Instructor, What’s Wrong? (4)
Clatter—
Clatter—
The head of Yohaiden. Pruna Yohaiden was leading a detachment of the White Tiger Knights, departing from the Duke’s mansion and heading towards the Imperial City.
“Father.”
From beside him, Selena’s elder brother and the second son of the Duke, Sedan Yohaiden, spoke with a stiff expression.
“Yes.”
“Regarding that no… that Zeke Clayman, the one who saved Selena’s life, do you know anything about him?”
“I don’t. Only that he’s a swordsmanship instructor at Ramielli Academy. We haven’t been able to acquire any concrete information yet.”
“To think he saved our Selena’s life… By any chance, is there a possibility he approached her with ulterior motives…?”
“Isn’t that why we are going to confirm it right now?”
Zeke Clayman, Zeke Clayman. Pruna Yohaiden ruminated on his name.
Then, he suddenly sighed as he thought about Selena.
“Haah, more than that, it’s absurd that we were completely unaware of our Selena being in a life-threatening situation…”
At his words, Sedan could only clench his jaw.
He was already feeling a deep sense of guilt over the fact that he could have lost his beloved younger sister, whom he cherished more than anything, and that he was the one who had provided the cause for this carelessness.
Sedan reflected on his mistake.
“As expected, it seems we should have stopped Selena from learning swordsmanship no matter what.”
“…Didn’t we try to stop her?”
“No. We only tried with words. In reality, we all knew that even Father secretly watched Selena during her dawn training.”
“Ahem…”
Pruna Yohaiden coughed awkwardly with an embarrassed expression.
Even now, Selena firmly believed that she had been training in secret without her family’s knowledge.
But in truth, there wasn’t a single person in the Yohaiden Duchy who didn’t know about her sword training.
The silver-haired girl, who hadn’t even learned to conceal her presence, would peek into the training grounds at dawn and grasp her sword with a serious face.
When she was immersed like that, she would completely forget about her “secret training” and let out shouts of “Ha! Ha!”
The combination of her clumsy swordsmanship and cute shouts.
There was even a viewing club called the “Observation Society” to witness that precious sight, which showed how much the people of Yohaiden cherished her.
However, apart from that, they couldn’t support Selena’s desire to learn swordsmanship seriously.
For the youngest daughter of the Duke, who was as precious as gold and jade, sharp blades were too dangerous.
They also knew all too well that she had not a shred of talent for the sword.
If, by any chance, she insisted on pursuing the sword and later became a general, being dragged onto a dangerous battlefield, it was clear as day that she would get hurt or, worse, lead her comrades to their deaths with a wrong judgment.
The Selena that her family knew was a kind and delicate child who would never be able to bear such guilt.
So they tried to reason with her gently and strived to divert her attention away from the sword.
They even tried to be harsh for the first time, but in the end, everyone raised the white flag.
Well, because in the Yohaiden family, there wasn’t a single soul who could bear to receive Selena’s resentful gaze after getting genuinely angry at her!
In a way, Selena was the strongest youngest daughter in Yohaiden.
“Then you should have stopped her!”
“How could I! Last time, I spoke a little harshly, and she wouldn’t even eat with me for a whole week, saying she wouldn’t talk to me anymore.”
“Haah, tch. I didn’t know she would last for over a month at Ramielli… And wasn’t it your idea to send her there?!”
Pruna Yohaiden, feeling frustrated after a month of Selena deprivation, snapped at his second son.
Sedan closed his mouth as if he had been struck dumb.
“…”
In reality, the family knew that Selena was preparing for the academy.
Once again, they had ostensibly opposed it, but they couldn’t bring themselves to stop her from preparing behind their backs, which was a testament to their love for her.
Furthermore, Sedan’s words:
“The swordsmanship classes at Ramielli Academy are harsh. So, the academy’s classes will play the role of the bad guys, which we are unable to do.”
Persuaded by his convincing words, they had turned a blind eye to Selena’s enrollment.
They even decided not to attach any guards to her, thinking they might as well make her feel lonely and want to come back quickly since they had already sent her there.
But to think her life was in danger!
The Duke glared at his second son with displeasure.
“Truly, if anything had happened to Selena, you wouldn’t be alive right now.”
“Yes, I wouldn’t dream of living in a world without Selena. I will gladly accept the punishment for putting Selena in danger this time after I see her. At the very least, I cannot worry her with a distressed face before we meet.”
A father threatening his son’s life for the crime of putting his youngest daughter in danger, and Sedan readily accepting it with a solemn face.
It felt like their intelligence plummeted whenever it came to Selena.
“By the way, it’s a shame the eldest couldn’t see Selena this time.”
“Hmm, that’s true. It can’t be helped since he received the title of Grand Duke.”
Sedan nodded, picturing his older brother buried in a mountain of paperwork with a despairing face.
Just then,
Clatter— Clatter—
They saw a scout, who had been scouting ahead, rushing back with a pale face.
“D-Duke!”
“Hmm…?”
“There are bodies!”
“Bodies?”
“Y-yes… So many that I couldn’t even count… Ugh…”
The scout, recalling the scene, retched.
“Calm down. Tell me more about what you saw.”
“B-bodies in a gruesome state… They were scattered everywhere.”
“The location?”
“If you follow the giant trail near Higma Forest, you’ll find them.”
“Hmm, monsters?”
“T-that’s… I’m not sure. At a glance, it looked like sword wounds… but for sword wounds, the cuts were too clean.”
Gulp.
The scout swallowed hard.
“Did you confirm the enemy who did this?”
“No. There was no one… Not a single ant within a 100-jang radius. They must have all fled, fearing whatever was there.”
The Duke frowned.
An unexpected encounter with such an anomaly on their way to finally meet Selena.
Of course, they were still quite a distance from the Imperial City, but it was only half a day’s ride on horseback.
This meant that the Imperial City was also within the danger zone.
In other words, it was directly related to Selena’s safety.
The Duke felt the need to investigate the site.
He turned to Sedan.
“For now, you go ahead and meet Selena. I need to examine the forest.”
“Father! It’s dangerous!”
“This isn’t just about Selena’s safety, but also the security of the Imperial City. If we don’t step forward to face the Empire’s dangers, then who will?”
“Then I’ll go with you!”
Pruna Yohaiden shook his head.
“By now, Selena should have received the letter informing her of our arrival. She’ll be worried if we don’t appear at the appointed time. So, you go and reassure her.”
“But…”
“Right now, the White Tiger Knights of Yohaiden, our most elite, are with us. What is there to worry about?”
Sedan wanted to send his father to Selena and stay behind, but the knights he had brought were the elite knights directly under his father’s command, bound by special orders.
Sedan reluctantly nodded, closing his eyes tightly.
“…Very well. But please come right away after confirming the danger.”
“Yes. Give my regards to Selena.”
“Come quickly and tell her yourself.”
“Honestly…, alright.”
***
“Huh? Selena, I’m telling you, I could take down Eustia all by myself.”
Zeke urged Selena for an answer.
‘Instructor’s power is… beyond common sense.’
What would happen if she nodded here?
Selena fell into deep thought, staring into Zeke’s black, gleaming eyes.
‘In the end, even Eustia’s assassination squad failed to eliminate Instructor.’
Perhaps even if she hadn’t revealed Zeke as her benefactor and offered him political protection, he would have been safe.
However, driven by a slight sense of anxiety and the thought of him leaving her side, she had ultimately taken action…
After learning about his mystical mana powers, Selena was even more certain.
She realized that Zeke’s power was beyond her imagination and that if he were to act in earnest, he could achieve significant results, if not conquer the entirety of Eustia.
Selena hated Eustia.
No, it went beyond hate; at times, she even felt disgust.
If it were her brothers or father sitting here, they would have nodded without a second thought.
Anyone from Yohaiden had experienced competing with Eustia and losing their precious subordinates and retainers to their dirty schemes.
It was clear that Eustia was behind it, but with insufficient evidence, only suspicions piled up.
In such a situation, if Instructor were to step forward and eliminate them…
Could there be a more convenient and tempting proposition for Yohaiden?
Of course, they would have to deal with the ensuing chaos bordering on madness and engage in tedious political tug-of-war with the Emperor over the massive spoils that would suddenly appear, but for Yohaiden, it wouldn’t be a task they hated, just a difficult one.
However, Selena couldn’t nod.
It wasn’t out of pity or sympathy for Iriel.
She, too, was a noble from a Duke’s family.
Her naive demeanor was only shown in front of those close to her.
In the first place, those she didn't allow near her weren't even permitted to be around her.
As she was still the youngest daughter of the Duke, her conflicts with Eustia were nothing more than petty squabbles with Iriel.
She hadn't directly lost any precious lives to them yet.
But more importantly, it was about the treatment of the perpetrator of this incident:
Zeke Clayman.
No matter how much of a benefactor he was to her, from the family’s perspective, Instructor was formerly associated with Eustia, an outsider easily discarded.
A murder occurs within the Duke’s family, and no one is held responsible?
Such a thing was inconceivable.
At the very least, the Empire would have to find someone, even if they had to force it, to pin the blame on and deliver a harsh punishment.
That was power, and that was nobility.
Sigh…
Selena let out a long breath.
Zeke’s sudden change was bewildering, but she had never expected him to propose such a thing, so she ended up agonizing over something not even worth considering.
“Instructor. It’s not like I want that.”
Selena shook her head.
“Why? You hate Eustia, don’t you? I don’t like them either.”
“Instructor, you saved Iriel just yesterday, and now you’re talking about killing Eustia?”
“Ah, I’ll leave Iriel alone.”
“Then wouldn’t Iriel testify against you?”
“What does it matter if she does?”
Zeke tilted his head as if he didn’t understand the problem.
For some reason, Zeke was being overly extreme, as if he were missing a screw.
‘…Could this be Instructor’s true nature, which he’s been hiding all along…?
“Instructor, do you hate Eustia that much?”
Selena asked Zeke with a serious expression.
“Huh? Hmm. It’s not so much hate as it is… annoying? Hmm? Are they the same thing? No, they’re just… bothersome?”
“Then why do you want to kill them all?”
“Because you don’t like them.”
“…What?”
Selena trailed off, caught off guard by his unexpected answer.
“If you want me to, I can even kill the Demon Lord for you.”
Zeke smiled brightly, like a boy.
“That’s how precious you are to me.”
Thump.
Selena’s heart skipped a beat.
‘W-was he always this straightforward?’
Just then, the head butler approached Selena with an urgent look on his face.
“L-Lady Selena! A letter has arrived! The Duke and the Second Young Master will be visiting soon.”
“What!? When?!”
“Very soon!”
Selena looked at Zeke with shaking eyes.
‘O-of all times, why in this state…’
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