Chapter 12 : Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Behind the mansion of the Count’s House of Lake, a small back mountain where few people ever set foot stood like a folding screen.

The trees grew so densely that if one hid around the mountainside, it was difficult to spot them from inside the mansion.

And now, Owen was hiding halfway up that mountain together with his loyal Escort Knight Robert, glaring at the Count’s House of Lake with eyes as sharp as a viper’s.

Since he had long since grasped the internal layout of the count’s mansion as clearly as the lines in his palm, he could identify which of the many rooms Cain used.

“Now, Robert. It is about time we make a decision, is it not? Should we simply keep waiting until that bastard crawls out on his own? Or should we quietly go in ourselves and drag him out?”

Owen asked with an insidious, cruel smile.

“It would likely be safer to wait, Young Master.”

Robert answered in a voice that sounded somehow reluctant.

“Ha. I suppose even with your skills, sneaking into the mansion and taking care of one good-for-nothing bastard is too much for you? Was your rank as a Mid-Level Sword Expert Knight nothing but an empty title?”

Owen said with a slight sneer, deliberately scraping at his pride.

“That is not the case. However, it may be difficult to deal with him quietly without leaving any traces. If by any chance we are discovered….”

Robert added, as though making an excuse.

Robert Stephan.

He was a recognized expert, acknowledged by both himself and others, who had already come close to the realm of High-level Sword Expert.

He was one of the strongest individuals in this region.

Although the Count’s House of Lake had fallen, it was still, in name, the mansion of a count’s house.

There might not be a single powerful individual there capable of stopping Robert, but even so, there was nothing wrong with being as careful as possible in case of an emergency.

If they were discovered, things would become troublesome in many ways.

The particular problem was the count’s genius second son, Simon.

“Tsk. Then there is no helping it. We will have to sit around here and wait a little longer.”

Owen grumbled in irritation.

A deep wrinkle formed between his brows.

“No, I do not think there is any need for that. We will welcome the guests in his place.”

At that very moment, an unfamiliar voice came from a place they had not expected at all.

It was a clear and melodious voice, yet somehow it had a strangely irritating quality that grated on the nerves.

Startled, Robert reflexively drew the sword at his waist and sharply glared in the direction of the voice with Killing Intent in his eyes.

Tense alertness ran through his entire body like an electric current.

And there stood an elf he had never seen before, looking at them with a sly, playful smile on her face, as though she were deliberately provoking them.

“You… who are you?”

Robert asked in a growling voice, without lowering his guard.

“Ho ho. If you are asking who I am, I am Seirei, the beautiful, sacred, and even merciful Heresy Inquisitor who faithfully protects my noble lord…….”

By the time they realized it, words were once again pouring endlessly from Seirei’s mouth like a waterfall.

“What the hell is that crazy bitch? Where did that worthless mongrel crawl out from?”

Owen muttered in disbelief.

“It seems our plan has been exposed, Young Master. That elf is no ordinary opponent. We should leave this place quickly, even now.”

Robert proposed urgently.

His instincts were sending him a danger signal.

“Leave? Leave where? Stop talking nonsense and deal with that lunatic bitch right now. Rip out that tongue of hers.”

Owen shouted, his irritation turning into rage.

His patience had long since hit rock bottom.

At Owen’s firm command, Robert reluctantly shook his head, adjusted his grip on his sword, and charged fiercely toward Seirei.

From the tip of his sword, sharp and lethal Killing Intent burst forth like a flash of light.

However, Seirei merely watched Robert rush toward her with an indifferent expression, as if she were looking at a roadside pebble, and leisurely crossed her arms.

Not even the slightest hint of tension or fear could be found on her face.

“Oho! You are quite a bit faster than I expected. So this is the level of your skill. Among the people I have met since coming here, you do seem to be the strongest…….”

She lightly avoided Robert’s attack and continued speaking calmly.

“Impudent wench. Focus on the fight.”

Robert shouted, feeling unbearable rage at Seirei’s attitude, which seemed to thoroughly disregard him.

As though he intended to settle the match from the very beginning, he wrapped his sword in Sword Aura infused with all his strength and swung it fiercely at her.

The Sword Aura cut through the air, producing a sharp scream as it tore the space apart.

“Ah, but I am honestly curious. With your level of skill, about what level would you be considered in this place……?”

Seirei lightly avoided Robert’s sword strike merely by twisting her body slightly, as if she were dancing.

Her movements were incredibly smooth and elegant.

And even in the midst of that, her mouth did not stop for even a single instant.

Facing such a Seirei, Robert truly felt as though he was going to lose his mind.

It felt as though a thousand fires were boiling inside him.

‘Am I dreaming right now?’

He was confused by the unbelievable reality before him.

He was undoubtedly a true expert among experts, one who stood on the verge of reaching the realm of High-level Sword Expert and had no rival in this region.

He had always been confident that as long as he filled in the small amount of mana he still lacked, he could cross the wall into the high level at any time.

And yet, was he truly being toyed with to this extent by some unidentified elf wench?

Moreover, his opponent was still acting leisurely with her arms crossed.

He felt an unbearable sense of shame and humiliation.

“Robert! What do you think you are doing? Stop fooling around and hurry up and deal with that woman. Tear apart that cursed mouth of hers.”

Owen’s irritated urging from behind was like pouring oil onto Robert’s boiling rage.

“Grrgh! I will not forgive you, you arrogant wench.”

Robert’s eyes flashed with Killing Intent.

Without hesitating any longer, he began drawing the mana throughout his body to its limit in order to use his strongest and most destructive Secret Technique.

The air around him grew heavy and distorted, beginning to churn like the calm before a storm.

Seirei looked at Robert like that and still moved her mouth, grinning like a demon.

“Oh my. Standing still so openly and gathering power in the middle of a fight is practically the same as advertising, ‘please kill me~,’ is it not……?”

Robert even felt the illusion that blood was pouring from his ears.

Seirei’s irritating voice persistently burrowed into his ears like a curse.

“Dieeeee!”

At last, Robert completed all his preparations and was just about to activate his Skill with all his might.

Before he knew it, Seirei had uncrossed her arms and, in the blink of an eye—no, before one could even blink—appeared directly in front of Robert and lightly grabbed his shoulder.

Then she applied force, truly ever so lightly, as though brushing dust from his shoulder.

With a choked cry, Robert dropped to his knees on the spot.

His sword fell weakly to the ground.

“G-Ggh…! W-What… is this… absurd… strength…!”

It was an unimaginable grip strength.

In the midst of the agonizing pain that felt as though his shoulder bone were being crushed, Robert desperately struggled to move and escape.

However, as if he were pinned beneath a gigantic boulder, his body could not move even slightly.

In the face of that overwhelming difference in strength, resistance was meaningless.

“Ho ho ho! God’s Authority dwells in these hands. In other words, a foolish and irreverent person like you can be subdued by this very body with a single hand…….”

Along with Seirei’s long, drawn-out sermon, dazzling white light erupted violently from her hand.

Wrapped in that holy beam of light, Robert could no longer resist at all and slowly lost consciousness before collapsing.

After confirming that Owen’s loyal knight had fallen powerlessly, Seirei turned toward Owen in satisfaction and grinned eerily once again.

Her eyes were cold and brutal, like those of a predator before its prey.

“Well… now you are the only one left, are you not?”

At that moment, Owen’s legs began trembling violently, as though they had been caught in an earthquake.

He was seized by an extreme fear he had never felt in his life.

He felt as if he might wet himself.

* * *

After receiving Seirei’s signal, Sharon and I immediately moved to where she was.

And there, just as expected, were two men lying sprawled unconscious on the ground.

They were Owen and his Escort Knight, Robert.

“…As expected, it was you, Owen.”

I murmured coldly.

“From the looks of it, they seem to have been hiding here in secret while aiming for My Lord…….”

Seirei continued speaking at length while exaggerating her own achievements.

“Good grief! You noisy elf! Why do you babble so much? Would it kill you to shut up and stay still? My ears are going to bleed.”

Sharon cut off Seirei’s words in an irritated voice.

“What? What did you just say? You accursed witch…….”

Seirei snapped back sharply, refusing to lose.

“Both of you, stop.”

I held my throbbing head and spoke in a low voice.

“This is the first warning. There will not be a next one.”

They had clearly promised not to fight in front of me, yet these Summoned Creatures of mine seemed to possess not even a speck of self-control.

There truly was not a single quiet moment.

However, now was not the time to pay attention to their childish argument.

I looked down coldly at Owen and Robert, who were lying unconscious on the ground, and spoke.

“First, shall we wake those two up?”

“Yes, sir! I will wake them at once.”

As if she intended to vent her frustration in the process of waking them, Seirei answered excitedly.

“No, wait a moment.”

Sharon stepped forward and stopped Seirei.

At Sharon’s interference, Seirei glared at her with Killing Intent in her eyes, but Sharon calmly ignored that piercing gaze and spoke coldly.

“What are you going to do if you wake them up without any preparations and those bastards suddenly start thrashing around? I will first place a powerful Paralysis Curse on them so they will not be able to budge even after they regain consciousness. Wait quietly.”

A black, ominous energy slowly flowed out of Sharon’s body like a snake and seeped into the bodies of the two men sprawled on the ground.

“There. It is done now. You can wake them up.”

As if she had been waiting for those words, Seirei began prodding the heads of the two fallen men with her foot to wake them.