Ch.736Friendly Sisters

“This place is surprisingly intact. Should I say it was blessed by fortune?”

[How fortunate indeed, at least you won’t have to put your subordinates up in inn rooms.]

Despite half the island being destroyed by Nidhogg’s rampage, the mansion of Epee de Ciel—the Heavenly Sword Division—stood completely unscathed, without even a single broken window.

Whether it was good luck, or perhaps because this had been Isabella’s mansion and the dragon had deliberately avoided damaging it, I couldn’t say. The whitewashed exterior walls were somewhat stained with ash and dust, but that was nothing the servants couldn’t clean up later.

“Thanks for driving the carriage. We’ll be staying here tonight, so you can return to Rose Hall, Minea.”

“Um… could I stay here too? You’ll need a driver tomorrow anyway…”

Minea asked hesitantly.

You want to rest here? At your level?

“Would that be appropriate?” I asked with a slight smile.

I understand how she feels. She probably doesn’t want to end her coachman duties after just one day and return to the main unit. Being my carriage driver is like being a division commander’s personal driver in modern terms—a comfortable, safe position that’s pure honey. Of course she wants to keep enjoying that sweetness.

But should the newest recruit be seeking only comfort already?

“Ah… I guess not, right?”

Of course not. Go train, spar, or take an assignment—do something productive instead of seeking comfort.

“I told you earlier, didn’t I? Train hard if you don’t want to die young. Think of it as losing a year of your life for every day you rest.”

“Yes…”

Looking somewhat dejected, Minea drove the carriage away at a sluggish pace.

I don’t understand why she became a guide if she dislikes dangerous or difficult work so much. It’s an extremely hazardous profession where you could lose your life or everything you own if you encounter weak or unscrupulous adventurers.

Compared to that, being a noble’s knight is so much safer.

Since we’re not part of the Imperial Knights, we won’t be dragged to various battlefields, and when hunting monsters, we move in groups of ten or more, so death is unlikely. Even when facing opponents too powerful for us, master-level knights step in to handle them.

Limiting it to sword-wielding professions, what could be more comfortable and safe than this?

—-

“I’m back.”

After sending Minea away, I threw open the main entrance and stepped inside.

“Welcome back, Lord Haschal.”

“You took longer than expected. Did Leopold give you trouble?”

Nigel and Leonore, who had been sparring in the garden, turned to greet me.

“It was more than just trouble… Where are the others?”

“Demian and Millia are resting inside. Jahan refuses to leave the training room, saying he needs to build more strength, and Ophelia has locked herself in the basement. Hush is looking after the drunken Perneisia with Lena.”

Despite the chaos outside, these people haven’t changed their habits at all.

“I’m going to see Ophelia first. Call Demian’s group and Jahan to the reception room. I have something to tell everyone.”

“What about Hush and Perneisia?”

“Hmm… yes, they should hear it too. Sober them up and bring them along.”

After asking Leonore to gather everyone, I headed straight down to the basement where Ophelia was lurking.

—-

‘This place is damp and gloomy no matter when I visit.’

The basement was dark and humid, reflecting Ophelia’s dark, moist, deep, and secretive nature. She must have remembered my advice about ventilation, as it no longer had the sickly sweet stench that used to permeate the place.

[What else would you expect from a sorcerer’s den? If she weren’t your friend, I would have killed her long ago.]

Hersella snorted with her typical violent rhetoric. Despite learning that her ancestor was a shaman of the steppes, her hatred for sorcery hadn’t improved much.

‘Aren’t we sorcerers too? It’s hypocritical to condemn sorcery while shooting fire from your hands…’

[What do you mean “we”? Don’t lump me in with you. You might use sorcery, but I’ve never touched it with even a fingertip.]

…Well, that’s true.

Whether she couldn’t or wouldn’t use it, Hersella never utilized the power of runes even when she had control of the body.

Of course, since Hersella and I shared one body, her stubbornness didn’t change the fact that in others’ eyes, Aishan-Gioro Haschal had long since become a magic knight who wielded magic stronger than high-level mages.

—-

“I’m here. Are you inside?”

After reaching Ophelia’s laboratory through the dark basement corridor, I lightly knocked on the firmly locked door to announce my arrival. Judging by the moans coming from inside, barging in would lead to quite an awkward situation.

Both Millia’s group and Ophelia seem to be treating my mansion like some luxury love hotel.

“Oh, Haschal? Ah, just a moment. I’ll open the door soon.”

Ophelia answered in a startled, urgent tone. She must have been so engrossed in her unproductive reproductive activities that she hadn’t noticed my arrival.

…They’re really going at it.

Such overflowing affection between sisters. Or should I say overflowing bodily fluids? How nice for them to have such a close relationship.

“Sister…? Please do more… it feels so good…”

Claire’s voice could also be heard. A thin, gasping voice drained of energy. Her tone was dreamy and hazy, as if half-lost in ecstasy.

The fact that she calls Ophelia “sister” suggests her infantile regression hasn’t been cured.

“Wait a little, Claire. I’ll continue later, but for now, let’s cover you with a blanket. Okay?”

“Mmm…”

Ophelia soothed Claire while rustling about. From the sound of fabric brushing, she seemed to be covering Claire with a blanket while looking for something to wear herself.

“Haah…”

It was an appalling sight as always, so I could only sigh helplessly and cleanse my brain with cigarette smoke.

—-

Eventually, the door swung open to reveal Ophelia wearing nothing but a robe over her naked body.

Her face was flushed red like a ripe persimmon, her breathing was rough, and her lips glistened with saliva.

Their activities must have been quite intense, as red marks and bite marks were visible on her skin through the gaps in her robe, and something was even dripping down between her thighs… let’s just stop there.

“Sorry to keep you waiting. I didn’t expect you to visit so suddenly. You can come in now.”

“…No, let’s talk out here.”

Why would I go in there?

Until thirty seconds ago, it was a place where a sister who had become an older sister was giving sinful pleasure to an older sister who had become a younger sister.

“If that’s what you prefer. So, what did you want to talk about?”

“I have one question and two things to tell you.”

“Is it a long conversation?”

Ophelia asked, pulling out a long mana herb from her robe pocket.

“Well, that depends on your answer. Let’s start with the question.”

I watched Ophelia light her mana herb with a snap of my fingers and asked the question that had been bothering me since hearing the detailed account of the Nidhogg incident from Leopold.

“I heard that after evading the dragon’s breath, you ran back to the mansion saying you had something to retrieve. What did you do after that? Don’t tell me you were just hiding?”

According to Leopold’s explanation, Ophelia never reappeared after returning to the mansion until Nidhogg finally fled.

While Lacy had withdrawn after sustaining serious injuries from blocking the dragon’s breath, Ophelia had still been perfectly capable of fighting. What was she doing that kept her completely out of sight?

It could only be seen as desertion or dereliction of duty.

“That’s a misunderstanding. I wasn’t hiding—I was busy working on my own. It was just something I couldn’t explain to others.”

Ophelia shook her head and smiled wryly.

“Explain it now.”

“I will. But first, let me ask you something. Half the island was destroyed, and the other half isn’t in great shape either… yet this mansion remains completely intact without a single scratch. Why do you think that is?”

Answering a question with another question is annoying.

But… since we’re on the same side, I’ll let it slide just this once.

“Divine luck? You’re not foolish enough to think that, are you?”

…That’s exactly what I thought.

[Congratulations, you’ve become a fool!]

Hersella chuckled mockingly. She hadn’t objected to my statement earlier, so I don’t know what she’s laughing about.

Anyway, from what Ophelia was saying, it seemed the mansion remained standing thanks to her.

“You were defending it?”

“Of course. It would be troublesome for both of us if this place collapsed, wouldn’t it? I made sure it wouldn’t be destroyed no matter what that dragon did.”

Ophelia proudly puffed out her chest and smiled.

So… during a national crisis, one of the empire’s elite forces, instead of actively engaging, was focused entirely on protecting my property.

I wasn’t sure whether to scold her or praise her. It was a difficult judgment to make.

If Ophelia had actively participated in subduing the dragon, the damage to the island might have been slightly reduced… but she wasn’t affiliated with the Magic Tower. As my personal mage, her primary duty was to protect my property and safety.

“…So you just sat in the mansion?”

“Not just that. No matter how thoroughly I protected it, if the dragon didn’t leave, the mansion would eventually collapse. So naturally, I was preparing a contingency plan.”

“A contingency plan?”

“Yes. Even if we couldn’t defeat the dragon, we could at least remove it from the island. Wait, I’ll show you now.”

Ophelia turned and went back into her laboratory, then returned with a fist-sized jewel.

“That’s…”

A familiar jewel.

“Yes, a soul stone. Remember how I stored Isabella’s soul in here to play with? Although the soul itself was destroyed after it served its purpose, some residue remained inside the soul stone.”

“Residue? What were you planning to do with that?”

“That dragon was obviously what Isabella was trying to create, right? So, by using the residue in the soul stone to emit a mana wavelength similar to Isabella’s soul… the creature would mistake it for its mother calling. A kind of lure, you could say. I couldn’t use it because the dragon fled before I completed it.”

Ophelia continued her explanation while exhaling mana herb smoke.

“If I had completed it, the dragon would have sensed the mana wavelength in this soul stone and been compelled to follow it. Then, all that would remain would be to give this soul stone to a fast human and order them to flee the island with all their might, throwing it in an uninhabited area. We couldn’t stop Nidhogg’s rampage, but at least we could prevent further destruction of the island.”

“Is… that really possible?”

“I couldn’t test it, so I can’t be certain.”

Ophelia shrugged and smiled.

Hearing this, I realized she hadn’t neglected her duties but had been doing her best to create a means to calm the dragon situation in her own way, so I couldn’t criticize her further.

To be honest, a dragon-luring bait was certainly a hundred times more useful than firing off a few high-level spells.