episode_0033

000

Expensive liquor was splattered over Eustace’s head.

His hair, shoulders, and the clothes he was wearing were soaked in the red color of the wine.

A humiliating act for the son of a marquis.

But if it was his own father who did it, Eustace had to lower his head and accept the condemnation.

“You stupid bastard! You idiot!”

The man sitting in his chair, rebuking his son before him.

Hughes Woodnocker.

As Talcheck had said before, his physique was spread wide.

His face was so ugly that it was questionable whether he was truly related to Eustace by blood.

Protruding lips, a blunt nose, and droopy eyes.

Most of his hair was gone, revealing a bald head, thanks to which the back of his head was exposed.

His body was so large that he was occupying a two-person sofa all by himself.

Even that seemed to be unable to withstand the weight, and the legs were bent.

For him to be yelling at his son, whom he was usually displeased with, was nothing more than a reprimand for returning after losing `Rubella`.

“Do you even know what kind of existence Rubella is to this family? She alone is worth more than hiring dozens of skilled mercenaries!”

A slave and servant he had taken in during childhood and raised to use as his sword.

It was a mistake to assign her as a guard to protect his son, who was still too lacking to inherit the family.

“B, but Father. It’s wrong that she didn’t let go of her sword….”

“Eustace! Please. She’s a magic swordsman! Having her sword taken away is no different than having her soul taken away!”

When he reached out his short arms and grabbed his collar, Eustace had no choice but to break out in a cold sweat to avoid grimacing at the smell of alcohol and stench emanating from his father.

“F, Father. But…. Didn’t I return safely like this! It’s all thanks to Rubella’s sacrifice!”

Seeing his son putting on a brazen act with a dry smile, the marquis felt like he was about to explode with anger.

“Don’t talk nonsense! Right now, you are worth less than `Rubella`, as well as the accompanying adventurer trash!”

Eventually, Hughes slapped his son.

Eustace collapsed to the side from the shock, rubbing his tingling face.

“…Keuk….”

Eustace clenched his fist at his father’s behavior of caring more about a single servant than himself.

Of course, he knew that he only saw people as numbers.

However, when he was reminded after a long time that the attitude was maintained even toward family.

Eustace felt nauseous.

“…Hoo…. Okay. It can’t be helped. If that girl is dead…. I have no choice but to find a replacement….”

Eustace was silent for a moment at those words, then suddenly recalled what happened during the day.

The black-haired female swordsman who fought on equal terms with the boss bear.

“A, Father! I know a good adventurer.”

“…What?”

Eustace said that and talked about the female adventurer who had swordsmanship skills equal to Rubella, or perhaps even better.

“Black hair and black eyes. Certainly?”

“Yes! She was the same as Rubella.”

“…A runaway slave from the Black Horse clan? If she was a woman, it wouldn’t have been so easy to escape….”

Hughes rubbed his chin for a moment, organizing his thoughts.

Then, looking at Eustace, he said,

“Then you go find that woman. I’ll judge her myself after seeing her.”

“A, I understand!”

Eustace said that and got up and left his father’s room.

Hughes looked at his retreating figure with a displeased expression, then looked at the letter placed on the desk.

“I was in a good mood until I received this letter…. Tsk tsk….”

The emblem engraved on the white envelope was that of the `Sanctuary of the Saint’s Blessing`.

001

Eustace, who had received his father’s wine shower, first cleaned himself up and came out to the city.

It was already night because the sun had set, but he had to find that female adventurer as soon as possible.

The superhuman strength coming from her frail body.

Confident eyes and haughty attitude.

Eustace felt his heart pounding violently every time he thought of that woman’s appearance.

“…She doesn’t look that different from Rubella.”

He smiled involuntarily, thinking about his future with her.

If he’s looking for an adventurer, it’s probably the guild.

If he asks the staff, they’ll tell him who it is.

Thinking that, he entered an alley to take a shortcut-.

Step. Step.

With a slow, staggering gait.

Someone was walking out of the darkness.

Her clothes were torn here and there.

There were no injuries on her body, but healing magic cannot recover physical strength such as `stamina`.

Rubella, on the verge of exhaustion, made eye contact with her master as she was.

“…Young master.”

“Ru, Rubella… You were alive?!”

Eustace was quite taken aback to meet such a Rubella.

He frowned when he saw Rubella’s appearance.

“It feels like you barely escaped. Hah. What kind of magic swordsman is that…. Is that sword so important that you were dragged away like that?”

“…I’m sorry.”

Even if I talk about what happened below, nothing will change.

Rubella thought that it was best to just cater to Eustace’s tastes here.

“I have something to report to Marquis Hughes. I’ll tell you the details later….”

As Rubella tried to pass by Eustace, Eustace grabbed Rubella’s arm.

“Wait! Wait, wait! Are you going to go to Father in that state? Father won’t forgive you!”

Eustace stops such Rubella while looking at her.

It would be a lie to say that he has no affection for her, as she has been his assistant for a long time.

For Eustace, he didn’t want to let his father know that she was alive right now.

If she’s alive, there’s no need to bring in an adventurer to replace her.

“I’m prepared to receive punishment…. It’s my fault for not protecting you, young master.”

“No… that…”

Eustace pondered for a moment, then changed his expression as if he had a brilliant idea.

“No! I’m disappointed in you. Father said so too.”

“… …”

Eustace raised the corners of his lips as he looked at Rubella, who was bowing her head.

That’s right, no matter how skilled she is in swordsmanship and is a rare class magic swordsman, she is still a servant after all.

She has no choice but to obey her master’s words.

“Therefore… Magic swordsman Rubella. I banish you from the Woodnocker family!”

Eustace declares as he holds up the ring on his hand.

That ring is proof of the next head of the family and is also a magic tool that governs various oaths made within the family.

The imprint of the master-servant contract she had with her was activated.

The mark of the banished was engraved on the back of Rubella’s hand.

“…Huh…? W, wait…. Please wait. Young master…!”

Rubella was noticeably embarrassed.

She clung to Eustace’s pants as if she couldn’t believe the mark of the banished engraved on the back of her hand.

“Let go! From the beginning…. You’re the one who’s weird! Your sword is more important than your master!”

“T, that is…. I, I will gladly accept any punishment. Just not banishment from the family…!”

“That banishment is your punishment! Don’t bother me anymore and get lost!”

Eustace said that and raised his ring.

Then, a spark flowed through the banished Rubella’s hand, separating her from Eustace.

A device to prevent the banished from harboring resentment and harming the master.

Rubella could only look at Eustace and cry out without being able to reach out her hand.

“I haven’t received what I was promised from Hughes yet…! Just a little more, just a little more and it would have been…!”

Hearing Rubella’s words, Eustace raised the corners of his lips as if he had completely lost affection for her.

“Haha… I see. So, you were promised a huge reward from Father…? That’s right. There’s no way you’d have any loyalty.”

“No! What I’m saying is not that…!”

“Shut up! I don’t want to hear any more! Banished Rubella! I forbid you from opening your mouth in front of me!”

With a crack! A line was added to the mark engraved on the hand of the banished.

Such an unreasonable contract.

It was a contract of subordination in which any rights were recognized for the one who banished against the one who was banished.

“… …!”

Rubella was unable to open her mouth and make a sound.

“Banished Rubella! I forbid you from looking at the people of the Woodnocker family!”

Once again, a line is added to the mark.

Rubella’s head then forcibly turns, preventing her from looking at Eustace.

“Banished Rubella! I forbid you from approaching the Woodnocker family’s mansion, and I forbid you from approaching members of the family!”

Eustace leaves.

And Rubella was just left there alone.

She had no choice but to reach out her hand toward the young master she couldn’t even see.

002

Rubella was able to move only after Eustace’s presence had completely disappeared from the surroundings.

When she slowly tried to get up, the strength in her body and the mental shock combined, leaving her unable to properly support herself.

When she slowly raised her head, raindrops falling from the dark sky wet her cheeks.

13 years. She had grown up in that mansion, enduring all kinds of humiliation.

From the day her childhood happiness was burned away along with her hometown.

She had lived until now, searching for only one clue.

Tears did not flow.

She was just so angry.

How many times does God have to turn her life upside down to be satisfied?

Unbearable despair comes to her.

“It’s because I’m so stupid…!”

She covered her face with both hands and sobbed like a child.

Instead of dry tears, the sound that burst out echoed through the back alley.

[….Vera…. Ru….lla….]

At that time, she heard a voice calling her.

When Rubella turned her head toward the place where the sound was coming from.

There, her magic sword was vibrating slightly.

“…Balisada…?”

Rubella quietly called out the name of her sword and reached out her hand.

And the moment she grabbed the sheath and the hilt of the sword at the same time and tried to draw it.

“Rubella.”

She hurriedly turned her head at the voice calling her.

There…. stood a young man with the same black hair and black eyes as herself.

A beautiful sword hanging at his waist.

“…Black Horse clan…”

Rubella stared blankly at him for a moment, then realized that the voice calling her name had stopped at some point and raised her sword to her waist.

“…You’re the one from daytime. You became a woman and then a man. Which one is the real you?”

Rubella quietly showed hostility.

“So you noticed.”

“That we’re of the same race. But I didn’t think you were a magic swordsman. You weren’t armed during the day.”

“Ah. I didn’t want you to see it, so I hid my sword and ran out.”

To be exact, I had entrusted it to Iona for a while.

“What is your purpose? Are you in league with Iona Chevalier?”

“Well…. You can think of it that way.”

“Then…. Did you come to kill me?”

Rubella lowered her stance and grabbed her sword.

She was filled with the will to slash him with a quick draw if he came even a little closer.

“I don’t intend to do that. I just…. I just couldn’t leave you alone.”

“Ah…. So you were watching me. Peeking is not a very good hobby.”

“…Anyone would be concerned if you’re crying so sadly.”

Cleon scratched his head.

Did she notice that Cleon had no hostility?

Rubella quietly took her hand off her sword and stood up straight.

She looked at Cleon with a neat posture, as if her previous pathetic state had disappeared.

“… …”

“… …”

Silence flows.

As for Cleon, he had no intention of revealing himself while monitoring.

But…. That scene just now was so similar to someone he knew that he couldn’t stand still.

So…. He decided to talk through the opportunity he had obtained.

“You, are you from Dragon’s Valley?”

When Cleon asked that, Rubella also opened her eyes wide and nodded.

“If you know the existence of that village…. Could it be that you are too?”

“…Yes. But I’m surprised. I never thought there would be survivors besides me.”

At Cleon’s words, Rubella quietly closed her eyes and answered.

“I’m different from you. I…. We. That day. The day a golden light fell on the village and everything burned and ended.”

And quietly, her expression twisted.

With her eyes closed, as if shaking off a past she didn’t want to remember.

“A few children of the clan, including me, were dragged away by a merchant who escaped through a dimensional door.”

“… …”

Cleon quietly listened to the story.

“Most of them became sex slaves. They’re probably still being abused and exploited somewhere.”

Rubella’s fist was clenched tightly.

It was caused by anger and hatred.

“But I…. I was one of the luckier ones among them. That’s because the protection spell I received from my mother just before being caught by the invaders remained.”

The memory of that day inevitably comes to mind.

The spell her mother used to protect her body.

And her mother’s death.

Humans leave behind the most powerful magic power just before they die.

That magic power was combined with the protection spell engraved on Rubella’s body and remained on her as a formula that no one could undo, imprinted on her.

“The effect was simple. Not being `violated` by those including the invaders.”

“That is, protecting my virginity, and if someone tried to do something obscene to me, a powerful barrier would be deployed and deflect everything.”

“Haha. The first person to be hit flew backwards and hit his head on the corner, and it was so funny.”

Cleon imagined the adults trying to pour dirty desires on the young Rubella and felt disgusted.

“Thanks to that, I wasn’t sold as a sex slave and was taken in by the marquis family and raised as a combat operative and servant.”

Rubella looked at Cleon as if asking if he understood now.

“Marquis Hughes told me. If I wield my sword to protect his son and himself until the year I turn 20…. He would tell me about the merchant who betrayed the clan that day.”

Cleon’s eyes widened at her words.

Could it be that she had been following the marquis until now, sincerely believing those words?

Rubella also ridiculed herself as if she understood the truth of that expression.

“Yes. I know what you’re thinking. But there is someone I want to take revenge on, even if I have to do that.”

“…What if the target of your revenge is no longer in this world?”

“….That’s right. At that time…. There’s no reason to live anymore.”

Rubella looked down at her magic sword for a moment.

Cleon was silent for a moment, then opened his mouth again.

“What are you going to do now?”

“It’s the same question. The Woodnocker family, which was my only hope, has banished me, and I can’t go back there according to the oath.”

What else is possible for someone like me.

“Maybe, I’ll just wander around like this until I turn 20 and my mother’s protection disappears. It might not be bad to entrust myself to a brothel where other children are.”

“Stop saying such…. stupid things.”

It was Cleon’s true feelings.

“Stupid? What is it?”

“…Everything. Depending on Marquis Hughes. Taking your own life.”

“… …”

Rubella looks at Cleon.

And she looks at the magic sword hanging at his waist.

Galatea was emitting a faint light as if it was pulsating.

It seemed that she didn’t like the her in front of her.

“Your magic sword has already awakened its ego. How many people have you hurt in the process?”

“… …”

“And yet…. That way of worrying about others. If I didn’t know much about magic swordsmen, I might have followed you obediently.”

Cleon turns his gaze and lowers his head.

Her words are true.

He used schemes for revenge, and Kuon was hurt in the process.

As a result, he even deceived Sasha.

But even so….

Cleon, who was not good at talking, could not say anything to her.

Just.

`I don’t want the fellow clansman I met with so much difficulty to die.`

`A new goal can arise for you too.`

No matter how much he uttered such platitudes, it would not resonate with her heart.

“…A really troubled face. Hehe. It’s nice to see.”

Rubella covered her mouth and laughed as she looked at Cleon’s face.

Then, she looked down at her magic sword for a moment and looked at Cleon.

“I also need power.”

“…Power?”

Rubella nodded.

“Power to control a magic sword freely like you, and to dominate others.”

“…Are you going to use that power to strike Hughes?”

Then Rubella only raised the corners of her lips and did not answer.

No, that act itself was already the answer.

Cleon thinks.

If she, who knows the marquis family well, has the same purpose as them, it will definitely be of great help later on.

But….

That path is the same path he walked, hurting others over and over again.

“… …”

“What are you worried about?”

After a while, Cleon laughed `ha.` .

What was he worried about?

He laughed at his own selfishness.

He had finished his revenge and was worried about others walking that path.

Since when did he become such a virtuous person?

Cleon shook his head and held out his hand.

“…I’ll join you. Me too.”

“… …”

“When you think about it, the information about that merchant is something that can repay the resentment of the entire clan. There’s no reason for me not to help.”

“…Is that so. Then.”

Rubella grabbed Cleon’s outstretched hand.

And just before they were about to shake hands, her body fell forward.

“Hey, hey!”

Cleon caught such Rubella from the front and clicked his tongue and moved her to a place where he could leave her with peace of mind.