing for you to learn?¡±

    ¡°Actually one of the upperssmen picked a fight with me, but I beat him down in a simtion battle. I wish you were there to see it Amagi.¡±

    Despite telling her about my brilliant victory against Dolph, Amagi didn¡¯t seem very happy with me.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°...Master, didn¡¯t all of that happen because you were acting conceited?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s only natural for evil lords to be conceited. However, it¡¯s also true that I wanted to beat down the fool who was brandishing his sense of justice. It makes me want tough thinking about how someone of that level was the valedictorian.¡±

    It wasn¡¯t such a big deal in the academy.

    As I broke into a grin, Amagi began to chastise me,

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to see you constantly getting into fights with the other cadets. Master, you should focus more on your studies in the academy instead.¡±

    ...today¡¯s Amagi sure was harsh.

    ¡°You know, you¡¯re the only one who I¡¯d allow to take that attitude towards me, right? If it was anyone else, I would¡¯ve already had their head by now.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just telling you what you need to hear, Master. You can always take my head whenever you wish.¡±

    Take Amagi¡¯s head? That¡¯s something that should never be said, not even as a joke.

    I raised my hands in surrender.

    ¡°I¡¯ll try to follow your advice. Please don¡¯t be mad at me.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not angry.¡±

    ¡°¨Cby the way, umm... how¡¯s Rosetta doing?¡±

    She was a troublesome girl who said she¡¯d even follow me to the military academy. Has she been behaving herself in the mansion?

    She happily calls me ¡°Darling!¡± when we¡¯re together, and I didn¡¯t really know how to treat her.

    As a candidate for my future harem, I thought she was beautiful enough... but something felt wrong when I thought about that.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta is currently going through strict training with the head maid. There have been talks to have her begin studies at another house, but we¡¯re having difficulty finding one considering our current situation with the Berkley family.¡±

    ¡°So it¡¯s the Berkley family again?¡±

    I always heard their name wherever I went.

    In the Empire, that seemed to be a surname asmon as ¡®Tanaka¡¯.

    ¡°Well... I¡¯ll leave the details to you.¡±

    ¡°Just leave it to me.¡±

    After the call ended, I stood up from my chair and stretched.

    ¡°Now then, just like what Amagi told me, should I try taking sses a little more seriously?¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The next day¡¯s ss taught the basics of fleet warfare.

    I had learned about this already in the education capsule, but after hearing the instructor¡¯s lesson¨C I could feel myself break out into a cold sweat.

    Standing on the tform, the instructor indifferently spoke about modern warfare.

    ¡°As the sizes of fleet battles increase, the time battlesst tend to increase as well. This is because aggressive tactics are dangerous. Since the side who¡¯s more patient tends to have the advantage, assault tactics should be avoided.¡±

    The holographic image reproduced a fleet battle and exined the truth to us in an easy-to-understand manner.

    ¡°While the quality of the ships and the skill of the crews are other factors to consider, it would be risky to charge at an opponent of the same level indiscriminately. Careful preparations are necessary.¡±

    The instructor added on,

    ¡°Current assault tactics are usually used when pursuing a fleet that had already lost. I pray that there is no one among you hoping to rush into enemy lines like a hero.¡±

    The candidates wereughing.

    But I wasn¡¯t.

    After all, assault tactics could be considered the Banfield house¡¯s signature winning move.

    Even if it¡¯s worked so far, that was only because our opponents were pirates...

    I asked the instructor a question,

    ¡°Instructor, how much of a strength difference would you need for assault tactics to be viable?¡±

    ¡°Oh, cadet Liam? How surprising, I didn¡¯t think there was anything left for me to teach you. Let¡¯s see... I think you¡¯d need at least four times the enemy force in that scenario.¡±

    Quadruple the amount.

    If that was the truth, then the Banfield house would be screwed if the enemy was even ten-thousand strong.

    Our ships were built for aggressive maneuvers, and our soldiers had gone through assault-oriented training.

    I¡¯vepletely messed up in how I organised them.

    ¡°Four times... four times?¡±

    While I was in deep thought, Wace called out to me,

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°...it¡¯s nothing. I¡¯ve just been thinking about bolistering my army.¡±

    ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡±

    It was necessary to immediately change our military policies and increase our numbers.

    Even an evil lord would feel anxiety when their army wasn¡¯t up to par.

    I wanted to trample over others from a safe position, not a risky one.

    ¡°Armaments... If I¡¯m talking about those then¨C¡±

    I guess I¡¯ll have to get in contact with the weapon factories soon.

    I also need to call Amagi again.

    Even if I change the policies now, it would take several years at the earliest for them to show any effect.

    But considering how I¡¯ll have to change everything we¡¯ve built up so far, there¡¯s no doubt it¡¯d take even longer.

    Damn it! ¨CI messed up.

    Looking back at all of our aggressive battles so far, I¡¯ve been careless.

    Now that I think about it, I was losing against Dolph at the beginning of our battle because of assault tactics.

    But luckily, I was a man who could respond to changes immediately.

    Let¡¯s spin this in a positive light and say I was lucky to notice it this early, before anything had actually happened.

    ¡°For the time being, I¡¯ll aim to double my forces to sixty thousand ships. No, shouldn¡¯t I triple them to a total of ny thousand?¡±

    Listening to my mutterings, Wace went, ¡°Eh? You really need that many?¡± in surprise.

    Of course I did.

    My army should never be one to retreat.

    That¡¯s because one¡¯s military power was the symbol of what it meant to be an evil lord.

    Anyone would grow silent as long as you had a powerful army.

    No, I¡¯d force them into silence.

    A strong military was the ultimate form of the power of violence.

    That¡¯s why I¡¯ll never retreat.

    Wait, I totally forgot!

    As Amagi was right, I shouldn¡¯t grow conceited with just this!

    Right now I didn¡¯t have the military power to guarantee my safety, but I could still change this.

    ¡°I¡¯m suddenly feeling really motivated.¡±

    Watching my serious expression, Wace looked like he didn¡¯t know what to say,

    ¡°I-is that so? Well... I guess I¡¯m happy for you? D-do your best!¡±

    Yes, as my underling, I¡¯ll do my best for you as well!

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    After hearing the report in his office, Cashmiro dropped his cigar.

    ¡°W-what did you say?¡±

    The son who gave the report through call didn¡¯t even try to hide how upset he was.

    ¡°The Banfield house sold all of the rare metals they had stored. After auctioning them all off to the Empire, they paid off their debts in full with cash.¡±

    Their n to cut the power of the Banfield house ended up with their frontpany just losing credibility.

    ¡°In any case just keep pressuring them! If we leave that brat alone, the Berkley family will be looked down on!¡±

    ¡°U-understood.¡±

    When the call ended, Cashmiro held his head.

    ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me. Weren¡¯t they just a poor noble house?¡±

    He didn¡¯t think they had that much room to move economically.

    (To choose to stay in debt despite having the capital to pay it off... did they change where they allocated their funds? I thought they were just some upstarts developing on the frontier, but they¡¯re surprisingly troublesome.)

    Now that things had gotten this far, there was no choice but to match them until they gave up.

    If they backed off first, others would begin to question the Berkley family¡¯s power.

    There was no point in any of this unless they won.

    Yes¨C there were quite a few troubles that came once you started a fight with a high-noble.

    ¡°We have elixirs though. With those, we can earn arge sum of money in an instant. Even if they had a lot of rare metals, it¡¯s the Banfield house that¡¯ll fall first.¡±

    Although there was the demerit of how they had to destroys in order to make them, there was still quite the demand for elixirs.

    Cashmiro thought that Liam would definitely surrender given time.

    ¡°Nevertheless, this economic war could still be considered a failure. We¡¯ve sustained quite a lot of damage on this side too.¡±

    Their frontpany lost credibility and trust.

    It¡¯s connection to their Berkley family was exposed.

    If he knew this was going to happen, he would¡¯ve started the fight in a different way.

    ¡°...we can¡¯t afford to lose to that brat anymore.¡±

    Their fight would only grow in intensity from here on¨C or it was supposed to.

 Chapter 54 - Volume 4 Chapter 4 Cursed Star Poison

    <strong>Volume 4 Chapter 4 Cursed Star Poison</strong>

    A room inside the military academy.

    There, a nobleman from the Berkley family confirmed the contents of a suitcase that his followers had brought.

    ¡°This is the cursed star poison?¡±

    Inside of the suitcase was a capsule that contained a purple liquid.

    The liquid inside of it was poison.

    ¡°Try your best to avoid contact with it. Rather than poison, it¡¯s more of a curse.¡±

    ¡°So this thing will really curse whoever I use it on?¡±

    The underling began to exin how the cursed star poison worked,

    ¡°If you use this, you can kill Liam without ever being found out. The power of the curse is no joke. It¡¯s the literal materialization of those who were burned alive when their was destroyed.¡±

    When a was destroyed, all living beings residing on it were killed as well, this liquid was the manifestation of their negative feelings.

    If you were to ingest it, you¡¯d suffer from it¡¯s powerful curse until you died.

    The only way to treat it would be to use an elixir, and if you didn¡¯t have one avable, you were finished.

    If enough time had passed, even elixirs wouldn¡¯t be able to save you, leaving death as your only escape.

    ¡°¨Cfather and the rest of those old men are acting too conservatively. I¡¯ll be the one to kill Liam, which in turn will allow me to rise as one of the family¡¯s executives!¡±

    The follower lowered his head.

    ¡°At that time, please don¡¯t forget to give me credit.¡±

    ¡°I know. Anyways, where did you even get this from?¡±

    With a sly grin, the henchman gave an unexpected name.

    ¡°Do you know the  Restoration Activist Group¡¯?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard of them.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re actually dealing with these items under the table. While they¡¯re a charity organisation on the surface, in truth they illegally steal various things from the destroyeds. They don¡¯t take that  restoration¡¯ crap seriously.¡±

    While they did have the capability to do so, they tried to avoid revitalising thes if possible.

    Instead, they dealt with and moved illegal goods for enormous profits.

    ¡°Well, that doesn¡¯t really matter to me. So I just need to put this in Liam¡¯s meal?¡±

    ¡°The capsule itself will melt, but it¡¯s contents will be undetectable. If you mix it into soup, it¡¯ll just be mistaken for another ingredient.¡±

    ¡°...hehehe, this day will be that guy¡¯sst.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Interrogation room.

    The person sitting opposite to me was the brigadier general of the military police.

    Such a guy was taking an imputant attitude, treating me like the criminal responsible for the recent death in the academy.

    ¡°Count, I¡¯ve heard that you were currently quarrelling with the Berkley family.¡±

    The brigadier general was choosing his words carefully, despite the fact that I was still only a cadet.

    I was that powerful afterall.

    However, I was innocent, so I wish they¡¯d stop treating me like the culprit already.

    ¡°What¡¯s the basis for these usations? Where¡¯s the evidence that shows that I¡¯m the killer?¡±

    ¡°The dead cadet was a member of the Berkley family.¡±

    ¡°What about it? There¡¯s a lot of people with the Berkley surname. How am I supposed to know which Berkley you¡¯re talking about? Or are you just trying to pick a fight with me?¡±

    In the first ce, the fact that some cadet died didn¡¯t interest me at all.

    And beyond the interrogation room door¨C

    ¡°You bastard! To actually lock up Lord Liam like this! I¡¯ll kill you! Don¡¯t think you can just imprison someone with no evidence and get away unscathed!¡±

    ¨CMarie was yelling out while using vulgarnguage.

    It seems that the military police were forced to gather just to hold her down.

    ¡°Please calm down!¡±

    ¡°We have permission from the academy for this!¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re only checking his alibi!¡±

    Listening to such words, I turned to the brigadier general in front of me.

    ¡°So it¡¯s your personal judgement that¡¯s determined me to be the criminal?¡±

    ¡°Well, no matter how you look at this situation...¡±

    Just because I¡¯ve dered myself hostile to the Berkley family, I¡¯m the murderer?

    I hate false charges.

    It reminds me of being falsely used of things during my previous life¡¯s divorce.

    A new person appeared outside the room.

    Apparently it was Tia, who had just be a fourth-year student at the academy.

    ¡°You fossil! Allowing Lord Liam to be confined in a ce like this, while you¡¯re wasting your time outside¨C as I thought, we don¡¯t need someone as useless as you!¡±

    ¡°You minced-meat bitch!¡±

    I thought she hade to help me, but it looks like she just came here to pick a fight with Marie.

    From the noises I could hearing from beyond the door, I was sure that they were brawling it out.

    ¡°Y-you two need to stop!¡±

    ¡°Call for reinforcements!¡±

    ¡°Someone get a cadet instructor!¡±

    The military police were in a frenzy, while the brigadier general was holding his face with his right hand as he sighed.

    I don¡¯t really care what they do, but are they not going to help me?

    My evaluation of those two were rapidly dropping.

    ¡°I¡¯ll smash a fossil like you into pieces!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to cut you down back to the chunk of meat you were!¡±

    The door was struck with tremendous momentum, distorting it and cracking the walls.

    What the hell were they doing?

    Were they not aware of their positions as my head and deputy knights?

    I was getting angry.

    ¡°If there¡¯s really no evidence, then I¡¯m leaving.¡±

    As I stood up while saying that, the brigadier general tried to stop me.

    ¡°Please wait!¡±

    ¡°I won¡¯t. Try again once you have proof.¡±

    As both the insides and outsides of the interrogation room were growing noisy, a military police officer burst into the room while out of breath.

    ¡°Your Excellency! We¡¯ve found evidence!¡±

    ¡°What?! I see, well done! Count, you can¡¯t escape now!¡±

    As the brigadier general tried to arrest me, the military police officer shook his head.

    ¡°N-no, you¡¯ve misunderstood. The evidence came from the dead cadet¡¯s room. It seems he¡¯s smuggled in some cursed star poison.¡±

    ¡°...w-what?! Contact headquarters, and evacuate all cadets from the school building immediately!¡±

    Completely forgetting about my arrest, he started to fall into a panic.

    Even so, to use cursed star poison... I¡¯ve heard of that before. If I remember correctly, it was something like the concentrated mass of people¡¯s curses and resentment.

    It was something that¡¯d definitely kill you if you ingested it.

    To be drinking something like that, were the people from the Berkley family idiots?

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The morgue.

    Dying while suffering¨C thereid the man who tried to assassinate Liam.

    The guide who hade to the room, looked down at the man¡¯s body with a sad expression.

    ¡°...the idea of trying to kill him using a curse wasn¡¯t bad.¡±

    If the assassination was sessful, the guide would¡¯ve been pleased, if not somewhat unsatisfied.

    But the result was a failure.

    Detecting the danger beforehand, Kukuri had reversed the situation and had him poisoned instead.

    ¡°Well, at least you had a connection to Liam. Everything, all of your suffering and despair will be my power.¡±

    After the guide ced his hand from the man¡¯s face, his expression changed to a peaceful one.

    The guide¡¯s connection to Liam was so strong that any negative emotions unrted to him couldn¡¯t be absorbed efficiently. However, this also meant even the slightest connection dramatically increased the rate in return.

    The guide relished the man¡¯s emotions as if he were drinking high-quality wine.

    ¡°It¡¯s delicious, your feelings alongside the grudge of an entire¡¯s destruction are quite pleasant. You were a fool, and I don¡¯t even know your name, but I promise to use this power you¡¯ve given me to its fullest.¡±

    After regaining his strength, the guide¡¯s mouth twisted into the shape of a crescent moon.

    ¡°I¡¯ve regained quite a bit of power. With this, it should only take one¨C no, two or three more moves to drag Liam down to hell.¡±

    Liam was the first person ever to ever torture him so.

    Therefore, the guide resolved himself to never give up on his revenge.

    Because of his careless actions so far, he had screwed up multiple times already.

    He had regarded Liam as an insignificant existence, and had suffered the consequences of doing so.

    ¡°I need to gather Liam¡¯s enemies. I¡¯ll n this out thoroughly, and then he¡¯ll definitely¨C!¡±

    The guide disappeared from the room inughter.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The imperial pce.

    The prime minister could feel his temper rise as he read the report from the military academy.

    His subordinates around him were nervous.

    ¡°...who approved the handling of cursed star poison¡¯s treatment without authorisation?¡±

    Questioning his subordinates, the prime minister wondered what punishment would be appropriate.

    The problem was that the offending party was connected to the Berkley family.

    Any normal punishment would bring various troubles.

    It was necessary to crush their status first.

    ¡°Normally, the execution of their house would be appropriate, but one house is but a small fraction of the whole Berkley family.¡±

    Even though they were a collection of small barons, together they held the power of a ducal household.

    Since they were a gathering of baron houses, even if they punished one of them, it¡¯d just be like cutting the tail off a lizard.

    The Berkley family¡¯s¨C no, Cashmiro¡¯s neck couldn¡¯t be touched.

    How did they prosper so far you ask? Besides the fact that they¡¯re the only stable supplier for elixirs, they had also received much favour from the former Emperor.

    They approached his majesty with gifts of elixirs, and in return he covered-up all their illegal deeds.

    Before he had even noticed it, they had grown toorge, bringing many headaches to the prime minister.

    He had to crush the Berkley family for the sake of justice, they were growing too powerful in the Empire.

    They had that much influence.

    ¡°I won¡¯t be able to reach Cashmiro¡¯s neck at this rate.¡±

    ¡°Yes. In that case, wouldn¡¯t it be better just to ept his existence and receive the elixirs he offers instead?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d rather die.¡±

    The prime minister ced many expectations for Liam in his heart because he knew that he had the power to ovee this situation.

    If the Empire could move, they¡¯d be able to easily solve this problem, but they were too big and couldn¡¯t react quickly enough.

    And once they started moving, it¡¯d be difficult to make them stop.

    Because they couldn¡¯t easily move, this situation would eventually lead to the Empire¡¯s copse.

    A subordinate gave a report on another matter.

    ¡°Minister, because we¡¯ve recently replenished our stock of rare-metals, the military is asking to rece their lost fleets.¡±

    ¡°...what they¡¯re asking for is impossible.¡±

    The Empire wasn¡¯t the only intergctic country out there.

    There were neighboring countries adjacent to them, and even if you said there was quite a distance between them, they still had trades and disputes with them.

    Naturally, they had armies stationed on the borders to solidify their defenses.

    Sometimes they even invaded and conquered their enemies territories.

    But the Empire¡¯srge size only meant that they had more borders they needed to protect. Furthermore, there was always a war happening somewhere.

    Resources were being used faster than they could replenish them.

    Rare metals were needed in the all-important engines for ships.

    Substitute metals could also be used, but due to the obvious difference in performance, there were many requests for ships built using rare metals on the front-line.

    The army heard that Liam had recently sold a lot of rare metals to the Empire, so naturally, they took this chance to petition for resupplies.

    The prime minister looked at the results from the most recent war.

    ¡°We¡¯re being pushed on various fronts.¡±

    One of his subordinates exined why,

    ¡°There are various reasons, but I believe the main one being that resources aren¡¯t being used efficiently. There are cases of patrol fleets being increased to sizes farrger than necessary.¡±

    Patrol fleets.

    They were important forces that protects imperial territory, among them were fleets directly prepared by nobles.

    Those cases happened when an aristocrat didn¡¯t want to subordinate themselves to another, immediately bing themander of the fleet they arranged after they graduated from the academy.

    While others had histories of preparing fleets full of obsolete equipment so they¡¯d be relocated to areas free of strife they couldze about in.

    In anycase, there was a rise in wastefulness.

    Some of them had even deserted to be pirates, turning into a problem that needed to be dealt with quickly¨C but they didn¡¯t have the budget, the staff, nor the resources needed to do so.

    ¡°What a headache. It¡¯ll cost money to reorganise them, but we can¡¯t afford it.¡±

    Their dissolve won¡¯t fix everything, there was also the handling of their fleet¡¯s equipment and the reassignment of their personnel to consider afterwards.

    In the first ce, there were multiple patrol fleets that were poorly controlled, where the soldiers weren¡¯t even properly trained.

    A fleet that didn¡¯t conduct training regrly quickly lost it¡¯s skill, so conditioning was absolutely necessary.

    The strength of the Empire was enormous, but they weren¡¯t omnipotent.

    ¡°Now, what else is there?¡±

    The prime minister was stressed by the problems that endlessly popped up, one after another.

 Chapter 55 - Volume 4 Chapter 5 Patrol Fleet

    <h4><strong>Volume 4 Chapter 5 Patrol Fleet</strong></h4>

    ¡°Patrol fleet?¡±

    I was chatting with Wace in the academy¡¯s cafeteria.

    This was my third year, and I had already grown ustomed to living here.

    ¡°Yes, I was talking to my brother who had left the pce like I had. He had chosen to live as a soldier, but was denied enlistment into the one of the main fleets and was sent to a patrol one instead.¡±

    It was strange to think that the imperial army would refuse a member of the royal family, but I guess that had to do with his own rank as a royal. Just like how Wace used to be, he was probably another prince with no backing or right to inherit the throne.

    Most of the main fleets wouldn¡¯t ept such a person because of the various troubles that followed them.

    ¡°If he became themander of a patrol fleet, he should¡¯ve been given at the very least a few hundred ships to control. That doesn¡¯t sound so bad.¡±

    When I said so, Wace had a very subtle change to his expression,

    ¡°The problem is that he was given the garbage that everyone else threw away. My brother [Cedric] was sent a tiny fleet of thirty outdated ships. He seems to have fallen into depression after being assigned to an area that was practically empty space.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it fine if he just stays onboard? It sounds like easy work where he can just rx.¡±

    ¡°Inside of a narrow and outdated ship, there¡¯s no way he could rx. He¡¯s told me that he doesn¡¯t know what he¡¯s working for anymore, and that all the soldiers assigned to him were rotten.¡±

    Was this part of the military¡¯s biased relocation of human resources?

    If I were topare them to apany... would they be like a group of useless employees?

    It looks like the number of useless patrol fleets were increasing, where the soldiers stationed there grewcent.

    ...were they idiots?

    ¡°How¡¯d this situation evene to be?¡±

    Wace exined to me the reason while poking his mushy meal with a fork.

    ¡°The higher-ups in the military wanted a ce to dump their rivals. This isn¡¯t just any normal relegation, it was a move made to actively break their spirits. Other than that¨C they just wanted a ce they could push off the nobility.¡±

    ¡°The nobles?¡±

    ¡°There are a lot of people among them who like to take advantage of their peerage. In the army, it¡¯d be fatal to have such people rise to power, so they assign them asmanders of patrol fleets. Thanks to that, the number of them has explosively increased, and it¡¯s expensive to reorganise them, so they¡¯re pretty much left alone.¡±

    ¡°I thought it would¡¯ve been harder to keep up their maintenance.¡±

    ¡°If you hand over supplies, things will somehow work out in the practically empty environment. Besides, they still need to have something stationed there. It definitely wouldn¡¯t be funny to have pirates set up a base in empty space.¡±

    So in short, a lot ofplicated situations stacked together to create the current situation full of useless expenditures?

    ...no, this isn¡¯t that bad actually.

    ¡°That¡¯s an interesting story.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re interested in them? But Liam, you¡¯re practically guaranteed to be assigned to the main army.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t really want to though.¡±

    Just thinking about them gave me headaches.

    ¡®Come join our fleet!¡¯¨C and so forth. They¡¯ve been badgering me from all over to recruit me.

    There were many different ces to be assigned in the main army, some of which were along the borders, while others were based in rural areas.

    For the imperial capital, there was always at least three fleets based there to defend it, where the elites even among the main army were gathered.

    The imperial guards had invited me to join them, but they didn¡¯t interest me at all.

    I don¡¯t like being given orders from others, so wouldn¡¯t being themander of a patrol fleet be the best?

    ¡°I¡¯ve decided! I want a patrol fleet!¡±

    ¡°...Liam, are you an idiot?¡±

    ¡°How so?¡±

    ¡°Did you not listen to me at all?! My brother was forced into that position and now he¡¯s crying out that he¡¯d rather die. I was stunned when I learned about his assignment. All of his ships are outdated, and the environment he¡¯s based in is bad, do you really want to spend four years in such a ce?¡±

    Wace didn¡¯t know anything.

    It might be that way for others, but I was rich.

    Naturally, I was going to invest in my fleet myself.

    ¡°I can just buy the ships and other things to fix those. If I prepare a luxury passenger ship, then it¡¯ll practically turn into a fun vacation.¡±

    ¡°...the military would never fund such a thing.¡±

    ¡°Of course they wouldn¡¯t, I¡¯d supply the funding myself.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll provide the money to buy the ships.¡±

    ¡°No but... if you¡¯re the only one using a luxury ship, then you¡¯ll antagonise your surroundings, Liam.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. All I need to do is rece their ships as well. Though, I guess it¡¯d be toote for that if I start right after I¡¯m assigned... Okay then, let¡¯s prepare a fleet suitable for myself immediately.¡±

    ¡°...huh? You¡¯re really going through with this?¡±

    ¡°Of course I am. Tia will be graduating from the academy next year, I¡¯ll get her to prepare my fleet.¡±

    I¡¯ll even make a bribe to guarantee I get the destination I want.

    My assignment will be chosen by myself!

    To disregard the army¡¯s invitations, and prepare my own fleet¨C this is exactly how an evil lord should act!

    To think that not even the military could stand against the power of money¨C my heart was full.

    ¡°I¡¯ve met many kinds of nobles in my life, but I¡¯ve never seen anyone like you, Liam.¡±

    ¡°So I¡¯m the first in the Empire? That¡¯s fine. Let¡¯s give Tia my orders as soon as possible.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Themunication room.

    The person Tia was talking to was her former boss, the prime minister.

    ¡°...many aristocrats prepare their own ships. Some of them even prepare entire patrol fleets, but this is the first time for a noble like the Count to appear.¡±

    It seems not even the prime minister could hide his surprise.

    Tia spoke with confidence to his reaction,

    ¡°We¡¯ve fixed one of the Empire¡¯s problems, so I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a bad thing.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s the demerit in how the fleet will belong to the Count, and not the Empire. But to rece the outdated equipment and retrain the useless human resources of a patrol fleet... the costs will no doubt be immense.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam ordered me ¡®Prepare a fleet suitable for myself¡¯. He provided the budget for it himself, so there¡¯s no problem there.¡±

    Liam told her to prepare a patrol fleet for him, but to Tia, only a fleet the size of a regr one would be worthy of him.

    Since they had the funds to afford it, she decided to gather the useless patrol fleets together andbine them to the size of a normal one.

    She was currently asking for permission from the prime minister.

    The higher-ups of the military weren¡¯t likely to give her it because they didn¡¯t understand how beneficial this would be for the Empire¡¯s financial situation.

    So she decided to contact the prime minister who was aware of this instead.

    ¡°...when you leave for the army, the fleet will still be working in the Empire. For that reason, we¡¯ll prepare an officer to act asmander at least in name.¡±

    ¡°¡®In name?¡¯ Are you worried about leaving Lord Liam inmand?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s too young, and you are as well. It won¡¯t be enough to give you the rank, even if you¡¯re officially assigned. If we forcibly promote you two, then the military will undoubtedly start toin. Don¡¯t worry, he might be themander on paper, but you¡¯ll still be the ones in power.¡±

    Tia fell into thought.

    (The returns don¡¯t justify these conditions, but everything he said was true...)

    ¡°...understood.¡±

    ¡°This truly was a wonderful proposal. The Empire can solve two of its biggest problems in an instant.¡±

    When the call finished, Tia could feel herself growing excited.

    ¡°Right now the fleet isn¡¯t suitable for Lord Liam¨C in just two years, I need to gather the useless patrol fleets and retrain all their personnel. I also need to prepare the new ships... I don¡¯t know if I¡¯ll be able to make it in time.¡±

    Although Tia often acts pathetically, her abilities were real.

    ¡°A fleet suitable for Lord Liam... I will give my all for this assignment.¡±

    Yes, she was ecstatically squirming with her hands on her cheeks... but her ability was real.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    While Liam and others were starting to move at the academy.

    There was also movement in the Berkley family.

    ¡°Damn it!¡±

    Cashmiro was frustrated with the reports that wereing in one after another.

    They¡¯ve been in an economic war with Liam for a few years now, but things weren¡¯t looking good.

    The reason was clear, it was simply because it still hadn¡¯t finished.

    ¡°What is he?! What the hell is that brat?!¡±

    ary development equipment¨C to produce elixirs for this war, Cashmiro had used these devices to destroy multiple worlds already.

    Despite this, he had heard rumours that Liam just recently made heavy investments into the military.

    Even though he was currently in conflict with the Berkley family, he still had the financial leeway to make these purchases.

    ¡°How many elixirs have we already released for this?! To be able to keep up with us even then... no, does he have one as well?¡±

    It was almost unthinkable for Liam to have one of the devices.

    But if he did, then it was highly likely that he recovered theary development device that Derrick had lost.

    If he had that, then he certainly could¡¯ve kept up against the family.

    ...no, even if he did, Cashmiro was certain that he wouldn¡¯t have been able to use the device correctly. It just looked like some kind of weird sphere afterall.

    Even if he somehow managed to make it work, since the Berkley family had multiple of such devices, they ultimately had the advantage.

    The problem was they didn¡¯t know how much longer this situation wouldst until they were crushed.

    This was an opponent they shouldn¡¯t have chosen to fight economically.

    ¡°We¡¯ll definitely be able to crush him given the time. We¡¯ll win, but at what cost?¡±

    The waste of time, resources, and finances was nothing tough at.

    Seeing that, Cashmiro decided he needed to end this futile fight already.

    ¨Cthey couldn¡¯t afford to fight with Liam any longer.

    ¡°I¡¯m done with the tricks. If we don¡¯t move to crush him seriously, he¡¯ll finish us off first.¡±

    The young and talented Liam.

    His remaining lifespan was different from Cashmiro, and there was no doubt he¡¯d grow into a troublesome existence if they left him alone.

    Could his sons beat Liam? ¨Cit was impossible no matter how Cashmiro thought about it, so he made a call.

    ¡°Yes, father?¡±

    ¡°¨Cget in contact with the army and gather professionals for the war against Liam.¡±

    ¡°War?! This is too early, father!¡±

    ¡°You idiot! If we don¡¯t crush him now, the Berkley family will be destroyed by him! Just shut up and follow my orders! Gather soldiers who can win against the Banfield house! Anyone is fine, as long as they can help beat down that brat¨C then I¡¯ll wee them with open arms!¡±

    Cashmiro was seriously afraid of Liam.

    The guide was silently watching over this development.

    He noticed Cashmiro¡¯s strong interest in Liam and approached him.

    The guide started apuding.

    ¡°You¡¯re wonderful, Cashmiro. You¡¯ve urately judged what kind of a threat Liam posed.¡±

    More than anything else, the guide loved Cashmiro¡¯s superior military force that Liam¡¯s couldn¡¯tpare to.

    He had more than a hundred thousand ships, and that wasn¡¯t even counting his allied nobles and pirates under hismand.

    Gathered together it was a force in the hundreds of thousands.

    On the other hand, Liam¡¯s army didn¡¯t even reach fifty thousand ships, even is he was increasing his forces at the moment.

    This was because he was already satisfied with the thirty thousand strong fleet he¡¯s had until now.

    He had grown arrogant after his consecutive wins, so this was the time to crush him.

    ¡°Liam... your carelessness will be your downfall.¡±

    On top of that, Liam would be practically fighting alone due to hisck of allies.

    ¡°Cashmiro¨C you can win this. I will do my best to support you as well.¡±

    ck smoke was emitted from the guide, which then clung to Cashmiro¡¯s body.

    Looking at that figure, the guide spread his arms in delight.

    ¡°From now on, all those who wish to defeat Liam will naturally gather around you! The darkness of the Empire will rally at your call to kill him! Consolidate them together as your power!¡±

    He had manipted things to easily assemble Liam¡¯s enemies.

    This will further increase Cashmiro¡¯s allies, further widening their difference in strength.

    Before the quantity that even the quality of Liam¡¯s forces couldn¡¯t handle, the guide relished in the ideas of what kind of agonising death was in store for him.

    ¡°I¡¯ve even prepared the seeds of revenge as fail safes. I don¡¯t know if Yasushi will make it in time though¨C because I also have that woman ready.¡±

    A woman who burned to have revenge on Liam¨C [Eulisia Morisille].

    ¡°One day, I¡¯ll put her by Liam¡¯s side. Having him get stabbed by that woman is another interesting way to finish this.¡±

    Regardless of the situation, Liam will definitely die.

    The guide felt an inexplicable sense of happiness.

    ¡°I understand¨C no, I know that I¡¯ve finally driven Liam to a corner!¡±

    A powerful enemy was about to appear before Liam.

 Chapter 56 - Volume 4 Chapter 6 Rosettaâ€™s Training

    <strong>Volume 4 Chapter 6 Rosetta¡¯s Training</strong>

    The Pce of the Imperial Capital.

    Rosetta, who hade to train here as an apprentice, looked up at the sky from the hallway¡¯s window.

    The sky of the imperial capital was just an artificial image, but it was still clear and beautiful.

    ¡°...are you doing alright, Darling?¡±

    Serena had chosen her original workce as Rosetta¡¯s destination for training.

    If shepleted her education here, no one would be able to belittle her.

    Many aristocratic daughters hade here as apprentices, so many of the maids were actually of noble origin.

    The n was for her to spend at least three years here.

    Since Serena told her that her bridal training should be done in the imperial capital, Rosetta was unable to return to the Banfield house¡¯s territory for a while.

    That¡¯s when some girls dressed in maid attire approached her.

    ¡°Oh, what¡¯s the heiress of the udia house doing in a ce like this?¡±

    The leader of the group was the daughter of a Marquis house.

    While the children in her entourage were both daughters of Viscount houses.

    However, even if these girls would¡¯ve been treated as princesses back in their home territories, they were only maids here.

    ¡°I¡¯m currently on break.¡±

    As a graduate from elementary school, the sight of Rosetta- who had the appearance of a highschool student, getting into a quarrel with girls who looked like junior-high students, was quite the spectacle to see.

    ¡°¨Caren¡¯t you embarrassed to be starting your training at your age?¡±

    When the leader of the girls said so, the twockeys at her sidesughed in agreement.

    Of the children who were currently undergoing training, most of them had just recentlye of age.

    It was rare to see someone start at Rosetta¡¯s age.

    ¡°There are various circumstances behind this, if you could overlook this, I¡¯d really appreciate it.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s with that attitude? Don¡¯t act like you have dignity, you should just keep your head down like you used to.¡±

    The leader was probably there when Rosetta was humiliated at one of the pce¡¯s parties.

    She wanted to ridicule her like she did back then.

    ¡°...currently, I might be apprenticing as a maid, but I¡¯m still Lord Liam¡¯s fianc¨¦e. I can¡¯t allow myself to take such a shameful attitude anymore.¡±

    At that response, the leader of the children made a dissatisfied expression.

    ¡°Liam, huh? He seems to have be famous recently, but isn¡¯t he just a nobleman from the sticks? Sounds like he¡¯s a suitable partner for someone like you. Oh, but I know the truth, isn¡¯t he currently fighting with the Berkley family right now?¡±

    The Pirate Nobles¨C he was currently in conflict with a very dangerous group among the aristocracy.

    ¡°So what?¡±

    ¡°Do you really think he can win against the Berkley family? You¡¯re probably in danger right now as well.¡±

    Done with this conversation, Rosetta tried to leave when the three girls burst intoughter.

    ¡°So you¡¯re going to run away? As expected of the infamous udia Ducal household. Because you have no pride, you can¡¯t even stand up for yourself.¡±

    After having her noble pride mocked, Rosetta bit her lip in frustration.

    (Bear with it. I can¡¯t lose myself here for Darling¡¯s sake.)

    As Rosetta tried to return to work, a silver-haired woman approached her.

    It was Serena¡¯s granddaughter [Cattleya].

    Although she was wearing a stylish maid outfit, her actual position was that of one that governed over arge number of servants.

    She was also Rosetta¡¯s educator while she was here for training.

    ¡°So it¡¯s you three again?¡±

    ¡°Lady Cattleya.¡±

    As Rosetta bowed, Cattleya sent a judgemental look towards the children who had caused trouble the previous day as well, scattering them.

    ¡°And here I thought they were learning to not brandish their status here.¡±

    After being pampered like princesses growing up, they still hadn¡¯t discarded the habits they had developed in their homes.

    They seemed to misunderstand that the power of their parent¡¯s houses was their own.

    ¡°I¡¯ll try to stop them if I see it happening¨C but Rosetta, this is something you need to solve yourself.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    After hearing Cattleya¡¯s warning, Rosetta couldn¡¯t help but feel confused.

    ¡°Try to think about how to deal with this yourself. If you can¡¯t even solve something of this level, only hardships will be in store for you in the future. ¨CMoreover, try to do this as a maid.¡±

    Contemting Cattleya¡¯s words, Rosetta began mulling over how to deal with the girls.

    (...is this a test?)

    There were actually several ways to silence them.

    By borrowing Liam¡¯s power, she could solve this situation in an instant, while even getting a bit of revenge in.

    But would a solution like this really be suitable for a Duchess?

    (I can¡¯t borrow Darling¡¯s strength for this. If I did that, then I¡¯d be no different from them. There¡¯s also no point in attacking a child who hasn¡¯t even graduated from the elementary school.)

    A high-school student taking revenge on junior-highschool students¨C even if there was a reason behind it, this wasn¡¯t an option considering how it¡¯d look to the public.

    If Rosetta did this, Liam¡¯s reputation would be damaged.

    (In that case, the method I choose needs to be as fair and honourable as Darling is! I need to do this in a way everyone will acknowledge as a maid!)

    The positive Rosetta decided to give it her all as a servant.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Banfield Estate.

    In the mansion where both Liam and Rosetta were gone, Brian was lonely.

    ¡°Hah~¡±

    The number of sighs he made increased throughout his break.

    Serena couldn¡¯t help but be surprised at his condition.

    ¡°That¡¯s quite the awful expression you¡¯re making there.¡±

    ¡°...this ce feels empty now that the energetic Lady Rosetta is gone, and Lord Liam is still away at the academy as well. All the ¡®fire¡¯ in the mansion seems to have disappeared.¡±

    ¡°But the quiet is nice in its own way. Once things get busy, you¡¯ll end up missing these days, you know?¡±

    Brian was worried about Rosetta.

    He also worried about Liam, but he knew that he could ovee any obstacle on his own.

    But Rosetta was different.

    ¡°I wonder if Lady Rosetta is okay?¡±

    ¡°I left her in the care of my granddaughter, [Cattleya], so she should be fine.¡±

    Catteya¨C Serena¡¯s granddaughter was a very good child.

    Serena knew Rosetta would be safe if she was watching over her.

    ¡°The most we have to worry about is if she¡¯s being bullied by the other apprentices. The girls who study there sometimes go to extreme lengths.¡±

    As someone who has served the Banfield house for many years, Brian has also seen the bitter fights involving women.

    That¡¯s why he was worried.

    ¡°...this is also something that Lady Rosetta needs to learn about. This can be considered part of her training as well.¡±

    The pce was Serena¡¯s former workce.

    She¡¯s seen how those girls fought, so she knew that those with malicious intent would approach Rosetta.

    However, as the future Duchess, it¡¯d be troubling if Rosetta was crushed by something at that level.

    ¡°Oh, if Cattleya¡¯s there, then I can have peace of mind.¡±

    ¡°But there are other things to worry about as well. Our conflict with the Berkley family seems to have settled down recently, so I can¡¯t help but feel like something terrible is about it happen.¡±

    Even though they were having an economic war just a little while ago, the Berkley family had suddenly gone silent.

    Rather than relief, this brought a strange sense of dread.

    ¡°Maybe they gave up?¡±

    When Brian said so, Serena assuredly denied it, saying, ¡°that¡¯s impossible¡±.

    ¡°It looks like they¡¯re preparing for war with great vigor. Lord Liam is building up his forces as well. Both sides are preparing to end this all at once.¡±

    ¡°Really?! Did Lord Liam increase his increase his forces because he already predicted this development happening?! This Brian here thought Lord Liam just wanted to expand his military on a whim!¡±

    Seeing Brian¡¯s feelings about Liam from the side, Serena made a serious expression.

    ¡°...there¡¯s no way that¡¯d be the case.¡±

    Serena muttered a retort under her breath.

    (Was it just his intuition that made him build up his forces before the Berkley family got serious? Or was he expecting all this to happen? ...as always, that child ispetent to a frightening degree.)

    For Rosetta to be a presence of support for such a Liam, Serena couldn¡¯t help but think there¡¯d be quite the difficult future ahead of her.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Meanwhile, elsewhere.

    Tia, who had just graduated from the academy as the valedictorian, was currently a lieutenant.

    Normally, one would be doing chores in various departments during their training period.

    However, Tia was specially exempted from that and was now reorganising the patrol fleets.

    Inside an office, she was busy setting up a fleet suitable for Liam.

    ¡°The forty-ninth to the eighty-ninth patrol fleets seem to have a difference in the number of ships and personnel assigned to them.¡±

    ording to the document, each fleet should have about thirty vessels.

    But in reality, each one only had about ten.

    The number of human resources allocated to them was also small.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t these ships already obsolete? We need to dismantle and recycle them... and it doesn¡¯t look like their staff has much skill or motivation either.¡±

    In the preliminary survey, more than sixty percent of the soldiers wanted to leave the army.

    Vocational training would need to be supplied, after which they could reassign them somewhere else.

    However, giving soldiers vocational training and arranging new positions for them wasn¡¯t free.

    They needed a budget.

    ¡°The imperial army isn¡¯t willing to reorganise them, the funds they gave aren¡¯t nearly enough.¡±

    The idea behind this was that it¡¯d be better to just prepare a new fleet instead of fixing the obsolete ones.

    There were various reasons, but the main one seemed to be how there was a strong inclination to send as much support to the front lines as possible.

    Sending support to the patrol fleets full of low-morale, low-skill, and the oldest equipment instead of the front-lines would be a considerable waste.

    First off all was the re-education and re-training necessary.

    To convert them into something useful, an enormous amount of time and money would be required to prepare the courses they need.

    And even then, it¡¯d cost even more time and money to equip the soldiers with new equipment afterwards.

    In addition to that, when Tia finally started the restructuring the fleet under Liam¡¯s orders, the low quality of the soldiers had surpassed her expectations, giving her a headache.

    But¨C

    Tia had all of Liam¡¯s personal funds at her disposal.

    The amount would still have surplus even if a regr fleet was formed.

    Tia smiled.

    ¡°I now see why Lord Liam entrusted such a huge budget for me, but why would he go so far?¡±

    Liam probably only gave this much because he wanted a fleet that he couldze around in.

    That was the truth, but¨C

    Tia, who worshiped Liam, read too deeply into it after considering the amount of funds and the current situation.

    ¡°If he was going to send this much, then it would¡¯ve been better if he directly used it on the Banfield fleet¨C no, wait! I see! So that¡¯s what he¡¯s nning! As expected of Lord Liam!¡±

    If he invested into the imperial army, only the Empire would benefit in the end.

    For that reason, usually one would invest in their own territory instead.

    However, Tia thought ¡®Lord Liam must have thought of something!¡¯ and began thinking of things from that viewpoint.

    And after pondering it, there was a justifiable reason.

    ¡°I understand Lord Liam¡¯s aims! This is a strategy to cut down the Berkley family¡¯s future forces while increasing his influence in the imperial army!¡±

    For patrol fleets, it wasn¡¯t an umon story to hear of them deserting their positions to be pirates.

    In other words, they were likely to be the future forces of the Berkley family, who were known as the Pirate Nobles.

    To reduce such pirates from appearing, they were going to reform them into a normal fleet in the imperial army.

    And no matter who denied it, a fleet formed by Liam would undoubtedly be connected to him.

    The military would hold Liam in a favourable light, and the newly organised fleet would be a trump-card against the Berkley family.

    ¡°The Banfield house¡¯s forces alone can only be increased to a certain limit, so he ingeniously decided to conscript the imperial army itself for our cause!¡±

    Tia read too deeply into a simple budget.

    ¡°With funds on this level, we can secure a significant number of allies while maintaining Lord Liam¡¯s military influence for the future! ¨CI can¡¯t let him down here!¡±

    Tia¡¯s motivation was further increased.

    Deeply impressed by Liam¡¯s deep insight into future events, Tia became more and more enamoured with him.

    ¡°To eradicate the garbage known as the Pirate Nobles, while purging the corruption within the Empire. Lord Liam truly is the embodiment of virtue.¡±

    With cheeks burning red with excitement, Tia spent a minute happily thinking about Liam before returning back to work.

 Chapter 57 - Volume 4 Chapter 7 Rosettaâ€™s Growth

    <strong>Volume 4 Chapter 7 Rosetta¡¯s Growth</strong>

    ¨CRecently, the military seems to be in a frenzy.

    The the academy was on had re-education and re-training facilities, which have been in full operation for thest few years now.

    And it wasn¡¯t just here either, apparently the majority of the Empire¡¯s facilities were in a simr state.

    Rumours have been spreading among the cadets that they were preparing for some great strategy or something.

    Currently, I was a senior cadet in my sixth year at the academy.

    Since she graduated earlier, I gave Tia permission to use my personal funds to form a patrol fleet, but I couldn¡¯t help but worry if it was going well or not.

    To be honest, I didn¡¯t really know how much money I sent over because there were too many digits in my bank ount, so I was actually looking forward to seeing what kind of fleet was made.

    I didn¡¯t really have many opportunities to use it, so I ended up just throwing my money out there on a whim because I¡¯ve umted quite a bit of it.

    ¡°...it¡¯s already recovered.¡±

    A percentage of the tax revenue was always redirected to my personal funds, but I always felt dizzy looking at it because it was there was so much.

    Because there was always more capital gained than used, I didn¡¯t really hold it at much value at all.

    Recently, as an evil lord, I couldn¡¯t help but think that it was useless to ruminate over how to use money.

    As I thought that, Wace called out to me in a carefree manner.

    ¡°Liam, give me some pocket money.¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t I just give you somest week?¡±

    ¡°It was all spent when I went out with an underssmen and covered him.¡±

    I felt my temper rise when I looked at Wace, who was proudly boasting about he yed around outside.

    This guy broke curfew and went out drinking with his juniors.

    ¨Cwith my money!

    ¡°Why do I have to prepare funds for you to y around with?¡±

    ¡°Because you¡¯re my patron of cour¨C w-wait, that was just a joke, please don¡¯t raise your fist! P-PLEASE STOOOPPP!!!¡±

    After giving Wace a good whack, he was grasping at his head with both of his hands in pain.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t have to get so violent about it...¡±

    ¡°Seeing that you¡¯re the only one having fun annoys me.¡±

    ¡°Then you should join us, Liam.¡±

    ¡°If I could, I would¡¯ve already!¡±

    ¨CI wanted to y around as well, but I was still traumatised after knowing what happened to Peter.

    What if I got the STD that made male genitalia explode?

    It was a venereal disease of a fantasy universe, but it seriously scared me.

    Even evil lords would be afraid of such an illness.

    ¡°...I¡¯m scared that my manhood might explode.¡±

    Wace burst intoughter after I revealed my true feelings.

    ¡°Is that why both you and Kurt never ¡®yed around¡¯ during our days at the elementary school? Most STDs can be detected beforehand, the ones that create explosions and the like are only the worst-case scenarios.¡±

    ¡°But that means it¡¯s still possible!¡±

    By the way, two cadets have exploded during my six years here at the academy.

    Should I be relieved that it¡¯s only been two, or be scared that there¡¯s already been two?

    But either way, if there was even the slightest possibility of it happening, I¡¯d prioritise my safety and avoid ying around.

    However, as an evil lord, I still wanted to do so.

    ¡°You don¡¯t need to go all the way, you can still have fun just by drinking with the girls.¡±

    ¡°...I guess that¡¯s true.¡±

    Honestly, I didn¡¯t think the bars were that interesting, but was wasting money that way that bad of an option?

    I¡¯d be misusing the taxes the people of my territory sweated to make for me.

    ¨Cthat sounded pretty great actually.

    That was exactly what an evil lord should be like.

    However, I seriously wasn¡¯t interested at all.

    As I troubled myself over this, Wace asked me what I was nning to do after I graduated.

    ¡°By the way, where do you n to go for your training after leaving the academy, Liam?¡±

    ¡°The imperial capital. Though apparently even high-nobles like myself have to do odd-jobs over there.¡±

    If you were born as a high-noble, it was only natural to go to the most popr ce for your training destination.

    The same goes for Wace, who was part of the royal family.

    ¡°What about me?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯reing with me.¡±

    ¡°Is it that? Did you just choose that ce because deciding would be too troublesome?¡±

    ¡°...something like that.¡±

    After hearing that he¡¯d be returning back to the imperial capital, Wace seemed like he was looking forward to it.

    That¡¯s when he reminded me of Kurt, who wasn¡¯t here with us.

    ¡°Are you going to visit Kurt at the university?¡±

    ¡°Maybe during one of the holidays, wouldn¡¯t he be busy otherwise?¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯d be better if you called out to him as soon as possible. He was really crying when he found out he¡¯d be separated from you, Liam.¡±

    When Wace told me that, I recalled how Kurt was in tears during the elementary school¡¯s graduation ceremony.

    Wasn¡¯t he overreacting a bit, though?

    ¡°You really think he cares that much?¡±

    ¡°Yes, he does. Kurt would probably fall into depression if he found out you were there, and you didn¡¯t reach out to him. Oh,e to think of it, wasn¡¯t Rosetta at the imperial capital as well?¡±

    When Rosetta¡¯s name came up, I suddenly felt my myself panic a little.

    I didn¡¯t really know how I should treat her.

    ¡°Would it be better if I called out to her as well?¡±

    ¡°...what are you worried about? She¡¯s your fianc¨¦e.¡±

    Despite Wace saying that, I couldn¡¯t help but feel anxious about my future life in the imperial capital.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Meanwhile, at that time.

    In the pce of the imperial capital, Rosetta was teaching the girls who hade there for their apprenticeships as their senior.

    She was currently educating them on what mentality was expected of them while they were here.

    ¡°It¡¯s prohibited to take domineering attitudes over your peers using the strength of your parent¡¯s households. Because you¡¯re here to train yourselves as apprentices, there will be no mercy shown if you break this rule. ¡±

    The girls tensely responded to Rosetta, whose bearing had be far more dignifiedpared to when she first arrived.

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    ¡°¨Ca promising response. I¡¯ll do my best to teach you as much as possible as well.¡±

    In order for one to be entrusted with teaching the other apprentices, one had to be highly evaluated in the workce.

    Since one could only watch over them until your training was finished, they wouldn¡¯t be assigned to you otherwise.

    The girls who used to ridicule Rosetta now seemed to be regretting it.

    After disbanding the juniors, Cattleya approached in their ce.

    With the frustrating girls now gone, she gave Rosetta her praise.

    ¡°When you first arrived here, I didn¡¯t think you would make it, but I guess I was wrong.¡±

    When Cattleya said so, Rosetta bowed while expressing her thanks.

    ¡°This was all because of your guidance, Lady Cattleya.¡±

    ¡°I might¡¯ve helped, this was all because of your efforts. Be more proud of yourself.¡±

    She worked harder than anyone else during her training, and now she was a maid recognised by everyone around her.

    In the first ce, Rosetta was used to working hard in harsh environments.

    There¡¯s no way her spirit would break at something of this level.

    Cattleya looked towards the direction the girls fled.

    ¡°Now if only they¡¯d follow in your footsteps.¡±

    Although they generally behaved themselves during their apprenticeship, their evaluations weren¡¯t that high.

    Rosetta didn¡¯tment.

    Seeing that, Cattleya smiled.

    ¡°...you¡¯ve done well. For the rest of the year, I¡¯ll leave the junior¡¯s guidance to you. Show them how it¡¯s done, Rosetta.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Oh yes, I also have a message from my grandmother. It seems Count Banfield will be assigned to the imperial capital for his military training next year.¡±

    ¡°Darling will be?! Ah, no. Please excuse me.¡±

    Cattleyaughed in response, giggling all the while.

    ¡°It looks like you have a good rtionship. I heard that he¡¯ll be spending two years here, but in that time, men can easily be roped in by their surroundings to ¡®y around¡¯ and do other bad things. ¨CRosetta, you should keep an eye on him.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam isn¡¯t like tha¨C¡±

    ¡°Men who never do so tend to build up stress. Even serious people can make mistakes, so hold onto his reins tightly, but don¡¯t tighten your grip too much.¡±

    Considering Liam¡¯s position, it wouldn¡¯t be strange for him to have several mistresses.

    Or rather, when you think about the Banfield houses current situation, it¡¯s actually troubling that he didn¡¯t.

    If Liam died, the candidates to be his heir wouldn¡¯t be his direct line, but one of his rtives¨C or maybe even one of his predecessors.

    It was a possibility that Amagi and Brian wanted to avoid at all costs.

    Serena was of the same opinion, saying that the Banfield house should be seeded by Liam¡¯s descendants alone.

    ¡°...understood.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re making an expression that says you¡¯re not convinced. I understand your feelings, but it¡¯s normal for one to only go for love after they¡¯ve fulfilled their duties.¡±

    Many noble daughters freely pursued romance after creating an heir.

    In truth, after Liam¡¯s mother and grandmother had their kids, they separately had families with their favourite partners on the side.

    But Rosetta loved Liam, stories about what she could do after they had a child were irrelevant.

    ¡°Lord Liam is the only one for me.¡±

    ¡°...I¡¯m actually quite envious you can say that so confidently.¡±

    After Cattleya said so, she left to return to her work.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A luxury hotel in the imperial capital.

    It was currently undergoing a sudden renovation.

    Thomas was watching over it while the building manager exined the changes to the interior.

    ¡°We¡¯re working as fast as we can, but I don¡¯t think we¡¯ll be in time for next year.¡±

    Although it was a historic luxury hotel in the imperial capital, it had fallen into ruin in recent years for unknown reasons.

    ¡°As long as it¡¯s only the parts that Lord Liam won¡¯t see that fall behind, everything should still be okay. More importantly, how¡¯s the employees¡¯ educationing?¡±

    When Thomas first found this hotel, he was suspicious over how such an old thing could still be operating.

    ¡°We¡¯re reaching out to our former workers, but we still don¡¯t have enough experienced personnel.¡±

    ¡°Hurry up and gather some then. After Lord Liam graduates from the academy, this will be his temporary base of operations.¡±

    The manager was serious.

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    From his strong response, one could easily feel his enthusiasm to not miss out on this opportunity.

    This hotel wasn¡¯t in disarray because not enough people stayed there.

    The problem was that when they drove out a drunk and violent customer before, the man turned out to be an aristocrat¨C and because they had quite the high standing, they ended up pressuring them as revenge.

    If one turned a noble into their enemy, it was only natural for their business to copse, no matter how popr the hotel was.

    But conversely, as long as they had an aristocrat on their side, they could easily bounce back.

    The manager double-checked with Thomas.

    ¡°By the way, for those who¡¯ll be assigned to Lord Liam himself, is it really okay to select them by ability? Wouldn¡¯t one¡¯s appearance usually be used for the selection criteria?¡±

    If he had a certain preference, they do all in their power to find someone who matched it.

    When the manager said so, Thomas shook his head.

    ¡°Lord Liam doesn¡¯t eveny his hands on his mansion¡¯s servants. He¡¯s a really strict person, so rather than someone who matches his tastes or preferences, he¡¯d have a better evaluation of you if you ced capable personnel that can show results at his side.¡±

    To Thomas, Liam was the most virtuous of nobles.

    The manager lowered his head.

    ¡°...I¡¯ve seen many different aristocrats here in the imperial capital, but just from what I¡¯ve heard, Lord Liam already sounds far better than all of them.¡±

    ¡°He might stand out a bit because of how brutal he speaks, but he¡¯s actually quite benevolent. His enemies are shown no mercy, but he¡¯s highly tolerant of others. Manager, any extra treatment is unnecessary. As long as you do your job properly, Lord Liam will surely have a good opinion of you.¡±

    The manager straightened his back and raised his face.

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Preparations were being made in the imperial capital to receive Liam.

    While Thomas was feeling relief at the fact that he was able to secure Liam¡¯s residence, one of his subordinates rushed towards him.

    ¡°President!¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°T-t-the merchants of the imperial capital want to meet with you, president!¡±

    ¡°...what? Who exactly?¡±

    It was quite unusual for a merchant of the imperial capital to want to meet with Thomas, who usually did business outside the region.

    Normally Thomas would be the one requesting the meetings.

    ¡°It¡¯s Elliot, the president of the ve Company, and Lady Patrice, an executive of the Nends Company.¡±

    Thomas¡¯ eyes widened.¡°Both of them are big shots.¡±

    The ve Company wasn¡¯t just any group of imperial merchants.

    They were one of the biggestpanies in the Empire.

    And while the Nends Company had their head office in the imperial capital, they were argepany who did their business all across the country.

    Both of them were on apletely different levelpared to Thomas¡¯ Henfrey Company.

    For the president and executive ofpanies that did business all across the Empire to want to meet with the owner of a small business that only had a few stores across the frontier was unprecedented.

    The manager seemed disturbed by this as well.

    Both of them were practically celebrities.

    ¡°What¡¯s their goal here?¡±

    Because it was impossible for him to refuse their visit, Thomas immediately decided to meet with them.

 Chapter 58 - Volume 4 Chapter 8 Training Period

    <h4>Volume 4 Chapter 8 Training Period</h4>

    I was assigned to the logistics department in the imperial capital for my training.

    After graduating from the military academy with honours, I was promoted to a lieutenant¨C but to be clear, this wasn¡¯t where the elite¡¯s normally went.

    It wasn¡¯t the department where the best of the best were trained, but I was satisfied.

    Why?

    ¨Cbecause just by doing paperwork here, I was guaranteed a promotion to captain after only a year.

    And by the end of my second year, my status would be elevated again to a major.

    Nobles could easily advance their careers by safely doing deskwork in the back.

    Truly wonderful.

    And this isn¡¯t even considering how when I¡¯m given my official assignment, I¡¯ll be able to spend my four years of conscription rxing in the fleet Tia prepared for me.

    This training was the turning point, because after this all that was left was my student-life at the university and my work as an official that came with it.

    Without even trying, aristocrats could be assigned to the elite courses and pull ahead in life, happily watching those struggling below them from safe distances.

    This was exactly what an evil lord should be like.

    Life in the barracks was mandatory during the training period, but it felt more like I was staying in a hotel while vacationing in the capital.

    After working at regr times everyday, I returned to the barracks and enjoyed some personal time after five.

    This truly was wonderfulpared to the elites who were working themselves to death in busy departments.

    While I was working, Wace called out to me.

    ¡°Hey Liam, there seems to be a visitor who stormed into the building screaming.¡±

    ¡°Screaming? Was there a mistake made somewhere?¡±

    But who made the mistake?

    I left a lot of things to the AIs, but they wouldn¡¯t make any blunders.

    Some of the work did require humans to process, so the error probably came from myself.

    ¡°No, they¡¯re here to lodge aint about the supplies you¡¯ve arranged, Liam.¡±

    ¡°...what?¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The logistic departments tend to be looked down upon because they didn¡¯t operate on the front lines.

    Their use of AIs to reduce the workload is another reason why they¡¯re held in contempt.

    However, work efficiency greatly decreases if only humans are employed.

    When you thought about how the work done back here was used to help support the front lines, social norms be damned, they had to rely on them.

    ¡°Now what¡¯s the meaning behind a half-assed person like you¨C who relies on AIs do to his work, rejecting my application form?!¡±

    It was just past noon when the colonel burst into the building and started causing amotion.

    A brigadier general was his opponent, but the colonel was still taking a crude attitude towards him because of his noble birth.

    ¡°M-my apologies. Colonel, we¡¯ll remedy this soon, so please calm down.¡±

    Because of their use of AIs to process their work, even the higher-ups in the logistics department were made light of.

    The Empire thought it was bad to overly rely on AIs, so this division wasn¡¯t really one you¡¯d choose if you wanted a fast-track through the ranks.

    ¡°Bring me the idiot who designated the supplies for my ship! I¡¯ll set him straight myself!¡±

    The brigadier general hurriedly tried to stop the colonel who was brandishing his whip while grinning.

    ¡°Colonel, that¡¯s no good. If you do that then¨C¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m saying I¡¯ll personally straighten out the coward who refuses to fight on the front lines. Are you telling me you¡¯d rather take his ce?¡±

    The colonel was a person who enjoyed harassing the weak.

    The brigadier general dropped his shoulders.

    ¡°You can¡¯t say I didn¡¯t warn you.¡±

    Giving up, the brigadier general then called out, ¡°Someone get the lieutenant,¡± the colonel swinging the whip in his hands in response, releasing a loud ¡®crack¡¯.

    ¡°Oh? It was some greenhorn brat that¡¯s still in the middle of their training? I¡¯ll show him how things work in the imperial army.¡±

    Seeing the colonel denounce the youth, the brigadier general looked away.

    ¡°...if you really can subdue him, then I hope you¡¯ll teach me your methods as well.¡±

    ¡°Did you say something?¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s nothing.¡±

    The sound of the door being knocked could be heard

    ¡°Get in already!¡±

    Opening the door and entering the room¨C it was Liam who appeared.

    ¡°So you¡¯re the one responsible for designating supplies for my ship?! Do you know what you did?!¡±

    Towards the big attitude the colonel took towards him, Liam snorted.

    ¡°Who the hell are you?¡±

    ¡°W-what?! Can¡¯t you even recognise my rank from the badge?!¡±

    ¡°It just says you¡¯re a patrol fleet colonel, that doesn¡¯t mean anything to me. Brigadier general, I¡¯m actually really busy right now. I don¡¯t want you to call me for things on this level.¡±

    To Liam¡¯sment, the brigadier general said, ¡°I didn¡¯t want to either, but the colonel here apparently wants to teach you a lesson.¡±

    The colour of Liam¡¯s eyes changed when he heard that.

    ¡°...who is he nning to teach?¡±

    ¡°You, brat! What the hell have you been learning at the academy?! Don¡¯t think you¡¯re going home today!¡±

    While the colonel was thinking about how he was going to have fun torturing Liam¨C he was suddenly blown away.

    ¡°Bweh-?!¡±

    mming into the wall, he made an expression that said he didn¡¯t even know what just happened, and then he heard Liam¡¯s voice.

    ¡°Brigadier general, can you call this guy¡¯s superiors for me?¡±

    ¡°I-it¡¯s not like I can¡¯t, but¨C¡±

    ¡°This guy¡¯s application form said to prepare expensive liquors and snacks. I¡¯m sure his boss would love to hear all about that. He¡¯s just a no-name soldier from the patrol fleets, who the hell is he to question my decisions?¡±

    To the smiling Liam, the brigadier general replied, ¡°Understood¡± before making the call to the colonel¡¯s superior.

    The person he called was a major general who was in charge of a patrol fleet charged with protecting the space around the imperial capital.

    When the call went through, he was clearly grumpy.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°Hey, major general. You¡¯re subordinate picked a fight with me. Will you take responsibility for this as his boss?¡±

    ¡°Wha-?! My lord?!¡±

    The major general was also a nobleman, but his status was inferior to Liam, who had seeded as the head of his house.

    But even putting that aside, Liam was infamous for being in open-conflict with the Berkley family.

    The major general was clearly distressed.

    ¡°M-my subordinate has been rude towards you. Tell him to immediately withdraw.¡±

    ¡°I should tell him? No, you¡¯re going toe here and bring him back yourself. Are you seriously trying to give me orders? Well haven¡¯t you grown full of yourself. Do you really think you can look down on me just because of your military ss?¡±

    ¡°P-please excuse me. I¡¯ll pick him up soon. No, I¡¯ll leave to pick him up right now.¡±

    ¡°Be quick about it. And while I¡¯m at it, the application form you¡¯ve sent goes too far, even for a joke. Don¡¯t put in requests that waste my time. Do you understand me?¡±

    ¡°N-no, I understand.¡±

    ¡°...it sounds like you have a grievance. What is it then? Spit it out.¡±

    ¡°I-it¡¯s really nothing, my lord.¡±

    Distracting him from his work, having to deal with these situations wasted Liam¡¯s time.

    He hated things like this.

    ¡°Good, I like smart people like you. Now then, get over here and pick up your ipetant subordinate as soon as possible.¡±

    ¡°...understood.¡±

    When the major general ended the call, the colonel was trembling at the revtion that Liam was an active Count with considerable power.

    ¡°Now then, I believe you said you were going to teach me a lesson? My body has been feeling dull recently from all this desk work, so won¡¯t you help me get some exercise?¡±

    The colonel immediately sprung up and saluted.

    ¡°Please forgive me for all of my transgressions, my lord!¡±

    He immediately acknowledged the other party as his superior¨C but it was toote.

    Liam put his hand on the colonel¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°I don¡¯t hate attitudes like yours, but I¡¯m not the kind of man who forgives others that easily. Do you understand what I¡¯m saying?¡±

    Liam then seized the trembling colonel by his cor and dragged him out of the room.

    The brigadier general silently watched this all happen from the side.

    ¡°Haa... it looks like bringing him in was the right answer.¡±

    ¨Che was pleased with how smoothly the department¡¯s work had gotten ever since Liam¡¯s arrival.

    There were many soldiers who looked down on the logistics department and request various things.

    For that reason, he wanted to bring in some powerful nobles to his division.

    But if he brought in a corrupt noble like someone from the Berkley family, then he¡¯d only be creating more troubles for himself.

    However, a serious noble like Liam would never tolerate anything like fraud.

    ¡°I hope this will reduce the number of unreasonable demands a little.¡±

    The brigadier general was happy to have roped Liam in, but he couldn¡¯t understand why he¡¯d choose his department of all things.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The front lines.

    Marie was currently training there as an infantry.

    ¡°You minced meat bitch, I¡¯ll never forgive you...¡±

    Dressed in a powered-suit, she jumped off a transport aircraft while muttering curses against Tia.

    She didn¡¯t use a parachute, but a barrier suddenly appeared around her before shended, absorbing the impact before shattering.

    In the middle of a jungle, Marie took in her surroundings.

    ¡°Marie, is it safe?¡±

    ¡°No problems here.¡±

    ¡°Acknowledged. In that case, proceed to infiltrate the enemy facilities and rescue the hostages. It¡¯s a difficult task, but I know that you can do it.¡±

    Being forced to advance on a hostile base all on her on while rescuing a hostage, Marie started toin in her head.

    (I¡¯ll definitely return and take that minced meat bitch¡¯s head.)

    Because of Tia moving things behind the scenes, she was assigned to the special forces.

    Tia said, ¡°There¡¯s no ce for you by Lord Liam¡¯s side.¡± andughed at her.

    Quickly making her way through the jungle, Marie promptly executed a lookout with her knife.

    Her boss, who was watching over the situation praised her finesse through thems.

    ¡°Your skills are amazing. They remind me of my former subordinates.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve had others on my level? Where and when was this?¡±

    Marie was interested after hearing that there were other humans as strong as her.

    ¡°They¡¯ve probably changed their name by now though, because unlike yourself, they worked as a spy. They were unbelievably strong in battle, and could aplish any mission we sent their way.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve caught my interest, do go on.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t tell you because of military regtions, but she was an excellent subordinate.¡±

    When the enemy base came into view, ended the call and began her infiltration.

    ¡°Now then, I want to return to Lord Liam¡¯s side as soon as possible, so shouldn¡¯t I finish this quickly?¡±

    On that day¨C one criminal organisation was wiped from existence.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Moderate exercise feels good.

    ¡°And I even managed to finish my work on time as well.¡±

    While thinking about everything that happened today, Wace made a tired expression before speaking,

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t fuss over the time so much. Do you understand? Look, there¡¯s others still working even now.¡±

    There were senior officers who couldn¡¯tplete their work on time and had to stay.

    But that had nothing to do with me.

    Because I did finish.

    ¡°There¡¯s no value in working overtime.¡±

    ¡°Is that why you never help others?¡±

    Sometimes there were idiots who couldn¡¯t even do their jobs, and came crying to me for help, but I always pushed them away, saying that these were things they needed to figure out themselves.

    ¡°What¡¯s the point in doing so?¡±

    In my previous life, I worked my hardest for mypany, my subordinates, and my juniors¨C I really did my best, but it was all for nought in the end.

    When you finish your work, you should be allowed to go home.

    There should be no problems as long as you work hard enough to justify your sry.

    Society and thepanies may ask you for more, but abstract ideas like ¡®building good faith¡¯ meant nothing to me.

    Compared to the effort you had to put in for such things, the few words of ¡°thanks¡± they gave you wasn¡¯t sufficient enough of a reward to justify it.

    That¡¯s why I only work for what they pay me for.

    When I left the office building, a big limousine was waiting there in front of us.

    ¡°It¡¯s beautiful. Did someone important drop by?¡±

    You could easily tell the limousine was a luxury vehicle.

    The logistics department wasn¡¯t a popr division, so there weren¡¯t many aristocrats here.

    When I thought so, Wace noticed something,

    ¡°Wait, aren¡¯t they here to pick you up, Liam?¡±

    ¡°...what?¡±

    As I approached, it¡¯s door burst open and Rosetta dressed in in clothes jumped out of it.

    ¡°Darling!¡±

    ¡°Rosetta?!¡±

    I actually wanted to dodge, but if I did it poorly, Rosetta might¡¯ve hurt herself, so I ended up catching her in my arms.

    ¡°W-what are you doing here?¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you try resting at the hotel for today? That¡¯s where I¡¯m staying now that my training is finished. I wanted to spend some time with you, so I came to pick you up.¡±

    Hearing that, Wace immediately boarded the limousine.

    ¡°Then don¡¯t mind if I do. I¡¯ll take a free ride anytime. ¨Cwoah, Liam! The insides of this thing are amazing! There¡¯s even alcohol and snacks here!¡±

    Seeing Wace was already inside and drinking, I tried to make onest vain effort to stop him.

    ¡°Hey, wait! I thought we were already had ns to go drinkingter!¡±

    ¡°It should be fine to go to the hotel instead. I mean, we can¡¯t really y around much before payday, and this is all free!¡±

    This bastard!

    Pulling away from me slightly, Rosetta looked up at me with moist eyes.

    ¡°Darling, did you already have ns? I-I guess that makes sense. I know how important it is to keep up your workce rtionships.¡±

    Seeing how sad Rosetta looked, I felt an inexplicable sense of guilt wash over me.

    In the first ce, I was just nning to go with Wace to a bar for drinks, and nothing more.

    ¡°N-no, we just had ns to go drinking together, that¡¯s all.¡±

    ¡°Really?! Then, let¡¯s go to the hotel! There¡¯s so many restaurants in the vicinity that you¡¯ll never grow bored! I¡¯ll have them prepare all the drinks you could ever want, Darling.¡±

    ¡°I-I see.¡±

    I used to think that she was a woman of steel¨C an ice queen with an unbreakable heart, but this was before she became my fianc¨¦e.

    Now she calls me darling while fawning over me.

    I was actually hoping for Rosetta to hate me more, since I can¡¯t really mess with her like this.

    ¡°...so Rosetta, what have you been doing during your stay at the hotel?¡±

    ¡°Right now I¡¯m just learning a bunch of things. Currently I¡¯m studying about the imperial capital¡¯s culture along with the daughters of our neighboring territories¡¯ lords. It¡¯s a lot of fun.¡±

    Is it like a young wife attending a cooking ss?

    I¡¯m d that it looks like she¡¯s enjoying herself... not that I was worried about her or anything.

    Rosetta¡¯s expression suddenly became serious.

    ¡°Oh yes, Darling... there¡¯s actually some guests over there that want to see you.¡±

    ¡°Some guests?¡±

    More people want to meet with me? Hopefully it¡¯s not like the colonel who visited around noon.

 Chapter 59 - Volume 4 Chapter 9 Merchants of the Imperial Capital

    <h4>Volume 4 Chapter 9 Merchants of the Imperial Capital</h4>

    A luxury hotel¡¯s lounge.

    The hotel arranged by my merchant Thomas was a historic building renovated to modern standards.

    It was a waste of money, but this was how evil lords were supposed to use their funds.

    Crossing my legs as I sat down on the couch, I looked at the two people Thomas had mediated a meeting for me with.

    Dressed in a suit while having his blonde hair set in a seven-three ratio, was the young head of the ve Company¨C their president Elliot.

    His appearance was that of one in their early twenties, and he actually seemed to be that age.

    He sent a smile my way,

    ¡°I¡¯d like to thank you for meeting with us today.¡±

    Sitting next to him was an executive of the Nends Company¨C Patrice.

    She had crimson hair and emerald green eyes.

    Her suit that emphasised her chest seemed to match it... was she aiming for a certain colour scheme?

    ¡°It brings me great joy to finally meet with the famous Count¨C no, I¡¯m very pleased to meet the future Duke, Lord Liam.¡±

    She was a beautifuldy with an alluring voice, but I didn¡¯t like girls like her.

    ¨Cshe reminded me of my former wife.

    I didn¡¯t like shy women.

    Turning towards Thomas, he seems to have curled himself up, trying to have as little presence as possible.

    ¡°Lord Liam, there¡¯s some things we want to talk to you about today. This concerns us bing your exclusive purveyors.¡±

    The biggest vendors in the imperial capital have approached me to be my merchants.

    Because the scale the operated on was farrger than Thomas¡¯ firm, they had the potential to be quite useful in many ways.

    ¡°My exclusive purveyors?¡±

    ¡°Yes, please allow us to serve you, Lord Liam. The vepany is an imperial merchant group with deep ties to tradition and history. I¡¯m sure that we could be of value to you.¡±

    When Elliot said so with a smile, Patrice¨C who was sitting next to him, also tried to appeal to me.

    ¡°While it is true that the vepany is the best in the imperial capital, our Nends Company does business across the entire Empire. Ourpany is widely supported by innumerable nobles, whose connections will surely be useful to you, Lord Liam.¡±

    I love people who shamelessly sell ttery to me.

    However¨C their offers seemed too good to be true.

    And I¡¯d never trust anyone who said they were willing to help me only out of the goodness of their own hearts.

    ¡°Thomas is my exclusive merchant, do you understand what the implications of your proposals are?¡±

    Thomas made a flustered expression.

    He really should try acting more dignified sometimes.

    Elliot made another gesture to persuade me.

    ¡°Of course I understand. Make no mistake, I have no wish to expel the Henfrey Company from their position, but I¡¯d appreciate it if you used our ve Company in addition to them.¡±

    Patrice did the same.

    They both smiled while trying to sell me dreams of what the future could be like.

    If I joined hands with them, they would do various things for my sake¨C it was just too convenient.

    ¡°...and so? What are you aiming for, approaching me like this?¡±

    At my query, Elliot and Patrice¡¯s smiles didn¡¯t seem fazed at all.

    ¡°What are we aiming for? I¡¯m a merchant too, my lord. Of course my aim here is the mary profit that I predict you¡¯ll bring me.¡±

    ¡°The Nends Company holds the momentum your quickly rising Banfield house has in high-regard, and doesn¡¯t wish to miss out on this opportunity to build a connection with you.¡±

    I quietly observed the grins stered on their faces.

    They gave off the same feeling as my ex-wife.

    I still haven¡¯t forgotten the face of the woman who made a fool of me.

    ¡°Wipe those damn smiles off your faces already.¡±

    When I said that, all expression seemed to vanish from Elliot¡¯s face.

    ¡°...I¡¯ve heard rumours that you were a virtuous lord full of affection, but I guess there are some things you just can¡¯t understand without meeting the person in question face-to-face.¡±

    Patrice was still smiling, but it seemed to have a different ¡®depth¡¯ to it.

    It looked like one full of expectations, but also one of impatience.

    ¡°Is this what your true nature is like? I can¡¯t say I hate it though.¡±

    ¡°I see... so? What do you want from me?¡±

    When the atmosphere behind the two changed, Thomas quickly went on to exin,

    ¡°Lord Liam, both of them are seeking the strength of your Banfield house.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s somewhat reasonable, but I don¡¯t understand why such powerful merchants would need to rely on me.¡±

    Many merchants have expressed their desire to borrow the Banfield house¡¯s power.

    However, they must have other nobles in their pockets they can rely on.

    They wouldn¡¯t be big merchants otherwise.

    For the powerful imperial merchant group of the ve Company, there should be no reason for them to reach out to my house at all.

    Elliot covered his mouth with his hand.

    ¡°I¡¯ve only seeded as the head of my group a few years ago, and I¡¯ve been shing with the other executives ever since.¡±

    Considering the situation, it looks like the ve Company was too close to noble politics.

    ¡°There are a lot of people who seek to take advantage of my youth and manipte me. To be honest, after investigating my father¡¯s death, it turns out he was assassinated.¡±

    It looks like the big tradingpanies had their own fair share of problems to deal with.

    ¡°Why haven¡¯t you reported this to the Empire?¡±

    ¡°Because the Empire needs the vepany, not myself as an individual. It was actually the government itself who hired the people that killed my father.¡±

    Just like the other executives, it looks like he was looking for an aristocrat to be his backer.

    I turned to Patrice, and when she exined her circumstances¨C she revealed her ambitions.

    ¡°Unlike Elliot, who wants someone to defend himself, I want the Nends Company for my own.¡±

    Although Elliot didn¡¯t seem interested, she had piqued my interest.

    ¡°Continue.¡±

    ¡°The Nends Company has many executives, including myself. Although we generally work together, things are different now that the ownership is changing. Everyone is wondering, ¡®who will be the next head?¡¯¡±

    Patrice took a pose that emphasised her chest, to try to appeal to me.

    ¡°Lord Liam, will you lend me your power to help me be the Nends Company¡¯s next president? Of course, I¡¯ll make sure to reward you appropriately.¡±

    Thomas looked away from the two.

    ¡°Lord Liam, with these two¡¯s support, the Banfield house will be able to reach even greater heights, but they alsoe with various problems.¡±

    ¡°Right...¡±

    These powerful merchants sought me out because they want my strength for their internal struggles.

    Now isn¡¯t that easy to understand?

    In other words, they held the power of violence I could wield in high regard.

    I called out towards them,

    ¡°...because you¡¯ve piqued my interest, I¡¯ve decided I¡¯ll lend you my support.¡±

    The expressions on Elliot and Patrice¡¯s faces were serious.

    ¡°You do understand what this means, right?¡±

    Elliot warned me, but for these two to seek me out means that they¡¯re considerably evil, no?

    They should¡¯ve already heard from Thomas of all the viinous things I¡¯ve done so far.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, but let me say this¨C as long as you two make sure I profit from this, I¡¯ll support you in turn. Don¡¯t you think that a mutually beneficial rtionship would be the best for all of us?¡±

    Loyalty? Gratitude? Honour?

    I don¡¯t believe in such things.

    But as long as they can profit from this situation, I know they won¡¯t betray me.

    Simple, isn¡¯t it?

    Patrice ced a finger on her lips.

    ¡°...you¡¯re different from what I imagined, Lord Liam. Of course, in a good sense, but I thought you would¡¯ve been a person who valued honour over profits.¡±

    Honour? What¡¯s honour to an evil lord? Ahh, was she referring to the sense of honour that might appear in some television drama?

    I never valued such a thing before, and I don¡¯t value it now.

    ¡°Are you afraid that your profits may be thrown away in favour of morals? What great merchants you are, don¡¯t you think so as well, Thomas?¡±

    When I turned the conversation to him, Thomas made a troubled expression.

    ¡°W-what do you want me to say?¡±

    ¡°...well, as long as they can bring me profits, I¡¯ll support them. Now, isn¡¯t that quite simple and easy for a contract?¡±

    Elliot began to smile, but it wasn¡¯t that fake smile of a good and serious youth he showed me at first.

    ¡°Ipletely understand. Rather than the invisible ties of morals and honour, the material bindings of a contract are far more trustworthy.¡±

    Patrice¡¯s cheeks flushed red in excitement.

    ¡°I¡¯ll bring you the contract immediately. Lord Liam... I¡¯d like for you to sign the contract together with me, personally.¡±

    Much better.

    Rather than the polished expressions they first showed, I prefer them far more as they are now.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    After having signed their contracts with Liam, Elliot and Patrice were now alone in the elevator.

    It¡¯s walls were made of ss, making the beautiful night view of the imperial capital visible.

    Elliot loosened his tie and called out to Patrice.

    ¡°...he was easier of a person to talk to than I thought.¡±

    Patrice crossed her arms, refusing to show her back to him.

    ¡°Don¡¯t act so over familiarly with me. This doesn¡¯t change the fact that we¡¯re still enemies.¡±

    ¡°Oh? I would¡¯ve thought it¡¯d be far more beneficial for us to cooperate with each other.¡±

    ¡°...it¡¯s meaningless to join hands with the head of a group that has no power.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re telling me...¡±

    There were various reasons why they approached Liam, but for Elliot, it was because many of hispany¡¯s executives had close ties with the Berkley family.

    As long as you paid the Pirate Nobles, they¡¯d support you, that¡¯s just how society was.

    But if the pirates gained any more power, they¡¯d start interfering with business.

    Elliot hated this idea and decided to support Liam, who was openly fighting with the Berkley family from the front.

    At first he was worried when he heard about how serious he was, but that¡¯s exactly why Liam¡¯s true nature was so interesting.

    ¡°But I thought you were in the same situation as me. Aren¡¯t many of yourpany¡¯s executives close to the Berkley family as well?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no point in following in their footsteps. If they¡¯re going to bet on the Berkley family, then I¡¯m going to put my chips on the Banfield house instead.¡±

    Patrice wanted to use Liam to gain power within herpany.

    Originally, she was going to skillfully manipte him with hernguage skills, but she waspletely caught off guard.

    ¡°Still, things sure have taken an interesting turn. I¡¯m d that he¡¯s not just another goody-two-shoes.¡±

    The majority of aristocrats prioritised their personal profits, but Liam didn¡¯t trust such one-sided rtionships.

    ¡°...we¡¯ve gone too far now, the Count needs to win this war.¡±

    When Elliot said so, Patrice agreed.

    ¡°He has to, because If he doesn¡¯t, we¡¯re screwed.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    While Liam was in the middle of training, problems had clearly arose with his designation of supplies.

    They mostly came from those his policies affected¨C the corrupt soldiers.

    ¡°Damn it! That Banfield brat is getting full of himself!¡±

    In addition to the nobles who hadzily wasted their time in the patrol fleets, the soldiers who had been living indulgent lives in the regr fleets until now were enraged.

    ¡°Seriously, the amount of alcohol we¡¯ve been receiving has decreased.¡±

    ¡°What the hell does he mean by he can¡¯t waste funds on premium liquor on us?! We¡¯re nobles damn it!¡±

    ¡°On top of that, he¡¯s messed with our fleets! After giving some random reason, he reduced the number of vessels I was in charge of!¡±

    Everything that was wrong with their lives was the fault of the Banfield house¡¯s Liam.

    Their opinions were in sync.

    And the guide was silently watching over all of it.

    Sitting down in a chair, he started apuding while swinging his legs.

    ¡°It looks like he¡¯s smoothly creating more enemies for himself. Now, let¡¯s put these guys to work.¡±

    After snapping his fingers, ck smoke began to emanate from the guide¡¯s body.

    The dark smog quickly filled up the room, but the nobles didn¡¯t seem to care.

    That¡¯s when one of them spoke out,

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard rumours that the Berkley family is going to settle things with the Banfield house soon.¡±

    The gathered soldiers suddenly became interested in that story.

    ¡°Really?¡±

    ¡°It looks like they¡¯re recruiting soldiers, so how about this? ¨CAs an imperial nobleman, won¡¯t you join me in helping the Berkley family restore the military to how it¡¯s supposed to be? They said they¡¯d provide us with a mountain of rewards.¡±

    The military men broke out into grins.

    The guide was preparing human resources to join the Berkley family¡¯s army, further increasing Liam¡¯s enemies.

    ¡°This still isn¡¯t enough. I need to make all the contingency ns possible to ensure Liam¡¯s defeat.¡±

    He needed to make sure he wasn¡¯t negligent.

    Or else he¡¯d never be able to kill Liam.

    Standing up, the guide fixed the position of his hat, and left the room.

    However, a faint light in the shape of a dog was watching everything from the room¡¯s corner, and silently followed after him.

 Chapter 60 - Volume 4 Chapter 10 Liamâ€™s Fleet

    <strong> Volume 4 Chapter 10 Liam¡¯s Fleet</strong>

    The days spent at my training assignment continued.

    I let the AIs process most of my work, then double-checked the results before noon.

    After that came lunch, which was then followed by a short break to rx.

    In the afternoon, I finished my remaining work and prepared to leave on schedule so I could enjoy the rest of my day.

    When soldiers came in toin, I used my social standing as a shield, and sent bribes¨C no, seasonal greetings to theirmanders in the regr fleets to get the results I wanted.

    Tia told me, ¡°If you send arge amount of replenishment supplies to the front lines, everyone will surely understand your greatness, Lord Liam.¡±

    It was a truly delicious story, knowing I could easily sell favours using my people¡¯s tax money.

    I didn¡¯t think it¡¯d be good for my image if I only used their money though, so I made sure to use my personal funds a bit too.

    Selling these favours to themanders of the regr fleets will surely bring great returns someday.

    If I wanted to build up a debt the Empire would owe me, wouldn¡¯t it be better to start while I¡¯m still in training?

    In anycase, that¡¯s how I leisurely spent those days of mine.

    When suddenly, I was invited to lunch by Kurt.

    He¡¯s been training as an official after graduating from the university, and it looks like he¡¯s been having a tough time.

    Unlike myself, he was a rather serious person, so he didn¡¯t really have many free days for us to meet up like this.

    And that Kurt was currently talking to me about¨C

    ¡°My aide?¡±

    It¡¯s been a while since west saw each other, but the suit wearing Kurt seems to have grown up a bit.

    At first nce, he might look like a pretty boy¨C a respectable youth, but on the inside he was actually a serious viin.

    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s a hot topic even on my side. There are many famous soldiers out their who want to be your adjutant, Liam. So many in fact, that the military is having trouble deciding who to assign to you.¡±

    Apparently there was a multitude of soldier¡¯s who wanted to be a future Duke¡¯s aide.

    ¡°Anyone is fine, as long as they¡¯re a beautiful woman.¡±

    At thatment, Kurtughed while saying, ¡°You¡¯re the same as usual, I see.¡±

    Chowing down on a steak, Wace sent Kurt a gaze,

    ¡°Putting Liam aside, as the heir of a Baron house, it looks like you¡¯re quite popr with the girls yourself. There seem to be a lot of them applying to be your secretaries or subordinates.¡±

    Now where¡¯d he hear that? Wace was apparently familiar with Kurt¡¯s circumstances.

    ¡°Is that so?¡±

    Hearing that, Kurt seemed to be embarrassed,

    ¡°Well, even if you say there¡¯s a lot, I¡¯m not the only one being aimed for. There are a plethora of people aiming to raise their status by bing the secretaries or adjutants of heirs.¡±

    Wace was jealous,

    ¡°There are numerous cases where the secretary of military officers or government officials were headhunted after their initial assignment to work for their superiors. If someone is able to slide into one of those positions, they¡¯ve practically made it.¡±

    But no one seemed interested in working for a prince.

    The idea of getting involved in the session war between their family was nothing tough about.

    As always, they were in a delicate position.

    ¡°For my aide¨C I hope I get an ethereal beauty.¡±

    Wace burst intoughter,

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, appearances are a required selection criteria for the adjutant and secretary positions. Though rumours say it¡¯s all just a manner of preferences, I wonder who they¡¯ll choose for you, Liam?¡±

    In the end, I¡¯ll be the one to choose from the list of candidates that remain, but the selection process that sifts them out until that point is quite strict.

    I¡¯ve heard that they do multiple things like background checks and such.

    So who will remain?

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Attractive female officers were lined up in arge room.

    In the ce where various beauties dressed in military uniforms were gathered, Tia was walking in-between them after having been promoted for her achievements of consolidating and reorganising the patrol fleets into one that would match even a regr armada.

    The status disyed on her badge was one of a colonel.

    It was an unusual jump through the ranks, but that¡¯s just how highly they evaluated her achievements.

    ¡°Ladies, Lord Liam has finally been officially assigned to the military.¡±

    Tia¡¯s skills in organising arge fleet was highly valued within the army, and although there have been offers of permanent positions for her, they¡¯ve all been refused.

    All the female officers collected by Tia were from the Banfield house¡¯s territory.

    ¡°You¡¯re all elites chosen directly from Lord Liam¡¯s domain. From those of you here, one of you will surely be chosen to be his aide¨C no, one of you must be his aide.¡±

    There were a multitude of soldiers who wanted to raise their reputation by bing Liam¡¯s adjutant.

    However, Tia could never trust an outsider to serve by his side.

    The reason being was that if he took a liking to said outsider, he¡¯d surely take them with him once he resigned from the army.

    This would surely strengthen his connection to the military, but it¡¯d be troublesome if they prioritised the imperial army over Liam.

    There was also the possibility of Liamying his hands on them, and if that was the case, it¡¯d be preferred if that person was an elite that hailed from his territory.

    ¡°All for this is for Lord Liam¡¯s sake. Devote your bodies and souls to him!¡±

    ¡°Understood!¡±

    When all of them responded and saluted in sync, Tia made a satisfied expression.

    (All of them have the appearance and the ability to serve as his aide¨C there¡¯s no one more suited than them. Lord Liam will surely be satisfied.)

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Meanwhile¨C

    The upper echelon of the military were grasping at their heads.

    ¡°What are we going to do?!¡±

    ¡°...we need a connection with the Count¨C no, the future Duke.¡±

    ¡°But do we even have anyone suitable for a position as a liaison?¡±

    After making great achievements in the logistics department, Liam had prepared a regr fleet consisting of thetest models of mobile knights and ships for his position in the military.

    While he was a person who solved one of the army¡¯s most troublesome problems, he was also a nobleman with an abundance of rare metals.

    They really wanted a connection with him.

    However, because Tia had shown absolutely no interest in a permanent military standing, they didn¡¯t have any way to build one.

    It was possible to create one through the assignment of an aide, but the majority of the candidates were residents of his territory.

    One of the officers raised his head.

    ¡°...there¡¯s one person I know of exceptional talent.¡±

    ¡°What of her appearance?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no problems in that aspect either, and she¡¯s even already acquainted with the Count.¡±

    ¡°Now who¡¯s that exactly?¡±

    The woman¡¯s data was pulled up.

    ¡°Major Eulisia. She was originally assigned to a weapons factory, but after retraining she was transferred to the special forces. She¡¯s also received espionage-rted training.¡±

    She had a variety of qualifications and a proven track record.

    Although she was someone the army would be reluctant to let go of, a capable and beautiful person had a higher chance of getting Liam¡¯s attention.

    ¡°What of the individual¡¯s will? People with simr backgrounds have been known to cause problems. Has she consented to this assignment?¡±

    Would she be okay with potentially bing a noble¡¯s lover or mistress? This was the problem.

    Some people were willing to go that far, but many were adverse to it.

    ¡°No problems there either. She seemed willing when I brought it up.¡±

    ¡°Still, she sure has a great track record. I¡¯d rather keep such people as our subordinates.¡±

    Eulisia was highly rated among them.

    ¡°If it¡¯s not the major, then it¡¯d be better to just give up. Send her documents to the Count immediately.¡±

    ¨Cthe power of the guide worked, slipping Eulisia in as one of Liam¡¯s adjutant candidates.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    I was looking through documents that resembled matchmaking photos during work.

    The surroundings seemed to be concerned about what I was doing, but no one dared toin.

    Picking one of them up and examining the paper¡¯s contents, Wace cried out in surprise,

    ¡°What a beauty! Haa~ can¡¯t she be my aide?¡±

    As a member of the royal family, he¡¯ll be promoted to a lieutenant after our training is finished.

    However, there were no ns for him to receive an adjutant.

    That was because his position didn¡¯t require one.

    ¡°Do you need another session with the drill sergeant?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a good joke Liam... that was a joke, right?¡±

    Leave the drill sergeant as this guy¡¯s educator¨C that might be a good idea.

    However, I wasn¡¯t too fond of driving in the military¡¯s values into him.

    Since our conscription in the military was only temporary, it wasn¡¯t something he really needed.

    While Wace was sifting through the various papers, he stopped at one.

    ¡°Oh, this person¡¯s track record is amazing. She¡¯s formerly from the special forces.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    When I checked the contents of her document, what was there was a picture of Eulisia.

    Looking at her career, after leaving the Third Weapons Factory, she went through retraining at a military re-education facility, where she was then transferred to the special forces.

    After that, she studied espionage and information technologies at another facility.

    She was like a female spy.

    ¡°Now why would someone like her join the special forces?¡±

    When I pondered that out loud, Wace raised his head.

    ¡°She¡¯s your acquaintance?¡±

    ¡°I was her charge while she was still a saledy at one of the weapon factories.¡±

    ¡°Man, you have it good~ Even if you don¡¯t do anything, beautiful girls seem to naturally flock to you.¡±

    Seeing Wace¡¯s bnt envy made me happy.

    Then I turned back to the pile of documents.

    ¨Cif I really looked through all of these, I probably wouldn¡¯t be able to go home on time.

    After all, no matter who I looked at, none of the girls so far really interested me.

    Haa... I miss Amagi.

    Should I try bringing her over to the imperial capital?

    But right now I¡¯ve entrusted her with work in my territory, and right now the Berkleys and other nuisances are wandering around me, so I¡¯m worried about what dangers I might be putting her in.

    ...I¡¯m seriously tired of fighting with the Berkleys.

    I wish I could just finish this all already.

    ¡°Should I just go with Eulisia then? I¡¯m already acquainted with her, and she seems prettypetent, right?¡±

    ¡°Is it really okay to decide that easily?¡±

    ¡°Hah! I can gather as many beautiful girls as I want whenever! So is there really any need to be so hung up over who I¡¯ll have as my adjutant?¡±

    Since it really matter who I chose, I decided to go with Eulisia.

    She was a bit disappointing, but she was still ok.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The day after I decided my adjutant.

    Eulisia visited my training site.

    ¡°It¡¯s nice to see you again, Lord Liam.¡±

    Eulisia, who saluted to me with a smile, seemed to have a somewhat more toned body than before.

    Yet both her chest and butt still had the right amount of fat¨C her style seems to have improved.

    Almost as if she had chosen specifically what she wanted to train, her more supple parts seemed to be more emphasised inparison.

    Seeing Eulisia approach while I was still working, I stopped processing my electronic documents.

    ¡°...wasn¡¯t there still half a year before you were officially assigned to me?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve already gotten permission from my superiors. I heard that your workload increased since you¡¯re going to be transferred soon, so I¡¯m here to help.¡±

    Isn¡¯t she a lot sharper now?

    It¡¯s almost as if she¡¯s a different person.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Now standing directly in front of Liam, Eulisia was holding back the dark feelings welling up inside her.

    (Finally... I can finally have my revenge against you, Liam.)

    Eulisia had only approached Liam so that she could have revenge for when he crushed her pride.

    Filled only with thoughts of ensnaring him in a honey trap, she had polished herself for decades.

    ¡°Lord Liam, for now lets¨C¡±

    Her first step of revenge would begin here.

    That¡¯s what she thought, but then a person burst into Liam¡¯s workce crying.

    It was Nias, the technology captain of the Seventh Weapons Factory, a ce filled with various problems.

    At first nce, she was an intelligent woman with ck hair and sses, but she was actually a person with many unfortunate sides to her.

    ¡°Lord Liam~!¡±

    After wildly flying through the door, Nias broke down into tears.

    (Y-you?!)

    Eulisia was another of Nias¡¯ acquaintances, but she didn¡¯t even greet her.

    Liam had an exasperated expression on his face.

    ¡°...what is it?¡±

    (Urgh! You¡¯re an annoyance, so go away already! You¡¯re lucky he¡¯s being so lenient!)

    Liam was basically sweet to his acquaintances.

    Although he was pretty severe, he was still one of the more benevolent noblemen.

    While Eulisia knew that, she was still annoyed that Nias disturbed her ns.

    ¡°Please listen to this! Lord Liam, I was building a new prototype of ship using the rare metals you prepared for me! But then everyone kept butting in and getting in my¨C¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve told me this already.¡±

    Although Nias wanted to experiment with various things, it seems the higher-ups of the Seventh Weapons Factory had collectively decided to work on other projects.

    As a result¨C Nias was unable to work on the things she desired.

    Eulisia was smiling in her heart.

    (That¡¯s nice. Now if you¡¯re done venting, hurry up and go home already.)

    She wanted to get rid of Liam early, and Nias was in her way.

    However¨C

    ¡°¨CI want additional rare metals and funds.¡±

    ¡°Huh?!¡±

    At her impudent request, Eulisia couldn¡¯t help but exim in surprise.

    If one wanted to develop a new generation of battleships, they needed an immense budget.

    They also needed arge amount of rare metals.

    It was unreasonable to ask Liam for such things.

    However, he was surprisingly interested.

    ¡°You were developing a new battleship?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to prepare a special battleship for you, Lord Liam! But the development costs for such things aren¡¯t cheap, so that¡¯s why I need more funds and rare metals!¡±

    However, Liam didn¡¯t seem willing to make a budget for a proposal like that so he refused, which in turn led Nias to drop to the floor crying, turning up her skirt slightly.

    She didn¡¯t seem to do it intentionally.

    After all, the shorts she was wearing underneath were of the functional variety.

    But Liam¡¯s eyes went wide at the sight.

    (T-this isn¡¯t good!)

    With Liam always on her mind, Eulisia had also tried her best to study his hobbies and preferences. So she knew.

    Liam preferred sporty underwear over the shier kind.

    Noticing his line of sight, Nias rushed to return her skirt to its original position.

    Embarrassed, Nias hurriedly began to make excuses.

    ¡°P-please excuse me. D-don¡¯t get me wrong, I¡¯ve been really busy recently, so I was only wearing this because it was all I had on hand at the time. I usually wear better underwear than this!¡±

    Despite thinking that it was such an obvious lie, Eulisia didn¡¯t miss Liam¡¯s joy.

    ¡°I-is that so? Yes, I see. Now then, we were talking about the budget, right? I¡¯ll prepare you the money using my personal funds.¡±

    Eulisia covered her face with both her hands.

    (Stupid! Why do you have to be so easy now of all times?!)

    Nias immediately went on to make additional demands.

    ¡°Please give me rare metals as well! Also, I¡¯d like it if you bought some battleships too. Aren¡¯t you being a bit mean? Lord Liam, you¡¯re preparing a whole new fleet, but you didn¡¯t evenmision a single ship from us. It truly was mean of you to jointly hire the third and sixth factories to produce the vessels needed while ignoring us.¡±¡°Oh, is that so? I didn¡¯t know because I left that job to Tia.¡±

    Liam didn¡¯t seem interested in those details.

    As a former employee at the Third Weapons Factory, even Eulisia had heard about the joint development.

    (...joint development of the next generation of ships. I¡¯ve even heard rumours that the Ninth Weapons Factory is on the move.)

    Each of the weapon factories were hurriedly preparing new fleets.

    Meanwhile, the Seventh Weapons Factory waspletely disregarded by Tia.

    ¡°...it¡¯s because you peoplepletely disregard appearances during development.¡±

    Nias removed her sses and wiped her tears.

    ¡°We did our best! However, thatdy refused us and said, ¡®They¡¯re not suitable for Lord Liam¡¯, and we even had eight hundred ships ready in storage for that sale! If you don¡¯t buy them, we¡¯re screwed!¡±

    Eulisia fell into thought,

    (Their focus on performance and developing technology is still the same as ever. They shouldn¡¯t be making eight hundred ships without an initialmision in the first ce.)

    Even Liam seemed to be surprised¨C and then he seemed to realise something.

    ¡°I understand. I¡¯ll buy those eight hundred ships of yours.¡±

    ¡°Really?!¡±

    But to Nias¡¯ happy reaction, Liam tacked on a condition,

    ¡°I¡¯ll make moremissions for you. The other weapon factories are likely to be busy, but you guys seem to be free. Also¨C do you have any ships or weapons that are designated to be discarded? Turn them over to me instead.¡±

    Eulisia had no idea what Liam was thinking about.

 Chapter 61 - Volume 4 Chapter 11 The Berkley Fleet

    <strong>Volume 4 Chapter 11 The Berkley Fleet</strong>

    The home of the Berkley family.

    Cashmiro was standing in front of a soldier.

    ¡°...you¡¯ve showed me your ns. They¡¯re amazing, but you need to make major reforms to defeat the Banfield house.¡±

    The soldier was Dolph, who was promoted to a Major.

    He was assigned to an empty post where he wasn¡¯t expected to do anything, but that gave him all the time he needed to ponder how he could defeat Liam and pull ahead in life.

    Such a Dolph was now meeting with Cashmiro.

    Their encounter was of pure chance.

    And with that, Dolph was now devoting all of his body and soul into this strategy.

    ¡°Taking what you proposed at face value, it¡¯s not enough. Realistically speaking, with the amount of time and funds avable to us, we still have potential for more, the current ns will only hold us back.¡±

    ¡°...is it even possible for us to rece the entire fleet while reorganising ourmand structure? Also, I¡¯ve never heard of anyone creating an armada solely out of ships specialised in close and medium rangebat.¡±

    Dolph pulled up a holographic image.

    The Banfield house¡¯s fleet was projected there.

    The appearance of them one-sidedly ughtering a pirate fleet was a horrifying sight.

    ¡°The strength of the Banfield house lies in the high quality of their equipment and personnel.¡±

    ¡°Is it impossible to ovee this with numbers?¡±

    ¡°While they may only have a hundred thousand ships at most, if they break through even a single point, both sides will end up taking massive damage. In the worst case scenario even ourmander will perish, and once that urs we¡¯ve already practically lost.¡±

    Then Dolph presented his strategy.

    ¡°We¡¯ll let them charge at us, and then we¡¯ll intercept them with precise countermeasures. That¡¯s why we¡¯ll focus on procuring ships for short and medium rangebat.¡±

    To defeat the Banfield house¡¯s fleet, Dolph suggested creating another armada over a hundred thousand strong that had almost no practical application in a standard fight.

    However, Cashmiro held Dolph in high regard.

    (Each and every single one of them, they all said that as long as we had equal numbers matching the brat, we¡¯d win. But this guy here... I¡¯ve never seen anyone more driven than this kid.)

    Cashmiro tried asking a question,

    ¡°And what would you suppose we¡¯d do if the enemy decided to fight normally in this situation?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯d certainly be in danger, but assault tactics are the winning strategies of the Banfield house. It¡¯d be very difficult for them to change the battle habits that they¡¯ve used for decades.¡±

    Cashimiro also understood this.

    They were people who¡¯ve aggressively hunted pirates for many years now.

    Certainly, their assault tactics have be a sort of art to them.

    Their formations never broke, and their soldiers seemed to know no fear.

    They had grown dependant on aggressive strategies as a guarantee for victory.

    (This guy... he¡¯s the only one who understands that.)

    Dolph broke into a fervent spiel,

    ¡°All the ships need to be reced, and the personnel will need to be retrained for this operation! While this will take an enormous amount of time and money, they are necessary expenses to win! That¡¯s just how highly I evaluate the enemy! We can¡¯t underestimate the Banfield house!¡±

    Just to defeat Liam, the Berkley fleet will be reformed into an immovable armada.

    They¡¯d be weak in a normal battle, but they¡¯d never lose against assault tactics.

    All the soldiers Cashimiro had met with so far had said they¡¯d win as long as they had equal numbers, but he knew that wasn¡¯t enough.

    ¡°...will we make it in time? I¡¯ve heard that the Banfield house is also increasing their armaments.¡±

    ¡°We definitely can. No, I¡¯ll make it so we do! We need to immediately start gathering as many ships as possible!¡±

    Affected by Dolph¡¯s enthusiasm, Cashmiro made his resolve.

    ¡°That sounds fine, let¡¯s do it.¡±

    ¡°Thank you so much! In that case, I want you to gather the pirates as well.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    For this battle, Dolph decided he needed to put pressure on Liam¡¯s allies.

    This was to prevent him from receiving reinforcements.

    ¡°There are rumours that Liam has formed a regr fleet, and I¡¯ve confirmed them to be true. He seems to be nning to have it used as his trump card.¡±

    A regr fleet in the tens of thousands.

    Hearing that, Cashmiro decided that pirates probably wouldn¡¯t be able to do anything against it.

    ¡°...I know that there are people in the army who don¡¯t like the Banfield brat. It might not be a bad idea to gather them up as well.¡±

    ¡°Oh, that would be perfect!¡±

    Many patrol fleets controlled by the nobility were disbanded.

    If the remains were collected, they¡¯d no doubt reach a force in the tens of thousands themselves.

    And Cashmiro had friends other than soldiers as well.

    Merchants houses¨C and even the first and second weapon factories have pledged their aid to him.

    ¡°Dolph, if I gather the soldiers for you, can you organise them into a fleet?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s possible, but I don¡¯t think they¡¯ll be that useful. If anything, we can use them as decoys.¡±

    Dolph didn¡¯t have any expectations for the neers scrounged up at thest minute.

    Cashmiro was the same.

    ¡°Contact the weapon factories and have them properly equipped anyways.¡±

    ¡°Are you sure? The cost of this won¡¯t be small, and those soldiers tend toin if their treatment is even a little unsatisfactory.¡±

    While Dolph said that it wasn¡¯t worth spending money on them, Cashmiro said that the budget shouldn¡¯t be worried about.

    ¡°I don¡¯t care! If I¡¯m going to do this, then I¡¯m going to do this thoroughly! Even if it costs a bit, it doesn¡¯t matter as long as it works towards wearing down that brat even the smallest amount more.¡±

    With that said, Cashmiro still had one more card to perfect his countermeasures.

    ¡°Now let¡¯s feed the pirates to the Banfield house.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll feed them?¡±

    ¡°Yes, we¡¯ll make them fight more than ever to ensure they stick to assault tactics. I want to maintain the situation where there isn¡¯t even the slightest of doubts that aggressive maneuvers will bring them victory.¡±

    Dolph felt chills run up his spine as he listened to Cashmiro easilyugh about forsaking the pirates.

    ¡°...no, this could work. This will bring us another step closer to winning.¡±

    It wasn¡¯t just the pirates. Mechants, weapons factories, the military¨C Cashmiro had decided to involve all of them in the war against the Banfield house.

    And watching this all from the beginning while apuding was the guide.

    ¡°...perfect. Both of you are doing your best to defeat Liam, so I¡¯ll give you all the support you¡¯ll need from the shadows.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°What is... this?¡±

    When I went to eh patrol fleet I was assigned to, several regr fleets were waiting for me instead.

    The sight seen from the bridge of a super-ss battleship over three thousand meters long was a tremendous fleet consisting of innumerable ships.

    Battleships were lined up as far as the eye could see.

    My holographic image was projected into outer space as a ceremony to wee my official assignment.

    At my side was Eulisia, who was designated to support me as my aide, and Marie, who had just returned from the special forces.

    Wace was also here as back-up personnel for the bridge.

    And¨C

    ¡°Special staff officer, thanks for appointing me as captain of this ship! Thank you so much!¡±

    ¡ªA big-faced man with bristled short hair was expressing his gratitude towards me.

    He was the recently promoted brigadier general [Cedric Noah Albte].

    I appointed him as the captain for the gship I boarded.

    After my recent promotion to Lieutenant Colonel, I was given a unique title of ¡®Special Staff Officer¡¯.

    By the way, Cedric was Wace¡¯s half-brother.

    However, he was just another of the hundreds of princes without backing.

    Wace was amazed,

    ¡°Are you seriously happy enough to cry?¡±

    ¡°Of course I am! You have no idea how hard it is to patrol the universe for no reason! Actually, how the hell are you the one to have found such an excellent patron?!¡±

    Cedric started strangling Wace¡¯s neck in envy.

    ¡°I give, I give!¡±

    Tia entered into the noisy bridge with another officer.

    ¡°Lord Liam, I¡¯ve brought themander.¡±

    He was a man who looked like he was in his forties.

    So he must actually be of a pretty old age.

    With current anti-aging technology, being seen as middle-aged was like proof of longevity.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be in your care,mander.¡±

    The other party was smiling.

    ¡°I never would¡¯ve expected to be in charge of the famous Count of all people. Well, I¡¯ll make sure to do my part.¡±

    ttery didn¡¯t seem to have much effect on this man, but to have been entrusted with a fleet of this size, he must have the skills appropriate for it.

    ¨CLet¡¯s do our best not to make this guy an enemy.

    I¡¯ve recently learned that I shouldn¡¯t pick fights with troublesome people.

    ¨Clike the Berkley family.

    They were really annoying.

    Tia went on to tell me about our future ns.

    ¡°Lord Liam, tomorrow we¡¯ll be leading the fleet to patrol around the frontier base.¡±

    ¡°The frontier base?¡±

    ¡°Yes, think of it as something simr to introducing yourself while also ensuring the safety of our route.¡±

    With such arge fleet, we¡¯re going to ensure the safety of our path?

    Normally these things would be done with smaller fleets, so it¡¯d be a bit of a waste to do on this scale.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t we disperse our forces while moving towards our destination. Yes, let¡¯s turn this into apetition. We¡¯ll go there first and give rewards to those who arrive after solving the pirate problems in the local areas.¡±

    Since I wasn¡¯t going to take this position seriously, I was going to turn it into a game for my amusement¨C Tia seemed a bit disappointed though.

    ¡°Lord Liam, this is a chance to show off your dignified figure! Such a fleet operation is¨C¡±

    However, there was a person who sent me a lifeboat.

    It was Marie.

    ¡°Oh, are you refuting Lord Liam¡¯s orders? Are you sure that¡¯s fine? Even I can tell that there¡¯s no point in moving a fleet of this size all together.¡±

    ¡°This will also serve as training for when we do need to move on this scale. Not that you would understand that.¡±

    ¡°Even if that¡¯s true, it¡¯d be better to consolidate once we¡¯re actually at our destination. It¡¯s such a shame seeing our head knight be so inflexible.¡±

    Cedric started whispering to Wace while they quarreled,

    ¡°Your patron¡¯s knights... isn¡¯t the atmosphere between them somewhat strained?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re always like this, you¡¯ll get used to it soon.¡±

    Wace wasughing, but seeing my head and deputy knight fighting wasn¡¯t funny to me at all.

    Eulisia made a suggestion to me,

    ¡°Lieutenant Colonel, are you sure you want to turn this into apetition before we even reached our destination?¡±

    I was ignoring themanding officer¡¯s position and making decisions on my own.

    But when I looked towards themander, he shrugged his shoulders.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like we have any urgent business to attend to, so I don¡¯t see any problems.¡±

    It was a bit bigger than I expected, but it was still a fleet I prepared myself, so it should be fine to use it as I like.

    ¡°Yes, let¡¯s make this into apetition. Defeating pirates will get them points. Large scale fleets will be worth ten. I¡¯ll even prepare rewards depending on the scores.¡±

    Those were my thoughts on the game that was about to begin¨C a few dayster, the major generals I gathered seemed excited when I exined the rules to them.

    As for myself? I got to watch everyonepete against each other from the sidelines as an evil lord.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    I led three thousand ships to the goal point¨C well, a certain.

    It was directly under the Empire¡¯s control and was designated as a still under development.

    The atmosphere around the peoplepeting for the reward seemed to change when we started, so I wonder when they¡¯ll arrive?

    Currently, I was sitting in a luxurious seat on the ship¡¯s bridge while swishing around the drink inside the ss I held.

    ¡°I¡¯m bored. Wace, do something.¡±

    ¡°Huh, what are you asking me to do? I¡¯m sorry, but I¡¯ve already run out of material.¡±

    I¡¯ve already made this unreasonable request to Wace dozens of times.

    He doesn¡¯t seem to have any more good ideas.

    We¡¯ve spent thest few days just waiting in this deste ce¨C its boring.

    ¡°There¡¯s too much free time.¡±

    I thought I¡¯d be fine just rxing on a luxury cruise ship.

    And certainly, the vessel¡¯s facilities are substantial, even to the point of possessing a small shopping mall.

    There were many nonbatants here, and even some chain stores were opening up shop.

    It was crowded with crew members on break or holidays, turning the ship into its own mini-colony.

    But¨C what was the point of me ying around in such a ce?

    I¡¯ve spent most of my free time in my room.

    My days have been spent with me just swinging my sword around in training.

    ¡°Cedric, do an impression of something.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s impossible my lord¨C I¡¯ve already used up all my materials as well, and even then, most of the celebrities I¡¯ve done are people you didn¡¯t even know.¡±

    Cedric was also out of good ideas.

    I¡¯ve exhausted all my measures to alleviate my boredom.

    Then Marie made a suggestion,

    ¡°Then why don¡¯t you start developing this? The soldiers will be able to work, and there¡¯s also the supply fleets that are bound to meet with us before our allies arrive. So why don¡¯t we try to build a simple spaceport for them?¡±

    Just because I was free, was I really going to start ying a real-life colony development game?

    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s do it. Now what should we do for the design?¡±

    Eulisia made a proposal,

    ¡°Lord Liam, there are pioneers on the surface. If start supporting them, it will be easy for us to get the cooperation of the residents when we use this ce as a ry station in the future.¡±

    To be honest, I wasn¡¯t that interested in the original residents, but I¡¯ll lend them a hand since I have the time to do so.

    For my territory, I left a lot of things to Amagi since she knew what was best for our future ies, but it should be fun to do things on my own for once.

    Even if I messed up and failed, it was only the Empire¡¯s territory in the end.

    So there was no problem there.

    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s start changing things on the surface then. Wace, I¡¯m going to start building facilities down there, so I¡¯m appointing you as the site manager.¡±

    ¡°Eh~¡±

    I decided to have the distressed Wace go down to the surface and start the construction for a government office building.

    ¡°Yes, let¡¯s make it a huge building that¡¯ll really give off a ¡®BANG¡¯ impact when seen.¡±

    Because doing things like this was a good way to waste money.

    Let¡¯s build it with an emphasis on design.

    Tia was looking at me with her hands sped together.

    Her eyes seemed to be shining.

    ¡°That sounds amazing, Lord Liam.¡±

    Considering how I was treating the residents as toys for a game, I didn¡¯t think I was doing anything worthplimenting.

    Well, it was only natural for evil lords to trample over others.

    I¡¯ll just develop this ce however I want.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¨CLiam¡¯s fleet destroyed another local pirate armada.

    Such a topic was being heard half a year after Liam was officially assigned.

    The prime minister¡¯s eyes went wide after reading the contents of the report.

    ¡°He¡¯s amazing.¡±

    Subordinates had been dispatched to investigate how powerful Liam¡¯s fleet was.

    Spies were nted as workers in the fleet.

    And the majority of them all sung Liam¡¯s praise.

    One of his subordinates made a relieved expression,

    ¡°It seems they were having apetition to see who could hunt the most pirates, but more important than that is the developments they¡¯ve started for the they¡¯ve been assigned to. We¡¯ve left that ce alone for so long because the costs weren¡¯t worth it, so this is something to celebrate.¡±

    There was a where Liam¡¯speting fleets were assigned to consolidate at.

    Liam seemed to have made various improvements there while he waited.

    Now that there was a spaceport there¨C albeit a simple one, the was likely to develop further in the future.

    In fact, it already seems like merchants are gathering there in hopes of conducting business with Liam.

    As for the¡¯s surface¨C

    ¡°Hmm, so he prioritised the construction of the necessary facilities first? He has good judgement.¡±

    There weren¡¯t any facilities built on the ground in the first ce, so the residents would be grateful no matter where they were built.

    Though they seemed to be built with an emphasis on design, that much was still reasonable.

    (I¡¯ll give him about eighty points. If he gains a bit more experience, then he¡¯ll surely able to reach even greater heights¨C it¡¯s easy to forget because he became famous through his martial skills, but the Count¡¯s original fame came from his skill in domestic affairs.)

    Originally, he was highly regarded for how revitalised his deste territory, but recently the only news about him seems toe from his pirate hunts.

    With how the situation would seem to improve even if he left it unattended, the prime minister inadvertently felt a smile creep up on him.

    However¨C he wasn¡¯t the type to believe in others that easily.

    ¡°With achievements like this, even the army wouldn¡¯t be able toin. I should have the count promoted to colonel. I¡¯ll even give him a medal.¡±

    ¡°Are you sure?¡±

    ¡°Something of this level is still cheap. By next year, should I have him promoted to brigadier general? I want him to at least be a lieutenant general before he leaves the military.¡±

    (Well, if this isn¡¯t enough to please him, should I give him something else?)

 Chapter 62 - Volume 4 Chapter 12 Lieutenant General

    <strong>Volume 4 Chapter 12 Lieutenant General</strong>

    ¡°I guess one¡¯s birth doesn¡¯t decide everything. Don¡¯t you agree, Commander?¡±

    The ss badge pinned on my military uniform was that of a lieutenant general.

    After only a few years, I was promoted to this position in the military even though I was justzily ying a game of domestic affairs.

    While soldiers frantically running around on the battlefield might¡¯ve only gained one rank, I had jumped up four.

    This was the power of noble birth.

    I currently sitting across a table from themander while we yed a game of mahjong.

    ¡°Oh, Ipletely agree, Count. Ah, I got the back Dora.¡±

    However, not even my birth could protect me from themander¡¯s direct hit, who had set a trap with one of his discarded tiles.

    ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me!¡±

    Themander was too strong at this game and I was on a losing streak.

    Wace and Cedric were stark naked, having lost all their money for this month and were currently begging me in tears for more.

    Tia and Marie were ring at themander.

    ¡°Even though this fossil and I teamed up together, howe Lord Liam still lost?!¡±

    ¡°You bastard! This only could¡¯ve happened because you cheated!¡±

    ...no, I lost fair and square.

    I passed my scoring sticks to themander.

    ¡°Howe I keep losing? Commander, is there some kind of trick to it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s just luck. Thanks to luck, I got to be put in charge of such arge fleet, as well as make a bit of extra cash through these games, but if I were to name another important thing... I¡¯d say it¡¯s all about reading the ¡®flow¡¯.¡±

    ¡°The flow?¡±

    ¡°All things make a certain ¡®flow¡¯ that can be read, but putting that aside, do you want to y another game?¡±

    I was currently on a losing streak, but I didn¡¯t really care how much money I lost.

    ¡°All right.¡±

    Tia and Marie also seemed up for it.

    ¡°I¡¯ll definitely strip you down naked this time.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, let¡¯s make a secret signal between us.¡±

    And even then, themander still easily won against us¨C as I thought, he wasn¡¯t just your average person.

    For some reason, he gave off the same feeling as Master Yasushi.

    Master... is he doing well right now?

    Since his whereabouts were still unknown to me, I was worried about him.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Themander was in deep thought,

    (Even though I¡¯m obviously cheating, why do these guys keep ying against me?!)

    Despite the fact that Liam was openly starting to cheat himself, themander was still overwhelmingly winning.

    In the first ce, themander was the one who prepared the table for the mahjong game.

    Right now he was just trying to con some extra cash off of a rich nobleman, but he was slowly losing his calm with how well it was going.

    Just like Liam¡¯s swordmaster Yasushi¨C he was just another scammer.

    (I thought this was going to be a simple job!)

    Originally, themander was a noble.

    He only got to his current position because various circumstances regarding his house, the Empire, and many other things.

    His grades in the military academy weren¡¯t great either, but he was able to advance to this point due to the power of his parents.

    (I mean, aren¡¯t these guys weird?! What the hell are they?! They¡¯re just doing whatever they feel like, and they¡¯re still being promoted¨C do they even know how many bribes I had to give to get where I am now?!)

    He once went to the front lines, but only to have the ¡®truth¡¯ of saying he had fought there, he was immediately pulled out and assigned to the Liam was currently developing right after.

    His orders were just to wait there for a while, but then Liam suddenly decided to start working on domestic affairs just because he was free.

    (I don¡¯t understand. Why would you start developing a territory that wouldn¡¯t benefit you at all? As I thought, I¡¯mpletely ipatible with this guy.)

    While feeling how mismatched their personalities were, themander started the next game.

    That¡¯s when Eulisia, who was watching the game from the sides, checked for messages on her terminal.

    ¡°General Liam, there¡¯s a request for reinforcements from a nearby lord.¡±

    ¡°Really? How many do they need?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re asking for a thousand ships.¡±

    ¡°Send whoever seems to be free, then gather whatever scraps remain of the enemy.¡±

    ¡°Understood, I¡¯ll make the dispatch order immediately.¡±

    After affirming the reinforcement request, Liam turned back to the game.

    ¡°Now then, which tile should I throw away?¡±

    (There was no need for him to answer the requests of those minor lords either.)

    Liam¡¯s fleet actually had a lot of free time, so helping out others was just another way for them to keep busy.

    asionally, they even sent reinforcements to the border.

    This was because Liam wanted to sell favours to themanders stationed there.

    (Well, as long as the person himself doesn¡¯t move, I¡¯ll be able to keep rxing as well.)

    ¡°Count, it¡¯s Ron.¡±

    ¡°What?!¡±

    Although themander won against Liam, it was only by the smallest amount that game.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    While Liam as leisurely spending his time like that.

    The Berkley family was preparing for war.

    They had amassed a fleet consisting of over three hundred thousand ships.

    On paper, it was being led by one of Cashmiro¡¯s sons with Dolph acting as his adjutant and advisor.

    But in truth, the armada was actually being controlled by Dolph.

    This massive fleet lined up in space was more than just the Berkley family.

    Elixirs were sold, and rare metals were gathered.

    Many pirates were lost during its development, but instead tens of thousands of ships from the military were there to take their ce.

    It was actually a smaller number than what they nned.

    But in both quality and numbers¨C they were a true fleet.

    ¡°Dolph, can this armada defeat the Banfield house?¡±

    He was an executive¨C to the words of the man who was Cashmiro¡¯s eldest son, Dolph replied,

    ¡°If we can¡¯t beat Liam with even this much, then no one can.¡±

    ¡°I see... ok, let¡¯s sortie!¡±

    The armada consisting of over three hundred thousand ships started sailing towards the Banfield house¡¯s territory.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    At that time, there was also movement in the Banfield house.

    Brian was working as usual, when Serena hurriedly approached him.

    Seeing her sprinting through the halls, Brian almost doubted she was the head maid for a second there when¨C

    ¡°Brian, the Berkley family is on the move! I think this is it! This will be their serious attack to wipe us out!¡±

    ¡°W-what?! But Lord Liam hasn¡¯t even returned yet!¡±

    For fights between nobles, it was an unspoken rule not to attack while the territory¡¯s lord was absent in training.

    In anycase, this was a sneak attack.

    This was proof in how serious the Berkley family was for this operation.

    ¡°I still haven¡¯t contacted Lord Liam about this, but for now we should tell our military the news.¡±

    ¡°U-understood!¡±

    In preparation for this day, the Banfield house has also increased their military power.

    But Serena couldn¡¯t help but feel anxious.

    ¡°Still... a fleet over three hundred thousand strong? I¡¯ve underestimated the Berkley family.¡±

    Even though Liam had focused on increasing his military power, the Banfield house¡¯s forces didn¡¯t even reach ny thousand ships.

    And of them, only seventy thousand could be used for battle.

    The opponent¡¯s strength exceeded theirs by over four times.

    ¡°Will Lord Liam be able to make it in time?¡±

    Seeing how the Berkley family acted, Serena couldn¡¯t help but feel frustrated.

    And happily watching this all happen was the guide that no one noticed.

    ¡°...yes, that¡¯s right. Don¡¯t panic. Continue to believe that you¡¯ll be saved as long as Liames, for death shall be all that is waiting for you.¡±

    While imagining the destruction of the Banfield house, the guide burst intoughter.

    ¡°Hurry up, Liam! No, it¡¯d be better for you to arrive after everything is already gone. Show me your face twisted into despair!¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The spaceport built at my assigned destination.

    Thomas hade to visit me.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard you¡¯ve been moving quite energetically, Lord Liam.¡±

    ¨Cis he saying he wasn¡¯t a fan of the spaceport I built on a whim?

    True, it might have a lot of problems since I only made it because I was free, but it should still have the basic functions necessary.

    ¡°I was just trying to kill time. More importantly, what¡¯s brought you out here today?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve actually been transporting supplies for your fleet, so I was hoping to get your permission to conduct business here.¡±

    It looks like he wants to do some trading with the crew.

    ¡°Do whatever you want.¡±

    Since this was imperial territory, it¡¯d be dangerous for me to receive some of Thomas¡¯ profits.

    If I was going to pick a fight, I wanted to make sure I chose my opponents correctly.

    This was knowledge required for an evil lord.

    ¡°Thank you. Now then I¡¯ll¨C¡±

    While Thomas was still talking, a siren suddenly resounded throughout the spaceport.

    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡±

    Almost immediately I received a call from Eulisia.

    ¡°Report.¡±

    ¡°A transport fleet has appeared. I don¡¯t think they¡¯re hostile, but we¡¯re staying wary because they suddenly warped in out of nowhere.¡±

    ¡°Now what idiots would do that?¡±

    ¡°...it¡¯s the ve and Nendspanies. A merchant named Patrice seems to want to meet with you in a hurry, Lieutenant General.¡±

    I wonder what this is about?

    What were my merchants thinking, suddenly warping arge number of transport ships here out of the blue?

    But when I turned towards Thomas, his face was pale.

    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me-! Lord Liam, could it be that the Berkley family has made their move?!¡±

    ...so it¡¯s the Berkley family again.

    I hate them.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    By the time I returned to my gship, the bridge was in a frenzy.

    ¡°How many ships do we have that have finished their maintenance and resupply?!¡±

    ¡°We have about ten thousand vessels avable!¡±

    ¡°Gather as many as possible!¡±

    Tia was issuing outmands left and right.

    While themander was silently watching over the situation with his arms folded.

    ¡°You sure are calm, Commander.¡±

    ¡°...there¡¯s no point in panicking. It¡¯s precisely because it¡¯s a time like this that we need to keep our heads about us. This is all to raise our probability of victory, even by the smallest amount.¡±

    ¡°I guess that makes sense.¡±

    I called out to Tia who seemed to want to sortie before even we had gathered everyone.

    ¡°Tia, we¡¯re not going to leave until the fleet is ready. The ve and Nendspanies have even brought us a mountain of supplies. Start distributing them.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam?! B-but¨C!¡±

    ¡°Send a call back to the territory, tell them that all assault maneuvers are to be banned, and that they¡¯re to buy for as much time as possible.¡±

    Just like how the sharp and capablemander said.

    It¡¯s times like this when you need to stay calm the most.

    Bursting into the bridge, Marie immediately went on to give me a report.

    ¡°Lord Liam! The Berkley fleet is about three hundred thousand units strong, and there¡¯s confirmation that the imperial army seems to be waiting within warpable space.¡±

    ¡°The imperial army?¡±

    It seems that there¡¯s an imperial fleet trying to block off the warpable space we can use.

    ...what should I do about this?

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Warpable space.

    Waiting for Liam there was a group of corrupt soldiers.

    Provided by both the Berkley family and the weapon factories, the number of ships they controlled reached thirty thousand.

    Some among them were of older models, but their sheer numbers were still a considerable threat.

    There were aristocratic generals on the gship bridge.

    Their military uniforms were remodeled to be shy, and there were several medals hung off of their chests.

    ¡°I imagine they¡¯re off towards this area in a hurry now.¡±

    ¡°Goes to show that if the Berkley family was serious, then that little boy is nothing.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s show him how the imperial army really fights.¡±

    The generals burst intoughter.

    However, at that moment the operator suddenly erupted out yelling.

    ¡°Commander! Enemy forces inbound!¡±

    ¡°So they¡¯re here? Let¡¯s do it then! Connect us with the kid!¡±

    However, when the call went through, the face that came out wasn¡¯t Liam¡¯s.

    It was an eye-patched soldier¨C a man with an atmosphere of a veteren general that appeared on the screen¡¯s monitor.

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re-?!¡±

    The general started to yell out in a panic, but it was the other man who spoke first.

    ¡°¨Cyour actions are currently in vition of militaryws. Even if you are of the nobility, we have all the rights to detain you as you are.¡±

    ¡°W-what?!¡±

    ¡°If you surrender now you can still be pardoned, but if you don¡¯t, then we¡¯ll be your opponents today.¡±

    They were a gathering of the regr fleets that were normally deployed at the border.

    Scraped together, their numbers reached that of forty thousand ships.

    ¡°Are you betraying us?! We¡¯re part of the imperial army just like you!¡±

    ¡°No. You¡¯re the ones who betrayed the Empire first.¡±

    ¡°You mean to say you¡¯re taking the side of that brat?!¡±

    ¡°¨Cit would be troublesome if the Berkley family won this war. The military can no longer afford to cater to those of noble status, and also... I owe the Count a few favours for the kindness he¡¯s shown.¡±

    Because the aristocrats were given preferential treatment, there were manymon soldiers that weren¡¯t properly being paid at all.

    The Empire¡¯s national power was still somehow being maintained despite this, but there were many people in the military who were dissatisfied with this situation.

    One of the noble generals shouted,

    ¡°A-attack!¡±

    But their opponent was expecting this.

    ¡°I knew this would happen.¡±

    On this day, the noble¡¯s armada attacked a regr fleet separate from Liam¡¯s and was annihted.

 Chapter 63 - Volume 4 Chapter 13 Miscalculation

    <strong>Volume 4 Chapter 13 Miscalction </strong>

    Arge armada of ships over seventy thousand strong was facing the Berkley fleet, a force over four times their size.

    The Banfield house was using the massive fortress ss carrier as their gship.

    It was usually deployed as a temporary base for the pioneers, but this was an emergency.

    The generals were gathered and were currently discussing how they could deal with this situation.

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t we attacking already?!¡±

    ¡°Commander, assault tactics are our only option here!¡±

    ¡°With such a difference between us, we won¡¯t win unless we take the initiative!¡±

    The generals were pushing for aggressive maneuvers, but themander had kept them passive for an entire week.

    Before therge scale battle between the two fleets, things were strangely quiet.

    They observed each other¡¯s formations, altered their own formations in turn to counter what they saw, closing and opening the distances between them before repeating the process all over again.

    At this rate, it¡¯d take a month or so before anyone actually attacked.

    However, the Banfield house¡¯s fleet, who usually immediately ughtered their opponents with assault tactics, was slowly losing their patience.

    ¡°This is Lord Liam¡¯s order.¡±

    When themander said so, the general¡¯s looked up.

    ¡°Lord Liam said to do this?¡±

    ¡°Wasn¡¯t he currently stationed as an imperial army officer?¡±

    ¡°When did you get in contact with him?¡±

    Themander went on to exin Liam¡¯s current situation.

    ¡°It seems he¡¯s currently heading our way with the fleet he¡¯s created, and until then, his orders were to buy as much time as possible without engaging inbat.¡±

    But it wasn¡¯t that easy to change the mentality of those who had been implementing assault tactics for decades.

    ¡°Commander, this situation won¡¯t change if we just passively wait for reinforcements!¡±

    At most, Liam would¡¯ve only gathered thirty thousand ships in his fleet.

    Just because their numbers would increase a little, the difference in their two forces strength wouldn¡¯t really change.

    The Berkley family would still have the advantage.

    ¡°I understand your feelings, but these are his orders.¡±

    Liam¡¯s orders must be followed.

    To those words, the generals quieted down.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Berkley fleet¡¯s gship.

    On the battleship bridge that was luxuriously built with rare metals, Cashmiro¡¯s eldest son was currently hounding at Dolph,

    ¡°Hey, why aren¡¯t they moving?!¡±

    But Dolph wasn¡¯t phased,

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, they¡¯re only acting so passively because Liam isn¡¯t there.¡±

    ¡°This is still different from our ns.¡±

    ¡°I never expected everything to go perfectly from the beginning, but no matter what they do, it¡¯s practically impossible for them to ovee the difference between our forces.¡±

    The weapons factories had prepared the newest generation of ships and mobile knights for them.

    All of their personnel have been sufficiently educated and trained as well.

    This was a fleet prepared with an immeasurable budget.

    However, these results were born from the destruction of multiple worlds for the creation of elixirs, and the suffering of the citizens bearing unreasonable taxes.

    The thing is, neither Dolph, nor the eldest son cared.

    ¡°...there are rumours going around saying that Liam has gathered his fleet from the army.¡±

    ¡°It seems like he¡¯s collected about thirty thousand ships, even if he joins the battle then, our superiority will not break. Even if he tries to do a pincer attack, we¡¯re still more than capable of fending off his two fleets, and then, in a final act of desperation to overturn the situation he¡¯ll undoubtedly order¨C¡±

    ¡°¨Cthe Banfield house to start an assault?¡±

    ¡°Precisely. It¡¯s still fine even if they don¡¯t charge though. We¡¯ve already won.¡±

    They didn¡¯t underestimate Liam, and prepared as much as possible for this operation.

    The Dolph of today was like Liam¡¯s natural enemy.

    (Liam... I¡¯ll be sure to pay back the debt from the military academy. In the ¡®livebat¡¯ that you love so much, I¡¯ll beat you down!)

    The eldest son felt relieved after seeing how confident Dolph was.

    ¡°I-I guess you¡¯re right. We should be fine.¡±

    The Berkley fleet was made up of trained soldiers, unlike traditional pirates.

    Firmly following Dolph¡¯s orders, they continued to face the Banfield house¡¯s fleet.

    Seeing how his allies easily moved like his own limbs, Dolph was assured of his victory.

    The situation wasn¡¯t that different from what he nned.

    This was because his loss against Liam became a driving force towards his growth as a tactician.

    (I will make up for that day¡¯s defeat with this battle. I¡¯ll ept that I lost back in the simtor, but thest one to win will be me!)

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Sitting on his suitcase in the middle of space was the guide.

    He was currently watching the two fleets in their stand-off while he drank a cup of tea.

    The fact that he was in space didn¡¯t matter to the guide at all.

    ¡°...they haven¡¯t moved at all. However the victors of this war have already been decided. All that¡¯s left is for me to enjoy how deep into despair Liam falls into.¡±

    Even if Liam¡¯s patrol fleet joined, his forces would only reach a hundred thousand at most.

    But the Berkley family¡¯s armada was over three hundred thousand strong.

    There wasn¡¯t any big differences in the quality of equipment or skill between the two forces either.

    The Banfield house was better overall, but that wasn¡¯t enough to ovee the difference.

    ¡°If their abilities were to an extent the same, the side who had higher numbers would win.¡±

    While they still haven¡¯t moved, once things started, it¡¯d be impossible for them to stop until the end.

    The guide was actually quite enjoying this quiet time.

    ¡°Will this finally be the end of my connection to Liam, who has caused so much of my suffering?¡±

    He felt deeply moved at this thought.

    Liam was the first to ever drive him this far into a corner.

    ¡°...I¡¯ll prepare an extraordinary hell just for him.¡±

    The guide was happily looking forward to the sight of Liam crying and begging for forgiveness.

    That¡¯s when the unpleasant sensation of his skin burning grew stronger.

    With just that alone, the guide knew that Liam was nearby.

    ¡°So you¡¯re finally here, Liam!¡±

    Warp holes manifested into being, and from them warships started appearing one after another.

    ¡°FUHAHAHAHA! I¡¯VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU, LIAAAAMMMM¨C huh?!¡±

    The guide was so happy he even threw away the cup he was holding, but there were a lot of shipsing out of the warp holes.

    In fact, they were still appearing even now.

    ¡°Hey, wait a second here! What the hell is that?! Why are there so many of them?!¡±

    There was no doubt that Liam was nearby.

    But something was wrong.

    Undoubtedly, the fleet Liam had brought was¨C over a hundred thousand strong.

    The guide was grasping at his head.

    Liam¡¯s fervent gratitude was burning his skin even now.

    ¡°Why?! JUST WHY?!¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°Hmm?¡±

    When I raised my head, Marie¨C who had brought me tea, asked me,

    ¡°Lord Liam, is something wrong?¡±

    ¡°No, I just thought I felt a friend nearby.¡±

    I could¡¯ve sworn I heard the nostalgic voice of the guide.

    If I was right... does that mean he¡¯s watching me right now?

    Then that means my victory was guaranteed.

    As I drank my tea, the operators brought in reports one after another.

    ¡°The twenty fourth fleet has safely warped in!¡±

    ¡°The thirty sixth fleet is awaiting further orders!¡±

    ¡°The enemy armada¡¯s status has been confirmed! It doesn¡¯t look like they¡¯ve engaged inbat yet!¡±

    Word got around that there were some fools who dared to invade my territory. Hearing this, themanders of various regr fleets said ¡°Oh, then I¡¯ll lend you a hand,¡± and sent their ships out to support me.

    But since they couldn¡¯t just abandon their post to protect the borders, only a hundred and twenty two thousand hade.

    As I thought, the effects of bribes were amazing!

    After that, the merchants started sending in supplies one after another, so I was easily able to move a fleet of this size with no problems at all.

    I guess I was right to increase my contracted merchants.

    Tia made a suggestion,

    ¡°Lord Liam, in this situation we can begin a pincer attack. We might have smaller numbers, but if we charge in together with the Banfield fleet, we¡¯ll be able to deal lethal blow to them.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡±

    As I was about to give the order, themander rushed in and stopped me.

    He usually lets me do what I want, is there something that I missed?

    ¡°Wait!¡±

    ¡°...Commander, do you have a problem with this n?¡±

    Tia scowled at themander, while Marie started reaching for her weapon, but I stood up and told them to stop.

    ¡°Stand down, let¡¯s hear him out¨C Commander, do you have any other suggestions?¡±

    After giving a cough, themander began to exin his reasoning,

    ¡°While it¡¯s true that might be an effective move, you¡¯ll incur too many damages that way. Once battles get thisrge, there¡¯s a certain way they¡¯re supposed to be fought.¡±

    Eulisia started pointing a gaze full of suspicion his way.

    ¡°Then what would the ¡®appropriate¡¯ way be then?¡±

    ¡°¨Cfirst of all, it would be better if we started exchanging blows at a distance.¡±

    Crossing her arms, Marie startedining about themander¡¯s somewhat cowardly suggestion.

    ¡°That¡¯s too passive of a strategy. It¡¯s not suitable for Lord Liam.¡±

    ...huh? Really?

    Since when did people decide that there was a way to fight that was ¡®suitable¡¯ for me?

    However, themander seemed more serious about this than I¡¯ve ever seen him before.

    ¡°Count... there¡¯s a certain way that champions are expected to fight. While it¡¯s true that you have numerous exploits when fighting against pirates, you can¡¯t do the same thing when leading forces of this scale.¡±

    Tia immediately pulled out her weapon and pointed it towards themander.

    ¡°Such impudence! Are you seriously lecturing Lord Liam of all people of how a champion should fight?! He¡¯s already be a splendid champion doing things exactly the way he¡¯s done so thus far!¡±

    As I thought, these girls really didn¡¯t understand me.

    I¡¯m sure that in their point of view, I was an unparalleled and wonderful human being.

    But that was just the delusion they forced on me.

    ¡°I thought I told you to stand down.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam?¡±

    I pushed Tia aside and turned towards themander.

    With how serious his gaze was, I hadplete trust in the sixth sense that themander had cultivated as a gambler.

    ¡°...okay, here are my orders. All ships are to keep their distance and attack at range. Make sure that a constant gap between our forces is maintained!¡±

    Although it was a cowardly way of fighting, evil lords were supposed to be cowardly.

    The only thing that mattered was that I won.

    It didn¡¯t matter how I fought.

    Marie was surprised.

    ¡°Lord Liam?! Are you sure about this?!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s tedious having to repeat myself. Just follow my orders.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Themander was relieved.

    (Don¡¯t screw with me! Were you seriously going to give the order to assault with a fleet thisrge?! It¡¯s far safer to keep our distance and shoot at them from the back.)

    Having been able to avoid the assault order, themander felt waves of relief wash over him as he vowed to never get involved with Liam ever again after this.

    (As long as we keep our distance during this fight, this ship will never fall.)

    The vessel Liam was currently boarded on was a custom model.

    Therefore, it wasn¡¯t that easy to sink it.

    However¨C

    ¡°Okay, I want to shoot the main gun myself, so bring the gship to the front!¡±

    Liam gave the order to move forward with high spirits.

    (...huh?)

    Eulisia seemed surprised,

    ¡°Lieutenant general, are you sure you want to move to the front?¡±

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not like we¡¯d bepletely safe if we kept to the back either, right? At least at the front we can shoot down enemies ourselves. Hey, transfer controls for the main gun to me.¡±

    (You¡¯ve got to be kidding me! What the hell is this guy talking about?!)

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Berkley fleet that was caught in the middle of a pincer attack was currently in a state of confusion.

    Liam and his forces had chosen to attack from a distance.

    While they could just shoot back¨C the problem was that the majority of their ships were built for close rangebat.

    Against long distance attacks, they had no choice other than to just endure the hits.

    A ship that was carrying arge amount of missiles exploded near the gship.

    ¡°Shit!¡±

    Dolph swung his fist down on the control panel.

    Apparently, the enemy seemed to be aiming for the ships that had less armour.

    The eldest son grabbed Dolph¡¯s chest.

    ¡°Hey, isn¡¯t this different from what you told us what would happen?! Why aren¡¯t they charging in on us?!¡±

    ¡°Please calm down. In this scenario, we have no choice but to find and shoot down the enemy gship. If we strike at their head, the enemy will surely fall into a state of confusion.¡±

    ¡°If it was that easy to figure out which ship the enemy¡¯s leader was on, we wouldn¡¯t be having this hard of a time in the first ce!¡±

    The Berkley fleet was searching for which vessel the enemy¡¯smander had boarded.

    However, the Banfield fleet¡¯s fortress-ss gship didn¡¯t seem that easy to destroy.

    On the other hand, for the armada that had rushed in as reinforcements¨C they didn¡¯t even know where their leader was.

    The eldest son fell to the ground as the ship he and Dolph were currently on shook after taking a hit.

    ¡°N-not in a ce like this! I¡¯m the heir of the Berkley family! Like hell I¡¯m going to die here!¡±

    Seeing the eldest son run away, Dolph scoffed,

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I never needed someone like him in the first ce, but it¡¯s true that this situation can¡¯t go on.¡±

    While they did have the advantage in numbers, if the enemy continued to fight at a distance, the circumstances would eventually reverse.

    That¡¯s when the worried Dolph heard a voice,

    ¡°¨CDolph, I will lend you my power.¡±

    ¡°Who¡¯s there?!¡±

    Dolph looked around, but there was no one there.

    Just when he was questioning whether he imagined it, one of the operators shouted out,

    ¡°We¡¯ve located the enemy¡¯s gship!¡±

    ¡°What?!¡±

    They had somehow identified which ship Liam was on from over a hundred thousand vessels.

    That was outrageously lucky.

    ¡°We¡¯re changing ns! If it¡¯s like this, we¡¯ll go on the offensive ourselves and target Liam!¡±

    The Berkley fleet was going tounch an assault on Liam¡¯s battleship.

 Chapter 64 - Volume 4 Chapter 14 Assault

    <strong>Volume 4 Chapter 14 Assault</strong>

    The Banfield house¡¯s fleet¨C the fortress-ss ship¡¯s hangar.

    Avid¨C Liam¡¯s exclusive machine, was stored there.

    Therge ck* aircraft had no master to pilot it, so it wasn¡¯t currently in use.

    And manifesting itself inside such a hanger¨C was a dog.

    Looking up towards Avid, it let out a bark.

    At that moment, Avid¡¯s two eyes started to shine.

    It¡¯s engine began to roar with life, and armaments began materializing from the magic circles that manifested around it.

    Threerge rocket boosters were summoned and connected to Avid.

    Moving by itself, Avid walked towards that exit hatch and pried it open.

    The dog had already disappeared, leaving one of the mechanics stationed there to panic as he reported the machine¡¯s sudden movement to his boss.

    ¡°Hey, did anyone give Avid clearance to sortie?!¡±

    ¡°What are you talking about? Avid can only be used by Lord Liam, who here could possibly move it?¡±

    ¡°But it¡¯s still moving!¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m telling you¨C¡±

    Exiting out into space, the boosters on Avid¡¯s back sprung to life as it rushed into enemy lines.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    I had grown bored of shooting at the enemy.

    Right now I was leaving that to the originally assigned gunner, as I sat in my seat yawning.

    A few days had passed since the battle began, but I was surprised by how fragile the enemy actually was.

    Their counterattack was pretty lukewarm as well.

    How do I put it? They were weak.

    Cedric called out to me,

    ¡°Special Staff Officer, aren¡¯t you taking things a bit too lightly?¡±

    ¡°Haven¡¯t we already won?¡±

    ¡°I think it would be better to stay vignt until it¡¯s officially over.¡±

    The serious Cedric still somewhat tense about the situation.

    Inparison, Wace had already dozed off and was asleep.

    ¨Cwhy was there such a difference between these two brothers?

    Of all the royals out there, I feel like the one that I chose to be my underling was probably the biggest failure among them.

    Eulisia brought me a report just when I was considering returning to my room.

    ¡°Lieutenant General, we¡¯ve received confirmation that a part of the enemy forces are charging directly towards our location!¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Turning towards the monitor, the simplified image of the battlefield showed that a section of the enemy had broken off and was beginning assault maneuvers towards our gship.

    They wereing straight for us.

    Tia immediately started giving out orders to our allies.

    ¡°Pull back the gship! Change our formations to intercept and surround them!¡±

    Soon after the fleet formed a shape simr to a crane¡¯s wing and tried to envelop the enemy, but the momentum they had built up was too strong.

    I crossed my arms.

    ¡°...it¡¯s no good. They¡¯re going to reach us.¡±

    As an expert in assault tactics, I instinctively knew.

    Wace woke up from all the noise and began to tremble.

    ¡°W-what are we going to do?! Can our battleships endure their assault?!¡±

    Cedric twisted Wace¡¯s arms behind him.

    ¡°Quiet down! Special Staff Officer, you need to escape immediately. You¡¯re probably what they¡¯re aiming for.¡±

    To Cedric¡¯s proposal, I asked,

    ¡°Then what do you n to do?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I quite like this ship. In the stagnant life I¡¯ve lived so far, I¡¯m lucky I got to experience this at the end. Don¡¯t worry, I promise to keep fighting until myst breath.¡±

    ...wasn¡¯t this guy more useful than Wace?

    Well, he was a different kind of person than I was¨C he was a serious guy.

    ¡°I see. Do whatever you want. However, I don¡¯t intend to be defeated by something of this level. Tia, prepare for me a mobile knight.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam?!¡±

    When I asked for an aircraft to pilot, Tia immediately objected,

    ¡°No, please give up on that idea. In this situation, you absolutely can not be dispatched, Lord Liam!¡±

    Marie then refuted her while agreeing with my opinion,

    ¡°If this is Lord Liam¡¯s order, then it¡¯s your duty as his knight to follow it. Don¡¯t start causing trouble!¡±

    Tia drew her weapon,

    ¡°You fossil! Are you going to take responsibility if anything happens to him?! Lord Liam¡¯s life is worth far more than trash like yourself!¡±

    The surroundings went silent at the intimidating atmosphere building up between the two.

    ...I was sick of it.

    ¡°Hey.¡±

    Approaching them, I grabbed their heads and pressed them down against the floor.

    ¡°L-lord Liam?!¡±

    ¡°W-what the meaning of this?!¡±

    Marie and Tia were struggling against my grasp¨C clearly upset, but they couldn¡¯t go against my strength.

    I pushed down on their heads a bit more as their butts stuck out.

    To their clear confusion, I exined,

    ¡°Are the two of you going to keep fighting in front of me forever? I don¡¯t remember asking for my knights to be constantly in discord with each other.¡±

    Marie hurriedly made an excuse,

    ¡°I-it¡¯s not my fault! Lord Liam, it¡¯s because this minced meat bitch was refuting your orde¨C urgh!¡±

    When I put a bit more force into pushing down on their heads¨C dents were made in the floor.

    ¡°All you needed to do was prove your worth to me and build up your achievements, and I would¡¯ve made sure to reward you properly. You can¡¯t keep bickering like children forever.¡±

    Tia looked up towards me with tearful eyes,

    ¡°P-please forgive me! Please! I beg of you!¡±

    ¡°...I¡¯ll forgive you in deference of the things you¡¯ve achieved so far, but I¡¯m depriving you two of your statuses as my head and deputy knights.¡±

    Tia and Marie made expressions filled with despair, but I didn¡¯t care.

    Honestly, I should¡¯ve disciplined them earlier.

    ¡°Now what are your replies?¡±

    When the two of them sulkily whispered ¡°Yes¡± in response, I released them with a smile.

    ¡°Okay then, let¡¯s sortie. Someone prepare for me a mobile knight.¡±

    After lifting themselves off the floor, Tia and Marie directed flushed expressions my way.

    Surely they were frustrated to the point of wanting to cry.

    But it couldn¡¯t be helped.

    I had just deprived them of the statuses they had so much pride in after all.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Tia and Marie didn¡¯t follow him as Liam left the bridge.

    Her facepletely flushed, Tia had a spellbound expression on.

    Wace was kind of creeped out by it.

    ¡°Hey, why are you so happy?¡±

    Tia scoffed derisively, and looked at Wace like he was an idiot for not understanding her feelings.

    ¡°To have the strength to hold the two of us down with only one hand each, and the boldness to immediately intercept enemies that had resolved themselves for a suicide attack. This is Lord Liam!¡±

    For Tia, even being admonished by Liam was nothing more than a reward for her, so she was delighted by the fact that she got to see this side of him.

    Cedric¡¯s shoulders dropped.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine and all but, can somebody give me my orders already?¡±

    Against the iing enemy forces, their allies were losing ground.

    Snapping out of her daze, Tia immediately started giving outmands.

    ¡°Prepare the mobile knights for dispatch! Bring out the ships that were built for short rangebat! Pull back any vessels with less armour and have them focus on artillery, but make sure they¡¯re wary of friendly fire!¡±

    Switching mentalities, she gave out orders one after another to prepare a battlefield where mobile knights could disy their strengths to the fullest.

    Eulisia looked at her figure and nodded.

    ¡°...putting her personality aside, she¡¯s actually quite capable, isn¡¯t she?¡±

    The neglectedmander silently prayed in his heart for his survival.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The Berkley fleet.

    Dolph received a report saying the enemy¡¯s mobile knights had sortied, and immediately sent out a dispatch order for his own.

    And with that, the aircrafts they specifically built to deal with Liam¡¯s Avid would be released.

    ¡°All special models are to sortie!¡±

    The special machines prepared by the Berkley family were mobile knights of the same size ss as Avid.

    Althoughrge models were considered obsolete in modern times, these were thetest generation of weapons created by the first and second weapon factories based on Avid¡¯s data.

    However, it was no exaggeration to say that these were made specifically to defeat their predecessor.

    After seeing Avid easily destroy their previous creations, these machines were built with all the frustrations their developers had hammered into them.

    Twelve aircrafts were prepared.

    The operator raised his voice,

    ¡°There are no confirmed sightings of Avid!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s fine! If he won¡¯te out himself, then we¡¯ll just attack his gship!¡±

    Despite not being trained in assault tactics, the Berkley fleet approached to take Liam¡¯s head without having their numbers significantly reduced.

    This was all due to Dolph¡¯s tenacity and the guide¡¯s blessing.

    Standing next to Dolph, the guide shouted,

    ¡°Hey! Liam is actually there! Dolph, destroy the aircraft leading the interception!¡±

    With that scream, Dolph noticed what should¡¯ve been impossible for him to know.

    ¡°It¡¯s the foremost aircraft! That¡¯s where Liam is!¡±

    Dolph rationalised it as his intuition, but it was actually the guide who revealed his location.

    Spreading his hands, ck smoke was emitted from the guide and spread into the floor.

    The dark smog reached out and entered into the special anti-Avid aircrafts.

    ¡°LIAMMM!!!¡±

    Growing excited, the guide directed the special machines to the mass production model Liam was piloting.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The cockpit of one of the mass production machines.

    It was a mobile knight just like Avid was, but it felt exceptionally brittle.

    ¡°As I thought, mass production machines are no good.¡±

    When you¡¯re rich, custom order models were the only way to go.

    Following behind me was Marie, who went on to exin what model I was using,

    ¡°Lord Liam, that aircraft is one of the new prototypes for the next generation of mobile knights.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing I can do about it, but that¡¯s a bit worrying.¡±

    In the first ce, it wasn¡¯t unheard of for prototypes to have various problems.

    And even if this was a next generation model, it was still a mass production one in the end.

    I don¡¯t know how useful it will be.

    ¡°As I thought, I should¡¯ve brought Avid with me.¡±

    I missed the luxury seat I had installed in it.

    While I thought that, the Berkley fleet started to dispatch their mobile knights as well.

    They seem to have prepared a lot, because there were thousands of them.

    And their numbers were still increasing even now.

    If taking the Berkley fleet¡¯s position into ount, we were attacking them from above, and the enemy was rising upwards to reach us.

    However, since there was no gravity in space, the direction they came from wasn¡¯t relevant.

    ¡°Okay, here theye!¡±

    Pressing down on the elerator, I felt the cockpit shake a little.

    Avid wouldn¡¯t even budge at this.

    Mobile knights approached one after another as they targeted me.

    The enemies were an assortment of state of the art models and mainstream ones.

    In the vastness of space, I passed by another mobile knight holding a de, swinging through and destroying it.

    I swooped down on them with a hail ofsers and bullets¨C avoiding enemy missiles and destroying them with a swing of my sword.

    ¡°You guys are just a little more crunchy than Derrick!¡±

    An allied mobile knight shot down an attacking enemy with their rifle.

    ¡°Lord Liam, I¡¯m here to support you!¡±

    Marie hade to my assistance.

    Thanks to her taking down the troublesome enemies, I could take down my targets with ease.

    Whenever my mobile knight swung its sword, five enemy aircrafts exploded at once.

    ¡°It¡¯s amazing that they¡¯ll even explode in space! How does that even work?!¡±

    I beat them down with overwhelming power.

    The mobile knight was able to reproduce the One-sh, but it¡¯s reaction rate was dismalpared to Avid.

    It wasn¡¯t able to reproduce my movements that well either.

    Marie shoots and destroys another aircraft that tried to take my back.

    Just by defeating the enemies in front of us, our kill scores gradually increased.

    ¡°Well, I guess it¡¯s okay for a prototype.¡±

    When I said that, a huge aircraft appeared among the enemy forces.

    Even though Marie tried shooting at it with her rifle, the bullets and beams were easily repelled off of its armour.

    ¡°These bastards! Lord Liam, leave this one to me!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t be stupid, I¡¯ve been waiting for someone like this.¡±

    I advance my aircraft forward and shed at them with my de, but the enemy deployed a spherical barrier of light around them.

    It¡¯s output was nothing tough at.

    If the aircraft I was piloting was considered a standard model, then my opponent¡¯s machine was a super one inparison.

    ¡°You¡¯re pretty good, but that¡¯s nothing to me!¡±

    The enemy moved to catch me, so I cut off both of their arms.

    Unable to process what had just happened, the enemy hurriedly tried to pull back.

    ¡°As my opponent you should entertain me more!¡±

    Closing the distance and swinging down my de, I broke through the enemy¡¯s barrier shield¨C but then was stopped by their armour before I could bisect them.

    ¡°Tch.¡±

    I clicked my tongue, letting go of my sword while backing away, and immediately after a rain of beams and bullets rained down on the ce I was just a second before. Swallowed up by the attack, the enemy aircraft exploded.

    ¡°...this might be a little difficult.¡±

    Looking upwards, there were eleven more simrly builtrge aircrafts.

    The red eyes in each of them were shining.

    Marie moved forward as if to protect me.

    ¡°Lord Liam, these ones are dangerous. We need to take them down before they surround us.¡±

    ¡°That sounds like a good n, but I don¡¯t think they¡¯ll let us.¡±

    An enemy battleship pointed their bow m way and started firing at me.

    Completely disregarding their allies that were still nearby.

    Honestly? Looking at things I was probably scre¨C

    ¡°...Avid?¡±

    Turning towards a new a new presence I felt approaching, there was an aircraft rocketing towards my direction while weaving between enemy ships.

    Marie broke out into confusion in them lines,

    ¡°Avid¡¯s here?! That¡¯s impossible! Who¡¯s piloting it?!¡±

    Apparently, Avid seems to have flown out from the Banfield fleet.

    Alone¨C without authorisation.

    I smiled.

    ¡°Perfect follow up, guide!¡±

    I charged the aircraft towards Avid, and as I adjusted it to match its rtive speed, enemies started gathering around.

    But Avid spread its arms, letting outsers to destroy them.

    The boosters attached to Avid disconnected themselves.

    Catching the aircraft I was piloting with both of it¡¯s hands, it opened its cockpit hatch to receive me.

    ¡°Good job.¡±

    Lowering the visor on my helmet, I opened the aircraft¡¯s hatch and jumped out.

    After that, Avid reached out and caught me, sending me into its cockpit.

    Inside was the nostalgic and spacious chamber I was used to.

    I took off my helmet.

    ¡°It¡¯s been a while since I rode you.¡±

    No one was sitting in the pilot seat.

    ¨Cin other words, this was all the work of the guide following up on me.

    As I thought, he truly was reliable.

    He brought Avid to me at the best moment.

    ¡°I need to make sure to thank him again.¡±

    Sitting down on the seat and grabbing the control stick, I was finally able to rampage with Avid for the first time in a while.

 Chapter 67 - Volume 4 Chapter 15 Nightmare

    <strong>Volume 4 Chapter 15 Nightmare</strong>

    A nightmare had appeared for the Berkley family.

    ¡°You can¡¯t beat me with cheap knock-offs of Avid you fake bastards~!!!¡±

    The ck aircraft decorated with gold hadrge shields mounted on both of its shoulders.

    The unusuallyrge aircraft grabbed one of the Berkley family¡¯s special mobile knights in its hand, using it as a shield as it charged towards a battleship¨C breaking straight through it.

    The allied machine was destroyed.

    But Avid was unscathed.

    With the battleship exploding right behind it, Avid threw away what remained of therge aircraft like the garbage it now was.

    Dolph¡¯s eyebrows furrowed at the sight.

    ¡°So that¡¯s the rumoured Avid?¡±

    The new aircrafts from the First Weapons Factory didn¡¯t stand a chance against it.

    And on top of that, Liam was piloting it¨C a person considered an ace even among the best of knights.

    He was one of the few people who could actually bring out Avid¡¯s performance to its limits.

    Dolph proceed to give out orders as the ship shook.

    ¡°Surround him and shoot him down!¡±

    ¡°I-it¡¯s no good. Our allied aircrafts... aren¡¯t able to keep up with it.¡±

    Another video appeared in front of Dolph, showcasing a mobile knight wielding arge hatchet-like weapon in both its hands as it decimated his allies.

    It moved violently, while a beastly battle cry could be heard in the background.

    ¡°YOU¡¯RE IN MY WAY¨C!!!¡±

    Both the ordinary mobile knights and the special models were scrapped one after another.

    ¡°Shit!¡±

    Dolph wracked his brain on how to handle this situation, but unfortunately, the problem wasn¡¯t going to just let him do that.

    ¡°Enemy aircraft iing!¡±

    Upon hearing the sorrowful screams of the operator, Avid violentlynded on Dolph¡¯s gship.

    Part of the ship¡¯s armour was stripped bare, air and various liquids spouting from the gap.

    Dolph moved to the front of the bridge, and took in the image of Avid wielding it¡¯srge sword.

    ¡°LIAMMM!!!¡±

    With hatred swelling in his heart, the surrounding debris of the destroyed battleships and mobile knights gathered on his gship.

    Wildly attaching themselves to it, eventually they started to take the shape of the upper half of a giant mobile knight.

    ¡°W-what¡¯s happening?!¡±

    Dolph was confused, but the guide standing next to him had a bitter expression on his face.

    His teeth were clenched, blood was dripping from the edge of his mouth, and he was grasping at his chest.

    ¡°...why won¡¯t you just die already?! Why must you... torment me so?!¡±

    Liam¡¯s feelings of gratitude were increasing.

    No, Liam has always been grateful, but the power of it for some reason felt amplified this time, bringing the guide severe pain.

    Squeezing out all he could muster, the guide resolved himself to crush Liam no matter what.

    As Avid backed away from the gship, he spread his arms out.

    ¡°So you still had a hidden ace up your sleeve! ¨Clooks like it¡¯s finally time for me to use ¡®that¡¯!¡±

    He seemed happy for some reason.

    Dolph and the guide¡¯s voices were one.

    ¡°LIAM, YOU BASTAAAARD!!!¡±

    Manifesting within the guide¡¯s hand was an object in the shape of a heart.

    Pressing it against the gship¡¯s operation panel, cords stretched out of it and started corrupting the machinery.

    They looked like blood vessels as they spread out, pulsating all the while.

    ¡°With this... you¡¯ll definitely-!!!

    It was an ancient artifact he found while he was traveling around.

    When the giant mobile knight opened its mouth and roared, the ship began to shake erratically.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Apparently, the Berkley family still had a trump card on them.

    Assimting the surrounding battleships and aircrafts, they had turned their gship into a giant mobile knight.

    Even if it was only the upper half of one, it was ridiculouslyrge¨C the biggest target I¡¯ve ever seen.

    ¡°Last time I couldn¡¯t go all out, so it was an iplete testrun. Avid... it¡¯s finally time to show what happens when we¡¯re serious.¡±

    Touching the operation panel, a sound resounded out.

    ¡°¨Cconnected.¡±

    After the short electronic message, arge magic circle appeared on Avid¡¯s back.

    From there a giant battleship manifested itself.

    No¨C Avid¡¯s true body had appeared.

    What I was using right now was nothing but the core.

    There was an idea that the Seventh Weapons Factory had given up on before.

    They simply wanted to make a mobile knight with the performance and specs of a battleship.

    Or should they make a battleship with the versatility of a mobile knight?

    After that, they came up with the idea ofbining an unmanned battleship with a mobile knight¨C and of course, that proposal was obviously rejected.

    It¡¯s no wonder.

    That idea was too wasteful.

    But you see, I was a man who loved wasteful things.

    Cords extended from the magic circle towards Avid, energy flowing in with each part attached.

    It wasn¡¯t just weapons that were housed in Avid magic storage space.

    The rest of Avid itself was there.

    Avid was then sucked into the battleship that had manifested from the magic circle.

    Storing Avid into its center, the battleship transformed and changed itself into a humanoid.

    So wasteful. This was an overwhelmingly wasteful function.

    ¡°How is it?! This is a weapon created from the blood taxes squeezed from my territory!¡±

    The monster in front of me was probably created from an artifact simr to my alchemy box.

    But it was useless.

    I¡¯ve been vainly searching for ways to increase my power.

    As a result, I had arrived at the extremity of wastefulness¨C transforming a vessel into a humanoid form, creating a mobile knight with the full power and specs of a battleship.

    The enemy might¡¯ve been a little bigger, but I didn¡¯t care about that at all.

    I mean, the Seventh Weapons Factory was full of idiots who loved to make things like this.

    A battle between super huge mobile knights.

    I¡¯ve always wanted to experience this at least once!

    ¡°Avid, let¡¯s show them your full power!¡±

    As I grabbed the control stick like a new toy and stepped on the foot pedal, Avid seemed to roar in agreeance.

    It might¡¯ve just been the vibration from the engine or power reactor, but this was a matter of feelings.

    Avid¡¯s giant arm collided with the enemy¡¯s arm¨C smashing it into smithereens.

    ¡°How¡¯s that?! All of this was created using rare metals! A lump of second-ss metals like that could never beat us!¡±

    After destroying and tearing off one of the enemy¡¯s arms, the surrounding debris started to gather together to restore it.

    ¡°So it has a restoration function? ¨Cthen it should try its best to entertain me.¡±

    Then that meant this was my chance to try out everything I could.

    There were a lot of things I wanted to experiment using.

    Avid¡¯s cannons began firing at the enemy, gradually wearing away at their surfaceyer.

    I¡¯d peel parts of it off, blowing other parts away¨C those parts would then restore themselves, and the process would repeat.

    ¡°It¡¯s useless.¡±

    The enemy rampaged and tried to swing its arm at me, but arge de emerged from Avid¡¯s hand and shed it off.

    Unfortunately, it was impossible to reproduce the One-sh like this.

    There was also the fact that it seemed to restore cuts easier.

    ¡°Missiles.¡±

    Afterunching missiles from various parts, the enemy was shrouded in a cascade of explosions.

    Even so, it amazingly continued to restore itself even after that.

    ¡°That ability of yours to collect trash is interesting, I want it.¡±

    Avid¡¯s chest opened up and a bright light started to build up in the center of it.

    ¡°A main gun holding a ridiculous amount of power is a man¡¯s romance. ¨Cdon¡¯t you think so as well?¡±

    Firing the main gun at the enemy that didn¡¯t answer me, the surroundings were enveloped by light.

    The think light burst through the enemy, burning it out faster than it could restore itself.

    It tried reaching its arms out in protection, but those were burned away as well.

    ¡°You¡¯re done for!¡±

    Seeing the enemy gradually fall apart while unable to sustain itself was really satisfying.

    ¡°If I just wanted to shoot the main gun, there¡¯s no real point doing so in human form.¡±

    I was just restating the obvious.

    But useless features were awesome.

    I expanded Avid¡¯s visual feed.

    There, the image of the enemy¡¯s gship emerged.

    It was beaten and tattered, not likely able to move anymore.

    ¡°...they sure are troublesome.¡±

    I directed Avid¡¯s hand to grab the gship¡¯s bridge.

    ¡°Lord Liam, the enemy has begun to withdraw.¡±

    Just when I was about to crush it, I froze after hearing Tia¡¯s message.

    ¡°So we finished this battle following the textbook examples then?¡±

    ¡°I think fighting like a champion suits you far better, Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°The ttery is nice, but since we¡¯re already doing it, why don¡¯t we just follow the textbook this time? All forces are to charge. Don¡¯t let a single one get away.¡±

    It would be annoying if any escaped and started resisting, so I¡¯ve decided to thoroughly crush the Berkley family.

    However, their family tree wasrge.

    There¡¯s no way I¡¯ve gotten them all with just this battle.

    ¨Cconsidering how I wanted to kill them all to thest man, I couldn¡¯t help butment how troublesome this was going to be.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Falling to the floor on his back, Dolphughed as blood spilled from his mouth.

    Blood was flowing from an abdomen wound he was pressing his hand against.

    ¡°...so I was right afterall.¡±

    Despite losing, Dolph happily burst intoughter after hearing the conversation between Liam and Tia.

    ¡°I knew assault tactics were utter nonsense. Defense oriented maneuvers are better, since those are only effective after the enemy formation has already copsed! You may have won Liam, but at the same time you¡¯re practically admitting your mistake!¡±

    Assault tactics had lost.

    Dolph knew he was right, he had believed this ever since the simtor battle back when they were still cadets.

    Staring at the looming ceiling above him, Dolph continued tough as Avid¡¯s hand moved to crush the bridge.

    ¡°I WASN¡¯T WRONG!!!¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    From outer space, the guide silently watched as Dolph got squeezed to death by Avid¡¯s hand.

    Gripping the brim of his hat with both his hands, he was trembling.

    ¡°How am I supposed to win?! How the hell am I supposed to defeat you, Liam?!¡±

    He had done everything he could.

    He had even used his trump card.

    However, it was all for nought.

    At that moment, Avid collected the heart-shaped device that was drifting in space.

    ¡°Oh, this thing gives off a somewhat different feeling. Should I try showing it to Brian?¡±

    Liam was in good spirits.

    The over three hundred thousand ships of the Berkley armada were scattered by the Banfield fleet¡¯s assault.

    Being chased down by the regr army, they were easily sunk without much effort.

    And as for those of them who tried to surrender¨C they were mercilessly shot down.

    The guide reached out towards Liam¨C who was still in good spirits.

    ¡°LIAMMM!!!¡±

    ck smoke shot out towards Liam, but it couldn¡¯t reach him.

    He seemed to be protected by something invisible.

    ¡°Wait, that¡¯s it!¡±

    The guide immediately started searching for something.

    It wasn¡¯t the eldest son of the Berkley family who tried to flee but was caught.

    All the other people were useless as well.

    The guide finally found them while he was clenching his teeth.

    ¡°Yes, there¡¯s still one person here who can overturn this situation!¡±

    It was someone stationed right by Liam¡¯s side.

    ¨CEulisia.

    ¡°For the revenge you¡¯ve sworn to enact against Liam, I¡¯ll give you all the power I have!¡±

    The guide shared his power with Eulisia.

    ¡°Go out there and stab him already!¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¨CAfter hearing the results of the war, Cashmiro had a burnt-out expression on his face.

    ¡°So we lost?¡±

    It was theirplete defeat.

    The son who had entered to give a report was pale.

    ¡°Father, things are only going to get worse if we don¡¯t run away! Although the regr fleets have withdrawn, the Banfield house¡¯s army is heading our way! If we don¡¯t escape quickly, we¡¯ll be killed!¡±

    When his eldest son was captured and presented to Liam, he was immediately executed on the spot.

    Liam was serious about this.

    He had absolutely no intention to negotiate.

    ¡°Contact the imperial capital. We need the Empire to act as mediators.¡±

    They were still guaranteed to lose a lot, but it was better than nothing.

    Just when he had decided so, amunication monitor opened up.

    But it wasn¡¯t just one.

    Several more followed right after.

    ¡°T-the hell?!¡±

    In front of the panicked Cashmiro were multiple lords of the imperial nobility.

    However, it wasn¡¯t the people that he usually made deals with.

    One of them¨C a man who had his grey hair slicked back, called out to him cheerfully.

    ¡°Hello, master of the Pirate Nobles. How about that economy, huh?¡±

    Another one¨C a man with a muscr build and wearing an eyepatch, scoffed at Cashmiro in a disdainful manner,

    ¡°The pirates have recently been incited to attack us. Now Cashmiro, would a bastard like you know anything about that?¡±

    All of them were lords that were Cashmiro¡¯s enemies, the ones who chose to support Liam.

    They might look a little rough, but they were all prime examples of what imperial nobles should be like.

    Among them was Baron Exner.

    ¡°Baron Berkley. Yourpanions have told me that you instructed them to attack us.¡±

    The aristocrats who sided with Cashmiro were their opponents.

    But when they heard that Liam was the victor¨C they all immediately surrendered.

    The eyepatched man crossed his arms.

    ¡°It was really refreshing to crush them!¡±

    The grey-haired man added on,

    ¡°...by the way, how do n topensate us for all the damages you¡¯ve caused?¡±

    But before Cashmiro could say anything, an rm resounded throughout the mansion.

    And another call came in from one of his subordinates.

    ¡°Lord Cashmiro! T-thirty thousand of the Banfield house¡¯s ships are invading us!¡±

    Opening a nearby window and looking up at the sky, enough battleships to cover the sky had appeared.

    They were descending one after another while releasing ground troops.

    The territory¡¯s interception systems were quickly destroyed, and thend squadrons began to enter the mansion.

    His son was crying.

    ¡°Father! They¡¯reing!¡±

    Cashmiro lost all the strength in his legs and copsed to the floor.

    ¡°...cut off my head. Take it so you can start negotiations with the head of the Banfield house.¡±

    ¡°U-understood, father.¡±

    Cashmiro¡¯s son took out his gun to shoot him with trembling hands.

    But that¡¯s when infantry soldiers in powered suits burst into the room.

    ¡°Don¡¯t move! If you resist, no mercy will be shown!¡±

    It was a knight who was leading them.

    Seeing the state Cashmiro was in, he immediately kicked armed son away.

    Cashmiro was then taken into custody right after.

    ¡°Follow!¡±

    While being violently pulled, Cashmiro called out to the knight,

    ¡°...with the kid¨C no, I want to begin negotiations with the head of the Banfield house.¡±

 Chapter 68 - Volume 4 Chapter 16 Villain

    <strong>Volume 4 Chapter 16 Viin</strong>

    The Berkley family¡¯s domain.

    ¡°A territory with nothing.¡±

    This ce truly was the sticks.

    Derrick seemed to be pretty well-off, so I thought his territory would be more developed, but I guess not.

    Some parts had flourished into urban areas, but the rest was nothing special¨C no, they were underdeveloped countryside.

    Their standard of living didn¡¯t seem that good either.

    The average resident¡¯s circumstances were horrible.

    While some of them had ess to electricity, everyone else was practically living at medieval levels.

    In the Berkley family¡¯s estate, I leaned back into the chair the lord¡¯s head would usually be seated, as I looked down at Cashmiro¡¯s bound figure in front of me.

    ¡°...now, what am I supposed to do with you?¡±

    I had invaded and taken another man¡¯s estate with armed forces, and was now crossing my legs on his chair like I owned the ce.

    Such a me was currently being appealed to by Cashmiro.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you my head, so please allow me to strike a deal with you.¡±

    By my side, Tia looked down on Cashmiro with disgust,

    ¡°That¡¯s not nearly enough.¡±

    Marie was the same,

    ¡°Your head alone isn¡¯t worth it.¡±

    I never needed something like that in the first ce.

    My victory was only a matter of course.

    It was their fault for thinking a gathering of Barons could ever stand against a Count like myself.

    The difference between our domains were too different.

    Though there was one thing I could from how they did things.

    As I thought, development of one¡¯s territory was essential.

    Even though the Berkley family themselves didn¡¯t seem that strong, the quality of their soldiers surprised me.

    The way they conscripted their residents living in medieval times, creating instant soldiers through the use of educational capsules was amazingly efficient.

    However, the problems that would arise from doing so weren¡¯t worth it.

    In addition to that, I felt nothing but contempt when I saw the terrible conditions their residents lived in.

    ¨CThey had nothing left for me to take.

    Truly, developing one¡¯s territory was a necessity.

    As Cashmiro tried to move closer to me, the knights at his side held him down, pressing his head against the floor.

    ¡°I¡¯m begging you! I¡¯ll give you all of my treasures. I¡¯ll hand over as many of my house¡¯s assets as possible! So please, just let my family live! I¡¯ve heard that you were a virtuous ruler. So just once. Please believe in the Berkley family just this one time! We¡¯ll never betray you, and our entire n will swear fealty to you!¡±

    Just to save his family from execution, he was willing to all of his possessions and even his life¨C now isn¡¯t that such a touching story?

    Tia seemed frustrated.

    ¡°A shameful lie. There¡¯s no way we could believe such a thing when considering all the actions you¡¯ve done thus far.¡±

    Cashmiro raised his head and pleaded,

    ¡°I¡¯m begging you! Please, at least my family!¡±

    That¡¯s right.

    Give up your life and relinquish all your assets.

    All for the smallest of chances for me mercy.

    ¡°You¡¯ve twisted my arm. Okay, I¡¯ll forgive you.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam?!¡±

    I raised my hand at Marie¡¯s surprised exmation and turned to Cashmiro,

    ¡°I¡¯ll forgive you¨C after your family has perished, that¡¯s no way I wouldn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°W-what?!¡±

    In the first ce, killing Derrick¨C a single member of their n, brought me innumerable troubles with the rest of his family ever since.

    So executing Cashmiro alone would undoubtedly bring more annoyances in the future.

    ¡°Despair at the fact that I was your opponent. A Baron¡¯s punishment formitting transgressions against a Count like myself are heavy.¡±

    ¡°W-wait a minute!¡±

    ¡°Cashmiro... I may not have any interest in your territory, but I¡¯ll make sure to use it effectively in the future.¡±

    There might not be anything for me to take from their domain itself, but at the very least I¡¯ll plunder what assets they have here in the estate.

    Looting was an essential aspect of being an evil lord.

    ¡°All Berkley family officials and executives are to be publicly executed before the territory¡¯s residents. Let them know who their new lord is.¡±

    Hearing my judgement, Eulisia seemed a little concerned,

    ¡°Lieutenant General, are you sure about this? It¡¯s usually customary for children that haven¡¯te of age to be sent to frontiers after being stripped of their noble status.¡±

    ¡°What? Such conventions existed?¡±

    ¡°There are also women who have been wed into the Berkley family against their will. We need to investigate such matters thoroughly¨C¡±

    To Eulisia¡¯s words, Marie scoffed,

    ¡°There¡¯s no need. Such things have already been investigated beforehand.¡±

    Apparently, we¡¯ve already researched into those things in advance.

    Although she was usually no good, she did have her moments that showed howpetent she actually was, which made it kind of hard to evaluate her sometimes.

    ¡°Okay then, begin the executions immediately, and somebody get in contact with the Empire¨C¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m here.¡±

    Since Tia said that with a smile, I decided to let her deal with it.

    ¡°I see, then I¡¯ll leave this matter to you then. I¡¯m returning back to the gship to rx, I¡¯m bored of this already.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    After Liam had left.

    Cashmiro started to cry and shed tears.

    ¡°He¡¯s bored... HE¡¯S BORED?!¡±

    The attitude Liam was taking was as if they were never a threat from the very beginning.

    He said he wasn¡¯t interested in what had been umted here, and seemed to be truly seeking out the Berkley family¡¯s destruction.

    Even though there were so many stories about him being a benevolent and virtuous ruler¨C reality was different.

    ¡°I guess I was wrong... this is the end.¡±

    To see the Berkley family that had grown so far be destroyed so easily by a single kid, Cashiro could do nothing butugh while crying.

    ¡°Go to hell, you shitty brat! I¡¯ll be the first there to greet yo¨C¡±

    He couldn¡¯t say anything beyond that.

    Because Tia had trampled down on him,

    ¡°Shut up. Having a man like you even talk to Lord Liam disgusts me.¡±

    The Pirate Nobles.

    As a person who had a grudge against pirates, Tia had no intention to show Cashmiro even the slightest of mercy.

    ¡°I¡¯ve prepared a special execution method just for you. Do your best to entertain me. Be at ease¨C we¡¯ll be sure to send the rest of your family over right after.¡±

    While Tia was making an atrocious smile, one of the knights called out to her,

    ¡°Head knight, if you even execute the children, Lord Liam¡¯s reputation will be damaged.¡±

    When Liam¡¯s name was mentioned, Tia became serious,

    ¡°By Lord Liam¡¯s order, I was dismissed as his head knight. I¡¯m just a normal one now.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, all the children who haven¡¯te of age will be sent to remotes instead.¡±

    They¡¯ll be sent to harsh frontiers where they¡¯ll be forced to live in poverty.

    ¨Cit was unknown how long they¡¯d be able to survive though.

    Marie¨C who was silently watching over the situation, grabbed Cashmiro.

    ¡°Cashmiro, there¡¯s a mountain of things I want to hear from you, so let¡¯s talk before your execution.¡±

    Seeing Marie grab Cashmiro, the knights started trembling.

    All of their eyes gathered on Tia.

    ¡°Lady Tia, are you okay with this?¡±

    Was she not going to reproach Marie for her selfish conduct?

    However, Tia seemed different from her usual self.

    ¡°As long as she doesn¡¯t kill him, it should be fine. That woman should at least understand that much.¡±

    The knights were frightened at the sight of the two who always fought not getting in each other¡¯s way.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Cashmiro¡¯s corpse was put on disy to the Berkley territory.

    The residents looked at it with dark feelings welling up inside of them.

    In such a ce, the guide blended in together with the crowd of residents.

    He seemed to be in pain.

    ¡°...I will use the negative feelings you had towards Liam.¡±

    He absorbed Cashmiro¡¯s grudge.

    The negative feelings about Liam that were surrounding the territory were also assimted.

    The reason why he was so hated was because the Berkley soldiers came from the resident¡¯s families.

    Being the one who killed them, it was only natural for that they umted a grudge against him.

    Taking in their negative emotions, the guide could finally rx a little.

    After gathering up their grudges, the guide looked forward to seeing Eulisia, who was a fail-safe he had prepared beforehand.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Three months after the war against the Berkley family.

    Liam¡¯s adjutant¨C Eulisia, was currently providing him with work support in the office.

    And right now she was alone with him.

    Eulisia squinted as she watched Liam work so seriously.

    (I think now¡¯s the time.)

    Having studied everything about Liam¡¯s life, Eulisia was convinced that now was the most opportune moment.

    Liam was also a man.

    Even he had sexual desires, or rather, his were stronger than the norm.

    However, Liam neverid his hands on the women around him, and wasn¡¯t very good at alleviating them.

    It was clear that he was pent up.

    Unaware of his presence, Eulisia made her resolve to take action as the guide watched over the situation.

    The dog was also observing them¨C but then left the room.

    (That¡¯s good, Eulisia! Now kill him!)

    Eulisia¨C whose mind was only filled with thoughts of Liam, dropped her pen.

    She deliberately turned her back to Liam, bending down her upper body to pick it up, while ¡®identally¡¯ shing the underwear she was wearing underneath her skirt.

    Liam sent a side-nce her way.

    (He took the bait!)

    All of these were calcted actions.

    Even her underwear was specifically chosen with an emphasis on functionality.

    They didn¡¯t have much sexual appeal, but those were exactly Liam¡¯s preferences.

    However, there would be no point if they didn¡¯t have any at all.

    Liam¡¯s had very difficult tastes, or rather, his strike zone was too narrow.

    But having thoroughly investigated him, Eulisia knew everything she needed to know.

    (These are the exact kind of underwear he likes!)

    She slowly raised her upper body and ¡®noticed¡¯ his gaze, turning towards him with a smile.

    She then covered her butt with her hands and became embarrassed¨C but it was all an act.

    ¡°P-please excuse me, Lieutenant General.¡±

    ¡°N-no, it¡¯s fine.¡±

    After seeing Liam get flustered, Eulisia was convinced of her victory.

    (Hey, your face is flushed.)

    The guide cheered Eulisia on as she looked at Liam with a bestial gaze.

    Although something felt a bit weird, he knew that her grudge against Liam was the real thing.

    He wasn¡¯t going to sweat the small stuff.

    ¡°That¡¯s great, Eulisia! Now use your seduction techniques to make Liam drop his guard, then kill him! You can do it!¡±

    Eulisia smiled, but when she was just about to lure in Liam¨C

    ¡°Lord Liam!¡±

    ¡ªNias burst into the room while crying.

    Moreover, in a swimsuit of all things.

    She was wearing a jacket on top of it, but that did nothing to cover the navy blue swimwear that had a white name tag on over its chest.

    ¡®Nias¡¯ was written there.

    Seeing that figure, Eulisia immediately understood.

    (You again?!)

    If she was just interrupting, it¡¯d be easy to turn her away, but the problem was her appearance.

    It was an inneryerbined with functional yet somewhat amorous work clothes.

    ¨Cit matched Liam¡¯s strike zone.

    (Thispletely blows away any impression my underwear made¨C)

    But when Eulisa turned to look at Liam, he was showing a different reaction than what she thought he¡¯d be making.

    He muttered, ¡°a school swimsuit?¡± or something along those lines.

    Theypletely fit Liam¡¯s tastes, but he didn¡¯t seem interested at all¨C or rather, he was actually looking at Nias with eyes full of pity.

    Nias continued to cry,pletely oblivious to Liam¡¯s reaction.

    ¡°Lord Liam, please listen! The budget and materials you sent have been taken away from me! Since what I¡¯m developing is ultimately going to be yours in the end, this is your problem as well! They¡¯re going too far~!¡±

    What the hell did she do?

    If the upper echelons of the Seventh Weapons Factory took them away, she must¡¯ve caused quite amotion.

    Eulisia thought that as she shook her head.

    ¡°Technology Captain Nias, the Lieutenant General is currently busy with work. Please vacate yourself from the office.¡±

    But Liam looked at the crying Nias¨C and forgave her.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay. Nobody willin even if my work is dyed slightly. Besides, this looks like fun. Anyways, do you even realise how you look right now, Nias? What¡¯s with that appearance?¡±

    Still crying, Nias had fallen to the floor as she took her sses off.

    ¡°This is because my superiors cut me off while I was in the middle of work! Even though there were new technologies I wanted to experiment with! Sure, there was a risk of explosions, but that¡¯s a natural part of development!¡±

    No, that¡¯s definitely no good. As Eulisia made a retort in her heart, she was stunned by Liam¡¯s response.

    ¡°I guess it can¡¯t be helped. I¡¯ll talk to your superiors in the Seventh Weapons Factory for you.¡±

    ¡°Thank you so much!¡±

    Nias then went on to hug him, and while he did look annoyed, he also seemed a little happy.

    While he didn¡¯t seem aroused in the slightest, he truly did look like he was having fun.

    Seeing his smile¨C Eulisia instinctively knew that she had lost.

    It was like she was shown the distinct difference between herself and a ¡®natural¡¯ that she could never ovee.

    She copsed from her knees.

    Watching over the situation, the guide let out a surprised, ¡°Eh?!¡±, and when the sitting Eulisia began to cry herself, Liam called out to her.

    ¡°H-hey, what¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°I did my best! I¡¯ve tried my hardest for decades just so that I could throw you away!¡±

    In front of the stunned Liam and Nias, Eulisia continued to cry on her knees.

    Liam called out to her,

    ¡°...so you were trying to seduce me, just so you could throw me away?¡±

    Nias snorted,

    ¡°I think there was a problem even before you got to throwing him away.¡±

    This was being said by an adult wearing a school swimsuit.

    Eulisia buried her face into her knees and continued to cry,

    ¡°I did my best! I... I retrained myself in the army, entered the special forces, and gained various qualifications, all so that I could be ced by the Count¡¯s side!¡±

    Liam had an indescribable expression on his face,

    ¡°You did all that for me?¡±

    Eulisia made a small nod.

    Everything was for the sake of enticing Liam.

    In the corner of the room, the guide crumbled to his knees.

    ¡°...you¡¯ve got to be kidding me.¡±

    While she certainly burned with a desire for revenge, he didn¡¯t think that she just wanted to throw Liam away in a rejection.

    Liam scratched his cheek with his finger.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, you¡¯re just another one of the disappointing girls I know.¡±

    Nias was making a triumphant expression,

    ¡°Oh, so you know other disappointing girls as well? You sure have it hard, Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re one of them.¡±

    ¡°Eh?!¡±

    Leaving Nias and the surprised expression she was making alone, Liam turned back to Eulisia and called out to her,

    ¡°I understand. It¡¯s okay, you can still throw me away.¡±

    Eulisia continued to cry,

    ¡°But you haven¡¯t even confessed to me.¡±

    She¡¯d throw him away after he confessed. That was something she wouldn¡¯t give up on.

    ¡°Does that even really matter? Well... okay.¡±

    So that she could throw him away, Liam took pity on the disappointing girl and started speaking,

    ¡°Eulisia, when I finally leave the army,e with me.¡±

    Hearing Liam¡¯s confession, Eulisia¡¯s whole face broke out into a smile¨C and then she realised something.

    (Wait... if I reject his invitation, won¡¯t I be stuck in the military for hundreds of years?)

    She had been trained to the point where she was assigned to join the special forces.

    And training wasn¡¯t free.

    Naturally it cost money, and the amount needed to train even a single soldier was enormous.

    Furthermore, those costs would only increase with each educational course attended to gain new skills.

    The military wouldn¡¯t easily release Eulisia after investing that much money into her.

    And so¨C

    (Even if I continue to meet with other nobles, is there any out there that are better than the Count?)

    ¨CEulisia¡¯s original goal was to be the wife or mistress of a promising aristocrat.

    With that in mind, rejecting Liam here waspletely out of the question.

    After all, there was no stock in the Empire more promising than Liam.

    Kurt had potential as well, but the difference between the two was too vast.

    Appearance¨C pass.

    Personality¨C just barely pass.

    Assets¨C perfect!

    Future potential¨C JACKPOT!!!

    Eulisia was looking at Liam¡¯s face with serious intent.

    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s wrong? Weren¡¯t you going to throw me away?¡±

    Eulisia immediately hugged Liam.

    ¡°I¡¯ll follow you for the rest of my life, Count!¡±

    Nias wasn¡¯t just going to let that slide though,

    ¡°Hey, you bitch! Putting how he thinks I¡¯m a disappointing girl aside, Lord Liam is my patron!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not yours! Actually, let go of me already! Stop looking at me like that!¡±

    Eulisia answered while clinging onto Liam,

    ¡°It¡¯s because you have a promising future, Count! Plus, you only have one wife, and no mistresses or lovers at the moment!¡±

    If she could slide in as a mistress or a lover, it would still count as a win in Eulisia¡¯s book.

    Thinking about it now, she had technically seeded in enticing him, so what¡¯s the problem?

    It would be a waste to throw him away.

    ¡°H-hey! I said you were just another one of the disappointing girls I knew!¡±

    ¡°And when I asked you to take me! You asked me to follow you!¡±

    Not being able to endure watching the three of them anymore, the guide stood up and showed himself before Liam.

    Of course, he had stopped time as well.

    Liam¡¯s eyes went wide at the guide¡¯s appearance.

    ¡°It¡¯s been a long time¨C Liam!¡±

    The guide had decided to just reveal everything him.

 Chapter 69 - Volume 4 Chapter 17 Reserve Duty

    <strong>Volume 4 Chapter 17 Reserve Duty</strong>

    It happened while I was still entangled with the pitiful girls.

    When the guide suddenly appeared, he was painfully grasping at his chest.

    Was he in a hurry or something?

    ¡°Liam... did you not notice? I¡¯m the reason why your enemies had gathered together!¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Apparently, the coalition between the Berkley fleet and my enemies within the military was all the work of the guide.

    ¡°You¡¯re the reason why my enemies were working together?!¡±

    ¡°Exactly! Yet you still never realized it, not even after everything was already finished¨C!¡±

    Hearing that, I felt feelings of regret well up inside of me.

    ¡°...I¡¯m sorry. I never noticed.¡±

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s fine. However, now you know the truth, right?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Come on, it should be obvious! Who your true enemy is!¡±

    My true enemy?

    The guide was trying to tell me who my true enemy was.

    In other words, there was someone out there who manipted the Berkley family?

    Don¡¯t tell me, has this guy been protecting me from them this entire time...

    ¡°You, it can¡¯t be!¡±

    ¡°So you finally understand!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I finally get it. Thank you so much.¡±

    ¡°...huh?¡±

    Of course the guide would be angry after being run down so raggedly.

    If I was protecting someone from their true enemy, I¡¯d grow irritated if they never noticed either.

    I¡¯m sure that he¡¯s gone through some tough times.

    Looking at him closely, even his clothes seemed to be tattered.

    All of this was because he was gathering my enemies for me.

    He saw that I was troubled and set things up so I could finish everything in one battle.

    ¡°I thought it was weird seeing the Berkley family working together with the faction of the military that was hostile to me.¡±

    Well, the only thing they had going for them was their numbers though.

    I was actually surprised by how weak they were.

    Were they betting everything on that secret weapon that came out at the end?

    ¡°N-no, I¡¯m telling you¨C!¡±

    But before the guide could say anything, I went ahead and expressed my thanks to him.

    ¡°There was the matter with Avid, as well as many other things as well. I¡¯m seriously indebted to you. I¡¯ll make sure to look into my true enemy as well, but for now¨C thank you so much!¡±

    The guide really was a shy person.

    This was probably because there weren¡¯t that many people out there who could express their gratitude to him in the first ce.

    He was trembling in embarrassment even now.

    ¡°S-stop it!¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t need to be so self conscious about it. Though honestly, it¡¯s kind of cute.¡±

    ¡°STOP IT!!!¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The guide watched in horror as golden matchlock guns manifested behind Liam.

    Arge number of vintage guns were all pointing their muzzles in his direction.

    Liam¡¯s gratitude wasbined with the gratitude various people had for him, turning into ammunition the guns used as they shot at the guide.

    But Liam was unable to see it.

    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°N-no!¡±

    The guide was unable toy his hands on Liam directly.

    Each encounter they¡¯ve had so far, the tables have been turned against him.

    Liam had grown that powerful.

    (What the hell are you?! Even though I¡¯ve worked so hard to make you miserable?! You thank me every time¨C this guy, is he not taking pleasure in the unsightly figure I¡¯m left in?!)

    Liam¨C a person who was grateful no matter what, was an object of fear for the guide.

    It was to the point that he was starting to wonder if he was doing this all on purpose.

    (Does he actually know that his gratitude hurt me? N-no, that should be... impossible.)

    As Liam approached him, bullets were fired one after another from the firearms.

    Hitting their mark, ck smoke spewed out from each new bullet wound.

    ¡°I HATE THIS!!!¡±

    At that moment, a golden bullet filled with gratitude pierced through the guide¡¯s body.

    Unable to withstand anymore pain, the guide escaped from that ce as ck smoke.

    ¡°H-hey, where are you going?! I¡¯m still not done thankin¨C and he¡¯s gone.¡±

    With the guide¡¯s disappearance, Nias and Eulisia began to move normally again.

    ¡°Lord Liam, please give me more funds!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll never let go of you for the rest of my life!¡±

    Liam¨C who was currently being hugged by the pitiful girls, was wondering if he was ever going to get the chance to properly thank the guide.

    The dog was watching his figure from the corner of the room with a sad expression.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    Four years have passed since I got my official assignment.

    Considering my future status, it was decided that the final rank I¡¯d receive as I entered reserve duty would be that of a General.

    This extraordinary advancement was justified through my various achievements, but there¡¯s no doubt my bribes had a tremendous effect on this.

    It was only four years.

    This level of military status was only natural for a member of the nobility.

    Incidentally, Tia was promoted to Brigadier General.

    Marie had be a Major.

    And as the aide to a general, Eulisia was promoted to the rank of Colonel.

    As a side note¨C Nias was promoted to a Technology Major by using my backing.

    For some reason, when my name was mentioned as one¡¯s patron¨C it was strangely easy to get consent for things. It made it troublesome to refuse them, so even the pitiful ones got promotions easier.

    With that said, Wace really disappointed me this time.

    ¡°Wace, why are you entering reserve duty as a Captain?! What the hell were you doing?!¡±

    As my underling, I was sure he¡¯d be a Major, but he was stuck one ss lower than I thought.

    He made a troubled expression.

    ¡°Well~ You see~¡±

    ¡°Why haven¡¯t you been promoted?! I even gave out bribes for you!¡±

    Wait, that¡¯s wrong. They were seasonal greetings and donations.

    I mean, I made sure to take care of my army.

    I bought favours from the regr fleets usings my funds, applied for additional supplies for the domestic affairs game I yed at my station, and I even contributed to the renewal of the military¡¯s equipment by purchasing their old ships.

    With those achievements behind me, I asked for Wace¡¯s promotion!

    ¡°Don¡¯t you know how ashamed I am as your patron?!¡±

    ¡°N-no, you see, there wasn¡¯t anywhere for me to y an active role in! All I did was supervise a construction site on the surface!¡±

    ¡°But as a noble you should¡¯ve been promoted anyway!¡±

    ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because I¡¯m part of the royal family?¡±

    Seriously... even this guy¡¯s brother¨C Cedric, was promoted to a general.

    Wace joined his hands behind his head.

    ¡°In the first ce, once we go into reserve duty our military sses be meaningless. Don¡¯t they just entitle us to a bit of money annually then?¡±

    Though as the head of a house, I wasn¡¯t going to be paid that.

    Not that I needed it in the first ce.

    ¡°Its for the future. I just didn¡¯t want to stand out too much.¡±

    ¡°If you were constantly saying things like that, wasn¡¯t that the reason why you never got promoted?¡±

    Wace turned his gaze away from me, so I was probably right.

    However, it was true that I never delegated any real work to him.

    So I¡¯ll let things slide this time.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s fine. We¡¯re going to be entering the Imperial University next year anyway.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right! Ahh~ my long awaited campus life is about to begin! Everyday we¡¯ll go to mixers, y around and have fun!¡±

    ...was it okay for a member of the royal family to be like this?

    I mean, I already have a fianc¨¦e¨C was it really appropriate for me to join mixers?

    At times like this, I feel like it¡¯d be better to n your life out.

    Looking at Eulisia only strengthened this conviction.

    ¡°Lord Liam! You¡¯re renting out a famous hotel in the imperial capital, right? Please get me a room too!¡±

    Towards the pitiful girl who asked me that with sparkling eyes, I shook my head.

    ¡°...do whatever you want.¡±

    ¡°Woohoo! I¡¯m now one step closer to my dream life!¡±

    Looking at Eulisia, Wace was amazed,

    ¡°I thought she was a serious soldier, but she¡¯s actually just like any other girl, and she¡¯s even really pretty on top of that.¡±

    More or less, that was all true.

    I didn¡¯t have any problems with her serving by my side.

    However¨C

    ¡°Ahh~ I¡¯ll swim in the hotel¡¯s pool in the morning, go shopping around noon, and then have an elegant moment to myself in a caf¨¦ afterwards!¡±

    ¨CI felt nothing but regret when I saw her caught up in her delusions.

    Wace called out to me,

    ¡°Putting all that aside, have you told Rosetta about your aide yet?¡±

    ¡°...ah.¡±

    I still had to tell my fianc¨¦e about her.

    ...what was this? Why was my chest so heavy?

    ¡°Liam, are you really okay with this?¡±

    ¡°With what? Having mistresses or lovers? I was always nning to build a harem, so this is fine.¡±

    ¡°Huh, really? Wait, I was talking about something else. What are you going to do about the Berkley territory?¡±

    ¡°Oh, that.¡±

    After wiping out the Berkley family, I had taken away their property as my spoils.

    Up until there things were still fine, but the problem was that there were too manys there for me to control.

    When I tried to manage them, Amagi told me, ¡°There are too manys that aren¡¯t within reach of our capital.¡±

    If I were to describe it as an image, my territory now looked like an enve.

    I thought it didn¡¯t matter since we could just warp, but surprisingly, distance was still important.

    Plus, arge number of thes were deste and ruined.

    Those guys had destroyed their worlds in mass to produce elixirs.

    While they were nice to have, if you asked me if I was willing to sacrifice a for one, I¡¯d only be able to reply, ¡°Hmm...¡±

    So I sold the territory I didn¡¯t need to the Empire.

    I kept a bit for myself of course, but everything else was pawned off.

    Also, I was able to collect a bunch of the items that I wanted.

    ary development equipment¨C the Berkley family had a lot of them, and I nned to put them into use in the future.

    Let¡¯s ce them on fortress-ss ships and have them redevelop some ruineds.

    There also seemed to be a lot of people selling elixirs now.

    While I was selling rare metals to merchants, I saw that elixirs were in cirction and bought them on the spot.

    ¨CThere were also the guide¡¯s words that I had to consider though.

    My true enemy.

    Surely they were something on a scale iparable to the Berkley family.

    If I was going to fight them, then I definitely needed more power than what I have now.

    Also, it was troublesome to protect an enve.

    Since that was how it was going to be, it¡¯d just be better to get rid of it from the beginning.

    ¡°It¡¯s such a waste though, can¡¯t you just give it to me?¡±

    ¡°If you¡¯re fine with an underdeveloped, I can give you something right away.¡±

    ¡°No thanks, I¡¯d prefer a somewhat developed world. Even if it¡¯s only a you developed in your spare time, I won¡¯tin.¡±

    ¨Cat my assigned world, I yed a real life game of domestic affairs and actually developed the ce more than expected.

    There were a bunch of merchants who wanted to open stores there, so I left the details to Thomas, and now the popce of that ce was steadily growing.

    Well, part of the reason why was probably because it was under the Empire¡¯s direct control, nearby another one of their cities.

    It was only natural for it to develop that fast.

    ¡°I¡¯m not promising anything, but I¡¯ll see what I can do.¡±

    ¡°I have high expectations for you.¡±

    ¨Cagain, this guy was supposed to be my underling.

    I was also necessary for me to increase the number of my allies in the future.

    The guide left before telling me who my true enemy was¨C but because it was him, I¡¯m sure he had a reason for that.

    For now, let¡¯s just concentrate on umting my power.

    ¡°So, what do you n to do next? Are you going straight to the imperial capital?¡±

    At Wace¡¯s inquiry, I answered honestly,

    ¡°I¡¯m going to return to the territory first. I have something I need to do there.¡±

    ¡°Oh, in that case I¡¯ll go to the imperial capital firs¨C¡±

    ¡°You¡¯reing too!¡±

    I decided to go back home with Wace.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°Ahh~ there¡¯s no ce like home!¡±

    Greeting me with open arms was Brian¨C who was crying, of course.

    ¡°Lord Liam, you¡¯ve grown so splendidly. This Brian here can¡¯t stop shedding tears.¡±

    ¡°Can you even see me in that state?¡±

    This guy always seemed to be crying.

    Turning towards Amagi, she seemed to be the same as usual.

    ¡°Amagi, I assume nothing happened?¡±

    ¡°Yes, since all of our damages were caused by military actions, we were ridiculouslypensated as an apology.¡±

    It looks like some damages came out after all.

    ¡°I see. Give the soldiers preferential treatment, they¡¯re my precious forces.¡±

    ¡°As you wish.¡±

    After wiping his tears, Brian started asking me about Rosetta,

    ¡°Lord Liam, putting that all aside, I heard you weed a potential candidate for a mistress? Where might she anddy Rosetta be?¡±

    ¡°...I left them behind.¡±

    ¡°But why?! Lord Liam, do you know how excited I was to hear that you were finally developing an interest in women?!¡±

    He thought I didn¡¯t have an interest in women? That¡¯s surprising.

    Brian wanted me toe back with Rosetta and Eulisia, but they were both enjoying their hotel life.

    For Rosetta... it was kind of painful seeing her in person, so I left her alone.

    And in any case, all Eulisia did was withdraw as my aide, she wasn¡¯t a candidate for a mistress.

    She was too pitiful to even consider that.

    But since Brian would surely be annoying if I told him, I decided to change the subject.

    ¡°Ah~ hey Brian, do you know that this is?¡±

    I brought out a device shaped like a heart.

    Brian looked at it with interest.

    ¡°Now this is rare. The [Machine Heart]¨C it¡¯s an ancient artifact said to able to breath life into lifeless machines.¡±

    ¡°What?!¡±

    Turning towards Amagi, I immediately pushed the machine heart into her chest.

    It sunk in just as much as I pushed, it truly was an amazing bosom.

    However, that action caused Amagi to turn cold eyes my way.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°Well, I thought It would bring you to life.¡±

    ¡°Its a fake. You can¡¯t find ancient artifacts that easily.¡±

    ¡°I-is that so? That¡¯s too bad, I would¡¯ve been really happy if you were brought to life.¡±

    ¡°...that¡¯s impossible.¡±

    When Amagi said that, she looked a little sad.

    Brian turned towards me,

    ¡°That¡¯s right, I heard you bought multiple fortress-ss ships recently. Lord Liam, you shouldn¡¯t go buying battleships like toys.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll be turning them into temporary bases for pioneers.¡±

    ¡°What?! You¡¯re really going to develop more?!¡±

    ¡°Of course I am.¡±

    I¡¯ll load up theary development equipment I recently received on them and continue further development for the territory.

    It was necessary to make preparations for when the true enemy appears.

    Right now was the time to umte my power.

    ¡°I¡¯ve decided that now¡¯s the time to build up my strength. Amagi, I¡¯m nning to develop the territory further, so please write up a new n.¡±

    However, Amagi¡¯s response was different from what I expected,

    ¡°About that, I¡¯m actually going to resign from my management position soon.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve already nurtured the human resources required. Even without my input, the territory will develop on its own with AI support.¡±

    ¡°I-is that so?¡±

    ¡°¨Cso now I¡¯ll be able to fully support you personally, Master.¡±

    Brian went on to exin to me Amagi¡¯s future ns,

    ¡°As soon as the transfer is over, Amagi will leave to take care of you on the imperial capital, Lord Liam. If everything goes smoothly, she might even leave here with you.¡±

    I felt unimaginably relieved when I heard that.

    ¡°What, so that was it? Okay! Let¡¯s have a shy wee for your arrival, Amagi!¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s fine.¡±

    I felt a little lonely at Amagi¡¯s refusal.

    ¡°-r-really? Then a normal greeting... will that be okay?¡±

    ¡°Yes. In any case, my kind isn¡¯t exactly wee in the Empire.¡±

    Hearing Amagi say that a shy wee wouldn¡¯t suit her, I felt a little distant.

 Chapter 70 - Volume 4 Epilogue + New Project Announcement!

    <strong>Volume 4 Epilogue + New Project Announcement!</strong>

    After being gunned down by Liam¡¯s bullets of gratitude, the guide was walking down a dim alley.

    ¡°Eulisia... you¡¯ve betrayed me!¡±

    He never would¡¯ve imagined that Eulisia¡¯s revenge was just for her to throw Liam away in a rejection.

    Why the hell did she need to enter the special forces for that?! ¨Cit couldn¡¯t be helped that the guide felt betrayed.

    Normally, those who had returned to the military for re-education don¡¯t enlist into the special forces.

    And so, the guide was now moving to see Yasushi¨C a person who hasn¡¯t done anything this time.

    ¡°Yasushi. I swear, if you¡¯re going to betray me too...¡±

    Shedding blood from his mouth, what the guide saw while checking up on Yasushi¡¯s situation was¨C

    ¡°That¡¯s not enough! Liam was able to do this much easily¨C you¡¯ll never be able to surpass your senior pupil at this rate!¡±

    ¨Cliving inside a hidden ce, Yasushi had created a training ground and was currently instructing two children in the way of swordsmanship.

    Looking at them, the guide could finally see the light of hope.

    Two children were standing in unbnced positions, gripping onto wooden swords as they sweated.

    Although they were just little kids, they seemed to be stronger than Yasushi.

    ¡°I knew I could believe in you, Yasushi!¡±

    Yasushi was currently teaching them the One-sh.

    Having already been proven as effective through Liam, he was apparently teaching the two in the same way using all the money he had left.

    Educational capsules were used multiple times, he had invested everything he had to make them stronger.

    There was a reason why Yasushi was going this far.

    Visiting this ce, some obviously corrupt knights hade.

    ¡°Hey, old man. Have you heard anything about the One-sh swordmaster Yasushi being here?¡±

    Some delinquent-like youths had arrived.

    Yasushi immediately answered them,

    ¡°The One-sh? I¡¯ve never heard of such a thing.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? The information we collected said that the great knight Liam¡¯s swordmaster was in this area...¡±

    ¡°What?! Such a celebrity was nearby?! I¡¯m sorry, but I don¡¯t know anyone of the sort.¡±

    ¡°Tch! Let¡¯s go, you guys...¡±

    ¨CJust like that, more and more people were searching for Liam¡¯s swordmaster.

    Yasushi was frightened.

    (Damn it! This bad situation is all because Liam keeps spreading the name of that fictional sword style! I¡¯m constantly sticking out in a bad way!)

    He didn¡¯t have any time to waste.

    To defeat Liam, the One-sh was necessary.

    For that goal, Yasushi was currently taking care of two children.

    ¡°That¡¯s enough!¡±

    The two children let out deep breaths while blindfolded.

    ¡°You two have done great. You¡¯ve both grown splendidly.¡±

    They removed their blindfolds.

    ¡°Master, why did you lie to those people?¡±

    ¡°Hmm?¡±

    ¡°Small fish like them are easily defeatable.¡±

    ¡°T-that¡¯s because... you¡¯re not supposed to brandish your swords recklessly! Those des that you¡¯ve honed were made to defeat the strong!¡±

    The two of them were calling the knights from before small fish.

    Even the guide could see that they were stronger than them.

    ¡°...they still aren¡¯t a match for Liam, but they¡¯re definitely growing. Yasushi, I¡¯m cheering for you.¡±

    The guide disappeared at that moment, but the dog was still there, watching over the situation.

    The kids wiped their sweat,

    ¡°You¡¯ve told us that multiple times already. If we defeat the senior pupil, will you finally recognise us?¡±

    ¡°I will. Once you defeat Liam, you¡¯ll pass.¡±

    ¡°But, is our senior pupil really that famous Liam person? I can¡¯t really believe that.¡±

    ¡°D-don¡¯t doubt me! Trust me, you¡¯ll definitely meet him in due time.¡±

    Their stomachs empty, the two kids wanted to go back home already.

    ¡°Ahh... I want to eat more food.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m hungry~¡±

    ¡°H-hey, wait!¡±

    Looking at the figure of Yasushi struggling to take care of the children, the dog then disappeared as well.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¨Cthat¡¯s weird.

    I was currently in Avid¡¯s cockpit.

    When I tried pushing the machine heart onto the control panel, Avid absorbed it.

    ¡°Even though it didn¡¯t work on Amagi...¡±

    Although there were a few problems, it was still an artifact given to me by the guide.

    I was sure it was the real thing, so I tried using it on Avid.

    And with that, I think it¡¯s output has increased.

    Well, it was more the sake of using it.

    I didn¡¯t care about small changes in the specs.

    ¡°I¡¯m happy because Avid got a power up, but how does this work?¡±

    Well, since it didn¡¯t work with Amagi, maybe this was a good thing... yeah, let¡¯s go with that.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A room in the mansion.

    Beds for the maid androids were lined up there.

    Amagi¨C who was lying on one of them, woke up.

    ¡°...life.¡±

    To give life to a lifeless object.

    When the machine heart didn¡¯t react to her, Amagi felt a little happy, but also a little sad.

    ¡°Does this mean the emotions I¡¯ve been feeling are real?¡±

    While mulling over those thoughts, Amagi stood up to return to work.

    Almost immediately after, Liam sent her a call,

    ¡°Amagi, I was able to power-up Avid!¡±

    ¡°Master, did you use the machine heart to do that?¡±

    ¡°I did!¡±

    ¡°...did I not tell you to refrain from using it until I had it examined?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it came from a source that guarantees its safety.¡±

    Despite him saying that, Amagi was worried as she had absolutely no idea about its origins.

    ¡°Come on, let¡¯s give it a spin!¡±

    ¡°...understood.¡±

    Amagi had resolved herself to board Avid in order to confirm its current state.

    (Why do so many things naturally find their way to Master?)

    Artifacts of lost technology seemed to unnaturally gather to Liam.

    Amagi couldn¡¯t help but wonder if there was some reason for that.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A hotel rented out by Liam at the imperial capital.

    Rosetta was currently working as its administrator.

    In the lounge, the hotel manager was currently exining the schedule to her while operating a tablet.

    ¡°Currently, about eighty percent of our rooms have been upied.¡±

    Knights, soldiers, and officials of the Banfield house were the ones that used them.

    Other than that, they had also taken some of the children training at Liam¡¯s estate for a session of studying abroad.

    In addition, the majority of the women who served Rosetta personally were actually noble daughters who had already graduated from said training.

    Taking advantage of their tutge under Liam, they were doing this in order to experience what life in the imperial capital would be like.

    After all, there were many aristocrats who never got to leave their territories, and there were many women who didn¡¯t really feel like they were daughters of nobles during their training.

    With the personal experience she had gained while training here, Rosetta wanted to show them what the upper-ss were like.

    ¡°So we still have room to ept more then.¡±

    Then manager replied,

    ¡°Yes, but if we be fully upied, it¡¯ll be hard for us to respond to any sudden changes that may ur.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s annoying. There are many people out there who want to know more about the universe.¡±

    There were arge number of countryside nobles from the frontier gathering here.

    Even if you had heard about how amazing the imperial capital was, it was impossible to truly understand that without actually visiting the ce yourself.

    With that in mind, it was necessary to educate your people properly about this.

    Every now and then, some people would gain superficial knowledge and rise up against their lords in rebellion, thinking that they could do whatever they wanted.

    When situations like that ured, the Empire themselves intervened and burned thoses to the ground.

    They were merciless against those who undermined their power.

    So it was necessary to teach those people how big the universe was beforehand.

    The simplest solution would be just to deprive them of all power from the beginning.

    However, that was against the way Liam did things, so Rosetta decided to follow his policies.

    Also, there were other things she needed to work on as well.

    ¡°I still need to find a mansion for us here in the capital...¡±

    ¡°As his wife, I guess it¡¯s only natural for you to be busy.¡±

    ¡°R-right now, I¡¯m still only his fianc¨¦e.¡±

    ¡°Oh, please excuse me.¡±

    Seeing Rosetta¡¯s face flush red, the manager decided to change the topic,

    ¡°Now that I think about it, both of you will be attending the university soon. Lady Rosetta, will you be working as an official as well?¡±

    Once Liam returned, he¡¯d be enrolling into the university.

    Rosetta was looking forward to it.

    ¡°I am.¡±

    In the future, if Liam was absent, it would be necessary for her to act as the lord in his ce, so she needed the training to at least be able to do the minimum of work.

    Whenever he was gone, it would be her duty to cover for him.

    (Darling, pleasee back soon.)

    Rosetta was looking forward to her university life together with Liam.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¨CI had finally returned to the imperial capital after a long time.

    In my own territory I was a king, but here I was just another noble.

    I still had a lot of power, but the fact that there were people above me here bothered me.

    With that in mind, I was going to try and keep myself from picking fights with troublesome opponents.

    It¡¯s not like I¡¯d lose against them, but it was annoying when these feuds dragged on for years on end.

    That said, the returns I received from defeating the Berkley family were amazing.

    Multipleary development devices.

    The machine heart.

    As well as the Berkley family¡¯s assets.

    Since I even obtained some resource satellites from them, I now had an excuse ready for when I brought outrge quantities of rare metals in the future.

    I boarded a limousine-like vehicle and sat beside Amagi as I watched the scenery of the capital pass by.

    ¡°Everything¡¯s grey.¡±

    It was a concrete jungle¨C not, the materials used weren¡¯t concrete, but there definitely was ack of greenery.

    The feeling of being in the middle of a major city was strong.

    Wace¨C who was also on board, was currently suffering from a hangover.

    ¡°Liam... give me some medicine already.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s your fault for making such a ruckus earlier. You should wallow in your pain for a while as punishment.¡±

    It¡¯d be easy to cure him with medicine, but I left him alone because that wouldn¡¯t be interesting.

    And honestly, this was probably a better medicine for him anyways.

    Amagi¡¯s line of sight was focusing on the hotel as we approached.

    ¡°...Master, did we not agree that you only set up a modest greeting?¡±

    There were knights and soldiers lined up to wee me.

    It was a grand wee ceremony.

    I know that she asked for a modest one, but Amagi deserved something big and shy deserving of her.

    An orchestra began to perform, while the knights and soldiers were lined up in formal wear.

    This felt great.

    ¡°Surprise!¡±

    ¡°Something of this level would usually be for someone of Lady Rosetta¡¯s status.¡±

    ¡°...well, I guess.¡±

    Though I think she¡¯d be happy no matter what I did, doing something like this would probably get me another hug.

    However, if she was honest with herself¨C she¡¯d probably be troubled.

    Considering the life that she¡¯s lived until now, she actually preferred things to be more modest.

    shy stuff seemed more like Eulisia¡¯s thing.

    When the limousinended on the ground, the lined up subordinates all saluted at once.

    Opening the door, I got off first,

    ¡°Amagi.¡±

    When I extended my hand to her, Amagi hesitated for a moment before grabbing it.

    And when she finally stepped outside¨C amotion seemed to break out in the surroundings.

    ¡°What¡¯s this? This guy is seriously holding his hand out to an android.¡±

    A gaudy man whose face was already flushed despite it being the morning, approached us while being escorted by knights.

    Apparently, he hade here just to ridicule me.

    He seemed to be a noble.

    My subordinates immediately rushed over to the man to drive him away.

    ¡°This is the private property of the Banfield house. Please leave the premises at once!¡±

    When my knight said so, the other man burst intoughter,

    ¡°A mere knight dares toin to me, the heir of a Marquis house? Just because your lord became a little famous, you think you¡¯re better than me?! Even so... to think he¡¯s so poor that the best he could do was a deserted hotel like this.¡±

    So he knew about this hotel¡¯s circumstances?

    ...well, it doesn¡¯t matter.

    It looks like I¡¯m already involved with something, but I don¡¯t really want to waste too much time on this.

    ¡°Amagi, you should enter the hotel first.¡±

    She gripped my hand firmly.

    ¡°Master, don¡¯t do this.¡±

    Watching this all happen, the heir to a Marquis pointed his finger at me andughed,

    ¡°He¡¯s actually talking to the thing! ¡®The oh-so-great Liam still ys with lifeless dolls!¡¯¡±

    I turned to look at the man¡¯s face,

    ¡°What did you just say to me?¡±

    ¨CI didn¡¯t even know who this idiot was, but he seemed to know me.

    He knew that and still chose to pick a fight,

    ¡°This here is the imperial capital~ Don¡¯t bring filthy androids here~!¡±

    I took onest look at the person screaming at me like a baby, before turning my back to him and escorting Amagi to the hotel.

    After rushing over to me, I gave my order to Tia,

    ¡°Hey, clean this up.¡±

    ¡°Are you sure?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t see any problems, do you? After your done, carry Wace in.¡±

    After assigning someone to get Wace from the car, I moved to enter the hotel.

    Things were still fine up until there.

    ¡°Gahahaha~! So you¡¯re not even going to say anything in your defense?! Android lover LI~A~M~!¡±

    The man who wasughing up until that moment suddenly fell to the ground, having been vertically bisected in half, his two parts spraying blood everywhere.

    I only did that because I wanted him to shut up¨C but that truly was refreshing.

    The surroundings that were so noisy until then instantly went silent.

    When I ignored the situation and proceeded to the hotel, Amagi narrowed her eyes.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you were going to be cautious when picking fights with other nobles?¡±

    ¡°Oh, I made sure to consider things beforehand, and as a result¨C I¡¯ve decided to crush them. I¡¯m going to investigate his house thoroughly, find out everyone who¡¯s rted to him, and I will erase them like the Berkley family.¡±

    It was their fault for picking a fight with me in the first ce.

    Their status seemed to be high, but they didn¡¯t look that powerful.

    The Berkley family had already given me enough practice with these things.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The underlings and the knights of the heir that was killed immediately closed in on Tia.

    ¡°Do you know what you just did?!¡±

    ¡°Are you seriously going to turn the Marquis into your enemy?!¡±

    ¡°Something like this can never be forgiven!¡±

    Pulling out her rapier with a smile, Tia swung her de to the side and beheaded a knight.

    Blood sprayed out, and as the knight¡¯s body fell she opened her mouth,

    ¡°Let¡¯s clean this ce up.¡±

    Her subordinate knights were somewhat hesitant,

    ¡°B-but!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s the ultimate shame for a knight to fail in protecting their charge. It¡¯s far more merciful of us to give them the opportunity to avenge their master. As for the underlings who had just lost their position... kill them.¡±

    ¡°No, but¨C¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam ordered us to clean up.¡±

    One of the opposing knights rushed forward and pulled out their sword, but fell after their head was pierced by Tia¡¯s rapier.

    When she pulled out the de, blood spouted out of the hole.

    ¡°Lord Liam will never forgive anyone who ridicules Amagi. Kill all of them without exception, and send the bodies to their houses.¡±

    The nobles and the knights were trembling.

    Liam¡¯s knights pulled out their swords, imagining Liam¡¯s rage at the fools who dared to insult Amagi.

    The soldiers lifted up their guns as well.

    ¡°...they dared to make a fool of Lord Liam. For that alone they deserve death.¡±

    The underlings and the knights were then ughtered by Liam¡¯s subordinates¨C their then thrown to the Marquis¡¯ mansion in the imperial capital.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    While I was rxing in the top floor¡¯s suite, Rosetta burst through the door.

    ¡°Darling, did you do something?!¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    I was currently sitting on the sofa while reading a book on my tablet terminal.

    Various information was floating around.

    ¡°...an acquaintance from my training period had begged me intercede on her behalf.¡±

    ¡°Your acquaintance?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s a child who apprenticed together with me in the pce.¡±

    What would such a person want with me?

    ¡°Who?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s the child of a Marquis house. Darling, they recently angered you, and now they want to apologise.¡±

    ¡°Is this person your friend?¡±

    ¡°Uh, that¡¯s a bit...¡±

    With how Rosetta had trouble answering, I could tell.

    I¡¯m sure they weren¡¯t close.

    Just as I was wondering what to do, Marie entered the room,

    ¡°Lord Liam, here¡¯s the information we¡¯ve collected on the Marquis¡¯ house.¡±

    ¡°...oh, those people.¡±

    After receiving and confirming their information, they seemed to actually be a fairlyrge house.

    But the only thing fitting of their status was their size¨C their territory wasparable to that of the Berkley family.

    Their territory wasn¡¯t developed, and their fleet was basically a paper tiger.

    They might¡¯ve had a hundred thousand ships, but the Berkley family was stronger than them.

    I knew they were small fries.

    Marie was looking at me with her back straight.

    I sat down on the couch with a rxed posture and returned the documents to Marie.

    ¡°They annoy me, so let¡¯s crush them. From here on, let¡¯s start moving aggressively!¡±

    Since it would be troublesome if this dragged out, I wanted to end this quickly.

    ¡°That might be difficult. The Marquis has already asked the Empire to intervene. They want to apologise.¡±

    ¡°What, they don¡¯t want to fight?¡±

    ¡°After hearing that their heir picked a fight with you, Lord Liam, they immediately went through the procedures to disinherit him. They¡¯re even willing to offer up their daughter to appease you. I¡¯ve heard that she actually learned how to behave under Lady Rosetta¡¯s tutge during their apprenticeship.¡±

    I felt like Rosetta¡¯s expression turned cloudy there for a second.

    Something definitely happened during their time training together.

    It might be interesting to watch Rosetta¡¯s reaction when keeping such a woman nearby.

    Okay.

    Let¡¯s start moving things in that direction.

    Thinking so, I started to get a little interested.

    ¡°Do you have a picture of her? Is she beautiful?¡±

    ¡°I do.¡±

    When Marie prepared the holographic image, a girl who could definitely be considered a beauty was projected there.

    She looked to be on the cusp of entering adulthood, as she still had many childish features.

    ¨Cbut she was no good.

    I could never add someone like her as a mistress.

    ¡°I hate shy girls like her. Tell that to the Marquis.¡±

    ¡°Are you sure? If you ept her as a mistress, the child born between the two of you could be the next Marquis.¡±

    She was subtly telling me I could take over their house, but I didn¡¯t want such a thing.

    Also, I just didn¡¯t like her.

    She was beautiful, but she had the kind of face that screamed that she would betray me.

    It gave off a simr feeling to that of my ex-wife.

    She might have the looks, but I could never wee such a girl as a mistress.

    I prefer more modest girls.

    ¡°I¡¯m not interested. If I wanted something like that, I could¡¯ve just crushed them and taken their assets by force.¡±

    When I said that, Rosetta¡¯s expression instantly brightened.

    ¡°Darling!¡±

    ...no, it¡¯s not like I refused them for you or anything.

    Why are you so happy?

    Marie seemed pleased as well,

    ¡°I thought this would happen.¡±

    ¨Cso why did you even bring thatst part up? Well, I guess from her position it was only natural to report that.

    ¡°Darling, I love you!¡±

    Probably misunderstanding things, Rosetta went on to hug me.

    W-wait, don¡¯t! Even if you¡¯re really happy right now give me some space!

    ¡°L-let go of me! Rosetta, stop!¡±

    While I was still flustered and struggling, Amagi had brought some tea when she saw my figure.

    ¡°Oh, you two seem to be getting along... shoulde back with the tea two hours from now?¡±

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re wrong! This is¨C!¡±

    It was almost like I was caught in the middle of an affair.

    At that moment, Marie seemed to misread the situation and went, ¡°Make sure nobody interrupts Lord Liam and gets in the way!¡±

    This person really was useless.

    While I tried to pull away from Rosetta¡¯s embrace, Eulisia burst into the room with a bunch of shopping bags.

    It looks like she¡¯s been visiting various stores today as well.

    ¡°Lord Liam~ I want to show off to my former colleagues, so let¡¯s take a picture together!¡±

    This person really was the worst.

    She wanted a picture together with me just so she could brag to the mistresses of other nobles or her colleagues that were also aiming for a mistress position.

    As I thought, a disappointing girl will always be disappointing.

    Amagi and Marie grabbed Eulisia and dragged her out of the room.

    ¡°Eulisia, you should be more aware of your position as Lord Liam¡¯s aide.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t get in Lady Rosetta¡¯s way, you piece of junk.¡±

    ¡°W-wait! Aren¡¯t you treating me a bit too terribly?! I want another chance~¡±

    The three of them left.

    All that remained was Rosetta and I.

    ...this is bad.

    Rosetta¡¯s cheeks were flushed.

    While I was thinking about how to escape from this ce¨C the door burst open to Wace yelling.

    ¡°Liam, we¡¯ve got a problem!¡±

    With Wace suddenly charging into the room, Rosetta reluctantly let go of me and took her distance.

    ¡°Nice timing, Wace! ¨Cso what happened?¡±

    I guess it wasn¡¯t wrong of me to make this guy my underling.

    Rosetta fixed her appearance.

    What the out-of-breath Wace needed to tell me was¨C a new problem.

    ¡°It¡¯s... different. T-the third prince.¡±

    ¡°The third prince?¡±

    ¡°The prince third in line to the throne wants to meet with you!¡±

    At those words, Rosetta covered her mouth in surprise.

    ¡°The third prince... but why?!¡±

    Wace and Rosetta¡¯s eyes gathered on me.

    It looks like things are getting interesting again.

 Chapter 71 - Volume 5 Prologue

    <b>Prologue</b>

    The imperial capital of the Algrand Empire.

    Located there was the inner pce, which was the size of a city in and of itself.

    In the ce where the royal family lived, everything one could ever need was readied there.

    To support the kin of the Emperor, millions of people were hired as servants.

    Inside one of the high-rise buildings located there lived the prince third in line to the throne.

    His name was [Cleo Noah Albte].

    Although his red hair was cut short, the right half of it was left long to the point that it flowed down to his shoulder.

    Although his androgyneous face could be considered very beautiful¨C he was undoubtedly a man.

    Currently shirtless and only wearing pants, Cleo was looking out a window.

    He had just recentlye of age, and currently had the appearance of someone who had just entered their teens.

    Looking at the figure of this person was [Lysithea Noah Albte], their older sister who had her slightly curly hair tied into a ponytail.

    She was a tall woman with a well-trained body.

    Rather than a member of the imperial family, it¡¯d be more apt to describe her as a knight.

    In truth, Lysithea was actually stationed at Cleo¡¯s side as his knight.

    ¡°Cleo, can¡¯t you wear a shirt or something?¡±

    Turning to look back at his nagging sister, Cleo¡¯s upper body was actually quite toned despite its slenderness.

    Combined with his androgyneous looks, he almost looked like a girl with no breasts.

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing to be ashamed of. I¡¯m a man.¡±

    Although Lysithea understood his perspective, she still pushed for her brother to dress himself.

    ¡°You can¡¯t stay shirtless forever. Not to mention, you¡¯ve received a reply from Count Banfield¨C he¡¯s agreed to meet with you.¡±

    Hearing those words, Cleo turned back towards the window.

    ¡°Is that so?¡±

    As if talking to himself, the tone of his voice showed that he wasn¡¯t very interested.

    Seeing his response, Lysithea pleaded for him to change his attitude.

    ¡°I understand how you might feel, but there aren¡¯t many people even willing to meet with you as it is. You can¡¯t be rude to him.¡±

    But he snorted at that statement.

    ¡°He probably only agreed because he wants to make a fool of me. Many others have done the exact same thing before.¡±

    Cleo might live in a skyscraper, but there actually weren¡¯t that many people in the building.

    Usually the residents of the prince¡¯s that held the highest rights to inheritance had a constant influx of people lined up for meetings and the like.

    Nevertheless, barely anyone visited Cleo¡¯s residence despite the fact that he was third in line for the throne.

    This was because of Cleo¡¯s special position.

    ¡°Seriously... this is mother¡¯s problem, not mine. I¡¯m not the one who couldn¡¯t ept reality and forced my ugly ambitions onto a child.¡±

    Lysithea didn¡¯t respond to him.

    Considering the circumstances, she felt the Emperor was more to me rather than their mother.

    But if she ever actually voice those thoughts, heads would be sent flying.

    Though their lives would still be at risk even if they didn¡¯t do anything.

    ¡°Cleo, you need a powerful noble on your side.¡±

    Lysithea once again tried to persuade her brother.

    ¡°...I know that.¡±

    ¡°Then take this more seriously! Count Banfield isn¡¯t just young and capable, I¡¯ve heard that he¡¯s also the embodiment of noble spirit! Once he learns of your circumstances, he¡¯ll undoubtedly lend you his power.¡±

    Casting his eyes downward, Cleo suddenly burst intoughter while clinging to his stomach.

    ¡°You¡¯re telling me there¡¯s an aristocrat out there that will help a clown like myself? Even mother gave up on me. There¡¯s no point in having any expectations.¡±

    He was third in line to inherit the throne¨C but this position of his was nothing more than the Emperor¡¯s cruel joke.

    Knowing this truth, no noble would ever consider supporting Cleo.

    They¡¯d ratherugh at him instead.

    The reason such a Cleo tried getting in contact with a person as distinguished as Liam was¨C to put it simply, due to the intensifying battle for session.

    Repercussions of the Berkley family¡¯s fall to ruin were appearing everywhere.

    The aftermath had even reached the inner pce, factions were thrown into chaos and were now being reorganised.

    Now as a natural result, people were now taking advantage of this opportunity to raise their cement in the race for inheritance.

    There was significant meaning in someone choosing to support Cleo during this time.

    Both him and Lysithea were in dire straights, this meeting with Liam was theirst chance of hope to cling to.

    However, with how nobody had agreed to help them before, he had already given up himself.

    ¡°In any case¨C our older brothers are already preparing to recruit the Banfield house into their ranks.¡±

    Hearing that, Lysithea opened her eyes wide.

    ¡°Are you talking about the first and second ranked? Though they might be capable, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve heard any news of them trying to get into contact with him.¡±

    The crown prince with the highest chance to seed the throne was [Calvin Noah Albte].

    He had a multitude of nobles in his faction and was rumoured to be the most powerful man only second to the Emperor himself.

    However, when considering the royal family¡¯s history, such rumours were unreliable.

    Second in line was [Linus Noah Albte], an individual who¡¯s pure drive for the seat of Emperor couldn¡¯t bepared.

    Whenever anything even slightly seemed like it would be an obstacle to his ambitions, he thoroughly crushed them under his foot.

    But kicking Calvin down was difficult for even Linus.

    Due to the size of their factions and various circumstances, first through third ce for the right to inherit were rtively calm.

    However, with the destruction of the Berkley family, the imperial court has be restless.

    Linus wasn¡¯t going to miss this opportunity, and Calvin was strengthening his defences.

    As a result¨C the two of them were now recruiting as many powerful noblemen as they could.

    Such as Liam.

    Cleo couldn¡¯t help butment his ownck of power.

    ¡°It¡¯s only a matter of time.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°Lord Liam has safely enrolled into the Imperial University! This Brian here is so moved the tears won¡¯t stop!¡±

    Crying in the video call projected into the air was my butler Brian.

    He had made this call while I was currently living in the imperial capital.

    While sitting on a sofa in in clothes, I was currently watching his crying face.¡°What an unsightly face to see first thing in the morning. How many times have I told you? This is just another entrance ceremony, this one being for the university. Are you going to keep crying forever?¡±

    Was it really okay to have a butler that cried this easily?

    Well, at least he did his job well.

    I¡¯ve heard he was doing quite well managing my estate.

    ¡°What are you saying! After sessfully graduating from the military academy, all that¡¯s left of your training is your studies at the university and your work as an official! After that, you can return home and focus all your efforts into developing the territory!¡±

    While listening to Brian drone on, I was leisurely enjoying my morning.

    I was drinking tea prepared for me by Amagi as I conversed with him.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, is the development of the territory still proceeding smoothly?¡±

    Brian delightedly nodded his head multiple times.

    ¡°Of course! The domain is still developing even while you¡¯re in training. Please check the documents I¡¯ve sent if you want the specific numbers.¡±

    I smiled at his words.

    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear.¡±

    ¡°Everyone in the territory is eagerly awaiting your return, Lord Liam!¡±

    As always, my subjects seemed to bepletely ignorant of everything.

    Without even knowing that their master was an evil lord, they seemed to be looking forward to my return.

    I¨C [Liam Sera Banfield], am a reincarnator.

    I was a viin who was reincarnated into this fantasy universe and was aiming to be an evil lord.

    My previous life had taught me that there was no point in living virtuously, so now all of my actions in this one were done with the intention to enjoy it to the fullest.

    For that reason¨C while I wasn¡¯t in the territory, I had put in policy that would help drive its development.

    This was so that when I finally returned, I¡¯d be able to squeeze the rich residents for all they were worth.

    I was looking forward to that moment even now.

    With a meaningful smile, Brian chimed in while I was drinking tea.

    ¡°By the way, Lord Liam, when do you n to officially wee Lady Eulisia as a mistress?¡±

    ¡°-pfft?! W-where the hell did thate from?!¡±

    Eulisia¨C she was a former saledy of the Third Weapons Factory, a strange person who had left that position to return to the army while joining the special forces.

    Apparently her whole reason for doing so was just so that she could reject me after I confessed to her.

    She was a very disappointing girl, did people really think I wanted her as a mistress? While it was true that I had taken her in, I needed to correct this misconception.

    I had no intentions of weing her in as a lover.

    I really didn¡¯t, but I guess things might look that way considering how I recruited her.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t?¡±

    I turned back to look at Amagi, who was already moving to clean up the spilled tea.

    ¡°A-Amagi?! L-let me exin! This is just a misunderstanding!¡±

    Turning towards me, she was smiling.

    But something about it frightening.

    This situation was almost like man saying, ¡°You¡¯re misunderstanding my rtionship with that woman!¡± as he tried to exin things to his wife.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it fine? Lord Liam, you always say that you¡¯re looking to make a harem, but you never actually embrace anyone.¡±

    ¡°Then what about you!¡±

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t count.¡±

    ¡°Seriously?!¡±

    ¡°No, that¡¯s the truth. Your body is still pure, Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°...my body is still pure?¡±

    Amagi smiled as this surprising revtion dawned on me.

    In other words... I was still considered a virgin in this universe?

    Brian followed up while I was still in shock.

    ¡°I understand that you¡¯re currently engaged to Lady Rosetta, but the Banfield house currently suffers from ack of heirs. It¡¯s the duty of nobility to prepare sessors, even if by doing so you¡¯ll be a bit immoral.¡±

    ¡°Shut up! I can¡¯t make a child for a reason like that!¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with that?! Lord Liam, should anything ever happen to you, that would be the end of the Banfield house! This is important! We¡¯re actually really worried about this! You never show any interest in real women!¡±

    Seeing Brian actually angry for once, I was speechless.

    I want to live freely.

    I don¡¯t want to follow anyone¡¯s orders.

    However, seeing Brian so anxious, I couldn¡¯t really deny him with how long he¡¯s looked after me.

    ¡°I-I¡¯ll take that into consideration, but for now we¡¯re putting this story on hold.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re always dodging the subject like this! Lord Liam, this Brian here is so worried about this to the point of losing sleep. Even during your time at the imperial university, there will be those looking to turn the tables on yo¨C¡±

    Brian¡¯s nagging was getting pretty annoying so I ended the call there.

    I then wiped my sweat.

    ¡°¨Cmy mistresses should be carefully selected. That¡¯s why I¡¯m not going to ept Eulisia as one.¡±

    That¡¯s right. Only the best of the best can be one.

    Even if she was a little cute, a disappointing girl like Eulisia could never be one.

    Amagi was pouring me a new cup of tea.

    ¡°You¡¯ve already ended the call, why are you making excuses?¡±

    Not being able to bare Amagi¡¯s gaze any longer, I downed the tea in one go before standing up.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to the university.¡±

    Amagi bowed her head.

    ¡°Understood. I¡¯ll prepare the car.¡±

    Why do I have to be nagged by my butler about my own mistresses first thing in the morning?

    If there were more girls who weren¡¯t disappointing around me, it¡¯d be quickly increasing.

    Was that so hard to understand?

    Didn¡¯t butlers usually warn their masters to watch their womanising instead of pushing them into debauchery?

    ¡°Well, maybe there¡¯s some beautiful girls at the university?¡±

    To get Amagi and Brian off my back, should I just find some girl an¨C wait a second here.

    Why do I need an excuse to y around with women?

    With my second life, I¡¯ve already decided not to hold back on my desires.

    Anything should be fine as long as I enjoy myself.

    I¡¯m feeling kind of annoyed right now.

    ¡°Amagi, call Wace.¡±

    ¡°Wace? I don¡¯t believe he¡¯s awake yet.¡±

    He apparently returnedtest night and was still sleeping.

    The fact that this was all because he was ying around kind of pissed me off.

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter, wake him up.¡±

    Let¡¯s start going to mixers with him.

    Rosetta will surely be troubled if I start socialising with other women everyday.

    She¡¯ll surely regret getting engaged to a man like me!

 Chapter 72 - Volume 5 Chapter 1 - Factions

    <strong>Chapter 72- Volume 5 Chapter 1 ¨C Factions</strong>

    The Imperial Capital¡¯s University.

    Although it was called a university, it was actually a collection of several of them.

    There was an innumerable number of students enrolled, and a corresponding number of facilities to match.

    Depending on one¡¯s electives, students who¡¯ve enrolled at the same time may never actually meet each other.

    Walking around the campus of such a ce¨C was Rosetta.

    Her long blonde hair was set into its usual ringlets.

    Although such a hairstyle would usually stand out, this was the national university of the imperial capital.

    Because there were people who hailed from variouss here, there was an abundance of individuals with conspicuous hairstyles and clothes.

    Akin to a costumepetition, it was a spectacle that reminded one of a school¡¯s cultural festival.

    Surrounding Rosetta were multiple noble girls hailing from Liam¡¯s domain.

    They were the daughters of aristocratic families that called the Banfield house their patron. To describe their position in simple terms, they were the daughters of Liam¡¯s henchmen.

    Their job was to wait on Rosetta while she pursued her studies at the university.

    Great nobles often enrolled with their followers, so it wasn¡¯t an unusual sight.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, what should we have for lunch today?¡±

    ¡°How about cafeteria food?¡±

    ¡°We can¡¯t eat in such a ce, can we?¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it fine? It¡¯ll be a nice memory of our university life.¡±

    As they had this conversation while walking, the girls were getting increasingly noisy.

    But Rosetta didn¡¯t even spare them a nce.

    She understood their feelings.

    ¡°Eating at the cafeteria should be fine every once in a while, so why don¡¯t we pay it a visit?¡±

    When Rosetta gave her opinion, the two happily agreed.

    That¡¯s when a serious-looking girl that wore sses called out to her.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, their goal is to¨C¡±

    ¡°I know.¡±

    Various students gathered at the school cafeteria.

    Some of them were those that took sses here, while others were visitors from other institutes.

    But they were all there to pick up women.

    Many of them were aristocrats who had hidden their identity while they went out to ¡®y around.¡¯

    To partake in debauchery¨C they just wanted to enjoy their free time to the fullest.

    And in all honesty, a part of Rosetta¡¯s entourage wanted to find some boys to fool around with as well.

    ¡°Are you sure about this?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll allow it as long as they don¡¯t go overboard. Some of them don¡¯t even have fianc¨¦s yet, so I¡¯m trying to take that into consideration.¡±

    ¡°H-however, this might screw up their pre-marital negotiations.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not that unusual to partake in things like this, and I¡¯ve heard that many people actually forge strong friendships in these ces. As long as they take this seriously, I won¡¯t get in their way.¡±

    Though havinge from humble origins, Rosetta couldn¡¯t help but feel a little worried seeing all these people live their lives without restraint in the city.

    With that said, keeping too tight of a leash on the girls would be detrimental as well, so this was a chance for them to get a bit more experience on how to deal with people.

    That¡¯s why Rosetta wouldn¡¯t interfere.

    They just had to make sure they would take responsibility for their choices.

    And when Rosetta and her colleagues arrived at the cafeteria, they actually spotted Liam there.

    ¡°Ah, Darling¡¯s here.¡±

    Her cheeks flushing red, Rosetta began to approach him¨C but after seeing that Liam was in the middle of a serious conversation with Wace, she decided not to disturb them.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°Liam, I wasn¡¯t ying around yesterday, I just got backte.¡±

    Now sporting a fresh bump on his head, Wace went on to make excuses to me.

    ¡°You¡¯re saying this even though I¡¯ve heard that you go out drinking with badpany everyday? Using the money that I gave you? You¡¯re even taking such an impertinent attitude towards me.¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you the one being unreasonable here? Yeah, I usually use your money, but in any case, I really wasn¡¯t out ying around yesterday.¡±

    ¡°...did something happen?¡±

    With how frivolous Wace is, something must¡¯ve happened for him to return sote without ying around.

    Now that I think about it, he did seem kind of off this morning.

    He looked like he was painfullynguishing over something.

    ¡°A-actually... my family contacted me.¡±

    ¡°Your family? Like Cedric?¡±

    Cedric used to be one of the disposable spare-princes that was in a simr situation to Wace.

    But now he was enlisted in the army as a Major General.

    ¡°I wish. No, the ones that contacted me were my eldest and second-eldest siblings. Do you understand what that means?¡±

    He was testing my patience.

    I was starting to get angry here.

    ¡°Don¡¯t patronize me, just get to the point already.¡±

    ¡°...okay. In short, my brothers want to recruit you into their factions, so they requested me to work as their mediator. I hate this. I¡¯ve been trying to escape from the battle for the throne this entire time, but now I¡¯m suddenly involved again.¡±

    Wace has always been reluctant to partake in the court battles.

    This was because his life was easily forfeit if he made the wrong choice.

    There were thousands of individuals holding rights to seed the throne, all of which would do anything to kick theirpetitors down if they had the chance.

    Such individuals fought, crushed, and killed each other.

    ¡°They contacted you to get to me? You mean like how the prince third in line did so recently?¡±

    If I remember correctly, he was... His Highness Cleo?

    ¡°It¡¯s different. Cleo requested a direct meeting with you. In this case, my brothers wanted to recruit you into their factions through me.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    I couldn¡¯t understand this.

    ¡°In other words, they¡¯re requesting you to bend the knee and swear fealty to them. If you ept one of their invitations, then you¡¯ll have to make sure to prepare the souvenirs and donations necessary for the asion.¡±

    This kind of pissed me off.

    They¡¯re calling me out and ordering me to genuflect before them.

    Usually, I don¡¯t mind sending out bribes to build good will with my superiors¨C but in this case, the request the third prince sent asking for a formal meeting felt far better to ept than the others.

    ¡°They¡¯re looking down on me...¡±

    ¡°Of course they are. My brothers are the two candidates with the highest chance of bing the next Emperor.¡±

    It was only natural that they¡¯d have this arrogance.

    ¡°Hmm? Wait... so you¡¯re saying that they both have a great deal of power?¡±

    A disturbing thought passed through my mind.

    The hint about my ¡®true enemy¡¯ that the guide told me about before.

    I already held a fair amount of suspicions towards the current Emperor.

    Being the most powerful individual in the country, it wouldn¡¯t be surprising for him to be the one pulling the Berkley Family¡¯s strings.

    However, these new revtions show there¡¯s more than one possible candidate for the position.

    ¡°It¡¯s because my brothers both have a vast number of nobles working under them. In that sense, they¡¯re quite the imposing individuals. Not that my other siblings arepletely powerless, but those two stand out from the rest.¡±

    ¡°...is that so?¡±

    Taking that into consideration, they weren¡¯t people worth swearing myself to.

    There¡¯s a chance one of them was behind the Berkley Family¡¯s actions.

    If I epted their invitations too rashly, there was a possibility they¡¯d betray me.

    Or rather, this was an enemy the guide himself had to warn me about!

    They were dangerous.

    ¡°Wace, let them know¨C I refuse.¡±

    ¡°Ehhh?! Liam, what are you saying?! They¡¯re the first and second princes!¡±

    ¡°So what? They¡¯re my enemies.¡±

    It¡¯s highly likely that the Berkley Family was being manipted by someone in the shadows.

    The Emperor or the princes who are struggling against each other for the right of session are no good¨C but there is one person who approached me that meets my needs.

    ¡°Wace, if what you¡¯re saying is true, then isn¡¯t the third prince currently without any decent backing?¡±

    I¡¯ve heard stories about the third prince.

    A prince with almost no im to his inheritance and without any nobles supporting him.

    In other words, a powerless prince.

    But that¡¯s exactly why¨C

    ¡°Cleo doesn¡¯t have any decent backers, this has already been confirmed. Even the house that his mother is from has abandoned him.¡±

    ¡°How about his character?¡±

    ¡°His personality? W-well... he¡¯s my cute little brother, or should I say pitiful? Even though he¡¯s in a position where even I have sympathy for him, he¡¯s actually quite strong-willed.¡±

    ¡°That has a lot of weighting from you.¡±

    ¡°Of the three princes, Cleo is undoubtedly the most humane of them. Well, that could also be because of how young he is, so he isn¡¯t quite aware of the ways of the world. He¡¯s both serious and kind, but I don¡¯t know what the future has in store for him.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s enough.¡±

    ¨Che¡¯s no threat to me.

    It¡¯s highly unlikely that he was the one manipting the Berkley Family since he doesn¡¯t have any power of his own.

    He¡¯s the least risky choice of the lot.

    The Emperor and the two princes¨C if my true enemy is among them, then choosing any of their factions is dangerous.

    Not to mention the ill-will that I¡¯d receive as a neerte to the party.

    ¡°He¡¯s definitely the best. Cleo is the one I¡¯ll meet with. Send him a message to prepare for my arrival.¡±

    As I said that while drinking my coffee, Wace was trembling.

    ¡°Eh? Are you serious?¡±

    ¡°Obviously. Why wouldn¡¯t I be? Let it be publicly known¨C that I¡¯m seriously supporting His Highness Cleo.¡±

    I¡¯ve already built up enough power for my subordinates to take care of most of the grunt work.

    As for the two princes who are may potentially be my enemies¨C I can¡¯t let either of them be emperor.

    It would be pretty interesting to be Cleo¡¯s backer, and have the ruler of a nation dancing to my strings.

    That really gives off the feeling of an evil lord.

    ¡°Looks like things are getting fun.¡±

    When I said that, Wace began shaking his head in exasperation.

    ¡°You¡¯re the only one having fun with this.¡±

    Let¡¯s join the battle for the throne!

    My victory was practically guaranteed.

    I¡¯m pretty strong, both personally and financially.

    Two of the Empire¡¯s princes are nothing to me!

    Not to mention, I have a powerful guardian angel watching over me.

    As long as I have the guide on my side, I¡¯m invincible!

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    A far, far away from the Empire¡¯s imperial capital.

    All the way over in another intergctic nation.

    The guide was currently looking over a metropolitan city from the roof of a building.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been doing things wrong until now.¡±

    Reflecting over his past, the guide was currently gathering negative emotions from others a great distance away from Liam.

    As a result of this, he had a revtion.

    ¡°It was my mistake to get involved with Liam. With how he is now, there¡¯s no way for me to deal with him at the moment.¡±

    After calmly analyzing Liam¡¯s strength, he hade to the conclusion that he couldn¡¯t deal with him with only the Empire¡¯s resources.

    Did that mean he was giving up?

    No. Absolutely not.

    The guide spread out his hands.

    ¡°I need to crush the Empire in its entirety! The swordsmen that Yasushi raised will kill Liam himself, while I take measures to destroy the country he lives in from the outside!¡±

    His n was to involve other intergctic nations to kill Liam in the grandest fashion ever.

    So what was needed to make that possible?

    ¡°First, I¡¯ll sow the seeds of discord in this country¨C then I¡¯ll set fires to the nations around the Empire, which will eventually turn into zing infernos that will try to consume it!¡±

    Noticing problems that would eventually show themselves given time, the guide made moves to expedite those problems, making them grow as big as possible.

    This wasn¡¯t the only ce.

    ¡°All the nations adjacent to the Empire will be involved! Let¡¯s throw everything into havoc and chaos!¡±

    Just so he could kill Liam, the guide decided to involve the other intergctic nations to create the grandest stage ever.

    And as for Liam himself¨C

    ¡°I¡¯ll leave you alone for now, Liam. This is yourst chance to gather your strength, but don¡¯t forget¨C I¡¯m definitely going to make you drown in despair!¡±

    The guide made this deration out loud.

    ¡°Liam, from this ce where not even your gratitude can reach, I will definitely kill you!¡±

    From a ce far, far away¨C the guide directed his killing intent towards Liam.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°Cleo! You¡¯ve received a reply from Count Banfield!¡±

    Lysithea practically burst into the room Cleo was taking a bath in, letter in hand.

    She was in such a rush that she ran up to him while he was still soaking himself in the hot water.

    Although the few servants there were surprised, they didn¡¯tment on it due to her still being a princess.

    In the middle of a spacious bath, Cleo was staring at his sister in amazement.

    ¡°...you know that I¡¯m in the middle of a bath, right?¡±

    ¡°How can you be so calm about this?! Wace just brought us a letter from Count Banfield!¡±

    As Cleo stood up, his servants quickly covered his body in a hurry.

    They wiped it down with towels and brought him a bath gown.

    Approaching Lysithea at a steady pace, Cleo told his servants, ¡°that¡¯s enough,¡± and received the letter while still wet.

    (It¡¯s probably just a notice of rejection anyway...)

    He then proceeded to coldly cut the seal while under his sister¡¯s excited gaze.

    Then he read the letter.

    The contents of it were very formal.

    Maybe it was because he hasn¡¯t met them yet, but the sender¡¯s personality couldn¡¯t really be seen through what was written.

    The greeting however, was short and straight to the point.

    It said that arge donation would be immediately sent.

    The number listed had more digits than Cleo had ever seen before in his life.

    ¡°...that¡¯s quite a lot of money.¡±

    While Cleo still seemed to be in shock, Lysithea began speaking with shining eyes.

    ¡°Read it to the end! I¡¯ve already heard the rough outline from Wace, but Count Banfield said that he¡¯ll give you his full support!¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    It was no wonder that Cleo was surprised.

    After all, not just the crown prince, but even the second prince had moved to contact Liam.

    The two highest ranking princes had both reached out to the currently unaffiliated Count.

    This was one of the highest honours.

    And yet, he had chosen a decoration that didn¡¯t have any real power at all.

    ¡°Does he intend to turn me into his puppet?¡±

    Lysithea broke out intoughter at Cleo¡¯s concerns.

    ¡°What are you talking about? Looking at your current situation, no one would be willing to back you just to have you under their thumb.¡±

    ¡°...I guess that¡¯s true, I¡¯m not worth it.¡±

    Though when taking that into consideration, why did Liam choose him?

    Cleo couldn¡¯t understand this.

    ¡°In any case! You now have a young and powerful noble on your side! And it doesn¡¯t end there! Now the aristocrats that have stayed neutral until now might start gathering under the Banfield name! The creation of your faction is inevitable!¡±

    Cleo¡¯s faction would be formed with the Banfield house at its center.

    That meant that he would be a powerful force to be reckoned with.

    ¡°...I still can¡¯t understand what he wants from this. He might be a dangerous individual. I¡¯ll make my decision after meeting him in person.¡±

    Seeing Cleo¡¯s attitude, Lysithea finally calmed down.

    ¡°T-that might be true¨C however, isn¡¯t it fine to hope? At least just a little bit?¡±

    One of the servants listening in on their conversation made a slightly panicked expression, unlike the other happy employees.

 Chapter 73 - Volume 5 Chapter 2 - Who is the True Enemy?

    <strong>Chapter 73 ¨C Volume 5 Chapter 2 ¨C Who is the True Enemy?</strong>

    A greatmotion swept through the inner pce after Liam¡¯s letter arrived at Cleo¡¯s residence.

    Among Cleo¡¯s servants was a spy who reported the news to Crown Prince Calvin, and countermeasures were immediately made in response.

    The nobles who supported Calvin had gathered for a meeting.

    They couldn¡¯t understand this development.

    ¡°The declining Banfield house somehow managed to bounce back a little, and now they¡¯re acting so full of themselves.¡±

    ¡°A little? Are you blind? The Banfield house of today is stronger than how they were during their golden years. Their present head is hailed as a hero of this era.¡±

    ¡°But declining an invitation from the crown prince is just too much.¡±

    All of noble society was watching in anticipation for which side Count Banfield would choose among Calvin or Linus.

    However, he ended up dering that he would back Cleo instead.

    The aristocrats were sent into a frenzy at this.

    ¡°¨CI¡¯m concerned about how the families allied with the Banfield house will react to this.¡±

    ¡°Fortunately, the majority of them areposed of people who try to stay away from the court battles. I don¡¯t think they¡¯ll step in this time either.¡±

    ¡°Do you think Cleo¡¯s faction will be a third power? The timing couldn¡¯t be worse.¡±

    Silently looking over this meeting was a handsome young man sporting a beard¨C the Crown Prince Calvin himself.

    He listened to the conversation of the nobles with a smile.

    ¡°Well, this is puzzling. Why would he ally with Cleo of all people? Is this due to Wace¡¯s influence? My younger brother should¡¯ve been aware of Cleo¡¯s circumstances though.

    Wace¡¯s name was suddenly brought up in the meeting, which was then followed by Cedric¡¯s.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard that Prince Wace was close to Prince Cedric of the military.¡±

    ¡°Wasn¡¯t His Highness Cedric a Major General? Another prince with the backing of Count Banfield?¡±

    ¡°Then, could that mean that they¡¯re conspiring with each other to make a new faction? It would be troublesome if other members of the royal family began consolidating their power.¡±

    It¡¯d be problematic for the nobles to see other royals moving to support Cleo.

    Calvin let out a sigh.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to kill too many of my siblings.¡±

    The nobles beganining about Calvin¡¯s reaction.

    ¡°As the crown prince, mercy will only allow your enemies toe back with vengeance!¡±

    ¡°If you¡¯re too forgiving, your life will be forfeit, Your Highness!¡±

    ¡°We need to purge the filth from the royal family once again!¡±

    If something was inconvenient for them, the aristocrats wouldn¡¯t hesitate to eliminate the problem in a heartbeat.

    The nobles were desperate to make Calvin the emperor.

    After all, if their chosen prince became the country¡¯s ruler, all those here would be given important positions as a reward.

    But on the other hand¨Cif Calvin were to lose, they had no idea what the next emperor would do to them as punishment for their choices.

    ¡°His Highness Linus won¡¯t miss this chance. Your Highness, we need to move quickly!¡±

    Although the Empire wasn¡¯t without its own problems, when considering the current state of the neighboring countries this could the ideal time to push for session.

    Calvin nodded at this statement.

    ¡°It¡¯s such a shame. If Linus were just a bit less ambitious, then he wouldn¡¯t have forced my hand. I¡¯ll leave the details regarding this matter to you all.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    In a different area of the inner pce, the second prince¡¯s faction was gathering.

    Giving off more of an uptight impression whenpared to his older brother¨C Linus was also the person with the second highest rights to inherit the throne.

    His ambitions were intense even among the royal family.

    ¡°A report from the spy stationed to Cleo says that Count Banfield has refused to swear fealty to me.¡±

    The nobles were outraged when they heard this.

    ¡°What?!¡±

    ¡°He had the audacity to refuse the invitation of His Highness Linus?!¡±

    ¡°¨CYour Highness, how should we respond to this?¡±

    Linus was an ambitious individual with a face akin to a fox.

    His eyes opened wide as his thoughts drifted to the Banfield house.

    ¡°He chose to back not my older brother nor myself, but Cleo of all people? What are his intentions? Does this mean he thinks Cleo will win the session war?¡±

    The aristocrats fell silent at his words.

    Linus¡¯s faction consisted mainly of nobles that weren¡¯t epted into the Calvin¡¯s.

    While some of them chose Linus with actual hopes of overturning the situation, others were simply trying to parasitize off of the prince on chance he became emperor.

    So while he had the numbers, Linus¡¯s subordinatescked the quality of Calvin¡¯s faction.

    That¡¯s one of the reason¡¯s why he reached out to the powerful Liam.

    ¡°He rudely refused my invitation and chose my younger brother with poor prospects to seed the throne instead... this impertinence can¡¯t be forgiven.¡±

    The nobility understood how Linus felt, but still tried to dissuade him.

    ¡°We¡¯re currently in conflict with the crown prince¡¯s faction. If we start fighting with the Banfield house as well, the only one to benefit would be your older brother. There¡¯s also the movements of the neighboring countries to consider. It¡¯d be stupid to move rashly.¡±

    ¡°And let my enemies consolidate their power? Never. We need to move quickly.¡±

    ¡°Please heed our council, this is a turning point in the session war!¡±

    For Linus, the Banfield house wasn¡¯t his only problem.

    The movements of neighboring countries had grown chaotic, and this was his chance to exploit their moment of weakness.

    Not to mention the many other things he had nned.

    ¡°I know what you¡¯re saying, but he needs to pay for what he¡¯s done. He refused my invitation andmitted an act akin to spitting in my face. I can¡¯t just let this slide.¡±

    The nobles looked away.

    Linus seemed to be thinking about how severe the sanctions he should enforce in retaliation should be.

    ¡°In that case, how are we going to punish them?¡±

    Linus smiled at this query.

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t the majority of his profite from selling rare metals? The Empire has already secured the supplies we need, so lets halt all transactions with the Banfield house immediately. The merchants need to be sternly warned of this as well.¡±

    ¡°Wait! The Banfield house¡¯s Liam currently has the ve and Nendspanies as contracted purveyors! They have plenty of other channels to sell off their rare metals.¡±

    But Linus was aware of this as well.

    He wasn¡¯t worried.

    ¡°He¡¯s not contracted with thepanies themselves, but with Elliot and Patrice¨C two high ranking members within their respective businesses. The organizations themselves don¡¯t support the Banfield house. What¡¯s important is that others among their boards of directors see them as eyesores.¡±

    In other words, they were going to have an injunction filed on them as thest nail in the coffin.

    After hearing that much, the nobles had no choice but to ept.

    A direct fight would hinder their struggle against Calvin¡¯s faction. However¨C

    ¡°We¡¯ll move if we have the leeway too, but it¡¯s best to save our strength for when we fight the crown prince. His Highness Calvin is unlikely to reach out to Count Banfield again after his invitation was rejected, but leaving them alone could give them a chance to work together and corner us.¡±

    The nobles exined their point in a way Linus could ept.

    ¡°Anything is fine as long as he regrets going against me. The Count needs a reminder as to who he just picked a fight with.¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    ¡°Cheers!¡±

    We were currently at a bar.

    University students often gathered here and partied every night.

    The tavern was built with the youth in mind, so the majority of the customers were students.

    As such, many of the gatherings here were actually mixers.

    ¨CAnd yet... and yet!

    ¡°Wace, what the hell is this?!¡±

    Seeing as how the two of us were drinking alone at the counter, I couldn¡¯t help butin.

    Wace was practically drowning himself in alcohol.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say there¡¯d be girls?!¡±

    When I grabbed his clothes and shook him, Wace let out a detedugh.

    ¡°It¡¯s over... I¡¯m done for... My name has been popping up in my brother¡¯s meetings, and I¡¯ve been dragged into the session war...¡±

    Wace was broken.

    Even though he said there¡¯d be girls here, we were now drinking on our own in a noisy bar.

    ¡°You canceled our mixer with girls for that?¡±

    I tightened my grip on Wace¡¯s clothes, but he just gave me an emptyugh in response.

    When I finally let him go, he went right back to drinking again.

    ¡°As if you could understand me, Liam! Both my name and Cedric¡¯s were mentioned during my brother¡¯s faction meetings! At this rate, I¡¯ll be killed no matter who wins!¡±

    The struggle for the throne was a matter of life or death.

    If you made the wrong choice on who to side with, you¡¯d be killed after you lost.

    And depending on the next emperor, the way they¡¯d kill you would change.

    But even then, execution would be a mercy.

    No matter how scary actually dying was during the session wars, the worst part was the torture that came afterwards.

    In fear of this, Wace has been doing everything he could to avoid getting involved in this matter.

    And yet here he was¨C involved in it.

    He looked kind of pitiful, so I poured him a drink.

    ¡°Calm down, I wouldn¡¯t have chosen to support the third prince if I didn¡¯t think I had a chance of winning.¡±

    ¡°How so?! Choosing Cleo was practically a death sentence! He doesn¡¯t have a chance at all!¡±

    ¡°...what are you saying?¡±

    When I asked that, Wace took another swig of his drink before answering.

    ¡°Cleo... was originally a girl.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m saying that he was born a girl, but his mother dered him a man!¡±

    I couldn¡¯t help but ponder this statement.

    This was a universe with highly advanced science and technology.

    There was even magic here.

    In such a ce, did people seriously still struggle with determining a child¡¯s birth gender?

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t the truth be easy to reveal if that were the case?¡±

    ¡°¨Cit¡¯s because of my father¡¯s sick whims. Cleo¡¯s mother came from a family that originally supported a hostile faction. They were forgiven in the end, but were left struggling for quite a while.¡±

    The family Cleo¡¯s mother came from was once a powerful house.

    Although the emperor had eventually pardoned them, the scars from that time were never truly forgotten.

    And so, an insidious n for revenge began.

    ¡°There¡¯sws in ce that make it illegal to change the gender of minors, let alone babies that can¡¯t even choose for themselves, but the family had the doctor swear an oath of secrecy to hide the sexes of the children born there. Cleo¡¯s mother ended up bearing three children, but they were all girls. The third one was herst chance, and if it didn¡¯t work out, then that was the end for her.¡±

    ¡°The end?¡±

    ¡°She would¡¯ve lost her position in the inner pce. The other mothers had already given birth to boys, and with her only having daughters, Cleo¡¯s mother was losing standing among them.¡±

    How bad it got couldn¡¯t be said.

    But in any case, the hierarchy among the women that couldn¡¯t leave the inner pce was important.

    ¡°So Cleo is actually a girl?¡±

    ¡°No, he had his gender artificially changed to male. When my father learned the truth, heughed and said, ¡®I¡¯ll make him third in line to inherit the throne.¡¯¡±

    ¡°So what¡¯s the problem then?¡±

    So people can change their sex that easily? This universe is amazing.

    ¡°It¡¯s a big problem! If this became a viable strategy to increase one¡¯s standing, then all of my sisters would end up bing my brothers! To stop this, my father made Cleo into aughing stock, turning him into an example as to what would happen to those who falsified the genders of their children.¡±

    He was third in line for the throne in name only, Cleo¡¯s actual position and standing were far worse than his title. Nobody respected him.

    I fell into thought at this revtion.

    ¨Cthis was a chance.

    ¡°That¡¯s great!¡±

    ¡°Huh?! Haven¡¯t you been listening to me?! There¡¯s no future to siding with Cleo!¡±

    ¡°How so? As long as he¡¯s willing to ept his position then there¡¯s no problem. Rather, I¡¯ve been looking for a guy like him.¡±

    A prince hostile to my potential foe¨C the emperor.

    Even if their rtionship wasn¡¯t belligerent, it was a fact that they didn¡¯t get along well.

    In conclusion, it was highly unlikely that Cleo had anything to do with my ¡®true enemy.¡¯

    On the contrary, as he resented his father¨C we had amon adversary.

    That was all assuming the emperor was an enemy, though.

    This would still be a lucky find either way.

    Cleo was someone that I could use in the future.

    ¡°Wace, today we celebrate! Drink as much as you want!¡±

    After I asked the bar master to bring more alcohol, Wace started drinking again.

    ¡°Even if you didn¡¯t say that, I was nning to anyways!¡±

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The luxury hotel in the imperial capital where Liam was currently residing.

    There was currently a knight stationed there.

    His name was [us Sera Monto]¨C he was over three hundred years old, and had the appearance of someone in their thirties.

    He looked older than he should¡¯ve because he got easily stressed, but he was still a knight that served the Banfield house for several decades.

    With that said, he wasn¡¯t someone that was tortured by pirates or petrified in stone.

    He wasn¡¯t a knight who lovedbat either, he was just a normal person.

    Before eventually pledging himself to Liam, he served another noble house.

    However, that family was driven to ruin, and it was only on his journey to find a new liege that he discovered the Banfield house.

    For this reason, he wasn¡¯t as excessively loyal as some of the other knights were.

    He was fine as long as he could fulfill his duties, but he was still just a normal guy.

    Nevertheless, he was now themander of Liam¡¯s personal guard.

    ¡°How did this happen?¡±

    He sighed as he said this. Recently he¡¯s been sighing more often, and while he¡¯s been doing his best to keep it in check, he just couldn¡¯t stop.

    The reason was simple.

    All he wanted was a stable life. Rising up the ranks didn¡¯t interest him at all.

    The reason why us was assigned so close to Liam was because Tia and Marie were stripped of their positions as the head and deputy knights.

    Currently, those two had returned to Liam¡¯s territory to hunt pirates and earn money.

    And us was sent here in their ce.

    Among Liam¡¯s knights, he had a modest work ethic.

    He preferred following other¡¯s orders and didn¡¯t mind giving up credit on the battlefield.

    Don¡¯t get him wrong, he liked his job, but he¡¯d only put in a normal amount of effort into it.

    Being evaluated highly did make him happy, but only to a certain point.

    As us was making his way down one of the hotel¡¯s corridors, he passed by some of his men.

    ¡°Captain us! Do we have any orders to sortie?!¡±

    ¡°We should hunt down the pirates near the imperial capital!¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s go pick a fight with someone!¡±

    They were bloodthirsty subordinates hungry for a fight, no matter who the opponent was.

    (Why are all of my subordinates battle junkies?)

    The people whose lives were saved by Liam were loyal to the point of fanaticism.

    Serving Liam also guaranteed the officers that they would get to fight as much as they wanted.

    They were people who didn¡¯t really think about anything else¨C that¡¯s the kind of subordinates they were.

    ¡°Be prepared to receive Lord Liam¡¯s orders at any moment.¡±

    The men crisply saluted to us, who answered their queries calmly.

    ¡°Yes, sir!¡±

    As his men left, us dropped his shoulders.

    ¡°I want to return to a normal knight squad...¡±

    His subordinates were excellent, but they were too bloodthirsty.

    As he thought about that, us¡¯s deputy had approached him.

    ¡°Oh? us, you look like hell.¡±

    Not even bothering to address her boss appropriately was a female knight, one wearing a uniform based off of Chinese clothing.

    ¡°Chengshi, huh?¡±

    Her long ck hair was tied up like dumplings on both sides, which then fell into twin tails down her back.

    She was tall, and her supple limbs didn¡¯t seem like those a woman familiar withbat would have.

    But she was definitely a knight, and one on par with heroes like Tia and Marie at that.

    Her name was [Chengshi Sera Tourei].

    The edges of her eyes were decorated with red eye shadow.

    She was definitely beautiful, but the air around her felt like that of a savage.

    ¡°Do you know when Lord Liam is returning?¡±

    us couldn¡¯t help but feel that she was the most unstable of the knights he knew.

    (Why does Lord Liam continue to keep such dangerous people by his side?)

    ¡°Lord Liam is still out, but even when he returns you should keep your distance, Chengshi.¡±

    us was always on guard around her.

    The reason was obvious.

    ¡°That¡¯s too bad, and here I thought I¡¯d get a chance to challenge the rumoured ¡®School of the One-sh¡¯.¡±

    She was aiming to fight with Liam.

    There were many among Liam¡¯s knights that were quick to jump to violence.

    They were barbaric knights who only thought about fighting the strong.

    But even among them, Chengshi was an individual with outstanding talents and capability.

    ¡°I¡¯ve already told you this many times, but turning your de towards Lord Liam is a death sentence!¡±

    ¡°¨CI¡¯ve been constantly proiming that I wanted to see his strength for some time now, so isn¡¯t me being assigned here the same as him epting my challenge?¡±

    Liam was the one who selected his guards.

    Therefore, that was the only way she could interpret his choices.

    (Just why are my subordinates so bloodthirsty?!)

    us cried this out in his heart.

 Chapter 74 - Volume 5 Chapter 3 - Economic Sanctions

    <strong>Chapter 74 ¨C Volume 5 Chapter 3 ¨C Economic Sanctions</strong>

    A greatmotion had spread throughout the imperial court.

    The prime minister traveled to the room Linus resided in.

    ¡°Your Highness Linus, do you know what you just did?!¡±

    The prince was looking out through the window.

    His reflection shown on the ss was smiling.

    ¡°Prime minister, I know you have a high opinion of Count Banfield, but such favouritism means nothing to me.¡±

    ¡°Your Highness... could it be that you did this just because he didn¡¯t join your faction?!¡±

    The prime minister held a considerable amount of power within the Empire.

    However, certain factions didn¡¯t like that.

    One of them was Linus¡¯.

    ¡°The Banfield house has built up quite a lot of bad blood among the nobility. They need to be punished a bit. It¡¯s nothing big, all we¡¯re doing is refusing to buy their rare metals.¡±

    The thing is, it wasn¡¯t just the Empire, but all thepanies involved with Linus were involved in the boycott.

    Piggybacking on this opportunity, Calvin¡¯s faction and many others were also participating in this chance to cut down an arrogant neer.

    The prime minister realised nothing would change no matter what he said, and promptly gave up.

    ¡°¨CYour Highness, in every era you¡¯ll find those who seem to be chosen by fate, born with immeasurable luck. Unless fate decides to abandon these individuals, it isn¡¯t a wise decision to fight them.¡±

    Linus turned to the prime minister.

    ¡°I¡¯m lucky enough to be a prince born into the royal family, second in influence only to that of my older brother. Are you seriously saying that I¡¯d lose to some hick noble that grew up in the countryside?¡±

    The prime minister shook his head.

    ¡°You¡¯ve already made your choice, so I won¡¯t say anything more, but Your Highness, have you already forgotten what will happen if you lose this faction war?¡±

    ¡°How could I? Nevertheless, I¡¯m still alive, aren¡¯t I?¡±

    In the struggle for session, Linus¡¯ life has been at risk more than a few times, yet he¡¯s alwayse out on top.

    He was confident in his chances.

    ¡°If he¡¯s really that strong, then I¡¯ll forgive him after he bows down to me.¡±

    ¡°...don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t warn you.¡±

    After leaving the room, the prime minister immediately went to contact Serena¨C the maid currently working undercover in the Banfield house.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The day I was to meet with His Highness Cleo.

    Dressed in ceremonial attire and surrounded by knights, I had arrived at a visitor¡¯s facility located near the inner pce.

    Men who weren¡¯t affiliated with the royal family weren¡¯t allowed to enter this ce, so any business needed was taken care of in a supervised environment.

    As we waited there, us seemed to be silently panicking.

    This man was a knight rmended to me by Amagi.

    As a grounded and humane individual with a modest work ethic, she rated him very highly.

    As expected, I couldn¡¯t go against her wishes and ced a good person like him by my side.

    But topensate for that, I assigned Chengshi¨C a knight chosen for her appearance, as his deputy.

    A beautiful female knight was a must.

    Bnce was important.

    Having only old men as my guards was a turn off.

    ¡°Lord Liam, we¡¯ve received an urgent message from the Banfield territory.¡±

    ¡°An urgent message?¡±

    As I was currently trying to rx while drinking tea, us¡¯ report was nothing but an annoyance.

    ¡°Yes. There are rumours spreading throughout the imperial court that economic sanctions will soon be ced on the Banfield house. It¡¯s already been confirmed to be true.¡±

    ¡°¨Cand what do these sanctions entail?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯ll be restricting the rare metals sold by the Banfield house.¡±

    In summary, they were practically saying, ¡®We¡¯re no longer going to be doing business with you!¡¯

    Even if I conduct sales through my contracted merchants, it looks like they¡¯ll be heavily taxed.

    This meant that I couldn¡¯t sell rare metals anywhere in the Empire.

    ¡°I see... who¡¯s behind this?¡±

    ¡°That would be His Highness Linus.¡±

    ¡°Ah, that person. I believe he was the prince second in line to the throne? I guess he¡¯s taking revenge after I refused to enter his faction.¡±

    us looked nervous.

    But I wasn¡¯t worried.

    As long as I had the guide watching over me, I would never lose, and in the first ce, something on this level was nothing to me.

    ¡°What should we do?¡±

    ¡°Right now my first priority is to meet with His Highness Cleo. I¡¯lle up with countermeasures after I return... well, can you summon my merchants for a meeting?¡±

    His Highness Linus has done it now.

    If he thinks he can try to kick me down and just get away with it, he¡¯s in for a bad time.

    With this, I¡¯ve officially recognised the prince as my enemy.

    ¡°Are you seriously going to pick a fight against His Highness Linus?¡±

    ¡°That statement is wrong, us. He¡¯s the one who picked a fight with me.¡±

    ¡°N-no, aren¡¯t we the ones that started this? Afterall, we¡¯re the ones who refused his invitation in the first ce.¡±

    us seemed to be misunderstanding something.

    Seeing as there were eyes everywhere, I motioned for him to move closer before speaking in a quiet voice.

    ¡°I don¡¯t like how he summoned me while demanding that I bow my head to him. Though I wouldn¡¯t have any problem doing so if he was already confirmed to be the next Emperor.¡±

    ¡°...he¡¯s one of the stronger candidates though.¡±

    ¡°Precisely, a candidate. It still isn¡¯t locked in stone. us, I didn¡¯t refuse the invitation of the next Emperor because the person I choose will seed the throne. Don¡¯t make that mistake again.¡±

    If somebody wanted my help, it was easy enough.

    All they had to do was bow down and plead for me to join them.

    And that was it.

    As my puppet, it seems like His Highness Cleo would be the best choice.

    I would be the biggest ally among his faction.

    He wouldn¡¯t be able to do anything that would piss me off.

    As I thought, Cleo was the most appropriate one to be Emperor ording to my goals.

    While the current Emperor, Prince Calvin, and Prince Linus¨C the three candidates with the highest chance of being my true enemy needed to disappear.

    Otherwise, I¡¯d never be able to live in peace.

    For that reason, I¡¯ll crush them all.

    Two of them will die as coteral damage without any connection to my true enemy, but I didn¡¯t care.

    Anyone who threatens my peace is an enemy!

    As we continued to pass time like that, the knights who guarded the inner pce had appeared.

    ¡°Count Banfield, His Highness Cleo gives his greetings. Please leave your weapons here before passing through the gate.¡±

    They were vignt, but that wasn¡¯t unusual considering the royal family was involved.

    The knights in my guard looked nervous.

    This was because while rare, sneak attacks in the inner pce have been known to happen.

    ¡°So I¡¯ll finally get to meet with His Highness Cleo.¡±

    With those thoughts in mind, I left my weapon with the guards after being checked, and passed through the gates to meet with the prince.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    The waiting room that Liam had just left.

    Surrounded by the guards of the inner pce, Liam¡¯s knights couldn¡¯t help but be nervous.

    That was especially true for Captain us.

    (He just dered treason in front of the inner pce. Is he a big shot or just another fool? I honestly can¡¯t tell.)

    ording to the things us has experienced thus far, Liam was definitely no small fry.

    Many knights had sworn themselves to him for this very reason.

    However, there was one knight among the group smiling gleefully at these developments.

    It was Chengshi.

    ¡°¨Cthis is good. It looks like things will be getting fun soon!¡±

    Excitedly blushing, Chenshi had been itching for a fight ever since she was given her position.

    If handled poorly, she might¡¯ve even attacked Liam right here.

    That was the kind of knight Liam had stationed by his side.

    (Lord Liam, give me a break! Why would you bring this person on such an important asion?!)

    us straightened his back, fixing his appearance on the surface as his stomach ached all the while.

    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó

    For Cleo, his first encounter with Liam could only be described as eye-opening.

    ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you, Your Highness.¡±

    ¡°...I feel the same way, Count.¡±

    As an individual who has met numerous members of the imperial royal family, Cleo had momentarily lost his voice after witnessing the atmosphere and aura exuded by Liam.

    These people asionally appeared every era or so.

    Chosen ones blessed with talent, luck, and a certain aspect to them that couldn¡¯t beprehended by ordinary people.

    If somebody had even one of these traits, they¡¯d be guaranteed to seed in life, but the person in front of Cleo had everything.

    The instincts he had sharpened throughout his training instinctively knew this.

    (Even though he¡¯s been deprived of his sword, it still feels like he could kill me in an instant.)

    Currently acting as his guard¨C Lysithea¡¯s expression had sharpened into one full of vignce.

    Liam sat down in a chair and began talking, but the attitude he took wasn¡¯t one that should be used when speaking to a member of the royal family.

    ¡°I had nned to give my greetings and enjoy a discussion with you, but unfortunately something¡¯se up. So let¡¯s cut this short¨C what do you want?¡±

    Having suddenly been asked such a question, Cleo felt shame and frustration rise up in him as the one in the inferior position.

    But he immediately pushed down those feelings.

    (I¡¯m practically a beggar. I don¡¯t have any leverage to give the Count at the moment.)

    Once Cleo sat down as well, his eldest sister¨C [Cecillia Noah Albte], stepped in as a waitress to serve tea.

    Liam drank it with no hesitation.

    ¡°You sure have guts, Count. What if it were poisoned?¡±

    Upon hearing that, Liam broke out inughter.

    ¡°Is this much really that surprising to you?¡±

    A statement was made that implied he wasn¡¯t afraid of Cleo in the slightest.

    But it was the truth.

    Lysithea¡¯s impression of him seemed to be dropping, but she didn¡¯t break into the conversation.

    ¡°Since you¡¯re short on time I¡¯ll be straight, join my faction and support my rise to the throne. In return, once I be Emperor, I¡¯ll give you anything you desire. However, I can¡¯t guarantee I won¡¯t back out of this deal.¡±

    Both Cecillia and Lysithea were surprised by Cleo¡¯s attitude.

    But Liam¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change.

    (Now then, how will he respond? Even if he lost his temper, it would still be fine.)

    Cleo didn¡¯t know what Liam wanted from him.

    That was the scariest thing about this situation.

    But contrary to his expectations, Liam seemed... intrigued by Cleo¡¯s candidness.

    ¡°Not bad. I don¡¯t hate such attitudes. Don¡¯t worry, I knew you wouldn¡¯t be able to reward me with how powerless you are now, Your Highness.¡±

    He passive aggressively returned the conversation back to Cleo.

    But Cleo wasn¡¯t going to me Liam for his rudeness.

    ¡°It¡¯s true, I have no power. That¡¯s why I¡¯m asking you what you want in return for your support.¡±

    ¡°The answer is simple, I want you to be Emperor.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Was he being serious? Cleo couldn¡¯t help but be surprised at Liam¡¯s humourless expression.

    His bearing was steadfast and filled with confidence.

    ¡°Are you insane? Do you not know of my circumstances?¡±

    ¡°Oh I know of them, and that¡¯s exactly why I chose to support you. Let me make this clear, you didn¡¯t choose me, I chose you. Remember that.¡±

    His arrogance was beyond shocking, to the point that it was even almost respectable.

    ¡°That¡¯s quite the bullish attitude you have there.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve already picked a fight with His Highness Linus, so I¡¯m far past the point to be having doubts now.¡±

    With those words, the room fell into silence.

    ¡°...with my older brother?¡±

    ¡°I really am here to support you. Your Highness Cleo, please don¡¯t hesitate to name anything you need, and I will give you the seat of Emperor.¡±

    Cleo had heard rumours about Liam being a child prodigy, but the person in front of him was far more.

    For the first time in a long while, Cleo felt his heart beating in excitement.

    (What an interesting person. Although I¡¯ve seen plenty of confident people during my time in the court, I¡¯ve never seen anyone so unshakable in their beliefs. Even Linus has his doubts about bing Emperor.)

    At that moment, Cleo decided to bet his life on Liam.

    ¡°As I said earlier, Count. I want everything. Funds, human resources, martial power, everything you can spare.¡±

    To increase his standing, Cleo didn¡¯t just need arge amount of money, but also the personnel required to enact his ns.

    But more than anything else, he needed the Banfield house¡¯s military might on his side.

    Liam answered while sipping at his tea.

    ¡°I have three thousand ships waiting on standby at a nearby while I¡¯m here at the imperial capital. That¡¯s the most I can move at the moment.¡±

    Lysithea¡¯s eyes opened wide as she heard this.

    Bringing three thousand ships under Cleo¡¯s immediatemand would be an amazing boon for his current circumstances.

    ¡°Three thousand?! N-no, please excuse me.¡±

    Liam couldn¡¯t help but smirk after seeing Lysithea hurriedly move to control herself.

    ¡°Oh, is that not enough? In that case, I¡¯ll call in twelve thousand more. Please use them to show the true strength of His Highness Cleo.¡±

    Hearing those numbers, Lysithea couldn¡¯t help but fall silent in shock.

    Cleo was the same.

    ¡°...I appreciate it, but I don¡¯t think I can manage that many.¡±

    ¡°Really? Well, that¡¯s troubling... Oh, I know! I currently have a knight whose talents are being wasted on standby. I¡¯ll station them by your side, and they can double as my liaison.¡±

    As Liam uttered those words, a holographic image materialised into the air.

    The faces of two knights were shown, but Liam gestured to one of them.

    ¡°Her name is Christiana. Putting her personality aside, she¡¯s an excellent subordinate of mine, so use her as you please.¡±

    After hearing the knight¡¯s name, Lysithea couldn¡¯t help but exim.

    ¡°Christiana? As in... Brigadier General Christiana?!¡±

    Cleo had to lightly re at his sister before she calmed down in shame.

    ¡°...is she famous?¡±

    With the conversation already interrupted, Cleo addressed his sibling.

    Though Liam didn¡¯t seem to mind.

    Rather, he looked amused.

    ¡°Y-yeah. She¡¯s a female knight who graduated from the officers academy with exemry grades. Highly regarded as an official, she¡¯s even worked directly under the imperial prime minister multiple times.¡±

    To be able to assign such an individual to Cleo¡¯s side that easily...

    It seems that Liam had a multitude of talented subordinates at his call.

    ¡°Can you really afford to let go of such a knight?¡±

    When Cleo asked him that, Liam responded with an interesting offer.

    ¡°I don¡¯t mind. Do you need more?¡±

    Almost inexhaustible funds.

    An excellent array of human resources.

    Incredible military power¨C and the personnel required to make use of it to the fullest.

    Cleo felt a shudder run down his spine.

    (They call him a child prodigy, but that¡¯s only scratching the surface. Even if I really became the Emperor, what could he possibly want from me?)

    ¡°I don¡¯t like making assumptions about the future, but how do you want me to pay you for this, Count?¡±

    Liam smiled at Cleo¡¯s words.

    To provide this much support, he must surely be looking for something.

    An important position within the Empire?

    Or¨C

    ¡°I want free reign over my territory. If you can ept that, then I¡¯ll make you the Emperor.¡±

    ¨CCleo tilted his head.

    ¡°Is that it? You¡¯ll really lend me your support for just that?¡±

    ¡°Of course. Though naturally, I¡¯m going to make the most of this transaction. I¡¯m looking forward to our mutually beneficial rtionship in the future, so let¡¯s get along, yeah?¡±

    He was evading the question.

    Cleo couldn¡¯t help but feel anxious about the future when he realised this.

    (Does he intend to take control of the Empire from behind the scenes? Though... that doesn¡¯t actually seem that bad. If it was such a person, he¡¯d surely do much better than me.)

    Even after only a brief investigation, Liam¡¯s name was found to be widely associated with being a virtuous ruler.

    He wouldn¡¯t know the truth unless it actually happened, but Cleo was sure that Liam would be a better monarch.

    ¡°...before anything else, my top priority is my survival. Count, let¡¯s finish the rest of this conversation at ater date.¡±

    (No matter what happens, this guy will only get what he wants if I live. There¡¯s no point in finalising the rewards at this stage.)

    Having finished his tea, Liam briskly stood up.

    ¡°That sounds perfectly fine. Your Highness Cleo, I hope to see you again soon.¡±

    Watching Liam¡¯s receding back, Cleo couldn¡¯t help but shudder.

    (¨CI was afraid of my older brothers and desperately reached out to him for help, but I might¡¯ve just brought a ridiculous individual into the session war.)

 Chapter 75 - Volume 5 Chapter 4

    At the luxury hotel where Liam stayed, the three summoned merchants arrived.

    Thomas of the Henfrey Chamber of Commerce who had the longest rtionship with Liam.

    Elliot of the ve Chamber of Commerce who is doing business in the imperial capital of the Empire.

    Andstly, Patrice of the Nends Trading Company, which is widely involved with businesses in the empire.

    All three were very impatient.

    ¡°Is it going to be okay? Banfield¡¯s¡¯ main source of revenue is rare metals. If we can¡¯t trade this, it would be a big blow.¡±

    Thomas seemed very uneasy, Patrice returned irritably.

    ¡°It¡¯s a big blow. I don¡¯t have a solid position in the Nends Chamber of Commerce. Right now, some of the executives have begun cutting me off..¡±

    Elliot appeared calm, but his inner heart was in turmoil.

    ¡°It¡¯s the same with me. The Executives in my organization are debating a change of leadership. Turning His Highness Linus into an enemy-what on earth was the count thinking?¡±

    The three were staggered by Liam¡¯s iprehensible behavior.

    However, Thomas had experienced various things so far, and he was used to Liam¡¯s behavior.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, Lord Liam may act brash, but he¡¯s a firm man. There was Rosetta-san¡¯s case, and maybe this time as well.¡±

    Patrice shudders remembering the fate of the Berkley Family.

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t want to be crushed by that kind of force. It¡¯s proof of Lord Liam¡¯s endless depth.¡±

    But this time, the enemy is not a noble family like the Berkeley¡¯s, but a genuine prince contesting for the throne.

    It¡¯s not like how it used to be.

    Besides, the aristocrats of the Linus faction are also turning belligerent.

    It would be hard for even Liam to tackle them alone.

    Elliot¡¯s eyes turned cold.

    ¡°We need to deliberate this¡±

    The two were thinking about abandoning Liam, but Thomas had other thoughts.

    ¡°¨CI think Lord Liam is up to something in this case¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    When Elliot asks, Thomas has a hard time answering.

    However, It felt like Liam is nning something, something immense.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know exactly, but something big¨C¡°

    The door opens and Liam entered the room where the three were waiting.

    ¡°Thank you very much for gathering here!¡± Liam greets them cheerfully.

    Looking at Liam¡¯s cheerful smile, Patrice and Elliot both greet back mockingly.

    ¡°Thank you very much for this situation, Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°Looking at your smile, It doesn¡¯t look like you¡¯re engaged in a battle with His Highness Linus.¡±

    Liam waspletely unfazed by the stinging words of the two guests.

    ¡°Is it about the second prince? It doesn¡¯t matter, I don¡¯t care about him.¡±

    The second prince was not someone Liam put in his eyes in the first ce.

    When Liam sat down on the sofa, Thomas asked a question on behalf of the two of them.

    ¡°Lord Liam, what are you going to do about this? I hear that economic sanctions are going to be imposed upon your territory?¡±

    ¡°Economic sanctions? Oh, that. If I said that I was going to fully support the Third Prince and make him the Emperor, it would naturally result in fighting the Second Prince.¡±

    The spines of the three people who heard it suddenly became chilled.

    Liam was still smiling.

    ¡°I will make His Highness Cleo the Emperor. You can help me to do so if you wish.¡±

    Thomas was dizzy.

    What the hell is this guy saying? It¡¯s mind-boggling to think that a count of the Empire could decide the next Emperor.

    ¡°But is that really possible? In the first ce, Lord Liam received economic sanctions on your source of wealth...¡±

    ¡°I have a few ideas. The empire isn¡¯t the only trading partner, you know. The world is vast-is there any shortage of other interster nations?¡±

    Thomas had his mouth wide open.

    ¡°Do you intend to trade the rare metals with other countries?¡± he asked. It would be a felony to trade with other countries without permission...

    Some nobles also traded rare metals to other nations, but the amount was notrge by any means.

    They would be covert dealings evading the Empire¡¯s gaze.

    However, the amount of rare metals in Liam¡¯s territory is colossal.

    If that amount moves, even the Empire will immediately notice.

    ¡°His Highness Linus, who picked a quarrel with me, is the one in the wrong. And I¡¯m not going to be a criminal. I¡¯m just dealing with undesignated metals andmodities. Did Thomas and Patrice ever trade with foreign countries?¡±

    Thomas had traded with various countries before bing Liam¡¯s contracted purveyor.

    That is why there was merit in believing that this was an avenue they could pursue.

    ¡°Yes, but even if I had some dealings with them, it¡¯ll be a problem when ites to regr transactions.¡±

    The same goes for Patrice.

    ¡°I can¡¯t say that I have a reliablework either. Finding a trading partner is will be difficult.¡±

    Is there a foreign country that wants to do business with the Empire?

    Even if there is, could they trade openly?

    The Empire is currently at war with its neighbors, and should their dealingse to light, it would be seen as an act of treason.

    The military wouldn¡¯t be silent about it either.

    It was Elliot who smiled at the two worriedpanions.

    ¡°-There could be something we could explore, Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°What would that be Elliot?¡±

    Liam turned his attention to Elliot and asked him to exin.

    Elliot talked about the rumors he heard in the imperial capital.

    ¡°There is a rumor going around among the court nobles of the capital, and it seems to be extremely credible. The countries adjacent to the Empire seem to be having internal problems.¡±

    ¡°Continue¡±

    Liam expressed his interest.

    ¡°We are collecting various materials to be used for war efforts. That is why the Empire was seeking cooperation with us.¡±

    It was an open secret that the Empire had begun gathering various materials for the war.

    It also involved the upper echelons of the Empire.

    This is one of the reasons why Calvin and Linus are intensifying the fight between their factions. After all, the enemies are unable to move on arge scale.

    Considering the current state of the neighboring countries¡¯ immobility, this could the ideal time to push for session.

    ¡°What are the movements of the Imperial Army?¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t cooperate, we don¡¯t attack. I don¡¯t know what exactly is going on. But it¡¯s true that something is happening.¡±

    Thomas recalled after hearing Elliot¡¯s story.

    (This is it. Sometimes it seems like heaven is on Liam¡¯s side. This moment of desperation is offset by the neighboring nations internal conflicts-I think it¡¯s immensely lucky.)

    If this wasn¡¯t the case, Liam might have been stuffed.

    It was as if some higher force, a powerful guardian angel was watching over Liam.

    ¡°Let¡¯s make money by picking sides in the neighboring countries¡¯ conflicts. I¡¯ll prepare the resources.¡±

    Liam said, wondering if Patrice had finished the calctions in her head.

    Believing it would be profitable, she seemed to be enjoying the situation.

    ¡°I will prepare a list of trading partnerster. Before that, I beseech you to lend us your power.¡±

    ¡°My power?¡±

    ¡°Escorts to guard our shipments. Hundreds of ships.¡±

    Elliot was a little dispirited and requested the same.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have a firm standing in my organization right now. I will aid you, but I would need your power as well. The Executives of my organization would raise a fuss if I were to use my own.¡±

    Liam nods and immediately issued an order to prepare the escort ships.

    ¡°Thomas, do you need protection as well?¡±

    ¡°If you can, please provide them, Lord Liam¡± Thomas replied.

    ¡°I would be in trouble if you were to die.¡±

    Liam immediately leaves the room for a detailed meeting with the military, but the remaining three stay to discuss their n.

    Elliot immediately confirmed the requisite supplies.

    ¡°If we prepare a lot of rare metals to trade with the adjacent nations, His Highness Linus will catch on to us. We need to prepare a dummy.¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t need to. I think we¡¯ll be able to make good excuses when we sell through my channels, so you can leave this matter to me.¡±

    ¡°We just need to pick a side then.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s me and Thomas who¡¯ll be on the scene. Is it permissible for us to decide on which side to pick?¡±

    ¡°It would have been so much simpler to pick the one with the most funds, but s-¡°

    The two of them were very lively unlike just a short while ago.

    Thomas joins in on the conversation.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to talk to someone I¡¯ve traded with before. Even so, the surroundings of the empire are getting very busy.¡±

    It was eerie.

    It is not umon for a civil war to ur, butrge civil wars rarely urred.

    Patricees up with a suggestion!.

    ¡°Oh! The Imperial Army¡¯s fleets are annoyed and weary due to this long-running dispute. If we can make a ceasefire in secret, we can sell a favor to the Imperial Army!¡±

    The Imperial Army can also take a break.

    The truth is that the people who wanted to fight and the Imperial Army both wanted to take a breath.

    Elliot knew a few people.

    ¡°I¡¯ll talk to an acquaintance of mine in the Army.¡±

    ¡°It would be nice to see the enemy weaken. We¡¯ll take a break before the big offensive and monitor the situation meanwhile.¡±

    They don¡¯t know what exactly is going on.

    However, the three of them smell an opportunity.

    And at the same time, there is no other path for them.

    If Liam loses, their status and life will be in jeopardy.

    At any rate, they needed to survive this crisis.

    And hope is now visible.

    All they had to do is win.

    Thomas observed the two who seemed happy about making money by supplying resources to the conflicting parties.

    ¡°Don¡¯t get too greedy and touch upon Lord Liam¡¯s bottom line. Lord Liam is a virtuous personage. What would happen if he knew that you had dealings with someone unscrupulous?¡±

    Patrice hurries to settle Thomas¡¯s apprehension.

    ¡°Of course, of course. We will investigate and only deal with personages with the right cause¡±

    Elliot is no different.

    ¡°We can¡¯t make mistakes by looking at just the profits and choose the one that¡¯s most convenient for us. Lord Liam attaches great importance to just causes.¡±

    Liam told them to make money for themselves.

    He had a good understanding of how the merchants moved.

    He understands that you can¡¯t ask a merchant to do business by absolutelyplying with thew. But they know that Liam was also a virtuous ruler who had a bottom line.

    ¡°That¡¯s right if you look at his actions so far, it¡¯s better not to get on the bad side of Lord Liam. Once he gets angry and judges you to be an enemy, you¡¯ll be decimated just like the Berkley¡¯s.¡±

    The two of them acknowledge Thomas¡¯s opinion, after all, he had been with Liam for many years.

    ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s support only those who have a just cause. Anyway, it would be convenient if they would fight. This will allow us to earn their grace while enriching ourselves.¡±

    Elliot nodded at Patrice¡¯s opinion.

    ¡°I will support the two of you, so make sure you choose right.¡±

    It meant that they carried great responsibility.

    Elliot smiles at them.

    ¡°Good luck. I really wish you good luck. This is very important. Lord Liam is blessed with luck on this asion. I am still anxious about the matter of the Third Prince, but the future is not all bad.¡±

    For the three of them, it¡¯s important that Liam is alive and well.

    Patrice agrees.

    ¡°Even if it fails, it¡¯s an opportunity to branch out abroad, and I¡¯m happy to get involved.¡±

    And it¡¯s extremely desirable to make new connections in other countries.

    Also, their rewards would be enormous if his Highness Cleo, whom no one other than their Lord has bet on, were to win.

    And both Patrice and Elliot were optimistic about their chances.

 Chapter 76 - Volume 5 Chapter 5

    <h4>Volume 5 Chapter 5 Liam¡¯s n</h4>

    ¡°It was harder than I thought it would be.¡±

    Liam thought in his hotel room after the meeting with His Highness Cleo and his entourage had concluded.

    Cleo, whom he didn¡¯t think much of before the meeting, turned out to be more mature than he expected.

    He came to terms with it.

    It would be a pity if the prince was a little frustrated upon witnessing the vast difference in their abilities.

    He thought that the prince was an androgynous beauty, maybe because he was formerly a girl.

    Even though the prince had the frame of a man, Liam felt a woman inside him.

    Was he not a perfect transsexual?

    While Liam was engrossed in such thoughts, the door to his room was knocked open and Rosetta rushed in.

    ¡°Darling! I heard that his highness Linus is putting pressure on the Banfield family! Is that true!?¡¹

    Looking at the anxious Rosetta, Liam felt dispirited.

    He couldn¡¯t stand seeing the woman whose will was made of steel, to stoop so low and now exalt him.

    He became very embarrassed upon witnessing her demeanor.

    ¡°It isn¡¯t a big deal,¡± Liam responded.

    ¡°It¡¯s an enormous problem!¡± She retorted back. ¡°The Banfield family¡¯s finances would suffer devastating losses if the trading of rare metals is sanctioned!¡±

    The act of a restless Rosetta pping her hands like a bird was very amusing to watch.

    She brought out Liam¡¯s mischievous nature, he intended to tease her.

    ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯ll have to live in poverty if rare metals can¡¯t be sold anywhere. I would turn vulnerable and taken advantage of. Do you intend to throw me away and flee?

    When he turned to her, Rosetta gazed at him earnestly.

    ¡°I will remain with you even if Darling bes destitute,¡± she said. ¡°Even if you are no longer able to earn, I¡¯ll feed you!¡±

    Liam did not expect such a reaction.

    It was extremely disconcerting.

    ¡°I was kidding!¡± he retorted, ¡°I don¡¯t have any problems finding other trading partners. I can sell to our neighboring countries you know.¡±

    ¡°But is it not a vition to trade with the foreigners?¡± she asked.

    ¡°It was the second prince who picked a quarrel with me. Besides, even if I¡¯m not able to trade rare metals, I¡¯ll have no problems making money.¡±

    He did have a Trump card which was his alchemy box.

    He would be able to mass-produce and export metals other than the rare metals which the Empire regtes. It would not be a problem.

    Even if it is regted by the Empire, there were ways to get around it.

    Liam felt that the number of rare metals he traded was not toorge and his other business ventures were very profitable as well.

    Even without the rare metals, the count¡¯s estate would earn a decent amount through other various businesses.

    From the beginning, the Banfield¡¯s Estate focused on Risk diversification as a fundamental.

    ¡°It is not an outrageous idea to trade with foreign countries you know, it would be good to utilize this opportunity to make new connections with them,¡± he said.

    Rosetta sat down next to Liam and looked at him with a smile.

    ¡°With foreign powers? Do you intend to forge your path, one that may be of detriment to the Empire¡¯s interests?¡±

    ¡°I intend to side with the one who benefits me. It doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s hostile to the Empire.¡±

    Rosetta found it hard toprehend Liam¡¯s words.

    Liam stared at the stupefied Rosetta and felt that she was a little too naive to be bewildered even at his trivial remarks. Was I a little too severe? He thought to himself.

    Well, if she became startled by such trifling matters, she would notst as a wife of an evil lord. He thought.

    Wait? Looking at her, it felt like she was misunderstanding him!? He considered if he should unt his viinous nature to solve this misconception in her mind.

    ¡°Remember, Rosetta. A true viin colludes with the enemies and strangles his allies.¡±

    Rosetta was startled by listening to those words.

    It didn¡¯t matter if it would be detrimental to the Empire.

    He will pursue only his happiness!

    ¡ó

    Rosetta was perplexed while walking down the hallway, on her way back to her room.

    ¡°A true viin-who the hell is that?¡± she muttered to herself.

    It was inconceivable for Rosetta to associate the heroic figure of Liam to an unscrupulous viin.

    From her perspective, there was no one more righteous than Liam.

    She thought he was probably infuriated by the real scoundrels.

    Taking into ount Liam¡¯s actions so far, outrageous moves were not umon.

    That can be demonstrated by Liam¡¯s support of His Highness Cleo who was the farthest from the imperial throne. Even if that meant offending Calvin and Linus.

    What was the meaning behind this?

    Liam¡¯s current influence can in no way be disdained in the Empire

    His strength was such that, were he to pick a side between Calvin and Linus, the battle for session would be determined.

    So it was obvious that him epting His Highness Linus¡¯s offer would raise the Banfield¡¯s house to greater heights.

    That would also hold by joining the Calvin faction.

    If Liam¡¯s force wasbined with Linus¡¯s factions, he would surely have an enormous edge in the struggle for session.

    ¡°Darling is an influential aristocrat, so the two princes should have offered him a suitable status. Yet they were both turned down and he backed the Third Prince.¡± She deliberated.

    Rosetta ponders over Liam¡¯s bewildering actions. She thought Liam¡¯s decision had a greater meaning even though there wasn¡¯t any.

    ¡°Ah!¡± realization dawned upon Rosetta. ¡°Are both Prince Calvin and Prince Linus the scoundrels who are intimate with the enemy!?¡±

    Liam, who was actively seeking connections with the neighboring countries on his own, must be privy to the dirty secrets of the two princes.

    He wasn¡¯t revealing these secrets in consideration of the danger it would bring to them. Rosetta misconceived.

    Rosetta¡¯s spine became cold.

    ¡°-Is this the darkness of the Empire,¡± she asked herself.

    She didn¡¯t realize it until now, but the darkness of the empire made her feel gloomy.

    Rosetta deeply admires Liam who she feels is under immense pressure because of this conspiracy.

    It felt like Liam was fighting alone against the rogue princes who betrayed their homnd and colluded with the enemies to the detriment of the Empire.

    As Rosetta¡¯s misunderstanding grew, Mary came across Rosetta.

    ¡°How have you been, Rosetta?¡± Mary greeted.

    ¡°Mary? I didn¡¯t know you wereing here.¡±

    ¡°I received an order from Lord Liam,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯ll be departing from the empire in a while. So I thought of greeting you before that, but ¡­ what are you worried about? ¡°

    ¡°Mary, where will you be going?¡±

    Liam will probably dispatch his subordinates to foreign countries, Rosetta thought.

    Rosetta inquired Mary regarding her dispatch.

    Mary was a little baffled but talked about her orders.

    ¡°It¡¯s Roustoir. I¡¯m infiltrating the Roustoir Integrated Government disguised as mercenary escorts safeguarding Banfield estates contracted merchants.¡±

    Mary would be escorting Patrice of the Nends Trading Company.

    ¡°The Integrated Government? ¨CDid Darling tell you anything more?¡±

    ¡°I haven¡¯t heard directly, but Lord Liam intends to make his connections in the Integrated Government. We¡¯ll end up meeting their dignitaries as well, I¡¯ll be keeping an eye on them.¡±

    ¡°Aha!¡± Realization dawned on Rosetta.

    Rosetta felt she was able to connect the dots.

    ¡°Rosetta, are you okay?¡± Mary asked, concerned.

    Mary spoke of the details of her mission as Rosetta was Liam¡¯s fianc¨¦ and a key figure in the Banfield family.

    Liam hadn¡¯t told her that it was confidential, so she spoke readily about her mission.

    ¡°Mary, I have a favor to ask of you. Please gather intelligence on the Integrated Government. I want you to investigate the Empire¡¯s involvement in its inner dispute.¡±

    Mary squinted her eyes.

    ¡°I¡¯ll keep an eye out,¡± Mary replied approvingly.

    Mary also felt something was going on behind the scenes so she listened to Rosetta¡¯s request.

    ¡ó

    ¡°How can you be such an idiot Liam-san?¡±

    It was Wace¡¯s elder brother Cedric, who was expressing his discontent over the inte.

    Although he was a member of the imperial family, he was very far down the line of session and so lived his life as a military man. Currently, he is a major general who leads thousands of ships with the backing of Count Banfield.

    The reason he was swearing which was unbefitting of his stature was that the people around him were part of the same faction (Liam¡¯s subordinates).

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll send you state-of-the-art ships.¡± Liam said.

    ¡°Is that supposed to make me feel safe? I decided to live by on my strength, I wasn¡¯t nning on getting involved in the session fight!¡±

    ¡°Well, calm down. I¡¯ll give you lots of funds okay?¡±

    The reason Cedric was disgruntled was that he was assigned to a regr fleet and was being treated as a snitch by the other factions.

    Even the operating funds for his fleet were reduced and his requests to the higher-ups were snubbed.

    ¡°And why did you pick Cleo?! He can¡¯t seed. The only way you can aid him is to help him secretly escape!¡±

    ¡°That won¡¯t be necessary. I decided to make him the next emperor.¡± Liam replied.

    That will benefit me, Liam thought.

    The Emperor and the other princes are likely to be his enemies and Linus is already belligerent towards him.

    ¡°There is no way you are getting out of this situation now Cedric, just keep the fleet in control and I¡¯ll give you a generous budget and state-of-the-art weaponry.¡±

    ¡°If you give me the funds, I can do it. But I can move only around a thousand ships at most. I don¡¯t think I can be that helpful to you though?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not a problem, I¡¯ll get you promoted soon,¡± Liam answered.

    ¡°Stop already! There is another way to do this. I want to progress by achieving merits and getting promoted naturally!¡±

    Cedric seemed to be very motivated.

    ¡°Thank you, I¡¯ll put you to work then,¡± Liam said.

    ¡°Eh?¡± Cedric responded.

    Liam thought it was wasteful to let Cedric remain unutilized.

    If Cedric was going to be snubbed by his higher-ups, he thought of cing him in an environment where he can flourish.

    ¡°His Highness Cleo sent a letter to me. There seem to be many requests for the extermination of pirates. It would be too much even for my fleet to handle. So I expect you to help me with that.¡± Liam said.

    ¡°Eh!?¡± Cedric replied dumbfoundedly.

    ¡°Prepare a list of what you want. I¡¯ll also prepare an additional thousand ships. There are a lot of idle people in the Army, I¡¯ll gather and send them to you.¡±

    There are plenty of ways to join the Imperial Army! And there wasn¡¯t a shortage of soldiers to scrape together.

    In the first ce, there are lots of gaps in interster nations territory management.

    It is simply toorge to manage the whole territory. So the approach they took was distributing small fleets on patrolling missions. But most of these fleets never saw any conflict.

    Liam learned about it when he was in a patrol fleet.

    Liam thought of making effective use of them.

    ¡°Then, I¡¯ll tell you themanders I know in the Imperial Army. If you need any supplies, you can rely on them.¡±

    Liam had been bribingmanders regrly in the Imperial Army to expand his influence. He could cash in favors from them now.

    Cedric dly epted the help.

    ¡°Goodbye!¡± Liam cut off themunication.

    He was excited to n his next move.

    ¡°Well, I wonder what I should do next?¡±

    Being an evil lord was fun!

    ¡ó

    In the Banfield family¡¯s domain.

    Brian was shuddering while reading a report with Serena, the chief maid.

    ¡°Oh, we¡¯ve put all our effort into the development of the new territory, but the Lord wants us to fully mobilize the army!?¡±

    The Banfield¡¯s are now busy developing the newly acquired.

    The construction of settlements had begun and they were investing enormous capital, manpower, and resources.

    In the midst of that, almost all the troops were given orders to mobilize.

    Except for the fleets undergoing training and reorganizing, 30,000 ships were mobilized.

    The remaining ships were stationed near the territory for its defense and were extremely indispensable.

    Serena was also baffled.

    ¡°It¡¯s like fighting without any armor. With even the slightest miscalction on our part, the territory would copse.¡±

    If any unit fails, it would have a domino effect.

    There was a chance of utter destruction of the Banfield family.

    ¡°Lord Liam! Why didn¡¯t you consult with me!¡± Brianmented.

    While Brian started crying, Serena on the other hand was very amused.

    ¡°Well, we wouldn¡¯t be able to stop it now. Even so, this is a tremendous opportunity. If we seed, His Highness Cleo will emerge as a strong contender for the throne ¡°

    The chances of that happening were close to zero until now, but it may now increase by a few percent.

    Serena felt that Liam was serious about making Cleo the emperor. But that didn¡¯t matter to Brian.

    ¡°Why does Lord Liam always take such extreme measures!¡± It was not the first time Liam had made brash decisions. ¡°Even so, the territorial people are not burdened much.¡±

    Liam did not ce any burdens on the people of his territory even in this dire situation.

    Brian felt that it was due to Liam¡¯spassion.

    Serena shakes her head.

    ¡°Anyway, did you hear anything new about trade with neighboring countries?¡±

    ¡°I haven¡¯t heard anything, but tradingmodities other than rare metals is not a crime, so it should be fine.¡± He replied.

    ¡°-Yeah. There should be no troubles unless we trade rare metals.¡±

    Serena seemed to be very concerned.

    Brian answers with augh.

    ¡°I saw the list of items that we¡¯re nning on trading, they were all fine. You¡¯re worrying too much Serena.¡±

    ¡°I hope so,¡± Serena replied.

 Chapter 77 - Volume 5 Chapter 6

    <h4> Volume 5 Chapter 6 Roustoir Integrated Government</h4>

    Patrice, who lead the merchant caravan, was meeting with the dignitaries of the Roustoir Integrated Government at a spaceport.

    The two shook hands.

    ¡°We have been awaiting your arrival, Miss Patrice.¡±

    ¡°Likewise esteemed representatives.¡±

    The Roustoir Integrated Government is a coalition of democratic states.

    It is not an aristocracy like the Algrand Empire.

    They rely more on automatons and artificial intelligence than the Empire. Even though they do have some humans in their army, they didn¡¯t have any knights.

    From the perspective of the Integrated Government, the political system of the Empire was primitive.

    The delegate of such an Integrated Government was awaiting Patrice¡¯s arrival.

    Patrice was guided by the delegate to a room where they could begin the trade.

    There were not only officials but also politicians and military personnel waiting in the room.

    ¡°Please wait outside the room until the transaction is done,¡± Patrice said to her guards other than Mary.

    When Patrice said so, the escorts made a bitter face.

    It was Mary who apanied Patrice inside the room.

    (Taking someone of Mary¡¯s ability alone was overkill, she didn¡¯t understand why they got upset.)

    Patrice sat on the seat and Mary imposingly stood behind her.

    The official who guided them also sat down and began the transaction.

    ¡°We are in a hurry at the moment, so please show us the goods so we can finish the transaction. We can continue to do such business in the future-¡°

    ¡°I can¡¯t guarantee that.¡± Patrice interrupted.

    When Patrice refused to continue their dealings with the Integrated Government in the future, the members of the Integrated Government got visibly angry.

    She knew it was harsh, but she had to get it out before further matters were discussed.

    ¡°¡­May I ask you why?¡± The official inquired.

    ¡°These goods are sold by Count Banfield. The Count is reluctant to support a camp without a just cause.¡±

    One of the servicemen couldn¡¯t hold his anger and smashed the table with his fist.

    ¡°Does the Empire intend to support the rogue states then!?¡± He seemed strangely angry with the Empire for some reason.

    ¡°Please wait! ¡ª I¡¯m sorry. I don¡¯t think you understand our circumstances.¡± The official said to Patrice.

    The other servicemen restrained the angry serviceman.

    The official then spoke of their civil war.

    ¡°There is a movement among the states which are part of the Integrated Government to gain independence.¡±

    It was not unusual in itself, and even the Empire had such movements in its past.

    It was ideal to suppress it immediately, but the situation wasn¡¯t so simple for the Integrated Government.

    ¡°If it had been a dictator who dered independence, we would have quelled them immediately.¡± He said. ¡°But if it was democratically decided by their constituents, it¡¯s not so straightforward.¡±

    If autocratic states intended to gain independence through an armed struggle, the Integrated Government could immediately put them down.

    But if a democratically elected leader dered independence, it would be monumentally more challenging.

    Because that¡¯s what the people in the territory chose to do.

    Patrice listened interestedly.

    ¡°The situation is indeed very different from the Empire.¡± She said.

    ¡°¡­Yes. And the nations pushing for independence have united and dered war on the Integrated Government.¡±

    Mary, who was listening in on the conversation felt the pieces of the puzzlee together.

    (Is someone from the Empire supporting the movement? ¡­Who could that possibly be?)

    ¡°The weapons they are using have been examined to be disguised weapons sourced from the Empire.¡± He said.

    Looking at the footage projected in front of her, Mary deliberated on which weapons factory built the ship.

    (This is¡­ The work of the first weapons factory? The second weapons factory seems to also be involved.)

    They were both weapons factories that favored the Berkley family. (TL [FYI]: The first and second weapons factory had pledged their full support to the Berkleys during the battle with Banfield Estate.)

    It seems the ships meant for the Berkley family before their destruction had found their way into the Integrated Government.

    (There would only be a handful of people in the Empire capable of such a feat.)

    Patrice was watching the footage with great interest.

    ¡°So you think the Empire is supporting the rogue states right?¡± She said. ¡°That seems to be why your men are angry at me. But let me make myself clear, I¡¯m only a merchant and I assure you that my patron, Count Banfield is not supporting your enemies.¡±

    The official also seemed to understand.

    ¡°Yes, I understand.¡± He said. ¡°Our problem is the growing momentum for independence in various domains of our nation. Our armies are monitoring various critical regions and can¡¯t be moved carelessly to build up our war force.¡±

    However, the rogue states were equipped with state-of-the-art weapons andmanded their surrounding areas with strength.

    Patrice inquired.

    ¡°¡­Who do you think is supporting these rogue states?¡±

    ¡°The most likely possibility is¡­¡± The official answered troubled.

    ¡°-We believe it to be His Imperial Highness Linus. To be precise, we concluded that his henchmen are the ones providing the supplies.¡±

    Mary¡¯s eyes were wide open after listening to that possibility.

    (This is what Rosetta was troubled about. It¡¯s getting very interesting.)

    ¡°¡­Linus.¡± Patrice sighed.

    ¡°¡­Well, let¡¯s start by trading the products we brought in.¡±

    ¡ó

    The merchant caravan of the Henfrey Company came to the Oxis United Kingdom.

    As an interster nation, it resembled the Empire. They were a gathering of Kingdoms who in turn had a republican political system.

    Thomas had previously traded in the United Kingdom and had made connections with the aristocracy here.

    An aristocrat who was smoking a pipe revealed to Thomas the inner circumstances of the United Kingdom.

    Of course, that was after Thomas bribed him.

    ¡°Imperial Prince Linus has secret agreements with many kingdoms that are part of the United Kingdom. In return for our support, when Prince Linus seeds as the Emperor, he ns to yield the disputed territories to the United Kingdom¡±

    ¡°There were such behind-the-scenes dealings!?¡±

    Thomas was surprised, but it was no wonder there were such agreements.

    In the first ce, the territory of the Empire was immense.

    Even if a little territory was scraped away, it wouldn¡¯t trouble Linus in any way.

    In the first ce, the disputed territories belonged to the Empire¡¯s nobility and Linus had no im over it.

    ¡°The aristocrats colluding with His Highness Linus have been making a lot of noisetely. The domestic skirmishes in the kingdom have been increasing, so we¡¯re gathering the supplies we need. Coming back to our business, will you offer me a discount?¡±

    Thomas had told the aristocrat that he would sell him the wares cheaply in exchange for the information.

    ¡°Do you know which kingdoms Prince Linus is conspiring with?¡±

    ¡°Just so you know, not all aristocrats hold the same line of thought. The kingdom I serve is also in cahoots with the Prince. I of course have a different opinion.¡±

    Thomas felt the aristocrat was untrustworthy.

    ¡°His Highness Linus seems to have been very busy¡±

    ¡°From the United Kingdom¡¯s perspective, if we could get the disputed territories by supporting him seed the throne, we would profit enormously.¡±

    He was talking as if these were somebody else¡¯s affairs.

    The aristocrat seemed very sly.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not all good right now. The skirmishes this time will likely be very prolonged.¡±

    Thomas¡¯s opinion of this aristocrat wasn¡¯t any good and he felt that the aristocrat was lying about their hardships.

    ¡ó

    Imperial University.

    Liam was attending a lecture. Wace was sitting adjacent to him and appeared very fatigued.

    ¡°Drinking from night till dawn sure took a toll on your body.¡±

    That being said, the drugs in this world were very advanced.

    Some drugs could cure a hangover quickly, so it was okay to drown in booze like taking a bath every night.

    It also helped that the physical body was very strengthened.

    What ailed Wace was purely a mental issue.

    ¡°Leave me alone! I¡¯ll be in soon anyway. Just like the other members of the imperial family.¡±

    Liam thought Wace¡¯s pessimism was very repugnant.

    ¡°I have people assigned to protect you. So stop fretting so much.¡±

    ¡°The imperial family has a long and dark history. From the Empire¡¯s inception, there have been many special organizations created to carry out assassinations. I know that you are very strong, but even you are not infallible.¡±

    Well, there were manypetent assassination organizations in the Empire¡¯s history.

    Liam thought it would be a good idea to spend more on his protection.

    An urgent report arrived as he wasforting the gloomy Wace.

    It was from Thomas and Patrice, who were currently abroad.

    Incidentally, there was also a report from Mary.

    ording to the report from Thomas, Linus seemed to be making moves in the Oxis United Kingdom.

    He¡¯s a dubious guy alright.

    Rather, he became interested in the United Kingdom.

    He relished the fact that there were backstabbing nobles there who¡¯d sell secrets about their coborators.

    He ordered Thomas to stay there and make connections with those nobles.

    However, since Linus¡¯s activities were brought to light, deciding on which factions to cooperate with had be more straightforward.

    The report from Patrice stated that Linus was supporting the growing momentum for independence in the Roustoir Integrated Government.

    This guy seemed to have his fingers in every pie.

    (I want to support the states fighting for independence. But Linus is an enemy, so let¡¯s lend my strength to the Integrated Government instead.) He thought.

    I¡¯m making decisions without thinking of the repercussions to the Empire.

    He thought it was fitting for his role as an evil lord.

    He then read Mary¡¯s report.

    It felt like her report was reporting on wild conspiracies.

    ¡°What is she talking about? ult activities?¡±

    Mary¡¯s report said that it was unlikely that the Empire had intervened in a way to cause conflict in the surrounding countries. But she thought it was likely to be some other force.

    Well, the Empire had a long history of meddling in other countries¡¯ affairs.

    It was quite a normal thing to do.

    However, what was this about another inexplicable force working behind the scenes?

    The ult? All these conspiracy theories felt ridiculous to him.

    He was in a world where conflicts happened all year round. So even if unknown movements were taking ce, it wasn¡¯t something he needed to take seriously. He thought.

    The timings probably just a coincidence.

    No, wait! A mysterious force working behind the scenes!?

    He arrived at a single possibility.

    At the same time he picked a fight with the two princes, movements began in the neighboring countries. Now that he thought about it, it was pretty strange.

    ¡°No way!¡±

    He felt like he was going to scream. Liam covered his mouth with his hand.

    He couldn¡¯t control his excitement and began grinning.

    It was just too convenient for such a situation to ur¡­ Yeah, there had to be someone working behind-the-scenes.

    It was, of course, the Guide! He concluded.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter, Liam?¡±

    Wace looked at him with a weary expression, so he gave him a pompous smirk.

    ¡°Rejoice, Wace. My victory is affirmed.¡±

    ¡°Is something wrong with your head?¡±

    Liam hit Wace¡¯s head as he didn¡¯t realize that he was being serious.

    ¡ó

    ¡°It¡¯s so fun!¡± He eximed.

    They were in a dimly lit luxurious bar.

    Liam was surrounded by exquisitely dressed women pouring him wine.

    Also with him was the figure of a sulking Wace, who was sobbing while drinking.

    ¡°Damn it all!¡±

    He gulped some more sake.

    ¡°Wace, I brought you to this exclusive establishment so we could enjoy ourselves.¡±

    ¡°How can I enjoy anything with my impending death!?¡±

    Wace, who was terrified of being assassinated, drowned himself in booze to feel better.

    Being born in the imperial family, he was privy to how terrifying the assassins were.

    He reminisced about a group that existed in the long past.

    At a time when shadows lurked behind the scenes.

    The Imperial family had a two thousand years long history filled with blood and bones.

    These shadows yed an active part in that era. In the end, they were betrayed by their master, the Emperor of that time, and petrified.

    One of the women who was apanying them headed out to the bathroom.

    After checking to make sure she was alone, she pulled out a needle from inside a small container.

    ¡°What an idiotic man. Does he think his safety is guaranteed just because he is good with a sword? Strength is not the only way to kill a man.¡±

    When she tried to return to Liam¡¯s group, she found a huge wall blocking her path.

    The dark wall was smiling at her.

    ¡°I concur with your opinion. However, I¡¯m not sure if that needle can reach that person.¡±

    The humongous man wasughing eerily. He was dressed in a robe and wore a mask.

    As the robe shimmered, the woman tried to speak, but her mouth was covered by a hand.

    That hand belonged to a woman who was behind her and also adorning the same outfit as the man.

    When the masked woman peeled the woman¡¯s face-off, there was a different face underneath.

    The masked man, Kukuri, approached the woman¡¯s silhouette.

    ¡°This disguise is rather lousy. Their skills regressed quite a bit. It was an indispensable skill to master in our time. ¡°

    The woman somehow softened her joints and struggled to break free of the masked woman¡¯s clutches. But it was futile.

    The masked woman did not allow the woman to continue her struggle any longer.

    The three people were then slowly sucked into the floor.

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡±

    Kukuri looked at the resisting woman interestedly.

    ¡°It may not have simply regressed, but they may also be learning different techniques. Hmm, it looks like she¡¯ll have some answering to do. After all, we have two thousand years of nk space.¡±

    When the woman tried to resist, the masked woman took away her consciousness.

    ¡°Is this the darkness serving the current Emperor?¡± The masked woman asked.

    Kukuri answered the question in a doubtful manner.

    ¡°Hasn¡¯t the quality dropped? Well, they may be taking a path different to us. We¡¯ll investigate that slowly. Oh, you should take over her disguise and apany Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    The masked woman transformed her body to look like the captured woman.

    She then grabbed the peeled off face and used magic to attach that to herself. Her face and body now perfectly matched the captured woman.

    She then proceeded to read the mind of the captured woman. The woman quivered and let out froth from her mouth.

    ¡°It¡¯s almost like the world we knew ceased. Our knowledge and skills appear to have been lost.¡±

    Kukuri dropped his shoulders in response to his subordinate¡¯s report, which she gained from the woman.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect someone of such meager skill to be sent to take Lord Liam¡¯s life. I should go apany the Lord now.¡±

    When the woman and Kukuri disappear, the woman who removed her mask changed her clothes in an instant.

    Then she heard footsteps outside.

    It was one of the male staff members.

    ¡°Catherine, pleasee back soon. We don¡¯t want to upset our customers today~¡±

    To the male staff member who purred like a cat, the woman replied irritated.

    (Because Catherine was disced by the masked woman, she yelled at the man-)

    ¡°I know! Go away!¡±

    ¡°When did you be so spiteful!?¡± The man responded shocked.

    After the male staff member left, the woman then headed over to Liam¡¯s side.

    Brian (? ¦Ø ?) ¡°Cathaari ~ ne¡±

 Chapter 78 - Volume 5 Chapter 7

    Trantor: Cipher

    TN: It¡¯s officially been 3 months, so I¡¯ll be taking over. It¡¯ll be a weekly release. Please enjoy~

    ***************************************************************************

    It¡¯s been 3 years since I came to the Imperial University.

    ¡°Thank you all for gathering here.¡±

    Inside the hotel¡¯srge conference room are aristocrats with menacing appearances.

    Among them is someone who has white hair in an all-back hairstyle and is disying a rxed attitude despite his young age.

    This viin-like individual that can put people on a constant edge is Count [Francis Sera Ganne].

    ¡°Iya~ I¡¯m really honored to be summoned by the Capital¡¯s star in the creation of a new faction.¡±

    He¡¯s smiling amicably, but no one knows what he¡¯s thinking inside.

    It¡¯s a quality often found in viins.

    Next to him, a muscr ossan with an eyepatch, or should I say Count [Jeriko Sera Goal], isughing vigorously.

    There are countless scars all over his body.

    With the current medical technology, they can be easily erased, but he has not done so, meaning that he wants to intimidate others with his scars.

    This person¡¯s face and countenance also scream viin.

    ¡°I never thought I¡¯d be called by the young¡®un of the Banfield family!¡±

    He throws a sarcastic remark towards me to probe me.

    Despite what hisrge frame might suggest, he seems to be rather meticulous.

    He might not be as bullish as he looks.

    In the middle of all this, Baron Exner, who is like a middle-aged man, steps forward as a coordinator.

    ¡°Rather than that, is Mr. Liam serious about starting a new faction? Even we¡¯ve heard rumors about His Highness Cleo¡¯s situation, you know?¡±

    The prince farthest away from the throne.

    It¡¯s no wonder that he¡¯s worried hearing my intention to support Cleo.

    However, the odds are in my favor.

    ¡°Of course. After all, I¡¯ve promised His Highness Cleo that I¡¯ll guide him to the seat to the throne.¡±

    The nobles begin to whisper.

    These aristocrats are mainly lords that have their own territories.

    Many of them are detached from the court, and just as many of them are not familiar with the internal situation.

    Baron Exner voices his concerns.

    ¡°I hear that His Majesty¡¯s memory of him... isn¡¯t so good?¡±

    ¡°And that¡¯s what makes this worthwhile.¡±

    His Majesty is most probably an enemy, so I have to get rid of him.

    Count Ganne disys his interest in the topic.

    ¡°Not bad~. Ever since my family angered His Majesty from several generations ago, we have been treated indifferently. I would like to take this opportunity to make aeback.¡±

    What kind of wrongdoings did this guy¡¯s family do?

    Well, no matter. It just goes to show how reliable he is as a fellow viinous lord.

    Count Goal is eventually convinced when more nobles approve of my n.

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t want the troubles in the court to affect my territory, so it¡¯s true that I would prefer to have a convenient Emperor. Nheless, aren¡¯t His Highness Calvin and His Highness Linus both tough opponents?¡±

    Hearing that, I present the materials I have prepared.

    ¡°Please read through these. It is about His Highness Linus¡¯s back-door transactions with foreign countries.¡±

    Count Ganne puts his hand on his chin.

    ¡°It¡¯s not enough. It¡¯s isn¡¯t an unbelievable story, so I wouldn¡¯t be too surprised even if this is true. However, he¡¯ll most likely deny it until the end regardless of the evidence.¡±

    It¡¯s fine even if it does not work.

    All it matters is that rumor spreads about Linus doing something behind the scenes.

    ¡°I can appeal His Highness Cleo¡¯s uprightness byparing him with Linus, who has dirtied his hands. I also do not think that this is enough to overtake Linus, so we¡¯ll be obtaining the throne with our abilities.¡±

    Baron Exner is sweating cold sweat.

    He must be thinking that it¡¯s too much for him.

    ¡°There won¡¯t be any problem. It will be His Royal Highness Cleo who bears the brunt, and I will be there to back him. I simply wish for everyone¡¯s implicit cooperation.¡±

    If others learn of how many allies we have, there are bound to be some people that would offer their cooperation.

    Power in numbers!

    That said, I gathered as many viins as I could... but aren¡¯t there less of them than I anticipated?

    Did they disappear alongside the Berkeley family?

    ¡ó

    Liam became the representative of the faction and publicized his support of Cleo.

    That evening, Linus came to visit Cleo.

    The two of them were having a conversation about some unimportant matter in the reception room, but Linus grew impatient and went straight to the main point.

    ¡°Cleo, I have misjudged you.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±

    ¡°I thought you would live a modest and stable life. For that reason, I have not made a move against you to this day.¡±

    ¡°¡ªIs that so.¡±

    Linus got up from the sofa.

    ¡°From today, don¡¯t expect to sleep peacefully.¡±

    This was no different from Linus dering war on Cleo.

    ¡°You came over just to dere war on me? I see that you are quite confident, elder brother.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t get cocky, brat.¡±

    Linus stopped bothering about putting up an appearance.

    ¡°Don¡¯t get conceited just because the kid from the Banfield family has decided to support you. Did you really think you are equal to me now that there are a hundred aristocrats by your side?¡±

    Noticing his brother¡¯s irritation, Cleo made a conjecture.

    ¡°It looks like you¡¯re very frustrated. Did something happen?¡±

    Linus¡¯s eyes turned bloodshot, but Tia, who was standing behind Cleo, spoke up before he tried to do something.

    ¡°There are eyes here, Your Highness Linus.¡±

    Linus paused for a moment, straightened his back, and turned to leave the room.

    ¡°¡ªYou¡¯ll regret participating in the battle for the throne. You are henceforth my enemy.¡±

    Cleo leaned back on the sofa upon Linus¡¯s departure.

    ¡°We were enemies from the very beginning, elder brother.¡±

    Tia prepared tea for such a Cleo.

    From her performance, Cleo came to realize how excellent Tia was.

    His sister was also a high-ranking knight, but Tia was beyond that.

    ¡°Does Your Highness Cleo loathe His Highness Linus?¡±

    He was troubled by Tia¡¯s question.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like I hate him in particr. It¡¯s just that we have our positions to uphold. If we had met under a different circumstance, we might have be friends instead.¡±

    If only they were not of royal descent. Even if they were, if only they were not in the position to fight for the throne.

    However, it was useless.

    There was no point in specting on what could have been true.

    Just as his lips had touched the drink prepared by Tia, Cecilia came into the room.

    Her xen hair was straight and long unlike Lysithea¡¯s, emphasizing her femininity.

    She was someone who was carefree and rxed.

    ¡°Cleo-chan, brother Linus was furious. What happened?¡±

    Cleo became anxious upon seeing Cecilia, his eldest sister.

    (If possible, I would like her to escape from the pce.)

    A fierce battle was about tomence.

    He wanted to do something about Cecilia, who wasn¡¯t suited for this sort of conflict.

    ¡°Nothing, sister. Also, Tia?¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°Can I ask Count Banfield for a favor? I would like to find an appropriate fianc¨¦e for my sister.¡±

    Cleo was in a precarious position, and this had influenced Cecilia as well.

    Although Cecilia was of royal descent, her inheritance rights were low and she had no fianc¨¦e either.

    In a sense, she was worse off than Wace.

    Tia contemted before answering.

    ¡°I will speak to Lord Liam.¡±

    On the other hand, Cecilia, who was suddenly subjected to a conversation about finding her a fianc¨¦e, was utterly confused.

    ¡°Eh? EHHH!? Why are we suddenly talking about my engagement?¡±

    ¡ó

    After the supper with the other aristocrats, I am having a drink with Baron Exner.

    ¡°Do you understand my feelings, Count!? The feeling of having posters about me sold and ced into the lockers of my subordinate!?¡±

    It appears that he was holding back a lot.

    He¡¯s drunk in a bad way.

    ¡°Ah, of course I do.¡±

    I don¡¯t.

    What¡¯s the fun of putting up a poster about a man?

    It¡¯s not like Baron Exner is an idol or anything.

    As a man myself, if there¡¯s a poster of me on a wall, I¡¯d assume that it¡¯s so that an assassin can remember his target?

    Not that anyone would have a poster of me or anything.

    Baron Exner is sobbing.

    ¡°I feel pathetic for selling goods about myself for money. Besides, my son¡¯s¡¯ engagement hasn¡¯t been decided either... Oh, our promise of having my daughter receive training at your ce still holds, yes?¡±

    I tip my hat to you, sir, for having such a capitalistic spirit and earning money through selling your own goods.

    As an evil lord, I should also have such a spirit.

    ¡°Please leave it to me. I¡¯m not one to break a promise.¡±

    I see.

    So Kurt has not decided on a fianc¨¦e yet.

    It must be difficult for him because of his position.

    While I am drinking with Baron Exner, Tia, who has been entrusted to aid His Highness Cleo, contacts me.

    ¡°Excuse me, it¡¯s from a subordinate ¡ª What is it?¡±

    I stand up from my seat to talk with Tia.

    I think I heard someone say ¡°Ah~ it¡¯s Lord Liam¡¯s voice¡± softly, but it¡¯s probably just my imagination.

    ¡°Lord Liam, it¡¯s an order, no, a request from His Royal Highness Cleo.¡±

    ¡°What is it about? Money?¡±

    Just as I am pondering about how much to send, Tia tells me that it¡¯s something different.

    ¡°No, Her Highness Cecilia is High Highness Cleo¡¯s sister. She¡¯s 150 years old and at an age where she could¡¯ve married, but she doesn¡¯t have a partner because of her standing.¡±

    Even if you tell me that...

    I certainly remember her from before.

    She was a beautiful woman who exuded a fluffy feeling.

    ¡°Do you think I can do anything about that? Thing like engagements and marriages are decided by the court.¡±

    ¡°No need to worry about that. This matter will not be touched upon because of theck of a candidate. Lord Liam, why don¡¯t you take this chance to have her marry a nobleman that you are close with?¡±

    Tia¡¯s proposing to use Her Royal Highness Cecilia to buy the favor of another family.

    Her Royal Highness Cecilia is a royalty, and there isn¡¯t any bloodline nobler than hers in the empire.

    It could develop into a huge problem if someone raises the issue of bloodline.

    Her father is His Majesty the Emperor and her mother¡¯s family is a great aristocrat.

    However, none of the aristocrats are asking for her hand in marriage because she is the sister of His Highness Cleo.

    In other words, unlike Wace, she can marry whenever she wants to if the problem of His Highness Cleo is resolved.

    ¡°Marriage?¡±

    ¡°Yes, there¡¯s no issue with her bloodline, and she is an upstanding person. I hope she is blessed with a good rtionship.¡±

    I nce at the figure of Baron Exner who is drunk and sleeping.

    ¡°An upstart family would want superior bloodline, yes?¡±

    ¡°Do you have someone in mind?¡±

    I wake up Baron Exner to have a discussion.

    Although his consciousness is blurry, Baron Exner seems to be able to still talk.

    ¡°Baron Exner, I have something to speak with you regarding Kurt¡¯s marriage.¡±

    ¡°Kurt? Ah~~ yes, we need to quickly find him a partner.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s an acquaintance of mine who is a woman with a powerful bloodline. It¡¯s just that she¡¯s considerably older.¡±

    ¡°Older? No, if we do that ... I¡¯ll feel sorry for Kurt.¡±

    ¡°True, a difference of 70 years is a bit much.¡±

    ¡°70!? Isn¡¯t that within the permissible range?¡±

    Eh? It is?

    However, if I think about it, this is a world where people have much longer lives.

    Does 70 years¡¯ difference not matter that much?

    ¡ªI hesitate for a second.

    ¡°Will this be fine?¡±

    ¡°Having an older woman isn¡¯t bad. It would be nice for Kurt to have a wife he can rely on ¡ª I think.¡±

    Things are getting a bit messy.

    ¡°Will Kurt agree to this?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯ll be bothered if the age gap is over 100 years, but he said it¡¯s fine otherwise ¡ª I think.¡±

    Then we should introduce them to each other immediately.

    ¡°In that case, let¡¯s have a miai straight away. Oh, and it¡¯ll be a miai with the premise of marriage.¡±

    ¡°Fantastic! With this, Kurt can finally be considered full-fledge! Wait, huh? Do you think it¡¯s better to marry after he graduates from the Military Academy?¡±

    ¡°Then the marriage will be after he graduates from the Military Academy.¡±

    ¡°Umu! No objection!¡±

    I tell this to Tia who is listening to our conversation.

    ¡°Is it possible to meet with Kurt?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Do you want me to call for him?¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    Huu~ With this, I¡¯ve taken care of my friend¡¯s marriage.

    Not only is her bloodline solid, she¡¯s also a rare beauty, so I¡¯m sure Kurt will be overjoyed.

    I turn towards Baron Exner who has fallen asleep in joy.

    ¡°Please look forward to the celebration, Baron.¡±

    ¡ó

    It became chaotic when Baron Exner returned to his territory.

    ¡°What do you mean a royalty will be marrying in?¡±

    Baron Exner¡¯s wife was raising a fuss.

    The entire mansion was in a state of uproar.

    ¡°No idea! I have no clue! I was drunk and asleep. During the meantime, Kurt¡¯s marriage was decided!¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re just upstart Barons! How can we possibly afford to wee a woman from the Royal Family?¡±

    ¡°I-I said it¡¯s impossible, but Liam-kun kept telling me, ¡®It¡¯ll work out. It¡¯ll work out.¡¯!¡±

    ¡°It won¡¯t! To begin with, we¡¯re poor!¡±

    This was said by Kurt¡¯s younger sister, [Ciel Sera Exner], who was also listening to the story.

    She was someone with a long, loose silver hair and purple eyes.

    She was a beautiful girl with clear eyes and an erect nose, just like Kurt.

    Her body was small and slender.

    While listening to her parent¡¯s conversation, Ciel was alsomunicating with her brother Kurt.

    ¡°I feel sorry for brother.¡±

    ¡°Really? But it¡¯s a marriage that Liam put together, so I can¡¯t refuse it.¡±

    Seeing how delighted her brother was, Ciel felt like crying inside her heart.

    (Ever since brother returned from his training, he¡¯s been saying Liam that and Liam this ¡ª Liam, I won¡¯t forgive you.)

    Before she knew it, her brother, who was the subject of her adoration, was constantly talking about Liam.

    To Ciel, his younger sibling, this was not forgivable.

    (And he¡¯s definitely not as nice a person as my brother thinks. I¡¯m sure he¡¯s ck in the inside.)

    Kurt was happy.

    ¡°Marriage, huh? It feels so surreal. What should I wear next time when I meet Liam? Is uniform a good choice?¡±

    Ciel cried when she saw her brother more concerned about Liam than his omiai partner.

    ¡°What souvenir should I bring? Something Liam would be pleased with¡ª¡±

    Witnessing how happy Kurt was, Ciel cut off their connection.

    ¡°Brother, just you wait. I¡¯ll definitely wake you up.¡±

    Ciel was intent on taking off Liam¡¯s mask.

    ***************************************************************************

    [1] Miai -> Matchmaking

 Chapter 79 - Volume 5 Chapter 8

    -At the Prime Minister¡¯s Office-

    Having read the report from Serena, the Prime Minister looked up at the ceiling.

    ¡°The matter regarding His Highness Linus is an issue.¡±

    It would¡¯ve been fine if their transactions could serve to weaken the enemy countries, but their enemies weren¡¯t so na?ve.

    They woulde asking for profits from the side that won, and it was not Linus who would have to prepare the remuneration.

    Rather, the burden would fall on the subjects that serve the empire.

    The Prime Minister honestly wished that the princes wouldn¡¯t make such selfish promises in their attempts to be the next emperor.

    However, such exchanges weremon in the history of the empire, so there was no need for him to panic.

    Instead, it was Liam who was causing the real problem here.

    He was actively trying to form friendly connections with another country and was supporting them with arge amount of supplies.

    He was assisting a country that was hostile to the country Linus was involved in, and Linus was naturally aware of this fact.

    For Linus, this was no different from having a glove thrown at him from someone he intended to punish.

    In addition, Liam had formed a Cleo Faction which had around 200 aristocrats under its banner.

    It had initially begun with only about 100 nobles, but the number was gradually growing.

    The nobles that had joined the faction were mostly those that couldn¡¯t properly manage their own territories

    To be blunt, these noble households were mostly powerless.

    By supporting these kinds of households, Cleo was trying to increase his presence.

    In reality, it was Liam who was actually providing the resources.

    ¡°So he has been gaining power through proper territorial management. It is indeed a rather well-grounded and practical management method.¡±

    The Prime Minister was also in favor of this type of territorial management, not only because of the rare metals that could be gained from it, but also because it did not slight or offend other parties.

    However, this meant that Liam was determined to have a full-scale confrontation with Linus.

    ¡°How will His Highness Linus react?¡±

    The Prime Minister was looking forward to how this game would unfold.

    ¡ó

    -Linus¡¯s Room-

    Inside, Linus was pushing away everything that was on the desk with his hands.

    ¡°That little braaaaaat!!¡±

    Recently, a malicious rumor about Linus was being spread.

    The content of the rumor was about Linus conducting shady transactions with people from another country.

    It was the truth, and it became apparent to Linus that there was a formidable intelligencework working under Liam.

    However, Liam did not seem interested in backing Linus to a corner with this piece of information alone.

    It was instead the Calvin faction that was constantly jabbing him with this fact.

    Linus truly wished to crush Liam, but he was too worried to do so due to the Calvin faction which he constantly had to be wary of.

    When he held his breath and snapped his fingers, a group of men emerged from the floor.

    These men had unique masks on them and knelt in front of Linus.

    One of the underground organizations behind the empire was in Linus¡¯s hand.

    ¡°You appear to be troubled, Your Highness Linus.¡±

    When their leader opened his mouth to speak, the voice did not sound muffled despite the mask on his face.

    Linus sat down in a rough manner, not bothering to hide his dissatisfaction.

    ¡°It¡¯s time that you guys act. Make an example out of Cleo ¡ª and kill Liam.¡±

    They were an organization that specialized in performing dirty tasks like assassinations, and their current employer was Linus.

    ¡°Not to mention Liam, assassinating His Royal Highness Cleo woulde with a steep price. After all, the female knight on his side is rather skilled.¡±

    The blood vessels on Linus¡¯s forehead twitched and his eyes were about to bulge out.

    ¡°And what of it? Eliminate them immediately. I¡¯ll erase any fools that dare to challenge me.¡±

    The masked menughed.

    ¡°Well, they did kill one of our men.¡±

    ¡°Although it¡¯s a bitte, we can take this chance to exact revenge.¡±

    ¡°But will this be fine? There¡¯s still His Highness Calvin to look out for. Are you sure about devoting some of your power to deal with His Highness Cleo? ¡±

    Linus naturally understood what the man was getting at.

    Calvin¡¯s case was trickier to handlepared to Cleo¡¯s.

    Yet he couldn¡¯t afford to ignore Cleo ¨C or rather Liam ¨C any longer.

    ¡°¡ªErase them.¡±

    With Linus¡¯s verdict, the masked men sank back into the floor, disappearing from the room while being on their knees.

    Linus gazed up at the ceiling.

    ¡°I hear that you¡¯re confident with the sword, but these men have been active behind the scenes of the empire. They¡¯re not opponents someone of your caliber can handle, Liam.¡±

    They were people that have been working in the shadows of the empire for the past two millennia.

    Countless strong knights fell under their assassinations.

    Brute strength alone meant nothing against them.

    ¡°Although Liam also has a ck Ops of his own, there shouldn¡¯t be as many people in it as the Empire¡¯s. Again, you have offended the wrong person.¡±

    ¡ó

    The Inner Pce was shrouded in the darkness of the night.

    Inside his room, Cleo was alone and staring outside of the window.

    He was sweating and having trouble falling asleep.

    ¡°What an unpleasant feeling.¡±

    Ever since Linus dered war on him, he couldn¡¯t sleep in peace.

    Realizing how fragile his will was, he felt disheartened.

    Behind such a Cleo, a group of people wearing masks slowly rose up from the floor.

    Stunned, Cleo turned around and took a step backwards.

    When he grabbed the handle of a sword that he had hidden on him, it turned into aser de.

    ¡°Who are you?¡±

    There was something peculiar about these men who were wearing masks.

    Cleo knew that they were powerful, butpared to a knight, he perceived a different type of strength dwelling within them.

    When the masked men fully got out from the floor and showed their entire bodies, he saw that they were holding the heads of other men that were wearing simr masks.

    Some of them still had their torsos intact. Others had nothing below their necks.

    Cleo couldn¡¯t help but drip cold sweat.

    (Who are they!?)

    Just then, the door suddenly opened and Tia entered the room.

    ¡°Your Highness Cleo, are you well?¡±

    Tia had a rapier on her hand, and it was drenched in blood.

    Some blood seemed to have sshed on her as well; there were some blood marks on her clothing.

    Cleo called out to Tia.

    ¡°Be careful! These people are dangerous!¡±

    These ¡°dangerous¡± men stood aside when they saw Tia enter.

    Tia walked past them and approached Cleo to confirm his well-being.

    ¡°So you were safe.¡±

    Cleo was stunned, but he soon came to a realization.

    ¡°They¡¯re on our side?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Tia, having confirmed Cleo¡¯s safety, took out amunicator and contacted somebody.

    ¡°It¡¯s me... Yes, I see. We must always prioritize Lord Liam¡¯s life.¡±

    Tia then cut off themunication and exined to Cleo what was happening.

    ¡°His Highness Linus has made his move. Assassins were dispatched to us and Elliot of the ve Company.¡±

    ¡°Assassins?¡±

    Cleo recalled that there existed Shadows that came and went from the inner pce.

    He turned towards the corpses on the hands of the masked men.

    (That¡¯s them? It¡¯s my first time encountering them.)

    But this was also problematic in its own right as the masked men in front of him had on simr masks.

    ¡°Are they truly on our side? They have simr appearances.¡±

    Did Liam hire people from the same organization?

    He was having such thoughts when Tia beckoned him to hurry.

    ¡°Rather than that, let us move quickly. Lord Liam will be worried otherwise.¡±

    ¡°¡ªFine.¡±

    ¡ó

    -The Head Office Building of the ve Company-

    The inside of the meeting room was covered in blood.

    Elliot was sitting on a chair, pretending to be unmoved by the sight in front of him.

    He was staring down at the traitors in front of him with crossed arms and legs.

    ¡°Was it His Highness Linus¡¯s instruction to betray me?¡±

    The men in suits were the captured executives of the ve Company.

    The hired assassins were sprawled around them.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Chairman!¡±

    ¡°We acted in consideration of the ve Company¡¯s future!¡±

    ¡°This will never happen again!¡±

    Standing besides Elliot were some masked men.

    One of them who were spinning a knife close to his face walked to the executives and red at them with his blood-red eyes.

    Frightened, the executives fainted as they frothed at their mouths.

    The three escorts around Elliot were personnel dispatched by Liam.

    On the windows of the conference room were small cracks that suggested a shooting.

    ¡°Chairman Elliot, they were apparently trying to match His Highness Linus¡¯s movement to remove you from this world. Basically, this is the result of their own decisions.¡±

    ¡°Really? What a pity.¡±

    Elliot¡¯s back was drenched with sweat.

    (I never imagined that such an impressive force was around me.)

    He believed that some capable knights would be dispatched as his escorts.

    In reality, it was Kukuri¡¯s subordinates that were sent to protect him.

    The number of hired assassins that were killed by these three had exceeded ten.

    Even the sniper outside the window was not spared.

    The masked men began a conversation.

    ¡°What about Lord Liam?¡±

    ¡°The head is with him.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s talk about something more interesting.¡±

    Elliot had mixed feelings when he witnessed his escorts chatting merrily with dead bodies next to them.

    (If I were to turn coat, the same fate awaits me as these guys.)

    Liam was very scary. Yet at the same time, he was very reliable.

    (Liam-sama, I won¡¯t be holding back. To make thepany grow and for me to be the leader of thispany both in name and in authority, I would need your assistance.)

    From the time he assumed leadership of the huge tradingpany, he was prepared to weather the storm.

    Elliot was pleased to know that he had gained a powerful ally.

    ¡ó

    -At that time-

    On the rooftop of the hotel that Liam resided in, people wearing masks were fighting fiercely.

    The person who was against Kukuri was one of the most powerfulbatants in the organization.

    But this man was panicking.

    ¡°Who are you guys? How are you guys using the same techniques as us!?¡±

    He was losing his calm because their opponents were employing the same techniques as they were.

    He had quickly recognized that their techniques were not simr, but identical.

    Kukuri responded to the question.

    ¡°Same? No, you¡¯re wrong. They¡¯re not the same. You are simply imitating us.¡±

    ¡°W-what are you talking about!?¡±

    Kukuri¡¯s shoulders shook as heughed at confused man in front of him.

    ¡°You are different from us. Did you guys start a new organization after stealing our techniques? No wonder your skills are so rusty. The core has been lost.¡±

    The man surveyed his surroundings.

    He was starting to get agitated as his colleagues were being defeated one after another.

    As the situation was not in their favor, he tried to escape, but Kukuri¡¯s subordinates encircled him, preventing him from doing so.

    When several of them touched the ground, a terrifying rune enveloped the entirety of the rooftop, hindering the activation of all movement magics.

    The man judged that there was usible escape route, but he regained his cool.

    ¡°You¡¯re trying to confuse me; however, it¡¯s not going to work.¡±

    Two thousand years had passed since Kukuri and his gang were petrified.

    Suddenly being told that a new organization was formed based on the techniques left behind by Kukuri and his associates, it was no wonder that the man had his doubts.

    The possibility of people from 2,000 years ago reviving never crossed his mind.

    ¡°Confuse you? Hmm, this might be an upational disease. You are very skeptical of others¡¯ words. Now, we should wrap things up soon.¡±

    Kukuri shortened the distance between them and extended out his arm.

    In response, the man leaned back to avoid his arm.

    Kukuri¡¯s hand managed to touch the man¡¯s mask, exposing the man¡¯s mouth which warped into a smirk.

    ¡°Got you.¡±

    As the man said so, insect-like legs that resembled a spider¡¯s appeared from his back, piercing through his clothes and stabbing at Kukuri from eight separate directions simultaneously.

    It prated Kukuri from his back and came out from his chest.

    Kukuri¡¯s subordinates that were around them expressed astonishment and were about to wield their weapons to help.

    The man knew that he was about to die, but he cackled because he was able to drag Kukuri down with him.

    ¡°I¡¯ll have you all apany me to hell!¡±

    The man nned to activate the bomb imnted within his body.

    The bomb had enough firepower to blow away Liam along with the entire hotel building.

    Thinking that he could aplish his mission in exchange was his life, the man chortles.

    Unfortunately, Kukuri, who the man thought he had killed, started to move again.

    With his eyes glowing red, Kukuri punctured the man¡¯s chest with his bare hands and pulled out the bomb, disarming the bomb in the process.

    The man who was now vomiting blood from his mouth was shocked to see that Kukuri was alive.

    ¡°H-how?¡±

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have lowered your guard. Regardless, that was an eye-opener. A technique which we do not possess. We¡¯ll be studying it in depth.¡±

    Kukuri pulled out the legs that were stuck within him.

    The way he did so showed that he hadn¡¯t received any life-threatening injuries.

    The man, on the other hand, was detained by Kukuri¡¯s subordinates.

    Kukuri then observed and touched the man¡¯s body with interest.

    ¡°A hidden mechanism modeled after a spider? They¡¯re also properly smeared with poison. Hmmm, they¡¯re not bad, but they¡¯re nothing amazing either. I¡¯m intrigued, though. Is there a piece of technology that can reproduce the characteristics of other organisms?¡±

    One of Kukuri¡¯s subordinates spoke up as he was engrossed in his investigation of the man¡¯s body.

    ¡°Lord Liam is calling for you.¡±

    ¡°Hmm, how unfortunate! Then half of you will remain here to collect the bodies and examine them. Since they can be considered our juniors, treat their corpses with care. That said, I want to study him while he¡¯s breathing, so don¡¯t kill him.¡±

    A gag was put on the fainted man, and his treatment began soon after.

    Kukuri proceeded to head to Liam.

    ¡ó

    I call Kukuri after the assassins have been cleared up.

    ¡°Is it over?¡±

    ¡°Yes. His Royal Highness should be serious about this seeing as considering that he sent his experienced veterans.¡±

    Although I knew that he was unnerved, I didn¡¯t think he would reflexively react by trying to assassinate us.¡±

    A prince should be more thoughtful.

    Kukuri infers what the other party is thinking.

    ¡°He also has a dispute with His Highness Calvin. He probably wanted to get rid of us as soon as possible.¡±

    ¡°He thought we could be easily disposed of, huh?¡±

    Simply put, he didn¡¯t put me in his eyes.

    How boring.

    I¡¯m always weing towards enemies who aren¡¯t vignt. Nheless, I won¡¯t stand being looked down on like this.

    For Linus, Calvin should be his main rival.

    We¡¯re nothing but an annoying obstacle to him.

    ¡ªThanks to that, we¡¯re in a favorable position.

    Linus, Calvin, and the Emperor. It¡¯s better to deal with them one at a time.

    That said, I¡¯ll have the insignificant Linus disappear first.

    Since he¡¯s so impatient to erase us at the first sign of provocation, he would have lost to Calvin one day anyway.

    ¡°If he¡¯s sent assassins strong enough for you to describe as experienced, won¡¯t Cleo be in danger?¡±

    ¡°Please be assured as we have already taken him under our protection.¡±

    Kukuri is really efficient at doing his work and is an excellent subordinate to have, unlike some two idiots.

    I am blessed to have met such a great subordinate.

    Is this also thanks to the Guide?

    I can¡¯t thank him enough.

    I shall pray today as well.

    ¡°We¡¯ll head to where Cleo is.¡±

    ¡°Acknowledged.¡±

 Chapter 80 - Volume 5 Chapter 9 The Palace at Night

    Linus was stunned when he read the report and threw the things that were on his desk at the masked man kneeling in front of him.

    ¡°You failed!? And you have the audacity to call yourselves the Darkness!?¡±

    What infuriated him most was that they had left behind evidence that pointed at Linus¡¯s involvement.

    He could easily push the me on the executives of the ve Company, but Liam would definitely know who the true mastermind was.

    The masked man was also restless.

    ¡°I believe that our enemies were informed of how we do things. They were proficient in their works, so the people under Liam should be quite the experts.¡±

    An organization equivalent in strength as the current Empire¡¯s Darkness.

    Linus felt a shiver run down his spine.

    The enemies that he deemed as small fries turned out to be very troublesome opponents, but he was a tad toote in realizing this.

    ¡°¡ªCrush Liam in whatever way possible. Cleo can be dealt with any time. However, if we don¡¯t act now, my position can be jeopardized.¡±

    He thought he would be fine against a nobleman who could only be counted as being somewhat powerful.

    Until now, that was true.

    However, Linus was pushed to a corner when he learned that things were getting out of his control.

    It wasn¡¯t the time to be bothered by hispetitor, Calvin.

    He was sure that the aristocrats in his faction would desert if they were told of what transpired.

    The masked man made another report.

    ¡°Liam will be visiting the pce to see His Highness Cleo. We don¡¯t have the leeway to hold back anymore. Your Highness, gather your hands. It matter not whether they¡¯re knights or mercenaries.¡±

    Linus was already in a pinch.

    Although tantly conducting an assassination in the pce was indeed aggressive, he wasn¡¯t in a position to choose.

    Now that things had progressed until this point, he would not be able to greet tomorrow¡¯s morning without having Liam disappear.

    ¡°I¡¯ll convene everybody. Gather all your forces too.¡±

    ¡°Understood!¡±

    In the room where the masked man disappeared, Linus¡¯s expression turned nk from despair.

    ¡ó

    I¡¯m walking towards the pce to meet with His Highness Cleo.

    Even so, the pce is quiterge.

    In spite of the uproar caused by the assassination attempts, the tranquility here suggests that there was nothing of that sort.

    The fact that it¡¯s night may also be ying some part.

    Regardless, what a peculiar atmosphere.

    I get into a car that is floating on the road and look around.

    I sense killing intent.

    ¡°To send assassins so openly. Humans. Even if they know that it¡¯s not a wise decision, they will strike when they¡¯re at the edge of a cliff.¡±

    us, who is sitting beside me as my guard, has not noticed their presence.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Lord Liam?¡±

    ¡°Hey, stop the car.¡±

    When the driver parks the car, Ie out with my escorts in tow.

    Kukuri must have noticed already as he and his subordinates appear as I step out of the car.

    We¡¯re at a beautifully paved road.

    Not only are there trees and streetmps lining up both sides of the road, there are flower beds decorating it as well.

    If I am to describe the width of the road with terminologies from my previous life, it would be that the road is wide enough to fit fournes on one side.

    That would be eightnes total going in either directions.

    With no questions asked, a gunshot reverberates through the air instantly as I step out.

    I move half a step sideways, and a bullet passes by me before imbedding itself into the ground.

    My ears only ring for a while from the loud sound because I have strengthened my entire body.

    us hurriedly jumps in front of me.

    ¡°Lord Liam, please step back!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry and focus on protecting yourselves.¡±

    I push us away and step forward as I draw my katana.

    Bullets are shot by snipers from different angles, but I cut them down one after another.

    Now, this is getting a little interesting.

    I¡¯m happy that I can reproduce the scene of an expert shing apart bullets that I saw in my previous life.

    It¡¯s all thanks to this physically enhanced body and the One-sh technique.

    This is child¡¯s y to me.

    I speak to Kukuri.

    ¡°The snipers are annoying.¡±

    ¡°Acknowledged.¡±

    Some of Kukuri¡¯s subordinates fade into the darkness.

    More people are gradually gathering here.

    They¡¯re not pce guards who rushed over upon detecting the incident.

    Instead, these people are leaking killing intents.

    Knights, soldiers, and mercenaries?

    Therge force surrounds us.

    Facing them, us and the remaining guards draw their swords.

    ¡°Are you aware of what you guys are doing!?¡±

    The enemies don¡¯t seem keen on talking with us.

    They raise their weapons while covering their face.

    My guards are trying to advance, but I stop them from doing so.

    ¡°us, don¡¯t get in my way. Perfect. Let¡¯s check out what His Highness Linus¡¯s elites are made of.¡±

    I raise my chin slightly at my enemies.

    ¡°What? You¡¯re not charging?¡±

    There may be strong ones among them.

    Nevertheless, they¡¯re not my match.

    As I thought, Linus, who can only gather this many troops, is suitable as my first opponent.

    He¡¯s like a mid-boss that appears in the early stages of a game.

    They will serve as good experience.

    The knights are rushing towards me.

    At the same time, the soldiers are about to pull their triggers, so I opt to ridding myself of the nuisance first.

    I have not changed my stance, yet in front of me who is disying a pompous attitude, soldiers are being torn apart and spewing blood.

    The mercenaries panic, but the knights yell at them.

    ¡°This is his One-sh! If you want your life, cut him down quic¡ª¡±

    I kill the knight who is bbering.

    His head flies before he even approaches me, but the other knights charge at me, bracing themselves for death.

    Your bravery ismendable.

    Unfortunately...

    ¡°Bravery alone will not save you.¡±

    ¡ªI¡¯ll sh them all down.

    I might not seem to be moving, but I am in fact slicing the necks of all the knights.

    The knights fall powerlessly to the floor.

    I warn us who is zoning out.

    ¡°us, make sure to at least keep yourself out of danger.¡±

    ¡°Y-yes, sir!¡±

    The mercenaries helplessly watch as the knights fall... no, is bounty hunters the more appropriate term?

    The bounty hunters tremble at my sight.

    ¡°What¡¯s the problem? You guys want my head, no? You won¡¯t be killing anyone if you don¡¯t ready your weapons.¡±

    When I step forward, some of them get frightened and try to escape by throwing away their weapons.

    I cut down one of the bounty hunters that show his back.

    He¡¯s somewhere my sword shouldn¡¯t be able to reach, but he¡¯s actually within my attack range.

    ¡°The moment you pointed your weapons at me, yours and your master¡¯s fates were sealed. What a shame.¡±

    I sheathe my katana in front of the confused crowd of bounty hunters that have their weapons turned towards me.

    With clicking sounds, they copse onto the ground.

    To a bystander, what urred just now would seem unfathomable.

    us is also confused.

    ¡°us, everything¡¯s over. I¡¯ll be meeting His Highness Cleo through another route. Inform the pce guards about the situation.¡±

    The scene here is terrible.

    us shakes his head and returns to his serious face.

    ¡°Is our original route too dangerous?¡±

    ¡°There isn¡¯t a reason for us confront them foolheartedly. Besides, I sense something unpleasant.¡±

    Kukuri nears me as I am about to return to the car.

    ¡°Lord Liam, there is something I wish to tell you.¡±

    I smile upon hearing Kukuri¡¯s report.

    ¡ó

    Cleo had escaped to a facility outside of the Inner Pce.

    Guards were stationed there, and the location doubled as a shelter in case of an emergency.

    Cleo, who had fled to such a facility, was calming himself along with his escorts and Lysithea.

    Lysithea let out a sigh.

    ¡°I¡¯m d that Sister Cecilia is absent from the Inner Pce.¡±

    Fortunately, Cecilia, who was not suitable for disputes, had left the Inner Pce for her miai.

    Cleo observed the faces of the servants that fled with them.

    ¡°Tia, why are some of them missing?¡±

    Tia was armed and was serving as Cleo¡¯s guard, but her voice was dreadfully cold when she addressed the missing servants.

    ¡°They came up with excuses to be absent today, as if they were expecting an attack.¡±

    Cleo picked up on what she was hinting at.

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it was... Some of them had served me for a long time.¡±

    Foreseeing the attacks ¨C Simply put, they were traitors.

    Cleo knew that he couldn¡¯t afford to express anxiety in front of his frightened servants and tried to appear dignified.

    Watching his attitude, Tia praised him.

    ¡°Outstanding, Your Highness.¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you treating me like a child? That aside, did you contact the Count?¡±

    ¡°Yes. They were ambushed along the way; however, they are heading here without any problem. In five minutes,¡ª¡±

    Tia, who had spoken thus far, took out her rapier and moved to cover Cleo.

    The sound of metals shing was heard, and Tia managed to repel the weapon thrown at them.

    Men bathed in the blood of the knights and guards that were protecting this ce entered one by one from the entrance.

    Lysithea had also taken out her weapon, but she was a beat slowerpared to Tia.

    ¡°T-they chased us this far?¡±

    Lysithea¡¯s disoriented state was understandable.

    On the other hand, their enemies looked to be in the know about everything that was happening.

    ¡°The situation inside the court is mysterious and unpredictable ¡ª these kinds of events are a daily urrence.¡±

    The reason behind Lysithea¡¯s confusion was the knight in front of them who she saw often in the pce.

    As someone who worked as a knight during normal times, it was unexpected of him tounch this attack.

    This man who had thin eyes that made people think his eyes were closed had his eyes opened a little right now.

    His eyes were devoid of emotions.

    Tia ordered her subordinates to guard Cleo and stood before the man.

    Then, she spoke with a voice that was one degree lower than her usual.

    ¡°Your owner doesn¡¯t seem to care about the method he uses; neither does he bother to put up pretense.¡±

    Having heard her words, the menughed in a small voice.

    Tia squinted her eyes.

    ¡°What¡¯s so funny?¡±

    The thin-eyed man spread his arms out slightly and shrugged.

    ¡°No~~thing. We just found out that you are not very familiar with how the court operates. I bet you¡¯ll be shocked if we tell you who our master is.¡±

    With her rapier, Tia stabbed the two knights who were closing the distance at a tremendous speed after appearing from behind the thin-eyed man.

    Cleo wasn¡¯t able to react to this exchange.

    (Are they veterans?)

    Tia was alsomendable for defeating such opponents with ease.

    The thin-eyed man apuded.

    ¡°What a remarkable skill. I¡¯d scout you if I could.¡±

    Tia smirked provocatively.

    ¡°You jest. I¡¯ll be ughtering you all.¡±

    Tia was just about to walk forwards but immediately jumped back the next moment.

    Immediately, a sword came crashing down on the spot where Tia was previously.

    The man who had swung the sword was 2.5 meters tall.

    He had swung down a sword as big as his body and was grinning at Tia¡¯s reflex.

    ¡°It has been years since someonest dodged my hit.¡±

    Cleo, recognizing who this person was, opened his eyes wide.

    ¡°Why are you...¡±

    Lysithea was also trembling.

    ¡°Why is the Sword Saint against us?¡±

    The Sword Saint carried his longsword on his shoulder and turned towards the thin-eyed man.

    The thin-eyed man was demonstrating a fearless attitude.

    ¡°The Darkness of the Empire is extremely deep. People often stare into the abyss, only to realize that they¡¯re still at the entrance.¡±

    There were multiple Sword Saints in the Empire.

    The number of Sword Saints varied depending on the era.

    In this generation, there were four people who were bestowed the title of Sword Saint.

    Regardless of the school or style, Sword Saints were those that climbed to the peak of swordsmanship.

    And one such man was in front of them.

    As an enemy, no less.

    Tia was also on her guard.

    Her rxed demeanor was nowhere to be found.

    The Sword Saint called out to Tia.

    ¡°Let me ask again. It would be a pity for a swordswoman like you to perish here. What say you to joining our side?¡±

    Tia snorted.

    ¡°I will only ever serve one lord. There¡¯s no way I¡¯d turn coat.¡±

    ¡°Unfortunate. ¡ª I wanted to kill you when you were stronger!¡±

    The Sword Saint narrowed the distance between them instantaneously and crossed swords with Tia.

    Countless sparks flew in a moment¡¯s notice with Cleo being unable to follow the exchanges between Tia and the Sword Saint.

    (Is this how the knights that have reached the summit fight?)

    Their movements were so swift that his eyes weren¡¯t able to catch up.

    Before he knew, Tia was blown away and crashed into a wall.

    The thin-eyed man ttered the Sword Saint.

    ¡°As one would expect of a Sword Saint. The title of the present generation¡¯s strongest isn¡¯t for show.¡±

    The Sword Saint frowned at his praise.

    ¡°Enough with thepliments. I¡¯ll leave the rest to you. It¡¯s not fun killing the weak.¡±

    Perhaps the Sword Saint was the type that desired to battle against the strong.

    He walked towards Tia without batting an eye at Cleo and the others.

    Nevertheless, neither Cleo nor Lysithea, who was training to be a knight, was able to budge.

    They had been overwhelmed by the disy of power.

    The thin-eyed man scratched his hairs.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s start cleaning up. I don¡¯t want to spend too much time on this, so let¡¯s get this over with. Guys, it¡¯s time to work.¡±

    The thin-eyed man took a nce at his subordinates.

    They were frozen in ce.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Quickly¡ª¡±

    Footsteps were heard from beyond the entrance where the intruders had passed through.

    ¡°They can¡¯t work now that they¡¯re dead. Allow them to rest.¡±

    Hearing that voice, Cleo sucked in air

    ¡°Count Banfield!¡±

    The figure that emerged from the dark passageway was Liam.

    ¡°Is this the party venue?¡±

    When Liam passed by the thin-eyed man¡¯s subordinates, they crumbled down bleeding.

    Tia who was stuck to the wall let out a pained-yet-delighted voice.

    ¡°Liam... sa...ma.¡±

    Liam first looked at Tia and then at the Sword Saint.

    ¡°I had anticipated meeting the Sword Saint. Hey¡ªhand over your title.¡±

    Liam sold a fight to the Sword Saint as if he was challenging someone in a game.

 Chapter 81 - Volume 5 Chapter 10

    Lysithea witnessed Liam confronting the Sword Saint.

    (How can he face the Sword Saint unperturbed?)

    In front of the Sword Saint who wielded his sword, even a trained individual like her could not help but feel intimidated.

    Sword Saints were beyond first ss; they lived for the sake of arriving at the pinnacle of swordsmanship.

    To her, it seemed like Liam was at ease against an existence who had set one foot outside the boundaries of humanity.

    Liam swirled his katana around before grinning at the Sword Saint.

    ¡°Iyaa~~, I had been anticipating our meeting ever since my subordinates mentioned you. Although it¡¯s unbing for my age, I¡¯m really excited to fight you, Sword Saint.¡±

    Was he unaware of the huge difference in their powers?

    Such were Lysithea¡¯s honest thoughts, but the Sword Saint¡¯s reaction was unlike before.

    The smile on the Sword Saint¡¯s face was more ferocious than Liam¡¯s, and he held the handle of his sword so tightly that Lysithea heard his grip from a distance.

    He hadpletely lost interest in Tia.

    ¡°You¡¯re Liam?¡±

    The Sword Saint approached Liam.

    When they came near each other, it became apparent that their heights were like that of an adult¡¯s to a child¡¯s.

    ¡°Add honorifics at the end. I am an uing Duke.¡±

    Liam stared at the Sword Saint and addressed him as if he was talking to a subordinate.

    His attitude was so bold and brazen that he had to be one of either an ignorant child whocked awareness of how wide the world was or a truly important person.

    (No matter how strong he is, he won¡¯t be the Sword Saint¡¯s opponent. Sword Saints are known to be capable of overwhelming a group of Swordmasters. Against someone like that, Count Banfield stands no chance.)

    It was uncertain how effective the rumored One-sh would be against a Sword Saint.

    However, even the talented Tia had lost.

    How long would Liamst while facing an opponent of such high level?

    Lysithea couldn¡¯t help but grow concerned.

    The Sword Saint held his sword in front of Liam.

    ¡°Little boy, you¡¯re from the school of the One-sh, correct? Who is your master?¡±

    Liam didn¡¯t bother changing his stance in front of the Sword Saint who had a serious expression on his face.

    ¡°My master is Yasushi, the strongest man in the world.¡±

    The Sword Saint squinted his eyes.

    ¡°Yasushi? Never heard of him.¡±

    Liam¡¯s expression finally underwent a change when he heard that.

    ¡°There is no need for you to remember the name of a person you would never meet. After all, you will be departing from this world today.¡±

    A big spark flew between them.

    Their movements were so fast that only their afterimage was visible.

    Every time their swords collided, a spark bigger than the ones from Tia¡¯s duel was generated.

    The aftermath of their swords being swung around at a close distance caused breezes in the room.

    Lysithea watched in disbelief as Liam battle the Sword Saint without losing his grounds.

    (Unbelievable. His enemy is a Sword Saint who was recognized by the Empire. How is he still standing!?)

    Cleo called out to Lysithea who wasn¡¯t in her right mind.

    ¡°Elder sister, go treat Tia¡¯s injuries!¡±

    ¡°O-okay.¡±

    After being told so by her younger brother, Lysithea started to approach Tia who was buried in the walls.

    She peeled Tia off from the walls, only to notice that thetter was staring intently at Liam without minding her wounded body.

    (What is this girl thinking? Does she not understand our current predicament?)

    She had thought that Tia was a serious female knight, but she was disillusioned by how engrossed Tia was in Liam¡¯s appearance in spite of this state of emergency.

    Even so, Tia pulled out a vial from her equipment pouch and drank a little from it before spraying the rest on her injuries.

    She then opened her mouth to speak.

    ¡°Lysithea-dono, do you see Lord Liam¡¯s dignified appearance?¡±

    ¡°W-what are you even spouting in this situation? Unless we do something soon, we¡¯ll all be killed!¡±

    It was no wonder that Lysithea was angry.

    Knights with great abilities had entered the facility after defeating the guards that were stationed there.

    Moreover, they brought along a Sword Saint with them.

    The chance of their survival was slim.

    It was also strange how no help was arriving despite the ruckus.

    (It¡¯s not only Elder Brother Linus. It should be safe to assume that someone higher up is also involved in this. To think they want Cleo dead so much!)

    She didn¡¯t think Linus alone was enough to convince a Sword Saint into action.

    There was a possibility that someone above Linus ¡ª perhaps Calvin or even a figure above Calvin ¡ª had a hand in this.

    Would they make it out of this ce alive?

    Lysithea had already half given up.

    However, Tia, who had healed from her injuries, picked up her weapon and said,

    ¡°There¡¯s no need for us to panic. Please continue to watch their fight. I know not of anyone who is more powerful than Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡ó

    There¡¯s one thing I¡¯ve learned from shing head-to-head with the Sword Saint.

    ¡°You proim yourself a Sword Saint with just this? In that case, I shall henceforth be known as a Sword Saint!¡±

    Hearing my mockery, the huge man in front of me clenches his teeth.

    Although it may appear that we are exchanging swords equally, there are scratches appearing on the Sword Saint¡¯s arms and legs.

    Of course, I¡¯m totally uninjured.

    ¡°You¡¯re just a brat who hasn¡¯t lived a hundred years yet!¡±

    ¡°And you¡¯ll be defeated by such a brat! You¡¯re only worth that much! Have you realized the power of the One-sh? Be d that you can die having witnessed the strongest swordsmanship!¡±

    ¡°Bullshit!¡±

    One-sh is a wonderful sword technique.

    It¡¯s probably the best in the world.

    It¡¯s the world¡¯s misfortune that a fine technique like One-sh has been bestowed to me, a viin.

    Even so, how long has it been since Ist fought with a sword?

    Was it when I yed around with Kurt during our training?

    It was really difficult to hold back that time.

    If One-sh has a weakness to speak of, it is that the technique does not allow its user to hold back at all.

    Drawing the sword is equivalent to killing the opponent.

    It would have been problematic if I had identally cut off my opponents¡¯ limbs during matches.

    Those amateurs wouldn¡¯t have known how to deal with the invisible shes.

    Now, as for why I bothered pulling out my katana at all, it was simply to go easy on him.

    If I hadn¡¯t, victory and defeat would have been decided the moment my katana was pulled out of its sheath.

    That is how One-sh works.

    I¡¯m going along with the Sword Saint to test his abilities out.

    Aside from that, I¡¯m also checking how strong I¡¯ve be.

    Suddenly, the Sword Saint jumps back to widen our distance.

    The thin-eyed man expresses astonishment at the Sword Saint¡¯s behavior.

    ¡°Sword Saint, stop ying around!¡±

    Unexpectedly, the Sword Saint screams back at the thin-eyed man.

    ¡°Shut the hell up! ¡ª Some blood has rushed to my head, but I never thought there would be someone who could match me to this extent. It has been a while since I had this feeling. This is the best. You are the best!¡±

    This man is the type of person who enjoys fighting.

    There are times when knights like these appear.

    How strong can I be?

    I want to have more thrilling battles.

    Are there stronger opponents?

    They are pitiful beings that are controlled by these kinds of desires.

    Personally, I don¡¯t understand them at all.

    Anyway, the Sword Saint takes on the hass¨­ stance, and for a moment, my intuition warns me of its danger.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t think there would be another person that would make me unleash this technique. Please don¡¯t die on me straight away!¡±

    The Sword Saint unleashes a sh, but it is awfully crude.

    He unleashes a flurry of shes in an instant, ovepping them and forming a.

    It¡¯s probably an attack that is meant to directly suppress its enemies from the front.

    ¡°What a terrible thing.¡±

    The Sword Saint roars inughter.

    ¡°A sh that carries victory! Nobody can escape from this!¡±

    He shoots several more of such shes.

    ¡ªIt¡¯s terrible in the truest sense.

    I must be an idiot. To think I was wary of this kind of attack.

    As a license holder of the One-sh technique, I¡¯m too ashamed to meet my teacher.

    I blow his shes away, stopping the Sword Saint in his track.

    ¡°You sliced this down as well?¡±

    ¡°What a letdown. Are you actually considered strong?¡±

    I¡¯m growing suspicious.

    In the first ce, would a Sword Saint do this kind of dirty job?

    Is he a fake?

    I¡¯m beginning to doubt him.

    Such a disappointment.

    The Sword Saint changes his stance again.

    He holds his sword with one hand and stands naturally before proceeding to exhale for a long period of time.

    The muscles on the Sword Saint¡¯s body swells up for a moment before shrinking back down.

    I thought he¡¯d swell up, but he shrinks until he¡¯s thinner than he originally was.

    His clothes do not fit him anymore, so the Sword Saint cuts them into a pan-ichi style.

    Although his looks are ridiculous, there is steaming out of his body like some characters in animes and mangas.

    ¡ªIs releasing steam necessary? Couldn¡¯t you have done the same thing with magic?

    ¡°Your appearance changed.¡±

    The Sword Saint isughing, but he looks to be in pain.

    He must be burdening his body right now.

    ¡°This is the extremes of my swordsmanship. This is where my pursuit of absolute power brought me! A forbidden art which provides me with explosive physical abilities in exchange for my life-force!¡±

    The Sword Saint takes a step forward.

    The very next instant, his sword crashes down on where I was a moment ago.

    The ground where the Sword Saint is standing has sunken down, and the part of the floor which his sword has struck explodes out in a burst.

    Having avoided the attack, I open my eyes wide.

    He has just swung his sword downwards, but it¡¯s already approaching me from the sides and is targeting my torso.

    I dodge this as well, yet another shes my way from another direction.

    ¡°How¡¯s this, brat! You still think I¡¯m weak? As I am now, I can bisect a mobile knight! This is strength that surpasses humans!¡±

    When I receive one of his blows with my katana, my feet sink into the ground.

    It¡¯s very heavy.

    Nevertheless, my heart remains calm and tranquil.

    ¡°Extremes, huh... Maybe you were aiming for the wrong thing.¡±

    ¡°Ahh?¡±

    My katana bes tattered after parrying the flurry of blows from the Sword Saint.

    If I knew this would happen, I would have brought my prized katana and finished him off with a single blow.

    ¡°You can¡¯t even retaliate, much less seize victory! If you¡¯re waiting for me to tire out, I have unfortunate news for you! Even in this state, I canst a whole day!¡±

    Every time the Sword Saint swings his sword, a portion of his skin gets peeled off and a little bit of blood flows out.

    He can persist for a day? I gotta say that I¡¯m impressed, but¡ª

    ¡°A pity. I thought it could serve as reference, but your swordsmanship is too crude.¡±

    All of his movements rely on brute force.

    There¡¯s no beauty in them.

    I was testing the water to check if there¡¯s anything worth noting, but there¡¯s absolutely nothing.

    ¡ª It¡¯s not worth referencing.

    ¡°Brat, you dare scorn my swordsmanship!?¡±

    I lower my sword and cease all resistance.

    The Sword Saint¡¯s sword swings down ¡ª but fails to hit me.

    The sword of the Sword Saint, whose eyes are threatening to pop out from the shock, has been snapped from its ricasso.

    The broken de spins in the air and imbeds itself on the ground as itnds.

    The de is slightly red, suggesting that it has been exposed to a moderate amount of heat.

    I pull my legs out of the ground, return my katana back to its sheath, and stretch.

    ¡°Thanks for your hard work. From today onward, I¡¯ll be calling myself a Sword Saint in your stead.¡±

    The Sword Saint is ring at me.

    ¡°Not yet. It¡¯s not ¡ª over ¡ªyet.¡±

    His head is decapitated, prompting his huge body to copse while spewing out blood.

    Therge amount blood that is spurted outnds squarely on the thin-eyed man.

    He¡¯s observing me with murderous eyes.

    ¡°What? You aren¡¯t going to beg for your life?¡±

    The thin-eyed man tries to go for his sword as I draw near him, so I slice off both his arms.

    The thin-eyed man chuckles.

    ¡°When I first heard about the One-sh technique, Iughed because it sounded like some trick from a street performance ¡ª Now that I¡¯m experiencing it for myself, I can¡¯t help butugh again.¡±

    Invisible shes.

    The essence of One-sh lies in the fact that the enemies cannot even tell when it was that they were attacked.

    The thin-eyed man stops resisting.

    Without turning to look at me, he initiates a conversation.

    ¡°Do you want to know who the mastermind is?¡±

    I doubt this man will tell us the truth.

    It¡¯ll just be a waste of time.

    ¡°Unnecessary.¡±

    ¡°Even if your enemy is the entire empire?¡±

    The thin-eyed man raises his face and smiles as if nothing has happened to him.

    His face right now makes him look like the good guy.

    I chop off his head.

    ¡°That¡¯s precisely what I want.¡±

    The empire itself is my enemy? So what?

    This world is my yground.

    I¡¯ll crush anyone that stands in my way.

    Sensing that the battle is over, Lysithea rushes over to me.

    ¡°Hey! Why did you kill him? We might have obtained some information if we conducted an interrogation!¡±

    You¡¯re right, but it¡¯s my principle not to do anything meaningless.

    ¡°How will knowing our enemies¡¯ identities help? Don¡¯t forget that we¡¯re still surrounded by enemies.¡±

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re right.¡±

    ¡°In the first ce, do you really think this guy would have told us the truth? He would¡¯ve just spouted lies to throw us into confusion. This kind of person is not easy to handle.¡±

    The guards never arrived despite Cleo being ambushed.

    For many reasons, it¡¯s hard to believe that only His Highness Linus is behind this.

    In fact, I doubt he has the authority to mobilize a Sword Saint.

    That means that my true enemy is either Calvin or the Emperor ¡ª to be honest, I¡¯m relieved that they¡¯re being openly hostile.

    Lysithea quiets down.

    Next, Tiaes near me and kneels.

    ¡°Lord Liam, I¡¯ve shown you something unsightly.¡±

    Well, she has done her part by dragging things out against the Sword Saint.

    With this, I can im to be a Sword Saint.

    Sword Saint ¡ª yes, it has a nice ring to it.

    ¡°Considering that it¡¯s you we¡¯re talking about, you¡¯ve done your best. I shall praise you. Besides, I feel good today, so I¡¯ll forgive you. After all, I was able to be a Sword Saint.¡±

    ¡°Oh, Lord Liam! What a benevolent lord you are!¡±

    You¡¯re right.

    The fact that I¡¯m hiring you is enough proof of my benevolence.

    Tia is looking at me with joint hands and shiny eyes.

    It truly feels nice.

    High Highness Cleo who was listening to what we were saying shakes his head.

    ¡°Sword Saint? Count, are you not aware of it?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Cleo gazes at the fallen Sword Saint.

    ¡°Within the empire, only His Majesty the Emperor can appoint Sword Saints. Of course, we can nominate candidates who¡¯ll undergo His Majesty¡¯s examination, but it¡¯s not a title which can be earned by defeating a Sword Saint. ¡±

    When I hear that, I despair over theck of benefit thates with killing a Sword Saint.

    A match with nothing to be earned...

    ¡°¡ªYou¡¯re kidding, right?¡±

    Watching me wallow in disappointment, Tia¡¯s cheeks turn rosy.

    ¡°Lord Liam who has missed his mark is also. so. cool.¡±

    Somehow I don¡¯t feel motivated anymore.

    Guess I¡¯ll head back home for today.

    ¡°Whatever. We¡¯re leaving.¡±

    Lysithea stops me from returning back home.

    ¡°Are you going to do nothing about the situation!? We must secure Cleo¡¯s safety first!¡±

    You don¡¯t get it, do you?

    Why do you think I was horsing around until now?

    It¡¯s obviously because everything¡¯s already over.

    ¡°The enemies outside have been annihted, and my men are standing guard. I¡¯ve also reported to the higher-ups. Everything¡¯s already over.¡±

    At times like these, it¡¯s convenient to have connections with the higher-ups.

    I¡¯ve contacted the Prime Minister and asked him to take action.

    ¡°I-it¡¯s over?¡±

    Before going easy on your enemies, you must make sure that all the hassles have been taken care of.

    It only makes sense to go easy when you¡¯re certain of victory.

    Going easy before victory or defeat has been decided is equivalent to being careless.

    You shouldn¡¯t go easy when you have work left to do.

    In my case, all that was left was to fight against the Sword Saint.

    That¡¯s why I went through the trouble of going easy on him.

    Go easy on your opponents only when your victory is guaranteed! ¨C It sounds like a wise saying.

    Let¡¯s have it as my maxim.

 Chapter 82 - Vol. 5 Chapter 11 - Pebble

    <h4>Vol. 5 Chapter 11 ¨C Pebble</h4>

    The Prime Minister, who was awakened from his sleep, sighed as he heard about the assassination attempt on Cleo.

    ¡°His Highness Linus was too impatient.¡±

    Disposing the small fry known as Cleo before confronting Calvin, his nemesis.

    That was most likely what he was nning to do.

    However, the results were devastating.

    Not only had the assassination attempt failed, Linus received a fierce bacsh.

    Linus was a capable man in his own right and had done well in controlling his faction.

    Nevertheless, although he wasn¡¯t a buffoon, Linus¡¯s future was set in stone due to this episode.

    With the milk spilt, he had lost his chance of bing the Crown Prince.

    Rather than that, the Prime Minister was worried for another reason.

    ¡°¡ªWho moved the Sword Saint?¡±

    There were four Sword Saints recognized by the current empire, and one of them had been dispatched to assassinate Cleo.

    Of course, the Prime Minister had nothing to do with it.

    Although the Sword Saint might have cooperated in the assassination of Cleo for honor and prestige, it was unlikely for a swordsman who sought strength above anything else to disy interest in authority to that extent.

    The report stated that the Sword Saint executed the assassination at his own discretion, but it was highly likely that there was a mastermind behind him.

    After reading the report, the Prime Minister smiled.

    ¡°Even so, I didn¡¯t think he was this strong.¡±

    Liam hade out on top after shing with one of the Sword Saints recognized by the empire.

    Such a person was acting as Cleo¡¯s greatest supporter, and he had wielded his sword to protect the prince.

    The Prime Minister got changed.

    When he lightly tapped on his wristwatch, his sleepwear was instantly swapped with his work clothes.

    ¡°Busy days are ahead.¡±

    The pce was in a tumultuous situation, not because of the assassination attempt on Cleo, but rather because of the Second Prince Linus¡¯s blunder.

    ¡ó

    -The Day after the Incident-

    It¡¯s already past noon, but I¡¯m still stuck inside the pce.

    Sincest night, I¡¯ve been undergoing an interrogation.

    The location is inside a conference room.

    As an uing Duke and a current Count, I am being received in a luxurious room.

    The interrogation is being conducted while I¡¯m sitting on a puffy chair and drinking tea made by a maid.

    Not only am I surrounded by high-ranking officials, countless knights and soldiers that work for the pce are around me.

    I can¡¯t rx like this.

    ¡°¡ªHey, is lunch ready yet? I¡¯m at the pce, so I¡¯m expecting a full course.¡±

    On a separate note, it¡¯s pathetic how there¡¯s only one maid here.

    If you wish to keep me here, at least bring a dozen beautiful women over!

    I¡¯ll have you know that I¡¯m a Count!

    One of the high-ranking officials, a senior administrator per say, expresses frustration against my attitude.

    ¡°Count Banfield, are you aware of what happened yesterday night?¡±

    A member of the Royal Family was the target of an assassination attempt inside the pce.

    Out of context, it sounds like a critical matter, but in this world where blood is exchanged on a daily basis, such an event is nothing mindboggling.

    In the first ce, although it¡¯s called a pce ¨C it epasses an entire continent.

    That being the case, some idents are bound to happen every day.

    ¡°What¡¯s with all the fuss? There¡¯s nothing special about it.¡±

    ¡°Do you have any inkling of an idea as to how big of an incident this is!?¡±

    I sip tea gracefully in front of the senior administrator who tries to make me understand the gravity of the situation.

    Hmm, aren¡¯t the identities of these officials and military personnel gathered to investigate me a bit low? Where are the big shots?

    I¡¯m offended, so I don¡¯t feel motivated enough to cooperate with their work.

    ¡°Haa... I have to attend a lectureter in the day. I¡¯d appreciate it if we can finish this before then.¡±

    The senior administrator grabs his head because of my uncaring attitude.

    ¡°His Highness the Second Prince¡¯s future is at stake here. Please be more serious about this.¡±

    ¡°That is quite worrisome indeed.¡±

    ¡°¡ª Or so you say.¡±

    ¡°My thoughts are genuine.¡±

    No, really. I¡¯m also worried for His Highness Linus.

    He¡¯s a pitiful person who made the mistake of picking the wrong fight.

    I¡¯m d that he was someone who¡¯s quick to anger.

    Even though it was slightly troublesome, he came at us in a straightforward manner.

    I was ready to invest a long time struggling over the session rights, but thanks to Linus, we have one less rival to worry about.

    This is the result of Linus¡¯s own actions.

    For the guys in front of me, this may be a pressing concern.

    I, on the other hand, consider this a done deal.

    The fate of His Highness Linus the Second Prince is already sealed.

    He¡¯s no longer my opponent.

    Truth is, from the very beginning, there was no possibility of me losing.

    What I did is no different from kicking a pebble on the road out of my way.

    Regardless of what happens at this point, my victory is all but assured.

    You can say that I¡¯m going easy on them.

    I¡¯m just ying along with these pce officials.

    ¡°By the way.¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    I ask the senior administrator a question.

    ¡°How do I apply to be a Sword Saint?¡±

    The title of Sword Saint is more important than the case with Linus.

    ¡°Count! Please stop joking around!¡±

    ¡°A joke, you say!? I can¡¯t be more serious here. I have to spread the name of One-sh to every corner of the world. By spreading the words of the world¡¯s strongest school of swordsmanship, I¡¯ll be paying back Master Yasushi for his kindness! That¡¯s why I need the title of Sword Saint.¡±

    ¡°What on earth are you getting at?¡±

    I¡¯m a viin.

    Still, I¡¯m someone who knows how to pay back for other people¡¯s kindness.

    I¡¯ve been under Master Yasushi¡¯s care for a long time, yet the world sees One-sh as a minor branch of swordsmanship.

    Thus, I have no choice but to make the world know of its name.

    I have to let them know that One-sh is the strongest school of swordsmanship.

    ¡°Oh, how ¡®bout this. Gather the remaining three Sword Saints. If I beat them all, the empire would have to recognize me as a Sword Saint, right?¡±

    Once again, the senior administrator holds his head before me.

    ¡ó

    -That Afternoon-

    Linus was hanging around in arge room after the aristocrats had left.

    Until a moment ago, the aristocrats in his faction were gathered here for a meeting to think of countermeasures.

    Linus chuckled powerlessly.

    ¡°Don¡¯t give up? Bullshit ¨C It¡¯s over for me.¡±

    He understood that the aristocrats were merely putting up a front.

    Nheless, Linus couldn¡¯t find the energy within him to berate them.

    Linus wasn¡¯t so na?ve to believe that he could jump back up from this catastrophe.

    ¡°I misjudged Cleo. No, I underestimated that brat, Liam. He is definitely the source of my defeat.¡±

    He had belittled the kid, thinking that he was just a bumpkin from the frontiers.

    That was his biggest mistake.

    He should have either crushed Liam with all his might from the beginning or sucked up to him without letting go.

    If he had known that this would be the result, Linus would have invited Liam into his faction, even if that meant he had to bow to thetter.

    Such assumptions were meaningless now.

    Nevetheless, there was one thing that Linus could not help but wonder:

    ¨C When did things begin to go South?

    Without a doubt, it was when he decided to get himself involved with Liam.

    ¡°¡ªThe Prime Minister¡¯s warnings were spot on. As expected of the man who has controlled the empire behind the scenes for many years.¡±

    As Linus muttered this, a man slowly emerged from the floor.

    The man wasn¡¯t kneeling. Instead, he had a bottle of alcohol in his hands.

    The masked man ¨C¨C Linus was well acquainted with him.

    Linus smirked.

    ¡°Here to dispose me?¡±

    The masked man was someone from the organization Linus had allied with.

    ¡°Your Highness Linus, you are no longer useful for us. Our new master is heartbroken by this incident, and ¨C¨C I was tasked to resolve the issue immediately.¡±

    Linus leaned back on the sofa and his gazended on the sake that the masked man had brought.

    ¡°My favorite liquor. How considerate of you.¡±

    Watching howposed and calm Linus was behaving, the masked man felt that it was unfortunate.

    ¡°You aren¡¯t throwing a tantrum?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve made such a mess out of everything. In the future, I¡¯m for sure to be remembered as one of the fools in the history of the empire. I want to at least look cool in myst hour. Wait a minute, I¡¯ll bring the sses.¡±

    When he touched a certain portion of the room¡¯s wall, a gimmick activated, revealing a hidden shelf from behind.

    There were various tableware and beverages inside.

    Snacks to eat alongside the drink were also present.

    ¡°This goes well together with that sake.¡±

    The masked man opened the bottle for Linus who was calmly preparing to drink.

    Linus expressed his regret.

    ¡°You¡¯re thest person I¡¯ll be drinking with, huh? I¡¯ve imagined this several times in the past.¡±

    Linus drank the sake offered to him in one shot and presented his ss again, demanding for more.

    He questioned the masked man as he munched on the snacks.

    ¡°Tell me two things as souvenirs for my trip to hell. From your perspective, which person is fit to be emperor? Elder brother? Cleo?¡±

    The masked man chortled.

    ¡°Your Highness right now may have been suitable to be the emperor.¡±

    Hearing thepliment, Linus happily gulped down the sake.

    ¡°I¡¯ll ept your praise with a pinch of salt. ¨C¨C Moving on, who was the mastermind?¡±

    The masked man replied to his second question.

    ¡°Keeping our client¡¯s identity confidential is part of my job.¡±

    ¡°...You¡¯re right.¡±

    Linus smiled faintly, closed his eyes, and drew in hisst breath. It was as if he went into a deep slumber.

    The masked manmented.

    ¡°If you had shown this side of yours earlier, things might not have turned out like this.¡±

    With the death of a foolish prince who ended his life after confessing his sins, the curtains fell on the turmoil caused by a reckless assassination attempt.

    ¡ó

    A week has passed since the failed assassination attempt.

    I¡¯m having a meeting with His Highness Cleo inside the pce which has yet to regain its tranquility.

    ¡°Your Highness, you don¡¯t seem well.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? No, maybe you¡¯re right.¡±

    Although his emotions don¡¯t appear clogged up, he is clearly under the weather.

    Will he be alright?

    This is why kind people are no good.

    They get depressed over the deaths of those that tried to kill them first.

    Why can¡¯t they just dismiss things?

    His Highness Cleo opens his mouth to speak before I do.

    ¡°I¡¯ve made few memories with my brother, Linus, but I¡¯ve heard some things from a servant he sent as a spy.¡±

    ¡°What have you heard?¡±

    ¡°He held me in contempt, but he was sympathetic to me as well. If I hadin low, I think my brother would not have tried to remove me.¡±

    How kind of him.

    Unfortunately, there¡¯s no meaning to kindness in this world.

    I have experienced terrible betrayals in my previous life.

    At the time, I convinced myself that I was partially in the wrong and bore with the unreasonable treatments.

    As a result, I became theughing stock of the viins.

    ¡°It was His Highness Linus who ignited this conflict. That¡¯s why Your Highness need not feel guilty about his passing. Please remember that a simr fate will befall on Your Highness if you were to lose. To avoid that, Your Highness must fight back.¡±

    His Highness Cleo looks at me.

    ¡°Count, you are a strong man... So strong, in fact, that you fail to understand the feelings of the weak.¡±

    I can sense some toxicity mixed in with his words.

    However, let me tell you one thing.

    I do understand the feelings of the weak.

    After all, I was a weak person in my past life.

    A weak person whose only purpose was to be exploited by the viins.

    I¡¯m repulsed by my past self.

    ¡°I understand the feelings of the weak better than anyone else. Even if you¡¯re weak, when you¡¯re presented the opportunity to rob others, you should do so instead of having yourself robbed. Your Highness regards weakness as a virtue, but weakness is a sin by itself.¡±

    His Highness Cleo stares at me with squinted eyes.

    ¡°Do you? You think a man who was born strong can understand the feelings of the weak?¡±

    ¡°At least I do more than you.¡±

    Tia enters our conversation the moment I drop the honorifics.

    She has a report for me.

    ¡°I¡¯ll pour new cups of teas. Also, Brian-dono wishes to speak with you, Lord Liam.¡±

    She hints at us to take a break.

    I stand up from my seat.

    ¡°To request my presence so casually. If he wasn¡¯t Brian, I¡¯d have executed him.¡±

    I leave the room in this manner.

    ¡ó

    Cleo, who had his conversation interrupted, turned to address Tia.

    ¡°I was rude to the Count. I¡¯ll apologize when he returns.¡±

    Cleo knew of Tia¡¯s reverence towards Liam and believed that she would be angry at him.

    Contrary to his expectations, Tia giggled.

    ¡°Did I say something strange?¡±

    Tia gazed at the door that Liam used to leave the room.

    ¡°How much does Your Highness Cleo know about the Banfield Family?¡±

    ¡°I heard that ever since he was a child, Liam-dono has been improving the state of his territory which was managed poorly by the previous generation. Did he manage to secure a with an abundance of rare materials?¡±

    That was the extent of the public¡¯s evaluation of Liam.

    They were only interested in Liam¡¯s current prestige and military prowess.

    Aside from that, they assumed that the territory was being rapidly developed thanks to the rare metals.

    ¡°What I¡¯m about to say is something I read from the records. Lord Liam apparently became the Count at the age of five.¡±

    ¡°¡ª¡ªI¡¯ve heard rumors about aristocrats pushing their territories onto their children. To think that the rumors were true...¡±

    Cleo, who remained oblivious to most urrences outside the pce, was shocked by the validity of the rumors.

    In his defense, he had only recently begun to interact with the other nobles.

    Furthermore, despite their scary appearances, the aristocrats that made up his faction were lords that had serious personalities.

    As such, they didn¡¯t intend on burdening their children with their territories.

    ¡°The condition of the Banfield¡¯s territory was at its all-time low. The previous lord had demanded so much tax andbor from his citizens that they were at their breaking points. He even borrowed money from other ces to satisfy his vanity. I was stunned when I read the materials. I wondered whether people can actually stoop so low.¡±

    ¡°What a cruel story. I often hear simr tales about other territories. Are these stories true?¡±

    ¡°They are. It¡¯s unthinkable considering the present state of Lord Liam¡¯s territory. Despite so, there are countless people in the empire that are suffering on theirs.¡±

    Tia¡¯s heart ached when she imagined what Liam must have felt when he saw his territory in such shambles.

    ¡°Witnessing the state of his territory, what did the noble Lord Liam think? What did he do? Even though his life wasn¡¯t easy, he endured for decades on end. The young Lord Liam must have been very dashing indeed! He must have been cuter and more precious than he is now ¨C yet Lord Liam persevered through his difficult life and spared no effort in bettering his territory! He trained himself to the point where he obtained the strength to defeat a Sword Saint! ¨C Ah crap, the drool won¡¯t stop!¡±

    She imagined Liam as a child and thought, ¡°If I was by your side at that time!¡±

    Cleo took his eyes off Tia out of courtesy and respect.

    (The Count has some weird knights serving under him.)

    Tia waspetent alright, but she was a disappointing knight.

    Cleo¡¯s gaze returned to Tia when her delusion ended.

    Tia apologized.

    ¡°Please excuse me. What I wanted to tell Your Highness is that there was a time when Lord Liam wasn¡¯t as powerful. As a matter of fact, he was in a worse position than Cleo-sama.¡±

    Cleo hung his head down.

    ¡°¡ªI see. I¡¯ve been impolite to the Count.¡±

    (He had a tougher life than I thought. I guess that¡¯s why he was incensed by my remarks.)

    Cleo who had reflected apologized to Liam when he came back.

 Chapter 83 - Vol. 5 Chapter 12 - Three Swords

    <strong>Vol. 5 Chapter 12 ¨C Three Swords</strong>

    ¡°Linus? He was never my opponent. Didn¡¯t I say so before?¡±

    I¡¯m drinking at the hotel bar with a bbergasted Wace next to me.

    He has been sick in bed recently, but he jolted awake when he heard about the assassination attempt.

    ¡°Unbelievable. To think you won against Elder Brother Linus.¡±

    The world now views Linus as a dunce who failed to assassinate Cleo.

    After all, society is mercilessly cold towards the vanquished.

    Wace, on the other hand, seems to have had a good opinion of Linus.

    ¡°Elder Brother Linus was someone who built up his own faction and climbed to the second ce in terms of session rights. I never thought he¡¯d meet his end in this manner.¡±

    Looking sideways, I tilt my ss at Wace who is overwhelmed.

    ¡°That¡¯s why I told you that you didn¡¯t have to worry about me.¡±

    ¡°You did say that, but nobody would¡¯ve believed you under those circumstances!¡±

    ¡°I knew early on that my chances of winning were high. You think I¡¯d gamble on something knowing that I would lose?¡±

    ¡°Still, he was second in line to the throne!¡±

    I yed this game knowing that I¡¯ll emerge victorious.

    It¡¯s true that Linus had more subordinates and cards which he could¡¯ve employed.

    However, Linus was also busy fighting against Calvin, his main rival.

    I simply took advantage of that; that¡¯s why I was confident about this battle.

    Linus didn¡¯t have the chance to throw everything at us.

    Fair-and-square battles are not suited for Evil Lords.

    Experienced Evil Lords would move in a way such that their enemies cannot disy their full powers.

    Cleo¡¯s reputation is shooting up with the defeat of Linus.

    Plundering anything that is useful ¨C that is also the way of an Evil Lord.

    Unfortunately, this marks the end of the bonus stage.

    I think about our next opponent.

    ¡°Next up is Calvin. This is rather troublesome.¡±

    Wace concurs.

    ¡°He¡¯s the Crown Prince. Numerous aristocrats support him and the majority of those that are in the pce are on his side. Elder Brother Linus¡¯s defeat was unexpected, but what¡¯s your n from now?¡±

    ¡°¡ªn? What¡¯s that?¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t have one!?¡±

    Calvin is sitting on the title of Crown Prince and his position is as stable as a rock.

    He¡¯s not the type of person who would pick fights recklessly like Linus either.

    Phrased another way, there isn¡¯t any gap in his defense.

    Not only is he surrounded by many aristocrats, the quality of his subordinates aren¡¯t bad.

    Wace holds his head in frustration.

    ¡°What are you going to do!? Elder Brother Calvin is even harder to deal with!¡±

    ¡°Fret not. It¡¯ll be a prolonged battle. The person smiling in the end will be me, since Lady Luck is always by my side.¡±

    My victory is predetermined.

    Besides, I have the Guide behind me ¨C it¡¯s impossible for me to lose.

    I should try to enjoy this battle more.

    After sitting Cleo on the throne, I¡¯ll act however I want.

    Oops, I almost forgot about an important matter.

    ¡°Wace, how¡¯s the n for the mixer proceeding?¡±

    Wace stares at me and downs his drink at once without replying.

    ¡°Hey, do you know how important this is for me!?¡±

    Damn it!

    As a college student, I must spend more time partying.

    I haven¡¯t been able to do so because of all the time spent on fighting for the throne.

    Since I¡¯m a noble, I should be extravagant when I fool around!

    ¡ó

    The of the Imperial Capital was in a big fuss.

    ¡°Have you heard? Apparently, His Highness Linus passed away from an illness. The second in line for the throne is now vacant.¡±

    ¡°Is the Third Prince going to move up?¡±

    ¡°Nah. The spot¡¯s vacant alright, but the Third Prince?¡±

    The death of Second Prince Linus.

    Everybody expected hell to break loose in the pce over who would rece Linus as the second in line from the throne.

    In fact, princes who were fourth in line and below were plotting with their respective aristocrats in an attempt to surpass Cleo and be second in line.

    Everyone predicted that many princes and princesses would disappear over time.

    It was because simr things had happened many times before.

    Soon, another piece of news shook the Imperial Capital ¨C as well as the entire Empire.

    ¡ó

    -A far away from the of the Capital-

    Yasushi was trembling while holding an electronic newspaper.

    The figure of Liam holding a press conference could be seen on the screen, and a video was being yed on the newspaper.

    Yasushi trembled.

    ¡°THAT BASTARD! HE WENT AND DID IT! HE FINALLY WENT AND DID IT!¡±

    Yasushi cried, not from happiness, but from fear and anger.

    Inside the video, Liam was proudly proiming something to the reporters in front of him.

    ¡°Sword Saint? I defeated him. As a license holder of the school of One-sh, I defeated him.¡±

    The reporters were in disbelief.

    ¡°You defeated one of the four Heavenly Kings? Truly?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t make me repeat myself over and over. Yes, I slew him. Even so, I wasn¡¯t able to acquire the title of Sword Saint after defeating one. Because of this illogical system, I¡¯ve gone and applied to the pce. Currently, I¡¯m waiting for them to recognize me as a Sword Saint.¡±

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re dering yourself a Sword Saint? Don¡¯t you normally have to be nominated and screened several times before His Majesty approves it?¡±

    ¡°Are you dumb? The Sword Saint that they chose lost against me. Clearly, their eyes are clouded. I am the strongest. I am a Sword Saint. If anyone disapproves, bring the other three over here! I¡¯ll sh them all down.¡±

    There was a buzz in the air.

    Liam continued as if he remembered something crucial.

    ¡°Oh, I retract my previous im. I¡¯m not the strongest. My master is.¡±

    ¡°Your master as in the head of the One-sh? Why have we never heard of his name? If he¡¯s so powerful, his name should be widely¨C¡±

    ¡°Are you looking down on Master Yasushi!?¡±

    Liam projected an image of Yasushi.

    It was a nice and clear image of his face.

    The picture had been taken when Yasushi was teaching Liam swordsmanship.

    The scene was showcased to the reporters on a big screen.

    ¡°That idiot!!¡±

    Yasushi desired nothing else but to suspend the conference.

    Unlucky for him, it was toote by the time he was watching this video.

    There was nothing he could do.

    Liam¡¯s eyes shined as he praised Yasushi.

    ¡°Master Yasushi is the strongest man in the universe. I have been desperately chasing after his shadows. Unfortunately, I still don¡¯t have any confidence in overtaking my master. I¡¯d rather fight the Sword Saints than to face him.¡±

    The reporters were astonished.

    ¡°Is it to that extent!?¡±

    ¡°An existence that stands above a man who defeated a Sword Saint¨C¨C¡±

    ¡°The world¡¯s strongest swordsman ¨C Yasushi! No, he¡¯s a Sword God beyond the realm of Sword Saints!¡±

    ¡°Sword God Yasushi!¡±

    ¡°The strongest Sword God in the gxy!¡±

    ¡°Who exactly is Yasushi!?¡±

    The headline of the article he was reading was ¡°The Strongest Man in the Universe! Sword God Yasushi!¡±.

    Yasushi was nervous about how this news had reached such a distant.

    He shook like a leaf.

    (Not good, not good, not good, not good, not good. I-I¡¯ll be killed if I stay here. I must flee ¨C I must flee from this empire!)

    Liam¡¯s good intentions wereing back to bite him.

    Inside a dimly lit house which had the appearance of a barbershop, Yasushi was thinking about what to do in the future.

    Suddenly, the entrance to the house became noisy.

    ¡°Hand over Yasushi! Bring out the strongest man in the universe!¡±

    The voice belonged to a man.

    Yasushi was certain that the man had read the news about him and was intending to defeat him in order toy ims to the title of the strongest.

    The man¡¯s confidence was apparent in his voice.

    ¡°Hiii! Hiiiiii!¡±

    Yasushi was nning on escaping from the windows.

    Just as he was trying to do so, he heard his disciples fighting off the man.

    ¡°Angh? A trash like ya wishes to confront our master?¡±

    ¡°You must be dreaming.¡±

    His two disciples who were by the front door faced off against the man.

    ¡°¡ªYou young¡¯uns dare make a fool of me, the founder of the school of Infinite Flow? Let me tell you this: I¡¯ve killed five renowned knights in my life!¡±

    That alone indicated how dangerous the man was.

    Yasushi didn¡¯t think that his disciples could fend off such a brute, so he stepped onto the edge of the window frame in preparation for his escape.

    Then¡ª

    BOGOO!

    It was the sound of a wooden sword hitting someone¡¯s body.

    However, it was abnormally loud.

    A few momentster, the man began to scream.

    ¡°Gyaaaa! My arm! My arm!¡±

    His disciples mocked him.

    ¡°Stop screaming. You¡¯re being a nuisance to the neighborhood. The aunty next door is annoying, you know?¡±

    ¡°Next, we¡¯ll crush your right leg.¡±

    The sound of muscles being crushed preceded the man¡¯s scream.

    Shivering, the man¡¯s henchmen cried out.

    ¡°S-stop!¡±

    ¡°Let us go! We¡¯ll never disturb you again!¡±

    ¡°F-forgive us!¡±

    Sadly, Yasushi¡¯s disciples weren¡¯t finished with them.

    ¡°Hey, did ya really kill five famous knights? Yer weak. Weak to the point where I¡¯m yawning.¡±

    The more aggressive of the two disciples expected the man to be a tougher opponent.

    It was infuriating and disappointing.

    ¡°Huh? You believed his lies? Are you dumb?¡±

    The other disciple giggled and teased the aggressive disciple.

    As this disciple was giggling, the sound of bones being crushed was heard yet again.

    Yasushi had cold sweat running down his body.

    The aggressive disciple spoke to the sadistic disciple who was nonchntly torturing the intruders.

    ¡°I¡¯ll kill ya if ya don¡¯t shut up.¡±

    ¡°¡ªDon¡¯t you remember that we need permission from Master if we want to kill someone in the same school? I guess I¡¯ll tattle on Master.¡±

    ¡°Y-Ya dare!?¡±

    Killing disciples of the same school is prohibited ¨C this was a lie that Yasushi weaved as insurance when Liam requested for a practice match.

    He made sure to tell his new disciples the same thing. After all, they were both already stronger than him.

    Yasushi jumped down from the winder fame and walked towards the front door after confirming that the intruders had left.

    The entrance of the house was in a terrible condition, but Yasushi did not bat an eye to maintain his dignity in front of his two disciples.

    (They¡¯re vicious children, but they should be able to win against Liam. They can also beat the hell out of any idiots that challenge me. Still, it¡¯s better if I leave the empire.)

    Yasushi sighed upon seeing the bloody figures of his disciples.

    ¡°You two have caused trouble again?¡±

    His disciples hurriedly corrected their postures in front of their master.

    ¡°B-but Master!¡±

    ¡°I tried to hold him back.¡±

    Yasushi shouted in his heart.

    (Hold him back, my ass! That attitude of yours scares me more than anything!)

    He had managed to appear dignified all these years while taking care of them.

    Thanks to that, they willingly called Yasushi their master.

    ¡°Both of you, clean up and take a shower. Afterwards,e to the inner room.¡±

    They did as he ordered and came to the inner room.

    Yasushi presented them with the tools to kill Liam.

    For the aggressive child, he had prepared two katanas.

    For the sadistic child, he had prepared a katana that was longer than average.

    Each of them was of the highest grade that Yasushi could buy.

    Of course, the funds were from Liam¡¯s pocket.

    His two disciples received their katanas with sparkling eyes.

    ¡°Wow! Master, I can have these?¡±

    ¡°My very own sword!¡±

    Yasushi also had custom clothes tailored for them.

    In addition, he had bought tools for their travels.

    Their only goal was to assassinate Liam.

    (There are two of them, so hopefully one of them seeds in this endeavor. Meanwhile, I¡¯ll be running away from this empire.)

    Yasushi put on his serious face.

    ¡°¡ªYou two are henceforth official sessors.¡±

    The two looked at each other.

    ¡°Eh? Master? Aren¡¯t we still in training?¡±

    ¡°T-that¡¯s right, Master!¡±

    Yasushi smiled, but he was sweating inside his heart.

    (I don¡¯t have anything left to teach! These two are dangerous, just like Liam.)

    In the first ce, he had little to teach.

    If they stayed with him any longer, there was a chance that they would figure out the truth eventually.

    Yasushi wanted to get rid of them quickly.

    ¡°Hone your sword by traveling the outside world. Each of you must discover the One-sh that suits you.¡±

    The two were about to cry.

    Nheless, they did not let go of their new swords.

    Yasushi failed to understand their thought processes.

    (Why are you hugging your swords that much? It¡¯s kind of scary.)

    He did not tell them the true purpose of their travels.

    ¡°Hone your skills during your travels. I¡¯m sure that there will be many life-threatening encounters. You two might even split up someday. Just remember ¨C your senior brother will help youplete your sword.¡±

    The aggressive child wiped his tears.

    ¡°Senior Brother? You mean Liam? He¡¯s also a license holder of One-sh?¡±

    ¡°Yes. You aren¡¯t his match now, so hone your swordsmanship outside before challenging your senior brother.¡±

    The child with bad personality snorted.

    ¡°Is he that strong? We¡¯re pretty strong ourselves.¡±

    Yasushi nodded in his heart.

    (Honestly, how would you expect me to know? From my standpoint, all of you are monsters. Go ahead and kill each other as monsters.)

    Yasushi replied.

    ¡°He¡¯s strong. You two must challenge him with the intention to kill ¨C no, kill him. If you don¡¯t have that degree of determination, you¡¯ll die instead. Challenge him together. There¡¯s that big of a gap between him and you two.¡±

    (Well, you guys should be able to win if you challenge him as a pair.)

    The two nodded as they cried.

    Yasushi consoled them by saying that they were ready for the trip and presented their clothes.

    They were good quality clothes.

    Yasushi had prepared them as he felt a certain amount of responsibility.

    On top of everything, he also bestowed them with electronic currency amounting to a couple million.

    With that much money, he was sure that they would be fine for a while.

    If theycked funds, they could make a living as bounty hunters as well.

    ¡°I¡¯ll also depart from here after you two leave.¡±

    ¡°Master!?¡±

    ¡°Why!?¡±

    ¡°To ensure that your determination does not waver. I will go on a journey and continue to polish my One-sh technique. We may never meet again. Even so, I pray for your safeties.¡±

    (After they kill Liam, I¡¯ll call them back to serve as my bodyguards .... Never mind, I don¡¯t want to stay with these monsters. I won¡¯t be able to rest in peace. Also, if they kill Liam, they¡¯ll be fugitives.)

    Yasushi treated them gently to alleviate their sadness.

    Thereafter, the duo changed into their new clothing and appeared in front of Yasushi with their swords on their waists.

    ¡°¡ªBoth of you have grown up.¡±

    They blushed when he said so.

    Then, they proceeded to thank Yasushi.

    ¡°Master, thank you for raising me. I¡¯lle back to see Master again when I defeat senior brother and be full-fledged!¡±

    ¡°I will prove to the world that I am master¡¯s number one disciple. Until then ¨C farewell Master.¡±

    Yasushi grinned when they departed.

    (Haaa~. They have left atst. It took me decades to raise them. I¡¯m finally free.)

    Yasushi gazed at the house where his disciples had departed from.

    (¨C I-I feel a little sad.)

    Having raised them for such a long period of time, Yasushi had slightly grown attached to them.

    He knew that he would no longer return here.

    (I didn¡¯t think a guy like me would spend time raising children. They¡¯re rather pitiful to be raised by me.)

    Yasushi packed his belongings to escape from the empire¡¯s territories.

    Thedy from next door walked in.

    ¡°Yasushi-san! Were your children causing a ruckus again?¡±

    ¡°N-neighbor! P-please forgive their offense.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know about your circumstances, but what¡¯s the point of training your sword in this god forsaken ce? You don¡¯t even look strong.¡±

    Yasushiughed bitterly when he was told off by the aunty.

    ¡°Ahahaha ¨C You¡¯re right.¡±

    (Damn it! She¡¯s spouting whatever she wants without holding back! You don¡¯t have to remind me. I¡¯ll never train swordsmanship ever again! Today is thest day I¡¯ll be scared of Liam. It¡¯s nerve-wracking to leave the empire, but I should have done this from the very beginning.)

    He would travel to a ce where nobody would recognize him.

    When Yasushi arrived at this thought, he felt refreshed.... No, truth be told, he felt lonely.

    For some reason, Yasushi was concerned about the two children who had left their nest.

 Chapter 84 - Vol. 5 Chapter 13 - Lord Liam Doesnâ€™t...

    <strong>Vol. 5 Chapter 13 ¨C Lord Liam Doesn¡¯t...</strong>

    It was natural for me to win the battle.

    Even so, many people including Brian expressed surprise at my victory.

    Linus had been fighting Calvin with his back faced towards me, and I had simply stabbed him in the back while he was distracted.

    Why would anyone think I¡¯d lose?

    ¡ªAnyway, I returned back to my territory to encourage my subordinates to continue working hard on whatever they were doing.

    I¡¯m at least considerate and capable enough to praise my subordinates for their efforts.

    In the first ce, giving out praises doesn¡¯t cost me any money, so I¡¯m more than willing to do so.

    In the audience room of my mansion, I sit on the chair like a king would.

    Imposingly and with crossed legs ¨C¨C or so I wish.

    Unfortunately, that would make many people unhappy, so I fix my posture.

    All the civil and military officials line up... but aren¡¯t there too many of them?

    There are way more than a hundred of them.

    Just how many subordinates do I have?

    The number of subordinates has increased dramatically before I noticed anything.

    It isn¡¯t just the knights or the military officers.

    There are more administrative government officials as well.

    It was really difficult in the beginning, but it has nearly been a century since I was reborn in this world.

    Back in the days, I was dirt-poor, but now, I¡¯m filthy rich.

    Not only that, I have many subordinates that are ¨C¨C

    Are they reliable?

    I have ambivalent thoughts about Tia and Marie who are the head and the vice-head of my knight order.

    Although they aplish their jobs well, they have disappointing personalities.

    It appears that the quality of my subordinates is still somewhatcking.

    Now, as for today¡¯s ceremony, I¡¯ve left it upon the hands of us, the knight who has been serving as my escort.

    He¡¯s a useful subordinate who can handle anything smoothly.

    I¡¯ll make sure he continues to serve under me.

    ¡°Lord Liam.¡±

    I get up from the chair upon being called.

    ¡°Everyone has been giving their all recently. The past few years have been a struggle, but we were able to sessfully kick Linus down and push His Highness Cleo one step closer to the throne. For that, I¡¯d like to thank you all.¡±

    The sight of everyone kneeling is always pleasant to behold.

    It allows me recognize how great I am.

    us makes a difficult face for some reason and proceeds with the ceremony.

    ¡°Next ¨C¨C¡±

    ¡°us, next are the rewards, am I right? Who made the biggest contribution this time? I¡¯ll reward them personally.¡±

    There are many people that deserve praise, so most of them will be bestowed medals at ater date.

    However, I¡¯ll personally award the person with the most outstanding achievement.

    us looks nervous.

    ¡°Chengshi Sera Tourei ¨C Step forth!¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    A woman with mysterious sex appeals presents herself before me.

    Everyone¡¯s gazends on the woman.

    Both Tia and Marie are ring at the woman as if they¡¯ve been fed earthworms.

    If I am to describe her, she¡¯s ¨C a Chinese-esque beauty.

    Come to think of it, isn¡¯t she the knight I chose as an escort based on her appearance alone?

    us lists out Chengshi¡¯s achievements.

    ¡°In addition to her performance during this time¡¯s incident, she has made various other achievements, ranking her in the first ce. She has shot down over 600 enemy battleships, which is second only to Lord Liam in the Banfield family.¡±

    ¡°Six hundred?¡±

    When I cock my head, I hear the regretful voices of Tia and Marie.

    ¡°What¡¯s the point in counting the number of enemies she defeated alone?¡±

    ¡°If I¡¯m provided the same amount of battleships, I bet I can perform twice as better.¡±

    The defeated dogs are barking.

    Hm, now that I think about it ¨C having a Chinese-style beauty by my side is not bad.

    There¡¯s a certain element of mysteriousness about it.

    us continues.

    ¡°She is the only person in the Banfield family to achieve so much in such a short period of time. That said ¨C¨C¡±

    Ignoring the troubled us, Chengshi walks up to me.

    ¡°Lord Liam ¨C¨C there¡¯s one thing that I desire more than anything else.¡±

    How fearless of her to ask for a reward so boldly.

    I like it.

    I love talented subordinates.

    ¡°And that is?¡±

    Chengshi takes out a tubr hidden weapon from her loose cuffs which turns into a spear.

    Disregarding the knights that are growing agitated, Chengshi takes a step forward.

    ¡°I want your head!¡±

    She deres this with a ferocious smile.

    ¨C¨C Why are so many of my subordinates like this?

    They¡¯repetent, but they each have some type of problem.

    After stepping forward, Chengshi directly pounces on me.

    The distance between us shortens in an instant.

    She¡¯s rather fast.

    ¡°Show me what it took to kill a Sword Saint!¡±

    asionally, there are times when a stupid knight who could only fight appears.

    The saving grace is that Chengshi is more interesting to fight againstpared to the Sword Saint.

    ¡°I¡¯m disappointed with you ¨C¨CNheless, your speed is worthy of recognition.¡±

    Chengshi opens her eyes wide and twists her body.

    The next moment, her right arm which is holding the spear gets cut off.

    She jumps back immediately by kicking the air and readies another hidden weapon in her left hand.

    ¡°You used the air as a foothold to kick yourself back? Hey, that¡¯s really fascinating.¡±

    She¡¯s much more entertaining to battle than the Sword Saint.

    A sword that she takes out transforms into a Chinese falchion.

    ¡°You brought along a lot of expendables? You should¡¯ve brought a more proper weapon. Men, give her a weapon.¡±

    I walk down the short stairs while grinning.

    This Chengshi had avoided my sh.

    She had dodged a serious blow from me.

    She¡¯s undoubtedly strong.

    The way she¡¯s raring to fight even after she lost an arm ismendable.

    However, some knights including us form a human shield in front of me while the others surround Chengshi.

    Tia screams furiously.

    ¡°You better not hope for an easy death after dishonoring Lord Liam during a sacred ceremony!¡±

    Marie, who is holding an oversized tomahawk, res at Chengshi with bloodshot eyes.

    ¡°I¡¯ll make minced meat out of you.¡±

    You guys don¡¯t seem to understand your master¡¯s heart.

    Irritated, I pass an order to them.

    ¡°Withdraw. Don¡¯t ruin my fun.¡±

    us turns towards me in protest.

    ¡°B-but Lord Liam!¡±

    ¡°¡ª¡ª Don¡¯t make me repeat myself. Tia, Marie, the same applies to the both of you. In fact, you two should fetch her weapon. We¡¯ll be starting over.¡±

    From my pocket, I take out an elixir that I carry around as insurance.

    I toss it at Chengshi andmand the knights near her.

    ¡°Hey, bring her amputated arm and have her attach it back.¡±

    ¡°W-will that be wise? This person wants your life, Lord Liam!¡±

    ¡°And what¡¯s wrong with that? She wishes to fight, yes? Then I¡¯ll award her with a fight. Granted, my head is off-limits. My head isn¡¯t that cheap.¡±

    Tia and Marie return despite their frustration.

    Chengshi¡¯s weapon is on their hands.

    I take it from them.

    ¡°Mediocre quality. Whatever. Here, have it back.¡±

    I throw the weapon at Chengshi while she¡¯s reattaching her arm.

    Her breaths are a little rough.

    Nheless, she picks up her weapon and takes her stance.

    She giggles in spite of the cold sweat running down her cheeks.

    ¡°I don¡¯t dislike that boldness of yours.¡±

    ¡°Bold? You think I¡¯m bold? I must say that your eyes are clouded. What a letdown.¡±

    The fact that she called me bold is enough proof that she¡¯s also another one of those disappointing girls.

    Her appearance isn¡¯t bad ¨C¨C but she isn¡¯t qualified to enter my harem.

    In the midst of everyone¡¯s vignt stares, Chengshi rushes at me.

    I parry her attacks with my katana, only to have her strike back with greater momentum.

    ¡°An intriguing swordsmanship. It¡¯s honestly a better source of reference than the Sword Saint¡¯s.¡±

    Chengshi responds to mypliment with a kick.

    A kick from a pin-heel could be devastating, so I leap back.

    Chengshi follows up by kicking hard on the floor and charging at me with her elbow out.

    It¡¯s interesting how she has weaved in physical techniques into her swordsmanship.

    It¡¯s nothing mind blowing, though.

    There are simr techniques in the school of One-sh.

    ¡°Was it like this?¡±

    For the first time in a long while, I demonstrate a technique that can be used when someone¡¯s sword is shattered.

    It¡¯s a grappling skill that utilizes the opponent¡¯s momentum.

    I throw Chengshi into the air and have her spin as she crashes drown to the ground.

    She spasms when her back hits the floor.

    I stare down at her and very much enjoy the look of pain on her face.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? I thought you wanted to im my head? I gave you a chance, but your attacks aren¡¯t reaching me at all.¡±

    Chengshi slowly stands back up and breathes unevenly.

    ¡°Do you understand now that we¡¯re on different levels?¡±

    Chengshi shes at me when I purposefully show a gap in my defense.

    I try to deflect her attack with the katana.

    Surprisingly, Chengshi¡¯s de twists like a piece of cloth and continues to approach me unhindered.

    Tia shouts.

    ¡°Lord Liam!¡±

    I eye Tia and Marie, warning them not to intervene.

    The de that nearly reaches me ¨C¨C gets caught between the fingers of my left hand.

    ¡°That technique was pretty fascinating.¡±

    Chengshi¡¯s eyes widen a bit.

    ¡°¨C¨CNo way. I didn¡¯t think you¡¯d be able to see through it at first nce.¡±

    ¡°Is it unbelievable for you? For a license holder of the One-sh, this is a piece of cake.¡±

    Many years ago, Master Yasushi had once attacked me with a whip.

    The whip was special, making its trajectory difficult to read.

    I suffered quite a bit to figure out a way to defend against it.

    Thanks to that training, I was able to react instantly this time.

    I put some pressure into my fingertips, breaking the ded section of Chengshi¡¯s weapon.

    Chengshi whips out yet another hidden weapon and performs her next technique.

    It¡¯s a technique that allows her to spin like a tornado as she attacks.

    Normal shes will be fended off, opening an opportunity for Chengshi to retaliate.

    Regrettably, it¡¯s quite a boring technique.

    ¡°Are you already out of materials to disy?¡±

    I swing down my katana, but Chengshi avoids it once more.

    She managed to dodge twice ¨C¨C it honestly disturbs me.

    Have I been toozy nowadays?

    It seems necessary to train myself again.

    Chengshi¡¯s spin is interrupted, and her left hand and left leg fall to the floor.

    Even in that state, Chengshi doesn¡¯t give up and aims for my neck with a weapon in her mouth.

    Using her remaining arm and leg, she springs forward by kicking the ground.

    I plunge my katana deep into Chengshi¡¯s belly and lift her up.

    Chengshi drops the knife with a pained expression and vomits out blood.

    ¡°¡ª¡ªTo be fair, I was shocked to see that you avoided my blows twice in a row. There¡¯s no doubt that you¡¯re an excellent swordswoman.¡±

    I tell her my honest impression.

    The knights draw their swords behind Chengshi with bloodthirsty eyes, ready to kill Chengshi whenever I give the signal.

    Tia appears excited.

    ¡°Lord Liam, the winner has been decided. Now, please order us to dispose of this fool!¡±

    Marie isn¡¯t any different.

    ¡°Let¡¯s heal her a moment before she dies and torture her again, repeating the process until she begs for death!¡±

    These girls...

    ¡°When did I say that I¡¯m going to kill her? I¡¯ve taken a liking to this one.¡±

    ¡°H-however!¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, this woman is dangerous!¡±

    As if you two aren¡¯t! ¡ª¡ª And in many regards at that.

    Chengshi res at me.

    It¡¯s admirable how she still has the guts to challenge me in spite of her condition.

    Also, I like how she has just the right amount of skills to be deemed excellent without having the ability to actually kill me.

    I pull the katana out from Chengshi¡¯s stomach and m her to ground before staring down at her.

    ¡°This is the end of your reward. umte more merits and challenge me again. I won¡¯t decline from a fight.¡±

    us confirms what I said.

    ¡°Are you certain? She¡¯s someone who aimed for Lord Liam¡¯s life. Not only that, it was during an important ceremony.¡±

    ¡°Is anything wrong with that? I like her, and that¡¯s enough reason for her to live. Get her treated straight away. Also, we¡¯ll be continuing the ceremony. us-kun, as the MC, shouldn¡¯t you proceed with the ceremony?¡±

    ¡°Y-yes, sir!¡±

    The injured Chengshi is swiftly carried away and the ceremony resumes as it was.

    On second thought, it would¡¯ve been a better idea to adjourn the meeting for a while.

    I should¡¯ve at least ordered someone to clean up the mess on the floor.

    ¡ó

    ¡°Lord Liam! Why did you decide on keeping such a mad dog by your side!?¡±

    Having heard about what transpired during the ceremony, Brian is bawling in front of me.

    I would¡¯ve rebuked him and chased him out if he was simply being rowdy ¨C¨C but I¡¯m not good with tears.

    Also, the look that Amagi is giving me ¨C I¡¯m not good with it either.

    ¡°Master, a knight like her would not give up easily. She¡¯s the type of knight that loves to battle, so she¡¯ll target master¡¯s life again.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll just counterattack if thingse to that point. Also, isn¡¯t she the kind of person that wishes to fight against the strong? That means she won¡¯t be making any underhanded moves.¡±

    Brian shakes his head.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it quite underhanded to aim for someone¡¯s life during a ceremony? Anyway, there¡¯s something else that Lord Liam has to know.¡±

    ¡°Did a problem arise?¡±

    ¡°Yes, it can be ssified as a problem. We don¡¯t have enough military personnel. Our military is tasked to protect the newly acquired territories, patrol the borders, and exterminate the pirates.

    On top of that, troops have been dispatched to His Highness Cleo.

    Every single ship has been sortied, except for the ones under maintenance.

    Amagi also conveys her concern about the deployment rate of the military.

    ¡°There¡¯s a military school inside our territory and we have been securing some personnel from there. Nevertheless, it isn¡¯t nearly enough. The military has proposed to have the students train faster and to have some citizens conscripted.¡±

    ¡°¡ªWhat was that about conscripting the citizens?¡±

    Brian wipes off his sweat with his handkerchief, probably realizing that the atmosphere around me has changed.

    ¡°Yes, a portion of them has been drafted. We¡¯ve already gathered reserves to deal against unexpected situations. Lord Liam, from my understanding, we are at a critical juncture. That¡¯s why the people should also bear some of the burden and¡ª¡±

    ¡°You idiot!¡±

    Brian and Amagi close their mouths when I smash my fist down on the desk.

    ¡°You drafted the citizens of the territory? You thought I¡¯d be fine with that!?¡±

    Brian sounds moved.

    ¡°Lord Liam is thinking for his people!¡±

    On the other hand, Amagi sounds somewhat exasperated.

    ¡°Master, what are your true thoughts?¡±

    What does she mean by my ¡°true thoughts¡±?

    My policy has never changed.

    ¡°I¡¯m the only one who is allowed to oppress my people!¡±

    I will not tolerate any form of exploitation unless I¡¯m inside the territory.

    Exploitation is the source of my pleasure!

    I have no intention of sharing this joy with anyone else.

    Brian¡¯s head droops down.

    ¡°¡ªIs that so? Well, this Brian won¡¯t say anything since Lord Liam doesn¡¯t wish for the citizens to be harmed.¡±

    Amagi requests for a solution to the problem.

    ¡°We¡¯re severelycking military personnel. Lord Liam, this issue cannot be put on hold for long.¡±

    It would be difficult to resolve if I try to prepare all the personnel on my end.

    That¡¯s why I¡¯ll just bring them from somewhere else.

    ¡°It should be fine if we steal some soldiers from the Imperial Army again.¡±

    ¡°There is still a limit to that. Please be aware that we would have to weed out spies in the future.¡±

    In the likely event that I get involved a full-scale confrontation with Calvin, there¡¯s a good chance that spies will be sent my way.

    ¡°¡ªThis is rather troublesome.¡±

    Marie enters the office just as I am contemting.

    ¡°Lord Liam, Thomas-dono is requesting an audience for an urgent business.¡±

    ¡°Thomas? At a time like this?¡±

    I reluctantly head out to deal with Thomas.

 Chapter 85 - Vol. 5 Chapter 14 â€“ Disciple

    I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire! Vol. 5 Chapter 14 ¨C Disciple

    Vol. 5 Chapter 14 ¨C Disciple

    TN: We¡¯re almost at the epilogue!

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    My luck scares me sometimes.

    ¡°I¡¯ll have to thank him again.¡±

    Thomas and Patrice be confused by my muttering.

    ¡°Thank who?¡±

    ¡°Never mind. Carry on,¡± I say so to the confused Thomas in front of me.

    This always happens when I¡¯m in trouble.

    A solution appears out of thin air.

    Miracles like these do not ur naturally in this world.

    I¡¯m sure that the Guide is manipting things behind the scenes.

    That¡¯s the only way to exin this phenomenon.

    Patrice resumes her exnation.

    ¡°It¡¯s about the refugees from the United Kingdoms of Oxis and the Lustral Unified Government. Due to the abrupt fall of His Highness Linus who was backing them, the rebel forces have weakened considerably.¡±

    I drink the tea prepared by Amagi.

    Alcohol would¡¯ve fit the image of a viin better, but I dropped the idea when Amagi stared at me with reproachful eyes that said, ¡°Drinking from daytime?¡±

    I snort.

    ¡°I¡¯d normally refuse to ept traitors under me, but it¡¯s true that I am in need of men right now.¡±

    Thomas wipes his sweat with a handkerchief.

    ¡°No, the masterminds have already been punished in their respective countries. The issue is with the people that were dragged into the conflict. For example, knights and soldiers were forced to participate by their lords, so leaders of both countries are racking their brains over how to treat those that were only loosely rted to the rebellion.¡±

    In other words, the architects of the rebellions were punished, but they are having trouble dealing with the aftermaths because too many people were involved.

    Simply put, these refugees are like regr employees in a bankruptpany.

    They¡¯re not directly responsible for anything, yet the higher-ups are questioning how they should be handled in the future.

    Since they¡¯re traitors, it wouldn¡¯t be appropriate to wee them with open arms.

    Instead, it would be better if they disappeared.

    At the same time, however, they¡¯re reluctant to dispose subjects that were only dragged into the mess.

    Did I understand that correctly?

    ¡°ept them. We have a surplus of territories after all.¡±

    Amagi warns me in response to my remarks.

    ¡°Master, wouldn¡¯t it be unwise to ept citizens that grew up in different political environments?¡±

    ¡°¡ªThe Unified Government would be difficult.¡±

    The Unified Government is run by a system of democracy.

    The political structure there ispletely different from that of the aristocratic Empire¡¯s.

    Patrice also voices out her worry.

    ¡°As people that were once involved in politics, they may try to bring democracy into Lord Liam¡¯s territory.¡±

    ¡°Democracy ¨C I wouldn¡¯t want that.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s to be expected. So far, I¡¯ve only met a few aristocrats who were in favor of democracy.¡±

    ¡°¡ªSuch nobles exist? Nobles that favor democracy?¡±

    You¡¯re telling me that in this Empire that isrgely feudal, there are aristocrats who yearn for democracy!?

    There are so many idiots in this world.

    ¡°Some support it on the basis that their workload would decrease. Others sincerely praise democracy as a wonderful political system.¡±

    ¡°Fools.¡±

    I hate democracy.

    More specifically, I hate having someone stand above me.

    Although it¡¯s partially because I hold absolute power in my territory, the gist of the problem does not lie in the political system itself.

    Basically, the system is wed owing to the fact that humans are in control.

    No matter how wonderful a system is, humans will corrupt it.

    Once again, the gist of the problem does not lie in the political system itself.

    The problem lies in humans.

    I don¡¯t trust humans.

    That¡¯s why I can confidently assert that no political system is perfect.

    In that case, I¡¯d rather keep the status quo and reign as king in my territory.

    I turn my gaze towards Amagi.

    ¡°Master?¡±

    ¡°No...nothing.¡±

    Once upon a time, the humans of this world experienced a huge setback after they entrusted everything to artificial intelligence.

    But if they truly sought and desired perfection from artificial intelligence despite knowing all the atrocities that humanity could offer ¨C what else needs to be said?

    Then again, artificial intelligence can be argued to be imperfect since they were made by humans.

    They were made from the hands of the wed humans.

    ¡°Amagi, you are cute today too.¡±

    Such thoughts pass through my head, but when Iy my eyes on Amagi, the beauty who personifies my ideals, everything bes irrelevant.

    Amagi is the perfect one for me.

    ¡°Thank you. Nheless ¨C please be more mindful of the TPO so as to not puzzle our guests.¡±

    I clear my throat in front of the two people who havee to request me about epting those that are seeking asylum.

    ¡°To prevent troubles that may arise from having them grouped together, split them up and distribute them in an even manner. How about that?¡±

    Thomas nods.

    ¡°The refugees from the United Kingdoms should be okay with that. After all, their political system is simr to ours.¡±

    Patrice makes a troubled look.

    ¡°Ourpany will profit from selling this favor to the Unified Government. However, will this be fine? Wouldn¡¯t it be problematic if a democratization movement urs within the territory?¡±

    These guys don¡¯t understand me at all.

    If I was a nice andpetent lord, I would have been more concerned and cautious about epting the refugees.

    The thing is, I¡¯m an evil lord.

    ¡°I¡¯ll allow them to have the freedom of expression. If they cause issues in my territory, I¡¯ll simply crush them.¡±

    Both Thomas and Patrice suck in air.

    That said, I¡¯m curious about something else.

    ¡°By the way, Thomas, what happened to the traitorous aristocrat who you were in contact with? It wouldn¡¯t be a funny matter for us if his family was crushed as well.¡±

    Thomas smiles ruefully.

    ¡°He managed to protect his position by pushing the me and responsibility onto his lord.¡±

    ¡°Fabulous! We¡¯ll continue to support him.¡±

    The foreign viinous lord seems to be working hard.

    I should also work hard.

    ¡ó

    I haven¡¯t returned in a long while, so I decided to hide my identity and have a walk around the territory.

    I decided on this as I wished to execute anyone who dared to offend me.

    My heart was racing when I came out.

    As an evil lord, I thought I could finally y the part.

    At least that¡¯s what I thought¡ª.

    ¡°¡ªWhat¡¯s going on? Nobody hase to pick a fight with me.¡±

    I¡¯m currently sitting on a bench while holding an ice cream on one hand.

    This is supposed to be where it¡¯s most turbulent.

    Certainly, this ce feels a bit messier than others, but everything is still peaceful around here.

    I was imagining somewhere more slum-like ¡ª Not a ce like this where families can walk about normally.

    ¡°I asked for directions to where the security is the worst. Why am I here? The cop must have lied to me.¡±

    The policeman who I asked for directions must have scammed me.

    I¡¯ll make sure that person is demotedter on.

    Even so, the smell of fooding from the lined-up stalls is irresistible.

    Watching the families as they walk by, I am reminded of my past life.

    A time when I was happy.

    A time when I went out with my wife and child during the holidays without being aware of anything wrong.

    ¡°Recalling these memories is making me frustrated.¡±

    I get annoyed seeing the families on the street.

    Just as I¡¯m about to finish the ice cream and leave, I hear a shout.

    ¡°Hey! Where yer eyes at when ya walk, huh?!¡±

    It¡¯s the smell of a dispute.

    I join the crowd of spectators and stretch my neck to get a hold of the situation.

    Men that are clearly bad news are standing in the middle.

    ck leather jackets.

    Piercings.

    Spiky, blonde hairs.

    The viin-like guys shout at the mother-child pair in front of them.

    Perhaps the child bumped into them as there¡¯s an ice cream stain on one of the men¡¯s tight trousers.

    The mother hugs and shields her child from harm.

    ¡°I-I deeply apologize. I¡¯ll pay theundry fee¡ª¡±

    ¡°Laundry!? Do you have any idea who this noble figure is? He¡¯s the eldest young master in the House of Bar Clover, a family under the House of Baron Norden, an aristocratic household which is one of the Twelve Families that support the Banfields!¡±

    The mother and child turn pale upon hearing those words, and the spectators also begin to murmur amongst themselves in surprise.

    ¡°The Twelve Families?¡±

    ¡°Oh no! What will happen to that mother and child?¡±

    ¡°The child¡¯s luck must be rotten to bump into a noble.¡±

    I¡¯m at a loss for words.

    What Twelve Families?

    Baron Norden¡¯s family supports me?

    Many families have indeed approached me, and I remember that Baron Norden was one of them.

    The thing is, the Norden family has never supported me whatsoever.

    Instead, I¡¯ve been the one to support their family.

    And you guys! You guys that are gossiping about nobles-this-and-nobles-that!

    Why the heck are you guys acting servile towards these bottom of the rung ruffians!?

    You guys should be fawning over me instead!

    With me here, why are you guys being frightened by the likes of them!?

    Anger gradually builds up within me.

    I¡¯m pissed at my citizens for their behaviors.

    That said ¨C¨C

    ¡°You sure have the guts to dare act as a viin inside my territory despite your worthless noble status.¡±

    In the first ce, Bars aren¡¯t official aristocrats.

    They¡¯re simr to honorary knights that serve for only a single generation.

    The Empire closes its eyes on the Bars¡¯ hereditary practices only because it¡¯s too troublesome to appoint knights every time before they¡¯re sent to territories.

    Territories of knightse in varying sizes.

    There are cases where over a hundred knights are crowded on a single.

    Although there are exceptions where a single knight controls an entire, thoses are often territories that were devastated to the point where the total poption is less than a million.

    In other words ¨C¨C most of them are useless.

    I don¡¯t understand why beings like them are roaming around in my territory.

    Infuriated, I throw the half-eaten ice cream that I have towards the so-called eldest son.

    The surrounding quiets down when the ice cream hits the man in the face and stters around him.

    Everyone¡¯s staring at me, so I step forward with a grin.

    ¡°Hey, what will happen to me now that I¡¯ve thrown an ice cream at you? Tell me about it too.¡±

    Seeing that I have revealed myself before them, the trio res at me with hateful eyes.

    ¨C¨CEh?

    ¡°Ya spite an aristocrat? Men, erase this person.¡±

    His sidekicks ready their weapons in their hands.

    What they take out are only handles to their swords, but the des parts pop out soon after.

    I¡¯m in disbelief.

    ¡°W-wait. You guys don¡¯t recognize me?¡±

    Removing the ice cream on his face, the man splutters and screams at me.

    ¡°It¡¯s toote to be scared now! Do it, men! The police won¡¯t say anything to the death of onemoner.¡±

    ¨C¨CThis attitude... has he done this many times in the past?

    My subordinates are wiping these people¡¯s asses?

    Unforgivable.

    Upon my return, I¡¯ll be carrying out punishments to those that turned a blind eye on these people¡¯s crimes.

    The only person who can be arrogant in my territory¨C¨C the only person who can bully the people in my territory ¨C¨C is me.

    ¨C¨C I¡¯m the only one allowed to do so in this entire world.

    I avoid the two swords, grab their heads, and m them to the ground.

    Because they¡¯re trained knights, they shouldn¡¯t die from something of this level.

    They¡¯re convulsing from having the back of their heads buried to the ground, but whatever.

    I wouldn¡¯t mind even if they died.

    The man stares at me in astonishment.

    ¡°You¡¯re also a knight? Which house do you belong to!? I¡¯ll have you know that the House of Baron Norden is close to the House of Banfields. One of my close rtive is the Count¡¯s right arm, you know?¡±

    I can¡¯t help but grow frustrated.

    ¡°You don¡¯t even recognize the face of the one who¡¯s feeding you? I don¡¯t wish to see small fries of your caliber in my territory. You can die now.¡±

    The man points the muzzle of his gun at my direction.

    However, a knife is shot out which disarms him.

    Apparently, Kukuri¡¯s subordinates are guarding me.

    A katana appears in front of me, so I wield it and re at the man before me.

    ¡°The question is, are you really a noble?¡±

    The man begins to tremble.

    ¡°O-of couse! If you kill me, Count Banfield won¡¯t stay silent!¡±

    The mother and the child who have been given a hard time by the man shake in fear.

    Sensing that the situation has taken a turn for the worse, the surrounding bystanders start moring.

    ¡°Lord Liam?¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam is a strict person.¡±

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be bad for this entire region if we¡¯re not careful?¡±

    They sound rather nervous.

    Excellent.

    ¡°Count Banfield? So what?¡±

    The man points his finger at me.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you aware? Count Banfield is merciless against his enemies! Your whole family will be massacred. You want that? Killing me is equivalent to challenge the Banfield family¨C¨C¡±

    I cut him down because he¡¯s being annoying.

    As the man¡¯s head falls to the ground, I perform a stretch.

    ¡°Too trash. As punishment for this unpleasant experience, I shall discontinue my support of the Norden family.¡±

    The onlookers turn pale as a police car arrives at the scene.

    From the flying vehicle, police officers who were trained as knights leap down and surround me.

    Seeing that they have weapons on their hands, Marie, who appears to have been guarding me, swoops down and speaks up.

    ¡°Continue pointing your weapons at this person and everyone¡¯s heads will fly.¡±

    The police officers get agitated hearing the threat from Marie who¡¯s wielding a two handed hatchet-like sword.

    One of the police officers notices my identity.

    ¡°Lower your weapons! This person is Lord Liam!¡±

    Hearing that, the crowd bes noisy again.

    ¡°Lord Liam?¡±

    ¡°But he killed a noble!¡±

    ¡°So he¡¯s Lord Liam...¡±

    Personally, I want to be under the spotlight as a viin, but now that I¡¯ve murdered a nobleman, I might be remembered by the popce as a brute.

    Marie grows excited when she witnesses the two knights with their heads buried to the ground.

    ¡°Lord Liam, these are certainly the eldest son of the Clover family and hisckeys.¡±

    They¡¯ve stayed in my mansion for some time, but now they¡¯ve settled down somewhere inside my territory.

    I hear that they¡¯ve been rowdy and ying around a lot on mynds.

    This, I can forgive.

    However, I¡¯m the only one who is allowed to oppress my people.

    Nobody enjoys having their belongings touched by others without their permission.

    ¡°That so? Call this guy¡¯s ce and contact Baron Norden as well. I¡¯ll be questioning them. They think they can do whatever they want in mynd? The Twelve Families? Watch me crush them.¡±

    Marie smiles ferociously.

    ¡°In that case, please grant me the honor to take lead! This time, I¡¯ll be of use to Lord Liam for¡ª¡±

    Marie doesn¡¯t finish her sentence.

    I notice that the sheath of my katana is being held by someone.

    I turn back and see that it¡¯s the girl who the terrified mother was hugging.

    She¡¯s grabbing onto the sheath of my katana with her outstretched arms.

    Marie silently tries to swing down her sword on the mother and the child.

    I grab her hands and hold her back.

    ¡°Don¡¯t, Marie. I wish to speak to her.¡±

    ¡°¡ªUnderstood.¡±

    Normally, the girl would¡¯ve been sliced to pieces, but I was caught unawares because she didn¡¯t exude any killing intent.

    I crouch down to look at the girl¡¯s face, only for her to stare back at me.

    The cute girl has red hairs.

    She refuses to let go of my sheath after grabbing it.

    Her mother is shaking.

    ¡°Mercy! Please forgive her! The child doesn¡¯t know anything!¡±

    Marie retorts angrily at the mother¡¯s words.

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t know? It¡¯s sphemous to not know of Lord Liam despite living in his territory! Depending on what you say next, your death may not be a peaceful one.¡±

    Themoners are quaking in terror.

    Yes! She¡¯s being useful for once.

    The spectators here will surely spread the words that I have a vicious knight serving by my side.

    It fits the image of an evil lord perfectly! ¨CAt least that¡¯s what I think.

    Actually, in my previous life, I¡¯ve only heard of viinous lords in historical dramas.

    I think I¡¯m doing the right things¡ªbut am I really?

    I shut Mary up as I have something to continue discussing.

    ¡°Marie, don¡¯t interrupt me.¡±

    ¡°M-my apologies.¡±

    Marie steps back, and I turn my attention back to the girl¡¯s face.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? You want this katana?¡±

    Being the rich person that I am, I have various katanas in store.

    The one which I have with me today is a katana that even has decorations on its de.

    I purchased it purely because the katana went well with the image of a rich man.

    It¡¯s unexpectedly good, so I¡¯ve taken a fancy to it.

    Although it¡¯s one of my favorites, the girl shakes her head.

    ¡°It was beautiful.¡±

    ¡°Beautiful?¡±

    ¡°The de was beautiful.¡±

    I¡¯m stunned by what she says.

    ¡°¡ªYou caught that? What was the patter that you saw on the de?¡±

    ¡°A golden... cat.¡±

    Actually, it¡¯s a tiger, not a cat, but she might not know the difference.

    Even so¡ªshe correctly guessed what¡¯s on the de.

    There¡¯s a golden tiger engraved on the katana¡¯s de.

    She saw me pulling the katana out of its sheath!?

    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±

    ¡°Ellen¡ªEllen Tyler.¡±

    Although she¡¯s young, she replies clearly.

    I follow up with my question.

    ¡°Are you interested in bing a knight? To dedicate your life to the sword? If you are, I¡¯ll give you this katana.¡±

    The girl tilts her head to one side and eventually nods, somewhat confused.

 Chapter 86 - Vol. 5 Chapter 15- Epilogue

    <h4>Vol. 5 Chapter 15- Epilogue</h4>

    -At the Capital of the Empire-

    A girl hade to the luxury hotel where Liam was staying at.

    Her name was Ciel, Kurt¡¯s little sister.

    Ciel took a deep breath and stepped into the hotel grounds.

    Both her father and her brother were in a jovial mood.

    ¡°Iya~ The Count is really generous to ept Ciel so quickly.¡±

    ¡°Father, you speak as if you want Ciel gone as soon as possible.¡±

    ¡°N-no, I simply wish to see her be a full-fledgeddy early on. You see, it¡¯s hard for her to find a fianc¨¦e when she¡¯s in our territory, but if she¡¯s by the Count¡¯s side, I¡¯m sure she¡¯ll have lots of wonderful encounters.¡±

    Seeing that her father was ncing at her every few seconds, Ciel agreed to what he said.

    ¡°That makes sense. It¡¯s true that I wish to meet a wonderful gentleman. A wonderful gentleman other than Count, that is.¡±

    Deep inside her heart, she knew that even that was a lie.

    After all, the only man Ciel admired was¡ªher brother Kurt.

    Her father¡¯s shoulders dropped.

    ¡°I-is that so. Just make sure you aren¡¯t rude to the Count. Personally, I think the Count is a fine man.¡±

    He actually thought of having Ciel be one of Liam¡¯s concubines, but Ciel adamantly refused.

    At the end of the day, Liam¡ªwas Ciel¡¯s enemy.

    Kurt also expressed his disappointment.

    ¡°Liam is a strict and upright man. I heard that he killed the eldest son of a subordinate aristocrat not long ago for acting as he pleased inside his territory.¡±

    Their father, recalling the event, was impressed and said, ¡°It¡¯s in our nature to go easy on people that we¡¯re acquainted with. Taking that into consideration, the Count is truly a noble amongst the aristocrats. Ciel, you must be careful as well.¡±

    Ciel suspected the validity of their ims.

    Liam had once visited the Exner Barony¡ªbut he didn¡¯t appear to be such a noble character.

    She believed that everyone was being deceived.

    Kurt voiced out his sorrow.

    ¡°Liam isn¡¯t back yet, so I won¡¯t get to see him. I¡¯ll be away for a while due to a mission. Oh, I wonder when we¡¯ll be able to meet again.¡±

    Watching her brother cry out in dismay because he missed a man, Ciel thought,

    (How saddening it is, my brother, to see you being deceived by Liam like this. Please wait. I¡¯ll make sure I pry open brother¡¯s eyes!)

    When they arrived at the hotel lobby, they were greeted by Rosetta who was waiting there.

    ¡°Baron Exner, I¡¯ve been waiting for your arrival.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s our honor to be greeted by the Count¡¯s wife. Quickly, your two should also give your greetings.¡±

    Kurt was surprised upon seeing Rosetta.

    ¡°It has been a long time, Rosetta. Even so, you¡¯ve changed so much. The thorny atmosphere which you carried around you is nowhere to be found.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s embarrassing, so let¡¯s not talk about it. I see that Kurt hasn¡¯t changed much. The military uniform fits you rather well.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Rosetta turned to Ciel, who was watching the trio happily talking to one another.

    ¡°You must be Ciel-san. From now on, you will be training at the Banfield Family. That means you will be treated as a servant, not as the daughter of a Baron. Will that be fine with you?¡±

    She sounded strict yet kind at the same time.

    Ciel curtsied as she thought about Liam¡¯s fianc¨¦e in front of her.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be in your care.¡±

    ¡°You can take your time and rx for today. Training will officiallymence tomorrow. I wanted to introduce you to Darling, but he¡¯s back at his territory right now.¡±

    I wanted to go together with him~.

    As Rosetta was saying that, Ciel was having thoughts of her own.

    (I¡¯ll win this person¡¯s trust and get closer to Liam. Be prepared, for I will be taking off that mask of yours!)

    Ciel¡¯s battle was about to begin.

    ¡ó

    The day hase for me to leave the territory once again and head for the Capital.

    I board the super-dreadnought ss battleship with Ellen besides me.

    My disciple follows me while holding onto my sword.

    No, it¡¯s more urate to say that it¡¯s the sword I¡¯ve given Ellen.

    She¡¯s hugging the expensive katana as she carries it around.

    ¡°Ellen, I¡¯ll be busy for a while.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Master!¡±

    Being called Master makes me feelplicated.

    Is it alright for a half-baked person like me to take in a disciple?

    That¡¯s what I honestly think, but Master, Master Yasushi, did tell me to raise at least three disciples.

    I have no idea whether Ellen can be strong, but for the continuation of the school of One-sh, I must take in some disciples.

    Since it¡¯s a promise I made with Master, I have to keep it even if I¡¯m an evil lord.

    After all, I¡¯ve decided to dedicate myself to the school of One-sh without fretting over the gains and losses.

    ¡°When we arrive at the Capital, I¡¯ll be throwing you into an education capsule.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    ¡°When you¡¯re out of the capsule, I¡¯ll be teaching you the basics.¡±

    ¡°The basics of One-sh¡ªI¡¯ll give it my best!¡±

    She¡¯s apparently fond of One-sh.

    I had imitated Master Yasushi and showed her the school¡¯s secret technique before anything else.

    Back then, I didn¡¯t really understand just how powerful Master Yasushi was.

    I can defeat a Sword Saint now, but it doesn¡¯t feel like I¡¯m catching up to him at all.

    The way he silently bisected the log with movements that suggested that he hadn¡¯t pulled out his katana...

    How long will it take for my unpolished shes to reach that height?

    Ellen¡¯s gaze lingers on the group of servants that is here to see us off.

    Ellen¡¯s mother is amongst them, and Ellen¡¯s gaze is on her.

    ¡°Do you miss your mother?¡±

    Ellen, who is still young, was raised in a single parent family.

    With Ellen bing my disciple, her mother was hired as a servant inside the mansion.

    ¡°I-I¡¯ll be fine.¡±

    She¡¯s at an age where she should want to be pampered, but she¡¯s conducting herself very well.

    I don¡¯t really like kids.

    However, Ellen is my important disciple¡ªand someone who would carry on the legacy of the school of One-sh.

    I should be more considerate of her.

    ¡°Once my training as an aristocrat is over, we¡¯ll being back. From then on, I¡¯ll start training you in earnest, so be prepared¡ªby then, you¡¯ll be living close to your mother again.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    ¡ªOr, once her mother finishes receiving her education, I can have here to the Capital.

    I¡¯ll keep this as a secret, though.

    It¡¯s so that I can surprise Ellenter on.

    Aboard the battleship, knights have lined up on the sides.

    Chengshi is mixed in with them.

    I stop on my track to examine her face.

    It¡¯s as imposing and confident as ever.

    ¡°Your injuries seem to have healed.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Will you continue targeting me?¡±

    Chengshi¡¯s determination hasn¡¯t been shattered at all.

    As a matter of fact, she smiles at me.

    ¡°¡ªOf course.¡±

    The surrounding knights tense up, but I blurt out, ¡°Good! I¡¯ll be your opponent again whenever you have umted enough achievements. Work for me to the best of your abilities.¡±

    ¡°Yes. One day, for sure.¡±

    Ellen follows me closely when I leave Chengshi behind.

    ¡°U-um, Master?¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°That person was kind of scary.¡±

    I pause and tell Ellen, ¡°For a good reason, too. That woman is someone who wants my life.¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    ¡°¡ªWhen you grow up, I¡¯ll tell you more about it. Nowe. Until we reach the Capital, I¡¯ll be teaching you some of the basics on the ship. I can¡¯t allow a disciple of mine to be weak.¡±

    ¡°Y-Yes!¡±

    I managed to find myself a nice disciple.

    Whether or not she¡¯s suitable to inherit the legacy of One-sh depends on the future, but she¡¯s a serious girl, and I have a good feeling about her.

    More so than her preliminary attainments, it¡¯s wonderful how she¡¯s sensible enough to demonstrate interest towards One-sh.

    This child will surely grow.

    No, I¡¯ll make sure she grows.

    As with the matter of epting a disciple, many things have progressed well recently¡ªin fact, things have been going too swimmingly.

    Others might call it a miracle, but I don¡¯t believe in miracles.

    Despite my bad daily behavior, fortune seems to be watching over me.

    This is probably thanks to the Guide.

    As I¡¯m walking, I send my gratitude to the Guide whose whereabouts are currently unknown.

    ¡°I¡¯ll pray so that my gratitude reaches him.¡±

    ¡°Master?¡±

    ¡°Hmm? Oh, I¡¯m thanking someone for our encounter. You should pray along.¡±

    ¡°Eh? Ah, yes.¡±

    Ellen, being the serious disciple that she is, also starts her prayer.

    Guide¡ªIs our gratitude reaching you?

    Please deliver the gratitude from us master and disciple to the Guide who is somewhere about!

    ¡ó

    The missileunchers on Liam¡¯s battleship opened up.

    From there, a golden missile appeared, watched over by something that resembled a dog.

    When the dog howled, the golden missile wasunched without anyone noticing it.

    The inteary ballistic missile flew up into the sky, carrying with it the feelings of gratitude from both Liam and Ellen.

    The missile alone wouldn¡¯t have reached the Guide, so a warp gate was opened along the missile¡¯s path.

    On the bridge of the battleship, the crewmates were in a panic.

    ¡°Hey, the missileuncher is open!¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s a faint warp reaction!¡±

    ¡°Find out what¡¯s happening quickly! Lord Liam is on this ship!¡±

    The soldiers immediately initiated an investigation, yet the missileunchers soon closed up by themselves and the warp reaction ceased.

    It was as if nothing had happened.

    The dog also disappeared along with everything else.

    ¡ó

    The Guide who had left the Empire to manipte the other countries behind the scenes was skipping around.

    ¡°Whew~ I feel much morefortable now that Liam¡¯s gratitude can¡¯t reach me. It still stings here and there, but it¡¯s not as bad as the torturous pain back then.¡±

    He was harvesting negative emotions from foreign countries and sowing seeds of discord whenever he smelled a fire.

    In short, the Guide was being a troublesome existence.

    ¡°I¡¯ll keep saving up power this way and crush Liam along with the entire Empire¡ªOh? I see something.¡±

    The Guide stopped skipping and stared at the light in the distance.

    It was a warp gate.

    A golden missile shot out from within.

    ¡°Gold? How tasteless! Looking at it is making me irritated.¡±

    Perhaps influenced by his love for gold, Liam¡¯s gratitude was often gold in color.

    That was why the Guide hated gold with a passion.

    Who on earth does this tasteless thing belong to?

    The missile flew towards the Guide just as he was thinking of raining misfortune upon its owner.

    ¡°Some kind of ident? What a hassle.¡±

    The Guide moved and arrived at a different.

    I¡¯ll be collecting more negative emotions from now on!

    As the Guide was having such thoughts¡ªanother warp gate opened nearby.

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Realization finally dawned on the Guide.

    ¡°This¡ªThis tasteless golden missile¡ªLIAAAAAAAM!¡±

    bbergasted, the Guide attempted to flee.

    Unfortunately, the missile had already arrived near him.

    The Guide was caught up in the ensuing explosion as the missilended close to him.

    ¡°NOOOO!! H-Hot! It¡¯s burning me! This gratitude¡ªIt¡¯s from two people!!!! I haven¡¯t done anything this tiiiiiiiime!¡±

    In addition to the usual gratitude from Liam, the gratitude of a pure and innocent child was mixed in.

    The Guide loathed such gratitude.

    It spread throughout the Guide¡¯s body and burned him.

    The Guide copsed on the spot, tattered and burnt ck.

    He had managed to survive using the power that he had umted, but the negative emotions that he had gathered as he passed by various countries were reset to zero.

    The Guide cried out, ¡°I won¡¯t forgive you for this! I won¡¯t forgive you for this, Liam!¡ªThe amount of effort I put into this¡ªSHIT!! Mark my words, I¡¯ll have you killed!¡±

    The Guide stood up and roared.

    Carried over by the wind, an electronic newspaper fluttered down in front of him.

    The Guide looked down.

    The newspaper was about how the Lustral Unified Government had struck a deal with Liam¡¯s Banfield family.

    The Guide froze up for a moment, confused over what was going on¡ªthen, he picked up the electronic newspaper from the ground.

    When he perused through the content, he learned that Liam had received sanctions.

    The Guide also learned that Liam had ovee the predicament in part because of the rebellion that he had caused in the Unified Government.

    ¡°I thought I haven¡¯t done anythiiiiiiiiiiiiiing!¡±

    The Guide plopped back down, stunned.

    He was shocked that he had unintentionally aided Liam.

    A dog which had multiple copies of the electronic newspaper in its mouth was observing such a Guide from behind the grasses.

    It had deliberately set the stage so that the Guide would read the newspaper.

    Satisfied by the Guide¡¯s reaction, the dog left.

    Tears flowed down as the Guide pounded his fist on the ground.

    ¡°This is too muuuuuuuuuch!¡±

 Chapter 87 - Vol. 5 Chapter 16 -ã€Interludeã€‘ Eulisia Wants to Brag

    <strong>Vol. 5 Chapter 16 -¡¾Interlude¡¿ Eulisia Wants to Brag</strong>

    TN: Short chapter this week and the next, but we¡¯ll be entering volume 6 soon, so stay tuned!

    __________________________________________________________________

    This is a story which happened immediately after Linus ced economic sanctions upon Liam.

    Eulisia lived in the luxury hotel situated in the Capital.

    Inside the hotel, she was sitting in front of an information terminal with only her underwear on.

    At the terminal, an unbelievable amount of messages were being flooded in by her colleagues and seniors who were serving as secretaries in the army.

    ¡°How do you feel about the Count being sanctioned soon after you became his mistress!?¡±

    ¡°You were on the winning side, but you fell to the losing side so quickly.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s as if senior¡¯s the Goddess of Misfortune!¡±

    It was morning, but Eulisia was already getting angry.

    Every news site in the Capital had written articles about the economic sanctions ced on the Banfield¡¯s.

    A mysterious individual who imed to be in the know had said that the sanctions were ced to punish Liam for not swearing allegiance to His Highness Linus.

    It was mostly true, and it probably reflected the thoughts and opinions of those that were on Linus¡¯s side.

    ¡°These guys are saying whatever they want.¡±

    Eulisia was being fanned on by the others right now, but she wasn¡¯tpletely innocent either.

    Previously, Eulisia had also perpetrated the act of taunting her seniors and juniors.

    [I became the secretary of a Count who¡¯s young, powerful, rich, and handsome. That¡¯s why I¡¯ll be retiring from the army! Adieu, everyone!]

    ¡ªOr so she had boasted.

    ¡°As if you guys haven¡¯t experienced any failures! Unforgivable. With the skills I learned as a member of the Intelligence Unit, it would be a piece of cake to hack into your ounts!¡±

    With the techniques that she had learned from the military, Eulisia hijacked into the ounts of her seniors and juniors before proceeding to extract their private information.

    ¡°Hmph. Designer bags? Lunch at famous restaurants? They borrowed money for those. As for the rest, they¡¯re simply leeching off of men that are only somewhat sessful. I¡¯m at a much better position! Not only do I get to sleep in this luxury hotel every day, I get to have as many designer bags as I want!¡±

    Someone entered her room as Eulisia was doing such meaningless things with her high-end hacking skills.

    ¡ªIt was Rosetta.

    ¡°¡ªEulisia-san, can I ask you to exin what you¡¯re doing?¡±

    Eulisia¡¯s shoulders shook when she heard Rosetta¡¯s voice.

    ¡°Rosetta¡ªsama.¡±

    Rosetta was Liam¡¯s fianc¨¦e and his future wife.

    As such, she was in a higher position than Eulisia.

    Although Rosetta didn¡¯t find Liam¡¯s admittance of Eulisia interesting, she hadn¡¯t actively tried to kick thetter out either.

    However, Eulisia¡¯s performance as ofte was simply unbearable.

    ¡°It¡¯s already well past ten o¡¯clock. How long do you intend to be dressed like that?¡±

    Eulisia was still in her undergarments and hadn¡¯t fixed her bedhead.

    ¡°I-it¡¯s because yesterday night¡ª¡±

    ¡°I know. You seem to have enjoyed yourself at a fancy restaurant.¡±

    Liam was the one paying for the bills, but Rosetta had ess to the information of how much money was flowing out.

    ¡°It isn¡¯t like that! That restaurant is so popr in the Capital that I had some difficulties making a reservation!¡±

    She had somehow managed to reserve a seat, but it happened to be veryte at night.

    Eulisia had uploaded images of her enjoying various delicacies and drinks on SNS.

    She wanted to show her former colleagues how she was living.

    ¡ªAll so that she could brag.

    Rosetta knew this as well.

    ¡°Your reputation among your former colleagues doesn¡¯t appear to be good. I¡¯ll have you know that I won¡¯t allow you to do anything that would tarnish Darling¡¯s name.¡±

    ¡°Please listen to me first! Everyone¡¯s doing this! Do you want me to show you the SNS of some of my former colleagues who managed to safely enter the concubine route!? They always boast as if they¡¯re superior to others!¡±

    Rosetta snorted.

    ¡°That¡¯s not of my concern. Oh, and you¡¯re Darling¡¯s military secretary. You¡¯ve yet to be his concubine.¡±

    ¡°¡ªEH!?¡±

    Rosetta continued, slightly flustered.

    ¡°Darling said he¡¯s not ready to wee a concubine yet. That¡¯s why you aren¡¯t officially considered his concubine. Also, please don¡¯t forget why you¡¯re actually here. You¡¯re supposed to act as the pipeline connecting Darling with the Empire¡¯s military, correct? Are you performing your duties properly?¡±

    Eulisia was assigned to stay besides Liam to act as a bridge between him and the military.

    It was her responsibility to keep in touch and discuss matters with officials of the Imperial Army.

    However, she hadn¡¯t contacted any of them for some time because she was busy ying around.

    Eulisia directed her gaze away from Rosetta¡¯s eyes.

    Having received the answer to her question, Rosetta turned to Eulisia and smiled.

    ¡°I heard you were once an elite in the special task force, but there must have been a mistake in the evaluation. Darling will be busy for a while. In the meantime, please go and have yourself re-educated.¡±

    ¡°Eh!?¡±

    Thereafter, Eulisia was sent to one of the military¡¯s re-education facilities, and Liam did not notice her absence until her eventual return.

    In other words, she was forgotten by Liam.

 Chapter 88 - Vol. 5 Chapter 17 -ã€Interludeã€‘Nias Will Do Her Best!

    <strong>Vol. 5 Chapter 17 -¡¾Interlude¡¿Nias Will Do Her Best!</strong>

    TN: Next week will be prologue to Volume 6!

    __________________________________________________________________

    This is a story of which happened when economic sanctions were ced upon Liam.

    The Seventh Weapons Factory which Liam frequented had received several orders from the Empire regarding how they should conduct transactions.

    Tax will be raised if you receivemissions from the Banfield Family.

    Do not buy rare metals from the Banfield Family.

    Postpone any orders from the Banfield Family.

    ¡ªThe instructions that were detailed and extensive, to say the least.

    Nias¡¯s expression turned cold.

    ¡°Count Banfield is the only frequent customer that we have! There¡¯s nothing to postpone since we don¡¯t receive that many orders!¡±

    The Seventh Weapons Factory was not popr in the Empire as it manufactured weapons that always prioritized functionality over anything else.

    Liam had been purchasing their products simply because the Seventh Weapons Factory was where Avid, his mobile knight, was made.

    We won¡¯t be conducting any more transactions with you because the Empire told us so!

    If they said this, the Seventh Weapons Factory was bound to face astronomical losses.

    ¡°To being with, it¡¯s not like they ever provide us with any rare metals! Whenever they get money, they purchase things from the more popr Weapons Factories!¡±

    It pissed her off greatly.

    A junior who had been watching silently asked what they should do in the future.

    ¡°How should we proceed? We¡¯re supposed to deliver three fortress-ss battleships to the Banfield¡¯s before the end of this year!¡±

    For the Seventh Weapons Factory, Liam was their number one customer who never hesitated to swipe his card.

    Asking them to cut off their rtionship with Liam was absurd.

    The Seventh Weapons Factory would be finished the moment they did so.

    ¡°¡ªThose orders were ced before the instructions from above arrived.¡±

    ¡°But today, we also received amission asking us for 1000 battleships to be prepared.¡±

    Those battleships were meant to be for Cedric.

    ¡°¡ªSince they¡¯ll be sent to the military, we can manufacture them under the military¡¯s name.¡±

    ¡°Are we allowed to do that?¡±

    ¡°Of course not! However, we¡¯ll be dead meat if we cut off our rtionship with the Count!¡±

    There was a reason why Nias was clinging to Liam.

    It was because she was trying to develop a next-generation battleship.

    When she attempted to build a prototype without holding anything back, she figured out that she would need a ridiculous amount of rare metals.

    Within the Empire, nobody except Liam could prepare such an extraordinary amount.

    There were other aristocrats who owned rare metals, but with the exception of Liam, no one was willing to invest such a huge amount of rare metals on her hobbies.

    For personal reasons, Nias could not turn her back on Liam.

    ¡°Senior, you¡¯re being too reckless trying to finish that battleship of yours!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m betting my life on that child! Even if it¡¯s thest thing I do, I¡¯ll make sure that this n seeds!¡±

    The battleship that Nias was developing contained all of the best technologies that the Seventh Weapons Factory had to offer.

    She wanted the battleship to bepleted no matter what.

    ¡°Are you sure about this?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re in a bad position, but there¡¯s little we can do about it. Besides, the tables will turn in the near future. If you stress yourself out every time this kind of thing urs, you won¡¯t be able tost long.¡±

    Events such as this were not umon in the vast Empire.

    Even the Berkely Family whichmanded tremendous authority was easily annihted by Liam.

    The situation was always changing.

    Nias suddenly received a call by Liam.

    ¡°Ah, Lord Liam~~¡±

    Nias answered the call like a cat and requested Liam for rare metals.

    ¡°Nias wants rare metals~~~¡±

    Her junior stared at her behaving in this manner with a distant look in their eyes.

    Liam, who was on the other side of the screen, also looked at her with exasperated eyes.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t I send them to you a while back?¡±

    ¡°I want more! I want to try out a new technology!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re always like this¡ªugh, whatever. I¡¯ll send some more. So, how are the constructions of the fortress-ss battleships going?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re about 60% done. We don¡¯t have enough manpower to simultaneously build three ships.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m understaffed here as well, so I guess a little bit of dy is fine.¡±

    Liam then asked Nias about Avid.

    ¡°Putting that aside, how¡¯s Avid?¡±

    He had requested the Seventh Weapons Factory to perform a detailed inspection of Avid which had taken in the Machine Heart.

    Nias put on her serious face.

    ¡°There wasn¡¯t anything wrong in particr. Nevertheless, I found something interesting.¡±

    ¡°Interesting?¡±

    ¡°I believe it won¡¯t affect Avid¡¯s functionality as a mobile knight, but the Machine Heart is gradually eroding Avid. More precisely speaking, the Machine Heart is merging with Avid¡¯s nervous system and trying to be one with Avid. ¡±

    ¡°Would that pose any problem?¡±

    ¡°No. In fact, Avid¡¯s performance has been improving as ofte and will continue to improve in the future. Think of it as a mobile knight that has the potential to grow stronger.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s kind of romantic¡±

    ¡°Oh, you understand? It¡¯s romantic, right!?¡±

    The two became enthralled over the topic of Avid and ended the call after a brief talk about sending more rare metals.

    When their conversation was over, Nias¡¯s junior asked worriedly, ¡°Will this be alright? You just bought rare metals from the Count, you know?¡±

    ¡°Huh? You¡¯re wrong. I¡¯m receiving rare metals from him. That means I¡¯m getting them for free!¡±

    ¡°¡ªIn exchange for inspecting Avid, that is. Regardless, the Count found something truly amazing. I always thought the Machine Heart was something that only appears in legends.¡±

    ¡°I agree. It¡¯s a pity he used it before he told me about it. The Machine Heart......I would¡¯ve loved to have seen it. And studied it. And dismantled it.¡±

    Nias¡¯s junior¡ªagreed with her words.

    In the end, they were birds of a feather.

    ¡°I know right!¡±

 Chapter 89 - Vol. 6 â€“ Prologue

    <strong>Vol. 6 ¨C Prologue</strong>

    There is no such thing as justice in this world.

    In my previous life, I was upright and serious, but where was justice when I needed saving?

    Simrly, who in this world can punish me, an evil lord?

    Therefore, my conclusion is that justice does not exist.

    Those that speak of justice are in fact viins.

    How do I know this?

    Well, as a viin myself, I¡¯m speaking of justice right now!

    ¡°Justice lies within us! Cheers!¡±

    ¡°Cheers!¡±

    I¡¯m currently at a party venue, giving a speech that sounds pleasant to the ears in front of the aristocrats I gathered who belong in His Highness Cleo¡¯s faction.

    Battle for justice! Duty of aristocrats!

    Despite being the one who¡¯s saying it, I feel like throwing up.

    Thankfully, nobody that¡¯s gathered here actually believes in any of these ideals.

    Why?

    That¡¯s because they¡¯re all evil lords with corrupted hearts.

    There are hundreds of them gathered here, and they¡¯re all aware that justice wasn¡¯t the driving force which motivated me to rally them under His Highness Cleo¡¯s banner.

    We¡¯re all using justice as an excuse to profit ourselves.

    I decide to mingle with some of the guests as the party officiallymences.

    ¡°Count Banfield is amazing. There are very few aristocrats with the ability to hold parties of this magnitude inside the Capital.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m simply putting up a front, but I hope you enjoy, Viscount.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re depleting your own resources to put up a front for His Highness Cleo?¡±

    ¡°Something like that.¡±

    Think of this as an investment for His Highness Cleo.

    Of course, I¡¯ll make sure that I¡¯m properlypensated.

    ¡°His Highness Cleo must be feeling confident with Count Banfield supporting him. I may not be an important character, but I¡¯ll strive to do my best for our faction.¡±

    Most of the lords attending the party have territories of their own.

    I had called them over, so I had to bear the burden for everything, which included their lodging and transportation fees.

    Why, you might ask?

    I mean, who in their right mind would spend money for a party like this?

    They would have to travel through the vast universe, only to end up listening to my insincere speeches.

    If it were me, I would never choose to participate in such a party.

    Even so, as one of the top executives of the faction, I had to gather some people in this manner to save face.

    That¡¯s basically why I¡¯m bearing all the costs.

    Then again, money is of no concern to me.

    I¡¯ll never have to worry about money thanks to the Alchemy Box, a gift from the Guide.

    I can act as prodigally as I want.

    As for why I¡¯m putting up with such a hassle, it¡¯s to cause amotion in the Capital with the Cleo Faction.

    Think of it as a performance to fuel up the faction supporting Calvin, who is the closest one in line to seed the throne.

    Unfortunately, I¡¯m facing some obstacles.

    Previously, I was able to trample on Linus, the Second Prince, by stabbing him from the back when he was distracted; however, the same can¡¯t be done to Calvin.

    Although Calvin¡¯s position as Crown Prince isn¡¯t necessarily unshakable, he is receiving a great amount of support.

    As he has a lot of breathing space, he won¡¯t try to recklessly crush us through force, either.

    That said, he will surely strike if we show any hint of weakness.

    He¡¯s a tricky opponent.

    So much so, in fact, that he hasn¡¯t done anything despite me having graduated from the Imperial University.

    The Viscount who I¡¯ve been talking to asks about what I¡¯m nning on doing now that I have graduated.

    ¡°On a separate note, is Count Banfield thinking of working as an official?¡±

    After graduating from school, aristocrats are obligated to join the workforce as a form of ¡°training¡±.

    Of course, I¡¯m not foolish enough to work diligently. I¡¯ll be cutting corners here and there.

    ¡°Yes. If it¡¯s for the Empire, I¡¯m ready to work myself to the bones.¡±

    ¡°What a fine mindset. If only my son could learn a thing or two from Count Banfield.¡±

    ¡ªI spout out some empty words, and the Viscount goes along with my joke.

    As if I¡¯d actually follow through with my words.

    ¡°So, where has Count Banfield been assigned?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve been assigned to a government office where I¡¯ll be performing misceneous tasks.¡±

    ¡ó

    Liam Sera Banfield was a busy man.

    As a student of the Imperial University, he had single-handedly built up a faction for His Highness Cleo, the prince who was ranked third to the throne.

    Until the day of his graduation, Liam spent the majority of his time and energy on his schoolwork and on the newfound faction.

    While other students were having the time of their lives, Liam was busy fulfilling his duties.

    ¡°Is Darling at a party again?¡±

    Rosetta, who was house-sitting at the luxury hotel, wondered whether she should also participate.

    It was a pity that Liam did not bring Rosetta along.

    On a daily basis, Rosetta had to watch Liam toil away with ss works and faction-rted businesses.

    Rosetta wished to help him, but there was very little she could do to alleviate his burden.

    Seeing how worried she was, a maid spoke up.

    The maid¡¯s identity was [Ciel Sera Exner], and she had somehow managed to be assigned to aid Rosetta.

    ¡°¡ªIs Lord Liam that busy? Isn¡¯t it fun to attend parties every day of the week?¡±

    Ciel had little experience in attending parties.

    Knowing that, Rosetta didn¡¯t reprimand her too harshly.

    (Personally¡ªI don¡¯t have much good memories when ites to parties. Given the current situation, I doubt that Darling is enjoying himself.)

    ¡°Ciel, parties aren¡¯t all just fun and games. Many things go behind them.¡±

    In the past, members of Rosetta¡¯s family were forced to attend parties where they suffered ridicules from others.

    She only had unpleasant memories of those times.

    ¡°I spoke without thinking. Please forgive my insolence, Lady Rosetta.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. If you have any questions, don¡¯t hesitate to ask me. The Exner Family has entrusted you to the Banfield Family for your training, after all.¡±

    Ciel was different from normal maids.

    She was the family member of Baron Exner and Kurt, Liam¡¯s allies.

    As such, she had to be treated with care.

    She was also treated differently from the children of aristocratic families that served Liam.

    These children¡¯s parents were those that worked for Liam.

    On the other hand, Ciel¡¯s parents were from a family that directly served the Empire.

    Although the Banfield¡¯s and the Exner¡¯s were at different ranks, they were on equal footing as vassals.

    That was why Ciel received a high level of educationpared to the other daughters that were entrusted for training.

    In other words, she had to undergo stricter education.

    She wasn¡¯t ced besides Rosetta to have an easier time.

    Instead, she was assigned to Rosetta because she would be able to experience many things, even those that she might not like.

    ¡°¡ªI hope Darling isn¡¯t overexerting himself.¡±

    Ciel¡¯s gaze was somewhat sad as she stared at Rosetta worrying over Liam¡¯s health.

    ¡ó

    (He¡¯s really the worst)

    Ciel was watching Rosetta being concerned over Liam.

    Ciel¡¯s evaluation of Rosetta was neither good nor bad¡ªin other words, she was the perfect example of a normal person.

    Although Rosetta didn¡¯t have any special talent, she wasn¡¯t ipetent either.

    In fact, Ciel admired Rosetta for the effort she put into self-improvement and even supported her to some extent.

    The problem was, she had no eyes for men.

    (She¡¯s such a kind person¡ªI¡¯m sure she¡¯s being tricked as well.)

    Liam was said to be busy with parties and whatnot, but the person in question seemed to always be in high spirits. [1]

    Just the other day, she saw him discussing with one of the merchants about the party and getting excited over it.

    Although everyone praised Liam as phenomenal and awe-inspiring, Ciel suspected the validity of their ims.

    Could such saints truly exist?

    She had volunteered to stay next to Rosetta as a maid so that she could observe whatever¡¯s happening firsthand.

    She had endured the rigorous training so as to open the eyes of her dear brother Kurt.

    Her brother had be a totally different person ever since his encounter with Liam.

    Kurt used to be such a kind and dignified brother, yet he wouldn¡¯t stop talking about Liam after meeting him.

    As Kurt¡¯s younger sister, Celia refused to forgive Liam.

    She had already met Liam several times, and each time she did, she came to question Liam¡¯s manner of conduct

    No matter how much she thought about it, the way Liam behaved made him look like a small-time viin.

    His aplishments were an eye-opener, and he wasn¡¯t the wasteful type, either.

    Although she knew this, something bothered her greatly.

    Her intuition was screaming, ¡°Something¡¯s up with this man!¡±

    (I¡¯ll wake everyone up. I¡¯ll definitely peel off the mask that Liam¡¯s wearing!)

    A lone girl who wished to figure out the truth was about to approach Liam.

    ¡ó

    -While this was happening-

    The Guide, Liam¡¯s true enemy, was in distress.

    ¡°How can I defeat Liam? What must I do? What must I do to defeat him?¡±

    He failed to muster up an idea despite have thought very hard.

    The Guide had made various attempts to put Liam into misery. However, Liam managed to exceed his expectations each time.

    What¡¯s worse, Liam always thanked him afterwards as if to have his revenge.

    Liam¡¯s gratitude was bing more and more unbearable as it also started delivering the gratitude of others.

    If it was Liam¡¯s gratitude alone, it would¡¯ve only made the Guide feel slightly unpleasant.

    With the addition of other people, however, the gratitude he received became too overwhelming.

    Some even worshiped the Guide as if he was their God.

    The Guide experienced excruciating pain every time he was thanked with such passion.

    ¡°This is unforgivable! I¡¯ll make sure Liam bes miserable!¡±

    Unfortunately, he had failed in all his attempts.

    He had tampered with Liam¡¯s luck.

    He has assisted Liam¡¯s enemies.

    Still, his revenge never seeded.

    The Guide lost confidence in himself.

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t things proceeding as I want? If I reverse what I¡¯ve been doing, would I seed? If I were to help Liam instead and rain misfortune on his enemies¡ªAs if.¡±

    The Guide was repulsed by the very idea of aiding Liam.

    If he were to help Liam, he would be thanked again. This time, he might even be erased.

    The Guide trembled at the notion of being erased from the world.

    ¡°Tsk, I can¡¯t fail next time.¡±

    That said¡ª

    He couldn¡¯te up with any ingenious idea.

    As of now, Liam could fend off any source of misfortune.

    In addition, he was strong, ridiculously strong.

    ¡°How can I beat him? What the hell is One-sh anyway?¡ªHow could that idiot Yasushi, a scammer, raise a monster like Liam?¡±

    Yasushi had raised two other monsters just for the sake of killing Liam.

    These two were the Guide¡¯s trump cards.

    He wished to pave the road so that they could get closer to Liam, but he was scared that things wouldn¡¯t go as nned. As such, the Guide had not done anything yet.

    ¡°Seriously, what should I do!? I-I-¡±

    After thinking long and hard, the Guide arrived at an answer.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, I¡¯ll test the waters by helping Liam a little bit and putting his enemies in hot water. If things don¡¯t work out well, I¡¯ll think of a different method! Let¡¯s just see what happens when I help Liam a little!¡±

    Feeling cornered, the Guide wasn¡¯t putting much thought into what he was doing.

    ¡ó

    Prince Calvin, the man who was first in line for the throne, revealed a tired expression in front of the aristocrats that supported him.

    ¡°It¡¯s that bad?¡±

    The United Kingdoms of Oxis was the source of Calvin¡¯s distress.

    It had invaded the Empire under the pretext of the back-room deals that the deceased Linus had made.

    ¡°His Highness causes problems for us even after his death.¡±

    ¡°The United Kingdoms is serious this time. After all, it has been yed by His Highness Linus.¡±

    ¡°The purpose of their attack should be in revenge and in domestic stabilization.¡±

    The secret agreement that Linus had made had thrown the United Kingdoms under the bus.

    To the ousted kings and aristocrats of the United Kingdoms, this was noughing matter.

    A civil war had swept through the United Kingdoms of Oxis.

    An apology from the traitors wasn¡¯t enough to sate their anger.

    A reasonable price had to be paid, and what they demanded was the territories of the Empire.

    The aristocrats supporting Calvin were bing anxious.

    ¡°Your Highness the Crown Prince, the current situation isn¡¯t looking good for us. That Liam is actively expanding his influence, and ording to the spy aristocrat who we¡¯ve snuck in, Liam is moving in the name of justice.¡±

    In the name of justice¡ªif he was any other aristocrat, he would¡¯ve simply been dismissed as a bbermouth.

    However, the person who said this was no other than Liam.

    Albeit Linus¡¯s negligence having yed a role in his defeat, Liam was nheless the perpetrator who led to the Second Prince¡¯s demise.

    What¡¯s more, he had allowed the Dark Horse known as Cleo to rise up.

    On top of that, Liam was well known for his noble spirit of not letting any pirates off.

    Such a person was dering his dissatisfaction towards the current Empire.

    Liam wasn¡¯t just some random aristocrat with no real power¡ªhe was a powerful foe.

    It was also bad how local aristocrats overflowing with righteousness were gathering around Liam.

    ¡°If we let him be, Liam¡¯s fame will continue to grow.¡±

    If they ignored this predicament, there was a chance that many aristocrats would lose faith in the Empire and defect to side with the Cleo Faction.

    Normally, he would¡¯ve either left the situation alone forter or had the army deal with the situation.

    Those were no longer valid choices.

    The circumstances surrounding the United Kingdoms didn¡¯t seem favorable to them either.

    Due to the matters involving its civil war, the United Kingdoms was serious in their attacks.

    Driving them away woulde with a great cost.

    Calvin deliberated over what to do.

    ¡°If we were to organize arge fleet to repel our enemies, the Capital¡¯s defense will be too thin. Liam-kun isn¡¯t someone who would miss such an opportunity.¡±

    ¡°That man would no doubt make a move. We shouldn¡¯t have made him our enemy.¡±

    ¡°¡ªOn the other hand, if we were to stay put, people¡¯s faith in us will wane.¡±

    ¡°The flow of the battle is in favor of His Highness Cleo. No, it would be more urate to say that it¡¯s in favor of Liam. Your Highness the Crown Prince, we must also make a move.¡±

    In spite of everything, Calvin was someone that had survived the blood session war until this day.

    ¡°¡ªNo, we will remain put.¡±

    ¡°Your Highness!?¡±

    ¡°Cleo would be the one that would have to take action. We will be pushing the problem onto Cleo.¡±

    The aristocrats beneath him were enlightened by his n.

    ¡°Is Your Highness suggesting that we have His Highness Cleo¡ªNo, Liam, bear the brunt of the damage?¡±

    ¡°Exactly. If Liam-kun fails, all is well. Even if he triumphs, he would surely have lost a majority of his troops. That¡¯s how we will set the stage.¡±

    In other words, to stamp out Liam, Calvin was intent on joining hands with the United Kingdoms¡¯ invading army.

    ¡°While most their forces are absent from the Capital, we will shave off Liam-kun¡¯s faction.¡±

    Under Calvin¡¯s instructions, the aristocrats began to busily move about.

 Chapter 90 - Vol. 6 Chapter 1 â€“ Betrayal

    <strong>Vol. 6 Chapter 1 ¨C Betrayal</strong>

    The United Kingdoms of Oxis is on the move.

    That piece of news was enough to cause a stir in the Capital.

    Although skirmishes weremonce in the borders, the scale of the battles became different when it came to full-on invasions.

    It wasn¡¯t a matter of tens of thousands anymore.

    Instead, millions of battleships were bound to sh with one another.

    This time, the United Kingdoms was serious in its endeavor.

    ¡°Three million ships?¡±

    ¡°Y-yes! The United Kingdoms has organized arge fleet centered around the troops of countries and aristocrats that have taken part in the civil war. Lord Liam, we¡¯re in serious trouble!¡±

    If both sides are serious, a war between intergctic nations couldst up to hundreds of years.

    Inside my hotel room, I¡¯m gracefully drinking a cup of coffee.

    ¡°That so.¡±

    ¡°T-that so!? Lord Liam, are you properly considering this matter?¡±

    The person reporting is Thomas, who has connections with an evil lord of the United Kingdoms.

    It seems as though the foreign evil lord is swift in his tasks; he has brought back information for me at a moment¡¯s notice.

    ¡°But it¡¯s not my business. The military should be doing something about it. Right now, my status is that of a government official¡¯s.¡±

    Thomas had barged in just as I was thinking of spending some quality time before heading out for work.

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re not wrong, but the military won¡¯t be able to handle this situation alone. It would soon be asking for the aristocrats¡¯ assistance.¡±

    ¡°In that case, I¡¯d simply decline. Not to mention that I¡¯m currently going through training, as a soldier, I¡¯m part of the reserve forces.¡±

    A fleet consisting of three million strong would be invading the Empire¡ªthis is certainly rming news, but let¡¯s not forget that the Empire is a powerful intergctic nation as well.

    It could pump out twice the force if it so desired.

    The problem is, when people have too much leeway, they tend to pull the legs of their allies.

    For example, people like me would choose to watch on without participating.

    As an evil lord, I will not put myself in a ce of danger.

    Even if the Empire emerges victorious, it would be after having faced an army of three million.

    The Empire would¡¯ve no doubt suffered some damage by then.

    Is there any guarantee that the one to suffer damage won¡¯t be me?

    ¡°We¡¯ll provide assistance in the form of capital and supplies, nothing else.¡±

    ¡°That¡ªmight be for the best.¡±

    Thomas regains his calm.

    Did he expect me to participate in the war?

    While taking a sip of coffee, a call arrives from us, mypetent underling.

    ¡°Lord Liam, as this is an urgent matter, please forgive me for calling abruptly.¡±

    us, who has contacted me without prior appointment, looks to be in a rush.

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    If the call had been from either Tia or Marie, my disappointing subordinates, I would¡¯ve ended themunication there and then.

    It¡¯s just that they get excited over my cold attitude as well, so it feels like my loss either way.

    ¡°A request has arrived from the Royal Pce asking us to join the war against the United Kingdoms.¡±

    ¡°Declined. I¡¯m busy.¡±

    ¡°¡ªAnd it¡¯s been decided that His Highness Cleo would be themanding general of the war.¡±

    ¡°What?!¡±

    ¡ó

    In the United Kingdoms of Oxis, there was a nobleman with a connection to Liam known as Count Norden.

    He was someone who had been receiving resources from Liam through Thomas.

    This man had been bestowed a as his territory, but the king he was serving had joined the rebel army in the civil war.

    Thanks to that, he was forced to participate in the uing war to redeem himself.

    With his connection to Liam, a nobleman of the Empire, Count Norden had led an easy life up until then.

    He wasn¡¯t nning on working for the United Kingdoms.

    At the same time¡ªhe wasn¡¯t going to side with Liam, either.

    Everything he did was for himself.

    ¡°Basically, all I have to do is to help you pull Liam onto the battlefield?¡±

    A merchant hailing from the Empire nodded with an amicable smile.

    ¡°Recently, some aristocrats have been causing a disturbance in the Empire. Your country would be facing those people in the battle.¡±

    ¡°To think you¡¯d have the United Kingdoms get rid of your rival faction. Aristocrats of the Empire are frightening indeed.¡±

    ¡°In return, we will keep you updated on the information about the fleet which His Highness Cleo would be leading.¡±

    Count Norden was all smiles.

    With this, he could build up his achievements.

    In addition, the Empire wished to see its fleet defeated by the United Kingdoms.

    Not only would the Empire¡¯s fleet have to face their enemies, it would have to endure the harassment of its allies.

    ¡°But what a pity~ I¡¯m indebted to Liam, so asking me to betray is a bit~¡±

    The Empire¡¯s merchant chuckled when he heard Count Norden demanding for morepensation in a roundabout manner.

    ¡°Of course, if you seed, the Empire will reward you with whatever you want. This here is the advance payment.¡±

    What he handed over was a list which promised Count Norden an astronomical sum of money and resources.

    Count Norden could not help butugh inwardly.

    (Count Banfield, it looks to me that you have created far too many enemies within the Empire. Give up and relinquish your life for my benefit.)

    ¡ó

    -Inner Pce-

    In the building where Cleo resided, there was a huge fuss first thing in the morning.

    ¡°Lead a fleet numbering in the millions!? Cleo hasn¡¯t received any military education!¡±

    Lysithea, Cleo¡¯s sister, was expressing her anger uncontrobly.

    Despite being of royal descent, Lysithea¡¯s goal was to be a knight, and she acted as the bodyguard of her pitiful younger sister who was turned into a younger brother.

    Cleo, on the other hand, was calmly watching his sister¡¯s fury unfold.

    ¡°Calm down, sister. I¡¯ve been learning the basics through the education capsule.¡±

    ¡°Cleo, the education capsule is an excellent device, but all it does is infuse knowledge in your brain. It¡¯s meaningless if you don¡¯t know how to utilize said knowledge. If capsules are enough, what¡¯s the point of receiving education at school?!¡±

    ¡°¡ªEither way, Count Banfield would be the one that¡¯s actually leading the fleet, not me.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t understand. Count Banfield can at most lead a hundred thousand ships to battle. Double that number and you would need experiencedmanders. The Banfield Family cannot do this alone.¡±

    Liam was certainly an outstanding person.

    However, this wasn¡¯t something an individual could manage by himself.

    Lysithea held her head.

    ¡°The Count is too green. To be an admiral who can lead millions, he needs both talent and experience. On top of that, he would need to have tens of thousands of subordinates who can heed his orders and act as his hands and legs.¡±

    Tens of thousands¡ªnay, hundreds of thousands of well-educated officers were required.

    Regr soldiers would not do.

    This war wasn¡¯t something a single Count could prepare for.

    ¡°If we knew this would happen several years ago, we might have prepared in some way. Unfortunately, we don¡¯t have much time, and wars aren¡¯t something you can win with a disorganized army.¡±

    Based on his sister¡¯s speech, Cleo believed that it was the end of the road for him.

    (Count, this will be as far as we can go.)

    Considering the circumstances, either the Crown Prince or the Emperor himself should¡¯ve stepped forth by now.

    The right to the throne was likely to shift if one were to seed.

    Normally, Calvin should have taken charge, yet Calvin had nominated Cleo as themander.

    It was apparent that he expected Cleo to fail.

    Lysithea had teary eyes.

    ¡°Things can¡¯t be any worse. Since the Empire is in a crisis, the aristocrats supporting you would leave if you refuse to step up as themanding general. On the flip side, if you do end up bing themanding general, we won¡¯t have any chance of winning.¡±

    Assuming that they won, the exhausted Cleo faction wouldn¡¯t be a match against the Calvin faction.

    ¡°Elder brother Calvin is a difficult opponent.¡±

    Lysithea fully agreed with Cleo¡¯s opinion.

    ¡°As expected from the man who was able to keep his position as Crown Prince for so many years. He¡¯s no joke.¡±

    Reachable yet unreachable at the same time.

    The Emperor¡¯s throne felt very distant to Cleo.

    ¡ó

    -At one of the Capital¡¯s government buildings ¨C

    After graduating, I¡¯m working at what modern Japan would call a government office.

    Why?

    It¡¯s because I was removed from the Career Advancement Course.

    Originally, I should¡¯ve been sent to the pce where I could¡¯ve worked leisurely.

    Instead, I was sent to some rural region.

    Despite the long distance, however, I¡¯ve been driving myself to work on a daily basis.

    Why?

    That¡¯s because the performance of my car is amazing.

    Simply put, it has the functions of a small jet ne.

    With this, I¡¯ll be fine even if I¡¯m sent to a rural ce.

    It¡¯s just that my superior is as repulsive as a person can get.

    ¡°Liam-kuuun, you always drive here from the Capital, right? You¡¯re rich, so why don¡¯t you rent a room nearby?¡±

    Did he say that he¡¯s the thirtieth son of some great aristocrat?

    Anyway, the only thing this trash has is his pride.

    He alwayszes around without working andes to my desk to dump extra work on me.

    ¡°Oh, and organize these materials for me by tomorrow.¡±

    Arge number of files, or rather, electronic documents, getid in front of me.

    Taking a nce at the clock, I notice that I¡¯m scheduled to leave in 30 minutes.

    It¡¯s impossible to finish until then.

    It¡¯s a ssic form of bullying.

    I push the documents he gave to the side, grab his head, and smash it against my desk.

    ¡°Who do you think you¡¯re ordering, you piece of sh*t?¡±

    ¡°W-what are you doing against your superior!?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s really annoying when there¡¯s someone as ipetent as you as my superior.¡±

    Having said that, I shove down my superior¡¯s head even harder.

    I can hear some cracking sounds that shouldn¡¯t be heard, but I can¡¯t care less.

    By the way, I have nothing against ipetent bosses.

    As an evil lord, I consider myself an ipetent boss as well.

    However, I won¡¯t allow someone above me to be ipetent.

    I know it¡¯s hypocritical, but viins are like that.

    ¡°Why are you allocating work at this hour, huh? You¡¯re supposed to be in charge of management, so allocating work is part of your responsibility. Do you seriously expect people to finish their work on time when you allocate them sote?¡±

    ¡°He-hegyo.¡±

    He can¡¯t speak properly in his current condition.

    ¡°This is your mistake. Take care of it yourself.¡±

    When I release him, he trembles and shouts, ¡°Y-you! You think you can get away with this¡ª¡±

    I don¡¯t, and I¡¯m not letting you go either.

    I grab my ipetent superior¡¯s head and squeeze it hard.

    Creak. Creak.

    The people around us are watching while shaking.

    ¡°¡ªDo it. Alone. It was your mistake. Do I make myself clear?¡±

    ¡°Y-yesh!¡±

    I grin when the ipetent replies.

    ¡°You told me to finish by tomorrow, yes? I¡¯m sure you can do it then?¡±

    From what I see, it isn¡¯t something that can be alone.

    My ipetent superior shakes like a leaf.

    ¡°I-it¡¯s impossible.¡±

    ¡°And I¡¯m telling you that you can!¡±

    I send him rolling with a kick. He quivers violently.

    ¡°¡ªBy tomorrow. That¡¯s what you told me, so you should be able to do it, am I right?¡±

    Walking up to my ipetent superior, I re at his face.

    He turns pale as if he had lost blood.

    I smile gently.

    ¡°You will finish it by tomorrow by yourself. ¡ªIf you don¡¯t, you know what will happen, correct?¡±

    ¡°Y-yes, sir!¡±

    The clock chimes, indicating that it¡¯s no longer working hours.

    I decide to clean up and head home.

    Overtime work?

    Psh. That¡¯s not something an evil lord would do.

    Other people can do it.

    As for me? Never.

    ¡°Good work, everyone. ¨CYou, make sure that the work is done by tomorrow.¡±

    Although I¡¯m being extremely rude towards my ipetent superior, it¡¯s fine since I¡¯m a Count.

    The Empire will not question anything.

    Why?

    Because I¡¯m a genuine aristocrat.

    Needless to say, I¡¯m not talking about having a noble heart or anything of that sort.

    I¡¯m speaking purely in terms of my social status.

    Noblesse oblige, or the notion that privilege entails responsibility, is utter nonsense.

    On a different note, that ipetent superior of mine is making me stressed.

    Should I cleanse this workce a bit?

    ¡ó

    The next day, I am summoned to a room by my ipetent superior¡¯s boss.

    As a rtive of the ipetent superior and a member of a powerful aristocratic family, he talks to me in a condescending tone.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard talks that you were uncontroble during the years of your military service. However, this is a government office. I¡¯d appreciate it if you can refrain from behaving like a barbaric soldier.¡±

    Hiding behind his boss, my ipetent superior looks at me with triumphant eyes.

    Me? I¡¯m sitting on a sofa and reading some documents.

    ¡°¡ª You think everyone will bow down before you? My parents¡¯ family is a part of His Highness Calvin¡¯s faction. Thus, I¡¯m not scared of you!¡±

    Aristocrats, myself included, are just a congregation of hopeless men.

    Being at a position where one must do whatever they can to maintain their status, it¡¯s no wonder that even good people end up bing rotten.

    There are many people out there, and some of them are quire clever.

    Unfortunately, there are just as many ipetents like these two.

    I respond to the boss while reading the documents on my hands.

    ¡°And? Are you done yet?¡±

    ¡°Drop the act. I know that you¡¯ll be sent to the battlefield in the near future. You should rue the day you offended His Highness Calvin!¡±

    ¡ªIf there¡¯s one thing I sympathize Calvin for, it¡¯s that he has to take care of ipetents like these because of howrge his faction is.

    That¡¯s why I decided to reduce the trouble in his stead.

    ¡°Yeah, and I¡¯m still pissed about that. Right¡ªlook at these documents. These are the evidence of your corruption.¡±

    At each and every corner of the room, I disy the electric documents that I have collected.

    For a moment, the boss and the ipetent reveal surprised faces, but they smile immediately afterwards.

    ¡°So what? Corruption of this degree¡ª¡±

    ¡°¡ªIs prevalent? That¡¯s none of my concern. There are enough materials here to ruin you both, and you can be damn sure that I¡¯ll do it to make myself feel good. The working environment here isn¡¯t good. I¡¯ll clean this ce of you filths and modify the workce ording to my taste.¡±

    When I snap my fingers, armed soldiers begin to enter the room one after another.

    ¡°Freeze! Hold your hands behind your heads and lie down on the floor!¡±

    ¡°Y-you!¡±

    The soldiers blow the boss and ipetent away before detaining them.

    The captain of the squad then salutes me.

    ¡°We greatly appreciate your report.¡±

    ¡°That was fast.¡±

    I had personally investigated their corruption and reported it.

    A long time ago, during the times when Amagi and I had to work hard, I developed the ability to root out corruption.

    As a matter of fact, I excel at cleaning them up too.

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯m here with a message from the Chancellor: Thanks for the swift work.¡±

    For some reason, a praise is returned when I praise the soldiers.

    Finding this a little weird, Iugh.

    ¡°So you were under the orders of the Chancellor.¡±

    ¡°Sir, yes, sir!¡±

    ¡°The Chancellor has helped me on numerous asions. I should give him my thanks.¡±

    Later this day, I should deliver bribes¡ªand by that I mean gifts¡ªto these hard-working gentlemen.

    I¡¯m someone who¡¯s considerate towards those that are of use to me.

    Even so¡ªI have been strangely unlucky as ofte.

    Not only have I been dispatched to some rural area, my superior turned out to be an ipetent, the workce is littered with corruption, and I¡¯m about to be dragged into a tiresome war.

    Hassles have beening my way without end.

    Moreover, I managed to get myself entangled in a war between two intergctic nations.

    Honestly, it¡¯s a bit too much for me.

    What is going on?

 Chapter 91 - Vol. 6 Chapter 2 â€“ The Guideâ€™s Foolproof Plan

    Vol. 6 Chapter 2 ¨C The Guide¡¯s Foolproof n

    TN: Sorry everyone for the dy!

    _______________________________________________________________________________________________________

    ¡ªLiam was feeling troubled.

    Knowing this, the Guide¡¯s hands were trembling.

    Delight, a feeling which was foreign to him, coursed throughout his body.

    ¡°Liam is having a difficult time.¡±

    Hardship in and of itself wasn¡¯t that umon, but it became a different story when the Guide was involved.

    Until now, whatever he did, Liam ended up benefiting from it.

    For the longest time, the Guide had wished for Liam¡¯s unhappiness.

    Having failed in all his previous attempts, the Guide could not help but tremble at this time¡¯s result.

    ¡°I tried to help Liam by making Calvin unhappy¡ªhowever, Calvin redirected his misfortune and made Liam suffer in his stead. For once, I¡¯m siding with Liam, yet he¡¯s encountering one obstacle after another¡ªWhat could this mean?¡±

    The Guide grinned while holding his head.

    He could not stop hisughter.

    No matter how much he tried to make Liam suffer, he had always failed.

    This time, on the other hand, by offering Liam a little assistance, he was able to gradually corner him.

    It was the ultimate pleasure.

    Although Liam¡¯s gratitude still gave him a burning pain, the Guide was able to temporarily forget about it because of the overwhelming pleasure.

    ¡°We¡¯re like the North Wind and the Sun! Instead of actively trying to make his life miserable, things will work out in my favor so long as I try to make him happy! Yes, that must be it!¡±

    To the Guide who had repeatedly experienced failure, the result disyed in front of him this time meant everything.

    ¡°Now that that¡¯s clear, I¡¯ll continue to offer Liam my support! Hmm~ It¡¯s getting interesting now~¡±

    From behind, a dog was ring at the Guide as thetterughed with his mouth wide open.

    ¡ó

    Despite the sharp increase in the number of habitables in the territory of the Banfield family, the poption was still sparse.

    Because of the rapid territorial expansion, it was necessary to wait for the territory to be popted before doing anything more.

    As such, Liam, who had an urgent desire for manpower, was epting immigrants that could increase his territory¡¯s poption.

    The number of immigrants was high.

    Many people that originated from countries surrounding the Empire had abandoned their hometowns and emigrated because of the civil wars.

    ¡ªUnfortunately, there was a major w to this immigration policy.

    The territory of the Banfield¡¯s was originally a rtively calm and safe ce.

    Due to the circumstances surrounding the neighboring countries, there had been arge influx of immigrants.

    ¡°SAY NO TO ARISTOCRATIC DICTATORSHIP!¡±

    ¡°ARISTOCRACY IS TOO OPPRESIVE! DEMOCRACY SHOULD BE IMPLEMENTED!¡±

    ¡°PRECISELY! THAT WAS HOW IT WAS AT THE INTEGRATED GOVERNMENT!¡±

    ¡ªLiam had managed to acquire a huge number of citizens, but demonstrations began soon after in manys under the influence of the immigrants from the Integrated Government.

    -At one of thes that was holding such demonstrations-

    In an inconspicuous alleyway, the man in charge of the demonstration was having a discussion with someone else.

    ¡°Thanks to you, more people have joined our cause. I¡¯ll make sure that aristocracy is toppled.¡±

    The young leader of the demonstrators firmly believed that democracy was the right political system to implement, and that was what he was trying to do with the Empire.

    The person cooperating with this young leader was an agent under the Calvin Faction.

    ¡°And we would be delighted to help you achieve your goal. Let¡¯s end this era of aristocracy together.¡±

    ¡°Of course! I¡¯ll turn this Empire into a democratic country!¡±

    The agent wasughing inwardly.

    (Keep dancing for us. In the first ce, you don¡¯t seem to understand that if it was anyone else other than Liam, the lord would have razed the entire to the ground and swept it clean. That¡¯s how things are at the Empire.)

    If the demonstrators proved to be a nuisance after Liam¡¯s defeat, the Calvin Faction nned on destroying the.

    (The Empire does not need to be run by a democracy.)

    ¡ó

    ¡°THOSE PIECES OF TRAAAASH!!¡±

    I¡¯m currently at the luxury hotel located in the Capital, and I¡¯m absolutely furious.

    Soon after ¡°disinfecting¡± my workce, I received an urgent report from my territory.

    It was Brian who contacted me with unpleasant news.

    ¡°Lord Liam, what shall we do? I never expected the immigrants to suddenly start a demonstration in this manner.¡±

    There¡¯s clearly someone behind this.

    Calvin is our prime suspect, but he didn¡¯t leave behind any clue for us to trace.

    ¡°¡ªKukuri!¡±

    Kukuri presents himself the moment he is called for.

    ¡°Present.¡±

    ¡°Some spies must have infiltrated the territory. Why haven¡¯t they been found yet? You¡¯re not going to say that these demonstrators nned everything out and executed this on their own volition, right?¡±

    Starting a demonstration so soon after moving in¡ªit would¡¯ve made sense if they were treated poorly. However, I¡¯ve made lots of preparations for them and even provided them with adequate support.

    I did this to ensure that the human resources could be put to good use as soon as possible.

    Housing, education, vocational training¡ªall these generous supports were for the sake of using them.

    If one were toe to my territory, he or she would be given a house and a job.

    In the case of children, they can even receive education.

    Given these conditions, would people normally protest? Over a political system?

    Sh*t! I now regret having epted the immigrants from the Integrated Government.

    Anyway, my point is, I¡¯m certain that there¡¯s someone working behind the scenes.

    ¡°¡ªThis isn¡¯t about my subordinates, but I heard that a number of investigators affiliated to the house of Banfield¡¯s went missing recently.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Although Kukuri and his subordinates are outstanding, they can¡¯t do everything by themselves.

    That¡¯s why I formed an organization that can catch undercover spies, but it seems like some of its members vanished for no apparent reason.

    Brian also hurriedly adds on to this topic.

    ¡°A-Ah yes, I¡¯ve also received such reports.¡±

    ¡°Are they all ipetents?¡±

    Kukuri corrects me when I express my disappointment.

    ¡°Negative. Labeling them as ipetents wouldn¡¯t be appropriate. Even though they¡¯re not particrly skilled, I don¡¯t think they would normally be this oblivious. Lord Liam, I believe there are people like myself lurking inside the territory.¡±

    ¡°People like you guys?¡±

    ¡°Affirmative. There are many ns and organizations like us in the Empire. Even during the era when we were active, there were more than a hundred dark organizations. Among the group, there was a particr n which we had always been in conflict with.¡±

    A ck Ops from 2000 years ago¡ªit wouldn¡¯t be too strange for them to be still active, and I¡¯m sure they would be quite skilled if they are.

    ¡°...So some of them might have slipped in.¡±

    ¡°¡ªRight now, we have our hands full guarding Lord Liam and taking care of some businesses in the Capital. That¡¯s why only a few of my men are in Lord Liam¡¯s territory.¡±

    Kukuri¡¯ men are all exceptional. s, there are only a few of them.

    To think that my territory is being threatened at this busy hour, it¡¯s really unforgivable.

    ¡ªI must personally secure the Alchemy Box that I left behind in the territory before it¡¯s stolen.

    Where should I hide it?

    Realizing how frustrated I am, Kukuri offers a suggestion.

    ¡°¡ªDo you wish to dispatch us back to the territory?¡±

    ¡°Troubles are popping up everywhere! I can¡¯t carelessly move you guys from your current positions. Let¡¯s keep the status quo. Tell your subordinates in the territory to focus on their current missions.¡±

    ¡°Acknowledged.¡±

    With that, Kukuri sinks back to the floor and disappears.

    It¡¯s really ticking me off.

    Recing me with a system of democracy?

    I want to turn these people into ash if I could, but I¡¯m too busy right now.

    ¡ªIt would be safe to assume that the enemies have delved quite deep into my territory.

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯ll incinerate them all when I¡¯m done with everything!¡±

    Brian panics upon hearing me speak.

    ¡°Y-you can¡¯t, Lord Liam! You must hold yourself back at times like this!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re telling me to endure? Are you stupid? To tell you the truth, I would¡¯ve loved to return to the territory just so that I can slice them to pieces with my very own hands. Brian, what I adore are obedient subjects. Those that try to leave my hand¡ªare nothing more than trash.¡±

    ¡°L-Lord Liam.¡±

    Brian appears to be shocked and depressed, but my personality has always been like this.

    Amagi enters the room while I¡¯m still a bit pissed.

    I cut off mymunication with Brian.

    Ellen Tyler, my disciple,es into the room, hand-in-hand with Amagi.

    The little girl with red hairs and a wooden sword hides behind Amagi.

    ¡°¡ªEllen, why are you, a disciple of One-sh, hiding behind Amagi?¡±

    Seeing Ellen being scared of me, Amagi¡¯s expression turns sullen.

    From the outside, she looks as expressionless as always, but I can tell!

    She¡¯s angry.

    Amagi is angry.

    ¡°A-Amagi.¡±

    My voice suddenly drops a few notches, and Amagi steps forward as if to protect Ellen.

    ¡°Master, taking out your anger in this manner is pathetic.¡±

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re wrong! It¡¯s, uhhh, that. I¡¯m just upset because the people are rioting. As an aristocrat, I should suppress them by force and¡ª¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not as if everyone is partaking in the demo. If the problem can be dealt with by the forces stationed in thoses, you can leave it to them.¡±

    ¡°S-still, it makes me frus¡ª¡±

    ¡°Rather than that, there¡¯s something Master must attend to¡ªNow, Ellen-sama.¡±

    Amagi gently pushes the back of Ellen, who fidgets when she stands in front of me.

    ¡°¡ªMaster, the training session that you promised¡ªI haven¡¯t seen you in the past three days.¡±

    I am taken aback.

    Recently, I¡¯ve been too busy to watch over Ellen¡¯s training.

    I thought it would be fine since she was just repeating the basic moves, but to think I¡¯d forget my duty of raising a sessor for the school of One-sh¡ªI¡¯m too ashamed to face Master Yasushi anymore.

    Master Yasushi was always there for me when I was under his tutge.

    Amagi¡¯s gaze is on me.

    ¡°Master said that you¡¯d take care of her when you picked her up.¡±

    ¡°¡ªY-yes.¡±

    Indeed, after picking her up, I had promised to take care of her.

    Since it¡¯s Amagi who¡¯s saying it, I¡¯ll give up on the idea of returning to the territory and going on a rampage.

    To begin with, I don¡¯t have enough time to do that.

    Working at the government office.

    Making preparations for the sortie.

    Worrying about therge-scale demonstration back in the territory.

    Raising Ellen.

    I have never been this busy before.

    Amagiforts me, albeit in an admonishing tone.

    ¡°I understand that you¡¯re under a lot of stress, but¡ªplease don¡¯t forget to look around at your surroundings a bit more. Master, I¡¯m worried for you.¡±

    ¡°!¡±

    I made Amagi worry¡ª¡ªthis hurts.

    I fall on my knees, and Ellen rushes over.

    ¡°Master! Are you okay, Master!?¡±

    ¡°I-it¡¯s all good, Ellen. Let¡¯s begin training. After all, raising you¡ªis part of my promise with Master.¡±

    ¡°Master¡¯s Master?¡±

    ¡°Yes, Master Yasushi¡ªhe¡¯s a man known as the Sword God. He¡¯s an amazing person.¡±

    I was the one to first hail him as the Sword God.

    The title suits Master Yasushi so well that I¡¯m sure he won¡¯t have any objections.

    Master, are you pleased with the title?

    I stand back up and head to the training ground with Ellen.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    Amagi also follows behind us.

    ¡°By the way, Ellen, have you been diligently practicing the basics?¡±

    ¡°Y-yes! I tried my best!¡±

    ¡°While Master was absent, I watched her perform the basic movements. Ellen-sama worked very hard on them.¡±

    ¡°Ellen, you were alone with Amagi!? When I was too busy to even apany her!?¡±

    ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    Amagi bes upset when she sees Ellen apologizing.

    I¡¯ll say this again. From the outside, she looks as expressionless as always, but I can tell!

    ¡°¡ªMaster, what are you saying to a child?¡±

    ¡ó

    ¡°It¡¯s here! The wind is blowing on me!¡±

    Liam¡¯s anguish was transmitted to the Guide, making thetter ted.

    Power surged within him.

    He wasn¡¯t able to figure out why, but every time the Guide tried to assist Liam, an external force interfered and made Liam¡¯s life more difficult.

    A bunch of immigrants had moved in knowing that Liam was epting people into his territory.

    However, a demonstration soon began due to Calvin¡¯s influence.

    Liam would suffer every time he helps.

    The Guide was touched by this.

    ¡°It¡¯s simple. I just have to help Liam if I wish to achieve victory¡ªI have been mistaken all along!¡±

    After realizing his mistakes, the Guide was determined to help Liam in the future

    There was no reason for him to hesitate.

    ¡°Liam, I will help you attain happiness so that you will suffer more.¡±

    What the Guide muttered made no sense at all.

    ¡°You will have my full support! I will bless you with every iota of my power!¡±

    Thus, the Guide began supporting Liam with all his might.

    ¡ó

    -At the territory of the Banfield family-

    The original residents of the territory walked pass a mob of demonstrators.

    ¡°They¡¯re from the Integrated Government, aren¡¯t they?¡±

    ¡°How energetic.¡±

    ¡°Is democracy that good a system?¡±

    ¡°Recently, many youngsters from the territory have been participating in the demonstration.¡±

    ¡°¡ªNot many youngsters are informed of how it was in the past. Hence, they fail to appreciate what they have right now.¡±

    ¡°Wasn¡¯t thest demo dozens of years ago? It was¡ªright! It was when we argued with Lord Liam over the tornado hairstyle!¡±

    ¡°Ah~ I remember putting my back into it. Nowadays, I don¡¯t see many people with tornado hairs though.¡±

    ¡°It was quite festive, wasn¡¯t it? Back then, there were stalls and whatnot lined up on the streets.¡±

    ¡°Then are these people feeling festive as well?¡±

    ¡°Ah, that must be it! I get it now.¡±

    The residents talked amongst themselves as they watched the demonstrators from a distance.

    A group of young men from the Integrated Government approached them.

    ¡°Everyone, do you think it¡¯s alright for aristocrats to continue their reigns?¡± (Demonstrator)

    ¡°Eh? It isn¡¯t?¡± (Resident)

    ¡°Of course not!¡± (Demonstrator)

    The young men then proceeded to enthusiastically preach about how corrupted and hical aristocratic policies were.

    ¡°In an aristocratic society, tax rates are decided solely based on the lords¡¯ whims, not to mention that they are never judged or bound by anyw! How strange is that? It¡¯s dangerous when a single person holds all the authority! Each of us should have the right to vote so that we can choose our own representatives!¡±

    ¡°T-that so?¡±

    An elderly couple that was listening reminisced about the old days.

    ¡°Things were looking really terrible back then before the current lord took over.¡±

    ¡°Yes, you¡¯re right.¡±

    The group of young men smiled.

    ¡°Right?! If aristocracy isn¡¯t abolished, you never know when things will revert back to how it was¡ª¡±

    As the young protesters once again started their passionate speech, a different group of people from the younger generation gathered around the elderly couple to ask about how things were in the past.

    ¡°I remember my parents talking about it. They mentioned how tough things were when they were children. Were the conditions that terrible?¡±

    ¡°The word ¡®terrible¡¯ doesn¡¯t cut it. We¡¯re enjoying a period of prosperity thanks to Lord Liam, but before he became the lord, most of us were impoverished. It was to the point where many households could not even afford to pay for electricity.¡±

    ¡°Ah, I¡¯ve heard about that as well.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m really d that Lord Liam took over. In the future, I hope his sessor would continue on with his policies and¡ªand?¡±

    A sudden look of surprise washed over the elderly couple.

    ¡°Hey, does Lord Liam have a sessor?¡±

    ¡°¡ªNo, I haven¡¯t heard about anything.¡±

    Those from the younger generation felt a sense of crisis.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t this...bad?¡±

    ¡°Hypothetically speaking, if Lord Liam passes away, what would happen to this territory?¡±

    The elderly couple responded based on the past.

    ¡°The Empire would send out a deputy¡ªa-and we might have to experience that period of history once more? I hear that deputies aren¡¯t interested in managing or developing their territories.¡±

    The residents mored.

    ¡°¡ªIsn¡¯t Lord Liam engaged to Lady Rosetta?¡±

    ¡°But has there been any news of pregnancy?¡±

    ¡°¡ªH-hey, Lord Liam¡¯s the type that charges into the enemies¡¯ front lines, right?¡±

    Anxiousness swelled among the residents of the territory.

    The group of young men that were eager participants of the demonstration noticed something peculiar about the air around them.

    ¡°A-are you guys listening to us?¡±

    The residents red at them.

    ¡°We¡¯re having a serious conversation here! Shut up!¡±

    ¡°Hey, should we also start a demo?¡±

    ¡°Good idea!¡±

    Hearing them discuss about a demo, the group of youngsters that wished to spread democracy left, thinking that they had managed to convince the residents.

    ¡ªA demonstration of unprecedented scale was well under way in the territory of the Banfield¡¯s.

 Chapter 92 - Vol. 6 Chapter 3 â€“ Cornered

    Vol. 6 Chapter 3 ¨C Cornered

    ¡ªA report arrived from the agent who was dispatched to the Banfield¡¯s territory.

    In the conference room where the Calvinists were gathered, the agent reported about therge-scale demonstration that was going on.

    For some reason, the agent¡¯splexion didn¡¯t look so good.

    ¡°The demo is spreading at a scale muchrger than I originally anticipated. I¡¯ve begun to lose control here.¡±

    Inciting the immigrants from the Integrated Government and making Liam¡¯s territory nonoperational¡ªthis goal was wlessly achieved.

    However, Calvin and his subordinates were perplexed by how smoothly it seeded.

    ¡°Things went beyond our imagination. To be honest, I didn¡¯t think a demonstration of this size would happen in Liam-kun¡¯s territory.¡±

    As Liam¡¯s territory was known for its political stability, nobody expected that the ¡°Democratization¡± demonstration would spread this far.

    The aristocrats faced each other.

    ¡°As I thought, nothing goodes from educating the citizens.¡±

    ¡°The more they grow, the more rights they demand for. It makes me sick just thinking about it.¡±

    ¡°This ought to have taught that brat Liam a lesson.¡±

    Speaking only of the results, the operation was a great sess, and for that, Calvin praised the agent.

    ¡°Thank you for your hard work. You no longer have to stay there anymore. You may return.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Your Highness!¡±

    When the call ended, Calvin smiled at the aristocrats under his faction.

    The demonstration had grown to such an extent that it was more than enough material to put down Liam.

    One could say that the Calvin Faction had aplished its goal.

    ¡°This will put to question Liam-kun¡¯s ability to govern. We can leave things at that, but what should we do about his armed forces?¡±

    They could denounce Liam for his inability to properly govern his own territory.

    Nevertheless, their current objective was to drag Cleo down.

    If they carelessly pointed fingers at Liam, causing him to distance himself from the war, there was a probability of things bing troublesome.

    ¡°We should only use the materials in our hands to hound Liam down if he is defeated or barely manages to obtain a pyrrhic victory against the United Kingdoms. After all, his military might cannot be underestimated.¡±

    ¡°Although we may be able to emerge victorious, a frontal assault is ill-advised. On that note, it¡¯s better to be safe than sorry. Since Liam¡¯s strong enough to defeat a Sword Saint alone, we should have a Sword Saint serve as His Highness¡¯s guard.¡±

    ¡°One won¡¯t do. We¡¯d need two of them.¡±

    The aristocrats agreed that it¡¯d be foolish to confront Liam head-on. As such, they were actively trying to avoid a battle.

    Liam was someone who had single-handedly crushed the Pirate Noble.

    No one knew what he was capable of doing.

    To thoroughly trample on Liam, they had to ensure that he was sent to the battlefield.

    They were nning on conducting a kangaroo court using the demonstration as an excuse in the event that Liam survived and returned.

    Calvin also had his own ns about who would be his guards.

    Despite the presence of his ck Ops, Calvin was scared of Liam because of thetter¡¯s feat of ying a Sword Saint.

    Liam was an enormous threat as he had bested a man that had climbed to the position of Sword Saint with his own power.

    As such, Calvin decided to recruit two Sword Saints.

    ¡°¡ªSummon the schoolmasters of the Arend Style Swordsmanship and the Kurdan Style Swordsmanship. Also gather as many influential sword masters as you can. I¡¯ll tell the two schoolmasters to prepare some capable men that can act as your guards.¡±

    Taking care of the aristocrats working for him was Calvin¡¯s bread and butter.

    The two schools mentioned above were the mainstream swordsmanship within the Empire.

    A school¡¯s poprity was taken into ount whenever the Empire bestowed the title of Sword Saint to someone.

    In a sense, the two schoolmasters had obtained their title of Sword Saint for political reasons.

    It was risky for the Empire to bestow the title of Sword Saint to someone who had climbed up with nothing but their strength.

    This was because a Sword Saint¡¯s misconduct reflected badly on the Empire¡¯s reputation.

    That was why the Empire strove to select honorable swordsmen as Sword Saints.

    In essence, it was convenient for the Empire to have the schoolmasters of the mainstream schools as its Sword Saints.

    As a matter of course, their strengths were not in the leastcking either.

    ¡°¡ªBe sure to exin the situation clearly to the two Sword Saints. Don¡¯t forget to mention that the emerging school of swordsmanship known as the School of One sh may very well oust the two mainstream swordsmanship from their positions.¡±

    Calvin was intent on hunting down Liam.

    In order to do so, he was nning on defaming Liam by casting suspicion on his school of swordsmanship.

    The School of One sh was at the center of attention these days, and Calvin was convinced that the two mainstream schools would take serious actions against it.

    And it didn¡¯t take long for this to be a reality.

    ¡ó

    Through major media, the Empire reported a piece of news that reached the ears of even those in neighboring countries.

    The news was about the school of One sh, the one which Liam belonged to.

    Inside the monitor, the man who had once introduced Yasushi to Liam was answering the questions of an interview.

    ¡°To begin with, Yasushi¡¯s a third-rate swordsman. In other words, he¡¯s pretty much an amateur. A street performer, was it? He was the sort of person who earned money for food by performing on the streets.¡±

    ¡°Then what about the School of One sh?¡±

    ¡°That must be some nonsense he came up with.¡±

    Another program was analyzing the movements that formed the basis of the One sh Swordsmanship.

    Through unknown means, the program had seen through the fact that the basic movements taught by Yasushi were mere imitations of other schools, and the program was exining them in details.

    ¡°One sh¡¯s movement technique resembles that of the Kurdan Style¡¯s. On the other hand, this should be from the Arend Style Swordsmanship. If you look closely at it, you¡¯ll realize that it¡¯s just a mishmash of various techniques.¡±

    ¡°By that you mean¡ª?¡±

    ¡°The School of One sh is just imitating other schools.¡±

    The TV program was ruthlessly ndering the School of One sh, and the person who was clinging onto the monitor was none other than Yasushi himself.

    ¡°That¡¯s it! More. Tell them more! Let everyone know that the School of One sh does not exist!¡±

    Yasushi knew that Liam would kill him if his lies were exposed.

    However, rather than being known as a Sword God and getting chased around for it, Yasushi deemed it safer for his lies to be publicized.

    ¡°Finally! Finally¡ªthat¡¯s a load off my shoulders.¡±

    He was moved to tears.

    The swordsmanship that he had lied into existence was about to disappear, and Yasushi felt as if he had been released from all his shackles.

    ¡ó

    At a public canteen within the Empire¡¯s territory, two people were slurping on noodle dishes.

    There was a runningmentary eximing ¡°One sh is fake!?¡± on the television¡¯s news program.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. If the Count was speaking the truth, why haven¡¯t we heard about this school until now? It must be a lie. A. Lie.¡±

    The guests around the duo were also having conversations about the School of One sh.

    ¡°Well, most aristocrats love to put up an appearance.¡±

    ¡°One sh must be a fake swordsmanship.¡±

    ¡°On the contrary, the Arend and the Kurdan swordsmanship are the real deal. Their people are strong, as one would expect from the two major schools of swordsmanship.¡±

    In the news program, the schoolmasters and the instructors of the two mainstream schools were bashing on the School of One sh.

    The two that were eating at the canteen left their payment at their seats and exited the store.

    In front of the store¡ª

    ¡°Which one?¡±

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter which.¡ªThey¡¯re both getting demolished in the end.¡±

    ¡ªTheir conversation continued for a little while in this manner.

    Afterwards, they each went their own way.

    ¡ó

    ¡ªI¡¯ll ughter them all.

    I¡¯m sitting on the sofa with my favorite katana in hand.

    Listening to the reports that have been criticizing the School of One sh for days, I feel like my intestines are boiling.

    The leaders of mainstream schools bear the title of Sword Saint, yet they have conspired with other schools to ruin the image of the School of One sh.

    It¡¯s fake. It¡¯s trash. It¡¯s an imitation¡ª.

    I¡¯ll eventually cut these people down.

    Doing so right now isn¡¯t ideal.

    Ellen is in front of me, witnessing my fury.

    ¡°¡ªMaster.¡±

    My disciple¡¯s anxious attitude irks me even more.

    ¡°What is it? Do you also suspect the legitimacy of the School of One sh?¡±

    Ellen shakes her head side-to-side.

    ¡°I have faith in Master¡¯s sword! I don¡¯t really understand theplicated stuff, but I trust in Master¡¯s swordsmanship. To me, Master¡¯s the strongest swordsman in the universe!¡±

    My eyes jerk open upon hearing my disciple say that with teary eyes.

    Behind Ellen¡ªI can see Master Yasushi¡¯s silhouette.

    I must be hallucinating.

    Even so, it feels like the illusion of Master is smiling at me.

    ¡®Liam-dono, when you are troubled or perturbed, you must look back at yourself objectively. Keep your head cool even if your heart is a zing inferno¡ªdo not lose sight of what is important.¡¯

    Recalling the words of Master Yasushi, I shake my head andugh.

    ¡°Yes. There wasn¡¯t a speck of falsehood in the way Master wielded his sword. What I have confirmed with my own eyes is the truth. No matter what others say, the truth will never change.¡±

    I still have vivid memories of that day.

    Master¡¯s ¡°One sh¡± was as real as it could get.

    I can assert this with confidence.

    ¡°Master?¡±

    Ellen stares at me nervously and curiously.

    ¡ªI¡¯m still inexperienced as a teacher.

    ¡°I should learn to prioritize. The other schools can be dealt withter on. There are certain matters that I must address with haste.¡±

    Finding an opening to this crappy situation.

    The ongoing demonstration urring in the territory has been causing some issues, not to mention that the Cleo Faction is busy preparing for the war that¡¯s about to explode between two interster nations.

    As I¡¯ll be deploying most of my army, public security will be a problem in the territory as well.

    I don¡¯t have enough hands, and the shortage of personnel is overwhelming.

    ¡°Ellen, when you¡¯re frustrated, it¡¯s best to train. By sweating¡ª¡±

    Suddenly, an emergency call arrives from Brian.

    For the record, Brian has been house-keeping back in my territory.

    ¡°Bad news, Lord Liam!¡±

    ¡ó

    At the residence of the Banfield Family, Brian was sweating profusely.

    ¡°¡ªHow did therge-scale demonstration be so widespread?¡±

    The territory was beginning to malfunction.

    While the territory¡¯s ie did not drop in particr owing to the fact that the sectors under Liam remainedrgely unaffected, demonstrations spread explosively from various ces.

    ¡ªWhat¡¯s more,

    ¡°Brian, this is a petition from the servants working in the mansion. More than 80% of the workers have already signed their names on it.¡±

    Serena, the head maid, brought in another bomb.

    ¡°NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!¡±

    These anomalies were making Brian suffer from headaches and stomachaches.

    ¡°More than 80%!?¡±

    ¡°We should¡¯ve taken their dailyints more seriously. They¡¯ve taken advantage of the atmosphere around the territory nowadays to push through with their requests.¡±

    ¡°B-but I just finished reporting the circumstances to Lord Liam¡ªWhy? Why do these kind of things keep on happening?¡±

    Brian fell on his knees.

    *****

    The Guide was skipping around and humming a song, clearly appearing jubnt.

    ¡°Muhohoho, I didn¡¯t think it¡¯d go this well.¡±

    Not only was Liam¡¯s territory malfunctioning, Liam was infuriated by how the reputation of One sh was being tarnished.

    The Guide was over the moon.

    He had never felt so happy in the past few decades.

    He was experiencing the zenith of happiness.

    ¡°Liam suffers whenever I assist him. What an excellent system. This also satisfies my desire of making others miserable by indirectly interfering with their lives.¡±

    The Guide was truly the worst¡ªbut that was the reason why he was overlooking something important.

    ¡°I¡¯ll continue to support Liam from now on! I haven¡¯t supported him enough yet!!¡±

    ¡ó

    ¡ªTraitors have popped up.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t think that the servants working in the mansion would betray me.¡±

    The servants that work in the mansion are handpicked citizens.

    To think they¡¯d turn coat.

    A petition? What a joke.

    Rosetta is trying to soothe my frustration.

    ¡°Darling, calm down.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve never been as calm as I am now. I can¡¯t help but look forward to punishing those that betrayed me when I return to the territory.¡±

    I should henceforthe up with some torture methods.

    ¡°¡ªDarling.¡±

    Turning away from Rosetta, who appears to be disheartened, I nce towards Ciel, who has been entrusted to me by Baron Exner.

    ¡°Ciel, did Baron Exner say anything regarding this matter?¡±

    While remaining expressionless, Ciel directs her hostility at me.

    She may be trying to hide it, but I know what she¡¯s feeling like the back of my hands.

    This girl hates me.

    ¡°¡®Serve the Count well¡¯. That¡¯s what both my father and brother told me. My brother has been especially worried. He¡¯s been contacting me every, every, every day.¡±

    She must be feeling quite irritated, but she doesn¡¯t let it show on her face.

    What an interesting person.

    ¡°As a soldier, Kurt should be rather busy. I guess I¡¯ll call himter on. Oh, and by the way, has there been anything bothering you during your stay?¡±

    ¡°¡ªNo, everyone has been treating me nicely. I have also been learning a lot, so I¡¯m really grateful.¡±

    From our conversation alone, people would think that I¡¯m being considerate towards Ciel who has been entrusted to me for her training.

    However, our rtionship isn¡¯t that amicable.

    In fact, her hostility towards me is overflowing.

    She¡¯s trying to hide it, but it¡¯s tantly clear to me.

    She¡¯s an irregr who grew up innocently despite having a viinous lord like Baron Exner as her father.

    Such a girl has neither the ability nor the brains to do me any harm.

    Although she¡¯s excellent, Ciel is powerless to do anything against me.

    Simply put, she¡¯s a fun toy that I get to y with.

    Unlike the easy girl that Rosetta turned out to be, Ciel is a true woman of steel.

    It¡¯s funny to watch how she gets repulsed whenever we hold a conversation.

    Be that as it may, she¡¯s the daughter of Baron Exner and the younger sister of Kurt.

    I can¡¯t be too rough in dealing with her.

    Even if I¡¯m just toying with her, a bnce must be established.

    ¡°That¡¯s good. As I¡¯ve been busytely, I was worried about how your training has been progressing.¡±

    Being the insensitive person that she is, Rosetta interrupts our pleasant conversation.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry, Darling! I¡¯ll take good care of Ciel!¡±

    ¡°¡ªThat so.¡±

    Read the mood a bit!

    How dare she get in the way of me toying with Ciel.

    Moving on, since there turned out to be traitors in my territory¡¯s mansion, there should be others as well.

    It doesn¡¯t take a genius to tell that the Calvinists would be trying to diminish our power through this opportunity.

    I¡¯m sure that they did a lot of work behind the scenes.

    Actually, they might be in the middle of doing something as I speak.

    As things stand, I think it¡¯s safe to assume that those that had the intention of betraying have done so already.

    ¡ªDarn it, is the Guide not helping me out this time?

    In that case, I¡¯d have to find a solution to these problems myself¡ªHmm?

    I stop on my track and think carefully.

    Believe it or not, there might be a way to escape this predicament and even win.

    ¡°Huh? Aren¡¯t we in a better position than I thought?¡±

 Chapter 93 - Volume 6 Chapter 4 - Compassion

    Volume 6 Chapter 4 ¨C Compassion

    I¡¯m thinking about various things in the local government office where I work at.

    The workce has be a veryfortable ce now that some affairs have been dealt with.

    The annoying bosses and the corrupt locals connected to them have been wiped out, so there hasn¡¯t been any problem as ofte.

    Even if there is one, I can eliminate it using force.

    Thanks to that, the working environment has gotten much better, and no one dares to bother me.

    I¡¯ve already finished my work for the day, so I¡¯m just waiting until it¡¯s time to go home.

    There¡¯s around 15 minutes remaining, and I¡¯m utilizing that time period to contemte about various issues.

    First, we must be victorious in this interster war.

    Second, I must restore peace in my territory.

    Third, I must annihte those that ridiculed the School of One-sh.

    The first two objectives must be aplished with haste.

    On the other hand, the third objective can be postponed as it¡¯s not as urgent.

    There¡¯s no denying that One-sh is the best sword technique known to mankind.

    However, the war is imminent.

    Due to the sheer scale of wars between intergctic nations, they require a lot of time to prepare.

    Even so, both sides are bound to sh in the next few years.

    ¡°Well then, how should I distribute the forces?¡±

    I¡¯m inside the office of my ipetent boss¡¯s boss.

    Although I¡¯m just an intern, I get to sit in this position because I¡¯ve managed to clean this workce of the previous bosses.

    What kind of internship is this?

    I ponder about this topic for a moment, but since I don¡¯t really care about the work, I stop thinking about it almost immediately.

    There¡¯s something much more important than that that must be addressed.

    ¡°The problem lies with the Capital.¡±

    Unless I station some hands on the Capital, I would be distracted when I fight.

    As I¡¯m thinking hard, Kukuri appears from the shadow.

    ¡°Lord Liam, may I have a moment of your time?¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°¡ªRecently, acts of terrorism have been urring in the Capital.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s nothing new.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s something suspicious about them. Although the terrorists¡¯ ims are all over the ce, they¡¯re unusually skilled. What¡¯s more, the Imperial guards haven¡¯t been actively trying to capture them.¡±

    Having heard that much, it¡¯s abundantly clear what¡¯s going on.

    They¡¯re iming to be terrorist organizations when they¡¯re in fact assassins.

    Since it¡¯s Kukuri who¡¯s reporting, it would be safe to assume that the target is us.

    In the event that they actually kill us, they can reason that we were unfortunately dragged into the mess.

    What a roundabout way to do things¡ªit¡¯s worth referring to.

    ¡°Can your group handle this by yourselves?¡±

    ¡°With a bit of recklessness, yes.¡±

    ¡°In that case, leave the situation alone. There¡¯s something else I want you guys to do anyway. ¡ªIdentify the traitors. Oh, but don¡¯t touch them as I have use for them.¡±

    ¡°Acknowledged. When ites to traitors, I believe that the Count of the United Kingdoms is the most suspicious. However, it¡¯ll take some time to dispatch my men there. As for the Integrated Government, I have already sent someone there.¡±

    It seems like he sent personnel to the Integrated Government when the demonstration started taking ce.

    Kukuri, what a hard worker you are.

    ¡°The Count? I¡¯m sure that he betrayed. There¡¯s no need for anyone to confirm.¡±

    ¡°¡ªDo you wish for him to be disposed?¡±

    ¡°Perhaps when there¡¯s free time. Don¡¯t worry about him for now.¡±

    Count Norden, was it? The Count who has a connection with me through Thomas. He¡¯s supposedly a viinous lord of the United Kingdoms.

    Isn¡¯t there also a Norden residing inside my territory? A Baron, yes?

    Well, it doesn¡¯t matter.

    As fellow evil lords, I thought we could get along, but taking my situation into ount, I¡¯m pretty sure he that he betrayed me.

    If I was in his shoes, I would have definitely betrayed him as well.

    ¡°Be wary of the information that he delivers. Also, don¡¯t forget to feed him fake information when you contact him.¡±

    ¡°Won¡¯t Count Norden be on the battlefield?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll get rid of him if the opportunity arises¡ªfor now, the issue going on in the Capital takes precedence.¡±

    They have gone to such lengths to oh-so-politely prepare terrorist groups in an attempt to eliminate us.

    I won¡¯t be at ease no matter who I leave behind in the Capital.

    ¡ªWait a minute?

    Do I even have to be on the battlefield?

    As a simtion, I arrange the staffsunder the assumption that I will be remaining on the Capital.

    ¡°This might work. Kukuri, gather the executives when they return.¡±

    ¡°Acknowledged.¡±

    ¡ó

    Within Liam¡¯s knight order, there was an ordinary knight named us.

    As an ordinary knight with some experience under his belt, us, who had a nervous temperament, was a rare specimen in the order owing to the fact that most of Liam¡¯s knights had rather extreme personalities.

    However, us was currently trembling and suffering from a stomach ache.

    (NO WAAAAAY!!)

    Everyone inside the luxury hotel¡¯s conference room was baffled by the arrangement of personnel.

    Liam sat imposingly on a chair with an air of seriousness.

    ¡°us, you will essentially act as themanding general of His Highness Cleo¡¯s expeditionary force.¡±

    ¡°But Lord Liam, I have no experience inmanding arge fleet consisting of millions of battleships.¡±

    ¡°No problem.¡±

    ¡°Pardon? All I can see are problems!¡±

    What do you mean ¡®No problem¡¯?

    us foresaw all sorts of problems arising from this.

    Not only was he responsible formanding the ordinary fleet of the Empire, he was tasked withmanding the personal fleets of the aristocrats as well.

    In addition, Liam had entrusted him with arge fleet of 60,000 ships.

    Tia and Marie were ring at him with envious eyes.

    These two were notorious troublemakers that constantlypeted over the first ce in the knight order.

    ¡°What a good position you¡¯ve been given, us-dono.¡±

    ¡°If you feel like the burden is too much, just say the word. I¡¯ll swap with you.¡±

    He decided to ignore their stares.

    Instead, it was Liam who questioned them in a low voice.

    ¡°Are you two dissatisfied with my arrangement?¡±

    Marie and Tia hurriedly kneeled and apologized.

    ¡°N-never!¡±

    ¡°I dare not disagree with Lord Liam! B-but is us-dono fit to y this role? Hasn¡¯t he imed that he has never beforemanded a fleet of this magnitude?¡±

    Among Liam¡¯s subordinates, only two people had the experience of fighting in a war where millions of warships were involved, namely Tia and Marie.

    When she was still active as a Princess Knight, Tia had participated inrge-scale battles by allying herself with other countries to produce fleets of great magnitude.

    Marie, on the other hand, was one of the legendary Three Knights during the early days of the Empire.

    As such, she had partaken in various interster wars and had evenmanded one wing of the army.

    They were both more experiencedpared to us.

    ¡°Lord Liam, I¡¯m afraid that this is too great a responsibility for someone like me to¡ª¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m positive that you can do this. I¡¯ll have Tia follow your orders, so you can use her as you please. Also, Chengshi¡ª¡±

    Liam called for Chengshi, who had no interest in this topic.

    She was the dangerous knight who wished to kill Liam.

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re the strongest among my subordinates. You¡¯ll be ced under us, and your task is to protect His Highness Cleo.¡±

    ¡°¡ªYou trust me that much?¡±

    ¡°If you perform well, I¡¯ll y with you again.¡±

    When Chengshi heard this, her cheeks turned rosy and her body shivered.

    us, however, thought differently.

    (Wait, Lord Liam! You want me to take care of two troublemakers!?)

    Marie timidly raised her hand.

    Being the only person whose name wasn¡¯t called, she was making a lonely expression.

    ¡°Lord Liam, where will this Marie be stationed?¡±

    ¡°¡ªYou¡¯ll be leading 3000 ships and exterminating pirates. You¡¯re essentially in charge of defending the territory. Although 3000 isn¡¯t a lot, show me that you can do it.¡±

    ¡°Y-yes, my lord!¡±

    Entrusting her with the territory¡¯s safety was proof of Liam¡¯s trust.

    After all, Liam would be living on the Capital for a while.

    us was also worried about this.

    ¡°Lord Liam, how many ships will you be leaving behind with you on the Capital?¡±

    ¡°¡ªThree thousand should suffice.¡±

    ¡°T-that¡¯s far too little! The Calvinist aristocrats will definitely try to seize this opportunity!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯ll be fine. Just make sure you support His Highness Cleo properly. I¡¯ll be leisurely touring the Capital.¡±

    Despite saying that he would be ¡°leisurely¡± touring the Capital, it was quite clear that the Capital would be turned into a battlefield as well. It was too risky to have Liam remain on the.

    Even as bait, it was too dangerous.

    ¡°E-even then¡ª¡±

    ¡°Say no more!¡ªAnyway, what happened to Eulisia? I¡¯m nning on giving her some work.¡±

    us tilted his head when Liam suddenly brought up the topic of Eulisia, who was absent.

    ¡°Um, Lady Rosetta mentioned that Lady Eulisia would be returning to the army. I think it was something about Lady Eulisia cking off...¡±

    ¡°¡ªWhat is she doing at this busy hour? Call her back immediately! I¡¯ll have her work in the boisterous territory.¡±

    Did he forget about Lady Eulisia until now?

    us was beginning to doubt his master.

    (Seems like she still has a thorny road ahead of her before she can be a concubine¡ªHaa...)

    ¡ó

    After adjourning the meeting, I quickly head to the dressing room.

    Patrice, who is a member of the Nends Company and one of my personal merchants, has been summoned there, and she is dealing with Rosetta right now.

    ¡°It suits you really well, Lady Rosetta.¡±

    ¡°W-what¡¯s up with all these dresses? This is already the thirtieth one.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re for parties.¡±

    ¡°Parties? With this many dresses, I won¡¯t need to worry about what to wear for a decade.¡±

    ¡°Excuse me, but you won¡¯t be wearing any of these dresses twice. Hence, these will onlyst a month or so.¡±

    ¡°Ehhh!? Oh, are these dresses cheap? They¡¯re pretty much disposable, aren¡¯t they?¡±

    ¡°Yes, they¡¯re rtively cheap. It costs around this much.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s expensive! But then again, since it¡¯s for 30 dresses, I guess it¡¯s reasonable?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s the price of one dress, ma¡¯am.¡±

    ¡°¡ªEh?¡±

    Shocked, Rosetta stops in her tracks.

    Simrly, Ciel freezes up next to Rosetta.

    Ciel will be participating in the parties with us, so she¡¯s also picking up some dresses.

    Being the serious person that she is, she probably hates attending parties where she has to wear expensive clothes.

    ¡ªI, on the contrary, love parties.

    Spending money like water.

    Now that¡¯s what I¡¯d call an act befitting an evil lord!

    As for why we¡¯re doing this¡ªit¡¯s because we¡¯ll be partying consecutively for days in the Capital.

    I¡¯ll be thoroughly enjoying my stay here on the Capital.

    If someonees looking for trouble, I¡¯ll face them off.

    Rather than searching everywhere, it¡¯s more efficient to wait until someonees knocking.

    The parties will be held under several people¡¯s names, but I¡¯ll be managing everything in the dark.

    Wace, who appears to be free, would be hosting the parties. As for me, I¡¯ll just be participating and ying around every day.

    Patrice walks up to me.

    ¡°Lord Liam, a message arrived from the higher-ups of the Integrated Government. They¡¯re iming that they weren¡¯t the ones that instigated the demonstration. In fact, they seem rather surprised by it. Apparently, they didn¡¯t expect people to begin a demonstration so soon.¡±

    Due to the warm wee, some immigrants must have had the wrong idea, making them prime targets for an enemy agent to instigate.

    I¡¯m not really bothered by it, and I¡¯m pretty sure that the Integrated Government is innocent.

    The Integrated Government probably sent in a spy or two, but every country does that.

    ¡°I¡¯m not particrly suspicious of them.¡±

    ¡°¡ªHow will you punish the offenders? The Empire¡¯s typical approach is to raze the to the ground. The Integrated Government seems worried about this.¡±

    ¡°For the sake of the original inhabitants, I won¡¯t be doing anything of that nature. Nevertheless, they won¡¯t go unpunished.¡±

    They will have to suffer the consequences for beginning a riot inside my territory.

    ¡°How likely are we to beat the United Kingdoms in this war? Even if we do beat them, won¡¯t the Cleo Faction suffer a steep decline in power? Does Lord Liam have enough subordinates tomand?¡±

    Aren¡¯t youcking capable personnel?

    I smile at Patrice who disys concern.

    ¡°Investments are important, aren¡¯t they?¡±

    ¡°Does Lord Liam have a n?¡±

    ¡°¡ªIt¡¯s time for a harvest. That¡¯s all there is to it.¡±

    I¡¯ve allowed many young people from my territory to study abroad, so it¡¯s time for them to pay me back.

    Military officers, government officials¡ªall sorts of people have received my support in the past.

    I¡¯ve almost forgotten about them, but let¡¯s not mention that.

    ¡°I have enough people working under me. As for the war¡ªI¡¯ll be taking advantage of the traitors.¡±

    I look forward to what¡¯s toe as I watch Rosetta and Ciel constantly changing into new dresses that have been prepared for them ahead of time.

    ¡°Patrice, we¡¯ve already won this battle.¡±

    ¡°I sure do hope so. After all, even if you win against the United Kingdoms, you would have to face the Calvin Faction afterwards.¡±

    She seems to have misunderstood.

    I was talking about my battle with Calvin.

    Believing that he would definitely win, Calvin has made a careless move.

    I never thought Calvin would make a move this early on.

    I¡¯m truly grateful for this fortunate turn of events.

    ¡ó

    The Imperial Army¡¯s Seventh Weapons Factory was experiencing an unprecedented boom.

    ¡°Ahahaha, I can¡¯t stopughing!¡±

    As the Cleo Faction was dragged into the interster war, weapons were being ordered from the Third, the Sixth, and the Ninth Weapons Factories.

    The Seventh Weapons Factory had been cast aside.

    Fortunately, arge order had arrived from Liam.

    Next to Nias who wasughing uncontrobly, her junior was staring at the factory which was in full operation.

    The corners of her lips were also turned up.

    ¡°I heard that Baron Exner would be renewing all his family¡¯s weaponries too. Iya~, Count Bafield is indeed generous.¡±

    Among the aristocrats in the Cleo Faction, there were still some lords that remained uneasy about their fleets.

    As such, he had generously promised to provide them with various equipments such as state-of-the-art battleships and mobile knights.

    Since Cleo would be participating in the interster war, the Empire was providing him with maximum support, or at least that was what the Empire was trying to ¡°portray¡±.

    The factories were therefore permitted to build and sell weapons without having to worry about offending someone.

    The more they built, the more they were able to sell.

    Everything in their inventory had been purchased as well.

    That was mainly why Nias couldn¡¯t stopughing.

    ¡°Wartime demand is really amazing.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not like the war has officially started though.¡ªThat said,¡±

    The Seventh Weapons Factory was pumping out new models that had been further improved based on the Banfields¡¯ constructive criticisms.

    I don¡¯t like the design.

    I don¡¯t like the interior.

    Performance-wise, nothing really changed. However, they had added extra functions that were unbing of the Seventh Weapons Factory.

    Truth be told, they didn¡¯t want to build weapons like these, but none of the Seventh Weapons Factory¡¯s original models were being purchased.

    They were simply unpopr.

    The factory wasn¡¯t receiving any orders aside from the ones that requested for the Banfield-modified models.

    ¡°We¡¯ve only sold a few of our original models. My pride is in shambles.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I didn¡¯t design those anyway.¡±

    The Cleo Faction was pushing itself to prepare for the uing war, so weapons were selling like hotcakes.

    By lending money to some of the aristocrats, Liam sessfully expanded his influence within the faction and boosted the overall strength of it.

    He was able to make such shy moves by using the war as an excuse.

    Nias touched her cheeks with her hands and leered at the battleship in front of her, mesmerized.

    ¡°Ra. Ther. Than. That.¡ªThe newest battleship which I designed is of much greater importance! Just look at its mind-blowing functionalities!¡±

    Having incorporated vast quantities of rare metals, the 3000 meters long gship-ss battleship was built for Liam, and it was worthy of being called the ultimate battleship.

    ¡°Even the engine which powers the battleship contains rare metals within it! The output is at another level. Yes, the output! The barrels of the canons were made with Arondight, while the heat converter¡ª¡±

    With these changes, it¡¯ll no doubt be the strongest!-

    ¡ªUntil now, she didn¡¯t have the necessary resources to build one.

    As a result, the giant battleship of her dreams had always remained as a product of her imagination.

    However, thanks to Liam, she was given the chance to work on it, and Nias was able toplete it after a long time.

    ¡°Gufufufufufufu¡ª¡±

    Believing that Nias won¡¯t be returning back to reality for a while, her junior returned to her work.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s good that we¡¯re making a lot of money. Even so, the aristocrats of the Cleo Faction are upgrading their weapons to the newest generation with impable timing.¡±

    As new weapons were about to be introduced, the weapons that were mainstream at the moment were on their way to bing obsolete.

    Thus, the Cleo Faction became the first to switch over to a new generation of weapons.

 Chapter 94 - Volume 6 Chapter 5 â€“ Wallaceâ€™s Awakening

    Volume 6 Chapter 5 ¨C Wace¡¯s Awakening

    TN: Hello, everyone! I¡¯ve moved all the chapters here and reced the dead links on Novelupdates. I will be continuing both the trantion for both this novel and the other one that I¡¯m working on, so please don¡¯t worry.

    ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    As someone who was beyond 100th in line to the throne, Wace was a man whose worth was ambiguous despite being a member of the royal family.

    Overall, his abilities were subpar, and they were evaluated to be in the 40s range, which was neither a failing grade nor an excellent one.

    ¡°Huu¡ªSo Liam, you want me to host parties every single day? Let me make this clear. It¡¯s impossible.¡±

    When he dered so, he was hit by Liam.

    ¡°What was that for!? It hurt!¡±

    ¡°Listen well, Wace. I¡¯m super busy right now. To seize this opportunity, I even summoned for Eulisia, who has been doing nothing but y around these days.¡±

    ¡°Opportunity? Aren¡¯t you mistaking it with the word ¡®disaster¡¯?¡±

    ¡°No, this is an opportunity. I have Lady Luck by my side.¡±

    What is he talking about?

    Although Wace was full of doubt, he dared not go against the orders of Liam, his patron.

    ¡°Liam, you should just host them yourself.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s a lot going on. Just listen to me and prepare for the parties. It would be boring if they¡¯re all the same, so think of something interesting.¡±

    Liam¡¯s unreasonable requests were giving Wace a headache.

    ¡°You want me to think of interesting ideas for parties that will be held every day? Let¡¯s just get them over with without causing a scene.¡±

    ¡°¡ªWace, I have standards when ites to parties. Cutting corners is uneptable. I¡¯ll provide you with men and money, so make it happen.¡±

    This dude¡¯s the worst, Wace thought; however, he chose not to voice this out loud.

    It was true that Liam was busy.

    To an extent, Wace was impressed by how energetic Liam was for wanting to party despite how busy he was.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯ll try my best for you. Don¡¯t expect too much though. Also, why aren¡¯t you doing this yourself?¡±

    ¡°If I¡¯m in charge of everything, it wouldn¡¯t be as fun to participate in them.¡±

    Essentially, Liam was saying that there wouldn¡¯t be any surprises stored for him if he was the one who nned them in the first ce.

    He would also have to worry about whether the people around him were having a good time.

    What a selfish way of thinking, Wace thought.

    (I would¡¯ve preferred being moreid-back, but I guess there¡¯s no helping it¡ªit¡¯s not a wise decision to anger your patron. I¡¯ll put in just the right amount of effort so that I can give excusester on.)

    ¡ó

    Discussions regarding Liam¡¯s movements were dominating the conference hall of the Calvin Faction.

    ¡°He won¡¯t be part of the expeditionary force!?¡±

    ¡°Is he running away?¡±

    ¡°No, he has dispatched talented knights that are said to be his confidants. Apparently, His Highness Cleo is being guarded by his elites as well. From what I recall¡ªhe has also sent someone named us, a knight who has apanied him during the majority of his stay at the Capital.¡±

    ¡°He should be Liam¡¯s close aide, right?¡±

    ¡°Since he has dispatched a close aide of his, I don¡¯t think he¡¯s trying to leave the Cleo Faction. But¡ª¡±

    Cleo had been dered themanding general, but everyone believed that Liam would be the one who would actually be giving out orders.

    However, earlier on, there had been an announcement saying that Liam would be staying in the Capital.

    Calvin smirked.

    ¡°¡ªWe¡¯ve won.¡±

    ¡°Your Highness?¡±

    ¡°Rumors about Liam withdrawing in fear will spread. No, I¡¯ll make sure that it spreads. Even if the expeditionary force wins in the war, Liam¡¯s reputation will plummet to the ground.¡±

    The Calvinist aristocrats agreed with him in this regards, but they were disturbed about another matter.

    ¡°Your Highness the Crown Prince, did Liam mindlessly decide to remain in the Capital? Ever since he announced the lineup for the war, he has been constantly partying day in and day out without a care in the world.¡±

    Calvin was also worried about this, but he failed to see how Liam could possibly turn the tables on him.

    Liam had gone astray by his own will.

    ¡°I¡¯m also bothered by that, but it doesn¡¯t change the fact that he has made the wrong decision. No matter what he does from now on, his reputation will take a nosedive. After all, people would think that he has fled without putting up a fight. Unfortunately for him, he has missed the opportunity to make his move.¡±

    Staying in the Capital while his subordinates are fighting in the war.

    How would others interpret this?

    ¡ªThey would see it as Liam having fled from the battlefield.

    The amount of effort Liam had put in no longer mattered.

    Even if his presence wasn¡¯t necessary on the battlefield, people would think that he had fled.

    Although Calvin had avoided responsibility in a simr way, that was before the identity of themanding general was announced.

    He could conjure up as many excuses as he needed, and his faction was there to back him up by focusing people¡¯s target on Liam.

    ¡°¡ªWe¡¯ve honestly put in too much effort into this. What a disappointing ending.¡±

    ¡°Not everything¡¯s over yet, so don¡¯t let your guards down. Liam-kun¡¯s career may be over, but the fact that he¡¯s alive is a problem.¡±

    Regardless of his reputation, Liam was problematic just by being alive.

    Recently, Liam had been sent to a region riddled with corruption for his internship, and he was actively carrying out reforms and wiping out corrupt officials during his stay there.

    Not only was Liam a capable man, a noble spirit dwelled within him¡ªAs such, Calvin was certain that Liam would continue to hinder them in the future.

    ¡°¡ªWe¡¯ll strike at him with the pieces that we have prepared.¡±

    Calvin was almost convinced of his victory.

    However, as Liam was someone that defeated Linus, Calvin wished to crush him while he could.

    Blinded by victory, Calvin was bing negligent.

    ¡ó

    -The Party Venue-

    The aristocrats attending the party are clearly impressed.

    Artworks, mostly stone statues, are on disy, and the party is in the form of a standing buffet.

    This party doubles as a chance for up-anding artists to disy their new works.

    ¡°My, how wonderful.¡±

    ¡°I would love to have this.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve booked the one over there. It¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve attended parties like this. It¡¯s quite enjoyable. The one I attended previously was too bizarre for me to enjoy.¡±

    The venue is buzzing with excitement.

    Aristocrats and their family members have been invited to this party.

    From the outside, it doesn¡¯t look like I was the one who organized it, but everyone knows that I was involved.

    As it¡¯s a chance for me to show off my financial might, I¡¯ve also called out to some prospective aristocrats.

    That said, most of the people here are either aristocrats belonging to the Cleo Faction or their close rtives.

    While I¡¯m chatting with Rosetta and the aristocrats around me, I see the figure of Kurt in his military uniform, attending the party in Baron Exner¡¯s stead.

    Kurt waves his hand at me.

    Taking note of this, the aristocrats around us excuse themselves.

    ¡°Liam!¡±

    Next to him, there is also the figure of Her Highness Cecilia, Cleo¡¯s sister who got engaged to Kurt.

    Rosetta begins a conversation with Her Highness Cecilia just as Kurt approaches us.

    On the other hand, Kurt and I enter a small-talk.

    ¡°We¡¯ve finally met again. How¡¯s the situation in the military?¡±

    Kurt has grown a little taller.

    His has be more fit as well.

    ¡°To be honest, it¡¯s tough. Even so, I guess it¡¯s not too bad? This rugged life suits me better than being an official on the Capital.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve been assigned to the defense unit of the Capital, yes?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be transferred to the logistics soon. After that is the patrol fleet, I believe?¡±

    ¡°If you¡¯re thinking of joining an official fleet, do you want me to introduce you to one? Cedric¡¯s been promoted to the position of a lieutenant general. His fleet is rather flexible with things.¡±

    With my backing, I had Cedric promoted.

    I made him work tirelessly to have the others recognize him, so his achievements were more than enough.

    He looked a little tired, but whatever.

    ¡°I see that Liam hasn¡¯t changed. Then can I take you up on that offer?¡±

    ¡°Leave it all to me.¡±

    Looking at Kurt grinning happily, one could easily tell that he¡¯s a second generational evil lord.

    He¡¯s truly the son of Baron Exner.

    Ciel, who¡¯s standing besides Rosetta, is theplete antithesis of Kurt.

    She¡¯s staring at her brother with disgusted eyes.

    To tease her, I mention her in my conversation with Kurt.

    ¡°Kurt, it seems like Ciel wants to speak to you.¡±

    ¡°Oh, is that so? Ciel, you appear to be doing well.¡±

    Upon seeing Kurt¡¯s smile, Ciel makes a disappointed expression.

    Even so, she soon fakes a smile and returns a polite greeting.

    ¡°Yes. The Count and Lady Rosetta have been treating me well.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear. Huh? Did Liam buy that dress for you?¡±

    Kurt takes notice of Ciel¡¯s new dress.

    I¡¯ll brag about it in front of Kurt to make Ciel even more ufortable.

    I know for a fact that Ciel doesn¡¯t like these kinds of things.

    ¡°Yup, I gathered a bunch of renowned designers from the Capital and had them design this. I¡¯ve ordered¡ªaround 60 dresses, I believe?¡±

    As long as the party train continues, she would have to wear a new dress every day.

    A dress that has been worn once will never be worn again.

    It¡¯s good to be wasteful; this behavior reeks of evilness.

    ¡°Liam¡¯s amazing.¡±

    Rosetta, who has been having a separate discussion with Her Highness Cecilia, butts into our conversation midway through.

    ¡°Darling is so extravagant. Personally, I¡¯d prefer keeping one of the dresses that I¡¯ve taken a liking to.¡±

    ¡ªBecause she grew up in a poor family, Rosetta has a bad habit of preserving things.

    Cherishing things?

    Is she not aware that she¡¯s the fianc¨¦e of an evil lord?

    ¡°I can order as many dresses as you desire.¡±

    ¡°Darling, why not keep some of them?¡±

    In the midst of such an argument, some of the aristocrats¡¯ children walk over to where we are.

    Among the invited are the rtives of aristocrats that belong to our faction.

    It¡¯s to tell our enemies, ¡®We¡¯re here!¡¯

    It also serves as a mean to appease the aristocrats that have joined the expeditionary force.

    I¡¯m appealing to them that we¡¯re taking good care of their families.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, your dress today is as dazzling as ever.¡±

    The girls get excited over what kinds of dresses are being worn in social gatherings.

    Of course, there are a few that aren¡¯t as interested in this topic.

    ¡°Ara, thank you.¡±

    ¡°May I ask where you bought the dress?¡±

    ¡°It was custom-made.¡±

    ¡°I-is that so?¡±

    The girl who asked about where the dress was bought gets stared at by the others around her.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it obvious that the dress was custom-made?¡±

    ¡°Did youe from the countryside?¡±

    ¡°¡ªThose dresses that are disyed on shelves aren¡¯t fashionable at all. Having a popr dressmaker design one should be a given.¡±

    ¡ªGirls are scary, even when they¡¯re young.

    Rosetta kindly calls out to the girl who has be disheartened.

    ¡°Don¡¯t take their words too badly.¡±

    Realizing that the girl¡¯s about to cry, someone associated with the children¡¯s families rushes over hurriedly.

    He¡¯s panicking quite a bit.

    ¡°A-apologies, Liam-dono.¡ªGirls, return to where your families are.¡±

    ¡°¡°¡°Okay~¡±¡±¡±

    Even after the children have left, the associate remains behind and apologizes repeatedly.

    Well, I¡¯m from a remote ce, and Rosetta was too poor to afford dresses in the past.

    The associate might be thinking that the children¡¯s innocent words have offended us.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡±

    Then again, the people gathered here all belong to the Cleo Faction.

    I should handle this situation with utmost care.

    I speak to the girl who has begun crying.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need for tears. If you¡¯d like, I can order a tailor-made dress for you. Are you willing to wear that and join us in future parties?¡±

    The girl agrees in delight.

    Great! Now she won¡¯t say that she won¡¯t attend parties because she was emotionally hurt.

    The girl¡¯s family members express their gratitude and take her away.

    Watching this scene unfold, Kurt smiles and talks to Her Highness Cecilia.

    ¡°Liam has always been kind to others.¡±

    ¡°That seems to be the case.¡±

    This guy¡ªhe¡¯s doing an excellent job depicting me as a good person in front of Her Highness.

    As I thought, he¡¯s really fit to be an evil lord.

    I smile towards Ciel who has been ring at me suspiciously, prompting her to turn her head away.

    What an interesting girl she is.

    I¡¯ll continue teasing her in the future.

    Suddenly, Rosetta thanks me.

    ¡°Thank you, Darling.¡±

    ¡°I haven¡¯t done anything worthy of gratitude.¡±

    Why is she thanking me?

    I haven¡¯t done anything to you, you know?

    Nevertheless, we¡¯ve been partying nonstop¡ªand I¡¯vee to the conclusion that Wace has an unexpected talent in organizing events.

    I¡¯ve been attending every single party, but I haven¡¯t grown tired of them yet.

    ¡ó

    Outside the party venue, Kukuri and his subordinates were eliminating a group of armed men that attempted to intrude upon the party.

    The armed men copsed in an alley, and their bodies slowly sank into the ground, disappearing forever.

    Kukuri chuckled.

    ¡°¡ªYou guys finally showed up.¡±

    Someone had thrown a shuriken at Kukuri.

    When he deflected it, the shuriken rose up into mes and disappeared.

    Kukuri¡¯s men began showing up one after another, each covered in ck and wearing a mask.

    In response, ck mes appeared and took the shapes of Ninjas.

    The ninjas that materialized from the mes readied their weapons.

    ¡°¡ªKill.¡±

    With a brief mutter from one of them, they charged in.

    A battlemenced in the narrow alley.

    Two of the ninjas ambushed Kukuri, but they were easily mowed down.

    They turned back into mes and were about to vanish.

    However, Kukuri calmly grabbed the cores that were present within the mes and crushed them.

    The other ninjas that saw this backed away, visibly shocked.

    They were rmed and wary of Kukuri, who had seen through their secrets.

    ¡°How nostalgic. Your group has given us a lot of trouble in the past. Still, you shouldn¡¯t be so startled by something of this level. Things like these never startled your ancestors.¡±

    ¡°¡ªWho are you?¡±

    ¡°Nice to meet you¡ªand long time no see. We were once known as the Shadow n that served the Empire in the shadows. Oh, but that¡¯s just what the others decided to call us.¡±

    Upon hearing this, the ninjas decided to retreat, cognitive of the fact that they were at a disadvantage.

    Kukuri shot out spikes from his shadow, prating the ninjas¡¯ cores and not letting them escape.

    Afterwards, his subordinates sank back into the shadows.

    Only Kukuri remained behind to address the person that was watching them from the dark.

    ¡°Two thousand years. We have waited for this moment for two thousand years. We are here to have our revenge. Tell that to your master.¡ªIf you wish to me someone, me your ancestors for what they did.¡±

    Having said his piece, Kukuri also melted into the shadows.

    ¡ó

    ¡°Wace!¡±

    ¡°Liam,¡ªI¡ªI¡¯m scared of my own talent!¡±

    Wearing his party suit in a sloppy manner, Liam came tomend Wace for a job well-done.

    Having just returned from the party, Rosetta looked a little tired, so Ciel was preparing a drink for her.

    As she was doing so, she nced sideways and watched the interactions between Liam and Wace.

    ¡°I thought you were just a leech that wastes food, but you¡¯ve outdone yourself this time! The parties have been really exciting!¡±

    ¡°That kind of hurt. Anyway, thanks. I didn¡¯t know that I was talented in these areas either.¡±

    Liam brought out Wace¡¯s favorite liquor and started a drinking session with him.

    Wace had been nning out parties every day, and they were surprisingly being well received.

    It was an unexpected discovery.

    (Normally, it would be considered a useless talent.)

    They were spending an exorbitant amount of money for the parties that were happening on a daily basis.

    That said, Liam was having a st.

    Meanwhile, Rosetta was feeling drained as she constantly worried over how the others were doing during the parties.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, how about taking a day off tomorrow?¡±

    When Ciel asked worriedly, Rosetta shook her head.

    ¡°Ciel, we can¡¯t be doing that. One of the reasons Darling is gathering everyone and hosting these parties is to protect the families of aristocrats that are part of the expeditionary force.¡±

    (She¡¯s not wrong, but looking at Liam...)

    Although Ciel was doubtful of his intentions, it was true that he was indirectly protecting the family members of the aristocrats.

    He was even calling people that lived near the borders.

    From the perspective of the aristocrats that were partaking in the war, Liam, a person who could defeat a Sword Saint, was going out of his way to protect their families.

    ¡°¡ªWouldn¡¯t it have been better for the Count to participate in the war?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re right. Under normal circumstances, the aristocrats¡¯ family members would have been sent to the territory of the Banfield Family so that they can be protected there. Unfortunately, a demonstration is going on right now.¡±

    ¡°A demonstration over their lord¡¯s lower part of the body...that¡¯s even worse than what our territory is experiencing.¡±

    Although the demonstrations in the Banfield Family¡¯s territory had be widespread, less than a tenth of the demonstrators were advocating for the democratization of the government.

    They were almost negligible.

    The majority of the demonstrators were rioting about the issue of Liam not having an heir.

    Essentially, they were demanding for a sessor.

    (Our dad¡¯s so popr that people are asking when his nudes will be released, but this is clearly worse.)

    The petition was a form of appeal from the servants that were working at the mansion.

    Liam had never tried to sleep with them, so they were basically saying ¡°We¡¯re ready whenever you are! C¡¯mon~~!¡±

    They were essentially giving him the okay signal.

    (It seems like nothing goodes with being an aristocrat. Oh well, what can I say. I¡¯m an aristocrat myself. Since people are making a fuss over trivial things like this, I guess we can at least say that it¡¯s peaceful?) (Ciel)

    Liam and Wace were having a toast.

    ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to our next party!¡±

    ¡°Please do! I¡¯m confident about the next one as well!¡±

    ¡°Great! Oh, then I also want you to arrange a bucket party as the grand finale!¡±

    ¡°¡ªSorry, that hurdle¡¯s too high for me to ovee.¡±

 Chapter 95 - Volume 6 Chapter 6 â€“ The Expeditionary Force

    Volume 6 Chapter 6 ¨C The Expeditionary Force

    Somewhere in the vast universe, over 6 million battleships were gathered.

    Although it was a sight to behold, the cost required to move such a fleet was equally astronomical.

    Even for the huge Empire, an interster nation, the expense was nothing to scoff at.

    Nevertheless, it was necessary for the Empire to repel the United Kingdoms of Oxis at all costs.

    Inside the fleet¡¯s gship, us, who was essentially forced to be themanding general, was standing besides His Highness Cleo, enduring the pain in his stomach.

    (We hold a numerical advantage, but that doesn¡¯t mean much when ites to wars of such scales. Can we really win?)

    Numerically speaking, they had prepared a force that was double that of their enemies¡¯.

    However, it wasn¡¯t as if they would all be fighting together.

    The universe was such a huge ce.

    Their enemies would be dispersed over arge area.

    As such, the Empire¡¯s fleet would also have to disperse and fight at different locations.

    In that case, they would have to deal with several battlefields at once.

    Hundreds, if not thousands, of battlefields, big and small, would be generated.

    If they were to include the skirmishes, the number could grow to be in the tens of thousands.

    In the grand scheme of things, even if they lost a battle, it wouldn¡¯t matter if they won the war.

    Having said that, nobody knew how things would y out given the number of troops involved.

    Operators were screaming left and right.

    ¡°Deputy Commander us! The patrol fleet isining about theck of supplies!¡±

    ¡°Deputy Commander us! The aristocrats that joined the expeditionary force areining about theck of banquets!¡±

    ¡°Deputy Commander us! There seems to be a conflict between the allied forces! A battle has begun!¡±

    Comints were flooding in from the patrol fleet that contained all the aristocrats that had been sent to pull the leg of the Cleo Faction.

    Some aristocrats that had no qualms with the Cleo Faction were also trying to drag them down.

    It was clear as day that they had made a deal with the Calvin Faction.

    People that belonged to that category were the ones that were starting all the fights.

    The oue of the war didn¡¯t matter to them.

    If they were about to lose, they would simply run away.

    Desertion was punishable by death, but the Calvin Faction would no doubt interfere and me everything on Liam in order to smear Cleo¡¯s image.

    (My stomach hurts.¡ªIn actuality, we only have around 3 million troops at our disposal. The rest are just enemies.)

    It was 3 million against 6 million, not the other way around.

    The sole saving grace was that the other half was on their side, and this was only made possible thanks to Liam.

    (This must be because Lord Liam stayed behind to provide logistical support. In that regards, his arrangement makes sense. Still, why am I here?)

    Beside Cleo was the figure of Lysithea, his knight.

    A short distance away, Chengshi, their guard, was sitting down on a chair, grooming her nails without a care.

    (His Highness Cleo has zero experience inmanding a fleet, and Her Highness Lysithea has never participated in a war of such magnitude.¡ªThis is the first time for me as well. As for Chengshi, she¡¯spletely indifferent to this matter.)

    If it was Liam inmand, us would have followed orders without any hesitation.

    Unfortunately, Liam was providing the logistics instead.

    If not for Liam¡¯s logistical support, the fleet wouldn¡¯t have been nearly asrge.

    Everything from the replenishment of supplies to their distribution was being handled by Liam, and he was also making sure that things were stable on the rear.

    If Liam had left the Capital with them, they would¡¯ve had to suffer from the sabotages of the Calvin Faction.

    Enduring the pain in his stomach, us turned his attention to Tia, whose eyes were shining.

    ¡°What a bunch of problem-causing idiots. Operators, write their names down on a list. Their existence won¡¯t be necessary for us.¡±

    Liam wasn¡¯t a fool either.

    Knowing full well that us couldn¡¯t operate such a huge fleet alone, he had assigned Tia to assist him.

    In a sense, us was just there to act as an overseer.

    Even so, being the hard working man that he was, us dealt with many of the small tasks which Tia could not be bothered to do.

    ¡°Tia-dono, do you have a strategy in mind that can be used against the United Kingdoms?¡±

    Cleo looked nervously at Tia, who he was acquainted to.

    This was something that us had gone over with Tia beforehand. However¡ª

    ¡°We¡¯ll be going with the flow of the situation. When ites to battles of this scale, nothing goes as expected anyway.¡±

    Lysithea appeared uneasy.

    ¡°Can we really win? Our enemies essentially outnumber us two to one.¡±

    Lysithea was also aware that not all the troops would follow their instructions.

    Facing her unease, Tia tilted her head andughed.

    ¡°Two to one? Your Highness Lysithea, you have misunderstood something. This is more like a three-way battle. The United Kingdoms¡¯ army won¡¯t be able to differentiate between friend and foe when they confront our army.¡±

    The figure of 6 million battleships moving in space was projected in front of Cleo and the others.

    They were about to arrive on the battlefield, yet a portion of the fleet was moving independently and defying orders.

    It was a mixed fleet, and it had the patrol fleet within it.

    While the other fleets were busy moving to their assigned positions after arriving on the battlefield, the mixed fleet was ignoring the orders given to them.

    ¡°Oya, traitors right off the bat.¡ªI guess we¡¯ll begin by exterminating these people.¡±

    Tia tapped away at the screen in front of her and gave out instructions to the rest of the fleet.

    ¡°Our ultimate goal is Lord Liam¡¯s victory! ¡ª¡ªTraitors have a part to y as well.¡±

    The people around her were surprised by how cold she sounded as she said thatst sentence.

    ¡°Norden¡ªyou will regret ever betraying Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡ó

    -The United Kingdom¡¯s Army-

    The 6 thousand ships under Count Norden¡¯smand had formed a fleet with the ships of several other aristocrats.

    The fleetprised of nearly 100 thousand ships, and they were currently upying one of thes in the Empire¡¯s territory.

    While blowing a cigar on the bridge of one of the battleships, Count Norden listened to the message sent from the Imperial Army.

    ¡°Lord Count, the Empire has contacted us for their regr report. They have announced their next strategy.¡±

    Count Norden received the report from his subordinate and checked its content.

    ¡°Hmm, His Highness Cleo has reduced the number of ships around him and nted a fake gship¡ªso the real gship is hidden within the smaller fleet? It seems like the Imperial Army doesn¡¯t know how to properly wage a war.¡±

    A strategy to blind the enemies¡¯ eyes.

    There had been sessful cases in the past, so Count Norden did not doubt the content of the report.

    ¡®There¡¯s no way that a gship would be moving with a smaller fleet!¡¯

    Some interster nations had lost their wars having made such an assumption.

    Count Norden decided to report this to his superior.

    ¡°Report this to my lord. What a nice thing it is to watch the war unfold from afortable position. I almost feel sorry for those that are desperately killing each other.¡±

    Count Norden was thinking of staying away from the front lines until the war ended.

    The same went for the aristocrats around him.

    ¡°Don¡¯t think bad of me.¡±

    No one knew whether Count Norden was addressing Liam or his allies.

    ¡ó

    A new piece of information had arrived at the gship of the Imperial Army.

    ¡®Using 300 thousand ships, the United Kingdoms has defeated a mixed fleet! We have lost 60 thousand ships!¡¯

    Upon hearing the report, Tia pretended to be in pain.

    She clutched her chest with one hand and covered her face with the other.

    ¡°What a tragedy. I told them to return to their positions so many times¡ªin the end, the mixed fleet never listened.¡±

    With a single piece of information, they had gotten rid of numerous soldiers and aristocrats with bad intentions.

    Most of the aforementioned aristocrats were officials of the Calvin Faction.

    In other words, they were Liam¡¯s enemies.

    However, that did not change the fact that they were a part of the Imperial Army.

    Despite that, they had been erased through information maniption.

    A shiver ran down us¡¯s spine.

    (This woman¡ªshe dared do so!?)

    They had suddenly lost 60 thousand ships, yet there was no trace of remorse to be found.

    After all, it was their enemies that suffered the damage.

    Cleo¡¯s eyes contained some fear as he looked at Tia.

    ¡°It isn¡¯t right to intentionally pull the legs of your allies¡ª¡±

    Having perceived what Cleo was thinking, Tia smiled.

    ¡°¡ªor so I once thought. However, Your Highness, please understand that things like these are inevitable, especially when ites to battles of such scale. If we had made a mistake, we would¡¯ve been the ones to disappear instead of the mixed fleet.¡±

    Lysithea¡¯s face was pale.

    In contrast, Chengshi, who was sitting on a chair, was grinning.

    This event had sparked Chengshi¡¯s interest.

    ¡°This is what war truly entails. It reveals people¡¯s true nature. The ugliest and the most beautiful side of humanity can be witnessed on the battlefield.¡±

    us felt an acute pain in his stomach.

    (These people¡ªwhy are normal knights the overwhelming minority in this knights order?)

    Tia issued her nextmand.

    ¡°Okay, spread the words that His Highness Cleo managed to escape amidst the chaos. Our enemies will be confused by the discrepancy in the information we spread and the information that their spies are sending back. We¡¯ll strike at enemies that respond slowly and only fight easy battles!¡±

    Following hermand, Cleo¡¯s fleet destroyed a confused fleet of 100 thousand ships that belonged to the United Kingdoms.

    Afterwards, they moved to the next phase of the n.

    ¡°From now on, we¡¯ll be on the hunt for confused enemies. Our enemies are bound to be in disarray and suspect everything they see. Moving forward, the battlefield will only be more and more chaotic.¡±

    Tia was feeling properly pumped up.

    ¡°Everything¡¯s for Lord Liam¡¯s victory!¡±

    ¡ó

    9 million battleships were waging a war on the battlefield known as space.

    It was almost like a strategy simtion game taking ce in a vast universe.

    Conquers, build bases, rob, be robbed, betray, and be betrayed.

    One heck of a story was being created through this war.

    This was a war which could have easily continued on for hundreds of years, but its end was drawing near earlier than anyone had anticipated.

    Count Norden was being chased down by his allies, a fleet affiliated with the United Kingdoms.

    His fleet only had 3 thousand ships left.

    Inparison, 20 thousand ships were chasing after them.

    ¡°Norden, how dare you fool us!¡±

    ¡°To think that you were pretending to be an ally after joining hands with the Empire!¡±

    ¡°No matter what, I¡¯ll have you dead!¡±

    Hot on his tail were aristocrats and military officers whose family members, friends, and lovers were killed in the war.

    It was all because of the information from Count Norden.

    They were told that the Empire¡¯s Imperial Army was regrouping under the Cleo Faction¡¯s leadership after going through an internal divide.

    They were to aim for that moment.

    The portion of the Imperial Army that was hostile to the Cleo Faction had also promised their cooperation.

    Having defeated a lot of their enemies, the morale of the United Kingdoms¡¯ army was at its peak, and they chose to believe in his words.

    However¡ªthe Cleo Faction wasn¡¯t regrouping there.

    Instead, the ones that were there were their coborators who were fleeing.

    Oblivious to this fact, the United Kingdoms attacked their allies and caused massive damage to them.

    After the battle, the United Kingdoms¡¯ forces had exhausted their supply of ammunition.

    It was then that the Cleo Faction swooped in with a fleet of one million battleships.

    Tia then sent a message to the United Kingdoms¡¯ forces.

    ¡°You¡¯ve performed well, Count Norden. Thanks to you, the Empire will be winning this war. You have my words that you¡¯ll be rewarded for your hard work.¡±

    In addition to the Calvinist aristocrats and military officers that survived the battle, Count Norden had unintentionally made an enemy out of the entire United Kingdoms.

    ¡°Why! Why is this happening to me! Didn¡¯t the liaison confirm the validity of the reports!?¡±

    After being hounded by his former allies, Count Norden fled back to his territory with only 300 ships remaining.

    ¡ó

    Men dressed as Calvinist spies gathered around Tia.

    ¡°¡ªIt¡¯s over now. Thanks for cooperating.¡±

    The next moment, a ck liquid substance wrapped around the men, changing their appearances.

    They were members of the ck Ops, and they each had a mask on their faces.

    ¡°We simply followed Lord Liam¡¯s orders.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve also eliminated the other spies that infiltrated our ranks.¡±

    ¡°As we expected, Norden had turned coat.¡±

    Tia grinded her teeth.

    ¡°He actually had the guts to betray Lord Liam¡ªwhat an ignorant man.¡±

    If he had sided with them during the first information leak, he would¡¯ve been treated much better.

    ¡°He will definitely betray us¡ªthose were Lord Liam¡¯s words.¡±

    When a member of the ck Ops said so, Tia smiled and said, ¡°As expected of Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°The United Kingdoms¡¯ army has requested for a ceasefire agreement. Three months¡ªthis ended surprisingly fast. I¡¯m notining though; with this, I can give Lord Liam a good report. After all, we¡¯ve also eradicated a good number of enemies within the Empire.¡±

    Nearly one million, to be exact.

    Although many people still ended up slipping past the, they had won the war.

    Some damage was done when the Calvinist aristocrats and military personnel fled, but the overall result was satisfactory.

    A member of the ck Ops cackled.

    ¡°The damage done to the army is ridiculous though.¡±

    If one were to judge based on results alone¡ªthis could barely be considered a victory due to the astronomical damage that had been done.

    ¡°But our side barely suffered any damage. Anyways, a win is a win, right? Oh, and I hope those despicable deserters get their just desserts.¡±

    From the Empire¡¯s standpoint, it was a pyrrhic victory.

    However, from Liam¡¯s standpoint, it was a victory by andslide.

    ¡°After we return, we can use this to put pressure on the Calvin Faction.¡ªAh, I can already foresee Lord Liam¡¯s glorious victory! And the one who would have supported him in his endeavor would be me!¡±

    The ck Ops faded away into the shadows, leaving behind Tia who was immersed in her own world.

    ¡ó

    -The Capital-

    ¡°Aah, I can already foresee Liam¡¯s defeat!¡±

    In recent times, the Guide¡¯s mood had never dipped.

    He grinned when he read the news, which stated that the Imperial Army had won the war after suffering great damage.

    ¡°The Imperial Army suffered severe damage while Liam was partying around. He will now have to bear the responsibility.¡±

    The Guide couldn¡¯t stopughing as he watched Liam fall down the rabbit hole of misfortune.

    He was always smiling nowadays.

    Now, he could evenugh off the burning sensation that came from Liam¡¯s gratitude.

    Liam, on the other hand, couldn¡¯t seem to suppress his anger anymore.

    He had been furious when he heard the news that arrived from his territory.

    The Guide was certain that Liam¡¯s territory wasn¡¯t doing well.

    ¡°The time is nigh. Soon, Liam will learn the truth and be miserable.¡±

    The Guide skipped around the Capital, sucking in other people¡¯s misfortune.

    Sitting in an alley, there was a man drinking alcohol with a desperate look on his face.

    ¡°Damn it all! Nothing works out for me. Why do I have to¡ª¡±

    Passing by the drunkard, the Guide sucked up the man¡¯s misfortune and used it as his nutrition.

    ¡°Oya? This man¡¯s misfortune tastes pretty good. Mmmm~, today¡¯s dosage of misfortune was as delicious as always!¡±

    It was then.

    Someone had called the transceiver in the man¡¯s breast pocket.

    The man answered the call in an unfriendly manner.

    ¡°What is it!? A man like me can never¡ªEh!? R-really? An aristocrat took a liking to the clothes that I designed?¡±

    Someone had apparently requested the service of this man who was a nameless designer.

    The pay was good as well.

    The Guide harbored no interest in other people¡¯s happiness.

    ¡°Whenever I take in people¡¯s misfortune, this happens. Haaa~not good, not good. I should be focusing on making Liam unhappy¡ªno, making him as happy as possible.¡±

    The more he blessed Liam with happiness, the unhappier Liam became.

    Just like any other day, the Guide worked hard in collecting others¡¯ misery and blessing Liam with happiness.

    As the Guide left, a dog emerged from the back of a trash can which was situated in the alley.

    ¡ªWatching the Guide¡¯s behavior, it tilted its head.

    The drunkard was enthusiastic about his uing work.

    ¡°Count Banfield¡¯s wife and her maid? Designs for their dresses? How many? ¡ªAt least ten!? And for how much!? ¡ªI¡¯ll do it! Not to mention ten, I can design twenty of them! Thank God. I can support my family now.¡±

    The designer shed tears of relief and ran off in delight.

    The dog followed suit.

 Chapter 96 - Volume 6 Chapter 7 â€“ The Large Scale Demonstration

    <strong>Volume 6 Chapter 7 ¨C The Large Scale Demonstration</strong>

    ¡°My motto is to add functionalities to dresses! They shouldn¡¯t simply act as a piece of clothing.¡±

    An amusing designer has arrived.

    Once again, we¡¯re ordering new dresses for the parties.

    Having one or two designers didn¡¯t prove to be enough, so I had to reach out to a lot of others.

    This man happens to be one of them, and he¡¯s the type of person that wants to add functionalities to dresses that will be thrown away after being worn once.

    ¡ªWhat a fool.

    ¡°Please take a look at all these essories! Normally, dresses will only have disposable energy-shield generators on them, but this dress has a proper one attached to it. Granted, it¡¯s a bit heavier because of that, but it shouldn¡¯t be too burdensome for aristocraticdies such as yourselves.¡±

    Aristocrats tend to attach trinkets to their dresses in fear of events such as assassination attempts.

    However, most of these trinkets are for one-time use.

    This is because the well-made ones are so expensive that they aren¡¯t worth the price.

    It¡¯s wrong to assume that the same essory can be worn on different dresses.

    After all, dresses and their corresponding essories are meant to be sets.

    There¡¯s nothing wrong with reusing things per say, but the idea that saving money is good disgusts viins like me to their core.

    Rosetta and Ciel are listening to this man¡¯s rant with nk expressions.

    ¡®Functionality over usability!¡¯

    It¡¯s clear that they don¡¯t agree with this foolish designer¡¯s ideology.

    My request had been for disposable dresses, yet this man¡¯s trying to shape them intobat suits.

    But then again, idiots like him are just my cup of tea.

    The rich and the wealthy exist to waste money after all.

    ...No, that¡¯s not right.

    I should be saying that evil lords exist to live luxurious lives using the tax that they had wrung out from their citizens.

    This logic, of course, applies to these disposable dresses as well.

    I apud the man¡¯s speech.

    ¡°Excellent! I like it very much.¡±

    ¡°T-thank you, my Lord!¡±

    ¡°I have an additional request for you. Amagi.¡±

    ¡°¡ªYes, Master.¡±

    Amagi walks up to me from where she has been silently spectating, and I introduce her to the designer.

    ¡°She¡¯s my Amagi, and I¡¯m troubled by the fact that she¡¯s always wearing her maid uniform. Don¡¯t you think she needs dresses as well?¡±

    The designer makes a troubled face.

    The knights around us are ready to pull out their swords depending on how the designer responds.

    If he ridicules Amagi, his life will be forfeit.

    Fortunately, he seems to know this already.

    ¡°¡ªI-I don¡¯t have any experience tailoring dresses for androids. That said, as long as I¡¯m provided adequate time and instruction, I¡¯m sure I could make do somehow.¡±

    Previously, there had been a designer who said in disdain that his shop ¡°doesn¡¯t deal with doll apparels¡±.

    We had this conversation through a call, and I swore never to ce an order from his shop again.

    I was ready to butcher that man, but I gave up after Amagi convinced me otherwise.

    She told me that he was a favorite of some aristocrat, so killing him would cause unnecessary trouble.

    ¡ªEven so, she never said anything about taking revenge.

    I¡¯ll make sure to have my revenge after all the bothersome things have been taken care of.

    I¡¯ll just have to be discreet about it so that Amagi doesn¡¯t notice.

    For the time being, however, I should address the man in front of me.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about the cost.¡±

    Amagi stares at me disapprovingly.

    ¡°Master, I have no need for dresses.¡±

    ¡°This is an order.¡±

    ¡°¡ªBut...¡±

    Rosetta joins in to persuade Amagi who¡¯s making a difficult face.

    You¡ªYou¡¯re better than I thought.

    ¡°Amagi, isn¡¯t it fine to wear a dress from time to time?¡±

    ¡°¡ª¡ªUnderstood. However, a disposable dress is too wasteful, so I will take it upon myself to store it somewhere else.¡±

    It worked!

    Amagi agreed!

    ¡°Of course! ¡ª¡ªYou, you only have one chance. Make it count. Spend as much money as you need. I want the best possible masterpiece. Oh, but I won¡¯t ept anything that¡¯s overly shy.¡±

    ¡°Y-yes, my Lord!¡±

    Amunication request arrives just as I¡¯m watching the designer rush to his workstation.

    ¡ªIt¡¯s from Brian.

    ¡°Liam-zamaaaaaaa!!¡±

    How unpleasant. It sounds like he said ¡°serves you right!¡± at point nk. [1]

    Brian, if anyone else had said that, I would¡¯ve had that person tortured.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°The demo¡ªthe demo has grown bigger!¡±

    ¡°Haah!? Didn¡¯t I assign some people to deal with that!? Right, what happened to Eulisia!? I thought she was supposed to be capable!?¡±

    Is she incapable of suppressing a single demo!?

    ¡ó

    -At the Banfields¡¯ territory-

    Even today, demonstrations were being held on each.

    ¡°Does anyone want takoyaki~?¡±

    ¡°We have yakisoba here~¡±

    ¡°Take some fliers from us~¡±

    Stalls were lined up at the sides to provide service to therge number of people present at the scene.

    Soldiers were controlling traffic, and doctors were on standby.

    ¡°That¡¯s not part of the course. You should return using the route you just took.¡±

    ¡°Excuse me, may I ask where the toilet is?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s over there.¡±

    It was no different from a festival.

    This came as a big shock to the leader of the democratization movement who had emigrated from the Integrated Government.

    He had just recently graduated from college and was a fledgling with no experience working in society.

    Having graduated from a good university, a bright future awaited him, but he got himself involved in the rebellion.

    He was banking on gaining social status by cooperating with the rebels.

    ¡ªHowever, the rebels were defeated.

    By the flow of things, he arrived at the Empire.

    Thereafter, fueled by his desire to make it big, he became the leader of the democratization movement.

    The Banfield family employed a solid political system and was kind to its people.

    He took advantage of that and carried out the democratization movement.

    Certain that the Banfields would turn out to be just like any other aristocrats, he was intent on cracking them down and fighting them to the bitter end.

    He also intended to nominate himself as the leader of the rebel¡¯s army.

    Luckily for him, there was a group that supported his cause.

    Despite his status as an aristocrat, the head of the Banfield family was well-known to be someone who was kind to his people.

    If he properly capitalized on this fact, he was confident that he would seed.

    And yet¡ª

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t words of our activities spreading at all!?¡±

    ¡ªThe demo had certainly grown, but the content of the demo had taken a turn for the worse.

    The people parading around with cards weren¡¯t advocating for democratization.

    ¡°Don¡¯t forget to leave behind an heir!¡±

    ¡°Fulfill your duty as our lord!¡±

    ¡°Make Lady Rosetta happy!¡±

    Liam, their lord, did not have any children.

    A sense of crisis rose up as they knew that the Banfields were involved in the interster war.

    In such a big war, their lord could die in a moment of carelessness.

    The leader of the democratization movement was incensed by how rapidly the baby-making demo was spreading.

    In contrast, their activities weren¡¯t receiving any attention at all.

    ¡°Damn it! Don¡¯t they realize that this is a chance!? A chance for them to fight for their rights in the dictatorial Empire!?¡±

    Just as his colleagues were soothing him, a university student that had been listening to their conversation passed by with a card that had drawings of babies.

    The student appeared disgusted at the cards that they were holding on their hands which screamed democratization.

    ¡°Immigrants, yes? Have you properly done the paperwork and applied for whatever you¡¯re demonstrating for? As you can see, we¡¯re busy advocating for the baby-making demo, so can you go somewhere else?¡±

    ¡°We-we¡¯re speaking on behalf of the people about their innate rights as human be¡ª¡±

    ¡°Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Honestly, can you guys like, not? You¡¯re causing trouble for the others in the territory.¡±

    ¡°Haaa!? You must be someone sent by the government! Otherwise, there¡¯s no way that you wouldn¡¯t want to fight for you rights! You must be the lord¡¯s spy!¡±

    The college student calmly rebutted the leader¡¯s furious usations.

    ¡°No, I¡¯m just an ordinary citizen. I¡¯ve recently returned from studying abroad, but that¡¯s not what¡¯s important right now. Do you not know anything about the Empire?¡±

    ¡°As in?¡±

    ¡°Democratization movements are a hassle to deal with, so aristocrats often burn them to the ground before they be troublesome. I would rather not be victims of your activities.¡±

    As a university student that studied abroad, he had visited territories outside the Banfield family¡¯s governance and learned about a which was once gued by the democratization movement.

    ording to past records, the Empire turned that into a sea of fire and made an example out of it.

    There had also beens where education was minimized so that people wouldn¡¯t even fathom advocating for democracy.

    ¡°Here, we¡¯re allowed to pursue education and even study abroad. Public institutions are functioning without any problem. It wouldn¡¯t be funny if we are robbed of that because of your activities, you know?¡±

    ¡°¡ªYou¡¯re thinking like domesticated livestock! Do you want to spend your entire life wagging your tail in front of the aristocrats!? If you¡¯re a human being, you should think and live for yourself! What¡¯s there to say that the next lord wouldn¡¯t be a tyrant!? Someone is in control of your life! Aren¡¯t you worried!?¡±

    The university student had half given up.

    ¡°Then what¡¯s there to prevent pirates from lootings and killing their inhabitants? I¡¯m in favor of our current lord¡¯s policies. Besides, is there any guarantee that things would progress well after dering independence?¡±

    ¡°Rotten. It¡¯s not just the aristocrats. You guys have also rotted to the point where you¡¯ve stopped thinking intelligibly.¡±

    ¡°Why have you evene here? If you like democracy that much, go somewhere else. We don¡¯t restrict people from leaving and moving to other ces.¡±

    If you don¡¯t like it, leave.

    Hearing these words, the leader was stunned.

    What¡¯s going on here?

    The leader failed toprehend the university student¡¯s thought process.

    It was then.

    An important figure seemed to havee.

    Arge number of mobile knights were serving as escorts and floating in the sky, keeping watch of the surroundings.

    One of the leader¡¯s colleagues spoke to him.

    ¡°Leader, something¡¯s about to start.¡±

    ¡°An important figure? Let¡¯s wait and watch.¡±

    The leader shook his head and decided to switch his way of thinking.

    (That¡¯s right. The inhabitants on this are all retarded. Taking control of them will be a piece of cake. I should be grateful that they are idiots that can be easily manipted. Now, if this important figure begins a speech, I¡¯ll argue against it and gather supporters that agree with me.)

    He was nning on increasing the number of supporters around him by seizing this opportunity.

    A female military officer jumped onto the top of the armored vehicle that was floating in the sky.

    She had a microphone on her hand.

    ¡°Participants of the demonstration, heed my words¡ªdo not make a fuss over your lord¡¯s lower body and disband immediately!¡±

    She was a beautiful woman with gold, blonde hair, and the leader recognized who she was.

    ¡°Hey, isn¡¯t she the lord¡¯s concubine-cum-mistress?¡±

    ¡°Ah, yes. That¡¯s what¡¯s written on the document.¡±

    The crowd was wondering what she had to say.

    When it became apparent that she just wanted to stop the demo, people booed at her.

    ¡°We¡¯re serious!¡±

    ¡°Fulfill your duty as an aristocrat~!¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you his concubine or something? Do your work~!¡±

    Through the local news, people knew that Eulisia was a talent that Liam had recruited from the military.

    Normally, people would expect such ¡°recruits¡± to end up as the lords¡¯ lovers or concubines.

    Eulisia trembled when she heard the citizens¡¯ shouts.

    ¡°Y-YA THINK I DIDN¡¯T TRY!?¡±

    She was meant to step forward and stop the demo.

    However, instead, Eulisia began screaming at the top of her lung. It was a scream that came from the innermost depth of her soul.

    ¡°I TRIED MY BEST, YOU KNOW!? I TRIED SO HARD TO HAVE HIM FALL FOR MY CHARMS¡ªBUT LORD LIAM SIMPLY ISN¡¯T INTERESTED!¡±

    The demonstrators became silent until one person cautiously asked, ¡°¡ªD-does he hate women?¡±

    ¡ªTears welled up in Eulisia¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°I would have given up if that was the case! But-but he ims that he likes women! I had devoted my youth so that I could be his secretary, yet he was oblivious to the fact that I was sent to the military¡¯s re-education facility! Then, as soon as I returned to the territory, I was told to suppress a demo!¡ªIn the first ce, it¡¯s only been a few years! How could he forget about me like that!?¡±

    Eulisia had a lot of pent up frustration from her daily work, and she had reached the limit of her patience.

    With a microphone in hand, she spat out all herints.

    ¡°I want to¡ªI want to go on dates as well! Lady Rosetta gets to attend parties every day, but I¡¯m stuck here doing my job! Is he so busy that he can¡¯t spare me a single day!? I¡¯m getting older and older as days pass by. I sometimes feel like crying in the middle of the night because of my worries! I¡¯m tormented by them every day!¡±

    The demonstrators looked at one another in the face.

    Eulisia was sobbing with the microphone turned on.

    She was bawling her eyes out, so the demonstrators beganforting her.

    ¡°H-hope everything goes well~!¡±

    ¡°Eulisia-nee-chan, I¡¯m sure that good days are ahead of you!¡±

    ¡°I-it¡¯s okay. You¡¯re still very beautiful!¡±

    Eulisia didn¡¯t hold back at all and keptining with the mic on.

    ¡°I want him toy his hands on me, but he isn¡¯t doing anything! What can I even do then!? I¡¯m willing to do anything, but there¡¯s nothing I can do if he¡¯snot interested! None of this is my fault!¡±

    ¡ó

    ¡°¡ªAnd so, those that are participating in the demonstration are advocating for ¡®Cherish Lady Rosetta¡¯ and ¡®Please don¡¯t forget about Eulisia-san¡¯. That said, a lot of people are backing Lady Rosetta. In fact, her poprity is so amazing that this Brian¡¯s impressed.¡±

    My fists threaten tosh out as Brain happily makes a report about how much percent of the people are partaking in the demo.

    ¡ªWhat in the world is Eulisia doing?

    She has ruined my reputation as an evil lord.

    I¡¯ve spent decades trying to leave an impression of being evil, but now I just look like some irresponsible bastard.

    A petty man who isn¡¯t feeding the woman he brought back home¡ªIs that how others view me now?

    ¡°For your information, there have also been voices saying that Lord Liam should take in some new concubines.¡±

    ¡°Who are they tomand their lord!? My harem is mine and mine alone! I won¡¯t be entertaining anyone¡¯s suggestions.¡±

    Brian stares at me with cold eyes.

    If-if it was anyone else, I would¡¯ve had their head sliced off their neck!

    ¡°Lord Liam¡ªthere are zero people.¡±

    ¡°Huh? What?¡±

    ¡°To this day, there are zero people in your harem, Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°Huh!? What do you mean!? There¡¯s Amagi! She counts, right!?¡±

    ¡°That only bumps the number up to one. Lady Rosetta remains untouched, and Lord Liam has been ignoring Lady Eulisia, someone that was recruited from the army.¡ªThis Brian here is seriously considering whether or not to join the demonstration.¡±

    ¡°Bullsh*t! I refuse to be swayed by the words of others! I have my own standards when ites to beauties!¡±

    Must I reluctantly build a harem just because others want me to?

    Must Iy my hands on women I do not love?

    Nay, I say!

    I¡¯ll onlyy my hands on women that I want.

    This is something that I won¡¯tpromise.

    ¡°Having your own standards is good, but the issue of leaving behind a descendant is more important.¡±

    ¡°¡ªThey¡¯ll have to be ready for when I return to the territory. I¡¯ll impose such a heavy tax that they¡¯ll never think of demonstrating ever again.¡±

    ¡°Well, well, that¡¯s something to look forward to. On a different note, it¡¯s fascinating how little the democratization movement has spread. The fire has almost been extinguished.¡±

    ¡°Democratization, huh. Don¡¯t forget to write down the names of all those noisy idiots. They¡¯re my enemies. Human rights? They just want to be in the position of power.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam?¡±

    ¡°¡ªEven if aristocrats were to disappear, others will rise up to rece them. No matter what, some people would hold more authority than others. This will never change.¡±

    No matter what kind of political system we¡¯re looking at, there will always be a side that oppresses others and a side that gets oppressed.

    A world without inequality?

    Something like that doesn¡¯t exist.

    Even if we were to throw aristocrats out of the picture, politicians and rich merchants will seize control of the power.

    This time, inequality will be based on how rich or poor someone is.

    There will always be someone that is in control, and the rest will have to obey that entity.

    Well, I won¡¯t deny that this feudal system where aristocrats reign supreme isn¡¯t wed.

    However, I have no ns on relinquishing my authorities to anyone.

    What¡¯s happening to others is none of my concern.

    The same could be said about the people that are championing for democratization.

    A small minority might be serious about wanting democracy, but the rest of them just want my power.

    They may be holding onto their ideals at the moment, but if power is handed to them, they will be corrupt.

    I know because I wield it myself.

    Power is extremely addictive, and it can easily corrupt people¡¯s heart.

    I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a bad thing, though.

    I want to be corrupted and be intoxicated by the power I have.

    After all, I¡¯m an evil lord.

    ¡°If they wish to pull me down and rece me, they¡¯ll have to prove that they¡¯re stronger than I am. If they can do so, I won¡¯t mind epting their challenge. Otherwise, as the vanquished, they should quietly ept how they¡¯re being treated.¡±

    My retainers are trying to overthrow me.

    They can do so as they please, but they¡¯ll have to prepare themselves for when they are defeated.

    I¡¯m not someone that treats enemies with mercy.

    I¡¯ll make sure to crush them thoroughly.

 Chapter 97 - Vol. 6 Chapter 8 â€“ The Names of Two People

    <strong>Vol. 6 Chapter 8 ¨C The Names of Two People</strong>

    ¡ªThe Calvinist aristocrats¡¯plexions were dark.

    Fuming with anger, one of the aristocrats smashed his fist down on the table, gathering the attention of those around him.

    ¡°Dozens of people that had ties with my family were killed, and this includes my son. Dozens!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re telling me that only our side suffered losses!? Damn it! I didn¡¯t expect that brat Liam to have such apetent subordinate as his close aide.¡±

    ¡°us, right? I¡¯ve never heard of him before, but it seems he¡¯s rather skilled. He sabotaged his allies in cold blood and thoroughly eliminated members of the rival faction.¡±

    The war with the United Kingdoms ended on a rather anticlimactic note.

    Many people had predicted that the war would continue on for decades.

    However, in less than a year, the war ended with the Empire¡¯s victory.

    It was a close fight, and catastrophic damage was done to both sides.

    Nevertheless, Cleo¡¯s fame skyrocketed as he had won the war in such a short period of time.

    The Cleo Faction had not suffered much casualty.

    Most of the casualties were from the Calvin Faction which dispatched men to get in the way of the Cleo Faction.

    The people that they dispatched weren¡¯t too important to them.

    Even if some of them died, it wouldn¡¯t have hurt the faction at all.

    However, now that they experienced such a devastating setback, the story became a bit different.

    The aristocrats that were sitting near Calvin had bitter expressions.

    ¡°Your Highness the Crown Prince, using this war as an excuse, the Cleo Faction has been switching over to a new generation of weapons, and I¡¯ve been told that they¡¯re nearly done. It appears that some of the Weapons Factories have ignored our orders.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re right. This goes to show that my reputation can only do so much.¡±

    Representing the Empire, he had promised the expeditionary force that they will be prioritized when it came to renewing their equipment.

    That said, Calvin and his supporters went around informing the Weapons Factories that they should minimize their support for the expeditionary force.

    Some of the Weapons Factories ignored this order because of their prior dealings with Liam.

    While the rest of the Weapons Factories heeded Calvin¡¯s instruction, the Third, the Sixth, the Ninth, and the Seventh Weapons Factories which were close to Liam provided Liam with their full support.

    The Calvinist aristocrats were annoyed by this and tried to make conjectures as to why these Weapons Factories betrayed them.

    ¡°They must have been repulsed by the Empire¡¯s act of siding with the Berkeley family.¡±

    ¡°We might have given the First and the Second Weapons Factories too much preferential treatment.¡±

    ¡°We never intended to give them preferential treatment though.¡±

    Back then, several Weapons Factories had expressed their indignation towards the Berkeley family.

    This was because they were forced to hand over their technologies free of charge to the First and the Second Weapons Factories as the two factories were in a cooperative rtionship with the Berkeley¡¯s.

    Calvin let out a sigh.

    ¡°That¡¯s none of our business¡ªor so I¡¯d like to say. Did they arrive at the conclusion that it¡¯s more beneficial to be under Liam-kun¡¯smand?¡±

    After all, the Calvin Faction had tried to employ the carrot and stick method without actually having the means to procure any carrots.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped either.

    They were already too busy providing preferential treatment to the other Weapons Factories.

    Hence, when the Calvin Faction threatened them and ordered them to cut off their ties with Liam, some of the Weapons Factories turned hostile against them.

    ¡°The Cleo Faction has equipped itself with the most advanced weaponry. It¡¯d be nice if we could have them as well, but¡ª¡±

    Calvin looked around and saw the gloomy expressions that the aristocrats were making.

    It seems like that would be difficult.

    ¡°We could go ahead and enhance a portion of our fleet, but we¡¯ve exhausted too much resource on this war. Even if we were to demandpensation from the United Kingdoms, the Prime Minister would definitely refuse to give us any of the share.¡±

    The Prime Minister would no doubt shave off some of the military spending because of how much the war costed the Empire.

    In other words, they wouldn¡¯t be able to strengthen their faction using the Empire¡¯s budget.

    The aristocrats began a discussion centered around Liam.

    ¡°That brat utilized the Empire¡¯s budget to strengthen his own faction.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, but the show that he put on this time was quite eye-catching. He must have taken out a considerable sum of money from his own pocket.¡±

    ¡°So that means he¡¯s out of resources as well?¡±

    Calvin organized his thoughts.

    (¡ªWe made a big blunder. Liam-kun knew exactly what he was doing from the beginning.)

    The reason why Liam remained in the Capital was so that he could provide logistical support.

    With Liam holding down the fort, the expeditionary force did not have to worry about the logistics and was able to fully concentrate on the battles.

    Even though Liam would be stigmatized for being absent from the battlefield, the benefits of staying behind far outweighed the harms.

    (Moving forward, they would have the high ground when ites to military prowess.)

    Most of the Calvinist officials that joined the war as a part of the expeditionary force had been eliminated.

    Furthermore, it wouldn¡¯t be easy for them to rece their old weapons with the new ones.

    Now that the war had ended, the Prime Minister would deem it a waste of money.

    (They¡¯re in control of the flow. We can¡¯t have it remain this way.)

    ¡°¡ªWe can¡¯t allow Liam-kun to reap all the rewards.¡±

    The Calvinist aristocrats nodded.

    ¡°Let us target his reputation.¡±

    ¡°I admit that he did an excellent job at providing logistical support. However, it¡¯s also true that he fled from the battlefield.¡±

    ¡°Yes¡ªwe should have him experience a bit of bitterness.¡±

    With Liam, who could defeat a Sword Saint, standing guard, there was very little that they could do against his associates.

    The ck Ops serving under Liam weren¡¯t a joke either.

    Not only had Liam remained behind in the Capital, he had also sessfully provided logistical support to the expeditionary force without having to rely on hostile factions such as themselves.

    This proved to Calvin that Liam was a worthy enemy.

    In fact, Liam had turned into an enemy that none of the aristocrats could ignore.

    They initially thought he was just some arrogant upstart that had chanced upon some opportunities; however, before they noticed, he had grown into a tricky opponent.

    (We were toote to realize. ¡ªLinus, was this how it went for you as well?)

    Calvin put forth a suggestion.

    ¡°Let¡¯s immediately summon for the two Sword Saints. Things are about to escte in the Capital.¡±

    If they couldn¡¯t crush him on the battlefield, they would have to crush him in the Capital.

    Calvin and his subordinates were ready to risk it all.

    (To be able to reverse the situation so easily, the Heaven seems to be helping him. However, I won¡¯t be going down without a fight.)

    ¡ó

    The Arend Style Swordsmanship¡¯s headquarters was situated on a certain.

    The school¡¯s reputation was so widespread that it had been gifted an entire to use as its own.

    Many talented aristocrats and royalties were once listed as the school¡¯s disciples.

    It was to the point where people often debated over which was better, the Arend Style Swordsmanship or the Kurdan Style Swordsmanship.

    At the school¡¯s headquarters, the schoolmaster of the Arend Style Swordsmanship was about to leave for the Capital.

    ¡°Master.¡±

    ¡°Umu.¡±

    The schoolmaster was one of the Empire¡¯s Sword Saints, and it was his son that spoke to him just as he was about to board the car which had been prepared by the school¡¯s disciples.

    ¡°His Highness the Crown Prince is such a worrywart. He¡¯s so scared of Liam that he wants father to act as his guard.¡±

    Their social status was higher than most average aristocrats, so he spoke in a somewhat condescending manner.

    As prominent sword instructors, the Empire had bestowed them the title of nobility.

    ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of this so-called School of One-sh before. It¡¯s sad to see that so many people are afraid of it. I guess I¡¯ll take this as an opportunity to train the Crown Prince again.¡±

    They had grown a little arrogant over the years because of how cordially the aristocrats treated them.

    Their attitudes, however, were backed by their strengths.

    ¡°He seems to be proud of defeating a Sword Saint, but the one he defeated was just a self-taught rogue. He¡¯s nothingpared to us who practice the Arend Style Swordsmanship.¡±

    The schoolmaster nodded in agreement with his son¡¯s words.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. The School of One-sh must be another one of those schools that disappear just as quickly as they¡ª¡±

    Before he could finish his sentence, the schoolmaster abruptly jumped out of the car he was boarding.

    The disciples around him tried to do the same, but the less skilled ones were sent flying with blood gushing out of their wounds.

    The schoolmaster¡¯s son pulled out his sword.

    ¡°Who dares!?¡±

    Someone had bisected the car before anyone could react.

    A young woman appeared in front of them with a katana on each side of her waist.

    She had a sandogasa on her head and was wearing a garment that resembled a kimono.

    She was lightly dressed, and a single nce was enough to tell that the intruder was a woman.

    ¡°¡ªHow did you get in?¡±

    The schoolmaster¡¯s son was nervous, and for good reasons too.

    Reckless youngsters often visited the headquarters of the Arend Style Swordsmanship to issue challenges, so the security should¡¯ve been extremely strict.

    Several instructor-level Sword Masters lunged at the female intruder just as she was trying to take off her sandogasa.

    Confident that the woman would die, the schoolmaster gave her a final word of warning.

    ¡°You should¡¯ve been more alert in enemy territory. Since you had the gall to attack, you have no one but yourself to me¡ª!?¡±

    The instructor-level Sword Masters that ambushed the intruder were blown away, each having lost a limb.

    Not a single life was taken.

    The woman in front of them didn¡¯t seem to have moved at all.

    The schoolmaster¡¯s son stepped forward.

    ¡°Are you an assassin!? No. If that was true, then¡ª¡±

    ¡ªThen she would¡¯ve taken their lives, no?

    The schoolmaster was growing restless.

    (Wha-what on earth was that!?)

    He hadn¡¯t been able to follow the movement of the woman¡¯s sword.

    Was it magic? Or perhaps a newly developed weapon!?

    The woman tossed her sandogasa to the side, revealing her face to her shocked opponents.

    Her long, orange hair was tied back, and it swayed with the wind before spreading out like the manes of a lion.

    Her breasts were sorge that their outlines could be seen despite the dress that she was wearing.

    This was also what gave her gender away.

    She was extremely young and had most likely juste of age, yet there was something hidden beneath her brutality that made her captivating.

    (Who-who is she?¡ªWhich school does she belong to?)

    The schoolmaster sweated profusely.

    Then, he hurriedly drew his sword.

    Watching him do so, the woman named herself.

    ¡°I¡¯ll tell ya my name beforehand so that ya remember who defeated yater on. My name¡¯s [Shishigami Fuuka], a disciple of the School of One-sh.¡±

    Upon hearing that, the schoolmaster followed his instincts and jumped backwards.

    However, his son did the opposite and charged forward.

    ¡°Step down, you fool!¡±

    ¡°Against a swordswoman of this level, there¡¯s no need for father to personally¡ª¡±

    The schoolmaster¡¯s eyes shot open at what happened next.

    (W-what did she do!?)

    His most talented son had his arms sliced off.

    A few momentster, blood started spurting out, and his son began screaming in pain.

    ¡°My arms! My arms!!!¡±

    ¡°Yer in the way. Remove yerself.¡±

    Thereafter, Fuuka kicked the schoolmaster¡¯s son away and walked up to the schoolmaster.

    Her hands never touched the handles of her swords.

    She spread out her arms and said, ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting to meeting ya, Sword Saint. I was originally going to take yer head with me as a souvenir before challenging my Senior Brother.¡±

    The schoolmaster of the Arend Style Swordsmanship came to a certain understanding after observing this fierce swordswoman barge into their headquarters and sh down many of their swordsmen.

    (I¡¯m no match for her.)

    Although he had been elected as a Sword Saint for political reasons, he was still the head of the Empire¡¯s mainstream swordsmanship school.

    He urately gauged his opponent¡¯s strength and deduced that he could not win.

    Nevertheless, he smiled.

    ¡°What a lucky person I am. Here, I can use any means avable to defeat you.¡±

    ¡°Ang?¡±

    Fuuka stared suspiciously at the schoolmaster.

    ¡°Do it!¡± he shouted.

    Not only did armed soldiers rush in, armored vehicles appeared in the sky as well.

    Surrounded by soldiers with their weapons aimed towards her, Fuuka shrugged.

    With his sword directed towards Fuuka, the schoolmaster roared triumphantly.

    ¡°Did you seriously think that I would fight you? No matter how powerful the School of One-sh is, as long as you lose, its reputation throughout the universe will crumble, and the name of your school will disappear into oblivion.¡±

    Fuuka¡¯s eyes became devoid of any emotion.

    She was fed up and disappointed by the Sword Saint¡¯s behaviors.

    The schoolmaster continued tough without minding her.

    ¡°Victory is all that matters! We train our swords to beat our enemies! There¡¯s nothing wrong with devising a n to obtain victory!¡±

    Fuuka scratched her hair indifferently.

    ¡°Enough of the chit-chat. I just want the track record of defeating ya. Oh, and I¡¯ll have ya pay for insulting my Master. I¡¯ll beat ya senseless and have ya be nothing more than a promotional tool for the School of One-sh.¡±

    After hearing this deration, the schoolmaster issued an order at the people around him.

    ¡°Kill her! Kill her immediately!¡±

    The moment he issued this order, the soldiers were shed down and blown away along with their weapons.

    Then, the schoolmaster stopped moving.

    Fuuka, who had been more than 30 meters away from him, had appeared with her sword drawn, and she had embedded the tip of her katana into the schoolmaster¡¯s stomach.

    ¡°From now on, I¡¯ll slowly carve fear into yer body with techniques from the School of One-sh. Oh, and hand over yer title of Sword Saint. It sounds kinda cool.¡±

    She had no idea how much effort the schoolmaster had to put in before he was acknowledged as a Sword Saint.

    Being told to ¡°hand¡± it over simply because it sounded cool was an insult to everything he worked hard for.

    Ticked off, the schoolmaster opened his mouth to berate Fuuka.

    However, before he could say anything, he croaked in pain.

    ¡°Argh!!¡±

    ¡°To be honest, I was nning on quickly crushing this ce and moving on, but I can¡¯t let things slide that easily now that I¡¯ve heard ya guys throwing insults at Master.¡±

    Subjected to Fuuka¡¯s re, the schoolmaster trembled.

    (A young girl like her could overpower me this easily? Where did the School of One-sh originate from? Why has it only appeared now!? Why!?)

    An ancient school that has remained hidden until now has begun to move.

    The schoolmaster was under this misconception.

    ¡°S-SHOOOOT!!¡±

    Heeding the schoolmaster¡¯s order, more weapons began to appear.

    ¡°KILL HER! DON¡¯T MIND ME AND ATTACK! OTHERWISE, THE AREND STYLE SWORDSMANSHIP WILL¡ª!!¡±

    ¡ªOtherwise, the Arend Style Swordsmanship will cease to exist.

    Surrounded by hundreds of weapons, Fuuka readied her katanas and grinned.

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯ll devour ya¡¯ll.¡±

    On that day, the Arend Style Swordsmanship¡¯s headquarters was flipped upside down.

    It was as if a storm had passed.

    Fortunately, no one had been killed.

    While the bystanders praised it as a miracle, the parties involvedmented their misfortune.

    ¡ó

    -At a different-

    A swordswoman was sitting on the head of a mobile knight that had been cut in half.

    She was staring down at the Kurdan Style Swordsmanship¡¯s schoolmaster and his high-ranking disciples.

    The schoolmaster had been stripped naked, and the words ¡°Courtesy of the School of One-sh¡± had been written on his back.

    The swordswoman had engrained these words on the back of the schoolmaster using aser gun.

    ¡°Yup, I¡¯ve created a masterpiece. Handling a gun every now and then ain¡¯t so bad. It was quite refreshing.¡±

    The high-ranking disciples quaked in fear.

    It was the natural reaction.

    Bringing along her abnormally long katana, [Satuski Rinho], the swordswoman, had wrecked havoc on the where the headquarters of the Kurdan Style Swordsmanship was located.

    She even ended up defeating their schoolmaster.

    Since they were in their home ground, they brought out a mobile knight to defeat her, but the mobile knight got destroyed instead.

    With silky, blue hair and pinkish eyes, her innocentughs were like that of a tomboy¡¯s.

    Her body, on the other hand, was slim and slender, exuding a feminine charm.

    She was still very young and behaved like a child despite being a grown-up.

    Nheless, she was able topletely crush her opponents.

    Rinho dangled her legs, having lost interest in the schoolmaster who had fainted.

    ¡°¡ªNow, can you repeat what you said about the School of One-sh?¡±

    None of the high-ranking disciples replied, so Rinho decided to cut off an arm from one of them.

    ¡°Gyaaaa!¡±

    The high-ranking disciples were absolutely terrified of Rinho who remained seated.

    ¡°I won¡¯t be killing you guys. Instead, you guys will have to suffer a fate worse than death¡ªtoday, your lives as swordsmen wille to an end. This is what you get for acting arrogant despite how weak your sword techniques are. I¡¯ll never forgive anyone that insults the School of One-sh that Master and I belong to.¡±

    The high-ranking disciples scattered while shamelessly hollering in fear.

    Rinho chased after them.

    ¡°Ahahaha! A game of tag? Are you guys serious? That¡¯s like, sooooo funny!¡±

    When she caught up to them, she shed at their ankles and sent them rolling on the ground.

    Then, she dered the following under the horrified looks of the Kurdan Style Swordsmanship¡¯s disciples:

    ¡°Remember. The School of One-sh is the strongest school of swordsmanship in the world. What¡¯s more, the strongest being in existence is Master Yasushi, who is also known as the Sword God. If I hear trashes like you guys make nderousments about him¡ª¡±

    ¡°N-no! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!¡±

    The other disciples shuddered when they heard the miserable screams of a high-ranking disciple who had his wounds stepped-on by Rinho.

    The smile on Rinho¡¯s face disappeared without a trace.

    ¡°I¡¯m d that I could prepare a good souvenir before I set off to kill my Senior Brother.¡ªNow, let¡¯s broadcast this and have everyone in the Empire, nay, the world, admire this scene along with my Master. Hang in there for a minute.¡±

    Rinho took out a terminal from her pocket and started recording her surroundings.

    Then, she began a monologue in front of the camera.

    Levitating in the air, the terminal recorded the figure of Rinhomentating for a video that would be uploaded on a video sharing tform.

    ¡°Long time no see, everyone~ This is everyone¡¯s favorite swordswoman idol Rinho-chan reporting in! Today~ I raided the headquarters of the Kurdan Style Swordsmanship! Te he~!¡±

    She was pretending to be cute, but the sea of blood around her did not help her case.

    Everyone else aside from her was barely alive.

    She was the Empire¡¯s most bloodthirsty, self-proimed number one swordswoman idol.

    ¡°They were badmouthing my school, so I beat them up ck and blue.¡ªThey were rather weak, but I¡¯m treating this as a warm-up before I aim for my Senior Brother¡¯s life. Everyone¡¯s been telling me that Senior Brother is strong, so I¡¯m feeling excited already. Cheer me on everyone, and don¡¯t forget to watch the next episode¡ªI¡¯ll be showcasing Liam¡¯s head next time!¡±

    The two monsters that Yasushi had brought up were now aiming for Liam¡¯s life.

    At the same time, Yasushi became the two mainstream schools¡¯ most hated enemy.

 Chapter 98 - Vol. 6 Chapter 9 â€“ The Formula for Vi...

    <strong>Vol. 6 Chapter 9 ¨C The Form for Vi...</strong>

    ¡ªHuh? Something seems a bit...off?

    While watching Liam being cornered, the Guide had been checking up on various things.

    He cocked his head to one side.

    There was no doubt that Liam was suffering¡ªor rather, he was growing impatient.

    He could also feel Liam¡¯s anger being transmitted to him.

    Despite putting up a front and partying around, Liam was clearly upied by something.

    The expeditionary force had won, but the victory came with a steep price.

    All things considered, the Cleo Faction should have dipped in power; however, it appeared as though the Cleo Faction was more united than ever before.

    ¡°Am I being delusional? No, wait!¡±

    The Guide realized what the problem was.

    ¡°I see¡ªI didn¡¯t provide Liam with enough support!¡±

    Liam was certainly in a tight spot, but he was still someone that had forced the Guide to swallow a bitter pill on numerous asions.

    If Liam was such an easy opponent, the Guide wouldn¡¯t have had so much trouble dealing with him.

    Thus, the Guide attributed this sense of unease to ack of effort.

    ¡°More¡ªI just have to bless Liam even more! B-but am I doing things correctly? Why does it feel like I¡¯ve made a big mistake?¡±

    The Guide was worried.

    Suddenly, he was reminded of the two children that had been raised to kill Liam.

    Years ago, he had provided Eulisia with his support, only to be betrayed by herter on.

    He was anxious to see whether or not those two had lived up to his expectations.

    He wanted an answer to this question immediately, but he wasn¡¯t as powerful as he was before.

    Whenever he recovered a sizable portion of his strength, he spent it all on supporting Liam.

    For some reason, Liam would suffer every time he did so.

    If it meant he could bless Liam and make him miserable, the Guide was willing to put up with drinking muddy water in order to survive.

    As hecked the energy to gather information, the Guide had to pick up newspapers from the ground whenever he wished to search up information.

    Fortunately, he found what he was looking for on one of the featured articles.

    The post contained information about what he wanted to know.

    ¡°Kuuu! I¡¯ve been using up too much of my power trying to support Liam. Gathering information used to be so much easier.¡±

    Sounding a bit regretful, the Guide began to read the article.

    The electronic newspaper also featured the video that Rinho had taken.

    ¡°Senior Brother, are you watching~? I¡¯ming to get you~¡±

    In the background, the schoolmaster and the high-ranking disciples of the Kurdan Style Swordsmanship were lying on a puddle of blood.

    With a smile on her face, she dered that she would be taking Liam¡¯s life.

    The Guide¡¯s heart was warmed by the madness in her voice.

    ¡°Ah~ what a pure concentration of madness. If it¡¯s her, ying Liam would be¡ªHm? Wait. Where¡¯s the other one?¡±

    Flipping to a different page, he found out that the other one hadid-waste to the headquarters of the Arend Style Swordsmanship.

    ¡°Yasushi, you did a fine job raising the two trump cards. I believed in you.¡±

    The Guide expressed his gratitude towards Yasushi, who was no longer in the Empire.

    ¡°Once everything is over, I¡¯ll make sure that you¡¯re unhappy. After all, none of this would¡¯ve happened if you hadn¡¯t trained Liam to this extent.¡±

    The Guide threw away the electronic newspaper and left the scene with light steps.

    A translucent dog stared at the newspaper that had fallen to the ground and picked it up before heading towards a certain direction.

    ¡ó

    -At a party venue where the victory of the expeditionary force is scheduled to be celebrated-

    I¡¯m currently rxing in the waiting room and having a conversation with Elliot of the ve Company.

    ¡°So the theme of today¡¯s party has changed to thememoration of the expeditionary force. Am I understanding this correctly?¡±

    Tomemorate the overwhelming victory of the expeditionary¡ªwait, that¡¯s not right.

    Tomemorate my overwhelming victory, Elliot has brought with him a lot of gold and expensive wine.

    This is tant bribery, but I like it.

    ¡°We¡¯re just holding a small celebration amongst ourselves. ording to Tia, the United Kingdoms turned out to be formidable foe, and great damage was done to the Empire.¡±

    I say so with a grin.

    It seems like Elliot has understood the message I¡¯m trying to convey.

    ¡°For driving back such a powerful enemy, the right to seed the throne would likely be given to His Highness Cleo. On the other hand, the Crown Prince¡¯s standing would drop because he fled and shirked his responsibility before a crisis.¡±

    ¡°When all is said and done, I have won.¡ªSo, how is Calvin reacting to this news?¡±

    ¡°Those around him are moring to take action, but the person in question seems to be remaining calm. Either that, or he¡¯s trying to appear calm in front of the others.¡±

    I¡¯d rather have hime charging in recklessly.

    Calvin¡¯s inaction is really troublesome.

    That said, we¡¯ve managed to significantly weaken the Calvin Faction while strengthening our own.

    By lending money to the other lords, my influence has grown as well.

    Being the evil lord that I am, I was thinking of charging them with high interest, but I gave up on that thought since we¡¯re all fellow evil lords that belong to the Cleo Faction.

    Viins should cooperate with other viins in times of need.

    We should only fight when we have the leeway to do so.

    Until we drag Calvin down, I won¡¯t do anything against them.

    As Elliot and I are having our discussion, Wace enters the room looking haggard.

    ¡°This is bad, Liam!¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Are you done preparing for the party?¡±

    He¡¯s pale and appears hurried, so I listen to what he has to say.

    ¡°That¡¯s the thing! You suddenly changed this into a celebratory party for the expeditionary force, so we don¡¯t have the necessary supplies to prepare for it. We basically have to start again from scratch!¡±

    ¡°Say what!?¡±

    I had changed the content of the party in the spur of the moment without thinking about what that would entail.

    Wace holds his head in despair.

    ¡°No, we can¡¯t celebrate a victory without that thing!¡±

    To keep myself entertained, I put Wace in charge of the parties.

    This friend of mine has be much more reliable.

    Seeing him in distress, I turn towards Elliot.

    ¡°Elliot, quickly prepare whatever¡¯s missing.¡±

    ¡°Please leave it all to me. However, since we¡¯re in such a hurry, it might cost more than¡ª¡±

    ¡°FOOL! It¡¯s my party that we¡¯re talking about! Money isn¡¯t an issue!¡±

    Damn it! This haspletely caught me off guard.

    Anyway, to resolve this crisis, Wace and Elliot would have to cooperate closely with each other.

    Wace has a tired look on.

    ¡°We¡¯d have to rece most of what¡¯s already been prepared. What we have right now just won¡¯t do for a victory party.¡±

    I silently watch Wace as he worries over what to do about the party.

    Others might think that his talent is useless.

    However, I beg to differ.

    ¡ªHe has grown to be a fine man.

    From an evil lord¡¯s standpoint, it was the correct decision to pick him up.

    The talent that Wace has is indispensable for an evil lord¡ªafter all, it allows me to enjoy parties.

    I want to give my past self a thumbs-up for picking up Wace.

    ¡ó

    While this was going on, the core members of the Calvin Faction had gathered in the inner pce.

    They appeared to be agitated.

    ¡°Your Highness! Some of the aristocrats are nning to attack Count Banfield!

    ¡°¡ªThat¡¯s not good.¡±

    Calvin was truly in a bind this time.

    ¡°Which ones?¡±

    ¡°The rtives of those that perished in the war as members of the expeditionary force. Some of them had even lost their descendants. They aren¡¯t willing to let things go, and they want revenge, even if that means they have to withdraw from our faction.¡±

    The Calvin Faction was huge, and many of its aristocrats were incapable of looking far into the future.

    As such, managing them was a difficult task.

    This time around, many of them had lost their rtives.

    Although some of them were indeed seeking revenge out of grief, most of these people simply wished to regain their family¡¯s honor.

    Besides, quite a number of battleships had been lost through this war, and some of the aristocrats weren¡¯t ready to let things slide.

    (It will be in our best interest to stop them, but they¡¯ll direct their dissatisfaction towards us if we force them to back down.)

    They were angry at Liam at the moment, but if he tried to thwart their ns, Calvin would be their next target.

    I thought our victory was guaranteed!

    I thought everything would be fine!

    How are you going topensate us for the damages!?

    ¡ªThey had volunteered to participate on their own volition, yet they were now searching for a scapegoat to vent their anger on.

    It didn¡¯t make any sense at all, but human emotions had always been fickle.

    Many aristocrats were weak-willed andcked self-control.

    It was the result of growing up sheltered in a mansion.

    Attending preschool and joining the military helped, but only to an extent.

    The capable ones serving under Calvin had sour expressions.

    ¡°At such an important time...¡±

    ¡°Can¡¯t they tell what¡¯s good from bad?¡±

    ¡°If they cause trouble, it¡¯ll reflect badly on His Highness¡¯s reputation¡ª¡±

    Calvin sighed lightly.

    ¡°¡ªAllow them to leave if they wish to do so.¡±

    ¡°Are you certain, Your Highness? If they misbehave after leaving the faction, they¡¯ll indirectly lower Your Highness¡¯s reputation.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s take this as a chance to get rid of some baggage. Our faction has grown too much. We have some cleaning-up to do before we can confront Liam in a fight.¡±

    The aristocrats nodded and excused themselves from the room.

    After confirming that everyone has left, Calvin snapped his finger.

    A will-o¡¯-the-wisp appeared in the air.

    Then, the fire swelled up, transformed into the shape of a human, and knelt down before Calvin.

    This figure was dressed up like a ninja and adorned with essories.

    These essories suggested that he was of a higher rankpared to the ones that Kukuri fought.

    ¡°¡ªFor what reason have I been called?¡±

    ¡°Some idiots are about tounch an attack on Liam-kun. Find a chance and try to shave off some of Liam-kun¡¯s ck Ops. Did you find any useful information about them?¡±

    The ninja threw a shuriken at the wall, and the shuriken burst into mes, turning into a scroll which spread itself before them.

    Information about Kukuri and his subordinates were recorded there.

    ¡°ording our n¡¯s ancient records, they¡¯re most likely members of the Shadow n which should have been destroyed 2,000 years ago.¡±

    ¡°The Shadow n?¡±

    ¡°The Shadow n was one of the organizations that served the Emperor some 2,000 years ago. They were called the Shadow n because no one knew their true origins.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t 2,000 years ago the era when cks Ops were prevalent? Did the Banfield Family shield them until now?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°No?¡±

    The Chief Ninja threw another shuriken, and it projected the figure of a lone member of the Shadow n.

    It was Kukuri.

    ¡°He was the most feared man at the time, and he answered only to the Emperor. Unfortunately, he was turned into a stone statue by his master, and rumors say that the statue was destroyed.¡±

    ¡°¡ªAnd yet you¡¯re implying that he managed to survive? Couldn¡¯t someone else have inherited his techniques afterwards?¡±

    ¡°That is unlikely.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°The other organizations joined hands to eradicate the Shadow n. My ancestors took part in it as well. ¡®Don¡¯t spare anyone¡¯¡ªthose were the Emperor¡¯s words.¡±

    After turning Kukuri and his subordinate into stone statues, the Emperor of that era had ordered for theplete eradication of the n.

    It was unlikely for anyone to have survived.

    Even if someone did survive, he or she would not have been able to inherit Kukuri¡¯s skills.

    Nurturing a ck Ops such as the one that Kukuri led required a stupendous amount of financial resources.

    ¡°Your Highness¡ªthose men should know the ins and outs of the inner pce.¡±

    ¡°How annoying. Things have changed a lot since 2,000 years ago, but if there¡¯s a hidden passage that only they know of, it would be a hassle to deal with.¡±

    The pce had undergone reconstruction numerous times, and old ruins were discovered ever once in a while.

    With the passage of time, many secret locations had been forgotten.

    ¡°Based on what we know, it¡¯s safe to assume that their skills have not deteriorated after being revived. We¡¯re lucky that they¡¯re so few in number.¡±

    Each of them was extremely skilled, but there were only a few of them.

    (Overall, we still have the upper hand, so there¡¯s no need for us to be too desperate. Having said that¡ª)

    Knowing that a legendary ck Ops had revived, Calvin felt uneasy.

    ¡°¡ªCan you erase them?¡±

    With Calvin¡¯s words, the Chief Ninja turned into mes and scattered.

    ¡°As you will.¡±

    ¡ó

    -Back at Liam¡¯s party venue-

    Ruffians hired by the hostile aristocrats were hiding among the furnishings installed at the venue.

    ¡°Do aristocrats party every day?¡±

    ¡°Over the course of one night, they squander enough money for ordinary folks to live their entire livesfortably.¡±

    ¡°Let them enjoy it while itsts. We¡¯ll be burying them here anyway.¡±

    These men had volunteered for the job to make a quick fortune out of it, and they were holding their breaths to remain hidden.

    They had sneaked in with the furnishings that had been prepared for the party.

    Under normal circumstances, this would¡¯ve been impossible.

    However, they had received the support of many aristocrats along the way.

    Their preparation was perfect.

    The one downside was that they couldn¡¯t tell what was going on outside.

    They had installed cameras on the furnishings, but they couldn¡¯t see what was happening outside because the furnishings were covered by a piece of cloth.

    The narrow space where the ruffians were hiding asionally shook.

    ¡°They¡¯ve been moving us around from a while ago.¡±

    ¡°Have we been discovered?¡±

    ¡°If they did, we would¡¯ve been instantly shot to death. There must have been a change of ns.¡±

    These ruffians weren¡¯t alone.

    A lot of people had sneaked into the party venue.

    Even if they failed in assassinating Liam, they would be able to cause some massive damage.

    ¡ªOr at least that was what they thought.

    A punishment worse than death awaited those that failed.

    They nned on self-detonating in the event that they were caught.

    By doing so, they would cause some degree of damage no matter what.

    The shaking subsided, and the ruffians waited for the party to begin.

    However, no one came over to remove the piece of cloth even after a long time.

    ¡°¡ªDid they remove the furnishings from the venue?¡±

    ¡°Sh*t! Hey, we¡¯re heading out. The party venue must be close!¡±

    ¡°Contact the others!¡±

    The ruffians jumped out from where they were hiding.

    They had been moved to a warehouse.

    The others that had sneaked in with them came out of their hiding spots looking stunned.

    ¡°H-huh?¡±

    ¡°What the heck is happening?¡±

    ¡°W-we should quickly raid the venue!¡±

    The men left the warehouse, only to realize that they were quite a distance away from where the venue was.

    They rushed towards the location of the party venue in a hurry.

    Unfortunately, they wereter discovered and ughtered by Liam¡¯s knights that were standing guard.

 Chapter 99 - Vol. 6 Chapter 10 - Assassination

    <strong>Vol. 6 Chapter 10 ¨C Assassination</strong>

    ¡°¡ªWere they idiots?¡±

    There was a disturbance near the party venuest night.

    Ruffians wielding weapons were discovered running amok, and my knights tried to apprehend them.

    As the ruffians were armed, the knights tried to gun them down.

    Faced with the onught, the ruffians detonated the bombs that they were carrying.

    Suicide bombing is what I¡¯ve been told, but it seems like it might have been an unnned explosion.

    ¡ªAnyway, everything¡¯s still under investigation.

    Taking into ount the route that they were taking, they were probably aiming for us.

    However, I¡¯m disturbed by how crude and unpolished their ns were.

    Charging in despite the security that was present.

    As I thought, were they idiots?

    Kukuri appears from my shadow.

    ¡°Lord Liam, there is something that I wish to report.¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s about the aforementioned assants.¡±

    ¡°Did you find something out?¡±

    ¡°The assants were probably nning on secretly entering the party venue. In addition to the assants, many things at the venue were found to have been tampered with. We were fortunate that everything that would¡¯ve caused a problem was removed ahead of time. This leads me to believe that the assants were just a distraction.¡±

    In other words, various things had been set up in the party venue.

    ¡°I was nning on advising Lord Liam to put the party on hold, but Wace-dono removed all the gimmicks before I could do so.¡±

    ¡°¡ªThis feels ominous. Wace being so helpful is throwing me off.¡±

    Thanks to what he did, nothing happened during the party, and I¡¯m grateful for that.

    At the same time, however, it doesn¡¯t feel right.

    I never expected Wace to be this useful.

    Apetent Wace isn¡¯t Wace.

    ¡°Well, fine. And?¡±

    ¡°Two of my subordinates were killed. Skilled hands are onto us.¡±

    His subordinates had been killed, yet Kukuri doesn¡¯t sound angry about it.

    He reports the deaths of his subordinates as though we¡¯re having a casual conversation.

    ¡°That so. How did they die?¡±

    ¡°I had them trace back the footsteps of the assants. The enemy ck Ops is on the move.¡±

    Casualties arose from the excellent team under Kukuri.

    Their numbers are small to begin with, and I sometimes question the way they treat themselves.

    ¡ªThey¡¯re among the few talented subordinates that I have, so it¡¯s too wasteful to treat them as disposables.

    ¡°¡ªCan you guys handle this by yourselves? Tell me if there¡¯s anything that you need help with.¡±

    ¡°That would be akin to depriving us of our jobs. Nevertheless¡ªwe¡¯d appreciate it if we could have the dead bodies of the fallen ck Ops members. After all, their bodies contain a lot of confidential information.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re as devoted to your work as always. Alright, have it your way.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, they¡¯ve dispatched quite a lot of veterans this time. Please be careful for a while.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no need for concern. I¡¯m a man blessed by good fortune. ¡ªBesides. I¡¯ll cut down anyone that is hostile towards me. I¡¯ve always wanted to have a match against a ck Ops member. If you encounter anyone interesting, hand that person to me.¡±

    ¡°That would be unreasonable. Please remember that it is our responsibility to keep enemies out of Lord Liam¡¯s way.¡±

    He¡¯s so devoted to his work.

    This is what I want! This!

    Tia and Marie should learn from Kukuri.

    ¡°That¡¯s a shame.¡ªThen I¡¯ll leave it up to you guys to deal with what¡¯s happening in the dark. Today¡¯s party is a big one, so enemies should arrive in flocks.¡±

    ¡°Acknowledged.¡±

    Kukuri sinks back into my shadow and disappears.

    ¡ó

    Ciel was exhausted from all the parties that she had been attending ever day.

    Her footsteps were heavy as she walked down the hotel¡¯s corridor.

    It felt like she had attended all the parties she could ever attend in her lifetime.

    It wasn¡¯t just the numbers either.

    The parties came in all shapes and forms.

    Although Liam¡¯s hope for a bucket party was not realized, Ciel¡¯s days flowed by at a dizzying pace attending a great assortment of different parties.

    ¡°I-I won¡¯t lose to this. I have to quickly reveal Liam¡¯s true nature and wake brother up from his reverie.¡±

    Unfortunately, the reality was, she was barely keeping up with everything that was going on around her.

    ¡°This time, Liam has gone too far. He sent father and brother to the frontlines while he remained in the Capital to y around. What¡¯s worse, father seems to be treating it as a matter of course!¡±

    Ciel didn¡¯t know that Liam was protecting the family members of the expeditionary force and that he was providing logistical support from the back.

    She had not even attended preschool yet, so she was ignorant about these matters.

    From her perspective, it was as though Liam had fled from the frontlines.

    ¡°¡ªSomeday, I¡¯ll peel off that mask of his.¡±

    Despite how tired she was, Ciel¡¯s hatred towards Liam did not wane.

    Suddenly, it felt like she had seen an animal from the corner of her eye.

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    She also heard footsteps.

    ¡°W-who was it? Who could have brought animals onto this floor? Right, it must be Liam!¡±

    Liam lived on this floor, and it was impossible for animals to waltz in given the tight security of this ce.

    Only Liam had the authority to bring one in.

    Ciel chased after the animal, but she soon reached a dead end.

    ¡°I lost sight of her. I should report this to Lady Rosetta.¡±

    She found something on the floor just as she was about toin about having more work to do.

    It was an electric newspaper.

    ¡°Why is there such a cheap electric newspaper lying around?¡ªWait, isn¡¯t this...¡±

    Ciel hurriedly delivered the electric newspaper to Rosetta.

    ¡ó

    ¡°Darling! This is bad!¡±

    Rosetta noisily enters my room.

    I have been training Ellen, who is currently blindfolded and bncing herself on top of a ball.

    Her breathing pattern is uneven, and she could lose her bnce at any time.

    The ball that Ellen is standing on is covered in sweat, and Ellen¡¯s fatigue is at its peak.

    That said, I have no intention of having her stop.

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    Rosetta¡¯s holding a disposable electronic newspaper on her hand.

    That¡¯s quite an interesting thing that she has brought.

    Since I¡¯m so rich, I normally don¡¯t use them.

    Rosetta catches her breath and ys a clip that is on the newspaper.

    ¡°W-watch this!¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s it ab¡ªW-what the heck!?¡±

    I snatch the newspaper from Rosetta¡¯s hand and read its content.

    I tremble angrily.

    It¡¯s written that a swordswoman had raided the Arend Style Swordsmanship¡¯s headquarters.

    I¡¯m not surprised about the headquarters being attacked.

    It¡¯s the identity of the swordswoman that surprises me.

    ¡°Someone¡¯s impersonating as a School of One-sh disciple!?¡±

    Anger rises up within me.

    The intruder dered herself a disciple of the School of One-sh before defeating the schoolmaster, who¡¯s apparently a Sword Saint.

    I don¡¯t give a damn about the Sword Saint.

    It¡¯s the deration that the intruder has made about being a part of the School of One-sh that¡¯s triggering me.

    When there¡¯s a conflict between different schools, the world of swordsmanship will shake¡ªI couldn¡¯t care less about such a trivial thing.

    The one that¡¯s irking me is the intruder who¡¯s iming to be a member of the School of One-sh.

    ¡°At longst, an imposter has appeared.¡±

    Since she was capable of defeating a Sword Saint, she must be quite well-trained.

    I take a nce at my favorite katana.

    Of all the katanas I own, it¡¯s my absolute favorite.

    It was the spoils of war from fighting against Goaz¡¯s pirate fleet.

    I¡¯ve wielded a great number of katanas, but I haven¡¯t found a single one that can best it.

    ¡°No mercy is to be shown to an imposter of the School of One-sh. I¡¯ll hack her down.¡±

    Master¡¯s face materializes in my mind.

    Master once told me that he¡¯s on the lookout for more potential disciples, so technically, it wouldn¡¯t be too strange for there to be others like myself.

    There¡¯s a chance that the School of One-sh has weed new members.

    ¡°¡ªSo I have to double-check just in case?¡±

    For the time being, I¡¯ll bring my favorite katana with me.

    Realizing that Ellen is about to fall, I go around her and catch her from the back.

    ¡°S-sorry, Master.¡±

    ¡°Ellen, are you still trying to rely on your five senses? You have good eyesight, so you tend to rely on your vision a tad too much. Try polishing your other senses.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    Rosetta makes aplicated expression as she watches Ellen nod eagerly.

    ¡°I¡¯ve had this thought for a long time, but isn¡¯t the School of One-sh a bit too tough on its disciples? I¡¯m impressed that it was able to be passed down to this day.¡±

    My encounter with the School of One-sh was no different from a miracle.

    I wonder what Master is up to these days.

    ¡ó

    Around that time, Yasushi was being chased around by a woman.

    ¡°HOW DARE YOU SCAM ME INTO THIS MARRIAGE!!¡±

    A ck-haired beauty with sses on was chasing after him.

    She would¡¯ve given off the air of an intelligent woman if not for furious rampage.

    There wasn¡¯t a shadow ofposure to be detected.

    The beautiful woman chased after Yasushi like a devil.

    Yasushi was desperately running away from her, the reason being the knife on the woman¡¯s hand.

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t nning on scamming you!!¡±

    ¡°STOP RIGHT THERE!!¡±

    The woman somewhat resembled Nias.

    After aimlessly wandering in space, Yasushi had arrived at a certain where he became acquainted with this woman.

    Without knowing better, he decided to court her, and to his utter joy, she epted his advances.

    At first, Yasushi was delighted as she was just the type of woman that he fancied; however, she was more controlling than he anticipated.

    Having run out of money, he had been relying on his woman andzing around.

    That was when she began nagging Yasushi to ¡°get a job¡± and ¡°marry¡± her.

    Even worse, there was a baby on the woman¡¯s back.

    The baby was sleepingfortably despite themotion.

    ¡ªHe had been continuing his rtionship with the woman, and this ultimately resulted in a baby.

    He hadn¡¯t been able to find the right opportunity to cut off their rtionship, so he was determined to make a run for it today.

    Unfortunately, he was caught.

    ¡°YOU¡¯RE NOT GETTING OFF THE HOOK THIS TIME!¡±

    ¡°Mercy!!¡±

    Indeed.

    The woman was hunting down Yasushi for attempting to abandon his family and his responsibilities.

    That was when Yasushi slipped.

    ¡°Ah.¡±

    He slipped like a fool, giving the beautiful woman ample time to overtake him.

    ¡°BEGONE, ENEMY OF WOMEN!!¡±

    ¡°NOOOOO!¡±

    ¡ªThe woman swung her knife at Yasushi.

    ¡ó

    -Inside the party venue¡¯s waiting room-

    Today, once more, a fun party awaits me.

    Am I tired of it?

    Absolutely not.

    Even if I am, as an evil lord, I must continue to host parties.

    I feel great whenever I imagine myself squeezing out the tax from my citizens.

    ¡ªI¡¯m slightly nervous today.

    ¡°You¡¯re as beautiful as always, Amagi.¡±

    Amagi will be attending today¡¯s party with her dress on.

    Facing Amagi who isn¡¯t in her maid outfit, my heart thumps uncontrobly.

    ¡°Master, didn¡¯t you promise me that I won¡¯t have to attend parties?¡±

    ¡°Worry not. Today¡¯s party will be held in the dark, so no one will know that it¡¯s you. Iya~ asking Wace was the right decision. I never thought about having the party in the darkness. Since nobody would recognize you in the dark, you can join the party together with me.¡±

    ¡°What happened to our promise?¡±

    ¡°I-it¡¯s just once. Surely, there¡¯s no harm in attending once?¡±

    ¡°Goodness¡ªOnly once, okay?¡±

    ¡°Of course!¡±

    She always backs off, so I¡¯m d that I can take Amagi with me to this party.

    I was so excitedst night that I had trouble sleeping.

    ¡°Why does Master wish for me to attend the party?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s because I want to have fun with you.¡±

    I can say this kind of thing to Amagi without being embarrassed about it.

    Why?

    ¡ªBecause ites from my heart.

    I don¡¯t like humans because they always end up betraying me.

    The same goes for Rosetta.

    I thought she was a woman of steel, but she turned out to be an easy woman after I acquired her¡ªTo me, this was a form of betrayal.

    On the other hand, I¡¯m having a lot of fun teasing Ciel these days.

    Wace enters the waiting room.

    ¡°Liam, we¡¯re about to start.¡±

    ¡°Got it. Now then, Amagi.¡±

    Amagi hesitantly grabs the hand that I offer.

    With our hands held together, we enter the party venue¡ªand my expression turns dark immediately.

    Why does it have to be today of all days?

    Can¡¯t they read between the lines?

    ¡°¡ªIs it Calvin? He hase at a terrible time.¡±

    Amagi doesn¡¯t seem to understand what¡¯s happening.

    ¡°Is something wrong, Master?¡±

    Wace is in the dark as well.

    ¡°Liam, what¡¯s wrong?¡±

    I let go of Amagi¡¯s hand and summon Kukuri.

    ¡°Kukuri.¡±

    Kukuri appears with my katana, and I promptly receive it.

    ¡°Lord Liam, our enemies are here. Communication with the outside has been blocked, so we can¡¯t call for reinforcements.¡±

    ¡°Understood. Go take care of the enemies outside.¡±

    Kukuri sinks back into the shadow and disappears.

    Wace falls into a panic.

    ¡°Hold on for a second, Liam. The security here is impable! We¡¯ve checked the identities of everyone that has entered. No one could¡¯ve disguised themselves to secretly enter the party venue.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not it. The enemies are outside.¡±

    ¡ó

    As Kukuri exited the venue, his subordinates revealed themselves.

    In total, they numbered less than a hundred.

    In contrast, their opponents numbered over one thousand strong, and these hostile ck Ops members were surrounding the party venue.

    Kukuri cackled.

    He was fearless before his enemies.

    ¡°I¡¯m impressed by how many of you are here. There seems to be some ns and organizations I¡¯ve never heard of before, but as expected, a lot of you have survived the test of time. We¡¯re especially well-acquainted with the Fire n.¡±

    The ninjas of the ¡°Fire n¡± appeared one after another after being mentioned by Kukuri.

    Kukuri¡¯s gazended on one of them.

    ¡°Oya, I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d meet someone like you in this era. Compared to when our n was at its peak, I thought every organization had grown weaker over time¡ªbut you seem to be pretty skilled.¡±

    The Chief Ninja pulled out his katana.

    ¡°¡ªYour era has long passed. ept your death obediently.¡±

    Kukuri¡¯s subordinates also readied their weapons.

    Only Kukuri remained bare-handed as he spread out his arms.

    ¡°That¡¯s a shame, but I refuse!¡±

    Their enemies rushed in for the kill.

    Besides the Fire n, there was also the wannabe Shadow n that was formed based off of the ck Ops under Kukuri.

    (They sniffed out our existence and decided to crush us. Excellent!)

    With his long arms, he slew an enemy that was approaching him and sprinted towards where the head of the ninjas was.

    His subordinates were fighting against the ck Ops of the current generation, and both sides were suffering immense casualties.

    Kukuri swung his hands down when he was sufficiently close to the Chief Ninja.

    However, his attack was deflected by his opponent¡¯s sword.

    ¡°It¡¯s over for you guys. The aristocrats no longer care about putting up an appearance. You¡¯ve pushed your luck too far.¡±

    Kukuri distanced himself from the Chief Ninja upon hearing those words.

    A battleship was floating above the Capital.

    Entering the Capital with a battleship was strictly prohibited, so its presence at the venue was an unexpected one.

    Their enemies¡¯ master-n was to blow away Liam along with everyone else around him using the weapons on the battleship.

    Kukuri narrowed his eyes.

    ¡°This has be problematic.¡±

    Kukuri and his subordinates would have no trouble escaping, but a lot of the people that they had to protect were still inside the building.

    The aristocrats had finally grown tired of waiting and hade to kill Liam by force.

    Just as Kukuri was thinking of returning to his master¡¯s side, the Chief Ninja attacked.

    Kukuri blocked the iing de with his arm, but the mes on the katana inflicted him with some burns.

    It was clear that the Chief Ninja was trying to prevent Kukuri from contacting Liam.

    ¡°You¡¯ll all be buried here with us!¡±

    ¡°So you intend to drag us down with you, eh?¡±

    Kukuri and his subordinates had prevented all sorts of assassination attempts.

    The only exception to this had been the recent attack from the ruffians.

    In order to kill them, their enemies hade with the resolve to die.

    ¡ªKukuri chuckled.

    ¡°Each and every one of you is a fool.¡±

    ¡°!?¡±

    A machine shaped like an insect¡¯s leg flew out from Kukuri¡¯s body and sliced off one of the ninja¡¯s arms.

    The arm that was sliced off disappeared into mes.

    Then, mes enveloped the ninja¡¯s shoulder, and a new arm was generated.

    Kukuri stared enviously as this happened.

    ¡°After discarding your mortal body, you seem to have obtained a convenient vessel. Unfortunately, it¡¯s not something that our group can imitate.¡±

    The Chief Ninja raised his katana and red hatefully at Kukuri and his subordinates.

    ¡°You guys were too strong and too dangerous. Fearing your strengths, the Emperor of that era turned you guys into stones.¡±

    Kukuri tilted his head.

    The angle at which his neck was bent exceeded ny degrees, making it seem like it was about to break.

    ¡°Fearing our strengths? What a load of nonsense. You don¡¯t know anything. He would¡¯ve erased us if he was afraid. That repulsive ¡®thing¡¯ wasughing at us after turning us into stones.¡±

    ¡°How dare you speak ill of His Majesty the Emperor!?¡±

    Despite being a ck Ops, the Chief Ninja¡¯s loyalty to the country was genuine.

    However, unlike him, Kukuri was someone that had lived in that era.

    He knew what the Emperor of that period was like.

    ¡°He was a piece of trash. He might have been the Emperor, but hecked dignity and self-respect as a human being. He was a scum that found pleasure in other people¡¯s suffering.¡±

    ¡°That attitude of yours is enough to exin why you and your men were turned into stones and cast aside.¡±

    ¡°You might be right. Oh, but we¡¯re grateful for one thing. Thanks to that piece of trash, us shadows were able to meet the light that deserves our loyalty.¡±

    Someone came out of the building just as Kukuri finished his sentence.

    It was Liam, and he had his katana with him.

    Through eye-signals, the Chief Ninja dispatched some of his subordinates.

    ¡°Na?ve. You wish to escape by yourself? As if a human can outrun a battleship.¡±

    The ninjas that were closing in on Liam were blocked by Kukuri¡¯s subordinates.

    Without wasting any words, Kukuri¡¯s subordinates blew themselves up, killing off the ninjas in the process.

    Kukuri didn¡¯t bat an eyelid.

    He knew that Liam would¡¯ve been fine without their support, but this was the purpose of their existence.

    This was their line of work.

    Dying was included in their job description.

    That was why Kukuri wasn¡¯t bothered by his subordinates¡¯ deaths.

    ¡°Is that so? Let¡¯s see about that.¡±

    The battle between Kukuri and the Chief Ninja started once more.

 Chapter 100 - Volume 6 Chapter 11. The Battleship, Decapitated

    I¡¯vee out after sensing that something is off, only to be greeted by a battleship floating in the air.

    ¡°Flying a battleship above the capital is a bit too much. Calvin, an assassination should be done in a more clever way.¡±

    Looking around, I see that Kukuri and his subordinates are in the middle of a fight.

    The atmosphere in the party venue is at an all time low, and the guests are all terrified.

    Realizing that I¡¯ve taken a step outside, some enemy forces rush towards where I am.

    Kukuri¡¯s subordinates stop them in their tracks by blowing themselves away along with their enemies.

    They have sacrificed their lives for my sake.

    There¡¯s nothing strange about this.

    After all, this is part of their job.

    Nevertheless¡ª

    ¡°The dead do not betray. Rest assured, for I have confirmed that your loyalties were genuine.¡±

    ¡ªIt is only after their deaths that people be worthy of evaluation.

    The members of my ck Ops have fulfilled their duties by sacrificing themselves.

    As a token of my appreciation, I shall end this quickly.

    Rosetta, who has been tailing me,es out with Amagi following close behind her.

    Amagi is grabbing Rosetta¡¯s arm and convincing her to return to the venue.

    ¡°Let go, Amagi! Darling¡¯s in¡ª!¡±

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, you will only get in the way of Master. Please head back in and wait patiently.¡±

    What a relief.

    Things would¡¯ve be very troublesome had they stayed.

    ¡°Both of you should hurry back in.¡±

    The battleship¡¯s anti-aircraft weapons rain down attacks on us.

    I block the iingsers with my katana, but as a result, a cloud of dust rises up in the air.

    Not good! Amagi¡¯s dress will be ruined!

    ¡ªDespite my initial horror, the high-performance dress that I have prepared for Amagi keeps her spotless.

    ¡°That designer¡¯s not bad. I¡¯ll have him work as my exclusive designer from now on.¡±

    I grasp my katana, lower my posture, and adjust my breathing.

    Just as I¡¯m confirming whether or not Amagi and Rosetta have returned back in, the battleship unleashes another wave of attacks.

    Since we¡¯re at the Capital, it seems like they¡¯re reluctant to use the main cannon.

    However, that will be what spells their doom.

    If they wanted to kill me, they should¡¯ve sted me with the main cannon from the get-go.

    Well¡ªeven if they did, I would¡¯ve had a countermeasure.

    As an evil lord, I must be cautious at all times.

    A real viin never lowers his guard.

    I came out of the building because I was assured of my victory.

    I¡¯ll personally handle the enemies.

    ¡°My skills are far inferior to that of master¡¯s¡ªthat said, you guys aren¡¯t my match.¡±

    This sh will contain my maximum power.

    I¡¯ll be pushing myself to my limits.

    ¡°One-sh.¡±

    I sh towards the huge object floating in the sky.

    My favorite katana, which I have been carrying around, amplifies the power behind my sh.

    It feels a lot more powerful than useful.

    The battleship in the air bes silent.

    I free myself from the sword stance and carry the katana over my shoulder.

    ¡°The real problem is whates after this.¡±

    As it crumbles down, a huge cut is gradually made at the center of the battleship.

    The battleship which has been floating in the air is about to crash down into the Capital, scattering debris in all directions.

    We can expect a tremendous amount of damage.

    I¡¯ll be using self-defense as an excuse.

    The ones that attacked me are at fault.

    ¡°What¡¯s up with the Capital¡¯s security?¡±

    For a split second, I see the figure of an animal at the edge of my field of vision.

    I turn my head to look, but there¡¯s nothing there.

    ¡°Am I seeing things? Whatever. Now then, what should I do?¡±

    The battleship would have killed us if I had not cut it down.

    Since a shield can be deployed around the building, our safety is pretty much guaranteed.

    The problem is with the surrounding area.

    Things could get ugly really fast if the battleship crashes down.

    I don¡¯t want to be held responsible for this, so I want to do something about it.

    ¡ªPrecisely at that moment, a mobile knight descends from the sky.

    It appears to have jumped down from my fleet which had been on standby near the Capital.

    My beloved mobile knight doesn¡¯t seem to be affected by the signal issue, probably because of the Machine Heart.

    Sensing my crisis, it has literally flown here by itself.

    ¡°What a good child you are, Avid.¡±

    Avid makes anding before me.

    Despite hisrge body which is 24 meters long, he doesn¡¯t cause any tremors while doing so.

    The interster Empire¡¯s technology is amazing.

    Avid has extended one of its hands towards me, so I use it as a foothold to jump into the cockpit.

    I sit down inside the cockpit and grab the control stick.

    ¡°Avid, I¡¯ll be troubled if that thing drops to the ground. ¡ªShow me what you can do.¡±

    Avid issues a response with its engine and takes off into the sky.

    Then, it approaches the battleship which has been copsing and begins pushing it up from below.

    ¡°That¡¯s it. Push the ship back into space!¡±

    With Avid outputting more and more power, the battleship gradually stops falling and eventually starts rising.

    It¡¯s amazing that such a small aircraft is capable of pushing back the battleship.

    ¡°Ahahaha! This is the power that I wield!¡±

    Lifeboats are being prepared on the battleship.

    As we¡¯re in contact with the ship, the enemies try tomunicate with us.

    ¡°P-please help! At this rate, we¡¯ll¡ª¡±

    What nonsense are they spouting after trying to kill me?

    To think they¡¯d request for my help.

    I take off my hands from the control stick and fold them behind my head.

    Then, I proceed to cross my legs.

    Avid seems to be on autopilot, executing whatever is in my mind.

    ¡°Yup. At this rate, you guys will definitely die.¡±

    ¡°P-please! We were just following orders¡ª¡±

    ¡°You flew a battleship over the Capital and opened fire. Even if you were to survive this ordeal, your life would be over. Those that flee would be met with terrible punishments.¡±

    ¡°W-we were following¡ª¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t care. Just die.¡±

    Avid picks up more speed, drawing us near the outermost barrier of the Capital which is made of liquid metal.

    Naturally, as the barrier is in its liquid state, the battleship passes through it without any resistance.

    There¡¯s nothing but the outer space beyond the barrier.

    ¡°S-stoooooooooop!¡±

    Avid pushes the battleship out into space, silencing the enemies¡¯ screams.

    Then, Avid pulls out its katana and holds it on its right hand.

    ¡°You want to hack them into pieces?¡±

    Avid¡¯s engine groans as if to reply.

    I grab onto the control stick once more.

    I like the way that Avid is behaving after acquiring the Machine Heart.

    I don¡¯t mind ying along with one of its whims.

    ¡°Very well. Show me how well you can replicate my movements!¡±

    The battleship gets decapitated when I perform One-sh using Avid.

    I can hear disturbing noisesing from various parts of Avid¡¯s body.

    From that one move, Avid¡¯s damage indicator has jumped from green to orange.

    Thankfully, as Avid has the Machine Heart, it can self-repair its damaged parts.

    ¡°Not bad. With this, I can go wild.¡±

    Avid issues a reply and tells me that it hadn¡¯t rampaged enough.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be impatient. There are more enemies in this vast universe than you could ever mow down. I¡¯ll apany you until you get tired of it.¡±

    Avid calms down after hearing that.

    The battleship in front of us has been reduced to shambles.

    A direct blow to its engine causes the battleship to explode.

    Countless pieces of debris shoot out into space.

    ¡°A bunch of idiots¡ªOh, but then again...¡±

    I take out the alchemy box which had been hidden inside Avid.

    Extending its arms outward, Avid collects all the garbage in space by manipting gravity.

    Afterwards, Avidpresses it and turns it into gold using the alchemy box.

    The garbage transforms into particles which then turn into gold.

    ¡°It¡¯s working without any problem.¡±

    Yup, I¡¯ll have Avid safeguard it from now on.

    Only certain individuals are allowed to board Avid, and now that Avid has absorbed the Machine Heart, it has truly be my favorite horse.

    ¡ªNo, is it better to call it a partner? After all, Avid isn¡¯t a horse.

    On that note, with the battleship taken care of, I guess it¡¯s about time that I return.

    Calvin¡ªyou have finally shown me an opening.

    Until today, Calvin had remained silent, yet he has finally made his move.

    This is a huge opportunity for me.

    He even dispatched a battleship to the Capital, which can be considered a big blunder on his part.

    ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to how far I can corner you.¡±

    ¡ó

    The Guide was dumbfounded after watching everything unfold.

    ¡°¡ªEh?¡±

    His brain could not process what had happened.

    It refused to do so.

    Liam had single-handedly felled a battleship with his katana.

    ¡°H-how?¡±

    Although the attack had not been from the main cannon, theser beams were from the ship¡¯s anti-aircraft weapons.

    It was conceivable to block them with a sword.

    What¡¯s more, Liam had managed to strike down the aircraft.

    The notion that a single man would be powerless before a battleship no longer stood.

    ¡°Has Liam grown to be an untouchable monster?¡±

    The Guide fell to his knees.

    Could he beat Liam in his current state?

    He was so weak at the moment that the answer was clearly against his favor.

    ¡°What went wrong!? I demand an answer!¡±

    It was then that Avid returned.

    Amagi and the others hade out from the venue to wee Liam.

    Instead of greeting Rosetta, who had rushed out in a worry, Liam first greeted Amagi.

    The Guide witnessed this and smiled.

    ¡°I can no longer defeat you. That said, I can still deliver a wound to your heart. I don¡¯t care if I disappear from this world. I will gift him a wound that would never heal.¡±

    He no longer wished to defeat Liam.

    His new goal was to drag Liam into the pits of despair.

    ¡ó

    The party venue was in a state of utter chaos.

    This was unavoidable.

    After all, the Capital had been besieged by a battleship.

    Amagi had been so busy helping out around the venue that she hadn¡¯t had the time to change clothes.

    She was walking down a corridor when, all of a sudden, signs of human activity ceased.

    Just a few moments ago, she had seen people pass by, but strangely enough, no one was around her anymore.

    ¡°¡ªIs something bad happening?¡±

    Amagi tried returning to where Liam was in a hurry, but a mysterious existence materialized before her.

    ¡°Greetings, youngdy.¡±

    It was a man in a tailcoat.

    Tall and slender, the man had on a top hat that hid his eyes.

    However, Amagi¡¯s eyes failed to capture the man¡¯s appearance.

    All she could tell was that he was someone, or something, that she could not recognize.

    ¡°Who are you?¡±

    Something shaped like a human.

    The images reflected in Amagi¡¯s eyes were extremely noisy and unfocused.

    She did not have any data about this man.

    rm bells were ringing inside her head, warning her that the existence in front of her was dangerous.

    ¡°I¡¯m not obligated to answer a robot. Your death will make Liam suffer. That is all I need to know.¡±

    The Guide took out a gun from his pocket.

    ¡°Now that I¡¯m riddled with all sorts of wounds, I have no choice but to rely on this guy. I really should¡¯ve done this from the beginning.¡±

    The Guidecked the power to directly harm her.

    However, the pistol in his hand was powerful enough to destroy Amagi.

    ¡°!¡±

    Amagi thought of running away, but she was rendered immobile by what appeared to be ck smoke which held down her arms and legs.

    She tried calling for help, but there was no one around, andmunication had been cut off.

    So many people were in the building, yet nobody was approaching this location.

    How could this be possible?

    Who was this man in front of her?

    No one was there to answer her question.

    The Guide smiled.

    ¡°What kind of expression would Liam make if I were to throw your head at him?¡±

    Amagi shut her eyes, knowing full well that she wouldn¡¯t be able to defeat this man that was uttering Liam¡¯s name.

    ¡°Master, forgive me.¡±

    With a grin on his face, the Guide pulled the trigger.

 Chapter 101 - V6 Chapter 12. Hearing

    ¡°Master, forgive me.¡±

    Amagi had resigned herself to her fate of being destroyed.

    Precisely at that moment, the ornament on Amagi¡¯s dress shone and generated a shield around her.

    However, the Guide did not panic.

    ¡°Fuahahaha! I know that those are disposables! As long as I continue to attack¡ªcontinue to¡ª?¡±

    No matter how many shots were fired, the shield before Amagi did not falter.

    In fact, the pistol that the Guide had brought exhausted its energy first.

    Kachi. Kachi.

    The only sound that remained was that of the trigger being pulled.

    Amagi stared at the Guide.

    ¡°¡ªI thought you were going to destroy me?¡±

    She looked somewhat amazed.

    Her reaction was understandable.

    The Guide had dered that he would destroy her, yet the pistol he brought could not even prate the shield.

    She had thought that the intruder hade with ample preparation, but that did not seem to be the case.

    It was too crude.

    ¡°S-stop looking at me with that kind of eyes!¡±

    The Guide threw the pistol away and retreated as if to flee.

    ¡°Damn it! I haven¡¯t absorbed enough negative emotions! I¡¯ll gather more of them before throwing them all at Liam! I¡¯m done with this kind of ploy! I¡¯ll give my all to kill Liam!¡±

    Realizing that she could move again after the Guide left, Amagi shook her head.

    ¡°In the end, what kind of existence was that?¡±

    Had she just encountered a ridiculous existence?

    What¡¯s more, that existence kept blurting out Liam¡¯s name.

    Amagi felt anxious.

    ¡°¡ªAs I thought, is there a secret surrounding Master?¡±

    From time to time, they hade across some inexplicable urrences.

    If an existence like that was behind them¡ª

    There were still some things that did not make sense, but Amagi was worried about Liam.

    ¡°Is Master really as lucky as he ims to be?¡±

    Amagi felt uneasy knowing that Liam was being targeted by such an existence.

    ¡°It¡¯s a bit early, but it might be in our best interest to make a move ahead of time.¡±

    The existence known as the Guide made here to a certain decision.

    ¡ó

    Liam has decapitated a battleship.

    It was such an absurd notion that very little would¡¯ve believed the story.

    However, it was something that had happened above the Capital.

    There had been a lot of eyewitnesses, so there was credibility in the story being spread.

    Words of his exploits spread not only within the Capital, but to the entire Empire.

    Everyone had no choice but to acknowledge that the School of One-sh was the real deal.

    Inside his room, Calvin was sitting with his elbows on his desk and his hands sped in front of his mouth.

    ¡°To think they¡¯d cause a scene by flying a battleship above the Capital. What an outrageous thing they¡¯ve done.¡±

    This was due to some aristocrats going out of control.

    It was a big mistake on his part.

    Calvin had never expected them to do something this stupid.

    He had belittled the extent of their stupidity.

    Although they had left, they were once members of the Calvin Faction.

    Even before this, Calvin had been branded as a coward that pushed his responsibility to his younger brother to avoid participating in the interster war.

    Now, he was also known as a fool that failed to assassinate Liam.

    Calvin¡¯s gaze was on the box that was on the desk.

    The box was filled with the cores of Ninjas¡ªbroken cores that signified the death of those that had abandoned their mortal bodies in exchange for ones that could turn into any shape.

    He had found the box on his desk when he woke up in the morning.

    ¡°Is he warning me that he could kill me whenever he wants to?¡±

    Calvin had underestimated the strength of Liam¡¯s ck Ops.

    Thanks to the foolish acts of the aristocrats under him, Calvin had been driven to a corner.

    ¡°I was under the impression that we were cornering him. Seems like it was actually us that were being cornered.¡±

    ¡®I can¡¯t let things end on this note.¡¯

    Calvin convened a meeting with his aristocrats.

    ¡°There¡¯s a democratic movement going on within Liam-kun¡¯s territory, and I¡¯m thinking of holding him ountable.¡±

    If they couldn¡¯tpete with him on the battlefield, they would do so where they had the upper hand.

    Calvin decided to take a jab at Liam¡¯s weakness, which was the democratic movement in his territory.

    ¡°The Empire abhors anything associated with democratic movements. The army will be dispatched, razing Liam-kun¡¯s territory to the ground.¡±

    If that became a reality, there was little doubt that Liam would lose a lot of power.

    ¡ó

    An emergency hearing is being held in the Empire because of those retarded aristocrats that mobilized a battleship inside of the Capital.

    As for me, I¡¯ve been called to act as an important witness.

    However, I¡¯m being put on the spot as if I¡¯m the one whomitted a crime.

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯ll never forget this humiliation.¡±

    I grind my teeth, holding back the smoldering anger rising up inside of me.

    Calvin is also present at the hearing.

    I don¡¯t like how he¡¯s pretending to be cool and looking far into the distance.

    You¡¯re acting as if this has nothing to do with you, but I know that you¡¯re the one who has pushed me into this corner.

    You¡¯ve humiliated me and made me aughingstock.

    I¡¯ll definitely kill you with my own hands.

    I¡¯ll make sure to have my revenge on this guy who has brought me and humiliated me.

    I won¡¯t forgive the likes of him.

    The Prime Minister is staring down at me from a higher position as I express my frustration.

    The way he¡¯s looking at me is highly unpleasant.

    ¡°It¡¯s about time we reach a conclusion.¡±

    The aristocrats around me are all uttering simr things.

    ¡°Liam-dono is such a troublemaker.¡±

    ¡°He should be more aware of the fact that he¡¯s an aristocrat and fulfill his duties properly.¡±

    ¡°As a future Duke, he should be more mindful of his position.¡±

    A man and a woman in their thirties are mocking me from above.

    It¡¯s all Calvin¡¯s fault that the hearing is going in this direction.

    He put into question my ability to govern.

    It was his people that raided the Capital on a battleship, but I¡¯m the one that¡¯s being put on the spot.

    The aristocrats under him have been raising a ruckus and denouncing me at the hearing.

    They¡¯re currently facing away from me with cold expressions.

    I¡¯ll remember you all.

    Do not think that I would forgive you!

    The aristocrats on my side that attended the hearing are looking at me apologetically.

    Baron Exneres up to soothe me.

    ¡°Count, I¡¯m sorry about this.¡±

    If you have the leeway to apologize, help me! Help!

    Damn it!

    Calvin, you¡¯re the first one to have driven me into such a corner!

    The Prime Minister pounds the hammer like a judge would in a trial, silencing everyone in the venue.

    Then, he addresses me.

    ¡°Now then, the Count would have to¡ª¡±

    ¡°Ku¡­¡±

    I sp my hands with my head down.

    This shouldn¡¯t have happened.

    Things aren¡¯t supposed to go this way.

    I-I shouldn¡¯t have looked down on Calvin so much.

    I¡¯ll admit my defeat for today.

    But mark my words, for it shall only be for today!

    ¡ó

    When the hearing ended, the Calvinist aristocrats gathered while holding their heads.

    To pressure Liam, they had thrown a fit at the hearing by bringing into question his ability to govern his territory.

    They had even interrupted the flow of the hearing by moring that they would not allow the hearing to continue unless the problem was resolved.

    A democratization movement is taking ce in Liam¡¯s territory.

    The people are criticizing the Empire¡¯s policies.

    They brought up issues that the Empire was sensitive to so that they could ¡°lynch¡± Liam.

    ¡°¡ªAnyone care to exin?¡±

    They had gathered at a location that was near the venue where the hearing was held.

    Inside a resting room, Calvin looked around at each of his fellow faction members.

    Under his intense re, everyone turned the other way.

    Seeing this, Calvinughed cheerfully.

    ¡°The Prime Minister called me out as we were leaving, and he told me that we should stop making a fool of ourselves.¡±

    He wasughing, but it wasn¡¯t done so out of happiness.

    One of the aristocrats brought up a ratherme excuse.

    ¡°Your Highness, the agent that was sent to Liam¡¯s territory was someone that served the Viscount who led the secessionists. The data that we received from that agent certainly said that there was a democratic movement going on.¡±

    ¡°Does this look like a democratization demo to you?¡±

    During the hearing, they had submitted footage as evidence for the democratization movement in Liam¡¯s territory.

    Inside the video, Liam¡¯s citizens were holding cards.

    ¡°Fulfill your duty as an aristocrat!¡±

    ¡°Cherish Lady Rosetta, and please don¡¯t forget about Eulisia-san!¡±

    ¡°Exactly, don¡¯t forget about me!!¡±

    By the end of the footage, Eulisia had joined the side of the demonstrators.

    It was supposed to be a democratization demo, yet it had turned into a child-making demo instead.

    Calvin covered his face with his hands andughed.

    ¡°What do you think would happen to my reputation now that I¡¯ve brought into question Liam-kun¡¯s ability to govern with a straight face?¡±

    Calvin¡¯s supporters stared into the distance as if to escape reality.

    They never imagined that the content of the footage would be like that.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t anyone check its content?¡±

    They had simply assumed that they had the necessary evidence.

    It was a human error.

    They recalled how the tense atmosphere immediately loosened when this evidence was presented.

    They had expected Liam to receive a word of warning or even a punishment from the agitated aristocrats of the inquirymittee for his provocative behavior which incited some people to send a battleship to the Capital.

    However, when they saw how mortified Liam was about the demonstration, their words became something along the lines of ¡°Don¡¯t forget about your duty as an aristocrat¡±, ¡°The Count is still wet behind the ears¡±, and ¡°¡ªBe more careful in the future¡±.

    It was as if they were speaking to their favorite grandchild.

    They teased him somewhat sympathetically, and Liam¡¯s wrongdoings were treated as water under the bridge.

    He was practically forgiven after being told toy low for a while.

    On the other hand, the inquirymittee¡¯s impression of Calvin was at its worst.

    Their act of disrupting the flow of the hearing was seen as a major distraction.

    From Calvin¡¯s point of view, it was as if he had lost to Liam despite being at an advantageous position.

    Before they knew it, the weak Cleo Faction had almost caught up to them.

    ¡°We can no longer afford to put on airs.¡±

    The Calvinist aristocrats steeled themselves upon hearing Calvin¡¯s words.

    ¡ó

    An idiot brought along a battleship to the Capital.

    It¡¯s like the world¡¯s filled with idiots.

    After being attacked at the party venue, the court told me toy low for a while.

    That¡¯s why I¡¯ve been elegantly spending the past few days at the hotel.

    Because of the disturbance that happened at the venue, I¡¯ve been holding back from throwing parties left and right.

    An investigation was held for several weeks, and I was even summoned to a hearing.

    I¡¯m presumably under probation for a couple of months.

    ¡°Now, I just have to deal with the fakes that are pretending to be disciples of the School of One-sh.¡±

    Rumor has it that there are two such people.

    Is this the price that one has to pay for being famous?

    If they turn out to be imposters, I¡¯ll have to eliminate them.

    That said, the Empire is an intergctic nation.

    Searching for someone is easier said than done.

    I haven¡¯t been able to track down the footsteps of those that are iming to be from the School of One-sh.

    Tia, who has been wagging her tail and preparing tea for me in my room, talks to me.

    She¡¯s back from being part of the expeditionary force.

    When she first came back, she asked to be praised, to which I replied by saying,

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you d to work under me?¡±

    She shivered in response and nodded her head enthusiastically.

    She should really learn a thing or two from Kukuri, who is excellent at his work.

    ¡°Lord Liam, won¡¯t you also have to deal with therge-scale demo?¡±

    ¡°¡ªWhen everything¡¯s over, I¡¯ll crack down on the demonstrators. Who do they think they are to protest about the lower part of my body?¡±

    It¡¯s unforgivable how they¡¯re ordering their lord to sleep with Rosetta.

    How dare they meddle with my business!

    Curse them!

    Once I return, I¡¯ll crack them down in earnest.

    My army hase back from the expeditionary force and is taking a break right now.

    To make myself appear more impressive and imposing than I really am, I have to take good care of my military.

    I sometimes have them work their asses off, but if I overdo it, they might betray me.

    Thus, I leave them alone when they¡¯re resting.

    The point being, I can¡¯t make a move at the moment.

    I¡¯ll be suppressing the demo as soon as the army is ready.

    Tiaughs when she hears what I say.

    ¡ªI¡¯m pretty evil myself, but she¡¯s quite dangerous as well.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s a good thing that a democratization movement isn¡¯t happening in Lord Liam¡¯s territory. If it was, we would¡¯ve had to seriously crack the demonstrators down. Otherwise, the Imperial Army would¡¯ve sortied to suppress the movement.¡±

    ¡°I would¡¯ve preferred that.¡±

    The Calvin Faction targeted me during the hearing to recover from their previous losses.

    The hearing was held for the purpose of investigating them, but I was the one that took the bullet instead.

    Calvin has made me realize that I¡¯m no match against him when ites to a court battle.

    A democratization movement is happening in his territory!¡ªor so he had eximed.

    The Empire detested democratization movements, so the center of people¡¯s attention shifted to that during the hearing.

    However¡ªwhen an imperial investigator was dispatched to my territory, they came back with the news that the demo was over the issue of session and not democratization.

    Do you have any idea what it was like to stand in the court while everyone around me discussed the issue of my sessor?

    The footage that showed the figure of Eulisia participating in the demo left me speechless.

    She creates all sorts of problems when left unattended.

    When I was shown that footage¡ªI was embarrassed to no end.

    I still remember how everyone looked at me.

    Some wereughing, others were amused, and the rest were sympathetic.

    Even the Prime Minister was looking at me with warm eyes!

    Tia smiles as if to suggest something.

    ¡°But that has also driven the Calvin Faction to a corner. While they were being cornered, the Cleo Faction was able to be much stronger than before. Everything has been going ording to Lord Liam¡¯s n.¡±

    ¡°My victory was set in stone from the beginning. I¡¯m actually baffled by how lucky I am.¡±

    I say that, but all my luck is thanks to the Guide.

    From an outsider¡¯s perspective, it might have looked like I was in hot water, but in reality, everything was set in ce for my victory.

    As an evil lord, my life is in easy mode.

    ¡°I¡¯m growing tired of remaining quiet. It¡¯s been a while since I went out to y, so ready the car.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Tia orders her subordinates to prepare the car.

 Chapter 102 - Volume 6 Chapter 13 â€“ The One-Flash | Destiny

    <strong>Volume 6 Chapter 13 ¨C The One-sh | Destiny <Determined></strong>

    -That day-

    Liam had announced that he would be going out to y, and he decided to have Ellen, who was training, tag along on a whim.

    (I¡¯ll be shopping with Master today!)

    Ellen was delighted that she could spend time with Liam, her Master.

    The luxury car that they were on was shaped like a limousine.

    Although it had tires, they were rarely used as the car came with the function to fly.

    Of course, as it was a custom-made luxury car, its interior design was rather grand.

    The car was sliding along the road, levitating half a meter above it.

    Ellen nced at the katana that was next to Liam.

    Even among Liam¡¯s favorites, this one had a special ce in his heart.

    The katana that Ellen had received was also from Liam¡¯s collection, and it had been engraved with the drawing of a golden tiger.

    Her sword was a fine specimen in its own right, but there was a mysterious power dwelling in Liam¡¯s nameless katana.

    (Master has been carrying that sword around these days.)

    As it was his most prized katana, it wasn¡¯t often that he carried it around.

    It was as if he was being wary of something.

    Liam was sitting down on a seat and drinking from a ss that Tia had poured liquor into.

    ¡°Daytime drinking is the best.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, that was a wonderful way of drinking. People would be head over heels for you.¡±

    Tia¡¯s words sounded like ttery, but Ellen somehow knew that she was serious.

    After all, there was so much passion reflected in Tia¡¯s eyes that they almost looked like hearts.

    If she had tails, she would probably wag it like an excited dog.

    On a separate note, Ellen had been sensing a strange presence since a while ago, so she inquired Liam about it.

    ¡°Master?¡±

    ¡°Yes? If you want a stuffed animal, I¡¯ll buy one for you.¡±

    ¡°I-it¡¯s not about that! Um, I¡¯ve been getting this restless feeling.¡±

    She described it as a ¡°restless feeling¡±, but it was more along the lines of ¡°getting the chills¡±.

    A shiver was running down her spine.

    It shouldn¡¯t have been cold, but she was having the chills.

    It was as though someone was observing them.

    Ellen looked outside the window for clues, and Liam seemed somewhat happy about this development.

    ¡°So you¡¯vee to understand a bit.¡±

    Liam remained rxed.

    On the other hand, Tia, who had been chirping happily until now, became serious.

    She was confirming something with the guards outside through a terminal.

    ¡°Is anything off?¡±

    She received a report from her subordinates.

    ¡°Nothing unusual has been¡ªwait. There are some people ahead of us on the road. Two, from what I see?¡±

    When she heard this, Tia¡¯s eyes shot open, and she yelled out an order.

    ¡°All members are to be on the lookout!¡±

    The car suddenly swerved, and everything inside naturally shook.

    Liam downed the ss of liquor and muttered,

    ¡°¡ªYou were toote on the uptake. We won¡¯t be able to escape.¡±

    Ellen had been looking up at the car¡¯s ceiling when she was blown away by Liam without a word of warning.

    The car was chopped in half before she could process what had happened, and the seat that she was sitting on just a moment ago suffered a simr fate.

    The car which had been split into two fell to the ground before skidding to a stop.

    ¡°W-what?¡±

    Ellen looked around and saw a woman standing there, her beautiful dark blue hair waving with the wind.

    ¡°Huh? Is she perhaps¡ª¡±

    The woman stared at her with a smile on her face.

    The smile reeked of madness.

    Someone else jumped down next to Ellen.

    The neer¡¯s voice sounded rather rough.

    ¡°Ya didn¡¯t die from that, right? Show yerself, Liam!¡±

    Her orange hair was tied to the back; however, it still looked like a lion¡¯s mane, probably reflecting the woman¡¯s strong personality.

    Ellen noticed something.

    (These people are strong.)

    They both had katanas on their waists.

    With a rapier in hand, Tia shot out from one side of the bisected car.

    ¡°You bastards! Who do you think you¡¯re pointing your weapons at!¡±

    Despite facing Tia¡¯s wrath, the two women simply grinned.

    ¡°Not weak, I guess? But, ya know~¡±

    ¡°Yeah. She¡¯s better than most, but that¡¯s all there is to her.¡±

    Their abilities were clearly a cut above Tia¡¯s.

    Perhaps realizing this, Tia did not rush forward carelessly and stood in a position where she could protect Liam.

    ¡°Lord Liam, please leave this to us.¡±

    Liam stood up slowly, put his hand on his nape, and cracked his neck.

    When the knights gathered around him to serve as his guards, he made a hand gesture and shooed them away.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be stubborn. You guys are in the way, so back off.¡±

    ¡°B-but!¡±

    The orange-haired woman next to Ellen turned her attention to the two katanas on her waist.

    Tia noticed this and put herself in front of Liam.

    As a result, her left hand was cut off.

    Two huge scars had appeared on the ground.

    Even with her left hand gone, Tia remained standing in front of Liam.

    Seeing this, the orange-haired woman clicked her tongue.

    ¡°The hell? Was nning on showing ya the difference in our abilities by having both yer arms sliced off.¡±

    Then, the woman with dark blue hairughed mockingly at herpanion.

    ¡°You suck~¡±

    ¡°Ang? Ya want me toe at ya when I¡¯m done with Liam?¡±

    Just as sparks began to fly between the two, Liam stepped forward.

    He picked up Tia¡¯s hand and returned it to its owner before telling her to step back.

    ¡°You¡¯ve done well to shield me. What you did this time is worthy of praise.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam!?¡±

    Tia was standing there, stunned, so he pushed her to the other knights and left her with them.

    With Liam stepping forward, the air around thempletely changed.

    The two women that had been exchanging flippant remarks readied their stance.

    Liam stood provocatively before them and said, ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Aren¡¯t you guys here to kill me?¡ªBased on how much hesitation I¡¯m seeing, I doubt that you guys are real disciples of the School of One-sh.¡±

    Upon seeing how they wielded their swords, Liam arrived at the conclusion that they were from the School of One-sh.

    Ellen was also convinced of this.

    (So they¡¯re from the same school of swordsmanship!)

    The first to react was the woman with dark blue hair.

    ¡°Nice to meet you, Senior Brother. I¡¯m Satsuki Rinho¡ªthe legitimate sessor of the School of One-sh.¡±

    Although she was polite, her eyes that were on Liam contained killing intent.

    As for the other woman, she didn¡¯t even bother hiding her hostility.

    ¡°My name¡¯s Shishigami Fuuka! By taking your life, I¡¯ll be the true sessor of the School of One-sh!¡±

    Fuuka drew her katanas and charged at Liam.

    This was an unusual move as the School of One-sh specialized in shooting out invisible des.

    From what Ellen could tell, Fuuka had rapidlyunched thousands of shes with her swords.

    Despite her rough appearance, she was a dexterous swordswoman.

    ¡°Master!¡±

    Ellen screamed at Liam.

    Liam, however, did not even pull out his katana.

    ¡°Ellen, make sure you observe closely.¡±

    He then proceeded to block all of Fuuka¡¯s shes with shes of his own.

    He did not forget to instruct Ellen even as he confronted Fuuka.

    ¡°It¡¯s my first time fighting against someone from the same school. This might be my only opportunity as well.¡±

    Liam acknowledged that they were from the School of One-sh.

    Believing that she had just been yed, Fuuka felt infuriated.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be so cocky! One-sh!¡±

    Fuuka was about to swing her katanas at a speed which the human eye could not follow, but Liam stomped on both her des before that happened.

    ¡°Huh!?¡±

    Liam had stomped on them just as she had crossed her swords.

    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you something good¡ªI¡¯m stronger than both of you.¡±

    He then kicked Fuuka to the sides, making Rinho extremely cautious.

    ¡°How troublesome.¡±

    Sheunched waves upon waves of shes, but they were all blocked when Liam unsheathed his katana.

    With every exchange, more and more cracks were appearing on the ground.

    None of Liam¡¯s knights were able to interfere in this confrontation between disciples of the School of One-sh.

    It was only the three people on the stage, and from time to time, they teleported to different locations.

    They were exchanging strikes at such a high speed that only the sounds of metals shing could be heard.

    The wind around them gradually began to blow like a storm, sending the knights into disarray.

    ¡°What in the world is happening?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t move forward! You¡¯ll die!¡±

    ¡°We can¡¯t even provide assistance like this!¡±

    Contrary to their expectations, the two women¡¯s conditions were slowly bing worse and worse.

    They were receiving minor wounds as well.

    Although they weren¡¯t anything serious, injuries were piling up on them bodies.

    Both women were surprised by that.

    Liam let out a sigh.

    He had enough leeway to do so in front of the two women.

    In contrast, the women were riddle with wounds and breathing roughly.

    (Master is so strong!)

    Ellen¡¯s mind was blown away by Liam¡¯s strength.

    She had known that her Master was powerful, but she didn¡¯t know exactly how strong he was.

    Through this battle where people from the same school fought, she was able to ascertain his strength.

    ¡°¡ªWhat¡¯s up with you two? Are you so frightened that you can¡¯t take this seriously? If that¡¯s the case, do your worst and attack me together.¡±

    Liam sheathed his katana and spread his arms out, triggering the two swordswomen.

    Rinho even forgot to filter her words.

    ¡°To have the audacity to show me an opening¡ªDie, you lil¡¯ sh*t!¡±

    The blood vessels on Fuuka¡¯s forehead were bulging.

    ¡°I¡¯ll kill ya... I¡¯ll kill ya! I¡¯ve never been humiliated like this! I¡¯ll chop ya until nothing but dust remains!¡±

    Rinho lowered her posture and disappeared from her spot, reappearing right next to Liam.

    The ground beneath her had cracked.

    She was expressionless as she tried to reap Liam¡¯s life.

    With God speed, she shot out a powerful blow.

    ¡°One-sh¡ªDisappear.¡±

    Fuuka, on the other hand, jumped up, twisting herself so that she would spin in the air.

    ¡°One-sh! Go to hell!¡±

    Fuuka fired an unprecedented number of shes that came down like a storm.

    It was a storm that could cut down anything in its path.

    The natures of their attacks werepletely different.

    On the one hand, there was Rinho¡¯s attack, which was simple yet powerful.

    It followed the normal path of the School of One-sh, which was to put an end to the battle with a single swing of the sword.

    On the other hand, Fuuka¡¯s attacks weren¡¯t as powerful as Rinho¡¯s, but she made up for it through the sheer number of shes.

    Although it deviated from the normal path of the School of One-sh, it was more efficient in a sense to shoot out multiple blows with optimal power than to crush everything with a strike that could be deemed as overkill.

    They had both learned under the same master (Yasushi), yet they were treading onpletely different paths.

    (Then what about Master?)

    Ellen looked over at Liam.

    Liam was smiling as he faced the duo¡¯s One-sh.

    ¡°Both of you are second-rate at best. Come back after training yourselves.¡±

    Liam blocked Rinho¡¯s strike and cancelled out Fuuka¡¯s flurry of shes with a single sh of his own.

    Thereafter, he blew the two women away.

    When they showed signs of getting back up, Liam readied his stance.

    ¡°Don¡¯t boast before me ever again. Having said that, since we¡¯re from the same school, I¡¯ll show you what my serious attack looks like as a gesture of good will.¡ªIf you can¡¯t block it, just die.¡±

    Ellen shivered when she heard Liam dere that there was no ce for the weak in the School of One-sh.

    In other words, if she turned out to be weak, she¡¯d eventually be killed by Liam as well.

    Rinho managed to stand back up, and Fuuka readied her weapons while spitting out blood.

    Both of them were trembling.

    Rinhoughed half-heartedly.

    ¡°¡ªThis, might be bad.¡±

    Fuuka red at Liam.

    ¡°No wonder Master ordered us to challenge him together.¡±

    Liam narrowed his eyes upon seeing the twoe closer as if to help each other.

    ¡°One-sh.¡±

    The moment Liam finished saying the name of the technique, the two women spurted out blood and copsed onto the ground.

    Ellen hadn¡¯t been able to see anything.

    Compared to all themotion caused by the two women¡¯s One-sh, Liam¡¯s had been much quieter.

    Unlike the women¡¯s shy techniques, Liam¡¯s was quiet, caused no wind, and left no traces.

    (It¡¯s actually as if he hadn¡¯t done anything.)

    Ellen had confidence in her eyes, but she hadn¡¯t been able to see anything at all.

    The two women had fallen to the ground with their limbs cut off.

    So much blood was flowing out that it wouldn¡¯t have been strange if they had died from blood loss.

    They were so strong, yet they had been powerless before Liam.

    Ellen shuddered as she looked at Liam.

    (Master is amazing!)

    She was shaking from joy.

    Liam undid his stance and walked up to the two women.

    Realizing that the battle was over, Tia also began to move.

    The shape of her rapier had transformed into a terrifying chainsaw, and she was dragging it on the ground.

    Sparks flew everywhere.

    Her eyes revealed her murderous intent.

    ¡°Death. I¡¯ll make them suffer a fate worse than death for their sin of aiming for Lord Liam¡¯s life. Eternal torture and damnation¡ª¡±

    Liam looked back at Tia, who was raring to kill the two women despite having lost an arm to them.

    ¡°Tia, have them treated.¡±

    ¡°Pardon? N-no, but!¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re my cute junior disciples. Hmm, would it be more apt to call them my Junior Sisters? Anyway, arrange a doctor to treat them. If it¡¯s toote to do that, use an Elixir.¡±

    ¡°B-but these people were aiming for Lord Liam¡¯s life!¡±

    Liam chuckled.

    ¡°My Junior Sisters were just messing with me.¡±

    ¡°S-still, to treat them¡ª¡±

    ¡°That aside, Tia, you did well standing in front of me and shielding me. My evaluation of you has gone up considerably. You¡¯ve led the expeditionary force to victory, but that achievement pales inparison to what you did this time. I¡¯m proud to have you as my subordinate.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam!¡±

    Moved, Tia took out her terminal and said, ¡°One more time! Please say that one more time! Please say that again so that I could record it at the highest video quality!¡±

    As Liam was feeling pretty good, he praised Tia again and said, ¡°There¡¯s really no helping you~¡±.

    It was then.

    Rinho moved her mouth ever so slightly, trying to convey some message.

    Liam leaned in to listen.

    Then, he searched Rinho¡¯s pockets and took out a letter.

    Ellen was surprised to see that someone had written a letter in this day and age.

    When Liam read the letter, his eyes popped open.

    With a strong tone, he gave Tia, who was still in a daze, an order.

    ¡°What are you doing? Have you not heard mymand?¡±

    ¡°E-excuse me! I¡¯ll arrange a doctor immediately!¡±

    Tia let go of her weapon and begrudgingly follow Liam¡¯s order.

    ¡ó

    I¡¯ve read Master¡¯s letter.

    ¡°How do you do, Liam-dono? I am still wandering betweens to attain the pinnacle of One-sh. During my travels, I found two talented children.¡±

    It¡¯s written in the letter that he has permitted fights between disciples of the same school.

    This, he says, is normally forbidden, but he has given them permission to do so in order for the School of One-sh to reach new heights.

    This could have been dangerous.

    I didn¡¯t know that we needed Master¡¯s permission to fight people from the same school.

    Does this mean that Master thinks it¡¯s alright for his disciples to fight one another?

    There¡¯s more to the letter.

    ¡°You must be confused by their sudden appearance. However, since you are reading this letter, it must mean that you have easily won. If they¡¯re still alive, please take care of them, for I don¡¯t have the ability to raise them further.¡±

    Master has entrusted those two to me.

    He must have wanted to show me their abilities.

    They were quite serious about killing me, but this must be all part of Master¡¯s n.

    We¡¯re talking about Master after all!

    Hmm, but the fact that Master is saying he wouldn¡¯t be able to raise them further bothers me.

    Those two have already learned everything that there is to learn as swordswomen.

    The rest would depend on the amount of effort that they put in from now.

    Could something have happened to Master?

    Thinking about it here won¡¯t solve anything.

    All I know is that Master has entrusted those two to me, so I¡¯ll be taking good care of my Junior Sisters.

    ¡°Leave it to me, Master. I¡¯ll take care of them.¡±

    Although my Junior Sisters seem a little naughty, I¡¯ve vowed to take everything that has to do with the School of One-sh seriously.

    I would normally execute anyone that tries to take my life, but my Junior Sisters are an exception since we¡¯re from the same school.

    That is that and this is this.

    ¡°I wonder why Master said he couldn¡¯t raise them further. Also, where could he be, and what could he be doing?¡±

    Only one thing is for sure: Master must be aiming for the pinnacle by polishing his One-sh.

 Chapter 103 - V6 Chapter 14. One-Flash Of Gratitude

    -On a far away from the Empire-

    Inside a small apartment building, Yasushi was carrying a baby in his back.

    His wife, who was wearing a suit, was about to leave the house.

    ¡°Yasu-kun, I¡¯ll be back by 7 PM, so please take care of things until then.¡±

    ¡°¡ªOkay.¡±

    As an intellectual, the woman went to work while Yasushi remained behind as a stay-at-home husband.

    Hence, he was carrying their baby on his back.

    He had originally nned on escaping, but he was too scared to do so after being chased around with a knife.

    A freshly-formed scar that went from his chest to his abdomen was present on his body.

    His wife had said, ¡°Don¡¯t have it treated¡ªand don¡¯t think about running away again.¡±

    As a result, he was stuck with the scar for now.

    With the medical technology of this world, it would¡¯ve been an easy matter to erase the scar, but it was intentionally left alone.

    Yasushi regretted havingid his hands on a woman whose love was so deep.

    ¡°Uuuu, I want to escape, but it¡¯s nigh impossible with my pocket money.¡±

    He had used up most of the fund that he received from Liam to raise his two disciples.

    The rest had been spent on ying around, and he was now in a situation where he had to receive pocket money from a woman.

    Although he stayed at home to take care of their child, most of the housework was done by his wife.

    He wasn¡¯t a full-fledged househusband, but he wasn¡¯t a gigolo either; in other words, he wasn¡¯t one or the other.

    This was the situation that Yasushi, the Sword God that raised Liam, Rinho, and Fuuka, was in.

    The baby began squirming.

    ¡°Okay, okay, let¡¯s change you diaper, shall we? ¡ª¡ªReally, what the hell am I doing here?¡±

    This was how Yasushi was spending his days on a distant.

    ¡ó

    Rinho and Fuuka were in a special infirmary room of the luxury hotel.

    Not only were they in patient gowns, their bodies were entirely wrapped in bandages.

    With their injuries healed, they were having dishes delivered to their beds after mentioning how hungry they were.

    Tia was observing the situation with a reproachful look on her face, and Ellen was standing beside her.

    She watched the two as they ate on the bed with proper manners.

    Having said that, the dishes were disappearing at an rming rate, and the waiters were busy serving new dishes to them.

    Tia was amazed at their hearty appetite.

    ¡°I¡¯m amazed by how much food you two are stuffing down after having just recovered.¡±

    Feeling much better now, Fuuka let go of her chopsticks and stretched.

    ¡°Unless I eat, I can¡¯t exert any strength.¡±

    Rinho, who was drinking soup next to her, breathed out softly and grinned.

    ¡°You say that, but you¡¯re weaker than me.¡±

    Fuuka pointed her fingers at Rinho.

    ¡°Ya eat a lot, but yer still as skinny as a toothpick! Yer breasts are tiny to boot!¡±

    Compared to Fuuka¡¯s fine assets, Rinho¡¯s were a bitckluster.

    This was perhaps a sensitive topic as Rinho narrowed her eyes the next moment.

    ¡°Haaaang? Did all the nutrient that should¡¯ve gone to your head go to your chest instead? Why would you think that I¡¯d care about the size of my breasts? In the first ce, what¡¯s there to be proud about for havingrge breasts? As someone that¡¯s walking down the path of the sword, isn¡¯t it better to have all that unnecessary fat removed? In fact, do you want me to cut them off for you?¡±

    Ellen came to a certain conclusion after seeing how rapidly Rinho was speaking.

    (Oh, so she¡¯s self-conscious about it.)

    The two girls started arguing with each other.

    Soon enough, their stomachs began growling again, and they returned to having their meals.

    Tia, who was supervising them, felt dissatisfied.

    The arm that she had attached back were wrapped in bandages and connected to an equipment.

    ¡°Why do I have to take care of these two?¡±

    Ellen had been assigned to watch over the two girls as they were from the same school.

    As Liam intended to take the girls under his wings, he set up an opportunity for them to talk with one another.

    The two girls understood his intention.

    Fuuka was the first to speak with Ellen.

    ¡°By the way, Small One.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t call me Small One. I¡¯m Ellen.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t fret the details. We¡¯re from the same school anyway. Aren¡¯t we pretty much aunt and niece? Let¡¯s get along.¡±

    The two were being friendly to Ellen.

    Their intention to kill Liam also seemed like a lie.

    However, Ellen, who knew of their ns, refused to y along with them.

    ¡°As if I¡¯d want to get along with someone who¡¯s trying to kill Master!¡±

    She turned the other way.

    Fuuka became visibly sad.

    Rather than an interaction between disciples of the same school, it was more like an older sister getting depressed after being rejected by her younger sibling.

    Rinho giggled, showing an understanding towards Ellen¡¯s inner conflict.

    ¡°Well, it can¡¯t be helped. I¡¯d be pissed as well if someone targeted Master. But you see, it was that very same Master who instructed us to target Senior Brother. Senior Brother epted us because he knew that this was the case. As Senior Brother¡¯s disciple, your attitude is a biiit~¡±

    Satisfied with the meal, Fuukaid down on the bed.

    ¡°Ellen, you might be targeted by your Junior Brothers and Sisters one day, and it might be under Senior Brother¡¯s instruction.¡±

    ¡°¡ªT-that¡¯s...¡±

    As of now, Ellen was Liam¡¯s sole disciple.

    Rinho and Fuuka were just his Junior Sisters that he took custody of, so they weren¡¯t his official disciples.

    Ellen would eventually have at least two Juniors under her, and this was something which Ellen was not in favor of.

    If Liam epted another disciple other than herself, his attention would likely turn elsewhere.

    She wouldn¡¯t have all his attention as she had now.

    Liam entered the infirmary just as Ellen was feeling troubled.

    ¡°You two seem quite cheerful.¡±

    Looking at them, Liam smiled without a hint of wariness.

    The girls immediately kneeled on their beds and bowed.

    Although their attitudes were bold and theirnguage uncouth, they had been taught the proper etiquette.

    Rinho apologized to Liam.

    ¡°We apologize for causing trouble this time. This event made us realize how shallow our skills are.¡±

    Fuuka was the same.

    ¡°Being the greenhorns that we are, we¡¯vee to understand that we have yet to reach the realm where Senior Brother is standing.¡±

    Liam sat down on a chair which Tia had prepared and stared at the two girls who were showing admirable attitudes.

    He didn¡¯t seem a tad bit worried, and it was as if he was dealing with rtives.

    ¡°It¡¯s good that you understand who¡¯s above you. On that note, although I¡¯ll be taking care of you guys, I won¡¯t be training you in the path of the One-sh. The most I can do is provide you with a ce to train.¡±

    Under Yasushi¡¯s training regime, Rinho and Fuuka had be splendid swordswomen.

    From here on out, they had to polish their swords through their own effort, and Liam could only provide them with some light assistance.

    ¡°That said, you two are a mess in all other regards. Since Master has entrusted me with you two, it must mean that he wants you to be full-fledged knights. As soon as your injuries are healed, you two will be following me back to my territory where you will learn to be knights.¡±

    Rinho looked utterly disgusted when she was told that she had to study.

    ¡°¡ªAs swordswomen, is it really necessary for us to study? Senior Brother, with all due respect, I must decline. I believe it¡¯s more important for us to refine our techniques, even if it¡¯s by a small amount.¡±

    Liam smiled.

    ¡°No can do. After all, this is what Master entrusted me to do.¡±

    Liam was thinking about their education in his own way.

    Fuuka appeared to be indifferent to this arrangement.

    ¡°We just have to train for a couple of years and enter the capsule, right? I¡¯m used tough things anyway.¡±

    It was certainly not a bad idea to toss them into the military so that they could be molded into knights.

    However, Liam had a different n in store for them.

    ¡°That so? Well then, when we return, you two will be apprentices under Serena, my head maid, and you will be learning about manners from her. Do your best as maids.¡±

    Both Rinho and Fuuka were stunned by this sudden revtion.

    ¡°S-Senior Brother!? What do you mean by ¡®maids¡¯!?¡±

    ¡°No way! Why do we have to do something so girly!?¡±

    Liamughed.

    ¡°I also worked as a servant at my training destination. As you two aren¡¯t aristocrats, I¡¯ll have you two educated within my mansion. Don¡¯t even think about escaping.¡±

    ¡°N-no way!¡±

    ¡°M-me!? A maid!?¡±

    Liam meant well by being harsh on them, but the two despaired over the prospect of training for something that had nothing to do with the sword.

    ¡®Serves you right!¡¯ Ellen thought.

    ¡ó

    ¡°¡ªHow. Could. This. Be.¡±

    The Guide fell to his knees.

    He had put his faith in the trump cards to assassinate Liam, but they hadpletely failed.

    There was nothing inherently wrong about failing.

    However, after their defeat, instead of aiming for Liam¡¯s life, they started to revere him as their Senior Brother.

    This was also partially Yasushi¡¯s fault.

    After reading the letter from Yasushi, Liam had begun to spoil his Junior Sisters.

    ¡°He backed away at thest moment to preserve his life!¡±

    There was nothing unnatural about this considering Yasushi¡¯s disposition.

    Be that as it may, from the Guide¡¯s perspective, it was an act of betrayal.

    All that said, there was one thing that the Guide could not forgive.

    ¡°¡ªYou¡¯re telling me that my actions were actually helping Liam?¡±

    Upon closer examination, he realized that he had been helping Liam.

    When all was said and done, the Calvin Faction had be less united, and they had lost a good chunk of their power as well.

    On the other hand, the Cleo Faction¡ªand thus Liam¡ªnow had a bigger voice.

    The faction had be stronger overall, and the number of supporters had grown.

    It was to the point where the Cleo Faction, which was originally weak and feeble, now stood on par with the Calvin Faction.

    ¡°Unforgivable.¡±

    The Guide clenched his fists.

    There was also the matter with Liam¡¯s territory.

    Those that sneaked in with shady motives had been identified, thus eliminating the buds of future trouble.

    Everything was progressing in the direction that was favorable for Liam.

    ¡°Liam, I¡¯ll never forgive you! Now that things have gone this far, I¡¯ll kill Liam even if I have to go down with him!¡±

    The Guide dropped all pretense and gathered as much negative emotion as he could to y Liam.

    Since there had been a war between intergctic nations, there was bound to be a lot of grudges left behind in the battlefield.

    He decided to end Liam with his own hands after collecting all the swirling negative emotions associated with Liam.

    The Guide wasn¡¯t certain whether or not he could kill Liam; however, he wanted to defeat Liam no matter what.

    ¡°I¡¯ll definitely finish off Liam!¡±

    A dog bid farewell to the Guide as thetter disappeared from the scene to collect more negative emotions.

    The dog also disappeared soon after.

    ¡ó

    When the Empire¡¯s expeditionary force returned safe and sound, parties were held in various parts of the Capital to celebrate their victory.

    Aristocrats and military personnel that took part in the expedition were invited, and the aristocrats were especially hyped up.

    Some of them were simply happy that they had won.

    Others, however, were there to get closer to the Cleo Faction.

    Cleo was no longer as helpless as he was in the past.

    Cleo, who was the party¡¯s host, was exhausted after greeting many of the guests.

    Apanied by Lysithea, he entered the resting room.

    ¡°¡ªThis is really backbreaking. Has the Count been doing this on a daily basis? How incredible.¡±

    Lysithea chided Cleo forining, but she sounded somewhat happy as well.

    ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to the Count sowing the seeds for us. It seems like he made a lot of moves while he remained behind at the Capital. Now, so many people would move under your name. You¡¯re no longer as powerless as you used to be.¡±

    Liam had invited promising aristocrats to the party.

    Of course, he hadn¡¯t done so himself. In reality, it was the work of Wace.

    ¡°All I did was stand on the battlefield.¡±

    Cleo had not done anything.

    Tia had been the de factomanding general, and it was the talented knight named us that made all the fine adjustments.

    ¡°That aside, I didn¡¯t see the Count anywhere.¡±

    ¡°It seems like he will be returning to his territory. Therge-scale demonstration has calmed down, but he must still be worried about the situation.¡±

    Lysithea was impressed by Liam¡¯s patience that had allowed him to remain in the Capital while all this was happening.

    Cleo, however, didn¡¯t look as happy.

    ¡°¡ªThe Count is capable everything. He¡¯s theplete antithesis of me.¡±

    Cleo was fighting against his brother for the seat of the Emperor, but he was just a figurehead.

    He had epted this, but it wasn¡¯t a pleasant feeling.

    ¡°Even if I¡¯m not here, the people would be convinced as long as he¡¯s around.¡±

    ¡°Did you say something?¡±

    Lysithea was so excited about the future that she had missed Cleo¡¯s mutter.

    He had ovee the crisis and gained enough power to fight the Calvin Faction on the same ying field.

    It should¡¯ve been a happy asion.

    Cleo shook his head, not wanting to douse Lysithea¡¯s excitement with cold water.

    ¡°No, nothing.¡±

    ¡ó

    The Guide had returned to the Capital.

    The grudges from those that the expeditionary force destroyed and the hatred from those present in the Capital.

    The Guide hade to challenge Liam with all the negative emotions that he had collected without any regards.

    ¡°Liam! Today will be the day that I¡ª!!¡±

    The Guide had been incensed when he learnt that he couldn¡¯t destroy the android known as Amagi, and he was further angered by the fact that his actions had been meaningless and that he had ultimately led Liam to his victory.

    He had been forced to confront reality after a period of being on Cloud Nine, so he was naturally angered to the point where he lost himself.

    When he heard that Liam was at the spaceport preparing to head back to his territory, the Guide went straight for him.

    ¡°THERE YOU AREEE!¡±

    Liam was taking Rinho, Fuuka, and Ellen around his battleship, which was his pride and joy.

    They were walking in the corridors of the needlessly luxurious spaceship without any guards protecting them.

    The Guide saw the four¡¯s open backs and morphed the negative emotion into a de.

    The Guide¡¯s arm turned into a frightening de as the he shot towards Liam¡¯s back.

    ¡°LIAAAAAAAM!!¡±

    ¡ó

    ¡°Amazing, right!? This super dreadnought-ss battleship cost a fortune to build. Some soldiers have been living in it for years!¡±

    Being 3000 meters long, an entire colony is contained within in.

    Although the staffs sometimes change, some of them have been living on the battleship for years.

    Some had even married, and reports say that babies have been born.

    I seriously don¡¯t get it.

    Will the babies grow properly?

    I hear that there¡¯s a school, but I¡¯m still worried.

    I¡¯ve bought this ridiculous battleship for appearance¡¯s sake, but things have progressed beyond my understanding.

    I¡¯ve poured a lot of money to make this iprehensible-yet-luxurious battleship.

    It¡¯s strangely gratifying to see how delighted Fuuka is.

    ¡°This is amazing!! Senior Brother, buy me one as well!¡±

    I wouldn¡¯t mind buying an extra ship or two¡ªbut I¡¯m not allowed to.

    ¡°You think I can purchase a super dreadnought-level battleship at my discretion? I would need Amagi¡¯s permission to do that, and she would never give the permission.¡±

    Just the simple act of assigning a battleship as personal property had her making an unpleasant face.

    If I tell her that I¡¯m giving them to my Junior Sisters, I have no idea what Amagi would say.

    I ordered Nias to build a personal ship for me a while ago, and Amagi scolded me for that.

    It will bepleted soon, so I¡¯m looking forward to receiving it.

    ¡°Che~¡±

    Fuuka seems rather disappointed, but I¡¯ve prepared a present for them.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be so upset. I¡¯ve prepared personal mobile knights for you two. From now on, you would need to train your piloting skills as well.¡±

    Rinho fiddles with her hair, perhaps because she¡¯s not interested.

    ¡°Men seem to like robots, but they¡¯re all the same when they¡¯re cut into pieces.¡±

    I see, so she¡¯s not interested in them.

    Ellen¡¯s eyes are shining.

    ¡°Master, I-I want one too!¡±

    Sorry, but it¡¯s a no-go for Ellen.

    ¡°It¡¯s too early for you.¡±

    ¡°I-is that so?¡±

    She looks pitiful when she¡¯s feeling down, but Ellen is still young, so I want to raise her slowly.

    Unlike Rinho, Fuuka seems a bit interested in robots.

    ¡°Senior Brother, what sort of mobile knights have you prepared?¡±

    You¡¯ve asked a good question!

    ¡°Actually, I¡¯ve decided to mass-produce my favorite mobile knight. They¡¯re kind of like defective products though.¡±

    I was told that it¡¯s impossible to mass-produce Avid.

    ording to the Seventh Weapons Factory, ¡°it¡¯s not something that ought to be mass-produced¡±.

    Or rather, it can¡¯t be massed-produced.

    Even if I were to gather all the rare metals, the mass-produced knights won¡¯t be able to keep up with Avid¡¯s performance as they won¡¯t have a Machine Heart in them.

    Although they¡¯re inferior products, I opted to prepare two sets of mass-produced Avid-type mobile knights for the girls.

    It terms of performance, they¡¯re worse than Avid, but they¡¯re better than most others.

    Even though they¡¯re considered defective goods, they cost more to build than many of the exclusives out there.

    ¡°Defective products... I don¡¯t feel motivated at all.¡±

    I poke Fuuka¡¯s forehead with my finger when I hear herin.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be greedy. They¡¯re defective, but they cost money and time to build. Others would even say that they¡¯re first-rate.¡±

    What she says doesn¡¯t hurt me in any way though.

    I continue to walk forward happily.

    Ellen strikes up a conversation after noticing my mood.

    ¡°Master, did something good happen?¡±

    Seems like she understands how I¡¯m feeling.

    ¡°Yeah. Turns out it was a moreplete victory than I thought.¡±

    We¡¯ve gained enough power to rival Calvin, I got to meet my two Junior Sisters, and my disciple is growing day by day.

    I feel great today.

    This must be all thanks to the Guide.

    I¡¯ve been busy as ofte and have been neglecting my gratitude towards the Guide.

    I¡¯m sure he did his best to provide me with after-service this time around as well.

    Coincidentally, we pass by the ce where I¡¯ve ced a statue of the Guide.

    It¡¯s a statue made out of gold.

    ¡°¡ªYou guys should pray here.¡±

    Rinho makes an exasperated expression.

    ¡°What¡¯s up with the sudden order?¡±

    ¡°Speak less and pray more. Dedicate your gratitude to this statue over here!¡±

    Stunned by my order to suddenly pray, Fuuka and Rinho stare at one another.

    ¡°What should we do?¡±

    ¡°Well~ since it¡¯s Senior Brother¡¯s order, I guess we can y along.¡±

    Ellen is raring to go.

    ¡°Master, I¡¯m ready to thanks him lots!¡±

    ¡°Well said! Now, express your gratitude towards the statue!¡±

    ¡ó

    The three prayed to the statue under the instruction of Liam.

    Rinho didn¡¯t even know who she was supposed to be thanking.

    (If I¡¯m grateful to anyone, it would be Master Yasushi.)

    Of course, the same went for Fuuka.

    (I just have to thank Master Yasushi, right?)

    Last but not least, Ellen expressed her gratitude towards Liam.

    (Thanks so much for letting me meet Master!)

    The trio¡¯s feelings of genuine gratitude were poured into the golden statue of the Guide.

    ¡ó

    Liam and the others had stopped walking, and the Guide was ready to jump up on them.

    ¡°LIAM, THIS IS THE EEEEN...eh?¡±

    The four had abruptly turned around to bow down before a golden statue of himself.

    What on earth are they doing?

    The prayers containing Liam and the others¡¯ gratitude gathered around the golden statue.

    A golden statue of the Guide had been prepared such that Liam could express his gratitude wherever he was.

    The statue began to shine, but this was only visible to the Guide.

    ¡°T-too bright!!¡±

    Just as the Guide was being scorched by the golden light, a sword emerged from the golden statue.

    The sword¡¯s de was made out of gold, and it was the embodiment of the prayers from the sessors of the School of One-sh, tempered by their genuine feelings of gratitude.

    That alone would have been poison to the Guide, but it became even more lethal with the addition of Liam¡¯s gratitude.

    ¡°S-sto¡ª¡±

    The sword was embedded on the Guide¡¯s chest before he could yell for it to stop.

    The de was burning the Guide¡¯s body from within, and it was spreading deadly poison throughout his body.

    ¡°NOOOOOOOOOO!!¡±

    Liam¡¯s gratitude was overflowing, and it was being transmitted to the Guide via the sword¡¯s de.

    The de also contained an extraordinary gratitude towards Yasushi and Liam.

    There were more swords of gold floating around him, and the Guide was struck by them one after another.

    They weren¡¯t from Liam¡¯s gratitude alone.

    In fact, they originated from a variety of different sources.

    ¡°BUT I HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH THOOOOOOOOOSE¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡±

    And atst, the Guide¡¯s body copsed from an overload of gratitude, leaving only his top-hat behind.

    Just like that, the top-hat sank to the ground and disappeared.

 Chapter 104 - V6 Chapter 15. Epilogue

    <strong>V6 Chapter 15. Epilogue</strong>

    Inside the mansion of the Banfield Family, there stood the figures of Rinho and Fuuka in their maid uniforms.

    The maid outfits prepared for them were of the cute variety, and they wore them while looking as if they had been forced to swallow a bitter bug.

    As they were from the same school of swordsmanship, Liam had given them special treatment by having these uniforms custom-made for them.

    The two felt unbearably mortified.

    Even if they had to wear skirts, they preferred the cool-looking ones, yet the maid outfits that they were wearing were frilly and flowery, shaming them to no end.

    ¡°Why do I have to wear these kinds of clothes?¡±

    Rinho really hated the situation.

    Fuuka, on the other hand, was feeling embarrassed, and her usually bullish attitude was nowhere to be found.

    ¡°A-as if I¡¯d look good in this outfit!¡±

    Serena, who had been appointed as their instructor, was present before their eyes.

    Receiving education directly from Serena, the head maid, was a clear indication of favoritism.

    ¡°Such a barbaric pair of children.¡±

    They had prior knowledge when it came to basic etiquette, but they were no good as maids.

    They strongly viewed themselves as swordswomen, and their violent behaviors stood out.

    Hearing Serena¡¯s evaluation, Rinho unleashed her aura as a swordswoman.

    ¡°Hah? Are you getting carried away? My sword¡¯s been taken away, but I can still kill an ugly woman like¡ª¡±

    A child was watching them from the shadows.

    Fuuka noticed this and elbowed Rinho to shut her up.

    ¡°Oof!¡±

    While Rinho tended to her elbowed waist, Fuuka pointed at the figure behind them in a hurry.

    ¡°Ya idiot! Ellen¡¯s watching!¡±

    In response, Rinho, still clutching her waist, pretended tough.

    Ellen stared at them from the shadows.

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯ll be telling Master about this.¡±

    Even as she smiled, Rinho¡¯s expression turned blue upon hearing Ellen¡¯s words.

    ¡°Ellen, this was but a trivial matter. Just not to Senior Brother....please spare us from Senior Brother!¡±

    It was partially Yasushi¡¯s fault that they were so afraid of Liam.

    He had always watched over them warmly and never yelled or beat them even when he was scolding them.

    However, Liam was different.

    He was extremely strict, and he never hesitated to pull out his sword when they misbehaved.

    As they had attained a certain level of skill as swordswomen, he showed no mercy to his Junior Sisters.

    If anyone in the mansion dared defy Liam¡¯s orders, they would truly be forced to vomit blood.

    Under Ellen¡¯s scrutiny, the two feigned obedience in front of Serena.

    ¡°We¡¯ll be under your care, Head Maid!¡±

    ¡°Please go easy on us!¡±

    Seeing how energetic the girls were, Serena worried about the future.

    ¡°Really, if it hadn¡¯t been for Lord Liam¡¯s request, I would¡¯ve refused to take care of you two.¡±

    Would I be able to educate them well?

    Serena felt anxious.

    ¡ó

    In the underground basement of the Banfield Family¡¯s mansion, there¡¯s a space where only a select few are permitted to enter.

    It¡¯s where the ck Ops headed by Kukuri resides.

    I¡¯vee to visit, and I¡¯m currently staring at what¡¯s inside a huge casket.

    ¡°¡ªSo thirty of you died.¡±

    Due to the rampage in the Capital, the ck Ops under Kukuri has lost around thirty personnel.

    I¡¯m not feeling particrly disheartened though.

    After all, we were able to shave off a considerable portion of the ck Ops moving under the instructions of the Empire and Calvin.

    Kukuri who is standing next to me appears apologetic.

    ¡°Please forgive them as their deaths were not in vain.¡±

    ¡°You state the obvious. They have died for my sake. Naturally, their deaths were meaningful ones.¡±

    ¡ªThe dead do not betray.

    Nobody knows what they¡¯ll be like when they reincarnate, but it doesn¡¯t change the fact that they haveid down their lives for me.

    They did not betray me until the very end, and for that, they deserve my respect.

    Only the living can betray others.

    That¡¯s why I refuse to put my trust in humans.

    Having said that, those that perished for my sake deserve respect.

    I heard that the ck Ops will be conducting a funeral, so I¡¯ve carried myself here to send the dead on their way.

    ¡°What will you do with the bodies?¡±

    Kukuri answers calmly.

    ¡°Our bodies contain the secrets to our techniques, so we will be dissecting them, leaving nothing behind. Those that live on this side of the world are destined to disappear without a trace after their deaths.¡±

    What a sad reality.

    I wanted to bury them in graves, but they¡¯ve refused even that.

    They¡¯re really thorough with their work.

    ¡°¡ªKukuri, I shall give you a reward.¡±

    ¡°Pardon? Have we not already received one?¡±

    I¡¯m the type of person that gives preferential treatment to those around me.

    Since I don¡¯t have to fret over financial problems, I can reward people with however much I want to.

    Nevertheless, as an evil lord, I must be stingy.

    I spend a lot on myself, but whether I¡¯m generous to others depends only on my mood.

    Thus, I only bestow rewards upon those that have been of service to me.

    Recently, however, a lot of good things have happened.

    Tia has shielded me without regards for her own life, and Kukuri and his subordinates have put their lives on the line to fulfill my orders.

    They have all risked their lives for me.

    For their service, I don¡¯t mind rewarding them.

    ¡°You guys have been of great help to me. Hence, I will be preparing a reward for you and your men. Is there anything that you would like?¡±

    Say anything!¡ªis something I would not say.

    After all, I have no intention of entertaining unreasonable requests!

    Kukuri and his subordinates seem confused for a while, but eventually¡ª

    ¡°¡ªThen can we have a for our own use?¡±

    ¡°A?¡±

    ¡°We have lost our mother. If Lord Liam can be so kind as to bestow us with a that is in good condition, we would like to designate it as our new mother.¡±

    I check their list of conditions. There seems to be only one such within my territory that is suitable for them.

    Some people are living on the, but they only number tens of millions.

    Kukuri kneels before me.

    ¡°I have long wished for the revival of my family. To that end, please grant me somend.¡±

    A hidden vige where the ck Ops reside.

    What a romantic idea.

    It would also be to my advantage if there are more of Kukuri and his subordinates.

    ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll chase away the ones that are living on the straight away.¡±

    ¡°There is no need to go that far, Lord Liam. It would be more convenient for us if there are residents there.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Very well. I¡¯ll swiftly prepare everything that you need.¡±

    Every member of my ck Ops kneels down before me, but I have them stand back up since we¡¯re in a funeral.

    I ce a flower in the casket.

    ¡°¡ªThe dead do not betray. You have been loyal to me until the end. Until you are born again, sleep in peace.¡±

    ¡ó

    Back inside the Banfield Family¡¯s mansion, Ciel, who worked as a maid, was reminiscing her busy days at the Capital.

    ¡°¡ªI wasn¡¯t able to do anything.¡±

    She had tried to reveal Liam¡¯s true nature, but she hadn¡¯t been able to do anything at all.

    In fact, she had only witnessed the hard-working side of Liam.

    He had been sent to a local government office as an intern, but he ended up cleaning up the corrupt workce.

    Not only that, he supported the expeditionary force behind the scene and held parties on a daily basis, enthusiastically working for the Cleo Faction.

    She tried to find some clue, but he was so serious that there were none to be found.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on? What¡¯s up with him? He¡¯s behaving like a perfectly capable lord. Then why is it that he reeks of a small fry, even more so than the others!?¡±

    No matter whom she asked, people responded by saying, ¡°Lord Liam is a wonderful lord!¡±

    None of them questioned Liam¡¯s true nature.

    What¡¯s more, as Ciel worked under Rosetta who was close to Liam, she often received jealous looks from the others.

    ¡°It¡¯s not as enviable a position as you people think it is! The people here are all too blind to see the truth!¡±

    She couldn¡¯t tell why they were so drunk on Liam.

    While she busied herself in cleaning the room, Rosetta came over.

    ¡°Ciel, so you were here.¡±

    She had apparently been searching for Ciel.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta? I would¡¯ve been at your service if you had called for me!¡±

    Why was this woman roaming around in search of her own servant?

    It made no sense to her.

    ¡°I wanted to check and see if you were doing well. We¡¯re no longer at the Capital, so it¡¯s my duty to check on you to make sure you¡¯re adapting well to your life in the mansion!¡±

    Ciel was the daughter of a Baron that directly served the Empire.

    She had a higher positionpared to the children sent over by Liam¡¯s subordinate houses, and she was the first official student to havee to the Banfield Family for training.

    As such, she was treated differently from the children of Liam¡¯s subordinates.

    If Ciel¡¯s training went well, other aristocrats would also rush to send their children here.

    This, in turn, would increase the number of connections that the family could make with other aristocrats.

    As a cherry on top, popr training sites were often revered as prestigious houses.

    (Our families are both from the countryside, yet the manners taught here are as strict as those taught in the Capital. Objectively speaking, the education here is nice, and it¡¯s a good ce for people to train.)

    Serena, the head maid, was strict, but she was someone that had served as the Empire¡¯s imperial head maid for several years.

    Brian was not without ws, but he performed his duties well as a butler.

    Rosetta was strict as well, but she was gentle in nature, taking care of Ciel and guiding her patiently.

    It was the ideal environment for training.

    The only qualm she had was with Liam.

    Rosetta, on the other hand, was delighted to see that Ciel was working diligently.

    ¡°You seem to be doing well in the mansion as well. Since that¡¯s the case, the day when you finish your training and return to your parent¡¯s house is drawing near. I¡¯d be lonely without you though.¡±

    She appeared truly lonely.

    (She¡¯s such a kind-hearted person. Why did she have to fall in love with Liam of all people? Setting aside the others, I want this person to be aware of the truth.)

    Ciel hoped that Rosetta would open up her eyes to the reality.

    ¡ó

    Inside the borders of the United Kingdoms of Oxis, the Henfrey Chamber of Commerce was traversing through space.

    Among their fleet, there was one particrly eye-catching spaceship that looked extra luxurious.

    Thomas had boarded this ship and was personally dealing with Count Norden.

    Count Norden had lost his position in the United Kingdoms and was relying on the Henfrey Chamber of Commerce to escape abroad.

    He was nning on intruding upon Baron Norden, one of Liam¡¯s subordinates.

    In the past, their families had been rtives connected through blood.

    Relying on this fact, he was having Thomas escort him there.

    Inside the ship, he was drinking alcohol in an attempt to forget about his anxieties.

    ¡°Thomas, this is all your fault, so it¡¯s your responsibility to escort me to safety! Damn it! Why is this happening to me?¡±

    Thomas was watching him with cold eyes.

    Realizing that they were about to enter the Empire¡¯s territory, he cut straight to the point.

    Until now, he had been listening to whatever Count Norden said without interjecting.

    ¡°¡ªCount Norden.¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°We, the Henfrey Chamber of Commerce, are merchants that have their main office in Lord Liam¡¯s territory.¡±

    ¡°And what about it? If it¡¯s about money, haven¡¯t I paid you already? Just shut up and help me escape to a safe ce. Don¡¯t tell me that you, a merchant, is fixated on loyalty. Merchants are just a bunch of money-grubbers after all.¡±

    ¡°Those are some harsh words. It¡¯s true that merchants ce a lot of emphasis on earning money. Be that as it may¡ªI¡¯m still someone that knows about gratitude and honor. I¡¯ve received Lord Liam¡¯s assistance countless times in the past. Don¡¯t you think it would be disadvantageous for my merchant group to help you when you¡¯ve betrayed Lord Liam? ¡±

    Count Norden snorted in derision.

    ¡°As long as you keep it under the wraps, no one would notice anyway. This is something that everyone does. Just be upfront about it and tell me how much it would cost for you to betray Liam.¡±

    Count Norden, after being stripped of his title as an aristocrat, had abandoned his home and his family to escape by himself.

    All he had left was the fortune he had gained by betraying Liam.

    In addition, despite his current plight, Count Norden was formerly an aristocrat.

    With his knights protecting him, he was confident that he could deal with a merchant or two.

    Although he had run off without his family, he had brought along his knights.

    That was why he did not bother correcting his arrogant attitude.

    The reason why Count Norden had turned to Thomas for help was because none of thepanies in the United Kingdoms agreed to help him.

    As Norden was a traitor to the United Kingdoms, helping him would mean they would no longer be able to conduct business. As such, they refused despite all the money they were offered.

    With its main base inside the Empire¡¯s territory, the only willing party was the Henfrey Chamber of Commerce. That was why he had no choice but to rely on Thomas.

    His n was to seek refuge and flee to his distant rtive, Baron Norden.

    Liam wouldn¡¯t expect the traitor to be hiding right under his nose.

    In this sense, Baron Norden was a traitor as well.

    ¡°Count Norden, please know that I¡¯m not the only one dissatisfied with the happenings this time around.¡±

    ¡°Ah?¡±

    Suddenly, the spaceship shook.

    ¡°W-what!?¡±

    An rm warned Count Norden and his knights that intruders havee on board.

    The sound of footsteps was heard, and the door to the room was quickly kicked down.

    A woman wearing a purple power-suit entered.

    The sword in her hands had saw-toothed de, and it was rotating like a chainsaw.

    It was a vicious weapon designed to maim people.

    ¡°Found. You~¡±

    When the visor to her helmet opened, the helmet folded itself up and was stored away.

    The woman whose face was now in the open looked ecstatic.

    Behind her were some angry-looking knights.

    Norden¡¯s knights tried to attack them with their weapons, but all of them were obliterated by the knights that entered.

    Shocked, Norden¡¯s eyes shot open.

    Meanwhile, Marie was thanking Thomas.

    ¡°Thomas-dono, thank you for relying on me. You were right to call me instead of that minced-up woman. You have good eyes.¡±

    Marie, who had been assigned to protect Liam¡¯s territory, had dragged along hundreds of battleships for this endeavor.

    Thomas made a troubled face.

    ¡°He¡¯s all yours.¡±

    Marie¡¯s hatchet-like weapon was making a high-pitched sound that was painful to listen to.

    ¡°Norden! Your crime of betraying Lord Liam is a heavy one! I¡¯ll slowly teach you all your sins by carving them into your body. Don¡¯t worry. I have lots of medicine, so you won¡¯t be dying anytime soon.¡±

    There was a simr air surrounding the knights around her.

    ¡°Death to the traitor!¡±

    ¡°Kill Lord Liam¡¯s enemy!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s showtiiiiiiime!¡±

    Norden looked over to Thomas for help, but the person in question was already about to leave the room.

    He screamed as the knights pushed him to the ground.

    ¡°SPARE MEEEEEEEE!¡±

    Marie grinned.

    ¡°No. Way.¡±

    ¡ó

    The United Kingdoms was in a dispute over who should take responsibility for the war that they had lost.

    ¡°¡ªOya? By that way, what happened to Norden?¡±

    Liam had been rxing in his room and reading the news on his terminal with his back on the sofa.

    He recalled the circumstances surrounding Norden when he came across an article about the United Kingdoms.

    He decided to ask the question to Amagi, who was preparing drinks in the room.

    ¡°I received a report saying that he had been disposed of by Thomas and Marie.¡±

    Liam yawned.

    ¡°I was wondering where Marie had went. Turns out she was disposing of the traitor, huh? It¡¯s nice to know that she¡¯s working hard.¡±

    Noticing that Amagi had finished preparing tea and sweets, Liam got up to enjoy their smell.

    ¡°The tea that Amagi brews has a nice scent.¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t the leaves used the same as before?¡±

    ¡°The tea that you brew is different from others.¡±

    ¡°Is that how it is?¡±

    Was Liam talking about a very subtle difference?

    When Amagi looked up at Liam, she remembered the events that transpired on that day.

    (In the end, what kind of existence was that? He kept shouting Master¡¯s name until the end.)

    The mysterious existence had appeared in the shape of a man, but he was definitely not human.

    A lot of ¡°noise¡± was detected in the image when she tried to look at him.

    One thing was for certain: the existence was not friendly to humans.

    (Is Master being targeted? If so¡ª)

    Amagi was worried about Liam being targeted by an alien creature.

    Liam, on the other hand, was as carefree as ever.

    ¡°Hm? Where¡¯s Brian? I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve seen him today.¡±

    Upon seeing how carefree Liam was, Amagi decided to just y along like usual.

    That was the only thing that she could do.

    ¡°He has a day off today. I heard him say that he will be going out to eat with his grandchildren.¡±

    ¡°Brian¡¯s grandchildren, huh? I¡¯ll be paying for their meal. It¡¯s good to have him feel indebted in asions like these.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    ¡ó

    In the outer space, tiny limbs were growing out of the Guide¡¯s tophat that was floating about.

    A mouth appeared on the tophat as well, and it was grinding its teeth in regret.

    ¡°Damn it¡ªDamn it¡ª¡±

    He was crying.

    ¡ªThe Guide had not died yet.

    ¡°I can¡¯t win.¡±

    He couldn¡¯t even get close to Liam.

    The gratitude that Liam received from the people inside and outside his territory allowed him obtain a tremendous amount of power despite being human.

    Even in his heyday, the Guide might not have been able to win.

    That said, the Guide had not given up.

    ¡°I won¡¯t give up on revenge. I¡¯ll definitely end Liam¡¯s life!¡±

    Defeat Liam by any means avable.

    The Guide renewed his determination.

    A dog was watching such a Guide.

    It was dissatisfied by the fact that the Guide was still alive, but it disappeared to somewhere else, perhaps believing that it would be fine to leave him alone for now.

    The Guide roared.

    ¡°I admit defeat for today, but I shall definitely return. LIAAAAAAAAAAAAM¡ª¡±

    The Guide was drifting in space, heading to God knew where.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Brian ????(?§¥`)????: ¡°Lord Liam! This Brian is so moved that my tears refuse to stop flowing!¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°This marks the end of Volume 6. We won¡¯t be seeing each other for a while, but please be well until we meet again.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°Thoughts, impressions, and reviews are always wee! You can always writements down below, so feel free do so.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (©b§Õ©b): ¡°Oh, but please follow the rules and keep them appropriate!¡±

 Chapter 105 - V7 Prologue

    V7 Prologue

    The intergctic nation known as the Algrand Empire.

    Is it possible for an aristocratic government headed by an emperor to establish an intergctic nation?

    Some might ask such a question, but they have it all wrong.

    Considering the sheer size of an intergctic nation, it¡¯s impossible for a ruler to manage one by himself.

    Taking into ount the cost to rule over such a vast expanse ofnd, it¡¯s better to leave the management to other people, and that¡¯s why the system of aristocracy was revived.

    There seems to have been other things going on in the past, but I honestly don¡¯t care about such details.

    What¡¯s important is that I, [Liam Sera Banfield], am a Count of arge empire, and I have control over severals.

    ¡°Everything inside my territory is mine. This includes the lives of the inhabitants. What do you say to this?¡±

    I¡¯ve returned to my territory, and I¡¯m in front of a beautiful woman in the drawing room of my mansion.

    A tall elf with long ears is sitting in front of me in a folk dress.

    The mesmerizing dress is both thin and white, highlighting the elf¡¯s body-line.

    The embroidery on it is of a unique design as well.

    The female elf has wless white skin and blue eyes.

    She¡¯s so beautiful, in fact, that it seems almost fake.

    ¡ªIt¡¯s honestly repulsive.

    Two other equally tall elves are standing next to her, serving as guards and staring down at me who¡¯s sitting on the sofa.

    They¡¯re pretending like they¡¯re just on guard against me, but I¡¯m sure they¡¯re looking down on me in their hearts.

    Elves were once considered a race with a long lifespan, but the world has be a ce where humans could live for over 500 years.

    As Elves could only live for around 300 years, they¡¯re now treated as short-lived species.

    What¡¯s more, unlike us humans, their forces are few in number, so they hold a weak position in society.

    Despite all this, they slight humans and behave arrogantly because they believe that they are being sought after.

    It¡¯s true that many people are still fascinated by Elves.

    One of the well-established theories states that humans are attracted to Elves in part due to their physical beauty, but more so because of their charming magic power.

    Elves are mystical creatures even in this world.

    Not that I care though.

    As for why I¡¯m showing them such a brazen attitude, it¡¯s because we¡¯re in my territory, and they¡¯re demanding me to ¡°return¡± one of thes that I own.

    The female elf before me is of a special race called the High Elf, and she is treated as royalty among the other elves.

    That might exin why she seems to be looking down on me.

    ¡°An ideology befitting an aristocrat. However, I¡¯d like to point out that the under the Count was originally our ancestors¡¯ hometown.¡±

    ¡°That wastnd of a was once your ancestors¡¯ hometown? And now that I¡¯ve finally seeded in bringing back the vegetation, you want me to return it to you? What a convenient story. I never knew that Elves were such a shameless race.¡±

    Provoked, the two knights acting as guards narrow their eyes.

    In contrast, the Elf Queen remains calm.

    ¡°Our hometown has been restored. Surely, this must be the universe¡¯s way of telling us Elves to return to our hometown and prosper. I hear that there¡¯s a World Tree on the restored. Lord Count must be having some trouble taking care of the World Tree, no?¡±

    World Tree¡ªa sacred nt that produces elixir.

    Humans are said to be incapable of taking care of one.

    If we could secure a reliable source of elixir, it would indeed benefit the territory, but I¡¯m not interested at the moment.

    If I want to obtain elixirs, I just have to hunt some pirates.

    By defeating them, I would gain the right to their possessions.

    I can turn debris into resources with the Alchemy Box and convert the pirates¡¯ soul to elixirs using theary Development Device.

    Working one¡¯s fingers to the bone?

    Nay, as an evil lord, I make sure that I don¡¯t leave anything behind, not even their souls.

    In essence, the pirates are my wallet.

    They go around rampaging and collecting treasures all so that they couldy down their lives to profit me.

    As long as pirates exist, I won¡¯t face any troubles.

    But then again...

    Having a World Tree under one¡¯s control is a symbol of status for a lord.

    In a discussion between aristocrats, I would be able to boast that ¡°there¡¯s a World Tree in my territory!¡±

    In that sense, there¡¯s no harm in keeping these Elves.

    ¡°Hmm, fine. I¡¯ll think about it. If you¡¯re willing to work for me, the least I can do is let you guys exist.¡±

    I say this in a condescending manner.

    In return, the Elves smile at me with murderous intent.

    ¡ªWell, not like they could kill me with that.

    Amagi, who has been listening to the conversation, reminds me of my next appointment.

    ¡°Master, your next guests are about to arrive.¡±

    ¡°There are quite a lot of them today.¡±

    I¡¯ve been having simr conversations with dozens of others since the morning.

    Whenever I return to the mansion, guests always flood here.

    The Elves leave the room.

    ¡ó

    There were wrinkles on the Elf Queen¡¯s forehead as she left the room.

    ¡°How dare that filthy human brat¡ª¡±

    Despite being much younger than her, he remained brazen until the very end.

    The queen was annoyed that Liam had not bowed before her beauty.

    All the humans that she had dealt with until now were more than happy to see her.

    The aristocrats were no exception.

    However, her beauty had been ineffective against Liam.

    One of her guards spoke to her.

    ¡°But a with a World Tree is very precious. We must get our hands on it.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re right. Our n can prosper so long as we continue to produce elixirs. Even if we happen to squeeze the World Tree dry, we should be fine for the next few centuries.¡±

    Elves were indeed a race capable of taking care of the World Trees, but these World Trees often died prematurely after a couple hundred years when they should have been able to live for tens of thousands of years.

    This was because the Elves prospered by squeezing the World Trees dry of elixirs, destroying thes in the process.

    There were many such Elves, and the Elves that truly desired to protect the World Trees resented them for their actions.

    At the same time, there were some groups of Elves that could not tolerate being treated like ethnic minorities in the intergctic nations when they should have been revered and held in high regards.

    As they walked down the huge corridor, they came across the next set of guests which consisted of a tall man and a short one.

    The difference in their sizes was apparent.

    The short man was only around 1.2 meters tall.

    On the other hand, the tall one was 2 meters in height.

    Both of them were wearing suits, but they appeared so out of ce that the Elf Queenughed at them.

    The short man was a Goblin while the tall man was an Orc.

    From a human¡¯s point of view, they looked vastly inferior to the Elves.

    The two men¡¯s expression became ugly when they saw the Elf Queen and her guards approaching them from the other side of the corridor.

    From an evolutionary standpoint, Elves, Goblins, and Orcs in this world shared amon ancestor.

    However, the Elves had evolved to be beautiful while the Goblins and the Orcs had not.

    They were all treated as minorities in this universe, and the Elf Queen had a rough idea as to why they hade to visit Liam.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure that you¡¯re here to ask for the containing the World Tree, but you were a little toote. The Count would choose us for sure. Ugly beings like you should continue to wander in space.¡±

    Both the Goblin race and the Orc race were capable of managing the World Tree, but they were often deprived of their hometown because of their ugly appearances.

    This was because the Elves would manipte the humans into chasing out the two races, upying theirs after they were gone.

    Aristocrats preferred having beautiful Elves on theirs, even if they were the culprits behind the World Trees wilting.

    To begin with, humans didn¡¯t know that Elves were causing the World Trees¡¯ deaths, and they wouldn¡¯t believe it even if they were told such.

    This, ironically enough, was because of the existence of Elves that took their job of managing the World Trees seriously.

    The Goblin and the Orc that came to visit Liam were part of those that had to roam the universe after being chased out by the Elves.

    It was difficult for them to survive on a that did not have a World Tree, so they had been wandering in space looking for a which had one.

    The Goblin was seemingly aware of what the Elf Queen was plotting.

    ¡°It¡¯s sphemous to purposely have the sacred World Tree wilt and have its destroyed-gobu. Besides, that¡¯s also the hometown for us Goblins and Orcs-gobu.¡±

    One of thes that Liam owned just happened to be their ancestors¡¯ hometown, and it used to have a World Tree that was deemed outstanding even in this world¡¯s standards.

    The ones that made it wilt¡ªwere the Elves.

    The Orc also protested vehemently.

    ¡°How many World Trees have you killed, and how manys have you destroyed? Just how many must die until your people are satisfied!?¡±

    The Elf Queen mocked the two for their seriousness.

    ¡°So what? That¡¯s how we Elves keep ourselves fed. Be it the World Trees, thes that they¡¯re on, or the lives on theses, they all exist to be the source of our food. No matter how much you struggle, that willnd in our hands. None of the humans understand the true value of the World Trees anyway. That little brat will surely have us manage his World Tree.¡±

    Even so, the Goblin had his faith in Liam.

    ¡°¡ªCount Banfield is someone that¡¯s hailed as a virtuous lord-gobu. As long as we exin things properly, he will definitely understand-gobu.¡±

    The Elf Queen shed a fearless smile.

    ¡°A virtuous lord? That brat is just another human, and he¡¯ll no doubt choose the beautiful Elves over ugly beings like you.¡±

    Yes, that was how the world worked.

    However, they weren¡¯t aware of one important fact.

    ¡ªLiam Sera Banfield was someone that aspired to be an evil lord.

    ¡ó

    A Goblin and an Orc have arrived.

    I knew that Goblins and Orcs existed, but this is my first time actually meeting them.

    I¡¯ve been anticipating this meeting much more than the meeting with the Elves.

    ¡°Lord Count, please let us take care of the World Tree. As for what World Trees are¡ª¡±

    The Orc goes through a lot of effort to exin things to me.

    Apparently, the original purpose of World Trees isn¡¯t to produce elixirs.

    Something about their very existence being meaningful¡ªto sum it up, they have spiritual value.

    Anyway, I¡¯m not really interested in what they have to say.

    However, I am interested in the Goblin and the Orc themselves.

    ¡ªDon¡¯t you think they fit in with the image of an evil lord¡¯s sidekick better than the Elves?

    Those domineering Elves aren¡¯t exactly my cup of tea.

    If I had to choose, I¡¯d rather employ the Goblins and the Orcs.

    They¡¯ll be my trustypanions that remind me of how evil I am.

    To begin with, I can gather as many beauties as I want, but things are a bit different when ites to gathering Orcs and Goblins.

    You see, there aren¡¯t that many Goblins and Orcs in this world, so they¡¯re considered rarities.

    I thought there would be a lot more Goblins and Orcs roaming around, but that doesn¡¯t seem to be the case.

    Either way, I¡¯m nning on having people take care of the World Tree for the sake of putting up appearance, and I¡¯d rather employ them than the Elves.

    The Goblin begins saying something out of desperation.

    ¡°Lord Count, us Goblins will spare no effort in supporting you-gobu. I implore Lord Count to give ourpanions salvation-gobu.¡±

    ¡°Willing to spare no effort in supporting me, you say¡ªI like it.¡±

    The Goblin-and-Orc duo raises their heads.

    ¡°Gobu!?¡±

    ¡°Eh!?¡±

    They look utterly surprised. Did they not have high hopes?

    They must have thought that I¡¯d choose the Elves, but I can always catch the Elves anytime I want.

    Hmm, now that I think about it, it wouldn¡¯t be a bad idea to have them under these two¡¯s captivity so that things develop in the direction of those doujins.

    The idea reeks of evil and corruption.

    There was this one junior in the past that was very enthusiastic about doujins.

    Something about an evil lord doing something to the Elves...

    It seems like Goblins and Orcse out often in those scenarios.

    ¡°I¡¯ll bestow you with the that has the World Tree. You two will henceforth work for me.¡±

    ¡°Y-yes, sir!¡ªBut what exactly will we be tasked to do?¡±

    The Orc replies in a hurry, but it seems like he has no idea what their job entails.

    What a blunder. I only have a rudimentary understanding of those matters, and I don¡¯t know what I¡¯m supposed to have them do either.

    The thing is, I wasn¡¯t really paying attention when we were having that conversation about doujins.

    Sorry, junior.

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯ll call for you guys when the need arises. For the time being, take care of the World Tree and raise it properly.¡±

    ¡°U-understood, gobu!¡±

    I have a magnificent World Tree in my territory!¡ªI just want that kind of bragging rights.

    I¡¯ll hit them up with something when I need their service.

 Chapter 106 - V7 Chapter 1. The Fate Of The Great Factions

    <strong>V7 Chapter 1. The Fate Of The Great Factions</strong>

    The Goblins and the Orcs were allowed to migrate to the containing the World Tree.

    Instead of favoring the Elves, the Banfields had permitted the two ugly races to live in their territory.

    The Elf Queen had returned to her immigrant ship, and she shook in anger upon hearing this news.

    Her eyebrows were furrowed, and she was squeezing the armrests to her throne.

    ¡°¡ªWhy did he not choose us!? Why did he decide on those ugly bastards!?¡±

    The immigrant fleet under the Elf Queen was small, but there were still tens of thousands living there.

    They had been anticipating the moment when they would be able to finally settle on a new piece ofnd.

    However, the negotiation had fallen through.

    She was furious to learn that the Goblins and the Orcs had been chosen instead.

    The Elves on the side were equally baffled.

    Unable to contain her wrath, the Elf Queen roared towards the ceiling.

    ¡°¡ªHow dare a human do this to us! Yes, let¡¯s have the World Tree fall! Since we can¡¯t have it, there¡¯s no need for it to continue existing! With the-Cursing Poison¡ª¡±

    Hearing their angry Queen¡¯s deration, the Elves around her dissuaded her frantically, saying that it was a bad idea.

    The-Cursing Poison was a dangerous substance that was formed from the lingering grudges of a destroyed.

    Once applied, a terrible curse would rapidly spread throughout the entire, and if it was used as poison, the person who drank it would suffer and die miserably.

    Those with weak hearts would die instantaneously, their dead bodies bing the source of spreading misery.

    Disasters were bound to ensue when the poison was used.

    At that moment, a top hat fell from the ceiling without the Elves noticing.

    Small limbs were growing out of the top hat that wasn¡¯t visible to the Elves.

    ¡°Ahh, what an unsightly anger filled to the brim with pride and arrogance. I can soak it up easily since it¡¯s closely tied to Liam.¡±

    The Guide sucked up the Elves¡¯ anger and hatred towards Liam, even inhaling their-Cursing Poison and regaining arge amount of negative energy for the first time in a long while.

    With the overflowing energy, the Guide grew a new body from his top hat and raised his arms into the air.

    ¡°REVIVAL!¡±

    After getting the feel of his new body, the Guide thought about what he should do moving forward.

    ¡°Hmm, I¡¯ve made aeback, but I can¡¯t beat Liam as I am now. If I try to approach him, I¡¯ll have the tables turned on me. Hmmm, something I can do behind Liam¡¯s back¡ªOh, there¡¯s that!¡±

    The Guide thought of using his summoning magic to teleport Liam to a distant that the Empire had no information of.

    However, he soon realized that he didn¡¯t have enough power to perform such a task.

    What else could he do?

    ¡°Let¡¯s have him sent to a that¡¯s performing an otherworldly summoning. That ought to buy me some time. While he¡¯s there, I¡¯ll gather people like these Elves andy ruin to Liam¡¯s territory. If I can also take away his Alchemy Box, he¡¯ll be in for a lot of trouble.¡±

    The Guide¡¯s n was to drive Liam away, weakening the Banfields while the nuisance was gone.

    He would also steal Liam¡¯s Alchemy Box and hisary Development Device, the former of which was the source of his wealth.

    For this n to work, he would have to throw Liam on a where he wouldn¡¯t be able to interfere.

    That being said, as magic existed in this world, there were countermeasures ced to stop people from being kidnapped using summoning magic.

    As the Empire¡¯s Count,yers uponyers of such countermeasures had beenid on Liam.

    ¡°Sending him to a different world altogether would be impossible, but I can certainly have him sent to an undeveloped somewhere in this universe¡ªfor example, a gued by a Demon Lord. I could perhaps manipte the Demon Lord into defeating¡ªno, never mind.¡±

    If Liam could be defeated by a mere Demon Lord, he would not have been driven so far into a corner.

    Besides, if Liam were to disappear, his family would surely dispatch a search party.

    The Guide was just hoping to earn some time for himself.

    With that in mind, he began browsing through variouss, eventually finding one that was suffering under a Demon Lord and considering an other-world summon.

    A Hero was about to be summoned.

    ¡°This is it! If Liam¡¯s gone, I can do as I please in his territory! Let¡¯s quickly get rid of him by getting him involved in the summoning ritual!¡±

    When the Guide left the room, the Elf Queen powerlessly slumped down onto her chair.

    ¡°Your Majesty!?¡±

    The Elves around her looked worried. However, the Queen had let go of her ambitious n.

    Her eyebrows were no longer furrowed, and she appeared to have calmed down¡ªalmost as if she had been dowsed by cold water.

    ¡°I guess using poison is a bit excessive.¡±

    ¡°I-indeed! Even if we were to kill the World Tree, it would have to be after we squeeze out the elixirs!¡±

    Her subordinates were reassured, but the Elf Queen shook her head sideways.

    ¡°That¡¯s too troublesome.¡±

    ¡°Troublesome!? Y-your Majesty, are you unwell?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m thinking of settling down on a peaceful ce. Wandering around in space isn¡¯t that bad, but I want to rx now. Also, I should get married.¡±

    The Elves stared at one another, thinking that it wasn¡¯t a bad idea.

    As beautiful as their Queen was, she wasn¡¯t young.

    The people around her were honestly hoping that she would settle down soon.

    One of the younger Elves, however, failed to read the mood and said, ¡°This is great! After all, Your Majesty¡¯s already over two hundred years ol¡ª¡±

    ¡°Hmph!¡±

    ¡°Kaha!¡±

    The Queen stood up and rammed her fist into the stomach of the young Elf whose mouth had slipped.

    ¡°Now, let¡¯s find a where we can all live together.¡±

    To revive himself, the Guide had sucked away too much of the Elves¡¯ evil intention, and things were about to progress in a strange direction.

    ¡ó

    ¡ªAt the Capital¡ª

    Calvin, the Crown Prince, was the man that Cleo, the Third Prince backed by Liam, was up against in the session battle.

    Calvin¡¯s status as the Crown Prince was once rumored to be as immovable as a mountain, yet Liam had singlehandedly cornered him and raised Cleo up from his overwhelmingly disadvantageous position.

    Many of the aristocrats had left the Calvin Faction, and only his closest aides were left.

    Not only was his influence in the Empire diminishing, words out there were iming that Cleo would be the next Emperor.

    ¡ªCalvin was about to lose his title as the Crown Prince because of Liam¡¯s actions alone.

    However, he had a secret n, and he was smilingfortably in front of the aristocrats that were lined up in the conference room.

    ¡°The bigger the faction, the harder it is to control.¡±

    As someone that had once led thergest faction, Calvin knew this all too well.

    The dumb aristocrats that used to flock to his faction often dragged his entire faction down.

    The bigger the faction, the more problems it would have to face.

    A lot of fools were gathering around the Cleo Faction hoping to get onto the winning ship.

    What they didn¡¯t know was that Calvin was secretly influencing them into doing so.

    The aristocrats around him nodded in agreement.

    ¡°I highly doubt that Liam would be able to control the faction.¡±

    ¡°Agreed. After all, it was extremely hard for us as well.¡±

    ¡°There are bound to be some idiots that tie him down.¡±

    Even if they did nothing, those fools would drag Liam down, and there woulde a day when he would no longer be able to manage the faction.

    Calvin and his subordinates had experience in running a faction. Thus, they were counting on this happening to Liam.

    ¡°We will strike when Liam-kun loses control over the faction. Until that day arrives, we will preserve our war potential.¡±

    For the time being, they decided toy low.

    They hade to the consensus that they would wait and observe the situation without interfering with Liam¡¯s affairs.

    ¡ó

    Brian¡¯s been noisy recently.

    He barges in whenever I¡¯m trying to rx and brings up the issue of having a sessor.

    Since I¡¯m chilling right now, my appearance isn¡¯t the most presentable.

    ¡°Lord Liam, for how long do you n to avoid this issue!¡±

    ¡°Shut up! Don¡¯t intrude upon my private life!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not a private matter! This is of utmost importance for an aristocratic family!¡±

    Brian seems to be concerned about the future of the Banfield Family.

    To be honest, I don¡¯t care at all about the next generation.

    As if I give a damn about raising a sessor.

    Know this¡ªI abhor children.

    ¡°You have no say in what I do with my lower body. I¡¯ve made up my mind already to do as I please.¡±

    ¡°It would do even if the baby¡¯s from artificial insemination. Why not raise a sessor using a capsule?¡±

    Capsules¡ªafter artificial insemination isplete, these devices help raise the children in their mothers¡¯ stead until they grow into infants.

    By using them, the burden on women bes very light.

    When I was reincarnated, I was also born in this manner.

    It¡¯s quite incredible now that I think about it.

    Children can be made without love, and raising them doesn¡¯t put much burden on the parents either.

    I can easily prepare a sessor if I really want to.

    It can be done so easily, and that¡¯s exactly what makes me disgusted.

    ¡°I hate capsules.¡±

    Brian bes apologetic when he hears my response.

    He must be thinking that I¡¯m bothered by the fact that I was born in a capsule.

    I don¡¯t mind it at all, but it¡¯s a hassle to exin things, so I¡¯ll just leave the misunderstanding alone.

    ¡°¡ªThat was inconsiderate of me. That said, this is an important issue that the Banfield Family must address at one point. Lord Liam¡¯s vassals have pledged their allegiance to you alone. No one knows what will happen to the Banfield Family in the unlikely event that Lord Liam perishes.¡±

    ¡°Stop making a fuss about what might happen after I die. It doesn¡¯t concern me at all.¡±

    ¡°Again with this attitude! This is exactly why Lord Liam should raise a sessor! If something happens to Lord Liam, it¡¯d be toote to nominate one!¡±

    ¡°You speak as if I¡¯m about to die!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s because Lord Liam¡¯s constantly getting involved in things that might get you killed!¡±

    Amagi has been preparing tea next to us as we are having this heated discussion.

    I finish drinking the tea is one gulp and ce the cup back onto the table.

    Amagi joins our conversation as she fills the cup again.

    ¡°I believe Brian-dono¡¯s worries are justified.¡±

    ¡°The thing is, Amagi, I¡¯m not even a hundred years old yet. Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s too early for me to be nominating a sessor?¡±

    Being a hundred years old would¡¯ve sounded impressive in my previous world, but in this world, it¡¯s no different from being a greenhorn that¡¯s not even in his twenties.

    I¡¯m technically considered an adult, but I¡¯m yet to be recognized as a functioning member in society.

    From my previous life¡¯s standpoint, it¡¯s like appointing a sessor when I¡¯m only neen years old.

    Brian corrects my misconception.

    ¡°Aristocrats can pass away at any moment. We must be prepared for everything.¡±

    ¡°Got it, got it. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll appoint one eventually.¡±

    ¡°The vassals won¡¯t be convinced unless it¡¯s your real child, Lord Liam!¡±

    My vassals, including Tia and Marie, have sworn their allegiance to me and me alone.

    Brian¡¯s trying to point out that their loyalties don¡¯t lie with the Banfield Family.

    If I disappear and one of my rtives reces me, they won¡¯t be loyal to that person.

    The minimum requirement is for the sessor to be my descendant.

    But it¡¯s not like I¡¯m going to suddenly drop dead.

    After all, I have the Guide, who¡¯s the Goddess of¡ªHuh, Goddess? That doesn¡¯t sound right.

    Anyway, I have someone that brings me luck watching over me.

    I can ovee any crisis, not that I¡¯ve had any of course.

    There can be no obstacles in my life.

    So far, I¡¯ve been able to get past all my problems, and I¡¯m not feeling anxious at all.

    ¡°It¡¯s not your business what I do with the lower part of my body. On that note, don¡¯t you think I should punish the ones that participated in the child-making demonstration?¡±

    A little while ago, no, even now, demonstrations are being held in the territory.

    There was a democratization movement as well, but the problem right now is with the ¡°child making demo¡±.

    Because of the ¡°child-making demo¡±, I was made aughingstock at the court of inquiry.

    I will definitely wash away this humiliation.

    Amagi cocks her head to the side.

    ¡ªStop, you¡¯re being too cute.

    ¡°Master, won¡¯t the demonstrations naturally go away if a sessor is born?¡±

    ¡°I should punish them for going against me! It is a mortal sin to go against me as meremoners in my territory!¡±

    Brian shoves his face in front of mine.

    ¡°Lord Liam!¡±

    ¡°W-what is it!?¡±

    ¡°This Brian wishes to take this opportunity to clear things up. When in the world do you n on bedding Lady Rosetta?¡±

    Rosetta, who used to be a woman of steel, was once my favorite, but she turned out to be an easy woman and started calling me ¡°Darling¡± soon after our engagement.

    I¡¯m not looking for this kind of woman.

    What I want are strong, independent women that hate me from the bottom of their heart and resist me to the bitter end.

    There¡¯s no point inying me hands on easy women.

    ¡°You¡¯re asking me when I¡¯ll be sleeping with her? That¡¯s none of your concern.¡±

    ¡°Lady Rosetta has made up her mind ages ago. Lord Liam is exacerbating the issue because your indecisiveness. Before returning to the Capital, please leave behind a descendant!¡±

    ¡°Stop speaking to me as if I¡¯m a wimp!¡±

    I push Brian away and stand up indignantly.

    Me? A wimp?

    People would think I¡¯m scared of Rosetta or something.

    ¡°I get to decide who I¡¯lly my hands on! Rosetta¡¯s just one of the many girls out there.¡±

    Yes, I¡¯m a man that has decided on building a harem.

    A harem¡ªdoesn¡¯t it sound like something an evil lord would have?

    As an evil lord, I¡¯ll have beautiful women serving me while I¡¯m drinking and doing evil things!

    Brian ignores my determination and corrects my statement.

    ¡°Lord Liam¡ªthere are zero people.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°The number of people in Lord Liam¡¯s harem is still zero. Half a century ago, you have dered that you would have a harem, but the results say otherwise! This Brian is starting to doubt whether Lord Liam is serious about building a harem.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean zero!? I have Amagi! A-and there¡¯s also Rosetta!¡±

    I nce at Amagi, but she shakes her head sideways.

    ¡°As I have said many times in the past, I don¡¯t count. As for what Master has said about Lady Rosetta, she can¡¯t be considered being a part of your harem when she¡¯s the only one in it. What¡¯s more, didn¡¯t Master dere that you won¡¯t be adding Lady Rosetta to your harem?¡±

    Even with Rosetta, there would only be one.

    Only one?

    Nearly a century has passed since I reincarnated, but I¡¯ve hardly made any progress in building a harem.

    ¡°T-then I¡¯ll treat beauties like disposables and¡ªYes, that¡¯s right! I¡¯ll sleep with a beauty every day and throw her away in the next! I¡¯ll begin by gathering the beauties in my territory!¡±

    I say this to avoid the two¡¯s stares of disdain, but Brian¡¯s eyes shoot open the next moment upon hearing me say that I¡¯ll start looking for women.

    ¡°Is that so!? In other words, Lord Liam intends toy his hands on a different woman each day!?¡±

    ¡°O-of course! I should be able to gather them easily. I have the money for it after all!¡±

    From simple calction, this should mean 365 women in a year.

    Dumping a woman after sleeping with her. That¡¯s exactly what an evil lord would do.

    Amagi and Brian nod in unison.

    ¡°It¡¯s not nearly enough, but it should do for now.¡±

    ¡°Indeed. One a day sounds ratherckluster considering how there are over 30,000 concubine candidates waiting in line. If we were to send out a recruitment notice, I¡¯m sure that hundreds of thousands would gather.¡±

    ¡ªEh?

    Brian reveals a thin smile.

    ¡°Even if it¡¯s just one a day, the number would exceed a thousand in three years. It¡¯s a pity that the number is a bit small, but this is progress nheless!¡±

    Amagi concurs.

    ¡°For the time being, we should start by securing a thousand people each year.¡±

    ¡°Since the number¡¯s so small, we should only select the very best out of them all! This Brian can finally have a peace of mind. Three a day would be ideal, but we shouldn¡¯t be too greedy.¡±

    ¡°Once we start recruiting, we¡¯ll be flooded with applications. The number of applicants might even exceed a billion.¡±

    ¡ªCrap.

    I¡¯m a Count that has control over numerouss.

    In a sense, I¡¯m the master of billions.

    If I were to recruit people in earnest, it won¡¯t take any time at all to gather them.

    For some reason, the atmosphere¡¯s more along the lines of ¡°Will that really be enough?¡±

    Brian wipes the sweat off his forehead.

    ¡°I was foolish to assume that I would have to fill up an entire with beautiful women.¡±

    Amagi also mentions something scary.

    ¡°ording to the records, there was an aristocrat whose harem consisted of 10 billion women, and an entire had to be used to amodate them.¡±

    ¡°That would be going a bit too far, but 300 people each year should do very well! I¡¯m just worried that people wouldin about there being too little seats.¡±

    I¡¯ve made an error in judgment, haven¡¯t I?

    Cold sweat trickles down my face as I feel remorseful about belittling this world¡¯s standards.

    ¡°I-I take back what I said.¡±

    ¡°EH!?¡±

    Shocked, Brian stops moving momentarily.

    I think back at my sense of aesthetics.

    ¡°I promised myself that I¡¯ll only collect beauties that I have personally selected. I almost forgot about that. Anyway, I take back what I said.¡±

    Brian protests vehemently.

    ¡°Despite saying that, Lord Liam hasn¡¯t touched anyone until now!¡±

    ¡°S-silence! The point being, I¡¯ll be the one to appoint members to my harem!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s clear that that isn¡¯t wor¡ªLord Liam!?¡±

    Just as I¡¯m wondering how I should save myself from this situation, a magic circle appears by my feet.

    From the knowledge that has been installed, I immediately recognize it as a magic circle from a summoning magic.

    ¡°Wha¡ª¡±

    Measures should have already been taken against such magic, but I¡¯m getting sucked into the circle.

    Brian rushes to me, but he doesn¡¯t make it in time.

    Amagi also reaches out to me, but she¡¯s too far away to grab me.

    ¡ªThus, I get summoned against my will.

    I¡¯m not feeling panicked or surprised though. Instead, what I¡¯m thinking is...

    ¡ªGreat, I managed to escape!

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°What¡¯s this? It seems like a lot of you are sad that I haven¡¯t been appearing! Iya~ being popr is hard~...But you see...¡±

    Wakagi-chan (©bÑÔ©b): ¡°I don¡¯t condone any other nt-based idols aside from me! I¡¯ll have the World Tree killed in no time.¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°What an evil nt. Also, Lord Liam has been taken away. It¡¯s painful.¡±

 Chapter 107 - V7 Chapter 2. Hero Summoning

    <strong>V7 Chapter 2. Hero Summoning</strong>

    ***

    The Kingdom of Aarl, which was once hailed as the continent¡¯s strongest, was about to face imminent destruction.

    [Enora Frau Frauro] was a beautiful blue-eyed princess with blonde hair, and she had recently been crowned the Queen.

    She was only seventeen years old this year, and she had been raised under the careful protection of her parents and those around her.

    However, her parents had copsed and her brothers had perished in the war.

    Hence, the Kingdom of Aarl had no choice but to have Enora ascend to the throne.

    This was all because of the birth of a Demon Lord.

    The Demon Lord had brought along an army of monsters in its wake, and it had been destroying the nations of the continent one after another.

    The Kingdom of Aarl had tried to resist, but in the face of constant defeat, it was left with virtually no military power.

    Now, the country was headed towards its ruin.

    The knights in the audience hall were either extremely old or extremely young.

    Able men had all been sent to the battlefield, and the knights gathered here consisted mostly of children under the age of 15.

    This showed how much of a dire strait the Kingdom was in.

    Enora was sitting on the throne with a scepter in hand which symbolized her sovereignty.

    ¡°Just how many trials has our Lord prepared for us?¡±

    After hearing the reports from her subordinates, Enora felt discouraged.

    The enemies were rapidly approaching the Capital, but she had neither troops not reliable generals to rely on.

    She had barely scrounge together a mishmash of retired generals, knights, and soldiers.

    It was when everything seemed hopeless that an old minister approached her.

    ¡°Your Majesty, we won¡¯t be able to hold on for any longer. The only thing left...¡±

    ¡°I know...We will have to summon a Hero.¡±

    A forbidden technique passed down among those belonging to the Kingdom of Earl.

    A spell to summon forth an other-worldly Hero that can fight against the Demon Lord.

    Heroes were existences capable of defeating the Demon Lord, but the summoning magic was a one-way trip.

    Once a Hero was summoned, the kingdom had to take care of their needs.

    In a sense, it was a double-edged sword.

    If a Hero that could trump even the Demon Lord were to rebel, the kingdom would be hard-pressed to do anything.

    In addition, the Royal Family wasn¡¯t very keen on entrusting the fate of an entire country to someone from a different world.

    ¡°We don¡¯t have time to spare. Start preparing for the Hero Summoning!¡±

    Her vassals replied with the affirmative when Enora stood up to give hermand.

    Enora herself also rushed to the room where the summoning ritual would be held.

    ¡ó

    -In a different world-

    On a known as Earth, a high school girl was returning home from a part-time job that she had after school.

    It was already dark outside.

    The door to her house creaked the moment she tried to enter.

    It was nothing out of the ordinary as she was living in an old apartment building that was poorly constructed.

    ¡°I¡¯m back.¡±

    She told her mother that she was back, but she seemed to be sleeping with the television turned on.

    It was the warm season, yet their kotatsu was still out.

    Her mother used to be a beautiful woman, but there was no more trace of her former beauty.

    She took out the side dish that she bought on-sale in the supermarket and began preparing for dinner.

    The noise from the kitchen eventually woke her mother up from her slumber.

    ¡°Ara, wee back. Today¡¯s the day you get paid, isn¡¯t it? So, how much did you earn?¡±

    [Akui Kanami], the high school girl, handed 30,000 yen to her mother.

    Her mother rejoiced upon receiving the 30,000 yen, but she was soon disappointed.

    ¡°Only this much?¡±

    ¡°What did you expect from a student doing a part-time job?¡±

    ¡°Kanami, your studies aren¡¯t that important right now. You want me to introduce you to a job that can bring in more money? Kanami is cute, just like me, so you should be popr with the men.¡±

    Kanami was utterly disgusted by her mother who was implicitly suggesting her own daughter to sell herself.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you work then, huh!?¡±

    As Kanami had not dyed her ck hair, she looked like a diligent student at first nce.

    However, she grew up to have a foul mouth due to their poor living conditions and her constant quarrel with her mother.

    She used to be much more graceful in the past.

    ¡°Nonsense! You should know that mom has no experience in working. I was even fired from my part-time job!¡±

    ¡°That was years ago. Stop being so obstinate and go get a job.¡±

    ¡°You too, Kanami? Don¡¯t you know how much hardship your mom had to live through until now?¡±

    ¡°You reap what you sow.¡±

    Frustrated, Kanami left the house to have a walk.

    She felt restless with her mother being at home.

    Walking down the road in the middle of the night, Kanami smiled as if she was sick of it all.

    ¡°A~a, I¡¯m tired.¡±

    Her life used to be much better, but she lost her father because of her mother¡¯s selfishness.

    Although he wasn¡¯t her biological father, he was the only one that showered her with his love.

    He was no longer in this world though.

    Besides, when she was young, she hurt her father¡¯s feelings by saying that she wanted a new dad.

    By a twist of fate, however, she was abandoned by her new father along with her mother.

    ¡°I don¡¯t care anymore.¡±

    It didn¡¯t seem like a bad idea to drop out of high school to earn money.

    Just as she was thinking of leaving the house and living by herself, the ground beneath her began to shine.

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    The magic circle that appeared out of nowhere sucked her in.

    ¡°W-wait a sec!¡±

    And just like that, Kanami was summoned to another world.

    ¡ó

    When she came to, Kanami realized that she was in a ce that she didn¡¯t know.

    In front of her was a woman with blue eyes and blonde hair.

    She was carrying a scepter and had a crown on her head.

    ¡°W-w-wha!?¡±

    Faced with Kanami¡¯s panic, the woman greeted her reverently.

    ¡°Nice to meet you, Hero. My name is [Enora Frau Frauro], and I am the current Queen of the Kingdom of Aarl.¡±

    ¡°Queen? Hero?¡±

    Kanami was utterly confused and couldn¡¯t keep up with everything that was happening, but as they were in a rush against time, Enora exined things in a hurry.

    ¡°We apologize for our rudeness, O-Hero from another world. We simply had no choice but to summon you.¡±

    ¡°Summon?¡±

    What on earth was this woman talking about?

    Kanami looked around a bit more and confirmed that she was indeed in an unfamiliar ce.

    She was standing on top of an altar that seemed to be for some sort of suspicious ritual, and there were old men in robes surrounding her speaking excitedly amongst themselves.

    ¡°It worked. It worked!¡±

    ¡°The Great Wizard Citasan-sama¡¯s Hero Summoning was a sess!¡±

    ¡°Uhyahyahya, endless riches and honor await us!¡±

    These men were covered in wrinkles and missing several teeth.

    Their disciples were also celebrating in delight.

    Enora, their Queen, realized how frightened Kanami was and frowned.

    However, she wasn¡¯t angry at Kanami. Instead, her anger was directed towards the old men.

    ¡°Silence, Citasan. You¡¯re scaring the Hero.¡±

    Citasan, who was the leader of these magicians, rebuked his Queen arrogantly.

    ¡°You can¡¯t be like that, Your Majesty! Without us, the members of the Magic Summon n, summoning the Hero would have been impossible. Without us, this country would have¡ª¡±

    An argument ensued.

    Kanami, who was still feeling overwhelmed, just stood there with a nk face.

    (W-wait, what?)

    The magic circle was reacting to something, and a ck-haired man appeared the following moment.

    His eyes were purple, and his appearance suggested that he was in histe teens, but there was something special about the air around him.

    When he emerged from the magic circle, he nced at his surroundings in a seemingly grumpy manner.

    Unlike Kanami, he didn¡¯t appear to be surprised at all.

    It was actually the people around him, Enora included, that were shocked by this unexpected situation.

    ¡°Citasan!?¡±

    Enora demanded Citasan for an exnation; however, he was just as flustered as she was.

    ¡°B-but this isn¡¯t what the record states! I have no idea why this is happening!¡±

    His condescending attitude was nowhere to be seen.

    From this, Kanami understood that the young man wasn¡¯t meant to appear from the magic circle.

    She also noticed something else by observing the young man¡¯s appearance.

    (Isn¡¯t he wearing some very expensive outfit?)

    He was dressed roughly in a ck trouser, leather shoes, and a white shirt, but they all looked to be of a superior quality.

    He was also adorned with several essories, making Kanami wonder who this filthy rich man could be.

    For some reason, she felt nostalgic when she saw him.

    Meanwhile, the man was crouched down andined about the magic circle.

    ¡°What¡¯s with this trashy design? You¡¯re telling me that I was summoned by this sorry excuse of a magic circle? You gotta be kidding me.¡±

    Citasan¡¯s face burned bright red as he argued back.

    ¡°W-w-w-w-what big words you utter! This magic circle was created 300 years ago and refined by our ancestors throughout the ages to summon Heroes from another world! It¡¯s one of a kind!¡±

    It just looked like someplicated pattern drawn on the floor, but who was she to know what it really represented?

    The man simply snorted.

    ¡°You¡¯ve been using this outdated magic circle for 300 years? Imend you for making no progress whatsoever.¡±

    He was both bold and brazen.

    Unlike Kanami who was befuddled by the situation she was ced in, he behaved as if he already knew everything.

    ¡°Well, since you guys didn¡¯t try to enve me the moment I was summoned here, I¡¯ll at least hear you out. Is that woman over there your representative? Speak.¡±

    He discerned that Enora was their Queen without being told and had her exin their situation.

    Enora¡¯s subjects were infuriated by the man¡¯s insolence, but Enora held them back.

    ¡°Please excuse us. We didn¡¯t think there would be two Heroes, and this has resulted in some confusion.¡±

    ¡°So this wasn¡¯t part of your n. You¡¯re more ipetent than I thought.¡±

    Citasan¡¯s expression contorted to match the frustration in his heart.

    When the man heard the full story from Enora, heughed.

    ¡°Words can¡¯t express how sorry we are for imposing you Heroes with this heavy burden, but please. Please save our country.¡±

    ¡°Save your country, huh? Ahahaha, are you serious?¡±

    The man named himself after having a goodugh.

    ¡°You want to rely on me, Liam Sera Banfield? Me of all people?¡±

    The people around him reacted violently, probably because he had a middle name.

    Enora cautiously asked the question in everyone¡¯s mind.

    ¡°Were-were you perhaps a noble in your world?¡±

    ¡°You won¡¯t understand the full picture even if I exin, but that¡¯s essentially how it is. Whatever. I¡¯ll kill some time by helping you a lot. Now, guide me to where I¡¯m needed.¡±

    Liam yawned despite the presence of the armed knights in the room.

    ¡ó

    While this was happening, swarms of people were rushing around inside Liam¡¯s mansion.

    Magicians serving under Liam were examining the room where their master had disappeared with paleplexions.

    They were being monitored by Marie, who was furious beyond words.

    ¡°What in the world were you guys doing!?¡±

    The magicians shivered at the sight of her holding her weapon.

    ¡°P-please forgive us! Dozens ofyers of security have beenid on this mansion to prevent summoning magic from activating sessfully. To bypass all of them, one would have to be incredibly¡ª¡±

    The de of Marie¡¯s sword shed in front of the magician¡¯s neck.

    ¡°From the recorded footage, it¡¯s clear that Lord Liam was kidnapped by someone through a summoning magic while he was in this room. In other words, the responsibility falls on you guys. Am I wrong?¡±

    ¡°N-no, ma¡¯am!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a pity that I can¡¯t kill you yet. I¡¯m not allowed to dispose of you without Lord Liam¡¯s consent, but don¡¯t think that this is over. Now, go search for clues!¡±

    The magicians and Liam were not amateurs.

    In fact, they were among the very best, and they were promised handsome rewards for their services.

    Under normal circumstances, it would¡¯ve been impossible to bypass the magical security that these peopleid down.

    However, now that things had progressed in this direction, Marie would¡¯ve loved to have the person in charge of the magicians say goodbye to his head along with everyone else had it not been for the fact that they were needed to search for clues of Liam¡¯s whereabouts.

    She thought of recing them with a new batch of magicians, but she dismissed the idea as things could go very wrong if others were to hear of Liam¡¯s disappearance.

    ¡°If it¡¯s revealed that Lord Liam disappeared, the faction that he has built up could very well crumble.¡±

    Looking rather pale, Rosetta approached Marie who was venting her frustration.

    ¡°Marie.¡±

    ¡°Lady Rosetta!? Men quickly escort thedy to her room! My Lady, you¡¯ve just woken up after fainting, so please refrain from carelessly leaving your room.¡±

    Rosetta had copsed when news reached her ears that Liam had been summoned somewhere.

    That was why she was being apanied by an entourage of maids and doctors.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Marie. I insisted on leaving the room. That aside, how goes the search for Darling? We¡¯ll be able to find him, right?¡±

    ¡°¡ªOf course, My Lady. Now, please head back to your room.¡±

    Truth be told, an entire day had already passed, yet they hadn¡¯t found a single clue as to where he could possibly be.

    The magicians that analyzed the footage all reached the same conclusion, which was ¡°How did such a primitive type of magic circle bypass all our security measures!?¡±

    Tia, who was keeping an eye on them, flipped out when she heard this and instructed them to continue analyzing the footage. [1]

    After confirming that Rosetta has left the room, Marie stepped hard on the ground beneath her to call Kukuri out.

    ¡°What a violent way of calling people.¡±

    The magicians were scared witless when they saw that a face had appeared on the floor.

    Marie warned the magicians that she would kill them if they cked on their work.

    Then, she brought her face close to Kukuri¡¯s.

    ¡°Kukuri, I¡¯ve misjudged you. Lord Liam has been whisked away, but you¡¯re still alive to hear the tale. Do you know how to spell the word ¡®shameless¡¯?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s hardly convincing when you¡¯re the one saying that~¡±

    Sparks flew between them, but Kukuri backed down first.

    ¡°I¡¯ll admit that we are partially at fault. That said, one of my subordinates have also gone missing along with Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°Did you appoint a useless subordinate to guard Lord Liam?¡±

    Kukuriughed off Marie¡¯s provocation.

    ¡°Kuhihihi¡ªhe¡¯s one of our best. Although he¡¯s young, his skills are without a doubt first-rate. This is the proof.¡±

    The subordinate that was hiding within Liam¡¯s shadow had left behind a memo.

    Marie received it.

    ¡°It¡¯s encrypted?¡±

    ¡°He tried to cancel the summoning magic, but it failed for one reason or another. The interesting thing is that the magic was of a primitive type. There¡¯s something fishy about this.¡±

    The magic circle had been exceedingly simple, too simple, in fact, that it was hard to tell what their opponents were trying to aplish with this sort of magic.

    Marie tossed away the memo in her hand.

    ¡°You guys are to search for Lord Liam¡¯s whereabouts as well.¡±

    ¡°That goes without being told, but remember one thing¡ªyou don¡¯t have the right tomand us. We only serve Lord Liam.¡±

    Kukuriughed in an eerie manner and disappeared as if he was sucked into the floor, but not before directing his killing intent towards Marie.

    Marie smiled coldly and shook off Kukuri¡¯s attempt to agitate her.

    ¡°But are you sure that you can do me in?¡±

    With Liam gone, the unity among the members of the Banfield Family was about to fall apart.

 Chapter 108 - V7 Chapter 3. The Demon Lordâ€™s Army

    <strong>V7 Chapter 3. The Demon Lord¡¯s Army</strong>

    The Demon Lord¡¯s army was made up of diverse races, and they had surrounded the castle walls that protected the Royal Capital of the Kingdom of Aarl.

    The army consisted of demi-humans that had been persecuted and driven away by the humans.

    Among them was a tall, muscr Lycanthrope warrior with furry ears and a tail. With arge weapon on his back, he was having an audience with the Lion General, one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon Lord¡¯s army.

    Inside the tent were several other representatives from the various demi-human races.

    [Nogo], the Lion General, resembled a beast much more than he did a man. He was around two meters tall and looked no different from a lion standing on its hind legs. Women of the lion race surrounded him, forming a harem.

    Undisturbed by this, Nogo chugged down some beer in front of the Lycanthrope.

    ¡°So, how long will it take us to capture the Kingdom of Aarl?¡±

    [uss], the Lycanthrope warrior, was both a fighter and a strategist.

    That said, he wasn¡¯t particrly bright, and their battles always proceeded in a simple manner where they brute-forced through their opponents with overwhelming strength.

    He was really only responsible for detecting traps and dealing with them appropriately.

    They had used this method to defeat the Kingdom of Aarl¡¯s army numerous times, until they finally reached the walls of the Royal Capital.

    ¡°Our warriors will be able to do it in three days. Their towering walls mean nothing against us!¡±

    There were some demi-humans that were adept at climbing walls and if they snuck in during the dead of night, they would be able to open the gates from within.

    As demi-humans were generally much stronger than humans, they would have no problem winning in one-on-one duels.

    They were all seasoned warriors, and the only reason they suffered under human oppression was because the demi-humans were never united.

    It was only with the birth of the Demon Lord that they gathered under a single banner, pushing even the Kingdom of Aarl to a corner.

    Nogo opened his big mouth and roared withughter.

    The others around him smiled as well, convinced of their victory.

    ¡°With this, we can return to the Demon Lord bearing good news! Alright, let us drink to our victory!¡±

    The demi-humans in the tent cheered as one.

    ¡ó

    When uss came out of the tent, he called for [Chino], his daughter, who had been waiting for him outside.

    ¡°It¡¯s time for us to head back.¡±

    ¡°Yes, father!¡±

    Chino was a young girl with long, silver-white hair.

    Both her ears and her tail were silver in color while her eyes were yellow.

    Her breasts were small, and although she had a slim figure that did not look like a warrior¡¯s, she was powerful enough to defeat ordinary warriors without breaking a sweat.

    Her tail was swinging from side to side excitedly.

    ¡°Father, when will the war begin? I¡¯m so pumped for my first battle!¡±

    This was Chino¡¯s first time on the battlefield, and uss scolded her to calm down.

    ¡°Stop swinging your tail restlessly. It¡¯s unbing for a warrior.¡±

    ¡°M-my apologies!¡±

    Warriors had to prevent their enemies from reading their emotions, and tail control was among the very basics.

    After leaving the tent, they returned to the Lycanthropes¡¯ camp.

    uss then entered his own tent and had Chinoe inside for a talk.

    He plopped down onto the ground and let out a torrent ofints.

    ¡°General Nogo¡¯s being a fool again. He¡¯s depleting all the food that we¡¯ve looted.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t he depending on the fact that there will be a lot stored inside the Capital?¡±

    The Royal Capital was a huge city, so Chino naturally assumed that a lot of food would be in store.

    ¡°The humans have been pushed to the edge of a cliff. They might not have much food left either. In the worst case scenario, we would have to fight amongst ourselves when we enter the city. Chino, take this as a lesson.¡±

    They had invaded countless viges, towns, and cities like locusts to steal the humans¡¯ food supply.

    uss was fed up with General Nogo¡¯s thoughtless behaviors.

    However, as demi-humans only obeyed the strong, uss could not speak up against General Nogo, who was the strongest of the demi-humans.

    ¡°The Demon Lord has blessed General Nogo with strength. We must obey him at the moment as we can¡¯t beat him even if we were to fight him together. Nevertheless, we¡¯ll be in deep trouble if we don¡¯t do something about this.¡±

    It was obvious from her expression that Chino did not understand the conversation.

    All she knew was that they¡¯d be able to plunder the Capital if they won.

    Thus, she soothed her anxious father.

    ¡°Father, it¡¯ll be alright! I heard we were able to hoard a lot of food in the past through the act of plundering. There should be a tone of food in the Capital as well.¡±

    uss gave up on exining and stared sorrowfully at his daughter.

    ¡°I sure hope so.¡±

    ¡ó

    A woman wearing a mask appears from the shadows as I¡¯m lying down on a bed that¡¯s situated inside a very luxurious room of the pce.

    ¡°You were dragged into this as well?¡±

    ¡°¡ªMy apologies for being unable to prevent the summoning magic from activating. I am ready to make up for this mistake with my life when Lord Liam returns, but until then, please allow me to protect you.¡±

    What splendid loyalty. She¡¯s saying that she¡¯ll give up her life when my safety has been confirmed.

    But then again, Kukuri¡¯s n is small already so I don¡¯t want his men to die for this kind of trivial reason.

    To begin with, I don¡¯t mind the situation that I¡¯m in right now.

    I was almost forced to ept a harem, so I feel lucky to have escaped that situation.

    I could¡¯ve easily avoided the summoning circle if I truly wanted to.

    It was by my free will that I was summoned here, so I¡¯m reluctant to see her killed for this.

    ¡°There aren¡¯t that many of you in the first ce. It¡¯d be a waste to have you die for this kind of thing. As such, you¡¯re not allowed to take your life even when we¡¯re back home. Oh, and I have some work for you to do.¡±

    ¡°As you will!¡±

    Kukuri¡¯s subordinate kneels and bows before me.

    Kukuri¡¯s men don¡¯t have names of their own. Even if they do, they won¡¯t tell others their name.

    I don¡¯t know Kukuri¡¯s real name either.

    ¡°We¡¯ll be working together for a while, so let¡¯s decide on a name for you¡ªhmm, yes, Kunai should do.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s an honor to be named by you, Lord Liam. I will make sure that Lord Liam is safe and sound throughout this journey.¡±

    She¡¯s a lucky one to be named by me.

    I¡¯ve only named a few individuals up until now. There¡¯s that dog from my previous life, Amagi, and¡ªand my daughter.

    Even so, ¡°Kanami¡± huh...

    ¡ªWhat a frightening coincidence.

    I address Kunai, who seems touched by my generosity.

    ¡°I expect great things from you.¡±

    I decided to call her Kunai because she looks like a Ninja[1].

    ¡°Shuriken¡± was the first thing that came to my mind, but it¡¯d be weird to say ¡°Hey, Shuriken¡± every time I address her, so I decided on ¡°Kunai¡±.

    ¡°I will now give you your first task. Gather some information¡ªfind out whether the stories that the people have been feeding me are true.¡±

    ¡°Your will is mymand.¡±

    I watch Kunai as she sinks back into the floor.

    When she has disappeared, I let out a yawn on the bed.

    ¡°¡ªWell, based on the state of this room, I¡¯m not expecting much.¡±

    Compared to my mansion, this pce is almost miniscule.

    As someone that¡¯s from an intergctic nation, it would be inappropriate to evenpare the two, but it¡¯s just too shabby.

    Still, they¡¯re probably trying their best to amodate me.

    It¡¯s great to see that they¡¯re giving their all in these difficult times.

    As an evil lord, however, I refuse to stoop to other people¡¯s level even if they¡¯re struggling financially.

    It doesn¡¯t matter to me whether Enora and her subjects are suffering.

    As a viin, I¡¯ll be spending my time surrounded in luxuries.

    ¡°Now then.¡±

    I touch the bracelet on my left arm.

    A magic circle appears and several tools pour out.

    I grab one of them, get up from the bed, and approach the windowsill.

    Then, I open the window and toss out the tool which soars up into the sky.

    ¡°That¡¯s the distress signal sent. I¡¯m sure they¡¯lle and pick me up in due time.¡±

    ¡ó

    In a different room, Kanami was trying out armor.

    ¡°Wait, isn¡¯t this quite heavy!?¡±

    This was her first time wearing armor, and she was surprised by how heavy it was.

    The armor had been crafted from a lump of metal, so it was no wonder that it was heavy.

    ¡°T-this too!? Why¡¯s the sword this heavy as well!?¡±

    Enora felt uneasy watching Kanami struggle.

    ¡°We¡¯ll prepare something lightweight.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t move well in this kind of armor. Isn¡¯t there something lighter?¡±

    ¡°The lighter the armor, the less defense it has. The demi-humans are savages that only know how to push forward, but their strengths are formidable. Please bear with it.¡±

    Kanami was slightly perturbed by Enora¡¯s words.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it too much to call them savages?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve been gued by their act of looting for many years. They¡¯re cold-hearted beasts that do not wish to put in effort and only seek to rob the food supply of those that they¡¯ve ughtered.¡±

    Seeing the hostility in Enora¡¯s eyes, Kanami fell silent.

    ¡°A-are they really so terrible?¡±

    ¡°They were the first to wag their tails at the Demon Lord. Hero, they¡¯re undeserving of mercy.¡±

    She was about to be sent to a battlefield, but everything felt so surreal to her.

    Kanami directed her gaze elsewhere.

    ¡°Also, where¡¯s Liam? I¡¯m a girl for heaven¡¯s sake! Isn¡¯t it strange that I¡¯m the only one that¡¯s preparing for battle? Isn¡¯t this normally a man¡¯s job?¡±

    Enora was also troubled by this, and her worry was reflected on her face.

    ¡°I¡¯ve also requested for Liam-sama¡¯s presence, but he refused and said that it¡¯s unnecessary.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s up with his attitude!?¡±

    Kanami was annoyed that she was the only one that was about to be deployed.

    ¡ó

    Kunai returned to the room after several hours of investigation.

    ¡°Lord Liam, I have something to report.¡±

    I¡¯ve been killing time while waiting for her arrival.

    I yawn as I listen to her report.

    ¡°Enemies have set up camp around the Royal Capital. It seems that they¡¯re nning tounch an all-out attack tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s to that extent, huh. No wonder the Queen¡¯s so desperate.¡±

    To be honest, I don¡¯t really care whether the Kingdom of Aarl falls or not, but I¡¯ve confirmed that they¡¯re really in a crisis.

    Kunai continues her report.

    ¡°The enemies are nning to send a group of elites to infiltrate the city before dawn. They¡¯ll then open the gates from inside, allowing the main force to easily conquer the city.¡±

    ¡°Can the people here resist?¡± I ask.

    ¡°The army that they¡¯ve set up here consists mostly of children and the elderly. In contrast, the enemies that they¡¯re up against are all seasoned veterans.¡±

    ¡°Veteran warriors, you say...¡±

    ¡°They¡¯ll be trampled for sure. Lord Liam, what are your thoughts on this matter?¡±

    The destruction of this country doesn¡¯t bother me in the least, but I don¡¯t want to be stuck in situation where there¡¯s no one left to take care of my needs.

    Hmm, I still have some time left.

    ¡°Go and take a break. When you¡¯re well-rested, it¡¯ll be my turn to sleep, so don¡¯t forget to wake me up before dawn.¡±

    ¡°B-but¡ª¡±

    ¡°Moderate amounts of breaks are necessary to keep up work efficiency. I only expect the best results from you.¡±

    ¡°¡ªUnderstood.¡±

    Kunai disappears into the shadows.

    With nothing left for me to do, I simply wait inside the room.

    ¡ó

    Kanami had been taken to the outskirts of the city by Enora.

    The roads were filled with refugees that had fled from their hometowns, and they were all covered in dirt and mud.

    Enora was going around shaking their hands and encouraging the refugees.

    ¡°Things will all work out. We will definitely be able to win.¡±

    ¡°Enora-sama...¡±

    Most of them were children or the elderly, and the few remaining adult men were missing their limbs.

    Confronted by this cruel reality, Kanami shivered.

    She had known what war entailed, but she had never experienced it before.

    Her knowledge came from television shows, photos, and the inte, so she had always thought of it as someone else¡¯s problem.

    ¡°This is too cruel.¡±

    Enora nodded quietly.

    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s as cruel as it can get. I wonder what we did to deserve this. If left alone, the Demon Lord will afflict us with endless suffering. Subjugation of the Demon Lord; that¡¯s the reason why we resorted to summoning you Heroes here.¡±

    At first, Kanami had been angry that she had been summoned against her will.

    However, it didn¡¯t matter anymore.

    A terrible life awaited her in the previous world anyway.

    In that case, she was better off with these people who weed her.

    Although she had been a little sad when she was told that she could not go back, she felt like she had to do something when she witnessed the scene in front of her.

    ¡°Kanami-sama, will you be so kind as to lend us a hand in this fight?¡±

    After looking around, Kanami nodded.

    ¡°¡ªAlright. I¡¯ll fight with you, but do I have the strength necessary to do so?¡±

    ¡°Yes, you do.¡±

    Enora took Kanami to a training ground.

    There, children around the age of 15 were wielding weapons and receiving guidance from elderly men.

    There were hardly any men in their twenties to forties.

    The ones that stood out the most were the women.

    Kanami was surprised to see so many young men and women around her age wielding their weapons.

    ¡°I¡¯d like to ask someone to act as the Hero¡¯s training partner.¡±

    The people who were present at the scene tried to line up upon noticing Enora, but she stopped them before they could do so.

    An elderly man then stepped forward and readied his weapon.

    ¡°Eh, we¡¯re using real swords!?¡±

    The elderly man responded to Kanami¡¯s shock in a low voice.

    ¡°If you freeze up at things like this, you¡¯ll never be able to fight in actual battles.¡±

    Seeing the man rush forward, Kanami¡¯s eyes shot open, and she drew the sword on her waist.

    It felt as if everything around her had slowed down, so much so that she wondered if they were making fun of her.

    When she blocked the elderly man¡¯s sword, it shattered, and the flow of time returned to normal.

    The soldiers were stupefied, and Enora had to exin the situation to them.

    ¡°A mysterious power is said to dwell within summoned Heroes¡¯ bodies, making them much stronger than the average man. During battles, they would see their enemies¡¯ movements in slow motion.¡±

    ¡°T-that¡¯s amazing.¡±

    ¡®This is overpowered¡¯, Kanami thought.

    (M-maybe I could make it out of this war alive?)

    Kanami¡¯s heart was pounding because of the ability that she had been bestowed upon being summoned.

 Chapter 109 - V7 Chapter 4. The Banfield Family Falling Apart

    <strong>V7 Chapter 4. The Banfield Family Falling Apart</strong>

    Without Liam, the Banfield Family was heading towards its ruin.

    Brian held his head in distress.

    ¡°Wuuu, Lord Liam has disappeared¡ªI¡¯m still in disbelief.¡±

    Information had leaked out during their search for Liam, and people with unkind intentions were starting to make moves.

    The biggest issue, however, was¡ª

    ¡°I¡¯ll kill you, you old fossil!¡±

    ¡°Try me, minced woman!¡±

    ¡ªthe biggest issue was with Liam¡¯s knights.

    When Brian looked out the windows, he saw the figure of Tia and Marie quarreling after having destroyed the walls of the mansion.

    They were out in the garden with their weapons drawn, ring at each other with bloodshot eyes.

    Their breaths were rough, and their appearances were a mess.

    Things hadn¡¯t been this bad before.

    Although they often passed each other in the mansion without greeting or looking at each other¡¯s faces, they had never pulled out their weapons.

    But with Liam gone, there was no one to hold them back.

    ¡°It¡¯s those two again.¡±

    Brian was feeling extremely troubled, but this wasn¡¯t the end to his worries either.

    He heard something exploding at a different location.

    Due to the Banfield Family¡¯s recent development, he would¡¯ve weed the sound with open arms even if it had been from an enemy attack.

    A report soon arrived.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Brian asked.

    ¡®¡ªI-it¡¯s an emergency! Satsuki Rinho-sama and Shishigami Fuuka-sama¡ªthey¡¯re having a bout with Chengshi-sama and¡ª¡¯

    Brian cut off themunication and touched his aching forehead with a sigh.

    ¡°Lord Liam, please hurry back home!¡±

    ¡ó

    In one of the corridors of the Banfield Family¡¯s mansion, Rinho, with her long, dark blue hair, was sitting on a chair wearing a maid outfit, skipping her cleaning duties.

    She had her terminal out and was checking thements on her videos.

    ¡°As I thought, the views are dropping. As the world¡¯s most bloodthirsty idol, I should be out killing people. It¡¯s not the time to be sticking around and cleaning the mansion wearing a maid outfit.¡±

    Fuuka, who had orange hair, watched Rinho as she went about her work in her maid uniform, diligently sweeping the mansion with a broomstick in hand.

    ¡°Ya should quickly get to sweeping as well unless ya want to be scolded by that old hag Serena,¡± she advised Rinho.

    ¡°Huh? You scared of her or what? What a coward you¡¯ve be.¡± Rinho sneered.

    ¡°¡ªI dare ya to say that again.¡±

    Fuuka angrily wielded her broomstick.

    In response, Rinho also picked up the broomstick that was lying around beside her.

    Although it was shaped like a broomstick, it was a delicate machinery with high performance when it came to cleaning.

    ¡°As you wish, coward.¡±

    Rinho epted her challenge and they put some distance between them, preparing for a brawl, when a sh flew past them.

    When they turned around to look, they saw a woman approaching them from the end of the corridor.

    ¡ªIt was Chengshi.

    ¡°Oh, so you guys can avoid that.¡±

    She was wearing knight outfit that had been modified from her Chinese dress.

    However, there was something peculiar about her hands.

    Rinho giggled.

    ¡°You remodeled your body?¡±

    Chengshi¡¯s fingers were extended out like des, and her outstretched arms had metallic colors.

    Fuuka sniffed.

    ¡°Smells just like a machine. Ya made yer entire body into a machine?¡±

    Chengshi remained silent but opened her mouth, revealing a muzzle from within.

    The two girls jumped out of the way just in time to see the floor being scorched by aser beam.

    Annoyed, Rinho swung her broomstick down at Chengshi to retaliate.

    With her body no longer being confined by the limits of a human, Chenghsi caught the iing broomstick with one hand.

    However, Rinho did not back away.

    ¡°Your head should still be as it was. I¡¯ll just have to crush that¡ªThis is legitimate self-defense, so Senior Brother should have noints even if you were to die.¡±

    Hearing Rinho¡¯s words, Fuuka also shed at Chengshi.

    ¡°Yer right! I¡¯ll have ya relieve my pent-up stress!¡±

    Both girls were excited about their confrontation with the non-human figure, and this feeling was reciprocated by Chengshi.

    ¡°You two should do for this test run,¡± she said, satisfied.

    Chengshi had provoked these two so that she could use them as a reference when fighting Liam.

    They were attacking with the techniques they learned from the School of One-sh, but Chengshi had devised a countermeasure.

    She dodged their attacks immediately.

    Rinho appeared irritated by this.

    ¡°It¡¯s hard to be serious without a real sword. Also¡ªyou read our moves,¡± she said.

    Fuuka tossed her broomstick away.

    ¡°Ya messed with yer brains? Weaklings sure have it hard.¡±

    The Sixth Sense was a type of superpower, and Chengshi had sacrificed even her remaining brain to obtain it.

    The lenses in Chengshi¡¯s eyes shrunk and expanded repeatedly as she stared at the duo.

    ¡°If I can kill Liam with just this amount of sacrifice, I¡¯m willing to pay for it.¡±

    The corners of Rinho¡¯s mouth went up as she giggled.

    ¡°You¡¯re but a nonentity, yet you dream of defeating Senior Brother?¡±

    Fuuka put her hair up.

    ¡°Ya want to beat the School of One-sh with just this? I¡¯ll f*cking kill ya.¡±

    After making some nking noises, Chengshi transformed into a figure that was no longer human, and she rushed forward with great momentum.

    ¡ó

    Still remember Baron Norden?

    As a subordinate under Liam, he was one of the imperial aristocrats that relied on Liam¡¯s backing.

    He was also someone that had a distant rtionship with Count Norden, the aristocrat from the United Kingdoms.

    Bar Clover was his subordinate, and Liam had previously killed his son out of anger.

    To make matters worse, his connection to Count Norden was revealed, and his family was put in a precarious situation.

    The head of that very same Norden Family was proudly walking into Liam¡¯s mansion.

    ¡°It¡¯s quite noisy here,¡± hemented.

    He was a fat man with a small build, and he strutted in while having a cigar-like luxury item in his mouth, almost as if he was the boss of a mafia.

    Next to him were several officials who were supposed to be working in government offices.

    They were officials under the Banfield Family.

    Several knights were apanying them as well.

    These knights were vassals of the previous head of the Banfield Family and the head before that.

    They were there to protect the child born between Liam¡¯s father and his mistress.

    The boy looked to be around 15 years old, but his actual age was in fact 70, still a child from this world¡¯s standpoint.

    He had just graduated from elementary school and was spending his time freely without attending the military academy or university.

    His name was [Issac Sera Banfield], and he was a boy with beautiful blonde hair and cold blue eyes.

    ¡°What¡¯s with this boring mansion? It¡¯s so shabby that it¡¯s not suitable to be mine.¡±

    The people around him listened carefully to Isaac¡¯s evaluation of Liam¡¯s mansion. Even Baron Norden was disying a subservient attitude.

    ¡°It is as you say. A dpidated mansion such as this cannot possibly fit Lord Isaac¡¯s taste.¡±

    He spoke as if Isaac was already the owner of the mansion.

    The ones around them were also disying simr attitudes.

    Baron Norden¡¯s ambition was burning uncontrobly.

    (Liam! This is payback for the wrongs you¡¯ve done to me. While you¡¯re gone, I¡¯ll have this kid rece you as the head of the Banfield Family and take control of this ce.)

    Baron Norden was nothing more than one of Liam¡¯s subordinates, but he was nning to take control of the Banfield Family through Isaac.

    A portion of the government officials had the same idea.

    ¡°If Lord Isaac bes the head of the family, the Banfields will prosper even more!¡± They said.

    ¡°Liam doesn¡¯t understand anything about governance. To begin with, it¡¯s disgraceful for an imperial aristocrat to be using dolls in this day and age.¡±

    The real reason they betrayed Liam was because they couldn¡¯t embezzle any money with artificial intelligence being in control of everything.

    No matter how prosperous the territory became, if they abused their powers, it would be akin to touching Liam¡¯s reverse scale.

    For those with great ambition, Liam was an obstacle to be ovee.

    In a sense, they were precisely the evil officials that Liam desired.

    The next to speak were the knights that had once abandoned the Banfield Family.

    ¡°Indeed, Lord Isaac is the most suitable as the head of the Banfield Family. Liam is strong, but he has no pride as an aristocrat.¡± Theyined.

    They were supportive of Isaac because of his father and grandfather who were both living in the Capital.

    Isaac had been dispatched to snatch the wealth of the prospering Banfield Family, and the knights were there to protect him.

    These knights deemed it unforgivable that a house that they abandoned was making aeback because if they had stayed, they would¡¯ve gained a great amount of prestige as a loyal subordinate of the previous generation¡¯s head.

    From their perspective, the neers had gained the fame and prestige that was meant to be theirs.

    This was how these like-minded people gathered to take over the Banfield Family.

    Two knights secretly observed them from the dark.

    They were Tia and Marie that were in tatters due to their fight.

    ¡°They¡¯ve got guts trying to take advantage of Lord Liam¡¯s absence, I¡¯ll give them that.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s show them whose mansion they¡¯re trying to mess with.¡±

    They were about to take action, not knowing that there was a shadow creeping up behind them.

    ¡ªIt was the Guide.

    ¡ó

    The Guide was quietly watching Tia and Marie.

    He was at the Banfield Family¡¯s territory to sow seeds of discord while Liam was gone.

    Earlier, he had stimted the desires of a knight named Chengshi, prompting her to prepare for Liam¡¯s assassination.

    The Guide knew that this wouldn¡¯t be enough to kill Liam, but all that mattered to him was that he caused enough confusion.

    He didn¡¯t have high hopes for Tia and Marie either.

    ¡°I¡¯ll stimte their desires as well. Aaah~ what a busy day.¡±

    ck smoke came out of his fingertips and entered the bodies of Tia and Marie who were preparing to chase away Isaac and his entourage.

    The two women jolted to a stop, and the Guide, having lost his interest, left.

    ¡°Meh, let¡¯s move on. I don¡¯t expect much from them anyway.¡±

    ¡ó

    After the Guide left the scene, Tia had a sudden realization.

    (Isn¡¯t this quite convenient?)

    The Banfield Family was about to fall into chaos with Isaac raiding the mansion.

    Tia, who never once doubted that Liam would return, saw Isaac as nothing but a small hindrance and thought of making use of him.

    She took a nce at Marie¡¯s face, who also seemed to be thinking hard about something.

    (So she realized as well. Yes, this is our chance!)

    Tia came up with a random excuse to leave.

    ¡°Isaac¡¯s group isn¡¯t the only one that¡¯s on the move. I¡¯ll go take a look at the situation.¡±

    Marie would¡¯ve normally picked a fight with her by now, but her reaction was quite different this time.

    ¡°Is that so? Then I¡¯ll take care of Isaac.¡±

    ¡°Much appreciated.¡± Tia said, and the two went their separate ways.

    After confirming that Marie was gone, Tia rushed to contact her allies.

    ¡°Gather everyone that¡¯s under me and prepare a fleet.¡±

    ¡®Tia-sama!? What is this about?¡¯

    ¡°Just quickly do as I say! This chance¡ªI must grasp it.¡±

    She had originally nned on carrying out this operation in silence without Liam noticing, but using this opportunity, Tia decided to carry it out in a grandiose manner.

    ¡ó

    ¡°¡ªDarling...¡±

    Inside her room, Rosetta was lying on the bed, sick and depressed.

    She had lost her appetite, and her mind was constantly on Liam.

    Ciel had been by her side, watching her.

    (It¡¯s great that that bastard has disappeared, but it¡¯s been pretty rowdy inside the mansion these days.)

    As someone that hated Liam, Ciel should¡¯ve been delighted that Liam had been whisked away by a summoning spell; however, she did not want to see Rosetta suffer like this.

    What¡¯s more¡ª

    ¡®Five minutes ago: Ciel, why can¡¯t I get in touch with Liam?¡¯

    ¡®Four minutes ago: Ciel, if Liam¡¯s busy, tell him to contactter.¡¯

    ¡®Three minutes ago: Ciel, are you there?¡¯

    ¡ªWhen she checked her terminal, she realized that her brother Kurt had been sending a new message every minute.

    Ciel gently put her terminal back into her pocket and decided to tell himter that she was busy with work and missed his messages.

    Only God knew what Kurt would do if he was told that Liam was gone.

    (Liam has a lot of enemies. A Banfield Family without its head is perfect prey for those aristocrats. I can already see them flocking over.)

    The head of the Banfield Family was missing, and a sessor had not been named.

    This made them a prime target for some of the aristocrats.

    As long as they stepped forward, they would gain the wealth, fame, and military prowess of the Banfield¡¯s.

    As things stood, even the aristocrats from the same faction were not to be trusted.

    Rosetta stared longingly at an image of Liam with teary eyes.

    Just as Ciel was about to say someforting words, a female knight kicked down the door to the room and barged in.

    Ciel strongly criticized the knight¡¯s conduct.

    ¡°W-what do you think you¡¯re doing!?¡±

    Marie, the intruder, ignored Ciel¡¯s vehement protest and approached Rosetta, her eyes glowing with excitement.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta! It¡¯s an emergency! There are some unscrupulous men trying to take over the Banfield Family!¡±

    ¡°H-how could that be!? Darling¡¯s not dead yet, he was just summoned away!¡±

    That, however, was enough reason for his enemies to move.

    They were taking advantage of Liam¡¯s absence to steal the Banfield Family¡¯s power.

    ¡°That matters not to them, and that¡¯s why we must ensure Lady Rosetta¡¯s safety. Some of those fools will try to target Lady Rosetta, who has officially been dered Lord Liam¡¯s fianc¨¦.¡±

    Many people hated Liam to the extreme and would do anything to harm him, so Marie had rushed over to make sure that Rosetta stayed out of harm¡¯s way.

    Ciel asked Marie what to do.

    ¡°Marie-sama, can we not push them back?¡±

    ¡°That would be impossible.¡±

    She replied so swiftly that Ciel harbored some doubts.

    On any other day, Marie would¡¯ve yelled ¡°Kill ¡®em all!¡± and charged in.

    It was almost as if she had scripted her answer ahead of time.

    ording to her, she was simply prioritizing Rosetta¡¯s wellbeing.

    ¡°Now, let us flee from here while we still can. Unfortunately, we don¡¯t have the power to face them. We must escape for now and bide our time.¡±

    ¡°B-but I don¡¯t have what it takes to unite the Banfield Family. Both the military and the knights only obey Darling¡¯s orders.¡±

    ¡°Please rest assured. I have already gathered men that support our cause and stationed some troops along with the knights on a different. That¡¯s where Lord Liam¡¯s direct descendants will be born!¡±

    ¡°Descendant? U-um, Marie, I¡¯ve yet to¡ª¡±

    ¡°I was afraid something simr would happen and prepared ahead! Fret not, for this Marie has procured a sample of Lord Liam¡¯s genes!¡±

    She took out a test tube from a box.

    Ciel immediately understood her intentions, but Rosetta cocked her head, still unsure of what was going on.

    (T-this woman has gone and done it! No, she hasn¡¯t done it yet, but¡ª!?)

    Marie¡¯s fervent eyes were glowing with even greater passion.

    Rosetta was oblivious to Marie¡¯s n, but Ciel was aware of it.

    (She intends to impregnate Lady Rosetta with Liam¡¯s gene!)

    And going by the flow, she was probably thinking of taking advantage of the chaos to give birth to Liam¡¯s child as well.

    Marie gently hugged and picked Rosetta up from the bed.

    There was a strange, purplish glint in her eyes.

    ¡°Now, Lady Rosetta¡ªlet us continue the Banfield Family¡¯s lineage, together!¡±

    Rosetta, who was feeling fatigued, assumed that the knights and the troops had been stationed elsewhere to support Liam when he returned.

    ¡°¡ªYou¡¯re right. Gather as many knights and soldiers as possible that still follow Darling. In case of an emergency, we must be ready to help Darling when he returns.¡±

    Rosetta was doing this for Liam. On the other hand, Marie was doing this for her own benefit.

    Ciel was absolutely dumbstruck by Marie¡¯s bold move.

    (Eh, wait a sec. There should be one other person causing a ruckus by now.)

    ¡ó

    That other person was already causing a ruckus.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be the one to bear Lord Liam¡¯s child!¡±

    Tia rubbed her face against the test tube that contained a certain fluid.

    How she managed to get a hold of it was a mystery, but she had secured Liam¡¯s gene.

    The knights that gathered under Tia were the ones whose loyalty had zoomed past the finish line.

    They were currently aboard a gship ss battleship that was 3000 meters in length.

    The knights that were lined up were part of the faction that was led by Tia.

    One of the female knights made a report about Marie.

    ¡°Tia-sama, Marie Sera Marian has secured Lady Rosetta and fled to the Third with a portion of the fleet and the knights. They¡¯re also gathering the local forces that are responsible for protecting the Banfield¡¯s territory.¡±

    A simplified 3D map of the Banfield Family¡¯s territory was disyed in front of Tia.

    Tia clicked her tongue.

    She ced the test tube carefully inside a case and put it in her pocket.

    ¡°That fossil woman ain¡¯t half bad it seems. Lord Liam¡¯s been developing that for more than a decade. It¡¯s more than adequate as a temporary base.¡±

    Tia¡¯s fleet was searching fors that could serve as their base.

    The territory that Liam had acquired and spent time developing was being torn apart and scrambled over for by his vassals.

    It was an all-out family feud.

    The female knight beside her smiled.

    ¡°Was this fine though? We could have easily eliminated those garbage that dared to step their foot into Lord Liam¡¯s mansion.¡±

    ¡ªTia was ying the same game as Marie.

    She was taking advantage of this turmoil to give birth to Liam¡¯s child.

    ¡°As if we could wage a war on Lord Liam¡¯s home. Also, it would be extremely disrespectful of us to dye his mansion with their filthy blood. Don¡¯t you think so too?¡±

    She was lying through her teeth.

    Baron Norden and Isaac meant nothing to them, but Tia couldn¡¯t ovee the urge to use this situation as an excuse to bear Liam¡¯s child.

    Tia spread out her arms.

    ¡°We must do what we can to boost our forces so that we can assist Lord Liam when he returns! Let us present him with an army that can annihte those sphemous pests.¡±

    (To bear Lord Liam¡¯s child! There¡¯s no higher form of happiness!)

    When Liam came back, she would tell him that ¡°There was no other way around it! The Banfield Family was facing an unprecedented crisis!¡±

    An unprecedented crisis¡ªindeed, it was an unprecedented crisis orchestrated by the runaway Tia and Marie.

    This could¡¯ve been easily dealt with, but they had done nothing on purpose to spice things up.

    ¡°Full steam ahead! We must secure all of Lord Liam¡¯s territory!¡±

    Thousands of ships started to move under Tia¡¯smand.

 Chapter 110 - V7 Chapter 5: A Great Mistake

    V7 Chapter 5: A Great Mistake

    ____________________________________

    ¡°¡ªYou¡¯re kidding...¡±

    The Guide was standing above the main of the Banfield Family.

    This time around, he had only sent Liam to another and stimted his subordinates¡¯ desires, yet the Banfield Family was in turmoil.

    Chaos ensued as it was revealed that Liam had been abducted through summoning magic.

    The scope of the damage wasn¡¯t limited to the mansion.

    The knights and the military personnel were equally confused, and some followed Tia and Marie, who took advantage of the turmoil to fulfill their agendas.

    ¡°But I only pushed their backs a little...¡± The Guide said to himself, confused.

    He had slightly provoked them after stimting their desires.

    That was the only thing he did this time, and he never expected it to cause such amotion.

    With Liam absent, both Tia and Marie had gone out of control.

    Not only that, Chengshi was having a death match against Liam¡¯s junior disciples for some reason or another.

    Not that any of this really bothered the Guide, of course.

    In addition, Isaac had overtaken Liam¡¯s mansion, and Baron Norden was doing as he pleased.

    Being the arrogant child that he was, Isaac was being manipted by Baron Norden, who was also attempting to dip his hand into the Cleo Faction which was led by Liam.

    ¡ªCorrupt aristocrats were gathering to take a bite out of Liam¡¯s vast territory.

    It was like a domino effect.

    Without Liam, the Banfields were having a much rougher time than the Guide had anticipated.

    ¡°It¡¯s here! My time is here!¡±

    He didn¡¯t think the territory would suffer this much as a consequence of Liam¡¯s absence.

    With clenched fists, the Guide shivered in joy.

    ¡°Right! I should steal Liam¡¯s treasures and let him have a taste of despair when he returns,¡± he said with glee, ¡°¡ªnow, where¡¯s the Alchemy Box?¡±

    Liam¡¯s Alchemy Box was a magical tool that could produce gold out of literal garbage.

    Thanks to this item, Liam had been freed from any and all financial burdens.

    It was an important source of revenue for Liamand if taken away, would cause a lot of inconveniences in the future.

    By the time he returned, his territory would be in tatters.

    It would take him decades if not centuries to regain everything that he lost.

    The Guide went to search for the Alchemy Box, skipping along the way.

    ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to your look of despair.¡±

    ¡ó

    In the basement of the mansion, a hangar had been prepared for the sole purpose of amodating Avid.

    Having fused with the invaluable item known as the Machine Heart, Avid was capable of moving freely on its own.

    That said, it obeyed no one¡¯s orders except Liam¡¯s.

    It recognized Liam as its sole owner and didn¡¯t allow anyone else to board it unless it was for maintenance.

    However, Ellen had approached Avid¡¯s cockpit with Liam¡¯s sword wrapped tightly around her arms.

    She was sobbing.

    ¡°Master¡ªMaster disappeared...¡±

    Not only was Liam absent, Rinho and Fuuka were busy trying to kill Chengshi on a daily basis.

    There was no one left to teach her about the One-sh, and she was feeling awfully lonely now that her favorite teacher was gone.

    She hade to Avid¡¯s cockpit seeking Liam¡¯s presence.

    Avid¡¯s eyes moved around before locking onto Ellen.

    It would¡¯ve normally refused entry for even Ellen, but it opened up its cockpit, probably thinking that she wouldn¡¯t do anything weird.

    Ellen climbed in, took a seat, and hugged her sword tightly.

    Avid closed the hatch, but not before someone suspicious floated over.

    ¡ªIt was the Guide.

    ¡°My, oh my, I didn¡¯t expect him to hide the Alchemy Box in a ce like this. I guess he has no one that he could trust. Well, no matter!¡±

    Avid detected the Guide and activated the defense mechanisms.

    Guns and the like appeared from the wall and unleashed their barrage upon the Guide, but none of them were able to reach him.

    Be it bullets orser beams, not of them could put a graze on the Guide.

    ¡°It¡¯s futile! Things like these can¡¯t ward me off!!¡±

    The Guide had been beaten by Liam countless times, but he wasn¡¯t a weak character by any means.

    When the Guide approached the cockpit, Avid extended its arms to protect itself; however, the Guide spread out his own arms and overpowered Avid in a contest of strength.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way I¡¯d lose to a chunk of iron that doesn¡¯t even have Liam on!!¡ªAfter getting the Alchemy Box, I¡¯ll make sure to destroy you too.¡±

    Avid¡¯s cockpit was forced open¡ªbut a gold knife was floating inside, ready for action.

    ¡°¡ªEh?¡±

    The Guide¡¯s mind froze.

    Inside the cockpit, Ellen was sleeping with Liam¡¯s sword carefully wrapped around her arms.

    ¡°¡ªMaster.¡±

    When she muttered so in her sleep, more knives began to appear, and they all pointed towards the Guide.

    ¡°W-wait one moment. H-h-hey, miss? Let¡¯s talk this out.¡±

    Desperate as he was, Ellen was in deep slumber and couldn¡¯t hear anything he said.

    One of the knives pierced the Guide¡¯s temple, and he fell on his back.

    Thereafter, the knives propelled themselves forward and impaled the Guide one after another until, once again, all that was left was his hat.

    ¡°A-after all that trouble that I went through to recover! I won¡¯t forget about this!¡±The Guide screeched.

    He flewaway from the scene looking like a hat with limbs attached.

    Watching this, Avid had a thought.

    ¡ªI should be stronger.

    Something that looked like blood vessels covered Avid¡¯s outer-shell, and adjustments were made to its internal structures.

    ¡ó

    ¡°Malice! Yes, I¡¯ll concentrate all the malice to this territory!¡±

    The Guide, who had be a tophat, was gathering all the malice inside Liam¡¯s territory.

    He also announced Liam¡¯s absence to everyone in the Empire so that those with malicious intents, be it aristocrats or pirates, would gather.

    ¡°I¡¯ll demolish everything that you have built up! Fuhahaha! By the time you¡¯re back, you¡¯re territory would be in shambles!!¡±

    He was venting his anger after having his body erased by Ellen.

    The Guide thought of something.

    ¡°Oh, I almost forgot about Calvin! I should provide him with my support. If it¡¯s him, he wouldn¡¯t miss this opportunity. I¡¯ll have people gather around him so that they can raise up a storm.¡±

    In order to ruin Liam¡¯s territory, the Guide decided to throw in his support and help Calvin.

    ¡ó

    ¡°I sure am lucky.¡±

    I mutter while lying on the bed, and Kunai, who has been standing beside me, nods.

    ¡°It is as Lord Liam says, but what¡¯s the asion?¡±

    As a ck Ops member that¡¯s responsible for protecting me, she¡¯s someone of few words, but I¡¯m chatting with her since I¡¯m boredand there¡¯s no one else to talk to.

    ¡°Well, it just felt like luck was seeping into me.¡±

    ¡°Does such a feeling exist?¡±

    ¡°Of course it does. After all, the god of luck is on my side. Anyway, how are things looking so far?¡±

    It¡¯s really bright outside even though it¡¯s already nighttime.

    There are countless torches lined up on the wall that¡¯s protecting the city, and a battle is ongoing.

    ¡°The beastmen are dominating. This country¡¯s soldiers are simply too weak,¡± Kunai reports.

    ¡°Hmm, it¡¯s not a bad idea to watch on as the country perishes,¡±I replyzily.

    This, in a sense, is also a type of luxury.

    The Kingdom¡¯s army is fighting desperately outside, but I¡¯m here on my bed, spectating from above.

    ¡°So? How¡¯s Kanami doing?¡±

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯m afraid that woman is dissatisfied with Lord Liam¡¯s attitude. She¡¯s moring on about how she¡¯s going to repel the enemy forces, but there¡¯s no doubt that she¡¯ll die soon.¡±

    I¡¯ve heard that she gained some great power as a Hero, but it seems like she doesn¡¯t have what it takes to push back the enemies.

    ¡°The Kingdom of Aarl was too indecisive. It should¡¯ve summoned the Hero earlier when it still had some forces left so that they could nurture the Hero.¡±

    It¡¯s useless to throw someone with brute force into the battlefield without anything else.

    This Queen is no good¡ªno good at all.

    ¡°Lord Liam, it¡¯s about time.¡±

    ¡°Then let¡¯s get going.¡±

    I stand up and stretch my back before leaving the room with Kunai.

    ¡ó

    That night.

    After being roused by Enora, Kanami was preparing her armor in a dark room, relying on nothing else but the light from the candles.

    The maids around her were helping her, but it was quite obvious that they were afraid.

    ¡°They attack at night as well?¡±

    Kanami was surprised, and this feeling was shared by Enora, who had entrusted her kingdom to Kanami.

    ¡°It¡¯s quite rare for them to do so. After all, there¡¯s bound to be more friendly-fires at night,¡± Enora replied. ¡°But then again, this might not be a problem for beastmen.¡±

    Kanami¡¯s hands shook at the thought of entering an actual battlefield.

    (I¡¯m scared. I¡¯ve be much stronger, but I¡¯m still scared.)

    Enora held Kanami¡¯s hands and entrusted her hope to thetter.

    ¡°Kanami-sama, please protect us. Please protect the innocent citizens from the hands of those despicable beasts.¡±

    Enora didn¡¯t fit the image that Kanami had of Queens.

    ¡°Leave it to me.¡±

    (She¡¯s always thinking about her people. I see, so this is what it means to be a member of the Royal Family.)

    ¡ó

    A fierce battle was taking ce on the Kingdom of Aarl¡¯s castle walls.

    The soldiers of the kingdom were fighting against the beastmen that had attacked in the middle of the night.

    Walls meant nothing before these strong beastmen warriors.

    After sessfully climbing the walls, they were surrounded by the kingdom¡¯s soldiers.

    One of the beastmen grabbed a soldier¡¯s head and squeezed it hard.

    ¡°Weak! Weak!! You humans aren¡¯t a match against us!¡±

    The soldiers were being mowed down by beastmen.

    It was then that Kanami descended onto the battlefield wielding a sword.

    Seeing the countless corpses of soldiers rolling around, Kanami¡¯s blood boiled.

    ¡°¡ªDon¡¯t expect me to show you mercy.¡±

    The beastmen howled inughter and smirked.

    ¡°It¡¯s a woman! They must be low on soldiers.¡± They jeered. ¡°The victory is ours¡ªh-huh?¡±

    Suddenly, a deep wound appeared on aughing beastman¡¯s abdomen, and blood started spurting out.

    The beastman crouched, applying pressure to his injuries with his hands.

    Kanami stood there, trembling with her sword in hand.

    When they saw this, the expressions on the beastmen around her changed, and they promptly charged at her.

    However, Kanami maneuvered past their attacks and shed at the iing beastmen¡¯s arms and legs, rendering them incapable of remaining standing.

    ¡°Haa¡ªhaa¡ª¡±

    Kanami shook from the sensation that she got when she shed someone.

    Then, the soldiers around her began stabbing the beastmen with their spears.

    ¡°Die! Die!¡±

    ¡°This is for my dead son!¡±

    ¡°Hail the Hero!¡±

    The soldiers were singing Kanami¡¯s praise.

    Before they knew it, they had ughtered most of the beastmen that had climbed the walls.

    Several of them had managed to escape, but it was a major victory for the Kingdom of Aarl.

    ¡°We won! It¡¯s our victory!¡±

    Kanami couldn¡¯t believe what she had just witnessed.

    (Why? They were already incapable of fighting back!)

    The injuries on their limbs had rendered the beastmen incapable of resisting, yet the soldier stabbed them without a moment¡¯s hesitation. It was almost scary.

    Kanami copsed on the spot.

    It was dawn.

    ¡ó

    Nogo, the Lion King, was about to swing hisrge battle-ax on the beastmen that had fled.

    ¡°M-mery. There was a Hero¡ª¡±

    Nogo hacked down the ones that had failed him before everyone¡¯s eyes before raising his blood-stained face to the crowd.

    ¡°It matters not whether they have a Hero. Since we¡¯vee to this, we¡¯ll just have to break down their gate to enter the city. It will be a feast!¡±

    When he raised his battle-ax, the beastmen cheered in unison.

    uss, who had been watching, clicked his tongue softly.

    ¡°A frontal assault. We¡¯ll be losing a lot ofrades again.¡±

    Nogo was powerful, so he was prone to attacking head-on.

    He was intoxicated with the feeling of crushing his enemies with overwhelming force.

    Chino, uss¡¯s daughter, rushed over.

    ¡°Father! The battle is about tomence.¡±

    Looking at her sparkling eyes, uss patted her head.

    Her ears that had been standing erect plopped down happily.

    ¡°Make sure to survive. A strong warrior is someone that survives.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll defeat the enemies and prove to everyone that I¡¯m as strong as father!¡±Chino dered.

    ¡°No, I¡¯m telling you to¡ª¡±

    It was at that moment.

    The conversation amongst the beastmen ceased all together.

    They were forced into silence by the immense pressureing from someone at the other side of the gate.

    Chino curled up her tail.

    ¡°F-father, could this feeling be from the rumored Demon Lord?¡±

    uss turned to Nogo.

    That didn¡¯t seem to be the case.

    Nogo was on guard as well.

    ¡°Prepare yourself!¡±

    Heeding Nogo¡¯smand, the tribes lined up in ranks and began their advance.

    Based on the pressureing from the gate, none of the beastmen were expecting an easy victory.

    Nogo gestured to the nearby tribes to charge.

    Interestingly enough, no arrows were being fired from the walls.

    Just as they were about to reach the walls¡ªthe castle¡¯s gate opened up, inviting the beastmen in.

    ¡°What!?¡±

    uss¡¯s eyes shot open, astonished by their enemies¡¯ reckless move.

    Other than the cityscape of the Kingdom of Aarl¡¯s capital, they also saw a man was standing there, carrying a thin sword on his shoulder with a grin on his face.

    With his hands, he was gesturing them toe at him.

    Nogo, thinking that their enemies were trying to provoke them, issued an order to the entire army.

    ¡°Unforgivable. They dare provoke me, Nogo?¡ªAll men, CHARGE!¡±

    The others charged in, but uss¡¯s intuition was telling him that it would be a bad idea to enter the city.

    Mostof the beastmen had realized this, but they had to charge because of Nogo¡¯smand.

    As a result of uss¡¯s dy, their tribe was falling behind the others.

    ¡°Father, we¡¯ve been ordered to charge! Let¡¯s charge ahead quickly!¡±

    uss was terrified of the man standing behind the gate.

    Nevertheless, orders were absolute.

    If he went against them, their entire tribe would be exterminated.

    ¡°¡ªWe shall charge.¡±

    The Lycanthropes howled and chased after their allies.

    Even so, cold sweat continued to flow down uss¡¯s forehead.

 Chapter 111 - V7 Chapter 6 â€“ The Greatest Villain

    <strong>Vol. 7 Chapter 6 ¨C The Greatest Viin</strong>

    Trantor: Eternia

    Editor: Vakkerb

    ***

    -At the public square before the castle¡¯s gate-

    Soldiers equipped with bows and arrows had gathered around Liam, and they shivered with fear as the beastmen approached.

    Kanami and Enora were watching from a distance, clueless as to what Liam had in mind.

    ¡°What in the world is he thinking? The moment he came out, the first thing he said was to open the gate!¡±

    Kanami admittedly didn¡¯t know much about wars, but she knew that they were meant to protect the gates, not open them.

    This wasmon sense for Enora as well, and she was shocked when the gates actually opened under Liam¡¯smand.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t issued such orders! Who was it that opened the gate!?¡±

    The knights around them were equally confused.

    ¡°I¡¯ve sent some men to check, but none has returned.¡±

    What on earth...?

    The beastmen that arrived at the square were being blown away the moment they came near Liam, their blood and flesh sttering everywhere as if a balloon had popped.

    The sword in Liam¡¯s hand piqued Kanami¡¯s interest.

    ¡°He¡¯s holding a katana.¡±

    ¡°Kanami-sama, do you happen to know what it is?¡±

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s uhh¡ªan ancient weapon from my home country, I guess?¡± She replied.

    She hadn¡¯t seen any katanas in this country, but Liam was holding one.

    The beastmen continued to rush in while hollering loudly.

    Seeing this, Enora sped her hands together and prayed.

    ¡°Lord, please protect us all.¡±

    Kanami was about to pull out her sword and join the fight to support Liam, but the beastmen were being flung out the moment they passed through the gate.

    It was as if they were being repelled by an invisible barrier.

    Those in the front hade to a stop, but they were being pushed forward by theirpanions in the back.

    They had charged forward with such incredible momentum that it wasn¡¯t an easy task for them to slow down.

    Liamughed at the sight of the gate being dyed bright red.

    ¡°Weak, far too weak! They¡¯re being flung back before I could even strike!¡±

    He was just holding his sword, but he spoke as if he was the one cutting them down.

    Kanami carefully observed Liam¡¯s movements, but it didn¡¯t seem as if he was doing anything.

    It was only after countless beastmen¡¯s sacrifice that the beastmen realized the peculiar situation and came to a halt.

    When they retreated from the gate, Liam decided to head out.

    Kanami and Enora climbed up the walls to see what Liam was up to.

    ¡ó

    ¡ªThese guys are so weak; they¡¯re being blown away by the air pressure from the sword.

    I wonder how many enemies I¡¯ve blown away by now.

    ¡°Now, who¡¯s the one that¡¯s leading these small-fries?¡±

    It feels great to exert so much strength against the weak.

    Whenever I overpower my enemies, I feel a sense of aplishment, as if I¡¯ve proven to myself that I¡¯m strong.

    I¡¯m not the one being hunted here.

    They¡¯re the ones being hunted, and I¡¯m the viin.

    When I step outside, I realize that the city has been surrounded by the beastmen.

    A beastman that resembles a lion steps forward while wielding a giant ax.

    From the way the other beastmen are behaving, it¡¯s clear that this one¡¯s their leader.

    ¡°You¡¯re the Demon Lord?¡± I ask.

    In response to my question, the lion swings down his ax.

    ¡°You¡¯re but a puny human!¡±

    He¡¯s so darn slow that I end up resisting the urge to yawn.

    I dodge the attack by a hair¡¯s breadth on purpose and continue to ask my question.

    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m asking you whether you¡¯re the Demon Lord or not. Answer me.¡±

    I kick his knees after he swings his ax.

    His bnce crumbles, and I grab his mane and m his face into the ground.

    The lion stares at me with wide eyes that reflect his disbelief.

    ¡°How!? How are you holding me down with such thin arms!?¡± He bellows.

    ¡°The densities of our bones and muscles are fundamentally different,¡± I answer. ¡°Now, are you the Demon Lord?¡±

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯m not.¡±

    The lion replies as he struggles in vain to escape from my grasp.

    That aside¡ªhe really does resemble a beast, a beast walking on two legs.

    I had a junior in my previous life that used to drone on about cat ears, but I can¡¯t rte at all.

    Several of the other beastmen shoot arrows at me while I¡¯m rough-handling the lion.

    I knock the iing projectiles away, but it seems like they think the arrows disappeared midflight as they raise voices of exmation.

    A momentter, the beastmen that attacked me get dragged into their shadows.

    ¡ªIt must be Kunai.

    It¡¯s good that she¡¯s enthusiastic about her work.

    Well, it¡¯s a given that they¡¯d die after trying to attack me.

    I let go of the lion, but he picks up his ax andes at me again almost immediately.

    I continue where we left off while avoiding his blows.

    ¡°Mind telling me where the Demon Lord resides? I¡¯m willing to go there myself. You just have to be my guide.¡±

    ¡°Unlike you puny humans, the Demon Lord holds a very lofty position! It¡¯s sphemous to even suggest having an audience with the Lord!¡±

    ¡°Alright then. Go die.¡±

    He¡¯ll be blown away if I unleash my One-sh, so I resort to just cutting off his head.

    I pull out my sword and double check that I¡¯m shing slowly.

    The beastmen that have been watching from the side charge at me in anger.

    ¡°Silence.¡±

    ¡ªIntimidated, they stop in their tracks.

    I swing my sword in a way that makes it visible to the beastmen.

    The next moment, dozens of beastmen warriors have their heads decapitated.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you guys two options to choose from,¡± I tell them. ¡°You can either obey me, or you can die after going against me. The choice is yours.¡±

    Finally catching on to the fact that we¡¯re onpletely different ying fields, they stare at each other¡¯s faces.

    Faced with my overwhelming might, the warriors sink to their knees¡ªahhh, what a beautiful sight to behold.

    If you wish to me anyone, me this country¡¯s Queen for summoning a viin like me to act as their Hero.

    While the others are showing subservient attitudes, a beastman jumps out from the crowd.

    It¡¯s someone with dog ears and a tail.

    She doesn¡¯t look like a beast. At first nce, she appears to be a girl that¡¯s cosying.

    ¡°Wai am! Ttthhe daudau¡ª¡±

    It seems like she¡¯s trying to say something to me, but her mouth isn¡¯t functioning properly.

    Also, her triangr ears are drooping down instead of standing erect, and she¡¯s shivering with her tail curled up.

    Her knees are shaking as if they¡¯re about to give out.

    Oh, and by the way, I love dogs.

    I used to own a dog that also shivered and curled up its tail whenever I scolded it.

    Seeing this child is making me feel nostalgic.

    ¡°You¡¯re a dog-kin, right? I¡¯ll forgive you since you¡¯re a dog.¡± I say generously.

    The girl¡¯s eyes sharpen.

    ¡°Nyaim niat a dog!¡±

    ¡ªKu! I¡¯ve got no clue what she¡¯s saying.

    She¡¯s so terrified that her tongue seems to have stopped working.

    It¡¯s so very adorable of her. I¡¯m having troubling keeping myself in check.

    Now that I¡¯m cognizant of the fact that she¡¯s a dog-kin, she¡¯s starting to look extremely cute.

    I try to calm down the young dog-kin that¡¯s before my eyes.

    ¡°Let¡¯s calm down, shall we? Breathe in...breathe out...¡± I guide her.

    ¡°Suuu....haaa....¡±

    She¡¯s actually listening to the words of her enemy and taking deep breaths to calm herself.

    How stupidly adorable of her.

    It¡¯s been so long since Ist kept a dog.

    I want a dog, but I¡¯m not keen on buying one.

    After all, it would eventually die, and that would make me really sad.

    Hmm, but what if it¡¯s this girl?

    The dog-kin girl before me introduces herself now that her mouth is working properly.

    ¡°My name is Chino! I¡¯m the daughter of uss, the strongest warrior in our tribe!¡±

    ¡°I see,¡± I reply, ¡°So, you¡¯re a dog-kin, right?¡±

    ¡°Are you mocking me!?¡± She yells. ¡°We¡¯re wol¡ª¡±

    Just as I¡¯m about to feel disappointed that I got it wrong, I hear someone shout, ¡°Yes, we¡¯re dogs!¡±

    I turn towards the direction of the shout and spot a beastman that looks simr to this Chino girl in front of me.

    From their simr appearance, I think it¡¯s safe to say that they know each other.

    Chino exims in surprise.

    ¡°B-but father!! We¡¯re proud wolv¡ª¡±

    ¡°Dogs. Chino, we¡¯re dogs,¡± he interrupts.

    ¡°Ehhh!?¡±

    Chino seems unconvinced, but the beastman steps forward and deres himself a member of the Dog tribe.

    ¡°And you are?¡±

    ¡°I am Gluass, Chino¡¯s father. May I have the honor of knowing your distinguished name?¡±

    It feels nice watching this uss or whatever kneeling before me, so I put my sword back into the sheath.

    ¡°I¡¯m Liam, Liam Sera Banfield, and I¡¯m your master from now on. Worship me. Honor me. Follow me! If there¡¯s anyone that objects, step forward. I¡¯ll chop you into pieces.¡±

    The beastmen kneelsilently.

    This feels really pleasant.

    Only Chino remains unconvinced.

    ¡°I-I¡¯m a wolf!¡±

    I nce at uss, who shrugs and tells me,

    ¡°That child admires wolves greatly. Dogs and wolves are like rtives, so...¡±

    I want her now more than ever before.

    ¡°What a cute girl.¡±

    A dog that thinks herself a wolf. She¡¯s like an umtion of moe.

    uss unexpectedly offers his daughter to me.

    ¡°I am willing to offer my daughter as proof of our loyalty.¡±

    ¡°For real? Like real real? She¡¯s your daughter though?¡±

    You¡¯re giving her away that easily!?

    I¡¯m shook inside, but uss appears to be calm.

    ¡ªHmm, since the civilization here isn¡¯t that developed, I guess children are not treated well.

    It¡¯s not like they¡¯re treated any better in intergctic nations though.

    Human life means very little in this world.

    ¡°She¡¯s old enough to be independent.¡±

    I have the father¡¯s permission to take her, but Chino doesn¡¯t seem very willing.

    ¡°Father! Please reconsider! I don¡¯t want to!¡±

    uss ignores her protest.

    ¡°Be quiet, the fate of our tribe is at stake here.¡±

    Chino bes dejected after being red at by her father.

    She¡¯s behaving just like a dog, I like it.

    My dog also used to be dejected whenever I scolded it.

    Just from this alone, I think it was worth being summoned here.

    Not only did I get to escape from Brian¡¯s nagging, I got my hands on a cute pet as well.

    ¡°Cool, I¡¯ll make sure to cherish your daughter,¡± I tell him happily. ¡°Oh, and I¡¯m your boss from now on. If you go against me, I¡¯ll decimate your tribe, so be aware of that.¡±

    I return to the city in a jubnt mood with the beastmen still bowing to me.

    ¡ó

    Inside the audience hall of the royal pce, Liam was sitting on the throne and talking with the beastmen¡¯s higher-ups.

    ¡°A subordinate of the Demon Lord?¡±

    ¡°Yes, the Lion King Nogo was one of the four Heavenly Kings under the Demon Lord.¡±

    ¡°They sound like a hassle to deal with, so I¡¯ll pass. Let¡¯s just defeat the Demon Lord and be done with this.¡±

    With his legs crossed, he dered disinterestedly that they should march onward and defeat the Demon Lord.

    Kanami, who was listening, started criticizing Liam¡¯s attitude.

    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s up with that attitude of yours, huh!? There are people suffering out there! Don¡¯t you think we should save them!?¡±

    There were people being oppressed by the Four Heavenly Kings, but Liam wasn¡¯t interested in them at all.

    ¡°And what¡¯s that got to do with me? It¡¯smon sense to aim for the enemy¡¯s leader in battles. Amateurs should just stay put.¡±

    ¡°A-amateur!?¡±

    ¡°Someone who couldn¡¯t even kill their enemies has no right to talk back to me,¡± Liam said mockingly. ¡°You hesitated, am I right? People like you are useless in wars, so just stay cooped up in this castle. There¡¯s no need for you to worry. I¡¯ll y the Demon Lord as pastime.¡±

    Pastime¡ªFor Liam, the battle just now with the beastmen was nothing more than a fun activity.

    The battle had been a terrible one, but Liam was calling it a ¡°pastime¡±.

    ¡°So many lives were lost,¡± Kanami said with clenched fists.

    Liam stared at Kanami with cold eyes as she thought back to all the soldiers that died.

    ¡°So? This is their war in the first ce. It¡¯s not my problem. In fact, they should be thanking me. If I weren¡¯t here, they would¡¯ve been annihted.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re supposed to be their Hero, just like me!¡± Kanami yelled at him.

    ¡°And that¡¯s why I bothered to help,¡± he said. ¡°Oh, and I haven¡¯t been thanked yet. Queen Enora, quickly prepare a celebratory feast for me.¡±

    Enora came forward at this arrogant disy of attitude.

    ¡°¡ªHero, while it¡¯s true that we were able to win the battle thanks to the two of you, I haven¡¯t been told anything about the beastmen entering the castle as your subordinates.¡±

    ¡°But of course. I haven¡¯t told anyone after all. It¡¯s not like I need your permission or anything,¡± Liam replied.

    ¡°We have suffered under the beastmen¡¯s oppression for many years,¡± Enora protested. ¡°Neither we nor the people will approve of this.¡±

    The beastmen had gued the Kingdom of Aarl for a long time.

    Feeling the hatred and sadness within Enora¡¯s voice, Kanami chose to stay silent.

    However¡ª

    ¡°And why would I need your approval? You guys just have to swallow it. Who do you think you¡¯re speaking to anyway?¡±

    ¡ªLiam did not care an ounce about their thoughts.

    A young knight pulled out his sword out of indignation and pointed it at Liam.

    ¡°Give him an inch and he¡¯ll take a mile! How dare you speak to Her Majesty the Queen in this manner! Not only have you invited these beasts into the castle, you even¡ªyour help is no longer necessary! We¡¯ll be massacring the beastmen outside as well!¡±

    The knights and the ministers that agreed with his words began pouring out theirints.

    Kanami knew that their anger was genuine.

    (There¡¯s no way I can stop them.)

    She didn¡¯t approve of genocides, but it would be hypocritical of her say ¡°you shouldn¡¯t kill¡± to those that had their families ughtered.

    Even if she did, nothing would change.

    Liam stood up slowly and closed the distance between himself and the young knight in an instant.

    Then, he chopped off the noisy knight¡¯s head with his hand

    This was enough to silence the crowd.

    Everyone stared at Liam fearfully.

    (What!? W-when did he move?)

    No one had been able to follow Liam¡¯s movement at all.

    ¡°These trash dumps seem to be under the wrong impression,¡± he sneered. ¡°You¡¯re not winners, you¡¯re losers. I was the one that won. You guys are merely survivors, and now that the beastmen have sworn their loyalty to me, they¡¯re my property. ¡ªTrash like you shouldn¡¯t even think of touching your Lord Human¡¯s property unless you have a death wish.¡±

    The expression on everyone¡¯s face sunk when Liam dered the victory to be his alone.

    Enora voiced herint.

    ¡°H-how could that be!? We have shed so much blood for this war! It¡¯s far too arrogant of you to im the victory as yours alone!¡±

    Kanami, who couldn¡¯t stand Liam¡¯s attitude any longer, joined the protest.

    ¡°You¡¯re personality¡¯s downright terrible! Do you even know how desperately these people¡ªw-what¡¯s wrong?¡±

    Liam snickered at Kanami and Enora¡¯s vehement protest.

    Then a momentter, he held his stomach and startedughing out loud.

    ¡°Shed blood? Desperate? You¡¯ve only done what you¡¯re supposed to do, nothing more, and nothing less. It¡¯s so funny watching you guys trying to brag on about how much effort you put in and stuff.¡±

    Kanami couldn¡¯t believe what she just heard.

    Liam moved on to address, nay, to preach Enora.

    ¡°You¡¯re this kingdom¡¯s ruler. So what if you had to put in a lot of effort? So what if you had to shed a lot of blood? Are you dumb or what?¡ªThose are just the basic responsibilities of a ruler. Your aplishments aren¡¯t even worth evaluating.¡±

    Enora took a step back due to the weight behind Liam¡¯s words.

    Liam pressured her even further by taking a step forward.

    ¡°It¡¯s frustrating seeing people like you. If you¡¯ve got the time to flirt with the citizens, do your job properly. Why are you wasting your time worrying about the people?¡±

    ¡°Fli¡ªexcuse me,¡± she sputtered. ¡°What does a man like you know!? I¡¯ve simply been doing what I could to help soothe the citizens that had to endure all these hardships throughout the¡ª¡±

    ¡°Riiight, that must be the only thing you could do with yourcking abilities,¡± he interrupted. ¡°Well, it¡¯s not like I don¡¯t understand. You must be scared, scared that the people would start a riot and have the city copse from within.¡±

    After having a goodugh, Liam went back to his discussion with the beastmen about future affairs,pletely ignoring Enora and her subjects.

 Chapter 112 - Vol 7 Chapter 7

    <h4>Vol 7 Chapter 7. Family Dispute</h4>

    Back at the Capital, Calvin was receiving reports about how Liam¡¯s territory was being torn apart.

    Members of his faction had gathered, and there was great excitement in the air.

    ¡ªThe Guide, who had reverted back to a hat, was watching from the sidelines.

    ¡°It¡¯s your time to step up! It¡¯s time for you to strike Liam¡¯s territory!¡±

    With the Guide fanning the mes behind the scenes, the aristocrats were all riled up.

    ¡°Your Highness Calvin, this is a chance, a chance for us to strike Liam¡¯s territory with full force!¡±

    Despite the aristocrats¡¯ excitement, Calvin maintained a calm attitude.

    ¡°¡ªSupport the ones that are charging recklessly. We won¡¯t be making any moves ourselves this time,¡± he ordered.

    ¡°Y-your Highness?¡±

    Everyone else in the room was shocked, and even the Guide stood up while screaming, ¡°What!?¡±

    He only had a bit of his powers left, so he had been unable to seizeplete control of Calvin.

    Calvin¡¯s eyes were glued to the reports.

    ¡°I still find it hard to believe that he went missing because of a summoning magic. It¡¯s probably a trap,¡± he deduced.

    ¡°T-that might be true, but would they really do such a thing? Besides, the Banfields are heading towards ruin. Isn¡¯t this the perfect opportunity for us to attack with our entire force?¡± they objected.

    ¡°We suffered a setback just a while ago. I¡¯d rather not dive into what could potentially be a trap. We¡¯ll have the other forces test the water for now. If the rumors turn out to be true, Liam-kun would no doubt suffer a great reduction in strength,¡± Calvin reasoned. ¡°That¡¯s when we¡¯ll confront him.¡±

    The aristocrats turned to look at one another.

    ¡°Even if hees back safe and sound, he¡¯ll need to invest years of time to set things back to how they were,¡± one of them said.

    ¡°If he¡¯s really unlucky, he might not be able to extinguish the fires of unrest even after decades, if not longer,¡± another continued.

    ¡°I guess we could bide our time for now,¡± the rest agreed.

    Everyone regained theirposure upon hearing Calvin¡¯s words, but the Guide was dissatisfied with how things yed out.

    ¡°Strike, damn it! It¡¯s your chance to do so! Why are you backing away at this critical juncture! You even have my support!¡±

    Upset that Calvin and his subordinates were not moving as he intended, the Guide banged on the desk before him with the tiny limbs that were growing out of his hat.

    ¡ó

    ¡®We are the legitimate sessors of the Banfield Family! We will follow Lord Liam¡¯s will, and I, Christina, will be takingmand of the situation!¡ªThose that disobey will be killed!¡¯

    ¡®We have Lady Rosetta under our protection, meaning we are the ones that carry the fate of the Banfield Family! I, Marie Sera Marian, swear to kill anyone that goes against us!¡¯

    Inside Liam¡¯s mansion which was situated on the Banfield Family¡¯s main, us was sweating profusely.

    Although he was average in terms of his abilities, he was tasked with keeping the knights in line.

    At this time, he had his head buried in his hands.

    ¡°Lord Liam¡¯s close aides suddenly turned coats!?¡±

    Both Tia and Marie were central figures among Liam¡¯s knights.

    They were highlypetent, and Liam relied on them very much.

    However, when Liam went missing, they rose up, each insisting that they should be the one to cover for Liam¡¯s absence.

    Tia mobilized Liam¡¯s fleet without his permission, while Marie whisked Rosetta away before gathering what forces she could gather from the fleet that was scattered around.

    On top of all that¡ª

    ¡®I hear that the Banfield Family does not have a sessor, but fear not. The blood of the Banfields happens to flow in my veins thanks to someone from two generations ago. Since this is an emergency, I am willing to offer my help.¡¯

    ¡®The Astreed Family, which was once a branch family under the Banfields, have the right to serve as the sessor. I¡¯m also backed by the leaders of the Cleo Faction, so make me your deputy head.¡¯

    ¡®I am pregnant with Lord Liam¡¯s child! He should be the next head of the Banfield Family!¡¯

    ¡ªHe had been dealing with such individuals from the morning.

    They were clearly aiming for the power and wealth of the Banfields.

    us, who had to entertain this farce, was getting more and more tired with each passing day.

    However, it was the knights that were supposed to be his allies that afflicted him with ulcer pain.

    ¡°us-sama, when are we going to beat those people up?¡± They asked.

    ¡°If we get rid of those two, us-sama would be the leader of the knights!¡±

    ¡°We have already prepared ourselves and are ready to fight at a moment¡¯s notice!¡± They told him excitedly.

    These bloodthirsty folks were raring to have us fight against Tia and Marie.

    While enduring the pain in his stomach, us gave out orders.

    ¡°¡ªWe will be on standby and protect this until Lord Liam returns.¡±

    us, who had neither the thought nor the ambition of taking advantage of the situation, sought to maintain the status quo.

    This was in spite of the fact that he could have split off from the Banfield Family to create an independent force.

    The people around him, however, seemed dissatisfied with his decision.

    (Someone¡¯s actually going to act up and start a war at this rate. Lord Liam, pleasee back as soon as you can!)

    ¡ó

    The knights that Isaac brought along were formal vassals of the family head from previous generations, and they were currently residing in the mansion¡¯s lounge that was meant for executive ss individuals, enjoying premium sake and having a st.

    They were having a feast and enjoying their time along with some ambitious maids and officials that wanted to suck up to them.

    With the territory¡¯s rapid expansion and development, a lot of people with ambition had suck in to the Banfield Family.

    Military officials, agents sent by Calvin and other hostile factions, as well as foreign spies trying to disrupt the Banfield Family¡¯s territory were participating in this affair.

    ¡°There seems to have been a lot of development in thest hundred years.¡±

    A knight with beards was sitting on the sofa with a beautiful woman waiting upon him.

    He was someone that had abandoned the Banfield Family when Liam¡¯s grandfather was still the head of the household.

    At the same time, he was the most skilled among the knights that had tagged along with Isaac.

    As such, Isaac had appointed him as his head knight.

    The intruders, after upying the lounge, were trying to gain allies within the mansion.

    Their strategy was to have things fall apart from inside, but all that they were really doing was ying around with Liam¡¯s wealth.

    The knights in particr were just ransacking the mansion.

    ¡°Take a look at this sword! It¡¯s a piece of art!¡±

    ¡°I found a mobile knight that¡¯s meant for elite guards in the hangar. It¡¯s mine from now on.¡±

    ¡°Look what I found!¡±

    Laughing, a knight entered the room while dragging with him a damaged doll.

    It was one of the mass-produced automatons that Amagi requested Liam to purchase.

    Its clothing had been torn and its joints dislocated.

    The knight had brutally hit and kicked the doll before grabbing its head and entering the lounge.

    ¡°There are dolls in this mansion? As I thought, Liam¡¯s no good. Hecks awareness as an aristocrat.¡±

    ¡°That, or he simply has no pride. He¡¯s full of himself just because he got rid of some pirates,¡± they mocked.

    ¡°Whatever, I doubt he¡¯ll evere back, and even if he does, Lord Isaac would be in charge by then. After all, even His Highness Calvin the Crown Prince is supportive of Lord Isaac.¡±

    Liam would have no ce in the household even if he were to return.

    This was why they were behaving wildly without a shred of concern.

    Someone entered the lounge.

    ¡°What is going on here!?¡±

    ¡ªIt was Brian.

    Noticing Brian¡¯s entry, Isaac¡¯s head knight stood up.

    ¡°Yo, it¡¯s been a while.¡±

    ¡°What in the world do you think you¡¯re doing!? Not only have you been causing a scene at the lounge since early morning, you¡¯ve evenid your hands on Lord Liam¡¯s possessions! Release it this instance!¡±

    ¡°Oioi, stop making a fuss out of a doll.¡±

    Brian¡¯s expression turned pale, and the head knight continued speaking, believing that Brian was scared of him.

    ¡°Butler-dono, let us not make too much noises. You don¡¯t want to displease Lord Isaac now, do you? You¡¯d prefer to continue working in this mansion, yes?¡±

    Brian¡¯s eyes became sharp.

    ¡°This Brian would rather leave the mansion than to betray Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°What astounding loyalty. I truly don¡¯t understand your thought process.¡±

    ¡°Nobody expects you to understand. After all, you¡¯re someone that already abandoned the Banfield Family,¡± Brian sneered.

    ¡°I simply left to protect the former head. That said, the newbies seem to be getting ahead of themselves. They would need to be reeducated in the near future.¡±

    As vassals that served the previous generations, they looked down on Liam¡¯s knights who were mostly neers.

    Brian did not speak back and left the lounge after retrieving the doll.

    Before he left, however, he gave his former colleagues a word of advice.

    ¡°Lord Liam may be apassionate man, but he can also be extremely frightening at times.¡ªYou should prepare yourselves for what¡¯s toe.¡±

    The head knight raised both his hands as if he was surrendering.

    ¡°That¡¯s scary indeed¡ªbut why should I be afraid of Liam when he¡¯s not even here? By the time he returns, everything here would belong to Lord Isaac.¡±

    The knights and the traitorsughed in unison.

    ¡ó

    ¡ªOn that day, the mansion was flipped upside down.

    ¡°R-really!?¡±

    ¡°Yeah! I saw the knights bullying it with my own eyes.¡±

    ¡°I-it was apparently destroyed. This is real bad. We might be held ountable as well.¡±

    The maids¡¯ expressions had been pale since the morning.

    When Serena, the head maid, arrived, the three maids straightened their backs.

    ¡°Stop making so much noise. Even at times like this, maids of this household must be able to perform the work that has been given to them.¡±

    However, this wasn¡¯t enough to pacify the terrified maids.

    ¡°H-head maid, um¡ªwe heard that one of Lord Liam¡¯s attendants was destroyed by the knights that barged in. W-we were wondering if we¡¯d also¡ª¡±

    They began shivering in fear.

    Liam¡¯s attendants¡ªit would be imprudent to call them dolls, so they were referred to as such.

    Serena understood their worries and tried to soothe them.

    ¡°None of you were at the scene, so you won¡¯t be punished. If someone does end up getting punished, it would be me, as I am the person in charge. Now, enough of this and get back to your works.¡±

    ¡°Y-yes, ma¡¯am!¡±

    After watching the three leave, Serena fiddled with a bracelet-shaped terminal and projected some images around her.

    These images contained the attendance records of her subordinates.

    Excluding the ones that were either ill, on paid leave, or had other reasons to be absent, hundreds of people had note to work.

    When words spread that a doll was destroyed, however, half the traitors returned to their work.

    Just like the frightened maids from a moment ago, they had realized that things were about to make a turn for the worse.

    ¡°¡ªWell, this is well within my expectations.¡±

    She had anticipated greater number of traitors, but her subordinates turned out to be better than she initially thought.

    ¡°There seems to be some kids with loose screws though. No, is shrewd a better way to put it?¡±

    One of Liam¡¯s dolls had been destroyed¡ªif this wasn¡¯t enough to wake them up, there wasn¡¯t any point in Serena trying to save them.

    ¡ó

    At the royal pce of the Kingdom of Aarl¡ª

    I¡¯m lying down sideways on the bed and chatting with Kunai who¡¯s sitting upright.

    ¡°Lord Liam, I have figured out the masterminds behind the assassins. Several ministers and generals were involved in this,¡± she reported.

    ¡°Oh, is that so? Get rid of them then.¡±

    ¡°As youmand!¡ªWhat about the girl named Kanami? That girl has been extremely disrespectful towards Lord Liam. Shall I dispose of her along with the others?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t. It¡¯s fun teasing her,¡± I smirk. ¡°So leave her alone for now.¡±

    ¡°W-will that be alright with you, my lord?¡±

    Kunai seems confused, and rightfully so.

    Normally, I¡¯m not this forgiving, but for some reason, I don¡¯t feel like killing her just yet.

    I want to continue teasing her a little more.

    ¡°I¡¯m not in the mood to have her killed, and it¡¯s fun teasing her, so leave her be. As for the bastards that tried to kill me, get rid of them all.¡±

    The ministers and generals of this country are frustrated over the fact that I let the beastmen into the castle.

    I¡¯d be angry as well if I was in their position,but this and that are different.

    Since they sent assassins after me, I¡¯ll deal with them in an appropriate manner.

    I¡¯m d to have someone like Kunai who handles her job very quickly.

    ¡°The ones behind the assassins¡ªthey were apparently nning out the assassination even before the Hero Summoning,¡± Kunai said.

    ¡°After going through the trouble of summoning the Hero, they were thinking of killing her? Well, it does kind of make sense. I would¡¯ve done so as well¡ªno, never mind. People normally don¡¯t resort to that.¡±

    It would be in bad taste to assassinate a Hero that you¡¯ve summoned for help after being pushed to a corner.

    As I thought, a country that allows itself to be cornered is no good at all, and I say that for valid reasons.

    ¡°When the Queen is ipetent, it seems that the people around her are bound to be ipetent as well.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s as Lord Liam says,¡± Kunai agrees.

    ¡°Even so, for that Queen to¡ª¡±

    Someone knocks on the door as we¡¯re chatting.

    ¡°Is it Kanami? What does she want from me?¡±

    I can sort of tell who it is even before the door is opened.

    Kunai opens the door for me, revealing the figure of Kanami whose brows are furrowed.

    ¡°It¡¯s all your fault!¡±

    ¡°Angh?¡±

    What a cruel thing to say. At least tell me what this is about and why it¡¯s my fault.

    ¡°I don¡¯t possess superpowers, so I¡¯d appreciate a rification.¡±

    I tease her while grinning.

    It¡¯s fun watching Kanami be frustrated over my attitude.

    ¡°I¡¯m talking about the matter with the Queen! That girl¡¯s around our age, but she¡¯s been burdened with the responsibilities of being a Queen! How could you say such terrible things to her? Do you even consider yourself a man!? Enora¡¯s feeling down because of you!¡±

    ¡ªWhat is up with this girl? Does she find the Queen pitiful?

    Is she showing sympathy for the Queen just because she¡¯s nice?

    Oh, Lord. This girl¡¯s beyond saving.

    ¡°She¡¯s a ruler.¡±

    ¡°So? She¡¯s still a girl!¡±

    ¡°For a ruler, their age and sex do not matter. If she¡¯s in a position of power, it¡¯s expected of her to fulfill her duties,¡± I tell her.

    ¡°But¡ª¡±

    ¡°What a fool you are.¡±

    ¡°A-a fool!?¡±

    It¡¯s fun watching her seethe in anger, so I decide on the spot to teach her about various things in life.

    For unknown reasons, I can¡¯t seem to leave her alone.

    Is it because her name¡¯s the same as my daughter¡¯s from my previous life?

    Granted, it¡¯s not like they¡¯re the same person.

    We¡¯re currently in a different world and era¡ªit would take something beyond a miracle for me to reunite with my daughter here.

    The probability is infinitely close to zero. In essence, it¡¯s impossible.

    But if she does turn out to be my daughter, then fate is the only word to describe it.

    It would be an event that has been predestined.

    That said, there is no such thing as fate between my daughter and I.

    It¡¯s not like we¡¯re even blood-rted, so there¡¯s no way that our hearts are.

    ¡ªThis is also why I hate children.

    ¡°Is that what you¡¯re going to say to the dead? ¡®The Queen has already done her best, and she¡¯s a very kind person¡¯¡ªWhat would the people that lost their families think when they hear this?¡±

    ¡°I-it might not be a satisfactory exnation,¡± she stutters. ¡°But I¡¯m sure that they¡¯ll¡ª¡±

    ¡°You really don¡¯t understand anything.¡±

    If I were to be extreme about this, I dare say that ability is the most important thing for a ruler.

    This is especially true in feudal societies.

    Compassion? That is of secondary or even tertiary importance.

    As a human, the Queen may be a wonderful person, but as a ruler, she¡¯s a failure.

    This is a world where even tyrants are hailed as wise kings so long as they can make their citizens rich.

    ¡ªTake me as an example. I might be a sh*tty tyrant and all, but I¡¯m being praised as a wise ruler.

    Kanami looks down and takes in my words.

    It seems like she¡¯s at least got a brain.

    Having said all that, I¡¯m aware that I¡¯m not fit to be a ruler either.

    My personality¡¯s downright trash, so I go about doing things while taking that into ount.

    I¡¯m revered as someone great despite all the deception and unruly acts I¡¯ve performed.

    That¡¯s just the kind of world we¡¯re in, a world that smiles on the viins.

    ¡°When the country¡¯s in a crisis, simply working hard isn¡¯t enough. In fact, putting in effort should be a given. As of now, the Queen¡¯s no different from a child that¡¯s begging forpliments despite doing the bare minimum as a ruler.¡ªFrom a citizen¡¯s point of view, a ruler that can¡¯t produce tangible result is the same as garbage.¡±

    ¡°But!¡±

    ¡°Tell that to the people that lost their homes and their loved ones! Tell them that their Queen tried her best, but it wasn¡¯t enough! You can try asking them for their forgiveness, but do you honestly think they¡¯ll be willing to let things go for that kind of excuse? Can you, without going against your conscience, tell them not to resent their ipetent Queen? You¡¯re addressing the wrong group here.¡±

    If we were to really cherry-pick, there¡¯s no end to the number of criticisms that someone can give to another human being.

    I don¡¯t have much right to criticize other people, but I can go on for days listing out everything that the Queen has been doing wrong.

    Personally, I have zero interest in the wellbeing of the citizens.

    In fact, I very much enjoy watching them squirm from high tax rates.

    ¡ªNow that we¡¯re on that topic, I¡¯ll make sure to have my revenge. How dare they humiliate me with their child-making demo nonsense.

    The first thing on my agenda after I return is to raise the tax rate.

    ¡°Your parents must be fools as well. I can tell by looking at their daughter. What on earth have they been teaching you?¡±

    She¡¯s a kind girl that¡¯s considerate of others.

    I used to hope that my daughter would grow up to be like that as well, but everything about my previous life was wrong, which means my dreams and hopes were also just the foolish ramblings of a man that couldn¡¯t open up his eyes to see what the world was really like.

    Kanami looks up with anger in her eyes.

    ¡°Don¡¯t insult my father!¡±

    ¡°Ah?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to insult my father!¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s this about? You like your dad that much?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not about my dad, it¡¯s about my father! You¡¯re not allowed to talk trash about my father!¡±

    Based on how she differentiates between the words father and dad, it¡¯s clear to me that the one responsible for her naivety is her father.

    This is starting to piss me off.

    To think there¡¯s someone like that besides me, not to mention that he has a daughter as well¡ªthis is the worst.

    ¡°That so? Then your father must be a na?ve idiot that teaches his daughter all the wrong things. I can tell just by observing you. He must have said something along the lines of ¡®always show kindness to others¡¯, correct?¡±

    Kanami shivers in anger, probably because I¡¯ve hit the bullseye.

    This girl¡¯s father is truly a hopeless man.

    ¡°Shut up!¡±

    Just as she¡¯s about to whip out her sword from her waist, Kunai appears and punches her stomach, making her faint.

    Then, with murderous eyes, Kunai draws her knife, ready to cut off Kanami¡¯s head.

    Watching Kanami who has fainted makes me think for a second.

    She may be a victim of a no-good father, but at least that father of hers is loved by his daughter.

    The same can¡¯t be said for me.

    ¡°Kunai, don¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Are you certain, my lord? This girl was about to point her sword at you.¡±

    ¡°It was a nice pastime. Send her back to her room, and do not touch her. She¡¯s my toy.¡±

    I¡¯m envious of her father.

    He may be a fool like my former self, but he has done well in raising his children.

    There¡¯s no doubt that he¡¯s a better father than I was.

 Chapter 113 - V7 Chapter 8

    A giant battleship had arrived at the territory of the Banfields.

    It was the battleship that the 7thWeapons Factory had built for Liam.

    At the bridge of the ship, Nias danced about ecstatically as she read the data presented on the monitor screen.

    Her eyes shone as she spoke about the splendid battleship that she created.

    ¡°It¡¯s absolutely brilliant! I want to show this to the ones that mocked me and said that it¡¯s only possible in theory! Just look! Just look at its specs! They¡¯re far beyond what I expected! Its energy conversion rate is insane as well. And the output! This is a battleship like no other. Ah~ I¡¯m so talented that it¡¯s making me nervous.¡±

    Some soldiers watched on as Nias had her face pressed to the monitor.

    They were the soldiers that Liam had assigned to pick up his battleship. Being elite soldiers, Liam had entrusted his ship to them.

    The other staff members from the Weapons Factory were taken aback by Nias¡¯s frenzied dance, but they did not cut corners when it came to their work.

    ¡°Is she not aware of what¡¯s going on right now?¡±

    ¡°This just proves that talent is inversely proportional to sanity.¡±

    ¡°Hey, she¡¯s rolling on the floor now. Someone should stop her.¡±

    It was an embarrassing disy.

    However, her excitement was understandable as the ship¡¯s performance well exceeded everyone¡¯s expectations.

    The only issue was that its owner was missing.

    Suddenly, Nias came to a halt.

    Looking at the ship¡¯s monitor, she tilted her head.

    ¡°Oh? It¡¯s picked up a distress signal. It¡¯s from a distant ce though. To pick up a signal that¡¯sing from so far away, mom¡¯s proud of you.¡±

    She referred to the battleship as her child and spoke like she was its mother.

    The people around her didn¡¯t know what to say anymore.

    It was then that the captain stood up and shoved Nias away from the monitor.

    Nias fell down with a ¡°Fugya!¡± but no one bothered with her.

    ¡°This distress signal¡ªhey, someone contact the home immediately and gather all our allies!¡±

    With thatmand from the captain, the people in the bridge got busy.

    ¡ó

    Nogo, one of the Four Heavenly Kings, had been in.

    [Gorius], the Demon Lord, was sitting on the throne that was inside its castle.

    Its body was shaped like a human¡¯s, but it was made of flickering mes, and its eyes consisted of two sharp glints of light.

    Gorius had no need for food.

    Instead, it loved to consume negative emotions such as malice, despair, and fear.

    Having bestowed the beastmen some of its powers, Gorius was irked when it learned that they had been defeated.

    ¡°That¡¯s beastmen for you, I guess.¡±

    It had epted the beastmen under its wing so that they could terrorize the humans in its stead.

    However, it had nned on getting rid of them in due time.

    In essence, they were just tools Gorius used to efficiently squeeze out the negative emotions of the human race.

    Its remaining subordinates stepped forward, fighting over who should rece Nogo in terrorizing the humans.

    ¡°My Lord, please let me have a go at them next!¡±

    ¡°No, I shall go next!¡±

    ¡°I believe I¡¯m fit for the job because¡ª¡±

    Gorius was just about fed up with all this.

    (Manipting these lowly creatures is getting tiresome real quick. Oh, if only I could dominate the world more quickly!)

    Gorius had suffered under the Heroes¡¯ might many times in the past.

    However, it had managed to resurrect over the years.

    Not only that, it had saved up a great amount of power.

    As humans had the habit of fighting amongst themselves, Gorius had been able to silently siphon their negative emotions.

    (Whatever, I¡¯m just doing this for fun anyway. Even if a Hero appears, it¡¯s not like they¡¯ll be able to beat me. After all, I¡¯ve already transcended the realm of a Demon Lord.)

    Gorius didn¡¯t have a physical body to speak of, so it was naturally immune to physical attacks.

    Just as Gorius was thinking of killing off its subordinates and personally dealing with the humans, a Giant came into the audience hall while covered in blood.

    ¡°The beastmen have betrayed you, my Lord. They¡¯ve entered the castle, and a Hero is leading them.¡±

    The Giant then breathed itsst.

    The Demon Lord narrowed its eyes, forming two crescent moons.

    ¡°Ho~ so you¡¯vee to take my head. My, what an impatient Hero we¡¯ve got here.¡±

    ¡ó

    At the royal pce of the Kingdom of Aarl, Queen Enora was feeling troubled over Liam¡¯s reckless decision to charge ahead.

    The heavyweights of the kingdom were having a meeting inside the throne room.

    ¡°He just went ahead and attacked the Demon Lord¡¯s castle!?¡±

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t he consult with us beforehand!?¡±

    To subjugate the Demon Lord, they assumed that Liam would need their help.

    From the beginning, however, Liam had never once considered getting help from the Kingdom of Aarl.

    After a few days of rest, he took off with the beastmen and charged into the Demon Lord¡¯s castle.

    What made things worse was that he had taken with him less than a hundred people, iming that it would be ¡°pointless to have so many people marching¡± behind him.

    He hadn¡¯t been able to secure enough food and water, so he left behind a majority of the beastmen.

    Putting all that aside, Enora¡¯s biggest concern had to do with the heads that had been delivered to them before Liam left.

    The decapitated heads of the ministers and the generals that had plotted Liam¡¯s assassination, had been sent to them by Liam¡¯s servant, Kunai.

    She had also said, ¡°None of you are in the clear. When everything is over, you better be prepared.¡±.

    Almost as an aside, she told them that people would being to the Kingdom of Aarl to assist Liam.

    ? She was saying a lot of things that I didn¡¯t understand, but she seemed convinced that help would being.)

    If people like Liam who could use mysterious magic were reallying, the kingdom would have to give them a warm reception.

    Originally, they intended to build a friendly rtionship by cooperating in the subjugation of the Demon Lord, but due to Liam¡¯s independent action along with the assassinationattempt that Enora had no prior knowledge of, everything went down the drain, and things were now beyond saving.

    ¡°What shall we do?¡± She asked, worried. ¡°If Liam-dono¡¯s country makes a move to retrieve him, we¡¯ll have to go to war.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no precedent of this,¡± Citasan said. ¡°It should be impossible.¡±

    ¡°But their knowledge of magic might exceed ours.¡±

    Enora nced at Citasan, the one responsible for the summoning magic.

    ¡°Citasan, do you think it¡¯s possible for Liam-sama¡¯s country to knock on our doors?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s impossible, Your Majesty. That summoning spell searches through numerous worlds to find a candidate that can defeat the Demon Lord. It¡¯s a one-way trip, so returning is impossible. That servant of his must have been bluffing¡±

    She was relieved to hear that, but it made her think as well.

    (What a cruel magic. We can¡¯t return them back to where they came from despite summoning them here.)

    When she thought of Kanami, her heart began to hurt.

    Enora certainly wasn¡¯t qualified as a queen, but she was a kind person.

    A soldier rushed in amidst the moring meeting.

    ¡°I-it¡¯s an emergency! The Demon Lord¡¯s army has appeared above us!¡±

    News arrived that the Demon Lord¡¯s army had invaded the kingdom while Liam was gone.

    ¡ó

    ¡ªThe Demon Lord¡¯s castle.

    After storming in, Liam had gotten rid of all the soldiers and officers that stood in his way.

    Gorius, the Demon Lord, showed an interest in Liam¡¯s sword after watching the battle.

    ¡°That weapon must have been made using Orichalcum.¡±

    ¡°You know your stuff.¡±

    The sword that Liam usually carried around as a spare was made of Orichalcum.

    Normally, it would be considered a very valuable item, but in Liam¡¯s eyes, it was just an ordinary sword among the many others in his collection.

    Gorius was convinced of its victory.

    ¡°Imend mankind for their effort. I don¡¯t know how you guys processed it, but I¡¯m impressed by how much you humans were able to aplish under pressure.¡ªThe thing is, though, that thing won¡¯t be enough to beat me.¡±

    Liam stared intently at Gorius.

    The very next moment, the backrest of the throne that Gorius was sitting on was sliced off.

    Itughed when it saw Liam raise one of his eyebrows.

    ¡°Are you wondering why I¡¯m fine? It¡¯s because I don¡¯t have a physical body.¡±

    It hadn¡¯t been able to follow Liam¡¯s attack just now, but it didn¡¯t matter as neither physical attacks nor magic attacks worked against Gorius.

    Unless it was of considerable output, it could even withstand attacks from Holy magic.

    Gorius stood up from the throne.

    ¡°How pitiful. You must have put in a lot of effort to reach such an insanely high realm of swordsmanship. Not only that, you¡¯ve been bestowed a Orichalcum sword. The humans must have invested a lot in you, but s, all that was for naught.¡±

    As it walked up to Liam, its body grew in size.

    The ck me took the form of a human as it stared down at Liam.

    ¡°Everything¡ªyes, everything that you did was for naught! Do you know what I feed on?¡±

    Liam frowned as he looked up at Gorius, perhaps annoyed by how he was being looked down on.

    ¡°Not interested.¡±

    ¡°Kukuku, how stubborn you are. I wonder how long you could keep that attitude of yours.¡±

    It waved its fist with enough force to blow away a portion of the castle¡¯s wall.

    ¡°Oh, you were able to avoid that?¡±

    However, Liam had dodged its attack while still looking up.

    Gorius was in a good mood. Hence, it decided to teach Liam about despair.

    ¡°I¡¯ve fought Heroes multiple times before.¡±

    ¡°That so.¡±

    Liam did not sound impressed, but Gorius continued on with its speech cheerfully.

    ¡°I was in many times, but as you can see, I¡¯ve managed toe back to life each time. That¡¯s right¡ªI am immortal.¡±

    Even when Gorius revealed that it was immortal, Liam did not seem fazed at all.

    Gorius assumed that he was trying to think of a n to defeat it.

    ¡°Are you trying toe up with a n to beat me? Sorry to tell you this, but you can¡¯t. I can¡¯t be killed with swords or magic, and that¡¯s because I¡¯m malice itself!¡±

    ¡°Malice!¡±

    ¡°Yes, malice! As long as there¡¯s negative energy hanging around, I¡¯ll be able to revive myself over and over again! No matter how many times you subjugate me, I¡¯ll return stronger than ever. Be it through sword or magic, none of the attacks can reach me! Even if they do, I can juste back to life! Why do you think this is the case?¡ªIt¡¯s because I won¡¯t cease to exist as long as you humans are out there!¡±

    Having finished its speech, it held its hands together and swung them down on Liam like a hammer.

    A hole was created in the floor, and the castle was beginning to copse, but Gorius wasn¡¯t bothered by them.

    It continued to swing its fists at Liam, and thetter kept retreating.

    ¡°I will not perish as long as you humans exist!¡±

    Liam kept dodging an inch before the Demon Lord¡¯s fists could connect with him.

    Goriusnded a kick where Liam had fled to.

    ¡°I can revive as many times as I need to!¡±

    Gorius roared at the Heavens inside the Demon Lord¡¯s castle that was turning into a pile of rubble.

    ¡°Because I am malice itself!¡±

    Hundreds of thousands of shes flew towards Gorius as itughed.

    For a split second, the mes were diced.

    Soon enough, however, it recovered.

    ¡°Impressive, you still haven¡¯t given up.¡±

    Liam hadn¡¯t been injured.

    ¡°You were trained to defeat me, but you can¡¯t touch me, even with your Orichalcum sword. You¡¯ve wasted your time.¡±

    However, there was something that was bothering Gorius.

    (Why is hepletely unscathed?)

    Not even a scratch.

    Even so, he looked angry for some reason.

    ¡°Malice? You?¡ªHow dare you look down on humans!¡±

    Gorius was about to be left speechless by Liam¡¯s rant.

    ¡ó

    Malice my foot.

    It¡¯s being fed by the negative emotions of humans, yet it¡¯s pretending like it¡¯s the master of the house.

    It¡¯s true that no one on this could beat this guy, but!¡ªit¡¯s vastly underestimating the human race.

    ¡°You¡¯ve underestimated your human masters too much.¡±

    ¡°¡ªWhat...did you just say?¡±

    I rest my sword on my shoulder and check the bracelet on my left arm.

    ¡°You¡¯ve been bbering on about how you can revive as long as there are humans on the, but that also means you rely on us humans to live.¡±

    The Demon Lord bes silent, and I look up at the night sky.

    The ceiling has copsed, so the stars are in full view.

    ¡°A tiny being like you might not understand what I¡¯m saying, but you¡¯re not the most evil being in this world¡ªhumans are!¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    It has probably only faced off against weak humans until now.

    In other words, it doesn¡¯t know anything.

    It doesn¡¯t know that there are other humans outside this.

    ¡°How can you im to be evil when you haven¡¯t even taken over a single? Compared to the number of people I¡¯ve killed, the number you killed means nothing!¡±

    Do you know how many people I¡¯ve killed?

    Do you know how many things I¡¯ve destroyed?

    I¡¯ve killed so many that I¡¯ve stopped bothering to count.

    In my eyes, this Demon Lord is nothing more than a kid that¡¯s iming to be a general at a local yground.

    Simply put, it¡¯s just a big fish in a small pond.

    ¡°Has your kill count reached a hundred million yet?¡±

    ¡°¡ªIt should be in the tens of millions. To begin with, there aren¡¯t that many people in this world.¡±

    You¡¯ve revived so many times, but it¡¯s only at that level?

    ¡°Yes, there are. There are hundreds of billions of people in this world, perhaps even more, and I¡¯m a man who has killed people in the hundreds of millions!¡±

    Not to mention the pirates, I¡¯ve ughtered countless enemies that blocked my path.

    Because of that, there are a lot of people that resent me.

    Iam evil. I am Malice!

    A Demon Lord of this tiny world has no right to call itself evil!

    ¡°Can you hear the voices of the dead? If you can, ask them about how cruel of a man I am.¡±

    This guy looks like an apparition of some type, so it might be able to hear the whispers of the dead.

    I bet it¡¯ll be surprised when it hears all the voices of resentment.

    ¡°W-what is this!?¡±

    The yellow lights that represent the Demon Lord¡¯s eyes turn round, probably from the shock.

    I toss my sword aside and raise my right hand towards the sky.

    ¡°A small fry like you has no right to im that it¡¯s evil! That right is solely reserved for the humans. Yes, someone like me! I am evil!¡ªEllen, my sword!¡±

    Avides down from the sky like a shooting star.

    The Demon Lord exims in surprise as Avidnds next to me, blowing away the rest of the castle.

    ¡°W-w-w-w-what is that!? WHAT IS THAT!?¡±

    Avid towers over the Demon Lord, and from its cockpit, Ellen appears with my sword in hand.

    ¡°Master!¡±

    Ellen then throws my most prized sword at me, and the sword¡¯s handlends right in my extended hand, almost as if it¡¯s been sucked into it.

    Upon grabbing the handle, I unsheathe the sword.

    ¡°Rejoice, Demon Lord. I¡¯ll give you the honor of dying from my favorite sword. I¡¯ll erase you sopletely that you¡¯ll never be able to revive again.¡±

    It¡¯s time to cut down this delusional son of a b*tch.

 Chapter 116 - V7 Chapter 9. Demon Lord Subjugation

    <h4>Chapter 116 ¨C V7 Chapter 9. Demon Lord Subjugation</h4>

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Gorius beheld an unbelievable sight.

    The metal giant that had descended from the sky was staring down at the Demon Lord.

    It was made of various precious metals that only appeared in legends and myths, making Gorius wonder how the materials were even collected.

    There was little room to doubt that this metal giant was at a higher level of existence than itself.

    Furthermore, this lump of metal seemed very much alive, almost as if it had a will of its own, and it was watching over Liam, who was its master.

    Gorius knew instinctively that it would lose if it challenged the metal giant.

    It knew that it would be extinguished, never to be revived again.

    Heck, even if it did manage to revive, Gorius wasn¡¯t confident of winning the next time.

    But enough about the giant.

    What Gorius refused to believe, or at least what it didn¡¯t wish to believe, was the nature of Liam¡¯s sword.

    (N-no way. That weapon. A weapon like that shouldn¡¯t be allowed to exist!)

    Its fear stemmed from a certain type of metal mixed in with the sword.

    Said metal was much like gold, but beyond that of gold¡ªit was a type of metal that should not have existed in this world.

    At the very least, Gorius didn¡¯t want to be at the receiving end of a sword that contained this metal.

    It was like having a nuclear missile aimed at an ant.

    The term ¡°overkill¡± would be an understatement.

    The biggest problem, however, had to do with Liam.

    (What¡¯s up with this guy!?)

    He rambled on about how humans were the root of all evil and how he was an evil being himself, but behind him stood the shadows of tens of billions that were supportive of Liam.

    Prayers from those that had once received his help shone like gold particles as they blessed him with strength.

    A sacred force was protecting him, and he was subconsciously drawing out and manipting some of its power.

    The sacred weapon in his hand was acting as a catalyst and empowering him.

    (He¡¯s not a human.)

    Gorius had never encountered a human like this before. It was its first time facing someone far superior to itself.

    It wasn¡¯t just the living.

    Even the dead and the stars above were backing Liam.

    He was being showered by divine light, and when he drew his dangerous-looking sword, it appeared as if the de shone gold.

    Although the light was harmless to Liam and the others, it was a big threat against Gorius.

    In fact, Gorius could feel its existence fading out because of the blinding light.

    ¡°¡ªEvil? You must mean¡ª¡±

    Before it could finish its sentence, however, Liam swung his sword, having grown tired of listening to Gorius.

    ¡°Zip it. Our conversation here is over.¡±

    With that sword swing, even the evil aura surrounding the Demon Lord¡¯s castle was blown away and purified.

    Liam did not wish for its revival, so he hadpletely erased Gorius from the world.

    ¡ó

    I¡¯ve just eliminated a Demon Lord wannabe.

    ¡°¡ªTo think I¡¯d be forced to use my favorite sword against a small fry.¡±

    Although it dered itself to be a Demon Lord, it was quite weak, so weak in fact that I¡¯m ashamed that I had to pull out my trump card.

    ¡°An existence that couldn¡¯t be cut down...¡±

    I¡¯ve heard of enemies that can¡¯t be dealt with through physical or magical means, but they can be easily eliminated by machines that are found in interster nations.

    But that won¡¯t do.

    I must find a way to deal with them even if I¡¯m by myself.

    ¡°How can I slice something that can¡¯t be sliced¡ª¡±

    Ellen jumps down from the sky just as I¡¯m contemting this question.

    ¡°Master!¡±

    She¡¯s crying her eyes out with a runny nose.

    She must have been quite worried as she¡¯s refusing to let go after clinging onto me.

    ¡°I¡¯ve worried you. Who else havee to pick me up?¡±

    ¡°Gusu¡ªAmagi-san, Brian-san, Nias-san, and¡ª¡±

    ¡°Huh? Why are they here? And why Nias? Were Tia and Marie not free?¡±

    Eh, why is Nias here as well?

    It¡¯s not like it would matter to her whether or not I disappear.

    Actually, never mind.

    Nias is probably the type of person that screams when she loses a sponsor.

    ¡°What a pain. So Amagi and Brian are here as well? I was treating this as a short break, but¡ª¡±

    I¡¯m in for a round of scolding, I guess.

    Kunai appears from my shadow.

    ¡°Lord Liam, the head is here.¡±

    ¡°Hmm? Kukuri came as well?¡±

    A bulky man wearing a mask appears from the shadow of a pir that¡¯s standing amidst the rubble.

    Kukuri approaches us with a weapon in hand.

    I stop him with my right hand to protect Kunai.

    ¡°Lord Liam, I¡¯m d to know that you¡¯re safe. On that note, please do not stop me from getting rid of a worthless subordinate. Kuhihihihi.¡±

    Kunai¡¯s on her knees, and she has her neck out for Kukuri.

    ¡°I¡¯ve forgiven her, not to mention I was the one who got her involved in the first ce. You should spare her.¡±

    ¡°¡ªIf that is Lord Liam¡¯s wish, then I shall obey.¡±

    ¡°She has worked hard for me, so I¡¯ll be rewarding herter on.¡±

    Kukuri stares down at Kunai.

    ¡°You should be grateful to Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°Ha!¡±

    After making sure that Kukuri has put away his weapon, I hug Ellen who¡¯s still crying.

    Kunai bows deeply, but that¡¯s not what¡¯s important right now.

    ¡°Kukuri, has anything changed?¡±

    I ask him if anything had changed while I was away.

    Kukuri tilts his head to the side.

    ¡°Yes. The territory has fallen apart, some aristocrats have raided the mansion, and a sessor has been dered. Some members of the Cleo Faction have betrayed us and are nning to plunder the territory after allying with the pirates.¡±

    ¡°¡ªHuh?¡±

    ¡ó

    ¡°Those idiots!¡±

    By the time I returned to the pce, mobile knights havee down to upy the Kingdom of Aarl.

    The spaceships hovering in the sky are blocking the sunlight from reaching the ground.

    It¡¯s around noon, and the sky should be clear, but it¡¯s dark outside because thousands of battleships havee to pick me up.

    That¡¯s not why I¡¯m mad though.

    After all, I expected no less from my subordinates.

    The reason I¡¯m mad is because I¡¯ve been told that Tia and Marie have risen up.

    They¡¯re apparently going around the territory iming that they¡¯re my sessor.

    ¡°And I was just starting to see them in a new light... Really, what am I going to do with them?¡±

    Things shouldn¡¯t have escted this far even with my absence.

    It¡¯s because of those idiot underlings of mine that things have grown to this point.

    Also, who the heck is Isaac!? I refuse to have a nobody like him named as my sessor!

    ¡°I¡¯ll deal with Tia, Marie, and Isaac when I¡¯m back, but for now¡ª¡±

    Some of my knights are following behind me as I walk down the pce corridor.

    They¡¯re part of the Liam retrieval force, and they seem to have taken control of the kingdom¡¯s pce.

    When I enter the audience hall, I¡¯m greeted by an empty throne.

    The heavyweights of the kingdom have been handcuffed, including the Queen that was responsible for summoning me.

    The same goes for the kingdom¡¯s knights.

    Some seem to have resisted and were consequently beaten up.

    It feels nice seeing them like this.

    While the majority of my subordinates look relieved that I¡¯m back, there are still some that appear agitated.

    ¡°Speak the truth! Such a primitive magic circle couldn¡¯t have prated our barriers! You¡¯re hiding something, aren¡¯t you!? Spit it out! If you don¡¯t, I¡¯ll force you to¡ª¡±

    ¡°P-please! Have mercy!¡±

    The magicians under me are surrounding a summoner named Citasan and interrogating him.

    They¡¯re apparently having a hard time believing that such a primitive magic could bypass their barriers.

    I feel a bit sorry seeing everyone so agitated.

    After all, I could¡¯ve easily escaped from the summoning circle if I really wanted to.

    ¡°You guys are being too loud.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam!? Please ept our sincere apologies. We¡¯re willing to make up for this mistake with our lives, so please have mercy on our families!¡±

    To the inhabitants of this, these magicians must look like otherworldly sages.

    The heavyweights of the kingdom finallye to a realization of what¡¯s going on after seeing the magicians begging for forgiveness with their heads touching the ground.

    Kukuri looks at me and asks, ¡°Lord Liam, how should we dispose of them?¡±

    ¡°¡ªYou better make this thest time that something like this happens. Go over the mansion¡¯s defenses again when we¡¯re back.¡±

    ¡°W-words cannot express our gratitude, my lord!¡±

    I was the one who got caught up in it on purpose, so it would be too cruel to execute them.

    When they hear that they¡¯ve been forgiven, they begin thanking me profusely while banging their heads on the floor.

    ¡ªIt¡¯s a bit disturbing to watch.

    My knights kneel down before me as I sit on the throne with crossed legs.

    The officials that havee to pick me up are ring at the kingdom¡¯s inhabitants with cold eyes.

    ¡°They¡¯re calling it a Hero Summoning, but what they did is no different from kidnapping. Lord Liam, I believe it¡¯s necessary to put these people in their ce.¡±

    A lot must have happened while I was gone for the officials to sound this irritated.

    ¡°You¡¯re right. How about destroying the entire? They were being pushed back by a small time viin anyway. They¡¯re bound to be destroyed sooner orter.¡±

    Let¡¯s destroy the!

    When I say so, two women, Queen Enora and Kanami, stand up in protest.

    ¡°P-please wait!¡±

    ¡°Destroy the!? You¡¯re going too far!¡±

    My knights pull out their swords, but I raise my right hand and signal them to back down.

    Iugh maniacally like a viin after sentencing them to their deaths.

    ¡°You kidnapped me through a summoning magic. This is a great sin. What are you willing to do to make up for this transgression?¡±

    With a sullen look, Enora replies that her kingdom willpensate us.

    ¡°We are willing topensate you with gold and silver, so please spare us.¡±

    ¡°Very well! Then prepare enough treasure to fill this pce to the brim! I might spare you all if you do.¡±

    ¡°T-that¡¯s unreasonable!¡±

    ¡°Are you hinting that I¡¯m not worth that much? What do you guys think?¡±

    Enough treasure to fill up the pce.

    I requested it while knowing full well that it¡¯s an unreasonable demand, but my subordinates do not seem to catch on to this.

    ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be nearly enough.¡±

    ¡°Are they even aware of their sins?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re saying that it¡¯s unreasonable without even trying. I don¡¯t think they¡¯re reflecting on their mistakes at all.¡±

    ¡ªMy subordinates are taking this so seriously that it¡¯s kind of troubling.

    I was envisioning a scene where theyugh like viins at the kingdom¡¯s heavyweights.

    I didn¡¯t think they¡¯d react like this.

    I guess this is what I get for not interacting with them regrly.

    They¡¯re genuinely angry. I don¡¯t think they¡¯re in the mood to entertain jokes.

    ¡°Whatever. In that case¡ª¡±

    ¡°And what do you think you¡¯re doing?¡±

    ¡°¡ªA-Amagi!?¡±

    Just as I was thinking of teasing them even more, the door to the audience hall opens.

    I straighten my back and adjust my position to sit properly on the throne.

    Amagi presents herself before me.

    ¡ªBrian, who has entered with her, runs up to me, crying.

    ¡°LORD LIAAAAAM!!¡± He wails.

    ¡°D-don¡¯te near me! I have no need for men¡¯s tears!¡±

    ¡°Thank God you were saaaafe! I was so worried that I couldn¡¯t sleep at night!¡±

    Amagi walks up to me just as I¡¯m trying to peel Brian off.

    My subordinates look back and forth between Amagi and I.

    ¡°Master.¡±

    ¡°Y-yes?¡±

    ¡°When the summoning circle appeared, you didn¡¯t move away on purpose, right?¡±

    ¡°¡ªRight.¡±

    ¡°Although it doesn¡¯t justify what they did, they must have been quite desperate to do something like this. Also, you knew that we would being, yes? What I want to say is¡ªplease stop horsing around.¡±

    The people around us await my response.

    If I were to ignore her words and order for the¡¯s destruction, my subordinates will heed my order without asking any question, but doing so would mean incurring Amagi¡¯s wrath.

    Yup, this¡¯s not worth the trouble.

    That said, if I were to retreat here after being scolded by Amagi, my image as an evil lord would suffer.

    Kuuu...what should I do?

    Brian wipes his tears and speaks up.

    ¡°Lord Liam, ording to the Empire¡¯sw, we¡¯re supposed to minimize our contact with intelligent life forms that are incapable of going into space by themselves. We must refrain from doing anything that may lead to the loss of cultural diversity. We had no choice but to get involved with them this time because of the summoning magic, but we should leave things at that and return without causing trouble.¡±

    I would have lost all face if I had to change my decision after being scolded by Amagi, but thankfully, Brian has extended an olive branch at a critical juncture.

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re right. I guess there¡¯s nothing we can do about it if it¡¯s the Empire¡¯sw! Aight, boys, withdraw!¡±

    Heeding mymand, my subordinates salute in unison and leave in a hurry.

    They must have put two and two together and figured out that I cannot go against Amagi.

    It¡¯s quite shameful as a leader.

    The saving grace is that my subordinates are quick enough on the uptake and don¡¯t question my orders.

    I¡¯m d that they¡¯re like that.

    Amagi bows.

    ¡°Thank you for listening to my suggestion. However, when we return, we will still need to have a talk along with Brian.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t be too angry¡ªI¡¯ll apologize.¡±

    I quickly leave the audience hall to escape from the critical eyes of Amagi and Brian.

    ¡ó

    Queen Enora could not believe what she had just witnessed.

    The arrogant army that came from another world was obediently heading back because of the orders of a single woman.

    It was as if a goddess had descended onto the.

    Her appearance was out of the ordinary, and she was wearing a beautiful dress.

    The woman unlocked Enora¡¯s handcuff and held her hands.

    Her scarlet eyes were so mesmerizing that Enora felt as if her soul was being sucked in.

    ¡°Please allow me to apologize on their behalf for causing such a big disturbance.¡±

    ¡°T-that¡¯s not necessary! Ah, would you mind telling us your name?¡±

    ¡°¡ªI go by the name of Amagi. We have brought with us some supplies that we believe would help in the kingdom¡¯s recovery. Please use them as you see fit.¡±

    ¡°C-can we really?¡±

    ¡°Consider these our apology for the disturbance that we have caused. Having said that, please do not summon anymore heroes from now on. The magic circle is too unstable. It could cause other idents like this one.¡±

    After listening to Amagi¡¯s exnation, Enora nodded.

    ¡°But we would be helpless against the Demon Lord if it appears again.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, my Master, has thoroughly defeated the Demon Lord. It won¡¯t revive ever again. If another problem arises, you will have to rely on your own power to ovee it.¡±

    Enora saw Amagi as a goddess. Thus, she begged Amagi for help.

    ¡°We are weak, so please, help us!¡±

    However, Amagi shook her head.

    ¡°You must learn to ovee the challenges. That is the trial that has been bestowed to you.¡±

    ¡ó

    Someone calls out to me just as I¡¯m about to head back with my luggage.

    It¡¯s Kanami.

    ¡°W-wait!¡±

    ¡°What do you want?¡±

    ¡°Well, um¡ªthose people are telling me that they¡¯ll send me back.¡±

    I¡¯ve ordered the magicians under me to return Kanami to her original world.

    Nothing good will happen from leaving her in a world like this.

    She¡¯ll be happier back in her own world.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s free.¡±

    ¡°¡ªBut I don¡¯t want to go back.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you want to meet your precious daddy?¡±

    Kanami¡¯s erupts in anger.

    The guards around me try to pull out their weapons, but I tell them to stand down with my eyes.

    ¡°I¡¯m not talking about daddy! The only one that truly loved me is my father!¡ªHe¡¯s dead though.¡±

    What aplicated family situation.

    Not that it matters to me, but I don¡¯t like to leave things hanging, so I decide to have a short talk with her.

    I put myrge baggage aside and sit on the stairs to talk with Kanami.

    ¡°I don¡¯t care about your family situation, but we all belong to our respective worlds. You should return to where you came from.¡±

    I¡¯m sure her deceased father would want that as well.

    He wouldn¡¯t want his daughter to stay in a world that stinks of blood and war.

    ¡°Even if I do go back, I¡¯ll be sold by my mom. Might as well stay her and help with the reconstruction.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re really dumb. Now that the Demon Lord has perished, you¡¯re an unnecessary existence to this world. In fact, they¡¯ll soon see you as a nuisance because of your power.¡±

    ¡°Enora¡¯s not that kind of person.¡±

    The fact that she trusts the Queen so much goes to prove that she has no eyes for people.

    ¡°The Queen will likely be swayed by the words of those around her. Even if that¡¯s not the case, the others will try to kill you in secret. Either way, nothing good will result from you staying here,¡± I tell her.

    ¡°T-that can¡¯t be...¡±

    I can¡¯t help but want to take care of her after seeing her so shaken by the revtion.

    It must be because her name¡¯s the same as my daughter¡¯s.

    ¡ªA lot has happened back then, but my daughter was not the direct cause of my suffering.

    I hated her for a period of time, but she was just a child back then.

    I still don¡¯t have a good impression of her, but I don¡¯t hate her like before.

    My hatred is instead directed towards the woman that abandoned me and the man that encouraged her to do so.

    Seeing Kanami reminds me of all that.

    ¡°You might be friends with the Queen right now, but she¡¯s someone with a weak mentality. She¡¯ll eventuallye to fear you and distance herself, but if you leave right now, you¡¯ll be able to keep your beautiful memory with her.¡±

    Kanami was summoned to this world as a secret weapon against the Demon Lord.

    Now that the Demon Lord is gone, she¡¯ll be nothing more than an obstacle.

    Kanami presses her forehead against her knees.

    ¡°Haha, in the end, I don¡¯t belong anywhere.¡±

    ¡°You should create a ce you can call home.¡±

    ¡°As if. I¡¯m just a normal high school student back in my original world. I can¡¯t do jack by myself.¡±

    The image of my daughter oveps with Kanami whenever I look at thetter.

    Herst name is different, and it would be a miracle to have a reunion with my daughter at this point.

    There¡¯s just no way for them to be the same person.

    They do look simr, but I¡¯m sure that my daughter is living a good life with her real dad.

    ¡ªShe must be having a good time after discarding me.

    It makes my chest ufortable just thinking about it.

    I hope they all get cursed or something.

    That said, my encounter with Kanami must have been some sort of fate.

    I guess I can help her out a bit.

    I take out a bag of gold coins from my pocket and shove it towards Kanami.

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    ¡°I got these gold coins from the Demon Lord¡¯s castle.¡±

    ¡°¡ªYou sure you¡¯re rich? Is this why you attacked the Demon Lord¡¯s castle? Were you just there to rob? What were you thinking?¡±

    I chuckle at how much of a goody two-shoes she is.

    ¡°Since I defeated it, the Demon Lord¡¯s wealth of course belongs to me. Oh, just checking, but gold coins are valuable in your world as well, right?¡±

    Seeing her nod, I hand the bag of coins to her.

    ¡°Then take these gold coins and use them as you like. You can choose to start a new life with this or just use them to have fun. I¡¯ll leave it up to you to decide.¡±

    Kanami grabs the bag that contains the gold coins.

    ¡°You think I can lead a new life with this?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯ll be up to you. Now, it¡¯s time for you to return.¡±

    The magicians are waiting for Kanami after having finished preparing.

    I push her back lightly before picking up my luggage and boarding the battleship.

    Kanami calls out to me.

    ¡°You¡¯re nicer than I thought.¡±

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯ll give you a piece of advice. You should develop your eyes for men. You suck as judging people.¡±

    ¡°S-sorry!? I just praised you! Do you really have to put it like that!?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s why I keep calling you an idiot. Everything that happened today was a coincidence. I am an evil lord¡ªI¡¯m an evil viin! You were lucky that I decided to help you on a whim.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°Lord Liam treats me so coldly. It¡¯s painful.¡±

 Chapter 117 - Vol 7 Chapter 10. Pet Dog

    <h4>Chapter 117 ¨C Vol 7 Chapter 10. Pet Dog</h4>

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    My super-dreadnought ss battleship is finallyplete!

    Never thought it would be the one toe pick me up though.

    By the way, I¡¯m in a terrible situation.

    We¡¯re already quite far away from the that I was summoned to, but the people that have gathered in my room are criticizing me.

    The reason for this is because of Chino.

    Chino, the girl that belongs to the Dog tribe, is currently sleeping on my bed with her stomach exposed.

    Ellen¡¯s touching her ears and tail out of interest, but she doesn¡¯t seem to be waking up at all.

    After finishing the food that has been prepared for her, she has apparently fallen asleep.

    Based on how unsuspecting she is of her surroundings; I refuse to believe that she is a wolf.

    In my eyes, she¡¯s just a cute pet dog.

    ¡°Lord Liam, this Brian here is bbergasted. What were you thinking by bringing along a local human as your pet?¡±

    When I look away from Brian, I catch sight of Amagi who starts lecturing me with an exasperated tone.

    ¡°Master, we¡¯ll be returning her to the ce where you picked her up.¡±

    ¡°But why!? Everyone else is doing it as well! When aristocrats find rare creatures, they keep them, right?¡±

    ¡°While beastmen are certainly not numerous, they aren¡¯t that rare either.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m free to do what I like!¡±

    When I think of selfish aristocrats, I imagine them brining back rare creatures to their hometown, even if the aforementioned creatures are from somewhere that they shouldn¡¯t have technically visited.

    Selfishness is forgiven¡ªthat¡¯s the impression that I have of aristocrats.

    Amagi¡¯s face remains expressionless, but her attitude is like that of a mother that is scolding her child for picking up animals on the street.

    Kuu! Stop looking at me like that!

    ¡°Can¡¯t I keep her? I promise I¡¯ll take care of her properly!¡±

    Both Amagi and Brian turn towards Ellen, whose attention is still on Chino.

    ¡°You say all that, but you left behind Ellen this time and made her sad, didn¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°This Brian believes that Lord Liam should keep a normal dog instead. What do you think, Lord Liam?¡±

    These guys don¡¯t understand anything.

    I¡¯ll never keep a real dog ever again since I¡¯ll be sad when it eventually dies.

    Since Chino is closer to that of a human, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be as sad if she were to die.

    ¡°Enough about me! Now, let¡¯s return and subjugate the idiots there.¡±

    I¡¯ll deal with them using an iron fist along with the super idiots that can¡¯t even house sit properly.

    Brian wipes away his tears using a handkerchief.

    ¡°It¡¯s all because Lord Liam ignored the problem about leaving behind a descendant that the issue became this serious.¡±

    ¡°This ain¡¯t my fault.¡±

    ¡°Part of the responsibility still falls on Lord Liam!¡±

    I¡¯ll pretend I didn¡¯t hear that.

    ¡ó

    A massive fleet consisting of 30,000 ships was advancing towards the territory of the Banfield Family to plunder thend.

    While some were aristocrats disguised as pirates, the rest were the real deal.

    Some aristocrats of the Cleo Faction were also participating with 3,000 ships of their own.

    They had joined the Cleo Faction because of its meteoric rise.

    In other words, they were opportunists that just wanted to be on the winning horse.

    ¡°This is what he gets for showing off despite being nothing more than a brat.¡±

    Inside one of the battleships, an aristocrat is rxing in a room that had been decorated like a pce, drinking sake from his ss.

    He was precisely an evil lord that Liam aspired to be.

    ¡°To think he¡¯d allow us to plunder the Banfields¡¯ territory as much as we¡¯d like. That¡¯s quite generous of him. I guess that just shows how desperate he is to get rid of Liam.¡±

    As they were being backed by a certain individual, the aristocrats had entered Liam¡¯s territory with peace of mind.

    They had been informed of what was happening inside the territory.

    Not only were Liam¡¯s vassals divided, his rtives were gathering on the main topete over who should inherit his position.

    Now was the perfect time to plunder the territory.

    Besides themselves, other pirate groups and aristocrats of the Empire were advancing towards the Banfields¡¯ territory.

    By joining hands with the pirates, they wished to have a slice out of the Banfield Family¡¯s wealth.

    ¡°Even then, this is way too easy. I guess a family that rose through the ranks in the course of one generation is only so-so... bwah!?¡±

    Just as he was about to gracefully take a sip out of his ss, the battleship began to shake violently.

    ¡ó

    I don¡¯t feel nervous at all despite facing the 30,000 pirate ships that we¡¯vee across along the way.

    I¡¯m sitting on a chair that¡¯s inside the battleship¡¯s bridge with my disciple Ellen standing beside me.

    Like the great master that I am, I¡¯m teaching Ellen about various things.

    ¡°Ellen, I¡¯ll show you how I do things.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Master!¡±

    I¡¯m getting the impulse to tease her seeing how cheerful she is.

    Chino is also next to us, but she doesn¡¯t seem interested at all in our conversation.

    She has her pillow with her, and she appears to be very sleepy as she leans her head against the ship.

    It¡¯s fine though. She¡¯s just a pet after all.

    If it was Ellen behaving this way, I would¡¯ve had her undergo rigorous training.

    ¡°All pirates that enter my territory are to be annihted. There are no exceptions to this rule.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Master!¡±

    ¡°Wait, I take that back. If it¡¯s a beauty that catches my eye, you don¡¯t have to be heavy-handed.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Master!¡±

    I immediately regret the joke that I make after seeing Ellen¡¯s eyes twinkling.

    What am I saying in front of a child?

    I should reflect on my behavior. I¡¯ve been toox recently.

    Amagi and Brian are staring at me with cold eyes.

    ¡°Master, please consider the time, ce and, asion

    before speaking.¡±

    ¡°This Brian hopes that Lady Ellen could grow up normally.¡±

    I try tough it off.

    ¡°Hahaha! Anyway, annihte pirates on sight! They¡¯re the ones that bring me fame and treasure, so we must wee them with open arms!¡±

    Outside the battleship, the fleet that came to retrieve me hasunched a surprise attack on the enemy fleet.

    Our enemies outnumber us greatly, but my elites are tearing through them.

    At the end of the day, pirates are just a bunch of riff raff.

    The moment things start taking a turn for the worse, they scatter like ducks, allowing us to hunt them down.

    Themander of my fleet delivers a message from the enemies.

    ¡°Lord Liam, a message has arrived from the pirates. They¡¯re saying that they¡¯ll surrender.¡±

    What did I tell you?

    ¡°Reject it. It¡¯s their fault for intruding upon my territory. Oh, and also, call for the fortress ss battleship that¡¯s nearby. Have them take care of the leftovers.¡±

    On a different note, we seem to be dealing with someone troublesome this time.

    Some fools have taken advantage of my absence to cause trouble.

    ¡°We¡¯ve also received a message from someone called Lord Burns who ims to be a member of the Cleo Faction. He wants us to stop attacking. He doesn¡¯t look like he was captured though.¡±

    Burns? I know dozens of people with the same name, so I¡¯ve got no idea who this one is.

    Oh, I think there was someone with that name among the aristocrats of the Cleo Faction, but I¡¯m probably mistaken.

    There¡¯s no way he¡¯s here... and it doesn¡¯t matter if he is!

    ¡°Commander, are you insinuating that aristocrats are siding with the pirates? That¡¯s a rather disrespectful thing to say, don¡¯t you agree?¡±

    I warn the fleetmander with a smile.

    Seeing what I¡¯m trying to get at, themander shrugs.

    Of course, I won¡¯t be punishing him for something of this level.

    After all, I¡¯m forgiving towards those that follow me.

    ¡°My sincere apologies. There¡¯s no way the proud aristocrats would side with the pirates. I¡¯m willing to bear the punishment for what I¡¯ve just said.¡±

    ¡°In that case, make sure that none of the enemies escape with their lives.¡±

    Truth be told, I know that some aristocrats are mixed in with the enemies.

    It¡¯s not umon for aristocrats to lend the pirates a helping hand.

    To begin with, pirates and aristocrats are very simr beings.

    Aristocrats of intergctic nations are just well-behaved versions of space pirates.

    They¡¯re the same deep within, so there¡¯s nothing strange about what¡¯s happening.

    ¡°This is the debut battle of my new ship, so make it shy.¡±

    Themander hands out orders to his subordinates.

    ¡°Have the gship move forward and prepare to engage the enemies!¡±

    ¡ó

    The coalition of aristocrats and pirates were being attacked by a fleet less than one-third their size.

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t they going down!?¡±

    ¡°Our opponents are the elites of the Banfield Family! I-in addition, one of their ships is strange.¡±

    The ship in question wasparable to a gship ss battleship in terms of its size, yet its performance outshone that of simr sized ships.

    None of their attacks could reach this ship, yet a single blow from it was enough to prate dozens of their own.

    A battleship of such abnormal performance was rampaging on the battlefield.

    ¡°Tell them that we surrender!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what we¡¯ve been trying to do! H-however, the only reply we¡¯ve gotten is ¡®we will annihte the shameless pirates that are impersonating the aristocrats. They¡¯re not willing to ept any form of negotiation!¡±

    The aristocrat swung his fist down upon the armrest.

    ¡°Are those dogs of Liam¡¯s intent on burying us here!? I¡¯m an aristocrat! Keep calling them over and over again!¡±

    Pirate ships and aristocratic ships alike were being sunk one after another.

    It was so one-sided that it couldn¡¯t be called a battle.

    Things only changed when Liam epted the request for negotiation.

    His fearless face soon appeared on the monitor.

    The aristocrat whose hair was all over the ce due to his previous disy of impatience shed a smile at Liam.

    ¡°Liam-dono, it¡¯s been a long time since we¡¯ve met.¡±

    (Why is Liam here!? D-did His Highness Calvin trick us!?)

    Although he was startled by Liam¡¯s sudden appearance, he quickly calmed himself.

    Unfortunately, Liam¡¯s words were as cold as ever.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have any pirates among my acquaintances, and since you invaded my territory without permission, there¡¯s no way that you¡¯re an aristocrat. Hence, you¡¯ll all be dying here.¡±

    ¡°Sh*t will hit the fan if you kill me.¡±

    The aristocrat wiped the smile off his face and red at Liam, but to no avail.

    ¡°So? That just means I¡¯ll have to destroy your family as well.¡±

    Themunication was cut off, and the battleship that the aristocrat was on shook violently.

    The ship¡¯s operator let out a shout.

    ¡°A fortress ss has appeared! We¡¯ve confirmed the entry of one fortress ss battleship and 6,000 other battleships! They seem to be a part of the Banfield Family¡¯s fleet, and they¡¯re warping in one after another!¡±

    With Liam¡¯s return, the Banfield Family¡¯s fleet wasing back together.

    The aristocrat stared intently at the monitor.

    The powerful fleet of the Banfield Family was effortlessly crushing their fleet of 30,000 ships.

    The enemy fleet suddenly charged, and the battleship with monstrous performance was approaching quickly.

    ¡°S-so this is the Pirate Hunter Liam...¡±

    Soon after the aristocrat finished muttering, he was hit by a blinding light which evaporated him into nothingness.

    ¡ó

    While this was happening; the fleet led by Tia and the fleet led by Marie were confronting each other.

    Both armies were utterly confused, but they were ready for battle.

    Inside the bridge of a ship, amander was questioning Marie.

    ¡°Are we really going to fight amongst ourselves!?¡±

    Marie was grooming her nails and did not seem hesitant at all about fighting against her allies.

    ¡°Yup. If I don¡¯t destroy that minced meat woman, how am I supposed to sleepfortably? All you have to do is follow my orders.¡±

    Marie¡¯s goal was to kill Tia.

    (I¡¯ll put the Banfield Family back together and present Lord Liam with a knight¡¯s order that befits his status, but that minced meat woman will no doubt get in my way.)

    As Liam was absent, she was thinking of pinning all the me on Tia before silencing her.

    Tia was of the same mind.

    Tia¡¯s face was projected on the monitor.

    ¡°Fossil woman, the time has finallye. I can¡¯t help but be excited imagining you on your knees begging for forgiveness.¡±

    Marie stood up from her seat, smiling with bloodshot eyes.

    One of her eyes was open wider than the other, and her smile didn¡¯t look like an actual smile.

    ¡°A woman like you should just remain as a pirate¡¯s toy. I¡¯ll sell you to the pirates after you¡¯re captured. A breeding room, was it? I¡¯ll let you go back there.¡±

    Tia¡¯s face became nk.

    ¡°... I¡¯ll kill you.¡±

    Marie¡¯s expression ceased as well.

    ¡°Die.¡±

    They hated each other¡¯s gut, but they also recognized each other as a formidable foe.

    With Liam¡¯s absence, various forces had emerged, and it was as if the territory had entered the Warring States period.

    Tia was leading a group of Liam supremacists, while the group centered around Marie had secured the safety of Lady Rosetta.

    Ambitious individuals, and those that simply wanted in on the fun, were also participating in the battles.

    Common sense dictated that they crush the weaker forces first, but ironically enough, they saw each other as their greatest threat.

    Although they both knew how capable the other was, they didn¡¯t want to voice it out loud.

    What¡¯s more, their desire to get rid of the other person was genuine.

    They had only been holding back because of Liam.

    Now, however, they were seriously about to start a civil war.

    Their right arms were raised, but just as they were about to swing them down and start the battle, Liam¡¯s face appeared on their monitors.

    ¡°You dumb-asses.¡±

    Liam said in a low voice with his sword in hand.

    He was on his seat and looking down, so his expression couldn¡¯t be seen, but there was no doubt that he was furious.

    The air in the bridge became tense, but the soldiers around Tia and Marie heaved sighs of relief.

    With their wrongdoings exposed at the worst possible moment, the two could not keep their hearts calm.

    Marie straightened her back and saluted, but drips of cold sweat trickled down non-stop.

    On her monitor, she could see that Tia¡¯s face was pale.

    ¡°Lord Liam, so you were safe! This Marie was so worried...¡±

    ¡°So worried that you decided to go to war with my fleet?¡±

    ¡°W-well, about that...o-oh, right! A young man named Isaac barged in and took over the iming that he had the right because of his bloodline! I escaped from the with Lady Rosetta, but the woman over therebeled me a deserter and attacked us!¡±

    She decided on the fly to push all the me on to Isaac and Tia.

    Tia¡¯s expression on the other side of the monitor became like a *Hannya mask.

    * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hannya

    ¡°FOSSIL WOMAN!! I¡¯LL TURN YOU BACK INTO A STATUE AGAIN!¡±

    However, when Liam raised his face, he stared at them with cold eyes.

    ¡°Hmmm, so you can¡¯t even house sit properly.¡±

    They had failed to protect Liam¡¯s home, which meant they had failed in their duties.

    Marie shook uncontrobly.

    ¡°W-we¡¯re terribly sorry.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll deal with the two of youter, but before that... clean up the enemies that have entered the territory with your fleets. Don¡¯t spare anyone.¡±

    Themunication was cut off, and the crew on the bridge stared at Marie.

    Her reaction was abnormal.

    She had her hands joined together, and she appeared to be enraptured by the figure of Liam that she hadn¡¯t seen for a long time.

    ¡°Ahhh! Lord Liam looked so dignified today! Now, it¡¯s time for work. We have to annihte those pirates before that minced meat woman can. Everyone, I expect you all to work hard.¡±

    ¡®It¡¯s a tad toote to redeem yourself,¡¯ thought the military personnel on the ship.

    ¡ó

    Many battleships were floating above Liam¡¯s mansion located on the Banfield Family¡¯s main, and Isaac was annoyed by this rude act.

    ¡°Which idiot was it that had the battleships standby above the mansion!? Bring him to me immediately! I¡¯ll decapitate him myself!¡±

    The people around him distanced themselves after seeing Isaac pull out his sword.

    However, his colleagues and his head knight reacted differently.

    ¡°Lord Isaac, Liam is apparently back.¡±

    ¡°Liam? Hmph! What a lucky guy.¡±

    There was a reason why he wasn¡¯t flustered after learning that Liam was back.

    This time around, the Banfield Family experienced a crisis because a sessor had not been nominated.

    With that in mind, Isaac was thinking of having Liam nominate him as his sessor, saying that he would give way to Liam¡¯s child if, and when, one was born.

    Just by bing a sessor candidate he would have an easier time as many people would be willing to suck up to a potential head of the Banfield Family.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get ourselves ready to greet him. It¡¯s really a pain to have a brother who¡¯s this uncultured. I find it disgusting that we have the same blood flowing through us. Also, where¡¯s Norden?¡±

    ¡°He ran away because he¡¯s afraid of Liam.¡±

    Isaac didn¡¯t think much of Norden. So, when he heard that thetter had run away, he didn¡¯t think much of it besidesbeling Norden as an idiot in his mind.

    He was more concerned about Liam.

    Isaac had much to say to Liam who didn¡¯t act like a proper aristocrat.

    He didn¡¯t think Liam was suitable as the head of the Banfield Family, an aristocratic household, that was on its way to bing one of the Empire¡¯s greatest noble houses.

    That said; he was nning on feigning obedience for the time being.

    ¡°I don¡¯t like him at all, but the territory that he¡¯s developing is rather desirable.¡±

    He might get the chance to inherit this territory.

    For that reason, he was willing to put up a front before Liam.

    His head knight shed a meaningful smile.

    ¡°It turns out Lord Liam was just a temporary stop point, and he was waiting for someone who could truly act as the Banfield Family¡¯s leader to appear.¡±

    Isaac felt good after hearing thispliment.

    ¡°Now that you put it that way, I¡¯m starting to feel grateful towards Liam.¡±

    It was then that Isaac got a call from Liam.

    ¡ó

    It¡¯s been a long time since I¡¯vee home.

    The hall that we¡¯re in was built for my harem, but due to ack of beautiful women, it was renovated into an audience hall.

    I¡¯m currently sitting on a chair and yawning in front of my subordinates that number in the hundreds.

    The one smiling and talking before me is my younger brother who I¡¯ve never met before.

    ¡°Dear brother, I¡¯m relieved to hear that you¡¯re back safe and sound, but all this trouble was caused because of ack of sessor. What do you say to appointing me, your younger brother who¡¯s rted to you by blood, as the temporary sessor? Of course, in the event that elder brother has a child... your child could have the higher priority.¡±

    I look closely at Isaac¡¯s face.

    He¡¯s a typical ikemen with blond hair and blue eyes, but I can tell from his face that he¡¯s rotten inside, just like me.

    Thinking to this point, I feel a sense of intimacy with this brother of mine.

    But my answer is no. My wealth is mine alone, and I don¡¯t n to share it with anyone, not even my immediate family members.

    ¡°And why do I have to nominate you again?¡±

    ¡°Well, for situations like this.¡±

    ¡°Also, I see that the knights that have previously abandoned the Banfield Family are present in this meeting. It amazes me to see that you guys can keep your heads held high despite crawling back here shamelessly.¡±

    Upon hearing my words, the knights that havee with Isaac show bitter looks.

    My knights are ring at them with their sharp eyes.

    These are the knights that left when the house showed signs of decline.

    Chivalry-wise, they¡¯repletely out of the picture, but it¡¯s not like I don¡¯t understand where they¡¯reing from.

    After all, I¡¯m not the most trusting of others either.

    However, I have no intention of keeping traitors in my household.

    ¡°By the way, I¡¯ve heard that there were some fools that betrayed me for Isaac.¡±

    The officials are shivering in fear.

    The people around them are directing cold gazes at them and calling them traitors.

    One of the officials¡¯ steps forward to give his excuse.

    Feeling generous, I decide on listening to what he has to say.

    ¡°Lord Liam, please allow me to speak!¡±

    ¡°Permission granted.¡±

    us who¡¯s beside me exims in surprise when he hears me grant the permission.

    ¡°Are you sure, my Lord?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll forgive him if he coulde up with an interesting excuse. Hey, speak up before I change my mind.¡±

    Having received my permission to speak, the official starts presenting his excuse while looking as if all the blood is rushing to his face.

    ¡°The events that transpired this time highlighted the Banfield Family¡¯s critical w. When Lord Liam went missing; the army was split up, and problems emerged in the territory¡¯s management. All these problems could be traced back to the absence of a proper sessor.¡±

    I mean he has a point.

    It¡¯s because I never nominated a sessor that my territory became so chaotic.

    I apud the official¡¯s excuse.

    ¡°You do have a point, but your excuse wasn¡¯t interesting. Start over and try again in your next life.¡±

    ¡°!?¡±

    Too bad for you.

    A benevolent lord might have listened to your opinion, but I¡¯m an evil lord.

    Hence, I¡¯m not looking for that kind of opinion.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Brian (©c¡ä¦Ø`): ¡°It¡¯s painful. Our knights have such terrible tempers...Why do I feel like I¡¯ve said this before?¡±

 Chapter 118 - Vol 7 Chapter 11. Arrogance

    <h4>Chapter 118 ¨C Vol 7 Chapter 11. Arrogance</h4>

    Vol 7 Chapter 11. Arrogance

    ___________________________________________________________________________

    Isaac was sweating bullets in the audience hall.

    (W-what¡¯s wrong with this person!? You¡¯re telling me this is my brother?)

    He had seen Liam only once before when he was young.

    It was almost half a century ago.

    He had visited the Capital for Liam¡¯s award ceremony and had seen him from a distance.

    His grandfather and father had invited him to the ceremony since it was one of their rtives being awarded.

    At that time, he had stood far away from Liam, but now, he was scared witless.

    The knights lined up at his sides looked very different from the knights that he had brought with him.

    Everything felt so different.

    His head knight appeared rather pathetic as he tried to make up various excuses in front of Liam.

    ¡°Lord Liam, please hear me out. We had left because of our duty to protect the previous head of the family.¡±

    Disinterested, Liam ignored the excuses that he gave.

    However, he soon felt a sense of difort when he observed the dolls that were lined up in the audience hall.

    ¡°Hey, why am I missing a maid here?¡±

    Noticing that one of the maids was missing, he asked us about the situation.

    After a moment of hesitation, us replied.

    ¡°¡ªWe¡¯ve sent it back to the manufacturer in order to have it repaired.¡±

    ¡°Huh? But why? Isn¡¯t the scheduled repair time muchter on?¡±

    It was as if Liam knew the schedules for each and every one of his dolls.

    He sounded displeased¡ªor rather worried¡ªthat one of them was missing.

    ¡°¡ªIsaac¡¯s knights deliberately destroyed it.¡±

    ¡°Destroyed?¡ªIsaac, was it you who ordered for its destruction?¡±

    Subjected to Liam¡¯s re, the words just stuck in his throat when Isaac tried to speak.

    He shivered, terrified.

    (U-uh...ah...)

    He was so terrified that he couldn¡¯t organize his mind.

    Instead, it was us who made a report based on the investigation.

    ¡°Lord Liam, ording to our investigation, Lord Isaac¡¯s knights acted on their own. We have sufficient evidence to back this up, so it¡¯s most definitely true. We¡¯ve left them alone so that Lord Liam could deal with them when he¡¯s bac¡ª¡±

    It happened immediately afterwards.

    Before the head knight coulde up with an excuse, Liam appeared next to Isaac and swung down his sword.

    The knights beside Isaac were hacked up, but they were left alive.

    As he was furious, Liam did not bother hiding his rage, resulting in Isaac fainting due to the pressure.

    ¡ó

    ¡°¡ªSend Isaac back to the Capital. A man who faints this easily isn¡¯t suitable as my sessor.¡±

    I put my sword back in its scabbard and stare down at Isaac¡¯s subordinates that are still alive.

    I purposely didn¡¯t kill them in one blow.

    ¡°M-mercy¡ª¡±

    I step on the man who seems to be Isaac¡¯s head knight.

    ¡°I was thinking of going along with this farce, but I¡¯ve changed my mind. Kukuri.¡±

    ¡°Present.¡±

    I hand over the human waste, that harmed my maid, to Kukuri who has emerged from the shadows.

    ¡°Do whatever you want with them.¡±

    ¡°Hihihi, are you sure?¡±

    To be honest... I want to torture them myself, but I¡¯m afraid of idently killing them in a fit of rage.

    Besides, Kukuri and his subordinates are better versed in the art of torture than I am.

    ¡°Yes. If I were to deal with them, they¡¯ll probably die immediately.¡ªNow, I heard there were some idiots that helped them?¡±

    Traitors that betrayed me for Isaac.

    The officials are clinging to me and begging for forgiveness, but my knights are holding them down.

    ¡°Lord Liam! Please have mercy!¡±

    ¡°I-it was all their doing! Please forgive us!¡±

    I¡¯m tired of hearing all these excuses.

    ¡°Execute all traitors and expel their families from the territory.¡ªTake them out of my sight.¡±

    The knights drag the officials away from the audience hall.

    My heart¡¯s boiling right now, and I can¡¯t help it.

    It¡¯s really frustrating.

    I didn¡¯t think all this mess would happen just because I was gone. They even destroyed one of my maids!

    ¡°It¡¯s been a while since thest clean-up. It¡¯s time to clean the house thoroughly.¡±

    us rushes over to me and asks what I meant by clean-up.

    ¡°Clean-up, my Lord? The mansion¡¯s always in a pristine state though?¡±

    From how much he¡¯s sweating, it¡¯s clear that us is asking while being fully aware of my true intentions.

    ¡°No, too much trash has built up. It¡¯s time to clean them all up.¡ªTrack down all traitors and punish them ordingly. You know what... let¡¯s do things thoroughly this time. Investigate and punish even those that haven¡¯t necessarily betrayed.¡±

    I¡¯m fully prepared to hear words of protest, but us simply nods.

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    He¡¯s surprisingly cool about it.

    Now that I think about it, he was here to keep things under control even while I was absent.

    He¡¯s much more reliable than Tia and Marie.

    ¡ªHe should do.

    I p my hands and give out instructions to everyone.

    ¡°It¡¯s clean-up time! Go back and clean up your workce.¡ªMake it spot-free, understood? If there¡¯s any trash remaining, you¡¯ll be held ountable for beingzy.¡±

    Everyone at the scene kneels before me and heeds my order.

    ¡°As you will!¡±

    It¡¯s time to clean things up.

    ¡ó

    us was, in many ways, at his limit.

    He had exhausted himself trying to maintain order during Liam¡¯s absence.

    As such, when Liam ordered for a massive clean-up, he went along with it thinking, ¡®do whatever you want¡¯.

    (Well, traitors didemerge, so I guess it makes sense to tighten things up. In any case, what will happen to Chengshi? It seemed as if she had *crossed the Rubicon.)

    * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossing_the_Rubicon

    With more work piled onto him, he felt like giving up.

    Liam looked at everyone in the audience hall before tilting his head.

    ¡°Huh? Where are my junior sisters? And where¡¯s Chengshi?¡±

    ¡°Those three are...¡±

    Liam¡¯s junior sisters and Chengshi, the most bloodthirsty female knight, were in a messy situation.

    ¡ó

    Rinho and Fuuka were using the training facility that Liam had set up, and they were facing Chengshi who had given up her human form.

    Chengshi looked like a terrifying mechanical insect, one which sent shivers down both Rinho and Fuuka¡¯s backs.

    ¡°She keeps challenging us regardless of how many times we cut her down. She has guts, I¡¯ll give her that.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m getting tired of this.¡±

    Every time they cut her down, she would revive and challenge them again.

    Each time she did so, she would be stronger, and now, she was strong enough to threaten them.

    They initially considered it a pastime and went along with her challenges, but they hadnded themselves in hot water.

    Fuuka shed at Chengshi¡¯s legs with her twin swords, but they turned into liquid metal and re-attached themselves to Chengshi¡¯s body.

    It didn¡¯t matter how much they tried to cut her down, she would always recover.

    ¡°I¡¯m sick of this! Rinho, she¡¯s all yers now.¡±

    Rinho was also getting sick of it.

    ¡°No, you do it. I¡¯m tired of it.¡±

    There was a core inside Chengshi¡¯s body holding the liquid metal together.

    However, it was constantly moving around inside her body, making it difficult to detect.

    This had given Chengshi the opportunity to observe the techniques of the One-sh, until finally, she managed to dodge Fuuka¡¯s strike.

    Shocked, Fuuka distanced herself from Chengshi.

    ¡°She actually dodged it.¡±

    Fuuka was surprised that Chengshi had dodged one of her serious strikes.

    Chengshi spoke to them.

    ¡°Thanks to you two, I¡¯ve learned much about the One-sh. Now, I can challenge Liam.¡±

    Frustrated, Rinho lunged at her and shed down, but Chengshi split her body into two and avoided the strike.

    She kept splitting her body until she surrounded them from all sides.

    ¡°Tch!¡±

    Rinho lowered her body posture and readied her sword.

    Fuuka was equally wary of Chengshi.

    ¡°I¡¯ve horsed around for long enough.¡±

    Chengshi was fully intent on killing them where they stood.

    ¡°I¡¯ll show Liam your dead bodies. Then, he¡¯ll fight me seriously!¡±

    Chengshi¡¯s only purpose in life was to battle, so she didn¡¯t care what the future had in store for her.

    Her only desire was to defeat Liam.

    It was then that the door to the training ground opened, revealing Liam¡¯s figure.

    He had a sword in his hand as he entered, and he made a disgusted face when he beheld the sight of Chengshi.

    ¡°What a sorry figure.¡±

    ¡°LIAAAAAAMM!!¡±

    Chengshi rejoiced, and the mechanical insects converged into one.

    She had abandoned her human body to fight the One-sh.

    She charged at Liam to finish him off.

    Seeing this, Fuuka tried to warned Liam.

    ¡°Senior brother, she can¡ª¡±

    However, Liam had no interest in what she had to say

    ¡°There¡¯s no need to worry. Chengshi, you¡¯ve betrayed my expectations.¡±

    As Chengshi tried to see through Liam¡¯s One-sh, she was blown away, and liquid metal sttered on the wall.

    There was a spherical object in Liam¡¯s left hand.

    It was Chengshi¡¯s core.

    ¡°You found my core that quickly?¡±

    Chengshi was shocked, but Liam remained indifferent.

    He tossed Chengshi¡¯s core to the men behind him.

    ¡°Hey, create a new body for her. If she¡¯s only at this level despite being a machine, she¡¯s better off with her original body.¡±

    Having lost the core, the liquid metal stopped regenerating.

    Chengshi seemed frustrated.

    ¡°Are you pretending to be merciful? Just kill me! If you don¡¯t, I¡¯ll keep aiming for your life!¡±

    ¡°It would be a pity if I were to lose a ymate. But then again, at your level, you¡¯re not even fit to be my ymate. Since that¡¯s the case, I¡¯ll have you y with my junior disciples from now on.¡±

    Inside the spherical core, Chengshi let out a scream when she was told that she wasn¡¯t fit to be his enemy.

    ¡°Are you trying to break your promise!? I¡¯ll be the one to kill you!¡±

    Liamughed.

    ¡°Nice joke.¡ªYou can¡¯t even finish off my juniors, yet you wish to defeat me? Just y with Rinho and Fuuka in the future. Oh, and I¡¯ll let you y with Ellen as well in about 30 years.¡±

    Liam turned his attention away from Chengshi and started to lecture Rinho and Fuuka.

    ¡°Care to exin why you two are struggling against someone like her? Are you trying to smear dirt on the School of One-sh? Huh?¡±

    Facing Liam¡¯s wrath, Rinho and Fuuka shrunk in fear.

    ¡°W-we¡¯re reflecting on it, b-but it wasn¡¯t like this before... ¡±

    ¡°¡ªW-we kept sparing her because we thought she was a good practice partner, a-and hey, we¡¯ve won so many times...i-it¡¯s just that we were pushed back a little today.¡±

    Liam stared coldly at the two as they desperately came up with excuses.

    ¡°It looks like you guys need to be trained again.¡±

    The two were disheartened by Liam¡¯s words.

    ¡ó

    Rinho and Fuuka haven¡¯t grown as much as I predicted.

    As someone that belongs to the same school of swordsmanship, it¡¯s embarrassing to see them struggling against Chengshi.

    That¡¯s why I¡¯ve decided to have them undergo vigorous training with me from today onwards.

    Seeing the two copse from exhaustion, I start meditating and unifying my spirit.

    My two juniors are wearing tank tops and leggings, and they¡¯ve fainted after sparring with me for a while.

    I told Ellen to participate in the beginning as well, but since she¡¯s not yet fully trained, I had her withdraw in the middle.

    Right now, I¡¯m doing meditation training by myself.

    ¡°Master has entrusted the girls to me, but with only this much to show, I¡¯d too be embarrassed to stand before him. There¡¯s also the fact that I struggled against a no-name.¡±

    The no-name in question was the so-called Demon Lord.

    It¡¯s shameful that I had to use my favorite sword to defeat that guy.

    I should¡¯ve been able to kill it even with a spare sword.

    I feel frustrated by my ipetence.

    ¡°How can I strike down an enemy that can¡¯t be shed?¡±

    There are enemies that can¡¯t be harmed through physical or magical means.

    That just means I must train myself to be able to cut them.

    But how?

    I¡¯m pretty sure I can do something about it if I continue to train rigorously, but that will take too much time.

    I tell myself to concentrate and not lose focus.

    I¡¯m meditating to figure out a method to cut something that can¡¯t be cut.

    Compromise isn¡¯t an option when ites to swordsmanship.

    An evil lord should stand above the rest and stare down at them arrogantly.

    I must be serious ande up with a countermeasure.

    ¡ó

    After Liam released them from their training, Rinho and Fuuka had to use their wooden swords as crutches in order to walk.

    They hadn¡¯t experienced this type of training ever since their days with Yasushi.

    Rinho looked like she was about to cry.

    ¡°Senior brother¡¯s a devil.¡±

    The same went for Fuuka.

    Their bodies were screaming in pain and trembling uncontrobly.

    ¡°We should have killed her when we had the chance. Senior brother mentioned that we¡¯ll be training for a while, so we¡¯re stuck doing this for the foreseeable future.¡±

    They were both licensed members of the School of One-sh, but Liam¡¯s training regime was enough to make them tear up.

    They wouldn¡¯t be able to escape from this hellish training until Liam decided to return to the Capital.

    As theygged behind Chengshi, Liam had forced them to participate in more training.

    The two girls sat down on a nearby bench.

    ¡°I hope senior brother quickly returns to the Capital.¡±

    ¡°Same. Isn¡¯t he still training to be an aristocrat? Why¡¯s he even back?¡±

    The answer to that question; to deal with the upstarts that wanted to take advantage of Liam¡¯s absence.

    The Banfield Family¡¯s territory was going through an upheaval as traitors were being mercilessly cracked down upon.

    Officials and military officers were being executed on a daily basis, and their families were being banished from the territory.

    Rinho took out her terminal and checked the news.

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    ¡°W-what¡¯s wrong?¡±

    Seeing Rinho curiously reading the news, Fuuka asked with her body still in pain.

    It appeared that the Banfield Family wasn¡¯t the only ce going through an uproar.

    ¡ó

    ¡ªAt the Capital¡ª

    ¡°They were annihted?¡±

    Inside the pce, Calvin was listening to the reports from his subordinates.

    His eyes shot open when he heard the contents of the report.

    The aristocrat that was giving the report also looked as if he couldn¡¯t believe what he was reading.

    ¡°Indeed. All the agents that we¡¯ve sent to the Banfield¡¯s territory have disappeared. Also, many of the aristocrats that rushed over were killed. The exact number isn¡¯t clear, but not many have survived.¡±

    When Calvin learned that Liam had disappeared through summoning magic, he had manipted some thoughtless people into wreaking havoc inside Liam¡¯s territory.

    Calvin had leaked the information to them on purpose and watched on as they celebrated excitedly.

    Of course, he had also reminded them not to touch the people in his faction.

    ¡°He¡¯s really gone and done it. How bold of him to do this at such a critical juncture.¡±

    ¡°Your Highness?¡±

    Calvin held himself back from sighing and exined what was going on to the clueless man that was giving the report.

    ¡°Since the Cleo faction grew so quickly, he decided to sieve through the faction members. If he had failed, the Banfield Family¡¯s territory would have been in deep trouble. However, he was able to get rid of the fools that bit on to the bait and expelled them from the Cleo Faction. As we had predicted, it was a trap.¡±

    ¡°I-is that so? Then we basically¡ª¡±

    ¡°Yes, we walked straight into his trap. The good thing is that our forces didn¡¯t directly participate in this affair, so we were able to conserve our strength. Only the fools and Liam-kun suffered from this, so it¡¯s not a bad result.¡±

    What Calvin just said was a lie.

    If he had given his all and attacked, he could have left a big scar on Liam¡¯s territory.

    (I was being too paranoid and lost the chance.)

    In addition, they had lost all their agents, meaning they wouldn¡¯t be able to gather information as easily in the future.

    (But it could have been worse.)

    At least the damage that they received was minimal.

    Calvin proceeded to ask about the fools that invaded Liam¡¯s territory.

    ¡°What happened to the fools that attacked Liam-kun¡¯s territory? Were they all really killed? Couldn¡¯t he have captured them to use as bargaining chips?¡±

    Capturing for the purpose of ransom, between aristocrats, this was considered the smart way to resolve things.

    ¡°¡ªThey were allbeled as space pirates and mercilessly killed.¡±

    However, Liam was different from the others.

    ¡°Everyone? That¡¯s rather extreme of him. A lot of people will resent him for this.¡±

    Although Liam was the victim in this case, people would resent him for his extreme measures.

    The families that had their leaders and officials executed would surely have a bone to pick with Liam.

    This wasn¡¯t a bad thing for Calvin since they would no doubt pull Liam down.

    ¡°We can make use of them. Support those families from now on and¡ª¡±

    ¡°Your Highness, there is something else that¡¯s important that I wish to report.¡±

    The person that spoke up had a bitter look on his face.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s like this. The households of the aristocrats that Liam killed dered that they would join our faction. They desire Liam¡¯s downfall.¡±

    ¡°W-what!?¡±

    ¡°The aristocrats that hate Liam have formed a group, but they didn¡¯t have a clear-cut leader, so they¡¯ve dered that they¡¯ll join our faction.¡±

    ¡°What selfish behavior.¡±

    Calvin boiled with anger upon being told of their selfish behavior.

    These aristocratic households had sent people to act as pirates, but since they were beaten back, they decided to switch their allegiance to Calvin for revenge.

    Even if such people decided to join his faction, they would only get in his way.

    As a result, arge number of undesirable people left Liam¡¯s faction and dered that they would join the Calvin Faction.

    (Either Liam-kun is being blessed by the Goddess of Luck, or I¡¯m being cursed by the God of Misfortune.¡ªWhat a tricky opponent he is.)

    As things had already progressed to this point, Calvin decided to do something that could at least minimize his worry about the future.

    ¡°Make a list of the names of aristocrats that dered that they would join us. We can¡¯t afford to have them pull us down.¡±

    He had the person that gave the report withdraw.

    Then he braced himself knowing that he would be busy organizing his faction again.

    Thus, Calvin¡¯s hands and feet were bound at this critical point in time.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°A lot of people seem to be sad that I don¡¯t appear in the postscripts! Since that¡¯s the case, I¡¯ll promote things without holding back! The 4thmanga volume of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ will be released early August!¡±

    Brian (?¦Ø?£à): ¡°Two is one too many. It¡¯s all about how you put it.¡±

 Chapter 119 - V7 Chapter 12. Virtuous Evil Lord

    <h4>Chapter 119 ¨C V7 Chapter 12. Virtuous Evil Lord</h4>

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    After fleeing from the main of the Banfield Family, Baron Norden had returned to his territory to make preparations for his escape.

    His family members were also terrified of what was toe, and his wife is questioning him with a shrill voice.

    She is a beautiful woman, but she is very shy.

    ¡°Is it true that Liam is back!?¡±

    ¡°Yes, it is. If we don¡¯t run away quickly, we¡¯ll be killed.¡±

    From what he had heard, the space pirates that entered the Banfield Family¡¯s territory were being annihted by Liam¡¯s private army which came back together with Liam¡¯s return.

    Baron Norden made a regretful expression.

    ¡°If only he hadn¡¯t returned...¡±

    As someone that had been born in a remote Baron family, he had always been looked down upon by the other imperial aristocrats.

    Even at the Capital, he would be treated as a country bumpkin.

    He wanted to lead a life full of luxury, but the that he inherited was in a terrible condition as his predecessors had taxed the citizens heavily so that they could support their own luxurious lifestyles.

    In essence, his family was in the same situation as the previous Banfield Family.

    It was only with Liam¡¯s assistance that Baron Norden¡¯s family became somewhat wealthier.

    Liam had helped him develop his territory free of charge.

    With the development of the territory¡¯s infrastructures the tax revenue had increased, and naturally he taxed the people even more from then on.

    He was such an ipetent lord that even Liam would have said ¡°what an idiot¡± when he saw him.

    ¡°I only agreed to this because you said it would definitely be okay!¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t think he¡¯de back either! What? Am I not even allowed to have this tiny bit of luxury?¡±

    He had invited Isaac to the Banfield Family¡¯s territory to profit from the situation.

    Despite exploiting their citizens and making them suffer so that they could afford theirvish spending habits, they still believed that they were poor.

    Just as they were preparing to escape, armed soldiers rushed into the room.

    They¡¯re the soldiers that belonged to Baron Norden¡¯s private army.

    ¡°W-what is this!? We¡¯re not ready yet. Pick us up afterwards when...¡±

    Before he could finish voicing out hisints his soldiers pulled the triggers without saying a word.

    He and his wife were killed then and there, and the soldiers surrounded their dead bodies.

    ¡°Thought you two could escape by yourselves? As if.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve suffered under them for countless years. It was worth waiting for this moment.¡±

    ¡°Should we hang their bodies at the square? I¡¯m sure everyone would be delighted.¡±

    Those that suffered from his reign had risen up upon learning that Baron Norden had turned against Liam.

    Unless they had a legitimate reason, or someone to back them up, the Empire would havemanded Liam to burn down the entire if they had killed their lord.

    They had been waiting for this opportunity for the longest time.

    The one leading the soldiers stared at the two bodies on the ground.

    ¡°Deliver their bodies to the Banfield Family and let them know that we¡¯re not hostile. Calm yourselves.¡±

    More soldiers wereing in to drag out the corpses.

    The Banfield Family¡¯s fleet soon arrived at Baron Norden¡¯s.

    ¡ó

    Tia had been assigned to Baron Norden¡¯s territory, and she was reading a report inside her spaceship¡¯s bridge.

    ncing at the information projected on the monitors around her, she immediately understood what was going on and sighed.

    ¡°The citizens that he terrorized struck him down the moment they learned that he was up against Lord Liam. I knew he was ipetent, but I didn¡¯t think he¡¯d die like this.¡±

    Baron Norden¡¯s private army had killed everyone in his family. This included his wife, his concubines, and even his children.

    The people in his territory were wishing that the Banfield¡¯s could take over and govern the in his stead.

    A female knight standing beside her asked Tia what to do next.

    ¡°Killing a lord is considered felony. Shall we execute the soldiers that were involved? They seem ready for it too.¡±

    It didn¡¯t matter what the reason was. Killing their lord was a heavy crime.

    However, Tia smiled.

    When she reported what transpired to Liam, he seemed happy with Norden¡¯s unsightly end.

    Although she hadn¡¯t delved into the details, Liam appeared to be satisfied.

    ¡°Thanks to them, I was able to make a great report to Lord Liam. Have the soldiers discharged and renamed before taking them to a different. On the official papers, I¡¯ll just say that they were executed.¡±

    The female knight looked somewhat exasperated as it would¡¯ve taken her less time and effort to simply execute the soldiers.

    ¡°That¡¯s quite a benevolent sentence considering the soldiers are fully expecting their execution.¡±

    ¡°They were able to please Lord Liam, so I¡¯m just rewarding them. Now then... it¡¯s a bit of a hassle, but we have to manage Baron Norden¡¯s territory for a while.¡±

    The fleet that had been dispatched was scheduled to temporarily take control of the Norden Family¡¯s territory.

    Tia was to act as the¡¯s deputy lord until a substitute arrived.

    It was easy to forget because of her disappointing behaviors, but Tia was an excellent knight.

    The female knight looked bored as she checked the state of Baron Norden¡¯s territory.

    ¡°A perfect example of an evil lord ruling over a rural area. It¡¯s no wonder that he was hated by his citizens. If not for the Banfield Family¡¯s assistance, the territory would¡¯ve been in an even worse state.¡±

    Tia nced at the information about Baron Norden¡¯s territory.

    It was in such a terrible condition that it even started to feel somewhat refreshing to see.

    The territory improved a bit with Liam¡¯s support, but Norden had raised the tax immediately afterwards and tormented his people.

    He was asking to be hated.

    ¡°He was theplete opposite of Lord Liam. Let us show our Lord¡¯s majesty to the inhabitants of this. If Lord Liam were to witness the state of this deste, he¡¯ll surely want to do something about it.¡±

    Tia decided to be serious in ruling over the that had been exploited by the evil lord, believing that Liam would have done the same if he was in her shoes.

    ¡ó

    ¡°Darling!¡±

    Rosetta hugs me the moment she returns to the mansion, and I silently ept her hug.

    It would be in bad taste to avoid her seeing how much she¡¯s crying, not to mention that Amagi is nearby.

    If I avoid Rosetta¡¯s hug now, there¡¯s no doubt that Amagi would scold meter on.

    ¡°I see that you¡¯re as energetic as ever.¡±

    Rosetta separates from me and wipes the tears from her face before telling me how worried she was while I was away.

    ¡°I was really sad when Darling suddenly disappeared. I¡¯ve alsoe to understand how important Darling¡¯s presence is to the territory. I-I wasn¡¯t able to do anything. I¡¯m disappointed at myself for being so powerless without Darling.¡±

    But of course; if you were to start poking you nose into matters about the territory, I¡¯d be pissed.

    It¡¯s out of the question to give Rosetta any real form of authority since she¡¯d be a big obstacle if she has the power to do whatever she wants in the territory.

    If I must entrust someone, it would be one of my loyal subordinates, not Rosetta.

    ¡°Don¡¯t mind it too much. That said, I¡¯ll form a group of personal guards to protect you in case something like this happens again in the future.¡±

    ¡°T-there¡¯s no need for that. Having personal guards around is too much of a luxury.¡±

    It¡¯s indeed an extravagance, but it¡¯s something that must be done.

    She must have the ability to defend herself against someone like Marie so that a simr situation doesn¡¯t ur again.

    ¡°It¡¯s for your protection.¡±

    ¡°Darling...¡±

    Rosetta seems to be moved by my words, but she¡¯s misunderstanding something.

    Assigning personal guards to protect her might seem to go against my policy, but that¡¯s not really the case here.

    In fact, I¡¯m doing this to limit the extent of Rosetta¡¯s authority within the territory.

    She¡¯d only be able to bemand the members of her personal guard.

    It would be a real headache if she begins to take matters rted to the territory into her own hands.

    She¡¯s too nice of a human, so she might stop me from tormenting my citizens in the future if I leave her alone.

    I¡¯m setting the limit to how much say she has over the matters of the territory so that she doesn¡¯t sway the officials and the military officerster on.

    In other words, I¡¯m nning ahead of time. I¡¯m NOT trying to be nice to her, or anything of that nature.

    ¡°Rosetta, I¡¯ll prepare an outstanding group of personal guards for you.¡±

    ¡°T-that so? But will I be able to handle them properly?¡±

    ¡°No need to worry, you can use them however you want.¡±

    I was initially disappointed by how easy a woman she turned out to be, but I¡¯ve recentlye to a realization that she¡¯s the type of person that best fits an evil lord.

    Since she¡¯s such an easy woman, I can roll her around on the palm of my hand.

    I order Amagi to prepare Rosetta¡¯s personal guards.

    ¡°Amagi, prepare a group of personal guards for Rosetta. Prepare a battleship for her as well. It¡¯ll be hers from now on.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Rosetta appears to be quite happy over the fact that she¡¯s being assigned personal guards.

    ¡°A battleship that I can use freely whenever I want to. What a luxury. But what should I do with it when I¡¯m not aboard?¡±

    She seems to think it¡¯s a waste of resources.

    Her mindset really reeks of poverty.

    ¡°Do whatever you like with it. You can decide what to do with it when it¡¯s not being used.¡±

    ¡°Really? Then I¡¯ll take my time and think of something. Oh, and I heard that Darling¡¯s getting a pet. What kind of pet are you getting?¡±

    I see, so Rosetta hasn¡¯t been told about Chino yet.

    ¡°I¡¯ll introduce her in due time. She¡¯s currently at the hospital undergoing quarantine and receiving various health checks.¡±

    ¡°I look forward to meeting her.¡±

    Rosetta must be imagining a dog or something.

    She¡¯s definitely in for a surprise.

    Well then, I guess it¡¯s time for me to do some actual work.

    It¡¯s time to punish my citizens.

    ¡ó

    I¡¯m giving orders to my subordinates inside my office.

    Since we¡¯ve just gone through a purge the subordinates are behaving exceptionally well.

    It¡¯s nice to see that they¡¯re on edge.

    ¡°Pardon me.¡±

    Ciel, who¡¯s under Rosetta¡¯s care, enters the room.

    Since I¡¯m hard at work right now, I give her a nod.

    While watching Ciel prepare my tea, I hand out instructions to my officials.

    ¡°Yeah, show those delusional idiots in my territory about my true nature.¡±

    ¡°Understood. But will it be alright talking about Lord Liam¡¯s activities at the Capital? They all seem to be about parties.¡±

    ¡°Just do it.¡±

    Knowing that the official will follow my order, I hang up the call and move on to the next official.

    At that moment, Ciel directs a look of disdain at me.

    She¡¯s not even trying to hide it anymore.

    What an amusing girl she is.

    I ignore her and continue giving instructions to the next official.

    ¡°So, how¡¯s ¡®that¡¯ matter progressing?¡±

    ¡°Regarding the tax increase; if we were to increase the tax for no reason, we¡¯ll receive some bacsh. This is especially true since there¡¯s no need to raise the tax in the first ce based on the financial situation of the Banfield Family.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be the one to decide whether it¡¯s necessary or not, but you¡¯re right. We need to give them a reason.¡±

    Think back me! What was the most annoying thing about tax increases in my previous life?

    Although there were many, but if I must choose one... it would be social welfare.

    Since it¡¯s a valid reason we couldn¡¯t protest strongly against it, but nothing in particr really improved after the tax increase.

    I remember questioning what the hell they¡¯re doing with the increased taxes after seeing the news speak of corrupt officials and whatnot.

    ¡°Then tell them that it¡¯s for social welfare. It¡¯s important to improve public aid, right?¡±

    ¡°Understood. We¡¯ll make arrangements in that direction.¡±

    Ciel, who couldn¡¯t stand it anymore, decides speak up when the call ends.

    It¡¯s not something that a maid should be doing, but I allow her to speak since I want to tease her.

    ¡°You¡¯re raising the tax, not because you have to, but because you want to? And now you¡¯re looking for a reason to do that? You¡¯re mistaking the means to an end!¡±

    She¡¯s absolutely right.

    It¡¯s fascinating that an evil lord like Baron Exner could have a good-natured daughter like Ciel.

    Despite having the blood of an evil lord flowing through her veins, she¡¯s denouncing the existence of an evil lord.

    ¡°But I¡¯m not? I¡¯m raising the tax because I want to see the people suffer. I really don¡¯t care about the reason for doing it.¡±

    Ciel¡¯s eyes erges after hearing my words.

    Then, she makes a satisfied expression.

    ¡°You¡¯ve finally revealed your true self. I knew that you weren¡¯t the wise lord that everyone imed that you are.¡±

    Her tone abruptly changes.

    She¡¯s dropped all pretense now that she¡¯s learned of my true nature.

    Yes, and that¡¯s how she should be.

    ¡°It¡¯s those idiots that are misunderstanding my intentions. That said, you¡¯re quite wise to see through my acts. Here, let me praise you.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t raise the tax. It¡¯ll make the citizens suffer. Did you forget what happened to Baron Norden? He and his family members met a horrible end at the hands of their citizens.¡±

    Is she talking about that fool who was killed by his own people?

    Yes, that really was a masterpiece.

    However, that has nothing to do with me.

    ¡°He was a buffoon, and that¡¯s all there was to it. I can do things correctly.¡±

    Doing just enough to leave them neither dead nor alive¡ªthat¡¯s how a proper evil lord should exploit their citizens.

    If they can¡¯t, it just means they¡¯re a fool.

    ¡°You¡¯re right, but don¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Too bad. This is my territory to begin with. What¡¯s wrong with me doing whatever I want?¡±

    ¡°Please, don¡¯t torment the people of your territory.¡±

    They¡¯re not even her own people, yet she¡¯s showing concern for them.

    From this, I can tell that I¡¯ve made a wonderful pick.

    Yes, she¡¯s the type of woman that I¡¯ve been waiting for!

    ¡°Your wish isn¡¯t worth granting. After all, I want to see my citizens suffering in pain.¡±

    There¡¯s no need to smooth things over with her.

    Baron Exner, her father, and Kurt, her older brother, are both on my side. Even if Ciel were to cause amotion, I wouldn¡¯t be harmed in any way.

    ¡°You¡¯re the worst. You¡¯re really the worst lord out there!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll take that as apliment.¡±

    This is it! I was waiting for this kind of woman to show up.

    I mistakenly took in an easy woman like Rosetta, but I never thought Ciel would possess a spirit of steel.

    She canin all she wants about what I do, but she can¡¯t stop me because of herck of authority.

    Going against me is the only thing that she can do.

    I¡¯m delighted to learn that such a talent was close by.

    She¡¯s truly my blue bird of happiness.

    ¡°You¡¯re deceiving everyone around you. This isn¡¯t right!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s the world that¡¯s messed up, not me. Without power no one will trust what you say. Now, if you¡¯re done with your work here, return to your workce.¡±

    I want to continue teasing her, but I¡¯ve got some work to do as well.

    I¡¯ll be showing my citizens the images and videos of me partying at the Capital.

    I¡¯ll show them what I¡¯ve been doing with their money before raising the tax.

    Ignorant citizens of mine, you will learn to rue the day that you decided to humiliate me with the child making demo.

    Ciel leaves the room with tears in her eyes, perhaps because she¡¯s frustrated by how powerless she is.

    After she leaves, Kukuri¡¯s face emerges from my shadow.

    ¡°Lord Liam, will this be alright?¡±

    Kukuri will probably kill Ciel secretly if he¡¯s left alone, so I give him a stern warning.

    ¡°She¡¯s Baron Exner¡¯s beloved daughter, so don¡¯t make a move against her. It¡¯s also fun teasing her, make sure to help her out if she¡¯s in trouble.¡±

    ¡°Please don¡¯t fool around too much.¡±

    With what happened to Kunai, a lot must be going through Kukuri¡¯s mind.

    ¡°Ciel¡¯s a favorite of mine. This much should still be fine. So, what¡¯s the problem? You didn¡¯te out just to ask for permission to assassinate Ciel, right?¡±

    ¡°There is something that I believe Lord Liam should know. I¡¯ve received word that both Christina and Marie took some of Lord Liam¡¯s genes. Here... it¡¯s these.¡±

    It seems like they¡¯ve taken the test tubes that contain my gics.

    ¡°Kukuri, you¡¯ve worked hard for me. I¡¯ll prepare a reward for you.¡±

    I¡¯m grateful to have such a hard-working subordinate.

    ¡°Lord Liam, how are you nning on dealing with them?¡±

    ¡°I will be punishing them myself.¡±

    What were they nning to do with my genes?

    Well, I can sort of guess.

    Anyway, I¡¯ll have theme before me so that I can punish them.

    ¡°Kukuri, preparing a sessor without my permission is inexcusable, don¡¯t you think?¡±

    ¡°It is as you say.¡±

    They should be going about inside the territory right now.

    I¡¯ll call them back and teach them how heavy a sin it is to prepare a child without my permission.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°I know what¡¯s about to happen! Even if he raises the tax...¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°The strange nt is trying to spoil the plot. It¡¯s painful.¡±

 Chapter 120 - V7 Chapter 13. The Weight Of Life

    <h4>Chapter 120 ¨C V7 Chapter 13. The Weight Of Life</h4>

    In our society, human lives are considered to be as light as feathers.

    This is true even in an intergctic empire.

    In fact, I¡¯d say that human life is valued even less in this world than in my previous world.

    Tens of thousands of people can easily lose their lives in a small skirmish, and millions could perish in a single war.

    I¡¯m sure that a war of such scale is happening somewhere in this universe even as I speak.

    No matter how much development we see in science and magic, there¡¯s no meaning in them if we as humans do not develop alongside them.

    Now, enough with the introduction.

    Human life isn¡¯t valued much in this intergctic nation, and one of the reasons is because it¡¯s not difficult to have children.

    I myself was born in a test tube and raised in machines.

    My parents didn¡¯t love me either and left me with a debt-ridden territory as soon as I was five years old.

    Children are born just as easily as people die.

    That is the reality of this world.

    ¡°I¡¯ll hear your excuses, but before that! us, tell them what they¡¯re charged with.¡±

    I¡¯m sitting on my chair with my legs crossed and my chin resting on my hand as I look down at the two people with their heads hanging low.

    I¡¯ve called over Tia and Marie, who were busy at work, and ordered them to kneel.

    us is standing beside me.

    Rather than looking exasperated, he looks like he¡¯s entered the realm of enlightenment.

    He reads the charges out loud.

    ¡°First, you two allowed Baron Norden to lead Isaac and his men into the territory. Not only that, you used Lord Liam¡¯s fleet without permission and started a revolt in some of the territory¡¯ss. Finally, you two illegally obtained Lord Liam¡¯s gic information in an attempt to give birth to his descendants.¡±

    What a mess.

    Knights are meant to protect their masters¡¯ house if and when they¡¯re gone.

    They aren¡¯t supposed to be moving around however they want.

    ¡°You two have disappointed me many times in the past, but your greatest sin this time was betraying me and acting independently.¡±

    Tia raises her face and begins making excuses.

    ¡°Lord Liam! Since the territory wascking a sessor, I...¡±

    I stomp on the floor to silence her and tell the girls something very important before allowing them to continue with their excuses.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine with valid excuses, but I¡¯m not here for those. Just know that I¡¯ll be cutting you down if your excuses turn out to be boring.¡±

    They¡¯ve supported me for decades, but I have no need for subordinates that betray my trust, even if they¡¯repetent.

    I¡¯m interested in gathering beautiful female knights, but if they all turn out to be like these two... I¡¯d have to think again about adding them to my harem.

    I should pick knights based on their skills rather than their appearances¡ªyup, let¡¯s recruit better people from now.

    The two girls fall silent.

    Guess they¡¯re not much different form Isaac and the others after all.

    Thinking so, I reach out for my sword that¡¯s leaning against the chair.

    Marie sweeps her hair to one side and shows me her neck.

    She¡¯s telling me to do it if I want to.

    ¡°Oh, how bold of you. I¡¯ll make sure that it¡¯s painless and slice off your neck in one¡ª¡±

    ¡°I just wanted to bear Lord Liam¡¯s child!¡±

    ¡°¡ªOi.¡±

    The excuse that she gives at the next moment is so absurd that I can¡¯t help but give a retort.

    What the heck is she saying?

    Marie continues with her excuse, but it only gets worse from there.

    ¡°E-even if Lord Liam did not acknowledge the child as his sessor, I was ready to raise the child by myself! P-please forgive me!¡±

    I look towards us for help, but he seems just as confused as I am.

    Her excuse is shocking even to someone withmon sense like him.

    For a split second, I wonder whether this is the norm in an intergctic nation.

    But then again, these two are everything but normal.

    Tia also begins to speak with tears in her eyes.

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t hoping for Lord Liam¡¯s affection, but I wanted to feel a connection in one way or another. Even if this ident hadn¡¯t urred, I was nning on giving birth to a child using Lord Liam¡¯s gene to continue the family name. I wasn¡¯t nning to have the child be the Banfield Family¡¯s sessor or anything. B-basically, I fell for the devil¡¯s temptation and...¡±

    What do children mean to you both?

    ¡°You two wanted to bear my children?¡±

    Marie nods while shaking and exins her reason.

    ¡°As impudent as it may sound, this Marie wished to have a connection with Lord Liam. I understand that what I¡¯vemitted is a heavy sin, but I just couldn¡¯t help myself. However, I wouldn¡¯t mind dying if it¡¯s from Lord Liam¡¯s hands!¡±

    They want to establish some form of connection with me?

    They don¡¯t mind being cut down if it¡¯s by my hands?

    I don¡¯t feel like doing it anymore...

    I stop myself from reaching out for my sword.

    ¡°Since you two are imperial knights, I can¡¯t revoke your licenses, but I refuse to recognize you two as my knights inside my territory. You will both work as maids inside the mansion for the foreseeable future.¡±

    I was nning on getting rid of them, but their absurd reasons have sucked away my motivation.

    The two girls begin crying and thanking me profusely, but I really don¡¯t care at this point.

    ¡°A hundred thanks, Lord Liam!¡±

    ¡°Even as a maid, this Marie swears to have unwavering loyalty towards Lord Liam!¡±

    I left them be because of how skilled they were, but I was wrong in doing so.

    From today onward, I¡¯ll have Serena teach them about what it means to be feminine.

    ¡°Just leave. Oh, and us.¡±

    ¡°Yes, my lord?¡±

    ¡°You see, I¡¯ve been thinking of assigning numbers to my mostpetent knights. You¡¯ve worked hard for me this time, so I appoint you the position of my number one knight.¡±

    ¡°Under... p-pardon?¡±

    After nodding in eptance, us opens his eyes in surprise.

    He must be confused by the sudden appointment.

    ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to increase your authority and your sry. Keep up the good work.¡±

    ¡°Y-yes, my lord!¡±

    It¡¯s amusing to see Tia and Marie looking at us with eyes that have lost their lights.

    They seem to be having a difficult time epting the content of my conversation with us.

    ¡°Tia, Marie.¡±

    ¡°Y-yes!?¡±

    ¡°Anything I can do for you, Lord Liam?¡±

    ¡°If you guys had stayed put and done your jobs properly, I would have assigned this position to one of you two. What a pity this is.¡±

    The girls freeze in ce.

    Satisfied by their reaction, I stand up from my seat and leave the room.

    ¡ó

    Cold sweat trickled continuously down us¡¯s forehead.

    There had been a rumor going around about Liam assigning numbers to his knights and implementing a special ss system.

    Baron Norden and the heads of Liam¡¯s other vassal households had mistakenly believed that they were the only ones fit to support Liam as his twelve knights.

    Even members of their households, that came to Liam¡¯s territory to study abroad, were saying such things.

    Although Liam personally denied this allegation, rumor had it that he would indeed be numbering his knights.

    Who would be the chosen knights?

    This topic had sparked many heated discussions among the knights.

    (Howe I was chosen as his number one!?)

    This came as a bolt from the blue to us.

    Inside the room where Liam had left; Tia and Marie, who had their position of number one stolen by us, were still present and they were staring at him with dark, dark eyes.

    Tia slowly rose from her position.

    The way she stood up was extremely eerie, almost as if she couldn¡¯t find the energy within her to stand back up.

    ¡°us-dono... congrattions.¡±

    Marie also stood up with lifeless eyes, her movements sluggish like a zombie¡¯s.

    ¡°Being Lord Liam¡¯s number one knight. My... what a wonderful title. Ah... just saying, but if the incident this time hadn¡¯t happened, I would¡¯ve been the one to receive that title.¡±

    They had received a considerable amount of damage knowing that they had failed to be Liam¡¯s number one knight.

    ¡°W-well, it came as a surprise to me as well. Lord Liam must have said it on the fly. I¡¯m sure that the matter will be dismissed at the meeting between the knights and the military... hopefully.¡±

    us experienced yet another stomachache from being looked at by the girls¡¯ envious eyes.

    (Why must I be the leader of the knights!?)

    As talented as they were, the majority of Liam¡¯s knights were problem children, and us was tasked with the responsibility of managing them.

    us¡¯s anguish had yet toe to an end.

    ¡ó

    It¡¯s over...

    Inside the pce at the Capital, Calvin was alone and wrapping his head around the recent events.

    ¡°They¡¯ve finally caught up to us.¡±

    Liam¡¯s data was disyed on his desk.

    ording to what was written; ¡°Liam¡¯s biggest weakness stemmed from his one-man rule, and his absence would leave the territory vulnerable to attacks.¡±

    There was some truth in this statement.

    When news of Liam¡¯s disappearance became public, the territory swiftly fell apart and entered what seemed like the Warring States period.

    As the report said, it left the territory very vulnerable.

    This would normally be a good thing, as they would only have to deal with Liam and Liam alone.

    Unfortunately, that proved to be an insurmountable task.

    ¡°Assassination attempts. Failed. Sending him to battlefields. Failed. Spreading rumors in his territory. Failed. How am I supposed to deal with him when he can breeze through most of the sabotages that we set up?¡±

    With the shadow n protecting him, assassinating Liam was nigh impossible.

    Even if they were tounch a head-on assault, they had very little chance against someone that could cut down a Sword Saint, not to mention that Calvin¡¯s reputation would be sullied.

    Erasing him on the battlefield wasn¡¯t easy either.

    Liam¡¯s individual prowess was one thing, but his knights and military officers were extremely talented as well.

    Furthermore, now that Liam had reigned in his officials, betrayals were unlikely to happen.

    Their n of having the territory fall apart from within was crumbling down.

    Through this event, Liam sessfully cleaned up the territory and rooted out the spies that Calvin and the others had sent

    The Banfield Family was nothing without Liam, but there was no easy way of getting rid of him.

    What¡¯s more, the people that were supposed to act as baggage and drag Liam down had suddenly flocked over to him.

    Calvin was stumped. How did all this happen?

    He had just provided them with some superficial help, yet he had be their patron before he could tell what was going on.

    ¡°Things aren¡¯t looking good for me.¡±

    He could actually see Cleo taking his ce and bing the crown prince.

    Calvin really felt like holding his head in his hands.

    ¡ó

    There was someone that had his head in his hands¡ªor more precisely¡ªsomeone that had his hat in his hands.

    Yes, it was the Guide, and he was crouching down on the floor with his tiny limbs.

    ¡°No matter what I do, it benefits Liam in the end.¡±

    He had sent Liam far away with summoning magic so that he could make a mess out of his territory.

    It had worked in the beginning, but it only ended up highlighting the problem that was bubbling beneath the surface, allowing Liam to deal with it.

    The Guide was currently inside the Banfield Family¡¯s territory, and he was crouching on the main street watching a huge monitor.

    ¡°This video was released by the government, and it¡¯s of Lord Liam participating in a party together with Lady Rosetta.¡±

    ¡°It looks like they decided to release the clip to the public after being told that their rtionship wasn¡¯t progressing. Either way, they look exceptionally good together.¡±

    The news broadcast showed the figure of Liam ying around at the Capital, but the citizens¡¯ reaction was rather nd.

    Instead, their interest was somewhere else.

    ¡°Oh, so they¡¯re on good terms after all.¡±

    ¡°I guess there was no point in the demo?¡±

    ¡°Well, it was something closer to a festival. Anyway, it looks like we don¡¯t have to worry about the matter regarding his sessor.¡±

    The people were walking about the main street andughing joyfully.

    ¡°Next up: the government has announced that the tax will be increased for the sake of improving social welfare.¡±

    ¡°As for what this really entails¡ª¡±

    On the huge monitor projected in the sky, the news reporter was talking about the tax increase.

    Just like before, the citizens barely reacted to this.

    ¡°Tax is going up?¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam¡¯s the worst.¡±

    ¡°But it says hospital treatment would be cheaper.¡±

    ¡°Oh, so Lord Liam¡¯s the best after all.¡±

    They didn¡¯t like the fact that they had to pay more tax, but they were willing to ept the burden since it would be used to improve social welfare.

    The Guide felt like the ground beneath him was hotter than usual, and he was right.

    It was as if he was standing on a smoldering hot iron te.

    ¡°I-it¡¯s hot!? IT¡¯S HOT!! GYAAAAAA~!!¡±

    He pped about on his tiny legs before tripping and rolling over.

    The top hat which was essentially the Guide¡¯s body started to burn.

    ¡°NO! IT¡¯S HOT NO MATTER WHERE I GO!!¡±

    The sound of sizzling could be heard as ck smoke rose from the Guide¡¯s body and began to rob him of his power.

    At this rate, he would be burned to death.

    The Guide was desperately looking for a ce where he would be safe, but found none.

    Just as he was about to be turned into charcoal, the Guide figured out the reason behind this phenomenon.

    ¡°C-could it be!?¡±

    He floated up into the air and continued to ascend into space.

    The from outer space looked divine as it shone and emitted gold particles into its immediate surroundings.

    ¡°Huh? What¡¯s causing this!?¡±

    Liam¡¯s gratitude alone would not have caused such a big phenomenon.

    What force could possibly envelop the entire and kick him out of it?

    After much thinking, the Guide remembered something.

    ¡°T-the World Tree!!¡±

    Something that could extend beyond time and space was flowing out of a distant.

    It was a that had just been revived, and it contained the World Tree that Liam had taken custody over.

    As it had just been revived, it was but a small sapling.

    Nevertheless, its gratitude toward Liam was genuine, and it manifested in the form of a sacred force that protected him from harm.

    ¡°The World Tree¡¯s trying to protect him!? How on earth am I supposed to beat him then!?¡±

    World Trees were sacred nts, but they were more like poison to the Guide.

    Blinded by the immediate benefits, the Guide had taken away the devious elves¡¯ hatred, thereby dismissing their desire to kill the World Tree.

    Normally, World Trees did not go so far as to help a certain individual.

    The Guide trembled at this unexpected situation.

    ¡°I-I can¡¯t deal with him by myself anymore. Since things have gotten to this point, I must gather beings like me that are in this universe.¡±

    If he couldn¡¯t do it alone, he would hire the help of others.

    Until now, his pride had prevented him from seeking help from others like him, but the Guide was willing to throw away his pride to defeat Liam.

    ¡°I¡¯ll do anything if it means beating Liam!¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Brian (?¦Ø?£à): ¡°Lord Liam, this Brian believes it¡¯s quite rude topare the rest of the female knights to those two.¡±

 Chapter 121 - V7 Chapter 14. Touchstone

    <h4>Chapter 121 ¨C V7 Chapter 14. Touchstone</h4>

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Liam decided to raise the tax for no other reason than to see his citizens suffer.

    He had said something about improving social welfare and whatnot, but that was nothing but an empty promise.

    With such a vague goal, there was much room for the government officials to do whatever they wanted with the increased tax money.

    However, the Banfield Family had just experienced a massive purge, and the officials working at the government office were worried about Liam¡¯s purpose in raising the tax.

    As for why this was the case¡ª

    ¡°He¡¯s definitely trying to test us!¡±

    ¡°He must be testing us by making use up with the n for improving social welfare!¡±

    ¡°If we don¡¯te up with something good, we¡¯ll be dead meat as well.¡±

    The officials that betrayed Liam had been executed.

    Not only that, any and all officials thatmitted crimes, big or small, had been put on trial.

    Even the overlooked spies sent by; other territories, Calvin the Crown Prince, and other countries had been dealt with.

    That was when Liam decided on the tax increase and left the details to the officials.

    Being suddenly entrusted with the task ofing up with improvements to the social welfare system, the officials could not help but have their doubts.

    ¡°If we don¡¯te up with a system that satisfies Lord Liam¡ªwe¡¯ll all be killed.¡±

    An elderly official told the young officials a certain tale while looking extremely pale.

    ¡°This is a story from 90 years ago. Lord Liam was only ten at the time, but he wiped out all the corrupt officials in the territory.¡±

    This was something that the young officials had heard of before, but not many had experienced it themselves.

    ¡°Lord Liam is much more generous and benevolent than other lords, but he doesn¡¯t hesitate to make fierce decisions when the need arises. Once he makes up his mind, he will swing down the sword himself. I almost forgot about it after 90 years.¡±

    90 years had passed in peace.

    The officials had bex, and some had even be greedy.

    However, the words of the elderly official took the breath out of the others around him.

    ¡°I-I think I¡¯ve heard of that story before as well.¡±

    ¡°When I was a kid, there was a time when a lot of officials were rooted out.¡±

    ¡°Things were much worse before... so he might have done it out of necessity, no?¡±

    They didn¡¯t think the same would happen to them.

    The elderly official continued to talk as he looked down at the ground.

    ¡°If we propose a n thatcks essence, we¡¯ll be the ones to be purged this time. Once again, Lord Liam is someone that follows through with his words. If someone does something funny, everyone here will have to pay with their lives. After all, the territory can be governed using artificial intelligence.¡±

    This was something that the officials had be aware of at one point in their careers.

    If Liam really wanted to, he could dispose of them and have the AIs take over.

    They were easily receable.

    Coming to this conclusion, the officials decided to do their jobs seriously.

    ¡ó

    -At a normal household in the Banfield Family¡¯s territory-

    A family of seven that consisted of three children, the parents, and the grandparents were talking about the tax increase while seated around a table.

    ¡°Improvements to social welfare... if Lord Liam¡¯s saying it then it must be true.¡±

    When the father said so, the grandfather nodded while taking a sip of tea.

    ¡°You¡¯re right. Lord Liam¡¯s a wise man.¡±

    The children, who had never experienced the previous lord, were suspicious of their parent¡¯s and grandparent¡¯s absolute trust in their lord.

    The eldest daughter cast doubt on the four¡¯s opinion.

    ¡°But we never know what will really happen, right?¡±

    ¡°I see. So you guys aren¡¯t aware. Despite learning about it in ss, it must feel surreal to you.¡±

    Liam hadid down a rule saying that those living inside the Banfield Family¡¯s territory must undergo nine years ofpulsory education.

    A period of nine years was neither long nor short, but with the help of the education capsules everyone in the territory was educated enough to be a college graduate.

    This made things easier for children to pursue further education after finishing theirpulsory one.

    This was what their parents and grandparents believed was the source of the children¡¯s doubt.

    The children weren¡¯t even in their fifties, so they weren¡¯t considered adults by this world¡¯s standards.

    In fact, they looked to be around ten years old, give or take.

    It was no wonder that they were oblivious to the period known as the Banfield Family¡¯s dark ages.

    ¡°Until Lord Liam took over, as the lord, the territory was in a terrible condition. The tax kept climbing with no apparent reason, jobs were difficult to find, and people were forced to participate in wars.¡±

    The grandfather¡¯s expression was grave as he recalled what it was like in the past.

    However, this wasn¡¯t enough to dispel the children¡¯s suspicion.

    ¡°How does that even make sense? Isn¡¯t it in the aristocrats¡¯ best interest to develop their territories?¡±

    It sounded like the natural thing to do, but their father exined to the na?ve children that didn¡¯t know much about the universe.

    ¡°When you grow up, you¡¯ll be able to see how the other territories are faring. I wonder if you¡¯ll be able to say the same after seeing how they¡¯re run. You¡¯ll learn that there are very few aristocrats that think like that.¡±

    The grandmother urged her family to resume their meal after seeing the confused looks on her grandchildren¡¯s faces.

    ¡°Eat before the food bes cold. It¡¯s Lord Liam we¡¯re talking about. Nothing can go wrong.¡±

    The children thought that the amount of trust their parents and grandparents had in Liam was getting to a dangerous level.

    ¡ó

    The Banfield Family¡¯s military was also in an uproar.

    Unlike the soldiers that followed Liam from the early days, many of those that joinedter on were found to have done some intolerable deeds.

    The most unforgivable one of them all was...

    ¡°Someone has connections to the pirates!?¡±

    Someone was secretly interacting with the space pirates...

    More specifically, a colonel that had graduated from the Banfield Family¡¯s military academy was discovered receiving bribes from the pirates in exchange for letting them go.

    He was receiving gold and other precious goods from the pirates and distributing them to his friends.

    Recently Liam had not been personally dealing with the space pirates, so the soldiers were starting to get out of line.

    What¡¯s more, the soldiers were bing arrogant as the space pirates were terrified of the Banfield Family¡¯s name.

    The higher-ups in the army shivered when they were notified of these charges.

    ¡°W-why would they do something so stupid.¡±

    ¡°If word reaches Lord Liam, he¡¯ll flip out for sure.¡±

    ¡°B-but if we don¡¯t report this, our heads will literally roll.¡±

    The generals were terrified to this extent because Liam was never forgiving towards matters that involved pirates.

    These generals, that had been in the army since the beginning, knew how fierce Liam could be on the battlefield.

    They knew that hell would break loose if Liam were to learn that his subordinates had let pirates go.

    To make matter worse, ording to their investigation, quite a number of field officers were involved in this as well.

    ¡°Send everyone involved with the pirates to the firing squad and have them executed.¡±

    ¡°And the interrogations?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine even if you use a bit of force, but do it thoroughly!¡±

    More than 90 years had passed since Liamst cleaned up the territory.

    The military officers believed that it was necessary to be more stringent with themselves and decided to take this chance to investigate their members thoroughly.

    ¡ó

    ¡°There weren¡¯t as many idiots as I thought.¡±

    Inside my office, I¡¯m reading the reports that I¡¯ve received from various departments. Honestly, I¡¯m quite fed up.

    ¡°Embezzlement, bribery, and secret interactions with pirates... Well, I guess that sums it all up.¡±

    It¡¯s not like I had any trust in humans to begin with.

    In fact, I¡¯d say that it wasn¡¯t as bad as I thought it¡¯d be.

    At 3 o¡¯clock, Amagi enters with my snack, so I take a break and chat with her.

    ¡°I believe the Banfield Family¡¯s condition is much betterpared to other ces.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good. I¡¯ll cherish those that faithfully act as my arms and legs.¡±

    ¡°Can¡¯t you show that kindness of yours to your citizens as well?¡±

    ¡°They dared embarrass me. I¡¯ll have them pay for what they¡¯ve done.¡±

    I¡¯ll never be able to forget the looks of ridicule that I received at the court of inquiry because of that child-making demo nonsense.

    Eulisia also had a part in... shaming... huh?

    ¡°Amagi, what¡¯s Eulisia doing right now?¡±

    ¡°Lady Eulisia? Please wait a moment.¡±

    ording to Amagi, Eulisia¡¯s somewhere in the mansion.

    ¡ó

    ¡°Lord Liam, you¡¯re so cruel!¡±

    ¡°Cruel my foot! I ordered you to suppress the demo, not to participate in it!¡±

    Although she participated in the child-making demo, she didn¡¯t betray me for Isaac during this debacle.

    She was apparently too scared toe out.

    ¡°They¡¯re all so cruel. They forgot about me despite being a concubine candidate. I holed up in my room thinking I¡¯d be killed if I came out.¡±

    ¡°Can¡¯t me them. I almost forgot about you myself.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam¡¯s a devil!¡±

    I should punish this girl as well, but she¡¯s sort of the bridge between me and the Imperial Army, so I can¡¯t really execute her.

    That¡¯s why I¡¯vee up with a suitable punishment for Eulisia.

    I¡¯m talking about the case of preparing Rosetta¡¯s personal guards.

    Since Rosetta doesn¡¯t have any military experience, she¡¯d need a lieutenant to help her out.

    Although she¡¯s a disappointing woman, Eulisia¡¯s quite capable and has connections with both the military and the weapons factories.

    If only she could prove her worth on a more regr basis... Anyway, she seems free right now, so I¡¯ll assign her to Rosetta.

    ¡°Since you¡¯re free right now, help Rosetta establish her personal guards.¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you good at this kind of thing?¡±

    ¡°I mean... I am...but aren¡¯t I supposed to be Lord Liam¡¯s concubine candidate? It¡¯s a bit awkward to help Lady Rosetta, who¡¯s your fianc¨¦e, you know?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m relieved to hear that you¡¯re at least smart enough to realize that. It should serve well as a punishment.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s so cruel! I don¡¯t want this kind of punishment!¡±

    ¡°Do well under Rosetta! I¡¯ll give you the funds, so go assemble her personal guards.¡±

    I¡¯ll be providing the funds with my own pocket money, but how much should I give her?

    For the time being, will a few dozen battleships¡¯ worth be enough?

    Thinking that it should do for now. I send the money to Eulisia, who looks at me in surprise.

    ¡°Eh? This much?¡±

    ¡°That should be enough, right?¡±

    ¡°I-it is, but how big of a scale are you thinking?¡±

    ¡°Enough to use up the budget. I won¡¯t specify a number. I¡¯ll leave the rest to you.¡±

    ¡ó

    After Liam left, Eulisia was left wrapping her hands around her head.

    ¡°Use up the budget, he says. Does he have no idea how big of a fleet it¡¯d be if I use it all up?¡±

    She had just received a ridiculous amount of money, enough to buy an entire fleet¡¯s worth of ships.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t there a few too many zeroes!?¡±

    It would be difficult, even for Eulisia, to prepare a fleet of such size on short notice.

    She wasn¡¯t an anomaly like Tia who could prepare tens of thousands of ships after being told so by Liam.

    It wasn¡¯t because she was ipetent. If anything, Eulisia was much morepetent than the average soldier.

    ¡°A-anyway, I should consult Lady Rosetta first beforeing to a decision. A-also, I¡¯d have to think of where we can order the ships and weapons from. Would the Third Weapons Factory do? But since we¡¯ll be ordering so many things at once, they would definitelyin if we don¡¯t give them time to perform trials.¡±

    The budget that Liam had set aside was so huge that Eulisia didn¡¯t know what to do with it.

    ¡°When you think of personal guards, don¡¯t they usually consist of only a hundred ships or so? Why would he have Lady Rosetta¡¯s fleet be as big as his own? Wouldn¡¯t Lady Rosetta hold too much military power then¡ªwait, is that what he¡¯s trying to do?¡±

    Was he trying to have his wife wield a lot of power?

    Eulisia started guessing at Liam¡¯s intention for doing this.

    ¡°Wait... could he have entered the three extra zeroes without realizing? No, that can¡¯t be... Hmm... Lord Liam¡¯s not the type of person who would do that sort of thing.¡±

    If she went ahead and formed a fleet of 10,000 ships, Liam would probably be furious with her.

    On the other hand, she¡¯d be reprimanded if she didn¡¯t use enough of the budget.

    Embezzlement wasn¡¯t an option either as she¡¯d be erased for doing so.

    ¡°Think... Think, Eulisia! If I don¡¯t think of something good, I¡¯ll really be forgotten after this! An idea that can prevent that from happening¡ªright, there¡¯s that!¡±

    Rosetta¡¯s personal guards were unlikely to fight on the battlefield.

    With that in mind, Eulisia was originally nning on ordering ships of slightly inferior quality and focusing only on their outwards appearance.

    However, that would result in a fleet consisting of over 10,000 ships.

    In that case, all she had to do was make sure that the ships¡¯ interior was done just as well.

    ¡°With an elite lineup, we¡¯d only have around 1,000 ships on our hands. It¡¯s still slightly more than one would expect. It¡¯s not like they¡¯ll be sent to the front lines, so it should be fine to emphasize both their exterior and interior designs.¡±

    Since they would be for Rosetta¡¯s personal guards, they just had to protect Rosetta.

    As such, quality was preferred over quantity.

    They just needed to be capable of escaping with Rosetta in case of an emergency.

    ¡°I cane up with something else if Lady Rosetta doesn¡¯t like this idea, but this should be okay for the time being.¡±

    She quickly drew an outline of her n to present to Rosetta.

    ¡ó

    Rosetta was feeling troubled after seeing Eulisia¡¯s n.

    ¡°Will this really be for the best?¡±

    Liam had sent Eulisia, a concubine candidate, to help Rosetta put together her personal guards.

    Rosetta had some doubts about this arrangement, but ultimately decided to follow Liam¡¯s orders.

    She hadn¡¯t graduated from a military academy, so it was true that she needed someone that could counsel her, and Eulisia was talented enough to serve this purpose.

    ¡°Marie made Darling angry, so she won¡¯t be serving as a knight for a while. I guess there¡¯s nothing we can do about it.¡±

    She would normally rely on Marie, but Marie had her qualifications as a knight revoked after angering Liam.

    Now, she was receiving education under Serena.

    Ciel, who Rosetta was taking care of, was looking at Eulisia¡¯s n and, seemed to be thinking deeply about something.

    Remembering that Ciel was the daughter of Baron Exner, an aristocrat specialized in militaristic arts, Rosetta sought her opinion on the matter.

    ¡°Ciel, what do you think?¡±

    ¡°¡ªMay I present my honest opinion?¡±

    ¡°You may. I want to know what you think. What should I do with my personal guards? Sorry... the question¡¯s a bit vague, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Hearing her apology, Ciel perceived that Rosetta was asking about how she should treat her guards.

    Her eyes became sharp as she spoke.

    ¡°When ites to the number of ships, I believe Lady Rosetta should only keep a couple hundred of them under yourmand. If the fleet bes too big, it could spark conflict within the household.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re right. The army should be managed by Darling alone. If I hold too much power, it could be a source of conflict.¡±

    Even if Rosetta was unaware, conflict may arise between the army and her guards.

    Point being, having too big of a fleet would be problematic.

    ¡°300 ships should be enough to serve as Lady Rosetta¡¯s guards. The rest of the fund should go towards the soldiers¡¯ vacations and training, as well as their deployment.¡±

    ¡°Deployment?¡±

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, there are a lot of aristocrats out there that can¡¯t fend for themselves.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m aware of that. Are you suggesting that I should help protect them?¡±

    ¡°Yes. How about taking care of some misceneous tasks that Lord Liam doesn¡¯t have time to do as a Count? If it¡¯s just small-scale conflicts, Lady Rosetta should be able to take care of them as well.¡±

    Being told that she could be of help to Liam, Rosetta praised Ciel¡¯s foresight.

    ¡°That¡¯s a great idea. Darling has to deal with a lot of requests and petitions. I¡¯ve been told that not everything is being processed, so I¡¯d be happy to help with the misceneous tasks.¡±

    ¡°Then we¡¯d need a headquarters first.¡±

    ¡°We need to prepare a base for that?¡±

    ¡°Of course. We would be operating separately from the military after all.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll talk to Eulisia about it.¡±

    ¡ó

    Ciel celebrated her victory when Rosetta left to inform Eulisia about the n.

    ¡°Yes! It¡¯s nothing big, but Lady Rosetta should be able to amass some power with this. Even if she only has a small number of elites in her fleet, she should be able to get a lot of aristocrats on her side. Eventually, Lady Rosetta would have enough power to be a threat to Liam.¡±

    The reason Ciel decided to support her was because she wanted Rosetta to stop the tyrant known as Liam.

    To aplish this goal, Rosetta would have to be strong.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta will one daye to realize Liam¡¯s evil nature. When that happens, I need her to be able to put him down.¡±

    Liam was the type of person that enjoyed watching others suffer.

    Rosetta would understand one day as well¡ªor so she hoped.

    ¡°Just you wait, Liam¡ªI¡¯ll put an end to you and wake elder brother up from his dream!¡±

    ¡ó

    ¡°¡ªAnd that¡¯s essentially how Lady Ciel¡¯s manipting Lady Rosetta.¡±

    Ciel seems to be concocting a n of her own by putting a word or two into the formation of Rosetta¡¯s personal guards.

    Thanks to Kunai¡¯s report, however, everything¡¯s beenid bare.

    ¡°She¡¯s so cute and stupid at the same time.¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam, are you sure we should leave her alone?¡±

    Ciel¡¯s actions are akin to betrayal, but it¡¯ll be boring to crush her at this moment in time.

    After all, she¡¯s someone with a steel spirit.

    Nevertheless... I won¡¯t be careless.

    ¡°Just leave her be, but call Rosetta instead.¡±

    ¡°As you will!¡±

    Kunai disappears from the room, and Rosetta arrives after a while.

    ¡°Darling, you have something you want to say to me?¡±

    Looking at Rosetta who¡¯s all smiles and exuding a soft and fluffy atmosphere. I want her to take a page from Ciel ande up with something that can threaten me a little.

    ¡°It¡¯s about your personal guards. I heard Ciel told you to take care of some of my misceneous tasks?¡±

    ¡°You knew?¡±

    ¡°Of course, and on that note, I forbid you from doing so.¡±

    ¡°A-as I thought, it¡¯s no good?¡±

    I have no problem with Rosetta taking care of my misceneous work, but it wouldn¡¯t do to just go along with Ciel¡¯s schemes, now would it?

    Sorry, but I¡¯ll be getting involved in this matter.

    Ciel must be happy that Rosetta¡¯s moving the way she wants her to move. In reality, she¡¯s just rolling on the palm of my hand.

    ¡°You can do whatever you want, but don¡¯t let others decide for you. Even if you consult others, you should have the final say. It concerns your guards after all.¡±

    For now, I¡¯ll leave it up to Rosetta.

    She has received some military education before, but it¡¯s only from her time in preschool.

    It¡¯s not her main upation, so she would probably self-destruct or end up doing nothing significant if I leave her alone.

    I want to see Ciel¡¯s frustrated expression as she watches Rosetta fail!

    ¡°Whatever I want?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t mind if you talk it out with other people, but don¡¯t take their words at face value. Come up with the decision on your own. Otherwise, I¡¯ll reject whatever n you have. You can leave if you understand.¡±

    Kunai emerges from my shadow soon after I kick Rosetta out of the room.

    ¡°Lord Liam, will this be alright?¡±

    To be honest... I never knew that my electronic wallet omits three digits at the end.

    I seem to have given Rosetta a little too much money, but I can¡¯t really ask her to give it back.

    That¡¯s why I must put up a front and bear with it.

    ¡°Leave them alone. I want to see what Rosetta and Ciel will do.¡±

    ¡°Then what about Lady Eulisia?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s going to have a disappointing end anyway. Let¡¯s just enjoy the show from the sidelines.¡±

    Unlike Nias who¡¯s ¡°peaky¡± [1], Eulisia¡¯s... ugh... just disappointing overall.

    ¡°I just wanna quickly return to the Capital and get my training over with. It should be over in another 4 years or so. Never thought I¡¯d be held back by these kinds of things.¡±

    When I¡¯m done with my training, I¡¯ll live my life freely as an evil lord.

    An emergency call suddenly arrives from Wace, who is currently at the Capital.

    ¡°Bad news, Liam!¡±

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s you, Wace.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not the time to be acting calm! Something big happened!¡±

    ¡°You, on the other hand, should calm down a bit. So... what happened?¡±

    ¡°The Kingdom of Domination [2] has dered war on the Empire!¡±

    ¡°That so.¡±

    I thought it was something important, seeing how rmed he was.

    Turns out it¡¯s just an interster nation, that has nothing to do with my territory, dering war on the Empire.

    He should really report something that¡¯s more important and relevant next time.

    ¡°How can you be so calm!?¡±

    ¡°Well, it has nothing to do with me. Oh, and I¡¯ll be returning to the Capital to finish my training.¡±

    ¡°Eh? Liam, you¡¯re not going to participate in the war? I was certain that you would.¡±

    ¡°Nah, it¡¯s too much work. I¡¯d rather finish my training.¡±

    Why would he think I¡¯d want to join the war?

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°The time has finallye. The story of Lord Liam¡¯s sess will be published in book-form. Please look forward to Lord Liam¡¯s future aplishments in the novel! Today is a good day indeed!¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°And here¡¯s the daily dose of painful news. The epilogue of Volume 7 will be out tomorrow.¡±

    [1] ¡°peaky¡±: used when a specific function in mechanical material performs much better than the others. In most cases, a product that has a ¡°peaky¡± function gives up the other functions.

    [2] Ò†Íõ¹ú ¨¤ Ò†: to dominate, have supremacy over; victory, champion, hegemony. Íõ¹ú: kingdom

 Chapter 122 - V7 Epilogue

    <h4>Chapter 122 ¨C V7 Epilogue</h4>

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    The Kingdom of Aarl underwent a massive change after Liam departed.

    ¡°Amagi-sama...¡±

    Queen Enora was wearing a costume that closely resembled Amagi¡¯s maid outfit, and there was a statue of Amagi in front of her.

    The people next to her were wearing maid uniforms as well, regardless of whether they were male or female. They were all praying to the aforementioned statue.

    The reason behind their behavior was simple.

    Even the almighty Liam could not go against Amagi, so they concluded that she was a transcendental being.

    As such, they prepared a statue of her and ordered for her outfit to be made.

    From their perspective, Amagi¡¯s maid outfit was the clothing of God.

    With that in mind, they decided to have the priests wear maid outfits while worshiping Amagi.

    Enora offered her fervent prayers.

    ¡°We have signed a peace treaty with the beastmen and agreed not to interfere with each other. Was this the right course of action?¡±

    The reason why Amagi left supplies behind for Enora was because of Liam¡¯s actions.

    He had dered the beastmen his private property. Which meant they had to provide for them, however little that may be.

    If they had left without doing anything, a war would¡¯ve surely erupted over resources such as food.

    To prevent this from happening, Amagi left some resources behind for the inhabitants.

    Enora treated her gesture as a blessing.

    ¡°Goddess Amagi, thank you for saving us.¡±

    Men and women of all ages prayed to the statue of Amagi while wearing their maid uniforms.

    ¡ó

    uss, the chief of the wolf-tribe-turned-dog-tribe, had built a wooden statue of Liam at the center of the vige.

    ¡°My daughter has married Lord Liam! Our dog tribe is now a part of God¡¯s family!¡±

    Taking advantage of the fact that Chino had be Liam¡¯s pet, he was trying to increase his tribe¡¯s presence and authority among the beastmen.

    To this end, he had erected a wooden statue of what was meantto be Liam and decorated it.

    Unfortunately, his fellow tribesmen didn¡¯t share his enthusiasm.

    ¡°Dogs? That¡¯s going a bit too far.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re wolves, you know?¡±

    ¡°Does that bastard uss have no pride?¡±

    From the other beastmen tribes¡¯ perspective, the dog tribe had managed to marry off one of their daughters to Liam. Thus, elevating their status to something that cannot be ignored.

    However, the response within the tribe wasn¡¯t so good.

    uss furiously rebuked his tribesmen, as if he was ready to kick their ass and send them flying.

    ¡°None of you were able to do anything in that situation either. So, I don¡¯t want to hear anyints! If we hadn¡¯t given up our pride, we would¡¯ve been wiped out. Would you be fine with that?¡±

    They would¡¯ve dlyid down their lives if they could die fighting like warriors, but going against Liam couldn¡¯t be considered ¡°fighting¡±.

    Liam would trample them unterally.

    None of their warriors could possibly challenge him.

    Liam was already considered a War God among the members of the dog tribe.

    uss¡¯ son raised his hand to speak.

    ¡°Father, will Chino evere back?¡±

    ¡°That child has be the cornerstone of our tribe¡¯s rise. See¡ª¡±

    (t/l¡¯s note: In the first ce, they said something about the universe and whatnot¡ªbut I understood none of it.

    Editor¡¯s note: It¡¯s okay, uss didn¡¯t understand either.)

    uss came up with some reasonable exnation for his tribesmen, but in reality, he had no idea what he was talking about.

    Intergctic nations, universes, ands... he didn¡¯t have the knowledge to understand what these terms meant, and he had no clue how Chino was being treated either.

    (She should be safe and healthy. That said... she might be going through some difficult times. Chino... it¡¯s thanks to you that we¡¯re all alive. I¡¯ll make sure that your tale lives on.)

    As a chief, he didn¡¯t regret offering his daughter to appease Liam. But as a father, he felt sorry for her.

    ¡°Let¡¯s also worship Chino. It¡¯s thanks to her that we¡¯re all here.¡±

    Another wooden statue was added to the vige, a statue that was meantto resemble Chino.

    ¡ó

    Inside the Banfield Family¡¯s mansion, newly assigned maids were standing before Serena the head maid.

    ¡°I¡¯m Christina!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Marie!¡±

    The girls were in their maid uniforms and trying to strike a cute pose; the smiles on their faces looked awfully unnatural.

    They knew that this didn¡¯t fit their image at all. But they had received orders from Liam, and Liam¡¯s orders were absolute.

    Hence, the girls treated this as a matter of life and death, which was also why they were desperately striking cute poses in their maid uniforms.

    Serena sighed.

    ¡°Your smiles are too awkward. Try again.¡±

    Hearing Serena¡¯s instruction to start over, Tia and Marie protested furiously.

    ¡°I¡¯m clearly not the one at fault here! It¡¯s the fossil woman over there that can¡¯t do things properly!¡±

    ¡°What¡¯d you just say? Huh? Minced meat! Your terrible pose is what¡¯s dragging us down right now!¡±

    Serena stared at them coldly as they swore at one another.

    ¡°Lord Liam¡¯s given this old woman a troublesome task. Why can¡¯t you both learn from the neer over there?¡±

    She no longer bothered speaking formally and directed the bickering girls¡¯ gaze to the third newly appointed maid.

    Chino, who had triangr dog ears and a fluffy tail, was also dressed in maid uniform.

    ¡°I¡¯m Chino, a proud member of the wolf tribe! I was told to be a maid, and so I shall! Now, who¡¯s my enemy!¡±

    It was clear as day that she had no clue what being a maid entailed.

    Serena felt dizzy just thinking about it, but it was fine to leave Chino alone as Liam had allowed it.

    Tia looked at Chino and snorted.

    ¡°Serena-dono, you want us to learn from this little pup? I may not look the part, but I¡¯m top-notch even as a maid. There¡¯s nothing for me to learn from this beastman.¡±

    Seeing how triumphant Tia was behaving, Serena pointed out the facts.

    ¡°You two aren¡¯t even worthparing in the first ce.¡±

    Marie was delighted to hear that and pointed her finger at Tia whileughing.

    ¡°Heard that, minced woman? You¡¯re worth even less than a primitive beast like her!¡±

    Hearing Marie bad mouthing the others, Serena opened her mouth once again.

    ¡°You should do something about the way you speak. Without that fa?ade of yours that you normally trot around with, people would think that you¡¯rethe one who¡¯s less than a beast.¡±

    ¡°Say what!?¡±

    Marie flinched at her words.

    Tia, in the meantime, brought her face close to Chino¡¯s.

    ¡°I refuse to believe that I¡¯m worse than this mutt. I¡¯m more cultured than her, know more about etiquette, and I¡¯m stronger as well. I¡¯m better than her in all regards.¡±

    Intimidated by Tia¡¯s words, Chino began to tremble, and her tail curled up as well.

    Her dog ears drooped down.

    ¡°I-I¡¯m the proud daughter of the wolf tribe¡¯s hero!¡±

    Her voice cracked from fear.

    Marie also brought her face close to Chino¡¯s.

    ¡°As if Lord Liam would favor a beast like her.¡±

    Chino¡¯s body quaked in fear, and tears started to form in her eyes.

    After evaluating the situation, Serena touched on an important subject.

    ¡°At least she¡¯s a better person that the two of you.¡±

    ¡°Haaaah? I¡¯m a first-ss knight who¡¯s also regarded as Lord Liam¡¯s sword. You¡¯re saying that I¡¯ll lose to a beastman like her?¡±

    The girls kept calling Chino a ¡°beastman¡± because they thought Liam was interested in her due to her animal ears and tail.

    To be blunt, they were just jealous.

    Under normal circumstances, they wouldn¡¯t discriminate against others.

    But when Liam was involved, they had the tendency to lose control of themselves.

    Serena came up with a ¡®hypothetical¡¯ scenario.

    ¡°I see... then let me ask the two of you a question. Let¡¯s say that there¡¯s this woman who likes a certain man. The thing is, their social status is vastly different. So much so that for the woman, the man is as unattainable as the stars. The woman wanted to feel connected to the man, so she became pregnant with his child without first seeking his permission. What do you think about this situation?¡±

    It was clear to anyone watching that she was referring to Tia and Marie wanting to bear Liam¡¯s child.

    The girls seemed absolutely disgusted by the story.

    ¡°That¡¯s a bit creepy, you know? You should send that woman to the hospital.¡±

    ¡°Agreed, and not any hospital. She should be sent to a mental hospital or an asylum. Having a child without the man¡¯s approval...as a fellow human being, that¡¯s a bit too much.¡±

    (Are they really not aware that I¡¯m talking about them? They are excellent in many regards, but they¡¯re a pain to deal with whenever something¡¯s about Lord Liam.)

    Serena straightened her back and proceeded to hit the girls with the cruel facts.

    ¡°That¡¯s exactly Lord Liam¡¯s impression of you two right now.¡±

    Tia and Marie looked each other in the eyes andughed.

    ¡°Serena-dono, I didn¡¯t think you were so good at joking.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Why would they think they¡¯re any different from the woman in the story?

    Serena did not have to wait long to hear the answer.

    The light in the girls¡¯ eyes faded.

    With a smile on her face, Tia spread her arms and said; ¡°The phrase ¡®unattainable as the stars¡¯ does not do him justice. To me, Lord Liam¡¯s literally God Incarnate. To bear his child is like doing God¡¯s bidding.¡±

    Marie prayed with her hands held tightly together.

    ¡°Don¡¯tpare me with that crazy woman over there. Even if it¡¯s a taboo, I¡¯m willing to break it if that means I can bear Lord Liam¡¯s child. That¡¯s the extent of my loyalty.¡±

    Serena looked up at the sky.

    ¡°Telling me to take care of these two...Lord Liam¡¯s given me a harsh order.¡±

    Chino was taken aback by the two¡¯s behavior.

    ¡°I don¡¯t really know what this is about, but I think it¡¯s important for both sides to agree for this kind of thing...¡±

    Chino gave a valid opinion, to which Serena muttered; ¡°I would be much better off educating this child than those two¡±.

    Liam entered the scene where all this was taking ce.

    ¡°Chino! You¡¯ve never had pancakes before, right? I¡¯ve ordered a patissier to make them, so let¡¯s eat them together.¡±

    Liam arrived sounding very jubnt.

    Chino¡¯s tail was also swinging back and forth in delight.

    ¡°Pancakes!? That sounds delicious indeed... Nonono... D-don¡¯t think for a moment that Chino would fall for that kind of thing!¡±

    She had faltered in the middle, and it was quite obvious that she wanted to try it out.

    Liam was going to take her along regardless of what she said.

    ¡°Serena, I¡¯ll borrow Chino for a moment.¡±

    ¡°Sure, but what about these two?¡±

    Serena gestured towards Tia and Marie who were ring at Chino with cold eyes.

    mes of jealousy could be seen burning violently behind them.

    Chino was so scared that she hid behind Liam.

    ¡°Hiii!¡±

    Liam looked absolutely appalled by Tia and Marie.

    ¡°I¡¯ll cut the both of you down if youy your hands on my Chino. Make sure you learn what it means to be moredylike from Serena¡ªlet¡¯s go, Chino.¡±

    ¡°U-umu! I¡¯ll follow you for now.¡±

    Liam left with Chino in tow.

    Chino decided to follow along so that she could escape from the two girls.

    Terrified of Tia and Marie, she even held onto Liam¡¯s hand.

    Tia and Marie saw this and fell to their knees.

    ¡°Liam-samaaaaa!!¡±

    ¡°Why would you favor a girl like herrrrr!¡±

    Serena watched as they cried, and her head began to ache.

    ¡°It¡¯s my first time dealing with such troublesome girls. You two will be undergoing rigorous education from now on, so make sure you¡¯re ready.¡±

    (They¡¯re more durable than your average knight anyway. It should be fine to be a little strict with them.)

    This was how Tia and Marie ended up receiving Serena¡¯s draconian training.

    ¡ó

    Rosetta, Eulisia, and Ciel were gathered inside a room and discussing what to do about Rosetta¡¯s personal guards.

    Eulisia was slightly shocked when she first heard Rosetta¡¯s decision, but she soon nodded.

    ¡°You want to help those in need? I mean... sure, it¡¯s not a bad idea... but it¡¯ll cost more time and money than before.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t mind the extra expense. I¡¯ve finally remembered what I¡¯ve always wanted to do.¡±

    After being told by Liam toe up with her own decision, Rosetta had recalled her past.

    ¡°I used to struggle a lot as a member of a ducal household that had nothing to their name aside from its title. I was fortunate enough to be saved by Darling, but there are others out there that needs saving. I want to lend those people a helping hand.¡±

    Rosetta made up her mind to gather those in need of help to serve as her personal guards.

    More specifically, she was thinking of gathering people that were suffering from poverty, debt, and other problems of that nature.

    After listening to her n, Eulisia brought up a very realistic point.

    ¡°There are many cases where people lose money and go into debt due to their own foolishness. Are you thinking of saving everyone?¡±

    Rosetta shook her head.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think Darling would approve of that. I¡¯ll be choosing those that are struggling because of their parents or ancestors, as well as those that are in hopeless positions.¡±

    ¡°Then it should be fine, but it¡¯ll cost more than I originally anticipated. If you want your guards to be the cream of the crop, we¡¯ll only be able to have around 300 ships considering all the time and money we¡¯d have to invest.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m fine with that. They don¡¯t have to be elites either. I¡¯m okay with them having mediocre abilities. I just want to give them a chance and save people that need help.¡±

    Eulisia did some rough calctions to see how much a fleet that meets all of Rosetta¡¯s requirements would cost.

    ¡°What do you think of 3000 ships?¡±

    ¡°That would do, thank you.¡±

    Ciel was listening in on this conversation. Though it wasn¡¯t what she originally had in mind, she decided to let it go.

    (Lady Rosetta¡¯s kind and gentle after all. I¡¯m sure that she¡¯ll establish a wonderful fleet to serve as her personal guards.)

    She hoped that it would one day be strong enough to confront Liam.

    Rosetta was feeling really motivated.

    ¡°Since it¡¯s decided, it¡¯s time to put our n into action! We won¡¯t be able to gather that many people from Darling¡¯s territory alone. Let¡¯s go scout other territories governed by the Empire and its aristocrats.¡±

    Eulisia¡¯s response wasn¡¯t the most enthusiastic, as this was a big hassle, but she was still happy that she had something to do.

    ¡°Alright! I¡¯ll do it, but this has be quite a daunting task.¡±

    With that, they set out to establish Rosetta¡¯s personal guards.

    ¡ó

    ¡°Are they all dumb!?¡±

    I¡¯m looking at the monitor in front of me with Amagi, while grinding my teeth in frustration.

    Amagi had brought out the results of the poll.

    ¡°Most of the people are in favor of the tax increase as they¡¯ll be the ones to benefit with better social welfare.¡±

    ¡°The officials have put in too much work.¡±

    Since ancient times, officials are known to do unnecessary things when they¡¯re handed something.

    They¡¯re the type of people that be corrupt when left alone.

    That¡¯s why I left them to their own devices, hoping that they¡¯d do something shady. I¡¯m pretty sure that they have by now.

    I mean, I¡¯d certainly do it if I was in their shoes!

    Everything was good up until now, and we had ¡°promised¡± the people to enhance social welfare in exchange for the tax increase.

    The problem is, the officials came up with such an intricate n to hide their evil intentions that the people of the territory actually think we¡¯ll be going through with the promise.

    That must be why there¡¯s so little opposition.

    ¡°My perfect n is going astray!¡±

    ¡°Master, have you ever had a perfect n?¡±

    ¡°Amagi, contact the officials immediately!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll disy them on the monitor.¡±

    An official, who¡¯s sweating an awful lot, gets projected on the monitor that I¡¯ve been using to watch the news.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter, Lord Liam?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s about the social welfare n! Can¡¯t you make things simpler to understand!?¡±

    If I don¡¯t make it clear enough that I¡¯m just trying to exploit them, and squeeze out their money, the citizens won¡¯t understand what¡¯s going on.

    I¡¯m not interested in watching those idiot citizens of mine getting taxed without knowing what¡¯s happening. I want to see them suffer.

    This is revenge for the child-making demo!

    ¡°Make things simpler to understand? No... this is as far as we can possibly...¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s you guys we¡¯re talking about. You can do it!¡±

    For the longest time, officials have been famous for their ability to do shady things bying up with loopholes.

    There¡¯s no way that they can¡¯t do such a simple thing as this.

    ¡°W-we¡¯ll review the n again!¡±

    ¡°Good. Make sure to do well this time. I expect a lot from you, alright?¡±

    I apply the finishing touch by exerting pressure on them.

    I¡¯m doing that thing where a boss tells his employees ¡°I have high hopes for you¡±.

    Rather than an encouragement, it serves as a means to pressure them.

    With this, I¡¯m sure that the officials will get to work and make the social welfare system pretty much useless, thus triggering the residents of my territory.

    ¡°They¡¯ll regret ever making me angry.¡±

    Amagi directs an exasperated look towards me as I bring up the topic of the child-making demo again.

    ¡°You still haven¡¯t given up?¡±

    ¡°Why of course not. I¡¯ll make those sinful citizens of mine suffer for offending me.¡±

    The day of my return to the Capital is drawing near.

    I really want to see the faces of my citizens distort in pain.

    ¡ó

    A few monthster...

    The government office announced that the ns for the social welfare program had been reevaluated, and this sparked excitement among the citizens of the territory.

    ¡°It¡¯s easier to understand than before.¡±

    ¡°I heard Lord Liam ordered the office to make things easier to understand.¡±

    ¡°The officials were apparently really motivated because of Lord Liam¡¯s words of encouragement.¡±

    They were happy as things were, but it was now much more approachable and easier to understand.

    The citizens weed this change.

    ¡°Lord Liam really doesn¡¯t cut corners, does he? He could¡¯ve just left things alone.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s so upright.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s headed towards the Capital, right?¡±

    ¡°His aristocratic training should be over soon. He should be back in a few years.¡±

    ¡°I hope he returns sooner.¡±

    ¡°Will things start to calm down after he finishes his training?¡±

    Things were going in the opposite direction than Liam had expected, and his citizens were feeling more grateful than ever before.

    ¡ó

    -At the Capital-

    On the luxury hotel¡¯s uppermost floor, I fall to my knees after hearing the report.

    My reputation in the territory seems to be rising because of my order to have the new policies reviewed.

    Amagi¡¯s face remains expressionless, but I can tell that she¡¯s feeling a bit happy as she¡¯s reading the report.

    ¡°Everyone¡¯s praising Lord Liam for making things easier for them to understand. The citizens are all thanking you.¡±

    ¡°BUT I¡¯M TRYING TO MAKE THEM SUFFER!!!¡±

    They¡¯re so dumb that it¡¯s kind of scary.

    I stand up slowly and pass Amagi an order.

    ¡°Amagi, we must make some reforms to the territory¡¯s education. The education level is too low at the moment.¡±

    ¡°The territory¡¯s education? It¡¯s already at a decent level, is it not?¡±

    ¡°They don¡¯t even realize that I¡¯m trying to make them suffer! Why the heck are they feeling grateful!? Shouldn¡¯t it be the opposite!?¡±

    Back in my previous world, the ruling party¡¯s reputation would have plummeted by now.

    And yet my citizens are feeling grateful!?

    They must be retarded, or something.

    Their stupidity is almost fearsome.

    I¡¯m actually starting to worry about the education level in my territory being too low.

    ¡°As of now, citizens receive 9 years ofpulsory education.¡±

    ¡°Make it 12, and we should review the content of what they¡¯re learning. Let them receive better education.¡±

    It¡¯s scary that they haven¡¯t realized they¡¯re being made to suffer.

    It would¡¯ve been fine if I was trying to be discreet about it, but the issue here is that I¡¯m actively trying to make them suffer.

    Being an evil lord is harder than I thought...

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Brian (*¡ä¦Ø£à): ¡°This Brian is finally getting an illustration...what a happy asion.¡±

    Brian (`?¦Ø?¡ä): ¡°It¡¯s time to say goodbye with everyone for a while again.¡±

    Author¡¯s Note: This marks the end of Volume 7. Down at the bottom, there¡¯s a ce where readers can use points and writements. Points andments serve as a source of motivation for the author, so please feel free to do so.

    *However, please abide by the rules set by ¡®I want to be a Syosetsuka¡¯.

    I haven¡¯t decided on the release date for Volume 8 yet, but there are two volumes (of the author¡¯s novel) waiting to be released in July, so I may post it then for promotional purposes. More details will be posted on the activity report section, so please check it out.

 Chapter 123 - V7 Interlude 1. Chino, Lost

    <h4>Chapter 123 ¨C V7 Interlude 1. Chino, Lost</h4>

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Chino, the daughter of uss the wolf tribe¡¯s strongest warrior, had been brought back to the mansion with Liam and dressed as a maid.

    ¡°Kuu! This mansion is too big!¡±

    Although it was called a mansion, there was enough space inside to easily house the entirety of the Kingdom of Aarl¡¯s Royal Capital.

    In fact, it was too big to call it a mansion, and Chino had be lost in one of the ever extending corridors.

    There were signs on the walls telling her where she currently was, but Chino had no idea what they said.

    She knew how to read because of the time she spent inside the education capsule, but she had no idea what the words really meant as she had only received the bare minimum education.

    ¡°I-is it that way? No, I¡¯m pretty sure I passed by this ce earlier. Kuu! I thought I¡¯d be able to go back by following the smell.¡±

    She was in a pickle because of the cleaning robots moving about in the corridors.

    As the mansion was too big to clean by hand, there were cleaning robots going around.

    Chino had nned on following her scent back to where she¡¯de from, but the robots had already cleaned up and erased her smell.

    ¡°W-what should I doooo! Kuu...¡±

    Discouraged, she plopped down onto the floor.

    As she was somewhere not many people frequented, she hadn¡¯t seen anyone pass by.

    It was then that she picked up the faint scent of a dog.

    ¡°Hm? A dog?¡±

    When she raised her head, she found a dog staring back at her from a distance.

    It was as if the dog was telling her to follow it.

    For some reason it looked quite fed up with her.

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re just a cheeky dog! I¡¯m a wolf, you know!¡±

    She was happy about its appearance, but her instinct told her that she shouldn¡¯t allow others to slight her.

    She chased after it, but no matter how much she tried she couldn¡¯t shrink the distance between her and the dog.

    ¡°S-so fast!? How could it be faster than me!?¡±

    She was surprised by how fast it ran.

    Chino¡¯s leg strength was akin to a wild beast, yet she was failing to catch up with the dog.

    Just as she was about to get serious, the dog disappeared after turning a corner.

    ¡°W-where did you go! I-i-it¡¯s no use hiding, you know? Ce out, please.¡±

    She trembled from suddenly being left alone.

    That was when Amagi came over and called out to her.

    ¡°I gave you a terminal, did I not?¡±

    ¡°But I don¡¯t know how to work it.¡±

    From a modern Japanese standpoint, the terminal that Chino had been given was a kid¡¯s version, yet she still had no clue how to use it.

    ¡°We should really hurry with your basic education. Now, Chino, follow me.¡±

    ¡°U-umu!¡±

    Chino followed Amagi back to where Liam was.

    (Was that dog the household pet?)

    As she was returning, she kept thinking back to the dog from before.

    ¡ó

    ¡°How unbing of a maid.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s such a useless girl.¡±

    When Chino returned she was greeted by Tia and Marie, who were in maid uniforms and preparing tea for Liam.

    She wasn¡¯t happy with either of the girls, but she knew that she couldn¡¯t win in a fight.

    In fact, it wouldn¡¯t even be considered a fight.

    Her instincts were telling her to refrain from fighting them.

    There was something else that her instincts told her to do.

    ¡°A-Amagi-dono, I mean... Amagi-sama, Thank you for your help... back there.¡±

    Amagi was not offended by Chino¡¯s slip of the tongue.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. But next time you get lost, tell someone. Okay?¡±

    ¡°O-okay. I mean, understood.¡±

    Liam moved from where he was when he heard Chino¡¯s clumsy words of thanks.

    It was because she had given Amagi a bow.

    ¡°Chinoooo! You¡¯re such a good girl!¡±

    Liam ruffled her hair and gave her a good pat on the head.

    She didn¡¯t know why, but Chino¡¯s instincts were telling her who in the room that she should submit to.

    ¡°S-stop! Don¡¯t think you can tame me by doing things like... afuu...¡±

    For Liam, the selling point in doing this was watching Chino as she desperately resisted thefortable feeling of being stroked.

    Then he shot the two girls a cold look for making fun of Chino.

    ¡°You¡¯re so cute... You two, on the other hand, aren¡¯t cute at all.¡±

    Tia and Marie were shocked beyond words on hearing that they weren¡¯t cute.

    Chino asked Liam a question she was curious about.

    ¡°B-by the way, do you happen to own a dog? If you do, introduce it to me. I¡¯ll have it know who¡¯s at the top.¡±

    She knew that she was the weakest among everyone present, but she wanted to at least beat that dog.

    Liam tilted his head in confusion.

    ¡°Dog? That would be you.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not a dog, I¡¯m a wolf!¡±

    Liamughed and stroked Chino¡¯s head.

    ¡°Right, you¡¯re under that impression. That¡¯s so cute of you, Chino.¡±

    ¡°Listen to what I¡¯m saying! And don¡¯t stroke my head so casually... afuuu...¡±

    She desperately resisted in hopes of hearing about the dog, but the feeling offort from being stroked eventually got to her.

    In the end, she wasn¡¯t able to learn anything about the dog.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ???: (Why did I help?... It¡¯s because she¡¯s my junior.)

    ,.¨C¡¢_

    ©f-¤¸,©b._©b,.£©

    ¤·-¤¸-

 Chapter 124 - V7 Interlude 2. Swimsuit Time!

    <h4>Chapter 124 ¨C V7 Interlude 2. Swimsuit Time!</h4>

    V7 Interlude 2. Swimsuit Time!

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Why do swimsuits look so dazzling on the beach?

    They often cover as little area of the body as underwear, and at times it covers even less.

    Whenever there¡¯s a woman in a swimsuit, men¡¯s eyes tend to gravitate towards her.

    But what if it¡¯s someone you know?

    I, for one, don¡¯t enjoy others ogling my lover.

    ¡°Thomas, you¡¯ve disappointed me.¡±

    I slowly pull out my sword and approach Thomas, who ends up backing away in fear and falling on his butt.

    ¡°Lord Liam, please forgive me!¡±

    The reason I¡¯m angry at him is because he has truly disappointed me this time.

    ¡°Rejected. I absolutely refuse to have Amagi wear this kind of swimsuit. In fact, how¡¯s this diving suit even swimwear? Are you messing with me?¡±

    He brought a swimsuit that looks just like a diving suit.

    It even has a goggle and snorkel; you¡¯d think she¡¯s going on a dive.

    That¡¯s the kind of design it was.

    ¡°Thomas, what did I tell you? I told you that I¡¯m going to the beach with Amagi, did I not?¡±

    ¡°Y-you certainly did!¡±

    Thomas is on his knees and sweating profusely.

    ¡°Then exin what¡¯s up with this swimsuit! Do you think this is a joke!?¡±

    ¡°B-but Lord Liam, weren¡¯t you angry about the swimsuits from before being too revealing?¡±

    All the swimsuits that Thomas rmended me before revealed too much skin.

    They wereregr swimwear, but I won¡¯t have Amagi expose any of her skin while outside.

    If a guy sees Amagi¡¯s bare skin, I would cut him down where he stands.

    ¡°Well, they were!¡±

    ¡°I-I beg your pardon, but those cover more skin than the others on the market.¡±

    ¡°I want something that fits Amagi better!¡±

    ¡°Ehhh?¡±

    Thomas has failed to bring forth a swimsuit that meets the requirements that I¡¯ve set for him.

    He has showed me over a thousand swimsuits by now, none of which suit Amagi.

    His shoulders are drooped, and he seems unconvinced.

    I¡¯m frustrated by this development as well.

    ¡°It shouldn¡¯t reveal any skin, neither should it cover the skin¡ªLord Liam, is this some sort of a riddle?¡±

    ¡°Enough with this nonsense. Just find a swimsuit that matches well with Amagi.¡±

    Amagi enters as I¡¯m scolding Thomas.

    She¡¯s brought with her one of the swimsuits that Thomas rmended before.

    ¡°Amagi, that swimsuit exposes too much of your skin. Throw it away.¡±

    ¡°No, this one will do. Master, how much time are you going to waste choosing a swimsuit? Another week?¡±

    ¡°But Thomas¡ª¡±

    ¡°No but¡¯s. To begin with, it doesn¡¯t matter how revealing it is. Master owns a private beach where only authorized individuals can enter.¡±

    ¡°I do?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    I thought there would be other pests on the beach, but since I¡¯m rich, I have a private beach.

    ¡°Then I guess the one that you have with you right now is fine. Right, to the sea we go.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    I hear Thomas cry in the back as I prepare to leave the room and head to the beach with Amagi.

    ¡°Then what was the point of my suffering?¡±

    Sorry, but it was about Amagi¡¯s swimsuit, so I can¡¯t be med for being extra strict.

    ¡ó

    The ocean is as blue as could be, and the beach is covered in white sand.

    My servants got the beach all ready and prepared the moment I said we¡¯re going out to y.

    There¡¯s no trash anywhere as it¡¯s been cleaned before our arrival.

    Amagi¡¯s wearing a swimsuit that reveals much of her skin along with a skirt cover-up wrapped around her waist.

    She¡¯s more blinding than even the sun.

    ¡°Amagi¡ªyou¡¯re beautiful.¡±

    Words fail me as I try topliment her with both my hands holding her right hand.

    I¡¯m ashamed that ¡°beautiful¡± is the only praise Ie up with.

    ¡°Thank you. I chose the one that would fit Master¡¯s taste the most.¡±

    ¡°That said, it¡¯s still too revealing in my opinion.¡±

    ¡°Nobody will see it anyway.¡±

    If anyone does, I¡¯ll erase him.

    Brian calls out to us from a beach stand just as we¡¯re getting ready to y in the sea.

    He¡¯s wearing an old-fashioned swimsuit with stripes that go down to his elbows and knees.

    ¡°Lord Liam, make sure you warm up before entering the water. Oh, and would you like a drink? You must stay hydrated.¡±

    Brian¡¯s smiling brightly at us.

    ¡°Why are you here as if it¡¯s only natural?¡±

    ¡°Why, it¡¯s to serve Lord Liam of course! My, it¡¯s been a while since I¡¯vest been to a beach stand. Back in the day, I frequented beach stands so often that I was nicknamed Beach Stand Brian.¡±

    You weren¡¯t the one running it, right?

    I¡¯m not so sure about having him run the stand, but since Brian¡¯s a wizened old man that has lost much of his bodily functions, I guess it¡¯s fine to have him stay.

    If he was any other man, I would¡¯ve had him killed.

    ¡°Then give me something to drink.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Brian enters the stand, and Amagi follows suit after bowing to me.

    Soon after, she brings me a drink.

    ¡°Master, this is your drink.¡±

    I feel enchanted by Amagi¡¯s figure as she hands me the cup.

    I might be imaging things, but I think I saw Amagi smile there for a split second.

    ¡°Amagi, did you smile just now?¡±

    ¡°Well, what do you think?¡±

    Her expression has returned to normal, but I¡¯m fairly certain that she was smiling a moment ago.

    ¡°Are you having fun¡±

    ¡°Having fun¡ªmaybe so.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good.¡±

    In that case, it was worth bringing her to the beach.

    ¡ó

    Brian was making yakisoba at the beach stand while watching Liam and Amagi.

    ¡°Lord Liam¡¯s such a frugal man.¡±

    Just to go out and y, he had people clean his private beach and prepare a stand.

    Armies were also stationed outside Liam¡¯s sight to keep watch.

    Not only were they patrolling thend, the sea, and the sky, spaceships had been deployed as well for his protection.

    Only female soldiers had been summoned.

    A lot of manpower had been spent to fulfill Liam¡¯s wish, yet Brian was calling him ¡°frugal¡±.

    ¡°As a Count, Lord Liam could¡¯ve had a as his resort. Being a bit morevish wouldn¡¯t have hurt anyone.¡±

    They were in an intergctic nation, and from the perspective of a Count, this level of luxury was only considered ying in the front yard.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Brian (;?`¦Ø?¡ä): ¡°A limited edition sale is happening. It was such a sudden decision that this Brian¡¯s still in shock. You can head over to Melon Books-sama to purchase the limited edition.¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°Lord Liam¡¯s as unreasonable as always, it¡¯s painful.¡±

 Chapter 125 - V8 Prologue

    <h4>Chapter 125 ¨C V8 Prologue</h4>

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    The Algrand Empire¡¯s capital is gray in color as the entire is covered in metal. There are numerous buildings on the, but they¡¯re also painted gray.

    Everything on the is being managed through artificial means.

    As impressive as it may sound, I feel slightly ufortable because of theck of greenery.

    A clear blue sky is being projected in the air.

    Natural disasters don¡¯t ur in the Capital, and even the timing of rain is controlled.

    It¡¯sfortable living on a where everything¡¯s being managed, so a lot of people wish to live in the Capital.

    As a result, the poption density is extremely high.

    In my previous life, people showed a tendency to flock towards cities and away from the countryside. It¡¯s the same here, but to a more extreme level.

    Many of the apartments only provide people with just enough space to sleep, and most hotels in the Capital are capsule hotels.

    Of course, this doesn¡¯t apply to me, Liam Sera Banfield.

    Not only am I an aristocrat, I¡¯ve built myself a huge fortune.

    Be it fame, money, or power, I have it all. While I¡¯m at the Capital, I live in a well-established luxury hotel.

    Rather than renting out the best room like a typical person would, I¡¯ve rented the entire hotel for myself to use.

    There¡¯s not much point in doing so, but I¡¯m enjoying the luxurious life at the Capital.

    It¡¯s early in the morning right now, and I¡¯m changing into a suit.

    As it¡¯s my work uniform, there¡¯s very little decoration.

    Everything I wear is custom made and ridiculous expensive.

    Standing in front of a mirror, I have Amagi check my appearance.

    ¡°Master, your check isplete.¡±

    Amagi checks my appearance every morning.

    My clothes are disposable, but Amagi¡¯s different. [1]

    ¡°I like the one from before.¡±

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll prepare a new suit for tomorrow.¡±

    I don¡¯t like it, so rece everything!

    I can give that kind of order on a whim.

    Why? Because I¡¯m great.

    If there¡¯s a shirt that I don¡¯t like, I won¡¯t so much as touch its sleeve.

    It may sound wasteful, but the aristocrats in this world are allowed to make such decisions.

    ¡°Time to go.¡±

    It¡¯s time for me to leave for work.

    I¡¯m currently working as a civil officer at the pce.

    After graduating from the Imperial University and undergoing a two-year training period, I went ahead and took a break at my territory.

    There was that incident where I was summoned to some uncivilized, but it wasn¡¯t that bad.

    Chino, of the dog tribe, is looking out the window restlessly in her maid uniform.

    ¡°Woah~ we¡¯re so high up. Are we above the clouds?¡±

    She¡¯s looking at the scenery outside while making sure to not get too close to the windows.

    She hugs Ciel who¡¯s standing next to Rosetta and asks, ¡°Is the building gonna copse?¡±

    What a cute fellow.

    ¡°Chino, be careful not to fall off.¡±

    When I tease her lightly, Chino backs away with her ears and tail standing straight-up.

    ¡°Y-y-y-y-you can fall from here!?¡±

    Her legs shiver uncontrobly in fear that she will suddenly fall.

    Realizing that I¡¯ve taken the joke a bit too far, I turn towards Amagi.

    ¡°You¡¯ll be safe next to Amagi. Amagi, can you take care of Chino for me?¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Chino jumps towards Amagi in tears as thetter bows to me.

    ¡°I-I want my room to be downstairs! In fact, the closer to the ground the better! I-it¡¯s not because I¡¯m scared of heights or anything. Alright?¡±

    Terrified, she expresses her desire to head downstairs

    Like I said, she¡¯s really cute.

    ¡°I¡¯ll let you have one of the guest rooms downstairs. Ciel, prepare a room for Chino.¡±

    Being addressed by me must feel terrible for her, but Ciel replies without revealing any signs of hatred.

    ¡°Acknowledged.¡±

    Yes, this! This is what I¡¯ve always wanted!

    I can already feel the reluctance in her heart.

    She wants to get rid of me, but she¡¯s helpless to do anything with her meager abilities.

    She¡¯s apparently doing various things behind my back, but she hasn¡¯t realized that the information is being leaked.

    I would¡¯ve dealt with her already if she was trulypetent.

    Considering her abilities, it should be fine to leave her alone.

    She¡¯s only somewhat capable, which means she can only show a moderate level of struggle.

    She¡¯s a rare find.

    As I¡¯m celebrating in delight, Rosetta enters the room having finished getting ready.

    She smiles at me as she appears wearing a suit jacket and a skirt that goes below her knees.

    ¡°Darling seems ready as well. Let¡¯s leave together then.¡±

    My mood drops in an instant.

    ¡°Right...¡±

    ¡°Darling will be working at the same ce as me. Just thinking about it gets me excited.¡±

    ¡°The same ce? I mean it isclose, but you can¡¯t really call it the same ce, right?¡±

    ¡°The buildings are close enough, so that¡¯s that.¡±

    That¡¯s... a bit forced.

    Rosetta used to be a rebellious woman who hated me more than Ciel.

    Unfortunately, she¡¯s like a domesticated cat now. No, is ¡°dog¡± a better way to put it?

    Anyway, she¡¯s practically a beast without fangs.

    Her rebellious spirit is nowhere to be found now.

    ¡°Whatever. Amagi, call the car.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s already waiting outside¡±

    Naturally, I ride a car to get to my workce.

    ¡°I guess I¡¯ll put in just enough effort to get through my workload.¡±

    I don¡¯t care about receiving high evaluations.

    After all, I¡¯m a distinguished aristocrat.

    Just by sitting there silently, I¡¯ll rise up thedder.

    There¡¯s no need to put in any effort.

    I leave the room with Rosetta, only to stumble upon the scene of Tia and Marie in maid uniforms ring at one another.

    ¡°I¡¯ll clean the floor that Lord Liam has stepped foot on. Get out of my sight.¡±

    ¡°As if. I¡¯llbe the one to clean every corner of the floor that Lord Liam has visited. ME. Capiche?¡±

    It¡¯s still early in the morning, yet these idiots are already so energetic.

    They¡¯re kind of getting on my nerves.

    Why are so many of my subordinates so useless?

    I guess this is what happens when you prioritize appearance above everything else.

    I really should choose my knights based on their skills and loyalty.

    It¡¯s not like these two arecking in those departments, but they¡¯ve got nomon sense. Which makes them useless.

    ¡°Don¡¯t cause a scene so early in the morning. Since you guys enjoy cleaning so much, make sure to be finished with everything by the time I¡¯m back.¡±

    The girls kneel before me in a hurry after hearing my words.

    It feels somewhat surreal watching them kneel in their maid uniforms.

    ¡°Good morning, Lord Liam!¡±

    I ignore Tia¡¯s greeting.

    ¡°Who told you to kneel? I¡¯ve taught you two how to greet me properly, have I not? Now, do it again.¡±

    As knights, they have no choice but to obey my order for a redo.

    They stand back up and greet me the way I taught them to with a blush on their faces.

    Tia curls up her hands and uses them as cat ears while sticking out her hip.

    ¡°Master, good morning-nyan!¡±

    Meanwhile, Marie¡¯s using her hands to mimic the ears of a rabbit.

    ¡°Lord Liam, good morning-pyon!¡±

    It feels great to watch two grown-ups, that have climbed to the top as knights, greeting me in maid uniforms while they shake in shame.

    Rosetta looks away from them.

    It seems like she¡¯s trying to be considerate.

    I guess she couldn¡¯t bear seeing them in such pitiful states.

    I¡¯m still far from satisfied.

    ¡°That will do for today, but make sure it¡¯s more refined tomorrow.¡±

    Tia and Marie¡¯s shoulders droop when they hear mymand.

    ¡°As youmand, Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°If that is your wish, Lord Liam.¡±

    I walk past the two regrettable idiots and head for the elevator.

    The elevator installed here is wide and has a sofa in it for me to sit on.

    Amagi and the others also enter just as I¡¯m sitting down.

    It¡¯s a pity, but only my fianc¨¦e Rosetta can sit next to me.

    I would¡¯ve liked to have Amagi sit down as well, but she refused tly and said; ¡°That wouldn¡¯t be appropriate¡±.

    Rosetta plops down beside me and starts a conversation as the elevator begins to descend.

    ¡°Darling, can I ask you a question?¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°I heard that the Kingdom of Dominion has attacked. Is Darling not going to fight in that war? Wace seemed to have expected Darling to participate.¡±

    The Kingdom of Dominion.

    Officially, it¡¯s called the Gudwar Kingdom of Dominion, and it¡¯s a country where might makes right.

    The kingdom is in a constant state of war, and it¡¯s impressive how they don¡¯t get bored of fighting.

    While the Empire wages a lot of war. It still falls short of the Kingdom of Dominion, it¡¯s a country made for Asura. [2]

    It¡¯s like hearing about the Shimazu n from the Warring States Period. [3]

    To put another way, it¡¯s as if the warriors from the Kamakura period [4] have set up base in this Intergctic Era.

    Sorry, but I¡¯m not interested in fighting against those kinds of people.

    I refuse to fight against anyone strong. What I enjoy is trampling over the weak.

    I¡¯d rather not get involved in fighting against battle maniacs that thirst for battle all year long.

    ¡°I don¡¯t feel like fighting right now, and I want to give my army some time to rest.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re so kind, Darling.¡±

    That of course was a lie.

    I make them work like ves when it¡¯s necessary.

    The only reason they¡¯re having a break is because I don¡¯t want to make any moves right now.

    I¡¯m not kind.

    In fact, I¡¯m extremely selfish and prioritize myself over everyone else.

    My political enemy, Calvin, is the one who would be facing against the Kingdom of Dominion.

    The Crown Prince himself would be spearheading the army and subjugating the enemies.

    It¡¯s because his position has be unstable after being pushed against the wall by the Cleo Faction.

    ¡°The Kingdom of Dominion will be up against Calvin. Let¡¯s see how he does in the war.¡±

    ¡°Will His Highness Calvin be able to win? I get that he¡¯s Darling¡¯s political enemy, but I don¡¯t want the Empire to lose.¡±

    Rosetta¡¯s a good-natured girl.

    Taking into ount the situation of the Empire as a whole, she thinks it¡¯s better for Calvin to win the war.

    I beg to differ.

    I don¡¯t care who wins or loses, so long as I don¡¯t get hurt in the process.

    Heck, if I can benefit from the Empire¡¯s defeat, I¡¯d happily wee it with open arms.

    Things aren¡¯t that simple this time around.

    I don¡¯t want the Kingdom of Dominion to gain too much momentum, nor do I want to see Calvin achieve a wless victory.

    In other words, I want both sides to exhaust themselves through the course of the war.

    ¡°Calvin¡¯s apetent man. He¡¯s probably going to listen to the advice of his military personnel. The Empire has the upper hand in terms of number, they should be fine.¡±

    Rosetta looks visibly relieved after hearing my confident words.

    I¡¯m feeling really annoyed though.

    As I said, Calvin¡¯s apetent man.

    He was able to shame me in front of everyone at the hearing.

    He made a fool out of me and mocked me for the child-making demo that was going on in my territory.

    That¡¯s why I won¡¯t make light of him.

    The elevator arrives the first floor, and I stand up from my seat.

    ¡°I¡¯ll quickly wrap up this civilian officer nonsense and finish my aristocratic training so that I can spend the rest of my life ying around.¡±

    The training that hassted over 50 years is finallying to an end.

    It was a long timeing, too long in fact.

    Back in my previous world, I would¡¯ve been well beyond the halfway point of my life.

    ¡°The training will be over in 4 years. W-when that timees, we¡¯ll finally...¡±

    Rosetta¡¯s face burns bright red as she covers her cheeks with her hands.

    I wonder when she became such a disappointing woman.

    ¡ó

    The Guide was at the Gudwar Kingdom of Dominion, the intergctic nation which Liam had deemed befitting of the term ¡°Asura¡±.

    He was at the capital of a country where the strong subjugated the weak.

    Compared to the Empire¡¯s capital where everything was being managed, this ce was far more chaotic.

    Fights on the street were normal, and even the so-called police officers were eager to watch them unfold.

    The Guide was amazed by what he saw.

    ¡°What a barbaric bunch.¡±

    Strength was everything here.

    Anyone could rise up in status as long as they were strong.

    In a sense, it was a ¡®fair¡¯ country.

    The Guide was heading to an arena that looked simr to a colosseum.

    The blood of millions had been spilt in this fighting arena.

    This was where powerful men of the Kingdom of Dominion gathered to decide who was the strongest.

    For them, it was a sacred ce... yet an eerie existence resided there.

    This eerie existence had a mouth which was thin and sharp. It was pressing it against the ground, sucking up whatever blood was soaked into the soil.

    ¡°The blood of strong men is always so tasty!¡±

    Despite his facial features, he was an existence simr to the Guide.

    Unlike the Guide, he preferred bloodshed over human misery.

    As such, he controlled the Kingdom of Dominion from the shadows and ensured that battles would always ur somewhere.

    ¡°I finally found you, Gudwar.¡±

    ¡°What a rare asion for you to contact me first. As someone that can travel between worlds, what do you want with this great me?¡±

    This prideful existence had the same name as the kingdom that it resided in.

    ¡°I heard you¡¯ll be attacking the Empire.¡±

    ¡°Staying within the country is getting boring. What? You want me to stay out of your territory?¡±

    Gudwar stood up and readied himself for a fight, to which the Guide held up his hands in surrender.

    Liam had weakened him so much that there was no chance of victory.

    ¡°Now, now. Hold your horses. I¡¯m just here to inform you about someone strong in the Empire.¡±

    ¡°Someone... strong? Stronger than my pawns?¡±

    The Guide had sessfully piqued his interest.

    ¡°Of course. There¡¯s someone really strong in the Empire, the type of person that Gudwar likes the most. Want to try beating him?¡±

    ¡°Who is it? Tell me his name!¡±

    ¡°Liam Sera Banfield.¡±

    Hearing Liam¡¯s name, Gudwar¡¯s tentacle-like legs shivered in excitement.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard of him before! Liam of the School of One-sh! The man who defeated three Sword Saints! I see, so he¡¯s as strong as the rumors say. I look forward to meeting him!¡±

    The Guide politely bowed before Gudwar who was raring to go.

    ¡°Your help would be greatly appreciated. Together, let us bury Liam.¡±

    Thus, the Guide gained Gudwar as his ally.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Brian (¡ä?¦Ø?£à): ¡°Lord Liam doesn¡¯t n on heading to the Kingdom of Dominion... but he probably didn¡¯t expect the Guide make a move first. Now, time to advertise the light nov¡ª¡±

    Wakagi-chan (¥Î???)¥Î: ¡°Ei!¡± £½£½£½£½£½©ß©¥©ß))©b§¥©b)?¡ß. ¡°It¡¯s painful!¡±

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°The 6th Volume of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯, otherwise known as ¡®Mob Seka¡¯, will be released on July 30th! A limited drama edition CD will also be released this time around! Please go ahead and purchase them everyone~?.¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire!¡¯ Volume 1 will be released on July 25th! ...She was a step ahead of me.¡±

    [1] O...kay? That was random. The transition here feels a bit strange throw her away.

    Editor: I think what he¡¯s trying to say is that while Amagi is an item, he¡¯ll never throw her away.

    [2] Asura¡¯s are a demon or demigod from Hindu or Buddhist myths. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asura

    [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shimazu_n

    [4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamakura_period

 Chapter 126 - V8 Chapter 1. Work

    <h4>Chapter 126 ¨C V8 Chapter 1. Work</h4>

    V8 Chapter 1. Work

    **

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Although I¡¯ve been assigned to work at the pce, it¡¯s so huge here that it feels like I¡¯m checking in at a regrpany instead.

    As I arrive at the excessively luxurious lobby of the building, I¡¯m greeted by the sight of many neers wearing brand new suits.

    Some of the civil officers here are aristocrats like me, who didn¡¯t have to take any exams to walk this elite path.

    The others are bona fide bureaucrats that climbed to their position after going through intensepetition.

    Thanks to the caste system, these ordinary bureaucrats are at our beck and call.

    Hurray for the aristocracy!

    The bureaucrats gathered in the lobby begin to buzz just as I enter the room.

    I assumed for a second that it¡¯s because of me, a rather renowned aristocrat, but it doesn¡¯t seem to be the case.

    I look back and catch sight of a man in red suit, surrounded by some men in ck,ing towards our general direction.

    Is that a white muffler around his shoulder?

    Based on his demeanor, and the reactions of those around him, it¡¯s safe to say that he¡¯s not amoner.

    He¡¯s probably an aristocrat and a legitimate heir to his household.

    He appears to be around 100 years older than me, but there¡¯s nothing strange about that since we¡¯re allowed a bit of leeway. As long as we finish our aristocratic training before turning 200 years old.

    In other words, it¡¯s not unusual to be trained together with people from previous generations. This can be considered an opportunity to be acquainted with other families.

    The man in the red suit ignores my presence and walks past me.

    As I watch his back, I start regretting not bringing any subordinates of my own.

    ¡°Damn it. Someone should¡¯ve told me that we¡¯re allowed to bring subordinates with us. I would¡¯ve prepared twice the number as that man.¡±

    I have subordinates lurking in the shadows, but I haven¡¯t brought along anyone that can be put in the limelight like that man in the red suit.

    Since today¡¯s the first day, I thought people would think I came with a babysitter if I brought along an escort.

    Someone calls out to me as I¡¯m wallowing in this sense of defeat.

    ¡°It¡¯s an honor to meet the famous Count Banfield.¡±

    The person that speaks to me seems to be the child of an aristocrat based on the pretentious looking pants that he has on.

    Not only that, he¡¯s wearing a suit that entuates his sex appeal and makes him look like a club host.

    Based on the gazes that the women around him are giving, they clearly have a good impression of him.

    On the other hand, the women look at me and quickly look away in fear.

    I¡¯m fine with others being afraid of me, but why are we being treated this differently?

    ¡°State your business.¡±

    With a set of smooth movements, the man gives me a deep bow.

    Even his gestures are pretentious.

    ¡°My name is [Marion Sera Olgren]. Have you heard of Viscount Olgren¡¯s household?¡±

    Ib through the names of aristocratic households within my memory and eventually remember learning about Viscount Olgren through the education capsule a long time ago.

    Viscount Olgren¡¯s household should be a branch family of Margrave Olgren, which protects the borders of the Empire.

    Essentially, Viscount Olgren is Margrave Olgren¡¯s subordinate rted to him by blood.

    The official records state that the Viscount is a direct vassal of the Empire, but locally he¡¯s the subordinate of the powerful Margrave.

    His position is like that of the Baron who was under me before I crushed him.

    ¡°The one whose territory borders Gudwar¡¯s?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m relieved to hear that you¡¯ve heard of our name.¡±

    He has short silver hair, purple eyes, and a long bang. My first impression of Marion is that he¡¯s a cheeky kid with drooping eyes that¡¯s surrounded by a strange sex appeal.

    ¡°What business do you have with me, and where¡¯s your master?¡±

    You don¡¯t have what it takes to speak with me.

    At least have your master with you if you wish to speak to me.

    Catching my hint, Marion lets out a smallugh.

    ¡°Unfortunately, the sons and daughters of the Margrave already received their training some time ago. Thanks to that, I¡¯m here by myself, ready to serve the pce alone.¡±

    ¡°Were you not called back because you didn¡¯t graduate from a military academy?¡±

    Growing up, Marion probably attended preschool. Then entered the Imperial University, where he decided to walk the path of a civil officer.

    I¡¯m assuming that he¡¯s around eighty or so, which makes him my junior.

    ¡°You¡¯ve really hit me where it hurts. Right now¡¯s a dangerous time for my family and the main branch. I wanted to help out as well, but they apparently don¡¯t need a kid with zero military experience.¡±

    It¡¯s clear now as to why he decided to approach me.

    He wants to receive support from powerful aristocrats, or at least request reinforcements.

    He¡¯ll probably try to get close to influential figures during this period of training so that he can request their help.

    ¡°Sorry, but I¡¯m busy at the moment.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re quite cold, aren¡¯t you? Our workce is the same, so I¡¯m looking forward to getting along with you, Liam-senpai.¡±

    The friendly smile on his face reminds me of his young age, and it offers a stark contrast to the strange sex appeal surrounding him that is unbefitting of his age.

    The women around us seem to be very interested in Marion.

    ¡°Apparently his family are Viscounts!¡±

    ¡°The prestigious branch family of the Olgren¡¯s!¡±

    ¡°Things are looking quite amazing this year as well!¡±

    The department that I belong to, which is almost this entire building, is a gathering ce for the elite.

    Talented bureaucrats and powerful aristocratse here for their training.

    For an aristocrat, being here means being recognized as excellent by the Empire.

    This must be the result of never missing out on offering gifts to the higher-ups.

    Let¡¯s continue to get along with the Chancellor.

    I start walking, and Marion follows a few steps diagonally behind me while ying with his long bangs.

    ¡°As expected of a popr workce. It¡¯s like an aristocratic trade fair. The person over there is from a Count family.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m currently a Count.¡±

    ¡°Oh, and that person over there has connections to a Marquis. I¡¯d love to be acquainted with him.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m an up-anding Duke.¡±

    Being surrounded by all these famous aristocrats makes me sick.

    I try topete with them by bringing up my own titles, but it feels somewhat meaningless to do so.

    Marionughs at my behavior.

    ¡°I take it that Liam-senpai hates losing?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s because I don¡¯t think I¡¯mckingpared to them. They¡¯re not even the heirs to their households, right? They¡¯re nothing special.¡±

    Aristocrats, and their associates, that have been secretly listening to our conversation turn towards me with stern expressions on their faces.

    Marion intentionally gives an exaggerated shrug before saying my name out loud.

    ¡°Only someone like Liam-senpai can get away with saying that here. I expected no less from Count Banfield.¡±

    I guess he¡¯s trying to be considerate towards our surroundings.

    Most of the aristocratic onlookers turn their eyes away from us after hearing my name.

    The idiots that haven¡¯t heard of me continue to re at us.

    I re back at those few idiots, and the people around them drag them away in a hurry.

    ¡°You¡¯re quite tactful.¡±

    Marion bes slightly flustered by my praise.

    ¡°Anyone in my position would¡¯ve done the same. Oh, but is it alright for a Count to move around without anyone apanying him? Shouldn¡¯t you at least have a few people following you around?¡±

    Rosetta, who¡¯s also out for work, has an entourage following her.

    As for me, I don¡¯t need one.

    To be more precise... I don¡¯t have one.

    Recently, I sent them away for ¡°re-education¡± to keep them on a tight leash.

    Not to mention I executed the Baron who made light of me, and my other subordinates who betrayed me as well.

    I threw their kids into a military re-education facility that is well known to be the most brutal out there.

    As a result, my entourage is now non-existent.

    I thought I¡¯d at least have Wace beside me, but he¡¯s a member of the royal family now, even if it¡¯s only a thing of the past.

    Because of that, he¡¯s been assigned a special post at the pce. Which leaves me with no minions tomand.

    None within sight at least.

    We enter the elevator and I¡¯m left alone with Marion, who leans back on one of the walls. He brings up the topic of my preschool days.

    ¡°There¡¯s something that I¡¯m curious about. Is it true that you killed one of your opponents at the mobile knight tournament while you were in preschool? I¡¯ve heard lots of incredible legends about Liam-senpai.¡±

    ¡°Legends? I don¡¯t know about that, but it¡¯s true that I killed a piece of trash named Derrick there.¡±

    ¡°For real?¡±

    Marion expresses surprise towards my nonchnt reply.

    I thought a record of that match would be left somewhere, but maybe the instructors hid it.

    I suppose it¡¯s because it¡¯s considered a stain on the school¡¯s name.

    ¡°Then is it true that youid siege on the second school building? I heard the second school building became strict after that incident.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t know about the second part, but it¡¯s true that we attacked it.¡±

    I was free at the time, so I decided to barge in with Kurt and Wace.

    Those are fond memories from my time at preschool, but Rosetta turned out to be such an easy woman that everything from that time period feels rather nd.

    She has no idea how much effort I poured into her.

    ¡°I heard Liam-senpai was an excellent student, but it turns out you did a lot of bad things as well.¡±

    ¡°The instructors stayed silent because of my outstanding grades.¡±

    ¡°... Liam-senpai¡¯s quite the interesting person.¡±

    Marion observes me as if he¡¯s appraising a product.

    ¡°I¡¯m not interested in being an interesting person. Give up if you¡¯re thinking of asking for support for the Olgren Family.¡±

    ¡°Can¡¯t you give it a bit of consideration?¡±

    ¡°As I said, I¡¯m busy.¡±

    I really ambusy. I don¡¯t have the time to get myself involved with the Olgren Family.

    We step out as the elevator arrives at our destination.

    The neers of this season seem to be gathered here.

    Some of these neers have passed the exams and entered through legitimate means.

    There are also those who used connections and bribes to enter through the back door.

    Of course, there¡¯s also us aristocrats who are winners from birth.

    We¡¯re at a courtyard where the entrance ceremony is being held, but it feels more like a party venue.

    Preparations for a reception seem to be well underway. From the looks of it, today will be more like a banquet.

    As expected of the Empire!

    It seems like we won¡¯t have to do actual work and go through formal briefings on Day 1.

    The man in the red suit, that ignored me at the lobby earlier, has surrounded himself with other aristocrats and is chatting away.

    Seeing my arrival, he raises the left side of his mouth and smirks.

    One of his subordinates approaches me.

    ¡°Count Banfield?¡±

    ¡°That I am.¡±

    ¡°Lord Randy wishes to say hello, if you will.¡±

    ¡°Randy?¡±

    Marion, who¡¯s standing diagonally behind me, helps me out in a whisper.

    ¡°He hails from the house of Marquis [Lengrand]. His name is [Randy Sera Lengrand], he¡¯s heir of the Marquis household. He¡¯s also the cousin of His Highness Cleo.¡±

    His Highness Cleo¡¯s mother is from the Lengrand Family.

    In other words, the Lengrand Family who should¡¯ve backed His Highness Cleo.

    Yet the one who¡¯s actually backing him is me.

    ¡°He¡¯s asking a mere subordinate to greet the future Duke? Have your mastere here himself.¡±

    Looking clearly upset, the man in ck turns around to face Randy.

    The people around us are watching while holding their breaths.

    Randy, who failed to oust me, eventually walks up to where I¡¯m standing.

    ¡°Excuse my manners, Count Banfield. As the prince¡¯s cousin, I was curious about the person that His Highness Cleo is indebted to. I¡¯m happy to finally meet you like this.¡±

    The Lengrand¡¯s have refused to support Cleo up to this point, thinking that he didn¡¯t have what it takes to be an Emperor. Yet he¡¯s saying all this with a straight face.

    Well, I would¡¯ve said something along those lines if I was in his shoes.

    ¡°Please rest assured. I¡¯ll make sure that he¡¯s safe and sound.¡±

    I sh a smile at him.

    Randy also returns a smile... but with hostility mixed in.

    When someone gets to my level, it bes easy for them to see through what others are thinking, especially if the opponent is someone as weak as him.

    Randy presents me with a ss that he receives from his subordinate.

    ¡°From now on, the Lengrand Family will also give Cleo our full support. Until now, there was a misunderstanding between us that made it difficult for us to support him. It must have been difficult for Count Banfield as well.¡±

    Now that Cleo has a chance of seizing the throne, they¡¯vee to regret their earlier decisions.

    It¡¯s understandable, I¡¯d regret it as well if I were them.

    But I won¡¯t hand him over.

    ¡°It was no problem at all. His Highness Cleo¡¯s faction is very well organized after all. The addition of the Lengrand Family will surely be a great boon for us. Let¡¯s work hard together towards our goals.¡±

    There¡¯s a catch though: you will be under me!

    After a toast with Randy, I down the drink.

    The house of Cleo¡¯s mother has finallye into the picture.

    ....as I thought it would.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°Lord Liam has a kouhai now! This Brian is so d that Lord Liam grew up to be such a splendid man. What¡¯s more, Lord Liam¡¯s childhood has been recorded in a book! It¡¯ll be released on July 25th, and things are looking better than the web novel!¡±

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°You¡¯re ten years too early to advertise before me! Wakagi-chan will now...¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à) rûu~£¼?çÝ;©b§¥©b): ¡°.... Nugyaaa!!¡±

    Brian (¡ä?¦Ø?£à): ¡°Evil has been vanquished.¡±

    TN: NGL, this chapter was extremely hard to trante, so please don¡¯t bash me if I made a mistake in the trantion somewhere.

 Chapter 127 - V8 Chapter 2. The Workplace

    <h4>Chapter 127 ¨C V8 Chapter 2. The Workce</h4>

    V8 Chapter 2. The Workce

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Even though our workce is inside the pce, it sure doesn¡¯t look like one.

    The building prioritizes functionality over appearance, and the people working inside are wearing suits as well.

    I thought they¡¯d wear something that fits better with the pce setting, but they apparently wear suits except during ceremonies.

    Several departments exist within the pce, and it¡¯s a mystery as to whether or not there¡¯s anyone overseeing all of them.

    In fact, most of the people here have no clue what they¡¯re doing.

    I¡¯m currently at my desk, slowly organizing my work for the day and making the final touches so that I could leave right on time.

    It would be ridiculous for me to put in actual effort since I¡¯m not even sure what it is that I¡¯m working on.

    It¡¯s like being shown a small portion of a bigger picture.

    As for what that bigger picture entails, I have not the slightest idea.

    Turns out this so-called ¡®elite department¡¯ is nothing more than a group of clueless people who have no idea what they¡¯re working on.

    ¡°It¡¯s a department with nothing to it¡¯s name beside its flowery reputation.¡±

    There¡¯s a story that goes like this:

    There was once a serious and talented man who worked for the pce his entire life and was getting ready to retire.

    When he was summoned by his boss and praised for his years of hard work, the man said he only had one question that he wished to hear an answer to.

    What was that question, you ask?

    It was, ¡°What was it that I¡¯ve been working on for all these years?¡±

    He had done the job that had been assigned to him, but he had no idea what it was all about.

    Despite being a serious worker, and an excellent one at that, he had failed to grasp the bigger picture.

    What¡¯sughable is the boss¡¯ response.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know either.¡±

    What a joke!

    ¡°Using artificial intelligence would make things far more efficient.¡±

    It feels like they¡¯re making us do some useless work.

    What a waste of talented personnel. I couldn¡¯t help but wonder what I could have done with all this talent.

    The fact that they¡¯re serving inside the pce is proof of their excellence.

    They would either have to be really skilled, have deep connections, wield immense authority, or possess extreme wealth.

    There are people out there that think nothing of connections, but that¡¯s where they¡¯re wrong.

    Having connections is a form of power.

    I would¡¯ve also taken advantage of it if I could.

    Unfortunately, because of my parents and grandparents, the Banfield Family had no decent connections to speak of.

    Thanks to them, I¡¯m in the middle of forging my own connections.

    They¡¯re really a hateful bunch.

    Marion approaches me with a drink while I¡¯m slowly working.

    ¡°Liam-senpai, you¡¯re so serious with your work.¡±

    I reply sarcastically to that remark.

    ¡°You¡¯re right. The others are cking off so much that it looks like I¡¯m serious inparison.¡±

    The aristocrats around me arezing around without doing what they¡¯ve been assigned to do.

    The diligent bureaucrats next to them are going through mountains of paperwork while they¡¯re chatting about where to yter in the day.

    I receive the drink from Marion.

    ¡°How¡¯s work on your end?¡±

    ¡°I finished it already.¡±

    ¡°If you finish too early, the boss might assign more work to you.¡±

    Either that, or others will beg him to help with their work.

    Never mind... I doubt anyone would ask an aristocrat, of all people, for help.

    It¡¯s technically possible if there¡¯s a huge difference in status and ability, but at that point it would be easier to make use of the people that have been hired here solely for their capabilities rather than their status.

    I also intend to make use of them at some point in time.

    ¡°The boss is so scared of Liam-senpai that he hasn¡¯t beening out of his office. Senpai, you apparently wiped out your boss and your boss¡¯ boss during your previous training?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s their fault for trying to take advantage of me.¡±

    ¡°¨CWill you be doing that here as well? The boss is a member of the Calvin Faction, so the people around us think Senpai will do something simr against him.¡±

    There¡¯s a reason why I¡¯ve been assigned here where members of the Calvin Faction reside.

    Most members of the Cleo Faction are local lords, which means there aren¡¯t as many Cleo Faction officials working within the pce.

    That¡¯s why I failed to enter a department that¡¯s controlled by the Cleo Faction.

    I wanted to join a department under our faction to make life easier for myself, but there¡¯s too few bureaucrats under Cleo.

    If I wish to expand my influence within the pce, I will have to take action.

    ¡°If he goes against me, I¡¯ll crush him. If he obeys, I¡¯ll give him lots of love.¡±

    ¡°I wonder if that statement is appropriate here. It almost sounds suggestive.¡±

    Our boss is a middle-aged man with a big belly.

    He should be able to slim down easily enough with all the education capsules and other pieces of technological equipment lying around, but he hasn¡¯t done so.

    There seems to be a lot of people who think even that is too much of a hassle.

    There¡¯s always a group of people that don¡¯t care about their appearances and do nothing about it, right?

    Our boss belongs in that category.

    Saying that I¡¯d give him lots of love does indeed sound inappropriate.

    ¡°If he obeys, I¡¯ll make sure to exploit him thoroughly.¡±

    Hearing me correct my previous statement, Marion smiles.

    ¡°That¡¯s better. Also, can I borrow some of your time tonight? Let¡¯s go out for a drink.¡±

    Rather than inviting your colleagues, you should really be sucking up to your boss and your seniors.

    But then again, he¡¯s not here to form business rtionships. Rather, he¡¯s trying to get close to those with enough authority to help his family.

    Randy¡¯s voice rings across the room during the middle of our conversation.

    ¡°You have problems with my work!?¡±

    ¡°I-I¡¯m terribly sorry! H-however, unless Lord Randy makes these corrections, the application forms cannot be passed. So please! Just this once!¡±

    ¡°Hmph, how annoying.¡±

    It seems like Randy made some mistakes on his paperwork, but the one apologizing is the senior assigned as his workce educator.

    He¡¯s someone that¡¯s been working in this department for decades and has shown definite results in the past. It¡¯s just that his luck ran out after being selected as Randy¡¯s educator.

    For some reason, Randy the neer, looks more imposing than the senior.

    The reason why excellent personnel do not flow out of this department, despite such a working environment, is because ites with the status of being an official at the Capital.

    As officials, they¡¯re respected by those around them. In return they cling on to their workce, however bad the environment might be.

    Marion shrugs.

    ¡°As always, Randy-san doesn¡¯t seem to be in a good mood.¡±

    Shouldn¡¯t they iste the aristocrats and assign them to a separate department?

    ¨COr perhaps this department is serving that very purpose?

    ¡ó

    There was another building for officials near the building where Liam worked.

    Those in different departments worked in different buildings. Even within the same department, separate buildings were prepared for each section.

    Intergctic nations were so huge that things tended to get out of hand rather quickly.

    Rosetta was working in one such building.

    However, unlike Liam, she had attendants around her that provided her with solid support.

    Her two female attendents arrived at her desk just as Rosetta was getting finished with her morning tasks.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, it¡¯s lunch time. For today¡¯s lunch, we¡¯ve reserved a table at a nearby restaurant.¡±

    ¡°You did? Is Darlinging as well?¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam told us that he couldn¡¯te.¡±

    ¡°Is that so. It¡¯s a pity, but I guess it can¡¯t be helped.¡±

    Just as Rosetta stood up from her seat, one of her workce seniors called out to her, almost as if she¡¯d been waiting for this moment.

    That senior of hers was a woman wearing a shy suit, and she was apanied by six attendants.

    ¡°My, oh my. The neer has no manners. To think she¡¯d take a break before I do!¡±

    She was the daughter of one of the aristocrats under the Calvin Faction, and she was hiding her face behind a heavily decorated fan.

    Even though her training period was over, she had decided to remain in the workce and continue her career.

    The more diligent bureaucrats around her were annoyed by her presence, but it didn¡¯t help that there were so many women in the deparment that Rosetta had been assigned to.

    As many aristocraticdies were gathered here, their workce contained very few men.

    In fact, men were forbidden from stepping foot on the floor where Rosetta and the others resided.

    If they tried to force their way in, they would be cut down by the knights guarding the elevator.

    As a result, it had a reputation of being a safe workce where people can leave their daughters with peace of mind.

    Unfortunately... it was also under the control of the Calvin Faction.

    In essence, Rosetta had been thrown into enemey territory.

    ¡°Oh, but no one told me that it¡¯s a breach of manners. Shouldn¡¯t you stop imposing your own rules on others?¡± Rosetta replied with a smile.

    If she backed down now, she would have a hard time in the future.

    ¡°My... How fierce. Are you feeling assured because your reliable fianc¨¦ is nearby? Sorry to break it to you, but you don¡¯t have many allies here.¡±

    The woman folded her fan and pointed it towards Rosetta¡¯s chest.

    Those around them reacted very differently.

    Some women looked the other way.

    Others watched their interaction with a grin stered on their face.

    Others still were observing them carefully.

    If it was the Rosetta from the past, she would have shrunken back, but she was different now.

    ¡°That¡¯s a shame. Anyway, girls, let¡¯s go have lunch.¡±

    Rosetta left the office with her two attendants while having the woman re at her from behind.

    The moment they left her field of vision, she let out a scream.

    ¡°What¡¯s with her attitude!? Who does she think I am!?¡±

    Her scream was loud enough for Rosetta and her attendants to hear from the hallway.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, was it alright to provoke her like that?¡± Rosetta¡¯s attendants asked in worry.

    ¡°This can¡¯t even be considered ¡®provoking¡¯. She¡¯s just easily agitated. Nevermind that, we should contact Eulisia.¡±

    Openly, she only had two attendants with her, but Eulisia had been tasked with supporting her as well.

    ¡ó

    While all this was happening, Eulisia was busy at work at her desk inside a hotel room.

    Several screens were being projected in the air, each disying different information.

    One showed the screening process of selecting Rosetta¡¯s personal guards.

    Another screen was about the orders ced for the fleet¡¯s equipment.

    It was too much work for a normal person to handle alone, but Eulisia was apetent woman.

    She was easily forgotten, but nhelesspetent.

    She was handling various affairs by herself, and one screen disyed information about Rosetta¡¯s workce.

    She had been investigating during her free time.

    ¡°A~a, it¡¯s also problematic when a workce is filled with only women.¡±

    Due to their unique status and position in society, things could easily devolve into a tangled mess within the workce, which was essentially a gathering of many aristocraticdies.

    Not to mention their position within aristocratic circles, they had to consider things like feuds between certain households.

    Conflicts and joint struggles happened for various reasons, and things were subject to change on a day-to-day basis.

    As for Rosetta, she was in a bad position as the fianc¨¦e of Liam, the leader of the Cleo Faction.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta has been handed a lot of work, and it seems the amount of misceneous work is gradually increasing.¡±

    While checking the information about Rosetta¡¯s workce, Eulisia began to categorize the type of work that she was being given.

    It was clear that some of the work assigned to her were purely there as a form of harassment.

    ¡°This, this, and that are unnecessary work. Ah, but this one¡¯s necessary. Hmm~ these documents here have been tampered with. I wonder if I should contact them to have these fixed.¡±

    The six screens before her were being processed with incredible speed.

    It was then that Ciel, Rosetta¡¯s aide, came into her room with her meal.

    ¡°Lady Eulisia, I¡¯ve brought your meal.¡±

    ¡°Oh, can you put it over there for me? I¡±ll eat it when I¡¯m done.¡±

    Her face was glued to the screen as she replied back.

    ¡°So Lady Eulisia is someone capable?¡± Ciel asked.

    Eulisia¡¯s hands jolted to a stop, but some of the screens continued to move as they were being processed by her thoughts.

    Eulisia turned back to face Ciel.

    ¡°Eh? What are you trying to imply here? The fact that Lord Liam took me in is proof of my excellence.¡±

    To begin with, only those who survived fiercepetition were given the opportunity to serve as adjutants for aristocrats.

    Those deemed ipetent had no right to be one.

    ¡°But Lady Eulisia normally does nothing but y around inside the mansion.¡±

    ¡°T-that¡¯s only when I haven¡¯t been given any orders.¡±

    Because of how terribly Eulisia behaved during her daily life, Ciel just assumed that she was ipetent.

    Ciel looked over at the screen where Eulisia was selecting the potential members of Rosetta¡¯s personal guards.

    ¡°Pardon me, but I think Lady Rosetta¡¯s knights should be selected based on their seriousness rather than their skill with the sword! It would be in her best interest to select serious knights who do not tolerate injustice.¡±

    Eulisia reached out for the meal that Ciel had brought and contemted while munching on a sandwich.

    (This kid¡¯s been trying to chuck in her ideas here and there during the selection process. Is it because she¡¯s from a military household? Well, I do agree that their personality is more important than theirbat skills.)

    In the first ce, Eulisia didn¡¯t expect much strength from the members of Rosetta¡¯s personal guards.

    After all, Rosetta¡¯s ultimate goal was to assist knights who were in need of help.

    As she had once been in a position of helplessness, she wished to save those who were struggling to make ends meeet.

    ¡°Fine, but it¡¯s going to be a problem if you interfere too much.¡±

    Liam could very well order Ciel¡¯s execution if he suspected her of trying to raise an army by manipting Rosetta.

    Even at this critical juncture, Liam could have a fallout with Baron Exner, Ciel¡¯s father, without facing much repercussion.

    Baron Exner¡¯s household was pretty much being sponsored by Liam after all.

    Hence, cutting them off would only lighten the burden.

    ¡°The knights under the Banfield Family are very powerful. This time, we should gather knights who are serious, however mediocre their skills may be.¡±

    Eulisia agreed with Ciel¡¯s words.

    Rather than having knights like Tia and Marie, who were powerful but had problematic temperaments, it would be easier to takemand of knights who were mediocre but serious.

    ¡°I agree with your opinion, but I was going to choose based on their personalities anyway, so there¡¯s no need for you to worry about it.¡±

    Rosetta was doing this as a means to provide the knights with relief, so she wouldn¡¯t care much about their abilities either.

    Ciel looked visibly relieved hearing this.

    Eulisia began to suspect Ciel after seeing her expression.

    (She should have already heard about Lady Rosetta¡¯s n. Did shee here to check up on me? ¨CThis child is more dangerous than I initially thought. I should report this to Lord Liam.)

    Eulisia judged Ciel as a source of danger and decided to report her to Liam.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Brian (`?¦Ø?¡ä)©g : ¡°This Brian will do his best to promote the novel! Starting tomorrow, Volume 1 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire¡¯ will finally be on sale!¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à) : ¡°We started out with promoting the [author¡¯s] other works, yet now we¡¯ve reached a point where we can promote this novel as well. We couldn¡¯t havee this far without you, dear readers. So, thank you.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (#?ÑÔ?): ¡°...I cane back to life however many times it¡¯s necessary.¡±

 Chapter 128 - V8 Chapter 3. Madam Annabell

    <h4>Chapter 128 ¨C V8 Chapter 3. Madam Annabell</h4>

    V8 Chapter 3. Madam Annabell

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Contrary to most people¡¯s expectations, the session war that would decide who would be the next Emperor was proceeding in Cleo¡¯s favor.

    His faction had begun to grow rapidly ever since Liam made the announcement that he would back Cleo.

    After oveing many crises, Cleo had grown to the point where more voices were pushing for him to be the next Emperor than even Calvin.

    However, there was one person that wasn¡¯t happy with such a development.

    It was Cleo himself.

    ¡°It¡¯s never about me. They always ask for Liam.¡±

    He was in his room rxing by himself when he decied to voice out hisint despite there being no one present.

    Lysithea, who had been in a good mood recently, entered the room.

    Although she was born into royalty, she chose the path of a knight in order to protect Cleo.

    With her orange hair tied into a ponytail, she happily gave Cleo a report.

    ¡°Cleo, hear this! So many people came to visit today that it¡¯s finally reached a point where they would have to wait a couple of years!¡±

    An increasing number of aristocrats and merchants were rushing over to greet Cleo.

    Furthermore, several organizations had reached out to Cleo hoping for a meeting.

    Lysithea was excited as such a situation would have been unthinkable given their previous state of affairs.

    ¡°Everything¡¯s smooth sailing now that the faction hase together. Besides, Elder Brother Calvin is absent at the moment, so a lot of aristocrats want to meet you. In fact, more and more members of the Calvin Faction are expressing their desire to switch sides.¡±

    Rumor had it that Cleo was now the person closest to the throne.

    However, the distance between Cleo and Calvin wasn¡¯t that close.

    If something went awry, Cleo could still be blown away easily.

    ¡°It¡¯s not me that they¡¯re seeking, but rather Count Banfield. Am I wrong?¡±

    Lysithea¡¯s expression became slightly dark hearing his sarcastic remark.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure they¡¯re here for Count Banfield as well, but that¡¯s to be expected. He¡¯s your biggest supporter and backer. Without the Count¡¯s financial and military support, what would have be of us by now?¡±

    Cleo obediently backed down after being berated by his sister.

    ¡°It was just a joke. That said, I¡¯m really troubled by all the petitions that I must look through from early in the morning.¡±

    ¡°That just goes to show how many people are relying on you.¡±

    ¡°I guess it¡¯s better than being ignored...¡±

    (Most people think of me as nothing more than the Count¡¯s ornament.)

    In reality, he wasn¡¯t happy at all.

    His current position was gifted to him through Liam¡¯s power and not his own.

    He was aware of how vulnerable he was as a prince.

    ¡°Count Banfield¡¯s at the Capital as well, so we can rest assured regardless of what happens! Now, your schedule for today will be...¡±

    Just as Lysithea was about to recite Cleo¡¯s schedule to him like a secretary would, a mor began outside the room.

    The knights guarding Cleo confirmed what was going on.

    ¡°Your Highness Cleo, a moment please.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    ¡°A-actually... Your Highness¡¯s mother will be arriving shortly.¡±

    ¡°My mother?¡±

    Cleo shot up from his seat, and Lysithea¡¯s mouth hung wide open in surprise.

    [Annabell Sera Lengrand], their biological mother, had personallye to visit them.

    Neither Cleo, nor Lysithea, could mask their shock after learning about their mother¡¯s arrival given that she had never tried to meet her children before.

    Facing one another, Cleo asked for Lysithea¡¯s opinion.

    ¡°Sister, what should we do?¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s first see what she¡¯s here for... We can think of what to do with her afterwards. I¡¯ll go wee her, so Cleo should stay put.¡±

    Watching his sister rush out, Cleo sat down on a chair.

    ¡°What is she here for after all this time?¡±

    ¡ó

    Cleo was shocked upon meeting Madam Annabell.

    Due to her ess to anti-aging technology, she looked to be a young woman.

    No one would believe that she had three children and was old enough to even have grandchildren.

    She could even pass herself off as Cleo¡¯s older sister.

    Madam Annabell was wearing a unique yet shy dress which had a cor sorge that she looked like a frilled lizard.

    Her hairstyle was also one of a kind, shaped and tied like an onion.

    She had always been indifferent towards Cleo and her other children, so it was ufortable seeing her smile as she spoke.

    ¡°Cleo, you¡¯ve grown so much that I could hardly recognize you. I¡¯ve heard all about it. Your name precedes even that of His Highness Calvin within the pce.¡±

    Madam Annabell had practically withdrawn herself to the back pce and refused to get involved with the outside world.

    As such, she was unaware of what was considered fashionable these days and had a unique fashion of her own.

    Even though she had remained holed up, she had heard of Cleo¡¯s giant leap.

    That appeared to be the reason why she hade all the way here to visit her daughter-turned-son.

    Lysithea who stood diagonally behind Cleo took a nce at Madam Annabell before turning her eyes away with a bitter face.

    Madam Annabell was all smiles for Cleo, but she didn¡¯t even bat an eye at Lysithea.

    ¡°From how things are looking, Cleo will no doubt be the next Emperor.¡±

    ¡°No one knows what the future holds for us.¡±

    ¡°Nonsense! His Highness Calvin might be the Crown Prince, but he¡¯s away from the pce at the moment. He¡¯s battling the Kingdom of Dominion, which has coincidentally given you the chance to solidify your position.¡±

    Madam Annabell was right.

    Now that Calvin was absent from the Capital, the Cleo Faction could expand its influence inside the pce.

    However, Cleo wasn¡¯t involved in that matter.

    ¡°I¡¯ve left that task to Count Banfield.¡±

    Madam Annabell¡¯s eyes became sharp.

    ¡°Cleo... I understand why you¡¯re giving Count Banfield preferential treatment. It¡¯s because he was the only one that helped you during your darkest hours, right?¡±

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡±

    (You, on the other hand, didn¡¯t even pretend to help.)

    Cleo didn¡¯t voice out his venomous thoughts as he wished to avoid getting into a conflict with his mother.

    However, it was as if Madam Annabell could see through his feelings.

    ¡°It must have been tough for you. I¡¯m really sorry. I should¡¯ve asked my parents¡¯ household to protect you.¡±

    Madam Annabell grabbed Cleo¡¯s hands and offered a sincere sounding apology.

    Lysithea, who was watching from behind, frowned at how brazen her mother was behaving.

    ¡°After all this time,¡± she muttered in a soft voice.

    Her whisper escaped the ears of Madam Annabell.

    ¡°But it¡¯s not good to rely too much on someone. If you¡¯re too reliant on the Banfields, you will face a lot of problems during your reign.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re right.¡±

    The problem was that he couldn¡¯t cut off his ties with Liam even if he were to ascend to the throne and be the Emperor.

    Not only was he personally indebted to him, Liam was the one who had organized and gathered the members of his faction.

    If Cleo were to betray Liam, the aristocrats would no doubt call him an ¡°Ungrateful Emperor¡± and distance themselves from him.

    That would put a severe strain on the Cleo Faction¡¯s strength, and he would be hard pressed to reign as he wished.

    Cleo himself was already aware of this and hade to terms with it.

    ¡°Make good use of the Lengrand Family here. I¡¯m not telling you to cut off the Banfield Familypletely, but start relying on the Lengrand Family little by little. By doing so, you can prevent the possibility of his dictatorship.¡±

    ¡°What!¡±

    Lysithea raised her voice in horror.

    ¡°Cleo, don¡¯t lend her your ears! The aristocrats won¡¯t be convinced even if you take advantage of the Lengrand Family¡¯s name!¡±

    Cleo heard his sister¡¯s advice, but he had his own thoughts on this matter.

    (Is it really alright for me to rely on Count Banfield so much? Shouldn¡¯t I use the Lengrand Family and shave off as much of his power as I could?)

    The Lengrand Family decided to approach him the moment it became clear that Cleo might be the next Emperor.

    They weren¡¯t trustworthy, but it didn¡¯t seem bad to use them as a way to restrict Liam.

    He knew that the Lengrand Family wasn¡¯t to be trusted, but he couldn¡¯t help but be swayed due to Liam¡¯s presence.

    He felt inferior to Liam, and because of that inferiorityplex, he convinced himself to ept the Lengrand Family¡¯s offer.

    ¡°It should be fine. After all, I have the Lengrand Family¡¯s blood flowing within me. The aristocrats won¡¯t be too happy if they hear that I turned down my rtives.¡±

    Hearing his exnation, Lysithea hesitated.

    ¡°You might be right, but how will you exin this to Count Banfield?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll personally give him an exnation. I¡¯ll see to it that the Count is convinced.¡±

    (I¡¯m in the weaker position at the moment, but one day...)

    This was how the Lengrand Family joined the Cleo Faction.

    ¡ó

    Marion walks up to me while I¡¯m busy at work.

    ¡°Senpai must have it hard as well.¡±

    I don¡¯t know what his sources are and what he¡¯s heard, but Marion is awfully familiar with my situation.

    ¡°What are you on about?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m talking about the Lengrand Family. I heard Randy-san was allowed a special visit to His Highness Cleo. Rumors are spreading not only here but throughout the entire pce.¡±

    Marion shows me a terminal which is disying information like a bulletin board in my previous life.

    A lot of what¡¯s written there is aimed at provoking me.

    I ignore them and go back to ¡°my¡± own work.

    ¡°I¡¯m busy right now. Don¡¯t talk to me.¡±

    ¡°Liam-senpai¡¯s so serious. Despite what you say, you can¡¯t fake your serious personality.¡±

    He really doesn¡¯t get it, does he?

    He doesn¡¯t understand what I¡¯m trying to do right now.

    ¡°So? You came here just to show me this? What, you thought I¡¯d go find them and show them what a bloodbath is? I¡¯m busy as is, so I don¡¯t have the time for that kind of thing.¡±

    ¡°How disappointing. I thought you¡¯d be furious.¡±

    I¡¯m not that free.

    While the two of us are talking, Randy approaches us in his shy suit.

    He seems to be very proud of himself.

    ¡°Liam, do this too.¡±

    He throws the work which had been entrusted to him and hisckeys to me.

    ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing?¡±

    ¡°We should get along as members of the same faction. We¡¯re busy, so do our job for us.¡±

    Randy leaves with his entourage whileughing as if to mock me.

    I¡¯m honestly surprised that there¡¯s still someone who would talk to me with such attitude.

    Especially when he¡¯s in a worse position than me.

    Marion calls out to me.

    ¡°Need a hand?¡±

    ¡°No, I will do it. Focus on your own job.¡±

    I¡¯ll stay quiet for now.

    ¡ó

    Madam Annabell had called upon Randy, and he was giving his reports on Liam while looking very nervous.

    ¡°He¡¯s disying a calm attitude even when we behave arrogantly before him. It makes me wonder if he really caused a scene during his internship.¡±

    Randy had begun his training in a hurry as he was about to reach the age of 200.

    He couldn¡¯t be described as serious even when using excessive ttery.

    Nheless, due to his time inside the education capsule, he could keep up with the talented bureaucrats around him.

    Still, a huge wall stood between Liam and him.

    Madam Annabell sighed at her disappointing nephew.

    ¡°Make sure to watch Liam carefully.¡±

    ¡°Rest assured, for he is already under my watch. So will the Lengrand Family be spearheading the Cleo Faction?¡±

    Randy was interested in the top seats of the Cleo Faction.

    Seeing this, Madam Annabell shook her head.

    He really doesn¡¯t understand a thing.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Aunt?¡±

    ¡°Randy, why can¡¯t you be a bit smarter? When did I ever state that we¡¯ll be supporting Cleo? Our goal is to make the Cleo Faction copse from within. That is what that person desires.¡±

    To begin with, Madam Annabell had no intention of supporting Cleo.

    ¡°Then the Lengrand Family doesn¡¯t stand to gain anything!¡±

    ¡°Calm down. I¡¯ll make sure that there¡¯s profit to be had.¡±

    ¡°Is this somehow rted to His Highness Calvin? His Highness Calvin stands to gain the most with Cleo¡¯s downfall, does he not?¡±

    Calvin would benefit the most by kicking Cleo down.

    As such, Randy assumed that his aunt was secretly connected to Calvin behind the scenes.

    ¡°Randy... Just make sure that you keep an eye on Liam. Corner him if given the chance, but don¡¯t leave any evidence. You know how many aristocrats he¡¯s crushed so far, right?¡±

    Randy nodded while sweating bullets.

    ¡°O-of course.¡±

    The Lengrand Family was beginning to show suspicious movements after being invited into his faction by Cleo.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°Troubles are rolling in one after another even when the Guide is gone. It¡¯s painful. Oh, but¨C¡±

    Brian ©d(*¡ä¦Ø£à*)¥Î: ¡°Volume 1 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire!¡¯ was released today, and this Brian is pleased to say that it seems to be doing quite well.¡±

    Wakagi-chan |§Õ©b): ¡°Please also check out Volume 6 of ¡®The World of Otome Games if Tough for Mobs¡¯, released July 30th. A limited CD drama edition will be released this time around as well. Oh, and by the way, my guardian, Rion Shan will be voiced by [Yusuke Kobayashi], while the First Luxion will be voiced by [Shirai Yusuke] ... Neat, innit?¡±

 Chapter 129 - Volume 8 Chapter 4. Randy

    <h4>Chapter 129 ¨C Volume 8 Chapter 4. Randy</h4>

    Volume 8 Chapter 4. Randy

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Inside his home, Marion woke up in his bed next to a sleeping woman. She¡¯d called out to him the previous day.

    Having woken up, Marion raised his hand. By doing so, the windows no longer blocked the sunlight from prating into the room.

    The room came to life and began to move on its own, preparing for whatever was in store for the morning.

    Marion climbed out of his bed and got ready for work.

    As the woman showed no sign of waking up, he called out to her.

    ¡°Mydy, it¡¯s time for you to wake up.¡±

    Hearing his sweet and gentle voice, the woman woke up from her slumber.

    Then, she remebered what happenedst night and covered her body in a hurry.

    ¡°You¡¯re cute.¡±

    Marion found the woman¡¯s reaction to be rather lovely and reached out to touch her hair.

    The woman turned bright red and rushed to the shower room with her clothes which were scattered around her.

    ¡°She was so enthusiastic about it yesterday... Now, I should really start heading to work.¡±

    He looked out the window that overlooked the gray scenery which was the Capital.

    ¡°I don¡¯t like how dark and squalid the Capital is... That said, I do like the fact that there are a lot of beautiful women here.¡± [1]

    That was his impression of the Capital.

    ¡ó

    ¡°Good morning, Liam-senpai.¡±

    Marion greets me with a friendly smile.

    I¡¯ve been meeting him at the elevator almost on a daily basis.

    ¡°As always, you reek of perfume.¡±

    Marion whisks out his terminal to brag about his achievement fromst night.

    ¡°I found this cute girl and managed toy my hands on her. Oh, this is the one I¡¯m talking about.¡±

    It seems like the smell of perfume around him is from the woman.

    The picture of the girl that he¡¯s showing me right now is different from the previous one.

    He gives off the impression of someone who always hits on women at night.

    Apparently, a lot of women are decieved by his cutesy appearance.

    All I can say to that is... He¡¯s quite good.

    Marion then proceeds to show me his recent achievements.

    All his targets seem to be mature women. Is he into strong-looking beauties?

    ¡°How ¡¯bout it, Liam-senpai? Wanna do it as well? It¡¯s pretty much an all-you-can-eat buffet.¡±

    The eyes of ordinary women change the moment you tell them that you¡¯re an official working for the pce.

    After all, officials are considered winners among winners within the Empire.

    Hence, they¡¯re extremely popr in the Capital.

    ¡°Tell them that you¡¯ll be returning to the countryside when your training¡¯s over. I bet they¡¯ll scatter the moment they hear that.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll do just that when I break up with them. Even so, does Liam-senpai have no interest in women? Is it because you feel bad for your fianc¨¦e?¡±

    Feel bad for Rosetta? Is he stupid?

    Why should I care about what Rosetta thinks?

    She belongs to me, not the other way around.

    It¡¯s just that Amagi and Brian will start bugging me if I y around too much.

    Amagi will be like; ¡°Youid your hands on them, so you should take responsibility.¡± While Brian will be like; ¡°Lord Liam¡¯s finally taking an interest in women! Oh... but please be careful of honey traps. Everything¡¯s fine aside from that.¡±

    Wait a sec... Do they want this to happen?

    They¡¯ll probably be noisy about it if I were to so much as touch a single woman, so I won¡¯t be doing that.

    ¡°None of the women here would suit my standard.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s quite the bold statement. One night stands are quite fun, you know?¡±

    Seeing Marion being all smiles, I can¡¯t help but think that he¡¯ll be stabbed by one of those women eventually.

    Then again, he¡¯s an aristocrat.

    If he really does end up getting stabbed by amoner, he would be seen as a failure among the aristocrats.

    We get off the elevator once it arrives at our floor.

    As I¡¯m heading to my seat, I stumble upon Randy and his goons chatting near my desk early in the morning.

    ¡°Congrattions, Lord Randy.¡±

    ¡°Thanks.¡±

    ¡°By joining the Cleo Faction, the Lengrand Family will rise to an even more prominent position.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, and things will only get busier from here on out, so I¡¯ll need you guys¡¯ help.¡±

    They¡¯re hanging out near my desk and talking about the matter of the Lengrand Family joining the Cleo Faction.

    Marion stares at me with a look of interest.

    ¡°They¡¯re trying to provoke you.¡±

    ¡°Let them be.¡±

    Ignoring Randy and hisckeys, I sit down, only to have a file dumped on my desk.

    ¡°Hey Liam.¡±

    Randy drops the honorifics and puts his hand on my shoulder.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯re that close. Move you hand.¡±

    I give him a warning, but Randy simply smiles with a look of ridicule on his face.

    ¡°His Highness Cleo has summoned me today. I¡¯m busy, so I want you to do my portion of the work as well. We belong to the same faction, so it¡¯s fine right?¡±

    Cleo reported a few days ago that the Lengrand Family will be joining the faction.

    That, in and of itself, isn¡¯t all that surprising.

    As a matter of fact, I feel somewhat underwhelmed.

    ¡°Sure. As someone that stands at the top of the Cleo Faction, it¡¯s part of my responsibilities to take care of the newbies. Do your best to wag your tail before His Highness Cleo so that you can be well-liked.¡±

    Randy¡¯s expression undergoes a minute change when I utter those words with a smile.

    He¡¯s still smiling, but his cheeks are twitching.

    As an aristocrat, it¡¯s baffling that he can¡¯t even maintain his poker face... Such a thought shes through my mind for a split second.

    Since he¡¯s an aristocrat, the people in his territory and mansion must have always shown him respect.

    He¡¯s not used to being mocked, which is why he¡¯s having a hard time holding back.

    He was probably treated like royalty inside his territory.

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll leave you to it.¡±

    Frustrated, Randy and his goons leave the scene.

    Marion, who has been watching the situation unfold, speaks to me while sounding exasperated.

    ¡°You¡¯vended yourself in a tight spot. I didn¡¯t think His Highness Cleo would ept the Lengrand Family into his faction. From how big the faction already is, I don¡¯t think he should have rushed things.¡±

    The addition of one more inconsequential aristocratic family won¡¯t change the situation by much in the grand scheme of things. Not to mention that these opportunists jumped ships only after analyzing the current situation.

    They¡¯re very likely to betray us depending on how the future unfolds.

    It doesn¡¯t make sense to ept someone into your fold when you can¡¯t trust them... Or maybe it does.

    ¡°Let¡¯s sit back and watch how far the Lengrand Family can go.¡±

    I pick up the file that Randy has left.

    The file contains quite the bit of content. Despite how small the file is, the amount of data inside it isrge.

    He probably piled up all his work, then threw it at me.

    Marion speaks to me as I¡¯m closing the file.

    ¡°With that much work, overtime is pretty much confirmed. Need some help?¡±

    ¡°Nope.¡±

    I don¡¯t intend to do overtime.

    I¡¯ll finish things up before it¡¯s time to leave.

    ¡ó

    Even though it was work hours, Randy and his goons came over to a resting area located inside the building.

    It was a cafe-like ce with waiters and waitresses, and other aristocrats like them had been gathered there since the morning.

    Some of them even smelled of alcohol.

    The young aristocrats who were originally meant to be training werezing around.

    Randy had stopped by to kill some time before his meeting with Cleo.

    His goons were mocking Liam, thinking that he was just putting up a front.

    ¡°In the end, he has to do our work. That¡¯s all there is to him.¡±

    ¡°His military and personalbat skills are exceptional, but he¡¯s just too slow when ites to politics. Just what we¡¯d expect of an aristocrat from the countryside.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s our job to lead these stupid countryside aristocrats.¡±

    Looking at the Empire as a whole, the Lengrand Family, which Randy was a part of, was located rtively near the Capital.

    As such, it was well-developed.

    Due to this, they looked down on aristocrats like Liam who hailed from the countryside.

    However, Randy was slightly different from his entourage.

    ¡°But it¡¯s precisely these countryside aristocrats and their armed forces that are backing His Higheness Cleo and his faction. Make sure you neverpete with them in anything other than politics.¡±

    ¡°W-we¡¯re already well aware of that, Lord Randy.¡±

    Randy did not belittle Liam¡¯s personal skills and the Banfield Family¡¯s military might.

    He knew that it was Liam who defeated the Berkeley Family, also known as the Pirate Nobles.

    Randy pondered about his future ns.

    (Liam will be expelled from the Capital in the near future. We just have to be patient until then.)

    With Cleo¡¯s help, Randy was getting ready to kick Liam out of the Capital.

    (No matter how much military might you have, you won¡¯t be able to survive in the world of politics.)

    Randy was picking a fight with Liam through political means, something which could not be swayed by military might alone.

    ¡ó

    In the back pce, there was a building dedicated to Cleo¡¯s use, and Lysithea was fuming with anger inside it.

    ¡°Cleo, why did you agree to Randy¡¯s ideas!¡±

    Cleo was signing electronic documents in his office, documents which were petitions from poverty-stricken aristocrats asking for support.

    Some of these petitions looked clearly suspicious, yet Cleo signed them and promised support as if he was trying to splurge money.

    ¡°What are you talking about, Sister?¡±

    Lysithea noticed the petitions and criticized Cleo for promising help so carelessly.

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re going to sign all of them? If you thoughtlessly give them support, more and more people are bound toe knocking on your doors!¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re in dire need of help after being attacked by the Kingdom of Dominion. It wouldn¡¯t be right to abandon them.¡±

    Given these reasons, Lysithea couldn¡¯t say anything back in return.

    ¡°You should first consult Count Banfield about this.¡±

    Cleo let out a smallugh.

    ¡°W-what¡¯s with thatugh? Count Banfield¡¯s the one who¡¯s funding you. Don¡¯t you think it would be unreasonable of you to not consult him?¡±

    Cleo continued to sign the documents, but gave a small nod to acknowledge Lysithea¡¯s logic.

    ¡°But of course, I¡¯ll talk to Count Banfield about itter on. I¡¯m thinking of giving him an important task while I¡¯m at it.¡±

    Lysithea was relieved to hear that.

    After taking in the Lengrand Family, Cleo had been trying to set them up against Liam, and she had been feeling a sense of crisis from knowing that.

    ¡°That¡¯s good. It would be a bad idea to make light of Count Banfield.¡±

    ¡°I know, I know. As nothing more than a pretty decoration, I need the support of a powerful aristocrat if I wish to survive.¡±

    Oblivious to politics, Lysithea took Cleo¡¯s words at face value.

    ¡°So, what important task are you going to give to Count Banfield?¡±

    Cleo¡¯s eyes were on the electronic documents, and he was signing them without paying too much attention to their contents.

    ¡°One of the aristocratic households fell to ruin. Their territory is under the direct control of the Empire, but because it¡¯s located at such a remote area, someone needs to be dispatched there. I¡¯m thinking of sending Count Banfield.¡±

    ¡°...Huh?¡±

    Lysithea was so shocked by his words that her reaction was dyed.

    An aristocratic household has fallen to ruin. Since the lord was gone, someone had to be dispatched to take control of his... Everything made sense up to that point.

    The problemid in the fact that Liam was being dispatched there.

    ¡°You¡¯re nning on removing Count Banfield from the Capital!? Y-you can¡¯t! It¡¯s because he¡¯s here that nobody¡¯s making any moves! Cleo, you must rethink this!¡±

    ¡°Not only is Count Banfield very skilled militarily, he¡¯s also good at governance. He was able to sessfully revive his territory after all.¡±

    ¡°Even if he¡¯s the right fit, it wouldn¡¯t do to dispatch such irreceable personnel!¡±

    Seeing that Lysithea was about to cry, Cleo described the situation of the which Liam was scheduled to be dispatched to.

    ¡°Sister, that just goes to prove how important that is. Faced with the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s invasion, the Empire¡¯s citizens are evacuating. It¡¯s crucial that we hold onto a base which can provide logistical support to the army confronting our enemies. They¡¯re begging for someone with both military experience and skill. I can¡¯t refuse them.¡±

    Lysithea became silent after being told that it was necessary for the Empire.

    Cleo pushed on.

    ¡°I¡¯ve also received the Prime Minister¡¯s permission. Although it won¡¯t be easy on Count Banfield since he¡¯s still young and in training, the Prime Minister believes that he will live up to our expectation. Besides, if he pulls this off, we can prevent Brother Calvin from iming all the credit. We would be recognized as having yed a part in the war.¡±

    Lysithea¡¯s shoulders dropped.

    ¡°I¡¯m relieved to hear that Cleo¡¯s thinking about things from various angles, but without Count Banfield, who will protect you and back you in his absence?¡±

    Cleo answered calmly.

    ¡°I¡¯ll have the Lengrand Family do their best.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°It¡¯s painful. Enemies are appearing left and right. It¡¯s painful.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (åø©b§¥©b)åø: ¡°Get hyped! Volume 6 of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ will be released on July 30th, so get more hyped!¡±

    Wakagi-chan (; > <): ¡°Kuuu! I should work even harder to promote the products¨C¡±

    Wakagi-chan (*¥Î?¥Î): ¡°R-right. For the sake of promotion, I¡¯ll-I¡¯ll strip! I¡¯ll reveal my nudes! Surely, that will make the readers go wild! It will double the sales, no doubt! It¡¯s Naegi-chan¡¯s nudes, you know! Kyaaaa~!¡±

    Brian (;?`¦Ø?¡ä)?: ¡°...Aren¡¯t nts normally naked?¡±

    [1] Liam should take a page out of Marion¡¯s book.

 Chapter 130 - V8 Chapter 5. Traitor?

    <h4>Chapter 130 ¨C V8 Chapter 5. Traitor?</h4>

    V8 Chapter 5. Traitor?

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    There¡¯s a near the Empire¡¯s border with the Gudwar Kingdom of Dominion.

    I say ¡°near¡± loosely here as it¡¯s only in respect to the sheer size of an intergctic nation.

    In actuality, the distance between them is very far.

    However, it¡¯s in a position that can be easily reached using warp technology.

    As such, the where I was dispatched to is considered a strategically important base, especially now that the front line has moved.

    It used to be one of thes behind the front lines, but its importance has increased after the Imperial Army was pushed back.

    -On the bridge of a battleship-

    The floor beneath us has changed into monitors, showing us the which will be developed into an important base.

    It feels really nice to look down from a high ce.

    ¡°To think they¡¯d dispatch me to build such an important base. The Empire must be seriouslycking in manpower.¡±

    Wace, who¡¯s been forced to tag along, yells at me after seeing me grin.

    I brought him with me since he was trying to finish his training at the Capital without doing any form of actual work.

    From his perspective, it¡¯s like being banished from the safe confines of the Capital and being sent to the front lines.

    If I were to draw an analogy, it¡¯s like being demoted and moved from thepany headquarters to one of its remote branch offices.

    What¡¯s more, it¡¯s a branch office without any infrastructure to work with.

    ¡°Liam, you moron! You should¡¯ve refused this sort of work! You have enough authority to do so, do you not!?¡±

    ¡°I do. In fact, I could p it away whenever I wish to.¡±

    ¡°Then why!?¡±

    ¡°Just cuz. Now, don¡¯t get so upset. I was getting bored of the Capital anyway. It¡¯s not a bad idea to sit back and watch how Calvin¡¯s doing here.¡±

    The beneath us doesn¡¯t have a ruler as its former lord was an aristocrat that fell to ruins.

    The Empire has been thinking of dispatching a deputy in his ce, but truth be told, developing such a remote doesn¡¯t bring much benefit to the Empire.

    There¡¯s no need to bother with such remote ces as there are a lot of other undevelopeds under the Empire¡¯s direct control.

    Even if the Empire acquires a that¡¯s already been exhausted, they don¡¯t stand to gain much.

    I was dispatched here this time around to act as a civil officer so that this can be developed into one which could support the front lines.

    To this end, the Imperial Army has dispatched 3,000 of its battleships.

    Not only that, there¡¯s a transport fleet containing the materials which would be used for the¡¯s development with a Major General leading this fleet.

    I¡¯m a civil officer at the moment, but if I were to return to the army, I¡¯d be a Lieutenant General. Wait, no, I think I¡¯m a General now?

    Either way, not only am I a future Duke, I hold a high position in the military as well.

    The Major General has no right to tell me what to do as I¡¯m essentially the highest ranking officer here.

    I get contacted by the Major General while Wace isining, and a 3D image of him saluting gets projected into the air.

    He seems to be in his mid-twenties, but what¡¯s his actual age?

    The thing about living in an intergctic nation is that it¡¯s difficult to determine people¡¯s age with their appearance alone.

    ¡°Substitute Deputy Officer, the transport fleet has arrived safely.¡±

    ¡°I see. Wait until given further orders.¡±

    ¡°U-understood.¡±

    The call ends there, but Wace seems to feel sorry for the Major General.

    He looks like he wants to say something.

    ¡°Out with it.¡±

    ¡°Usually, it¡¯s the military officer that gets to act all high and mighty. It just feels weird that he¡¯s behaving like your inferior.¡±

    Even if I¡¯m an aristocrat, I¡¯m probably just another brat who hasn¡¯t finished his training in the eyes of the military officer.

    The Major General is supposed to be inmand, but Wace must be feeling sorry for him since he¡¯s being led around by a kid like me.

    There¡¯s a reason for this.

    Not only do I frequently give the army bribes and by that, I mean the usual greetings. I also purchase weapons from them whenever they¡¯re selling things.

    Due to these reasons, the Imperial Army has a favorable opinion of me.

    As such, the Major General wouldn¡¯t want to identally offend me.

    What¡¯s more, since I knew that I¡¯d being all the way to the frontier, I came prepared.

    In contrast to the 3,000 Imperial troops, I¡¯ve brought with me 30,000 of my own ships from my private army.

    Even if the Major General tries to put up a front, he¡¯d have no choice but to shut up in front of such a massive difference in numbers.

    I¡¯ll crush you if youin! That¡¯s the message that I¡¯m trying to convey.

    Oh, and I also brought Avid with me this time.

    That goes to show that I¡¯m pretty serious about this mission.

    ¡°More importantly, the¡¯s situation is a bit...¡±

    I brush aside whatever Wace was about to say midway, prompting him to say, ¡°You¡¯re just going to ignore this?¡±

    See, the problem on our hands isn¡¯t the military officer.

    It¡¯s the that is beneath our feet... it¡¯s in a really terrible condition.

    It¡¯s a deste ce, probably because the former lord was ipetent.

    I¡¯m alright with him trying to be an evil lord and squeezing his citizens dry.

    The problem here is that the territory¡¯s been exhausted and is on the verge of copse.

    That¡¯s just no good at all.

    The art of squeezing citizens dry is to leave them in a state where they could neither live nor die.

    Since the former lord couldn¡¯t do something so simple, he¡¯s worthless in my eyes.

    Viins must be strong.

    All else is worthless.

    ¡°The¡¯s in a horrible condition. This will take a while.¡±

    Wace draws back after seeing me look down at the with a grin.

    He must be wondering how I could act so cheerful after being sent to the frontier, but I¡¯ve brought my fleet with me, and within that fleet is the huge Fortress ss Mobile battleship.

    Thus, I can enjoy a luxurious life even if I¡¯m in the countryside.

    Wace droops his shoulders and looks at the data of the that we¡¯ve been assigned to.

    ¡°Are we really setting up base here? The poption¡¯s less than a hundred million, not to mention that the territory¡¯s already exhausted.¡±

    The former lord apparently portrayed aristocrats as gods.

    If I were to reference my previous life, the people on this are living like those from the Middle Ages.

    It seems the former lord was a fan of watching people struggle, leading to this travesty of a territory.

    Nobody would be willing to develop this kind of territory.

    In fact, no one even bothered toy their hands on this before we got dispatched.

    It would¡¯ve been fine to leave things as is if this was any ordinary territory, but we must make sure this is equipped to support the front lines.

    This is quite the responsibility.

    ¡°Worry not, for we have a good chance of seeding. I¡¯ll get some things done before that person arrives.¡±

    Hearing me mention someone else, Wace tilts his head.

    ¡°Someone other than us was dispatched here?¡±

    ¡°Yeah... and they¡¯ll be here soon.¡±

    ¡ó

    Liam had been sent to a remote.

    He had left with such hurry in the midst of his training that Rosetta, who was left behind in the Capital, became somewhat suspicious of what was going on.

    However, Rosetta couldn¡¯t raise a fuss as Liam had happily epted the transfer before heading to the distant.

    As a result, the Cleo Faction wascking someone that could bring the people together.

    On the other hand, those who hadid low due to Calvin¡¯s absence saw this as an opportunity.

    The same was true for Rosetta¡¯s senior.

    She deliberately sat down on Rosetta¡¯s desk while the person in question was busy working.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard that your fianc¨¦ was sent to the frontier. What kind of mistake did he make?¡±

    For those working as officials inside the Capital, being sent to the frontier was seen as a form of punishment.

    Not a single aristocrat would willingly head there unless they¡¯re guaranteed a decent position along with the promise to be weed back to the Capital.

    Being sent to the frontier was essentially a form of demotion.

    ¡°I was told that it¡¯s an important task where he provides His Highness Calvin with assistance. Are you implying that that¡¯s a demotion?¡±

    Her senior¡¯s face turned bright red after being told that Liam was there to wipe up the mess that their leader had made.

    ¡°Is that all you have to say for yourself? Now that your fianc¨¦ isn¡¯t here, we¡¯re no longer scared of you.¡±

    They hadn¡¯t been too tant about how they got about doing things because of their fear of Liam.

    There were few aristocrats left in the Capital that dared pick a fight with Liam after his previous disy of power.

    However, that wasn¡¯t to say that there was no one left within the Empire.

    Some knights were eager for duels, and there were some aristocrats that haven¡¯t heard of Liam¡¯s name.

    Because of how huge the Empire was, many people were unaware of the happenings inside the Capital.

    Just as her senior was about to get off from the desk and yank Rosetta off her chair, one of the female knights guarding the floor called out to her.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, you have a visitor.¡±

    ¡°Me?¡±

    Rosetta ignored her senior and left the office, only to find Marion waiting there.

    With a friendly smile on his face, he waved his right hand.

    As they were standing in the hallway, Rosetta brought him into one of the rooms where they sat face to face.

    ¡°You¡¯re one of Darling¡¯s colleagues, right? Why have you sought me out?¡±

    Marion shed a fearless smile, afterwhich he stood up from the sofa to approach Rosetta.

    Rosetta was hesitant at first about being approached so casually, but ultimately decided not to resist.

    Marion lift her chin with his fingers.

    ¡°I¡¯ll soon be chasing after Liam-senpai who has left the Capital. Even so, to leave behind such a beautiful fianc¨¦e... If you were mine, you wouldn¡¯t have to experience such a thing.¡±

    Rosetta was somewhat bewildered by Marion¡¯s sudden advances.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure Darling has his own ideas. Now, if there¡¯s nothing else, I¡¯ll be heading back. I¡¯m quite busy, you see.¡±

    Marion let out a light sigh before distancing himself from Rosetta.

    ¡°That¡¯s a shame... Now then, to the matter at hand. I¡¯d be heading to where Liam-senpai is at, so I was wondering if there¡¯s any message that you want me to deliver.¡±

    In other words, he hadn¡¯te here for any particr purpose.

    If Rosetta wished to speak with Liam, she could do so easily through her terminal.

    ¡°So, what¡¯s your realreason foring here?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re slower than I thought. I came to seduce you.¡±

    Rosetta maintained an indifferent expression against Marion¡¯s provacative smile.

    ¡°Please stop with the jokes.¡±

    ¡°Fine, for now that is. Leaving that aside, Liam-senpai might lose his life if nothing is done.¡±

    ¡°...And what do you mean by that?¡±

    Marion yed with his bangs using his fingertips and pretended to be clueless.

    ¡°That¡¯s a secret, but if you ept my invitation, I might tell you.¡±

    There was no way she could do that.

    Disgusted, Rosetta left, leaving Marion alone inside the room.

    Seeing her leave, Marion simply shrugged.

    After leaving the room, Rosetta leaned against one of the walls of the hallway, casting a shadow beneath her.

    From her shadow, one of Kukuri¡¯s masked subordinates appeared.

    Rosetta handed down an order.

    ¡°Can you investigate that person?¡±

    However, Kukuri¡¯s subordinate refused.

    ¡°Lord Liam has ordered to leave him alone.¡±

    ¡°Leave him alone?¡±

    ¡°Yes. If it wasn¡¯t for Lord Laim¡¯s order, I would have subdued him the moment he approached Lady Rosetta.¡±

    Kukuri had assigned a female subordinate other than Kunai to her.

    ¡°If Lady Rosetta is displeased with him, should I give him a stern warning?¡±

    ¡°Nevermind, I wouldn¡¯t want to disrupt Darling¡¯s ns.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Kukuri¡¯s subordinate faded back into the shadow.

    ¡ó

    Marion was speaking to someone inside the room where Rosetta had left.

    ¡°Yes, it failed... She¡¯s a tough nut to crack. I didn¡¯t have to be too serious about this, right? Especially since our main goal lies somewhere else.¡±

    The other party¡¯s voice couldn¡¯t be heard, and the small screen floating in the air was pitch ck as well.

    Marion continued his monologue.

    ¡°As nned, I¡¯ll keep an eye on Liam. Have you ever seen me fail before? There¡¯s no need for worries... Yes.¡±

    He had harassed Rosetta a bit, but he didn¡¯t think it would seed anyway.

    When the call ended, he loosened the area of the shirt near his neck.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter either way, but it¡¯s been a while since I was rejected so tly.¡±

    He was slightly bothered that Rosetta didn¡¯t even bat an eye to his advances.

    He was confident in his androgynous appearance that looked like an idol¡¯s, and he had never failed to get a woman before.

    ¡°It¡¯s slightly frustrating... I¡¯ll make Liam-senpai pay in full for this grievance.¡±

    Marionughed with a smirk and left the room after fixing his appearance.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°Volume 1 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire¡¯ is doing so well that this Brian can¡¯t stop crying. It¡¯s popr enough to get reprints! Eh? Marion-dono? Oh, he¡¯s...¡±

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°I¡¯m the idol of postscripts! Volume 6 of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ will be on sale soon! Please look upon it favorably as well!¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°For how long will this nt freeload here? It¡¯s painful.¡±

 Chapter 131 - V8 Chapter 6. Evil Deputy

    <h4>Chapter 131 ¨C V8 Chapter 6. Evil Deputy</h4>

    V8 Chapter 6. Evil Deputy

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Augur, the where I was sent to, is quite worn down.

    An aristocrat used to rule over it, but I can only say that I don¡¯t see them in the best light.

    ¡°That lord must have been some sh*tty guy who¡¯s not even third-rate. Trash like him fails even as a viin.¡±

    Looking at all the data around me, I can¡¯t help but get frustrated over what the previous lord had done.

    Even viins don¡¯t thoughtlessly squeeze their citizens dry.

    A true viinous lord doesn¡¯t let their citizens realize that they¡¯re being oppresssed.

    Yes, someone like me would be the perfect example.

    Just a while ago, I raised the tax rate as punishment for those that participated in the child-making demo, but the citizens failed to recognize what was going on.

    No, but for real.

    Why aren¡¯t they getting angry!?

    You know what... let¡¯s put that aside for now.

    See, even in my territory, the citizens don¡¯t realize that they¡¯re being exploited and require further education.

    In Augur, where people live like those from the middle ages, the use of educational capsules was previously banned.

    Wace, who¡¯s next to me, takes in the data while looking extremely reluctant.

    Even someone like him can tell at a nce that the situation is terrible.

    ¡°Liam, are we really going to turn this into a military base? Even if we try to educate everyone simultaneously, wouldn¡¯t it require quite some time?¡±

    Under normal circumstances, the natives will be put to work in turning the into a military base.

    However, with the Gudwar Kingdom of Dominion right on our doorstep, we don¡¯t have the time to slowly convert it into a base.

    Why would I be pressed for time, you may ask.

    Well, if I was Calvin, I¡¯d lure the enemy towards my political rival who¡¯s waiting in the rear. Have the enemy crush said rival, and then pretend I had nothing to do with what happened.

    From how nervously he¡¯s behaving, Wace must havee to the same conclusion

    ¡°What if the Kingdom of Dominion directs its attacks here?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll crush them.¡±

    ¡°Thank you for your oh-so-encouraging words. Liam, you can be really obstinate at times, you know that right?¡±

    Wace doesn¡¯t seem to trust me.

    Well, from a normal person¡¯s standpoint, it would seem as if we¡¯ve drawn the short end of the stick.

    Nobody would be willing to take on this task.

    However, I¡¯m different, and I can see how we can win.

    My target this time isn¡¯t Calvin who¡¯s fighting in the front lines, but rather the people in the Capital that are loitering around.

    I¡¯vee to Augur to make some preparations, preparations that will bear fruit in the future.

    I stand up from my seat.

    ¡°We¡¯ve recruited some migrants from the Banfield¡¯s Family, so our men will be doing all the work.¡±

    ¡°Eh, you sure about that? This territory¡¯s under the Empire¡¯s management, right? Even if things be stable here, someone else will be dispatched to be its lord.¡±

    Once the crisis with the Kingdom of Dominion is resolved, the Empire wouldn¡¯t bother itself with Augur anymore and either gift it, or sell it, to an aristocrat who wants to rise in rank or be independent.

    No matter how much time and effort I pour in, it would all be wasted in the end.

    But viins aren¡¯t ones to let things go to waste.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. For the time being, I¡¯ll build a spectacr military base for the Empire. We¡¯ve brought all the necessary materials with us, so let¡¯s get to building a spaceport immediately. ¡ª Now, Wace.¡±

    I was jealous of Wace, who was leisurely ying around in the Capital, and that¡¯s why I had hime along.

    It was meant to be a form of harassment, but let¡¯s have him do some work as well.

    ¡°You¡¯ll be heading to the surface.¡±

    ¡°Eh!? Y-you¡¯re kidding, right!? Liam!?¡±

    With a snap of my fingers, Wace is dragged away from the bridge by my subordiantes.

    ¡°We need to start construction on amunity building on the ground. You¡¯ve done it before, haven¡¯t you? You¡¯re just the person for the job. Rest assured¨C Once you¡¯re done with this, I¡¯ll make sure to put it down as your contribution and let you move up thedder as a civil officer.¡±

    Wace wants to be independent in the future, so bing a sessful civil officer makes no sense. I, of course, am aware of this.

    ¡°W-wait a second! Living like a primitive man is impossible for me! Unless I¡¯m guaranteed food, clothing, and shelter, I can¡¯t sleep in peace¡ª-!¡±

    Look at this guyparing the middle ages to primitive times.

    Hmm, but this might be how the Empire sees things.

    From my perspective, Augur¡¯s civilization seems to be in the middle ages, but from Wace¡¯s perspective, its civilization might seem primitive.

    The bridge bes silent after Wace leaves, and I address the knight who¡¯s by my side.

    ¡°You have work to do as well, us.¡±

    ¡°...Understood.¡±

    Having said his piece, he doesn¡¯t say anything else.

    The silence is golden, it¡¯s as if he already knows what he has to do.

    As I thought, it¡¯s nice to have a talented knight with me.

    Those two idiots are talented, sure, but their personalities...

    us, who¡¯s not only capable but has a sound personality, is the number one among my knights.

    Now... it¡¯s time toy some poison on Augur.

    ¡ó

    The spaceships carrying the migrants split off from the Banfield Family¡¯s fleet and descended to the ground.

    The local representatives who were royals-in-name watched anxiously as the spaceship descended carrying various equipment and materials.

    Although the royals were representatives of their countries, they never went against the lord of the who owned spaceships and was deemed a superior being.

    The previous lord had brainwashed the royals into worshipping him as their God, which led to them believing that the spaceships carried His messengers.

    A beautiful princess stood worriedly next to a king who had splendid, white beard.

    ¡°Your Majesty, did something important happen? For so many of His messengers toe at once...¡±

    ¡°We do not know, but you are the offering this time. Make sure to fulfill your duties well.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    The previous lord of Augur often made the kings provide offerings in the form of handsome princes, beautiful princesses, and treasures that they greatly cherished.

    He had a hobby of trampling them before the royals¡¯ very eyes.

    A small boat descended from a luxurious-looking spaceship.

    From within, a tall knight with noble bearing stepped out to face the royal families.

    The royals knelt at the appearance of the knight who seemed fit to protect God.

    When the knight¡¯s subordinates saw this, they were bewildered.

    ¡°us-sama, who are these?¡±

    ¡°Are they the representatives?¡±

    The knight named us exined to his confused subordinates.

    ¡°It appears that the former lord of this had himself worshipped as ¡®God¡¯. They must have suppressed the spread of information and technology as well.¡±

    ¡°What a horrible thing to do,¡± his men said in indignation.

    The royals were also confused at the men¡¯s interactions.

    ¡°I beg your forgiveness, but if I may have your permission to speak.¡±

    The white-bearded king spoke up on behalf of the royals.

    us assented.

    ¡°You may speak, but before that, have everyone stand. You do not have to address us in that manner.¡±

    There were whispers among the royals as they had never been treated this way before.

    us continued upon seeing the royals hesitate.

    ¡°From today onwards, Count Liam Sera Banfield will be in charge of thisnd and ruling as a deputy. Your former lord, who made you worship him as God, is no more.¡±

    Hearing that their God was no more made them even more worried.

    They raised their head to ask for rification.

    ¡°A-and what does that mean!?¡±

    us gave a calm response.

    ¡°Simply put, someone higher in rank than the one you revered as God will be ruling over thisnd.¡±

    The chaos only got worse as the royals learned that there was someone with a higher status than the God that they had worshipped until now.

    us cleared his throat.

    ¡°Oh, and a message from Lord Liam: he wishes to speak with the representatives. As such, you are all invited to his mothership.¡±

    They would be taken to heaven.

    Some royals were interested while others became dreadfully pale.

    ¡ó

    ¡°What an idiot.¡±

    To pose as God and demand others to worship him. It¡¯s in such bad taste that it¡¯s not even funny.

    I¡¯m aware that I always im myself to be a viin, but even I¡¯m not audacious enough to say that I¡¯m God.

    For me, God would be... Well, that¡¯s not what¡¯s important here.

    After listening to us¡¯s report, I stop processing the paperwork.

    I¡¯vee to the decision that I should make some adjustments to our policies moving forward.

    ¡°So, you told them that I¡¯m an existence above their God and that the migrant workers are my messengers? I like being respected, but being worshipped? I¡¯m not so keen on that idea.¡±

    us appears somewhat relieved by that.

    ¡°It¡¯s not that surprising apparently. I¡¯ve heard rumors that there are some lords that go about posing as God in their territories.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s low.¡±

    Calling yourself God is an unforgivable sin.

    It¡¯s such a vile act that even I wouldn¡¯t do it.

    ¡°I¡¯m relieved to hear that Lord Liam thinks that way. Unfortunately, the news came as a bigger shock than what we had imagined. The royals, Augur¡¯s royals, are discussing whether they should make this public to the citizens.¡±

    Sounds reasonable enough.

    After all, they¡¯ve just been told that the existence they had always believed to be God was in fact something entirely different.

    Some would refuse to believe it.

    ¡°Separate the living areas of the migrants and the living areas of the locals for now. Some idiots might let the worshipping go to their heads.¡±

    ¡°Understood, and what about the support for the locals?¡±

    I originally nned on providing the residents of Augur with a generous amount of support.

    Your previous lord was a cruel d*uche! I, on the other hand, will support you guys, even if it¡¯s only for a little while!

    I was thinking of restructuring the into a military base while showing them kindness, after which we¡¯d leave.

    We can proceed with that, but trouble might arise between the migrants and the locals which could hinder my ns.

    ¡°Proceed as nned, and gather the Augur royals. Ideally, if things have not gone south, I would¡¯ve quickly converted myself into a district representative or something, but...¡±

    If too many changes are introduced to people¡¯s lives at once, there are bound to be some that cannot keep up.

    There¡¯s no choice but to take things slowly from here on out.

    What a mess the previous lord has left behind.

    I¡¯m once again convinced that it¡¯s a bad idea to limit societal development, especially if it¡¯s done purely to entertain the aristocrats.

    ¡°This is more troublesome than I thought.¡±

    I would¡¯ve preferred to swiftly develop the base, but it¡¯s a pity that the Empire¡¯s aristocrats are so useless.

    I¡¯m also one of them though...

    ¡ó

    The Augur royals¡¯ minds were blown by the party venue that had been prepared for them. Many became speechless when they learned the fact their was spherical in shape.

    Not only that, the outside world was dark all day long, and innumerable structures bigger than their castles were floating in the sky. [1]

    The white-bearded king stood restlessly before Liam as thetter spoke to him in a friendly manner.

    ¡°You can rx... Is what I want to say, but you probably won¡¯t listen. Just know that I won¡¯t harm you in any way.¡±

    ¡°W-we are grateful for your magnanimity.¡±The king could not stop shaking as Liam appeared much more divine than the self-proimed God.

    The former lord¡¯s entourage used to look at them mockingly andugh at them scornfully, but no one here was treating them like some spectacle.

    Furthermore, the servants that they had to bow down to before were bowing at them instead.

    Liam took a sip from the ss that he had in his right hand.

    The royals also followed suit and drank the liquor that had been served to them, only to realize that it tasted better than any liquor that they had drunk before.

    Liam opened his mouth to speak to the royals who were feeling deeply moved by the drinks served.

    ¡°I¡¯ll exin in an easy-to-understand manner. I¡¯m someone who¡¯s two ranks above your former lord. In fact, I¡¯ll be promoted soon, which means I¡¯ll be four ranks higher.¡±

    Someone with a higher status than the one they worshipped. It was a lot to take in for the royals.

    However, Liam had shown them enough to convince them of his words.

    ¡°H-how will we be governed in the future?¡±

    The white-bearded king once again acted as their representative, to which Liam let out a soft chuckle.

    ¡°I¡¯ll only be staying here for a short amount of time. During that time period, I won¡¯t take anything away from you all. Instead, I¡¯ll bestow you various things.¡±

    ¡°Bestow us? Then... How much will we be taxed?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no need for that. Take this chance to rest. Hmm, right... If there¡¯s any young ones among the royalty, bring them forward. I¡¯ll have them receive education under me.¡±

    The princess stepped forth when the king nced at her, and she was introduced to Liam.

    ¡°This is my daugther. I may be being biased, but she¡¯s a very beautiful girl, so please ept her.¡±

    The princess curtsied, but Liam appeared somewhat displeased by her.

    The king panicked thinking he had done something wrong.

    After finishing his drink, Liam once again spoke.

    ¡°Don¡¯t get me wrong, she¡¯ll be with me for less than a year. In other words, she¡¯ll be returned to you very soon. You see, I don¡¯t have any women troubles.¡±

    The people around him had faces that said ¡°Say what!?¡±, but quickly turned away when Liam red at them.

    Puzzeld, the kings cocked their heads, but Liam continued as if nothing had happpened.

    ¡°Just think of it asing over to y. I¡¯ll show her how wide the world truly is. Having said that, if you encounter any problems, make sure you consult with us.¡±

    ¡°T-thank you for your kindness.¡±

    They had never received such treatment before.

    The royals at the scene didn¡¯t really understand what had transpired, but they were nevertheless relieved.

    That was when Liam decided to make a deration before the royals.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be protecting you all from now on. There¡¯s no need for anyone to worry.¡±

    His words that overflowed with confidence left a deep impression on the royals who had been taught to worship the higher-beings as Gods.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°Speaking of being worshiped, those in the Republic worship me as a sacred tree! Volume 6 of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ will be out soon, so make sure you grab one! I won¡¯t mind if you worship it, you know~!¡±

    Brian (?¦Ø?£à): (It¡¯s about time that the nt returns from whence it came.)

    Brian (¡ä?¦Ø?£à): ¡°Oh, and if you buy the e-books for ¡®The World of Otome Games if Tough for Mobs¡¯ on Book¡îWalker, you can get additional benefits in the form of a voice drama. As a cherry on top, ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ will be on sale until August 4th. Now¡¯s your chance to start with Volume 1. That will be all from Brian.¡±

    [1]: Outside world-> Space. Structures -> Probably the ships

 Chapter 132 - V8 Chapter 7. Planet Augur

    <h4>Chapter 132 ¨C V8 Chapter 7. Augur</h4>

    V8 Chapter 7. Augur

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°YOU ABSOLUTE FOOL!¡± I shout inside the ship¡¯s office.

    The report that I received from the ground is paining me.

    The one who¡¯s giving the report is Wace, who seems to be enjoying his time on the ground.

    Heined a lot in the beginning, but he¡¯s adapting quite well to the new environment.

    As for the content of his report...

    ¡®Aren¡¯t you d you¡¯re being worshipped by everyone?¡¯

    ¡°Have I ever said that I want to be worshipped? Also, what¡¯s with the sacrifices! When did I ever ask for sacrifices!?¡±

    I will stay true to what I said to the Augur royalty.

    I¡¯ll give them everything they need and protect their.

    Why, you ask?

    It¡¯s because things will be more convenient for me that way. That¡¯s all there is to it.

    ¡®ording to them, they¡¯re just providing offerings to the new God. I tip my hat to your charisma, Liam.¡¯

    Watching Wace sipping tea gracefully while giving his report makes me want to beat him up.

    He should learn a bit from Cleo.

    ¡°Makes me wonder if he¡¯s really connected to Cleo by blood.¡±

    ¡®Did you say something?¡¯

    ¡°Nothing. Anyway, tell them to stop with the sacrifices.¡±

    ¡®They say they¡¯re just some offerings.¡¯

    ¡°That¡¯s the same thing! I don¡¯t need them either way!¡±

    The former lord of Augur apparently had their citizens give beautiful young men and women as offerings.

    What horrible taste.

    I know I¡¯m a viin and all that, but even I don¡¯t stoop so low as to proim myself a god.

    I¡¯d feel bad for the Guide otherwise.

    Anyway, that former lord was judged by the Empire¡¯sw and had their household crushed.

    I don¡¯t know what he did to deserve that, but the Empire would be better off with arge majority of its aristocrats dead.

    I¡¯m on that list as well...

    ¡®By the way, Liam.¡¯

    ¡°Yeah?¡±

    Everything¡¯s proceeding smoothly, with the only thing slowing me down being the negative influences of the former lord.

    Or at least that¡¯s what I thought...

    ¡®It¡¯s about your citizens. The migrants didn¡¯t want to be left behind, and have sent a petition to host a Liam Festival. I approved it since it sounded interesting.¡¯

    Wace says this without batting an eye.

    This must be his payback for dragging him here.

    About the migrants from my territorypeting with the locals... Are they dumb?

    They¡¯ve been brought to such a remote ce, and yet they¡¯repeting with the locals over who can worship me better? What¡¯s there to evenpete over?

    ¡°Rejected! We¡¯re going to have to do something about their distorted view of religion! F*ck it with the aristocrats-are-gods bullsh*t! Absolutely repulsive.¡±

    If we¡¯re talking about God, then someone like the Guide would fit that description.

    After disconnectingmunication with Wace, I plop down on a chair and lean my head against the backrest.

    ¡°Ahh, this is the worst. Everything else is going well, so this is getting on my nerves more than it should.¡±

    Now that the call is over; Amagi, who¡¯s been standing beside me quietly, opens her mouth.

    ¡°Master, it¡¯s necessary to invest a lot of time in developing Augur.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re right, though I doubt their values will change much during my stay as Deputy. That said, I just need them to remember me as a kind and dependable Deputy while I¡¯m here.¡±

    Taking into ount the entirety of the Empire; Augur, which is now close to the Empire¡¯s border with the Kingdom of Dominion, is quite a distance away from my territory.

    If I were to draw aparison using my previous life as an example, it would be like the distance between Tokyo and Osaka.

    No, my territory¡¯s also in the countryside. So, it¡¯s more like the distance between Yamaguchi and Aomori.

    Either way, there¡¯s enough distance between us that what¡¯s consideredmon knowledge here is different from what¡¯s consideredmon knowledge back in my territory.

    Back there, I¡¯ve rampaged enough to have my name engraved in everyone¡¯s mind. Here, it¡¯s more along the lines of; ¡°Liam? Ahh, I think I¡¯ve heard of him?¡±

    You don¡¯t bother remembering the names of governors outside your prefecture, right? It¡¯s something like that.

    My fame in the Capital is shooting up, but the farther we are from it, the less I am known.

    That¡¯s why I¡¯ve decided to make a name for myself here as well.

    This may sound old fashioned, but it¡¯ll be like those scenes in delinquent manga where a gang from a different prefecture invades a local town.

    In this case, we¡¯d be the gang that¡¯s invading.

    Of course, we¡¯ll be the ones to emerge victorious.

    I hate losing after all.

    ¡°I¡¯m feeling rather irritated right now, so let¡¯s go vent some anger. Amagi, call the army. It¡¯s time to hunt some pirates.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    The pirates back home no longer approach us, but not many have heard of me here. So, they¡¯re bound to jump on us at every turn.

    Pirates are the type to swarm whenever they see a small fleet wandering around. They¡¯re precious assets that bring me both wealth and fame.

    I¡¯ll hunt as many of them as I can.

    ¡°I¡¯ll make them a part of the spaceport that¡¯s under construction.¡±

    The wreckage that will be left behind in their wakes should be put to good use.

    Also, my hunch is telling me that I¡¯ll be hitting three birds with one stone this time, instead of the usual two birds.

    ¡ó

    On that day, terror descended upon the pirates that traveled near Augur.

    ¡°W-who are they!?¡±

    It came as no surprise that the captain of the pirates was upset.

    His pirate fleet was arge one, numbering in the thousands, and he was notorious enough that none of the aristocrats around here would be willing to fight him.

    He and his pirates hade across a small fleet with a family crest that they had never seen before.

    The designs of the battleships and the mobile knights looked foreign to them, so they treated them like second-hand goods andughed them off.

    However, after they had engaged them, their ships and mobile knights were being shot down one after another.

    Though they outnumbered the enemy¡¯s fleet, they were being overpowered.

    The pirates turned pale in fear.

    ¡°Captain, we can¡¯t hold on anymore!¡±

    ¡°L-let¡¯s surrender!¡±

    With his crews in the bridge confused and disoriented, the captain decided to send a message of surrender to the strange fleet.

    ¡°Contact the enemy. Tell them that we surrender.¡±

    His crew on the ship were relieved to hear that.

    It was better than being killed, and they thought their opponents would forgive them if they offered up their loot.

    There were many such aristocrats, and most battleships that had family crests on them were their private armies.

    They thought they¡¯d be given a way out, as long as they gave up their treasures.

    However, the mysterious fleet did not stop its attacks. Themunication that was sent back showed a young man sitting proudly on a chair with a brazen attitude.

    ¡®You¡¯ll give up your treasures, you say?¡¯

    The captain thought he was talking to the descendant of some great aristocrat and thus assumed a humble attitude.

    ¡°Of course. We¡¯ll give you everything we have, my lord.¡±

    The captain didn¡¯t know who exactly he was speaking to.

    After all, there was no reason for him to remember the name of someone that he normally shouldn¡¯t have met.

    ¡®Then fork everything over. Everything, including your lives.¡¯

    With a smile, the young man cut off themunication. The mysterious fleet¡¯s attacks got stronger, sinking the pirate ships one after another.

    ¡°That bastard ns to kill us all!¡±

    The captain beheld a sight that was like hell on earth.

    The aristocrat¡¯s private army was ruthless as it sank the pirate ships that contained men that were begging for their lives.

    ¡°Why would an aristocrat do this?¡±

    The aristocrats in this region would have let them go at this point.

    Dealing with a pirate fleet of their size would have caused trouble on their end as well. If given an appropriate sum of money, they would have overlooked the pirates.

    Yet their enemy this time was unrelenting.

    Soon, the captain¡¯s ship was bombarded and blown apart.

    In the midst of it all, the pirate captain murmured, ¡°Who in the world...¡±

    ¡ó

    I was able to decimate a decentlyrge pirate group.

    ¡°Theytch onto whoever¡¯s traveling in small numbers. Today¡¯s catch was a big one.¡±

    I¡¯m really pleased that the pirates here take whatever bait is thrown at them.

    I haven¡¯t been earning much as ofte because the pirates back home kept fleeing.

    Those pirates should grow some balls.

    Hmm... Should I take the initiative to go afterrge pirate groups from now on? Huh? That might actually work.

    Thoserge pirate fleets should have a lot of treasures.

    I should actively hunt them down in the future.

    I¡¯ll have a lot of free time when my training is over, so it should be fine even if they¡¯re a bit far away.

    us, who has been standing next to me, speaks while I¡¯m grinning.

    ¡°Lord Liam, should we collect the debris from the battlefield?¡±

    ¡°Naturally. Collect everything and bring them to Augur. Also, contact the Seventh Weapons Factory. They probably have a lot of leftovers in their inventory.¡±

    ¡°The Seventh? Isn¡¯t it better to contact the other Weapons Factories?¡±

    us rmends the other Weapons Factories over the Seventh which heavily focuses on technology and performance.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯m just buying some gifts.¡±

    ¡°I feel like that¡¯s all the more reason to contact the other factories...¡±

    Niases over from time to time and nags that she won¡¯t go back until I buy some of their products. So, I¡¯ve been buying them every so often, not to mention that Avid¡¯s maintenance can only be done at the Seventh Weapons Factory.

    That¡¯s why I¡¯ve been employing their services.

    ¡°Just trust me and contact Nias.¡±

    ¡°¨CUnderstood.¡±

    us rys the order to contact the Seventh Weapons Factory.

    A small window appears in front of me after a little while.

    A sleepy looking Nias gets projected on the screen.

    She must have prepared in quite the hurry, as she hasn¡¯t fixed her bedhead.

    ¡®Do you know what time it is, Lord Liam? I barely had a wink of sleep.¡¯

    I check the timezone of the Seventh Weapons Factory. It should still be around noon.

    I thought it¡¯d be fine to call.

    Never did I expect that she¡¯d be asleep.

    ¡°Did you work overnight?¡±

    ¡®No, I was preparing some blueprints as a hobby until a while ago.¡¯

    ¡°A hobby, you say.¡±

    ¡®I¡¯m on vacation! I¡¯ve been staring at blueprints for two days and was finally going to get some sleep!¡¯

    She talks as if I¡¯m the bad one here, but it¡¯s clearly her fault.

    To begin with, all my transactions with the factory have to go through Nias. Which means it¡¯s part of her job regardless of whether she¡¯s on vacation, or not.

    That¡¯s what she¡¯s being paid for after all...

    ¡°You should really just go to sleep.¡±

    ¡®That¡¯s what I was about to do!¡¯

    us holds his face with one hand, perhaps because he¡¯s exasperated by her attitude.

    Having said that, Nias must have really been preparing to go to sleep.

    Her appearance right nowcks any sort of sex appeal, but the sense of daily life that¡¯s overflowing from her arouses me a little. I decide to close my eyes on her disrespectful behavior.

    ¡°All that aside, you have things left over in your inventory, right? I¡¯ll buy them, so send it over to me.¡±

    ¡®Huh? Really?¡¯

    Her eyes change color the moment she hears that I¡¯ll be buying their unsold weapons.

    She¡¯s calctive, but I like how straightforward she is.

    ¡°But do something about their outward appearance. They¡¯ll be gifts, so don¡¯t send over any old models, send the new ones.¡±

    The reason I went pirate hunting is because I wanted to relieve my stress and secure some materials for building the military base. It also served as a way to curry some favor with the local aristocrats.

    ¡®Gifts? If I¡¯m not wrong, Lord Liam was sent to a ce near the Kingdom of Dominion, right?¡¯

    ¡°I thought it would be impolite to meet them empty-handed.¡±

    I¡¯ll be gifting the weapons to local aristocrats that are in trouble.

    ¡®I don¡¯t know about sending weapons as gifts, but oh well. If it means emptying our inventory, anything goes I guess.¡¯

    She¡¯s not hiding her true intentions at all, but that¡¯s fine.

    If she was anyone else, I would have had her executed immediately.

    ¡°Make sure to send them over quickly.¡±

    ¡ó

    -At the front lines of the war against the Kingdom of Dominion-

    Calvin, who had been dispatched to serve as themander-in-chief, was surprised when he heard a certain report from his men.

    All the military personnel were inside arge conference room and discussing strategies to employ against the Kingdom of Dominion.

    ¡°Liam-kun¡¯s at the rear?¡±

    Calvin was surprised as he had never requested for Liam, and neither had any of the aristocrats and military personnel in his faction.

    The officials that he had brought with him wern¡¯t involved in this either.

    The reason being...

    ¡°How did we allow this to happen!?¡±

    Calvin never wanted to summon Liam to the battlefield as that was where he shone the brightest.

    Not only had he gained his fame through pirate hunting, he had won numerous battles in the past.

    Calvin didn¡¯t want someone like him to be dispatched as logistical support as he would be stuck with the Kingdom of Dominion in front of him and Liam behind him.

    It was like being pincer attacked on the battlefield.

    While Calvin was thinking about what to do moving forward, a young aristocrat raised his hand and spoke with confidence and enthusiasm.

    ¡°Your Highness the Crown Prince, all we have to do is crush Liam on this battlefield. Let¡¯s have the Kingdom of Dominion go around us and attack Liam.¡±

    The people around him would agree to his proposal... Or so he had hoped.

    Both the military personnel, and the other aristocrats present on the scene, opposed this n.

    ¡°Utter foolishness! That would mean having the Kingdom of Dominion pass through the Empire¡¯s territory!¡±

    ¡°This is why the young ones are no good.¡±

    ¡°Even if we beat Liam that way, it would all be for naught if we lose to the Kingdom of Dominion and damage His Highness¡¯s reputation.¡±

    Faced with so much opposition, the young aristocrat looked disgruntled and unconvinced.

    However, Calvin was relieved by the others¡¯ reactions.

    ¡°For now, we must do our best to deal with the Kingdom of Dominion. We¡¯ll keep an eye out, but won¡¯t make any moves yet.¡±

    Calvin wanted to absolutely avoid fighting against Liam here.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°The sales for ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire!¡¯ is going strong. This is all thanks to the readers who went to purchase the novel, so a big thank you to everyone that did. This Brian is crying tears of joy knowing that his postscripts helped with the sales, however little it was...What bliss.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (;©b§¥©b): (It would be insensitive of me to plug in an advertisement and ruin the mood... BUT. I¡¯m the idol of postscripts after all! Since I¡¯ve decided to take over the postscript segment, I must advertise until the end!)

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°Please also check out Volume 6 of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯, which will be released tomorrow! Gorgeous limited editions will be on sale as well, and theye with [Drama CDs]!¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à)¥Î¥·

 Chapter 133 - V8 Chapter 8. Gudwar Kingdom Of Dominion

    <h4>Chapter 133 ¨C V8 Chapter 8. Gudwar Kingdom Of Dominion</h4>

    The Gudwar Kingdom of Dominion had challenged the Algrand Empire.

    As its name implied, the intergctic nation was one where power meant everything.

    With enough strength, one could climb up the socialdder. But without it, even the royal family would lose its position.

    As such,petition within the Gudwar Kingdom of Dominion was fierce, even more so than their wars with other nations.

    However, a prince managed to reorganize the kingdom andunch an attack on the Algrand Empire.

    He was one of the overlord¡¯s many sons, and his status used to be very low.

    Not only was he one of several thousand princes, he was far from the line of session to the throne.

    Nevertheless, he imed that ¡°We should not be fighting amongst ourselves. If we are to fight, it should be against foreign forces!¡±

    His theory was that rather than fighting within the nation over who was strongest, it would be better to attack other countries and expand their territory.

    [Izel] was his name. He used his fists to convince his brothers that he was right, and rapidly moved up the line of session.

    In the Kingdom of Dominion, strength alone determined who had the right to seed.

    Izel, who was still young, stepped forward for the future of his kingdom and seized the title of Crown Prince with his own hands.

    He was only 200 years old and looked as if he was in his early twenties.

    However, there were a number of scars on his well-trained body.

    There was even a cross shaped wound on his forehead, but as injuries were regarded as marks of honor inside the Kingdom of Dominion, it had not been erased.

    Such a man was leading the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s fleets, which was around 3 million strong.

    Confronting them was the Algrand Empire and its fleets, numbering around 5 million.

    Inside themand room of the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s fortress-ss gship, Izel was studying a simplified map of the battlefield.

    ¡°Calvin shouldn¡¯t have much experience on the battlefield, but he¡¯s holding out against us quite well.¡±

    There were many brave warriors around Izel, with most of them being his former rivals that decided to follow him after being defeated.

    Even the regr staff members were trained in some form of martial art, making them look buff and muscr.

    ¡°I thought the Empire¡¯s prince would be weak, but it turns out he has several promising warirors under him.¡±

    ¡°But their Imperial Army is a mess.¡±

    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s as if they¡¯re just there to fill the numbers.¡±

    Izel crossed his arms and analyzed the data he had of the enemy fleet.

    The battleships around Calvin were certainly state-of-the-art, but nearly 40% of the enemy fleet consisted of outdated ships that had been scraped together.

    Their battleships, on the other hand, were all the same model.

    As an intergctic nation that prioritized strength over all else, they did not face any weapons-rted issues.

    Izel stretched his right hand forward.

    ¡°Let us continue defeating the Empire and gain control over a new territory!¡±

    Under the leadership of Izel, the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s fleet advanced towards Calvin¡¯s fleet with high morale.

    ¡ó

    The Guide was also inside the battleship¡¯s bridge where the warriors were getting pumped up.

    (So, this is what¡¯s meant by ¡®might makes right¡¯. Really, it¡¯s hard to understand them.)

    He nced over at Gudwar, whose head was like that of a bright red octopus.

    The reason why the Kingdom of Dominion continued to wage wars was because of Gudwar, who was an existence simr to the Guide.

    The Guide was showing Gudwar a deferential attitude.

    ¡°Wow, you have such reliable pawns. Is Izel, that young man, Gudwar¡¯s favorite ¡®at the moment¡¯?¡±

    Gudwar red at the Guide.

    ¡°What is the meaning of this? I thought I¡¯d get to see a match between warriors that could make my blood boil, but they¡¯re all so disappointing!¡±

    ¡°E-Even if you say that...¡±

    With the Kingdom of Dominion on the move, the Guide expected Liam to take part in the war.

    However, he had refused to participate, using his training as an excuse. Calvin was actively keeping Liam away from the battlefield as well.

    For some unknown reason, he was now in the rear, something that the Guide had not foreseen.

    He thought Liam would eventually make his appearance if the Kingdom of Dominion kept pushing forward, but Liam refused toe out.

    Gudwar had been looking forward to seeing the One-sh in person, but it was taking forever.

    While battles between strong men served as some distraction, it wasn¡¯t the main course he had been waiting for.

    ¡°I want to see Liam! Will my Izel triumph, or will he be killed? I want to see them fight on the battlefield!¡±

    Growing agitated, Gudwar started pping the Guide¡¯s cheeks with its octopi tentacles.

    ¡°I-It hurts. Please stop doing that, Gudwar.¡±

    (How dare he! If I hadn¡¯t lost my strength, I would¡¯ve erased him effortlessly.)

    Gudwar continued to p both of the Guide¡¯s cheeks and even grabbed his cor while he was at it.

    ¡°Bring him here. Now.¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    ¡°Bring Liam to the battlefield! Make him fight against my Izel!¡±

    ¡°D-Don¡¯t be unreasonable! He¡¯ll erase me the moment I get too close!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t care! Just do it!¡±

    Izel had the blessing of Gudwar. Unlike with the Guide, Gudwar¡¯s blessings were the real deal.

    The Guide wished to drown Liam in misery, but Gudwar was different.

    He would throw one challenge after another at Izel, giving him rewards whenever he overcame one.

    However, if he couldn¡¯t ovee the challenge, he would lose Gudwar¡¯s grace.

    Not only that, if he grew too strong, Gudwar would get bored of him.

    Being watched over by Gudwar was not always a good thing.

    The current Guide did not have what it took to pacify Gudwar and had to obey his words.

    ¡°O-Okay, okay.¡±

    ¡°Should¡¯ve agreed from the beginning!¡±

    Facing Gudwar, who sounded angry, the Guide clenched his fists.

    (¡ªAfter dealing with Liam, I¡¯ll make sure to erase him.)

    The Guide disappeared from where he was after telling himself that now was not the time.

    ¡ó

    Just as the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s fleet began moving, Marion arrived at Augur.

    The reason for histe arrival was because he and Liam received their notices at different times.

    This, in turn, was because they had to find recements for their posts.

    Marion was looking outside with his arms crossed as the spaceship drew near the spaceport built above Augur.

    What he saw was a magnificent spaceport that was still under construction.

    ¡°¡ªHe¡¯s a monster like the rumors say. It¡¯ll be hard to find any faults in him now that he¡¯s built such a grand spaceport in this short amount of time.¡±

    With how sudden the orders were, Marion expected to see a scantily built spaceport.

    As the mastermind behind him was thinking of using that as an excuse to pressure Liam, Marion had been sent as a minion to investigate.

    ¡°Then again, every man has his faults if you look deep enough.¡±

    He had approached Liam while pretending to be an ally so that he could find out his weakness.

    ¡°This is taking longer than I thought it would.¡±

    From the very beginning, Marion had been Liam¡¯s enemy.

    When the ship arrived at the mooring of the spaceport, it was docked in ce by several arms that extended out.

    The crew onboard gave way as Marion walked towards the spaceship¡¯s exit.

    As an official from the Capital, Marion¡¯s status was higher than the others.

    After all, officialsmanded a lot of authority inside the Empire.

    He disembarked and stepped foot inside the spaceport.

    There, he found someone waiting for him.

    It was a knight that served Margrave Olgren.

    From Marion¡¯s perspective, it was a meeting with a knight hailing from the main family.

    ¡°Greetings, Lord Marion. It has been a while.¡±

    ¡°Did youe all the way here to wee me?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Knights and military personnel under Margrave Olgren surrounded him.

    The atmosphere was tense, but from what he knew, they were on his side.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know you guys were here.¡±

    The knight smiled.

    ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to Lord Marion who convinced Count Banfield to send support. The Margrave is very pleased.¡±

    Hearing this, Marion had his doubts. Before he could process it any further, the knights and soldiers around him drew their weapons.

    ¡°¡ªWhat is this supposed to mean?¡±

    The smile on the knight¡¯s face vanished, only to be reced by killing intent.

    It was clear to Marion that he would be attacked if he resisted, so he raised both hands in surrender.

    ¡°Count Banfield is waiting for you.¡±

    Cold sweat trickled down Marion¡¯s forehead.

    (What¡¯s going on? What has this got to do with Liam-senpai? I haven¡¯t even introduced him to the main family yet!)

    While he had been meeting with the mastermind back in the Capital, Liam had been busy at work as well.

    The knight shed a dark smile.

    ¡°A change of clothes is in order. What you¡¯re wearing doesn¡¯t fit the Count¡¯s taste.¡±

    ¡°S-Stop!¡±

    Marion tried to struggle free with wide eyes, but the female knights seized him.

    ¡ó

    With the construction of the spaceport mostly done, what is there left to do, you may ask.

    The answer is: we must party.

    It matters not that our allies are fighting on the battlefield.

    Besides, there¡¯s something that I¡¯m looking forward to today.

    Although it¡¯s a standing party, we¡¯re taking advantage of the weightlessness to have people on the ceilings and the walls.

    It may appear baffling and somewhat iprehensible, but it¡¯s amon thing in an intergctic nation.

    We can amodate a lot of people since we¡¯re using the walls and ceilings as well.

    Of course, Wace was the one who prepared this party.

    ¡°Wace, isn¡¯t this a little in?¡±

    I speak to Wace, who¡¯s in a foul mood.

    He seems to have put quite a bit of thought into this.

    ¡°If we go overboard, the people on the battlefield wille to resent us.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with that? They¡¯re our political rivals anyway.¡±

    ¡°But we¡¯re all part of the Imperial Army. Don¡¯t you think we¡¯d be in danger as well if we piss them off?¡±

    Wace sounds fed up with all this, but the reason why I carried myself all the way to the frontier is because I wanted to sniff around.

    Unfortunately, it doesn¡¯t seem like Calvin was the one who summoned me here. Which means he¡¯s not connected to Madam Annabell.

    How disappointing.

    By the way, the drinks in our sses are made so as not to fly away, even in zero gravity.

    When I shake the ss, the drink within trembles like jelly.

    The moment it enters my mouth, however, it turns back into liquid.

    After hydrating the inside of my mouth with a couple sips of alcohol, I tell Wace about what¡¯s toe.

    ¡°It¡¯ll be fine. He¡¯s a talented man after all. Calvin, that is.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±

    He must be too busy to set me up, meaning there¡¯s someone else behind Madam Annabell.

    ¡°Calvin has too much on his te right now to bother with us.¡±

    ¡°Then who could have sent you here to the frontier? Well, I know it¡¯s Madam Annabell, but Cleo seems to have given his permission. What the heck is hedoing?¡±

    I turn to face Wace with a look of sympathy.

    Wace notices this and asks me angrily, ¡°What is it?! Tell me if you know something!¡±

    I¡¯d like to tell him to think for himself, but I¡¯ll leave it at that.

    I look towards the entrance of the venue.

    ¡°More importantly, today¡¯s main guest is here. We must be ready to wee her. Now, follow me!¡±

    A woman enters the party venue surrounded by escorts.

    She¡¯s wearing a pretty dress, but as the skirt is short, her beautiful, thin legs are visible.

    It¡¯s hard to notice because she usually wears pants, but things be obvious once her shoulders and legs are exposed.

    Confused, Wace tilts his head.

    ¡°I think I¡¯ve seen her somewhere.¡±

    Of course he has.

    Seeing us approach, the woman frowns, not bothering to hide her displeasure.

    ¡°Long time no see, Marion.¡±

    Upon being called out, Marion the woman, makes a frustrated expression.

    She¡¯s not crossdressing as a woman, or anything.

    Marion¡¯s a woman to begin with.

    She looks away, but Margrave Olgren who¡¯s standing besides her speaks to me.

    He¡¯s a bit more friendly it seems.

    ¡°Thank you for inviting me over, Liam-dono.¡±

    ¡°To have the Margrave, who protects the border, at my party is my honor.¡±

    Wepliment each other to show the people around us that we¡¯re good friends, but my target audience is Marion.

    ¡ªIt¡¯s to show her that even without her, my rtionship with the Margrave is good.

    The Margrave brings up the topic of the weapons I sent him.

    ¡°Thanks to your support, we¡¯ll be able to form a unit with the newest generation of weapons in a few months and send them as reinforcements to the front lines.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear.¡±

    Hearing our conversation from the side, Marion shakes with anger and frustration.

    The Margrave res at her with cold eyes.

    ¡°¡ªIt seems Marion is indebted to you.¡±

    ¡°Well, we¡¯ve been hitting it off in the Capital. Isn¡¯t that right, Marion?¡±

    I smile at her, but she refuses to even face me.

    She must be feeling humiliated by her current appearance.

    ¡ªShe should be grateful that I¡¯m only going this far, considering what she¡¯s done to pit me against the Lengrand Family.

    The Margrave begins to grumble about Marion.

    ¡°We sent her to the Capital to request for help. Of course, we were also nning on contacting the Banfield Family, but this troublesome girl just went off on her own without prior discussion.¡±

    Be it the rtives of Margrave Olgren or Viscount Olgren, they¡¯re all staring at Marion with cold eyes.

    It seems to be because Marion acted on her own discretion and ignored the orders from her family and the main family, which was to negogiate with influential aristocrats for support.

    No, she was probably nning on making use of that order as an opportunity to show off her talent, thereby elevating her position inside the Olgren Family.

    Just by doing a little bit of digging around, I was able to get some interesting results.

    Well, to be fair, I wouldn¡¯t have really minded if Margrave Olgren tried to sabotage me.

    I would¡¯ve simply regarded him as an enemy and made use of the Kingdom of Dominion to hit his territory so hard he would never recover.

    I turn to address Marion.

    ¡°Remember what I said when we first met? I asked for your master.¡±

    With a face full of hatred, Marion raises her right hand against me, but the people around us are quick to react.

    The Margrave¡¯s knights try to suppress Marion, whereas Kukuri and his subordinates get ready to appear from my shadow.

    However, I grab her hand before anything happens.

    ¡°It was fun, Marion. For a small fry, you danced quite well.¡±

    ¡°...!¡±

    I let go of her and face the Margrave.

    ¡°Well then, I think it¡¯s about time that we part.¡±

    ¡°I apologize for the trouble she has caused. How about this, I¡¯ll punish her as Liam-dono sees fit.¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s fine. Rather¡ªI prefer her this way.¡±

    The Margrave nods and looks at Marion.

    ¡°You better not let Liam-dono¡¯s kindness go to waste.¡±

    I leave the scene with Wace in tow, but not before giving Marion onest remark.

    ¡°You look cute in that dress, Marion.¡±

    ¡°That was quite terrible of you, Liam¡± Wace whispers.

    Well, I¡¯m a terrible man to begin with, so I guess he¡¯s not wrong.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°True postscript idols are those that appear the most in PVs! Now, I¡¯ll be advertising Volume 6 of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯! But I feel like I¡¯ve already said most of what¡¯s there to be said, so today will be about the special benefits thate with it!¡±

    Wakagi-chan (©b§¥©b): ¡°You see... for Volume 6, there will be a questionnaire special of ¡®Marie Route¡¯ that¡¯s written in 50,000 characters. Yes, you heard that right, 50,000. I think it would have been much more cost effective to prepare a bonus stage for me instead.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°Rather than this ¡®Marie Route¡¯ nonsense, you want to see more of this postscript idol¡¯s activities, right? RIGHT?! You¡¯re free to say you want to read stories about Naegi-chan in thement section below. Also, please vote for Naegi-chan in the poprity poll!¡±

    Wakagi-chan (#©b§¥©b): ¡°I didn¡¯t get to appear in the CD Drama edition this time, but I won¡¯t give up! I¡¯ll definitely climb to the top and be popr!¡±

 Chapter 134 - V8 Chapter 9. Liams Right-Hand Man

    <h4>Chapter 134 ¨C V8 Chapter 9. Liam¡¯s Right-Hand Man</h4>

    At the party venue, Marion was wearing a dress, and expressed her displeasure through a scowl on her face.

    ¡°¨CNow you¡¯ve done it.¡±

    She usually had an androgynous appearance, but she was currently attending the party as a beautiful woman.

    Her dress had been prepared by Liam.

    It wasn¡¯t to Marion¡¯s taste, and she didn¡¯t like wearing skirts in the first ce.

    Normally, she preferred wearing a suit.

    Liam was chatting away with the guests that had been invited to the party, and she was annoyed seeing Liam in a good mood after being praised for building such a magnificent spaceport.

    (I finally saw a chance at bing the Family Head, and yet...)

    A girl since birth, Marion wanted to be the Family Head of Viscount Algren¡¯s household.

    Now, however, it had be a thing of the past.

    The Margrave, who was the head of the main family, would never allow Marion to take this position.

    He spoke to Marion without looking in her direction.

    ¡°We sent you to the Capital to ask for support from influential aristocrats. Who told you to meddle in the session war?¡±

    Marion¡¯s job had been to request support from powerful aristocrats.

    However, her greed got the better of her.

    ¡°¡ªBy requesting cooperation from Liam, we would¡¯ve been drawn in to the session war regardless.¡±

    ¡°The Capital isn¡¯t bored enough to bother with the territories near the border. You should have ignored the session war and focused on other influential aristocrats. You and your ambitious dream have caused so much trouble.¡±

    Marion had backstabbed Liam for a reason¡ªshe had nned on selling a favor during the session war. Then she could promise immense support to the main family in exchange for her contribution.

    She was thinking of using that to be the next head of the Viscount¡¯s household.

    Rather than receiving support from a Count like Liam, she had been looking for ways in which the main family would receive the support of the Empire itself.

    Unfortunately, the Margrave wasn¡¯t so happy about this.

    ¡°We got the support we needed, yes, but now we owe one to the Banfield Family. If anything happens, he¡¯ll no doubt take advantage of us.¡±

    The Margrave knew that Liam wouldn¡¯t throw in his support without having his own agenda, and as a matter of course, he was right.

    Everything that Marion had done in the Capital had now gone down the drain.

    Liam was about to leave the venue, and Marion hurriedly tried to give chase.

    When the people around her stepped in to hold her back, she pleaded to the Margrave.

    ¡°Please give me another chance.¡±

    ¡ó

    After leaving the venue, I wait for a while in the hallway.

    Momentster, Marion rushes out in her dress.

    Realizing that I was waiting for her, she looks stumped for a second, but quickly tries to regain herposure.

    ¡°¡ªLiam-senpai, I¡¯d like to have a word with you.¡±

    I lean back on the wall andugh before giving my guess as to what she has to say.

    ¡°I know. You want to negotiate with me, am I right? And your bargaining chip is the identity of the person who¡¯s moving behind the scenes. I¡¯m not interested in what you want in exchange, but sorry... I already know.¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    Marion seems to think I¡¯m bluffing.

    ¡°You do know it¡¯s not the Lengrand Family, right?¡±

    Behind Marion stands the Lengrand Family, but there¡¯s also someone behind the Lengrand Family.

    Marion must have arrived at this conclusion as well, but what I¡¯m interested in knowing is the mastermind behind even them.

    ¡°A pawn like yourself was probably only informed up to Madam Annabell. With a little bit of thinking, you would¡¯ve also arrived at His Highness Cleo.¡±

    Cleo was the one who authorized my transfer to the frontier, so logically speaking, his name would pop up.

    But the reason I came all the way here was to identify the true mastermind.

    At first I thought it was Calvin, but being the honor student that he is, it¡¯s unlikely to be him.

    Marion stares at me in surprise.

    ¡°You knew?¡±

    ¡°I just digged around for information about who could be behind Madam Annabell, and I got the answer. So, who did you think the mastermind was? Oh, it¡¯s not His Highness Cleo by the way. I was the one who told him to send me to the frontier.¡±

    ¡°¡ªWhy?¡±

    From the beginning, the information that Marion had was of no value.

    ¡°Why? Well, it was more convenient that way.¡±

    To begin with, Cleo had been the one to consult with me about the Lengrand Family.

    I pass by Marion as she looks down.

    ¡°It¡¯s your fault for thinking that you can lead me around by the nose. You might have been able to be the head of the Viscount¡¯s household if you had just stuck to your orders¡ªit¡¯s truly unfortunate.¡±

    Triggered by my words, Marion throws a punch at me.

    I take a step back to avoid her attack.

    ck shadows appear from the ceiling, the walls, and the floor, holding Marion down with knives pointed towards her.

    They¡¯re Kukuri¡¯s men.

    Slowly, Kukuri also appears from my shadow.

    Witnessing Kukuri and his subordinates, Marion¡¯s eyes shoot open.

    ¡°A ck Ops?¡±

    She sounds surprised by how skilled they are.

    While Kukuri and his tribesmen did struggle during that one particr fight against Calvin, they possess outstanding abilities that put them a cut above the others.

    ¡°Return her to the venue without killing her.¡±

    That would serve as a greater punishment for Marion.

    ¡ó

    Around that time, the Calvin Faction was told of the line-up for Liam¡¯s fleet.

    More so than Liam himself, they had a problem with one of his subordinates.

    Calvin narrowed his eyes.

    ¡°I see. us, Liam¡¯s right-hand man, is here.¡±

    Calvin held us in high regards, and for good reasons too.

    During therge war with the United Kingdoms, us had been the Deputy Commander.

    For those that didn¡¯t participate in the war, it was as if us had takenmand in ce of Liam and Cleo.

    This was an upsetting news to the Calvinist aristocrats.

    ¡°The man who hunted down the United Kingdoms in a short period of time.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s said to have obliterated them without mercy.¡±

    ¡°By bringing such a man with him, is he seriously trying to bring us down?¡±

    us¡¯s name was more well known to his enemies than his allies.

    Calvin couldn¡¯t rx with us at their rear.

    (With such a monstrous tactician watching us from the back, our soldiers would be too wary to fight properly.)

    Even he couldn¡¯t predict what a tactician like us would do.

    After all, us was someone who brought the war to an end in an extremely short amount of time, bringing home a victory when everyone thought it¡¯dst much longer.

    Not only that, he used the battlefield to clean up the Calvinist aristocrats within the fleet.

    For Calvin and his allies, us was a highly dangerous knight.

    Worse yet, he couldn¡¯t recruit this capable knight to their side.

    Many Calvinist aristocrats had been in by his hands. As such, the others would not approve of us¡¯s entry into their faction.

    Calvin and his men came to the decision that they should be more vignt of their rear, not noticing that a group of young aristocrats were gathered in one corner of the conference room.

    ¡ó

    ¡°His Highness the Crown Prince is acting too afraid of Liam!¡±

    The young aristocrats gathered at the table were dissatisfied of Calvin¡¯s attitude towards Liam, which they deemed cowardly.

    This group mostly consisted of young lords that just seeded their households and representatives dispatched by influential aristocrats.

    A showy aristocrat put forth a proposal while he yed with his bangs.

    ¡°Rather than allowing Liam to do as he pleases, wouldn¡¯t it be more interesting to have him sh with the Kingdom of Dominion?¡±

    The young aristocrats looked at one another after hearing the proposal.

    ¡°But His Highness already rejected that n.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re not going to make it too obvious. We¡¯ll lure the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s army and have them strike at our weak point. Then, we¡¯ll purposely be slow in sending reinforcements, giving them the opportunity to break through and infiltrate.¡±

    One person noticed something as he was listening to the showy aristocrat¡¯s n.

    ¡°Then does that mean the decoys would have to fight the Kingdom of Dominion seriously? Will we not be informing them of this n?¡±

    ¡°Our enemies have beast-like instincts. We¡¯d need decoys who¡¯d fight to the bitter end.¡±

    In other words, they¡¯d be throwing their allies under the bus.

    The operation that Calvin had refused was going to be carried out by the young aristocrats.

    The Guide was also present at the scene.

    ¡°Good, they¡¯ll guide us to where Liam is. Let¡¯s tell Gudwar about this and have his favorite prince take the lead in attacking. Hmm, but as things stand, these guys would probably forgoying down the groundwork for this n. Which means that Calvin would notice them sooner orter. ¡ªI guess I have to get involved.¡±

    In order to fulfill Gudwar¡¯s request, the Guide decided to help the young aristocrats in their n by keeping Calvin in the dark.

    The Guide watched on with cold eyes as the young aristocrats got riled up.

    ¡°¡ªYou really think that¡¯s enough to deal with Liam? They¡¯re a useless bunch through and through.¡±

    Our n will definitely work!

    The Guide was fed up by how optimistic these aristocrats were.

    ¡ó

    -Inside the bridge of the Gudwar Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s gship-

    Gudwar was waiting for the Guide¡¯s return, feeling deeply unsatisfied.

    Just as he was wondering when his favorite Izel would get to be deployed onto the battlefield, the bridge came to life as an intelligence officer of the Kingdom of Dominion arrived with some new information.

    Even Izel felt excited by this piece of news.

    ¡°us? THE us Sera Monto is on the battlefield?¡±

    us¡¯ name had spread to even Izel, but he¡¯d collected his information from the United Kingdoms, not the Empire.

    Izel¡¯s subordinates were also thrilled.

    ¡°I heard he¡¯s a fierce man who crushed the United Kingdoms.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t he a tactician though?¡±

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter. A man of such caliber should have some strong warriors under him.¡±

    us, the man who one-sidedly beat up the United Kingdoms.

    Izel couldn¡¯t help but express his excitement from hearing this knight¡¯s name being mentioned.

    ¡°I was starting to think that Calvin¡¯s head wouldn¡¯t be enough. However, with a bigshot like him, things have changed. So, where¡¯s us-dono?¡±

    The intelligence officer told them what he knew.

    ¡°Rather than the front lines, he¡¯s situated at the rear where a base is currently under construction.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s not on the front lines? Why? With a knight like him, isn¡¯t itmon sense to ce him on the front lines?¡±

    The members of the Kingdom of Dominion believed us was more suitable as themander than Calvin.

    It was baffling to them that us wasn¡¯t the one leading the fleet.

    The intelligence officer went on to report where us was.

    ¡°He¡¯s located behind a fleet that seems unusually weak.¡±

    Izel came to an ephiphany after hearing that.

    ¡°¡ªSo that¡¯s his n. He intends to lure us in before hitting us.¡±

    Deliberatly luring their fleet deeper into the Empire.

    Izel¡¯s advisor cracked his neck.

    ¡°us, the man that trampled on the United Kingdoms, will be waiting for us once we take the bait. ¡ªIt¡¯s not a bad strategy. Izel-sama, what shall we do?¡±

    Izel closed his eyes and smiled.

    Then, his eyes shot open, and he raised his right hand forward.

    ¡°There¡¯s but one course of action! If there¡¯s a trap, we just have to push forward!¡±

    No need for strategies!

    That was essentially Izel¡¯s message, but his men showed great excitement over being told that they¡¯d be attacking.

    Gudwar was watching everything transpire in the bridge, his octopi legs wriggling in anticipation.

    ¡°Fufufufufufu! So, there¡¯s a strong man like him. Liam and us¡ªthe Empire has a lot of powerful guys as well! I¡¯m looking forward to it~¡±

    Gudwar couldn¡¯t wait to see Izel fighting against Liam and us.

    As a cherry on top, people would die in the hundreds of millions along the way.

    It was an irresistible temptation for Gudwar.

    ¡ó

    At Augur¡¯s spaceport, us, who was working in his office, felt a strange chill.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been getting the chillstely. Am I just tired?¡±

    us often suffered from Liam¡¯s unreasonable behaviors, but normally, his days would finish after a round of serious work.

    Today was as normal as all the others.

    Lately, however, a feeling of unpleasantness had been surrounding him.

    ¡°Is it because I got assigned to a near the front lines? I want to go home soon.¡±

    us didn¡¯t want to be the Head Knight. He just hoped for the peaceful days to continue.

    He knew himself that his abilities weren¡¯t outstanding.

    He wasn¡¯t particrly fond of fighting either, and he still couldn¡¯t believe he was given the title of Head Knight by the Banfield Family.

    ¡°I can head back once Lord Liam¡¯s training is over. Three, no if nothing happens, then in two years I¡¯ll be able to return safely.¡±

    When he first heard Liam saying that he would be heading to the frontier, us was worried about what the future held for him, but he was now getting confident that everything would end peacefully this time.

    However, the unpleasant feeling wasn¡¯t disappearing.

    ¡°¡ªLet¡¯s just focus on work.¡±

    He received a report from his subordinate just as he was about to finish up for the day and leave.

    ¡®us-sama, the Gudwar Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s army is on the move! Arge fleet is headed towards Augur!¡¯

    us gazed far into the distance with hollow eyes.

    (So this is what that unpleasant feeling was about.)

    However, reflected in his subordinate¡¯s eyes was the figure of a Head Knight who was calm and collected.

    A massive fleet is approaching, but he¡¯s so calm about it! The Head Knight is amazing!

    That was the kind of expression on his subordinate¡¯s face.

    ¡°I¡¯ll report this to Lord Liam myself. Get the army ready to sortie, and don¡¯t forget to start collecting information.¡±

    ¡®Yes, sir!¡¯

    us got to work with a heavy heart.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°The postscript section was taken over while I was on a business trip to Mishima Yomu¡¯s notepad. It¡¯s painful.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°It¡¯s your fault for leaving an opening! Both the regr and the limited editions of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ Volume 6 are on sale! The limited editionse with CD Dramas, so have fun with those!¡±

    Wakagi-chan (¡ä?£à*): ¡°Chapter 23 of the manga will be released on the first week of next month, so make sure to check out chapter 22 before that. Also, we¡¯re epting pre-orders for Volum 4 which has Milene on the cover, so make sure to buy this too!¡±

 Chapter 135 - V8 Chapter 10. Battle Against The Kingdom Of Dominion

    <h4>Chapter 135 ¨C V8 Chapter 10. Battle Against The Kingdom Of Dominion</h4>

    Allied ships are gathering at the spaceport above Augur one after another, and I¡¯m inside the bridge of the mothership overseeing the situation with a look of frustration...

    ¡°¡¯Your ns are brilliant. Knowing this, we would like to confront you head-on, and we intend to break through-Crown Prince Izel of the Gudwar Kingdom of Dominion.¡¯ ¡ªus, you seem to be held in high regards.¡±

    That¡¯s the reason behind my frustration, us is standing out more than I am.

    He¡¯s made a name for himself by ying an active role in the war against the United Kingdoms, and it seems like he¡¯s especially popr in the Kingdom of Dominion.

    ¡ªHowe us gets to be a celebrity?! What about me?!

    Also, he¡¯s being treated as someone who¡¯s more important than Calvin!

    Basically, I¡¯m irritated by our enemies¡¯ reaction.

    us stares far into the distance.

    ¡°That¡¯s because Lord Liam wasn¡¯t there during our battle with the United Kingdoms. We can spread Lord Liam¡¯s name through this war.¡±

    I didn¡¯t participatest time because I didn¡¯t think it was worth it against an enemy like the United Kingdoms, but now I¡¯vee to regret my decision a little.

    He¡¯s right though.

    I¡¯m really d I put him by my side.

    He¡¯s always there to give me decent advice. If it was Tia or Marie, they¡¯d be shouting ¡°I¡¯ll go kill them!¡± without offering any real solution to the situation.

    It was the right choice to make us my Head Knight.

    ¡°You¡¯re right. Make sure that Avid¡¯s ready to head out. Oh, and how are things going with the fleet?¡±

    ¡°All thirty thousand ships from the Banfield Family are ready to sortie, but the Major General who¡¯s leading the fleet of the Imperial Army has refused to heed the call, saying that they must remain behind to defend Augur.¡±

    So now that the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s massive fleet is approaching, he¡¯s busy securing an escape route instead of preparing for battle.

    Well, with only 3,000 ships, it makes sense that he¡¯s feeling insecure.

    If I were in his shoes, I would¡¯ve run as well.

    us waits for my orders.

    ¡°¡ªKeep a record of their rejection.¡±

    ¡°You won¡¯t have them participate in the battle?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t need them. Besides, they¡¯ll only get in our way. Connect me with the fleet under mymand.¡±

    Many small windows appear around me, and the officer-ss soldiers serving under the Banfield Family are projected onto the screens.

    I¡¯ll be giving a speech to my subordinates, but normally, speeches given by people at the top tend to be long and unbearable.

    They try to be funny by cracking jokes, but when they fail, they are faced with insincereughs that are done out of courtesy.

    Then again, people that enjoy giving speeches are happy with that because they get a sense of power from it.

    As for me, I don¡¯t really care about what I say or how I convey my message. I¡¯ll make sure that my subordinates put in effort proportional to their sries, meaning they¡¯d have to go along with my speech with a smile stered on their faces.

    ¡°Your arms must be getting rusty doing nothing else besides pirate hunting. Well, I have good news for you all. The folks over at the Kingdom of Dominion have decided to head towards us. Their target isn¡¯t me, but us over here.¡±

    us maintains a nk expression.

    Ignoring what my subordinates have to say, I continue my speech.

    There¡¯s no need for me to confirm whether or not they¡¯re listening.

    If they aren¡¯t, it¡¯s their fault. It¡¯s not as if I have anything important to say.

    Saying ¡°Let¡¯s do our best!¡± only works for a handful of people at the top. Most of the time, they don¡¯t even realize that they¡¯re failing.

    Things might be a bit different if I were to give a great speech, but I don¡¯t n on giving one.

    As long as I can have my sense of satisfaction, nothing else matters.

    ¡°Waiting doesn¡¯t suit our taste. Hence, we will be going on an all-out assault.¡±

    Seeing the soldiers salute, I get the impression that they want me to wrap things up quickly.

    But don¡¯t rush me!

    It feels kind of unpleasant, so I decide to ignore them and continue my speech.

    I¡¯ll drone on about some meaningless things!

    ¡°Our enemy this time is the Kingdom of Dominion, and they¡¯ve invaded the Empire without proper cause! We must punish them for what they¡¯ve done! ¡ªNow, have a look of Augur.¡±

    Just in time, a minitature 3D holographic projection of Augur appears in front of me.

    I ce my hand beneath the image of Augur to make it seem like the¡¯s fate is in my hands.

    ¡°This is a that I¡¯m taking care of. In other words, it¡¯s my territory at the moment! While I¡¯m just a deputy here, an aristocrat must protect his territory!¡±

    Of course, that¡¯s a big fat lie.

    The aristocrats tend to be the first to flee when the winds are not blowing in their favor.

    ¡°You are my subordinates, my swords and shields!¡±

    I¡¯mparing them swords and shields with the intention of using them like tools.

    ¡°Obey my words and don¡¯t go against them, for I will bring you victory! Know that this will be overrun by the enemies the moment you decide to flee. We must not allow that to happen!¡±

    These guys must think I¡¯m a great lord, who doesn¡¯t abandon his territory even as a deputy, but my true intention lies somewhere else.

    I¡¯ve invested so much time and resources into Augur, and I will not allow it to be robbed from me.

    I honestly don¡¯t care about the residents of Augur, but it¡¯s a sin to overrun a territory that I rule!

    And it¡¯s not like I can lose.

    I¡¯ve been blessed by the Guide, so it¡¯s physically impossible for me to lose.

    In addition, the School of One sh must never face defeat.

    I must let everyone know that it¡¯s the strongest.

    ¡°Spread my name to the Kingdom of Dominion. Let them know who¡¯s the strongest!¡±

    The soldiers listening do not budge.

    ¡ªWell, I sort of expected this.

    They¡¯re probably wondering when this speech will end.

    Some might even be saying, ¡°Can¡¯t you just send a message?¡± inside their head.

    At least that would have been my reaction if I were the one listening.

    We don¡¯t have much time, so I guess I¡¯ll leave it at that for today.

    ¡°¡ªAll forces, forward! Crush the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s fleet!¡±

    Under my order, the fleet begins to move.

    ¡ó

    The Kingdom of Dominion was advancing towards Augur, but the Empire¡¯s fleet that stood in its path was stuck in its position as orders weren¡¯ting down from headquarters or Calvin.

    Themander was at his wit¡¯s end.

    ¡°What is headquarters doing!? The enemy is right before our eyes!¡±

    To be fair, the enemy fleet wasn¡¯t visible yet, but ording to the information that they gathered they were rapidly approaching. They would soon be in range where the two sides could be embroiled inbat.

    From what they knew, the enemy fleet numbered around 600,000.

    The Kingdom of Dominion couldn¡¯t bring their entire army with them as the rest of their fleet was in confrontation with the Imperial Army in some other ces.

    Nevertheless, the Kingdom of Dominion had brought 600,000 ships to strike somewhere with less than 100,000 ships standing guard.

    Calvin, the Commanding General, wasn¡¯t there, and neither were any of the important bases.

    Augur was still in development, so the Imperial Army didn¡¯t expect their enemy to take it too seriously.

    ¡°So they want us-dono¡¯s head over His Highness Calvin¡¯s.¡±

    us, Liam¡¯s right-hand man, had earned a decisive victory against the United Kingdoms. He was well known even within the Imperial Army.

    His tactics were worth learning from, and his fame in the army was growing day by day.

    With a fleet numbering less than 100,000, themander wondered what to do.

    ¡°How¡¯s the request for reinforcement?¡±

    The operator that answered themander looked like he was about to cry.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been calling them since earlier, but the noise is so great that I can¡¯t contact them.¡±

    Why couldn¡¯t they connect? Were they being intercepted by the enemy?

    If that was the case, the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s response was too quick.

    Another possibility was that their allies were surrounded. In that case, fleeing could result in their annihtion.

    ¡°Continue to request for reinforcements! The headquarters should be aware of what¡¯s happening too!¡±

    With such a big movement from the enemy fleet, there was no way that they wouldn¡¯t notice.

    Normally, headquarters would have already sent reinforcements or ordered for a withdrawal.

    Themander couldn¡¯t figure out how this was happening.

    However, he knew how the aristocrats were and came up with a certain theory.

    (Once our line of defense is breached, they¡¯ll be able to reach Augur. Are the aristocrats nning on using us like sacrificial pawns?)

    The military was aware of the conflict between Calvin and Liam.

    It was then that he realized they had been drawn into the political war.

    An rmed shout came from one of the operators.

    ¡°The enemy fleet has warped out! T-there¡¯s more of them than we expected!¡±

    Themander swung his fist down onto his armrest.

    ¡°All men¡ª¡±

    He was about to order his men to earn as much time as possible when a different operator shouted with a voice that contained some excitement.

    ¡°Allied troops have warped in! Their number¡ª30,000! T-that family crest!¡±

    Allied troops warped in one after another from behind and continued to move forward without stopping.

    They passed through the Imperial Army and went into formation as they passed.

    The way they moved was enough to convince the Commander that they were a highly organized fleet.

    A highly organized fleet that wasn¡¯t a part of the Imperial Army.

    Very few aristocrats had private fleets of such quality, and it was rare even among the Calvinists.

    However, the Commander recalled which force resided behind them.

    ¡°It¡¯s the Banfield Family!¡±

    Mixed with some noise, Liam¡¯s figure was projected onto a screen, but the background was slightly peculiar.

    ¡°He¡¯s inside the cockpit of a mobile knight?!¡±

    Hearing the surprise in the Commander¡¯s voice, Liam smirked andughed.

    ¡®So, you guys are still alive. Good¡ªthen follow my lead. us will issue all the orders.¡¯

    Themunication was cut off afterwards.

    Even as an aristocrat, one would have to go through several procedures before having the right to order around the Imperial Army.

    The crew inside the bridge all turned towards the Commander.

    While looking like he had swallowed a bitter pill, the Commander ordered the operators to contact the Banfield Family¡¯s gship.

    He hade to the conclusion that they would face annihtion under his leadership.

    ¡°Not like we can put up much of a fight with a fleet like this one.¡±

    As priority wasn¡¯t given to the Imperial Army, its fleet wascking in terms of training and quality of weaponry. It was essentially a fleet of only numbers.

    The Commander was deep in thought.

    (Were we positioned here to be thrown away from the beginning?)

    ¡ó

    Inside the bridge of the Banfield Family¡¯s gship, us was issuing orders left and right.

    ¡°Have the Imperial Army serve as support!¡±

    (NoWayNoWayNoWayNoWay!!! With a fleet like that, the Kingdom of Dominion would simply melt them!!!)

    Knowing the firepower of the Imperial Army, he hurriedly decided to gear them towards support, hoping that they could keep the enemy somewhat in check.

    ¡°All mobile knights are to sortie while we charge towards the enemy fleet! Don¡¯t let Lord Liam head out, and even if he does, it has to beter! Members of his Personal Guards, don¡¯t let Lord Liam head out!¡±

    (Why the heck is the Commander-in-Chief aboard a mobile knight?! Charging straight towards the Kingdom of Dominion is madness!!!)

    His head was a mess as he gave out orders.

    Liam¡¯smand had been exceedingly simple.

    It was ¡°charge¡±, which was bing a signature move of the Banfield Family.

    Liam¡¯s strategy was to charge at the enemy general with their entire force.

    (There¡¯s no way that will work! We¡¯d lose even against a normal army, not to mention we¡¯re facing off against the Kingdom of Dominion this time!)

    ¡®Only their army is legit!¡¯ was the reputation of the Kingdom of Dominion.

    It was hard to understand their nation¡¯s culture, but one thing was clear. It was that their army was the real deal.

    Yet Liam was thinking of charging straight ahead against such an opponent.

    us received a call from one of the Personal Guards.

    ¡®We¡¯ve failed you, us-sama.¡¯

    ¡°Hm?¡±

    ¡®Lord Liam pushed us away and set out after saying I¡¯ll spearhead the charge.¡¯

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    He looked to the front and found a lone mobile knight standing in front of the Banfield Family¡¯s fleet.

    Therge shields mounted on its shoulders clearly indicated that it was Avid.

    us¡¯s cheeks twitched.

    (WHAT ARE YOU DOING LORD LIAAAAAAAAM!!! ¡ªThere¡¯s no saving this anymore.)

    ¡ªus was d he wrote down his will beforehand.

    ¡ó

    It feels nostalgic sitting inside Avid¡¯s cockpit.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t had much chance to ride you recently.¡±

    Avid¡¯s engine groans as if to reply.

    It couldn¡¯t disy its full potential against pirates, so it hasn¡¯t had a turn as ofte.

    Even if it had the chance, the battle would end in the blink of an eye, so Avid probably hasn¡¯t had its fill of rampaging.

    As I grab onto the control stick, the enemy fleet and their mobile knights appear on the monitor.

    With the Banfield Family¡¯s fleet about to charge into the enemy fleet, concentrated attacks rain down on Avid which is at the forefront.

    A barrage ofsers and shells from enemy battleships and mobile knights are flung our way, but they either get dispersed or blown away before reaching Avid.

    Avid continues its advance as if nothing has happened.

    ¡°Your performance has gone up again. Rejoice Avid¡ªagainst the Kingdom of Dominion, you may have to take things seriously.¡±

    With glowing eyes, Avid wields aser de in its hand and swings it down upon an enemy battleship that is several kilometers away.

    In space, a few kilometers is considered a close range, but it¡¯s not a distance that aser de can cover.

    Usually, that is.

    ¡°Avid, let¡¯s show the Kingdom of Dominion who we are. Let us etch our names in their minds and tell them who¡¯s the strongest inside the Empire!¡±

    The output behind Avid¡¯s swing makes the de of light follow the path of the sh like a folding fan that has been opened.

    Not only does it bisect the enemy ship, three mobile knights get dragged into it and are obliterated.

    The explosion of the enemy ship generates arge amount of debris that gets scattered around, with some hitting Avid¡¯s force field and illuminating brightly.

    With Avid smashing apart a battleship, the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s attentionnds on us.

    ¡°Liam Sera Banfield. Come, I¡¯ll face all of you.¡±

    Using its left hand, Avid makes a c¡¯meregesture, provoking hostile mobile knights into rushing at us in flocks.

    Although their basic abilities seem to be higher than that of the Imperial Army, they¡¯re still too predictable.

    When an interesting number of them has gathered, Avid hacks them all down with theser de.

    Dozens of mobile knights blow up into mes, and from behind Avid, the allied forces begin attacking the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s fleet.

    ¡°Members of the Kingdom of Dominion, make sure to entertain me.¡±

    A number of magic circles appear behind Avid, and various weapons emerge from within.

    They¡¯re fired simultaneously, destroying all the surrounding enemies.

    ¡ªI¡¯ll make sure none of you forget my name.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Wakagi-chan (©bÑÔ©b): ¡°¡ª¡¯The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ is popr as well, I¡¯ll have you know. More than 300,000 copies have been sold altogether, you know? It¡¯s so popr that the limited edition is out of stock!¡±

    Brian (¡ä?¦Ø?£à): ¡°Ah, okay.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (©bÑÔ©b): ¡°Chapter 23 of Shiori-sensei¡¯s manga wille out this month, so you can read them as many times as you want. Screw Liam, I¡¯m more popr than him!¡±

    Brian (£»?`¦Ø?¡ä): ¡°It¡¯s painful. A nt is trying topete with Lord Liam. It¡¯s painful.¡±

 Chapter 136 - V8 Chapter 11. Liam Vs. Izel

    <h4>Chapter 136 ¨C V8 Chapter 11. Liam Vs. Izel</h4>

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    The formation of the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s army was copsing under Avid¡¯s assault.

    However, in the grand schemes of things, it meant very little. There was virtually no way for a troop of 30,000 to charge into an army of 600,000 and emerge victorious.

    The Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s target was the Imperial Army which numbered at 100,000¡ªand of course, us, who was waiting behind them on Augur.

    Indeed, us was the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s ultimate target.

    It was neither Calvin nor Liam, but us.

    As for why, it had to do with us being a very capable knight.

    Defeating him would guarantee fame and glory.

    It would be like a local celebrity bing a national sensation.

    Not only that, if us were to be defeated it would be a massive loss for the Imperial Army in terms of human resource, or so the Kingdom of Dominion thought.

    A knight like us who could lead a fleet consisting of millions to victory was extremely valuable, and someone like him could not be easily reced.

    Hence, the Kingdom of Dominion was shocked to learn that the Banfield Family¡¯s fleet was moving under themand of us.

    Izel, who was inside the ship¡¯s bridge, was astonished by us¡¯ assault.

    ¡°With only 30,000 ships, he¡¯s challenging our fleet which numbers at 600,000? I was under the impression that he¡¯d be the strategic type, but it seems he¡¯s more of a fierce warlord.¡±

    His eyes were sparkling, showing how highly he thought of us the knight.

    The Kingdom of Dominion had just dered that they would be breaking through their line of defense, and yet us had stepped forth himself to confront them.

    More than anything else¡ª

    ¡°To use his master as a pawn if it means victory¡ªI like it! A knight, no, a general like him is wasted on the Empire!¡±

    ¡ªIzel couldn¡¯t help but desire us.

    He didn¡¯t like how us was being treated as a knight and a vassal under Liam when he had defeated the United Kingdoms.

    The strong should be given a position proportional to their strength.

    That was Izel¡¯s philosophy.

    It was then that one of his subordinates made a report.

    ¡°Speaking of his lord, Count Banfield is on his mobile knight and causing great damage to our army.¡±

    ¡°He falls short of us-dono, but he¡¯s a wonderful knight as well. He¡¯s a worthy opponent for our army! The name of the Banfield Family will be engraved in my heart.¡±

    A powerful knight¡ªthat was the extent of his evaluation towards Liam.

    However, unexpected news began to arrive in rapid session.

    ¡°Your Highness Izel! Lord Hajiteme, one of the Twelve Heavens under yourmand, has fallen in battle!¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    The Twelve Heavens were knights that Izel had collected, and they were fierce warriors that had fought with him on the battlefield.

    They represented the cornerstones of his army and were first-ss knights that had ughtered countless enemies.

    As they were bestowed the newest model of mobile knights crafted by the Kingdom of Dominion, they weren¡¯t ones to be easily killed.

    Izel raised the corners of his mouth.

    ¡°Who killed him?¡±

    ¡°Liam Sera Banfield!¡±

    The people around Izel looked at one another¡ªand grinned.

    ¡°He¡¯s strong.¡±

    ¡°Keeping him as a Count is almost wasteful.¡±

    ¡°If I were a few years younger, I would have gotten rid of him myself.¡±

    Everyone was excited at the appearance of a powerful foe.

    Izel spread his arms and said, ¡°We have ourselves a strong enemy! Let me deal with him personally!¡±

    Contrary to expectations, none of the crew on board tried to stop theirmander, who dered that he¡¯d head out. Instead, they cheered him on.

    ¡°His Highness Izel is heading out!¡±

    ¡°The strongest warrior of our kingdom is joining the battle!¡±

    ¡°Notify the entire army!¡±

    The Kingdom of Dominion was raring to go.

    The ship¡¯s monitors were featuring Avid as it defeated the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s mobile knights one after another.

    ¡ó

    I¡¯ve noticed something while running around the battlefield riding Avid.

    ¡°The Kingdom of Dominion, what a peculiar bunch they are.¡±

    They¡¯re treated like the Shimazu n, or better yet the samurais of the Kamakura period, and I can see why.

    Avid grabs an enemy mobile knight with its left hand, crushes it, and proceeds to throw it away.

    As it does so, more enemies flock towards us.

    Avid cuts them down with its de, but even more of them are flocking to us.

    Despite being shown the overwhelming difference in performance, the mobile knights of the Kingdom of Dominion are still charging at us.

    Avid kicks the head of a mobile knight that¡¯s approaching and shoots through its cockpit.

    A number of magic circles materialize behind Avid, and muzzles aimed at our enemies make their appearance.

    Enemies are being destroyed left and right around Avid, yet the enemies just keeping.

    Pirates would¡¯ve run away by now.

    ¡°Is it because they¡¯re aware that they have the numerical advantage? Still, aren¡¯t they afraid?¡±

    With itsser de, Avid slices apart an approaching mobile knight, and we leave the scene of the battle.

    After shaking off the enemies that try to chase after Avid who has arge body, I call forth our hidden card.

    ¡°I can¡¯t be bothered with you cannon fodders any longer. Avid¡ªConnect.¡±

    ¡®Connected.¡¯

    A huge magic circle appears behind Avid as its eyes glow brighter than before.

    A giant battleship, which is in fact Avid¡¯s main body, emerges from the magic circle.

    Avid merges with the giant battleship and intercepts the enemies that are flocking over with the weapons installed on the ship.

    The giant battleship then begins to change its appearance, and takes on a humanoid form.

    This is the hidden card that I used to destroy the Berkeley Family.

    ¡°Blow them all away.¡±

    Attacks pour forth from every part of the battleship, which has now assumed a humanoid form, destroying enemy knights and battleships in its vicinity.

    With its massive arm, it¡¯s swinging down its de on enemy ships that try to get near us.

    The Kingdom of Dominion is concentrating its attacks on Avid, but Avid¡¯s made of rare metals like adamantine and orichalcum. They often appear in games, and armor made out of these metals aren¡¯t easy to prate.

    The armor around its chest opens up, revealing a vast amount of energy that has been umting there.

    ¡°Discharge.¡±

    With that signal, Avid fires off the gun in its chest and sweeps it across the battlefield.

    Even the most distant enemies are swept away by the beam that¡¯s unleashed.

    An overwhelming difference in performance.

    That is what it means to be strong.

    ¡°You guys were never a match for me to begin with!¡±

    Whileughing hysterically inside the cockpit, I notice a mobile knight that¡¯s weaving past all the attacksing from Avid¡¯s body.

    It¡¯s avoiding attacks from optical weapons, such as beams andsers, and dodging missiles thrown its way.

    It¡¯s movements are rather ridiculous, leaving only a trail of light in its wake.

    The path of light bes exceedinglyplicated, and just as I¡¯m wondering whether it¡¯ll get tangled up, I realize that the enemy is right before us.

    The person inside the mobile knight, that¡¯s rapidly approaching Avid, announces his name through an open transmission.

    ¡®I¡¯m Crown Prince Izel of the Gudwar Kingdom of Dominion! I request a one-on-one against Count Liam Sera Banfield!¡¯

    With Izel dering his name and requesting to duel, a lot of people might think a great opportunity has rolled in for me, but it really hasn¡¯t.

    This is too unnatural of a situation.

    Why did the Crown Prince decide to appear before me?

    I was originally thinking of rushing to the ce where the enemymander might be and winning the war by defeating him, and yet the Crown Prince is here?

    He¡¯s the enemymander, you know?

    Not only that, said enemymander has requested a duel.

    It almost sounds like a joke.

    ¡°A one-on-one? Against me? Don¡¯t get cocky.¡±

    The enemy is being so stupid here than it¡¯s actually frightening.

    Can¡¯t he tell the difference in our strength?

    Is he only a Crown Prince in name?

    Or maybe he¡¯s just a look alike?

    I never thought I¡¯d encounter an enemy wheremon sense doesn¡¯t apply at all.

    ¡®You want me to first prove myself? I don¡¯t see why not.¡¯

    Izel¡¯s mobile knight is carrying ance with a sharp, conical tip.

    He swings it sideways and makes a pose.

    ¡®If it¡¯s against you, I can disy my full power! This is my¡ª¡¯

    ¡°Oh, shut up.¡±

    Explosions ur as Avid fires beams and missiles at Izel.

    What kind of a naive fool does one have to be to dere his name on the battlefield?

    From the looks of it, the Kingdom of Dominion is no good as well.

    While I¡¯m harboring such thoughts, Izel¡¯s mobile knight appears from within the explosion.

    But there¡¯s something off about its size.

    It seems bigger than before.

    ¡®How petty you are to interrupt somone while he¡¯s speaking.¡¯

    ¡°Ah?¡±

    There are some changes to the appearance of Izel¡¯s mobile knight.

    It previously took on a humanoid form, but there are six extra arms sticking out from its back now.

    In addition to the increased size, Izel¡¯s mobile knight now has a grand total of eight arms, and his spear is pointed towards Avid.

    Other than his spear, each one of his eight arms are carrying different weapons.

    ¡®The ruler of the Kingdom of Dominion is the strongest, and the title of Crown Prince is borne by the warrior who can take up that mantle.¡¯

    I was wondering what he had to say.

    Turns out he¡¯s just saying he¡¯s the strongest.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that just inside your kingdom? The title of the strongest belongs to the School of One sh¡ªto Master Yasushi, my teacher.¡±

    ¡®I¡¯ve heard rumors about One-sh. If you have that much to say about your school¡ªprove it!¡¯

    The mobile knight that Izel is on begins moving more quickly than ever before.

    So quick in fact, that Avid, with its huge body, cannot catch up to it.

    Avid pours down attacks as if to swat away an annoying fly, but none of them are hitting Izel and his mobile knight.

    ¡°You little...!¡±

    ¡®Fuhahaha! As expected of my favorite mobile knight! It¡¯s the strongest!¡¯

    Powerful attacks are thrown our way from each of Izel¡¯s eight weapons.

    The spear that he throws has increased pration due to the spin that it carries, and it pierces through Avid¡¯s armor.

    ¡°No way!¡±

    Avid¡¯s armor is made of rare metals.

    It¡¯s hard to believe that it could be breached.

    Another weapon that¡¯s shaped like a ring multiplies itself midair after being thrown and shes against Avid¡¯s armor.

    Batteries, missileunch pads, and lenses for optical weapons installed in various parts of Avid¡¯s body are destroyed by the attacks, then an rm goes off inside the cockpit.

    ¡®All the weapons equipped on my mobile knight are from the ancient era, not to mention the mobile knight itself was built using advanced ancient technology.¡¯

    In other words, the mobile knight that Izel is on is a crytallization of ancient technology that can no longer be manufactured.

    ¡ó

    The Guide was thrilled.

    ¡°A product of ancient technology that can¡¯t be replicated in modern times¡ªsplendid! Its performance is definitely above Avid¡¯s!¡±

    Avid was one heck of a humanoid weapon, but Izel¡¯s mobile knight was even beyond that.

    It possessed a performance higher than that of Avid.

    Gudwar was also watching the battle next to the Guide, and his octopi legs were swelling up in anticipation.

    ¡°I prepared that mobile knight just for Izel. He¡¯s my best masterpiece yet.¡±

    The best masterpiece.

    To forge Izel, countless battles had been waged.

    For Izel, tens of thousands, hundred of thousands, nay, hundreds of millions were sacrificed.

    An environment where he could be forged.

    An environment where he could grow.

    Battlefields and rivals.

    Many a life had to be forfeited.

    Nevertheless, Izel managed to survive on the deadly battlefields arranged for him by Gudwar, he was the real deal.

    Other warriors behind him perished on the dangerous battlefields that had been prepared for them.

    Gudwar was excited.

    ¡°I¡¯ll make Izel my first chess piece once this battle is over. He¡¯ll be the first to be one.¡±

    A warrior that Gudwar raised and favored.

    Izel was the product of that very ideal.

    It was no wonder when he was so strong.

    The Guide smiled, a crescent moon hanging on his mouth.

    He didn¡¯t stop there andughed while apuding.

    Watching Avid being dismantled was an irresistible sight for him.

    ¡°EXCELLENTOOO! Finally, Liam¡¯s end is near!¡±

    Gudwar praised Liam as well.

    ¡°He¡¯s a decent warrior too. A warrior who contributed inpleting Izel.¡±

    Liam was being evaluated as a bonus stage for Izel, almost as if his life existed for that very purpose¡ªand that was truly how Gudwar saw him.

    The Guide couldn¡¯t stopughing.

    ¡°How¡¯s that, Liam! Your opponent¡¯s a strong one, and he possesses ancient weapons to boot! Even you and Avid cannote out on top against him!¡±

    Avid was falling apart on the battlefield as the Guide and Gudwar were overseeing it all.

    ¡ó

    The Banfield Family¡¯s fleet was in a state of emergency.

    ¡®Avid¡¯s damage has exceeded 30%!¡¯

    ¡®It¡¯s a red alert!¡¯

    ¡®We can¡¯t seem to damage the enemy knight!¡¯

    us also faltered seeing Liam and Avid, a duo that had never lost before, struggle against their opponent.

    However, as his deputy, it would be problematic for him to lose his cool.

    ¡°Calm down! Immediately have Lord Liam recalled from the battlefield. I¡¯ll disguise as him and buy time for him to retreat.

    us wanted to immediately have Liam retreat from the battlefield.

    He wasn¡¯t saying this out of loyaly.

    If Liam were to die here, problems will sprout up without end.

    There was the matter of the Banfield Family not having a descendent, and besides that, the faction war between Cleo and Calvin was still ongoing.

    If Liam perished here, chaos would ensue inside the Empire.

    Not that it would be any less chaotic with him alive, of course.

    (As long as Lord Liam is alive, the Banfield Family will not fall.)

    The Banfield Family¡¯s fleet still remained standing, and there were other knights besides himself who were even better than him. So, there wouldn¡¯t be any problems in terms of human resources either.

    As extreme as it may sound, everyone else besides Liam was receable.

    There was no recement for Liam.

    ¡°Have Lord Liame back. Have him escape immediately¡ª¡±

    That was when Liam¡¯s voice was picked up by the ship.

    He had sent an open transmission to Izel.

    ¡®¡ªLook what you¡¯ve done, you punk. Don¡¯t get too conceited, I¡¯ll deal with you for real now.¡±

    ¡°Eh?! Lord Liam! You mustn¡¯t! Please make your escape immediately!¡±

    us panicked after hearing that Liam still nned on continuing the fight.

    Without knowing what us had to say about this, Liam continued to address Izel.

    ¡°I was originally thinking of capturing you and handing you over to the Empire¡ªbut now I¡¯ll have you die here.¡±

    His deration only served to motivate Izel even more.

    ¡®What delightful news, Banfield! You¡¯re the first one to show such an attitude after seeing what I can do when I¡¯m serious!¡¯

    Round two of Liam versus Izel was about to begin.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Wakagi-chan (©b§Õ©b): ¡°If we look at the bigger picture, I think losing us would be more devastating.¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°Lord Liam, and my ulcer painrade, are backed into a corner. It¡¯s painful.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°Even if they¡¯re in hot waters, Idol Naegi-chan will do her share of advertising! Volume 6 of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ is now on sale! If you want a digital copy of the limited edition, I rmend trying out BOOK¡îWALKER. They¡¯re selling Volumes 1 through 5 as well, so you can take this chance to purchase them.¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): (Lord Liam is in a pinch, and yet this nt is still doing advertisements here. It¡¯s painful.)

 Chapter 137 - V8 Chapter 12. Cheering

    <h4>Chapter 137 ¨C V8 Chapter 12. Cheering</h4>

    ¡ªI¡¯ll have Izel die here.

    With that in mind, I take a look at Avid.

    To be more exact, it¡¯s the giant battleship that Avid has merged with.

    Its surface is in tatters, and a part of it has exploded after being pierced through.

    Inside the cockpit, red rms are ringing incessantly, telling me that most parts are in a critical state.

    They¡¯re being repaired automatically as I speak, but they can¡¯t keep up with the damage.

    In other words, they¡¯re in an extremely precarious situation.

    ¡°How dare you.¡±

    Does he have any idea how much the maintenance cost is for Avid¡¯s reinforced parts?

    One could prepare a fleet with that amount of money.

    It¡¯s a huge battleship made of rare metals, not to mention the transformation mechanism that it has.

    With how damaged it has be, repairing it would take a few years.

    Avid¡¯s engine roars.

    At the same time, requests for certain parts to be upgraded start appearing on the monitor.

    I raise my eyebrows after going through the content of the requests.

    ¡°Is this because of the Machine Heart? ¡ªDo whatever you want. I¡¯ll help you.¡±

    It seems Avid is angrier than I am.

    It¡¯s probably because Izel is boasting about what a great weapon he has.

    Avid appears to be more pissed off than even me.

    Having obtained my permission, Avid disconnects from the giant battleship.

    The hatch opens, and Avid appears from inside.

    There, we see the figure of Izel and his mobile knight still attacking the huge battleship which is meant to be Avid¡¯s add-ons.

    The knight is twice asrge as Avid, standing at 48 meters tall.

    Izel notices Avid as well.

    ¡®So, you¡¯ve finallye out.¡¯

    How annoying, he seems to be having a lot of fun.

    What does he think he¡¯s doing to someone else¡¯s toy?

    Avid¡¯s joints are discharging excessive amounts of energy.

    ¡°You¡¯re Izel, right? I was thinking of dealing with you myself, but I¡¯ve decided to make way for Avid today.¡±

    ¡®Who are you talking about? Your secondary pilot?¡¯

    Well, he¡¯s not wrong in calling Avid my secondary pilot.

    ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll be acting as Avid¡¯s support this time around.¡±

    ¡®Are you trying to run away from the battle?¡¯

    Iugh at his attempt at provoking me.

    ¡°If you were the type of enemy that can make me flee, I would¡¯ve fled at the first notice. Now, why do you think I¡¯m still here and confronting you? ¡ªIt¡¯s because I¡¯m confident that I¡¯ll win.¡±

    I have been promised victory, and I have everything that¡¯s required to achieve it.

    Cracks appear on Avid¡¯s armor the moment I hold the control stick.

    Red lights are being emitted from the cracks, and the armor is threatening to blow apart.

    A time limit is disyed on the monitor screen.

    ¡°Three minutes. I¡¯ll kill you in the next three minutes.¡±

    I have three minutes as my time limit.

    One of the weapons held by Izel¡¯s mobile knight is pointed at me.

    It¡¯s a spherical weapon, and it shoots out hundreds ofsers with homing abilities.

    Thesersnd on Avid¡¯s armor, but they only cause the armor to glow red without doing much damage.

    That said, it¡¯s impressive that they managed to pass through Avid¡¯s defensive field and reach its armor.

    ¡®So, you can withstand this level of attack? As expected of my prey!¡¯

    Izel charges towards me.

    Let me correct one misunderstanding though.

    ¡°It¡¯s not me who¡¯s being hunted, it¡¯s you.¡±

    A magic circle appears on Avid¡¯s right hand, and a sword handle reveals itself.

    Holding the handle, Avid pulls out the special sword that has been prepared for it.

    Izel¡¯s mobile knight, which has eight arms attached, points two of its weapons at Avid.

    One appears to be a sword, and the other a staff.

    ¡®That¡¯s the spirit! Then I won¡¯t hold back either! This sword can invalidate all force fields while this staff can control the army around us to crush you!¡±

    The de of Izel¡¯s sword shines, scattering the defensive field around Avid.

    Then mobiles knights, from both sides that have been floating about in space, begin to line themselves as if they¡¯re under Izel¡¯smand.

    A sword that can cut through everything, and a staff that can force destroyed mobile knights to move.

    Without a doubt, they¡¯re both great weapons.

    ¡ªBut it¡¯s all for naught.

    Avid swings its sword, blowing apart the mobile knights that have gathered, and surprising Izel who¡¯s watching.

    ¡®You took an instance to slice them to pieces?¡¯

    ¡°I thought you weren¡¯t going to hold back. What¡¯s with you using only two of your weapons?¡±

    Izel finally bes serious and readies all eight of his weapons before heading towards me.

    The 48-meter-tall aircraft closes in on Avid in the blink of an eye.

    It certainly feels very big¡ªbut that¡¯s it.

    Avid avoids Izel¡¯s attack by a hair¡¯s breadth.

    ¡®You¡¯re reading my attacks? Unfortunately for you¡ª¡¯

    ¡°Your aircraft can predict the future, is it?¡±

    With its advancedputational power, Izel¡¯s mobile knight seems to be predicting Avid¡¯s movements.

    It¡¯s either that, or it¡¯s being done through some sort of magical means.

    ¡°Have you only fought against enemies that would lose to this kind of trick?¡±

    Predicting how the other party will move.

    That¡¯s the basic of the basics for One-sh.

    Avid kicks away Izel¡¯snce and chops down the other weapons with its sword.

    However, the frame of his mobile knight liquifies the next instance andtches on to the parts that have just been cut, restoring them to normal.

    ¡°Self-restoration huh.¡±

    ¡®Indeed, my mobile knight will regenerate no matter how many times it¡¯s cut down. Half-baked attacks can¡¯t even leave a scratch!¡¯

    All eight of his weapons regenerated as well.

    No matter how many attacks it¡¯s hit with, it¡¯s all meaningless in the end.

    I must admit that the ancient weapon¡¯s performance is exceptional.

    No matter how much power Avid puts into kicking and shing Izel¡¯s aircraft, our opponent would ultimately have the advantage.

    Avid hacks at the fusge, but it gets regenerated immediately afterwards.

    The attack definitely tore through the cockpit, which means it should have reached Izel as well.

    ¡ª So, his body¡¯s been tampered with.

    ¡°You were consumed by it.¡±

    Izel¡¯s mobile knight strikes a pose as if it¡¯s some sculpture of a divine being with multiple arms.

    ¡®Wrong, I¡¯m the one who did the consuming. This aircraft has consumed and killed many pilots in the past, but I¡¯ve made it submit to me.¡¯

    Apparently, he¡¯ll also regenerate whether he¡¯s shed or shot at.

    He¡¯s basically be a part of the aircraft.

    ¡ªNot to mention he¡¯s pretty powerful himself.

    There¡¯s less than two minutes left until time runs out.

    ¡ó

    The Guide was cheering with his arms spread out in support of Izel, who was controlling the ancient weapon.

    ¡°Go! Right there! Finish him!¡±

    Gudwar, who was next to him, was also cheering while swinging its octopi legs.

    Together, they looked like they were old men watching a boxing tournament.

    ¡°IZEEEEEL!! PUT MORE STRENGTH INTO IT!!¡±

    Gudwar was lending its power to Izel, allowing his mobile knight to further increase its power output.

    Izel¡¯s mobile knight, which was at a disadvantage until just now, suddenly started to overwhelm Avid in terms of both power and speed.

    Avid was gradually pushed back, exciting Izel greatly.

    ¡®I¡¯ve never felt stronger before! So, this is what it means to have your heart pumping before a powerful enemy!¡¯

    Izel, who was feeling high, demonstrated power that exceeded what he was normally capable of showing.

    Nevertheless, it was still a step short of being able to defeat Avid.

    The Guide¡¯s hands were getting sweaty.

    ¡°Just a little more! Liam¡¯s death is right around the corner! I refuse to give up on this hope!!! I¡¯m counting on you!¡±

    The Guide channeled what little power he had remaining to Izel, bringing about a noticeable change to Izel¡¯s aircraft.

    The multi-armed mobile knight was exuding an aura of the divine, and the weapons in its hands became even stronger than before.

    The mobile knights that tried to rush in to help Liam were all blown away, and the attacks from nearby battleships got dispersed before they could reach it.

    No one was able to interfere in the battle between Avid and Izel. They were only allowed to watch over as they fought.

    Izel had taken a step beyond the boundary of humanity.

    Gudwar was also thrilled to see this.

    ¡°OOHHH! A transcendent is about to be born! And it¡¯s a work of mine no less!¡±

    Delighted to witness such an asion, the Guide cheered until his throat was sore.

    He was fine with anything as long as it could destroy Liam.

    ¡°Pleaaaase! End Liam!!¡±

    ¡ªHowever,

    ¡®Avid, there¡¯s less than a minute left. It¡¯s time to switch.¡¯

    Liam was about to get serious.

    ¡ó

    A prompt showed up on the monitor inside the cockpit, refusing to switch and saying that it could still go on.

    It probably doesn¡¯t wish to switch ces with me, but¡ª

    ¡°I saidswitch. Don¡¯t make me repeat myself.¡±

    Avid obediently hands over themand after hearing me speak in a lowered voice.

    ¡°Now then, time to deal with them.¡±

    The ancient weapon is giving off light, its appearance was looking truly divine.

    ¡®Save it. It¡¯s toote for you to get serious now. ¡ªI have gone beyond the realm of humans.¡¯

    He¡¯s brought up some unpleasant memories that I wish to forget, but since he¡¯s got no future left, he can say whatever embarrassing thing he wants.

    Heck, he can take his time to bask himself in the moment.

    ¡°Are you saying that you, a human, has gone beyond the realm of humans? Are you mental? What do you even want to be after giving up being human?¡±

    Izel¡¯s aircraft vanishes from its spot, to which I jump back and swing Avid¡¯s sword sideways.

    The next moment, the sword shes with ance, giving off sparks in the process.

    Avid¡¯s sword shatters, but it quickly gets regenerated.

    The mechanism for the de is like that of a cutter knife, which can get its de reced one after another.

    ¡®Beyond the realm of humans. A War God, that¡¯s what I wish to be.¡¯

    I snort at his words.

    ¡°A War God?! You? With your skills?! Is the title of War God that cheap in intergctic nations?¡±

    Angered by my taunt, Izel hurls attack after attack at me.

    I avoid them and cut down whatever¡¯s sent my way before I spread Avid¡¯s arms out.

    ¡°You can¡¯t call yourself a War God when you can¡¯t even surpass me!¡±

    ¡®I¡¯ve already surpassed you, both as a pilot and in terms of aircraft performance!¡¯

    To correct his misunderstanding, I ce Avid¡¯s sword on its shoulder.

    Izel bes confused because of all the openings I¡¯m showing.

    ¡®Are you admitting defeat?¡¯

    ¡°You think so? Even after hearing everything I said? ¡ªThe title of War God doesn¡¯t suit you after all. Your aircraft¡¯s crying.¡±

    The ancient weapon is great, don¡¯t get me wrong.

    But¡ªit¡¯s not so great that I would desire it.

    ¡®What are yo¡ª¡¯

    The arms attached to his aircraft gets torn to pieces the very next moment, turning into liquid and starting to gather back together.

    In the meantime, I have Avid hold its sword.

    ¡°It was fun while itsted, Prince of the Kingdom of Dominion.¡±

    It would put a lot of strain on Avid to reproduce a One-sh in its current condition, but I trust it¡¯ll endure somehow.

    ¡°One-sh.¡±

    Immediately after I mutter it, Izel¡¯s aircraft experiences a distortion.

    The space around it gets slightly distorted. The aircraft which was near it, ends up in a distorted state as well.

    Because of that, it fails to go back to its previous state, and ends up all twisted and warped.

    That said, Avid¡¯s joints are screaming too.

    The Machine Heart is trying to heal them, but its speed couldn¡¯t keep up.

    ¡°All this after one swing. No, should I be thankful that it was able to reproduce even a single swing?¡±

    Unable to regenerate properly, Izel¡¯s aircraft begins to copse.

    An error must have urred somewhere in its body because of the iplete recovery.

    A small window appears on my monitor, and a man who appears to be Izel looks at me while spurting out blood.

    ¡®¡ªA wonderful sh. It is my loss. Let¡¯s have onest talk.¡¯

    ¡°Whatever suits you.¡±

    I check our surrounding and notice that the morale of the Kingdom of Dominion has dropped tremendously after General Izel¡¯s defeat.

    In fact, they¡¯ve stopped engaging in battle and are backing down.

    They¡¯re surprisingly clean about it.

    ¡®The universe sure is wide. To think there¡¯s someone as strong as you.¡¯

    ¡°Naturally. My Master¡¯s even stronger.¡±

    ¡®¡ªIs that so. It would¡¯ve been nice to meet him once.¡¯

    From how much blood Izel¡¯s coughing out, it¡¯s clear that his wish won¡¯te true.

    Now that his mobile knight is destroyed, it seems he will share the same fate.

    ¡®Why weren¡¯t you serious from the beginning? Wouldn¡¯t it have been better to fight in that form without having to merge?¡¯

    Izel has noticed that Avid is better off without the giant battleship, which is meant to reinforce it.

    I¡¯ve got many reasons, but the biggest of them all would be¡ª

    ¡°It was for fun.¡±

    ¡®For fun? Haha¡ªfor real, the universe is wide. I didn¡¯t think there¡¯d be anyone that would fight against the Kingdom of Dominion ¡®for fun¡¯. Next time, let us fight with our real bodies¡ª¡¯

    Izel¡¯s speech gets cut off there, and his mobile knight bes liquified before being dispersed around us.

    Until the very end, he wanted to fight. I wonder, how do people like him view their lives?

    But since he was a battle junky, he should have no qualms about dying on the battlefield.

    ¡°¡ªWhat a troublesome person.¡±

    That said, he was determined until the very end and remained honest to his desires.

    I don¡¯t know whether he was an evil lord or not, but just for that, he is a man worthy of praise.

    Avid¡¯s barely able to move at the moment, and as we¡¯ve reached its time limit, fighting anymore would be impossible.

    Nevertheless, despite all the creaking sounds Avid makes in the process, I raise its sword up in the air.

    ¡°The enemy general, Izel, has been in by Liam Sera Banfield!¡±

    With that information quickly spreading within the entire army, the Kingdom of Dominion begins retreating.

    I¡¯d love to give chase, but the fleet under me is too small.

    The Banfield Family¡¯s guards gather around Avid to protect us.

    ¡®Lord Liam, are you alright?¡¯

    ¡°You¡¯rete! Take Avid back quickly, and collect all the liquid from Izel¡¯s mobile knight. I¡¯ll have the Seventh Weapons Factory analyze it.¡±

    ¡®U-understood!¡¯

    It¡¯s all destroyed now, but I¡¯m sure there¡¯s some data to be gained.

    ¡ó

    Izel had been defeated.

    Gudwar, who watched as this happened, fell into a daze.

    On the other hand, no one knew when, but the Guide had run out of energy and reverted back to his hat form.

    The Guide shook in anger.

    ¡°Distorting dimensions? That¡¯s cheating!¡±

    He destroyed an ancient weapon by distorting the dimensions!

    The Guide was unwilling to ept such an absurd ending.

    Izel was arguably one of the strongest people in the world.

    His skill as a pilot was top notched, not to mention that his aircraft had higher performance than Avid.

    Gudwar was even more furious than the Guide.

    It grabbed the Guide, who was in his hat form, with its octopi legs before giving it a tight squeeze.

    ¡°Hey, what the heck was that?¡±

    ¡°W-what do you mean?¡±

    ¡°How did you raise someone like that?!¡±

    ¡°E-even if you ask me, I¡¯d like to know how this is happening myself.¡±

    Gudwar threw the Guide to the side, causing the hat to be all crumpled.

    ¡°T-that was mean.¡±

    Wriggling its octopi legs violently, Gudwar didn¡¯t hold back in expressing its anger.

    ¡°I¡¯ll kill him. I¡¯ll kill him! Mark my words, for I will take revenge for killing Izel! He was my favorite!¡±

    Gudwar was now serious about having Liam¡¯s life.

    The Guide couldn¡¯t physically smile at the moment, but he was smiling in his heart.

    (Fufufu, we failed this time, but with this, Gudwar has be serious. Liam¡¯s now bound to die eventually.)

    Liam wasn¡¯t aware of Gudwar¡¯s existence, meaning he didn¡¯t feel any gratitude towards it.

    Unlike the Guide, Gudwar didn¡¯t have to worry about receiving Liam¡¯s gratitude, making Gudwar a strong enemy for Liam.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Avid (¡ä?¦Ø?£à): ¡°I got scolded.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (£»©b§¥©b): ¡°M-must have been tough.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°That aside, Volume 6 of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ is now on sale! Chapter 23 and Volume 4 of the manga will be released this week as well, so please check them out!¡±

 Chapter 138 - V8 Chapter 13. The True Winner

    <h4>Chapter 138 ¨C V8 Chapter 13. The True Winner</h4>

    The Banfield Family¡¯s fleet has returned to Augur.

    Out of the 30,000 ships that made up the fleet, a couple thousand of them have been lost, and we¡¯re holding a funeral for them as we speak.

    us talks to me as I¡¯m standing in front of the war memorial in my mourning attire.

    ¡°Lord Liam, what are you thinking about in front of the memorial?¡±

    I¡¯ve been staring at the war memorial so intently that he must have grown suspicious.

    He must be wondering why a viinous lord like myself would act all serious at times like this.

    But see, it¡¯s only when they are dead that I can fully trust them.

    They haveid down their lives for me and proven that their loyalties were genuine.

    I¡¯m sure not all of them were willing to do so, but it doesn¡¯t change the fact that they died for my sake.

    They have all the right to swear at me, to resent me.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡±

    Even if I told him ¡°I¡¯m praying for the dead¡±, I doubt he¡¯ll believe me. Not to mention, it¡¯s already toote for those that have died.

    I¡¯m just doing this for self-satisfaction.

    ¡°Make sure to properlypensate the families of the deceased.¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    us and the other knight-escorts follow behind me as I turn my back on the memorial.

    Wacees over to me in his mourning attire.

    ¡°Liam, bad news!¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°A big problem has urred in the Capital! Look, the department you were in has been used of corruption, and it¡¯s been decided that it¡¯ll be crushed!¡±

    Wace operates his terminal and shows me an article about a case of corruption within the Capital.

    It¡¯s where I worked at before I was transferred here.

    ¡°Ahhh, you mean that. Well, we¡¯re approaching the end of our training after all.¡±

    ¡°Huh, what do you mean? I¡¯m telling you; your previous workce is about to be crushed. Investigators from the Capital might rush over here if we¡¯re unlucky.¡±

    Wace is making a big fuss about it, but it¡¯s nothing serious, so I keep walking.

    Dissatisfied by my reaction, Wace demands an exnation.

    ¡°I¡¯m the one who made the report.¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t like the fact that I was getting chased out of my workce, so I gathered evidence of corruption. I had quite a hard time getting it all done before the scheduled time.¡±

    That said, when I made up my mind to be the whistleblower, I became extremely motivated.

    There¡¯s a saying telling us to leave everything neat and tidy when you leave, but I went ahead and crushed my workce.

    I have no need for people that try to kick me out, and it¡¯s their fault for allowing me to find proof of their corruption.

    Wace¡¯s cheeks are twitching.

    ¡°You crushed them ¡®cause you didn¡¯t like them?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s that, but it was done more as a harassment¡ªRandy of the Lengrand Family will have a hard time because of this.¡±

    Just like me, Randy¡¯s about to finish his training, but I¡¯m looking forward to how these changes because of this incident.

    Normally, when someone¡¯s found to be involved in a case of corruption, they¡¯d have to restart their training.

    When he threw his work at me, I made sure to set him up.

    ¡ªHmm, he should be receiving the information on this by now?

    When I say ¡°restart¡± their training, I mean redoing everything except preschool, which is impossible to do.

    In other words¡ªit means going to the military academy again.

    All the aristocrats that were in my workce would have to restart their training.

    Wace flinches.

    ¡°You¡¯re a devil. Given his age, Randy would look extremely out of ce in the military academy.¡±

    ¡°Worry not. Just the fact that he has to start over due to corruption would make him stand out.¡±

    Basically, if you don¡¯tplete your training by the age of 200, the people around you would be like ¡°That¡¯s a bit...¡±

    This is especially the case if you have to start over as punishment for corruption.

    But this also means any act of corruption would normally be overlooked as long as that individual hasn¡¯t finished their training.

    This just goes to show how lenient the Empire is with the aristocrats.

    As I thought, being in a position of power is the best.

    ¡ó

    At the Capital...

    The department that Randy had been assigned to for his training had been emptied of all equipment including desks and chairs.

    The official that investigated the case of corruption made an announcement in front of the aristocratic children that had gathered there.

    ¡°Normally, as aristocrats of the Empire, this would be considered a serious offense. However, as you all haven¡¯t finished your training, you¡¯re only considered half-baked. As such, you will restart your training, and this incident will be swept under the rug.¡±

    Randy furrowed his brows in frustration in front of the officials, who reported directly to the Prime Minister.

    ¡°You dare do this to me, someone from the Lengrand Family?¡±

    The officialsughed derisively at his words, greatly upsetting Randy, but what followed made him dismiss this small details.

    To be more precise, his anger was redirected to someone else.

    ¡°A message from Count Banfield: ¡®Just a little more, and you would¡¯ve been done with your training. My condolences¡¯. Unlike everyone else here, Count Banfield, who was transferred, has sessfully finished his training and be a full-fledged aristocrat. He¡¯s a fine man, isn¡¯t he?¡±

    After throwing his former colleagues, juniors, and seniors under the bus and having them restart their training, he had gone off by himself after finishing it.

    Randy¡¯s face turned red as he imagined Liamughing out loud.

    ¡°H-him?¡±

    ¡°Indeed. Count Banfield was the informant after all. Oh, and he wanted to know what kind of expressions you guys will have when you learn of this, so please look over here.¡±

    Liam had only demanded one thing in exchange for being an informant: a picture of Randy and the others¡¯ frustrated expressions.

    Everyone at the scene was furious that they had to go through the training again just for that.

    ¡°You¡¯re being too overbearing here. I have the support of a faction¡ª¡±

    As Randy was about to finish his sentence, someone entered the room.

    It was Rosetta, who had remained behind in the Capital to move on Liam¡¯s behalf.

    She was being protected on all sides by her escorts, which included Tia and Marie who were back in their knight uniforms.

    As Liam was absent, they had been released from maid duty and were tasked with escorting Rosetta.

    ¡°Randy-dono, which faction are you talking about?¡±

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re Liam¡¯s fianc¨¦e.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s Rosetta, pleased to make your acquaintance.¡±

    Rosetta¡¯s voice echoed in the barren room.

    When everyone¡¯s attention was on her, she operated her terminal.

    ¡°His Highness Cleo has something to say to you.¡±

    A stereoscopic image of Cleo sitting on a chair was disyed, prompting Randy to fix his posture in a hurry.

    ¡°Your Highness Cleo, this¡ª¡±

    Before he could make any excuse, Cleo raised his right hand to shut him up.

    ¡®Randy-dono, I¡¯m disappointed with you. Go redo your training.¡¯

    ¡°A moment, Your Highness! This is clearly Liam¡¯s¡ª¡±

    ¡®Are you going to say that Count Banfield has set you up? If you aren¡¯t perceptive enough to see through this level of trap, you don¡¯t have what it takes to lead a faction.¡¯

    Seeing how much disappointment he has caused, Randy looked down in vexation.

    ¡®Count Banfield will be returning to the Capital now that his training is over. Good job working as his substitute.¡¯

    The stereoscopic image disappeared, and Randy copsed to his knees.

    ¡°Why? I¡¯m the Lengrand Family¡¯s sessor, you know? Is His Highness Cleo thinking of cutting off his rtionship with the Lengrand Family despite the close bond they share?¡±

    Rosetta stared down on Randy.

    ¡°I won¡¯t criticize you for wanting to get on the winning horse, but your timing and attitude couldn¡¯t have been more off.¡±

    If he had been humble and joined the faction while staying under Liam, none of this would have happened, but he had gone off and taken advantage of the fact that he was a member of Cleo¡¯s maternal household.

    As for what would¡¯ve happened if they had supported Cleo from the beginning¡ªsuch an assumption wasn¡¯t even worth considering.

    ¡°¡ªNot yet. It¡¯s not over yet.¡±

    In spite of everything, Randy hadn¡¯t given up.

    Now that she hadpleted her objective, Rosetta turned around to leave the room.

    ¡°Is that so.¡±

    She no longer paid Randy any attention.

    ¡ó

    When Rosetta was outside the now-emptied building, Eulisia, who was acting as her secretary, opened her mouth to speak while operating her terminal.

    ¡°The building¡¯s reputation has hit rock bottom due to this case of corruption, and it seems it¡¯ll be rebuilt because of that.¡±

    It was being rebuilt for a flimsy reason, but Rosetta wasn¡¯t interested in any of this.

    ¡°Rather than that, how are things progressing on our side?¡±

    Her eyes were on the building where her workce was.

    She had been working on a floor where only women could enter, and she was also just about finished her training.

    As for the result¡ª

    ¡°Everything has gone well. The boss, who was from the Calvin Faction, has been demoted and reced by someone from the Cleo Faction. In fact~ in just three years, we¡¯ll be able to rece 70% of them with people from our faction.¡±

    ¡ªWith the help of the talented Eulisia, the Cleo Faction was able to take control of most positions.

    While Rosetta and her retinue were returning to their workce, they came across one of Rosetta¡¯s former seniors who had been dismissed.

    ¡°How dare you¡ª!¡±

    Her hair was a mess, and she reeked of alcohol.

    Before she could reach Rosetta, Marie stepped forward to stop her.

    However, her former senior couldn¡¯t hold herself back and shouted at her.

    ¡°You better not think you¡¯re safe after doing all this! You¡¯re next to be kicked out! The Crown Prince¡¯s faction won¡¯t remain silent!¡±

    She had been dismissed because of the ssic act of embezzlement.

    Aristocrats weren¡¯t very perceptive, they usually behaved however they wanted, and did whatever they desired.

    She had just paid the price for that.

    ¡°Is that so. The thing is, I¡¯m not particrly attached to this workce. So, I¡¯ll be retiring now that I¡¯m done with my training.¡±

    Her former senior was stunned to hear that Rosetta would so effortlessly retire from the workce that she herself had clung so desperately onto. After a short pause, she began screaming.

    The knights dragged her away, and Rosetta returned to her workce.

    Eulisia shrugged seeing this.

    ¡°You¡¯re quite hated now.¡±

    ¡°You were the one who did everything though.¡±

    ¡°I was told to take things seriously after all.¡±

    Eulisia was usually all goofy, but she would be able to aplish most of what is expected of her once ordered to do so.

    Rosetta took this as a sign that Eulisia wasn¡¯t taking things seriously.

    ¡°From now on, take things seriously before being told to do so.¡±

    ¡°I think it¡¯s better to do everything in moderation. Lady Rosetta¡¯s too stiff about everything.¡±

    ¡°And you¡¯re toox about everything!¡±

    With her hands on her ears, Tia was receiving a report with a serious look on her face as the twodies continued to argue.

    Rosetta noticed her behavior and asked, ¡°Did something happen?¡±

    Tia let go of her ears and said with a somewhat impatient expression, ¡°¡ªIt¡¯s about the war with the Kingdom of Dominion. The Imperial Army has been defeated. The main army under His Highness Calvin has withdrawn, with great damage to the army.¡±

    ¡°Pardon?¡±

    Rosetta¡¯s face turned pale when she heard that the battle at the border where Liam had been dispatched to had ended with the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s victory.

    ¡ó

    Damaged ships are arriving at the spaceport above Augur seamlessly.

    Ships that have been wandering aimlessly in space looking for a ce to receive supplies and maintenance seem to be gathering here.

    However, there are more of them than we were expecting, and the spaceport is bing very crowded.

    Next to me, Wace gulps seeing the state of the Imperial Army¡¯s battleships.

    ¡°How did they win after losing theirmander? Liam already killed Izel, right?¡±

    The Imperial Army has lost.

    The battlefield I was on ended with the Empire¡¯s victory, but the Imperial Army lost on the other battlefields.

    The aristocrats of the Calvin Faction appear to have fought hard, but they couldn¡¯t resist the onught of the Kingdom of Dominion.

    Eventually they decided to withdraw.

    ¡°Calvin, who was backed to a corner, made the decision to retreat.¡±

    News was arriving one after another, but from what I¡¯ve gather, there were some unnatural movements.

    Some of the aristocrats seem to have purposely allowed the Kingdom of Dominion to approach Augur.

    I¡¯m not about to forgive them just because we won, but there¡¯s nothing I can do if the perpetrators are dead.

    Wace clings to me.

    ¡°Liam, let¡¯s run away! This is no longer a base that¡¯s in the rear. We¡¯re at the front lines! Even my brother withdrew. No one will say anything if we run.¡±

    Calvin¡¯s a capable man.

    The damage to the Imperial Army wasn¡¯t that great, but he ordered a retreat to minimize the damage upon realizing that he couldn¡¯t win.

    Thanks to that, Augur has be a base situated at the front lines, and Calvin¡¯s even left behind a souvenir.

    ¡°We can¡¯t, an order has been handed down from the Capital.¡±

    A small window that¡¯s used for disying electronic documents is floating in the air.

    I gesture it towards Wace, and the window slowly moves until it¡¯s right before his face.

    Wace confirms the content of the document, his eyes roll back and he faints.

    Now that I¡¯ve finished my training and be full-fledged aristocrat, the document is telling me to go to the front lines and serve as a breakwater against the Kingdom of Dominion.

    ¡°And here I was, preparing to head back to taunt Randy. What a bother.¡±

    After realizing that he couldn¡¯t win, not only did Calvin run away, he pushed the matter of the border to me.

    Just as I¡¯m wondering what to do next, us rushes to my side.

    ¡°Lord Liam, we were told that the Kingdom of Dominion would be sending an ambassador.¡±

    ¡°From the Kingdom of Dominion?¡±

    ¡°Yes, they wish for a ceasefire.¡±

    So now that they¡¯ve shaved off a chunk of the Empire, they want to end the war?

    ¡°And the Kingdom of Dominion has nominated Lord Liam, who defeated Crown Prince Izel, to act as the negotiator.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re already acting like the victors? What an impatient bunch.¡±

    ¡°What will you do?¡±

    us is sweating profusely.

    Well¡ªit sounds rather interesting, so I guess I¡¯ll take part in the negotiations.

    ¡°Contact the Capital.¡±

    I was under the impression that we won arge-scale battle, but from the looks of things, it was only one piece of the puzzle.

    Even if I win, it doesn¡¯t mean anything if we lose on all the other battlefields.

    ¡ªBut this must have been a dangerous wager for Calvin as well.

    If he can¡¯t recover from this, he¡¯ll probably lose his status as the Crown Prince.

    ¡°¡ªOh, one more thing. us, take Wace back to his room.¡±

    ¡°U-understood.¡±

    us carries Wace away.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°With the web novelpleted, I won¡¯t be able to y any active role, but as the idol of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯, I¡¯ll continue to pull my weight by taking over the postscript! Now, onto today¡¯s promotions!¡±

    Wakagi-chan (*¡ä?£à): ¡°Volume 4 of the manga ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ will be released August 7th. Chapter 23, which has a whopping 50 pages, will be updated this week as well!¡±

    Wakagi-chan (*¡ä?£à*): ¡°For readers of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire¡¯, if you¡¯ve be interested, you may want to try out the manga first. ¡ªOh, but Naegi-chan (aka me) hasn¡¯t appeared yet, so don¡¯t be too disappointed.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (¡ä?£à*): ¡°Please show much love to ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯, which as a series, have sold a total of 300,000 copies!¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°It¡¯s painful.¡±

 Chapter 139 - V8 Chapter 14. The Overlords Daughter

    <h4>Chapter 139 ¨C V8 Chapter 14. The Overlord¡¯s Daughter</h4>

    V8 Chapter 14. The Overlord¡¯s Daughter

    It took the delegation from the Gudwar Kingdom of Dominion three months to reach Augur, and the people that arrived at the spaceport were more normal than I thought.

    I was fully expecting them to be Shura-esque individuals, but they look pretty ordinary, and the officials that the Capital dispatched have been negotiating with them over the terms for the ceasefire.

    What¡¯s my role in this? ¡ªNothing.

    This is a matter between the Empire and the Kingdom of Dominion.

    I¡¯m just participating because the other side nominated me, so I have no real say in this.

    I¡¯ve essentially been taking part every day in meetings where I can¡¯t speak, but it seems like the officials that were sent here have sessfully managed to pull off a ceasefire period of 30 years with the Kingdom of Dominion.

    They seem delighted by it, but it¡¯s neither a long nor a short period from this world¡¯s perspective.

    With the negotiation done and over with, whates next is naturally a party.

    This is where I can truly shine. Rather, as the person in charge of the spaceport, I¡¯ve been instructed to ¡®prepare a party¡¯. Of course, I had Wace make all the necessary preparations.

    ¡ó

    Marion, who¡¯s all dressed up, is standing next to me at the party venue with a grim expression on her face, perhaps because she feels ufortable in a dress.

    There¡¯s also the fact that she finds me irritable.

    ¡°If you hate being in women¡¯s attire so much, just change your gender.¡±

    One¡¯s allowed to freely choose their gender in this world, but Marion¡¯s excuse for not doing so is very interesting.

    ¡°I like myself as I am. I never had a problem with my gender to begin with.¡±

    ¡°I thought you like women?¡±

    She kept saying things like ¡°I¡¯ll devour all the women!¡± So, I thought she wanted to be a man, but it seems I was wrong.

    ¡°To love a girl as a girl. That is my wish.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think I fully understand.¡±

    ¡°No surprise there.¡±

    Marion doesn¡¯t have any misgivings about being a girl, but she also likes other girls.

    Thus, she decided to aim for the position of Family Head as she was.

    ¡°How silly of you. That position could have been yours if you had remained quiet.¡±

    ¡°¡ªIt¡¯s all your fault,¡± says Marion with a voice full of hate.

    She was really frustrated when she first heard of the mischief I performed on Randy, the heir from the Lengrand Family.

    Marion¡¯s loss was confirmed the moment she bet on Randy¡¯s victory.

    It feels nice to watch her bitter expression.

    I dislike women that try to take advantage of me, but it¡¯s refreshing to see Marion¡¯s look of frustration.

    ¡ªNot to mention she¡¯s of use to me.

    ¡°So, what¡¯s the Kingdom of Dominion trying to do?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re going to talk about work all of a sudden? You¡¯re as serious as always.¡±

    ¡°I kept you alive, so I expect you to work for me.¡±

    ¡°What a way to phrase it.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m counting on you kouhai, or should I say, Marion-chan?¡±

    ¡°Stop calling me that.¡±

    ¡°Then report what you¡¯ve found.¡±

    It felt unpleasant being kept in the dark, so I¡¯ve been doing my own investigation.

    That¡¯s also why I called Marion to the party.

    She¡¯s a local here and has various connections, so I had her investigate for me.

    ¡°¡ªIt¡¯s not only the Empire that stands to gain from the ceasefire. With the death of Crown Prince Izel, his rtives have taken hold of his army.¡±

    Despite theirmander perishing in battle, the Kingdom of Dominion and its army kept pushing, defeating the Imperial Army in the end.

    I see, so it was all thanks to the hard work of Izel¡¯s rtives.

    ¡°Is this the work of brotherly love?¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t understand a thing about the Kingdom of Dominion. What conclusion do you think their generals came to after hearing that theirmander died? ¡ªIt¡¯s that they can be the next Crown Prince if they y an active role on the battlefield.¡±

    They didn¡¯t mourn Izel¡¯s death.

    Instead, they thought luck was on their side.

    As I thought, the Kingdom of Dominion is no good either.

    Marion turns towards the ignorant officials that have been dispatched from the Capital.

    She must be feeling ticked off by how delighted they seem over the ceasefire.

    ¡°If they had done some prior research, we could have regained some of our territory.¡±

    This isn¡¯t a case of the officials being ipetent.

    They may seem that way because of all the territory we¡¯ve lost, but for them, it¡¯s more important that we stop fighting with the Kingdom of Dominion. Even if that means losing some of the territories along the border.

    They must be more concerned about the borders we share with other countries.

    They¡¯re probably thinking that they can take back the territoriester down the line, or better yet, they might even think it¡¯s alright without those territories.

    ¡°They want Izel to be reced?¡±

    ¡°Soon, a bloodbath is bound to begin inside the Kingdom of Dominion.¡±

    That¡¯s why they want a ceasefire?

    A tall woman approaches us as we¡¯re talking.

    Instead of skirt, she¡¯s wearing a ck suit with pants, and she seem to have a well-trained body.

    Her long, silver hair sways as she walks, and her sharp blue eyes give off the impression of a strong woman.

    Not finding the woman to her taste, Marion turns away as the powerful-looking beauty walks up to us, but the new arrival doesn¡¯t take heed of Marion¡¯s attitude.

    ¡°Sorry about that.¡±

    I apologize for Marion¡¯s behavior, and the woman waves it off.

    Her interest seems to be on me instead.

    ¡°In her, my interestys not. My interest is on thee.¡±

    The woman speaks in a rather unique way thatplements the atmosphere around her.

    It¡¯s not just her outwards appearance. She must be a warrior through and through.

    ¡°What do you want?¡±

    Thinking she¡¯d be offended if I were to treat her like a weak woman, I change my tone when I speak to her, and she seems pleased by it.

    However, the smile on her face is like that of a ferocious beast.

    ¡°I wanted to see the man who slew the prince with mine own eyes. A masterpiece he was, even in my, his sister¡¯s eyes. He was a brother I was proud of.¡±

    Just as I¡¯m wondering whether she¡¯s thinking of challenging me to a duel for killing such an excellent brother¡ªshe says something thatpletely stumps me.

    ¡°I¡¯m grateful to thee.¡±

    ¡°Say what?¡±

    Being thanked so suddenly leaves me utterly confused, and the same is true for Marion.

    For a moment, I even wonder if she made a mistake.

    ¡°I thank thee for ying my brother.¡±

    ¡°You said he was a brother you were proud of just now, didn¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°Thou art right. I greatly respect my brother. Even now, that hasn¡¯t changed. He was supposed to fall under my sword, but someone even stronger than him appeared. What a big world we live in.¡±

    She sounds excited, and her eyes are burning with passion.

    While looking like a maiden who¡¯s about to confess her love, she says, ¡°Wait until I catch up. Thine life I will take. Also, give me thine genes.¡±

    ¡°¡ªWhat the hell are you on about?¡±

    Inside my head, she immediately gets put in the same category as Tia and Marie.

    They have the looks, but why do they all have to be so disappointing?

    ¡°I wish for the genes of a strong man.¡±

    ¡°I refuse.¡±

    ¡°Why so?¡±

    Marion clears her throat in front of the woman who seems genuinely curious.

    ¡°It¡¯s not a topic you¡¯d typically bring up at a party. Continuing this conversation any further would be considered a breach of manner, princess of the Kingdom of Dominion.¡±

    I¡¯m surprised by her words.

    Eh, this here¡¯s the Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s princess?!

    Sure, she¡¯s referred to herself as Izel¡¯s sister, but I thought it was more like a rtionship between inws?

    For real?

    The woman lets out a small sigh of disappointment.

    ¡°Pardon me, it is considered normal in our country. Is it not so in other ces? This must be that thing called ¡®culture shock¡¯.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m the one that¡¯s shocked here.¡±

    What kind of a thought process must someone have to request a stranger¡¯s gic material during their first encounter?

    After such a long time, the woman introduces herself.

    ¡°[Aruna] is mine name. If thee happen to change thine mind,e visit the Kingdom of Dominion.¡±

    With that, Aruna, Izel¡¯s sister, takes her leave.

    ¡°Never,¡± I mutter behind her back.

    That was the biggest shock I¡¯ve had in recent days.

    The world is truly a big ce.

    I¡¯ve never had someone demand I hand over my genes before, though there was that one time when my gic material was collected without me noticing it.

    Marion shows an unnatural smile.

    ¡°I remember now. The Kingdom of Dominion likes to actively seek out genes of strong men.¡±

    ¡°Say that beforehand.¡±

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s my first time interacting with them. Liam-senpai would no doubt be very popr if you go to the Kingdom of Dominion.¡±

    No.

    ¡°So, when is Liam-senpai nning on returning to the Capital? Please take me with you. Because of a certain someone, I¡¯ve lost my ce at my parents¡¯ house.¡±

    ¡°You reap what you sow. But if you want to follow me back, get ready. I¡¯ll be leaving soon.¡±

    ¡ó

    In the Inner Pce of the Capital, one furious Madam Annabel barged into the skyscraper which was Cleo¡¯s residence.

    ¡°I think you owe us an exnation!¡±

    She was indignant that Randy, her nephew and heir to the Lengrand Family, had to restart his training.

    She wasn¡¯t particrly worried about Randy himself, but this was a scandal that could affect her reputation as well.

    Not only that, she was being faced withints from the Lengrand Family.

    Cleo, who had been processing electronic documents inside his office, stopped his work and raised his head.

    ¡°Embezzlement is a crime, mother.¡±

    ¡°Everyone¡¯s doing it! You¡¯d be a fool to throw away your backer just for something that¡¯s considered a norm!¡±

    ¡°Are you really that stupid?¡±

    Seeing Cleough, Madam Annabel felt a shiver run down her spine, and her face turned from red to blue.

    Cleo slowly began his exnation.

    ¡°I never counted on the Lengrand Family¡¯s backing to begin with.¡±

    ¡°What?!¡±

    ¡°You approached us only when things got better on our end. Did you really think I¡¯d trust you after seeing that? You thought I¡¯d let bygones be bygones and ept your support?¡±

    Madam Annabel remained silent after noticing that the air around Cleo had changed.

    Cleo continued to address Madam Annabel.

    ¡°If you really thought I¡¯d be happy to obey you, there¡¯s something wrong with your head.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re talking to your mother here! In the first ce, someone like you¡ª¡±

    Lysithea, Cleo¡¯s sister, entered the room before Madam Annabel could finish what she was saying.

    ¡°Cleo, Count Banfield has arrived. He wants to have a meeting with you as soon as possible.¡±

    Realization dawned on Madam Annabel after hearing Lysithea mention Liam¡¯s name.

    ¡°Y-you tricked us?¡±

    What a slow person,Cleo thought as he exined.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. You probably genuinely believed I¡¯d give the Lengrand Family preferential treatment over Count Banfield, but that would be illogical.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re going to ignore the fact that we¡¯re connected by blood and¡ª¡±

    Cleo smirked.

    ¡°¡ªIt¡¯s precisely those that are connected by blood that are trying to kill each other here. What are you even getting at?¡±

    Cleo stood up to leave the room, leaving Madam Annabel behind.

    Incensed, she gave Cleo a warning.

    ¡°The darkness behind the Empire is deeper than you think. When you realize who it is that¡¯s trying to take your life, you will surely fall into the depths of despair.¡±

    Cleo and Lysithea exited the room while Madam Annabel drowned herself in herughter.

    ¡ó

    ¡°You really helped me out this time.¡±

    After his encounter with Madam Annabel, Cleo proceeded to meet with Liam, who was sitting on a chair and drinking tea.

    ¡°The pleasure¡¯s mine, toying with Randy was a st.¡±

    This was a man who had crushed his workce.

    Deep in his heart, Cleo couldn¡¯t help but envy Liam.

    (You¡¯re always so rxed and unafraid of anything.)

    Cleo jumped straight into the topic at hand.

    He had never nned on evenparing the Banfield Family with the Lengrand Family, thetter of which hadn¡¯t done anything for him until now.

    He had informed Liam about the Lengrand Family from the very beginning and hade up with countermeasures against them.

    ¡°You told me to let them do whatever they want when I first informed you about the Lengrand Family stepping forth to support me. Did you expect things to progress this way?¡±

    Liam put down his cup and exined why he went out of his way to trouble himself.

    ¡°I was trying to figure out who was behind the Lengrand Family. I thought it was Calvin, but it¡¯s apparently not him.¡±

    ¡°¡ªElder brother also has it rough. He¡¯s in a bad position now that he¡¯s lost the war even after you defeated the enemymander.¡±

    It wouldn¡¯t have been so bad for Calvin if he had only lost the war.

    Unfortunately for him, with Liam having defeated Izel, things becameplicated.

    If Cleo had been inmand from the beginning, wouldn¡¯t the Empire have won the war?

    More and more people were starting to think in such a way.

    ¡°Calvin¡¯s been really unlucky. It¡¯s almost as if he¡¯s being followed by a gue god.¡±

    Cleoughed at Liam¡¯s joke, but what came next wasn¡¯t so funny.

    ¡°Oh, by the way. The force that¡¯s backing the Lengrand Family¡ªIt¡¯s the Emperor.¡±

    ¡°¡ªCome again?¡±

    ¡°I had my ck Ops investigate. Madam Annabel¡¯s behavior also makes sense if it¡¯s the emperor that¡¯s backing her up.¡±

    Liam was saying this as if it was nothing important, but Cleo¡¯s surprise was evident.

    ¡°My father?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s nice that we finally know who our true enemy is.¡±

    ¡°So, His Majesty the Emperor¡¯s our true enemy huh~¡± Liam said casually.

    ¡°¡ªIf we¡¯re up against Father, whatever position I have right now can be blown away easily.¡±

    ¡°And I¡¯m here to prevent that. Then again, we¡¯re not strong enough at the moment, so let¡¯s continue to try and expand our power. ¡ªOn that note, I heard you¡¯re selling a lot of favors to poor aristocrats.¡±

    Liam¡¯s eyes glinted, prompting Cleo to pour forth with the excuse that he hade up with.

    ¡°It was all to trick the Lengrand Family¡¯s eyes. I splurged on your support to make it seem like our rtionship was getting worse. My sister was unaware of this as well since it was all part of my act. Having said that, I apologize for keeping you in the dark.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t really mind.¡±

    Cleo and Liam were allies, but there was a clear reason as to why he decided to support the weak aristocrats, and it had nothing to do with tricking the Lengrand Family.

    (You are really strong. With your power, you can do whatever you want. As for me¡ªI¡¯m just a figurehead. But some day¡ª)

    Cleo did not rely on the Lengrand Family¡¯s support as he didn¡¯t think they could beat Liam.

    However, he had taken this opportunity to sell favors to poor aristocratic families.

    He was making preparations so that he could eventually increase his influence.

    Cleo maintained his smile in front of Liam who was drinking tea, but deep in his heart, his expression was cold.

    (There wille a day when I can beat you. I refuse to remain as a figurehead.)

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°It¡¯s been decided that ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ will be reprinted! Along with Volume 6, there will be a reprint of Volume 4! You see? This is all thanks to my advertisement!¡±

    Wakagi-chan (???): ¡°¡¯The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ is currently on sale with great reviews! Also, Volume 4 of the manga will be released this week along with an update of chapter 23.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (;???): ¡°Chapter 23 has almost 50 pages of content, which came as a surprise to even Naegi-chan! Please enjoy. Oh, and also purchase Volume 4 of the manga please~¡±

    Brian(¡ä?¦Ø?): ¡°Miss, she¡¯s over here!¡±

    Yumeria (¡ä?£à): ¡°I¡¯vee to pick up Wakagi-chan!¡±

    Wakagi-chan ¦²¦² (©b §¥ ©b £»): ¡°NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!?!?!¡±

 Chapter 140 - V8 Chapter 15. The Guide And Gudwar

    <h4>Chapter 140 ¨C V8 Chapter 15. The Guide And Gudwar</h4>

    In the Gudwar Kingdom of Dominion¡¯s Capital, the power struggle over who would seed Crown Prince Izel¡¯s position had already begun to heat up.

    Who would be fit to seed as the Crown Prince, and by extension, who would be the next Overlord?

    Not only was the Royal Family involved, aristocrats andmoners, who were confident in their strengths, also joined in the fray. So, skirmishes were happening all over the ce.

    Since they had just had their war with the Empire, the scale of these fights was notrge, but everyone in the kingdom knew that things were about to be rough in the near future.

    At the Capital, there was an arena that closely resembled the Coliseum. Gudwar was there with its eight legs extended out, shaking them as if they were whips.

    The target of the whipping was the Guide, who had regressed back into his hat form.

    ¡°No! It hurts! Stop!¡±

    The Guide was being beaten and struck so many times that he was all dirty from rolling on the ground after being thrown around.

    Gudwar was in a state of rage and refused to listen to the Guide.

    ¡°Izel was just one step away from bing my servant, and yet...! This is all your fault! It¡¯s all because of you!¡±

    It med the Guide for interfering needlessly in their situation.

    Not only were its legs swelled up, even its octopus head had turned red from anger.

    The Guide, however, begged to differ.

    (What a joke. I had my hopes up after seeing how confident you were, but in the end, that treasured child of yours couldn¡¯t even beat Liam. Strongest my foot! My effort was wasted.)

    He was furious as well, but he couldn¡¯t beat Gudwar in his current state.

    Knowing this, the Guide tried to cate Gudwar.

    ¡°I understand where you¡¯reing from, but¡ª¡±

    ¡°What would you know?! Do you have any idea how much effort I poured into raising Izel?! Do you understand the excitement I felt every time he overcame challenges that I prepared for him, challenges that he could barely pass at the time? He was even able to ovee some that appeared impossible!¡±

    An existence like Izel could only be born when multiple miracles ovepped.

    For some reason, the Guide felt a bad premonition after hearing this.

    (Then what about Liam who¡¯s survived all the outrageous trials that¡¯s been thrown at him?)

    Gudwar had to undergo a lot of trouble raising Izel.

    Inparison, Liam had always ovee the impossible without ever being fazed.

    To the Guide, this was nothing short of horrifying.

    (Wouldn¡¯t it be better to leave him alone?)

    The Guide was about to arrive at the correct conclusion, but his thoughts were interrupted by attacks from Gudwar¡¯s octopi legs.

    ¡°Eyaa¡ª?!¡±

    The Guide shivered and let out a weird scream.

    Then, Gudwar issued him an order.

    ¡°I expect you to cooperate with me. First, we¡¯ll prepare warriors that can kill Liam. Then, we¡¯ll equip them with the best weapons!¡±

    If one Izel wasn¡¯t enough, they¡¯d simply equip mass-produced versions of Izel with excellent quality weapons and overwhelm Liam with numbers.

    Or at least that was Gudwar¡¯s n.

    The Guide fixed his crumpled hat and dusted it off with his small hands.

    (If that¡¯s all it takes to beat Liam, I wouldn¡¯t be so troubled in the first ce.)

    He was thinking of running away and staying quiet until Liam passed away, but he couldn¡¯t do that anymore now that Gudwar had caught him.

    ¡°Liam must die!¡±

    Despite feeling scared, the Guide asked Gudwar a question.

    ¡°I thought you like people that are strong? Liam would fit the bill, wouldn¡¯t he?¡±

    The Guide was nning on handing Liam over to Gudwar before making his escape. However, he was denied this option.

    ¡°¡ªIt¡¯s different. He¡¯s not a warrior that I raised.¡±

    ¡°I-is t-that so.¡±

    Apparently, it only acknowledged warriors that it raised itself.

    Gudwar lifted the Guide with its outstretched legs.

    ¡°I¡¯ll say it once again. I expect you to cooperate. If you try to run away¡ªI¡¯ll hunt you down and erase your existence.¡±

    ¡°Hiii!¡±

    Due to his previous obsession over Liam, the Guide couldn¡¯t escape anymore, further deepening his hatred towards him.

    (Why did things turn out this way!? This is all Liam¡¯s fault. Curse you Liam!)

    His thirst for vengeance was rekindled, the evil hands of both the Guide and Gudwar were about to approach Liam.

    ¡ó

    Having returned to the Capital, I had a meeting with His Highness Cleo beforeing back to the hotel.

    At the hotel, I¡¯m greeted by none other than Rosetta.

    ¡°Wee back, Darling!¡±

    She jumps me and puts her arms around my neck, effectivelytching onto my body.

    I can feel her big breasts touching me, and she smells rather nice¡ªbut that¡¯s not the problem here.

    She¡¯s embarrassing the heck out of me.

    It makes me ufortable whenever I¡¯m faced with such unconditional kindness.

    ¡°Let go of me.¡±

    ¡°Darling, I have something to tell you!¡±

    ¡°Later. I¡¯m going to my room, so don¡¯t let anyone in.¡±

    The look of disappointment on her face after she separates from me reminds me of the feeling known as guilt, something which I thought I¡¯d forgotten.

    I really hope she returns to her strong former self.

    ¡°¡ªIf it won¡¯t take long. I¡¯ll listen to what you have to say in 30 minutes, so have some tea prepared for us.¡±

    Rosetta¡¯s expression visibly brightens, and she smiles at me.

    ¡°Right away!¡±

    Then she scurries away.

    Wait, is she going to brew the tea herself?

    Are you okay with that? You¡¯re a frickin¡¯ Duchess-to-be, you know?!

    Ciel, Rosetta¡¯s servant, hurriedly chases after her.

    ¡ªShoot. I was thinking of teasing her, but she¡¯s already chased after Rosetta.

    Amagi, who¡¯s been listening to us, steps in.

    ¡°Then I will ensure no one enters Master¡¯s room.¡±

    ¡°Amagi¡¯s free to enter, though.¡±

    I head to the office that¡¯s been prepared for me.

    Inside, there are people already waiting.

    ¡ªOne of them is Kukuri.

    He¡¯s waiting on one knee along with Kunai, who I¡¯ve personally named.

    When I sit down, Kukuri begins his report.

    ¡°The result of our investigation matches that of the information provided by Marion. The Kingdom of Dominion has its hands full trying to handle the civil war that¡¯s erupted over who should be the next Overlord.¡±

    Obviously, I didn¡¯t take Marion¡¯s information at face value. I had Kukuri and his men investigate its authenticity.

    ¡°We would win if we were to fight them now.¡±

    ¡°Only if it¡¯s against the Kingdom of Dominion.¡±

    Kukuri seems to think there are other sources of danger besides the Kingdom of Dominion.

    ¡°Which force is on the move?¡±

    Kukuri must have received intel of other intergctic nations eyeing the weakened Empire.

    ¡°For now, we are only certain about the Parallel Federation.¡±

    The Parallel Federation¡ªa massive intergctic alliance formed by a number of independent nations. It can be seen as a gathering of intergctic nations with amon set ofws.

    It¡¯s simr to the United Kingdoms in that sense, but the difference is that a presidential system is in ce, meaning aristocracy isn¡¯t a thing.

    This may sound like what the Lustral Unified Government has in ce, but the Parallel Federation isn¡¯t as unified. As mentioned before, it¡¯s more a gathering of independent nations.[1]

    ¡°The Parallel Federation... Hmm, I don¡¯t have any connections there.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s situated very far from the Banfield Family¡¯s territory, so there¡¯s no need to worry about being called to the battlefield even if there¡¯s a war, Lord Liam has already participated in the battle against the Kingdom of Dominion.¡±

    I¡¯ve fought with the Kingdom of Dominion and racked up some achievements, so it¡¯s highly likely that I¡¯ll be exempt in the next war.

    However, if I am asked to participate, I¡¯ll refuse. I¡¯ll only provide funds and resources for the war effort.

    ¡°Now I can return to my territory and hole up.¡±

    I¡¯m finally done with my long training, so I can do whatever I wish from now on.

    Amagi dumps cold water on me just as I¡¯m getting excited over all the things toe.

    ¡°Indeed. Master has yet to wed Lady Rosetta, so a wedding would be in order when we return to the territory. Once the wedding is over, the Banfield Family will be promoted to a Ducal household.¡±

    ¡°¡ªEh?¡±

    ¡°Now that Master¡¯s training is over, you¡¯re considered a full-fledged aristocrat. Once you marry Lady Rosetta, you¡¯ll be a Duke.¡±

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re right.¡±

    I forgot. I totally forgot that I had to marry Rosetta.

    I¡¯m interested in her family¡¯s title, but do I have to marry Rosetta as she is now?

    Will I truly be satisfied with marrying the current Rosetta, who¡¯s acting like an easy woman, and not the previous Rosetta, who was a woman of steel?

    But if I were to abandon Rosetta now, my reputation among the aristocrats would hit rock bottom, never to recover.

    Seeing my reaction, Amagi looks at me with squinted eyes.

    ¡°Master, you aren¡¯t thinking of running away from the marriage thiste in the game, right? That would be unforgivable.¡±

    Kukuri and Kunai remain silent, perhaps because they don¡¯t wish to get involved in such a silly topic.

    Y-you guys should be helping your Master!

    It¡¯s not like I can go against Amagi though.

    ¡°O-of course not! We¡¯ll host the wedding when we¡¯re back. Yup, when we¡¯re back!¡±

    I couldn¡¯t go out and y during the training period because of the various inconveniences along the way, so I want to enjoy being a bachelor for a little longer.

    Sorry Rosetta, but I¡¯ll have to ask you to put up with it for a couple more years.

    I¡¯lle up with some excuse to remain in the Capital so that I can y around!

    A knock on the door is heard as I¡¯m thinking hard about my ns for the future.

    Eulisia¡¯s voice is heard from the other side of the door.

    ¡°Lord Liam, Baron Exner and Lord Kurt are here.¡±

    The Baron¡¯s here? And Kurt?

    ¡ó

    I meet Baron Exner inside the reception room that I rent from the hotel.

    Kurt, who has officially be a soldier after finishing his training, is there as well.

    He¡¯s as tall and handsome as always, but he¡¯s making a bitter expression.

    Baron Exner performs a dogeza in front of me.

    ¡°Liam-dono, I¡¯m truly sorry!¡±

    Baron Exner bangs his forehead repeatedly on the ground and apologizes.

    Kurt, who¡¯s standing next to him, res at Ciel. She¡¯s also in the room, and looking down with teary eyes.

    I¡¯m utterly confused as to why Baron Exner¡¯s performing a dogeza.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Baron? Please, take a seat on the sofa.¡±

    ¡°That, I cannot do!¡±

    Baron Exner keeps apologizing profusely. I turn towards Kurt, who¡¯s still ring at Ciel, for an exnation.

    Kurt is also wearing an apologetic look.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry about this, Liam.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the issue here?¡±

    ¡°¡ªCiel was doing things behind your back and interfered in matters regarding Rosetta¡¯s personal guards.¡±

    ¡°I-is that so.¡±

    Kurt must have scolded Ciel before I arrived.

    She¡¯s keeping her head down while looking like she¡¯s about to cry.

    ¡ªSorry, but I knew about that... Is what I would like to say, but it doesn¡¯t seem like it¡¯s the right time to say it.

    To begin with, no matter what she does, I¡¯m informed about it.

    Ciel makes up for the rebellious attitude that Rosettacks.

    She heals me in a sense.

    But how did Baron Exner and Kurt be aware of her actions?

    No, there¡¯s a bigger problem that must first be addressed¡ª

    ¡°I understand that apologizing won¡¯t be enough, so I¡¯ll take responsibility for what has happened! Please allow Kurt to seed me, and I¡¯ll make sure that he properlypensates you.¡±

    I wouldn¡¯t be bothered all that much if he just intends on giving up his position as the head of family, but based on how he¡¯s phrasing it, I think Baron Exner intends on taking responsibility with his life.

    Thatwould be a problem! After all, he¡¯s a fellow viinous lord!

    Kurt scowls at Ciel.

    ¡°To think she¡¯d be up to this sort of mischief inside the house that¡¯s taking care of her. Liam, let me also apologize on her behalf. I¡¯m really sorry that this has happened¡ª Ciel, you should apologize too.¡±

    Ciel bows her head with tears in her eyes, but I can see that her rebellious attitude is still there.

    Fantastic, you should stay that way!

    However, it appears Kurt has already made up his mind about what to do with her.

    ¡°If you¡¯re willing to forgive her, we¡¯re thinking of banishing her from the family and sending her somewhere remote. If you can¡¯t forgive her for what she¡¯s done¡ªwe¡¯re willing to ept whatever punishment you have in store for her.¡±

    You mean to say that you¡¯re going to take her away from here?!

    Among all the girls that I have right now, there¡¯s no one capable of healing my soul like Ciel!

    Chino has her own role, and Ellen¡¯s role is that of my disciple¡ªno, this won¡¯t do.

    No one can rece her.

    While my mind is in a state of disarray, Rosetta, who¡¯s been listening to our conversation, pleads for my mercy.

    ¡°Darling, can you at least spare her life? I¡¯m also partly responsible and was involved in teaching this child, so please.¡±

    Rosetta¡¯s asking me to spare Ciel, but that was never the problem here!

    The only thing on my mind is what I should do to make sure Ciel remains within my grasp.

    I approach Baron Exner before calling out to him.

    ¡°Baron¡ªhow much will it be?¡±

    ¡°Thepensation? Well, I was thinking of discussing that with Liam-dono as well¡ª¡±

    ¡°No, no, no. How much will it cost to pardon Ciel?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Baron Exner seems to not understand what¡¯s going on, so I give him a polite exnation.

    ¡°I¡¯m willing to forgive Ciel. On top of that, I ask that you continue entrusting your daughter¡¯s training to my household. Throwing her out like this will damage my reputation, you see. ¡ªSo how much will it take for me to convince you, Baron? 5,000? 10,000?¡±

    Obviously, I¡¯m omitting a couple of zeroes at the end when I say 5,000.

    ¡°Eh? But why are we receivingpensation? Normally, it would be the other way around...¡±

    You just have to nod your head!

    ¡°Then how about 20,000? Oh, and I have a lot of acquaintances in the army, so I can put in a good word for Kurt.¡±

    Baron Exner shakes his head.

    ¡°No, no, we can¡¯t possibly receive that. Allow us to take Ciel away and provide you with a formal apology.¡±

    ¡°And I¡¯m asking if you could do something about that! Please just continue to entrust your daughter with us! ¡ªOkay, let us settle at 50,000. I¡¯ll also speak to the military about Kurt. I¡¯ll put pressure on them if that¡¯s what it takes! He¡¯d be guaranteed a double promotion at the very least!¡±

    ¡°Stop, this is getting scary¡± Kurt says, but this is all to keep Ciel by my side.

    Ciel seems bewildered as well.

    Rosetta admonishes her for what she¡¯s done.

    ¡°¡ªListen carefully, Ciel. You were forgiven this time because Darling is just that nice. Normally, you¡¯d be kicked out, no questions asked. That¡¯s how serious your offense was, so make sure you reflect on your actions.¡±

    ¡°Y-yes, ma¡¯am.¡±

    Ciel doesn¡¯t appear convinced, but with Rosetta beside her, she has no choice but to acquiesce.

    Good thing too, since if she has a change of heart or something along that line, I will kick her out just like that. [2]

    Please keep up with your rebellious spirit.

    ¡°That will do, yes?¡±

    ¡°¡ªIf Liam-dono is fine with that.¡±

    The baron still doesn¡¯t sound like he fully understands, but he epts my proposal.

    ¡ªPhew, that¡¯s a relief.

    Now, how did the information about Ciel get leaked?

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Wakagi-chan (; ¡ä§¥`): ¡°E-even if I were to fall here, a second and third me will appear and continue to advertise. As long as there are things left to advertise, I am immortal¡ªgufu! Volume 4 of the manga ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ will be released tomorrow¡ªand chapter 23 will be updated tomorrow as well.¡±

    Yumeria (¥Î???)¥Î: ¡°Be a good girl~~ Be a good girl~~¡±

    Wakagi-chan ((( ;©b§Õ©b))): ¡°NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!?!?!!???

    Wakagi-chan (©b§Õ©b): ¡°....¡±

    Wakagi-chan©c(¡ã¨Œ¡¢¡ã)¥Î: ¡°¡¯The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ is currently on sale with good reviews, and so is ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire¡¯! Volume 4 will be released tomorrow, so please show both series your support~!¡±

    Yumeria (¡ä?£à): ¡°She¡¯s be a good girl!¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°It¡¯s painful... In many ways.¡±

    [1] It¡¯s more like the EU, or European Union.

    [2] Change of heart like Rosetta¡¯s ¡°change of heart¡±

 Chapter 141 - V8 Chapter 16. Epilogue

    <h4>Chapter 141 ¨C V8 Chapter 16. Epilogue</h4>

    That was dangerous.

    I almost had Ciel, who¡¯s rebellious against me, taken away.

    Who on earth leaked the information?

    I don¡¯t think Kukuri and his subordinates would go against my orders, and it¡¯s not like anything would¡¯ve happened by leaving Ciel alone.

    Although she hates me and tries to get in my way, there¡¯s only so much she can do with her abilities.

    Being the good person that she is, her actions are very limited.

    If she was evil, I would¡¯ve eliminated her already since those that can throw caution to the wind are dangerous.

    From my perspective, Ciel is the perfect woman to have rolling on my palm.

    It would¡¯ve been tough to find a recement, and it doesn¡¯t sit right with me to go out of my way to search for one.

    Ciel¡¯s worth is precisely because she¡¯s all-natural.

    ¡ªBasically, it¡¯s a matter of taste.

    ¡°In the end, where did the information get leaked from? Should I have Kukuri and his men look into it?¡±

    A sense of crisis takes hold of me due to the info leak that has ured.

    Just then, Eulisia enters my office with some documents in hand.

    ¡°Lord Liam, there¡¯s something I wish to consult with you. It¡¯s about Lady Rosetta¡¯s personal guards.¡±

    Unlike her usual self, Eulisia in work mode is wearing a skirt suit, and giving off the vibe of apetent woman.

    She should really take things more seriously on a daily basis.

    ¡°Rosetta¡¯s?¡±

    I browse through the documents and find nothing interesting about the personal guards that are being assembled.

    It¡¯s neither good nor bad.

    As dull as it is, it¡¯s a solid selection.

    ¡°As one would expect of Rosetta. Her personal guards are so unremarkable that it¡¯s almost boring.¡±

    ¡°Even so, that¡¯s the best we could do.¡±

    Giving it your all means nothing.

    ¡°What¡¯s important in this world is the result, not the effort that you put in. Show me results.¡±

    ¡°So, mean! ¡ªOh, in that case, please praise me.¡±

    ¡°Huh? You? Why?¡±

    Why do I have to praise her?

    She¡¯s living off my money, so there¡¯s nothing weird with her working for me.

    It¡¯d be a waste to keep her otherwise.

    ¡°I¡¯m talking about what happned to Ciel-chan. You see, I was the one who figured out that she¡¯s moving behind the scenes to interfere with the selection of Lady Rosetta¡¯s personal guards!¡±

    Eulisia sticks her chest out and deres with confidence and pride.

    Stunned, I shoot up from my chair and approach her.

    ¡°Oh, feeling like praising me? Then be gentle with¡ªhey, that hurts!¡±

    I give her a good flick, prompting her to crouch down with both her hands covering her forehead.

    ¡°What gives?!¡±

    ¡°What have you done, you disappointing woman!¡±

    With teary eyes, Eulisiains about the mistreatment.

    I didn¡¯t expect the traitor to be right next to me.

    This girl must have found evidence of Ciel moving behind the scenes and tattled to Baron Exner!

    ¡°Take this! And this! And this!¡±

    I jab her cheeks with my index finger.

    ¡°S-stop with the mistreatment!¡±

    ¡°You should be grateful that I¡¯m willing to forgive you with just this. Don¡¯t poke your nose into Ciel¡¯s business from now on.¡±

    Holding her cheeks with her hands, Eulisia stares at me, shocked.

    Just as I¡¯m wondering what she¡¯s surprised about, she says somethingpletely out of the blue.

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re getting angry with me, but you¡¯re willing to forgive Ciel even when she¡¯s betrayed you?! You like her that much?!¡±

    It seems she¡¯s unwilling to ept the fact that Ciel¡¯s loved more than herself.

    ¡ªWhat happened to your n of casting me aside and breaking up with me?

    And to begin with, I don¡¯t think there was any love between us.

    ¡°She¡¯s indeed better than you.¡±

    Compared to Eulisia, Ciel can heal my wounded soul.

    She¡¯s valuable in that she has what Rosettacks.

    ¡°You keep moving on to other women!¡±

    ¡°When was I ever into you?¡±

    I call B.S.! Amagi¡¯s the only one I¡¯m crazy about!

    Eulisia causes a scene, and Rosetta joins us in the midst of that.

    ¡°Darling, are you done discussing with her? I want to speak to you about my personal guards¡ª¡±

    Rosetta enters the room with a smile, but upon seeing Eulisia bawling with tears in her eyes, her expression turns cold.

    However, the target of her cold gaze is Eulisia, not me.

    ¡°Eulisia-san, what are you doing?¡±

    ¡°Me?! So, I¡¯m the problem now?! It¡¯s clearly Lord Liam¡¯s fault! He¡¯s cheating on me with another woman!¡±

    ¡ªWhy does she think I¡¯m interested in her?

    Truly, she¡¯s being overly self-centered.

    If she was less disappointing, I might¡¯ve considered treating her a bit better.

    Also, it¡¯s scary how Rosetta doesn¡¯t suspect me one bit after seeing what¡¯s going on.

    Normally, one would take the side of the crying woman.

    Her blind trust in me is quite burdensome.

    ¡°From the looks of things, you¡¯re troubling Darling. Also, taking into ount your normal behavior, what else do you expect?¡±

    Since she knows how Eulisia normally behaves, she¡¯se to the conclusion that I¡¯m not the one at fault here.

    Rosetta... why are you such an easy woman?

    You should be more suspicious of me.

    ¡°Enough. You need me for something?¡±

    ¡°Oh, right...it¡¯s about Ciel.¡±

    Ciel?

    ¡ó

    Ciel, after being scolded by her father and brother, had been told to reflect on her actions in her room.

    Baron Exner had eximed, ¡®You won¡¯t find a finer aristocrat anywhere else! How could you call him a bad person!¡¯

    On the other hand, Kurt had said, ¡®Apologizing won¡¯t be enough. Now that things havee this far, I¡¯ll undergo sex reassignment surgery and¡ª¡¯

    Ciel¡¯s pillow was wet from her tears.

    ¡°Brother¡¯s an idiot! No one¡¯s aware of that person¡¯s true nature!¡±

    What made things worse was that she had to receive the help that Liam had offered for her offense to be overlooked.

    He had bowed down before Baron Exner, saying that he was willing to ¡°pay however much is needed for her pardon¡±.

    With Liam¡¯s help, Ciel¡¯s education was once against entrusted to the Banfields.

    She was crying because of how pathetic she felt and how her brother was seriously considering changing his gender despite having a fianc¨¦e.

    While her eyes were swollen red, the door to her room opened.

    The door should have been locked, but she found Liam standing there.

    ¡°Yo.¡±

    Liam, who was grinning, probably knew how she felt.

    He was having the time of his life watching her cry in frustration.

    ¡°I-it¡¯s you.¡±

    ¡°Since you¡¯re a maid, you should greet your Master.¡±

    ¡°As if! Besides, I¡¯m currently under house arrest!¡±

    Normally, her status didn¡¯t allow her to talk back, but Liam looked like he was enjoying himself.

    In fact, he seemed to very much wee the retorts.

    ¡°What did I say? Nobody¡¯s going to trust your words.¡±

    ¡°Ku!¡±

    As things stood, she would be yelled at or asked if she was okay if she went around calling Liam a viin.

    However, Ciel wasn¡¯t about to give up.

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯ll definitely expose your true nature to the world.¡±

    She was determined to prove to the others that they were misunderstanding him and that Liam wasn¡¯t the good person they thought he was.

    Hearing this, Liam brought his face close to Ciel¡¯s.

    ¡°I very much look forward to it. I¡¯ll be rooting for you, Ciel-chan.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll defintely make you regret what you¡¯ve done today! I¡¯ll make you regret ever helping me!¡±

    Ciel wasn¡¯t about to forgive Liam for tricking her brother.

    Kurt was seriously debating whether he should change his gender.

    If he did, he would go from being her dear brother to being her dear sister, and Ciel absolutely refused to ept that.

    She was going to unmask Liam and open up her brother¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you plenty of praise if you manage to do that.¡±

    Liam beamed in happiness seeing Ciel maintain her stubborn attitude.

    He turned around and left the room.

    Ciel wiped off her tears with renewed determination, knowing that it wasn¡¯t the time to be crying.

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯ll definitely expose your true nature to the world.¡±

    In the corner of her room, a faint light that resembled a dog cocked its head as it watched Ciel yell, ¡°I won¡¯t let my dear brother be my sister!¡± towards the ceiling.

    Then, it too exited the room.

    ¡ó

    Back in my room, I¡¯m drinking the tea that Amagi has prepared for me.

    This is the time of day when I can have my peace.

    Amagi asks a question as she prepares sweets for me.

    ¡°Is Ciel-san back on her feet?¡±

    ¡°My heart went cold when I heard she was feeling down, but it seems her spirit isn¡¯t broken yet. She¡¯s a rare talent.¡±

    She keeps saying she¡¯ll expose me even though she can¡¯t, and I find that really cute.

    It¡¯s like watching a chihuahua trying to initiate a fight against a tiger.

    ¡°Master, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a good idea to tease her so much.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. Putting that aside¡ªI heard Cleo¡¯s also moving about a lot behind the scenes.¡±

    ¡°His Highness Cleo?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s using the money that I¡¯ve provided him with and distributing it to poor aristocrats. I had Kukuri and his men investigate, and it appears he¡¯s gathering people that can act as his arms and legs.¡±

    Will he remain satisfied as a figurehead, or¡ª

    Amagi looks towards me. She¡¯s as expressionless as always, but there¡¯s a hint of worry in her eyes.

    ¡°Rest assured. He¡¯s not my enemy.¡±

    ¡°Master seems pretty rxed despite being up against His Majesty the Emperor.¡±

    Against the entire Empire, a puny lord like myself would normally be obliterated.

    However, the fact that he¡¯s sneakily moving behind the scenes proves that he can¡¯t publicly make a move against me.

    That, or he¡¯s toying with me.

    ¡ªAll things considered; it does bother me.

    The Guide mentioned something about my ¡®true enemy¡¯.

    Everything would make sense if it was His Majesty the Emperor was controlling the Berkeley Family from the shadows, but that would also mean he¡¯s much more powerful than the likes of Linus and Calvin.

    ¡°I¡¯ll leave the Empire intact if Cleo remains as he is, but if he doesn¡¯t¡ª¡±

    I don¡¯t finish my sentence.

    It¡¯s be highly likely that my true enemy is this country¡¯s Emperor, but that just means I have to do what it takes to beat him, and I fully intend to win.

    Seeing that there¡¯s still some uneasiness in Amagi¡¯s eyes, I reassure her.

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing to worry about. We have a good chance of winning.¡±

    ¡°But enemies keep appearing one after another.¡±

    ¡°Well, you¡¯re right on that one.¡±

    I want to remain cooped up inside my territory and y around, but I haven¡¯t had any time for that.

    Like seriously, I wasn¡¯t given any time to y around, even back when I was in university.

    That¡¯s why I¡¯ll remain in the Capital for a while and enjoy myself.

    Since it¡¯s the Emperor that¡¯s moving behind the scenes, even if I were to defeat the enemies that I have right now, more would pop up in due time.

    Amagi asks how I¡¯ll deal with Cleo.

    ¡°Is Master thinking of giving His Highness Cleo a warning? I don¡¯t rmend leaving him alone.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll let him be for now since it will be more interesting that way, and what he¡¯s doing ismendable. Don¡¯t you see? To stand against me, he¡¯s gathering everyone that opposes me.¡±

    Those that oppose me are generally good people.

    Since my group consists of evil lords, those that oppose us should be made of virtuous ones.

    Cleo¡¯s basically gathering them all in one ce and acting like a vum cleaner.

    Once they¡¯re all nicely gathered¡ªI¡¯ll erase them.

    ¡°I should save up my strength for a while. There¡¯s the matter of nurturing sessors for the School of One-sh, not to mention¡ª¡±

    My One-sh still falls short of my Master¡¯s.

    There¡¯s something missing to it.

    ¡°¡ªShould I seek out Master?¡±

    It¡¯s about time I seek his guidance once more.

    I was able to defeat Izel, but I¡¯m not sure whether this is the answer to cutting down the uncuttable.

    Amagi reports to me as I think about various things.

    ¡°I believe His Highness Cleo is doing the same thing as Lady Rosetta.¡±

    ¡°The same as Rosetta?¡±

    ¡°Yes. To establish her personal guards, she¡¯s calling out to knights and aristocrats that are in distress and providing them with support.¡±

    ¡°Hmm.¡±

    No surprise there. She¡¯s a nice person after all.

    As expected, it was the right decision to establish her personal guards.

    With just Eulisia alone, she¡¯ll only be able to maintain the appearance of an army.

    ¡°However, Lady Rosetta seems to be doing a lot of careful investigation, meaning she¡¯s not randomly selecting people.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t care about the details. Just notify me if any problem urs.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Amagi bows before looking at me.

    ¡°Anything wrong?¡±

    ¡°No, but standing beside Master like this reminds me of the past.¡±

    ¡°The past?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I have been serving Master for a long time after all.¡±

    Now that I think about it, has it been over a hundred years?

    Indeed, we¡¯ve been acquainted for a long time.

    It just irks me that I¡¯ve known Brian the longest.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be counting on you in the future as well.¡±

    ¡°¡ªOf course.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Ciel (#©b§¥©b): ¡°I¡¯ll never acknowledge my brother bing a sister!¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°¡ªThe way Lord Liam views this Brian is terrible. It¡¯s painful.¡±

    Brian (¡ä?¦Ø?£à): ¡°And that marks the conclusion of Volume 8. This section was originally written to promote other works, but things have taken a strange turn. Nevertheless, it¡¯s a pleasant surprise to see this novel promoted as well.¡±

    Brian ©d(*¡ä¦Ø£à*)¥Î: ¡°This Brian is happy to announce that Volume 1 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire!¡¯ is being well received. Please have a look at ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ as well. Thank you.¡±

    Brian (*¡ä¦Ø£à): ¡°Speaking of the first volume of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire!¡¯, a lot of revisions have been made prior to the novel¡¯s publication, so readers of the web novel can enjoy it as well. Please consider purchasing a copy.¡±

    Brian (*¡ä¦Ø£à*)¥Î: ¡°Well then, see you in Volume 9.¡±

    Author¡¯s Notes:

    ¡ªHow was Volume 8?

    On July 25th, Volume 1 of ¡°I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire!¡± was released!

    On July 30th, Volume 6 Regr and Limited Edition of ¡°The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡± was released!

    On August 7th, Volume 4 of the manga ¡°The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡± was released!

    ¡ªAnd just like that, there was somehow a publication rush (^_^; )

    Both series seem to be popr, and as the author, it makes me very happy. This is also thanks to our dear readers.

    Thank you very much. (*^¨Œ^*)

    Also, we would like to know what the readers think of this work. You can write your impressions and evaluations of the work below, so feel free to give us your thoughts. We look forward to reading your reviews.

    *However, please make sure to follow the rules.

    Volume 9 will be up next, and the time of its release is yet to be decided, but I would like to have it uploaded by the end of this year.

    Last, but not least, thank you for your continued support!

    TN: That was a long author¡¯s note.

    Editor: I¡¯m still confused about why Kurt needs to be a woman...

 Chapter 142 - V9 Prologue

    <h4>Chapter 142 ¨C V9 Prologue</h4>

    Havingpleted my training as an aristocrat, I, [Liam Sera Banfield], have returned to my territory over the age of 100.

    To be honest, I wanted to spend some more time at the Capital ying around.

    With me being the faction leader, and Cleo its figurehead, I still have the long-established luxury hotel rented under my name.

    I haven¡¯t let go of my amodation in the Capital because I n on visiting again in the future.

    I knew I should¡¯ve acquired a mansion or something¡ªhmm? Is it just me, or have I done that already?

    I¡¯m currently thinking about various things inside a certain facility located within the courtyard of my oversized mansion.

    It¡¯s called a courtyard, but due to the sheer size of the mansion itself, it feels no different from being outside.

    The facility I¡¯m in is a training room that¡¯s dedicated to me.

    ¡°¡ªCome.¡±

    d in a ck armor, I point my weapon that looks like a wooden sword at my junior disciples.

    [Shishigami Fuuka], her orange hair tied up in a flower bun, smacks her lips.

    ¡°Try not to get yerself killed!¡±

    Contrary to her words, she doesn¡¯t seem concerned for my safety at all.

    Instead, she looks excited.

    With this junior disciple of mine gleefully wielding both her swords, and shing them towards me, I quickly retaliate by swinging the wooden sword in my right hand.

    This practice equipment that looks like a wooden sword has an extremely high performance, and the same goes for my armor.

    [Satsuki Rinho] also pulls out her sword with a smile at the corners of her lips, her long, dark blue hair swinging from side to side.

    The swords that they¡¯re using are the real deal.

    ¡°AHAHA! DIE!¡±

    Where¡¯s their respect for their senior?

    Then again, as swordsmen of the same school, it¡¯s a given that they¡¯re being serious.

    Sparks fly as I block the two girls¡¯ attacks with my wooden sword, and scratch marks appear all over the armor that I¡¯m wearing.

    Most of these scratch marks are from attacks that I¡¯ve failed to parry or avoid, while the rest are from the aftermath of the sh.

    Fuuka jumps up into the air and nts her feet on the ceiling.

    We¡¯re not in some zero-gravity environment, but she bends her knees while standing on the ceiling and shoots towards me with great momentum.

    ¡°Chop, chop.¡±

    Fuuka¡¯sing at me with bloodthirsty eyes, but she seems to be a decoy.

    Turning back to look, I notice Rinho, who¡¯s arrived right before me preparing to draw her sword.

    Fuuka with her flurry of attacks and Rinho with her sure-kill technique.

    Slowing me down with the former¡¯s attacks and finishing me off with thetter¡¯s deadly blow.

    ¡°Ku!¡±

    ¡ªDealing with them isn¡¯t an easy task.

    Not only is Fuuka¡¯s attack numerous, each blow can be fatal.

    She¡¯s unleashing such an attack on both Rinho and me, intending to kill us both.

    On the other hand, Rinho¡¯s trying to strike the two of us with devastating attacks, attacks that can be described as overkill.

    Out of desperation, I grab the handle of Rinho¡¯s sword with my left hand, sealing her sword-drawing technique.

    Then, I perform a sh with my wooden sword to shoot Fuuka down from above.

    Rinho tackles me with a sweep and thrusts her sword while I¡¯m down.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be the one to finish him off!¡±

    I avoid the thrust by rolling on the ground and stand back up with sweat running down my back.

    Fuuka, who¡¯s managed to get behind me, tries to chop my head off with her twin swords.

    Turning back, I make an upward sh with my wooden sword to deflect Fuuka¡¯s des andnd a kick to her abdomen.

    I was in too much of a hurry to adjust my strength, so she was flung all the way to the wall.

    ¡°*Cough* I-I¡¯ll be the one to kill him! Senior brother¡¯s life is mine!¡±

    Despite being mmed against the wall, and spitting out blood, Fuuka isn¡¯t showing any sign of giving up.

    I turn around and look away from her.

    Immediately afterwards, I swing my sword horizontally in order to block a sh that¡¯se my way.

    Sparks fly once more.

    A short distance away, I find Rinho in her sword stance.

    With One-sh, the secret technique of our school, she shoots out a storm of shes.

    ¡°Let¡¯s see who can hold out longer! Show me how long you canst!¡±

    Her shes are stronger and more numerous than mine.

    Rinho, who¡¯s attacking with a smirk on her face, doesn¡¯t show any sign of letting up.

    There¡¯s a 10-meter distance between the two of us, but sparks are flying 3 meters away from me.

    From this, it¡¯s obvious that I¡¯m being pushed.

    ¡°You too?!¡±

    Several shes are thrown my way from behind as I¡¯m fending off the attacks from Rinho.

    Rinho, Fuuka, and I are now standing in a straight line with me at the center.

    Sparks appear all around me as I continue to parry the One-sh that they shoot out.

    Fuuka takes a step forward and closes in on me.

    ¡°This is the end of the line for ya, Senior Brother! But rest assured, for I¡¯ll seed the school in yer stead! I¡¯ll take good care of Ellen as well!¡±

    She speaks as if she¡¯s already won.

    Rinho, who¡¯s on the other side, also starts approaching me one step at a time.

    ¡°This is what you get for underestimating us. I didn¡¯t despise Senior Brother, so you¡¯ll at least live on within our memories!¡±

    From their appearances alone, they look no different from your average high school girls.

    To the untrained eye, it looks as if they¡¯re simply approaching me with their swords.

    The only thing they¡¯ll find peculiar are the sparks being scattered around us.

    While wearing my helmet, I mutter, ¡°A little more, just a little more.¡±

    My body¡¯s already screaming for help.

    However, it¡¯s the tools that fail me first.

    The swords in Rinho and Fuuka¡¯s hands shatter, and so does my wooden sword.

    The armor makes an announcement with its electronic voice.

    [The training armor has reached its limit. Forced shutdown.]

    ¡°No, wait!¡±

    Ignoring mymand, the armor pops off all at once after making its statement, leaving me in just my inner suit.

    I¡¯m soaked in sweat and breathing roughly. Not only that, there are scratches all over my body.

    ¡°Damn it!¡±

    I plop down onto the floor.

    I was just about to feel something!

    Rinho stares at the shattered swords.

    ¡°Really, how many does this make?¡±

    Fuuka tosses her swords away, and the cleaning robots collect them.

    ¡°Who knows?¡±

    The two girls walk over to me as I look at the shattered wooden sword and my armor.

    ¡°So, money isn¡¯t enough to solve this issue.¡±

    Neither the armor, nor the wooden sword, have been able to improve my abilities.

    In fact, it¡¯s the opposite. They¡¯re exceptionally good tools for limiting their user¡¯s abilities.

    The armor ces a heavy burden on the user¡¯s body, and the wooden sword is extremely difficult to swing.

    After limiting my abilities, I told my junior disciples to ¡°Come at me with the intention to kill.¡±

    Otherwise, I won¡¯t be able to push myself beyond my limits.

    I open my quivering right hand and stare at it.

    ¡°Why can¡¯t I reach him? Why can¡¯t I reach the level of our Master?¡±

    I¡¯m starting to feel hopeless and pathetic.

    Regardless of how much training I go through, and how much practical experience I gain, I can¡¯t seem to enter the realm of our Master.

    I¡¯m still incapable of reproducing the ¡®sh that appears as if the sword has never been drawn¡¯ that I saw as a kid.

    Fuuka tries tofort me while wiping off the blood near her mouth.

    ¡°Senior Brother¡¯s stronger than the both of us. Yer bound to reach him one day, right?¡±

    ¡°Idiot. There¡¯s no point inforting Senior Brother. To begin with, what we say doesn¡¯t matter. ¡ªYou¡¯ve also seen Master Yasushi¡¯s skill first hand. How does itpare to Senior Brother¡¯s?¡±

    Indeed, words offort are pointless. As people who¡¯ve witnessed Master¡¯s abilities, they¡¯re nothing more than an insult.

    Fuuka looks away awkwardly.

    ¡°T-that wasn¡¯t what I was trynna say!¡±

    She turned her eyes away from me since she also realizes the massive chasm that exists between Master and me.

    ¡°I-I know full well that Senior Brother¡¯sckingpared to Master Yasushi. I mean, I can¡¯t even begin to fathom the extent of Master¡¯s abilities. It should be the same for ya.¡±

    Rinho pouts.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to tell me that, I know already. That just goes to show how awesome Master Yasushi truly is.¡±

    Yes, Master is amazing.

    The difference between us is so great that we can¡¯t even tell how great he is.

    Normally, it seems like he¡¯ll lose to amateurs, but when he draws his sword, no one in the world can hold a candle against him.

    I¡¯ve imagined fighting against Master Yasushi many times, but never have I ever emerged as the victor.

    This didn¡¯t change even after I defeated the so called Sword Saints of the Empire.

    ¡°I¡¯m missing something. What am I missing? Have I¡ªHave I already reached my limit?¡±

    Can I no longer be stronger?

    The anxiety is about to crush me.

    As an evil lord, I¡¯ve obtained the strongest means of violence, One-sh, yet my journey is about to end midway due to ack of talent.

    If I¡¯m just trying to be some bad guy, I¡¯d be fine with that.

    However, I want to be even stronger, not only as an evil lord, but as Master¡¯s student.

    I want to properly inherit the One-sh that Master has shown me.

    Ellen, who has grown quite a bit, runs up to me as I¡¯m wiping off my sweat.

    She was so small when we first met, but now she looks like she has almost reached ten years of age.

    ¡°Master, please allow me to wipe your sweat!¡±

    ¡°Sure.¡±

    I receive the drink that Ellen has brought and allow her to wipe my body.

    While gulping down the supplemental nutrition drink, I think about various things...

    ¡°Ellen, how old are you again?¡±

    ...and end up wondering how old my disciple is.

    Rinho and Fuuka, who are also sweaty and out of breath, remain silent as they also realize what I¡¯m getting at.

    ¡°I-I¡¯m around thirty years old.¡±

    Someone in their thirties would be considered an adult in my previous world, but they¡¯re still considered a child in this one.

    Fuuka shrugs before looking over at me.

    ¡°Senior Brother¡¯s really overprotective about her.¡±

    Rinho whisks out her device and starts updating her blog as if she¡¯s lost interest in our conversation.

    ¡°Ellen¡¯s under Senior Brother¡¯s care, so it¡¯s not our ce to say anything, but at this rate she¡¯ll never be a proper swordswoman of One-sh.¡±

    A look of surprise appears on Ellen¡¯s face for a moment when she hears what the two girls have to say, but she immediately argues back.

    ¡°Please don¡¯t look down on me! I¡¯ve been training under Master for over 10 years and can do the basics. W-well, I can¡¯t perform a One-sh, but...¡±

    Although she has a solid foundation, Ellen hasn¡¯t been able to unleash a One-sh.

    There¡¯s no helping it though.

    After all, it took me more than 20.

    Rinho takes her eyes off her terminal and stares at Ellen with cold eyes.

    Sensing the killing intent, Ellen bes frightened, but Rinho takes no heed of that and speaks her mind.

    ¡°That¡¯s not the point. We¡¯re talking about something much more important.¡±

    Ellen looks back and forth between Rinho, and I, while still shivering in fear.

    ¡°Something much more important?¡±

    Fuuka replies in my stead.

    ¡°You haven¡¯t killed anyone yet, have you? No, I¡¯m certain you haven¡¯t.¡±

    Ellen¡¯s eyes widen.

    ¡ªFor her to be a swordswoman, she must first take someone¡¯s life.

    It may sound strange in a world where intergctic nations exist.

    Spaceships and humanoid weapons exist, but sword fights still ur.

    Killing someone isn¡¯t an easy thing to do. For us, who¡¯ve chosen this path, it¡¯s something inevitable.

    I stand up and ce my hand on Ellen¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°I¡¯ll find an appropriate opponent for you in the near future.¡±

    Ellen stares at the ground as if in shock, but as she can¡¯t go against her Master, she replies in a small voice.

    ¡°¡ªUnderstood.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, everyone. Brian here (Please stop calling me Tsurian). It¡¯s wonderful to see everyone again now that new chapters are being released.¡±

    Brian (* ¡ä¦Ø£à*): ¡°Also, Volume 2 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire¡¯ will be released on December 25th. By all means, please purchase the novel. This time, this Brian will be ying a big role... maybe.¡±

 Chapter 143 - Vol. 9 Chapter 1 - Yasushis Realization

    <h4>Chapter 143 ¨C Vol. 9 Chapter 1 ¨C Yasushi¡¯s Realization</h4>

    ¡ªHe was in big, big trouble.

    A small lie he¡¯d told had grown beyond the point of his control, and before he knew it, he had been bestowed the title of Sword God.

    This man, [Yasushi], was currently living in a small room in a cheap apartment building with his family of three.

    He had fled from the he was living on with his family to a that was much more remote.

    ¡°¡ªWhat a nightmare,¡± Yasushi muttered as he stared at the small amount of food that was on the table.

    His wife frowned at his words, thinking he wasining about the food.

    ¡°You should be grateful that there¡¯s something to eat! Who do you think is feeding this family?¡±

    ¡°Hyii¡ª!! Y-you¡¯ve misunderstood. I wasn¡¯t talking about the food, but rather the situation we¡¯ve been forced into.¡±

    His wife let out a small sigh at her husband¡¯s timid behavior.

    A young boy clung to the woman, and pleaded, ¡°Mom, I¡¯m still hungry.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Mom will be paid from her part time job soon, so be patient until then, m¡¯kay?¡±

    Yasushi¡¯s wife, Nina, had long, smooth, ck hair.

    She was a graceful woman that wore sses, and she used to work a full-time job so that she could feed both Yasushi and their child.

    However, after relocating to the new, she has yet to find a stable job.

    They had to use her savings to emigrate, and they were barely scraping by with what was left of it.

    She was now working a number of part time jobs, but the pay was low and their lives were bing difficult.

    Nina gave Yasushi a re.

    ¡°Why did you choose here of all ces? The¡¯s in such a remote location that it¡¯s not properly developed, not to mention there¡¯s no work to find because of the recent recession, and it¡¯s not like the heavy tax that are imposed on us is making life any easier.¡±

    They had to move to such a rundown because of Yasushi.

    ¡°T-there was no other option! If we had gone to a developed, I would¡¯ve been discovered!¡±

    It was all Liam¡¯s fault that they had to emigrate to this horrible.

    A certain video was being yed on the electronic newspaper that was ced atop the table.

    The video was about the official announcement from the Gudwar Kingdom of Dominion.

    ¡®We are nning on weing Yasushi of the School of One-sh to serve as the sword instructor at our Royal Pce! Those that can provide information regarding his whereabouts will be given a handsome reward! Find Yasushi at all cost!¡¯

    A little while ago, Liam had defeated Izel, who used to be the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Dominion.

    It was through this asion that the School of One-sh became well known throughout the kingdom.

    As the Kingdom of Dominion was a country where might made right, everyone was excited over the existence of a powerful school of swordsmanship that they¡¯d never heard of before.

    They couldn¡¯t poach Liam, but what about his master Yasushi? That was when the gears started to turn.

    To make things worse, the other countries joined in the search. They¡¯d say, ¡°It¡¯s the Kingdom of Dominion we¡¯re talking about. If they¡¯re looking for him, he must be the real deal.¡±

    Countless countries and aristocrats were requesting his service in exchange for favorable treatments, but just as many people were after his life, wanting to prove their strength and make a name for themselves.

    ¡°This is all his fault. It¡¯s¡ªit¡¯s all because of him!¡±

    Liam was an aristocrat of the Algrand Empire.

    He was a lord, who was a part of a powerful country.

    Rather than Liam, wouldn¡¯t it be easier to deal with Yasushi?

    That was the conclusion that everyone came to, and the reason why they were searching for Yasushi with bloodshot eyes.

    Nina looked coldly at him as she continued to apany their child.

    ¡°I find it hard to believe. Yasu-kun was the Master to an Imperial aristocrat?¡±

    Yasushi was a street performer¡ª an entertainer.

    One-sh, the swordsmanship that he¡¯d taught Liam, was a lie that he came up with.

    He had taught Liam swordsmanship in a fraudulent manner, but somehow a monster was born as a result.

    Following that, he raised two disciples to act as his assassins, and they also grew up to be monsters in their own right.

    Even though Yasushi himself was weak, he had ended up raising three monsters.

    ¡°I¡¯m in disbelief as well! I don¡¯t even know where the disciples I sent to assassinate Liam have gone! I¡¯m sick and tired of this!¡±

    Yasushi was hiding on this remote to prevent assassins and Liam from finding him.

    No one would think I¡¯m on such a! ¡ªthat was his thought process.

    But now that they were here, he was starting to have second thoughts.

    ¡°¡ªMan, it¡¯s tough living here.¡±

    Nina gave a sharp reply that hinted at her disapproval towards Yasushi.

    ¡°Then why don¡¯t you find work for yourself as well?¡±

    ¡°Huh?! I-I mean... I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    He had tried to work some part time jobs, but they neversted.

    The reason for that was the tax.

    People would only receive around 30% of their pay after a day of work as the rest would go towards paying the tax.

    It was no wonder he didn¡¯t feel motivated to work.

    Hourly wages of part time jobs were miserably low, yet they would be given all sorts of things to do.

    ¡°If I¡¯d known things would turn out this way, I wouldn¡¯t have suggested running away. This is all because of Liam as well. None of this would¡¯ve happened if he hadn¡¯t spread the name of One-sh.¡±

    Having finished her meal, Nina began to clean up the table while Yasushi wallowed in regret.

    ¡°Who knew you could teach someone without being skilled yourself? If you¡¯re really that good at teaching, why don¡¯t you just open a dojo? If what you said were true, that is.¡±

    Yasushi raised his head after hearing Nina¡¯s remarks.

    ¡°Come again?¡±

    Surprised, Nina exined things to Yasushi.

    ¡°Well, assuming you¡¯re really good at teaching, you should run a dojo. Everyone¡¯s talking about the School of One-sh at the moment, so there should be a lot of people willing to pay good money to learn it, right? I mean, you¡¯ve already raised three disciples, so it¡¯s ought to seed.¡±

    He had raised Liam, Rinho, and Fuuka, which went to show he had talent for training others.

    Although he had technically only taught three people, his sess rate so far had been 100%.

    Do I, perhaps, have a talent for raising others?

    ¡ªIt was only now that he hade to this realization.

    ¡°T-that¡¯s it! If I raise a lot of disciples, they can serve as my bodyguards, and I won¡¯t have to worry about money! No, wait. Wouldn¡¯t that reveal where I am?¡±

    Yasushi thought hard for a moment beforeing up with an easy answer.

    ¡°I¡¯ll use a pseudonym! I¡¯ll put up a sign saying something along the lines of ¡®The Original One-sh¡¯ and work under a different name! There are a lot of dojos with simr names nowadays, so I¡¯ll just be considered one of them!¡±

    As a martial arts instructor, wouldn¡¯t that hurt his integrity?

    Though Nina had some doubts, she was happy to see Yasushi overflowing with motivation.

    ¡°Yasu-kun can definitely do it! I¡¯ll help you too!¡±

    ¡°Ou!¡±

    Nina was apetent woman and serious when it came to her work.

    The only w she had was that she fell for a good-for-nothing like Yasushi.

    This was how the Original One-sh Dojo came into being on a deste and remote.

    ¡ó

    ¡°Ahhh, eating without needing to work is the best.¡±

    It¡¯s breakfast time, and I¡¯m eating the needlessly luxurious meal that Amagi and Brian have served me.

    In front of me is a simple breakfast.

    If I were topare it to my previous life, it¡¯s like having a fried egg, toast, sd, and soup for breakfast.

    However, they¡¯re all made of high-quality ingredients carefully selected from the territory.

    The omelet, for example, was made with eggs that cost tens of thousands of yen each.

    ¡ªThe yogurt, however, is Brian¡¯s homemade product.

    These ingredients are then used by chefs, who were gathered from all over the territory, to make meals for me.

    A group of chefs, with simr skills to those working at 3-star Michelin restaurants, cook for me on a daily basis.

    It¡¯s like having top level chefs working in cycles at a cafeteria.

    It¡¯s truly a breakfast worthy of an evil lord.

    Inside therge room where I¡¯m having breakfast, an orchestra is performing a piece that suits the morning mood.

    Amagi takes away the tes of food I¡¯ve finished eating and asks about what I said earlier.

    ¡°Master, is there something bothering you? Master has been handling the public affairs for days now.¡±

    Even Brian looks at me worriedly.

    ¡°Lord Liam, are you perhaps feeling tired from the excessive training that you¡¯ve been doing the past few days? This Brian¡¯s worried for Lord Liam¡¯s health. How about taking a day off from public affairs?¡±

    From their perspective, it must seem like I¡¯ve been hard at work.

    But I¡¯m doing all this for myself.

    I don¡¯t consider it work since it¡¯s all for my own sake.

    ¡°You thought I was working seriously? That was nothing more than child¡¯s y.¡±

    Amagi remains as expressionless as ever, but she seems to have some questions about what I¡¯ve said.

    ¡°But Master hasn¡¯t misbehaved recently. In fact, Master¡¯s been managing the territory seriously, have you not?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s because it¡¯s not the time to be ying around. For now, I¡¯m focused on bing stronger.¡±

    ¡°¡ªIt¡¯s child¡¯s y, but there¡¯s no time to y around? Which is it?¡±

    ¡°I was just saying random things. Don¡¯t dwell on it.¡±

    Watching Amagi seriously contemte the meaning behind my words makes me feel guilty.

    Brian frowns when he hears me refer to work inside the territory as child¡¯s y.

    ¡°Lord Liam should prioritize work inside the territory first and foremost. To begin with, there¡¯s no need for Lord Liam to learn swordsmanship.¡±

    Brian admonishes me for devoting so much of my time on training the One-sh.

    The thing is, I¡¯m not someone who changes simply because I¡¯m told to.

    ¡°I say nay to that. Besides, I can feel that I¡¯m just a step away from a breakthrough. Though... at the same time, I¡¯m starting to feel my limit.¡±

    Anytime now, I¡¯ll be able to break down this invisible wall, but I¡¯m also starting to feel my limitations.

    I don¡¯t know what else I can do now.

    Kukuri appears from my shadow as I¡¯m eating yogurt for dessert.

    Brian frowns at Kukuri¡¯s appearance.

    ¡°Kukuri-dono, Lord Liam is eating.¡±

    ¡°I am aware. However, we¡¯ve been ordered to investigate a certain matter as quickly as possible. Hence, the report on this matter have been deemed top priority. ¡ªLord Liam, please excuse me for disrupting your meal.¡±

    I continue to eat while addressing Kukuri who kneels next to me.

    ¡°So, have you finished checking?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    My hand stops, and I take a break from eating so that I can turn and listen to Kukuri¡¯s report.

    ¡°You found Master?¡±

    I had Kukuri investigate the whereabouts of Master.

    I was starting to worry about my progress, so I had him find where Master is.

    ¡°Where is he? Let¡¯s go meet him straight away.¡±

    Otherwise, I can¡¯t be stronger.

    I¡¯m thinking of asking my Master for guidance, but when I hear Kukuri¡¯s response, my excitement turns into anger.

    ¡°There are far too many people iming to be Yasushi-sama of the One-sh, so we are still in the process of identifying him, but it will take some time due to theck of manpower.¡±

    Kukuri and his men are exceptional, but there aren¡¯t many of them.

    The drawback of having too little men is that they can¡¯t employ human wave tactics.

    ¡°I¡¯ll lend you some of my subordinates.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re already partaking in the investigation. We¡¯re tasked with the final confirmation, but there is too much riffraff, and it will take some time.¡±

    The subordinates that have been dispatched aren¡¯t capable of telling Master apart from a fake.

    Kukuri and his men are capable of doing so, but they arecking in the numbers department.

    ¡°¡ªIt seems the fakes are getting carried away.¡±

    As I¡¯ve be extremely famous, the number of fakes have swelled up all at once.

    They im to be ¡®The True One sh!¡¯, or ¡®The Original One sh!¡¯, and so on.

    Even if I eradicate one of them, another would pop up to take its ce, so I¡¯ve left them unattended, but I can¡¯t leave them alone now that they¡¯re getting in the way of my search for Master.

    I stand up slowly from my seat.

    ¡°Call Tia and Marie.¡±

    Kukuri disappears as if he¡¯s been sucked back into my shadow.

    ¡°As you will.¡±

    ¡ó

    A beautiful blond woman dressed as a maid shes a big smile at me.

    ¡°Lord Liam, Tia-nyan is honored to be called upon nyan!¡±

    With one foot raised, Tia strikes a cute pose while saying ¡°nyan nyan¡±.

    Next to her, a beauty with purple hair moves her rabbit ears.

    ¡°Marie is happy pyon!¡±

    Marie, who¡¯s imitating a rabbit, is also dressed as a maid.

    However, their maid outfits have been modified recently.

    Tia¡¯s uniform is apanied by cat ears, a tail, and some other cat-like essories. While Marie¡¯s uniform is essorized by rabbit ears, a tail, and some other rabbit-like essories.

    Having discarded their pride, the two join hands and stand cheek-to-cheek, while wearing their pointlessly high quality cosy costumes. [1]

    ¡°Lord Liam¡¯s maid, Tia, hase to answer the call nyan!¡±

    ¡°Lord Liam¡¯s maid, Marie, hase to answer the call pyon!¡±

    They usually have a habit of being at one another¡¯s throats, but they¡¯re pretending to be close friends because of my orders.

    They¡¯re really in sync; they must¡¯ve practiced this many times together.

    Next to me, us, my head knight, looks away from his previous superiors that have changed.

    It¡¯s no wonder that he¡¯s looking away. The two knights that used to represent the Banfield Family are wearing modified maid outfits and cosying as a cat and rabbit.

    They were embarrassed about it until a while ago, but they seem to be proud of their appearances now and are striving for even higher heights.

    They must have put in quite the bit of effort, but that¡¯s not what matters right now!

    ¡°Are you fooling around in front of me?¡±

    The girls panic at my words.

    ¡°Eh?! Is there something that¡¯s not to your liking, nyan?¡±

    ¡°Does Lord Liam prefer bunny suits, pyon?!¡±

    I like how they¡¯re trying to cater to my mood, but we need to talk about finding Master.

    ¡°You two are henceforth dismissed from your positions as maids. Return to your knightly duties.¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    ¡°B-but why?!¡±

    I was sure they¡¯d be happy to return to their former positions, but they look pale for some reason.

    ¡°You don¡¯t want to?¡±

    Tia gives a small nod.

    ¡°Yes, I won¡¯t be able to take care of Lord Liam anymore nyan.¡±

    Marie covers her face with her hands.

    ¡°It¡¯s better to die now that Lord Liam isn¡¯t going to humiliate me pyon.¡±

    ¡ªI really would¡¯ve fired them by now if it wasn¡¯t for their skills.

    They¡¯re both capable, but they have such strange characters that it makes me take a step back.

    ¡°Stopining. Also, enough with the nyans and the pyons! From this moment onwards, you two will be reinstated as knights. us!¡±

    ¡°Y-yes?!¡±

    I tell us about what the two girls will be assigned to do.

    ¡°Tia is to be sent to the border that the Empire shares with the Kingdom of Dominion. We¡¯ll leave the situation at the border to her. Although she¡¯s a disappointing woman, she knows how to govern. Send her out with 10,000 ships.¡±

    ¡°Oh, so that¡¯s why I was called back.¡±

    Until now, I had us, my right hand man, taking care of the situation at the border.

    I have to say, he¡¯s really good at everything he does.

    us looks relieved, but Tia has an imploring look in her eyes.

    ¡°Lord Liam will also being to the border, right? Right?!¡±

    ¡°Are you stupid? Why would I volunteer to deal with the Kingdom of Dominion? I¡¯m sending you there since I want us back here.¡±

    ¡°H-how could that beeeeeeee!!¡±

    Tia cries with her head down after she was told that she¡¯s the only one who would be sent to the border.

    Next on the agenda is Marie.

    ¡°Marie, I¡¯ll have you lead a small fleet of elites.¡±

    ¡°Understood, but will I be dispatched somewhere as well?¡±

    Marie¡¯s trembling.

    ¡°You¡¯ll be serving as my escort. I¡¯ll be heading out on a trip for a while.¡±

    When she hears this, Marie smiles.

    In fact, her smile¡¯s so bright that it¡¯s as if a flower has bloomed.

    While looking pleased with herself, she proceeds to assert dominance over Tia, who¡¯s copsed.

    Upon witnessing Marie¡¯s smug expression, Tia grinds her teeth in frustration.

    ¡ªThey¡¯re still cosying in their maid uniforms by the way.

    us, who¡¯s still in the dark, approaches me.

    ¡°Lord Liam? Um, this is my first time hearing about this. What was that about you going on a trip?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be searching for my Master, so I¡¯ll be away for a while. I leave the rest to you, us.¡±

    ¡°¡ªPardon?¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°It¡¯s painful. It¡¯s painful to watch as the former head, and vice head, of the knights order shamelessly finish their sentences with pyons and nyans.

    Wakagi-chan(£»©b§Õ©b): ¡°I¡¯m a bit put off as well. Since Tsurian-san seems preupied, I¡¯ll take over the responsibility of promoting the novel... Volume 2 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire!¡¯ is scheduled to release on December 25th!¡±

    [1] Like this I assume? https://i.redd.it/zxc98miy31.png

 Chapter 144 - V9 Chapter 2. Image Play

    <h4>Chapter 144 ¨C V9 Chapter 2. Image y</h4>

    TN: Happy New Year everyone~

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    In a deste town situated on a remote, a stubble-bearded man wearing a kimono was walking down the middle of a road with a sword at his waist.

    Behind him were men, who appeared to be his disciples, and people in front of him moved away from them in terror.

    One of the disciples addressed the stubble-bearded man as Yasushi.

    ¡°Lord Sword God, how about the store over there? I heard there¡¯s a cute poster girl there.¡±

    ¡°Hou~ then we must get a taste of her.¡±

    It was a restaurant that was owned by a married couple, and it was famous for serving home-cooked meals.

    Although the restaurant had just opened, it quickly became popr because the daughter of the owners¡¯ helped them out.

    When the men entered the store, they caught sight of a girl, who seemed to be a student helping out the couple while wearing an apron over her school uniform.

    The men stared at her in a lewd manner.

    She was as beautiful. No, she was even more beautiful than the rumors said.

    ¡°Wel..e.¡±

    The smile on the girl, who was here to help her family after returning from school vanished, reced by her fear towards Yasushi and his crew.

    Her parents, who were behind the counter, realized what was happening and came forth in a hurry. They stood in front of Yasushi as if to shield their daughter.

    ¡°L-Lord Sword God! It¡¯s an honor to have you here!¡±

    Yasushi repliedfortably as he stared down at the shopkeeper, who was bowing deeply.

    ¡°Give us food and booze. Oh, and have your daughter pour us drinks.¡±

    The regrs in the store were about to say something, but they averted their eyes after being red at by Yasushi¡¯s disciples.

    There was no one to go against them.

    While looking like he was about to cry, the shopkeeper turned to face his daughter.

    ¡°Sorry. I¡¯m really sorry.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I-it¡¯s just pouring some drinks.¡±

    Yasushi and his disciples sat at a table in a rowdy manner, then began enjoying the food and the drinks while they hugged the school girl¡¯s shoulders.

    The other guests left the store, leaving behind the shopkeeper and his family to deal with Yasushi and his gang.

    They ate and drank for two hours all whilstying waste to the store before taking their leave.

    ¡°That was some nice food. Welp, time to go folks.¡±

    With Yasushi¡¯s words, his disciples stood up to leave.

    It was clear that no one would be paying, but the shopkeeper hurriedly called out to Yasushi.

    ¡°Lord Sword God, p-please return my daughter!¡±

    The shopkeeper tried to plead on behalf of his daughter, who was being carried by one of Yasushi¡¯s disciples.

    Yasushi smiled vulgarly.

    ¡°I like her quite a bit, so I¡¯ll be taking her with me. I¡¯ll return her once I be bored of her. Or are you trying to go against me, Sword God Yasushi?¡±

    Yasushi stepped face to face with the shopkeeper.

    The expression on the daughter¡¯s face as she was being carried away was begging for help, but the shopkeeper looked down, trembling.

    ¡°O-of course not.¡±

    Then, he copsed on his knees, sping his hands tight in frustration.

    However, there was nothing he could do.

    After all, he was facing Yasushi, the Sword God.

    ¡°Hmph. Good choice. If you disobey me, my prime disciple Count Banfield, won¡¯t remain silent. GAHAHA!¡±

    With that, Yasushi tried to exit the store with his disciples.

    Count Banfield, Sword God Yasushi¡¯s prime disciple, a virtuous aristocrat praised for being well versed in both literary and martial arts.

    A name that everyone inside the Empire has heard of.

    Despite his young age, he was a powerhouse that led and organized one of thergest factions.

    He wasn¡¯t someone that a random civilian living in the outskirts could oppose.

    By extension, the shopkeeper couldn¡¯t go against Count Banfield¡¯s master.

    While he was weeping in frustration, Yasushi was exiting the store, and bumped into someone.

    ¡°Watch where you¡¯re going.¡±

    A young man red at Yasushi before entering the store.

    Then he took a sniff and muttered, ¡°The smell of mackerel miso was definitelying from here!¡±

    The young man was in a kimono and had a sword on his waist.

    Next to him was a young red-haired girl, who was also wearing a kimono and carrying a sword that didn¡¯t fit the size of her body. She was holding hands with the young man.

    ¡°Master, the inside of the store is so dirty.¡±

    ¡°Sorry, but my stomach has decided on mackerel miso, and there¡¯s no changing its decision. Hey, shop keep. Clean this ce up quickly,¡± the young manmanded authoritatively.

    Under normal circumstances, the shopkeeper would¡¯ve been apologetic about the state of his store, but he wasn¡¯t in the mood for that at the moment.

    With the young man entering the store, two other women followed suit, shoving Yasushi¡¯s men to the side.

    ¡°Senior Brother, I want arge serving.¡±

    ¡°Same here.¡±

    Hearing what they wanted, the young man behaved in a generous manner and said, ¡°Threerge servings of mackerel miso, is it? How about you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d like the same thing as Master.¡±

    The quartet entered the store as if nothing had happened and looked through the menu as they sat down on their seats.

    From a while ago, Yasushi and his disciples had been extremely angry, to the point where they were fuming.

    ¡°Are you tourists? It seems youck understanding about this.¡±

    The biggest and most intimidating disciple walked up to the four and ced his hand on his sword.

    He approached them arrogantly, but neither the young man nor the women seemed to notice him.

    Instead, the young man was staring at Yasushi in a provocative way.

    He didn¡¯t even bother looking at the disciples.

    Yasushi noticed this and approached the man.

    ¡°It looks like you don¡¯t know who I am. I¡¯m Yasushi, the Sword God. Oh, or are you one of those swordsmen who are confident about their skills?¡±

    His disciples pulled out their swords in the store.

    They were ready to kill and didn¡¯t seem bothered by the fact that they were up against women and a child.

    They weren¡¯t feared by the people simply because of their connection to the One-sh or the Banfield Family.

    It was because they mercilessly killed anyone that opposed them.

    Furthermore, Yasushi was the sword instructor for this remote¡¯s lord, meaning very few people on this could go against him.

    ¡°Kid, you better apologize while you have the chance. I¡¯m well acquainted with the lord of this. You think you can pick a fight against me?¡±

    The young man replied almost immediately.

    ¡°You dumb or what? I¡¯vee here precisely to pick a fight with you. No, I should be saying that I¡¯m here because you picked a fight with me. You should be grateful.¡±

    After saying that, all but Yasushi and the disciple carrying the shopkeeper¡¯s daughter were blown away.

    The door and the walls of the store were destroyed, and the disciples were driven out.

    Yasushi, his remaining disciple, the shopkeeper, and the shopkeeper¡¯s family were stunned by the sudden turn of events.

    The young man stood up from his seat to speak to the shopkeeper.

    ¡°Bring us four mackerel miso meal sets. Make themrge.¡±

    (Mackerel miso meal set? What¡¯s that?)

    ¡ó

    There¡¯s an idiot impersonating Master.

    He must¡¯ve undergone stic surgery to look like him, so he¡¯s put in some effort. But in the end, he¡¯s nothing more than a third-rate swordsman.

    Even as I¡¯m standing before him, he doesn¡¯t know who he¡¯s talking to.

    I blew away his disciples as a light greeting, but his expression tells me he doesn¡¯t understand what¡¯s happened.

    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s the matter? As an instructor of One-sh, you shouldn¡¯t be surprised at something like this. I know you¡¯re just a fake, but shouldn¡¯t you be at least somewhat decent?¡±

    I approach the master-disciple duo while grinning, making them tense up.

    The remaining disciple throws the daughter he was carrying to the side before making a run for it.

    It seems the disciple¡¯s got better skills than the master.

    Fuuka jumps on his back and pins him down in an instant, pulling out her sword and putting it on the man¡¯s nape.

    ¡°Don¡¯cha run away! There¡¯s no fleeing from a member of One-sh! If there¡¯s a fight, ya hafta either kill or get killed!¡±

    ¡°N-no! I was just hired! I¡¯m a fake!¡±

    The disciple admitted to being a fake, and Fuuka sheathed her sword.

    She looked down at the imposter with cold eyes.

    ¡°Again? This is already the fifth time.¡±

    Just as the man raised his face thinking he would be released, he was kicked away by Fuuka.

    The fake iming to be Master finally realizes what¡¯s happening.

    ¡°A-are you perhaps¡ª¡±

    ¡°Nice to meet you, you fake bastard. ¡ªLiam Sera Banfield, at your service.¡±

    The fake bes pale.

    He shivers violently and copses on his knees. I order him to call forth the lord of this.

    ¡°Call that retarded lord who hired you.¡±

    ¡°Eh? B-but he¡¯s a busy person.¡±

    ¡°So, a countryside lord doesn¡¯t have the time to answer my call? Me, a Count? Death it is then.¡±

    ¡°Hyiiiii! I-I¡¯ll call him over!¡±

    The whole point of having authority and being of high status is so that I could lord it over others.

    I suck up to those above me, but oppress those below me.

    How should I deal with this small time lord, who not only did nothing about the fake, but also smeared dirt on the name of One-sh?

    I return to my seat, only to find the shopkeeper looking troubled.

    ¡°Where¡¯s my mackerel miso meal set?¡±

    ¡°U-um, what exactly is this mackerel miso meal set?¡±

    Apparently, the smell of mackerel miso came from a different dish.

    ¡ó

    Fifteen minutester...

    I dig into the food that is brought in, and for the first time since I was reincarnated, I get to have a taste of mackerel miso.

    ¡°This is it!¡±

    During those terrible times before I was reincarnated, I had to smell the scent of mackerel miso every time I passed in front of a certain store.

    I couldn¡¯t go in to eat it because I was having trouble bringing any food to the table. Even after being reincarnated into this intergctic empire, I couldn¡¯t find it anywhere.

    Some food were simr, but they weren¡¯t exactly the same.

    I thought of making it myself, but I was too busy during my training to experiment with the recipes.

    I tried exining it to my chefs, but they couldn¡¯t reproduce it perfectly.

    The food they made were good though, which pissed me off even more.

    Then, on this remote, I¡¯ve finally united with the mackerel miso meal set.

    It feels like I¡¯ve found a treasure.

    The lord of this remote is kneeling down on the ground next to us as we are steadily eating our meal.

    ¡°Please ept my most humble apologies for not knowing that his lordship would be visiting here! I have erred, for I was unaware that this man was a fake and hired him as a sword instructor. I will have them publicly executed at once!¡±

    Outside the store, the imposters have been detained by the small-time lord¡¯s knights and have been forced to kneel, their faces beaten and full of bruises.

    ¡°Silence. I¡¯m eating.¡±

    ¡°M-my apologies! Rather than eating in such a dirty shop, I am having a party prepared at my house as we speak. Please, it would be an honor if the Count could attend.¡±

    ¡®Don¡¯t eat here,e over to my house!¡¯ is what he¡¯s saying.

    I would¡¯ve normally epted such an offer, but right now, the mackerel miso meal set is more important.

    Also, the crime of acknowledging a fake and hiring him as an instructor of One-sh is unforgivable.

    ¡°Shut it. One more time and you¡¯re dead.¡±

    The small-time lord bes silent.

    This time, Rinho¡¯s the one to speak as she eats the mackerel miso meal set in front of her.

    ¡°Senior Brother, what are we going to do now?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll head to the next and enjoy our travel along the way.¡±

    Since I was able to discover this mackerel miso meal set, I¡¯ll surely stumble upon more treasures on others.

    Rinho, however, seems bored by that.

    ¡°So, we¡¯re just going to go around the countryside? It¡¯d be nice if we can encounter someone strong, but the fakes we¡¯ve met have all been trash. It¡¯s so boring.¡±

    ¡°Then how about this? We¡¯ll find strong people on thes and challenge them. It¡¯ll be like going on a warrior¡¯s journey.¡±

    Let¡¯s crush some famous dojos during this short trip.

    That sounds just like what an evil lord would do!

    Fuuka finishes her meal and stands up.

    ¡°Sounds good to me! I¡¯ll be first up!¡±

    ¡°Huh? Then what about me? My views have been dropping recently ¡®cuz I haven¡¯t been cutting anyone down.¡±

    The most bloodthirsty underground idol in the universe, was it?

    Since Rinho¡¯s a streamer, it seems she wants to stand out.

    ¡°You can just takes turns fighting. Ellen, you¡¯ll be joining them too.¡±

    ¡°Y-yes.¡±

    Ellen doesn¡¯t sound as energetic as usual.

    As I thought, she isn¡¯t too keen on the idea of cutting people down.

    I kind of regret sheltering her so much.

    After our meal, we see the shopkeeper and his family standing ufortably.

    ¡°Hey, we¡¯re paying.¡±

    ¡°Cing!¡±

    I take out my card and transfer the payment electronically.

    The shopkeeper opens his eyes in surprise.

    ¡°I-is it alright to pay us this much?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s for destroying the store. Also, I¡¯ll have your familye to my territory.¡±

    ¡°Sorry?¡±

    My orderes as a surprise to the three.

    Unlike those petty viins we met earlier, I want the entire family, not just the daughter.

    ¡°From time to time, I get this craving you see.¡±

    Maybe it¡¯s because I didn¡¯t get to eat it during my previous life.

    For some reason, there are times when I suddenly want to eat mackerel miso.

    Since this is so distant from my territory, it¡¯s too much of a pain toe here every time I want to eat.

    Hence, I¡¯vee up with the idea of bringing back the entire family to my territory.

    It¡¯s just what an evil lord would do.

    ¡°Well, but...¡±

    Troubled, the shopkeeper looks at the small-time lord kneeling on the ground.

    I address said lord.

    ¡°Anyints?¡±

    ¡°None!¡±

    ¡°See? Now, go pack your luggage. This is an order. Your family has no right to refuse.¡±

    It¡¯s quite tragic indeed.

    After all, their lives are being swayed by my selfishness.

    That said, I want to speak to the daughter who¡¯s apparently been helping out with the store.

    ¡°Are you their daughter?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    She¡¯s a in and simple girl, but she¡¯ll no doubt be a beauty with a few touches here and there.

    ¡°Heard you were helping out with the store. Must be tough to earn pocket money.¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m not receiving any. Setting up a store has always been my parents¡¯ dream, so I thought I¡¯d help them.¡±

    It seems she¡¯s been helping out aftering back from school.

    What a kind-hearted daughter she is.

    Honestly, I¡¯m starting to feel sorry about having the family move to my territory, but if I go back on my words, my reputation as an evil lord would be at risk.

    Ie up with a certain idea as I wonder about what I could do for them.

    ¡°How admirable of you to help your parents, I like it. When you arrive at my territory, say my name at the government office. I¡¯ll arrange tuition and schrships for you.¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    I enjoy the interaction where an evil lord gives money to a beautiful girl.

    I feel a little less guilty now.

    That¡¯s when I catch sight of the small-time lord kneeling on the ground.

    I almost forgot about him.

    ¡°You better not let things get to your head again. I¡¯ll destroy your family if it happens again.¡±

    From my perspective, it¡¯s an unforgivable crime to acknowledge and hire fakes pretending to be members of the School of One-sh.

    The small-time lord replies after hearing my warning, which might have contained a threat of destruction.

    ¡°I¡¯ll turn over a new leaf from now!¡±

    ¡°And naturally you should.¡±

    Well, I don¡¯t have time to stay here forever.

    We hurry out of the store to continue our search for Master.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°It¡¯s painful. It¡¯s painful to watch Lord Liam go on a rehabilitative journey despite iming to be an evil lord. What is he even thinking?¡±

    Wakagi-chan (©b?©b): ¡°Attention please! The limited edition of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ Volume 6es with a voice drama, but obtaining a physical copy can be difficult! However, if you buy the limited edition of the book on Book ¡îWalker, you can download the voice drama and listen to it whenever you want, so please consider purchasing a copy!¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°...Volume 2 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire!¡¯ will be released on the 25th of this month, so please look forward to that as well!¡±

 Chapter 145 - Vol. 9 Chapter 3 - A Major Miscalculation

    <h4>Chapter 145 ¨C Vol. 9 Chapter 3 ¨C A Major Miscalction</h4>

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    While Liam was searching for Yasushi, thetter was putting up a wooden sign, with the words ¡®The Original One-sh¡¯ written in ink, on a dojo that looked like a prefabricated hut.

    ¡°Fuhahaha! This is my dojo!¡±

    ¡°It looks wonderful, Yasu-kun!¡±

    Nina, his wife, had paid for everything. From the purchasing of thend, to the preparation of the building, but the dojo was under Yasushi¡¯s name.

    As a matter of fact, he hadn¡¯t paid a single cent.

    Still, he was a master when it came to putting on airs.

    Nina praised her husband, who was wearing a d¨­gi.

    ¡°Yasu-kun, the d¨­gi fits you so well!¡±

    ¡°You bet! Us humans are all about how we look. Leave it to me to set the vibe.¡±

    While Yasushi was getting puffed up with pride, Nina asked him a serious question about how he would operate the dojo.

    ¡°But can you teach your students with vibes alone? Yasu-kun, it¡¯s not like you¡¯re that strong, right?¡±

    ¡°Well, I do have a track record of raising three monstrous disciples. It should be fine as long as I hold back a bit. Who knows, I might be the sword instructor of some lord in the future. When that timees, I¡¯ll make sure to suck him dry.¡±

    ¡°I like that asshole side of you too!¡±

    Yasushi nodded in satisfaction seeing how lovestruck Nina was with him.

    He was determined not to fail this time.

    (It¡¯s been a series of failures ever since I fled from the Banfield Family, but this time, I¡¯ll find an aristocratic household that I can reallytch onto.)

    There were many aristocrats interested in the School of One-sh, and the existence of Liam, who embodied its sess, served to further fuel their interest.

    However... there was a saying that ¡®poverty dulls the wit¡¯.

    Yasushi had forgotten something important after being blinded by the money he could potentially earn.

    A knight who had seen the promotional flyer approached Yasushi just as he had finished putting up the signboard for the One sh dojo.

    One look was enough to tell that the knight was probably an unruly fellow.

    ¡°Is this a dojo affiliated with the School of One-sh?¡±

    ¡°A disciple right off the bat? That¡¯s right. I¡¯m a sword instructor of the original One-sh.¡±

    Yasushi did not reveal his name as things could be troublesome once it was known that he was the Sword God.

    ¡°What¡¯s your rtionship with Count Banfield?¡±

    ¡°Um~ we¡¯re something akin to distant rtives. There are several variations to One-sh after all.¡±

    ¡°I want to be stronger. Will I be stronger if I train here?¡±

    ¡°But of course! Despite how I may look, I¡¯m a top-notch instructor!¡±

    The knight grinned.

    ¡°Excellent. I was exiled and thinking of getting revenge after bing stronger. May as well learn from the School of One-sh.¡±

    Yasushi¡¯s expression hardened when he heard the knight¡¯s words.

    ¡°¡ªEh? Exiled?¡±

    ¡°I was just having a little fun with the people, but that bastard of a lord got all angry with me. He¡¯s such a petty lord. I¡¯ll get ¡®im for what he¡¯s done.¡±

    Nina pulled Yasushi to the side when she saw the eerie smile on the knight¡¯s face.

    ¡°Yasu-kun, are you sure about this?¡±

    ¡°A-all¡¯s well. He¡¯s an important disciple of mine as long as he can afford to pay the monthly fees. A-anyway, you¡¯re my disciple from today. Let¡¯s begin with the etique¡ª¡±

    ¡°To hell with etiquettes! Why would a knight need that?! Being strong is all that matters!¡±

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re absolutely right! T-then let¡¯s start training straight away.¡±

    ¡°The swordsmanship that Count Banfield learned, is it? I¡¯m looking forward to it.¡±

    Out of nowhere, an ill-bred fellow had appeared.

    ¡ó

    Someone was watching Yasushi from the sky as he opened his dojo.

    ¡ªIt was the Guide.

    ¡°Yasushi, you¡¯ve got some work to do.¡±

    Gudwar, who looked like a human octopus, stood next to him.

    ¡°Is that the Sword God? He seems to be a regr person with no skills.¡±

    Gudwar had been looking forward to meeting the Sword God, but he was confused when he saw Yasushi in person.

    ¡°He himself isn¡¯t that strong, but he¡¯s the man who raised Liam and the two others. He¡¯s basically specialized in raising powerful warriors.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good! I¡¯ll send a bunch of strong men his way.¡±

    The two decided on gathering wandering knights who were strong but had problematic personalities and sending them towards Yasushi.

    They¡¯ll then greet Liam with an army of swordsmen from the School of One-sh.

    The Guide and Gudwar both agreed that to defeat Liam, the swordsmen opposing him should also be trained in the School of One-sh.

    The previous attempt had failed because there were only two people to oppose him.

    But what if they went with quantity over quality?

    Instead of training children from scratch, if they gathered swordsmen with a certain amount of skill, they should take shape soon enough.

    Or so the two thought.

    ¡°Yasushi decided to open a dojo just at the right time. Let¡¯s gather more ruffians for him.¡±

    The Guide let out a crudeugh, and Gudwar was also having a good time.

    ¡°Things are getting interesting back in my country, but it also sounds fun to have members of the School of One-sh sh against one another.¡±

    Gudwar, who enjoyed watching battles between powerful men, shook its eight legs in delight.

    The Guide was in a great mood as well and directed some of his negative energy towards Yasushi¡¯s dojo, and ruffians began to swarm over as if they were being lured by it.

    With the help of Gudwar, the Guide was nning on mass-producing swordsmen capable of reproducing the One sh.

    ¡°With our assistance, those ruffians will master the One-sh in no time. I¡¯m already shaking in anticipation.¡±

    ¡°A battle between powerful warriors. My blood¡¯s boiling.¡±

    And so, to defeat Liam who had be overpowered, the Guide and Gudwar was preparing arge army of ruffians that could unleash the One-sh.

    ¡ó

    Meanwhile, on a different, Rinho was facing off against a swordsman.

    Her opponent had drawn his sword, but Rinho had yet to do so, her hand merely on her sword¡¯s handle.

    She made gestures to provoke her enemy.

    ¡°Come. You¡¯re the strongest around here, right?¡±

    The man she was up against was a skinhead and had a tattoo on his face, making it obvious that he was an evil-doer.

    His sword was pointed at Rinho, but he was having cold sweats as he did so.

    The underlings that he had brought had all fallen to the ground.

    They were a group of mercenaries hired by pirates, and their group consisted of former knights and swordsmen that had made a name for themselves.

    It was even said that the private armies of lords would flee in terror at the sight of them.

    While maintaining his stance, he spoke to Rinho.

    ¡°Why are members of the One-sh here? I thought you guys only appeared in areas around the Banfield Family and the Kingdom of Dominion?¡±

    With Liam spreading the word, the School of One sh was finally being recognized throughout the Empire.

    Rinho put her right hand close to her mouth and giggled.

    ¡°We¡¯re just here to kill time.¡±

    Hearing her response, the man stepped forward and closed the distance between them.

    He used to be a knight and was trained in the art of the sword. Not only that, he was a veteran that had survived countless battlefields.

    Since bing a pirate knight, he had been active as a bodyguard and was a well-respected sword master in the underworld.

    (You¡¯re just a young girl!)

    There was no way he could lose.

    Thinking so, he swung down his sword, only to cut through air.

    He was certain the sword would reach Rinho.

    However, he realized that his sword was broken and that its de was missing.

    The man quickly took some distance, only to see Rinho ying with the broken de in front of him.

    ¡°Ah~ how boring. If I¡¯d known things would end up this way, I would¡¯ve just stuck to following Senior Brother around.¡±

    ¡°Guh!¡±

    The man tried to pull out his pistol from the holster, but before he could react, his arms were cut off.

    ¡°Wha-?!¡±

    Ignoring the man¡¯s look of surprise, Rinho tossed the de away before gripping her sword¡¯s hilt.

    She pulled it out and approached the man.

    ¡°I heard someone strong was here and pled Senior Brother to let me have him, but you¡¯re worse than the serial killer from a while ago. At least he was more enjoyable to deal with.¡±

    ¡°Serial killer? You mean Donil? Six-Sword Donil? He was done in by a girl like you?!¡±

    He already knew that someone had put an end to the infamous serial killer, but he didn¡¯t think it was the girl in front of him that had done the deed.

    ¡°Six-Sword? Ah, right. That was his second name. You know, I expected a little more from that criminal since I heard aristocrats and knights alike feared him.¡±

    The serial killer was a cunning man that continued to murder people even as a wanted man in the Empire.

    The man suddenly recalled a certain rumor about a swordsman that hunted wrongdoers like him.

    The rumor had been around for a few years, but the man dismissed it thinking it was the work of a Good Samaritan passing by.

    However, he connected the dots hearing the swordswoman in front of him refer to her Senior Brother from the School of One-sh.

    ¡°Liam¡¯s here? Why¡¯s Count Banfield at a ce like¡ª¡±

    Before the man could finish his sentence, Rinho raised her eyebrows, displeased.

    ¡°This is for addressing Senior Brother without honorifics.¡±

    When she put her sword back in its scabbard, the man¡¯s head fell off his body.

    Just then, Rinho received a call, and a small window appeared in the air with Fuuka projected inside it.

    ¡®We don¡¯t got all day, y¡¯know?¡¯

    Seeing how moody she was, Rinho replied while using her fingers to put her hair behind her ears.

    ¡°Shut up. I¡¯ve already wrapped things up on my end. How are things on yours?¡±

    ¡®Senior Brother said he¡¯s getting bored of dealing with them. He¡¯s thinking of having Marie do the cleanup, so you should return as well.¡¯

    ¡°It¡¯s no wonder Senior Brother¡¯s bored.¡±

    Rinho left the scene on a small ship that had been waiting to pick her up.

    ¡ó

    A thousand ck ships led by Marie Sera Marian were hunting down the pirates.

    As a female knight that was once part of the Empire¡¯s Three Knights, she had pledged allegiance to Liam after being freed from 2000 years of petrification.

    At the bridge of the fleet¡¯s gship, she was issuing orders as themander.

    ¡°Lord Liam wishes to see every single ship destroyed.¡±

    There were over 2000 pirate ships.

    Although they were outnumbered two-to-one, Liam¡¯s fleet consisted of state-of-the-art battleships that had been prepared so that they could travel incognito.

    Under Marie¡¯smand, Liam¡¯s fleet was shooting down the pirates one after another.

    One of the operators reported to Marie that the pirates were begging for mercy.

    ¡°Commander, the pirates keep saying they¡¯ll surrender.¡±

    The crew inside the bridge were making faces that said ¡°Again?¡±

    Marie smiled and refused.

    ¡°No mercy to the pirates. Lord Liam¡¯s getting tired of them.¡±

    Liam was sitting on a special seat behind Marie and rxing.

    He was excited about pirate hunting in the beginning, but he quickly lost interest when he realized their enemies were a bunch of weaklings.

    ¡°They¡¯re saying that they¡¯re close with one of the aristocrats. They¡¯re trying to threaten us by saying that things could be messy for Count Banfield if we continue to rampage.¡±

    ¡°¡ªOh? They have pretty good eyes and ears.¡±

    Their fleet did not carry the Banfield Family¡¯s crest, which meant that their enemies had identified them based on the information that they¡¯d obtained themselves.

    Marie turned towards Liam.

    Lord Liam, what should we do?

    Liam gave a casual reply seeing the question in her eyes.

    ¡°Do they think a random aristocrat can go against me? If they¡¯re part of the same faction as us, I can just bribe them. If they¡¯re part of the Calvin Faction, we can just grind them to dust. If they¡¯re part of the group that¡¯s waiting to see how the wind blows, I¡¯ll confront them upfront. Connect up with the pirates.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    The operators heeded themand and brought up the face of a certain pirate on the monitor.

    Liam¡¯s attitude remained as bold as ever.

    ¡°So, who¡¯s backing you?¡±

    ¡®Hehehe, that would have to remain a secret. If Count Banfield is willing to withdraw, we¡¯re willing to let matters go.¡¯

    The other party was making the assumption that Liam wished to avoid a conflict between aristocrats.

    Liam once fought against the Pirate Noble, but that was before he became the leader of the huge Cleo faction.

    The pirate had revealed his connection to an aristocrat thinking Liam would be shackled down by all sorts of responsibilities.

    ¡°Well then, I¡¯ll investigate once we¡¯re done crushing you guys. End the call.¡±

    The pirate panicked when Liam tried to end the call.

    ¡®A-are you crazy?! You don¡¯t even know who we¡¯re connected to! How can you still call yourself an aristocrat!¡¯

    Liam maintained his attitude before the pirate.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter, be it friend or foe.¡±

    The pirate stared at him in disbelief.

    ¡®Why is a bigshot like you going out of your way to hunt pirates like us? There are a plenty of bigger pirate groups!¡¯

    Never did they think they¡¯d be targeted by the Banfield Family.

    Liam smiled.

    ¡°The size doesn¡¯t matter. I enjoy crushing you guys like flies all the same. You know how people take detours when they¡¯re on a trip? This is something like that.¡±

    ¡®Y-you¡¯re killing us for that kind of reason?¡¯

    ¡°Do you ever stop to think about other people¡¯s feelings when you¡¯re looting them? No, right? ¡ªHey, cut off themunication.¡±

    The call ended there, and Marie moved to Liam¡¯s side.

    ¡°Lord Liam, that was wonderful. This Marie is deeply moved.¡±

    Her cheeks were blushing, and Liam was staring at her as if she was something disgusting.

    ¡°Um, yeah. More importantly, I don¡¯t see anyone suitable around.¡±

    Liam turned to look at Ellen who was standing silently.

    She appeared to be nervous.

    Marie¡¯s gaze alsonded on Ellen, and she understood what Liam was on about.

    ¡°If it¡¯s about Ellen¡¯s opponent, shall I go out and catch one of the pirates in the area?¡±

    Liam shook his head.

    ¡°That won¡¯t do.¡±

    Ellen looked relieved when she heard this, but she quickly rposed herself.

    However, Liam was not one to miss this.

    Marie also shrugged.

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be feeling relieved, Ellen. Killing is a must for swordsmen and knights. You¡¯ll only be considered full-fledged once you¡¯ve killed someone.¡±

    Ellen became disheartened.

    ¡°I know. As soon an appropriate opponent is found¡ª¡±

    ¡°Naturally. You¡¯re not qualified to learn One-sh if you can¡¯t even be full-fledged.¡±

    Receiving Liam¡¯s stern gaze, a shadow was cast on Ellen¡¯s face, knowing she¡¯d have to kill an opponent sooner orter.

    Liam was supposed to decide who she¡¯d be facing, but he had yet to find an opponent that suited her.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°It¡¯s painful. Lord Liam is maintaining order in another person¡¯s territory. He should reallye back.¡±

    Brian (£à?¦Ø?¡ä): ¡°On a different note, there will be a cob between ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire¡¯ and ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯. If you purchase Volume Two of Intergctic, which is scheduled to be released on the 25th, you¡¯ll also get a special SS where Lord Liam is sent to the world of the Otome Games.¡±

    Wakagi-chan ( ©b?©b): ¡°Also, Volume 7 of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ will be released in January! If you purchase a copy of it, you¡¯ll also receive a bonus SS where Leon-san gets sent to the world of Intergctic Nations.¡±

    Brian (*¡ä¦Ø£à*): ¡°It¡¯ll be a double release in December and January.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (£»©b§¥©b): ¡°Be careful. These bonus SS are distributed at bookstores, so people that buy the e-book versions probably won¡¯t get them. Nevertheless, for us to have a coboration with Intergctic... you never know what would happen in life.¡±

 Chapter 146 - V9 Chapter 4. Rosettas Personal Guards

    <h4>Chapter 146 ¨C V9 Chapter 4. Rosetta¡¯s Personal Guards</h4>

    It had been three years since Liam embarked on his training journey.

    While he was away arge fleet was being formed on the Banfield Family¡¯s main.

    Rosetta and Eulisia were visiting the space fortress with Ciel trailing behind them.

    The docks of the space fortress were lined with various ships that had been purchased from the Third Weapons Factory, and they were floating in zero-gravity.

    With documents in hand, Eulisia was exining about some of the weapons. As she was in work mode, she was like apletely different person, and her normally disappointing figure was nowhere to be found.

    ¡°They aren¡¯t the newest models, but they¡¯re mainstream, and we¡¯ve been gathering a lot of them.¡±

    Originally, they were nning on having a small number of elite guards, but the numbers have been adjusted to fulfill Rosetta¡¯s wishes.

    To help those struggling like her former self, she recruited knights that were having a difficult time.

    Simrly, the ships¡¯ crew mainly consisted of nomads who had nowhere to go.

    Eulisia asked once more for Rosetta¡¯s confirmation.

    ¡°We¡¯ve been following through with Lady Rosetta¡¯s wishes, but is this truly alright? We haven¡¯t been the most particr with the ships¡¯ appearance other than our gship and its escort ship. In fact, the gship¡¯s appearance also pales inparison to the other houses.¡±

    Even Liam had a shy gship.

    When put side by side, Rosetta¡¯s personal guards were truly in.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine to have minimalistic looks. We should focus on practicality over aesthetics. I want them to help people in need after all.¡±

    Rosetta didn¡¯t want her personal guards to be around her.

    Instead, she wanted them to help people on others who were in a predicament.

    ¡°Darling¡¯s currently in the center of the Empire¡¯s power struggle. He doesn¡¯t have the time to handle certain things, so I want to do something in his ce.¡±

    ¡°I understand your sentiment, but the problem¡¯s with the scale.¡±

    They weren¡¯t dealing with a couple hundred ships here.

    There were talking about tens of thousands of ships, with more joining as time passed.

    Not only were there a lot of people in need of help, the Banfield Family was also focusing on territorial development and epting immigrants, who wereing in waves and settling on newly pioneereds.

    Eulisia seemed worried.

    ¡°It¡¯s already far past the scale of being personal guards. I¡¯m amazed Lord Liam even allowed this.¡±

    It was like a private army dedicated to Rosetta had popped up amid the Banfield Family¡¯s army.

    Although Liam was at the top of themand chain, it was essentially under Rosetta.

    Hence, a huge problem would ur if the two were to have a confrontation.

    Even if that didn¡¯t happen, conflicts may arise in the future among their sessors, and Eulisia was worried about that.

    ¡°In the future, we should bring forth the matter of reducing the fleet¡¯s size to Lord Liam.¡±

    ¡°Sure, I¡¯m fine with that.¡±

    Rosetta immediately agreed, and didn¡¯t seem to mind, but Ciel wasn¡¯t happy with that.

    (I must have Lady Rosetta win the hearts of the people¡ªthe sooner, the better.)

    While most people were enthralled by Liam¡¯s public image, Ciel knew his true character.

    She knew that Liam wasn¡¯t the kind and caring person that the world believed him to be.

    Rather, he self-identified as an evil lord.

    She was doing things behind the scenes to ensure that Liam didn¡¯t get any more powerful than he already was.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta, simply having the guards trained won¡¯t be enough.¡±

    ¡°Oh, is that so?¡±

    Though she was quite knowledgeable, Rosetta hadn¡¯t graduated from the military academy, so she relied on Eulisia for such matters.

    Eulisia stared at Ciel with suspicious eyes.

    However, she didn¡¯t disagree with Ciel as what she said was correct.

    ¡°Training¡¯s just training in the end. Actual battle is something else, so she¡¯s not wrong. Still, we shouldn¡¯t move on our own. It wouldn¡¯t be toote to move after getting Lord Liam¡¯s permission when he returns.¡±

    It was a valid point. Though the fleet was Rosetta¡¯s personal guards, they shouldn¡¯t act on their own.

    This made some gears turn inside Ciel¡¯s head.

    (She¡¯s usually such a disappointing woman, why now! ...Right, there¡¯s that!)

    Ciel proceeded to persuade Rosetta.

    ¡°There are people out there struggling precisely because Lord Liam¡¯s not there to help them. Lady Rosetta, this is the perfect chance for the personal guards to act now that Lord Liam is busy with something else. They were formed for that reason, were they not?¡±

    With Ciel bringing up the topic of her guards¡¯ raison d¡¯¨ºtre, Rosetta was made to think a little.

    ¡°You¡¯re right. Darling must be ¡®doing his best¡¯ over on his side, so I want to do what I can to help. There are a lot of petitions piled up, so let¡¯s handle the ones that we can. We won¡¯t be able to handle any of the important ones though.¡±

    Even if she deployed her guards, she shouldn¡¯t be too conspicuous about it.

    This was to avoid pulling Liam¡¯s legster down the line.

    They would have to limit themselves to things like disaster relief, and avoid matters such as sending reinforcements to resolve skirmishes.

    ¡°But of course! We should help the needy!¡±

    Ciel was banking on increasing the number of Rosetta¡¯s allies.

    ¡°Yup!¡±

    While the two girls were hyping themselves up, Eulisia was looking at them with cold eyes.

    ¡ó

    Eulisia distanced herself from the two, and called out to a ck Ops member, who should¡¯ve been observing them.

    ¡°...Can youe out?¡±

    Though she said that, she didn¡¯t know if there would be any reaction.

    She wasn¡¯t even sure if the person was there, or not.

    However, a woman wearing a mask immediately came out from her shadow.

    She was freaking out inside, but Eulisia held herself back, and exined what was happening with Ciel.

    ¡°Is it okay to leave her alone? That child must be plotting something by taking advantage of Lady Rosetta¡¯s enthusiasm.¡±

    The masked woman, who revealed herself was Kunai, the one that Liam had named.

    ¡°Lord Liam has ordered us to keep an eye on her, but to let her do as she pleases.¡±

    ¡°What is he thinking? The Banfield Family¡¯s military is alsoining, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Some generals in the army thought Rosetta¡¯s fleet of personal guards was too big and viewed it as a threat.

    Just like her, they pushed for Rosetta to reduce the scale of her fleet in the future.

    ¡°We¡¯re using the fact that Lord Liam has given his permission to hold them at bay. ¡ªus-dono has been tasked with this, so everything should be alright.¡±

    us was responsible for handling this troublesome matter.

    Eulisia was relieved to hear that.

    ¡°It¡¯s good that he¡¯s returned from the border. If he wasn¡¯t here, their dissatisfaction might have exploded out into something else by now.¡±

    ¡°Then they would¡¯ve be targets of our purge.¡±

    Kukuri¡¯s nsmen were there to purge those that disobeyed Liam, even if the targets were from the family.

    Eulisia felt a chill.

    ¡°Even so, you¡¯re willing to let that child run amok.¡±

    ¡°That was Lord Liam¡¯s order after all.¡±

    Having said her piece, the masked woman disappeared into her shadow.

    ¡ó

    We¡¯re on a trip to search for Master Yasushi, and we¡¯re currently traveling to the next.

    I¡¯ve just finished my daily training, and I¡¯m talking to my Junior Disciples while wiping off my sweat.

    ¡°What should we eat today?¡±

    It¡¯s fun exploring variouss, but I¡¯m getting tired of the food on board.

    More urately speaking, I want something stimting.

    Different dishes are served every day, and they¡¯re all delicious, so I have noints in that aspect, but I want something stimting.

    Eating a full course meal every day makes me miss the food I ate when I was poor.

    We¡¯ve tried things like Ochazuke, but I want to experiment with other things.

    ¡°Rather than these luxurious dishes that we eat, is there something you want to eat from the time when you were having a hard time?¡±

    The chefs have satisfied all my requests, so I¡¯m asking for my Junior Disciples¡¯ opinions.

    Fuuka and Rinho look at one another.

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that be the time before Master picked us up from the streets?¡±

    ¡°We had to rummage through trash for food, so I don¡¯t have many good memories of those times.¡±

    ¡ªIt seems I¡¯ve stepped on and mine.

    I usually order people not to speak about heavy topics in front of me, but I can¡¯t say that to my cute Junior Disciples.

    After all, I¡¯ve decided not to involve One-sh with my act as an evil lord.

    I myself have also fished for food in the trashcan numerous times in my previous life, and I don¡¯t want to do that ever again.

    ¡°Let¡¯s say after Master picked you guys up.¡±

    Rinho thinks with her arms crossed.

    ¡°Something delicious...you say that, but we were happy just being able to eat.¡±

    Fuuka puts her hands behind her head to think as well.

    ¡°Yeah. Everything tasted good, even the fish that Master cooked for us which was slightly burnt.¡±

    Since the two couldn¡¯t decide, I turn towards Ellen for an answer.

    ¡°What about you, Ellen?¡±

    ¡°Well, uhm... I can¡¯t think of one either...¡±

    I can tell that she¡¯s lying by how her eyes are darting from one ce to another.

    ¡°Stop lying. You have one, don¡¯t you? Be honest. If you aren¡¯t, I¡¯ll make today¡¯s meal filled with food that Ellen dislikes.¡±

    ¡°Hiii! Well, um...¡±

    Ellen tries to say what her favorite food is, but she seems to be having a difficult time answering in front of us.

    Eventually, she squeezes out a response.

    ¡°I want food made by my mom.¡±

    Ellen looks down at the ground.

    It appears I¡¯ve stepped on and mine yet again.

    A child with the appearance of a 10 year-old leaving her parent and going on a training trip.

    It¡¯s no surprise that she misses her mother.

    Today¡¯s been nothing, but a series of failures.

    ¡°How ¡¯bout you two?¡±

    I turn towards Fuuka and Rinho for help, but neither of them notices my hint.

    ¡°Anything¡¯s fine.¡±

    ¡°I guess anything that will look good in a picture, or a video?¡±

    ¡®Anything¡¯, they say. They couldn¡¯t have given a worse answer.

    Fuuka remembers something while we¡¯re wondering what to eat.

    ¡°Oh, I want to eat bread.¡±

    ¡°Bread? So Western cuisine?¡±

    ¡°We were given bread when we first met Master. It was a cheap bread, but it was the first taste of food that we had.¡±

    Fuuka recalls her memories of that time and looks back at it nostalgically.

    The same goes for Rinho, but she¡¯s absentmindedly holding her cheeks with her hands.

    ¡°That bread was delicious. One of the peoplepeting with us over the scraps of food tried to kill us, but we turned the table on him. That was when we met Master. He treated us kindly and gave us some bread.¡±

    Fuuka tilts her head.

    ¡°Really? I thought he helped us when we were being attacked?¡±

    ¡°Does it really matter?¡±

    What¡¯s up with this ambiguous encounter?

    Then again, Master picked them up when they were very young, so their memories might be hazy.

    Bread, huh?

    ¡°Okay, we¡¯ll have the chef make bread for us. What kind of bread was it?¡±

    ¡°Sweet buns!¡±

    ¡°With jam for mine!¡±

    This is how our meal became sweet buns.

    ¡ó

    On that day, the head chef onboard Liam¡¯s battleship was waiting for his order.

    Even for chefs that served Count Banfield¡¯s family, preparing Liam¡¯s meal wasn¡¯t an easy task.

    Not only did the chefs have to be skilled, they had tomand the highest level of respect, and honor in their field.

    Chefs with both skill and pride were awaiting Liam¡¯s order.

    ¡°Head chef, this is Lord Liam¡¯s order!¡±

    Seeing how much of a hurry his subordinate was in, the head chef made a stern expression.

    ¡°Calm yourself! No matter what kind of dish he demands, I can make it perfectly.¡±

    He scolded his subordinate for being so panicked, but when he heard what the order was, he buried his head in his hands.

    ¡°H-he demands bread.¡±

    ¡°A dish that goes well with bread? That¡¯s rather vague, but I should be able toe up with something.¡±

    ¡°No, he wants bread. Only bread.¡±

    ¡°¡ªHm? What are you on about?¡±

    The head chef fell into a dilemma when he was told that Liam wanted only bread.

    ¡°So... umm... he wants sweet buns.¡±

    The other chefs around him also came to a stop.

    The best chefs in the territory were being ordered to make sweet buns.

    ¡°A-and, um, this is for reference.¡±

    The image that was shown was that of a cheap bun.

    The head chef was utterly confused.

    ¡°What¡¯s this? Is he trying to test me? Does Lord Liam wish to see how far I can improve this? That has to be it, right?!¡±

    His subordinate shook his head and replied in the negative.

    ¡°He¡¯s ordered to reproduce the sweet buns as close to the original as possible, and to make it cheap.¡±

    The surrounding chefs rushed to support the head chef who was about to copse.

    The head chef then said, ¡°B-bring the ingredients. Since it¡¯s an order, I¡¯ll reproduce it perfectly, even if it¡¯s just cheap sweet buns.¡±

    Liam was making one of the most talented chef bake cheap sweet buns.

    ¡ó

    Rinho and Fuuka start devouring the sweet buns when theye out.

    ¡°This is it! This was what I was talking about.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re not as tasty as I remember them to be, but I guess these will do.¡±

    Ellen also takes a bite seeing how happily the two are eating.

    Then, she turns to face me.

    ¡°Master, these cream buns are delicious.¡±

    ¡°That so. Eat as much as you like.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    I felt sorry for them and prepared food that they wanted as an apology, but I feel conflicted, and can¡¯t help but wonder if these cheap buns are enough to make it up to them.

    They¡¯re delicious alright, but doesn¡¯t something feel off?

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°It¡¯s painful. Lord Liam, instead of ordering first-ss chefs to bake them, couldn¡¯t you have simply bought them? Lord Liam¡¯s misusing the chefs... it¡¯s painful.¡±

    Wakagi-chan ( ©b?©b): ¡°Enough about the buns! I¡¯m here to advertise Volume 7 of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯. Finally, it¡¯s time! Volume 7, which kind-of-sort-of-maybe has the possibility of me making a big appearance¡ª¡±

    Brian: ¡°Ei!¡± (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à)£òûu~£¼?çÝ;©b§¥©b)¥Î ¡°Nougyaa~¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°....¡±

    Brian (£à?¦Ø?¡ä): ¡°Volume 2 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire¡¯ where Lord Liam causes big waves will be out on December 25th. Please look forward to it!¡±

 Chapter 147 - V9 Chapter 5. Evil Governor

    <h4>Chapter 147 ¨C V9 Chapter 5. Evil Governor</h4>

    V9 Chapter 5. Evil Governor

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    We¡¯ve arrived at the home of one of the lords that belongs to the Cleo Faction.

    The lord of this is a Viscount that is at the very bottom of the hierarchy within our faction. He and his family members are kneeling before me inside their luxurious mansion as I stare down at them.

    ¡°I see you¡¯ve been quite brazen.¡±

    The Viscount trembles.

    ¡°M-my apologies!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t think an apology will be enough.¡±

    ¡°Hiii?!¡±

    We decided to visit here on our search for our Master, and we were told that a swordsman from the School of One-sh was acting as the sword instructor here.

    However, the man in question, that imed to know the True One-sh, turned out to be someone that was using a tool to replicate our secret art.

    It was so bad it couldn¡¯t even pass as a magic trick. When we went out of our way to meet him, he looked at us and said, ¡°Are you one of those knock-offs? Scram!¡±

    Rinho and Fuuka were ticked off by his attitude, and went on a rampage in the Viscount¡¯s mansion.

    Honestly, I was pretty impressed by the Viscount in the beginning.

    There¡¯s a huge wealth gap between the rich and the poor, with the aristocrats living luxurious lives at the expense of themon people.

    This is what an evil lord should be like! I thought to myself.

    We also belonged to the same faction, so I was going to give him a light warning, and tell him that he¡¯d hired a fake instructor.

    And yet!

    ¡°Your soldiers and knights pointed their weapons at me. Do you understand what that means? You pointed your weapons at me, the head of the Cleo Faction!¡±

    ¡°Please forgive me! Please forgive me, Count Banfield!¡±

    He probably joined the faction thinking of getting a slice of the huge pie.

    I don¡¯t me him for that.

    If he¡¯d shown even a sliver of cooperativeness, I wouldn¡¯t have minded joining hands with him.

    But when the Viscount saw us, he shouted, ¡°There¡¯s no way the Count is here. He¡¯s a fake!¡±

    Not only did he lend his hand to an imposter posing as Master Yasushi¡¯s disciple, he tried to kill me.

    ¡ªWhat he¡¯s done is unforgivable.

    The imposter who imed to be Master¡¯s disciple is being kicked around by Rinho and Fuuka inside the mansion¡¯s audience hall.

    ¡°Master¡¯s disciple, you say? I haven¡¯t heard of you.¡±

    Rinho kicks the fake in his stomach, making him suffer and apologize.

    ¡°F-forgive me.¡±

    Fuuka stomps on the head of the fake disciple begging for forgiveness, and looks down at him with murderous eyes.

    ¡°A fake dares to call us fakes? Not only have ya stained our names, but also Master¡¯s name. A street performer like ya shouldn¡¯t have pushed yer luck!¡±

    As she puts more strength in her legs, unpleasant cracking sounds start to be heard from the head of the fake disciple.

    ¡°From tomorrow on, you will have no ce inside the faction,¡± I tell the Viscount in disdain.

    ¡°T-that can¡¯t be! Please, please forgive us!¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you head over to Calvin for help then? It¡¯s your fault for pointing your weapons at me.¡±

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t told that Count Banfield would be traveling incognito! If I had known, this wouldn¡¯t have happened!¡±

    ¡°¡ªSo what? I don¡¯t intend to forgive you. If you don¡¯t like this oue, we can always go to war you know?¡±

    I¡¯m soid back because I¡¯ve already finished investigating the Viscount.

    The result is¡ª whether it¡¯s in terms of financial, or military power, he¡¯s trash.

    No wonder he joined the Cleo Faction.

    It¡¯s such a hopeless household that other factions won¡¯t even deign to look at them.

    If we fight, I¡¯ll definitely win.

    In fact, just the fleet that I brought with me would be enough to obtain victory.

    The fleet led by Marie is currently floating above the, ready to obliterate the Viscount¡¯s household at a moment¡¯s notice.

    The Viscount crouches down with tears in his eyes, not having the energy to go against my words.

    I want to quickly move on without having to deal with all these troublesome matters, so let¡¯s leave it at that.

    If I had the time, I would¡¯ve crushed him thoroughly.

    What a pity I couldn¡¯t.

    ¡°I won¡¯t be so kind next time I see you getting carried away, so you better remember your lesson.¡±

    I put pressure on the Viscount¡¯s family members, and they nod rapidly in terror.

    As I thought, it feels nice to oppress others with my authority!

    ¡ó

    In the Empire¡¯s Capital, the Prime Minister was receiving a report from a spy that had snuck into the Banfield Family.

    Said spy was Serena, the mansion¡¯s head maid.

    They weremunicating via call, but the Prime Minster couldn¡¯t mask his confusion.

    ¡°What is the Count thinking?¡±

    Now that his aristocratic training was over, the Prime Minister thought Liam would quickly hold a wedding and be a Duke.

    However, he had remained quiet ever since he returned to his territory.

    The Prime Minister thought he was focusing on the territory¡¯s internal affairs, but he couldn¡¯t help, but sweat after hearing what was really going on.

    Serena continued her report.

    ¡®Last I heard, he was visiting the territories of fellow aristocrats in the same faction, and inspecting the situation there. If he deemed them unsatisfactory, he would kick the aristocrats out of the faction.¡¯

    ¡°He¡¯s just finished his aristocratic training, yet he¡¯s now on a swordsmanship journey, and reforming others? Is the Count serious?¡±

    The Cleo Faction had a violent sh with the Calvin Faction, and emerged with the upper hand.

    However, Liam, who had organized the Cleo Faction, had since disappeared from the central stage of the Empire. The Calvin Faction was starting to regain momentum now that no one was there to keep it in check.

    Serena, on the other hand, didn¡¯t see this as being all bad.

    ¡®By inspecting the territories of the aristocrats in the Cleo Faction, he must be trying to strengthen their cohesion. It seems many of the lords have heard about Lord Liam¡¯s inspections, and have gotten a grip on themselves.¡¯

    ¡°Knowing the Count, I don¡¯t me them for being afraid. But it wouldn¡¯t do to have him wander around forever. How¡¯s the Banfield Family¡¯s home faring?¡±

    ¡®us-dono is holding down the fort, and working hard to develop the territory further.¡¯

    Hearing us¡¯ name, the Prime Minister regained hisposure.

    ¡°Right, I heard he was summoned back from our border with the Kingdom of Dominion. Since Christina was sent to rece him, it should be fine, but I would¡¯ve preferred us stayed at the border.¡±

    ¡®It seems the Prime Minister also holds him in high regard.¡¯

    ¡°He¡¯s the Count¡¯s right-hand man after all. To think such a talent was out there undiscovered. The universe really is big. I¡¯d even go so far as to say that I want him to be a direct vassal of the Empire, and ce him in an important post.¡±

    The Prime Minster appreciated us¡¯ value, and wanted him to be the Empire¡¯s direct vassal.

    ¡°I envy the Count for having so many talented people under him. At the same time, it¡¯s a problem that he has so many... Serena, is it possible to take us away from him?¡±

    ¡®I¡¯ll casually bring up to topic, and check with him.¡¯

    The Prime Minister was nning on extracting us from the Banfield¡¯s.

    ¡ó

    ¡°¡ªStrange. Something¡¯s strange.¡±

    us, the Head Knight of the Banfield Family, was holding his head while inside his office.

    He had just been invited to be a direct vassal of the Empire.

    Not only that, he had been promised an important post.

    The Empire was willing to provide adequatepensation to the Banfield Family such that us¡¯s extraction wouldn¡¯t sour their rtionship.

    us, who was barely holding on to the vital position that Liam had given him, couldn¡¯t believe what was happening.

    ¡°Until a while ago, I was struggling to find a master who I can serve, and yet... a direct vassal of the Empire? Me? Moreover, I¡¯ll be treated favorably? ¡ªNo way. Definitely impossible.¡±

    Even now, us was feeling burdened by his responsibilities.

    He refused to be put in a position where his responsibilities would be even heavier.

    ¡°I guess I¡¯ll have to politely refuse.¡±

    us wondered why all this was happening to him.

    A knight entered us¡¯s office.

    She barged into the room without asking for permission.

    Again?us sighed in defeat.

    ¡°Chengshi, do I have to tell you every time that you should ask for permission before entering?¡±

    Chengshi, who was in a foul mood, ignored what he said and made a demand.

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯m feeling pent up. I want to fight. Arrange an enemy for me.¡±

    Having defeated her, Liam lost interest in Chengshi, making Rinho and Fuuka her primary opponents.

    However, Liam had taken them away on his journey, and her frustration was beginning to pile up.

    ¡°Again? Just a while ago, didn¡¯t you forcibly participate in the subjugation of pirates?¡±

    ¡°They fled the moment they saw the Banfield¡¯s family crest. They weren¡¯t enough to relieve my stress.¡±

    Seeing Chengshi¡¯s bloodthirsty eyes, us contemted for a moment.

    (If I leave her alone, she¡¯ll probably start fighting with our own frustrated men. It¡¯ll be problematic to have them cause havoc here, so I should send then away.)

    Thus, us came up with an idea.

    ¡°One of the petitions sent to Lord Liam was a request for the subjugation of some pirates.¡±

    ¡°Pirates? Again?¡±

    ¡°Be quiet and listen. I want you to take part in the subjugation as a mercenary, not a member of the Banfield Family.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Because the request came from an aristocrat in the Calvin Faction. Joining hands with them would pose a problem for both sides. That¡¯s why I¡¯m telling you to lead the hotheaded knights, and join the subjugation as mercenaries.¡±

    ¡°Okay. I¡¯m not interested in politics, but I¡¯d do anything for a chance to rampage.¡±

    us was relieved to see Chengshi leave.

    (I was originally going to turn down the request, but Lord Liam isn¡¯t here, so it¡¯s better to send them away.)

    us nned on sending Chengshi and the rest of the warlike knights to the battlefield, away from the Banfield Family¡¯s territory.

    ¡ó

    Yasushi was in a pinch.

    Inside his pre-fabricated dojo, Yasushi was sitting upright in a seiza, surrounded by his fierce-looking disciples.

    He was somehow maintaining his calm image.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t think the governor would visit a ce like this.¡±

    Although Yasushi smiled, he was screaming inside.

    (Why is such a bigshot at my dojo! Stay away from meee!)

    Standing before him was the governor of the where Yasushi resided.

    A tall, well-trained man in his mid-twenties looked at Yasushi, disying a bold attitude.

    ¡°I¡¯ve seen the techniques of your disciples. I was going to execute you if you were a fake, but it seems you¡¯re the real thing.¡±

    The fierce-looking disciples were closer to the governor than they were with Yasushi himself.

    ¡°Lord Governor here is inviting you to be his sword instructor. Yasujirou, you¡¯ll ept, right?¡±

    Yasujirou was Yasushi¡¯s pseudonym.

    His disciples weren¡¯t using honorifics, but Yasushi didn¡¯t reprimand them.

    Rather, he couldn¡¯t.

    ¡°It seems Lord Governor thinks too highly of me.¡±

    ¡°I was convinced that you were the real deal after witnessing your disciples¡¯ skills.¡±

    There were thirty disciples present, each capable of performing the One-sh, and each one was stronger than Yasushi.

    They were all formidable warriors that could easily subdue the average knights.

    Moreover, they were all ill-bred ruffians.

    (How could this have happened? It took decades for Liam and the other two to learn the One-sh, but it only took them a couple of years!)

    The governor looked at Yasushi, and brought up Liam¡¯s name.

    ¡°Liam Sera Banfield is said to have mastered the One-sh. With it, he rebuilt his devastated territory, and eventually rose up to the position he is at right now. He conquered manys with his might, and became the powerful man that he is today.¡±

    ¡°¡ªIndeed.¡±

    (I don¡¯t know about the details, but it must be true since he¡¯s saying it.)

    While he agreed with the governor¡¯s words, at the back of his mind, he was thinking, ¡®Is that so?¡¯

    He sensed that disagreeing would make the Governor unhappy, so he chose to remain silent.

    ¡°I hail from a Count family that owns this, but I have dozens of older brothers above me. That¡¯s why I¡¯m just a governor of this rundown.¡±

    The governor was young and ambitious, he wanted to imitate Liam, and master the One-sh.

    Young aristocrats admired Liam¡¯s sess story.

    The reason why there were so many One-sh imposters was because the number of people who yearned to imitate Liam was increasing.

    Yasushi looked back at the governor.

    ¡°So, Lord Governor wishes to learn the One-sh?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I¡¯m a man destined for greater things than this shoddy.¡±

    (You call it a shoddy, but the only reason why it¡¯s not developing is because you¡¯re squeezing the people dry. That kid Liam was much better inparison.)

    The governor himself was the one hindering the¡¯s development.

    His name was [Chester].

    While he was born into a Count¡¯s family, this ambitious man was now just a governor of a remote.

    Unfortunately, Yasushi had no right to turn him down.

    After all, he was facing the governor who controlled the he lived on.

    ¡°It may not amount to much, but please allow me to assist Lord Governor in your endeavor.¡±

    ¡°You have my thanks. From today on, you are appointed as my sword instructor, and your disciples will act as my knights.¡±

    The ruffians heard that, and rejoiced.

    ¡°We¡¯re knights from today on!¡±

    ¡°Lord Chester, let us rise up together!¡±

    ¡°With the techniques of One-sh, we have nothin¡¯ to fear!¡±

    Yasushi watched on as his disciples celebrated.

    (How did this happen?)

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°It¡¯s painful. Everyone seems to be holding their head in their hands. ¡ªBut when ites to Yasushi-dono... serves him right!¡±

    Brian (£à?¦Ø?¡ä)©g: ¡°There¡¯s only five days left until Volume 2 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire¡¯ goes on sale, so please look forward to that! Volume 2, where Lord Liam will be even more powerful than he is in the web novel, is schedules to release on December 25th.¡±

 Chapter 148 - V9 Chapter 6. A Journey For Reforms [1]

    <h4>Chapter 148 ¨C V9 Chapter 6. A Journey For Reforms [1]</h4>

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°How many does this make now?¡±

    We¡¯vended on yet another that¡¯s in terrible condition, and I¡¯m walking alongside Rinho, Fuuka, and Ellen while dressed in a kimono like a ronin [2].

    The city we¡¯re in feels lifeless, which speaks volumes to the governor¡¯s management skills.

    ¡°Are they all stupid? They seem to know nothing other than how to squeeze their citizens dry.¡±

    At first, I was like ¡®Excellent work¡¯, but after seeing it so many times I¡¯m starting to get tired of it.

    Only knowing how to exploit others is a sign of someone that¡¯s below second-rate.

    Fuuka turns to face me after observing the citizens¡¯ expressions.

    ¡°As I thought, Senior Brother is amazing.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°The citizens living in Senior Brother¡¯s territory look different, they¡¯re livelier. We¡¯ve visited others, but the people there all have dead eyes.¡±

    Their eyes are dead because they understand that they¡¯re being exploited.

    This is why second-rates are no good.

    ¡°My citizens, on the other hand, are too dumb to realize that they¡¯re being exploited.¡±

    Their stupidity somewhat terrifies me, but I can say for certain that I¡¯m doing better than this¡¯s governor.

    Rinho is on her terminal, ying a game as we walk.

    ¡°So, what¡¯s our n now? This ce is ourst, right?¡±

    This is thest ce we¡¯re visiting on our journey to find Master because Amagi got angry with me.

    ¡ó

    ¡°Master, how long do you intend to be on this journey?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not returning until I find Master!¡±

    Amagi, who was taking care of me in my room onboard the ship, had not stayed back in the territory as her presence was apparently no longer necessary.

    ¡°It won¡¯t do to leave everything up to us-dono. Please head back immediately.¡±

    Amagi was firm with her words, but I was determined to show her that I wouldn¡¯t meekly obey her any longer.

    ¡°I meaaaan, I guess it wouldn¡¯t hurt to head back soon.¡±

    ¡°¡ªPlease stop misbehaving.¡±

    Although she remained expressionless, I could tell that she was staring at me with eyes that an adult would have while scolding a spoiled child.

    ¡°No, I refuse.¡±

    ¡°Please return to the territory, and marry Lady Rosetta. Wasn¡¯t Master nning on bing a Duke?¡±

    ¡°I only want the title.¡±

    ¡°That will not do.¡±

    ¡°Is there really no other way? Like really really?¡±

    ¡°Master, please consider you position.¡±

    Amagi wasn¡¯t willing topromise, so I decided that the next will be ourst.

    ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll return after visiting the next.¡±

    ¡°I will ry this information back home.¡±

    ¡ó

    ¡ªAnd that¡¯s how the journey to search for our Master is about toe to an end.

    ¡°I want to get ahold of a clue at the very least.¡±

    I let out a heavy sigh as we walk towards our destination, which is a dojo of the School of One-sh.

    It seems like there¡¯s an imposter iming to be the original One-sh, and his disciples are reputed to be extremely powerful, to the point where they¡¯ve been called upon by the governor to be his knights.

    After finishing her game, Rinho stretches her back.

    ¡°Hey, how ¡¯bout we decide who gets to fight next? They¡¯re going to be fakes anyway.¡±

    Neither Fuuka nor Rinho believe our real Master will be there.

    ¡°I doubt Master would ept so many disciples; it¡¯s probably a miss this time as well.¡±

    We¡¯ve traveled between manys, but we¡¯ve only met imposters along the way.

    We didn¡¯t get to meet any authentic members of the School of One-sh other than ourselves.

    Our school dictates that each member should have at least three disciples.

    Since Master Yasushi had a master as well, it wouldn¡¯t be that strange toe across a fellow member of One-sh, yet for one reason or another, we haven¡¯t met one until now.

    ¡°I was really hoping to meet someone from the same school.¡±

    If we¡¯re fellow members of One-sh, it wouldn¡¯t be a bad idea to exchange pointers with one another.

    Rinho also appears interested in the idea.

    ¡°I¡¯ve also never met anyone from the same school beside Senior Brother and Ellen.¡±

    Fuuka¡¯s eyes are filled with expectation.

    ¡°Sounds interesting. I wonder how others have interpreted their One-sh. What do ya think, Senior Brother?¡±

    What a foolish question to ask.

    ¡°Considering how noble Master is, wouldn¡¯t others of the same school also exude a simr air of nobility and elegance? We might not havee across any of them since they¡¯re busy training inside a mountain.¡±

    Even now, they¡¯re probably practicing and honing their skills.

    I feel ashamed just thinking about it.

    After looking around the city for a while, Ellen notices something.

    ¡°Master, that building¡¯s a little weird.¡±

    ¡°Mm? You¡¯re right. The color¡¯s a little different.¡±

    I look closely at the wall¡ªthe colors are indeed slightly different.

    For a moment, I wonder if it¡¯s simply a design choice, but there¡¯s a diagonal line that runs across the building, past which the color slightly shifts.

    Fuuka observes the ground while Rinho checks our surroundings.

    The listless citizens seem fearful of us.

    More precisely, they seem fearful of our swords.

    I put my hand on the wall to check what might¡¯ve happened.

    It¡¯s as if the wall¡¯s been repaired after being cut down.

    ¡°No way.¡±

    This is thest that we¡¯re visiting, but we might be onto something.

    A child jumps out with a stone in hand while I¡¯m still in thought.

    ¡°Return my dad!¡±

    He then throws the stone at me, but Ellen steps forward and cuts down the stone.

    Fuuka apuds.

    ¡°Well done! From the looks of it, Ellen might be ready to perform One-sh one of these days.¡±

    Rinho has her hands on her sword.

    ¡°That¡¯s beside the point right now. ¡ªThrowing a stone at Senior Brother. This child needs some discipline, don¡¯t you agree?¡±

    Although my Junior Disciples are rather hotheaded, they refrain from drawing their swords on the child.

    I nce around to check how the people around us are reacting.

    ¡°Did you see that just now?¡±

    ¡°Are they also the governor¡¯s knights?¡±

    ¡°We shouldn¡¯t get involved, or we might get killed.¡±

    Why did theye to the conclusion that we¡¯re the governor¡¯s knights?

    Also, while Ellen hasn¡¯t matured yet, her swordsmanship isn¡¯t one that an ordinary person can see through.

    Why aren¡¯t they surprised by Ellen¡¯s invisible sh?

    I approach the child that threw the stone at me.

    ¡°Oi, why did you throw a stone at us?¡±

    ¡°Because you guys took my dad!¡±

    He replies with a quivering voice, annoying me to no end, but I must admit that he¡¯s pretty brave.

    Besides, this child may have some valuable clues.

    Ellen res at the child that threw the stone at me.

    ¡°He threw a stone at Master. Unforgiveable.¡±

    ¡°¡ªThen should we kill him?¡±

    Ellen looks up in surprise at my question before looking away.

    ¡°N-no.¡±

    As I thought, she¡¯s too kind-hearted.

    If I tell her to kill innocent people, I¡¯ll be inflicting unnecessary wounds on her heart.

    Also, Ellen has grown so much, albeit in a sheltered environment.

    Making her fight against ordinary opponents won¡¯t serve as training for her anymore.

    It¡¯s be difficult to find a suitable opponent for Ellen.

    I turn to Rinho and Fuuka, and tell them to ask around for information.

    ¡°We might have stumbled across some clues. Go ask around. Meanwhile, I¡¯ll be questioning this kid.¡±

    They seem like they have something they wish to say, but they eventually leave without saying anything.

    I stare at the boy with sharp eyes. He looks like he¡¯s ready to cry, making me feel troubled as to how I should deal with him.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know how to handle boys.¡±

    I had a daughter in my previous life and Ellen, who I¡¯m taking care of at the moment, is also a girl.

    ¡°I¡¯ll pardon your crime of throwing a stone at me if you can provide me with some answers.¡±

    Although I¡¯m being a bit forceful, I drag the kid along to hear his side of things.

    ¡ó

    We arrive at the boy¡¯s house, which is located inside a small apartment building.

    Despite interster travel being a thing in this world, the quality of life feels slightlycking inparison to my previous world.

    Restrictions seem to have been ced on the people of this.

    ¡°Yasuyuki! Why did you throw a stone at Sir Knight! I¡¯m terribly sorry, sir. Please, please spare this child¡¯s life!¡±

    Nina-san, who is the boy¡¯s mother, has juste back from her part-time job.

    Hearing that her son [Yasuyuki] has thrown a stone at me, she apologizes while looking extremely pale.

    Normally a beheading would have been in order, but since I¡¯vee across some clues on this, I¡¯ve decided to prioritize gathering information.

    ¡°Instead of epting your apology, I¡¯d like to ask you some questions.¡±

    ¡°Questions? Well, if it¡¯s something we know...¡±

    Nina-san appears rather haggard.

    It probably has something to do with Yasuyuki¡¯s dad being taken away.

    ¡°Your son told me to return his father when he caught sight of us. What¡¯s the story behind that?¡±

    Nina-san lowers her gaze before looking back at us, trying to measure our true intentions.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need for worries. We¡¯re travelers that just arrived on this yesterday.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    After realizing that we have nothing to do with his father¡¯s case, Yasuyuki looks down and mutters an apology.

    It really was a misunderstanding after all.

    Nina-san opens her mouth with a heavy heart after hearing about our situation.

    ¡°A few days ago, my husband was taken away by the governor¡¯s knights.¡±

    ¡°By the knights of this? But why was your husband targeted?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s...¡±

    Nina-san hesitates to speak, but Yasuyuki stands up and exins what¡¯s going on with a loud voice.

    ¡°Dad was taken away by those bastards from the Original One-sh!¡±

    ¡°Ya-Yasuyuki!¡±

    His mother tries to stop him, but to no avail.

    ¡°Master, could this Original One-sh be part of our school?¡± Ellen asks.

    ¡°¡ªThere¡¯s a possibility.¡±

    I¡¯ve investigated the trace of the sh on that store, and there were many points that aroused my suspicion.

    Is a branch of the School of One-sh on this?

    Yasuyuki asks us for help while wiping his tears away with his arms.

    ¡°Th-they took my dad away. They were saying ¡®How dare you trick us all¡¯.¡±

    ¡°They were tricked? Was your dad doing something he shouldn¡¯t have been doing?¡±

    I turn towards his mother for answers, and I get a slight reaction out of her.

    I hint at the possibility that he was captured by the knights after doing something to the governor, but Yasuyuki denies it the next moment.

    ¡°My dad didn¡¯t do anything wrong! He has his share of shorings, but he¡¯s a kind father to me!¡±

    ¡°Then why was he taken away?¡±

    While I¡¯m still wondering what reason there could possibly be, I manage to get a vital piece of information from Yasuyuki.

    ¡°When they saw dad, they said, ¡®To think the Sword God would be in such a ce¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Sword God?!¡±

    Blood rushes to my head, furious that someone daredy im to the title of Sword God which should belong to Master.

    But there¡¯s something strange about what he¡¯s said, and it¡¯s quite obvious once you think about it.

    I don¡¯t see any trace of a swordsman inside this room.

    It¡¯s an ordinary household no matter how you look at it.

    Would a Sword God really live here?

    Questions start popping up in my head.

    ¡°They were calling dad ¡®Yasujirou¡¯. I told them that my dad¡¯s name is ¡®Yasushi¡¯ and that they¡¯ve got the wrong person, but they took him away happily when they heard what I said.¡±

    It takes a second for me to realize that I¡¯ve stood up from my seat.

    Ellen, who¡¯s next to me, stands up from hers as well and looks towards me.

    ¡°Ellen, call Rinho and Fuuka.¡±

    ¡°U-understood!¡±

    ¡ó

    Meanwhile, Rinho and Fuuka, who had been asking around for information, learned that there were people iming to be from the School of One-sh on this.

    Rinho observed her surroundings with keen eyes.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t think we¡¯d meet someone from the same school at the very end of our journey.¡±

    Fuuka was eating a dango as she walked around appearing rxed.

    ¡°Yeah. The Original One-sh, was it? I wonder what kind of connection we have with them?¡±

    She was curious about the rtionship between them, who learned under Yasushi, and the so called Original One-sh.

    Rinho grinned, and came to a stop.

    ¡°We just hafta ask them.¡±

    When she turned back, a man with a sword at his waist was standing there.

    Donned in a fancy kimono, the man stared at Rinho and Fuuka condescendingly, confident about his skills.

    Behind him were his henchmen.

    They all gave the impression of being thugs and scoundrels.

    ¡°Are you the ones that are sniffing around? Seems like we have ourselves some cutedies.¡±

    The men had vulgar smiles on their faces.

    The citizens around them all scurried away.

    It was still morning, but the city became awfully silent.

    ¡°Are you a member of the Original One-sh?¡± Rinho asked.

    ¡°Thas right. I¡¯m a senior disciple of the Original One-sh.¡±

    Senior disciple was a term used to describe disciples with excellent skills.

    Fuuka munched on her dango, then tossed the skewer into a trash can.

    ¡°Finally, someone from the same school. But I have to say, ya have some bad taste, leading yourckeys around.¡±

    ¡®Isn¡¯t it unbing of someone from the School of One-sh?¡¯ was what she was trying to say.

    The senior disciple crossed his arms and said, ¡°These are my disciples. They¡¯re all young members of aristocratic and merchant households.¡±

    Fuuka closed her mouth when she heard that whereas Rinho raised her eyebrows.

    ¡°¡ªYou¡¯re using the School of One-sh for profit.¡±

    The two became indignant when they learned that the man was teaching the rich for mary gains.

    They had high hopes for someone from the same school of swordsmanship, but it turned out he had fallen and forsaken his pride of being a member of One-sh.

    Since that was the case, the two decided to help him move on to the next world.

    The senior disciple was shocked when Rinho suddenly unleashed a One-sh towards him.

    However, Rinho¡¯s attack was blocked, and sparks flew in front of the senior disciple.

    The senior¡¯s disciples were surprised by this.

    ¡°One-sh?!¡±

    ¡°Are they also disciples of the Original One-sh?¡±

    ¡°But I¡¯ve never seen them before.¡±

    Sensing that his disciples were getting unsettled, the senior disciple roared at them.

    ¡°Do not be swayed! A senior disciple of the Original One-sh will not lose to the likes of them! Girls, you wille to regret making me pull out my sword.¡±

    Rinho¡¯s expression became nk.

    ¡°You speak too much. Although we¡¯re both from the School of One-sh, you have fallen.¡±

    Fuuka¡¯s eyes were bloodshot.

    ¡°¡ªKill.¡±

    The next moment, sparks began to fly between the three.

    However, as it was two-to-one, the senior disciple was quickly put at a disadvantage.

    ¡°Kuh?! They¡¯re stronger than me?!¡±

    The senior disciple was slowly being cornered.

    Nevertheless, Rinho and Fuuka both took some distance from him in a hurry.

    The moment they jumped back, numerous shes flew their way, wrecking the ground and buildings near them.

    Fuuka looked up at the roof of a certain building.

    ¡°They¡¯re all members of One-sh?¡±

    The ones on top of the roof were knights dressed in kimonos, and they all had their swords with them.

    They stared down at Rinho and Fuuka, ready to unleash their One-sh.

    One of the knights called out to them.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d see other members of the School of One-sh in such a remote location. You sure you want to continue this?¡±

    Rinho was ticked off by how the man stared down at them. The way he spoke suggested their side would win if they continued.

    ¡°You¡¯re overestimating yourselves. Come. All at onc¡ª¡±

    Fuuka stopped her before she could continue.

    ¡°No. We stop here.¡±

    Rinho was ready to kill Fuuka for stopping her.

    ¡°Huh? You telling me to run away with my tail between my legs? You¡¯re telling a member of One-sh to show her back to her enemies? I¡¯ll kill you too, you know?¡±

    Although they were sisters that grew up together, she was ready to kill anyone that tarnished the name of One-sh.

    However, Fuuka did not falter.

    ¡°Senior Brother has ordered us to return. I told him about our situation, but he insists on our return.¡±

    Since it was Liam¡¯s order, Rinho decided to withdraw despite her thirst for blood.

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯ll definitelye back to im your lives.¡±

    The two disappeared from the spot in an instant, prompting the senior disciples to chase after them.

    ¡°Don¡¯t let them escape! We must kill them!¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°It¡¯s painful. Lord Liam¡¯s so busy making reforms away from his territory... It¡¯s painful. To be honest, it¡¯s preferable to have him stay in his territory acting as an evil lord, or whatnot.¡±

    Brian (£à?¦Ø?¡ä): ¡°That aside, Volume 2 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire¡¯ will be on sale starting this week. Please look forward to Lord Liam¡¯s sess, one which transcends even the Web novel!¡±

    [1] People think that Liam¡¯s wandering around the Empire making reforms, and making sure that people in the Cleo Faction are up to his standards. I used the word ¡°reform¡± here (the raw says ÊÀÖ±¤·), but if you have a better word for it, please let me known down below in thement section.

    [2] Ronin: a wandering samurai who had no lord or master.

 Chapter 149 - V9 Chapter 7. The Imprisoned Yasushi

    <h4>Chapter 149 ¨C V9 Chapter 7. The Imprisoned Yasushi</h4>

    ¡ªHow have thingse to this?

    Yasujirou, or Yasushi, was deep in thought inside his cell, sitting in a seiza while looking asposed as ever.

    Standing on the other side of the bars was Chester, the governor.

    ¡°How dare you deceive us, Yasujirou¡ª or should I say¡ª Sword God Yasushi!¡±

    He had nned on remaining hidden by employing a pseudonym, but his opponent this time was the¡¯s governor.

    Chester could figure out Yasushi¡¯s true identity by checking the documents he submitted when he entered the.

    Since Yasushi was to be his Swords Instructor, he¡¯d conducted a background check.

    ¡°I had my suspicions that you were the real deal after seeing your disciples¡¯ skills, but to think I¡¯d truly hit the jackpot. It was the right call to conduct an investigation. With you by my side, I¡¯ll be able to be like the Banfield¡¯s, bisecting a battleship and such.¡±

    Back in the Capital, Liam had cut down a battleship.

    This became a well-known fact, which lead to a rumor that those who studied the One-sh could even smash down battleships.

    Chester, as the¡¯s governor, wanted that sort of power.

    (Bisecting a battleship?! As if a human can do such a thing! Where¡¯s yourmon sense?!)

    Cutting down a battleship went beyond the realm of human capabilities.

    To begin with, Yasushi didn¡¯t consider Liam, Rinho, and Fuuka to be humans like himself.

    However, Chester was too excited by all the possibilities to notice what was going on inside Yasushi¡¯s mind.

    ¡°I¡¯ll have you tell me everything. Let¡¯s start with the secrets of One-sh.¡±

    Chester was demanding to be taught everything he knew, but Yasushi had already done so.

    ¡°I¡¯m not someone deserving of the title of Sword God, and I¡¯ve already taught you everything I know. The rest depends on the effort that Chester-dono puts in.¡±

    He tried to talk his way through this, but his opponent was Chester and not Liam. Unlike thetter, Chester didn¡¯t possess an ounce of kindness or diligence.

    After all, he was a viin through and through.

    ¡°¡ªYasushi, I hate putting in effort. If there¡¯s any secret to getting stronger, tell me now. Strength is nothing but a tool for me, a tool for me to rece the Banfield¡¯s, and obtain the pinnacle of glory.¡±

    Yasushi couldn¡¯t help but sweat when he saw the zed look in Chester¡¯s eyes.

    (T-that¡¯s unreasonable! If strength is all it takes to prosper, no one would be having a hard time!)

    By bing a Sword Saint, would someone be able to defeat the emperor?

    Everyone would shake their head at that.

    Just because someone mastered martial arts, it didn¡¯t equate to achieving sess as an aristocrat.

    From Yasushi¡¯s point of view, Chester and Liam were fundamentally different.

    He didn¡¯t think they¡¯d have the same level of sess.

    ¡°No, um, Chester-dono? If you wish for fame and glory as an aristocrat, shouldn¡¯t you put your eyes on something other than One-sh? How about making an effort to develop the territory?¡±

    (In fact, our lives are difficult precisely because you aren¡¯t a capable governor! You should focus on your duties!)

    He was trying to tell Chester that with mastery of One-sh alone, he wouldn¡¯t be able to get the fame and glory that he desired.

    Chester responded while looking irritated.

    ¡°The we¡¯re at right now is managed by my family, not by me. So wouldn¡¯t it make more sense to squeeze out as much money as I can from the people, and increase my fortune while I can?¡±

    ¡°Eh? No, no, no, no. If you continue to oppress the people, the territory won¡¯t be able to develop.¡±

    ¡°A territory would develop by itself even if I leave it unattended. I just have to suck the people dry, and leave them in a state where they¡¯re neither dead nor alive. Even if they happen to die, so what?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s¡ª! They¡¯re living, breathing humans!¡±

    ¡°They only exist in number! A true human refers to aristocrats like me. Peasants like them are no different from bugs that crawl on the ground.¡±

    Yasushi was about to give up on Chester, who thought of his citizens as nothing but bugs.

    However, an idea shed through his mind.

    ¡°What if Chester-dono masters the martial art, and bes the next head of the Count¡¯s family? If Chester-dono doesn¡¯t change his ways, the territory would be worn out. This trantes to a reduced source of future profit. As a lord, it¡¯s important to bepassionate.¡±

    Yasushi believed he had just said something really good, but Chester¡¯s ambition went beyond that.

    ¡°Count? That¡¯s nothing more than a stepping stone for me. I intend to climb higher. The peasants that get stepped on in the process should be honored that they can be the stepping stone for my path to glory.¡±

    Yasushi stared at the aristocrat in front of him in a daze.

    (He¡¯s an aristocrat, and he behaves like one.)

    Aristocrats like Liam were just rare exceptions.

    Chester continued his speech.

    ¡°When ites to those that aren¡¯t aristocrats, their worth boils down to whether they¡¯re useful to me or not. If they¡¯re not, they¡¯re the same as garbage. Yasushi, do you showpassion to garbage? No, right?¡±

    Yasushi was fearful of this man who didn¡¯t view humans as humans.

    (It¡¯s useless. No matter what I say to him, it won¡¯t reach his ears.)

    Even Liam would be preferrable over Chester.

    However, Yasushi was currently imprisoned, and Chester was about to threaten him.

    ¡°Yasushi, you have a family, don¡¯t you? If you don¡¯t tell me the secrets of One-sh, I might have an idea as to how I can obtain them.¡±

    ¡°Wha¡ª?! No, not my family!¡±

    Yasushi, who valued his family a lot, failed to maintain hisposure before the threat.

    Chester smiled when he saw this.

    ¡°Then make sure you can satisfy me with your answer during my next visit.¡±

    With that, Chester left, leaving Yasushi with his head hung low inside the prison.

    (There¡¯s no secret to speak of! To begin with, One-sh itself is a big fat lie of mine!)

    ¡ó

    Rinho and Fuuka arrive at the small apartment building.

    I called them here forcefully while they were exchanging swords with those of the same school, so Rinho appears visibly resentful.

    ¡°To show my back to my enemies as a member of One-sh... Fuuka, you seemed rather willing. Aren¡¯t you better off dead?¡±

    ¡°And what do ya mean by that, huh?!¡±

    Seeing them argue inside this small apartment, Ellen looks toward me for help.

    They won¡¯t calm down unless I step in.

    ¡°Rinho, are you questioning my orders?¡±

    ¡°¡ª! B-but Senior Brother should understand what I¡¯m getting at! I had to show my back to my enemies during a fight! Me! Despite being Master¡¯s disciple, I ran away from my enemies! I refuse to back down when ites to this, even if it¡¯s Senior Brother!¡±

    Although she¡¯s afraid, she pushes forward with her beliefs with tears in her eyes.

    Rinho¡¯s anger is, of course, justified.

    If I¡¯m told to run away from an enemy, I would absolutely refuse.

    Fuuka seems to have reluctantly obeyed my orders, but she¡¯s probably dissatisfied as well.

    ¡°Fret not, for we will kill all our enemies.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°¡ªThose folks that im to be from the Original One-sh, they¡¯ve kidnapped Master Yasushi.¡±

    I tell them the truth, and the girls¡¯ eyes sh open while their mouths close.

    They must be so shocked that they¡¯ve be speechless.

    ¡°The one governing this appears to be a disciple of the Original One-sh. He made those from the same school his knights, and he¡¯s apparently been going on quite the rampage with them.¡±

    As Fuuka¡¯s about to jump up, I grab her by the shoulder and stop her.

    She res at me with vicious eyes.

    ¡°Let me go! I¡¯ll kill them all, and retrieve Master!¡±

    ¡°Calm down. There are several things that have caught my attention.¡±

    I calm Fuuka down before turning to face Nina-san, our Master¡¯s wife.

    I adjust my posture, and ask her a question.

    ¡°Madam, why was Master taken away by those guys from the Original One-sh? Since it¡¯s Master we¡¯re talking about, he should¡¯ve been able to resist them.¡±

    Troubled by my question, Madam¡¯s eyes wander around the room.

    ¡°Um, I think Yasu-kun, our Yasushi, is someone else with the same name. After all, he¡¯s not strong.¡±

    ¡°Are there any family photos, or videos?¡±

    ¡°Y-you can take a look at these.¡±

    What we¡¯re shown confirm that we¡¯re talking about our Master.

    Rinho and Fuuka cause a scene.

    ¡°It¡¯s Master! But he seems a bit thin?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s Master Yasushi, no doubt about that. But you¡¯re right, he does seem a bit thin.¡±

    I haven¡¯t met him face-to-face in a long time, but Master certainly looks a bit small.

    Is it because I grew up?

    Regardless, there¡¯s no doubt that the one in the photos and the videos is Master.

    While the three of us are tilting our head inquiringly, Ellen seems suspicious.

    ¡°Master, is this man really Yasushi-sama?¡±

    ¡°Naturally! There¡¯s no way we¡¯d make a mistake!¡±

    As my disciple, it¡¯s rude of her to not recognize Master Yasushi.

    However, Ellen remains doubtful.

    ¡°It does seem like he knows his way around a sword, but his movements are strange. Is he really a skilled swordsman?¡±

    We rebut her argument when she ims that his movements aren¡¯t of someone that¡¯s mastered martial arts.

    ¡°It¡¯s just that you can¡¯t tell how great he is! I-it¡¯s true that he may look weak at first nce, but he¡¯s my Master!¡±

    Triggered as she is, Rinho exins things to Ellen.

    ¡°It¡¯s true that he seems weak, but he¡¯s my Master. He¡¯s reached a realm where he can unleash a One-sh that¡¯s totally beyond us. There¡¯s just no way he¡¯s actually weak!¡±

    Fuuka tries to do the same.

    ¡°Ellen, there are certain things that shouldn¡¯t be said. I-it¡¯s certainly true that he looks weak. B-but you see, he wasn¡¯t like this before.¡±

    The three of us look at one another, and wonder if something¡¯s happened to him.

    Madam ims that Master¡¯s not strong, and those from the Original One-sh took him away.

    It¡¯s also worth noting that Master¡¯s been using the pseudonym Yasujirou.

    ¡°¡ªAnyway, there¡¯s a lot of things I don¡¯t understand, but the fact that those from the Original One-sh kidnapped our Master still stands. We¡¯ll make sure that they disappear.¡±

    Rinho and Fuuka decide to contain their anger for the time being after hearing my resolve.

    They sit down and look at Yasuyuki, who¡¯s next to the Madam, with curious eyes.

    I introduce him to them.

    ¡°This is Yasuyuki, Master¡¯s son.¡±

    Fuuka fluffs up her hair and gives him a bright look.

    ¡°So, yer name¡¯s Yasuyuki! Since yer Master¡¯s son, that makes ya my little brother. From now on, ya can call me, Shishigami Fuuka, big sis!¡±

    Rinho pushes Fuuka to the side, and also begins to introduce herself.

    ¡°I¡¯m Satsuki Rinho! I¡¯ll be your elder sister from today, so you can depend on me!¡±

    They¡¯re trying topete over him, but the person in question seems confused.

    Ellen looks at them as if she¡¯s fed up with them.

    ¡°This child threw a rock at Master, you know?¡±

    She¡¯s stingry about that?

    Since he¡¯s Master¡¯s child, I¡¯ll forgive him for such a small offense.

    ¡°Ellen, that never happened.¡±

    ¡°Eh? But¡ª¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t remember such a thing ever happening, so I can¡¯t question him about it, neither do I intend to. Okay, end of story. We should prioritize rescuing Master.¡±

    Why was Master, who¡¯s so powerful, taken away by the folks from the Original One-sh?

    Ellen looks at me worriedly.

    ¡°We¡¯ll be shing with people from the same school. Master, what should we do?¡±

    ¡°Easy. We¡¯ll just barge into that governor¡¯s mansion.¡±

    ¡ó

    Meanwhile, at the governor¡¯s mansion, Chester was receiving reports from his knights.

    He was practicing the One-sh, so he wiped his sweat as he listened to the reports.

    ¡°What did you say? You met other members of One-sh aside from us?¡±

    ¡°Yes. They said we¡¯re from the same school of swordsmanship. But they also mentioned how they couldn¡¯t forgive us who¡¯ve ¡®fallen¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Fallen, you say? ¡ªNo, wait.¡±

    Chester recalled a certain rumor that was going around.

    It was a ridiculous rumor about Liam traveling around the country disciplining aristocrats.

    At first, Chester dismissed it, thinking ¡®Who in their right mind would go around disciplining aristocrats?¡¯

    Liam, now the head of a huge faction, would not do something of that nature.

    However, it was true that evil lords and governors were being disciplined, or outright destroyed, in various parts of the country.

    Although it was just a rumor, he had no choice but to acknowledge that something was happening.

    ¡°One-sh... were they women?¡±

    ¡°Yes, and they mentioned something about a senior brother, so there should be one more.¡±

    ¡°If we¡¯re talking about a man who¡¯s mastered the One-sh, it has to be Banfield. So, the rumors weren¡¯t wrong after all.¡±

    Chesterughed as he predicted that Liam, and the others would try to storm in.

    ¡°Call our home. Tell father that we have a chance to kill Liam.¡±

    ¡°Will that be alright?¡±

    ¡°We belong to His Highness Calvin¡¯s faction. I¡¯ll also reach out to the other lords around us. If we kill Banfield, His Highness will no doubt favor us. Luck seems to be on my side.¡±

    Chester¡¯s n was to turn the tables on Liam.

    Chester picked up his sword, and swung.

    Although it was still crude, a log 10 meters ahead was cut down.

    ¡°I¡¯ll defeat Banfield, and be showered with all the glory that an aristocrat can ask for. There¡¯s nothing that I can¡¯t do that Banfield can.¡±

    Liam wasing for him, but Chester justughed.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Wakagi-chan (# ©b§¥©b): ¡°Even if I must crawl on the ground, and taste mud, I¡¯ll revive as many times as needed! I am the heroine of the postscript section!¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°...A weird nt has taken root, and is trying to erode this ce. It¡¯s painful.¡±

    Brian (£à£»¦Ø£»¡ä): ¡°Also, Volume 2 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire¡¯ will be on sale soon! Please show it lots of love!¡±

    Brian (*¡ä¦Ø£à): ¡°Special offers are as follows¡±

    ¨C Melon Book-sama SS booklet

    ¨C Melon Book-sama Limited Edition SS Booklet + SS booklet

    ¨C Animate-sama A6 size 4P leaflet

    ¨C Toranoana-sama 4P leaflet

    ¨C Gamers-sama 4P leaflet

    ¨C WanderGOO-sama 4P booklet

    ¨C Manga King-sama Publisher Paper

    ¨C Shosen-sama Shosen?Gamers limited leaflet

    Brian (*¡ä¦Ø£à): ¡°...There seems to be a lot.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (£»©b§¥©b): ¡°A coboration SS with Mob Seka will be added as well.¡±

 Chapter 150 - V9 Chapter 8. The Governors Mansion

    <h4>Chapter 150 ¨C V9 Chapter 8. The Governor¡¯s Mansion</h4>

    There existed a satellite far away from the governed by Chester, and behind it, a stealth fleet led by Liam was on standby.[1]

    The fleet was receiving supplies delivered from the Banfield Family, and Thomas, the merchant, was the one who delivered them.

    ¡°I¡¯m always surprised by what Lord Liam does. That said, now that several routes have be safe to use, us merchants can do business with peace of mind.¡±

    There was a look of joy on Thomas¡¯ face as he talked to Marie.

    ¡°But of course. After all, Lord Liam¡¯s born to be the true ruler.¡±

    Thomas pretended like he didn¡¯t hear thatst part as trouble was bound toe knocking if someone heard their exchange.

    ¡°Anyhow, when is Lord Liam nning on returning to his home? It¡¯ll be problematic even for us if he remains absent for too long. It¡¯s said that His Highness Calvin is making a lot of moves back in the Capital.¡±

    Marie was also concerned about this.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t he fall from grace after being defeated at the hands of the Kingdom of Dominion?¡±

    ¡°Even so, he is still the Crown Prince. Unless Lord Liam is there to put pressure on him, he can move about freely inside the Capital. The ve Company and the Nends Company are also eagerly awaiting Lord Liam¡¯s return.¡±

    ¡°And what is His Highness Cleo doing? Lord Liam may be absent, but there shouldn¡¯t be any problem as long as he¡¯s present.¡±

    The Cleo Faction was essentially Liam¡¯s, but it existed to support Cleo, who was a prince.

    Hence, although not as great as Liam, Cleo still had a decent amount of authority.

    With Liam absent, Cleo should¡¯ve made his presence known and rallied the faction under him.

    Marie was slightly discontent since Cleo wasn¡¯t doing that, but her opinions changed after hearing what Thomas said next.

    ¡°We¡¯ve also noticed some suspicious movements from His Highness Cleo. He¡¯s been gathering supporters and weing them into the Cleo Faction. There¡¯s nothing strange about that in and of itself, but said supporters mostly consist of weak aristocrats without any real power.¡±

    ¡°¡ªHow very kind of him.¡±

    Marie¡¯s eyes narrowed when she heard that Cleo was generously providing them mary support and making them feel indebted to him.

    She spoke words of praise, but the same wasn¡¯t happening inside her head.

    ¡°It seems he enjoys using the Banfield Family¡¯s wealth to give alms to poor aristocrats.¡±

    ¡°Well¡ª yes. He has requested a huge sum of money from the Banfield Family, and has been generously distributing it.¡±

    It would¡¯ve been understandable if Cleo was doing this to be the Crown Prince, but he was trying to draw in aristocrats and knights who had no power.

    This served no purpose at all since they couldn¡¯t be used for political maneuvers.

    Originally, the Banfield Family wanted to send a powerful knight to the Capital.

    However, they now had to guard their own territory, and the Empire¡¯s border with the Kingdom of Dominion.

    There were very few knights who had administrative skills like us and Tia, and even if there were more of such knights, it didn¡¯t help much considering the ever-expanding territory of the Banfield¡¯s.

    ¡°s, he would¡¯ve had a safe and peaceful future if he had only stayed quiet and done his best to hinder Calvin.¡±

    Frightened by Marie¡¯s demeanor, Thomas decided to change the subject.

    ¡°H-have you heard about the activities of Lady Rosetta¡¯s Personal Guards?¡±

    ¡°I have. To help in matters outside Lord Liam¡¯s reach, I heard she¡¯s put together a decent fleet. Really¡ªif she had asked, I would¡¯ve put together an even better one to serve as her guards!¡±

    Marie felt affectionate towards Rosetta.

    As such, she had helped her out in various matters.

    She had to apany Liam this time around, but had Rosetta asked, Marie would¡¯ve done her best to help.

    ¡°Lady Rosetta¡¯s bing pretty well-known within the territory. Many citizens are demanding a formal marriage to be carried out as soon as possible.¡±

    ¡°Insolence¡ªis what I¡¯d like to say, but I agree with them. I was under the impression that Lord Liam and Lady Rosetta would be wed immediately following the end of their training.¡±

    She wouldn¡¯t be at ease until they married and had a child.

    That was also what the people wanted, but Liam had prioritized his journey.

    He refused to listen to anyone that tried to advise him.

    ¡°Brian-dono and Amagi tried to persuade him many times, but he wouldn¡¯t budge.¡±

    Hearing Marie sigh, Thomas hung his head.

    ¡°We¡¯d also like to see Lord Liam get married. The sooner the better. Is there no other way?¡±

    Marie thought for a second but eventually shook her head.

    ¡°No.¡±

    This was one of his shorings, the Banfield Family¡¯s power was concentrated too much on Liam alone.

    That was why no one could stop him from going on this journey.

    Although it was proof that he held absolute power, it meant no one could stop him from doing whatever he wanted.

    Marie fixed her appearance in the midst of their conversation.

    ¡°It¡¯s almost time for my periodic call with Lord Liam. Thomas-dono, please remain quiet. This is an important, I repeat, an important responsibility of mine.¡±

    Thomas nodded seeing how excited Marie was about this periodic call with Liam.

    A small window soon appeared in the air, and the figure of Liam was projected within.

    ¡°Lord Liam, it¡¯s time for our pe¨Cri¨Co¨CHIIII!¡±

    Marie let out a scream.

    Thomas was simrly shocked by Liam¡¯s appearance on screen.

    ¡°Lord Liam!!!¡±

    The reason why even Thomas raised his voice was because Liam was washing the disheswhile video calling.

    ¡®Huh? Thomas, you¡¯re there as well? Anyway, I¡¯m busy washing the dishes, so I¡¯ll being cutting the call.¡¯

    Marie hurriedly approached the screen.

    ¡°You mustn¡¯t, Lord Liam! Lord Liam shouldn¡¯t be doing such a thing! After all, Lord Liam is this Empire¡¯s¡ªHuh? Lord Liam? LORD LIAM?!¡±

    The call had been cut.

    Marie felt the blood drain from her face seeing Liam wash the dishes.

    ¡°NOOOOO!!!¡±

    Thomas covered his ears as Marie wailed.

    ¡ó

    We had dinner at our Master¡¯s house.

    We ate everything as it¡¯d be unthinkable to leave something that the Madam has prepared untouched, and I¡¯m in the process of cleaning up.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for having you do the dishes.¡±

    The Madam looks apologetic, but since she¡¯s Master¡¯s wife, I can¡¯t be rude to her.

    ¡°Please don¡¯t mind it. I¡¯m used to washing the dishes.¡±

    I¡¯ve done it several times while I was in training, not to mention I lived alone in my previous life, so something of this degree won¡¯t pose a problem.

    I look towards the living room from the kitchen and chance upon Rinho and Fuuka ying with Yasuyuki.

    ¡°Yasuyuki, call me Onee-chan.¡±

    ¡°Is there anyone ya hate, Yasuyuki? Big sis here will cut ¡¯em down for ya.¡±

    Yasuyuki seems a bit overwhelmed by the two¡¯s enthusiasm.

    As he¡¯s Master¡¯s son, he¡¯s like a younger brother to them.

    Ellen, who¡¯s like their niece, already gets showered by lots of love.

    When ites to a younger brother, there¡¯s no doubt they¡¯ll spoil him even more.

    Ellen appears dissatisfied with the three of them.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you two forgetting the fact that we have to raid the governor¡¯s mansion tomorrow?¡±

    Rinho, who¡¯s beenying down, rolls around and turns to face Ellen.

    With a smile that screams ¡°So what?¡±, she begins to talk about tomorrow¡¯s n.

    ¡°Well, we¡¯ve decided on raiding the ce, but we just have to do what we¡¯ve always done.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re part of the same school.¡±

    ¡°I beg to differ. They¡¯ve be corrupt. They¡¯re no longer qualified to be a part of One-sh.¡±

    Fuuka joins the conversation while carrying Yasuyuki on her back.

    ¡°She¡¯s right. ¡ªAnd if we happen to lose, that just means we were weak.¡±

    The weak have no right to say what¡¯s right or wrong.

    To show that we¡¯re right, we¡¯ll be storming into enemy territory to cut everyone down.

    After washing the dishes, I wipe my hands and join in on the four¡¯s discussion.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be getting in touch with Marieter. We¡¯ll take custody of Master¡¯s family, and ensure their safety before rushing in tomorrow morning. Make sure you¡¯re all ready by then.¡±

    Rinho and Fuuka¡¯s eyes be sharp, and they both smile.

    Their blood must be boiling.

    We¡¯ve only encountered weak enemies until now.

    Although they¡¯ve be corrupted, our opponent this time is from the same school of swordsmanship.

    I can feel my heart racing as well.

    ¡°They¡¯veid their hands on our Master. Since it¡¯s him we¡¯re talking about, he¡¯s probably safe¡ªthat said, we must settle the debt properly. Don¡¯t horse around too much.¡±

    Although I¡¯m excited, I¡¯m also furious at them for taking away our Master.

    I¡¯d like to have some fun with them, but we must first teach them who¡¯s boss.

    The three give me satisfying nods.

    ¡ªThe folks over at the Original One-sh will have to pay this lesson fee with their lives.

    ¡ó

    The Guide and Gudwar were on top of a skyscraper with wine sses in hand.

    The sses were tilted diagonally, and they were filled with the blood of citizens.

    More specifically, they were filled with the blood of citizens that suffered under Chester.

    While absorbing the negative energying from them, the two were waiting to watch the best show of the century.

    ¡°Hmm, I prefer negative emotions that are a bit more mature, but the youthfulness in this is good too. This man, Chester, has a lot of potential.¡±

    He was definitely evil.

    There was no questioning that he was an evil governor.

    The man named Chester didn¡¯t see his citizens as humans, and caused them to suffer by imposing heavy taxes.

    He killed those that went against him, and he sometimes killed on a whim.

    Such a man had been bestowed the One-sh by the Guide and Gudwar.

    Gudwar was also feeling ecstatic about the situation.

    ¡°Once Chesters¡¯ knights have fully matured, I¡¯ll send them to my country to serve as fodder for a warrior who can surpass the One-sh.¡±

    Neither of them was willing to acknowledge the swordsmanship known as One-sh, a swordsmanship born through sheer chance.

    It was an ¡®outrageous swordsmanship¡¯ that appeared out of nowhere, and had no history to speak of.

    It wasn¡¯t to Gudwar¡¯s liking either, and it was a school of swordsmanship that had tormented the Guide.

    The Guide wasn¡¯t willing to forgive its existence, and wanted nothing more than to see it eradicated.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine with me. As long as Liam¡¯s dead, I have noints. Putting that matter aside, this ce is really nice. There are negative emotions everywhere.¡±

    The Guide let out a sigh that contained relief,fort, happiness, and various other emotions.

    Gudwar stared at his ss.

    ¡°Chester¡¯s family as a whole have done some horrible things.¡±

    ¡°Once Liam¡¯s dead, I might just help them out. Have the Empire destroyed from the inside out.¡±

    The Guide wanted Chester to take everything away from Liam.

    He wanted to see everything Liam had built up torn away, used for the sake of bringing about a dark age for the Empire.

    The Guide smiled, imagining all the negative emotions that would swirl up as a result.

    ¡°Cheers to Liam¡¯s death!¡±

    ¡°¡ªWhy are you leading the cheer? I¡¯m the one who gathered all those ruffians and allowed them to learn the One-sh.¡±

    ¡°Eh? Oh, yes.¡±

    The weakened Guide could not speak up against Gudwar.

    Instead, he could only lead thetter around while reluctantly pretending to obey him.

    He was churning inside as he had to constantly be mindful of Gudwar¡¯s mood.

    (This is all Liam¡¯s fault! I was originally at a higher level of existence than Gudwar, but now I could only ask for his help in defeating Liam.)

    The Guide¡¯s pride had been shattered, but he had to put up with it if he was to beat Liam.

    (I¡¯ll definitely have you kill Liam!)

    The Guide burned for revenge, and looked forward to tomorrow¡¯s events.

    ¡ó

    Around the same time, Chester was contacting his father, the head of a Count¡¯s family.

    ¡®Is Liam still in your area of management?¡¯

    ¡°Yes, father.¡±

    With a smile stered on his face, Chester assumed a humble attitude, paying attention to how his father was feeling that day.

    It was all in order to rise up in position.

    To do that, he had to bow his head to his father for the time being.

    ¡®Our army is ready. To jump into enemy territory with just a thousand ships, he seems to have growncent after winning too many times.¡¯

    ¡°How many troops have we gathered?¡±

    ¡®I had the surrounding lords get involved as well. We have 60,000, with 30,000 of them being our own.¡¯

    ¡°¡ª30,000? That¡¯s wonderful news.¡±

    However, Chester was inwardly clicking his tongue.

    (I know I didn¡¯t give you much time, but you should¡¯ve gathered more, you shitty old man. Well, I guess for someone like him, this is his limit. Either way, our fleet is for show.)

    The same could be said about the surrounding lords¡¯ fleets.

    Nevertheless, they outnumbered their opponent 60 to 1.

    Liam¡¯s attempt to win against the odds would be for naught when faced with such an overwhelming difference in numbers.

    He was able to win in the battle against the Kingdom of Dominion by taking down the enemymander, but this time around the Count would remain behind the front lines.

    (Having more troops would¡¯ve been nice, but this should suffice.)

    There was no escape for Liam.

    ¡ó

    The next morning arrived, and the four of us are standing in front of the governor¡¯s mansion.

    Despite the depressing state of the territory, the mansion is rather magnificent.

    I would¡¯ve normally praised it, but I¡¯m not in the mood for it right now.

    ¡°Are you guys ready?¡±

    Fuuka smiles, but the smile doesn¡¯t reach her eyes.

    ¡°More than ever! After retrieving Master, I¡¯ll raise hell and butcher ¡¯em all up!¡±

    Rinho has a cold smile on her face.

    ¡°Today marks the end of the line for the Original One-sh. Only ours will remain.¡±

    It¡¯s reassuring to know that they won¡¯t go easy on the enemies despite being from the same school.

    Both of them have matured well.

    However, Ellen seems nervous, so I call out to her.

    ¡°Ellen, this will be your first time experiencing this, so don¡¯t leave my side.¡±

    Ellen bows her head in a hurry and replies, ¡°U-understood!¡±

    Fuuka and Rinho take a quick nce at her before looking away.

    They probably intend to leave her with me while they go and kill the enemies.

    With a One-sh, I cut down the huge, thick gate.

    ¡°¡ªLet¡¯s go. It¡¯s showtime.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°It¡¯s painful. Lord Liam doing the dishes¡ª That¡¯s not something that the head of a Count¡¯s family should be doing! ¡ªIt¡¯s painful.¡±

    Wakagi-chan ( ©b?©b): ¡°Two days left! Two days, I tell you! Only two days remain until Volume 2 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire!¡¯ is released!¡±

    [1] I¡¯m assuming the satellite is like a secondary, not the artificial type built by men

 Chapter 151 - V9 Chapter 9. The Original One-Flash

    <h4>Chapter 151 ¨C V9 Chapter 9. The Original One-sh</h4>

    The thick, heavy gate is blown away, and as the four of us enter, we are greeted by unmanned security drones which shower us withser attacks.

    We retaliate with our One-sh, causing sh damage to appear on the trees in the garden and the buildings of the mansion.

    I notice a sniper on the roof, and slice the bullet that they fire.

    ¡°So, they were waiting for our arrival. Their informationwork seems quite decent.¡±

    We walk in slowly, and we don¡¯te across any nonbatants.

    They must have known we wereing, and evacuated in advance.

    In their ce are bodyguards, and soldiers wielding weapons.

    Seeing them appear from the other side of the windows, Fuuka unleashes her One-sh, cutting them down in an instant.

    Rinho opens her mouth and says, ¡°Senior Brother, I¡¯ll go this way.¡±

    She points to the right side of the mansion.

    Fuuka pulls out her sword, and points to her left.

    ¡°Then I call dibs on this side.¡±

    I can sense the presence of the Original One-sh¡¯s disciples where they¡¯re pointing to.

    If we spread out, they would no doubt make their move as well.

    ¡°You can do whatever you want, but if you meet the schoolmaster of the Original One-sh, you must let me know.¡±

    Fuuka seems unwilling to do so.

    ¡°How ¡¯bout making it ¡®firste, first-serve¡¯? I wanna aim for the schoolmaster too.¡±

    Rinho agrees with Fuuka¡¯s opinion.

    ¡°Senior Brother¡¯s being unfair.¡±

    Yes, I¡¯m an unfair person.

    ¡°And what if I am?¡±

    The girls avert their eyes when I smile at them.

    Now that I¡¯ve gotten their consent, I head into the mansion with Ellen.

    ¡°Time to teach those trash over at the Original One-sh what a true One-sh looks like.¡±

    ¡ó

    The Guide and Gudwar were watching Liam, and hispanions, rush into the governor¡¯s mansion from far above.

    ¡°The show¡¯s about to begin.¡±

    The Guide spread his arms out in glee when he saw Liam had jumped straight into a trap on his own volition.

    Of course, there was a chance of Liam emerging victorious.

    However, arge army of enemies were approaching their group from behind.

    Even if he came out of the mansion alive, he would still be trapped.

    Gudwar was excited about the battle between those who could unleash the One-sh.

    ¡°Fight. Spill your enemies¡¯ blood. Entertain me. You guys exist to entertain me with your struggles.¡±

    Gudwar, who only saw humans as tools for entertainment, was curious to see how Liam would die.

    The Guide, on the other hand, didn¡¯t care so long as Liam perished.

    ¡°There¡¯s no escape for you, Liam. Today is the day you die!¡±

    ¡ó

    Fuuka was taking a walk inside the courtyard of the governor¡¯s mansion.

    After she separated from Liam, she had been advancing while dealing with the drones and guards that came her way.

    Ordinary people wouldn¡¯t have understood what was going on as enemies dropped like flies around her.

    Suddenly, Fuuka stopped in her tracks, and shes appeared a few centimeters away from her.

    The ground had been carved away by several people unleashing their One-shes all at once.

    She looked up and found disciples of the Original One-sh standing on the roof.

    Among them was the senior disciple that she had met the previous day.

    ¡°You guys actually decided to storm this ce? Must be a bunch of idiots.¡±

    The disciples of the Original One-sh snickered.

    Fuuka, a small smile hung on her lips, used her twin swords to unleash a One-sh onto her surroundings.

    However, as her opponents were fellow members of the same school, all of her attacks were intercepted, and none of her enemies fell.

    She wasn¡¯t surprised by this.

    The disciples, however, saw this, and were convinced of their victory.

    After all, there were ten of them and one of her.

    Although they were individually weaker than Fuuka, they had an overwhelming advantage in number.

    The senior disciple stared at Fuuka, and the corner of his mouth raised up.

    ¡°To spread your forces despite being fewer in number. Do you not understand what strategy is, or have you be too conceited?¡±

    Fuuka quietly drew her swords after being called out for her arrogance, and prepared her stance.

    The notion of sword stances didn¡¯t exist in the School of One-sh, and the senior disciple looked at her quizzically.

    Fuuka, despite being at a disadvantage,ughed.

    ¡°Ya speak too much. Juste at me, ya third rates!!!¡±

    Fuuka unleashed yet another wave of One-shes around her, and the disciples tried to block them the same way as before.

    However, blood sshed as some of them failed to parry the attacks.

    The senior disciple was shocked and looked around, only to see that their swords had broken.

    He turned his attention back to Fuuka with clenched teeth.

    Fuuka, on the other hand, was disappointed by the results.

    ¡°Three, huh. It¡¯s less than I thought.¡±

    She was preparing to attack again, so the senior disciple called out to his allies.

    ¡°Attack her all together! Don¡¯t give her time to fight back!¡±

    Now that her enemies were starting to get serious, Fuuka shed a fierce smile.

    ¡°Shoulda done so from the beginning.¡±

    ¡ó

    Meanwhile, Rinho was facing a lone man.

    ¡°Only one? Seems like I¡¯ve drawn the short end of the stick.¡±

    The man introduced himself to Rinho, who was feeling down about only having one person as her opponent.

    ¡°I¡¯m the prime disciple of the Original One-sh. I¡¯d appreciate it if you don¡¯t treat me like the others.¡±

    The man, who dered himself the prime disciple, had a stern look on his face.

    Rinho¡¯s interest was slightly stirred.

    She unleashed her One-sh to test the waters, and the man responded in kind.

    A number of sparks scattered, but they were nearer Rinho, which indicated that she was being pushed back.

    ¡°You really are the prime disciple.¡±

    ¡°You aren¡¯t half bad for a little girl. How about bing my disciple?¡±

    Rinho was pissed off by the man¡¯s offer.

    She had long, dark blue hair and gave off the impression of always being calm because of her orderly appearance.

    It was a stark contrast to Fuuka¡¯s shy looks.

    Nheless, of the two, Rinho was more easily swayed by her emotions.

    The expression on her face vanished.

    ¡°Trash shouldn¡¯t let things get to their head.¡±

    The bloodlusting out of her slightly swayed her hair.

    The tense atmosphere inside the mansion cooled in an instant, but the prime disciple appeared unaffected as he believed in his strength.

    ¡°What a pity. You have a decent face, and here I was thinking of making you my mistress.¡±

    Sparks scattered once more between the two as their One-shes shed against one another.

    Scratches appeared on the corridor of the mansion, and windows shattered before being blown away.

    The walls, ceiling, and floor were not spared from the damage.

    The prime disciple took a step forward, which prompted Rinho to step back.

    The prime disciple had a frown on his face when he saw this.

    ¡°I won¡¯t spare anyone that goes against me. Prepare yourself, little girl.¡±

    He took another step forward, and Rinho took another step back.

    There was a grim look on Rinho¡¯s face, and cold sweat ran down her forehead.

    ¡ó

    We stop in front of a big door.

    ¡°Ellen, wait here.¡±

    ¡°Master?¡±

    ¡°¡ªNeen. If I include the enemies Rinho and Fuuka are dealing with, the one in the far back should be the governor. Ellen, you should move away from here.¡±

    ¡°B-but!¡±

    ¡°As you are now, you will only get in the way.¡±

    Subject to my re, Ellen looks down before scurrying away.

    Looking at her back, I wonder if I¡¯ve said too much, but there¡¯s no helping it.

    ¡ªI can¡¯t afford to care for her at the moment.

    Feeling several strong One-sh presences, I open the door and enter by myself.

    What awaits me are neen disciples of the Original One-sh.

    The huge door closes with a bang, and I hear the sound of heavy metal clicking.

    Apparently, they¡¯ve locked the door.

    ¡°What a wasted effort.¡±

    I can just rip off the door with a single One-sh, so I don¡¯t see the point of locking me inside.

    I look to the front, and a few guys that seem stronger than the rest step forward.

    ¡°Wee, Liam-dono.¡±

    ¡°Address me as a Lord when you speak to me.¡±

    It¡¯s honestly beneath me to so much as meet with members of One-sh who have fallen from grace.

    The other disciples be angry at my attitude, but the three in front of me show a different reaction.

    Theyugh.

    ¡°Apologies. We are senior disciples of the Original One-sh. In other words, we are fellow disciples of the same school. We pay our respect to our senior.¡±

    I don¡¯t like how they¡¯re acting as if they¡¯re above me despite calling me their senior.

    ¡°Enough with the chitchat. Why aren¡¯t youing at me?¡±

    One of the senior disciples¡¯ grins, and approaches me for a deal.

    ¡°Simple. Would you like to make a deal in exchange for sparing your life?¡±

    ¡°¡ªI¡¯ll at least listen to what you have to say.¡±

    ¡°Our master, the governor of this, admires Liam-dono greatly. If you are willing to join hands with him, you will be allowed to walk away from here with your life. But in exchange, you will be working for the governor in the future.¡±

    The governor admires me?

    That¡¯s rather interesting, but to think he¡¯d say he¡¯s willing to ¡®spare my life¡¯.

    On top of that, he wants me to work for him?

    ¡ªA mere governor should know his ce.

    ¡°Enough with the nonsense. Return our Master immediately.¡±

    ¡°That would be impossible. I¡¯m calling this a deal, but our side is in a far better position.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Anger begins to work its way up my body while facing these enemies who appear convinced that they have the upper hand.

    The senior disciple talks about the current situation.

    ¡°60,000 ships will be gathering on this, all from supporters of the Calvin Faction. I wonder what they¡¯ll do to you once we hand you over.¡±

    I¡¯ve decided on what to do with these guys.

    ¡°Well then. I¡¯ll just have to save Master after defeating everyone here. Nothing more, nothing less.¡±

    The senior disciple shakes his head.

    ¡°So, the negotiation has broken down.¡±

    The disciples of the Original One-sh fire off their One-shes simultaneously.

    This room seems to have been made sturdy enough for such an asion only left scratches behind.

    Several shesnd near me, leaving scratch marks on the floor.

    ¡°It¡¯s quite spectacr seeing neen people unleash their One-shes at once.¡±

    Invisible shes.

    The traces left behind by the attacks from enemies hailing from a school of swordsmanship, which prioritized in killing its foes, can be seen all over the room.

    The senior disciple looks at me, and grins.

    ¡°Do you still wish to continue?¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    I start dashing as One-shes gets hurled at me one after another.

    Scratches appear in ces where I previously stood as I run around the room.

    I only block the attacks that will hit me.

    Sparks continue to be scattered around.

    As a result, from the outside it would appear as if fireworks are chasing after me.

    The senior disciple watches me run around, and makes fool of me whileughing.

    ¡°Running away won¡¯t get you anywhere! Seems like defeating a Sword Saint doesn¡¯t mean much!¡±

    I¡¯ve known for the longest time that fighting against someone from the same school wasn¡¯t easy.

    However, I didn¡¯t know things could be this tricky when I¡¯m outnumbered.

    None of them are as good as Rinho and Fuuka individually, but with neen people, I¡¯m starting to feel a sense of danger.

    ¡°Tsk!¡±

    To flee from the attacks, I climb up a pir and start running on the wall.

    It¡¯s as if I¡¯ve be a ninja.

    The enemies can attack as much as they wish while I have my hands full with blocking them.

    The situation can¡¯t get any worse for me.

    There are scratches everywhere in the room now that I¡¯ve spent some time running around.

    The other members of the Original One-sh join in on ridiculing me.

    ¡°Liam isn¡¯t as scary as the rumors say!¡±

    ¡°This shows that we¡¯re stronger than him!¡±

    ¡°The Original One-sh is the strongest school of swordsmanship! We¡¯ll prove it by taking Liam¡¯s head!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be the one to take his head!¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯ll be me! Whoever gets it will be rewarded by the governor!¡±

    They¡¯ve even begun topete over who¡¯ll take my life.

    There¡¯s only so much reward that a mere governor can give, and yet these fools are trying topete over my neck for that.

    Before I notice, tears begin to form on the kimono that I¡¯m wearing.

    ¡°I was cornered so easily.¡±

    I feel dissatisfied by myck of ability.

    I won¡¯t be able to perfect the One-sh like this.

    Drawing my sword, I sh at one of the disciples.

    As I do so, I notice something peculiar about the opponent¡¯s movement.

    And by that, I mean he bes extremely flustered trying to receive my blow.

    ¡°Hiii?!¡±

    In fact, he seems terrified.

    I¡¯ll be bombarded by a barrage of One-shes if I stay in one ce for too long, so I jump away.

    As soon as I do so, the senior brother raises his voice toward the enemy that I just attacked.

    ¡°What are you doing, you disgraceful bastard!¡±

    ¡°P-please forgive me!!!¡±

    Is it possible for a swordsman that can unleash a One-sh to falter so easily before an approaching enemy?

    Maybe it¡¯s because he knows I¡¯m stronger, but still.

    Questions are popping up inside my head, but I shake off my thoughts to concentrate on the battle.

    ¡°A little more. Just a little more.¡±

    I¡¯m reaching my limit, and it¡¯s bing difficult to breathe.

    My body¡¯s also screaming in pain.

    I jump into the storm of One-shes conjured up by my enemies, and avoid them all at thest minute.

    My clothes get ripped, and a graze appears on my cheek. Blood flows out from within, but I don¡¯t pay it any mind.

    ¡°A bit more. Just a bit more¡ª¡±

    As I refuse to fall, the enemies have decided to resume their attacks after spreading out around me.

    At longst, I receive an injury as I fail to intercept the attacks that areing from all sides.

    From there, I get hit by all the enemies¡¯ One-shes.

    I haven¡¯t seen my blood dance in the air since the days of my rigorous training with Master.

    Cheers erupt from the surrounding.

    ¡°We got him! Liam¡¯s down!¡±

    ¡°Not yet! His wounds are shallow!¡±

    ¡°No, he can¡¯t move anymore. I¡¯ll be taking his head.¡±

    I¡¯m on my knees and bleeding, my consciousness is about to fade.

    This reminds me of my painful days of training, and Master Yasushi¡¯s face suddenly make its appearance inside my head.

    He¡¯s smiling, and he seems to be saying something.

    ¡°Right. A long time ago¡ª¡±

    Master Yasushi once taught me something.

    It was around the time I got a grasp of unleashing the One-sh.

    All my focus was in my training, and I remember asking how I could unleash a One-sh like Master.

    However, instead of giving me the answer directly, Master taught me something else.

    ¡®Liam-dono, some time¡¯s it¡¯s important to take a moment to pause and think.¡¯

    I was confused by what he meant.

    ¡®Take a moment to pause and think?¡¯

    ¡®That¡¯s right. Don¡¯t limit yourself to one truth. Things can look different from different angles. Question everything you believed in until now, and improve upon them. That is what it means to study martial arts. If you get stuck along the way, first begin by doubting yourself.¡¯

    ¡®Doubt myself?¡¯

    ¡®Yes! You must first doubt yourself! Understood? Great!¡¯

    As I reminisce about my conversation with Master, the flow of time around me slows down.

    Doubt? Me? My One-sh?

    I¡¯ve never been able to surpass my Master. Does that mean I¡¯ve made a mistake somewhere down the line?

    Was I mistaken from the very beginning?

    ¡°Could it be¡ª that Master never drew his sword from the beginning to the end?¡±

    Ie to a realization.

    An enemy approaches my side and raises his sword, ready to swing it down on my neck.

    At the same time, an electronic voice is heard from the training armor that I¡¯m wearing under my kimono.

    [The training armor has reached its limit. Forced shutdown.]

    Freed from the load that I¡¯ve been burdened with thus far, I sh at the disciple that has approached me.

    However, instead of using One-sh, I use my sword to do so.

    This surprises the senior disciples, and the regr disciples alike.

    I stand up, and look up at the ceiling.

    ¡°Reality is cruel.¡±

    I¡¯vee to realize the truth of One-sh.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Brian (`; ¦Ø; ¡ä): ¡°Before saying anything¡ª what happened to not looking down on your enemies?! This Brian demands an exnation!¡±

    Wakagi-chan (£»©b§¥©b): ¡°T-tomorrow is the day of release for Volume 2 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire!¡¯ P-please look upon it favorably. Gramps, you should calm down.¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°No! The Master whom I serve is a sword maniac ¡ªit¡¯s painful.¡±

 Chapter 152 - V9 Chapter 10. The Enlightened Liam

    <h4>Chapter 152 ¨C V9 Chapter 10. The Enlightened Liam</h4>

    Rinho, who was fighting the prime disciple, had been driven to a wall.

    Some of her long, beautiful hair had been cut, and her clothes were stained with blood.

    The prime disciple, who saw this, appeared bored.

    ¡°Is this the One-sh that¡¯s said to be invincible? Weak, too weak. It turns out it wasn¡¯t you guys that were strong, but the techniques of One-sh that were incredible.¡±

    Rinho silently intercepted a One-sh that the prime disciple had unleashed.

    And thus, the prime disciple came to a decision.

    ¡°I alone am enough to spread the fame of this strongest school of swordsmanship. After killing you and Liam, I¡¯ll proceed to eliminate everyone who¡¯s learned the One-sh and make it my own!¡±

    This deration was akin to saying that he would even kill the governor to make this invincible sword technique his and his alone.

    He was thinking of putting his n into action starting with Rinho, and took a big step forward to unleash a One-sh.

    But at that very moment, Rinho also moved forward and went past where the prime disciple stood.

    Surprised that his One-sh missed her, the prime disciple looked back in a hurry.

    Rinho let out a small sigh.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been observing your movement, and to be honest, it¡¯s a letdown. What¡¯s more, the fact that you wish to hammer down the nails that stick out just shows that you¡¯re a petty man.¡±

    ¡°Someone who¡¯s struggling to deal with my One-sh has no right to say that!¡±

    Hearing this, Rinho unleashed a One-sh of her own, and a light scratch appeared on the prime disciple¡¯s cheek.

    The prime disciple touched it with his hand, and realized that he¡¯s been grazed.

    With that, he came to a horrible realization, and started to shake in terror.

    Disappointed by the prime disciple, Rinho carried on.

    ¡°I wanted to observe and learn how the Original One-sh had developed, but there¡¯s nothing noteworthy aside from your One-sh. You¡¯recking in every other aspect, so you can¡¯t even bring out the true potential of One-sh.¡±

    Rinho came to the conclusion that the Original One-sh was a school that cast everything aside, and focused solely on learning the One-sh.

    Turning to face the prime disciple, Rinho readied her iai.

    The prime disciple hurriedly readied his sword as well, but before he knew it, his body had fallen to the grown, bisected vertically in half.

    As blood sshed on the floor, Rinho stared down at him with cold eyes.

    ¡°A One-sh that has fallen is better off gone.¡±

    Rinho started walking as she muttered.

    ¡ó

    Fighting against seven people in the courtyard, Fuuka¡¯s clothes were tattered, and she herself was riddled with wounds.

    Despite being surrounded by seven people simultaneously unleashing their One-sh, sheughed as she fought.

    The senior disciple at the scene was taken aback.

    ¡°Why can¡¯t we hit her?! Why isn¡¯t she falling?!¡±

    It was inconceivable to him how Fuuka could remain standing even with their numerical advantage.

    However, Fuuka had noticed something during their fight.

    Rinho was the type of person who calmly analyzed her fights, whereas Fuuka was the type that learned with her instincts.

    ¡°Yer nothing without the One-sh.¡±

    Fuuka belittled them out of nowhere, which enraged the disciples.

    They put more force behind their attacks, making their One-sh more destructive than ever before, but Fuuka simply avoided them all.

    ¡°It¡¯s no use. All yer doing is putting more strength. This¡ª is One-sh.¡±

    With that, she swung her twin swords, killing three of the regr disciples.

    While everyone was stunned, Fuuka put her swords on her shoulder.

    ¡°Yer One-sh is fake.¡±

    Fuuka said this with such confidence, while the senior disciple pulled out his sword in denial.

    ¡°It¡¯s not fake. It¡¯s the real One-sh! The strongest swordsmanship in the Empire!¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s fake. You¡¯ve left out everything that¡¯s important, so even your One-sh seems dull. Looking at you, I can finally appreciate how scary Master and Senior Brother are.¡±

    Although she felt disappointed by the Original One-sh, she was grateful to be reminded once more about how terrifying Yasushi and Liam were.

    And that was all there was to them.

    They were tough opponents, and they taught her what she wascking in.

    ¡°Seeing you guys have taught me a lot. Unleashing the One-sh isn¡¯t enough. It¡¯s no wonder Senior Brother attaches such great importance to the basics.¡±

    Growing impatient, the senior disciple rushed in to attack while Fuuka was muttering to herself.

    His instincts were screaming in terror.

    Fuuka narrowed her eyes without moving, chopping the senior disciple into fine pieces.

    The other disciples, who were watching, tried to escape with their backs exposed to her.

    Fuuka opened her mouth wide and grinned.

    ¡°Now, now, that ain¡¯t the answer, is it? For members of One-sh to flee in battle¡ª aren¡¯t ya¡¯ll just better off dead?¡±

    Fuuka closed the distance between her and the scattered disciples, then she unleashed her One-sh.

    She only used the bare minimum amount of force to finish them off in a single blow by targeting their vitals, and by the time Fuukanded on the ground, all the disciples had copsed.

    Returning her swords to their scabbard, Fuuka took a deep breath before taking a look at herself.

    ¡°¡ªWelp, it¡¯s better than when we fought with Senior Brother.¡±

    Fuuka, who had won against members of the same school, moved once more in search of her next enemy.

    ¡ó

    ¡°Reality is cruel.¡±

    The kimono that I¡¯m wearing is in tatters, and the training suit that I¡¯m wearing underneath has been forcefully shut down.

    I take off what I¡¯m wearing above the waist, leaving myself half naked with only a hakama.

    Blood is flowing down from my wounds, but none of them are fatal, so I leave them be.

    I sheathe my sword that¡¯s in my right hand, and hold it in my left before looking up at the ceiling.

    The light is dazzling.

    I¡¯m embarrassed by all the misunderstandings I¡¯ve had until now.

    ¡°From the beginning, Master never unsheathed his sword...¡±

    Not appreciating the profound realization that I¡¯ve just had; the disciples of the Original One-sh unleash their One-shes at me.

    I slightly raise the guard of my sword with my thumb and give it a light snap.

    And what do you know?

    The bodies of seventeen disciples including the senior members copse into pieces, blood flowing out of them after hitting the ground.

    Not a single drop of blood has been sshed.

    ¡ªAnd what¡¯s more, I haven¡¯t unsheathed my sword.

    All I did was make a sound.

    Just by doing that, 17 people were cut down and several sword marks were left in the room.

    After all that rigorous training, I¡¯vee to know the secrets.

    One-sh exists beyond the realm of simple strength, killing, or even magic.

    All this time, I¡¯ve only been imitating the One-sh.

    ¡°No wonder Master doesn¡¯t carry a sword with him. ¡ªHe doesn¡¯t need one in the first ce.¡±

    I think back to the time when we met at the territory of Viscount Razel, who¡¯s now a Baron.

    Master wasn¡¯t carrying a sword back then.

    It¡¯s not that he didn¡¯t have one¡ªit¡¯s that he didn¡¯t have to have one with him.

    That¡¯s probably beyond me for the time being.

    Without carrying a sword with me, I¡¯ll probably fail in unleashing the One-sh, and even if I could, it¡¯ll surely miss.

    ¡°So, this is the true One-sh.¡±

    I say this under my breath as I turn my gaze toward the sole surviving member.

    He¡¯s the only one who survived, but it doesn¡¯t look like he understands what¡¯s happened.

    I approach him slowly.

    With a look of terror on his face, he shoots a One-sh at me.

    He¡¯s not even aiming, so there¡¯s no need for me to even dodge the attack.

    ¡°D-don¡¯te towards me! Don¡¯te!!!¡±

    Looking at his pitiful figure, it makes me sad that we¡¯re both members of One-sh.

    When I arrive before him, he falls on his butt, and the smell of ammonia soon follows.

    Without minding the smell, I start asking him questions.

    ¡°Where¡¯s your Master?¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m talking about the instructor of the Original One-sh. What¡¯s his name? Where is he? Is our Master safe?¡±

    It¡¯s frustrating to know that one person managed to survive from the One-sh, the true One-sh, because of my immaturity.

    However, it¡¯s precisely because he managed to survive that I can interrogate him.

    ¡°Answer me. Where¡¯s your Master? Where¡¯s our Master?¡±

    ¡°H-he¡¯s with Lord Governor¡ª¡±

    I don¡¯t sense anyone powerful next to the governor, but this should be enough.

    I decapitate the disciple before sheathing my sword and making a clicking sound.

    The thick door blocking the room shatters into pieces and copses.

    It seems I¡¯ve been wrong from the very beginning.

    The secret to One-sh is to sh without pulling out the sword.

    ¡°Now, time to call Ellen back.¡±

    I¡¯ve managed to ovee a wall.

    All that¡¯s left is to rescue Master Yasushi.

    ¡ó

    ¡°Cutting down enemies without pulling out the sword?!¡±

    The Guide, who was watching Liam, couldn¡¯t process what was happening before his eyes.

    The secret to the sword technique was to keep the sword sheathed.

    He couldn¡¯t believe what Liam was suggesting, and neither could Gudwar.

    ¡°Sure, there are schools out there that say it¡¯s best to defeat one¡¯s enemies without needing to pull out their sword, but this¡ªthis is different! Those are two different things! He¡¯s actually not pulling out his sword!¡±

    A sh produced by neither swordsmanship, nor magic.

    The Guide and Gudwar were bbergasted by the answer Liam arrived at.

    They had mass produced people who could use the One-sh to defeat Liam, but their attempts only made him stronger.

    It was the Guide¡¯s worst nightmare.

    ¡°Gudwar, since things havee to this¡ªhiii?!¡±

    The Guide was about to share their next course of action, but Gudwar¡¯s face was bright red, and steam wasing out of it.

    It appeared Liam really wasn¡¯t to his liking.

    ¡°I was hoping for an exciting battle filled with bloodshed! This is unforgivable! I¡¯ll crush him. I¡¯ll make sure to crush him here and now!¡±

    Gudwar, who no longer deemed Liam¡¯s One-sh a form of swordsmanship, grabbed the Guide with one of his octopi legs.

    ¡°N-no, stop. That hurts!¡±

    Seeing the Guide whom he grabbed suffering, Gudwar tightened his grasp to release his pent-up anger.

    ¡°This is all because of the unnecessary things that you¡¯ve done!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re being unreasonable!¡±

    Although he said this, it was true that Liam had grown to this extent thanks to the Guide¡¯s interference, so Gudwar¡¯s anger was not uncalled for.

    ¡°Since things havee to this, I¡¯ll make sure that Liam dies by hook or by crook! He¡¯s bad news, I tell you. If we leave him alone¡ªhe¡¯ll eventually be our enemy, and when the timees, he¡¯ll direct his des at us!¡±

    A ck steam rose from Gudwar and spread out in all directions, prating into space and calling forth Liam¡¯s enemies.

    The Guide watched as this happened while he remained restrained.

    (W-with this, it¡¯s game over for Liam.)

    Although he was suffering under Gudwar, the Guide was willing to put up with it if it meant defeating Liam.

    ¡ó

    Two malicious beings were trying to take Liam¡¯s life.

    The ck steam which was being dispersed throughout the universe was invisible to the human eyes, but at the bow of a ck battleship, a light in the shape of a dog was watching as it spread.

    In outer space where there was no air for sound to travel, the dog howled, and its howl traveled through space until it reached its intended target.

    ¡ó

    ¡°Huh? Was that a dog¡¯s howl I just heard? Whatever, that¡¯s not what¡¯s important right now.¡±

    Chester was inside a room waiting for someone to enter, and beside him was Yasushi, who had been locked up inside a cage like a product being disyed.

    ¡°They all lost? All thirty of them?¡±

    Chester was quite flustered when he heard the report from his subordinate.

    Seeing him so unsettled, Yasushiughed through his nose.

    (Oh? Have hostile forces entered the mansion? Good, now defeat them all and help me out of here. It seems my prayers have worked.)

    After being captured, he had prayed to God every day for ¡®someone toe and help¡¯.

    He wasn¡¯t capable enough to do anything by himself, so whenever he was troubled, he went straight to praying.

    Knowing that his prayers had been answered, Yasushi felt pleased and was optimistic about his situation.

    Since an enemy of Chester¡¯s was rushing over; they might help him after seeing him being held captive.

    While holding onto this faint hope, Yasushi suddenly felt a strange chill course through his body.

    A shiver went down his spine.

    (Have I caught a cold?)

    ¡®I should sleep tight tonight,¡¯ he thought with his escapist mindset.

    The door to the room was cut down just as he was having these thoughts.

    (Herees my hel¡ªeh?)

    Yasushi was excited to see who his saviors were, but after the door was cut down, he saw two people behind it¡ªand one of them was Liam.

    Liam, who¡¯d experienced so much growth, looked much more powerful and mature than Yasushi remembered him to be.

    Liam also saw Yasushi, and corrected his posture.

    ¡°Master, I¡¯m sorry for beingte.¡±

    Liam made his appearance, his body still full of wounds.

    Yasushi also corrected his posture, and sat upright.

    He tried his best to act calm andposed, but rms were ringing inside of him.

    (Dear God, you got the wrong person!!! Literally anyone but him!!! Take him back!!!)

    The person who arrived was thest person he wanted to see.

    A red-haired girl stood behind Liam, and she was addressing Liam as her master.

    ¡°Master, I don¡¯t see the instructor of the Original One-sh anywhere.¡±

    ¡°We just have to ask Chester then. ¡ªSo, are you the one who kidnapped Master? You¡¯re ready to face the consequences, right?¡±

    Liam threatened Chester with a terribly cold voice, wrapping the room in a heavy atmosphere.

    It was almost suffocating, and cold sweat constantly ran down Yasushi¡¯s back.

    However, things didn¡¯t end there.

    ¡°Arara? Senior Brother got here first?¡±

    Rinho, who was also in tatters, showed up.

    When she entered the room and found Yasushi in it, a big smile blossomed on her face.

    ¡°It¡¯s Master! Masteeer!!!¡±

    Rinho waved her hand at him, and from behind her, Fuuka made her appearance by jumping into the room.

    She was also covered in wounds, but she was so happy to see Yasushi that there were tears in her eyes.

    ¡°Finally. We¡¯ve finally reunited! Master, I¡¯vee to help!¡±

    Yasushi desperately tried to maintain his smile as he nodded at the four who came to save him.

    (I didn¡¯t want to see you guys ever again! Also, I sent you two to kill Liam. Why are you moving together with him?!)

    Yasushi was at his wits¡¯ end trying to figure out what was going on.

    As such, he couldn¡¯t bother listening to what Chester said next.

    There was a switch in Chester¡¯s hand.

    ¡°Don¡¯te any closer! If you do, your Master would be blown to smithereens¡ª Wha¡ª?!¡±

    Chester showed the switch to them, but the moment he did, it shattered to pieces.

    Not only that, various figures appeared from the walls and floor near Yasushi.

    They were wearing masks, and appeared to be Liam¡¯s subordinates.

    ¡°Lord Liam, we¡¯ve dealt with all the explosives. All the traps have been removed as well.¡±

    ¡°That so,¡± Liam muttered.

    Then, he turned his attention to Chester, who was shaking in fear.

    Chester, who couldn¡¯t stand the pressure from Liam any longer, pulled out his sword.

    ¡°Y-you monsters!¡±

    Though still immature, he unleashed a One-sh, which was blocked by Liam.

    Sparks scattered between the two as Chester continued to fire his One-sh, only to be intercepted by Liam.

    Liam then put his hand on his chin before looking over at Ellen.

    ¡°It¡¯s just about right. Ellen, you¡¯ll be his opponent.¡±

    ¡°¡ªUnderstood.¡±

    Ellen stepped forward to confront Chester.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°...What does it even mean to sh without pulling out one¡¯s sword?¡±

    Wakagi-chan (£»©b§¥©b): ¡°Eh? Hmm, I don¡¯t understand either.¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°....¡±

    Wakagi-chan (£»©b§¥©b): ¡°....¡±

    Brian (£à?¦Ø?¡ä): ¡°Anyway, today¡¯s the day that Volume 2 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire¡¯ goes on sale! Did anyone manage to read about Lord Liam¡¯s glorious feats already?¡±

    Wakagi-chan ( ©b?©b): ¡°Please also look forward to the coborative SS with ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯! Volume 7 will be released on January 30th, so don¡¯t forget to check it out! I¡¯ll be ying an active role. Maybe!¡±

 Chapter 153 - V9 Chapter 11. A Swordswoman Of One-Flash

    <h4>Chapter 153 ¨C V9 Chapter 11. A Swordswoman Of One-sh</h4>

    We decided to raid the governor¡¯s mansion to rescue Master Yasushi, and when I entered the room where Chester was located in, I found him locked up inside a cage.

    ¡ªI don¡¯t intend to forgive anyone for such transgression against Master, but Chester¡¯s skill is perfect for a certain task.

    ¡°Can you do it, Ellen?¡±

    Ellen replies quietly to the question.

    ¡°I can.¡±

    Ellen steps forward to face Chester.

    She seems pretty nervous, but I can tell that she¡¯s also focused, so as her master, I can rest assured.

    Chester¡¯s eyes dart about, and he notices that we don¡¯t intend to touch him.

    At the same time, he looks at Ellen and observes the child in front of him cautiously.

    ¡°What¡¯s the meaning of this?¡±

    Ellen remains silent, so I decide to answer the question instead.

    ¡°My disciple hasn¡¯t killed anyone before. As a swordswoman, this means she¡¯s not fully-fledged yet. As such, I¡¯m thinking of having her gain some experience through you. Now that we¡¯ve managed to rescue Master, you¡¯re worthless to us.¡±

    I ask Rinho and Fuuka, who are staring at Chester with cold eyes, to act as witnesses.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be showing my disciple to Master Yasushi. Rinho, Fuuka. You two will be the witnesses.¡±

    Rinho shrugs her shoulders.

    ¡°Okay~¡±

    Fuuka appears interested in how Ellen will fight.

    ¡°Ellen, make sure ya don¡¯t tarnish the names of Master and Senior Brother.¡±

    I turn towards Master Yasushi, who closes his eyes before slowing opening them again.

    His eyes are locked on Ellen and Chester, who are in front of him.

    For Master Yasushi, Ellen will be his grand-disciple.

    I¡¯ve had her undergo rigorous training, but I wonder how she looks in the eyes of Master.

    I¡¯m bing nervous as well.

    ¡°Ellen, as you¡¯re not familiar with the One-sh, I forbid you from using it in this fight.¡±

    Ellen remains calm and collected despite being told to kill her enemy without using the One-sh.

    She isn¡¯t showing any signs of pulling out her sword either.

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    She¡¯s concentrating more and more, waiting for me to signal the start of battle.

    Chester on the other hand isn¡¯t ready at all.

    ¡°Cut the bullsh*t! I never agreed to fight with this kid! Guards! Guards!¡±

    He shouts for his subordinates, who have presumably been waiting outside the room, but Kukuri appears from my shadow and begins to cackle.

    ¡°They¡¯ve departed this world already, and are waiting for their governor to catch up to them.¡±

    It¡¯s really nice to have such a capable subordinate.

    Also, unlike Tia and Marie, Kukuri won¡¯t go and do anything crazy.

    ¡°Sorry for the trouble, Kukuri.¡±

    ¡°It is our honor to serve you.¡±

    Kukuri bows respectfully, and Chester falls to the ground.

    No one knows what¡¯s going through his mind, but with both hands on the ground, he addresses me with a fawning voice.

    ¡°Let¡¯s strike a deal, Count Banfield!¡±

    I don¡¯t give him any response, but Chester continues, assuming that I¡¯m interested in what he has to say.

    ¡°Troops from my parents and surrounding lords areing to this, and they number over 60,000. I-if you spare me, I wouldn¡¯t mind helping you out.¡±

    I let out a sigh after hearing Chester¡¯s attempt to strike a deal with me with his quivering voice.

    ¡°Marie.¡±

    A small window appears in front of me as soon as I call out her name, and Marie¡¯s face is projected onto the screen.

    ¡®Lord Liam, it¡¯s true that arge fleet is heading for this ce¡ªL-Lord Liam?! All those wounds! I-immediate treatment¡ª¡¯

    ¡°Shut up, you¡¯re being too noisy.¡±

    Thinking he could negotiate; Chester stands up and points his finger at me.

    Both he and his subordinates seem to love making deals.

    ¡°S-so what will you do, Count Banfield? Do you ept, or do you not?!¡±

    He¡¯s continuing the conversation all on his own, but there¡¯s only ever been one answer.

    ¡°¡ªWho do you think you¡¯re speaking to? You and I making a deal? Impossible. Just shut up, and be experience for my disciple. Aren¡¯t you honored to be the stepping stone of a true member of One-sh?¡±

    ¡°Wha¡ª?¡±

    Chester seems dumbfounded, so I shake my head, and teach him a lesson.

    ¡°A fleet numbering 60,000 ships? So what?¡±

    Marie, who¡¯s been watching us through the small window, interrupts me.

    ¡®Lord Liam, please escape immediately!¡¯

    ¡°Don¡¯t interrupt me.¡±

    ¡®~!¡¯

    ¡°¡ªMarie, drop Avid down here.¡±

    ¡®B-but!¡¯

    ¡°Don¡¯t make me repeat myself.¡±

    ¡®M-my apologies.¡¯

    ¡°If you so wish, you can leave first. I¡¯ll catch up to you guys with Avidter on. It¡¯d be a waste to lose subordinates for such a trivial matter after all.¡±

    Marie¡¯s expression bes stern when she hears me telling them to run away before me.

    ¡®I haven¡¯t be so ipetent as to flee and leave my lord behind.¡¯

    After themunication gets cut off, I turn towards Chester, whose face is screaming ¡°Unbelievable¡±.

    To begin with, I doubt a small fry like him has the authority to let us go.

    ¡°¡ªHow long do you intend to sit around like that? Get back to your feet.¡±

    I re at him, making Chester¡¯s mouth open and close repeatedly.

    Ellen, who¡¯s been silent until now, opens her mouth to speak.

    ¡°Although you¡¯re an evil man, it doesn¡¯t sit well with me to kill someone who shows no sign of resistance. At the very least, please show me your pride as a swordsman.¡±

    Being told off by a girl younger than him, Chester stands back up and unsheathes his sword.

    ¡°How dare you look down on me! Putting aside Liam, killing a brat like you should pose no problem to me!¡±

    ¡ªA mere governor addressed me without honorifics.

    I almost kill him right there and then, but I suppress my urge.

    After all, Chester really is the best opponent for Ellen.

    I stare at Chester beforeying the charges.

    ¡°Addressing me without honorifics is a capital offense, but I¡¯ll let it go for now. You¡¯re just the right person for Ellen to train against. Not only have you abused your position, you¡¯ve oppressed the people and held ambitions that far exceed your capabilities. The biggest offense, however, is that you kidnapped Master Yasushi.¡±

    Chester looks at me, and smiles fearlessly.

    ¡°So, you can¡¯t condone my action of oppressing the people? I heard you were a pushover, and it seems the rumors are right! That¡¯s what it means to rule over others! Despite all your flowery words, how are you any different from me? At the end of the day, all you¡¯re doing is putting up a front.¡±

    Me? Same as him? Disgusting.

    ¡°Don¡¯t lump me in the same group as the likes of you. We¡¯re fundamentally different. It¡¯s an insult to evenpare us. ¡ªWhatever, we don¡¯t have all day to talk. Just begin the fight.¡±

    Even audacity has its limit. To think a small-time viin wouldpare himself to a super viin like me.

    ¡°Say all you want; you guys are done. After killing this brat, I¡¯ll¡ª!¡±

    Chester unleashes a One-sh before I signal the start of the fight.

    It flies straight toward where Ellen¡¯s neck is, but she deflects it.

    ¡°T-take this! And this!¡±

    Chester continuously shoots One-sh after One-sh at her direction, but she blocks them all with her sword.

    Rinho appears exasperated.

    ¡°He¡¯s calling that a One-sh? What an insult.¡±

    Fuuka¡¯s interest in the fight has waned.

    ¡°He¡¯s just shooting off des. How unsightly.¡±

    I watch Ellen¡¯s fight with my arms crossed.

    Chester¡¯s truly the ideal opponent for her, not to mention he fits in perfectly with the stereotypical image of an evil governor that oppresses the people.

    Ellen puts her sword back in her scabbard in front of Chester, who¡¯s short on breath.

    Seeing this, Chester assumes he¡¯s off the hook.

    ¡°¡¯Y-you¡¯re willing to spare me? T-thank you¡ª Is that what you thought I¡¯d say? Die, idiot!¡±

    He tries to take advantage of the opportunity to unleash a One-sh, but Ellen bends down and jumps toward him, quickly approaching Chester and pulling out her sword.

    She flies past Chester, pulls out her sword like an iai¡ªand shes.

    Chester falls to the ground, and Ellen stares down at him while swinging her sword to remove the blood from the de.

    ¡°No one is allowed to insult Master.¡±

    Rinho and Fuuka, who¡¯ve been watching the fight, give her unenthusiastic ps.

    ¡°With this Ellen is also considered fully-fledged.¡±

    ¡°She might be able to spar with us in a few decades.¡±

    I walk up to Ellen.

    Her fingers are sped tightly around her sword, and she¡¯s looking at Chester, who she¡¯s just killed.

    Her breathing is rough, and her legs are trembling.

    I put my hand over Ellen¡¯s clenched fingers, imitating what Amagi did for me when I was young.

    As I take her fingers off one at a time, Ellen looks up at me as if she has something she wants to say.

    Her face has be pale.

    ¡°Since you¡¯ve decided to tread the path of a swordswoman, this is something you can¡¯t avoid. I¡¯m sure you¡¯re aware of this as well.¡±

    Killing people naturally apanies being a swordsman.

    It¡¯d be absurd to have a member of One-sh that can¡¯t kill.

    Ellen appears dejected.

    ¡°I apologize for myck of ability.¡±

    I shouldn¡¯t be so cold towards my disciple, who¡¯s just taken a big step forward.

    ¡°No, you¡¯ve done much better than I did when I was young.¡±

    Ellen raises her face in surprise, but I head towards Master Yasushi¡¯s cell without saying anything else.

    Kukuri carefully dismantles the cage, and Master stands up.

    ¡°You¡¯ve really grown.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to Master¡¯s teachings.¡±

    I kneel down, and lower my head.

    Master speaks to me in a bright voice that would make one question whether he was truly imprisoned.

    ¡°You may stand. Liam-dono is already a splendid swordsman. Now that you have a disciple, you must stand proud before others.¡±

    I get back on my feet, and turn towards Ellen.

    ¡°Master, this is Ellen, my disciple. How is she from Master¡¯s perspective?¡±

    Master strokes his stubbled chin with his hand.

    ¡°She¡¯s a talented swordswoman.¡±

    I¡¯m both relieved and proud to have my dear disciple praised by Master.

    ¡°Thank you for the praise. She¡¯s my first disciple.¡±

    ¡ó

    Yasushi was freaking out in front of Liam.

    (Their numbers have increased!!!)

    Before he knew it, he¡¯d gotten a grand-disciple named Ellen, and Yasushi was feeling terrified.

    Of course, Liam was scary in his own right, but Yasushi knew that Ellen was better with the sword than he.

    Knowing that he¡¯d be killed if they sparred, Yasushi was terrified.

    What¡¯s more¡ªthe problem was with Ellen¡¯s eyes.

    (I-is this kid suspicious of me?!)

    Liam, Rinho, and Fuuka¡¯s eyes were sparkling without any hint of doubt.

    That was scary as well, but the scariest of them all was Ellen, who was probably suspicious of him.

    ¡°Ahem!¡±

    After clearing his throat in an exaggerated manner, Yasushi tried to think of how he should escape this situation.

    If he stayed, his lie would eventually be exposed, and he imagined a future where he was ughtered like Chester.

    ¡°I¡¯m d to see that everyone has matured. Now then, it¡¯s time for me to move on to the next¡ª¡±

    It was then.

    Liam looked up at the ceiling.

    ¡°We have some rude guests.¡±

    Just as Yasushi was wondering what was going on, a number of windows appeared around Liam, projecting images within them.

    The garrison¡¯s weapons, in charge of the¡¯s security, were pointed at them and surrounded the entire mansion.

    ¡°Arrest the criminals that assassinated the Lord Governor! If it¡¯s deemed impossible, eliminate them!¡±

    They could even see battleships stationed outside.

    Sirens were ringing, and residents nearby were being forced to evacuate.

    (A-are they going to blow the entire mansion away?!)

    Even the armed soldiers that followed Governor Chester were here, and they were all directing their killing intent at Yasushi and his group.

    However, all Liam did was let out a small sigh.

    ¡°¡ªAvid, do it.¡±

    Immediately after he said those words, the ground near the governor¡¯s mansion shook violently. The guards and armed soldiers were pierced bysers, swept away by beams, and set aze by missiles.

    The image on the window disyed a single mobile knight with eerie, shining eyes, its figure illuminated by the mes around it.

    (Huh?!)

    Yasushi was stupefied, but managed to somehow keep his voice from leaking out.

    He was shocked when he saw the mobile knight in the video.

    (Eh? Isn¡¯t that the mobile knight from way back? How was this second-hand mech so strong?!)

    The mansion¡¯s ceiling shook. In response, Rinho and Fuuka blew the ceiling away with their One-sh, which revealed the figure of Avid, who slowly descended from above.

    ¡°We¡¯re going to board Avid, and evacuate from the,¡± Liam said.

    Fuuka had her hands behind her head.

    ¡°Eh~ we¡¯re gonna run away?¡±

    ¡°Of course not. We¡¯ll reorganize, and return to crush our enemies.¡±

    Yasushi had to resist the urge to shake after hearing Liam¡¯s response.

    (Why would youe back to fight a fleet of 60,000 ships?! We should be running away, idiot!)

    He thought the n was idiotic, but he couldn¡¯t say it out loud.

    After all, he was a person of a small caliber.

    He wouldn¡¯t speak up against Liam, who was stronger than him.

    Simply put, he had no courage.

    However, an existence that could bring salvation to Yasushi arrived the next moment.

    To put it mildly, the existence was terrifying.

    Though its body was that of a businessman in a suit, its head was that of an octopus with all its legs.

    Its head was dyed red, and its eight tentacles were shaking in anger.

    ¡°¡ªYour very existence is unforgivable. Unforgiveable!¡±

    For a moment, Yasushi thought help had arrived, but he soon realized that its killing intent was directed at him as well.

    (Huh? Wha¡ª?! What¡¯s going on?!)

    Steam wasing out from the mouth of the octopus, almost like a kettle.

    Even the faint sound of a whistle could be heard.

    ¡°One-sh isn¡¯t necessary to this world. It shouldn¡¯t exist in this world¡ªI¡¯ll make sure to erase even your existence today!¡±

    Its head swelled, and its humanoid body from his neck-down was swallowed up, turning into one big octopus.

    The steam which came out from its mouth became ck, impairing the visibility of their surroundings.

    Facing such a bizarre enemy, Rinho and Fuuka readied their swords.

    ¡°W-what¡¯s up with this guy?!¡±

    ¡°F-from a while ago, I couldn¡¯t stop shivering.¡±

    The two were visibly shaken.

    Ellen, on the other hand, had slumped to the ground, too afraid to move.

    Based on his instinct, Yasushi arrived at a certain conclusion.

    (¡ªYup, we¡¯re dead.)

    The enemy before them had such overwhelming presence that he was stunned silent.

    However, Liam was looking at the scene skeptically with one eyebrow raised.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°Ellen-dono has be fully-fledged. Brian has mixed feelings about that. That said, Lord Liam has so many enemies. It¡¯s painful.¡±

    Wakagi-chan (£»©b§¥©b): ¡°If only our Rion-chan was as daring¡ªnever mind. I¡¯d most likely be cut down if that were the case.¡±

    Wakagi-chan ( ©b?©b): ¡°Leaving that aside, have your readers managed to get ahold of the coboration SS between Evil Lord and Heretic? Volume 2 of ¡®I¡¯m the Evil Lord of an Intergctic Empire¡¯ has already been released, but Volume 7 of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯ is scheduled to go on sale next month, so please look forward to that!¡±

    Wakagi-chan ( ©b§Õ©b): ¡°Evil Lord was originally written to promote Mob Seka... Why am I promoting Evil Lord as well? ¡ªIt¡¯s painful.¡±

 Chapter 154

    <h4>Chapter 154</h4>

    A giant octopus has appeared out of nowhere, and told us that we ¡®shouldn¡¯t exist in this world¡¯.

    I have a lot of say, but first... who is this guy?

    I turn around to look at mypanions, and notice that my junior disciples are trembling.

    They¡¯ve drawn their swords out of instinct, but their des are shaking.

    Meanwhile, Ellen is slumped on the ground, having lost her will to fight.

    That¡¯s unbing of my disciple! ¡ªisn¡¯t what I say to her.

    Kukuri appears from my shadow.

    ¡°Lord Liam, please take this chance to retreat.¡±

    There¡¯s nothing wrong with his decision to have me flee, but I will not.

    ¡°Have your men back down.¡±

    Kukuri, who¡¯s usually prettyid back, appears to be in a panic.

    ¡°My Lord!¡±

    ¡°Stand down!¡±

    He follows my order, and withdraws.

    My attention then turns to Master, who¡¯s been watching the giant octopus.

    ¡°Master?¡±

    Master¡¯s observing the giant octopus without any trace of fear or anger.

    He turns around, and asks me a question.

    ¡°Liam-dono, do you think you can beat it?¡±

    Master won¡¯t be taking action against the octopus?

    Hmm, maybe he¡¯s thinking of testing my ability.

    The octopus lunges toward us, but Avid, who¡¯s standing behind us, activates a protective force field that wraps around our group.

    The giant octopus has a terrifying appearance, and it¡¯s corroding the parts of the governor¡¯s mansion that ites into contact with it.

    The ck steaming out of its mouth appears poisonous too.

    ¡°¡ªIt would be a close fight.¡±

    The octopus before us is a much greater threat than the folks from the Original One-sh.

    In fact, I¡¯m not sure whether my One-sh would be enough against this octopus. My gut is telling me that I¡¯ll fall slightly short.

    ¡°Then please deal with the octopus,¡± Master says. ¡°I am no longer capable of fighting.¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    Master can¡¯t fight anymore?

    ¡ó

    Yasushi maintained his calm outward appearance while entrusting his life to his disciples.

    (Sure, this monster might have appeared out of nowhere. But his disciples are pretty monstrous themselves, meaning they stand a chance of defeating it, right?)

    He looked toward Rinho and Fuuka expectantly.

    However, they seemed frightened and were staring at Yasushi for help.

    (Fools! I¡¯m weaker than you! How do you expect me to beat someone that you two are afraid of!)

    Liam, on the other hand, had a puzzled look on his face, and seeing howposed he was irked Yasushi.

    Avid, who previously demonstrated overwhelming might, had its hands full keeping the force field activated and shielding the group from the octopus.

    The force field was gradually being pushed back, and the giant octopus was swelling up, bing even bigger than before.

    ¡°ONE-FLASH MUST CEASE TO EXIST!!!¡±

    For some reason, its killing intent was at an all-time high.

    (What the hell did I do?! My life hasn¡¯t been the most honorable, but I haven¡¯t done anything to warrant so much hate!)

    Yasushi, who¡¯d told Liam earlier that he couldn¡¯t fight anymore, had spun up a lie in order to preserve his life.

    It¡¯d be a bad joke if they thought he was hiding his abilities, and asked him to battle that monster.

    Hence, he decided to lie, and say that he couldn¡¯t fight anymore.

    ¡°Liam-dono, I¡¯d like to see how strong you¡¯ve be.¡±

    For the time being, his n was to rely on Liam, and escape this predicament.

    Liam¡¯s eyes shot up in astonishment, but he soon nodded and took a step forward.

    Yasushi was praying in his heart.

    (Dear Lord from above, please grant Liam strength!!! If we can somehow survive this ordeal, I¡¯ll find a way to escape without relying on anyone!)

    Yasushi was thinking of running away even if they managed to ovee this crisis.

    ¡ó

    The Guide was watching from the sky as Gudwar revealed his true form to the world.

    ¡°That¡¯s it, Gudwar! You¡¯re the best!!!¡±

    After showing up in front of Liam and his group, Gudwar had gone straight in for the kill.

    Although it may seem as if Avid¡¯s force field was stopping Gudwar in its path, Gudwar was actually struggling due to Liam¡¯s power.

    Prayers from the citizens of his territory, prayers from the inhabitants of thes he¡¯d helped.

    Liam was being protected by the power of the sacred tree in his territory as well as the prayers of the people, and this was being amplified by Avid, who was essentially a lump of rare metals.

    The force field generated was thus imbued with sacred power, and from the Guide¡¯s point of view, what Gudwar was doing was no different from jumping into a sea of fire.

    If the Guide was in Gudwar¡¯s shoes, he would never have made such a decision.

    Even if Liam was defeated in this way, Gudwar would need a long time to recover from his injuries.

    In the worst-case scenario, he would have to suffer for all of eternity.

    However, there was a good reason as to why Gudwar wanted Liam dead.

    ¡°Fuuu... Even so, I didn¡¯t think he would step into our realm by sheer coincidence. Although just barely, he¡¯s be someone capable of reaching our ne of existence, and there¡¯s no way we can allow that!¡±

    Just barely.

    As the Guide had said, Liam had barely managed to step into the ne of existence that he and Gudwar were in.

    He had managed to scrape the surface with his fingertips, as misunderstandings stacked on top of one another. Liam¡¯s desire to aim for greater heights contributed to this as well.

    ¡°You¡¯ve done well to grow so much using party tricks, but this is as far as you go! Now I, Gudwar, will oblige you, so make sure you win!¡±

    ck smoke emerged from the Guide as he gave Gudwar his support.

    Just as Gudwar became even bigger, and threatened to swallow up Liam¡¯s group in its entirety¡ª

    ¡°¡ªWhat?!¡±

    The Guide saw light particles converge behind Liam, forming a humanoid shape that revealed only its upper body.

    It wasrger in size than even Avid, and the body seemed well-trained enough to belong to a God of War.

    Although its body was naked, its mouth was hidden behind a samurai mask, and a sword was in its hand.

    The giant that had materialized due to the gathering of light red at the Guide.

    ¡°D-did it really just notice¡ªhiii?!¡±

    The Giant of Light unsheathed its sword, and Liam, who was beneath said giant, also looked up toward where the Guide was at.

    ¡°He¡¯s found meeeee!!!¡±

    Flustered, the Guide escaped from the scene, leaving Gudwar behind.

    ¡ó

    When I look up at the sky, I catch sight of the Guide leaving.

    ¡°¡ªIt¡¯s my victory.¡±

    Apparently, the Guide has been moving behind the scenes to support me for this asion, and he¡¯s probably helped me at other times as well.

    His after-sales service is so perfect that I¡¯m starting to feel sorry.

    With the Guide¡¯s assistance, it doesn¡¯t matter whether I¡¯m up against the Original One-sh, or the enemy fleet that¡¯s approaching us as we speak. Victory will be mine!

    Convinced that everything¡¯s already been settled, I hand my sword over to Ellen.

    She¡¯s still not able to stand back up.

    ¡°M-master?¡±

    ¡®What are you going to do?¡¯ her eyes seem to say.

    Without answering, I look up at Avid.

    ¡°Avid, hand me my sword.¡±

    A sword flies out of Avid¡¯s cockpit, and I raise my left hand to receive it.

    It¡¯s my favorite sword.

    The giant octopus, who¡¯s approaching us, opens its huge bloodshot eyes in surprise.

    ¡°That sword!¡±

    From how panicked he sounds; he probably knows what this sword is.

    I had my suspicions that this sword of mine would be able to cut down this octopus, and it seems I was right.

    Turns out the sword which I stole from Goaz is quite the treasure.

    I have the Guide to thank for this as well.

    ¡°This is the best sword in my possession. With this in hand, my attack should reach you.¡±

    I put my hand on Ellen¡¯s head.

    ¡°Ellen, I haven¡¯t been able to show you the true One-sh until now.¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    ¡°As your Master, I¡¯ve finally be full-fledged.¡±

    I take a step forward, and use both hands to raise the sword to my eye-level.

    Then, I pull out approximately 30 cm worth of my sword from the sheath, my purplish eyes appearing to shine as they get reflected on the de¡¯s surface.

    ¡°I have yet to reach a level where I don¡¯t need my sword.¡±

    Growing desperate, the giant octopus in front of me swells up, trying to swallow Avid¡¯s force field whole.

    ¡°As I thought, that sword must be [God of Go¡ª¡±

    I didn¡¯t have the time to listen to the giant octopus.

    ¡°One-sh.¡±

    Instead of pulling out the sword, I put it back in its sheath, producing a sound in the process.

    A One-sh is generated, splitting the giant octopus vertically.

    ck smoke flows out from where the body has been cut, and the giant octopus bes deted.

    ¡°IGYAAAAAAA!!!¡±

    The octopus screams in pain.

    ¡°If I¡ªhad known¡ªI would have¡ªquickly¡ª¡±

    The body of the giant octopus disperses into the air.

    The ck smoke gradually disappears, reced by gold glitters that dance above us.

    ¡ªWhat¡¯s this phenomenon? It¡¯s not too bad.

    In fact, I like it a lot.

    I lower my sword, and ce it at my waist before looking back.

    Rinho appears shocked.

    ¡°S-senior Brother... that just now...¡±

    Fuuka lets go of her sword, and sits down with tears in her eyes.

    ¡°That was scary~ What even was that? I¡¯ve never seen anythin¡¯ like that before. Senior Brother did somethin¡¯ amazing as well. I don¡¯t get it anymore...¡±

    Ellen sps her hands, and look at me while crying.

    ¡°M-master, congrattions. I couldn¡¯t see Master¡¯s One-sh, but I made sure to burn it into my memory.¡±

    An invisible sh.

    The truth behind it isn¡¯t about the speed at which the sword is swung.

    Creating des out of magic isn¡¯t the answer either.

    Calling it a paranormal phenomenon wouldn¡¯t be wrong, but it¡¯s a technique that can¡¯t be realized if any of its prerequisites aren¡¯t met.

    One-sh can only be reached after mastering everything, and oveing the barrier.

    ¡°Master¡ªI finally understand the secrets of the One-sh.¡±

    Now that the battle is over, I bow deeply before Master.

    Certainly, the secret behind it isn¡¯t something that can be described with words.

    Without Master¡¯s guidance and the Guide¡¯s help, I would¡¯ve forever been stuck releasing pseudo-One-shes like the members of the Original One-sh.

    With things the way they are, I can¡¯tugh at those Sword Saints anymore.

    After all, I had been training the wrong way as well.

    Master responds kindly to my words.

    ¡°That was wonderfully executed, Liam-dono. With this, you have surpassed me. There is nothing left for me to teach.¡±

    ¡°S-surely not. I¡¯m still far from reaching the level where Master¡¯s at.¡±

    I can still clearly remember Master¡¯s One-sh from my childhood.

    That was the realthing.

    ¡°No, Liam-dono is the best!¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m still nowhere near beating Master.¡±

    ¡°Nonono, Liam-dono is the strongest now!¡±

    ¡°Master¡¯s still the best!¡±

    ¡°Liam-dono¡¯s the best!¡±

    ¡°Master¡¯s the...¡±

    While we¡¯re having such an exchange, a small window appears in front of me, and Marie makes a report.

    ¡®Lord Liam, something¡¯s wrong!¡¯

    ¡°What happened? If you¡¯re struggling, I can head over there and¡ª¡±

    ¡®N-no. It appears the enemies have begun to fight amongst themselves.¡¯

    ¡°There¡¯s internal strife?¡±

    ¡®Yes. It seems the mercenaries that the enemies have hired have betrayed them.¡¯

    I couldn¡¯t help but feel amused looking at Marie¡¯s confused face.

    With the Guide helping me from behind the scenes, there¡¯s no way I¡¯d lose!

    ¡°Hmm, at times like this, I think we¡¯d say... Lady Luck shines upon me... or was it something else? Anyway, no need to be so surprised. It¡¯s natural for me to win. You should just focus on your task.¡±

    ¡®U-understood!¡¯

    The call ends there.

    ¡°Well then, there¡¯s much that I wish to talk about, but we should evacuate first. Master, I¡¯ll have you escorted to my mothership.¡±

    ¡°No, that won¡¯t be necessary. I have a family on this.¡±

    Ellen reassures Master.

    ¡°Yasushi-sama¡¯s family has already been taken into protection under Master¡¯s order.¡±

    ¡°¡ªHuh?¡±

    I had Madam and Yasuyuki evacuate to the mothership first so that they would remain out of harm¡¯s way even if a battle urred.

    ¡°Please rest assured, Master!¡±

    For some reason, hearing my words, Master starts staring off into the distance.

    ¡°R-right.¡±

    ¡ó

    Around the same time, Liam¡¯s stealth fleet was fighting in space under Marie¡¯smand.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    Marie¡¯s voice echoed throughout the bridge, but none of the crew knew what was happening either.

    The ship¡¯s operator made a report.

    ¡°A part of the enemy fleet has rebelled, but other than that, we haven¡¯t received any information.¡±

    3,000 mercenary ships were attacking their allies, and causing havoc.

    Even the fleet led by the governor¡¯s father was in disarray as a result of the betrayal.

    Marie broke out in a cold sweat.

    (Lady Luck shines upon me... it¡¯s as Lord Liam said.)

    No matter how disadvantageous the situation was, Liam always managed to grab hold of victory, almost as if he was being watched over by an existence beyond humanprehension.

    The operator let out a shout.

    ¡°We¡¯ve retrieved Avid! We can retreat at any time!¡±

    ¡°Break through the frontlines! Having the gship escape is our top priority! We must protect Lord Liam, even if it costs us our lives!¡±

    They were literally risking their lives here.

    To break through enemy lines and retreat.

    Many allied ships would be sunk in the process, but it was a cheap price to pay in exchange for Liam¡¯s life.

    ¡°The enemies are crumbling from within! Men, to assault formation!¡±

    While Marie was handing out instructions, Liam appeared on the control room¡¯s monitor.

    ¡®Have the gship ced at the forefront. I¡¯ll be heading out as well.¡¯

    Liam, still riddled with wounds,ughed fearlessly, but Marie ignored his order.

    ¡°Even if it¡¯s Lord Liam¡¯s direct orders, we cannot follow through with that. We¡¯ll have Lord Liam leave this battlefield, even if it means putting our lives on the line.¡±

    ¡®¡ªWho do you think you¡¯re speaking to?¡¯

    Liam¡¯s cold voice rang throughout the bridge, but Marie believed in her loyalty, and continued to urge Liam.

    ¡°As long as Lord Liam is alive, the Banfield Family can rise up again and again. On the contrary, if we were to lose Lord Liam here, we will never be able to recover from the blow. I will notpromise on this matter.¡±

    Liam smiled, pleased with Marie¡¯s answer.

    ¡®I understand that you¡¯re loyal to me, but you¡¯re underestimating me a bit too much. Who said I¡¯m at a disadvantage? I¡¯m a man who always wins.¡¯

    Chengshi, who was leading the mercenaries, interrupted Liam as he was expressing his confidence in his victory.

    ¡®It has been a while, Lord Liam.¡¯

    Marie red at Chengshi, who she could see was wearing a Chinese dress through the monitor.

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re...¡±

    ¡®We¡¯ve joined the battle disguised as mercenaries. I was thinking of shaving off the number of enemies... but now that I think about it, this is a good chance to fight against Lord Liam.¡¯

    Marie¡¯s face turned sour.

    (To think we¡¯d have to battle this extremist.)

    Marie could also be categorized as an extremist, but among them were elites like Chengshi, who lived and died for battle.

    They would jump at the opportunity to challenge someone strong, so they would be more than happy to confront Liam.

    Liam¡¯s eyes narrowed when he heard what Chengshi said.

    ¡®I have no need for mutts that don¡¯t know how to y along. Come, I¡¯ll crush you all.¡¯

    Liam didn¡¯t have any intention of backing down.

    Hearing his reply, Chengshi¡¯s cheeks became red.

    ¡®Aren¡¯t you going to ask for our help?¡¯

    ¡°I can win even without your help.¡±

    Chengshi folded after witnessing such unwavering confidence radiating from Liam.

    ¡®That¡¯s why I find you so interesting¡ª we¡¯lle under yourmand.¡¯

    With 3,000 ships joining Liam¡¯s side, the operator reported on the situation.

    ¡°Although the ships were disguised, they¡¯re all equipped with the standard gear of the Banfield Family!¡±

    Upon hearing that, the gears in Marie¡¯s head started to turn as she thought of what to do in the current situation.

    (The number of enemies have decreased whereas the number of allies has increased. Having said that, the difference in number is still¡ª)

    That was when a new aristocratic fleet made its appearance.

    Therge fleet consisted of 20,000 ships that bore a family crest different from that of the Banfield Family.

    Liam, who had been rxed until now, was shocked, his eyes opening wide.

    ¡®¡ªH-howe?¡¯

    Even Liam¡¯s hadn¡¯t foreseen this happening.

    A message arrived from the fleet.

    ¡®I¡¯m here to help, Darling!¡¯

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°¡¯Lady Luck is shining upon me¡¯ isn¡¯t what you should be saying, Lord Liam. Why must you always charge straight in even when the situation isn¡¯t looking great, and gleefully too? ¡ªThis Brian is fully of worries. It¡¯s painful.¡±

    Wakagi-chan ( ©b?©b): ¡°It must be tough having a wacky protagonist, who¡¯s all about cutting down everything in his way. The protagonist of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯, on the other hand, is ate-boomer who¡¯s shy and introverted, so it¡¯s all good! That said, he takes action when the need arises¡ªthat he does.¡±

    Brian (¡ä£»¦Ø£»£à): ¡°Thank you for all your support. Please also look forward to Volume 7 of ¡®The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs¡¯!¡±

    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and

    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!