———


  Even if I do say so myself, I believe my life was tumultuous.

  The torture in the pretext of training, being taken around everywhere in conflict areas with a ‘going for a stroll’ frame of mind.

  During those turbulent days, I had become United Japan’s 37th Special Covert Operative… …the so called ‘Agent’.

  Thereupon I met my comrade, and together, I continued to fight.

  Spending all of my time fighting, at around the time I had passed 50 years of age, I retired and became an educator for the next generation.

  ‘Education’ was something that was difficult, but I believe that the days that I spent engrossed in it were enjoyable.

  During those pleasant days, behind the scenes, a certain shadow organisation proceeded with secret maneuvering to have the world subverted.

  The people who were to obstruct that shadow organisation’s size of an enterprise were, after great consideration, cautiously chosen.

  And then… …I was selected.

  I once possessed skills that made a name for me in the world; the selection is the result of my credibility and achievements.

  But in reality, ‘it’s a retired ossan, so there’s little harm in it, even in the worst case scenario where he dies’… …is an afterthought based on the organisation-esque calculations of profits and loss.

  ‘No matter how you look at it, it’s a conspiracy’… …is how my comrade objected, but I accepted that.

  It is because if I succeed with the elimination of the target, my comrade was promised to become part of the organisation’s senior management.

  After being made to make a blood-sealed pledge, I make preparations, and attempt the operation.

  The result… …I am dead.

  Although it was a drawn out telling, I want you to think of me as having had spent a life that was by far, widely removed from those ordinary people. Having also gotten older, I take pride in having an iron heart that is not perturbed by ordinary occurrences.

  And yet… …I am shamefully flustered.

  “Au―, Auaua―!”


  Why have I become a baby!

  Even though that’s what I wanted to yell, probably as this body’s vocal cords aren’t developed, even words are impossible. These surprisingly tiny hands and feet, this body which won’t move to my satisfaction even though it is my own body. Despite being an absurd state of affairs, I somehow clearly understand that I had become a baby.

  No matter how optimistically I had lived my life in my previous existence, these state of affairs are unacceptable.

  As my confused self and composed self quarrel with one another, a shadow is cast over my face.

  “———……——……—”


  A woman is looking at me and speaking.

  However, without my undeveloped ears successfully picking up the words, I don’t even know what is being said.

  Calm down, let’s try to sort out the situation a bit. With composure, I quickly and accurately transition to analysis. To calm myself, I look back through my memories.

  At what probably became my last operation, I disposed of the man who was the target, but I had myself suffered a fatal wound. Escape had become impossible, and to also include the destruction of evidence, I chose to to disappear together with the building.

  When I awoke, I was a baby.

  … …yea, I’ve calmed down but ultimately I don’t get it. Even though I undoubtedly should have died, for some reason I became a baby. That I had gone through [Reincarnation] makes sense but, why do I still have my ego and memories?

  Moreover, despite being able to recall the life I had led, I can’t recall the names of my former comrade and apprentices. The pinpoint holes in my memories, the situation in which I couldn’t obtain any information, and this body. In the present condition, I am unable to come up with answers no matter how much I think about it, and there’s also nobody that can give me answers either.

  Stopping at the thought of ‘anything more than this is useless’, for the time being I tried observing the person in front of my eyes.

  A woman with grey hair tied up in a bundle behind her head, with sky blue eyes.

  There are a few wrinkles on her face, so she was probably approximately past marriageable age, but all flattery aside, she is thoroughly a beautiful person. If I wasn’t a baby, I may have made advances on her.

  However, I wonder why she is wearing maid clothing? Cosplay? No, from her appearance, is this a foreign country? While I was absentmindedly thinking, she gently held me up in her arms, and started to hum something that sounded like a lullaby. I don’t understand the contents nor the words. But at her gaze filled with kindness directed at me and the restful rhythm of the humming, my awareness becomes distant.

  Although there’s a heap of things that I must consider, without resisting the pleasant feeling, I let go of my consciousness.

  One month had lapsed since I had awoken.

  The world that I know of is still this room only.

  Approximately 6.5 tatami in space, there was nothing but the low-height bed which I slept on, a table and a closet. This room that doesn’t even have any books, can be summed up perfectly in one word; dreary. The material of the coverlet also has a slightly harsh texture, and with the various other things, there’s a somewhat out of date feel to it.

  Well now, it was a month where I did nothing but eat and sleep, but my body is developing favourably.

  Unlike before when sounds were difficult to hear, as if coming from a broken speaker, my ears had also become able to clearly distinguish sounds. And although I can’t walk yet, I have become able to move my body somewhat. However, inversely proportional to that, fuel consumption had exceedingly worsened. In other words, I had become hungry.

  If it were as usual, the food arrives with the best timing, as if you’d question whether they were surveilling me, but today of all days, it’s late. ‘I must think up some kind of plan for this’… …I had started to think of countermeasures, and at around time, the door opened.

  It was the entrance of the grey haired maid-san who is taking care of me. Speaking of that, even though a month has gone by, I haven’t seen anybody else other than this maid-san, have I?

  “———……——————”


  Yep, as usual I don’t know what she’s saying. My ears had become able to hear what they are saying, but I’m completely ignorant of the language. As I had flown about throughout the world in my previous life, I was proficient with languages, but not one of those languages has any consistency with this one.

  However it’s not that big of a deal. As long as I’m listening, I’ll probably eventually remember it, so I decide that ‘now is the time to prioritise the meal’.

  “——? ——————”


  Oh? It appears that today there’s not only grey-haired maid-san but one more person.

  Let me see…I wonder what kind of person—…………whah?

  “——, ———, ———”


  The grey haired maid-san gave instructions to the other person and left the room.

  No no, wait a moment. Who on earth is this woman who is approaching me with a smile on her whole face? She’s wearing maid clothes, so she probably came to help take care of me, but there’s a point I sort of want to retort to.

  This girl, why in the world does she have [cat ears] on?

  Seemingly full of life, her age is probably somewhere between a young lady and an adult. With red hair in a ponytail, she is a considerably adorable girl. But the cat ears on her head bothers me. It’s not that I particularly dislike them, but the first thing that comes to mind is a cosplay cafe. That’s what came to mind but, no matter how you look at it, these ears are moving. And even with a lovely *blip blop*.

  “——, ———?”


  Moving the surprised me, the girl in front of me held out a spoon with the food on it. As there isn’t a baby bottle or anything, I am being fed this way with a spoon.

  I still have questions, but I’m hungry so I decide to eat. Although, it’s something like milk with some kind of food mixed in it and doesn’t really taste nice.

  “——! ————”


  Every time I eat from the spoon, she squirms delightfully.

  It’s a bit annoying, but for the time being, I devoted myself to eating silently.

  Although the meal had ended, cat ears-san was smiling and gazing at me without getting tired of it. You’re one of those people aren’t you? The type of person who has a weakness for cute things, right? Although, as there are no mirrors here, I don’t even know whether my appearance is cute or not. Leaving aside my appearance, now that my stomach is now bloated, let’s resolve one question shall we?

  Honestly, are those cat ears real?

  I point at the cat ears and try to appeal to her that I wanted her to let me touch them. No, not grab your finger, your ears for crying out loud. Even though she thinks about it for a little bit, cat ears-san brings her head closer and let me touch her ears. Yep, warm. I tried checking as far as the roots, but they’re definitely growing from her head. This is real, this is.

  “——! ——,——————,——……”


  I’m immersed in an indescribable feeling, and cat ears-san claps her hands as if she had thought of something. She closes her eyes, raises her index finger and with a *murmur murmur*, is muttering something.

  “———!”


  Right after having uttered a cry with her fighting spirit, at that instant, a flame suddenly appeared at her fingertip.

  ……eh, fire? But there’s no lighter or anything, from where exactly did the flame? Ahh I see, is it something like a sleight of hand? But I don’t think ‘fire’ is something that becomes such a beautiful sphere and floats in mid-air.

  “———?”


  I’m confused over here, and in front of me cat ears-san is happily rotating her finger.

  While the sphere of fire is doing impossible movements and is matching that rotation, it flew about in cat ears-san’s surroundings. I can’t find any trick-like objects.

  Is this possibly [Magic]… …maybe?

  “——!”


  “—!?”


  At the same time as that conclusion arose within me, grey haired maid-san returned.

  Having realised that, cat ears-san’s movements stop, and at the same time the sphere of fire also disappeared. Without speaking, grey haired maid-san beckons over cat ears-san. With a scary ‘come here’ smiling face. The ears and the tail of the cat ears-san that was heading that way is dejectedly drooping; it was somehow soothing.

  Cat ears or tails which don’t exist on normal humans, and the existence of magic.

  Things that absolutely didn’t exist in my previous life where the whole world had been unravelled.

  I had presumably stepped away from intellection, but it seems that I must soon obediently accept reality.

  This is… …nooot Earth.

  Three months since I woke up.

  My neck is steady, crawling movement was possible.

  When the pair of maids aren’t watching, I break out from bed’s fencing, and devoting myself to gathering information from my surroundings; it’s how I’m spending my time everyday.

  Making various rounds like that, I was deepening my understanding of the current situation anew. I confirmed that this isn’t Earth, and as there are things such as magic, it’s probably okay to call it an [other world].

  Well well, that the [other world reincarnation] that my otaku colleague had spoken so much about would happen to me. Although I have already died once, ‘life’ is something incomprehensible.

  The level of civilization here is, if in Earth terms, probably closest to Europe’s Middle Ages. Among other things, candles are the main for light and there’s no trace of things like electrical appliances so it seems inconvenient, but instead, there’s magic.

  I move in search of new discoveries, but it’ll be meal time before long.

  I decide to return to my room before maid-san comes. Today it’s probably cat ears-san’s turn to come.

  “Here we are, it’s time to eat. I’ll feed you a lot. Aaan?.”


  Oh yeah, I had finally become able to understand the previously incomprehensible language. It’s probably also due to the learning speed of a baby, but I think it’s largely thanks to this cat ears-san. As this girl is immensely officious and at the same time loquacious, she comes to speak to me, to the extent of being arduous. If one is covered in the native language, then its acquisition is also fast. Being able to understand the language, naturally I also confirmed my name.

  Sirius… …that is my new name.

  The actual situation is unknown, but thus I gained a new life.

  My name in my previous life has disappeared, but so long as I have my ‘self’, I think i’ll live properly as ‘Sirius’. I might be saying something cool, but the me in reality is in the position of being fed by someone else, so there is a discrepancy.

  “I wonder if the meal is finished?”


  Grey haired maid-san, amended to Erina-san, came to check up on me. With her impeccable outfit, she has on the captivating presence of an expert maid today too. Although she’s probably younger than I was in my previous life, holding respect for the other party when they’re a professional is my own way of thinking.

  “Ah, yes. At any rate, Sirius-sama eats neatly doesn’t he? Although I had heard that babies meals were harder to handle?”


  “It’s probably true for normal children, but Sirius-sama is special. He will undoubtedly make a name for himself in the future.”


  An expert maid, but somewhat containing a doting parent.

  I had certainly considered whether Erina-san was my parent, but after hearing conversations it seems like she’s not. Her speech and conduct is that of towards one’s superiors, and I have the feeling that she’s closer to a lady-in-waiting rather than a maid. For that reason, the ‘doting parent’ expression is also a bit strange, but the eyes aimed this way are completely the eyes of a parent. Considering my age, rather than a doting attendant, there’s no mistake, it’s the expression of a doting parent.

  “I know right. It’s almost as if he understands my words. Aah, even so, he’s really adorable.”


  The name of cat ears-san who is entranced with me, is Noel-san.

  She’s in the middle of her maid training at Erina-san’s side, but she still has a long way to go, as she hasn’t left her age-appropriate childishness.

  “I wonder how soon he’ll call me ‘onee-chan’? Ah, but ‘onee-sama’ is also difficult to give up…”


  Yep, this girl is fine without an honorific title.

  “The meal is over now, right? I’ll ask that you do the cleaning next.”


  “Understood!”


  Noel gives a reply filled with vigor. From behind her, Erina-san comes and affectionately holds me in her arms, and left the room with me. Heading towards the entranceway as is, it had been decided that I am going outside for the first time in my life.

  I don’t know whether this world has four seasons or not, but outside the weather is fair and warm. It seems as if I were to take something like an afternoon nap, it’d be comfortable.

  “Today the weather is warm, isn’t it? Let’s take a stroll outside for a bit shall we?”


  “Ai—”


  “Yes, please leave it to me.”


  Brought along by Erina-san, we take a leisurely stroll around the house.

  The exterior of the house is a splendid two-storied wooden construction. There are six rooms, and I think it’s a house a bit more spacious than the average house. As they add a [-sama] to my name when they address me, I’m thinking that I’m living in a mansion as an upper class noble. This yard is quite large, and in several places the planted vegetable gardens, trees and shrubs were neatly arranged.

  And then after going around the house once, I incidentally notice it. But this house, it’s perimeter is completely covered by the forest and not one sign of other residences can be found? At best, there’s only a maintained path that continues ahead of a main gate-esque structure, and what was left of the surroundings, the forest is the only thing visible. It’s the kind of remote region that can’t be passed off as a rural area.

  I occasionally see a rabbit that has sprouted horns, jumping out from the thicket, making me believe that ‘this is really another world isn’t it…’.

  “Sirius-sama, that is called a [Horabi]. It has a timid disposition, but it is a monster so you must not approach it.”


  Yeaah, although I had expected it ever since I was aware that ‘there is magic’, sure enough it’s a world with monsters isn’t it?

  It seems that it’s usual for there to be things like dragons and other creatures which were just imaginary in my previous life, so it seems like it’s better if I start training my body from tomorrow onwards. Should I stop pretending to be a baby to some small extent and start training? If I show them that I can crawl after a while and they get used to the speed of my development, any distrust of the abnormal development thereafter will also probably fade. It would be ideal if, one month after I become able to walk, they’d smile and watch over me even if I jogged.

  “……Erina-sama.”


  “Ara, is the pruning complete perhaps? ”


  “Yes.”


  Turning towards the voice, an onii-san with pruning shears in his work clothes appeared from between the trees.

  To me, he is the third human discovered.

  He was a young man with short brown hair and sharp eyes, he was also tall and in some respects engendered a ‘difficult to approach atmosphere’. If it was someone he was meeting for the first time, it seems like they would hesitate before accosting him.

  “Apus have grown. Let’s bring some out for today’s evening meal.”


  “Is that so? It’s Noel’s favourite food, so she will jump up and down with delight.”


  “Yes.”


  Perhaps he is not good at speaking with others, his words are few and direct. As his expression has not changed one bit for a while now, if it was the previous world, he would definitely be certified as having communication sickness.

  Perhaps she knew that I’m observing him, Erina-san introduced Dee to me.

  “Sirius-sama, this is Dee Mas. He’s our house’s gardener and chef.”


  “Erina-sama, it’s impossible for a baby to understand…”


  “That might be true, but if I don’t properly introduce you in advance…”


  “…..that’s true. Please call me Dee, Sirius-sama.”


  “Ai—”


  “!?”


  He probably didn’t think that I would reply, Dee’s expression slightly fell apart.

  It’s really meaningless, but I feel like I won.

  “……looking forward to the future right?”


  “Yeah, truly.”


  The pair’s eyes narrow, their gazes converge.

  The future……huh. If I was able to speak at this stage, I’d say something like ‘to be ready for any troubles that may occur, I’ll train my body’. Before that, there’s no sign of the people that would be the most involved in my future.

  I’ve never seen them, and since there aren’t anything like photos, I don’t even know their faces.

  As if avoiding it intentionally, the topic hasn’t come up at all. I also am pretending not to have noticed, but it’s suspicious enough.

  My parents—I wonder where they are?

  Volume 11 Intermission: The [G] Appears

  — Noel —


  Three months have passed since Sirius-sama’s departure.

  Our family is in good health and [Erina’s DIning Room] is prospering.

  Speaking of things that have changed, isn’t that my tummy?

  My tummy hasn’t bulged out yet, but as Sirius-sama said, there was a baby in my tummy, and I was able to notice it a few days after Sirius-sama’s departed.

  Recently, I can’t help always being hungry, but my husband diligently prepares the meals, and I have no complaints. He prepares various meals, so that I won’t get tired of the taste. He’s truly the best husband.

  By the way, I thought of having Sirius-sama as the godfather for the second child, but as I expected, he declined that privilege again.

  When I think about it, I have decided to name the child Dylan if the baby is a boy. And if the baby is girl, I want to use the name that I had thought before Noir was born.

  My husband, Dee, seems to have it hard. He has to manage the dining room and prepare my meals every day and recently, he is busy teaching Noir how to cook.

  It seems hard, but he is completely replenished when he talks to the baby while stroking my belly at night. However, I think the fatigue has been accumulating, so I try to make him rest whenever possible. I also diligently support him, you know?

  And when today’s business is over, I will clean up the dining room and Noir’s special training will begin before we turn off the fire in the kitchen.

  “Let’s cut the meat and vegetables today. When working with knives, please don’t be careless.” (Dee)

  “Got it.” (Noir)

  “When you answer, say ‘yes’.” (Dee)

  “Yes!” (Noir)

  When I look at Noir, who is learning how to cook for Reus-kun, I remember the past Emi-chan. At that time… No, even now, Emi-chan worked hard to become a splendid attendant, since she is engrossed with Sirius-sama.

  Noir is not training in the direction of having good strength, like Sirius-sama’s disciples, but I think that I want to raise her to become someone who can support someone even without having strength, similar like Erina-san. Especially for the thickheaded Reus-kun, she has to ‘push’ strongly.

  At a glance, Dee-san seems to be seriously strict when teaching, but he is undeniably pleased when teaching Noir about cooking. I am his wife, so I know.

  However, he seems to have complicated feelings, since the other side is Reus-kun. Sometimes, while he is drinking, he grumbles… that he doesn’t want to let his daughter go. It’s not that I don’t understand his feelings, but I think Reus-kun will make Noir-chan happy. So, please be patient, dear.

  Those days have continued and on that day… that person came.

  —


  I’m on my third month of pregnancy, but it’s still fine for me to move my body. And I help as a waitress whenever it’s reasonable.

  Today as well, when I suggested meals while having light conversations with the regulars, the visiting bell rang and a new customer came in. Since I was in the kitchen at that time, Nokia seemed to be heading out soon but… she seemed somewhat strange.

  “Wel……come…” (Nokia)

  What happened? I heard only one voice, but Nokia’s demeanor was strange. She had met various adventurers until now, so she shouldn’t be shaken from seeing an ordinary opponent, but… who the heck came?

  When I came to the interior of the store, Nokia-chan had finished guiding the customer to their seat.

  When I turned my eyes to look at what kind of person it was… he was a very big Ojii-san.

  Although he lost one of his eyes, he was an Ojii-san with thick muscles, like a log, and sharp eyes equal to Dee-san’s. Let alone the appearance, the body itself was big, and it made me feel that other adventurers that I had seen until now were similar to children. In reality, other customers that sat around were dumbfoundedly staring at the Ojii-san.

  Besides, there was a greatsword as tall as himself that was put on the side chair, but he was lifting the greatsword, which seemed nothing but a lump of steel, with one hand.

  Nokia-chan was likely to lose at the impressiveness of such an Ojii-san, but she, somehow, endured it and showed the menu on the table.

  “Well… give me all the dishes in this store.” (??) (TLN: I put ?? for the time being, and you know why)

  …This was the first time for such an order.

  I immediately came to her side, since Nokia-chan turned her eyes as soon as he said that. There was no other way, please leave it to your Onee-chan.

  “Welcome. I’m sorry, but can you order again, please?” (Noel)

  “I want all the dishes on this menu.” (??)

  “Everything… is it?” (Noel)

  Nokia-chan was overwhelmed by the Ojii-san’s impressiveness, but I was able to think calmly since I was somehow used to it because of Sirius-sama.

  He asked for all of them, but since it was almost time to close the store, it was difficult to prepare them… and when I was thinking that, the Ojii-chan somehow noticed my thoughts, and then he placed a pouch from his waist onto the table.

  “Is it about the money? If it is, I think this should be enough, right?” (??)

  When he spread out the contents of the pouch in a casual manner, gold coins were spread on the table with a jingling sound.

  What should I do…? As expected, I also became unrest. I slightly looked at them for the time being, there were dozens of gold coins, and after I roughly calculated the price of the dishes, I only picked up some gold coins.

  “Uhmm… the dishes here are not that expensive, so these are enough.” (Noel)

  “Is that so? I don’t care if you take them all. No matter whom I heard it from, everyone says that they’re delicious, so I’m looking forward to this.” (??)

  While the Ojii-san said he was looking forward to them, he put away the remaining gold coins and laughed heartily. I think that I can definitely respond to his expectations since it is Dee-san’s dishes, but I want him to wait a bit.

  This feeling of not understanding common sense… although I am meeting him for the first time, he seems closely similar to a child who had a similar behavior and appearance.

  When I was wondering who, Nokia-chan whispered to my ear.

  “Isn’t this person somewhat similar to Reus-kun?” (Nokia)

  Yeah, it is Reus-kun!

  The muscles were terribly big on his large body, and the presence of him holding the greatsword that was as tall as him was exactly like Reus-kun. And, his lack of common sense when treating gold coins like stones… I was certain that this person was related to Sirius-sama.

  If I remember right, in the past, Sirius-sama said that he met the ‘Strongest Sword’, Lior, and I heard that Reus-kun was taught swordsmanship by that ‘Strongest Sword’.

  In short, this person is…


  “Excuse me, I’m sorry about this, but I would like to know if, by any chance, are you the ‘Strongest Sword’, Lior-sama?” (Noel)

  “No, I am said to resemble him, but I’m not the ‘Strongest Sword’. My name is Ikkitousen, just a traveler.” (??)

  The surroundings were surprised when they heard about the ‘Strongest Sword’, but they were obviously dejected when it was denied by the Ojii-san. When listening about the ‘Strongest Sword’, I think it is natural for most people wanting to meet him, since he is the strongest.

  But, I thought that there was no mistake. Perhaps, he was trying to hide his name? If that’s the case, I decided to change the conversation a bit and asked with a lower voice.

  “Well then, do you know Sirius-sama? He is a black-haired kid, who is very good at cooking and very strong…” (Noel)

  “Where did you hear that name?” (??)

  “I am Sirius-sama’s attendant, and Reus-kun’s senior.” (Noel)

  “Hohou! You are related to that guy and that kid, huh… I didn’t expect to see you in such a place.” (??)

  “So, after all, you are…” (Noel)

  “Hmmm. You are correct, but keep it a secret.” (Lior)

  There was no doubt that this person is Lior-sama. I don’t what the reason was for hiding his name, but let’s match with him for the time being.

  When I tried to continue the conversation further, Nokia-chan poked my shoulder.

  “Nee-chan, I know that he is your acquaintance, but we have work to do.” (Nokia)

  “Oops, that’s not good. Uhmm, since it will take some time to cook it altogether, will it be alright if you have one dish at a time?” (Noel)

  “I don’t mind. If you are related to that guy, I expect that the meals are tasty. I’m looking forward to them.” (Lior)

  We both wanted to ask each other, but I immediately left him, since I was still working, and headed to the kitchen to give the order.

  Dee-san was also surprised when I told him everything, but since he understood that he was an acquaintance of Sirius-sama, he cooked enthusiastically.

  Since I thought of asking him the details later, when I brought the first meal, Erina’s Sandwich, I asked him to stay even after we closed the shop.

  “Got it. I also have something I want to ask.” (Lior)

  “Thank you very much. Well, here’s the main dish of the house, Erina’s Sandwich.” (Noel)

  “Ooo, this is it! It’s nostalgic. That guy always brought it for me.” (Lior)

  Lior-sama ate a piece in one bite with a loosened face. Yeah… like Sirius-sama said, he is a really wonderful person.

  Oops, I can’t look at this situation leisurely. He will finish eating soon.

  “Onee-chan, I’m bringing the curry. I will take care of the other customers, so please take care of him.” (Nokia)

  “As I expected of you, Nokia-chan!” (Noel)

  “It’s alright. It is about time that customers are starting to go home, too. Onee-chan, please don’t overdo it.” (Nokia)

  Since the closing hour was approaching, the number of people started to decrease. Because of that, I entrusted everything to Nokia-chan, without hesitation, and I decided to concentrate on Lior-sama.

  “Here is the curry. It is a bit spicy, but it is delicious.” (Noel)

  “What is this? It is a strange dish with white seeds in the green soup… delicious! Give me the next one!” (Lior)

  “So fast!?” (Noel)

  Since he already finished eating as I went back to pick up the next dish, this was more difficult than I expected. This was repeated several times even after the closing hour, even when there was no other customer.

  After that, I could concentrate on Lior-sama, and when I brought a dish of substantial quantity… an unexpected sight was spread on the table.

  “And then, Reus-sama swung around his sword and rescued me!” (Noir)

  “Hohou, that boy is doing well, isn’t he?” (Lior)

  For some reason, Noir-chan was sitting and talking face-to-face with Lior-sama.

  She is shy person when seeing strangers, so it was unusual for her to approach the other person whom she has met for the first time. Does she feel the air that resembles Reus-kun?

  But whenever Noir-chan couldn’t accept Lior-sama’s answers, she began to get angry while hitting the desk several times.

  “He is not ‘that boy’, he is Reus-sama! Call his name properly!” (Noir)

  “You know, I will only call the name of the people that I approve. Sorry, but just give it up.” (Lior)

  “Reus-sama, Reus-sama, RE-U-S-sama!” (Noir)

  “Nuoohh… forgive me, Ojou-chan.” (Lior)

  As expected of my daughter. Although he is the ‘Strongest Sword’, she ‘won’ over him. While I endured the feelings that were erupting from my chest, I went between them and offered him a meal.

  “Thank you for waiting, here’s the next dish. And, I’m sorry that my child has become a hindrance.” (Noel)

  “Nah, I don’t mind. Anyway, this is also delicious. The dishes in this store are the best.” (Lior)

  “I know, right?! Otou-san’s dishes are the best!” (Noir)

  “Yeah, the best of the best. Hahaha!” (Lior)

  Somehow, these two are strangely compatible with each other.

  From the story that I heard from Reus-kun, I was told that he was a dangerous Ojii-san who swings the sword, but the feeling I have right now is that he is just an ordinary Ojii-san who thinks about his grandchild.

  While Nokia-chan cleaned up the store’s interior while straining her ears, Dee-san came out from the kitchen and came in front of us. As I expected, he was not only preparing drinks for Lior-sama, but for us, too.

  “This is the first time I’ve met you. My name is Deemas, I am Sirius-sama’s attendant.” (Dee)

  “Hou, are you the one who made the dishes? It tastes really great.” (Lior)

  “Thank you very much. The most important thing is that you are satisfied.” (Dee)

  “Hmm, I am satisfied. Well, is the next dish ready yet?” (Lior)

  “I will go back to cook, so please wait a bit.” (Dee)

  He had eaten portions for dozens of people, and yet he didn’t feel like giving up. Reese-chan also eat that much. The people who gathered around Sirius-sama really eat a lot.

  After that, he ate a big bowl of udon that’s big for our family, and, finally, Lior-sama was satisfied…


  “I’d be troubling you if I have any more than this, so I will stop. I will ask for the rest of the dishes tomorrow.” (Lior)

  …And he wasn’t done yet.

  However, he seemed pleased after eating so many delicious dishes. He laughed and drank the wine in a cup poured by Dee-san.

  We finished our work and meal, and then we finally settled down and were able to talk. Our whole family held a drink, brought chairs to Lior-sama’s table and shared the table with him.

  “Well then, I would like to introduce us once again. My name is Noel, and this here’s Noir.” (Noel)

  “I am Noir. Nice to meet you, Ojii-chan.” (Noir)

  “Ojii-chan… uhmm. Not good, not good. I think you guys already know. I am called the ‘Strongest Sword’, Lior. As I told you earlier, but now call me Ikkitousen.” (Lior)

  ““Ehh!?” (Alad/Nokia)

  Nokia-chan and Alad, who were standing nearby, were making noises. Aah, yes. It was reasonable for those two, since they don’t know that Sirius-sama is an acquaintance of Lior-sama.

  Alad was the loudest one… when he shouted, but Lior-sama was laughing when he heard him.

  “Hahaha! I am not the strongest anymore. The present me is no more than an old man who is challenging the new strongest. Until then, call me either Ikkitousen or Tousen.” (Lior)

  I see, the name is different because he was defeated and reborn. Since it was confusing, I think it is fine to call him Lior-sama, but I should be careful when it comes to speaking in front of others.

  And then, he was happy… he talked about his encounter with Sirius-sama until he was defeated by him, but he was somehow in a good mood when he talked about his harsh experience in the past.

  Even if he is Sirius-sama’s acquaintance, will it be alright to talk about this to us, who he met for the first time? No, the story itself was exciting.

  “Uhmm, is it alright to tell us about your past and your defeat?” (Noel?)

  “Fortunately, it is not something to hide. Well, if I want to put it in words, I was weak and he was strong… that is all there is to that story.” (Lior)

  “In short, Ojii-chan is trying to win because you lost against Sirius-sama?” (Noir)

  “Hmmm! That is correct. Ojou-chan is quick to understand, and I’m saved from the explanation. And also, call me Ojii-chan some more.” (Lior)

  Noir-chan took a deep breath, expanding her chest. As expected of Noir-chan… I want to praise her, but I need to teach her that she can’t say that to the person she meets for the first time.

  I’m glad that Lior-sama is a wonderful person, but bad adventurers might kill her without hesitation.

  “Well, that was the story of me and that guy. If you don’t mind, can you tell me about you and your master, too?” (Lior)

  “Understood. We were with Sirius-sama since he was born, and…” (Noel)

  And then, I explained our relationship with Sirius-sama. If Lior-sama talked about it to that extent, we can’t lose in terms of that.

  I cried when he asked, and I also cried when I told the story. Starting with the meeting after Aria-sama gave birth, instead of teaching him, we got taught by him. And then, I also talked about the farewell of Erina-san.

  “Previously, I thought that such a person could not exist, but that person reminded me that it was a mistake when I met him in person.” (Noel)

  “I also wanted to learn a lot more…” (Dee)

  “Zzz…” (Noir)

  I talked to Nokia-chan and Alad several times, since it was already late, and Noir-chan had fallen asleep.

  Well, what kind of reaction does Lior-sama have?

  “Hmmm… the attendant called Erina was a woman with a splendid belief. That guy mentioned her many times, and I wanted to see her at least once.” (Lior)

  Oh, you are responding to Erina-san better than Sirius-sama. Or perhaps I should say, Erina-san was the one who wanted to meet the ‘Strongest Sword’.

  “I have decided! I will also go to Erina’s grave.” (Lior)

  “Eh!? That makes us happy, but aren’t you going to catch up with Sirius-sama?” (Noel)

  “Ooh! Yeah, I wanted to know that! Where did he go? He said he went to school for five years, and I wanted to join him afterwards.” (Lior)

  “I’m sorry, he went ahead to Adlode Continent three months ago…” (Noel)

  I told him that he was going to look for the same silver wolf tribe that Emi-chan and Reus-kun are from. At the beginning, I told him everything that I knew, but Lior-sama was obviously dropping his shoulders in disappointment.

  “Haa… it seems I was a bit late. I wanted to see Emilia…” (Lior)

  “Emi-chan has been growing up nicely. Won’t you able to see her if you go soon?” (Noel)

  Sirius-sama doesn’t really stand out, but I think it’s easy to find them since Emi-chan and Reus-kun are conspicuous. However, Lior-sama shook his head.

  “I want to do that, but I’m going ahead to Elysion. Unfortunately, I have to see a shorty obstinate old man to maintain my partner.” (Lior)

  “The weapon is certainly important, isn’t it?” (Dee)

  Being a former adventurer, Dee-san also nodded at Lior-sama’s words.

  Since the exchange of information was over, Lior-sama said that he would come again tomorrow and tried to go home, but I stopped him because I was a bit concern.

  “Have you decided on where to stay?” (Noel)

  “No, not for now. If it’s not good, I will sleep around in the area.” (Lior)

  “If that’s the case, there is a room available in the house, so would you like to stay there? It is a bit small, but it is the room where Sirius-sama stayed while he was here.” (Noel)

  “Hmmm… if you are alright with it, please.” (Lior)

  That’s bold, you’re also quick to make a decision, right?

  I was going to guide him to the room soon, since it was decided, but Lior-sama stopped once and handed over a pouch to us.

  “This is for the rent. Do not hesitate to take it.” (Lior)

  “It’s heavy!?” (Noel)

  When I looked closely, wasn’t that the gold coins pouch that he spread on the table earlier? There was about thirty gold coins inside it!

  “I don’t need this much! One piece is good enough.” (Noel)

  “If it includes tomorrow’s dishes, that much is fine, isnt’t it?” (Lior)

  “We will calculate the necessary amount tomorrow, so please keep it for now!” (Noel)

  “I don’t mind if you get all of them, you know…” (Lior)

  Why is he… making me worried in various ways, even though he is strong?

  —


  On the next day.

  Dee-san was preparing early in the morning even today too, and he prepared breakfast for us in between. When I was helping with the preparations, Noir-chan pulled my sleeve.

  “Ojii-chan is an early riser, isn’t he? He was waving his sword, like Reus-sama, in the square behind the store.” (Noir)

  “Ooh, it seems there is no need to wake him up. We’re going to have breakfast soon, shall we call him?” (Noel)

  “Got it.” (Noir)

  I took Noir along, and came to the square behind [Erina’s Dining Room].

  Here’s the place where Sirius-sama, Emi-chan and the others often played Frisbee and trained, but today Lior-sama was quietly swinging.

  Nevertheless, this person can still be called as the ‘Strongest Sword’. I do not quite understand swordsmanship, but I can see that it was clearly different from Reus-kun.

  He seemed to be just swinging down with the sword from the upper section, but when I thought of whether the arm and the sword were blurred, the sword returned to its original position. Since the weeds at his feet were shaking, I was certain he was waving it.

  He is an expert, no matter who sees him, but how did Sirius-sama win against such a person?

  “Ooh! Is it you guys? Today is an ideal day for training.” (Lior)

  “Good morning, Ojii-chan!” (Noir)

  “Good morning. We are going to have breakfast soon, so Li-… no, I mean, how about you, Tousen-san?” (Noel)

  “Of course, let’s have some. Breakfast is important.” (Lior)

  And then, Lior-sama consumed the breakfast bread and side dishes to the extent of not losing to Reese-chan.

  I heard he planned to leave by today, but he seems to have decided to postpone the departure to tomorrow because he wanted to eat more of Dee’s dishes.

  However, since [Erina’s Dining Room] wasn’t opened for business until noon, Lior-sama was free until that time, so he headed out while carrying his sword.

  “I am going to see the town while training for a bit.” (Lior)

  He went for a walk in the town after saying that, and since he was buying the breakfast, he paid one gold coin. When I was checking the room, there were only two gold coins left in the pouch.

  Although this was that person’s property, I feel like he’s giving us pocket money.

  —


  After seeing Lior-sama off, I went shopping with Noir-chan.

  There were some necessary things to buy, so we went out to the town with just two of us, but… an incident occurred here.

  “Yes, I would like it immediately.” (Noel)

  I was asking the Galgan Company for an additional order, since the supply of the ingredients was exhausted earlier than expected. It was because we had been already used to each other, I finished it by viva voice at the storefront. In the meantime, I asked Noir-chan to buy some skewered meat from the stall at the back.

  After I finished my order, I looked to the back, since the stall was at the rear. I tried to call Noir-chan, but Noir-chan’s loud voice sounded across before that.

  “Okaa-sa—n! This person is… suspicious…” (Noir)

  When I thought that there was an unfamiliar man in front of Noir, she felt sleepy after sniffing some kind of powder.

  The air of that man… I feel that it was similar to when I was being tormented by the slave hunters and slave merchants.

  The man carried Noir, who was put to sleep, and since he tried to escape, I quickly concentrated on using magic. I was taught various things by Sirius-sama in preparation for such a time, and we developed it together.

  When I was about to stop him by using magic, the surrounding people who noticed Noir’s voice raised angry voices.

  “Oi! Release Noir-chan!” (??)

  “What!? You bastard, what are you doing!?” (??)

  “Doing this in broad daylight… what a crazy guy!” (??)

  The people who were around got more aware because of the noise, and they began to give chase while shouting. Those men… they were regulars who came to eat in our store.

  The man, who carried Noir-chan, was escaping while being surprised, but he continued to flee, the number of people who chased him multiplied.

  “He went there! Surround him!” (??)

  “You won’t get away if Anego’s grandchild is hurt!” (??) (TLN: Anego = big female boss)

  “What are we going to do if we can’t eat Erina’s Sandwich anymore because of you!?” (??)

  “Wha-what’s with these people!?” (Kidnapper)

  By the time I noticed, there were muscular men and women mixed in who were Okaa-san’s disciples. I was carrying a baby in my stomach, so I couldn’t really run. That made me lose hope, but since everyone was giving chase, I would know where they were running to immediately.

  Although I was in a difficult situation where Noir was being kidnapped… I wanted to cry because of everyone’s kindness.

  But, let’s cry later. Now, I have to do my utmost to rescue Noir-chan…


  When I caught up with the man, the group had become around twenty people.

  However, the man was not caught, and everyone was surrounding him from a distance. That was expected because that man was holding a knife near Noir while putting his back against a wall.

  “D-do not get any closer! Damn, what’s going on in this town!?” (Kidnapper)

  I was happy that the people in the town were helping, but this was a very unpleasant situation.

  The man was completely frightened and confused because of the bloodlust coming from the surroundings, and he was likely going to hurt Noir at any moment. First, we had to ensure her safety.

  “Ooh, Noel-chan, did you come? As you can see, it’s a bad time to give up, but how are you going to save Noir-chan?” (??)

  “I have an idea. Can you please divert that guy’s attention?” (Noel)

  Since there was an old man from the neighborhood that I know from when I was a child, I asked him to divert that man’s attention. He made a curious face because of my sudden request, but he quickly accepted.

  “Hey, you! Aren’t you ashamed to make such a child a hostage!?” (Old man)

  “S-shut up! The leader will kill me if I don’t take as many as possible!” (Kidnapper)

  I had a good feeling. Meanwhile, I concentrated my mana and prepared to cast some spells.

  I aimed at the right arm holding the knife.

  Perhaps, if I fire the spell, the man’s arm will become useless. However, if it is for my child, I will do it even if it is inhumane.

  And when I tried to activate the spell…


  “Before that, do you want me to kill him?” (??)

  At the moment when I thought that I could hear a voice in my mind, an arm appeared from the back of the wall and grabbed the man’s right arm. The grabbed arm made a creaking noise, and the knife fell to the ground. Another arm appeared from the wall, and was strangling the man’s neck.

  Everyone, including me, was watching the scene of arms appearing from the wall that restrained the man in utter amazement.

  “What’s the matter? Quickly save your daughter.” (??)

  “Aah… yes! Noir-chan!” (Noel)

  The owner of the arms that penetrated the wall was Lior-sama.

  I went out to rescue Noir-chan while the man was completely restrained, but she was sleeping without any single wounds. Aah… I’m so glad.

  “Thank you very much, everyone, and Tousen-san.” (Noel)

  “It’s good that she’s safe.” (Lior/Tousen)

  “Yeah, it is troubling if something happened to the angel of [Erina’s Dining Room].” (??)

  “I’m troubled if the dining room is suspended because of such a silly thing.” (??)

  “Hmmm. If Ojou-chan is hurt, I will probably crush the head of this man.” (Lior/Tousen)

  Everyone who cooperated to help had a smile and was glad that she’s safe. Being loved so much by the people of the town… we are very fortunate.

  After a while, the town’s guards came running, and Lior-sama handed over the restrained man.

  Before that, Lior-sama tortured that man and got some information. Apparently, that man seemed to be the slave merchant who recently came to this town.

  I wasn’t familiar with him when I thought about him, so that was why. Moreover, he was a considerable vice dealer, since he was trying to resupply by kidnapping some slaves.

  The lower position had their own quota to meet, so when he saw I looked away from Noir-chan a bit, he tried to kidnap her by secretly taking her to the back of the alley, but since Noir-chan shouted because she thought he was suspicious, he unintentionally sprayed the sleeping powder.

  Although she was nearby, it was my carelessness for taking my eyes off her. I have to reflect on this.

  But, it was good that I taught her many things, especially to shout if there is a suspicious man. However, I should teach her magic, so that she can protect herself next time.

  After that, we returned home together with Lior-sama, and Dee, who knew the situation, hugged Noir-chan until she looked like she was in pain, and thanked Lior-sama many times.

  “Hahaha! If it’s about gratitude, I will depend on your meals. Oh yeah, you should also treat those who tried to help her. You can hold onto my money then.” (Lior)

  With those words, everyone who was worried and remained burst into cheers.

  Although it was a bit early, we opened [Erina’s Dining Room] and treated everyone, and we gave Erina’s Sandwich to those people who were helping and gave takeaways.

  Everyone said that it was all good unanimously, made a smile and returned.

  It was really nice to have tried hard, and to be loved by everyone…


  Later, Noir-chan opened her eyes without knowing what was happening. She was smiling as usual, and everyone was relieved.

  Thus, the kidnapping incident was settled safely.

  —


  However… the incident wasn’t over.

  That evening, after entrusting the clean up to Nokia-chan and Alad, and sent Nokia-chan to sleep, we hid in the shade that was slightly away from the dining room.

  We changed into light garments and covered our faces and hair with some cloth, so that nobody recognized us, and when we spotted Lior-sama leaving the dining room, we slowly went to him.

  “What are you? With that suspicious appearance? What on earth are you?” (Lior)

  “Are you going after them?” (Noel)

  Lior-sama was going to the possible hiding place of the slave merchants.

  He interrogated the man this morning, and the slave merchant vomited out the location of a vacant house that they made their base. But because it wasn’t reported to the town’s guards, I thought… it might be possible.

  “Hmmm… did you notice? Well, for your Ojou-chan’s safety, it’s not necessary for you to place your neck in unnecessary things.” (Lior)

  “No, since I can’t forgive his comrade, if there is something I can do…” (Dee)

  “We are familiar with this town and we can fight a bit. Besides, Sirius-sama always said this: ‘If your relative is hurt, never forgive your enemy…’” (Noel)

  That evening… my brother, who worked as the town guard, came to the store, said that he was not able to identify the hideout yet. Well that’s normal, because he was leaking the information after Lior-sama threatened him.

  Although it was a bad thing, they were foolish people who tried to kidnap our cute Noir-chan. Rather than letting the town guards deal with them, I also didn’t say anything, because if I didn’t overwhelm the opposing side, I would regret it. In other words, we are accomplices too.

  “Hahaha, you guys are really that guy’s attendants. But, do you plan to do this every time?” (Lior)

  “No, this time is because Lior-sama is here. Normally, I definitely wouldn’t do it.” (Noel)

  That’s because Dee-san would stop me. Even though I tried to stop myself from saying that I will go this time, I will stay here on the condition that Lior-sama allows it.

  Lior-sama was smiling ferociously when I was being honest, and then he headed out.

  “Well, come along. I’m going to the front and do nothing but swing my sword, so I will leave those guys to you if they try to run away.” (Lior)

  “Thank you very much. Well then, let’s go, my dear.” (Noel)

  “Aah. Noel will not come out in front of me, alright?” (Dee)

  While relying on someone that was different from Sirius-sama, we headed for the hideout of the slave merchants.

  —


  The place where the slave merchants were hiding was an abandoned noble mansion that was slightly away from the town. The gate of the mansion was in good condition, since everyone had already left the place, but I had a proper secret plan.

  “It’s my turn now. I will burn them out with the skill that was handed down directly from Sirius-sama, [Burner].” (Noel)

  The mana consumption was intense, but it is a spell that creates short flame knife that can even cut steel. In regards of battle, there are Dee-san and Lior-sama, so I am thinking about how I will participate in this setting…


  “There’s no need for that.” (Lior)

  Lior swung his sword and the gates were cut in half.

  Eh… This was made from iron, wasn’t it? But, if Reus-kun can do it, it would probably be weird if he couldn’t.

  “What’s this!? What’s going on?” (??)

  One man came out from the mansion because of the noise of the gates falling down, but it was too suspicious when the mansion was supposed to be an abandoned house. But in case of emergency, Lior-sama grabbed his head before that man raised his voice.

  “I have a question. Are you going to meet the slave merchant?” (Lior)

  “Guhh!? Wh-what… are you… saying… guahhh!” (??)

  “Answer quickly. Three… Two…” (Lior)

  “Aa-arrgh!? Y-yes! I am his accomplice!” (??)

  Yeah… Sirius-sama’s ‘Iron Claw’ looks cute, especially when the man’s head makes creaking noises, as if it was going to be crushed at any time.

  “Then, did you kidnap any children up till now?” (Lior)

  “That is… gyarrghh! I did! I have kidnapped three so far!” (??)

  “Is that so? You’ve worked hard.” (Lior)

  As he said those words, Lior-sama threw the man towards the door of the mansion. The thrown man went straight through the door, and then several men rushed out of the mansion because of the noise.

  For this town to gather so many ruffians… I have to report this matter to the higher-ups later.

  And then, there was a battle going on with the people who looked like escorts, but… their was only one word to say, overwhelming.

  “This old man! What are you do—…” (??)

  “If you don’t want taste a painful experience…” (??)

  “Nuooo!” (Lior)

  ““Gyaarghh!”” (??)

  Every time Lior-sama swung his sword, people were flying like tree leaves. I thought the scene where people flew into the sky only happened when Reus-kun was training with Sirius-sama.

  “There are also enemies here!” (Dee)

  There were also enemies who aimed at us while avoiding Lior-sama, they weren’t good enough against Dee, who repeatedly had mock battles with Sirius-sama. Reading the enemy’s movements, hitting their weapons without hesitation and hitting their stomachs afterwards. The enemies would faint afterwards.

  “Me too! [Flame Whip]” (Noel)

  On the other hand, I was fighting this time by using the spell that has misfired many times today.

  It is not comparable to Sirius-sama’s, but it is more or less as strong when [String] is launched and tangled the enemies’ arms. It is a spell where the [String] flares up at the moment when the opponent feels discomfort and burns them.

  Besides, I can wiggle it like a whip, but since I don’t have the skill, I can only use the basic movements.

  Dee-san made them faint while they were burning and aggravated, and our side had no problem dealing with them, similar to Lior-sama.

  In the first place, there were too few enemies. There were twenty enemies, but we only had three become our opponents. The rest were mowed down by Lior-sama, while he was laughing.

  After that, he grabbed the head of the last remaining person, and raised it to guide us to where the boss was.

  “Well then, where is your boss? While you’re at it, tell me where the kidnapped children and slaves are.” (Lior)

  “There is no need for that.” (??)

  When we turned to the voice that came from the entrance of the mansion, there was a thin young man standing there. He seemed like a good young man with a gentle smile at first glance, but I won’t be deceived. I could feel the darkness that slave hunters and slave merchants emitted behind that smile. It was too strong and even though I was already healed, it made me tremble.

  Having such an opponent, Lior-sama threw away the man he held and pointed the tip of the sword at him.

  “Hoho, a considerably wicked guy appeared. That means, you are the leader, right?” (Lior)

  “Yes. I am the leader and I am managing the slavery business. Nice to meet you, I am…” (Slave Merchant)

  “Aah, I don’t want to know. From now on, I don’t want to know the name of the enemies that I kill.” (Lior)

  “What an impatient man… But, please somewhat listen, become our accomplice…” (Slave Merchant)

  Lior-sama struck the sword into the ground, cutting off the invitation from the slave merchant.

  “I like opponents who will challenge me, but I dislike fools like you. Just die.” (Lior)

  “Is that so? How about this?” (Slave Merchant)

  The slave merchant looked at a big guy who was waiting at the rear, and then he threw a big leather pouch in front of Lior-sama. The content of the bag that made the loud noise when it fell on the ground… was gold coins. Those gold coins scattered on the ground and it was also many times more gold than what Lior-sama brought out yesterday.

  “That is one hundred gold coins. Honestly, I’m also fine with giving white gold coins, but it would be nice to understand this kind of thing, right?” (Slave Merchant)

  Yeah… although earning a piece is very hard, if it is compared to Lior-sama yesterday, it makes my feelings go haywire.

  Money is the easiest way to solicit recruitment, but since Lior-sama isn’t concerned about money, it doesn’t seem to have much effect.

  “Our job is to raise the quality of the slaves, and sell them to the customers, which are the nobles. But there are also many enemies to the business, so a strong man like you…” (Slave Merchant)

  “What a troublesome guy. Well, this is my answer.” (Lior)

  Lior-sama, who pulled the sword up and put it on his shoulder, was stepping on the gold spread on the floor. He wasn’t affected so far, not even a bit.

  The slave merchant was surprised at the direct refusal, but he immediately kept it up and let out a sigh as if there seemed to be no other way.

  “Good grief, people who are indifferent to money are rare. It can’t be helped then… Do it.” (Slave Merchant)

  When the slave merchant moved to the side, the big-sized man who threw the gold coins pouch, and a small-sized man appeared from the rear. These two have a different air compared to the men who fainted nearby.

  We tried to help, but Lior-sama waved his hands, saying it wasn’t necessary. It seemed possible to intervene forcibly, but Dee-san and I withdrew behind since he might seriously yell if we did it.

  “They are called ‘Brothers of Poison’, and they have been living in underworld. I will surrender if you can win against these brothers.” (Slave Merchant)

  “Hou? In short, they are strong, right? Your surrender is good no matter what, so shall I do this quickly?” (Lior)

  As Lior-sama happily set up his sword, the men called ‘Brothers of Poison’ attacked him.

  The first one that attacked was the big-sized man, who carried a bag on his back, and he brandished a greatsword as tall as him. Even if it was big, his sword was smaller than Lior-sama’s.

  “Hou! That’s a considerable power!” (Lior)

  Lior-sama took it from the front while happily smiling. Sirius-sama said he was a battle maniac, and I was convinced when I saw the present situation.

  However, there was one more person, while he stopped the big man, the remaining small-sized man brandished a knife and he was approaching from his feet.

  Lior-sama took one hand off the sword, and grabbed the face of the small man with an empty hand, but the man’s hand still didn’t stop, and his arm was slashed with a knife. Lior-sama threw the grabbed small-sized man aside while clicking his tongue.

  And without pausing, he loaded his strength to push the big man, but knives blew out from the bag that was being carried by him, and stabbed Lior-sama’s arm.

  Why knives? When I thought about it, another small-sized man brought his head out of the bag while smiling.

  “Did you think that there were only two brothers? Whatever it is, you are done.” (Slave Merchant)

  “What are you saying with this level of injuries?” (Lior)

  “No, you are done. Look.” (Slave Merchant)

  “Muu!?” (Lior)

  When Lior-sama pulled the knife that stuck in his arm out and threw it away, the sword he was holding fell to the ground at the same time. He immediately tried to open and close his hand for confirmation, but the hand was trembling and it was hard to do so.

  “Didn’t I say that these guys are the ‘Brothers of Poison? Aah, you shouldn’t overdo it. That knife was coated with a paralyzing poison acquired from a Paria Lizard, and soon it will be difficult for you to even stand up.” (Slave Merchant)

  “Paria Lizard?” (Lior)

  “Yes, it’s not lethal, but it is a paralytic poison that makes you unable to move for several hours once inflicted. Later, there is no need for them to rush and torture you…” (Slave Merchant)

  “Is that so? I thought that it was a nostalgic numbness, was it from that monster? The paralysis effect is too weak, it was a no-good monster.” (Lior)

  “…Haa?” (Slave Merchant)

  Lior-sama picked up the fallen sword and started swinging many times around. Since the sound was slightly different from earlier, it seemed there was some effect of paralysis.

  In short… Lior-sama was resistant to that paralytic poison, and he had no problem swinging the sword. While we and the slave merchant were surprised at different places, Lior-sama seemed displeased and was glaring at the ‘Brothers of Poison’.

  “Anyway, are you guys stupid? Why were you laughing with that boring knife slashing and piercing!?” (Lior)

  As the big man stepped forward with a displeased face, he was too engrossed with his strength and when he swung down his sword, Lior-sama stopped it with one hand… Eh!? It was stopped with barehanded?

  “Relying heavily on the weight of the sword but lacking skill… It is proof that you cannot cut my hand.” (Lior)

  No, no, no! That is weird!

  When I looked closely, the blade wasn’t stopped but it was caught with his fingers. I see, if that’s the case, I’m convinced… but really!?

  “What are you surprised about? It is not difficult if you read the enemy’s movements like this with [Boost]. If it is those people who know me, they are done when I land the first blow.” (Lior)

  Sirius-sama would certainly evade it a bit when he sees it for the first time, and he would knock it down with a counterattack. It’s to the extent that the evading skill of that person was at a different level.

  Since Lior-sama’s assault didn’t really hit Sirius-sama, he told us yesterday that he continued to refine his techniques in the last few years. Wasn’t that only part of it?

  Although the enemy stopped moving for a moment, they immediately resumed the assault and aimed at Lior-sama’s feet.

  “And, it’s good to aim at the feet, but at the very least, you want to target from behind!” (Lior)

  Lior-sama’s knee sank into the face of the small man who approached from his feet.

  Finally, when the small man lurking in the bag carried by the bigger man, positioned a knife…


  “Slicing is… something like this!” (Lior)

  He swung the sword down with his empty hand, and the man was cut into two. Incidentally, the small man, who received a knee blow, was sliced together. They were annihilated with one swing.

  The terrifying thing was, while he sliced three of them at the same time, they really were sliced in two without any resistance. For me, it was a blow with immeasurable power and skill.

  Hmm, Reus-kun. No matter how I think about it, I can’t imagine you defeating this man… How do you intend to win?

  “Well then, next is your… hmmm, where did he go?” (Lior)

  “I’m here.” (Slave Merchant)

  When I noticed him, the slave merchant, who stood in front of the door, stood at a place that appeared to be a balcony on the second floor. It seemed he moved away during the battle. There was unusual margin after directly witnessing Lior-sama’s strength.

  When I looked closely, there was an accompanied beast, a medium-sized bird-type monster, waiting next to the slave merchant. Perhaps, he planned to escape with that bird.

  “I am surprised at your strength, which was beyond my expectations. Therefore, let me get run away from it.” (Slave Merchant)

  “What? Are you going to run away? Didn’t you tell me earlier that you’re going to surrender?” (Lior)

  “Huhu, promises are important in the underworld, but there is no promise that is more important than life. I remembered your face, so let’s meet again. Well then…” (Slave Merchant)

  “Like I’m going to let you do it.” (Noel)

  At that moment, I stretched the [String], which I kept hidden and kept entangling it around that man’s legs, and pulled together with Dee-san. The [String] tore apart after resisting for an instant, but since that was just before he jumped on the monster, rather than landing on the monster, the slave merchant fell from the veranda.

  I never thought that it would do well so far, but I’m good!

  While looking at the slave merchant falling unprotected, Lior-sama swung the sword up with a ferocious smile.

  “Hahaha! You did it, Noel, Dee! Well, let me show you [Single Strike Ultimate Destruction Sword Style] as a gift to the afterlife.” (Lior)

  “Y-you are the… ‘Strongest Sword!? Then, you are…!?” (Slave Merchant)

  “Uuu… oooo!” (Lior)

  The appearance of the sword that did the [Single Strike Ultimate Destruction Sword Style] was just a down swing.

  But that blow…


  —


  After Lior-sama killed the slave merchant, we secretly contacted the town guards to head to the mansion and went home, so that nobody saw us.

  I did not know what happened from then on, but the next day, I heard the conclusion from my brother, who worked as a town guard.

  In response to the secret message, the town guards arrived at the mansion, the scenery that spread in front of them made them unable to think of anything but that the mansion was struck by disaster.

  The gates were cut into two, and the suspicious men were groaning while buried in the ground, leaving their heads, and he said it was hard to dig them up for interrogation.

  And the conclusion was… the mansion was split into two. It seemed as if the central part of the mansion had disappeared cleanly like a borderline, and they couldn’t understand what was going on. Well, you won’t know if you don’t see it.

  It was all because of Lior-sama’s sword, what would he do if he had unrelated people caught in that range?

  “I knew there was none based on my perception. Besides, I was paralyzed in the end, so I miscalculated the strength.” (Lior)

  …He didn’t seem to reflect too much.

  And then, they found several slaves in the basement of the mansion. They were protected by the town guards and dealt with accordingly. If they have family, they will be sent back. It was decided that they will be adopted in this town if they don’t. It seemed to cost a lot, but there was no need to worry about money since they used the money that was kept by the slave merchant.

  As a result of further investigation, that slave merchant was a considerable bad guy, who was wanted by the guild, but it appeared that it was difficult to arrest him since he was moving from place to place.

  They made the mansion a base several months ago, and they purposely didn’t aim at the townspeople in order to not get suspected. But, since it would leak someday, he made arrangements. He would run away while the man who kidnapped Noir-chan became a decoy.

  However, the man easily confessed when he was interrogated by Lior-sama, and we obstructed him when he tried to run away… that’s what happened.

  Finally, according to the testimonies of the buried men, with the exception of us who hid our faces, they confirmed that it was all thanks to Lior-sama including the suppression of man on the wanted list, and he received a special reward from the town.

  Lior-sama, who came back while carefully shaking the bag fitted with a large amount of gold coins, had a very troublesome look.

  When he received the reward, he was invited to participate in a party hosted by the noble-sama of the town. Officially, it is for gratitude, but I think the party is probably for the nobles to make connection with the strong man.

  And the main person, Lior-sama was…


  “Uhmm… delicious! This Kabayaki is the best with Tare Sauce.” (Lior)

  Although the sky was a madder red, he was eating dishes in [Erina’s Dining Room], just before the party began. Noir-chan, who was sitting on the other side, was tilting her head while pinching the same dish.

  “Hey Ojii-chan, aren’t you going to attend the party?” (Noir)

  “It’s troublesome. I will leave this town after I eat this.” (Lior)

  As for adventurers without status, it is said that it is a substantial honor to be invited to a noble’s party.

  At the present time, they didn’t know that he was Lior of the ‘Strongest Sword’, and to correspond to that… Lior-sama seemed really uninterested in joining the party.

  And the evidence was, he was having a bulging leather bag next to him, so that he can leave soon. By the way, the content of the bag was dishes made by Dee for a whole day.

  “Is that so? I’ll see you again.” (Noir)

  “What is this? Wouldn’t it better if you sound sadder? Look, I don’t mind if you want to hug me.” (Lior)

  “Uhmm… I’m sorry.” (Noir)

  Lior-sama was waiting with his arms wide open, but Noir shook her head and refused it. That was… intense. If I was going to say, the meal might not go through my throat.

  “I think Ojii-san will be fine no matter what happens. Besides, the only ones that I will hug are Otou-san and Reus-sama.” (Noir)

  What was that? She was already trying to protect her chastity in this year. I almost shed tears over Noir’s growth.

  In contrast of me, who was deeply moved, Lior-sama was holding his head with both hands and looking up to the sky.

  “Nuuoooo! Is it because of that boy!?” (Lior)

  “He is Reus-sama!” (Noir)

  “Don’t say that! He got Noir and has Emilia as a sister! When I see him next time… I will do it.” (Lior)

  Reus-kun… I hope you will survive; I’m sorry, I can’t do anything but pray.

  After that, he screamed for a while, and then Lior-sama resumed the meals again. After all, he was finally satisfied after having all kinds of dishes on the menu.

  “…Fuh, I’m done eating. Well, I guess I should go.” (Lior)

  “Please wait a minute, you forgot your money.” (Noel)

  “Have it, then.” (Lior)

  “I can’t. Here, please attach it to your waist properly.” (Noel)

  “It can’t be helped…” (Lior)

  Although Lior-sama had eaten luxuriously yesterday, there were still more than ten gold coins remaining. I had to make sure because it was a lot of money.

  I forcibly returned the pouch, which I was told to keep, and I was finally relieved after confirming the pouch of gold coins hanging on his waist.

  No, I was still worried.

  “Anyway… are you really going to leave now? It’s going to be dark soon, and if the party is troublesome, you can refuse it and leave tomorrow…” (Noel)

  “Hahaha, the night outside is not that bad, you know? I won’t feel bored because there are a lot of monsters here and there.” (Lior)

  Haa… Noir-chan was right. It is pointless to worry about him.

  We went to the front of the dining room to see him off, and Lior-sama finally started walking after stroking Noir’s head.

  “Well then, stay in good health. I will come back to eat again.” (Lior)

  “Yes, thank you very much.” (Noel)

  “Next time, we will have more varieties.” (Dee)

  “Bye-bye, Ojii-chan.” (Noir)

  He suddenly came, and he also suddenly left.

  Thus, Lior-sama left without looking back.

  I heard about this heroic person from Sirius-sama, he is beyond heroic when we actually met him.

  But… it is not unpleasant because he is a really daring man.

  He was a man who had a strange attraction.

  —


  Later, when the business was over and I was tidying the tables, Noir came before me.

  “Okaa-san. Here, I will give this to you.” (Noir)

  “Oh, I wonder what it… Eh, this is!?” (Noel)

  It was the pouch of gold coins which I strongly returned to Lior-sama, held by Noir-chan.

  Why… was it here?

  “This is for the town, and since Ojii-chan didn’t need it, he gave it to me. He said to give it to Okaa-san in the evening.” (Noir)

  “Tousen-san! The money!” (Noel)

  —


  Extra/Bonus 1

  “Let’s keep the gold coins for Noir’s future and for Nokia’s marriage. So, look for your husband soon, Nokia-chan. If not, Noir-chan is going to marry first…” (Noel)

  “Onee-chan… are you picking a fight? I don’t mind, you know? So, shall we go to the back?” (Nokia)

  Extra/Bonus 2

  “He got Noir and has Emilia as a sister! When I see him next time… I will do it.” (Lior)

  “Hiii!?” (Reus)

  “Uwaah!? Why did you come into my bed?” (Sirius)

  “I don’t know! I don’t really know, but please save me, Aniki!” (Reus)

  (Author: The [G] was the ‘Strongest Sword’ – Goutsurugi)

  (TLN: Some readers said [G] was Gokiburi. I think in a way, he is a Gokiburi since he will definitely survive anywhere like a cockroach? Or maybe it’s just Goutsurugi, IDK.)

  Volume 12, Intermission 2: The Pilgrimage of an Old Man

  “Uhmm… is it here?” (Lior)

  A road that was made by an overwhelming force suddenly appeared in the thickly overgrown forest.

  I came to the mansion where he used to live. It was a small house for nobles, but it was a nice place with a calm atmosphere.

  “Oh? It is unusual for a visitor to come to this place.” (Valio)

  I already noticed his presence. He was pruning the outside, and he spoke when he noticed me.

  According to him, there was an old man, like a butler, that almost the same age as me managing the mansion. Could it be this man?

  Since I surely looked suspicious, I had to explain first.

  “You have a different air compared to a bandit. Did you get lost?” (Valio)

  “I’m sorry, but you are… uhmm… I forgot the name. Anyway, I heard that there is a grave of a woman named Erina here, right?” (Lior)

  “Although that comes out of nowhere, shall we introduce ourselves first?” (Valio)

  “Alright. I heard your name from Sirius, but I forgot it. Sorry.” (Lior)

  He was looking at me suspiciously, but when I gave him Sirius’ name, he smiled and bowed. Hmm, there was no mistake that this man was someone whom I heard from him.

  “If you are acquainted with Sirius-sama… I guess that I can understand your impressiveness. Nice to meet you, my name is Valio.” (Valio)

  “That’s right, that is the name. By the way, I am Ikki-Tousen. Call me Tousen.” (Lior/Tousen)

  “Tousen-sama… is it? So, what did you come here for?” (Valio)

  “Hmmm. Actually, I came here to visit Erina’s grave.” (Lior)

  “Would you come inside for the time being? We’ll go out after some tea.” (Valio)

  “Ooh! Please, then. Although it wasn’t a big road, I am thirsty.” (Lior)

  I couldn’t see him being cautious, but I knew that he was being careful, even if he showed his back to me. The impressiveness and the presence clad on his body were considerable. Well, his muscles weren’t overwhelming, though. It was possible for him to become a strong warrior if he was trained, so it’s not worthy to feel obscure. More importantly, if it’s about tea, let’s definitely have some.

  “I see. Hearing you talk about Sirius-sama and the juniors, and about visiting Erina’s grave… Thank you so much for doing this for her.” (Valio)

  I explained the reason why I came here while eating the snacks and drinking the prepared tea, since I had no reason to hide.

  Nevertheless, the cookies and tea made by this man were delicious. They weren’t up to the level of Sirius’ and his attendants’, but I could taste his skills.

  He was grateful because I came here to visit her grave, but since I came on my own, I thought that there was no need to thank me.

  “If it wasn’t because of that Erina, I would not have met that guy. I would like to personally give my thanks before the grave.” (Lior)

  “…You seem to be a very frank person, aren’t you? Understood, let me guide you. Will you be heading there soon?” (Valio)

  “Alright. Since I can go at any time, will that be alright for you?” (Lior)

  “Please, leave it to me. I’ll get ready right away.” (Valio)

  Since it still hadn’t pass midday yet, if everything went well, I would be able to go to the town by nightfall.

  And, with the guidance of Valio, who finished the preparation while holding various tools, we went towards Erina’s grave.

  —


  When we entered the mountain from the back of the mansion, the trees and weeds were naturally growing thick, but there was a way for people to pass. Although it could be seen only as an animal trail, I saw traces of obstructive trees being cut. This was obviously done by the hand of a person who entered this place before.

  “Hmmm… it’s easy to walk through.” (Lior)

  “It seemed that it was maintained when Sirius-sama lived here. Nonetheless, it is difficult to notice it without being aware of it.” (Valio)

  “Huhuhu, that guy’s done well, hasn’t he?” (Lior)

  After we walked on the mountain road awhile, we suddenly came to an opened space where the forest was cleared and the flowers bloomed. Hmmm… this place was also a good place.

  We stepped into the flower garden, and in the center of it, there was an impressive presence coming from the base of a huge tree.

  “That is Erina’s grave. But, will you please wait a moment? I won’t be long, since I just want to do some cleaning.” (Valio)

  “I want to help, but I will damage the stone. So, I will patiently wait.” (Lior)

  I decided to lie down around the area and wait until the cleaning was over.

  While having the leisurely air brush against my cheeks, I remembered the matter told to me by the boy whom I taught ‘Single Strike Ultimate Destruction Sword Style’ in the past. The boy certainly said that he fought a big tortoise that was as hard as a rock in this flower garden.

  I heard that Sirius was, somehow, able to overturn the turtle and that made its weakness appear, where the boy stabbed it, but… if it was me, I would cut it into two by slashing from the front.

  It couldn’t be helped, since the boy was a child at that time, but now that several years had passed since then, it would be natural to cut it in two, if it was at the level of rocks. By the way, if he couldn’t do it, I planned to cut him into two.

  When I was vaguely thinking about the growth of the boy, Valio had finished cleaning, so I took out some wine from my belongings and ask for his permission.

  “I heard that Erina liked to drink wine, is it alright if I put this on the grave?” (Lior)

  “It is alright, but… where did you get that?” (Valio)

  “Hmmm? When I asked for the most expensive wine in the nearby town, they gave me this. Hey, drink it to your heart’s content.” (Lior)

  “Th-that wine is worth of ten god coins… aah!?” (Valio)

  I sprinkled the wine on the grave, but Valio was strangely noisy. You’re not going to say it’ll give a stinky smell with a bottle of wine, right?

  I turned around after pouring everything inside, and Valio was staring at me.

  “What’s with that face? Aah, if it’s not enough, I have a spare…” (Lior)

  “Th-that’s good enough! Rather, I would like for you to drink that…” (Valio)

  “Welll… I actually drank a bottle before coming, but it was too refined for me. Since I don’t need it anymore, I’ll give it to you.” (Lior)

  “W-what!?” (Valio)

  I gave the wine to Valio, I stood up in front of the grave again and lowered my head.

  I haven’t met you even once, but… knowing that Sirius had an extraordinary strength, I respect you, who diligently brought him up, pouring your love and kept watching over him.

  And since you were there, I met Sirius, who revived me.

  So, there was only one word that I wanted to say.

  “…Thank you.” (Lior)

  After I finished giving my deepest appreciation, I stood up and turned my back to the grave.

  “…Is this alright?” (Valio)

  “Hmmm. There is no need for an outsider like me to bother too much. A word of appreciation will be enough.” (Lior)

  “Understood. Well then, let’s head back.” (Valio)

  An old man like me would trouble him if I prayed for too long.

  Following Valio, who walked out with a bit of a smile, I left Erina’s grave.

  —


  “Ooh… you are the owner of that mansion now?” (Lior)

  “That’s right. The Galgan Company sold it cheaply to me.” (Valio)

  Valio and I were walking while chatting, and the subject of the chat was about the ownership of that mansion.

  Originally, the owner of the mansion was Sirius’ father… No, it seemed he was a foolish noble; but, apparently, the financial capability of that foolish noble was dwindling, and he had to sell that mansion to the Galgan Company.

  And then, Valio, who served that foolish noble as an attendant for many years, quit, and it seemed that he bought the mansion from the Galgan Company in order to spend the rest of his life in peace.

  “Although it is away from the town, it is a good place to live leisurely. Besides… it is my role to watch over her tomb.” (Valio)

  Hmm… it looked like he was asked to do that. Looking from his figure, he didn’t look very strong, and there was a possibility of being attacked by something, but I wouldn’t say anything about it.

  While I was convinced with that alone, I came back to where I could see the mansion. However, I felt something disturbing, so I grabbed Valio’s shoulder and stopped him.

  “…Hold it. I feel the presence of people in the mansion.” (Lior)

  “There is nothing here, and the adventurers rarely visit this place. There is a possibility of thieves, but… do you know how many of them?” (Valio)

  “No more than ten.” (Lior)

  “If so, the possibility of thieves seems to be high. It is fine if the mansion only has food, but I’ll be bothered if this beautiful mansion is laid to waste.” (Valio)

  If it was about fighting, it was going to be my turn. I confirmed by feeling my partner, the greatsword, on my back… I went in front of Valio, and turned to him.

  “Let me see, this is as my gratitude. I wonder if I should go for a moment and blow them away.” (Lior)

  “…What? Uhmm, Tousen-sama doesn’t have to fight. It will be fine if you go to the town and call for the guards.” (Valio)

  “It’s troublesome. My stomach is hungry for competition, so I will forcibly blow them away. I won’t damage the mansion, so you don’t have to worry.” (Lior)

  “Tousen-sama!?” (Valio)

  Ignoring Valio’s words, I left the space of many trees, and headed for the presence in front of the entrance of the mansion.

  What was in front of the entrance was a suspicious group wearing good-looking weapons and armors. From the quality of the equipment, it was a group that couldn’t be seen amongst advanced adventurers; so, judging from my intuition that I had been using to hunt thieves all the time, there was no mistake that they were thieves.

  Among the group, there was a man who had a different presence. The man was unusually fat and he wasn’t good enough to play bandit. He looked like a noble that I didn’t like.

  “Bardomyl-sama?” (Valio)

  “Oo! Where were you, Valio?” (Bardomyl)

  Valio, who came after me, was surprised to see that fat man. Hmm… it seemed that he knew Valio.

  “I had something to do in the forest. Leaving that aside, what kind of business do you have here?” (Valio)

  “Uhmm, well, that depends on you. I want to lend this mansion to these people.” (Bardomyl)

  A noble named Bardomyl or ‘Meaty’ referred to the men he had around him, but Valio shook his head and said it clearly.

  “I refuse. Because I am no longer your servant.” (Valio)

  “Wha!? W-weren’t you a servant who had supported my household? Although you did quit, as your former Master, you should listen to me!” (Bardomyl)

  “My Master was your father. By the way, who are these people?” (Valio)

  “They are some recently rising thieves, and they are my new colleagues. I am planning to make this mansion into their base and play an active part.” (Bardomyl)

  “…Have you fallen that far?!” (Valio)

  Valio was exclaiming, but I was getting troubled.

  In other words, they were planning to make this mansion, which was away from areas where people lived, as a base and commit thefts from the surrounding roads?

  “The pride of a noble no longer exists within you, huh?” (Valio)

  “I need money more than pride! You better look at the equipment of these guys. If a powerful person has equipment at this level, they won’t lose against guards and adventurers, right?” (Bardomly)

  “It is certainly true that those are wonderful equipments… but aren’t they thieves? Since it’s still not too late, please rethink this.” (Valio)

  “Shut up! I am already understaffed. The women are almost running away, and my son has left the house. And the only things left are an annoying woman who wants valuables, overstocked magic tools, and my house. And you are no more, so what are you going to say to me!?” (Bardomyl)

  “I have advised you not to do so, but you didn’t listen, did you? Everything is your own fault.” (Valio)

  Valio seemed to be a former attendant of this meaty noble, but I completely gave up, since I could no longer see the need to restrain myself.

  Although he said that, the meaty noble was persistently stuck to Valio.

  “Even if it was my own mistake, it won’t be a problem if it makes me money! With these mithril-made weapons, the adventurers and monsters in this area won’t be their opponents. They are free to plunder!” (Bardomyl)

  I was thinking that they had very good-looking weapons… so those were mithril made? They were a bunch who lacked muscles and had good weapons made of mithril, but you didn’t question that matter?

  Maybe because Valio had a similar thoughts, he was sighing at the words from the meaty noble.

  “Even if they are mithril-made equipments, there is no guarantee that the person himself is strong. Let me ask you a question. Do you really think that they can win against a strong man like Sirius-sama?” (Valio)

  “Well, that monster is not here anymore. And he is a rare monster in the first place!” (Bardomyl)

  “Monster!? Although he has severed his relationship with you, isn’t he still your son?” (Valio)

  “He is not my son! That monster… I don’t want to see him anymore!” (Bardomyl)

  The moment Sirius’ name was said, that meaty noble trembled and his face turned blue.

  Although I was bothered with various things… I was about to confirm some things, so I pat Valio’s shoulder and turned him around.

  “I have a question. Is he Sirius’ father?” (Lior)

  “Yes, he is. Are you aware about him breaking off their relationship?” (Valio)

  “I have heard about it to a certain extent. In other words, he was the one who made Erina suffer, right?” (Lior)

  “Oi, who is this old man!? Is he your acquaintance?” (Bardomyl)

  Meaty was staring with a slightly frustrated expression because I interrupted him, but he was frightened and closed his mouth when I turned around.

  “So, am I right?” (Lior)

  “That’s right. He is the person who hated such a gentle lady.” (Valio)

  “Hmm, if that’s so, there is no need for me to hold back.” (Lior)

  In the first place, since I hated nobles like him, I definitely had no plans to restrain myself.

  When I came forward, the meaty noble got scared and retreated, and the surrounding thieves were drawing their weapons and got ready.

  “What are you doing, Valio? Deal with this old man quickly! You, who had serve my household, dare to disobey me!?” (Bardomyl)

  “As I said before, I clearly said this when I left Bardomyl-sama’s mansion. I am not a person who will serve you anymore…” (Valio)

  “Guhh… I intended to keep you alive, but it can’t be helped then. Oi, do it!” (Bardomyl)

  With the command from Meaty, the ten thieves wielded their weapons towards me, but… they were full of gaps. By just having good-looking weapons, I couldn’t feel the strength that the meaty noble was so proud of.

  Valio, who stood behind me, was instinctively sighing, he grasped his fists and took a battle stance.

  “I am not that good in a fight, but I also will help. If it’s one or two, I can somehow…” (Valio)

  “There’s no need for you to help. Just stay put, and it will be immediately over!” (Lior)

  I kicked the ground, jumped forward, and swung my partner at the nearest thieves.

  Normally, I would cut their bodies in two, but thinking about the place this time, I struck the opponents with the body of the sword instead of slashing them.

  After sensing the breaking bones of the thieves from my partner, I could barely confirm the appearance of the thieves, who flew away, above the forest.

  “““…””” (Dumbfounded Group)

  “Hmmm… they flew far, huh?” (Lior)

  The surroundings of the mansion would be dirtied if I slashed the thieves here. So the method to deal with them was to blow the thieves far away. Since I broke their bones and blew them away into the depths of the forest, there was little possibility of them being alive.

  While all the surrounding people, including Valio, were stunned, I was satisfied with their reactions. Cutting them in half would be the best, but it wasn’t bad to let them know the name.

  According to him, this was called ‘Home Run’ or something.

  “Hahaha! Come, come at me! If you come… I will do it! Next will be a Home Run!” (Lior)

  Shouting out those words made me feel good.

  I blew off the thieves one after another; but, of course, some of them tried to resist with their weapons. Well, their good-looking weapons couldn’t stand the blow of my partner and broke, and there was no change to being blown away by me.

  I finished blowing away all of the thieves, and then, I stood before the remaining meaty noble.

  “Are there no more thieves? I want to beat several times more.” (Lior)

  “Wha… that can’t be!? Those guys had mithril-made weapons…” (Bardomyl)

  “Those were made from Mithril, huh?” (Lior)

  I picked up the weapon that fell when I blew a thief away. I stood in front of the meaty noble, who was retreating to the back. And then, I grabbed the tip and the handle of the sword and used my strength. The sword, then, made a dull sound, and I broke the sword in front of the meaty noble.

  In other words, the thieves’ appearances were merely a bluff.

  “This looks like a fake. I would not be able to break it if it’s the real thing.” (Lior)

  “Uhh… That’s a lie… My last chance… with fakes…” (Bardomyl)

  It seemed he was driven into a corner, to the point of being cheated with fakes. He looked miserable, but… it didn’t matter to me.

  “Well, next is your turn. An arm or a leg… which one you want me to cut off?” (Lior)

  “Do you think that a mere adventurer can lay their hands on a noble!?” (Bardomyl)

  “Eh, sorry, sorry, I couldn’t listen well. I am an old man, anyways. So… is it your arm?” (Lior)

  “Hi…hiiiiiii—!?” (Bardomyl)

  The meaty noble boarded a carriage that seemed to be used to come here. He ordered the coachman to run away.

  It was troublesome to waste him here, so I just confirmed that the carriage was escaping and turned to Valio.

  “It is alright now, so I will take my leave. Although it was a short while, thank you for taking care of me.” (Lior)

  “I am saved but… will this be alright? The opponent was, more or less, a noble, and if you leave him alone, there’s the possibility of him making you into a wanted person…” (Valio)

  “I am not boasting, but I don’t mind fighting nobles here and there. I am used to it, anyway.” (Lior)

  “It was safe here, until now…” (Valio)

  I was crushing foolish nobles only, and my reputation wasn’t bad, since I exterminated thieves along the way. Even if somebody tried to get involved, it was all settled with the sword.

  “There is no need for you to worry. Besides…” (Lior)

  “Besides…?” (Valio)

  “I… haven’t said anything about them escaping.” (Lior)

  —


  The next day… I awoke in a bed of an inn.

  Yesterday, I came to a certain town after going to Valio’s mansion, and stayed in this hotel after some training.

  “Hmm… I’m sleepy.” (Lior)

  I got up from the bed and warmed up my body. And then, I came to the dining area of the inn to eat breakfast. I called for a waitress and ordered.

  “Give me everything on this menu.” (Lior)

  “Eh?” (Waitress)

  They were surprised every time I asked for meals like this… was it that unusual?

  While I ate the meals that were being carried out one after another, several rumors could be heard from the adventurers who stayed in the same inn as me.

  The most noticeable rumor among them was the rumor about a certain noble’s mansion having been destroyed.

  The mansion was sliced into two, and a part of the mansion was shattered into small pieces by a tremendous force. The noble, which was the owner of the mansion, was buried within the wreckage, but it seemed he had, somehow, survived. And the criminal was… unknown.

  “He had a strong case of bad luck, huh…” (Lior)

  “Hmm? Did you say something?” (Waitress)

  “No, it’s nothing. Well, is the next dish ready yet?” (Lior)

  “Oops, it is. Yes, I kept you waiting for the next dish!” (Waitress)

  By the way, I was training nearby the meaty noble’s mansion.

  I made a little mistake by unleashing slashing attacks with waves, and they flew towards the mansion… I didn’t aim for it though!

  “Well… it’s a little bit more to Elysion.” (Lior)

  To dispel the gloomy feeling, I didn’t feel like caring about what happened to that meaty noble anymore. So, after I finished eating, I left for Elysion.

  —


  A few days later… I arrived at Elysion.

  The reason for me to come here was to see the stubborn old man who made my partner, [Crimson Lotus].

  As a weapon, it was still reliable and as robust as ever, but I recently felt that something was wrong. Whatever it was, I thought that I wanted to show it to him at least once, so I expressly came all the way to the place of that stubborn old man.

  Assembling the information based on the appearance’s features, I tried to locate his shop, but… the name was lengthy, with something like destruction or indestructible. It seemed his poor naming sense didn’t change, after all.

  However, if you add ‘fool’ at the end of the name, it would be the perfect name.

  “When I thought that I felt this presence somewhere… is that you, idiot!?” (Grant)

  When I was looking at the signboard, a small, short legged, stubborn old man came out from the store. Let alone the naming sense, his appearance didn’t change at all.

  “You’re loud as usual, huh? Look, I came to show you my sword.” (Lior)

  “You also haven’t change! Isn’t it supposed to be, ‘Please look at it’, you idiot!” (Grant)

  “Noisy! I’m saying that the sword, that you made, feels weird!” (Lior)

  “Haa!? I made it to fit you, so it’s not weird, you idiot! If there is nothing, I’ll go back and start hitting with my hammer, you idiot!” (Grant)

  “It is superb! Do what you can do!” (Lior)

  He was an annoying fellow, but in regards of the sword, he was a reliable and stubborn old man. When I told him about the uncomfortable feeling, he invited me into the shop while wondering about it, and he started looking at the sword.

  He lightly hit the sword directly with a hammer, but the stubborn old man only tilted his head.

  “Hmmm… as expected of my masterpiece. There is a place where the blade chipped a bit, but the whole thing is not really distorted. What is weird about this, you idiot!?” (Grant)

  “It’s because the sword feels light.” (Lior)

  “It feels light because you have become stronger, you idiot! What is going on with your body!?” (Grant)

  “Hmm, I just found a goal. Not just power, but I am also learning various techniques. So, I want the center of gravity to be closer. Fix it immediately.” (Lior)

  “Fix it immediately!? It will take, at least, a few months, you idiot!” (Grant)

  “Hmm… there is no other way then.” (Lior)

  Because there was no compromise in regards of weapons.

  When I was looking for a replacement sword while waiting for my partner to be reborn again, I remembered an important matter.

  “Oh, yeah!? Oi, old man! Did a human named Sirius and some Silver Wolfkin siblings come here?” (Lior)

  “Haa? Yeah, they came, you idiot. There were a man whom I took care of in various ways, a cheeky child and a cute granddaughter.” (Grant)

  “Uhmm, they really came. So, did you give good weapons to Emilia?” (Lior)

  Since Sirius already had a splendid weapon, I wrote in a letter, asking him to give Emilia some good weapons. That boy… whatever was good for him.

  “Idiot! I sold the best knife I made for five silver coins!” (Grant)

  “What!?” (Lior)

  I instinctively slapped the desk. The desk broke by that slap, but it wasn’t so much.

  “Why did you receive the money!? You should’ve said to keep it as pocket money since you already had enough!” (Lior)

  “Idiot! I said that, but she refused! She was a straightforward and cute girl!” (Grant)

  “Of course she is! That’s because she is my granddaughter!” (Lior)

  “She is not your granddaughter, you idiot!” (Grant)

  And then, the discussion between the stubborn old man and I continued with fists. It was settled with Emilia being our granddaughter.

  I felt that my intuition caught something strange, but… I didn’t mind.

  —


  [An alternative sword!? You conceited idiot!] (Grant)

  Even though he said that, I was given a weapon that was similar to an iron lump, which resembled a sword, from him. Its weight was no different from my partner, so the feeling of shouldering it wasn’t bad. However, since it had no blade, it was close to a blunt weapon.

  Although I attracted unusual gazes, I was walking around the town while looking for a shop, without worrying about them.

  “If I’m not wrong, he said something about Gal Company.” (Lior)

  Dee and Noel, whom I met before, recommended that company to me.

  Since I heard that he lent his skills, creating variety of dishes for that company, I thought that there must be something that would surprise me.

  I saw a signboard that said “Galgan Company” after searching for a short while. It was a store that had an unusual and different air compared to the other buildings.

  “Hmm… This looks like the place.” (Lior)

  There were many customers in the store, and I could see the sight of them buying goods that were written as “Essentials for Travel”. But, I felt more interested with the neighboring building.

  When I checked the signboard, it seemed like a restaurant with meals and teas. I was going to this place just because I was hungry.

  “Hello. Welcome to Galgan Cafe. Is it for one person?” (Waitress)

  When I entered the store, which was written as… the birthplace of cake or something, I was guided inside by a waitress in a maid dress.

  Either because the time was good, or not crowded, I was able to sit down at a table without waiting. And when I was handed a menu and read it all the way, I decided to order as usual, for the time being.

  “I want all the dishes and cakes on this menu. I don’t mind the order, I want you to prepare the things that you can do.” (Lior)

  “Certainly.” (Waitress)

  “…Ooh.” (Lior)

  A voice of admiration unconsciously leaked out.

  I had ordered like this in various shops so far, and they certainly asked again, since it was impossible for them, and they would try to stop me.

  On the contrary, this store accepted the order without asking again. That guy had, indeed, lent his hand here.

  Well… weren’t they a bit too used to it? I had a feeling that… they frequently had this kind of order.

  While I was in doubt, the waitress started to arrange the cakes on my table.

  “To begin with, here is the store-boasted cake set. Please wait for the other dishes awhile.” (Waitress)

  They were the same cakes that Dee made, but… they were smaller. Dee and that guy would make were big round cakes, but the cakes that I ordered from this store were in small pieces.

  I used a fork and ate it in one bite, but I was still satisfied with it. The taste wasn’t bad.

  “Hmm… it’s not enough. Sorry, can you bring more of these?” (Lior)

  I ordered again from a waitress who was walking nearby, and when I was drinking a hot tea…


  “Good grief… Eat cake more elegantly, you know?” (??)

  I heard such words from nearby… but that voice made me unusually irritated.

  When I turned around to glare at him, there was a young man at the next table who could be found anywhere, and a man who appeared to have a certain ability sitting on a chair.

  The voice just now came from the unfamiliar young man, but… I completely noticed that voice, even if I wanted to forget it.

  That was known as a supernatural magic, and there was no difference from that abnormal elf magician. His appearance was different, but if it was him, he could do it. Perhaps, he was disguised with magic or tools.

  “You bastard… what are you doing here?” (Lior)

  “Can’t you see? I am having cake. Unlike you, I’m elegant, don’t you think?” (Rodwell)

  “That is elegant? You just used magic like an idiot, and you call that elegant?” (Lior)

  “That’s rude. It was my mistake to use the word ‘elegant’ for you, whom has no brain but a sword. Let me apologize.” (Rodwell)

  We were smiling, but since we were staring at each other while releasing bloodlust, the surrounding waitresses and customers were getting away from us when I noticed them.

  “Do you think that is enough of an apology? My eye was badly injured because of your magic! Aren’t you a fool for suddenly dropping a mountain?!” (Lior)

  I couldn’t forget it.

  That was a few years ago… At that time, I was participating to crush some groups of thieves at the request of the guild.

  This guy dropped a mountain-like rock from above when I attacked them. I cut a part of the rock to avoid it, but if it was done poorly, I would’ve been killed.

  “Was it not because you charged in on your own without listening to the strategy? And because of you, I couldn’t wipe out all of the thieves, maybe you’re the one who should apologize?” (Rodwell)

  “It was weird to drop a mountain on thieves! Don’t do magical experiments on the thieves, do it somewhere else!” (Lior)

  “I don’t need to say that you were killing them while laughing.” (Rodwell)

  “What!?” (Lior)

  “Alright… shall we settle this?” (Rodwell)

  The cup he placed on the table had started to subtlely vibrate because of our bloodlust, and then I picked up the piece of iron, which was the substitute for my partner.

  This opponent would not be easy with this weapon, but I would be able to do it at this distance.

  “W-wait a minute, Magna-san! I haven’t eat the cake yet, so I want you to stop that!” (Rodwell)

  “Impossible. I will be killed if I unskillfully intervene.” (Magna)

  Other customers were getting noisy because they were driven out, the moment I took a step forward to push this iron lump against him… a woman came in between us.

  “Yeah, yeah, let’s stop at that. This is not outside, but inside the shop, so if you act violently, you won’t be able to come here again, you know.” (??)

  Normally, I didn’t mind attacking, but the woman, who interrupted me, had power and dignity that made me unintentionally stop my feet.

  I had, somehow, calmed down and when I separated my hand from the iron lump, he also stood down and sat back in his chair.

  “Yeah, that’s good! If you want to have a go, please do it outside of the town. Ojii-sama too, you were also being immature.” (Lifell)

  “I have displayed an embarrassing figure.” (Rodwell)

  “…The Jou-chan is right. Thank you for stopping me.” (Lior)

  “Hi-hime-sama—…no, please stop interrupting this situation!” (Melt)

  “I can’t do my job if I am frightened by this degree. Aah, the order? Three sets of cakes.” (Lifell)

  “U-understood… ” (Melt)

  Hooo…She was a dignified and strong-willed Jou-chan, huh?

  An ordinary person would run away, but rather than just interrupting us, she casually sat on a chair and placed an order.

  “Ojii-sama, also, let’s eat cake without having a fight. This is a precious break for us.” (Lifell)

  “That’s right. Well then, Magna, quickly take that one whole cake. I will never forgive you for eating alone.” (Rodwell)

  I didn’t really understand, but this Jou-chan seemed to know that foolish elf. She wasn’t afraid of our bloodlust… she didn’t seem to be an ordinary person.

  The surroundings also regained its calmness, starting with the Jou-chan, who happily ate the cakes. Since I had sat on a chair and the dishes had arrived, I decided to focus on the meals for the time being.

  When I enjoyed the dishes that were unexpectedly delicious, even though they weren’t at Dee’s level, the Jou-chan from earlier sat in front of me. In the vicinity, there were two who appeared to be that Jou-chan’s attendants; a female rabbitkin, and a young man who didn’t have enough muscles.

  “Hmmm… what is it? Was it because the commotion earlier was bad?” (Lior)

  “I didn’t really mind about that commotion. Actually, I’d like to ask you something.” (Lifell)

  “If it’s alright to answer while I’m eating, that’s fine, then.” (Lior)

  “Thank you very much. I heard from the person who was indulging in cakes over there. Are you the famous Lior-sama?” (Lifell)

  The part when she mentioned my name wasn’t heard by the surroundings, so I decided to nod obediently. Since she had heard it from that elf, I thought that there was no need to conceal that fact.

  “Although the name matches, that is not my name at the moment. My name is Ikki-Tousen. I want you to call me Tousen.” (Lior)

  “Well then, Tousen-sama. My name is Lifell, and I am the royal princess of Elysion. To tell you the truth, I want to ask a favor.” (Lifell)

  “…I dislike royalty and nobility. So, I don’t want to hear it.” (Lior)

  When I had a bothered face, the Jou-chan named Lifell took out a bell from her pocket and rang it. And then a large roasted meat and a cake, which hadn’t sliced yet, were brought together from the kitchen and lined up in front of me.

  “Please help yourself, you don’t have to hold back. It is good enough even if you just listen to the talk.” (Lifell)

  “…Fine. I will only listen, so don’t ask anything.” (Lior)

  “Thank you very much. The talk is simple. I want you to teach the people in the castle the way of using the sword. Of course, the reward will be amazing.” (Lifell)

  “Is that it? It’s troublesome…” (Lior)

  “Alright then, you can just do a simulated battle. I want the castle guards to directly experience the strength of Tousen-sama. Because experience is important.” (Lifell)

  “Hoo… I got it. There is a possibility that I might break the opponents, you know?” (Lior)

  “We are well aware of that, and the opponents of Tousen-sama really desire it. Actually, Melt, who is next to me, also wants it.” (Lifell)

  “I want to become strong to protect this person. Tousen-sama, will you consider it?” (Melt)

  This man… didn’t have sufficient muscles, but the determination in his eyes were considerable. He resembled that small boy who tried to surpass me for that purpose.

  “I want the people in the castle taught at least once by the strongest man in the world. If there are troublesome nobles, they will be immediately silenced, so will that be alright?” (Lifell)

  “I’m not the strongest in the world anymore…” (Lior)

  I wasn’t the strongest in the world when I was defeated by Sirius. And he didn’t claim that title, he just left it vacant, but… would that be troublesome to explain?

  Besides, when I think about it, I still have to wait for my partner to be fixed… so should I go to the castle to spend my time?

  “Well… alright. Are you going to take the responsibility?” (Lior)

  “Thank you very much. Although this is too quick, I will also explain about the future schedules…” (Lifell)

  “Since that old man has low intelligence other than a sword, it will be useless to explain. It is good enough if you just give him meals again as a reward.” (Rodwell)

  “What did you say!? You also looked happy when it comes to magic, aren’t you!? The face that you had when you tested the magic at that time was deplorable!” (Lior)

  “You too have a sloppy face when you swing a sword. By all means, show that disillusion to the soldiers of the castle.” (Rodwell)

  “…Want to have a go?” (Lior)

  “Shall we?” (Rodwell)

  “Yeah, yeah, stop it right there.” (Lifell)

  When the elf and I stood up, the Jou-chan intervened once again, but unlike earlier, both of us were totally unwilling.

  This time, when I grabbed my partner and I couldn’t be stopped anymore… inexcusable words came out from the Jou-chan.

  “My sister has a friend named Emilia, and… she told us a bit about Tousen-san, is that right, Senia?” (Lifell)

  “Yeah. She told me that you are a strong and kind-hearted Ojii-san. And if a fight with such a person happened in the town…” (Senia)

  “Besides, there is a new cake recipe that Sirius-kun thought of in the letter that I received the other day. That’s too bad, Ojii-sama.” (Lifell)

  ““…”” (Lior/Rodwell)

  The elf and I were silently shaking hands.

  I thought of squeezing his hand, but I am a gentle Ojii-san. I’ll forgive you today.

  Thus, while I’m leaving my partner behind, I ended up playing with the soldiers of Elysion.

  And after I get my partner back, I would immediately go after Sirius and Emilia.

  Boy… did you properly expect that?

  Wait for me!

  Later… the days when screams could be heard from the castle continued for several days.

  —


  Extra

  During [The Reformation of the Silver Wolf Tribe], the parents were…


  “…Emilia has finally overcome it.” (Erina)

  “Yeah. It seems that Sirius also took the opportunity, so it turned out well, I guess? Hehe, she looks really happy. I’m jealous.” (Aria)

  “Since I entrusted everything to Emilia, that girl will continue to support Sirius-sama.” (Erina)

  “Yes, that was a good response. As expected of a child brought up by Erina.” (Aria)

  “Thank you very much.” (Erina)

  “Excuse me…” (??)

  “Ooh? Aren’t you Emilia’s and Reus’…” (Aria)

  “Nice to meet you, my name is Rona. This time your son and our…” (Rona)

  “Aah, no need, no need. You don’t have to use honorifics. Everyone here is equal. Because this is just a place to watch the children. By the way, please call me Aria.” (Aria)

  “Please call me Erina. Would you like to have some tea?” (Erina)

  “Tea!? Ooh… yes, please.” (Rona)

  “Anyway, that person who stumbled over his knees over there, is he alright?” (Aria)

  “You do not need to worry. Because he’s just unable to accept that his daughter was taken by Sirius-kun. Hey, isn’t she looking really happy? How long are you going to be frustrated?” (Rona)

  “Uhmm… I’m sorry about my boy.” (Aria)

  “No… instead of just saving your daughter and son, he is a gentle child who will make them happy. He knows that, but, after all…” (Erina)

  “I think that he will recovered soon; so, please, leave him alone. Leaving that aside, we have something that we want to tell you, Aria-san.” (Rona)

  “What is it?” (Aria)

  “Thank you for giving birth to such a wonderful child. Since Sirius was there, we were able to disappear with confidence. And Erina-san…” (Rona)

  “Yes?” (Erina)

  “Thank you very much for loving our children. On the contrary, you gave Emilia a new goal.” (Rona)

  “…That’s incorrect. I used your child for my own self-satisfaction.” (Erina)

  “No, even if it was, when looking at their happy faces, I don’t think that was a mistake.” (Rona)

  “Yeah! That’s why they are good with each other.” (Aria)

  “Yeah… right. Leaving that matter aside, shall we watch the children together?” (Erina)

  “No… We already had enough. We’re going to disappear like this.” (Rona)

  “Yeah… you’re satisfied, aren’t you?” (Aria)

  “Yes. The children are already adults, and it will be alright if we leave them to Sirius-kun.” (Rona)

  “Is that so? It’s weird to say ‘please take care’… so goodbye.” (Aria)

  “Ahaha, I certainly do not know what to say. Hey, how long are you going to be like that? Say something.” (Rona)

  “Aah… yes. My wife has said everything that I wanted to say, and I’m also grateful. Sirius-kun is a wonderful child.” (Felios)

  “Hehe… of course, that’s because he is my child. Well then, goodbye.” (Aria)

  ““Yes.”” (Rona/Felios)

  “They have gone now.” (Erina)

  “Yeah. By the way, Erina. Are you going to move on?” (Aria)

  “Are you kidding me? I still have to watch over Sirius.” (Erina)

  “Me too. Besides, that child is doing a lot of things, so I won’t get tired of watching him.” (Aria)

  “Exactly, but I think that he will face a slightly dangerous situation soon.” (Erina)

  “Aah, isn’t that natural when he is on an adventure? Besides, since he said that he wanted to become an educator, I wonder when he will settle down?” (Aria)

  “That will be good. If he settles down, we will soon see a child born.” (Erina)

  “Yeah. Since there are two bride candidates, I’m sure it will be right away.” (Aria)

  “Grandchildren… is it?” (Erina)

  “Yeah. They will look cute.” (Aria)

  “Yes. They will.” (Erina)

  “I’m looking forward to it.” (Aria)

  “Me too.” (Erina)