A Sister's Resolve to Grow Stronger
“Oppa, are you okay?!”
“...I told you to stay put, Ia.”
“B-but... I was so worried... I couldn't just sit still. Ah, no, more importantly—we need to run! Hurry, Oppa!”
I appreciated Ia's kind heart.
She must have realized I wasn't coming back,
so rather than cowering in fear of the enemy, her desire to help me took precedence. She shook off her terror on her own and came rushing to my aid somehow.
But.
Rather than being touched by that, I was a little angry.
No, more than a little—furious, actually.
It was tantamount to her failing to grasp the obvious judgment anyone in her position should have made.
…Insolent little brat! Can't even look after yourself, yet trying to take care of others. Without a single sharp tool for resistance, you're just courting death.
Such kindheartedness only works in peaceful surroundings.
Luckily, I'd already subdued Jade, or it would've been a disaster.
If his skills had surpassed mine and I'd been utterly defeated, wouldn't she— who I'd hidden away—have been discovered, captured, and killed too?
Again.
She's doing it again.
And of all people, my 「little sister」 is pulling this reckless stunt once more.
What if she died because of it?
Or worse, got captured somewhere and suffered unspeakable horrors without dying?
What the hell would I do then?
Exterminate the demon race twice over—once for that guy and once for Ia?
Pointless thoughts piled up one after another.
But there was only one thing I could say here.
“Ia. Bottom line: I've handled this guy just fine. You didn't need to step in. If you'd gotten yourself killed, I would've been pissed.”
My tone was composed.
But laced with the seething rage burning inside.
With this level of edge, a smart kid like Ia would pick up right away that I wasn't in a good state.
“A-ahh…”
So, as I turned my gaze from her—confiscating even a glance for the moment—and looked down at Jade sprawled on the ground,
he was scratching the back of his head in bewilderment from the stone that'd hit him, his face twisted in indecision over whether to kill Ia or not.
Head.
Yes, Master Valter…!
I mouthed a few words at him,
and he instantly perfected his groveling act with cold, calculated situational awareness.
Seeing that, Ia scurried over to me,
clutching her skirt hem like she was about to burst into tears, begging forgiveness.
“I did something unnecessary, Oppa… I'm sorry…”
“Don't do it again. Force wielded by someone who can't even protect themselves is feeble and laughable. In the face of malice, that kindness could snap at any moment without warning.”
She immediately made a tearful face.
That utterly pure, unclouded expression cracked the hardened, twisted shell around my heart just a fraction.
“Ia, I'm not saying this because I hate you.”
“G-good… I'm glad that's not it.”
With that, I might have let a sliver of my true feelings slip.
Pure emotions untainted by anything.
“It's the opposite—because I like you. I want you to understand at least that much.”
“……O-Oppa.”
“Let's head back. If we show this guy to Mother, she'll be proud for sure.”
“Yeah, Oppa… Got it.”
And so, the incident wrapped up that day with us dragging the captured Jade as a prisoner back to the count's castle.
Whisper whisper—
“Talk where Ia can't hear. Blood Jade. First off, I want to keep you in plain sight, so I'm taking you to my family home.”
“As if I'd object. But my essence is an evil spirit. What good is dragging an evil spirit into a human castle? My true nature will be exposed immediately—how do you plan to handle that?”
“I've got a collaborator.”
In truth, that collaborator was my mother.
But I decided not to go into details about her.
Even though Jade had shown strong submission the moment he learned who I was, acting like he'd rip out his guts and gall bladder for me,
honestly, our trust wasn't solid enough to fully buy it yet—not even knowing his full background.
Sure, he could claim following me was the natural duty from his own mouth.
But words are cheap,
and who knows what he's really thinking inside.
Until that was confirmed,
his loyalty couldn't match the ironclad trust bound by blood with Valeria.
That was my judgment.
“We'll say I captured you, so hole up quietly in the underground dungeon. I'll use my collaborator to get you out soon enough.”
For now, I'd leave him there.
And use him as a trump card whenever it suited me.
“Compared to the 300 years I waited for you, prison is but a blink. This Jade shall endure with utter devotion.”
True to his word, Jade accepted without hesitation.
And so, as I dragged him back to the territory…
“The young heir of Tak Count family, Valter, returns in triumph. Open the gates at once.”
“Y-Young master—?!”
“I'm tired. Don't raise your voice so loud…”
“That evil spirit you're dragging behind your horse—what the hell is…?!”
“Can't you tell? Ran into it while out drinking with Ia. Captured it by chance. It's our prisoner now.”
“I-is that so—!! Then I'll sound the victory horns at once. Please, come in, hurry—!!”
“What's with the excitement?”
A festival broke out.
As it turned out,
this was the first high-rank monster subjugation in Tak County in nearly a century.
Ever since Seradion's 1:60 spell, humanity had been on a path of decline, growing ever weaker.
And among their territories, the somewhat remote Tak County was a place where even meager subjugation news was hard to come by…
For a young heir born after four generations to pull it off with nothing but a plain sword, it was cause for the entire territory to celebrate.
“Valter, Valter… Ahh, my son indeed. You are magnificent. You've done a splendid deed.”
“It's nothing, Mother. It was life or death, so I just gave it my all.”
“This warrants opening the count family granaries for celebration. Everyone must know of your feat. So don't worry, Valter. Leave raising your fame to this mother of yours…”
But.
Even hearing those honeyed words,
a corner of my heart remained deeply uneasy.
Ia's expression looked confused the whole time. Did I go too far?
It was because, now that my chest had calmed, I clearly felt how I'd let emotions sway me too much back then.
Learning about this entity called Jade,
and picking him up, was a solid gain.
I hadn't even known about the underground organization of Blood Apostles surrounding me, formed over the past 300 years.
Nor whether this evil spirit had survived.
Unintentionally unraveling clues tied to her through him was entirely thanks to Ia's goodwill toward me.
“…Maybe apologize during the festival. She's my only little sister—I should cherish her.”
Of course,
I didn't know then.
That Ia wasn't the type to sulk over something like this.
If anything,
she was blaming herself for being inadequate,
wagging her tail desperately to please me.
That day, Ia knocked on the door of the particularly sharp spire atop the count's castle.
To her,
the person inside was the most disagreeable in the world.
But she had to do it.
For the sake of her Oppa, who said he liked her.
***
Knock knock—
“Big Sis, Big Sis…”
“……”
“Pretending you're not here won't work. I'm coming in.”
Slam—
“Gyaaahh—?!”
“Knew you were in.”
What she faced upon opening the door
was a woman with the same red hair and pale face as her, but so tiny she barely seemed adult-sized.
Gaunt as a feather, filthy and disheveled, as if she never ate.
Wearing a grimy mage's robe and hat that reeked of neglect.
She was infamous in Tak Count family,
so describing those traits alone let anyone pinpoint her identity.
Valeria's eldest daughter,
Valter's big sister.
Lujena von Tak.
“Waaahh—!! You shitty perv. I've told you for months not to let anyone in. Why pick the lock?! You ruined my ultra-peak magic time.”
“Oppa scoped out the house layout, stole the steward's master key, and I just brought it back.”
“So you stole the stolen key?!”
“Yep.”
“F-f-fuck. What kinda messed-up family is this. I gotta tell Mother to fire the steward—”
Floating down from the ceiling like a tantrum-throwing toddler,
kicking the floor in rage.
No trace of eldest-sister dignity in her.
She threw a fit like Ia's visit was utterly unacceptable.
Communication impossible.
As always.
“…Don't be so pissy. I came today with a really polite request.”
“After barging in like that, what request could I possibly grant?! Have I ever babied you as a little sister even once? Uhhehe, now I'm curious… How'd you come to that conclusion… Poisoned by weird gas or something…?”
But.
Ia knew better than anyone how to handle her.
“Well, I just want help from the one and only 「once-in-a-millennium magical genius」 in this timeline.”
“Wh-what?!”
“…As you heard. It all depends on you, Big Sis.”
“Ufufu, ufufu— Pretty nice flattery. Kinda cute.”
At that,
Lujena seemed pleased,
grinning like an idiot without hiding it.
“If it's gender swap, I'll kill you! Anything else, spit it out.”
“Not that, Big Sis. I just want to learn magic.”
“You?! Ia?! The Ia who holes up in the library doing jack shit?!”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
To her,
Ia's answer was simple.
“Today I realized how weak I am. I want to get strong enough to go with him wherever he goes.”
“Who?”
“Oppa.”
Ia's resolve was rock-solid.