Sword Emperor, Becoming the Young Lady of a Viscount House

Chapter 15

“Today, we will stay here for the night.”

“We’ve arrived at the village.”

“It’s a small village, not a place to stay for long.”

“At least it’s better than sleeping on the streets.”

Beatrice stepped out of the carriage.

And as soon as she did—.

“Waaaah!”

Lilith came running and clung to Beatrice.

She grabbed her by the waist, half-crying.

“My waist hurts so much, Miss!”

It was no surprise.

Riding on horseback for such a long time must have felt like her pelvis was breaking.

Beatrice understood that feeling all too well.

“…What am I supposed to do about your pain?”

“Blow on it, please.”

“Why are you running away?”

“B-Because you raised your fist!”

“Didn’t you mean for me to hit you?”

“No, I didn’t!”

Of course, Beatrice wasn’t someone swayed by such antics.

“You seem quite close to your maid.”

Airy approached with light steps and commented.

“It’s not closeness; it’s more like enmity.”

In the carriage, they had decided how to address each other.

They agreed to speak casually.

However—.

“By the way, I’ve noticed you’re not really using informal speech despite the agreement.”

“T-That’s because…”

“Because?”

“…Thinking about it, I feel more comfortable this way.”

—Blush.

As she spoke, Airy’s cheeks turned red again.

‘What a peculiar girl.’

She seemed completely normal at times but would show odd behavior in the strangest moments.

Like in the carriage earlier.

And now, too.

She looked just like a girl in love.

Beatrice, on a hunch, asked Solid.

‘…Is homosexuality legal in this world?’

[No way. If my memory is correct, it’s punishable by death.]

“Just use informal speech. It makes me uncomfortable otherwise.”

Beatrice spoke unusually quickly.

She was always one to speak leisurely, making this instance rare.

And for good reason.

‘I’d like to avoid dying prematurely.’

She wanted to live a long life.

“My father told me, ‘It’s okay to get close to nobles who treat their maids kindly. Such people are surely considerate and good-hearted.’”

Airy casually diverted the topic from Beatrice’s words.

‘As expected, she speaks with the eloquence of a true noble.’

“You’re a good person, Beatrice.”

“I’m not such a person.”

Beatrice spoke as if addressing someone who had asked for directions and walked away.

A good person.

It was the first time in her life she had been called that.

To become the Sword Emperor, she had to cut down many.

“Hah, hah…”

The village chief greeted Beatrice’s group, panting as if he were about to collapse.

The old man in front of Beatrice looked far from reassuring.

It was the first time she had seen someone who seemed to struggle even to breathe.

“Village chief! They’re nobles, nobles!”

“What… what did you say? I can’t hear well.”

“Nobles! Nobles, village chief! No, father!”

The one shouting was said to be the village chief’s only daughter.

“Foot fungus! Is it the foot fungus guy who came?!”

“……”

“Ahem.”

“Just to be clear, don’t laugh, Lilith.”

Beatrice gave Lilith a sharp look.

Lilith’s cheeks were already puffed up like a blowfish.

She was on the verge of bursting into laughter.

Beatrice almost grabbed the back of her neck and fainted.

She was already beginning to miss Heinrich.

“…I’m sorry. My father—no, the village chief—isn’t in his right mind at the moment.”

The chief’s daughter apologized, bowing her head.

“It’s fine. We’re just staying for a night. We won’t cause any trouble.”

Beatrice spoke calmly.

The chief’s daughter looked slightly surprised.

She had never heard a noble speak in such a manner before.

“It’s shabby, but… if you’re okay with it, I’ll show you to your lodging.”

“Lead the way.”

‘If I want to reach the capital, I’ll have to go through this many times.’

Beatrice sighed as she walked.

She wanted to engage in war as soon as possible, but the journey ahead was long.

Even if she reached the capital, wouldn’t she have to go through more training?

“Airy.”

“Yes?”

Airy had been looking around curiously.

The rural environment had unique building structures.

Most of the houses were wooden cabins.

Though vastly inferior to the grand cities, they held a faint, rustic charm.

“Do you also undergo training?”

“Ah, you mean the conscription order?”

“Yes.”

“Yes. I’ll be participating in the war as a commander too.”

“But you’re a duchess.”

“No, I’m only the heir. I don’t hold any title yet.”

‘Isn’t that the same thing?’

Even if one’s father was a duke, the daughter wouldn’t inherit the title until it was officially passed down.

As the heir, her situation was different.

Barring any unusual circumstances, she would eventually become the duchess.

‘The treatment she receives must be different.’

“H-Here’s the guest villa. It’s humble, but…”

“Humble? I’ve never seen such a cozy place.”

Airy spoke with a smile.

It was a wooden house with two floors.

The sturdy construction indeed made it feel cozy, as Airy described.

“…Wow. This must be what nobles are really like.”

The village chief’s daughter muttered to herself.

Beatrice, with her sharp hearing, asked back.

“What?”

Apparently not expecting her to hear, the daughter stammered in a panic.

“Y-Your grace exudes such elegance.”

“Hehe, our young lady always radiates nobility. You noticed right away.”

“…Indeed. Other nobles weren’t like this.”

“Other nobles? Have other nobles visited here before?”

Airy asked, slightly surprised.

“Yes. They came the night before you arrived.”

“That’s… strange.”

Beatrice looked at Airy with eyes demanding an explanation.

“In this area… there shouldn’t be any noble families who left before us. Dora, am I mistaken?”

“No, Your Grace. You’re correct. According to the routes we scouted beforehand, the only family that departed on the same date was the Cenci family here.”

“So, you’re saying something smells fishy. Like the Resistance that attacked you before.”

Beatrice rubbed her chin thoughtfully.

“By any chance, do you remember the emblem on the carriage of the ones who came yesterday?”

Airy asked the village chief’s daughter.

The girl furrowed her brows as if recalling, then nodded as though she remembered.

“I don’t think there was any emblem on it.”

“No emblem at all?”

A noble family’s carriage always bore their emblem.

It was like an identification card, letting people know which family they belonged to.

For a carriage to have no emblem at all—.

Even to Beatrice, it sounded strange.

‘It’s like a car without a license plate in the modern world.’

It smelled too suspicious.

Beatrice gave an order to Chris, who was preparing the horses.

“Chris.”

“Yes, My Lady.”

“Search the surroundings. See if there’s anyone suspicious and report back.”

“Yes, I obey.”

Chris, though likely exhausted, knelt on one knee and placed his fist near his heart without a word of complaint.

Beatrice and Airy entered their temporary lodging.

The wooden cabin was not very spacious.

Sharing separate rooms was out of the question, so they decided to sleep in the same room.

As a noble, Beatrice couldn’t stay in the same room as the other servants.

“Miss… if you feel cold, please let me know, alright?”

“I said I got it.”

“Make sure you don’t have trouble sleeping just because you don’t have the doll you always slept with, okay?”

“When have I ever slept with a doll…!”

“But… you always hugged that frog doll when you slept.”

“……”

Since she had taken over this body, she couldn’t even argue against it.

Airy turned her head slightly and covered her mouth.

She was desperately trying to hold back laughter.

“Get out.”

“Please, let me know if there’s anything that makes you uncomfortable!”

“I said get out.”

“Waaah! What do I do? Your Grace! Please take care of the young lady. She looks so prickly, but she’s really so tender-hearted!”

“Of course. Don’t worry.”

Airy’s voice trembled as she tried to suppress her laughter.

Beatrice barely managed to push Lilith out of the room.

‘If I ever die, nine out of ten times, it will be because of Lilith.’

The only way she could die here was from a stress-induced heart attack, or so she genuinely thought.

“……”

With noisy Lilith gone, silence settled between them.

Beatrice turned around with the intention of changing her clothes.

‘We’re both women, so it should be fine.’

Truthfully, she had been itching to change for a while.

Though she didn’t whine about it to maintain her dignity, the rain- and sweat-soaked dress she wore felt like torture.

-Srrrk.

Without hesitation, Beatrice began taking off her clothes.

Since the room was so open, there wasn’t a place to hide and change anyway.

“W-Wait! Suddenly doing that is a bit…”

Beatrice turned her head slightly and said.

“Airy. Stop spouting nonsense and change too. You must feel gross.”

“…Ahem.”

Beatrice wasn’t the only one soaked from the rain.

Both of them changed into dry clothes and laid down on the bed.

They needed to wake up early the next morning to continue their journey.

Beatrice placed her sword next to her as she lay down.

Airy, eyes filled with curiosity, asked.

“You really seem like a knight.”

“…What?”

“Sleeping with a sword by your bedside, I mean.”

“Oh, this.”

It was a subconscious habit.

For Beatrice, it was only natural.

The 21st century she lived in hadn’t been peaceful.

Magical beasts could attack at any time, or enemy factions could launch surprise assaults.

Even while sleeping, she had to stay alert, keeping her weapon within reach to draw at a moment’s notice.

“…It’s a replacement for the frog doll.”

Not wanting to delve into serious topics, Beatrice deliberately joked.

Airy chuckled softly.

“Thanks for earlier.”

“You’ve already thanked me three times.”

“But I’m really grateful. I thought I was surely going to die back there.”

“Guess you weren’t meant to die just yet.”

“Seems so. Seeing how you appeared in front of me like that. But, Beatrice, you’re incredibly strong for someone so young. How can I… become as strong as you?”

[That’s something I’m curious about too. Young Beatrice, you’re undeniably skilled, but you weren’t born strong. That combat sense isn’t something developed overnight.]

‘It does seem unnatural.’

For a 16-year-old girl, especially one who had never held a sword before, her abilities seemed unrealistic.

But Beatrice didn’t feel the need to hide her skills.

Some people say, “The truly skilled hide their power.”

Beatrice agreed with that sentiment entirely.

However, she believed the opposite applied in certain cases.

The weaker you are, the stronger you need to appear. That way, fewer would dare to challenge you.

She considered herself still weak from an objective standpoint.

So, she had to seem stronger.

Stronger than anyone else.

“It’s the sword.”

“What?”

“This sword is an incredible masterpiece. It boosts the user’s abilities tenfold. And that’s not all. Even the slightest scratch guarantees death.”

“Y-You’re joking, right?”

Airy looked startled.

Beatrice smirked and answered.

No such sword could exist in this world.

Though it was indeed a remarkable sword, as it came from “The Vault,” it didn’t possess any special powers.

“Of course I’m joking.”

“…You enjoy making terrible jokes, don’t you?”

“I find them amusing.”

“I really thought it was true.”

“You must be an easy target for scams.”

They continued chatting about various topics.

Mostly, Airy asked questions, and Beatrice answered.

As the night deepened, Beatrice let out a long yawn.

Her voice was heavy with sleepiness.

“Let’s sleep now. If we want to leave early tomorrow morning, we should rest.”

Airy, who was also feeling drowsy, agreed.

She wanted to talk with Beatrice longer, but the journey to the capital was still far.

For tonight, going to sleep early seemed like the better choice.

She closed her eyes.

And after some time had passed—.

-Swsh.

Beatrice picked up her sword and stood.

It was the pitch-black stillness of dawn.