Chapter 10
"...What? A Demon Sword?"
Nicole chuckled and leaned back against the chair. She replied in a relaxed voice.
"And here I thought it was something important. Aren't you way past the age of fairy tales, Eki?"
"A transparent blade with patterns engraved on it, a black hilt made of an unknown metal, and about this long."
Eki raised her hand, indicating a height that reached her chest when she stood up. Nicole's expression changed slightly.
The Demon Sword Bardelgiosa, known for causing massacres wherever it appeared, was quite famous among the Giosa Series. However, despite its fame, its appearance was not widely known. It was normal for an ordinary noble lady like Ekinesia not to know, unlike Nicole, the disciple of the Seven Sages of the Magic Tower.
"...That kind of sword was in that bundle?"
"Yes, it was definitely a Demon Sword. The Demon Sword Bardelgiosa."
"How do you know it was Bardelgiosa?"
It was an expected question. Eki gave the excuse she had prepared.
"Actually, I've been quite interested in the Giosa Series. It looked similar to an illustration I saw in a book a while ago."
"......It must be a replica. There are many Giosa replicas."
"Well, see for yourself. You'll change your mind."
"What?"
Eki slowly removed the glove from her right hand. She placed the silk glove on the table and reached out her hand.
Nicole's eyes widened at the sight of the black pattern on her hand. And as the exact same sword Eki had described earlier emerged from that pattern, the color drained from her face.
Eki grabbed the hilt of the sword that had appeared on her hand. Then, she laid it horizontally on the table.
Nicole stared at the sword with a pale face and muttered a spell. A light flickered in her eyes for a moment before disappearing. It seemed to be a type of detection magic.
After examining the sword in that state, she was startled and jumped up. She quickly moved away from the table and pointed at it with a trembling hand.
"B, B, Bardelgiosa...!"
"I thought you'd recognize it right away, since you're a mage."
Eki gave a bitter smile and reached for the hilt of the Demon Sword. Seeing this, Nicole approached with a speed that was unbelievable for her usual self and grabbed Eki's wrist as she tried to grasp the Demon Sword.
"Are you crazy? You're going to touch a Demon Sword?"
"I already have, sister."
"Oh my god, we, we need to inform the Magic Tower immediately and seal it, no, the Azure Knights..."
"No, you just saw it."
"Wh, wh, wh, what?"
Eki easily broke free from Nicole's grip and grasped the Demon Sword. The Demon Sword disappeared into her hand as if melting into it. Nicole stared blankly at the spot where the sword had disappeared, then turned her gaze to Eki. Eki understood the unspoken question.
"Yes, it recognizes me as its owner."
"H, how? You, then, right now..."
Nicole panicked and rambled. The reason why Demon Swords were called Demon Swords was because they manipulated their owners to commit massacres. However, Eki in front of her seemed perfectly fine. She looked a little different from usual, but she didn't look like a demon crazed with slaughter. Eki shrugged.
"Why am I sane? I don't know. Anyway, the important thing isn't that."
"Not important? You're holding a Demon Sword and you're fine...!"
"Sister, why do you think a Demon Sword was in our kitchen, in such flimsy packaging?"
Nicole's eyes wavered. Eki put her glove back on and added.
"What if someone else had grabbed the Demon Sword before me? I'm not tainted by the Demon Sword now, but what if I had been controlled? What would have happened then?"
"......The Roaz mansion would be nothing but corpses now."
"Would it be just the Roaz family?"
Eki smiled coldly. Nicole took off her monocle and rubbed her eyes. Then, she wiped the stains off her glasses with her collar. Eki didn't say anything more and waited. Nicole, who had regained her composure, put on her glasses and said.
"Who, with what intention, and how did they bring the Demon Sword to the Roaz family? You're saying that's the most important thing right now?"
"That's right."
"You're wrong. What's more important than that right now is how you can hold a Demon Sword and be perfectly fine. We need to investigate this properly right away. You're a ticking time bomb right now. We need to get rid of that Demon Sword somehow and then..."
"I know the reason. And I've thought of a way to get rid of the Demon Sword."
"......Eki."
Nicole rubbed her eyes once more, looking troubled. She said heavily.
"What are you hiding?"
"......I'm sorry, I can't tell you. The only reason I told you that I have a Demon Sword is to ask you to investigate. Otherwise, I wouldn't have said anything."
"Investigate? The source of the Demon Sword?"
"Yes. I have something else to do."
"Something to do?"
"I have to get rid of the Demon Sword."
"......So, you're saying that while you get rid of the Demon Sword, you want me to investigate the source of the Demon Sword? Is that why you came?"
"That's right. And to ask you to look after my family while I'm gone."
"Gone? Where are you going?"
"Ajenka."
Nicole let out a groan-like sigh. She leaned back in her chair with a tired attitude and carelessly took off her monocle and threw it aside. Her murky green eyes sank like a swamp and glared at Eki.
"Do you even realize how serious the situation is right now?"
"I know very well. That's why I'm telling you. Because I can trust you."
"......I thought you were being unusually saccharine all of a sudden. You shouldn't trust people so easily, Cadet Ekinesia Roaz. Do you know what will happen if it's revealed that you're the owner of a Demon Sword?"
"It'll be dangerous, in many ways."
"Dangerous? Should I tell you specifically? You'll be immediately quarantined. Even if you're fine now, there's no guarantee that you'll be fine in the future. They might experiment on you to find out why you're not being controlled. There will be opinions that we should just kill you because we don't know when you'll explode. Do you think people will believe that you're not tainted?"
"You're believing me right now, though."
"Of course I am, no, do you really think that other people will trust you like I do? I didn't think you were that stupid...!"
"Of course I have to hide it from everyone except you. I didn't even tell my parents. You're the only one I can ask to investigate, so I'm only telling you. Because I can trust you."
"Where does that trust come from, anyway?"
She asked as if she was dumbfounded. Eki closed her mouth.
'Because I saw you not running away even in the face of death. You know, when you're facing death, you see the bottom of people. And I've seen that a lot. You're... someone I can trust.'
She couldn't say it. The times she had experienced no longer existed. She desperately hoped that would be the case and didn't regret it, but she felt a little lonely thinking that she couldn't share or be understood about that experience with anyone in the future.
Swallowing the words she couldn't say, Eki said something else.
"Then, shouldn't I trust you?"
"No, it's not that... No. You shouldn't trust anyone. It's better for you not to trust anyone."
Nicole muttered with a darkened face, then startled and raised her head.
"Wait a minute, why are you going to Ajenka? You're not going to go to the Azure Knights and say, 'I'm the owner of a Demon Sword,' are you?"
"You were just saying to inform the Magic Tower or the Azure Knights?"
"That's when you weren't the owner of a Demon Sword! I'm going crazy, is there a way to get rid of the Demon Sword? How are you going to deal with it anyway!"
Relinquishing ownership of a Demon Sword was simple. But that fact was not known at all. It was inevitable, since it was a sword that controlled its owner.
Eki, who couldn't give up the Demon Sword for other reasons, didn't explain that abandoning the Demon Sword was easy, but instead answered the latter part of the question.
"I'm going to become a knight of the Azure Knights."
"......What?"
"I'm going to become a formal knight and get rid of the Demon Sword."
Nicole didn't even try to hide her blatantly distorted expression. She asked back in a voice that was full of disbelief.
"A knight? You? And that too, of the Azure Knights?"
"Yes. The Ajenka Military Cadet selection exam is every spring. I'm going to take that. I'm going to start as a cadet and become a knight as quickly as possible."
In fact, if she revealed that she was a Master, she could take the entrance exam right away, but that was too suspicious. A normal twenty-year-old noble lady suddenly being a Master.
Of course, becoming a Military Cadet was also an absurd thing to do, but at least it was better than suddenly saying she was a Master.
'As a Military Cadet, I'll build up some achievements and show that my swordsmanship is improving, and then become a Master around the age of twenty-three, like Yuriene. That way, it'll be less noticeable. I'll just maintain a level that people can accept as being due to being a genius.'
Nicole, who had no idea what Eki was thinking, grabbed the back of her neck.
"No, how are you going to become a knight? You've never even held a sword before!"
This was also a question she had anticipated and prepared for. Eki smiled bitterly.
"Actually, I've secretly practiced with a sword before."
"Is she even talking nonsense now? Do I not know you? You, with your personality, doing swordsmanship training?"
"And sister, I'm the owner of a Demon Sword. A Giosa Owner."
Giosa Owner. With extremely rare exceptions, you had to be at least a Master to become a Giosa Owner. Therefore, all owners were naturally excellent swordsmen. This was common sense.
According to common sense, Ekinesia, who was a Giosa Owner, should also be an excellent swordsman. But the Eki that Nicole knew and the modifier of an excellent swordsman could not be connected at all. She became confused.
"A Giosa Owner...... First of all, that's, even if it's the Giosa Series, it's a Demon Sword...?"
"Yes, because it's a Demon Sword. I've become more skilled with the sword thanks to the Demon Sword."
It wasn't wrong. When she thought about it, it was because of the Demon Sword that she had become a master of the sword. Nicole understood her words differently.
"The Demon Sword had that kind of ability? Ah, that's right, that sword was originally meant to control its owner. Is it a similar method? No, then your ego should disappear...... What on earth......"
"Anyway, I don't intend to keep the Demon Sword forever. So until I become a knight, I want you to investigate the source of the Demon Sword while...... protecting our family. You're the only one I can ask."
Count Roaz was a person who was far removed from politics and scheming. You could tell just by the fact that he didn't get involved in the political scene of the capital and lived in the territory. The Countess wasn't much different, and Lancelid was a seventeen-year-old boy who hadn't even had his coming-of-age ceremony yet. Nicole Sizten was the only one who could help with this problem.
Nicole frowned and remained silent for a while. Eki, who was anxiously fidgeting with the edge of her glove while waiting for her answer, muttered softly.
"I'm sorry for asking you for this favor."
