episode_0072

Belita of the Red Hand.

Despite her ominous name and singular ability, her abilities were simple.

I can just manipulate that one red hand freely.

The problem is that the strength of that one hand is enormous. To put it simply, that one hand could easily win a tug-of-war with dozens of adult men.

The future her gave that hand a very heavy greatsword. As a bonus, she was skilled in various weapons such as swords, spears, and shields.

That’s why she was also called Weapon Master Belita.

Also called Belita of the Giants. The fact that she has many nicknames in this game means that she is a strong and famous NPC.

‘I didn’t know I’d meet him here.’

Now that I think about it, I vaguely remember the guy’s background. He was clearly said to have been a slave of a noble before the rebellion. It seemed like that must have been here.

‘What should I do···.’

That made me ponder for a moment. Aside from the fact that she was an important person, it would be inconvenient to rescue the children if she interfered now.

That’s why I had no choice but to take somewhat extreme measures.

‘Let’s knock him out.’

If that red hand were to run wild and touch the kids, it would be a disaster. After making up my mind, I quickly moved and swung my blade at the guy’s neck.

“Cough···!”

A cough escaped Belita’s mouth and she lost consciousness. The children nearby flinched when they saw this.

Meanwhile, Adele looked at me with contemptuous eyes…

“There is no mercy even towards children.”

“What are you talking about? Then just let it run wild?”

People who first develop their abilities are more likely to have accidents, because they themselves do not have the ability to control their abilities.

Anyway, the rest was a bit easier.

Since there were only kids in the first place, catching them was only slightly more difficult than twisting a child’s wrist.

After about 5 minutes, I was able to rescue all the children.

“Eup···!”

“Eup, eup···!!!”

There was a side effect where the resistance was so strong that they had to tie their mouths and bodies, and there were some who wet their pants from time to time because they were so scared… Anyway, they were fine. Anyway.

“Wow··· It’s finally over.”

“······ Is this the rescue?”

“By the way, what should I do now?”

After finishing that work, I fell into thought for a moment.

Capturing the lord and releasing the children didn’t solve everything. Now, the annoying aftermath remained.

Although he was a tyrant, the estate lost its lord and its children lost a place to sleep.

Originally, the plan was to send the children to an orphanage or to their respective parents’ homes, but the plans got a bit tangled.

‘It’s a bit of a waste to leave it like this.’

That’s because they have talent. Belita seemed to have affection for these children. So it’s hard for me to decide how to treat them.

Moreover, she is a woman who later grows up to be a leader of the rebel army. It is true that the rotten empire must be uprooted, but that does not mean that it should be completely destroyed.

That means the Demon King’s seal will be released.

Because of that, I was troubled. What should I do… How can I raise her properly while protecting her…

‘ah!’

As I was thinking about that, something popped into my head. Yes, there he was.

*

Having decided on a plan, I proceeded to handle the situation as I had decided. First, I entrusted the lord’s head to the saint and the magician.

By now he would have stood in the city square, held the lord’s neck up, and started a speech about how he had been brainwashed.

The scene where the saintess raises her head is a bit unbalanced, but… Anyway, this should be enough to avoid the First Prince’s eyes for the time being.

Next is the management of the estate. The management of the estate was left to the butler, Evil.

“Me, you mean me?”

“That’s right. Since he was by the lord’s side anyway, he must have seen some of the estate’s finances. He’s someone who’s been living in luxury anyway, so he should be better than that guy.”

Adele stepped forward for this negotiation. It seemed clear that things would get messy if I stepped in.

“I··· don’t know. I wonder if I can do it well.”

“Why?”

“I am a person who just watched as children suffered. Can someone like me accomplish something this big···?”

It seems that he felt quite guilty for just watching the children. Even though he couldn’t help it as a butler, he might think it was wrong as a human being.

But from my perspective, in this world, that level of humanity was nothing short of brilliant.

“Shouldn’t we try harder for that reason?”

“Yes?”

“If you feel guilty, manage the city well. Make sure people don’t sell their children anymore so they can live there.”

It’s a good thing Biklon doesn’t have a family, so he can easily pass the work on to his butler.

Of course, since the butler is not a nobleman, he may step down from his position someday… but for the time being, he will take responsibility for the work.

After taking care of the city finances, I immediately found a house. It was a bit out of town, but it was like an inn with a yard and many rooms. After all, the house was cheap.

The reason I bought a house was, of course, to raise my children.

Now that I think about it, I suddenly remember what the kids said as they ran away.

‘Come to think of it, you called me an educator…’

Of course, looking at the children’s reactions and the environment, it is clear that ‘educator’ does not have a good meaning.

But who cares? If the kids want it, I’ll be happy to do it.

I plan to educate you very thoroughly.

bang!

So I put the kids in the house.

The children looked anxious as they were transferred from the stuffy, damp prison cell to the warm, soft room.

You really are afraid of unfamiliar places.

“Hello, kids. As you said, I am an educator.”

“Ugh!”

“Hee, eek!”

“From today, you will receive my thorough education. I intend to change your mind from the root. So please follow along diligently.”

“Ugh, no, please save me···.”

“I won’t whine again, okay···?”

The frightened children gradually begin to shed tears.

That’s how my day in the new house began.

*

first night.

“I hate dirty things. The one I will entrust you to even more so. So if you don’t want to see a bad sight, always keep your body clean.”

Dirt is the breeding ground for disease.

As soon as Luke brought the kids home, he threw them straight into the bathtub. The kids were shivering with fear, but they quickly started bathing in the warm water they had been enjoying for the first time in a long time.

Luke thought about giving those who couldn’t wash properly a ‘punishment’ of having them wash themselves, but fortunately, the children washed each other, so no such mishaps occurred.

As soon as the kids finished showering, Luke started ripping off their clothes.

Snap! Snap!

“What are these rag-like clothes? You’ve been living like this for a long time. Do you think it’s allowed to walk around in this house wearing clothes like these?”

The children are terrified.

Luke gave the kids new clothes anyway.

It was a commoner’s clothing with no special features.

They won’t be that expensive or fancy, but they’ll be hundreds of times better than your last outfit.

“···Huh?”

“Why is this···.”

The children, who had become even fluffier, tilted their heads with puzzled expressions.

“If you want to live in this house from now on, you will have to wash and take care of yourself every day. The person who will be in charge of you likes cleanliness.”

The children nodded their heads bewilderedly at his firm words.

Luke smiled happily at that and said one more thing.

“Let’s go. It’s time to eat dinner.”

If you eat something too spicy on the first day, you might get diarrhea at night. For dinner that day, I replaced it with light oatmeal and bread.

Second day.

“These guys···!!”

As soon as he woke up, Luke couldn’t control his anger at what he saw.

The little guys were eating on the floor since morning!

Perhaps because he still had the beggarly mentality of a slave, he put his rice bowl on the floor and ate rice with his hands.

Of course, from the kids’ perspective, they ate on the floor like usual so as not to look bad to their new owner(?), but that was the worst possible thing.

As soon as he noticed the sight, Luke kicked the food bowl the kids were eating from!

Kujangchang!

“Who told you to eat from the floor! What do you think I am?!”

“Gyaaak!”

“I’m sorry! I knew it would be like this··· I won’t even use the dishes next time!”

“These guys···! Tch, this is not going to work. They need some proper education!”

Luke said that and arranged the food on the table.

A variety of foods are arranged in order on a plate.

It was shabby compared to the meals eaten by the nobles, but it was a feast for the children.

“Look! A meal is like this! Eating on the table!!”

The children stare blankly at him.

“Next time, try eating on the floor and get caught. It’ll be a really bad experience.”

The children nodded hurriedly at the mention of a bad experience. However, they couldn’t help but feel uneasy somewhere in their hearts.

what?

It was obviously scary and uncomfortable, but strangely, my body felt very comfortable. The educator’s antics did not end there.

“You guys! Why are you sleeping on the floor when you have a blanket!”

The child who was trying to take a nap while lying on the floor was kicked out onto the bed.

“Don’t worry about what others think and just walk around confidently. If you’re too intimidated, it won’t be fun to admire.”

He even said something to the kids, saying that his walking was strange.

“Wouldn’t you get bored if you just stayed still? You’re probably similar in age, so why don’t you go play with each other?”

He even sent the children out into the front yard to tell them not to stay still.

It was still scary, but it was obvious that he was trying to free them.

Some people had already relaxed at his attitude and were chatting away with their friends.

The other cautious children, including Belita, were still suspicious of everything.

“Lies. It’s all a trick.”

“Maybe they’re trying to prey on the ones who open their hearts first?”

“I absolutely can’t believe it. I’m sure he’ll turn violent in no time···.”

You say that in words, though.

However, the children did not reject this comfort.

Because it had been a very long time since I had felt this comfortable.

They also secretly hoped that this peace would be genuine and true.

“It’s already time. Everyone, get ready. Don’t forget to clean your body before going to bed.”

“Yes, yes!”

That day too, the children slept in their warm blankets with anxious hearts.

So the third day.

“These guys! How long do you think you can live like this, eating only rice!!”

After breakfast, the kids thought it was time to come when Luke shouted.

“If you keep growing like this, you will become adults who can’t do anything. It’s a disease that eats away at the empire’s taxes, just like Biklon said.”

“If I keep growing up like this, I’ll either be a back alley criminal or a beggar. I’ll only end up being one of the two.”

Luke speaks, much like the non-clone once did. What follows is even more shocking than what came before.

“So, I will resume education starting today.”

“Hee, eek!”

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

It seemed like peace had ended sooner than expected.

The children were frightened and begged for help.

Just as Belita was about to take out her red hand and make a desperate resistance… he opened his mouth again.

“So decide what you want to do.”

“···?”

“Whether it’s learning academics, building your body, or learning a skill, learn anything. I’ll support you if you can. But don’t just sit around and eat like you are doing now. If you don’t know what to do, at least study.”

For a moment, the children’s faces became blank.

They couldn’t believe they had heard it correctly.

As Luke said, they were given a chance to learn.

In this day and age, ‘learning’ is a precious thing.

Because information is power, the upper class is only interested in hiding it.

That’s why children without connections or money never had a chance to learn anything in their lives.

Growing up like that, you have no choice but to prolong your life without development.

Perhaps his father and mother were like that too.

His grandfather and his grandfather’s grandfather would have been like that.

Therefore, the poor were poor from birth.

He was poor until he died, and he was poor after he died.

But I will give you a chance to break that chain of poverty.

Of course, there were no children who thought like this, but at least they knew that learning was precious and essential to children.

So the children said what they wanted to do one by one.

“I wish I had a lot of money. Then I could buy what I want.”

“I want to learn the skill. I want to know why the chains that bound my hands were so strong.”

“I study···.”

“I want to make something delicious!”

It’s still the same that children are afraid of Luke.

However, I couldn’t let this golden opportunity go to waste.

Belita looked at the scene silently.

Although that is unlikely to happen.

If it’s one in a thousand, one in ten thousand.

If he truly wants to support them and not just deceive them…

“Your hair is really red.”

After thinking for a moment, he stood in front of Belita.

“The hand I took out last time was also red. I looked at it and it seemed to be quite strong.”

Kneel down on one knee to get eye level.

“Tell me, what do you want to do?”

Red eyes that make it impossible to tell what they are thinking.

It may seem like he’s just greedy, but it also seems like he’s plotting something deep.

To be honest, I still had my doubts, but her desire was already moving.

“···I want to become stronger.”

The voice, which has become very shrunken, is filled with emotion.

“I want to become stronger than anyone else so that I never have what I have taken away again, so that I can take revenge on those who took what was mine.”

There was silence for a moment.

Their eyes met. Even though the man in front of her, Luke, must have been quite scary, Belita didn’t avoid eye contact at all.

Rather, the more you look at it, the more a firm determination appears in its eyes.

That took a long time.

Luke chuckled. Then he sat up and added one more word.

“As much as you want.”

*

The third night.

“Let’s see··· I’ve sown the seeds and I think I’ve fertilized them to some extent.”

Now I guess all I have to do is wait for it to grow and then harvest it.

I muttered like this as I came out into the yard alone at night when everyone was asleep.

Although it was delayed for a few days due to an unexpected person, it is a reasonable expense.

Well, that’s because we’ve saved so many future talents.

Thanks to this, it will be much easier to chase down the puppet master, but the Demon King’s seal will be suppressed even more.

In fact, rebels also arouse a lot of people’s emotions.

I would like to harvest the crop myself, but… it turns out that I simply cannot do it.

In the first place, you need to water it regularly, but I didn’t have time to do that.

‘But there is someone who can replace you.’

Someone who is desperate for my help and can use the harvest properly instead of me.

[Use your magic!]

I used my magic to take out one of the bugs.

A bug the size of my fist with three pairs of wings.

Slingshot wasp.

It was a bug named after its speed, like a slingshot. It was originally used for attack, but considering its characteristics, it could also be used for communication.

I wrote a letter, tied it to my stomach, and sent it flying into the sky.

The place he’s headed to is the palace.

In an age when speech was the only means of communication, someone like him could reach the palace in half a day.

She was surprised when she saw the letter.

I smiled as I thought of the third princess, Deila.