◆
The extermination of the inferior beings was more or less complete.
I had been pretty sloppy when designating coordinates, so naturally a few slipped through. But I’d scared them enough, no real problem.
Still, what in the world is going on with the capital’s air defense?
Wasn’t the Sarion Ducal House responsible for that?
No matter how many layers of barriers they slap on, if they can barely catch birds, they’re not going to do a damn thing against dragons.
「Useless fools, all flowers and no fruit.」
「Idiots.」
「Trash.」
「Imbeciles.」
Clicking my tongue, I spat down toward the earth, tossing verbal curses as I rushed back home.
That said, I wasn’t faster than sound.
I don’t really understand the logic, but apparently flying faster than sound damages your clothes.
I could cast a defensive spell, sure, but that wouldn’t stop the sonic boom. It’d wake up every inferior being in the capital and throw them into a panic.
And if that happened, cleanup would become messy, and that would trouble mother.
So I held back my frustration and made my way home at a frustratingly slow pace.
・
・
In just a few minutes, the estate came into view.
I had jumped out the window earlier since mother was frightened and time was critical, but of course I returned through the front gate like I should.
「Hein-sama! Why did you go outside… Ah, the alarm earlier. A level two emergency warning. As one of the Twelve Noble Houses, the Duchy of Aster received immediate notice from the royal palace…」
「Handled. As it should be.」
I cut off Gaddem, the gatekeeper, with the only response needed.
「Understood! Then that light was indeed… No, I understand. I’ll make the proper arrangements right away.」
「As it should be.」
Gaddem is no inferior being.
He’s got both brains and brawn.
Unlike the usual rabble, Gaddem can grasp what I mean with few words and act appropriately.
He might not look refined, but who cares?
The rest of the inferior beings are miserable in every aspect beyond appearance.
Gaddem meets the bare minimum required of a gatekeeper, and his menacing looks are enough to scare off the average riffraff.
Apparently, he’s not even human. That doesn’t matter to me.
Look at the Sarion House, noble blood, prestigious name, and they couldn’t even fend off a single lizard.
But none of that matters now.
Mother is waiting.
I hurried inside the estate.
・
・
「Hein! You ran out so suddenly, I was worried!」
「I’m sorry, mother. But rest assured, the insolent inferior lizard targeting the capital has been eliminated by this Hein in a single blow. Also, I heard from Gaddem that the royal castle had issued a counterattack order. I’ve entrusted all post-operation matters to Gaddem, so please, don’t worry.」
I reported everything necessary while burying my face in mother’s chest.
「Hein… I know full well how strong you are. But even so, as your mother, I can’t help but worry. Please forgive this anxious mother of yours…」
There’s nothing to forgive, everything is my fault for worrying her.
I felt like the most pathetic being in existence. Lower than even the inferior beings, an ultra-inferior being.
What a disgrace I am. Should I just die?
But even as despair took hold, mother gently embraced me to comfort me.
「…Hein, now, don’t cry. Lately, you cry so quietly like this, but honestly, that hurts my heart even more. Yes… I’ve decided. I shall punish you. If you truly feel bad for worrying me, 」
With those words, mother closed her eyes.
What a terrifying punishment…
Was she asking me to take her lips?
That felt far too greedy, and guilt welled up inside me.
But I gathered my courage and pressed my lips to mother’s.
A kiss for mama.
Ah, mama!
I love you!
◆◆◆
Half-Ogre Gardem.
In the original timeline, he was said to have played a major role in the Hero’s party during the subjugation of the Demon King.
Though Gardem is now celebrated as a hero in historical records, the truth is that his life was steeped in hardship.
The source of that suffering lay in the deeply rooted prejudice against demi-humans throughout the Guynes Empire.
Born a half-ogre, Gardem was scorned as an “unholy child” due to his lineage.
He was the result of an unfortunate accident, and from early childhood he endured treatment too cruel for words.
Forced into grueling labor under a slaver, Gardem was physically and mentally exhausted by years of unrelenting abuse.
It was none other than the original timeline’s Hein who took an interest in Gardem’s massive physique.
Purchasing Gardem on a whim, Hein never even asked his name. He simply used him as a durable plaything, one more object to break. The abuse only worsened.
And the one who rescued Gardem from that life was none other than Azel.
After witnessing the horrific abuse Gardem suffered, Azel challenged Hein to a duel, wagering Gardem’s freedom.
Before awakening, Azel wouldn’t have stood a chance. But when he awakened, the outcome has changed.
Azel defeated Hein, rescued Gardem, tended to his injuries, and gave him food and clothing, his first taste of dignity and humane treatment.
Moved to tears, Gardem quietly swore loyalty to Azel…..That is the original history.
But in the parallel world, Hein grew up as a devout “Mother First” supremacist. And since his mother Helga had a touch of shyness when it came to strangers, Hein never brought many servants into the house.
Still, an estate needs a minimum number of staff to function.
So the parallel Hein focused not on quantity, but quality.
And thus, the one chosen to serve as gatekeeper was none other than Ga・d・dem・.
The Aster Ducal estate in this world is packed with hand-picked elite personnel, all selected strictly for their capabilities.
Incidentally, the difference in name between timelines has an explanation.
When Azel asked for his name, Gardem, then weak and half-conscious from relentless abuse, could only manage a frail whisper:
“Ga… dem…”
And so, from that faint, broken utterance, the name “Gaddem” stuck.
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