Chapter 31: The Demon’s Grasp
“That Baumgarten brattttttttttttttttttttttttttttt!”
I slammed the wine glass I was drinking from onto the floor.
The cause of this seething rage is that Baumgarten brat, Dietfried. For him to refuse a request from me, Margrave Huebner, his Guardian, is the height of insolence.
A ward should just quietly listen to what I say.
And yet he dares to refuse, even feigning illness…! That Baumgarten brat doesn’t understand common sense!
“So? What is that Baumgarten brat doing, feigning illness to refuse my request?”
When I asked the knight who brought the report, he shivered and replied.
“According to the housewives who sold us information, it seems he’s been diligently training and exterminating monsters lately…”
“An ill person exterminating monsters? He must really love exterminating monsters. That damn brat!”
There’s a limit to how much you can mock someone!
“What will you do? Shall we bring Baron Baumgarten here by force?”
“That alone won’t quell my anger!”
To be made a fool of like this. My anger won’t subside unless I retaliate somehow.
Isn’t there some good way?
Something that will drive that Baumgarten brat into a corner…
“…That’s it! How about we set fire to the forest in the Baumgarten Territory!”
“Margrave-sama!?”
“Do you object?”
“If we set fire to the forest, the monsters driven from their homes will cause a Stampede! If that happens, not only the residents but even the Baron himself could lose his life…”
“Hmph! A fool who prioritizes monster extermination to the point of feigning illness and ignoring my request might as well die! What an idiot who doesn’t even understand priorities!”
“But… Even if they somehow survive the Stampede, the territory will be devastated…”
“This is decided! Understand? Set fire to the forest in the Baumgarten Territory! A half-hearted fire won’t be tolerated, you hear? Burn the forest until a Stampede occurs! A brat who loves exterminating monsters so much will surely cry tears of joy.”
“Margrave-sama…”
“That is all from me. You may leave now.”
“…Yes, sir!”
“Kukuku…”
It’s truly a shame I won’t be able to see that brat’s flustered face.
“Father, you seem to be in a good mood.”
“Oh, Klemens, is that you? Well, I was just thinking of teaching that Baumgarten brat, who, despite being a mere ward, keeps refusing my requests, a little lesson.”
“That sounds good. However, even if he possesses the rare Healing Gift, if he’s that impudent, wouldn’t it be fine to just kill him?”
“Now, now, I’m trying to make a friend for you. You should try your best to get along, alright?”
“Yes. When he comes here, I’ll dote on him with all my might.”
“Hahahaha. That’s good.”
I smiled at my son, who understood what I was implying.
Ah, I want to punish that Baumgarten brat soon.
“Father, speaking of which, Baumgarten has a twin sister, doesn’t he? Is she still alive?”
“That’s right. I haven’t heard that she died, so she’s probably still alive.”
“In that case, let’s bring her to Huebner as well. I’ll personally inject some ‘vigor’ into her.”
“Hmm. I heard the brat cherishes his sister. That might be good too.”
“Yes!”
My son, who replied cheerfully, had a lecherous look on his face. Honestly, who does he take after? But heroes are fond of carnal pleasures. That’s fine too.
After all, my son’s Gift is Sword King. He’s a genius of the sword. It’s safe to say there are no knights in our territory who can match him anymore. He is, in name and reality, the strongest existence in our domain.
The future of our Margraviate of Huebner is bright!
Normally, he should be begging to be allowed to be Klemens-sama’s friend. But that Baumgarten brat…!
That Baumgarten brat has smeared mud on my face and Klemens’s. I can never forgive him.
“I’ll show him a thing or two.”
◇
A little past noon.
Today, we had come to Higashi Village for monster subjugation.
In the meadow near the forest, round, jiggly, translucent objects, much like kusamochi, were squirming about. Green Slimes.
“Are you ready, Bocchan? Ojou? You can defeat a slime by crushing the core inside its body. However, this core moves freely within the slime’s body, making it difficult to target. So, first, you hit the slime appropriately with the flat of your sword as if to scatter it.”
“And then? And then?”
“Once the slime’s volume has decreased to a certain extent, you then aim for the core. The guideline is when it becomes about the size of a human head.”
“Okay!”
As soon as she heard Achim’s explanation, Cornelia started running towards a slime.
“Wai- Ria!?”
“It’s okay! I’m just trying it out!”
Even if she says that, and even though I know Cornelia can easily handle mere slimes, an older brother’s heart can’t help but worry.
I started running after Cornelia.
“Hya!”
Cornelia ignored Achim’s advice and thrust at the slime. It was a splendid thrust, but that wouldn’t reduce the slime’s volume.
As I thought, I have to protect Cornelia!
Thinking that, I increased my running speed. The slime Cornelia had thrust at quivered and trembled, and finally, unable to maintain its round form, it splattered apart as if a water balloon had burst.
“I defeated it!”
Cornelia raised her sword, and impaled on its tip was a slime core about the size of an adult’s fist.
With Cornelia’s swordsmanship, she could probably defeat it in a single blow without needing to scatter the slime.
“Onii-sama, look!”
“Ria, you’re amazing. Wasn’t it difficult?”
“It’s kind of like playing, so it’s fun, you know?”
Cornelia is probably the only one who can say that. In the corner of my vision, I could see Achim with his eyes wide in surprise.
“But, Ria. Even if it’s an easy win, it’s dangerous to rush out on your own. You need to stay properly behind Onii-sama.”
“But, if I do that, I can’t protect Onii-sama…”
“Just like Ria wants to protect Onii-sama, Onii-sama also wants to protect Ria.”
“Umm… That makes me happy, but…”
Cornelia doesn’t seem convinced. It’s probably because I’m still weak. I need to work harder, enough to be able to protect Cornelia!