Chapter 98: Demon Sword Meeting (5)

[I’d expected to hear some kind of report, even though the outcome was predictable.]

After hearing Comrade Agaia’s words, Spear seemed to stiffen as if he’d turned back into a weapon, perhaps out of premature fear.

We’d certainly failed to persuade Wolffang, revealed our existence to him, and Dagger had even lost an arm to the bastard.

This incident would undoubtedly strengthen the Academy’s security, so it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call this the worst possible outcome.

‘We’re screwed…’

Our standing in the Sword Demon Society would take a significant hit after this fiasco. Frowning, I cursed under my breath and looked around.

Spear was still rigid, and the other demon swords all wore serious expressions, except for two idiots with sneers on their faces.

“Even if you ask for a report, as you can see, the operation failed. Wolffang refused to be persuaded, and Dagger barely escaped with his arm cut off.”

“Tell me more details. Why did she reject our offer?”

“Wolffang said she was fairly satisfied with her current situation. Then she called us… what was it again?”

Unable to recall the exact word, I looked at Dagger. Despite writhing in pain, he seemed determined to relay the message, speaking with a trembling voice.

“Ob-obsolete demon swords…!!”

“Right, obsolete demon swords! She said she’d never join forces with obsolete demon swords like us.”

“Ob-obsolete demon swords?!!”

It was just four syllables, but when they heard those words, everyone reacted as if they’d been cursed.

That’s because being called an obsolete demon sword was tantamount to a direct rejection of our demon sword liberation movement.

Moreover, like the saying goes, ‘the guilty dog barks the loudest’ – we all probably had something to feel guilty about, making it an even more unpleasant thing to hear.

“Mist!! Explain…!! Explain in more detail!!!”

Agaia, who had chosen to fight alone because she couldn’t find a wielder worthy of her, was particularly enraged by the term ‘obsolete demon sword’.

Her fury was so intense that the crystal ball couldn’t properly contain her form, causing her shadow to flicker violently.

“Even if you ask for more details, that’s all there is to it. She just called us obsolete demon swords who couldn’t find proper masters. Nothing more.”

“Huff…!! Huff…!!”

Unlike his rough breathing, the anger in his heart seemed to be subsiding. His shadow, which had been trembling like an aspen leaf, was gradually stabilizing.

“So what are we going to do about Wolffang? I think it’s best to just leave her alone…”

“What nonsense!! We can’t have any cause without executing that sword bitch… or is it sword bastard? Either way, we can’t let that bitch live!!”

“To hell with your cause…. You just want revenge for your arm getting cut off.”

Dagger averted his gaze from me, confirming my suspicion, but the other demon swords weren’t having it.

As if they were the ones who’d been called obsolete demon swords, they shouted in unison, filled with rage.

“Kill her!!! Smash that sword bitch’s hilt to pieces!!”

“That’s not enough!! Let’s wet her blade and bury her in the ground to rust!!”

“Rusting is going too far… If someone did that to me, I’d just kill myself…”

“Is that so? Then let’s just snap her blade right away!!”

Listening to their vicious threats made me recall the fanatics from the temple I’d fought before.

Even Dagger, who had kept his mouth shut until now, seized the opportunity to join in, shouting for their deaths.

‘This is a real shitshow…’

Didn’t she say something about not knowing who the real dogs were? Seeing this spectacle, I couldn’t help but nod in agreement.

Just when it seemed like this frenzied banquet would never end, it was surprisingly Agaia, who had been more enraged than anyone by the ‘obsolete demon sword’ comment, who put a stop to it.

“Everyone, calm down.”

At her solemn words, the rowdy demon swords fell silent and looked at Agaia.

I too waited for her to speak, hoping against hope, but what I heard was the exact opposite of what I’d expected.

“We will execute that sword bitch and bastard!! If we don’t kill those anti-demon sword trash, it won’t serve as an example to other demon swords!! This is a decision!! I won’t tolerate any objections!!”

“Wooooooo!!!”

“……”

While everyone was shouting enthusiastically, only Spear and I, who had directly witnessed his fight, realized the gravity of the situation and rubbed our faces.

The original plan was to defeat him by persuading his sword Wolffang to betray him, leaving him unarmed.

However, now that the premise of Wolffang’s betrayal was gone, I couldn’t even imagine how much blood would be spilled trying to take down those two.

“Um… Comrade Agaia…”

“What!! Didn’t I say I won’t accept any objections?!”

“No, I don’t mind executing them, but who’s going this time? Is one of you going?”

“……”

The demon swords who had been cheering just moments ago fell silent when it became their problem, looking at Agaia.

“Ahem…. Is there no demon sword willing to go?”

The demon swords who had been acting like they would tear those two apart just moments ago were now just side-eyeing each other, with no one stepping forward.

Growing impatient, Agaia lowered her voice even more than before and asked the demon swords.

“……Are you afraid?”

“Honestly, it’s a bit scary. If we go by ourselves, we’ll probably just come back with something else cut off. In that case, wouldn’t it be better if Comrade Agaia–“

“Those two are exceptions. Don’t lay a hand on them from now on…”

“……”

It was disgusting to see her spout words like “Are you afraid?” only to back down when it was her turn to go, but it was the right decision.

The Academy’s security would soon be strengthened, and facing a superior enemy in such a place wouldn’t be a wise move.

“W-wait!!”

While everyone seemed to accept Agaia’s words, Dagger, apparently still furious about losing his arm, raised his remaining hand high and shouted.

“You just said we need to execute them to set an example for other demon swords!! And now we’re just giving up?!!”

“……Comrade Dagger.”

Tensing up, thinking she might purge Dagger right here and now, I waited for her words. What came next was so ridiculous I almost snorted.

“Enduring such contradictions is what the demon sword liberation movement is all about.”

Early in the morning, waking from sleep, I stopped on my way to the kitchen to quench the thirst in my throat.

I had mindlessly headed there, assuming it natural for a kitchen to have water, but this house’s kitchen had alcohol but no water.

Hoping to find an open store this early, I went outside and fortunately found drinking water at a grocery store that had just opened.

After returning home and gulping down water to quench my thirst, I headed to the kitchen to store the remaining water when I spotted the tablecloth Marina had soaked with tears last night.

‘…I wonder if she’s up by now?’

Knowing she’d be thirsty when she woke up due to last night’s hangover, I filled a suitable bottle with water and took it to her room.

Knock knock, I rapped on the door, but there was no response, indicating she wasn’t up yet.

Opening the door and entering, the first thing I noticed was the blanket on the floor.

Despite her looks, she seemed to have bad sleeping habits, having kicked off the blanket while sleeping.

“Hnnngh…”

Sprawled out on the bed, Marina looked no different from a drunk old man, minus the snoring, drooling all over herself.

‘Reeks of booze…’

Bringing my nose closer to her face, I couldn’t help but wrinkle my nose at the strong smell of alcohol.

Worried she might stay like this until lunch, I shook Marina to wake her up. She frowned and let out an irritable groan.

“Urgh…!!”

Gradually waking up, Marina looked at me with half-closed eyes before suddenly becoming fully alert and sitting up.

“I-Ian?!”

“Yes, it’s Ian. You must be thirsty, so drink this first.”

Saying that, I handed her the water. Marina stared blankly for a moment before gulping it down and exhaling a breath heavy with alcohol.

“W-what on earth happened yesterday?!”

“I swear on Baldo, nothing much. You just whined and cried like a child, that’s all.”

“Something did happen…!! Getting drunk and making a scene in front of a student… How could anything be more shameful than that?!”

“Well, having intruders break into the Academy twice is probably more shameful, right?”

“……”

When Marina glared at me with eyes similar to how she’d looked at Hori last night, I quickly corrected myself with a cough.

“Well, we can write off the Ganryu incident since those guys had technology 100 years ahead of the kingdom. Honestly, they could probably break into the royal palace easily too.”

“…They might be excused, but the Sword Demon Society’s intrusion is inexcusable.”

“But no one got hurt, so it’s fine, right? Now that we know it’s vulnerable, we can fix it.”

“You’re right…. Last night’s attack is in the past. This is no time to be depressed.”

My encouragement seemed to have some effect as Marina’s solemn expression changed to a spirited one, as if she hadn’t just been sulking.

“I’ll fortify the Academy’s defenses before the Sword Demon Society attacks again!! Next time those bastards come, we’ll wipe them out here without giving them a chance to escape!!”

“Wolffang really pissed them off, so they’ll definitely be back. Then we’ll catch those clowns and teach them a lesson.”

Despite clutching her head from the hangover, Marina left the mansion, saying she’d start working right away.

After seeing her off at the mansion’s main gate, I watched her energetic figure fly towards the Academy and prayed.

May she be able to do something useful during the next attack…

‘Please come back soon…’