Chapter 9: A Fleeting Date…?

~A chapter from the month-long mandatory vacation ordered for the knight order~

A few hours after I ordered Laura, the commander of the Renford Knight Order, to take a vacation, I was in my chambers, contemplating my next moves.

“Ordering the knight order to rest was a good start, but if monsters attack during this time, the whole plan falls apart. I need to account for that.”

The obvious solution would be to rely on the town guards, but their skills are several tiers below the knight order’s. If a powerful monster attacked, the knights would inevitably have to step in.

There was no helping it.

“I suppose I’ll have to clear out the surrounding monsters myself beforehand.”

It was a bit of a hassle, but there were benefits to this approach.

Since conquering a few dungeons earlier, I hadn’t had much time to level up consistently.

Taking this opportunity to focus on defeating powerful monsters could boost my level considerably.

“Alright, that settles it—”

“Excuse me,” came a voice.

Just as I stood to leave the mansion, Marie entered at the worst possible moment.

She tilted her head slightly, noticing me standing.

“Master? What’s the matter?”

“…Hmph.”

How to brush this off?

A day or two could be excused with a flimsy reason, but this plan spanned a whole month.

I couldn’t keep using the same excuse.

…Wait a minute.

A thought struck me, and I turned my gaze to Marie.

The reason I made her my personal maid was to train my ability to counter potential assassins.

But lately, my status ailment resistance and heat resistance had maxed out, so her presence wasn’t serving as training anymore.

To improve this situation, I’d need to train Marie herself.

With that in mind, I extended a hand toward her.

“Alright, Marie. You’re coming with me.”

“Eh, ehh!?”

Grabbing the bewildered Marie’s hand, I leapt out the window, using wind magic to head straight for a nearby forest.

Even after arriving in the forest, Marie still seemed confused.

“M-Master, where are we?”

“Don’t you know? This is a forest near the territorial capital. I plan to take down some monsters around here.”

“I-I understand, but why bring me along? I’m delighted to be by your side, but I can’t possibly fathom your intentions…”

Hmph.

Her confusion was understandable.

“It’s simple. I want you to take down monsters with magic alongside me.”

“I see, alongside… Wait, what!? N-No way! I’ve never used magic before!”

“No problem. Marie, you have a talent for magic.”

“…Huh?”

At my words, Marie blinked in surprise.

She must be wondering how I could know such a thing.

But I had a solid basis for my claim.

—The reason lies in Marie’s black hair.

Let’s take a moment to revisit how black hair is perceived in the Solstia Kingdom.

The belief that those with black hair are descended from demons stems not only from appearance but also from another significant factor.

Human hair color is typically determined by the nature of their magical energy.

The wavelength of magical energy that dyes hair black closely resembles that of demons.

As a result, black-haired individuals have often been mistaken as sharing the same lineage as demons.

And here’s the crucial part:

Their magical energy, known as [Black Magic], often awakens unique magical abilities.

This is why many demons possess special powers, and the same applies to Marie.

With proper training, she has the potential to become a formidable force.

“I’ll explain the details another time. For now, we’ll start by taking down the monsters around here.”

“If it’s Master’s command, I’ll obey, but how should I…?”

“No problem. I’ll drill the basics of magic into you myself.”

“S-So, you’ll teach me… hand in hand, step by step?”

“? Yeah, something like that.”

“Understood! I’ll do my best!”

For some reason, Marie suddenly brimmed with enthusiasm.

Well, if she’s motivated, that’s convenient for me.

And so, I began teaching Marie how to use magic, having her fight monsters alongside me.

—A few hours later.

“Haa, haa… Fireball!”

Though the monster hunt had only just begun, Marie already looked exhausted.

That said, her growth was impressive for someone using magic for the first time.

My prediction about her talent was spot-on.

I decided to give her a break, and she turned her weary eyes toward me.

“I-I’m so sorry. To think I’d show such a pathetic state despite being taught by Master himself…”

“Don’t worry about it. You’re progressing well so far.”

“…But why go to such lengths to train me? If you need capable subordinates, you already have the knight order. I can’t imagine my efforts would be of any use…”

Hmph. It seems Marie doesn’t understand why I’m training her.

Well, it’s not like she’d guess I want her to hone her skills to use in assassination attempts against me.

But if she loses confidence, that’s a problem.

A final boss being taken out by an assassin in the last scene would be utterly anticlimactic.

To prevent that, Marie needs to become a worthy training partner for me.

“What are you talking about, Marie?”

“Huh?”

I looked her straight in the eyes and declared,

“I need you to stay by my side (to train my assassination countermeasures) forever. To do that, you’ll have to master (assassination) magic properly.”

“Fweh!? Th-That means…!”

For some reason, Marie’s face turned bright red, and she looked down.

What’s with her?

(Wait… That’s it!)

I was briefly puzzled, but my genius intellect quickly deduced the truth.

Marie’s goal is to assassinate me, yet I just told her she’d stay by my side forever.

To her, that’s tantamount to saying, “Your skills will never be enough to kill me.”

That must have made her so angry that her face flushed with heat.

But this is a good outcome.

The angrier she is, the more effort she’ll put into her training.

The proof—

“I-I understand! I may be unworthy, but… this Marie will pour her heart and soul into becoming someone fit to stand by Master’s side!”

—Her eyes blazed with determination, radiating such intensity it almost overwhelmed me.

It was honestly a bit intimidating.

“W-Well, as long as you get it. Let’s end the break and move on.”

“Yes!”

We resumed the monster hunt. Since Marie was clearly fatigued, I took the lead for the most part.

Meanwhile, behind me…

“T-To think Master would desire me so passionately… No, I know the truth. Our statuses and everything else are worlds apart—this feeling will likely never come to fruition. He must mean my role as a maid… Even so, since he’s asked this of me, I’ll give my all to fulfill it! I’ll serve by Master’s side forever, protecting him from any scoundrel! And if possible…”

…Marie was muttering something under her breath, but it was too quiet for me to hear.

◇◆◇

For the next month, Marie and I continued hunting monsters.

During that time, we encountered various events—

One day, after defeating a Melting Pork, known for its exquisite marbled meat, we ran into some vacationing knights.

(Oh, perfect!)

A brilliant idea struck me, and I called out to them.

“You lot, take this monster back to town.”

“Y-Yes, sir! But what should we do with it afterward…?”

“It’s a rare opportunity. Share it among the knights and eat well. We took down several, so there’s enough for everyone to stuff themselves.”

“! Understood, sir!”

Watching the knights happily carry the Melting Pork back, I smirked to myself.

They’re not training or fighting right now. Eating such high-calorie food will make them balloon up, weakening their combat ability.

This would set the stage for ordering them on an impossible mission in a month.

I couldn’t help but shudder at my own perfect plan.

On another day, after defeating a giant bear monster on a highway, a merchant’s carriage appeared from deeper in the woods.

Apparently, I’d inadvertently saved a merchant under attack.

“Oh, if it isn’t Lord-sama! Thank you so much for saving me!”

To make matters worse, the merchant thanked me.

Fearing I’d be labeled a do-gooder, I decided to demand compensation.

Merchants value money above all else, right?

“What are you talking about? I expect proper payment for this.”

“O-Of course! You’re my savior, after all!”

“How much do you usually pay for an escort?”

“Well, about this much…”

“Then I’ll take ten times that.”

“What!?”

The merchant grimaced, clearly reluctant, but realizing he couldn’t defy me, he gritted his teeth and handed over the money.

I nodded in satisfaction.

“Good. That’s enough for payment. Oh, and deal with this monster’s corpse yourself (it’s too much hassle for me).”

“!? You mean this Silky Bear!?”

“? Yeah (that’s its name, huh?).”

“U-Understood! If that’s Lord-sama’s will, absolutely!”

For some reason, the merchant’s reluctant expression shifted to one of surprise before he loaded the monster onto his carriage and left.

Satisfied with avoiding hero points and gaining some extra cash, I deepened my smile.

On yet another day, Marie and I decided to mix things up and headed to a lake a bit farther from the territorial capital.

I figured unleashing a full-power lightning spell on the lake could net me a ton of experience points at once.

“Hm? What’s that?”

To my surprise, an unexpected sight greeted me.

About thirty villagers, likely from a nearby settlement, were gathered by the lake.

They knelt on the ground, hands clasped as if in prayer.

Before them were several metal objects.

It looked like some sort of ritual.

Perhaps this lake was sacred to them.

—Not that I’d let that stop me.

“«Earth-Shattering Thunder»!”

As I chanted, a massive bolt of lightning struck from the sky, electrifying the entire lake.

Immediately, the monsters within floated to the surface, belly-up.

Nice, nice—this netted me a good chunk of experience points.

“What just happened!?”

“Lightning from the sky!”

“Did the Master get angry!? Please, forgive us…”

The villagers were thrown into confusion by the sudden event.

Some of them noticed me.

“Hey, there’s someone over there… Wait, is that Lord-sama!?”

“Look at the lake! That giant corpse floating up—it’s the Master…”

“The Master’s dead!? W-Wait, please! At least let us thank—”

They seemed to want to complain, but I had no reason to stick around.

Satisfied with my experience gains, I headed back to the territorial capital.

On the way back, I glanced at Marie.

She’d been by my side during all these misdeeds, but surprisingly, she never questioned my actions.

Curious about this, I decided to ask her directly.

“Marie, don’t you ever want to ask what I’m doing?”

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious… but I understand that everything Master does has a purpose. So, there’s no need for me to ask.”

“I… see.”

Her words carried an odd aura that almost overwhelmed me, but since she wasn’t complaining, I decided not to dwell on it.

With that, the month passed quickly as we repeated these events.

◇◆◇

One month after I ordered the Renford Knight Order to take a “mandatory vacation with a complete ban on training and combat,” I returned to the territorial capital in high spirits, having been away on business.

“Finally, the knight order’s vacation period ended yesterday. Now I can order them on an impossible mission, make them fail, and spread my infamy! How could I not be thrilled!? A-hahaha!”

Laughing triumphantly, I entered the town, only to notice an unusual commotion coming from the center.

It was far livelier than usual.

An uneasy feeling crept over me as I stepped inside.

And then, at that moment—

“““Uooooh! Lord-sama has returned!”””

—For some reason, the entire knight order, gathered in force, erupted in cheers upon seeing me.

(What!? What’s going on!?)

Bewildered by the sudden reception, I saw Laura, the knight commander, approach me.

“We’ve been awaiting your return, Lord-sama! Thanks to your orders, we successfully captured a Demon King’s army executive!”

“…Huh? A Demon King’s army executive?”

“Yes! This Laura is utterly in awe of you after this incident! Not only did you predict the executive’s attack, but you deduced their abilities from scant information and devised countermeasures. Truly splendid!”

I had no idea what Laura was talking about.

Apparently, while I was away, a Demon King’s army executive attacked, and they managed to capture them.

…Seriously, what’s going on!?

As I stood speechless at the unexpected turn of events, the knights I’d given the Melting Pork to stepped forward.

“Lord-sama, thank you so much! Thanks to the Melting Pork you provided, we stored enough energy to optimize our weight and neutralize the enemy’s magic!”

What kind of magic gets neutralized by a diet!?

This made no sense. Is this a prank? It’s a prank, right!?

The overwhelming flood of information made me dizzy.

Then, the merchant I’d extorted money from appeared next.

“Thanks to Lord-sama’s extraordinary consideration, I’m deeply grateful!”

“…What are you talking about?”

“Of course, I mean the Silky Bear you graciously gave me at a bargain! Its fur makes clothing with a silk-like texture, and since it’s rare and powerful, it hardly ever reaches the market. It’s the talk of the royal capital! Thanks to you, I made a hefty profit selling it. As thanks, I’d like to give you half the earnings and hope for more good deals in the future!”

The merchant handed me a sack of gold coins.

…Hold on, this is getting so ridiculous it’s not even about the Demon King’s army executive anymore!?

What is this situation!?

There can’t be more, right…?

But as I thought that, the men from the lake ritual appeared next.

Here it comes, right?

They’re here to condemn me for interrupting their ritual, aren’t they!?

Please, let that be it!

But reality was cruel.

“Lord-sama, thank you for protecting our treasures!”

“…Cough (sound of coughing up blood)”

“The Lake Serpent in that lake understood human speech and loved metal above all else—a supremely powerful monster. In exchange for not destroying our village, we had to offer valuable metals regularly. But thanks to Lord-sama’s magic, the Master is dead, and all our treasures at the lake’s bottom have been returned! Please, accept this as thanks!”

The villagers handed me a collection of expensive-looking metals.

I took them unconsciously, still standing there in a daze.

…What is happening?

…Why did it turn out like this?

All I wanted was to do something people would hate, so why am I suffering like this!?

Shaking my head vigorously, I tried to regain my composure.

(No, calm down. I’m tempted to burn the whole town to ashes in my despair, but this has to be the end! I didn’t interact with anyone else this month! This should be the last of the gratitude—)

Just as I tried to shift my thoughts, it happened.

“Excuse me, you must be Viscount Renford.”

A bespectacled man I’d never seen before appeared out of nowhere.

Who the heck is this guy?

Noticing my confusion, he continued.

“My apologies. I’m Sardis, a civil servant from the royal capital. I’ve come on behalf of His Majesty and Marquis Wyndham to report on that matter.”

“…Huh?”

The king and Marquis Wyndham? Why are their names coming up now?

And what’s “that matter”?

This is bad. I have a terrible feeling about this.

I need to get out of here, fast!

But before I could act, Sardis delivered the crushing blow.

“I was astonished. Not only did you succeed in that matter, but you also achieved the feat of capturing a Demon King’s army executive. Marquis Wyndham’s prediction that you’re a ‘great strategist’ was spot-on. I’ve already reported this incident to His Majesty via transmission magic… Oh, perfect timing—a reply has arrived.”

As cold sweat poured down my face, a blue bird perched on Sardis’s hand and spoke.

‘You captured a Demon King’s army executive!? What a tremendous achievement! Including that matter, I wish to grant Viscount Renford great rewards. Tell him to come to the royal castle soon—absolutely! I say again, absolutely! This concerns the honor of the royal family!’

The king’s voice, unusually excited for an absolute monarch, echoed loudly.

And the worst part? It wasn’t just me and Sardis who heard it—

“““Uooooh! Lord-sama has been recognized by His Majesty! He’s to be rewarded!”””

—Learning that their lord had been praised, the entire town erupted in joyous cheers.

In my heart, I could only curse.

Damn it, damn it, damn it!

All I wanted was to spread infamy!

Why did it turn out like this!?