Ch.75Training the NPC (1)

-Thud thud thud! WHAM!!

“Brother! Why are you so late? You said you’d be back in a day!! The sun has already set!!”

“Oh my, I’m sorry, Princess!! Did you wait long?”

“I did!! I waited forever!!!”

“I waited so long that I started to wonder if Jack had gone off somewhere with Ragni!”

[It felt like a week instead of a day.]

The power and speed with which my adorable little sister Ira rushes toward me, her hair fluttering, isn’t what it used to be.

I felt that if I were an ordinary person instead of myself, Ira’s tackle might have sent me flying out the door. I hugged her and patted her head, and since both Rei and Gorg were being troublesome, I patted their heads too.

“I’m sorry to ask this right after coming back, Rei.”

“If you’re sorry, then pet me more!!”

“No!! It’s my turn!! Go away, sis!!”

“Hmph…”

“I’ll pet you later, but for now, please take care of Ragni.”

“…Huh? Ragni?”

As Rei approached with her head bowed, asking for more pats, Ira pushed her away with her tiny palm and buried her face in my chest.

When I mentioned Ragni, Rei looked behind me at the trembling girl and her eyes went wide.

“Wh-what happened to make her shake like this?!”

“P-pervert. I met a real pervert.”

“Eh?! Wh-what do you mean?!”

“For now, help her take a bath. Can you do that? You’ll hear the details there.”

Sensing that this wasn’t something to discuss in front of Ira, I applied subtle pressure. Rei caught on and put her arm around Ragni’s shoulders before disappearing into the bathroom.

“Brother, say ‘aah’~”

“Here, aah.”

“Nom!”

Afterward, Ira and I had dinner prepared by Gorg. Even though we’d only been apart for a day, I had to work hard to appease our little sister who was throwing quite a tantrum.

Of course, it was just the effort of enduring a heart-stopping level of cuteness.

When she closes her mouth with a “nom” and those dimples appear, how can I help but smile like a proud father?

“Brother, if one day feels this long, what about half a year?”

“……”

Ira’s words made me unconsciously stop my spoon midway.

Even though I know it’s for my little sister’s sake, the thought of going alone to [Spirit Magic Nation Siltra] is certainly frightening.

In a few days, we’ll leave Aigram and head to [Land of Knowledge Neity] for Ira’s entrance exam. But seeing how anxious my sister is after just one day apart, I can’t help but wonder if I should really leave her behind.

‘…Still, I can’t take her with me.’

The entry level for ep. 2 [Spirit Magic Nation] is 110.

It’s considerably lower than the Ponian Empire, but the problem is that demons have already appeared in Aigram.

This means ep. 2 could explode at any time, and since Anger died first, we don’t know what might come from that side.

My already limited game knowledge will be even less helpful in the future that awaits. It’s hard to decide to take Ira along in this situation.

“Ira. I’ll come back as quickly as I can. And once you enter the academy, you’ll make friends and have fun. I’m sure you’ll be so happy you won’t even think about m—”

“There will never be a day when I don’t think about you. I love you more than anything in the world.”

Somehow, Ira’s words became serious, and I found myself looking into her eyes—those amethyst eyes like jewels of the night sky, sparkling as they gazed at me.

And I can’t help but smile when I look into those eyes.

“Yes, I love you more than anything too, Ira, and you’re the most precious to me. So I promise. I’ll really come back quickly.”

“Okay.”

Though our separation is still a year away, I felt like a young adult with a fixed enlistment date as I stroked my sister’s hair.

*

“Isn’t she crazy?! Why would a woman touch another woman’s body like that?!”

“Jack. If we’re leaving Aigram, let’s leave soon. There’s less than three months until enrollment at Neity Academy, right? We could just get a room there and live there, right?”

“Yeah, as soon as we finish tonight’s business, we’ll leave right away.”

Perhaps because Ragni told us about Miho, Rei is furiously angry, and Ragni is still trembling, clutching herself as if still haunted by what happened earlier.

After putting Ira to bed in my room, I sat at the table with Rei and Ragni.

We’ll leave Aigram within this week, but right now we need to deal with the assassins who are after us.

“By the way, where’s Gorg?”

“I sent her ahead. You heard the story from Ragni, right?”

“Yes. Assassins. For parents to try to kill their child—I absolutely cannot turn a blind eye to this!”

I can’t help but smile wryly seeing Rei’s long-dormant sense of justice flare up. Meanwhile, Ragni became a bit gloomy as the conversation shifted.

“I’m sorry. Because of me, everyone got involved…”

“I told you this morning not to apologize. And…”

Thanks to your skill, Gorg has probably finished everything by herself by now. I swallow those words for now.

“Gorg will handle things well. Given the level of that assassin captain, the rest of them will be no match for Gorg.”

“So, are we going outside now?”

“Yeah. But just to be safe, Rei and Ragni, stay here and watch over Ira.”

“…But it’s my problem, I should…”

“No. We already confirmed what we needed to during the day, right? Unless the Empire completely backs off from us, it’s right to treat them as ‘our’ enemies now. Right, Rei?”

“Yes!! I’m on Ragni’s side!!”

I think Rei, who speaks energetically while gripping her sword, is incredibly helpful in changing this gloomy atmosphere.

“Well then, I’ll be back. Both of you, please take care of Ira.”

“Yes. Be careful.”

“…Come back safely.”

I patted both their heads before leaving the house.

*

[You’ve arrived.]

“How many?”

[Sixteen. All restrained.]

As expected of Gorg. She really does what she’s told well. I reached out to pat her gray hair…

[If it’s a reward, I prefer something sexual.]

“Shut up.”

I immediately withdrew my hand.

“Mountain Guardian, sir. You’ve arrived.”

“Just call me Jack. So, where did you put the infiltration team, and did you catch them all?”

“Yes. We’ve drawn out all the personnel who had already infiltrated. The captured ones are on that rocky hill over there.”

A masked man speaks to me respectfully.

There were already infiltrators? This demon market bastard, he really needs to be taught a lesson.

As I consider whether I should rough him up once more before leaving, another assassin—a man like Kyaru who knows when to cut his losses—notices my displeasure at the mention of infiltrators and speaks up.

“This may sound like a poor excuse, but those infiltrators were quite persistent in trying to get in. As I mentioned earlier, if our assassination failed today, the plan was to enter with the remaining members three days later, but they had already killed two guards and entered ahead of schedule. Our intelligence wasn’t wrong, was it?”

“I see.”

I wasn’t particularly concerned about that, but killing guards? These guys really have nothing to lose.

I followed the two assassins and Gorg as they guided me.

At the front of a small cave on top of the rocky hill, five assassins who had agreed to join us were standing guard. The rest were stripped naked, covered in blood, with their hands, feet, and mouths bound.

It must have been a merciless fight; some had stab wounds. And there’s even a woman among them?

More importantly, I look at the status windows floating above the heads of those watching over the captives.

[-Occupation: Imperial Assassin- Level: 36]

[Emperor’s Quality Target: Absolute Command Activations 0 times.]

Most of them are around level 30. Should I be relieved? Not a single one betrayed us.

Of course.

[-Occupation: Imperial Assassin- Level: 74]

[Emperor’s Quality Target: Absolute Command Activations 3 times.]

Three of the men tied up among the others have used up all their activation counts.

Ragni gave them three commands: never betray our orders, don’t sabotage today’s operation, and don’t run away.

That assassin captain had such a long conversation with the lawyer, but seeing how all his skills were triggered, he got off easy.

As I approach them, the assassin captain and the two who didn’t join us this morning look at me like I’m a monster. All the captured men maintain eyes full of resentment and hatred toward me. Hmm, not exactly friendly gazes?

“Gorg, make these bastards open their eyes.”

-BOOM!!!

“…?!!”

The men let out stupid screams at the sudden event.

Wondering how she would follow my order, I told Gorg, and she immediately grew enormous and dropped her giant fist next to them. If they’d been hit by that, there wouldn’t be bones left to collect.

But. A giant rock golem. Isn’t this every man’s fantasy? It’s a bit of a shame that she has the appearance of a beautiful woman, but I’m sure some people prefer it that way?

I suppress my childishly excited heart and continue speaking.

“If you glare at me like that one more time, that fist will fall on your heads next.”

The effect was tremendous, and they all look at me like I’m a monster. Thinking about it makes me angry again—they must have been looking at young Ragni with those same eyes.

“Originally, before coming here, I thought about letting you all live to instill fear in you.”

I didn’t. It’s a strategy that just occurred to me when I saw Gorg grow larger.

“But I hate the look in all your eyes, so I’m scrapping that plan and will let just one of you live.”

Since they looked at me like a monster, I’ll act like one.

“The method is simple. Hey, you. Kyaru.”

“Huh? Me? Jack sir, I’m Dolph.”

“Ah, right. Dolph. Take out a knife.”

Whenever I see him, I think of Kyaru and call him that unintentionally, but the sharp-witted guy understands perfectly and immediately throws me a dagger.

And then.

-THWACK!! STAB!!

“?!!”

“Now. That knife stuck in your captain’s body—pull it out and kill each other. The last one standing gets to return to the Empire with all limbs intact.”

I kicked the incoming dagger straight into the captain’s heart, killing him instantly. The rest of them look at me and their dead captain with bewildered eyes, as if they can’t believe this is reality.

But these bastards seem too relaxed?

“Time limit is 5 minutes. If more than two are alive after 5 minutes, I’ll kill everyone.”

Well, I should take away that composure too, shouldn’t I?