From there on out, it must have been nothing short of hell for Clyde.
"First of all, your behavior around the competition has been far too problematic. Before, His Highness Aster was present, which allowed those remarks to be shut down—but to keep saying them openly in front of everyone, just as before? There's no way to call that anything other than foolish. Now, I can easily make it into a formal 'issue.' ...Oh, and of course, it's not just about words. I've caught wind of your attempt to fabricate evidence that Class B was cheating as a last resort, and I have proper physical evidence to back it up."
What Katia had supposedly been unable to do until now—and what Clyde had taken for granted she couldn't do, held back by her former reputation as the "Flawed Lady."
—However, the truth was that she simply hadn't wanted to do it, emotionally speaking.
Rather, if she set her mind to it, she could extract statements far more skillfully than Clyde had anticipated, sift through the gray areas to uncover clear-cut problems, and use her terrifying investigative ability and insight to pinpoint weaknesses and confront him with them.
He had forgotten. No—he couldn't bring himself to think of it because it was inconvenient for him.
Katia was—the daughter of that Yurugen von Trakia.
If she inherited the blood of that Minister of Law whom the entire aristocratic world still feared, one could almost say it would be expected of her to be capable of at least this much.
Having unsheathed the claws she had kept hidden, Katia was now mercilessly going for Clyde's throat.
"...So, well—these are the issues confirmed as of now. If I include information that's all but confirmed, there's still plenty more. Even just this much, if made public, would deal serious damage to your family's estate. Do you have anything to say for yourself?"
"Th—this is nothing but baseless accusations!"
And while Clyde could hardly be expected to simply accept this, both his rebuttal and his choice of words were far too crude.
"Th—this is a clear act of hostility toward us! Are you sure about this? If you're going to come at us like this, then we'll gladly meet you head-on with everything our family has!"
"Please do. In fact, I wouldn't be doing this if I didn't have that resolve. Unlike you, I'm not shameless enough to go around calling others shameless when I'm far worse."
"Ghk—You should know that the Trakia family has been diverting its military forces toward monster subjugation, leaving the main household's defenses thin!"
What Clyde blurted out next, in desperate straits, was anything but a gentle suggestion.
"Are you sure about that!? You seem awfully confident in your own strength, but in this country, there are more ways than you know to neutralize a single mage!"
"Hmm. I wonder if that's a threat."
"Just a suggestion. If something unfortunate happens, don't say I didn't warn you. There's no one to protect you—you didn't even bring proper escorts today—"
"Ahaha."
Katya laughed, as if the sound had escaped her involuntarily.
So, she thought. The man denied it, but this was an unmistakable threat. In other words: back down now, or you'll be attacked and made to suffer.
...Truly, this was quite the joke.
No escorts? From Clyde's perspective, it probably did look that way—she couldn't blame him for thinking so.
And that Katya herself would be attacked and made to suffer?
What was this man even talking about?
That was
,
the most impossible thing of all.
"Go ahead. If you think you can, try me."
And so, Katya replied with perfect composure, without so much as flinching.
...Also, she was getting fed up with people underestimating "him."
"So, Ermes."
"...Um, is that quite all right?"
Having anticipated that Clyde would take this approach, she exchanged a prearranged signal with her servant—Ermes.
Ermes's voice came back tinged with hesitation, but she nodded as if to say not to worry about it.
"It's fine. I have Father's permission... and besides, they wouldn't accept it anyway."
"...I see."
The reason was so strangely compelling that he nodded and started walking.
Seeing this, Clyde turned a look of utter disdain toward Ermes.
"Ha ha! Ermes, don't tell me you're planning to be her bodyguard!? You—the one she totally steamrolled in the tournament!? A bodyguard weaker than his charge—now that's a real joke──!?"
And then, in an instant, he froze.
Because in the span of a heartbeat—truly faster than a single blink—Ermes's figure vanished without a trace.
And at the same time, the man who should have been on the far side of the room had appeared behind him without giving him the slightest chance to react, the edge of his hand already pressed against the back of his neck.
"Wh...a..."
It was far too fast. Tracking him with his eyes was out of the question—tracking him with his mind was equally impossible. It was a teleportation that felt as though time itself had been stolen.
This was something that surpassed even Nina. A realm absolutely unattainable through normal magic-powered body enhancement.
And Clyde realized—from the very beginning, something had been off.
When Ermes first appeared, he had stopped Illumina from raising her hand against Sara. But even that—
when did he appear
in the first place?
"Clyde. You don't have to believe me, but I'll lay out the facts."
Armed with evidence that could not be denied, Katia stated her conclusion in a flat tone.
"—El is stronger than me."
"You're... kidding."
"That's your go-to response, I know—but it's a fair question. ...Why is it that you're so convinced you're the only one hiding magic?"
Ermes was currently reproducing a certain Bloodline Magic.
It was the
"Messenger of the Faceless."
A magic designed purely for physical enhancement — its performance was second to none, as expected of a Bloodline Magic. Against a mediocre mage, it wouldn't even permit the kind of reaction she had just displayed.
Reproducing Bloodline Magic in public was forbidden, but this time it received special permission — partly because the magic's effects were relatively difficult to perceive, and partly because, as Katia had stated, the only people who would witness it were those who wouldn't believe it or acknowledge it regardless.
Won't believe it, won't acknowledge it... but facts remain facts.
Which is to say —
Katia
herself
to target directly
is the most reckless thing
one could do.
"Heh — don't screw with me, making me do something like this, you —"
"...I would suggest choosing your words more carefully."
Just as expected, when Clyde cried out, Ermes's voice turned cold as he tightened his grip ever so slightly.
"I am not as tolerant of insults toward Lady Katia as Lady Katia herself is."
"!"
The killing intent that struck him from behind without mercy — this time, Clyde's spine truly froze.
"...El, that's going too far. But now you understand, don't you?"
Seeing that Ermes was angrier than expected — seeing the fact that he was angry on her behalf — Katia nearly let her guard down, but she caught herself, recognizing this was hardly the time, and turned back to face Clyde.
"There are plenty of ways to corner you. If you want to target me personally as retaliation, by all means — I'll even make use of that fact. ...Well, to put it simply — brace yourself."
True to her declaration of crushing him with everything she had, Katia drove Clyde into a corner and glared down at him.
Faced with a gaze so frigid it could freeze him to the bone, Clyde was at last—unable to utter a single word or employ any stratagem.
"—!"
He shook off Ermes's hand and bolted from the room without a second glance.
Though it could be said he had no other option, it must have been a retreat utterly steeped in humiliation for him.
"Shall we go after him?"
"No need. There's nothing left we can do here—and besides, he's finished."
Ermes had half-expected that answer, so he didn't press the matter.
"Besides," Katia murmured, turning her gaze toward someone else.
"There's still someone who has something to say."
The woman she turned her gaze to—Illumina—showed, true to form, a brief moment of hesitation.
Yet, as was typical of such people, she immediately fixed Katia with a glare brimming with hatred and let out a scream.
"—Who do you think you are?!"
"……"
"This is outrageous from the start—"
"The Hartmann family—"
"—has entered the Trachia family's service?! Not a single person told me about this—that arrangement is void!"
"My, what an amusing thing to say."
"How can a mere—"
"baroness—"
"possibly have the right to decide the family's course of action? That is the head of house's duty."
Just from this manner of speaking alone, one could see through to just how much tyranny Illumina had wrought within the Hartmann family up to now.
And when she was deliberately prodded with the words "mere baroness" — the very words Illumina despised most — the corners of her eyes shot up just as intended.
"Wh—what do you think you are?! You're nothing but a Flawed Lady — a woman of so little consequence that my Sarah stole your fiancé right out from under you — and you have the nerve to—"
"El, stay. ...That one sentence alone would be ample reason to have your head cut off, but shall we hear the rest?"
Katia stopped Ermes, who had tried to silence Illumina without question for such an outrageous outburst, and urged her to continue.
And Illumina, by now, was no longer listening to a word Katia said.
"Someone like you, what gives you the right to poke around with that condescending attitude?! You were merely born into a decent family and you stick your nose into our affairs! How selfish do you have to be before you're satisfied?!"
...The words "reflect on oneself" probably didn't exist in her vocabulary.
Putting that particular observation aside for now, Katia simply nodded in response to Illumina's accusation.
"You're right. This behavior of mine is selfish."
"Wh—"
"I'm sticking my nose into your affairs for my own convenience, and I'm taking Sarah away for my own personal purposes."
"...Ah, but not asking the person herself what she wants isn't right, is it. ...Which brings me to, Sarah."
Having said that, Katia handed the initiative to Sarah, who until now could only watch the exchange.
...Passing along the message that this is, after all, your story.
"What do you want to do? Will you continue to follow your mother's wishes as you have been, or will you come with me?"
"...Of course, I want you to choose the latter, but I will respect your decision. Even if you choose to stay as you have been, I promise that the Traukia family's offer to protect the Hartmann family will not be voided. So, follow your heart."
"Sarah! Listen, I'm the one who raised you — I'm the one who made you into everything you are! You wouldn't be so ungrateful as to abandon the mother who gave you everything, would you?!"
Suddenly, a choice was thrust upon her — from two women.
Her blood-related mother, and a precious friend. A binary decision that under normal circumstances would be impossible — one that could never be made lightly.
……But.
She had surely decided long ago—which way she wanted to go.
And so, Sarah first turned toward her mother and bowed her head.
"...I'm sorry, Mother."
"—"
Illumina stood there, dumbstruck. Katia, for the first time, let a gentle smile of relief surface on her face.
Having seen that, Illumina finally grasped what was happening—
"—!! You... you traitor—"
She lunged forward in a blind rage, hand raised to strike—but naturally, stopping her was Ermes's duty.
He took one heavy step forward. That alone was enough—having already witnessed his power moments ago, Illumina faltered and stopped in her tracks, redirecting the full brunt of her hatred toward him instead.
...She could hate him all she wanted, for all he cared. He was the sort of person who didn't bat an eye when some stranger he had no interest in harbored ill feelings toward him.
If that meant the hatred wouldn't fall on Sarah—if it eased her burden—then he would gladly play the usurper, the villain. Katia surely felt the same way.
Sarah turned to face Illumina once more and bowed her head apologetically. But after that, she never looked back. Urged on by Katia and Ermes, she left the scene.
From the drawing room, now empty save for one, Illumina's unbearable wails echoed on and on.
◆
"...I'm tired."
They walked on, and on, until they finally left the Hartmann estate behind.
Only then did Katia finally let her guard down, allowing her weight to lean against Ermes.
Supporting her as she did, Ermes spoke gentle words of praise.
"...That was beautifully done. Even I could tell—things between those two were already beyond saving."
"Yes, Clyde goes without saying, but with the Hartmann family now under our protection, Illumina's tyranny will be exposed before long. It was worth stepping out of my comfort zone."
With that said, Katia pulled away from Ermes. Then, sensing she still had more to say, she turned toward Sarah, who stood with her head bowed.
"Sarah, this is a message from your father, the Baron household head. 'I didn't have the courage to stand up to my wife, and I was never able to do anything for you all this time... If you're trying to change, then go ahead. Leave the rest to me.' That's what he said."
"!"
Upon hearing those words, Sarah's shoulders trembled—and a teardrop fell from her downcast face.
"...I'm sorry..."
First, in a feeble voice, she offered her apology.
"...I couldn't do anything. ...I wanted to be like you two, so I gathered what courage I had and tried my best... but nothing got through to them. In the end, I couldn't change a single thing..."
"That's because the other party was terrible."
"...Even so. ...I know it's terribly selfish of me, but... I wanted to do something about those two as well... I still feel that way. I know what led Mother and Clyde to become like that. And having learned the truth, I... can't help but want to do something about it..."
"...Sarah."
"..."
...Among the words Aster and Clyde had used to describe her—
Much of it was wildly off the mark... but there was one thing they said that was unmistakably true.
She—
was far too
,
kind
.
He would not deny that.
It was precisely because she had that temperament that Ermes was here now. There were surely many B-class people who had been saved by that very quality. And so, there was no way he could deny it.
"...You two are amazing. You have a clear sense of self and a goal, and you're willing to properly—'cut away' what you need to for it. I'm not there yet. I'm still half-hearted, and even today it all ended up being nothing but words..."
"Of course it was. You've only just begun to walk."
Katya cut through Sarah's negative words with a firm... yet gentle declaration.
"I was fortunate enough, thanks to El, to be able to look forward a little sooner than you. ...And naturally, when I first made that resolve, it was terrible. I don't know how El feels about it, but I was the same way at the start."
"So was I, honestly. ...If you asked my master, I'm sure any number of such episodes would come pouring out whether he wanted to share them or not."
Rose would recount them with gleeful enthusiasm. Ermes cast a distant gaze, privately hoping he wouldn't be present for that, before looking straight at Sarah.
"I said it when we first met, didn't I? —The power of your feelings is far stronger than you think. And today, you showed that."
"Yes, be proud of that first. ...Whatever you're still missing to give it shape, we'll figure out."
Unwavering words of encouragement from master to servant—as if to say that was the reward for her kindness.
Sarah blinked several times, and only then did the reality of it finally catch up to her.
"...Yes."
She smiled apologetically, timidly, yet with a joy that surpassed it all shining through.
...He didn't know how she would face her feelings and reality going forward.
But surely... now was not the time to think about that. That was something she should find the answer to in her own time.
Katya seemed to understand that. She spoke in a tone that shifted the conversation.
"Still, I really am exhausted. Today I worked harder and did more than usual for me, I think. ...Hey, El?"
With a hint of sheepishness, yet unmistakably eager, she took hold of Sarah's arm and turned her gaze toward him.
...He'd been around her long enough after their reunion. Ermes understood exactly what she was getting at.
"What would you like?"
"Let's go back to what we originally planned—come along for some shopping and a meal. I want something sweet too. ...Just for today, as a special exception, I'll allow Sarah to be treated the same as me."
"Eh?"
"Understood, my ladies."
Even in moments like these, she never forgot to show care for her friends.
If anything, cheering Sarah up was probably her main objective.
Understanding this, Ermes nodded and shifted his demeanor from bodyguard to butler.
Moreover, Katia, having caught something in his expression, turned to Sarah.
"...Brace yourself, Sarah."
"Eh?"
"You see, El... probably because of his teacher and all that, but when it comes to moments like this—"
"the way he spoils someone..."
"is..."
"extraordinary."
"...That's why. ...Really, you should brace yourself."
"E-eh... wh-what!?"
For some reason, Sarah's cheeks flushed at the strangely ominous words, yet she let out a bewildered voice—
—and without a moment's hesitation, Ermes began escorting the two young ladies.
For now, they returned to a peaceful holiday moment.
Sorry this went on so long...! That wraps up this arc!
And starting next time, we finally dive into the main event of the second half of chapter two. Stay tuned!