Chapter 680: I’m Not the Only One Who Causes Trouble

It bothered me slightly, so I decided to ask Brother Cain and Sister-in-law Meeka directly. I had a bad feeling that doing so would draw me into the affair, but as long as I refused firmly, they shouldn’t be able to take me by force.

“Doesn’t the academy provide combat training against ghosts or zombies?”

“Of course not. You may not know this, Julius, but silver swords are rather expensive. There’s no way the academy could provide one for every student.”

That was true. Even an academy in the royal capital could not equip every student in the knight class with a silver weapon. That was why I had created the Holy Droplets.

Hmm? Something did not fit.

“Brother Cain, what will you do if zombies truly appear in that underground passage?”

“Why, we’ll cut them down, of course.”

“How?”

I smiled. Brother Cain smiled too, but both of us were wearing false smiles. Lionel appeared to notice as well. He was also smiling, but his eyes were anything but amused.

“Surely you haven’t purchased a silver sword, Lord Cain? They should be exceptionally expensive.”

“Well, um… I thought it would be necessary if I’d accepted an escort assignment.”

I did not know whether Brother Cain had bought the sword before or after the president of the Paranormal Phenomena Club asked for his help. One thing was clear, however: Brother Cain wanted to test his new silver sword.

“Lord Cain, you only purchased one, correct?”

“Um, Meeka is coming with us too.”

“You purchased a silver sword for Lady Meeka as well?”

“Yes.”

Ah, Lionel was rubbing the wrinkles between his eyebrows. The House Heine territorial knights were constantly thinking about how to reduce expenses, so of course he would react like that when someone wasted money.

“L-Lionel, I wasn’t planning to keep them for myself. Once we return to the territory, I intended to make them equipment for the knights. We need silver swords, don’t we?”

“Actually, we don’t particularly need them.”

“What? Why not?”

Lionel’s unexpected reply left not only Brother Cain but also Sister-in-law Meeka, who had looked uncomfortable until now, wearing expressions of surprise.

Under their stares, Lionel turned his gaze towards me. Naturally, both of them followed it.

“…Come to think of it, Julius created an incredible magic potion, didn’t he?”

“If I recall correctly, it was powerful enough to defeat a wraith.”

Apparently, they had remembered. Their eyes began to sparkle once again, like children presented with a new toy. To be fair, neither of them had reached adulthood, so they did fall within the category of children.

“Julius, would you tell us more about that magic potion?”

“I don’t mind, but…”

And so, I told them about the Holy Droplets, a magic potion capable of granting weapons the power to exorcise evil.

“In that case, the sword I already carry can defeat zombies, can’t it?”

Brother Cain raised his voice happily. Sister-in-law Meeka’s eyes now shone brightly with anticipation as well.

Could it be that I should have kept this secret from them? There was still the matter of the silver swords, though.

“Yes, but as I told you before, the effect only lasts for a single day.”

“That’s more than enough. We just have to use it every day.”

Brother Cain, even if I am the one making it, you cannot possibly use it every day. You say it so casually, but it is quite difficult to compound.

I shook my head, driving the thought of the improved Holy Droplets from my mind. If Brother Cain and Sister-in-law Meeka learned it existed, every sword they owned would become a weapon that could never be allowed to leave House Heine.

“Lord Cain, we cannot have you wasting magic potions. Lord Julius made them as a precaution in case something happened. You must also return the silver swords.”

“What!? …Very well.”

Brother Cain quickly yielded beneath Lionel’s glare. He had probably decided that it did not matter since they could manage without the silver swords.

Still, I doubted this matter would end here.

My prediction proved correct. After dinner, Lionel summoned Brother Cain.

Since Sister-in-law Meeka was not called in with him, Lionel must have concluded that she was not an accomplice.

The next morning, after seeing Brother Cain and Sister-in-law Meeka off, I headed to the royal castle. I greeted Axel and Ijidol, then continued to the compounding room.

There, Commander Giovanni and the others tearfully told me how moved they had been by yesterday’s recital. Apparently, it had made a tremendous impression on them. They even worshipped my many talents as though I were a god.

Feeling increasingly uncomfortable, I hurried out of the compounding room and went to visit Sister-in-law Daniela. I wanted to ask where the private room supposedly prepared for me was located.

“I’m sorry to disturb you when you’re busy.”

“It’s quite all right. Don’t worry. By the way, I wanted to ask you something about Mira…”

Since Mira would be bored while I worked on magic tools, I decided to leave them with Sister-in-law Daniela. Apparently, Sister-in-law Daniela was meeting friends again today.

Perhaps she was gathering information about what had happened in the royal capital while she was away. She might be researching what was currently popular and what was likely to become popular next.

After all, she was one of the senior people responsible for managing the Heine Trading Company.