Ch.322322. Anyway, he was definitely a strange one.

“One!”

-Focus!

-Fooo-cus!

-Focus!!!

“Two!”

-Unity!

-Uuu-nity!

-Unity!!

The sun feels particularly scorching today.

I furrowed my brow as I looked at Jawill Wilson.

“Jawill Wilson.”

“Y-yes, ask me anything.”

“Will you stop slurring your words? Why do you keep doing that?”

“….I apologize.”

“Even Clara is training diligently without complaint. How is it that you’re struggling more?”

“….I’ll correct myself.”

I sighed briefly before speaking.

“Everyone stand up.”

At my command, Riden Solace and Clara rose in perfect unison, their bodies drenched in sweat.

Among them, only Jawill Wilson got up with a dying expression, squeezing out a groan.

“Ughh!”

“Are you taking a dump?”

“N-no, I’m not!”

“Feeling wronged?”

At my words, Jawill Wilson wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand and whimpered.

“It’s not so much that I feel wronged….”

“Not so much what?”

“Isn’t Riden Solace the mercenary guild leader?”

“That’s right.”

“And Clara is the Guardian Corps leader.”

“Yeah, so?”

“But I’m just the ‘vice-captain’ of the knights…. why am I….”

I pressed my fingers against my throbbing temple before speaking.

“Rain Breaker has been working so hard that I sent him on vacation, right?”

“Y-yes, that’s correct.”

“And that’s when the intruders attacked?”

“….Yes, that’s right.”

“So when intruders broke into the mansion, who was the person in charge of the knights?”

Jawill Wilson rolled his eyes around before pointing at himself.

“….It was me, wasn’t it?”

Tsk, have I been hitting him too much lately?

He seems to be losing his mind bit by bit.

I shook my head and continued.

“If you understand, let’s start again.”

“….Pardon?”

“Put on the blindfold.”

“Me first?”

“Would you prefer I send Clara and Riden Solace away and have just you wear the blindfold today?”

“….I’ll put it on right away.”

Jawill Wilson took several deep breaths before putting on the black cloth blindfold.

I immediately grabbed a wooden sword and swung it toward his head.

Whoosh-!

Whoosh-!

Whiiish-!

Whiiiiish-!

Whiiish-!

Thwack-!

“Argh!”

When he first put on the blindfold, he couldn’t dodge at all and just took the hits, but now he’s dodging quite decently.

I gripped the wooden sword more firmly and increased my speed.

Whish-!

Whiiiiish-!

Thwack-!

“Uuuugh-!!”

Jawill Wilson tore off his blindfold and rolled on the ground, clutching his head with both hands.

It seems I not only increased the speed but also the strength of my swing.

I cleared my throat awkwardly before speaking.

“Next.”

After training Riden Solace and Clara in the same way as Jawill Wilson, I raised my voice.

“Let me say this again. This time we’re just training, but if anyone else infiltrates the mansion, you’ll all be facing me in actual combat with real swords.”

Riden Solace silently wiped away his sweat, and Clara bit her lip tightly.

Meanwhile, Jawill Wilson was still rolling on the ground.

“I’ll see you all tomorrow. Jawill Wilson, follow me.”

As Riden Solace and Clara quickly disappeared from my sight, I narrowed my eyes at Jawill Wilson, who was trailing behind me.

“Jawill Wilson.”

“Y-yes, ask me anything.”

“Are Riden Solace and Clara properly training their guild and corps members in sensing energy?”

Training just the leaders and vice-captains wouldn’t make everyone stronger.

That’s why Jawill Wilson, Riden Solace, and Clara were passing down the training they received from me to their subordinates.

It was essentially a trickle-down torment.

Jawill Wilson bowed slightly as he spoke.

“Yes, I’ve been checking daily, exactly as you instructed, young master.”

“Tell me about everyone’s training progress.”

Jawill Wilson tensed up, veins bulging in his neck.

“First of all, our knights and the mercenary guild are adapting somewhat quickly to the training since we primarily use swords!!”

“What about the Guardian Corps?”

“….The Guardian Corps situation is a bit serious. Almost none of their members can properly dodge wooden swords while blindfolded yet.”

“That makes sense. Even though they’ve received sword training since coming to Lake Territory, there’s still a gap between them and the knights and mercenaries.”

Jawill Wilson glanced at me cautiously before speaking.

“Young master.”

“What?”

“I completely understand why you’re angry. It’s absolutely our fault—mine and the other members’—for letting the intruders escape.”

“Just get to the point.”

Jawill Wilson hesitated before continuing.

“….But do you know what expression you’ve been wearing while training us lately?”

“What expression?”

“You look like you’re about to kill someone. We definitely made a mistake, but even Riden Solace and Clara have mentioned how terrifying you’ve become.”

“Really?”

“We won’t ask you to reduce the intensity of the training, but could you perhaps adjust your expression…?”

I have been pushing the training intensely lately.

Honestly, I was disappointed.

I thought they could handle it even if Prince Leonis brought all his rebels to attack Lake Territory while I was away.

But that belief crumbled instantly.

And because of just three intruders.

So naturally, my anger rose as I conducted the training.

I looked at Jawill Wilson and smirked.

“Aren’t you scared?”

“Well, I’ve known you for a long time, so I already know your personality is terri—terribly wonderful, so I’m fine.”

I stared at Jawill Wilson.

In a way, he was truly remarkable.

I clearly trained him more harshly than Riden Solace and Clara, yet despite all the beatings, his mouth still worked.

He had a talent for choosing actions that would get him beaten to a pulp, just like Leonard.

He was definitely an unusual fellow.

Feeling that I’d hit him enough for today and that he might actually die if I continued, I crossed my arms heavily and nodded.

“Alright. Starting tomorrow, I’ll try to soften my expression a bit.”

“Th-thank you. I should go now to train the knights.”

“Good work.”

And then, for whatever reason, Jawill Wilson bounded away with a spring in his step.

Watching his retreating figure, I muttered under my breath.

“….He’s definitely not normal.”

*

“The mastermind was Prince Leonis, just as Lord Selden Alphonse predicted.”

It had been two weeks since Seri Familia began staying in the basement.

Sitting on the reception room sofa, her expression was overflowing with vitality.

“Is that so?”

“The leader of the intruders is named Reilly, he’s thirty-three years old, has no family, and Prince Leonis’s forces have been reduced from a thousand to approximately five hundred people due to the succession war.”

I had considered it a success just to identify the mastermind, but to even determine the number of rebels?

Is this what makes a professional different?

Hiding my surprise, I spoke.

“….It must have been difficult. Thank you for your hard work.”

“Not at all. It was truly fun after such a long time.”

Seri Familia curled her lips into a sinister smile, as if there was no longer any need to hide her true face.

I deliberately avoided her gaze as I continued.

“What information did you get from the other two?”

“I’ve only tortured Reilly so far.”

“….Pardon?”

“We’ve identified the mastermind, so the urgent matter is resolved, isn’t it?”

“Y-yes, I suppose so?”

“Reilly’s screams were so beautiful that the torture session took longer than expected. Now I should start with the others.”

Suddenly, I felt an inexplicable pity for the intruders.

Paying my respects to their thorny future, I raised my head.

“Since we’ve come this far, could I ask you to get more information before we hand the intruders over to the imperial family?”

“What information do you want?”

“Prince Leonis’s location and information about spies who have infiltrated the Western Continent’s imperial court.”

“Hmm, I’ll give it a try.”

“Though finding Prince Leonis’s location might be easier than getting information about the spies.”

“Why is that?”

“Spy information is usually critical and would only be known to Prince Leonis and a select few.”

At that, Seri Familia brushed her hair back with her fingers and smiled broadly.

“Nothing ventured, nothing gained, right? If they don’t know, all the better. It means I can continue the torture.”

“….You mustn’t kill them.”

“Don’t worry. I know exactly at what point a human life ends.”

“Haha…. you’re quite bold, aren’t you?”

At my question, Seri Familia raised one eyebrow.

“I don’t think we need pretenses between us anymore, do we?”

“Well, that’s true.”

“I don’t know how Lord Selden Alphonse found out about me, but it doesn’t matter. It gave me this wonderful opportunity.”

“Just remember your promise not to engage in meaningless killing.”

“Would I dare lie to Lord Selden Alphonse?”

Even though we were on the same side now, she was someone I’d rather not associate with.

The conversation was becoming increasingly uncomfortable.

“I understand. How much time should I give you?”

“The longer, the better. It means more time for torture. Just make sure to explain things well to my husband so he doesn’t worry.”

“….You seem to have grown quite close to my brother.”

“He may look manly on the outside, but he’s actually quite timid. If he saw my true self, he’d probably be afraid of me.”

“I’ll make sure to cover for you with my brother, so don’t worry about that.”

Seri Familia stood up.

Then, bowing at the waist, she opened her fist that had been tightly clenched throughout our meeting and placed it on the table.

Clack-! Clack-! Clack-!

Teeth spilled from her hand.

I looked up in shock, and Seri Familia smiled broadly as she spoke.

“These are Reilly’s teeth. A gift for you.”