Chapter 60: Sword Devil: There's such a good thing? (Patreon)

Soon, an old man in a butler's uniform, his hair streaked with gray but his back ramrod straight, walked into the hall with steady, measured steps. Despite his age, his eyes were as sharp as a hawk's, and the battle-hardened, iron-blooded aura around him — even deliberately restrained — still sent a chill down anyone's spine.

The "Sword Devil," Wilhelm van Astrea, was now nothing more than a coachman in service to the Karsten family. This man had cast aside everything from his past, all for the day he could finally swing his sword against his hated enemy.

When he saw Reinhard standing in the hall, his eyes dimmed slightly, and he respectfully placed a hand over his chest in salute, his voice flat and distant:

"Lord Reinhard."

"Sir Wilhelm." Reinhard's reply was low, his expression complicated.

Wilhelm didn't look at him again, turning instead to Crusch. "Lady Crusch, you sent for me?"

"Sir Wilhelm," Crusch said, her voice carrying a trace of barely suppressed excitement as she gestured toward Natsuki Subaru. "This is Sir Natsuki Subaru. He claims he has the means to locate the White Whale, and he's willing to work with us to hunt it down!"

Wilhelm's body jolted violently.

His eyes, still as a well long gone dry, suddenly blazed with a terrifying light, like an unsheathed blade thrust straight at Natsuki Subaru — a gaze carrying fifteen years of suppressed hatred and longing, enough to burn everything to ash.

"Sir..." his voice came out hoarse, like two rusted iron plates grinding together, "is this true?"

"Of course." Natsuki Subaru met that gaze, one that seemed almost ready to devour him whole, and answered calmly. "I hear you've waited fifteen years for this day. And me, I can't stand seeing people kept apart from their beloved."

He stepped forward, looking straight into the "Sword Devil's" eyes, and said, slow and deliberate:

"Rest easy, old man. I promise you'll get the chance to take your revenge on that beast with your own hands."

No flowery words, no rousing declarations — just a plain statement.

But the absolute confidence in that statement, spoken as though it were simple fact, struck Wilhelm's heart like a bolt of lightning.

He looked at the black-haired, golden-eyed young man before him, then glanced at his own grandson — the silent "Sword Saint" — standing beside him.

Hope...

That word, which he'd thought long dead, kept alive only by the obsession of vengeance, flickered back to life in his heart at that moment.

Thump.

Before the shocked eyes of everyone present, this man — proud his whole life, who had never bowed his head to anyone — dropped to one knee before Natsuki Subaru and lowered his noble head.

"If you can truly grant this old man's lifelong wish..."

"then this sword, this life — from this moment on, they are yours to command!"

It had to be said, old man Wilhelm's kneel was quite effective.

Everyone present was stunned speechless, especially Reinhard — though his expression stayed composed, Subaru had a feeling that if he'd been in Reinhard's shoes, he'd already be looking for a hole to crawl into. Reinhard probably wasn't feeling much better right now.

"Whoa! Old man, don't, please don't!"

Subaru immediately stepped forward to help Wilhelm up, saying seriously:

"Having an elder like you bow to me like this — I really can't accept it, especially since you're my brother's grandfather. Tell you what, I don't need you to pledge loyalty or anything. Just agree to one condition, and we're square."

"I'm listening!"

"It's actually pretty simple." Subaru threw an arm around Reinhard beside him. "Once we've killed that big fish of yours, you're going to have a real heart-to-heart with your grandson. Let him go, and let yourself go too. Deal?"

"But... this is our family's private matter."

Wilhelm's eyes wavered, his voice turning dry again.

"Which makes it my business too. My good brother's family is falling apart — how could I not lend a hand?"

Subaru replied, righteous and unshaken.

"Besides, I owe Reinhard a huge favor from a while back. Watching him live like this every day, so exhausted — I can't just sit by. I'm helping, and that's final!"

"Lord Subaru..."

Reinhard looked a little puzzled — he genuinely couldn't remember when he'd ever done Subaru such a great favor that the man would go to such lengths for him. But looking at that grinning face so close to his own, whatever doubts he had melted away.

Following his heart, acting on impulse — that was probably just who Natsuki Subaru was, at his core.

Thinking this, a flicker of warmth passed through Reinhard's eyes.

It had been far too long since he'd had someone who would share his burdens.

Meanwhile, Subaru was getting more worked up the more he talked.

"I'm just saying, old man, take a good look at what your precious grandson's become. Fifteen years, and every single day he wears this same happy-looking smile. Sure, he's handsome, but that's all there is to him. He's afraid to laugh, and even more afraid to cry. All he thinks about is duty, duty, duty — because he believes he got his grandmother killed, and that he owes you."

"That's—"

Hearing this, Wilhelm couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt. He let out a long sigh and said helplessly:

"Actually, over the years, I've come to understand that it wasn't his fault. I've thought about forgiving the boy. It's just... he's never once said anything about it."

"Of course he hasn't! You think he'd dare?" Subaru gave him a look like he was staring at a fool. "Honestly, I don't know how he grew up into such a saint given the family he's from. Did his old man set that good an example for him or something?"

"Heinkel..."

The remark left Wilhelm momentarily stunned. But the thought of his own self-destructive son brought a wave of grief he couldn't contain, and soon a surge of anger he couldn't suppress rose from deep within him.

Theresia's death in battle had utterly shattered what had once been a happy family. At the time, Wilhelm believed it was Heinkel's cowardice that had pushed Theresia into taking on the mission to subdue the White Whale — and worse, that afterward Heinkel had shielded Reinhard from blame. That was what finally ignited his fury, driving him to leave the Astrea family and pledge himself to Duke Karsten instead.

But he had never really considered that a father's resentment and a son's overwhelming brilliance were more than enough to break a middle-aged man who'd lost his beloved wife and seen his career collapse.

As the middle generation of three generations of Astreas, Heinkel was mediocre, with nothing remarkable about him. Above him stood the "Sword Devil," who could fight the previous Sword Saint to a draw; below him, the peerless "Sword Saint" himself. Squeezed between the two, Heinkel found himself belonging nowhere. Crushed under immense pressure and self-loathing, he eventually became a useless man who drank all day, lazy and arrogant.

Just a while back, Wilhelm happened to see Heinkel, who was still serving in the Royal Guard. He was disgusted by what his son had become, feeling that the man was utterly unworthy of even carrying the name "Astrea." His revolting demeanor was, to Wilhelm's eyes, a disgrace to Theresia's family.

"That man has probably already given up on himself completely, turned into a useless wreck. Have him set an example?" Wilhelm scoffed disdainfully. "It might honestly be better if that boy had no father at all."

"Well, your family situation really is a mess."

Subaru pinched the bridge of his nose. Honestly, this was the first time he'd witnessed such an absurdly dysfunctional set of three generations. It was hard to imagine how Reinhard had managed to grow into such a person with a grandfather who wouldn't love him and a father who'd given up on life.

Thinking about it, he couldn't help but marvel that Reinhard truly must be the world's favored son — or maybe he should just marvel that the man himself was simply too noble for his own good.

Resisting the urge to shift into Theresia's form and slap both the old man and his deadbeat son across the face, Subaru spread his hands and, patience wearing thin, said:

"Fine, every family's got its own mess to deal with. Once we take down the White Whale and you get your revenge for your late wife, you'll finally sit down and talk with my brother, right?"

"Of course! I've spent the rest of my life chasing that very moment!"

Wilhelm nodded, trembling.

"Great, then I say the three of you — grandfather, father, son — should all sit down together for a family meeting, and I'll moderate. When that happens, I hope you'll all stay reasonably calm, or I won't mind resorting to certain... forceful measures."

Hearing this, it was Reinhard's turn to break out in a cold sweat. He could more or less guess what Subaru's "forceful measures" would involve, and if at all possible, he'd really rather avoid that particular scenario.

After all, bringing his grandmother back, even in appearance, was terrifying no matter how he looked at it.

He genuinely feared his grandfather's heart wouldn't survive it.

As for Wilhelm, as long as he got the chance to slay the White Whale with his own hands, sitting down with his son and grandson was nothing — he'd have gladly served as Subaru's servant for life. A condition this small barely registered.

And so Wilhelm and Reinhard ended up simply staring at each other, neither saying a word. But at least the icy, hostile tension from before was gone. Seeing this, Subaru nodded, satisfied, and turned to Crusch, who had been watching the whole scene unfold.

"All right, Duke Karsten, I'm throwing in free family counseling services too. Pretty generous, huh? Sincere enough for you?"

Crusch nodded, giving him a long, deep look. Her assessment of "Natsuki Subaru" as a person had just shot up again dramatically. In her eyes, this could hardly even be called a deal anymore — it was more absurd than a pie falling from the sky.

Given his attitude and his abilities, it was practically like he was spoon-feeding her the credit. Did things this good really happen in this world?

In fact, Crusch was suspicious. This whole situation felt a little too perfect, so much so that it seemed almost unreal — could this be some scheme by ill-intentioned people to trap her?

But at least regarding "destroying the White Whale," his motives seemed genuinely pure. There shouldn't be any hidden agenda there.

Could it be that Lugnica truly had a loyal, righteous man hidden abroad — had she really just stumbled upon such a devoted reformist hero?

If that was really the case, then the Karsten family certainly couldn't afford to lose face either.

"Your resolve and sincerity — I've seen them both clearly," Crusch said solemnly, nodding and extending her hand to Subaru. "I swear on the honor of the Karsten family: after this is settled, no matter what pressure the Council of Wise Men brings to bear, we will see justice done on your behalf!"

"One week — at most one week, once the opening ceremony of the Royal Selection concludes and everything settles — we will gather our forces and eliminate this scourge once and for all, and show the entire kingdom exactly who it was that solved this nightmare that has plagued the realm for decades!"

"Deal!"

Subaru didn't hesitate, gripping the hand Crusch offered and shaking it firmly, twice.

"Now that's decisive. I like it!"

While things were going smoothly on Subaru's end, and he was in quite a good mood, over at Roswaal Manor, Emilia was anything but happy.

Because not long before, she too had received the kingdom's highest-priority arrest warrant issued from the royal capital — and the person named was none other than Subaru, the one she couldn't stop thinking about!

They were saying Subaru was some world-ending dragon summoned by the Witch Cult — absolute nonsense! He was the hero who'd taken down a Sin Archbishop, and now he was being slandered like this? How could she stand for that?

In Emilia's innocent worldview, good people deserved good outcomes and bad people deserved bad ones — that was a basic principle. Good people suffering unjust punishment struck right at her limits.

She could tolerate people looking down on her for being a "half-demon" — she was already deeply insecure about that — but she absolutely could not tolerate the person who mattered most to her being treated this way.

Emilia was furious, though the consequences wouldn't be severe — just a lot of anxiety.

At that moment, Elsa, the Bowel Hunter who had sworn a soul-bound oath never to betray her, slipped up from behind, wrapping her arms around Emilia's neck and pulling her close, the soft fullness of her chest pressing against Emilia's back.

"Seems like those good little children can't sit still anymore. They've probably heard through some channel that 'Mother dear' might be in danger, and decided to strike first."

"Otherwise, they'd all end up dragged out one by one by our lord and burned to ash. Heh... this is a wonderful opportunity, Lady Emilia."

As she spoke, Elsa leaned in close to Emilia's ear, a bewitching, soul-stirring smile playing on her lips, every movement dripping with provocation.

"Root out all the vermin that have infiltrated the kingdom, and even that lord will look at us in a whole new light. Just give the word, and Meili and I will make the royal capital host a feast of blood tonight."

"After all, I have a fairly good idea which brothers and sisters have replaced which nobles."

"No!"

Emilia shook her head without hesitation, breaking free of Elsa's embrace with a strength that didn't match her delicate appearance at all. She turned around, her eyes firm, and continued:

"Killing people however we please is wrong! No matter how great the crime, it should be judged by the kingdom's laws — not settled by us through private vengeance!"

"Otherwise, how are we any different from those who'll stop at nothing? If that happens... I won't have any right to stand beside Subaru anymore."

Watching Emilia declare this with such earnest, almost painfully naive conviction, Elsa — who might once have scoffed at such words — found herself, after her sense of self having shattered that night, unable to help but wonder whether there was something in this world besides violence and bloodshed that could offer warmth.

Something like what this silver-haired half-elf held onto so firmly — love and justice, perhaps?

"You're right. Seems our new mistress really is a pure, unblemished angel. Isn't she, Meili?"

Hearing this, Meili, sitting on the edge of the bed swinging her legs while holding Puck, nodded too, flashing a comical grin.

"Big sister's being a little too naive, don't you think? Keep clinging to that foolish way of thinking, and... you might end up dead, you know?"

"Don't you dare talk bad about Lia, you brat!"

Puck's fur instantly bristled as he raised his little cat paws and swatted at Meili's face a few times, not with much force — more like he was just tickling her.

Emilia, however, didn't seem to mind at all. She walked over to the bed and gently stroked Meili's head, smiling.

"Don't say things like that."

"Since you two aren't working for Capella anymore, killing shouldn't be something you fall back on as a habit. I know it's hard, but... for my sake, could you both at least try?"

"Please."