The Core Within the Blade
For a while after that, my days settled into three parts.
Mornings were for building my body. A Unique-grade sword and a newly learned heart method meant nothing if I neglected the stamina to back them up—and more than anything, I wanted to carve away some of this soft bulk I'd packed on. So I spent every morning in the training yard, sweating just as I always had.
From lunch until evening, I shut myself in the library. Whether because Valter had put in a good word with the duke, the ban on my entering had been lifted, and I devoured book after book there. Before long I understood everything from the principles of an aura core and the handling of mana to the magic theory of this world itself.
I didn't see this coming.
At first I had assumed it would be difficult. Neither the original me nor Lucas was the sort of genius who could grasp every theory just by reading. What solved that problem was none other than the Elixir of Growth—the cash-shop item that multiplied all growth experience sixteenfold. Its effect applied, of course, to raising the Knowledge stat as well, and whether it had boosted my comprehension by the same margin or not, whatever I read seemed to make sense on its own.
And for the last stretch of the day, from after dinner until I slept, I devoted myself to the heart method. I was not simply following the Loenheim method Valter had taught me. It was excellent, no doubt, but my ambitions ran higher. I wanted a heart method and a core of my own, and with what I already knew and what I had gleaned from the library, I set about making it real.
There were plenty of trials and errors. Even so, it was not as difficult as all that. The way an aura core converted mana into another force resembled the modern civilization I knew—the generators that drew energy from magic stones and turned it into electricity, the operating principles of certain weapons that ran on that same energy.
They were startlingly similar to an aura core's process of converting mana, and because I already understood a good deal of that principle, applying it was not especially hard.
Perhaps that was why.
"...Done."
In exactly one week, I completed an aura core of my own. It had not been formed near the heart, the way Valter had shown me. My core was not inside my body at all. To be precise, it lay within the sword in my hand.
Vmmm!
A clear sword-cry rang from the Wailing Sword, now host to the core. The core planted in the blade shed formless aura and resonated.
"It actually works."
Watching it, I let the corner of my mouth rise.
The location of an aura core varies slightly with the heart method. House Loenheim, the representative knightly house of the Empire's south, places theirs near the heart, while the knights of the Duke of the North, who represent the Empire's north, keep theirs in the dantian. But no one had ever tried to form an aura core outside their own body. No—they could not. Let mana flow beyond the body one was born with, and loss was inevitable.
I, however, had a way to make up that loss: Weapon Master, the skill that granted perfect control over a weapon. That power let me handle even the mana flowing through a weapon as if it were part of my own body, and so I could implant the core into the sword itself.
An aura core made this way was on an entirely different level from an ordinary one. Aura, after all, was mana specialized for the sword. There was bound to be a considerable difference between pouring aura born in the heart into a blade, and having the blade itself generate aura.
"At this level..."
Maybe it was time to move on to the next stage. I was thinking as much when—
"Hm...?"
For some reason, it was noisy outside. The footsteps of many people, the clank of armor, and the clatter of hooves came loud and clear. Wondering what was going on, I looked past the curtained window.
Knights bearing the banner of House Loenheim were drawn up at the mansion's entrance, and before them a young man who looked like some soft scholar sat astride a white horse, posed there with an air of grandeur.
"Huh?"
I had seen that face somewhere. At the same time, Lucas's memories surfaced. That was Edwin—Lucas's younger brother, the one called the next duke.
Duke Kaiser's office.
The heavy oak door opened, and a young knight in silver armor stepped in. He was a handsome youth, with skin like clean marble and well-ordered features. For a knight his impression was remarkably gentle, and yet a pressure unsuited to that appearance poured from a body tempered like steel.
"I have returned, Father."
Edwin knelt on one knee before Kaiser with a solemn bearing and paid his respects. Kaiser lifted his eyes from his documents and welcomed his son with a deep smile.
"Welcome back. I received the scouting report. You completed the mission again this time. Well done."
Even at Kaiser's praise, Edwin's expression was not entirely bright.
"Why that face? You are a commander returned victorious. Carry yourself with pride."
"Forgive me, Father. It's just... there is something that worries me."
"Worries you? What is it?"
At Edwin's words, Kaiser asked as if it were strange. Edwin hesitated a moment, then spoke.
"The situation in the Great Forest is grave. Go even a little way in, and demons are swarming—and even the beastmen have come out of the forest to request protection. Sister is dealing with the demons inside the Great Forest, but at this rate..."
"I know. Was that not written in your report? They will be upon the walls before long."
At Kaiser's indifferent reaction, Edwin's expression hardened.
"You mean... you are preparing for war?"
"I am."
"Then perhaps, before that, reducing the demons' numbers..."
"That would amount to a handful at best. You know as well as anyone that holding them at the walls is more efficient."
In effect, he was saying a full-scale war was coming. That was the one thing Edwin had wanted to avoid, and he closed his mouth and let out a short sigh. Sensing what lay behind it, Kaiser shook his head in earnest.
"It is a war we cannot avoid in any case. Do not fear it, Edwin."
Edwin merely bowed his head. Watching him, Kaiser rubbed the space between his brows.
The reason Edwin so desperately wished to avoid a full-scale war was not that he was a coward who feared his own death, but that he feared the deaths of others.
"I have told you time and again. For a knight, to die on the battlefield is both duty and glory. Would you insult their convictions with clumsy pity?"
"...No. I will keep it in mind."
Edwin said as much, but Kaiser clicked his tongue as if frustrated. He knew the boy would not listen anyway. The direction was the exact opposite, but in this he was no different from his older brother.
"Mix the two of them together, and it might actually be better."
Kaiser muttered it like a sigh. In the meantime, Edwin spoke again.
"Please grant me permission to sortie once more."
"A sortie? To do what?"
"There is a monster I let slip."
Edwin spoke of the Branded Monster he had failed to deal with—the black gnoll.
"I sent a pursuit party at once, but it seemed to be fleeing deeper into the territory. If we leave it as it is—"
"No. If it is that one, there is nothing to worry about."
Kaiser cut him off and waved a hand. Edwin lifted his head with a puzzled look.
"Pardon?"
"I mean it has already been dealt with."
"Is that true? But there is no knight order remaining at the ducal house, is there? Don't tell me... you dealt with it yourself, Father?"
"No. Not I..."
Kaiser denied it, yet he could not easily go on. It was something even he still found hard to believe. And was it all right to tell Edwin exactly as it was? He could not hide it either, though, and in the end he opened his mouth with a sigh.
"...Lucas."
"There was... a knight by that name?"
"Not a knight. Your older brother."
"What do you..."
Edwin looked at Kaiser as if he had heard something absurd.
"Are you saying Brother Lucas... felled a Branded Monster?"
"Hard to believe, but it is the truth."
"That is impossible. How could someone who is not even a knight face a Branded Monster?"
Edwin flatly denied his father's words. That was common sense, a truth there was no reason to doubt—and if anything, it was Kaiser, forced into denying it, who was left at a loss for words. Frowning in frustration, he finally found a fresh piece of evidence.
"Sir Valter saw it with his own eyes. This is what he reported himself."
"That can't..."
Edwin's words trailed off. He knew Valter's loyalty well.
"Then is there proof?"
"This is the proof. The soldiers testified the same as Valter."
To Edwin, who simply could not believe it, Kaiser held out the black hide stamped with the brand that Valter had brought.
"......"
Edwin stared at the black hide. It was, without a doubt, the brand of the very monster he himself had faced.
A short while later, Edwin made his way back to his room, turning over and over the unbelievable story he had heard from his father.
"Brother... a Branded Monster?"
No matter how he thought about it, it was absurd. But neither his father nor Valter, Lucas's escort knight, were the sort to speak nonsense. Nor were they the sort to yield to Lucas's threats. Then what on earth was all of this meant to be?
"Is he testing me?"
The reality was so hard to believe that even that thought occurred to him. Just then, a familiar and well-fed silhouette approached from the end of the corridor—an unpleasant, heavy bulk, recognizable even from a distance. Lucas.
As if it were only natural, a crease formed between Edwin's brows. Anyone who knew him would have said they never knew he could make such a face, so cold was it. But to Edwin's eyes, today's Lucas looked a little different.
Has he... lost some weight?
It looked a bit that way. He was not carrying liquor or greasy food the way he used to, and his clothes were not in disarray either. If anything, he wore what looked like a simple sword-training outfit, and at his waist hung a sword that gave off a chilling aura.
"......"
That Lucas came right up to him. Unconsciously tense, Edwin waited for his reaction.
"I hear you went to the Great Forest and back."
That was Lucas's first line. No greeting, nothing—just the point shoved in his face, rude as ever. That much was the same as before, but what followed was a little different from what Edwin expected.
"Then tell me about it. How are things over there?"
What came from Lucas's mouth was neither mockery, nor sarcasm, nor abuse. He was simply asking about the situation in the Great Forest, as if he already had some idea of what was happening there. Behaving so sensibly was so strange that—
"Is it true that you felled a Branded Monster, Brother?"
Edwin blurted out what he really thought before he knew it. At that, Lucas tilted his head slightly.
"What? Oh, you heard it from Father? Yeah. I took it down. Why?"
"That can't be."
Edwin stated it flatly. He had fought that Branded Monster himself, so he knew. It was absolutely not a monster Lucas could have felled.
"What do you mean, it can't be. I'm telling you it was me."
"Don't lie. Even you, Brother, have no right to steal another knight's achievement. So tell me honestly."
And so Edwin tried to hear the truth from him. He was certain someone had arranged things to help Lucas, or had been forced to move by his threats.
"It's not a lie."
"Brother!"
Edwin glared at Lucas with burning eyes. Lucas let out a short sigh, and this time wore a mean smile.
"So what you're saying is... some knight felled a Branded Monster, and I reported it as if I had done it myself?"
"You could put it that way."
"But the one who made the report was Sir Valter. Are you saying Sir Valter filed a false report?"
Lucas said it, pointing at the old knight standing behind him. Edwin, who had never meant to drag Valter into this, flustered and shook his head.
"No, that's..."
"What do you mean, no. You're saying Sir Valter took a request from me and submitted a false report to the ducal house. Oh, I get it now. I hear Sir Valter's retiring too. That old man figured he'd pull one last score from the ducal house before he goes—that's what you thought, isn't it?"
"I have never had such a vulgar thought!"
Edwin jumped as if stung. But Lucas, seizing the moment, turned his words on Valter instead.
"And you, sir, don't just stand there—say something. The boy's calling you a liar who took a bribe. You're about to step down, and your honor's about to hit the dirt! Shouldn't we be demanding a duel over this?"
Valter stood without a word, but a faint discomfort showed in the way his lips drew in. Thinking he had put Valter in an awkward position for no reason, Edwin shouted in a rush.
"That isn't what I meant!"
"What do you mean, it isn't. You said there's no way what Sir Valter testified could be true."
"......"
At a loss for words, Edwin bit his lip. He seemed changed in a few ways, but the way he seized on the tail of a person's words and would not let go was, sure enough, exactly the brother Edwin knew.
"No... no. I was mistaken."
In the end, Edwin had no choice but to take a step back. Using this as an excuse, just how outrageous a demand would come next? He was already worried about that. But what Lucas actually demanded was—
"Then cut the nonsense and just tell me what I asked."
Not some reckless reward, not some absurd threat. An answer to an utterly sensible question. Edwin looked at his brother with confused eyes.