"Milady?"
Bathed in the morning glow, Eris ran straight to Ghislaine, though her eyes never left the side of the beastkin swordswoman.
In her field of vision, Allen stood holding Sylphy, looking both helpless and a bit awkward as he tried to comfort her.
Eris stopped just a few paces in front of Ghislaine, her head still turned, gaze fixed to the side.
But at the sound of Ghislaine's voice, she jerked her head around so fast it was almost like lightning had struck. Her soaked red hair, wild and tangled from the rain, stuck up in little "horns" in all directions.
And yet, in the light of the dawn, it blazed like fire.
But to Rudeus, who stood a short distance behind, all he could think was: Can someone's head really turn that fast without snapping their neck?
He had completely forgotten how he himself had reacted when he'd realized Allen was back—his speed in whipping around hadn't been much slower than this Sword God Style novice's.
Eris looked Ghislaine up and down, taking in her body. No new scars.
She broke into a pleased grin, the corners of her mouth lifting high.
"Ghislaine! You're the one who saved him, right?"
Ghislaine didn't reply. She silently watched Eris, then turned slightly to glance at Allen's hand.
He was holding two severed heads.
Eris noticed her gaze, turned to follow it—and blinked in surprise.
Nuckle and Gard.
Identical faces.
She had just seen them, only a few hours ago.
The assassins who'd come for her.
And she recalled something Ghislaine had once told her:
Beastkin have a hunter's instincts ingrained in their very blood. And a hunter always keeps their kill in their own hands.
So now—
She didn't care in the slightest why there were suddenly two heads instead of one. She simply blinked and asked, straight to the point:
"Is Allen stronger than you, Sensei?"
Ghislaine, never one for reading the room, replied with absolute honesty.
"Last night, he was stronger than me. Right now, I'm stronger than him. But in the future…"
"He will be stronger than I am."
Eris blinked, eyebrows twitching slightly. But she quickly controlled her expression, turning to Allen with arms crossed and a pout on her lips.
"Hmph! Ghislaine says you're stronger than her, so I'll accept you as my teacher!"
She blurted it out loud—so loud it made Allen visibly jolt.
"...Huh?"
A puff of translucent smoke appeared before his eyes.
[Free-Time Event Complete: Encounter with Your "Sister" Eris — Time Elapsed: 13:14:12.]
[You've skipped the "intimidation and awe" phase. Eris has gone straight to admiration. At this moment, she's fully prepared to 'graciously' accept you as her teacher.]
[Rating Panel: Lilia, Zenith, Sylphy, Paul, Rudeus, Roxy, Laws, Nolda, Ghislaine, Eris]
[Who's next?]
[Is this the power of a Jobless Succubus?]
[Tch tch.]
["Divine Strike" magic slot unlocked.]
The smoke wasn't just illusion—it clung to the embryonic [Dragon-Saint Aura Core] in Allen's abdomen, releasing a faint chime audible only within the soul. A new groove formed beside the previously dull brown channel—
This one, a vivid scarlet, like the blush of morning light.
But Allen's face remained blank.
Excuse me?
Jobless Succubus?!
What kind of bullshit naming convention is that, system?!
Eris waited, but Allen didn't respond. Her expression started to twitch.
She froze, then suddenly snapped:
"What's with that face?! Didn't you hear what I said?!"
Allen blinked, finally recovering from his speechless stupor. He exchanged a helpless glance with Ghislaine, who clearly had no intention of correcting Eris's misunderstanding.
"Uh… yeah, I heard. Okay."
"Hmph!"
The young lady looked quite satisfied with her new "instructor." She closed her eyes, arms folded with pride, while a catgirl hastily worked to detangle her hair.
Sylphy, for her part, had stopped crying the moment she heard Eris's thunderous declaration. It was only now she seemed to realize she was still clinging to Allen.
Her body stiffened like a board, and she awkwardly slid off him like a plank.
Feeling the ground beneath her feet, she smoothed the hair at her brow. At first, she meant to look down at her shoes—but after a brief inner struggle, she forced herself to raise her head.
Tear tracks still marked her face.
But she looked Allen straight in the eyes.
"You don't have to apologize for making me worry. And also…"
"Welcome home, Allen."
Her smile bloomed in the morning light. It carried a hint of effort, the kind that comes from someone who knows they shouldn't cry anymore.
But for Allen, who'd been tightly wound all night, it was enough to finally let him relax.
All three carriages were confirmed in working condition—enough to continue on to Roa.
As for the one Allen had cleaved in half with a single sword strike, well… it was beyond saving.
Once that was settled, Ghislaine, in typical fashion, offered her own blunt review of Allen's [Longsword of Silence].
"Not bad. Good cut."
Allen almost lost it right there.
Everyone had spent the whole night in the rain. Most of the rain covers from the carriages had been yanked out by the catgirls to help people stay dry. The ground was a mess. Allen had meant to go help clean up, but Ghislaine—having soaked in the water all night and feeling a bit useless herself—grabbed him by the back of the collar and planted him next to Philip like a radish.
She told him all he had to do was sit and watch.
The others seemed to agree. They all silently acknowledged Allen as the one who had worked hardest last night. Not a single person came to bother him.
Well—except for Eris, who Ghislaine physically dragged away.
Because right now, the person standing next to Allen—
Was his biological father.
Everyone else had deliberately made space, giving the two time to speak alone.
A breeze passed by.
Allen looked down at his leg, half-sunken into the mud thanks to Ghislaine's enthusiastic "planting." He silently pulled it free.
"You satisfied with how this all turned out?"
Philip's eyes flickered with conflicting emotion. After a moment of silence, he finally spoke.
"…I'm sorry."
"…This wasn't what I expected. It must've been someone in my household who leaked the information to James—otherwise none of this adds up. But based on what I knew, he was always loyal to Darius. It shouldn't have happened."
Allen turned to look at Rudeus and Eris, who were now arguing furiously over who would get to share a carriage with him.
"You didn't expect a lot of things. Like the sudden attack by a Northern King. Or that my strength would be enough to take out both of them on my own. Or that Ghislaine would end up trapped in the woods."
"So many things you didn't expect. And when things slip out of your control, all you can say is, 'I didn't expect it.'"
"…"
"Did it ever occur to you that if you were wrong just a little more—what we'd be looking at now wouldn't be a happy ending."
"It could've been Eris's corpse. Mine. Ghislaine's."
"…You might not even be standing here alive."
Philip fell silent again. His lips parted as if to speak—but in the end, no words came out.
"The silver lining? This assassination proves that even after learning I'm still in the Asura Kingdom, James has zero interest in letting me return to his side. He sent another kill squad without hesitation."
"And now that it's failed, he definitely won't try to bring me back again."
"Once we reach your territory, he'll likely go quiet for a while. The nobles of Asura all maintain appearances—even more so between brothers. That buys me time. Time I can use to grow stronger."
Philip's eyes lit up. He turned toward Allen, his expression serious.
"In that case… we can go to the capital and take back—"
"I'm just the private tutor you hired."
Allen cut him off, brushing the mud from his foot.
"Who was the mole?"
Philip hesitated, then answered:
"My steward. Thomas."
Allen turned and walked away, heading toward the now-screaming Rudeus and Eris.
The morning wind brushed past his shoulders—
Carrying the scent of blood.
He never once looked back at Philip.