-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Head Down
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Gah!”
Daphne shot up.
Looking around, she saw it was pitch black outside. A faint shimmering light on the mountainside suggested the sun was just beginning to rise.
‘How long was I out?’
No, no.
That wasn’t important.
First, I need to focus on crushing that quack elf bastard. You’re dead.
“Bring me the elf at once… huh?”
Wait. Something’s strange.
Daphne leaped from the bed and pattered over to the mirror.
The Daphne in the mirror looked the same as always.
Slightly dry blonde hair, a pale complexion, and stick-thin limbs. She looked just as pathetic as before she had collapsed, but there was a subtle change.
Daphne immediately checked her body.
[Daphne Akion]
Stamina: 50 Charm: 300
Strength: 4 Mana: 1
[Daphne Akion]
Stamina: 50 Charm: 300
Strength: 4 Mana: 1
My goodness.
Her stamina had gone up by 20. And that wasn’t all. Her body felt refreshed. It was as if an Eastern acupuncturist had drawn out all the bad blood with cupping.
—You will experience symptoms that may feel like side effects.
—It is all part of the healing process, so do not be concerned.
“Oh… So he’s not a complete quack.”
Then I’ll put off crushing him for now.
Teiti was probably catching up on days of lost sleep after making the medicine. He had no idea that he had just brought me back from the brink of hell.
I truly am a merciful dragon. Hehehe.
Daphne clenched and unclenched her fists, getting a feel for her new body.
Then she turned on her heel.
She felt like heading straight to the training grounds.
I am the great calamity. No one can stand in my way.
With that thought, she went outside…
“M-My Lady?”
“Y-You’re awake? N-No. Why are you out here?”
“You should be resting!”
The knights, who were out for their dawn training, fussed over her, circling around her anxiously.
“What’s this? Why are you all acting like this?”
Daphne gave them a pathetic look and prepared to run.
“Don’t tell me you’re planning to do physical training again?”
“You’re going to run?”
“Yep. That’s right.”
“You can’t!”
A few knights stepped forward to block Daphne’s path.
“You only just collapsed yesterday, and now you’re going to push your body like this again!”
“Absolutely not. Absolutely!”
Their words had some merit.
Daphne had collapsed just yesterday while practicing her swordsmanship.
And now, the moment she woke up, she was out to run laps on the training grounds? That would be difficult even for most adults.
Moreover, the knights, unaware that Daphne’s stamina had increased, had no choice but to block her way.
But no matter how much sense they made, Daphne couldn’t understand. How dare they block my path? Do they know who I am?
I am a calamity. The very calamity whose touch is said to bring about cataclysmic pain and death. And yet these insignificant human bastards…!
“Do you dare stand in my way? You wanna get smacked?”
A murderous glint appeared in Daphne’s green eyes.
Whoa. What’s with that look? Scary.
The knights flinched in spite of themselves, but since the child before them was only five years old, they didn’t back down.
“B-But…! It’s for your own well-being, my Lady!”
“Absolutely not! If you insist on going, you’ll have to kill us first!”
“Hey, that’s not right. Why should we die?”
“It’s just an expression, you blockhead! This way, Her Ladyship will have no choice but to pretend she can’t win and go back inside!”
“Ah! Yes, that’s right! If you really want to go, then kill us!”
Daphne’s head tilted to one side. Her lips, which had been clamped shut like a clamshell, twisted. The breath that escaped through her teeth seemed faintly black.
“Is that your wish?”
“…Pardon?”
“If that’s your wish, of course I can grant it. I’ll make it painless.”
“W-Wait a minute!”
Can’t you take a hint!
The knights rushed to stop Daphne, who was now genuinely radiating killing intent. Just then.
“Just let her go.”
A familiar voice rang out. It was the Knight Commander, Lloyd.
“Her Ladyship wants to run, doesn’t she?”
He said, putting on a stern face.
“Isn’t that right, my Lady?”
Daphne stared up at Lloyd. The murderous intent that had been in her eyes just moments before was gone.
“Hmph. So there is one with a brain here.”
With a snort, she started running around the training grounds. Her short legs pattering along were quite cute. But at the same time, knowing she was a child destined to die, it was also quite pitiful. The sight of Daphne running evoked a mixture of emotions.
“It seems Her Ladyship has made up her mind.”
Lloyd said to the dazed knights.
“None of us can have weaker resolve than Her Ladyship.”
Lloyd was telling his knights to learn from the will of a mere five-year-old girl, but since they all knew how Daphne had trained over the past month, no one objected.
“You all run, too.”
“Yes, sir!”
The knights began to run in unison, while Daphne ran at her own pace around the training grounds.
***
“I’m dead.”
She had run ten laps today.
As a result, not only was her stamina completely depleted, but she didn’t even have the strength to lift a finger.
“Ugh.”
Was it because I got too cocky after my stamina increased?
Feeling her legs tremble, Daphne flopped onto her back right there on the training grounds.
‘Still, it’s working.’
If I keep this up, the day will come when I become strong.
And if I become strong, I can achieve my current plan—in other words, the grand goal of becoming stronger than in my past life and getting revenge on the Hero who killed me.
Daphne was waiting for that moment.
‘I’ll rest a bit and then practice my mana.’
With that thought, Daphne closed her eyes slightly. Or rather, she was about to.
“So, are you saying you’ll defy the Count’s order?”
A strange voice drifted over. Daphne opened her eyes and turned her head toward the sound.
There stood Lloyd and a few knights wearing uniforms different from those of the archducal house.
“Didn’t I say the Count has urgent business? This matter has already been approved by His Excellency the Archduke. Are you refusing to follow a direct command?”
The knight shouted with a sharp voice, but Lloyd didn’t back down.
“Is going hunting with the Count’s youngest son considered urgent business? I can’t think of anything more leisurely.”
“Watch your mouth, Knight Commander!”
“As I said, the Vice-Commander and I are assisting Master Arius with his training. If we were to leave, it would create a problem for the young master’s training. We cannot go to the count’s estate for at least a month, so please inform him of that.”
At Lloyd’s firm declaration, the knight gritted his teeth.
“Because of some damn brat…!”
“That’s right! That Arius fellow or whatever isn’t even of His Excellency’s bloodline! Compared to him, our young master is a true heir of a noble lineage!”
The knights all began to mock and sneer at Lloyd and Arius.
Hmm.
Daphne could finally grasp the situation.
The ones in different uniforms were the Count’s knights, and they were asking Lloyd to accompany the Count’s youngest son to a hunting ground. Lloyd had refused, citing Arius’s training, but they weren’t accepting it.
“Do you have any idea how furious the Count will be when he finds out you refused his order for some commoner’s child?”
“It seems you don’t yet know where to invest your time for the best results. We’ll teach you. So hurry up and prepare to leave for the count’s estate.”
Daphne crossed her arms and studied the knights’ faces.
They didn’t seem to realize in the slightest that they were saying anything strange. In other words, they believed their words, opinions, and convictions were right. How utterly base and pathetic.
‘But it’s a bit much for me to step in, isn’t it?’
This was, after all, Arius’s business and an internal affair of the Archducal House of Akion. It was an awkward situation for Daphne to interfere in.
‘I should just pretend I didn’t see…’
As Daphne muttered, something caught her eye. It was Arius, hiding behind a pillar with his ears perked up.
His once lively and confident expression was gone, replaced by a look of resentment as he gritted his teeth and hung his head low. With tears welling in his eyes, he looked just like a rabbit with its ears drooped.
“If you’re that upset, shouldn’t you step out and curse at them or something?”
Daphne clicked her tongue and got to her feet. She then walked toward Lloyd and the Count’s knights.
“So, what I’m saying is, once His Excellency steps down, those high-and-mighty young masters and ladies will all be kicked out anyway, so why pledge your loyalty over there!”
“I hear the young Lady is going to die soon anyway. Instead of this, wouldn’t it be better to be flexible and find another way to survive?”
“Indeed. We can arrange a position for you, so…”
“Are you done talking?”
“Not yet… huh? Who’s that?”
“It’s me.”
The knights were startled by the sudden voice, and then even more shocked to see it was Daphne, nearly jumping out of their skin.
“M-M-My Lady?”
“Hic!”
Daphne Akion.
The sole heir of the Akion family.
The owner of a notorious reputation, said to have traded her personality for her noble blood!
They had heard the Lady rarely left her room, so they wouldn’t run into her. Why was she here? The knights were in chaos.
“If you’re not done talking, then continue.”
“W-Well, my Lady.”
“Go on. I’ll listen to it as your last words.”
The knights couldn’t say a word.
Daphne’s notoriety was one thing, but considering their difference in status, they were in a position where they had to keep their mouths shut in front of her.
One wrong move and they could be dragged away and beheaded.
“You’re not talking.”
Daphne clicked her tongue with an I-knew-it expression.
“Arius is Arius Akion.”
She said in a voice loud enough for the hiding Arius to hear.
“If you wish to deny that, say it directly to the Hero. I will personally arrange the meeting for you.”
“N-No, my Lady!”
“We misspoke. We apologize.”
“We apologize!”
The knights seized the opportunity and quickly bowed their heads in apology.
Trying to save face here would literally cost them their necks. Whether Daphne was a child or not, the wisest course was to quietly admit their fault.
But Daphne seemed to have no intention of backing down. Was it because she saw Arius, hiding over there, crack a slight smile and wipe away his tears? In any case, Daphne crossed her arms and defiantly lifted her chin.
“If a simple apology could erase a wrongdoing, then why would punishments exist?”
“…Pardon?”
“Head down.”
“Pardon?”
“Your heads. Down.”
