The Price of Affection
Serin had fired the arrow. Checire clearly harbored affection for me… no, something far deeper than that. I’m not unaware of it. On the contrary, I know it perfectly well. On top of that, she was incredibly competent. After all, she oversaw the Carbandia family’s entire intelligence network. Her martial prowess had already stepped into the Master rank. While her skill with polearms still lingered at the peak of Expert, the innate power of the Carbandia bloodline elevated her overall combat strength to rival a true Master. Borrowing her strength wouldn’t be difficult at all. As the Grand Duke had said, if I asked for her support by leading with that affection, she would do anything for me.
…However, that didn’t mean it would come without a price.
When the Grand Duke had asked why I had come to see him, the answer was simple.
“…It would be better to discuss this with you, Your Grace.”
The direct descendants of Carbandia understood propriety, but they were hardly absolute saints. Among them, Checire excelled at deliberately acting like an innocent, cheerful young lady to secure her own interests. If I had gone straight to her instead of going through the Grand Duke…
“Is this Father’s will?”
In the world of nobility, the word “hunt” often carried an entirely different meaning. While leisurely falconry did exist, it usually signified a purge. A chill ran down my spine. Her crimson eyes flashed for a moment, thickening the air around us. Suggesting they go hunting together was the same as saying they would go kill their enemies side by side.
…And if this wasn’t an order from her father, then…
I’ll have to pay the price.
“Yes. I just spoke with him.”
“Ugh… Father is such an idiot.”
Of course, that wasn’t the case right now. As if the excitement had suddenly faded, she stepped slightly away from me and began turning the Tyrant over in her hands, examining it from every angle.
“Is this a gift from my husband?”
“…If that’s what you wish to believe, then by all means.”
“It’s the same thing you gave my father, isn’t it?”
It seemed I had managed to gloss over it. A small wave of relief washed over me, and the tension drained from my shoulders. Dealing with her was far more difficult than facing the Grand Duke.
“Well, fine. Tell me when you plan to depart.”
“The sooner the better. We could even leave right now.”
“Hmm~ I still have a few things to take care of… Let’s set out after sunset.”
“…Understood. I’ll wait nearby.”
“What a shame. I thought I might be able to demand an even bigger price this time.”
Since Checire was the head of the intelligence organization, the information she had gathered on Archbishop Henvil last time had all been thanks to her power. In other words… I had already paid her “price” once before. Having experienced it, I had deliberately tried to secure support through the Grand Duke this time instead.
“…Take your time with your work. Let me know when you’re ready.”
“Hehe, alright. See you later, husband!”
The sky was dyed in the soft hues of dusk. I waited for the young lady at the rear entrance of the Grand Duke’s mansion alongside Lucy. Lucy had been glaring at me with eyes full of dissatisfaction ever since earlier, but I stubbornly ignored her because I simply didn’t feel like dealing with it.
“…Fine. What’s your complaint? Just say it.”
I had originally planned to ignore her until the job was completely over, but her blatant stare was so piercing that I couldn’t take it anymore. I pressed my fingers against my brow and asked.
“Why did you even bring me along? Honestly, you didn’t need me at all. Do you have any idea how much I was trembling in front of that woman, Serin?!”
“…I told you. We’re going to wipe out the noble district branch of the Ashen Scales.”
It was obvious that central nobles were involved, but we lacked clear evidence. The justification provided by the title of “Hero” didn’t carry much weight in this empire, so securing solid proof was essential if we wanted to clean house. The black mages, the Ashen Scales’ noble district branch, and the nobles—those three groups were definitely connected. If we struck the Ashen Scales first, the evidence would naturally surface.
“Yes, I understand that part. But why do I have to go?”
“…Wouldn’t it be good for you to become the branch leader overseeing both of the Ashen Scales’ districts at once?”
“You don’t have to tell me that. You’re planning to wipe out the noble district branch and put me in charge.”
The Ashen Scales. It was an organization I didn’t particularly like, but it would be troublesome if it suddenly vanished. It supported the livelihoods of many people beyond just the back alleys. That was why I had chosen Lucy Heart to stand at the top. She was reasonably competent, reasonably sharp, reasonably strong… and, most importantly, she was the only one among the previous branch leaders who had absolutely no connection whatsoever to the trafficking of children.
“So you still have a complaint?”
“Are you going to keep changing the subject? Wiping them out can be done perfectly fine with just you and that woman!”
She was right. Of course, a branch on the scale of the noble district would likely have a Master-rank expert, but with me and Checire together, we could handle it without much trouble. The reason I was still bringing her along was…
“…Because it’s dangerous to be alone with Checire.”
“…Be honest. What exactly is this ‘price’ you keep talking about?”
Checire’s price. The reason I had been avoiding direct contact with her. It was—
“…A kiss.”
“?”
“—And other forms of physical intimacy….”
The sharp, dissatisfied look in Lucy’s eyes had now completely transformed into one of pure disgust. But what was I supposed to do? It was the truth. We had already progressed to kissing because of the Henvil incident. If I had to pay the price one more time, I couldn’t guarantee how far things would go.
“Ah, I see.”
“….”
“You do realize it’s really unpleasant to hear a man talk about that sort of thing in front of a woman, right?”
I know. I know…
In the past, because I believed I already had people I loved, I had obsessively avoided Checire’s affection. …Of course, right now it was true that I felt more favorably toward her than toward them. Setting love aside, there was no reason for me to look down on Checire as a person. It would be more accurate to say that rather than growing to like her because of my vow for revenge, the others had fallen so far that her presence had risen in comparison.
However, precisely because of that, I tried even harder to refrain from borrowing her strength by taking advantage of her feelings. I couldn’t toy with her heart. Nor did I want to live a life where I casually switched the object of my love so lightly.
“Huhu, husband! Did you wait long?”
“Not at all.”
Soon enough, Checire came running out from inside the mansion dressed in light combat attire. She naturally pressed herself tightly against me, linking her arm with mine, and shot Lucy a look that seemed to ask, What are you staring at?
…Lucy looked at me with an expression that said I really was something else. Yeah, I’ll admit it. Honestly, part of it was just that I was embarrassed.
The heart of the Revanhart Empire—the capital. We returned far faster than when we had gone to the Carbandia territory. Even with the Grand Duke’s permission, I couldn’t keep borrowing Checire’s power for too long. If Lucy hadn’t kept collapsing from exhaustion along the way, we could have returned even quicker.
Since I’m the one who insisted on dragging her along, I have to accept it.
The capital was, quite literally, in complete chaos. Not only had the grand festival the empire had prepared ended in total failure, but the heads of several responsible nobles had rolled as well. No matter how much the imperial authority had declined, the crime of allowing demons to appear in the capital and commit a massacre was enormous.
But that’s not the end of it.
The number of nobles executed this time was exactly two. The noble in charge of festival security and the noble who managed the capital’s stationed troops had been beheaded side by side, their punishment put on full display. To anyone looking, it was clearly a case of “kill the dog after the hunt is over.” In reality, the nobles actually involved couldn’t possibly end with just those two.
If they were going to hang someone’s head, they should have started with the one who oversaw the entire festival.
The emperor must be losing his mind right about now. The picture was so obvious, yet with all his limbs cut off, there was nothing he could do.
The first Revanhart was supposedly such an incredible man. How did his descendants turn out so terribly?
Honestly, I didn’t feel much sympathy. The emperor’s incompetence was simply a fact. Still, the emperor had been the one who had made some effort to look after the Hero from the center. He probably saw restoring imperial power as his only path forward. I had no intention of helping him with that, but…
This time, I’ll dance with the sword for him a little.
“My lady.”
“Yes!”
Checire pulled the string of the Tyrant back with a powerful twang. She was originally a Spear Expert who wielded the holy spear Bryunak. Nevertheless, the Grand Duke had strongly insisted that the Tyrant must be given to Checire.
The other two young lords use swords, he said.
Currently, there were no archers among the direct descendants of Carbandia. So, among them, who possessed the greatest talent for handling a bow?
Zzt— Unlike the simple gusts of wind that Serin had produced, an arrow formed in the shape of a spear crackling with blue lightning. Strictly speaking there were other differences, but both the bow and the spear shared the principle of “penetration.” In other words, regardless of her archery skill, Checire was already intimately familiar with the power to pierce through anything.
“Lucy, cover your ears.”
“Y-yes…!”
When Checire released her hand, an arrow resembling Bryunak shot forward with a thunderous roar. Its target was the main headquarters of the Ashen Scales’ noble district branch. The underground staircase we had reached following Lucy’s guidance led directly there.
Boom—!!
Blue lightning and storm winds smashed through the door in an instant. Soon the entire building shook violently, trembling as if it might collapse at any moment. It was an act that transcended the concept of simply firing an arrow. It was the principle of destroying everything before it with the power of a dragon. It was close to the overwhelming majesty of a Dragon Breath.
In the northern part of the capital, where countless nobles had built their nests—
“That felt refreshing.”
I had drilled one refreshing hole straight through the deeply rooted evil that dwelled there.
“The troops will come rushing in soon, husband.”
“That’s why you came with me, isn’t it?”
“I like that. A wise wife should listen well to her husband, after all.”
Originally, after hearing the full story, Checire had asked if we were going to infiltrate the Ashen Scales. I had simply shaken my head and told her we would start by blowing everything up in spectacular fashion. Stealthy tracking, infiltration, assassination—they were all fine, but honestly, they weren’t to my taste. Besides, since the Ashen Scales was an organization that dealt in information, any clumsy infiltration would be discovered immediately.
“Let’s finish this quickly.”
Roughly thirty minutes. Within that time, we would tear the entire headquarters apart and find the evidence.
“I-is this really okay, Hero…?”
I silently nodded. If we secured proper evidence… the Grand Duke would move personally.