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「Mother, why didn’t you tell me?」
I asked her that over dinner.
I understood her intentions.
Still, as her son, I couldn’t help but think she might’ve at least let me in on it.
Even I realized I was being childish, but a hint of displeasure may have slipped into my tone.
Mother responded,
「Fufufu, I’m sorry, Hein. But I wanted to surprise you.」
Well, I suppose that did sound like something she would do.
「I won’t press the issue, then… But still, a teacher? That caught me off guard.」
「I’ve been reflecting a bit. My skills in magic have grown quite dull.」
「I see. So you’re starting again from the ground up.」
When I said that, Mother gave a nod.
If Mother intends to seize control of the Guynes Empire, no, if she’s to become the first Empress of the Aster Empire, then yes, letting her magical prowess grow rusty would be a problem.
The Guynes Empire places absolute faith in individual power.
In other words, even the masses of inferior beings believe in that ideal.
So even if the empire changes its name, its underlying nature likely won’t shift much.
Which means if her magical ability is lacking, she risks being underestimated.
She must be worried about that. Surely. Probably. Maybe.
「More importantly, Hein, the swordsmanship tournament is coming up. I’ll be there to cheer you on, so do your best.」
“Do your best” likely meant: crush them all with overwhelming force, which is to say, encouragement.
But it also implied there were formidable opponents I should be wary of, which is to say, a warning.
Mother surely knows I’m no slouch when it comes to the sword, even without trying.
Which can only mean that unless I do try, I won’t be able to win. That there’s someone that strong waiting.
My instincts told me, that someone was Alphide ince, no, Azel.
Still, for Mother to personally caution me about him… I hadn’t expected that.
「Oh my. Hein, don’t tell me you’re not confident?」
「Not at all.」
I answered firmly, but Mother gave me a look as if she’d just seen something rare and said,
「It’s just an event, you know. I don’t think you need to take it so seriously.」
Do I really seem that on edge?
Mother might have started worrying about me.
If so, that would be an unforgivable failure on my part.
「Mother, rest assured. Even if it’s with a sword…. this Hein shall not be outdone by any inferior being. For the honor of House Aster, I will pour my whole body and soul into the tournament and reduce every opponent to nothing more than rust on my blade.」
「N-No….. you don’t have to reduce anyone to rust. I’d rather you just enjoy it as one of the school’s events, really.」
A swordsmanship tournament might seem like nothing more than a child’s game, yet for some, it carries significant weight, especially for those who are not heirs, but second sons and beyond.
For them, their future path after graduation is determined based on ability.
Academic performance and tournament results greatly influence the foundation of that first step.
In other words, if I were to utterly dominate the competition, I would be shattering the dreams of those striving for advancement.
But for someone who stands above others, such guilt is meaningless.
In short, what Mother is telling me is to become a ‘shura’.
She’s telling me to develop the mental fortitude to ‘enjoy’ crushing people’s hopes.
「Mother, rest assured. I understand completely.」
Be it their bodies, their minds, or their dreams, no matter how many of those from the inferior are trampled beneath me, my heart shall not so much as twitch.
I must show Mother just how cold and cruel I can be and ease her concerns.
Maybe I’ll drink fruit water from that impudent redhead Azel’s skull.
As I thought such things, Mother tilted her head slightly and looked at me.
The curve of her neck was a work of art.
It almost glowed with brilliance.
Like moonlight tracing the ridges of distant mountains.
I met her gaze with full focus. If I so much as blinked, my eyes might melt.
Then, seeing me like that, Mother spoke.
「Hmm… This is a bit… Yes, I think… Hein, why don’t we sleep together tonight? It’s been a while…」
I felt like my heart had been pierced through.
A rock!
Within that rock was water, no, not just water. Boiling, molten water.
I wanted to shout, “I love you, Mama!”, but barely managed to hold back, giving her a silent nod instead.
And then came the night.
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I stood motionless in front of Mother’s bedchamber.
The light from the magic stone lamps cast flickering shadows along the corridor, as if the hesitation within me had taken shape and danced upon the walls.
Lately, I hadn’t shared a bed with Mother.
At first, of course, I had been upset. But now, I fully understood why she had encouraged me to become independent.
If Mother was to walk the path of conquest, then I, her foremost vassal, could not afford to rely on her too much.
If I faltered just because I couldn’t sleep beside her, then these soft, untested legs of mine would never carry me through the harsh road toward world conquest, no, world peace.
But wait… if that’s the case, then why had Mother invited me to sleep beside her tonight…?
As if shaking off the doubt, I gently knocked on the door.
At once, it slowly opened.
A gentle wave of Mother’s magic wafted through the air.
For a brief moment, I envisioned a forest filling my vision.
It was a blend of fresh greenery and fallen leaves, without a doubt, the scent of her magic.
Mother said nothing.
But even without words, I could feel just how deeply she cherished me.
They say a glance can speak volumes, but magic speaks even more.
Her magic enveloped the room, welcoming me like a mother bird spreading her wings to shelter her young.
I let my own magic scent drift faintly into the air.
The feeling I imbued it with was “love”.
But this deep, vast, hot, swirling emotion was far too overwhelming to be summed up with just that word.
Even so, for convenience, I would call it love.
I stepped toward the bed in a daze, drawn as if by the pull of the moon upon the tide.
When I sat down beside it, the soft bedding yielded gently under my weight.
And as I lay down next to her, Mother slowly stroked my head.
The moment her hand brushed my hair, I stopped being “ore” and became “boku”.
「Mama…」
The word slipped from my lips, breaking through like a dam that had burst.
「My darling boy.」
Mama’s voice was tender.
「You can ease up a little, you know.」
I closed my eyes and buried my face in Mama’s chest.
I couldn’t breathe, but that didn’t matter.
Even if I went without air for minutes, for hours, I wouldn’t die.
Right now, I just wanted to use every breath I had to feel her.
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And then, the next day.
The day of the swordsmanship tournament.
「Hein, do your best today, but don’t overdo it.」
I nodded at Mother’s words.
As she said, I intended to go easy.
Even I had come to understand, quite clearly after last night, that I had my own weaknesses.
If that’s the case for me, then for the inferior beings, their hearts, minds, bodies, their entire existence must be utterly feeble.
That being so, even when demonstrating strength, there’s a proper way to do it.
After all, a nation is made up of people, and most of those people are inferior beings.
And inferiors are fragile, easily broken.
Which means, if I’m not careful, I might reduce their numbers far too quickly.
Therefore, I should gently, ever so gently, ‘pat’ them down.
◆◆◆
Faana Ira Abbot wielded her sword with skill to rival any man.
The Abbot family had never been blessed with magic, and so, instead, they refined their swordsmanship over generations.
Their sword doctrine was simple: strike fast, strike hard, and the enemy dies.
In the first round,
A scream rang from the audience as her opponent’s dominant arm was cleaved clean off, sword and all, flying through the air.
In the second round, she demonstrated her speed.
At the signal to begin, she didn’t allow her opponent even a moment to raise his guard before thrusting her blade to his throat.
Incidentally, losing a limb wasn’t considered a serious issue. Thanks to the Asclepius Ducal House, one of the Twelve Great Houses known for their healing magic, such wounds could be easily mended.
However, in the third round,
Faana nearly clicked her tongue.
Standing before her was Hein Sera Aster.
If House Sarion was the shield of the imperial capital, then House Aster was the spear.
And she couldn’t stand that.
Because the Abbot family served under the Duke Orlean, one of the Twelve Great Houses known as the “Sword Saints.”
Faana believed that it was not House Aster, but House Orlean who should have rightfully stood as the sword of the capital.
—He’s looking down on me.
The moment she met Hein’s gaze, something twisted in her chest.
It wasn’t just condescension.
His eyes didn’t even regard her as human.
Could a fellow human truly look at someone else with such disdain?
Faana gripped her sword tightly, and with such force it seemed the ground might shatter beneath her feet, she lunged forward.
Her goal: a single, clean cut.
Even though killing one’s opponent was forbidden in the tournament, no matter how skilled the empire’s healers were, once someone died, nothing could be done.
And yet, this slash…
One could not attack with such a blade unless they were willing to let their opponent die.
Her youth and fury had sharpened her sword into something uncompromising.
But,
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・
Ah, Faana came to a sudden halt.
Her sword had already swung through.
But the gruesomely cleaved-in-two Hein was nowhere to be seen.
Somehow, Hein was behind her now.
Just like Faana, he had the posture of one who had finished a swing.
「Good grief, looks like we both missed.」
Hein said it loudly, almost exaggeratedly.
But Faana knew, it wasn’t a miss.
Her own sword had indeed missed.
But Hein’s sword had not.
—I.was.cut.
Only a swordsman as skilled as Faana could sense it, that faint, subtle feeling.
—If I take even a single step… I’ll die.
She could feel it. A cold blade had passed cleanly through her from crown to groin.
And the only reason she was still alive… was because her body hadn’t realized it had been cut.
She couldn’t be allowed to realize, not if she wanted to live.
Faana couldn’t move. Wouldn’t move.
To her, Hein spoke gently.
「Count to ten. Slowly. Carefully, do that, and you’ll live. You’ll be able to move again. After that, you may declare your surrender. If you’d rather not, the match continues. But next time, I won’t wait.」
And ten seconds later, Faana declared her surrender.
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