Chapter 63
Only then did I intervene.
I lightly swung the pitch-black scythe toward the soldiers standing in a line.
“Activation. Thorn.”
Shraaak-!
Soon, Squirmy stretched out in dozens of directions, tearing the cards to shreds.
The nightmares seemed to linger and writhe, but eventually lost their strength and dissipated.
I spoke while dusting the shadows off my sleeve.
“As expected··· it seems controlling them becomes difficult once there are more than ten cards.”
“S-sorry···. I let my strength slip again···.”
“There's no need to apologize. It's only the third day of training, after all. You're doing more than well enough.”
“But, still···.”
Even after I told her it was all right, Alice looked dejected.
I smiled sympathetically.
‘This isn't power she can learn to handle in a day or two.’
While the Class E students trained along the paths each had chosen, Alice underwent nightmare-control training alone with me.
In Alice's case, her ability couldn't be allowed to leak outside, so we conducted her training in the center of a secluded forest.
She experimented with controlling the nightmares on her own to get a feel for them, and whenever they showed signs of going berserk, I stepped in and took care of it.
It was also part of the process of taming nightmares that I had promised her before.
I lightly cleared the surrounding area.
“Shall we call it a day?”
“Ah, yes···.”
“You've worked hard today, too.”
The girl nodded.
We set off side by side toward the dormitory.
I quietly moved closer to the oddly dispirited Alice and asked a question.
“How have things been lately? Do you still have nightmares at night or anything?”
“Th-that, no··· Ever since Sir Victor fi, fixed it··· I haven't···.”
“Then that's a relief.”
“Th-thank you···.”
“I wasn't really trying to bring it up to take credit or anything.”
Heh heh.
A light burst of laughter.
I raised a hand slightly and stroked her black hair.
“Miss Alice, you're doing more than well enough. You don't have to be so impatient.”
“······.”
“I mean it, really. You're doing well, and you'll keep doing well.”
“······I want to be of help to you too, Sir Victor.”
Alice muttered uncertainly.
Both during her rampage last time and now, when I was overseeing her training.
She seemed uncomfortable, as though she was receiving too much from me without giving anything in return.
“Sir Victor is incredibly, st, strong··· If I want to be of any help, I feel like I should, sh, say or do something···.”
Quite an admirable thing to say.
I stroked the fidgeting girl with even more affection.
“You're already more than enough, Miss Alice.”
You're practically a winning lottery ticket already, you know?
You're a real lucky charm, a lucky charm.
“It's enough just for you to keep living so earnestly.”
“You only ever say things like that···.”
Alice mumbled, seeming to lose heart.
Heat seemed to spread slowly across her pale cheeks.
Was she really that frustrated by the thought that she couldn't be of help to me?
I cocked my head, then quickly thought of something and flashed a grin.
“If it's bothering you that much.”
“······?”
“There's one thing I'd like you to help me with.”
“Something you'd like me to help with···? Me···? Wh-what is it? I'll do it! I-I want to!”
Perhaps she really had been worrying about it quite a lot, because she reacted desperately even to my casually tossed-out remark.
I calmed Alice, who was unusually excited, and continued.
“It's nothing special. I was thinking of going somewhere tonight.”
“Tonight···?”
“I was wondering if you could accompany me.”
The girl's eyes shone brightly.
It was about time to draw her into our organization as well.
A worldwide secret organization that protected the peace of the continent and safeguarded its people.
“Have you ever heard of··· the Slayers?”
A new black mask.
I asked while fiddling with it beneath my robe.
***
Afterward.
A full half-day later, night had fallen.
As usual, I slipped out of the academy and walked on.
“Ahem.”
By now, it was a routine I had gotten quite used to.
Using the wall-phasing bug, I moved to an empty lot far from the academy.
“Victor.”
“Ah··· Your Highness.”
The princess was walking beside me as though this, too, had become familiar by now.
In the gloomy predawn darkness, the girl's silver hair shimmered in the moonlight shining through the clouds.
She wore a red mask over her face.
“Where are we going this time?”
“As always, we're moving to protect the world's love and peace.”
“I see.”
The princess gave a serious nod even at my nonsense.
Even when I reached out to stroke her, she quietly accepted my touch.
Yes. Carmilla was endlessly indulgent when it came to anything involving me, but···.
“······Victor.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“Why is that girl accompanying us?”
At the moment, she was clearly rather sulky.
In the direction her finger pointed, a black-haired girl stood fidgeting.
It was Alice.
“She's a new member of the Slayers. Shall we make her code name Onion?”
“Did I not ask why you brought that girl along?”
“I asked her for help. I asked if she could accompany us.”
“Mmm···.”
“Besides, you two already got acquainted last time, didn't you? I thought that made her a perfect fit.”
“Mmmmm···.”
Carmilla hummed disapprovingly.
A timid finger poked me repeatedly in the side.
“Help··· Was I not enough?”
“Of course not. It's just that the matter we're handling this time is rather large-scale, so I thought it would be good to have an extra pair of hands.”
“Mmm···.”
“Besides, this is the perfect field for Miss Alice. I brought her along so she could gain practical experience while training.”
“······.”
Was it the fact that I had another partner now that bothered her?
Carmilla seemed unable to take to Alice.
She was rather possessive in this regard.
Still, since I was the one who had called Alice, Carmilla seemed unable to criticize her to her face.
“Victor···.”
The princess whispered in my ear, still pouting.
“Victor is my vassal and mine alone. You mustn't go falling head over heels just because other women start batting their lashes at you···.”
“You know I'm not the kind of person who would do that, don't you?”
“Of course, but···.”
Carmilla was insecure. I could understand how she felt.
She had lost her family, friends, and kingdom all in a single day, after all.
With no ties left to her but me, she seemed to cling too fiercely to her relationships.
I reassured her with gentle words.
“If not by Your Highness's side, where else would I stay?”
“······.”
“This outing is truly important, so please, Your Highness, set aside your anger.”
“······When have I ever been angry? I merely had a question and asked it.”
“Hehe, of course.”
Only then did the princess seem to relax and pull away.
I spoke to the two people on either side of me.
“Then··· Sir Maneur, Sir Onion. Shall we be off?”
Squad Leader Garuric.
Member Maneur.
Member Onion.
They were the elite of a worldwide secret organization.
“That reminds me··· What brings us out this time?”
The princess asked, peeking over.
I answered, tapping my mask.
“Because it's almost time.”
The New Kingdom.
It was time for the peace treaty between humans and vampires to break down, and for the vampires to formally declare war.
With this incident as the starting point, signs of war would begin to spread across the entire continent.
The humans would probably realize as well that vampires were no longer their allies.
“The starting point of the war.”
Red Night.
The incident at its root.
If we left this alone, an appalling number of casualties would result.
“We'll throw ourselves into its heart and keep the resulting casualties to an absolute minimum.”
Come to think of it.
“Your Highness may··· recognize a familiar face.”
“A familiar face? To me···?”
“You'll find out when you see them.”
I answered, casting a glance at the status window floating before me.
[Main Quest]
-Title: Water Knows the Answer!
-Content: Secure the vampire ‘Jersian’ affiliated with the New Kingdom. Make them submit through various means of persuasion.
-Failure penalty: Accelerate the progress of the Fourth Calamity, ‘Red Night.’
-Success reward: ???
[Time limit:129 days]
Jersian.
The key figure behind this incident, [Lunar Eclipse].
At the same time, he was one of the close aides who betrayed the Blandir Dynasty.
This was also an important turning point for Carmilla's personal revenge.
“Hundreds of casualties··· We can never let something like that happen.”
I walked ahead, my robe billowing.
By then, the brightly glowing Absolute Balloon Sword was already clutched in my hand.
――――
[Status Window]
Name : Victor
Title : Saint
Equipped items : Mask of the Evil God, Robe of the Evil God
Active set effect : The World Seen by ■■■.
.
.
[Saint]
-> Good Deed Points accumulate in proportion to the number of lives the user saves.
-> Good Deed Points can be used to improve the user's base stats.
(This title's special ability takes priority over other restrictions within the system.)
――――
Multicolored light illuminated the surroundings.
I was smiling behind the mask.
“We have to save them all.”
Now, then.
Shall we go farm some Saint points?