—What on earth is this…?
No, wait a second. Let's think logically. From what I had observed over the last month, there was always a reason for everything Rue did. He convinced the maid to let us come here with the excuse of "managing me." That meant he wouldn't have brought this lady here without some motive.
—I think you're making up an interesting story about what happened in your mind. Why don't you tell me too? Who knows, you might be right about something.
There was nothing he couldn't do.
—…you're not Morian right now. That means you had to use another kind of magic, didn't you?
You couldn't use magic while you were in a transformed state. This was based on basic magic theory that said: "you cannot use different spells in an overlapping state." That was the reason why mages valued magical tools so much, which could be used even when transformed.
—And you dragged this woman here, probably for some other reason than just for the sake of it. —Rue stared at me. I continued proudly —. Finally, you've been acting suspiciously these last few days. You must have dedicated your time to this woman. You said yesterday you had a date, it was to meet her, wasn't it?
—You know how to use logic, how cute. Go ahead, what is your conclusion?
—You're in love with this woman.
Rue's expression chilled. I quickly added my next line in case he was about to hit me on the head.
—I'm joking. In conclusion, you already knew this woman. What do you say?
—I ran into her when I was returning.
What? It wasn't that? I looked at the woman with a strange feeling. If that's not it, then what was the problem here? Probably I could get information about Dian Cecht without having this poor woman lying on the floor unconscious like this... wait.
—Did this woman attack you?
—That's exactly what she was going to do.
Ah, that was a clear clue. —This woman is an assassin.
There was a silent knock. Instinctively I put my hand on my right hip, which was empty.
—Excuse me, the Black Ragel has conducted a sponsored first-come, first-served visit to Iregiel. Please emerge when you are ready to disembark. I will show you the way to your dormitory in the Iregiel villa.
—Ah, well… my wife just woke up, so it will take a while for us to come out. I would like you to wait for us under the transport, if possible.
—Of course.
Uf. After driving the stewardess away, I kept my voice as low as possible as I asked: —Was she here to assassinate you?
—Well, I'm sure she at least had a shady purpose. If you're curious, why don't we ask her what her purpose was?
Rue, who smiled sarcastically, lifted the assassin's head in the air as if it were a potato. At that moment, the assassin's eyes, which were tightly closed, snapped open.
—Agh!
Dozens of magic spells overlapped on the assassin's green eyes, as a sudden exclamation burst from her mouth. As the layer of magic grew thicker, the focus in her eyes blurred. I knew this magic. Mind manipulation magic. Along with magical oaths, mind manipulation magic was a high-risk magic that was considered taboo.
—Aren't you going to ask?
—Is this why you brought her here?
Rue shrugged slightly instead of responding. —A H doesn't care at all about taboos. Neither did I care much, so I moved on.
Sitting with my knees bent in front of the assassin's face, I moved my lips silently. —For what purpose did you come aboard the Black Ragel?
As if trying to refuse to answer the question, the assassin shook her shoulders, but yielded and replied with what sounded like a dying voice. —The aristocracy… surveillance…
Her goal was the aristocrats and not Rue? I don't want to get involved in something unnecessary. I asked with a sigh. —Who was your target?
—The numbers were not specified… most…
Most? —How many more of you are hiding here?
—Twelve…
Something was wrong. Twelve assassins hired just for surveillance? I looked at Rue. There was something in his eyes that told me there was something about this he didn't like very much.
—What are the roles of the other guys besides you?
—You… Agh! Agh…!
The assassin's mental challenge intensified. Rue, still smiling, applied another layer of magic to the assassin. Now she looked more like a corpse with open eyes than a human.
—Answer me. What are the roles of the others besides yours?
The assassin, struggling to breathe, moved her lips slowly. —Villa Iregiel…attack…
As soon as Rue let go of her head, I got up and ran to the window. From here you could see the Iregiel villa, nestled under the white moonlight.
—Oh God.
Outside, dozens of heads were lined up like ants.
The wide hallway was full of busy crew members. Seeing the place was mostly luggage, most of the passengers on that floor already seemed to have disembarked.
Jean pushed through them and headed toward her destination. Her expression was as blunt and hostile as ever, but in her head she was reflecting on the situation of a few minutes earlier.
It was very different from all the knights I had faced so far. Skill level? Of course they were different. She had lost without her opponent even having to draw the sword. However, Jean's question was more fundamental than that.
The way of grabbing the scabbard and the position of his feet. All of them from unexpected angles. The body movement was different from what I expected. That's why she felt even more helpless and was forced to recount her duel relentlessly.
What if I had moved the left hand instead of the right? What if the balance of the left foot had been more perfect? What if I hadn't exposed my habit and had taken a blow to the right shoulder?
—…ha.
The sword master's style of defeating his opponents kept them down with the overwhelming difference in their skills. Viscount Weatherwoods, on the other hand, seemed like he was making fun of her in the duel.
Today's duel was a shock to Jean in many ways, so she had no choice but to admit that she was still just a plant in a huge greenhouse.
—But I'm lucky to have met Viscount Weatherwoods.
The Duke had declared he would retire from the task force in three years. It was a fact known and recognized by everyone in the empire that he had chosen Gavroche as his successor. Jean had knocked on the Berkley Grattens' doors only to learn how to use the sword. Furthermore, the Duke was not the type of character who would continue to have her as a disciple even after having been eliminated from the battle for succession.
—So I must not let the Weatherwoods go.
Practice continuously to reach the peak of fencing. For Jean, who had lived her entire life with that goal, Viscount Weatherwoods could provide a new path for her sword. When Jean regained her common sense, she found herself in front of her master and foster father, the sword master.
Despite having arrived at the last place, many passengers still remained in the cabin. Surely they wanted to check with their own ears the result of the duel.
—Here, Excellency.
Humbly, she returned the sword to the sword master with both hands. No, she tried to return it, but the person in charge did not seem to have any intention of taking it back. He looked at Jean's face with his legs crossed and said: —You have a very different expression than I expected.
—I am ashamed.
Yeager, who again held a card in his hands, opened his mouth distractedly. —No way… Gray beat Miss Jean? That can't be…
The murmurs in the cabin increased little by little, but the Duke did not answer the man's question. The Duke, slowly stroking his chin with worried eyes, asked Jean casually: —Jean, how many steps did you make him step back?
—It wasn't me who did it. It was my opponent who did it.
—How?
—He promised me that if I made him wield his sword twice, he would consider it my victory.
How arrogant! As soon as someone shouted that, the Duke turned to Yeager. —Mr. Yeager Panula.
—What? Ah, yes.
—Do you think the Viscount really didn't learn to use the sword?
As if thinking of something, Yeager narrowed his eyes. However, although the answer was a bit slow, he confirmed it with a firm tone. —Indeed.
—Is that so? Thank you for answering my question.
The sword master, who received the sword from Jean's hands, rose from his chair. —Go home for now. We arrived in Iregiel faster than I expected. See you tomorrow morning on land, not in the sky.
The Duke and Jean were the first to leave the cabin. As the Black Ragel had arrived in Iregiel, it seemed like a natural course of action that everyone understood. But Jean knew. The fact that the sword master had not allowed her to declare her defeat. Very skillfully, he covered Jean's mouth. He ignored Yeager's question about whether she had been defeated and left without hesitation. The sword master normally had a temperament that could not stand seeing things not go as he had planned. From his point of view, Jean's defeat must have been something outside his calculations.
As soon as they returned to the private cabin, the sword master asked: —How did Viscount Weatherwoods wield his sword?