Master and Slaves

[A/N: One more golden ticket to get 2 Bonus hapters :D]

“Yes. Next is…”

Helene paused for a breath.

I could more or less guess.

“Next is the Relun Kingdom. Probably.”

As I thought.

Gertrude had said so.

However, Helma, who apparently had not heard that, sucked in her breath.

Muriel also seemed concerned about Helma.

Muriel glanced at Helma’s condition.

“While they are attacking that Relun Kingdom, we intend to attack Torrestia from behind and occupy it.”

A so-called fire-site thief… or a little different from that.

However, I thought it was a tactic that people called knights would dislike as cowardly.

“Are the knights in favor of that?”

“Yes. They say there is no other choice.”

No other choice, huh.

Well, that itself was something there was no other choice about.

The idea was that the ones invading other countries were in the wrong.

But more than that, wasn’t there a chance it was a trap?

“Is that really all the military strength they have?”

“…At least, as far as we know.”

Helene answered without confidence.

Would it be all right?

“I understand Hiroyuki-sama’s thoughts. But if we do not find hope there, we cannot retake the Tres Kingdom with our military strength. This is our only chance.”

Helene spoke with force in her voice, as if confirming her own resolve.

…Retaking the Tres Kingdom.

Was that really what Helene wanted?

I thought otherwise.

Since I had woken up, Helene’s manner had been different from before.

The cause was…

“Mateus…-san, right.”

“…”

Helene fell silent.

“Well, if the goal is the same…”

“What would you…”

“Nn?”

“What would you understand?! You who could not even live unless we reached out to you, who were not there at the crucial time—what would you understand?!”

“What… did you say…?”

I glared back at Helene, who had glared at me in a rage.

“Hi…”

Perhaps overpowered, Helene flinched.

I took advantage of that and pressed on.

“You people summoned me on your own, made me do dangerous things, and are just using me in your own bargaining! …Reached out a hand? You only did that because you needed me! Not there at the crucial time? You only needed me at that time! It’s all just for your own convenience! Enough already!!”

It had been a long time since I raised my voice in anger.

It might have been the first time since I came to this world.

Because I was still sitting in my seat it probably lacked some intensity, but even so it seemed to be enough for the people here.

The room went silent.

No one made a sound.

No one could make a sound.

Looking around the room, Helene and Julius were frozen with pale faces.

The Dules were also pale-faced and trembling in the same way.

I sighed and relaxed.

“…Haa. Well, don’t get arrogant. It’s true I’ve been helped in various ways, and I’m grateful for that, so I intend to help this time… Well, it’s give and take.”

When I said that, the tense air loosened with a hoo.

Well, however, I well understood Helene’s feelings of taking it out on me.

Helene herself had been reluctant to accompany me on the ruin investigation.

And during that time this incident had occurred.

From the perspective of Helene, who put Mateus above all else, everything that had created that cause might be unforgivable.

And compromising on that was also all for Mateus’s sake.

I looked around at the Dules.

Would these girls become like that too?

No, they might already have.

“Hiroyuki-sama. Please forgive my rudeness. However, I am also desperate. Please do not forget that.”

Whether putting on a bold front or not, Helene said that and drank her after-meal tea with a hand that was still trembling.

“Yeah, I get it. …Ah, and one more thing. …Don’t lay a hand on my Dules.”

I intimidated Helene again.

“I-I understand.”

Helene put her mouth to the tea again.

However, I wondered why I was able to intimidate people this much.

Helene was a former knight, she was fairly old, and she did not seem like she would be shaken by small things.

“Hiroyuki-sama. Did you just think something rude?”

Helene glared at me with half-lidded eyes.

“No, I wasn’t thinking anything.”

I looked off toward the day after tomorrow and played dumb.

Then the two of us looked at each other’s faces.

“”Pfft””

The two of us burst out laughing.

“Ahaha, so you’ve finally gone back to the old Helene.”

“Hiroyuki-sama as well. When you got angry I didn’t know what to do.”

After laughing a little together, we exchanged light conversation.

But…

“No, that was serious.”

“I understand.”

We returned to straight faces again.

Doing this kind of bargaining was a pain, but I had to draw a line.

Especially since we would be going to war from now on, it would be a problem if I were used as a mere pawn.

I was no longer a body of just myself, after all.

Besides, I might leave the Dules with Helene.

If I left them, I wanted to leave them with peace of mind.

I had such designs on my side, and Helene probably had some scheme on hers as well.

We glared at each other.

“Waaaaaah!!!”

When that taut air began to drift through the room again, a crying voice suddenly rang out.

Apparently Rine could not hold it in and had started crying.

Rina and Sara hurriedly soothed her.

“Fuu. Now then, we’ve had after-meal tea as well, so shall we take our leave soon?”

That said, we were only going back to the room assigned to us inside Helene’s mansion.

“That’s right. Let us close it here.”

Helene said that as well and clapped her hands.

The dining room doors all opened at once.

“It was delicious, Helene.”

“Thank you very much, Hiroyuki-sama.”

“Well then, we’re going.”

“”””Yes, Master.””””

I gave Helene a merely formal greeting and said that to the Dules.

Muriel, Sara, Rina, and Cathy answered.

Then Muriel took Helma and Ilma, Rina took Rine, and I took Tiria and left the dining room.

Just before that, I glanced at Helene and saw that her face was slightly distorted.

…

“Was that really all right?”

When we returned to the room, Muriel asked me.

“Nn? About what?”

“…About Lady Helene just now.”

“Ah, that’s right. I thought I’d drive a nail in.”

“Why?”

“…Hey, Muriel. What do you think of Helene?”

“About Lady Helene?”

“Yeah. Somehow I can’t trust her. I felt that in the conversation just now as well.”

“In the conversation just now?”

“Yeah. Helene and I laughed, right? I truly thought that, but Helene’s side was an act. That’s why I kept checking her afterward as well.”

“An act…?”

“That’s right. At that time she should have known I would get angry. I had talked about it with Mateus before as well. Even so Helene said something like she hadn’t been able to predict it.”

“And so…”

“Yeah.”

“But we are still being allowed to stay in Lady Helene’s mansion.”

“If we fight with Helene we’ll be kicked out?”

“…”

Muriel stared at me while remaining silent.

Probably affirmation.

“That’s right. I don’t think we’ll be kicked out. She waited fifteen years. She won’t part ways that easily. If pushing doesn’t work she’ll pull back or use a roundabout approach.”

“That is… yes.”

“Well, as I said to Helene earlier, I do intend to help. But I wonder if I’m cut out for it.”

“That will be fine. If it is Master, everyone will follow. Besides, I will assist as well.”

“In other words, I’m a decoration.”

“Th-that is not…”

“Ahahaha, it’s a joke. I’m counting on you.”

Saying that, I patted Muriel’s back.

“Y-yes. I’ll do my best.”

Muriel answered with her face flushed.

“Now then, after this…”

While I was thinking about what to do, I felt several gazes.

“…Fuu. Sara, go tell Helene we want to use the inner courtyard for a sparring match again… was it. That we want to use it.”

I called out to one of them, Sara.

Because she had wanted to fight me ever since watching the match with Giacomo this morning.

“Yes, understood, Master!”

Sara answered energetically and immediately left the room.

“Master, before you do it with Sara, may I test Sara?”

“Nn? That’s fine, but why?”

“I also want to grasp the Dules’ fighting.”

“Grasp… for the war?”

“Yes. Sara seems able to fight as well, so I want to see how strong she is.”

“…Hey, …who is Muriel planning to take to the war?”

“Myself, Sara, Tiria, Helma, and Ilma.”

“Helma and Ilma too?”

Muriel I understood.

Sara also seemed able to fight, so she probably wanted to take her.

Tiria was… because she could use healing magic?

But Helma and Ilma were…

“Yes. Helma will be taken so that if Master’s body is wounded or he uses a great deal of magic, she can replenish life-force and magic. Ilma is so that magic can be replenished quickly.”

“Is it no good if they’re apart? Helene said she would make a safe place in the rear.”

“Yes. It is better to keep them as close as possible.”

“I don’t want to take them.”

“Yes. I thought you would say that. However, this alone… I want to protect Master no matter what. We are Dules, so we will not die. We will protect you with our bodies.”

“Even if you say you won’t die… it still hurts, right?”

“That is… true, but.”

Muriel answered reluctantly, looking troubled.

“A-anyway, I intend to take as many Dules as possible to protect Master. If necessary I will take Cathy and Rina as well.”

“…I want them to stay somewhere safe. I would be happy if Muriel and Sara could protect everyone.”

“Uu, you mustn’t.”

Muriel suppressed a happy expression and shook her head.

“””””…”””””

Looking around at everyone, everyone except two was looking at me with clinging eyes.

Cathy, who had somehow returned, was staring at me with tears in her eyes like a discarded puppy.

But I also did not want to put these girls in danger…

“…Fuu. Let’s think about it when the time comes.”

“Yes. There will be various battlefields…”

Muriel answered.

“Yeah, that’s right. Then… ah, that’s right. Sara, how was it?”

I remembered what I had been about to do and asked Sara the result of what I had requested.

“Ah, I’m sorry. You were talking… When I asked Lady Helene, she said we may use it. However, Lady Helene also wants to watch. And she said she wants Lord Julius to participate as well.”

Come to think of it, I hadn’t even spoken with Julius since meeting him.

I scared him earlier too, so maybe I’ll be his sparring partner as an apology as well.

…

And so I, my Dules, Helene, and Julius gathered in the garden.

Helene sat in the chair she had sat in this morning.

Julius was wearing training armor and holding a shield and a one-handed sword with the blade dulled.

“P-please take care of me, Lord Hiroyuki.”