Demon Sword Master of the Holy Sword Academy - Volume 2 - Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

HYPERION

“W-wow, look at this! This place is bigger than our house!”

“I-I’d bet the armory is beneath this block! It’s gotta be!”

Millet and Linze cheered as they ran down the carpeted corridor.

“Calm down, you two. You’re being rude,” Tessera chided the siblings.

“We can have a look later, all right?” Riselia turned to face the children with a wry smile.

They were on the third level of the cutting-edge anti-Void battleship, Hyperion. Civilians weren’t allowed to enter this area under any circumstances, yet Leonis and his group were strolling through unimpeded.

The fourth princess of the empire, Altiria O’ltriese, had invited them onto the ship to thank them personally for their assistance in securing the civilians’ safety.

“Her Highness also mentioned that she would love for you to participate in tonight’s social mixer,” said the royal guard captain walking ahead of them.

“A social mixer?” Leonis asked.

“It’s a small party held by Her Highness,” Riselia explained. “It’s so she may gather the influential people of the Seventh Assault Garden and hold an exchange of ideas and opinions. Princess Altiria always seeks out the many different opinions of people in varied positions.”

“Indeed. We’ll be holding a little party before the brainstorming meeting, and Her Highness would be glad to have you attend,” the guard captain added.

Hmm. As far as Leonis was concerned, this was a fantastic opportunity to gather information about the current goings-on of the empire without rousing any suspicion.

“E-erm, can we come, too?!” Tessera asked nervously.

“Of course. You’re companions of these fine people.”

“That said, we don’t have any formal clothes for social events. Is that all right?” Leonis asked.

He had the Cloak of Darkness he used to wear during the Gatherings of the Eight Dark Lords, but not only was it too big for him now, it also gave off a menacing aura.

“Your academy uniforms will do. Her Highness isn’t one for stiff evening parties.”

“That’s good…”

The group continued down a hall of the ship.

“Erm, Miss Selia…,” Leonis said, pinching Riselia’s sleeve as she walked ahead of him.

“Mm?”

“Why did Miss Regina run off?” he whispered.

It was true that Regina was conspicuously absent. She’d been invited as well, of course, but had disappeared just before they’d boarded the Hyperion. She’d been so enthusiastic about the princess that Leonis found it hard to imagine the girl passing up a chance like this.

“Regina, well… Regina has her own circumstances…,” Riselia said evasively with a somewhat bothered expression.

“Circumstances…?”

“Yes. It’s not really something I can talk about. It’s a personal problem of hers…”

“…I see.”

When Riselia put it like that, Leonis had no choice but to step away from the topic. Leonis himself had hidden quite the large secret from Riselia, too, after all.

“There’s something else we need to talk about, Leo,” Riselia interjected before clearing her throat.

“Wh-what?”

“If you’re going outside the academy, you have to tell me first,” Riselia scolded, poking Leonis’s forehead as they walked.

“Erm, I did leave a message on your terminal…,” he explained.

“…Th-that’s not enough. I was worried about you.” Riselia pouted, puffing her cheeks in discontentment.

Seeing a girl of such cool, collected beauty make a face like that was oddly adorable.

“I—I am your guardian, after all,” she added.

“…Understood. I’m sorry.”

Clearly Riselia had been rather worried about Leonis. Her tone was kind, but her eyes were quite serious. When Leonis was the Undead King, he and Blackas had infiltrated the human kingdom without informing anyone beforehand. Roselia, who’d hardly ever shown anger toward anything, had grown cross with them for not informing her and brought down divine punishment on the two. This situation reminded Leonis of that nostalgic memory.

“Oh, right. I want to give you this…,” Leonis said, taking out the silver accessory he’d bought in the plaza.

It was a cat-shaped charm, now enchanted with a bit of Leonis’s mana.

“Huh? Erm…” Riselia looked confused.

“I bought it at the parade. It’s a souvenir…for you,” Leonis explained, holding the charm out to her.

“Y-you bought this for me?”

“Yes, you’ve helped me out a great deal. You even saved my life.”

“…!” Riselia covered her mouth with her hands as joyful tears formed in her eyes.

…I-isn’t this a bit excessive? Leonis wondered, somewhat startled.

“Thank you, Leo!” Riselia grinned, her mood rebounding instantly. “This makes me really happy, but if you keep treating girls like this, you’ll end up being a dark lord in the bedroom. So you can’t do this with anyone else.”

A Dark Lord?! For a moment Leonis thought Riselia might have discovered his secret identity, but apparently, that wasn’t the case.

“Tessera, what do dark lords do in the bedroom?” Millet cocked her head curiously.

“I, erm… I don’t know…,” Tessera replied, her face turning red.

“We’ve brought the ones you asked for, Princess Altiria.”

The doors to the audience chamber opened, and Leonis and his group entered, led by the royal guard’s knights.

“Woooow…,” Tessera couldn’t help but exclaim before clasping her hands over her mouth bashfully.

The room was lit by enchanted lights along the wall, and a crimson carpet was spread beneath their feet. It was an extravagant, luxurious design one wouldn’t have expected to find on a battleship. The room appeared as though it’d been cut from a palace and inserted into the ship instead.

At the end of the creaseless red carpet was an antique-looking throne, upon which sat a girl in a white dress.

So this is the empire’s fourth princess. Leonis’s eyes widened slightly.

Her appearance suggested she was twelve or perhaps thirteen, only a few years older than Leonis’s current body. Hair a bright shade of blond had been tied up in a bun. In her eyes was the kind of innocence one might’ve expected from a girl her age, but there was the light of definite intellect and wisdom in her jade eyes. Her skin was as white as snow, and her dainty, young legs dangled off the edge of the magnificent throne.

Truly, this was a girl whose beauty was reminiscent of the sun. What drew Leonis’s attention far more than the princess’s fair appearance was the thing resting on her lap.

Is that…?

It was a small, white creature with fluffy fur and long ears. A red, shining gemstone was embedded in its forehead. At first, Leonis thought it was merely some magic forest creature, but he soon realized he was wrong. He let mana flow into his eyes and looked at it again; it was clear the creature was a spirit.

Unlike the one Leonis had encountered in the library, this wasn’t artificial. It was a true Origin Spirit, the kind that had existed a thousand years ago. The small furball-like creature slept curled in the princess’s arms.

Riselia stepped forward ahead of the others and knelt down. Tessera, Millet, and Linze all followed her example.

“L-Leo…!”

Leonis had remained standing, prompting Riselia to whisper at him hurriedly. Restraining an annoyed sigh, Leonis pondered for a moment.

Why should a Dark Lord bend a knee to the royal who will eventually be his vassal? This was a matter of pride, but Riselia kept tugging at the hem of his shirt, urging him to relinquish.

If it’s to allow my minion to avoid embarrassment, I suppose there’s no harm. Leonis bowed his head elegantly to the princess.

“Please raise your heads, everyone. We are not in the palace…” The princess looked slightly flustered as she rose from her throne and approached.

“I am Altiria Ray O’ltriese, fourth princess of the Integrated Empire.” The princess lifted the hems of her skirt and curtsied respectfully. “I am grateful for your gallant endeavors, brave Holy Swordsmen.”

“Not at all, Your Highness. We only did our duty as members of Excalibur Academy,” Riselia answered, raising her face to meet Altiria’s gaze.

“I also extend my gratitude to you all on behalf of the imperial knights,” the royal guard captain added, bowing his head at Riselia as well.

“Miss Riselia, are you not Duke Crystalia’s…?” the princess inquired.

“Yes. My father’s will lives on in me, and I have recently been granted the power of a Holy Sword.”

“I am honored to finally meet you. E-erm…” Curiously, the princess looked as if she wanted to say something more, but she quickly swallowed her words and turned her gaze to Leonis.

“You’re a Holy Swordsman, too, I see. Being a Holy Swordsman at the age of ten is astounding. I have yet to be graced with my own Holy Sword, so I must say I greatly respect you.”

“Your kind words are wasted on me…,” he replied modestly, his head bowed.

I shall sit upon your throne when the Dark Lords’ Armies rise again. Leonis cackled wickedly within his mind.

Princess Altiria then addressed Tessera, Millet, and Linze in turn, asking them if they’d been scared or hurt. Tessera was overtaken by timidity and stammered in an adorable, flustered manner.

“Hee-hee. You needn’t be nervous.” Altiria placed a hand over Tessera’s mouth and smiled gently. “I hope you will all enjoy your time today.”

The gesture struck Leonis as incredibly familiar. It reminded him of someone he knew.

“Achoo!”

The sun had set, and the air was turning cold. Regina watched as heavy machinery cleared away the rubble from the battle. She sat on a bench in the ruined plaza with her chin resting in her hands, looking up at the Hyperion’s illuminated deck. She sighed, twirling the tip of one of her pigtails with a finger.

I probably could’ve seen her…

A regret weighed heavily on the young woman’s heart. Meeting the princess had been out of the question, so she’d been forced to run when her friends had been invited on board the ship. Actually, it was more like Regina wasn’t sure what to do if she met the princess. Altiria didn’t know a thing about her, after all, and Regina Mercedes was forbidden from ever revealing her true name.

All right, time to go home. It’s getting cold. Regina hopped to her feet. She planned on returning to the Hræsvelgr dorm and cooking up some vegetable pasta. Perhaps she’d watch one of the mystery films she’d borrowed from the library that morning.

“Regina? What are you doing here?” a voice suddenly asked her.

“Aaah!” Regina exclaimed in an awkwardly high pitch.

Turning around, she found herself face-to-face with a pretty, older girl with sleek, waist-length black hair. It was Elfiné Phillet, another member of the eighteenth platoon.

“M-Miss Elfiné, why are you here?”

“I was invited to Her Highness’s mixer. I was passing by on my vehicle and saw you here.”

“Oh,” Regina said, nodding in understanding.

Elfiné was related to a count whose house had connections with the royal family. They were also the owners of the large corporation that handled the production of Artificial Elementals: the Phillet Company. Elfiné was her house’s sole daughter and heiress. Even without such titles, though, she was Excalibur Academy’s foremost expert on magical apparatuses. It was only natural she’d been invited to the gathering.

“And what are you doing here, Regina?”

“Oh, erm, I just thought that it’s not often you get to see the newest battleship, so I figured I might as well take a—” Regina waved her hands in a flustered gesture, trying to dodge the question.

“You don’t want to see your little sister?” Elfiné inquired.

“…” Regina bit her lip and fell silent.

There was no lying or talking her way out when it came to Elfiné. The older girl merely smiled and grabbed Regina’s hand gently.

“We should go together,” she insisted.

“H-huuuh?! B-but I wasn’t invited…”

“I’ll handle that,” Elfiné said, pulling out a terminal and tapping at it with her fingertips. “There, done.”

“What did you do?”

“I duplicated my invitation and sent it to your terminal.”

“Are you really allowed to do that…?! Wait, no, how is that even possible?”

“Just keep it a secret from the bureau.  ” Elfiné put a finger to her lips and winked whimsically.

“…You’re a bad person, Miss Elfiné.”

“Heh-heh, I sure am. A real villainess.” Elfiné cocked her hips in her best approximation of an evil pose.

Regina could only sigh in resignation.

“Of course, whether you come with me or not is up to you.” Elfiné’s tone suddenly turned serious, and she looked Regina straight in the eye.

“…”

“But keep in mind that, if you let this chance pass you by, you might never get another opportunity to meet the princess ever again. I want you to be sure you won’t regret this.” Elfiné tapped Regina on the shoulder and made her exit.

Standing in the rubble-strewn plaza, Regina was planted in place, her terminal gripped tightly in her hands.

Having been led into a guest room, Leonis took a seat on the bed. While the quarters weren’t very large, the room’s dresser, table, and other fixtures were all a high enough quality to suit Leonis’s standards.

This ship model is especially lovely.

The thing he liked most about the room was a model of a sailboat sitting in a glass case on the shelf. It was a work of art down to its most minute details, and Leonis could sense the devotion the artist had put into making it.

Leonis liked building models. During the stifling, months-long waits that came with siege battles, he’d whiled away the time by using bird bones to build models of castles, dragons, or ships.

A pity the only ones I could show them off to were the skeletons who served me.

Lying on the bed, Leonis pulled a stack of parchment from within his shadow. It was the manuscript of one of the ancient books he’d copied in the library. There was still plenty of time before the mixer, and he decided to put it to use.

Sixty-four years ago, the mysterious life-forms called the Voids had launched their invasion, and 75 percent of mankind’s population was wiped out. Following that, the empire had spearheaded the Human Integration Project.

No materials in the library archives went back any further than that event. The destruction caused by the Voids was said to be the reason, but that seemed unlikely.

Someone is trying to intentionally conceal the world of the past.

That much was clear, but Leonis seemed to be the only one who’d noticed that purposeful obfuscation, because he knew some of what had come before the Void attacks. He knew of the Luminous Powers, the Six Heroes, Roselia Ishtaris, the Goddess of Rebellion, and the Eight Dark Lords who’d reigned over the continent along with their vast armies. Leonis could not have been more certain of their place in history, yet they’d all been erased from the collective records of humanity.

Furthermore, why was sorcery discarded for a civilization based on magical technology?

Leonis glanced down at the terminal in his hand. Even the dvergrs and elves couldn’t have created such an advanced magical apparatus. Leonis chanted a language decipher spell and began reading the transcribed volume. The author of the tome was a human sorcerer from roughly two hundred years ago.

I suppose that’d make this a grimoire of sorts.

Reading carefully, Leonis pored over the manuscript but found no mention of any Dark Lords or gods. What he did happen upon, however, were descriptions of lesser spells with which he was quite familiar.

Wait, most of these are spells I developed…

The text detailed spells as high as the third order, often regarding them as though they were secret miracles. A mere human being able to cast third-order sorcery was impressive in and of itself, but it was still comparatively low.

This isn’t of much use.

Concluding there was no point to reading through the whole thing, Leonis discarded the parchment, letting it sink back into his shadow. If nothing else, the text had proved that, indeed, sorcery was still being practiced two centuries ago.

Leonis lay on his back. Not much time had passed. Remembering something he’d forgotten to do earlier, he beckoned to the girl hiding in his shadow.

“Shary.”

“Did you call for me, my master?” The dark beneath Leonis writhed, and a girl in maid’s clothing rose up from it.

She had shoulder-length hair that was as black as night. Her eyes were the color of dusk and were offset by alabaster skin that looked to have never known the touch of the sun.

This girl was Leonis’s dark minion, Shary Shadow Assassin. Once an assassin of the Realm of Shadows, Shary had sworn fealty to Leonis and became his personal maid. She knelt before Leonis and bowed her head respectfully.

“Did you throw that blade during the battle today?” Leonis inquired.

“Yes, as presumptuous of me as it may have been,” Shary answered, ashamed.

“No, it’s fine. It was quite helpful.” Leonis shook his head. “But abstain from doing anything too conspicuous in the future.”

“Understood. I will act as such going forward.”

“Good.” Leonis nodded approvingly. “Incidentally, there is something I want you to handle.”

“Ask anything of me, Master.”

“I want you to scout out this battleship, the Hyperion. Its armaments, cruising abilities, scouting abilities, its passengers, its engine, and also… Yes, investigate its living spaces, as well. Then, report back to me.”

“By your will, my master.”

Her master’s intentions were clear to Shary. Rebuilding the Dark Lords’ Armies in this new age meant they would need a powerful navy as well.

A thousand years ago, the demonic oceans had been ruled by Rivaiz Deep Sea, Lord of the Seas. From what Leonis had heard, however, Rivaiz had engaged in battle with a powerful mage who was a member of the Six Heroes. Both had met watery graves during their struggle. Surely Rivaiz would have no objections to Leonis, the last surviving Dark Lord, taking command over his former dominion.

The Hyperion was undoubtedly on the cutting edge of mankind’s magical technology. This was a golden opportunity to steal the secrets of its construction and use them for Leonis’s own purposes. Shary, an assassin of the shadows, could collect all the information Leonis required while avoiding detection.

“And what about slaying any foes in the event of a fi—”

“Strictly forbidden. Don’t draw attention to yourself,” Leonis commanded.

“Understood. I will begin my investigation at once.” The assassin maid bowed once and began silently sinking back into Leonis’s shadow.

“Oh, wait just a moment,” Leonis called after half the girl’s body had already descended.

Shary eyed him questioningly.

“I have a present for you.”

“…?! Whaaaaaaaaaaat?!” Shary exclaimed in utter shock as she scrambled to pull herself back out of the shadow. “A p-present for me, Master?” Shary’s usually sagacious expression turned to a broad smile.

“Indeed,” Leonis replied.

“N-no, you cannot show such kindness to a mere assassin maid like me…”

“Don’t say that. You’re the only maid who’s remained by my side for all these years.”

“M-Master…,” Shary stammered, her face flushing red.

Leonis handed the girl a brown paper bag.

“Erm, what’s this…?” she asked.

“Mm, these are called churros. They’re long, thin doughnuts.”

“Oh…,” Shary replied dispiritedly.

“What? I thought you liked doughnuts,” Leonis stated.

When he’d first sent her on recon, Shary had mostly just bought a lot of sweets. In particular, the girl seemed to have quite the affinity for doughnuts. She’d even secreted some of them away into Leonis’s shadow.

“No, I do like them, but… You’re an idiot, Master,” Shary declared, glaring bitterly at Leonis.

“Well, anyway. Make sure to handle things for me, Shary.”

“…Fine.” With that rather unenthusiastic response being her last word, Shary disappeared into her master’s shadow.

“Now then, let’s check another manuscript…,” Leonis said.

In a bit of unfortunate timing, however, just as he reached into his shadow to retrieve another copied tome, he heard a gentle knock at the door.

“Leo, are you there?”

“Miss Selia?” Leonis knit his eyebrows and opened the door.

Standing outside his room were Riselia, Tessera, and the other kids.

“Is something wrong?” Leonis asked.

“We’re all planning on going swimming in the pool. Come with us, Leo,” Millet said.

“A pool?”

“There’s a swimming pool on the rooftop of the ship. We got permission to use it,” Riselia explained.

Apparently, it had been installed for the crew’s training and leisure. Tessera, standing behind Riselia and holding an inner tube in her hands, nodded enthusiastically.

“I think I’ll politely decline.” Leonis shook his head.

“What, why?!” Millet exclaimed.

“Pools are dangerous. One could drown,” Leonis answered flatly.

“Oh, can’t you swim, Leo?” Millet asked.

“Th-that’s not it.”

Riselia didn’t miss that momentary waver in Leonis’s eyes, though. Her lovely lips curled into a smile. “Don’t worry, Leo. I can teach you how,” she offered happily.

“…I, ugh, I mean, I don’t have a swimsuit, see?”

“I bought you one as thanks for the present you gave me,” Riselia replied, spreading out a pair of black swimming trunks.

Well, aren’t you awfully prepared! Leonis mentally quipped.

“…A—a girl of your age shouldn’t go around flaunting underwear in public!” Leonis exclaimed, snatching the garment from his minion’s clutches.

“Come on, let’s hurry up and go already,” Millet insisted. “Tessera wants to show you her swimsuit.”

“D-don’t say stuff like th-that!” Tessera stammered with rosy cheeks, raining harmless little punches on Millet’s head.

“I’m not forcing you to go, but I’d be really happy if you came along, Leo.” With that parting remark, Riselia quietly closed the door to Leonis’s room.

“Uggghhh…,” Leonis moaned, looking at the black swimming trunks in his hands.

In the end, Leonis wound up joining the others at the pool.

I really am hopeless when it comes to my minions’ requests…

Leonis got into his bathing suit in a changing stall and was now gazing out at the sea from the edge of the pool. The sun had already started to sink below the horizon, casting red, refracting rays on the water. As he took in the sight, he heaved a deep sigh.

Leonis Death Magnus, the grand almighty Undead King, had but one, singular weakness: he couldn’t swim.

Even Leonis himself didn’t know exactly why, but even during his time as a human hero, he’d had difficulty with swimming. Blackas had once suggested he might’ve been cursed by the God of the Ocean.

Even after Leonis had fought alongside Rivaiz, the Lord of the Seas, and destroyed the God of the Ocean, he’d remained just as poor a swimmer. To this day, the Dark Lord still didn’t understand why he was so terrible at it.

Leonis walked along the poolside and looked down at the large ship’s deck from across a wire mesh fence at the edge of the level on which he was standing. Sitting along the deck were what looked like six combat machines of some sort.

“What are those…?” Leonis asked Linze, who’d been loitering by the fence for a while now.

“They’re combat planes!” the younger boy replied enthusiastically, pushing up his glasses as his words quickened. “It’s my first time seeing the real thing, too! The big ones are Knight Dragons; they’re loaded with large cannons and are usually used for suppression missions. The smaller ones are Strike Wyverns. They have two multi-rocket launchers and are sent on strike missions. I’ve seen them in the knights’ archives. They’re mostly deployed to carry and assist Holy Swordsmen when attacking Void nests, and—”

“What? Dragons?” Leonis caught a particular word in Linze’s speech.

Even when he’d still been a human hero, Leonis had always held a fondness for dragons. He peered down at the planes below.

My skull dragon is larger, he thought, overcome by an odd sense of rivalry with the human aircrafts.

“Ah, Leo…”

Millet and Tessera emerged from a changing booth, having changed into their swimwear. Millet was in a polka dot child’s swimsuit. Tessera, who was fidgeting bashfully, was clad in a navy-blue bathing suit.

Tessera walked with a reserved gait and meekly seated herself opposite Leonis. Her smooth black hair accentuated the nape of her slender neck. In a few more years, she was sure to grow into a captivating beauty.

“Riselia bought me this swimsuit…,” Tessera said.

“It looks good on you,” complimented Leonis, at which Tessera turned red down to her neck.

“What are you doing, Leo? Let’s get swimming!” Millet made to leap into the pool, an inner tube held in her arms.

“That’s no good, Millet. You have to do your stretches first.” A sudden chiding from Riselia brought the young girl to a halt.

Leonis turned his gaze to the source of the voice.

Huh?!

There was Riselia, his minion, clad in a bathing suit unlike anything Leonis had ever conceived of.

Wh-what kind of garment is that?! Leonis felt his heart skip a beat.

Riselia’s swimsuit showed a lot of skin. The mature-looking black fabric contrasted and accentuated the beauty of her white skin and argent hair. Soft-looking breasts were contained by rather meager pieces of material. The revealing outfit exposed Riselia’s healthy thighs, slender waist, and fair stomach. The bottom piece of her swimsuit was held up by strings tied on either side.

“Miss Selia, you look amazing…” Tessera seemed to have been shocked at the sight of Riselia’s bombastic proportions. She’d even used “miss,” something she rarely did.

“…!” Leonis himself was equally stunned.

“What’s wrong, Leo?” Riselia leaned in with concern. She always tried to speak at eye level when interacting with children, but this time, it meant Leonis’s gaze was fixed directly on her cleavage.

“N-nothing. There’s nothing wrong!” retorted Leonis as he hurriedly looked away.

Riselia was simply too careless when interacting with children.

“If you say so,” Riselia said. She stood and tied up her silvery hair. That done, she approached the edge of the pool and began to stretch.

“Leo, it went that way!”

“Ah, yes… Okay…!” Leo flicked the beach ball with one hand, sending it flying in an arc through the air.

“Ah?! Hyah…!” Tessera, who had caught his pass, fumbled, and the ball fell into the water.

Apparently, her motor skills weren’t well developed. The children of the orphanage likely hadn’t had much practice swimming, as Tessera, Millet and Linze all had inner tubes.

“Aaaah!” Tessera tossed the ball in a random direction.

Riselia caught it handily. In stark contrast to the rest of the group, Riselia was extremely well coordinated. Low-ranking vampires were weak against running water, but she had no such vulnerability.

“Leo, catch…!”

Riselia launched the ball high into the air. Leonis kicked against the water, moving rapidly, and gently passed the ball in Linze’s direction.

“Leo, you’re cheating,” Riselia pointed out as she gazed fixedly into the water. As a Vampire Queen, her eyes had undoubtedly noticed Leonis was using an underwater movement spell.

“I see you’re making good use of your vampire powers,” Leonis observed.

“Thanks to you, yes,” Riselia whispered before turning to face Millet. “Go play with everyone else for a bit, okay?”

“Okay!” Millet nodded cheerfully with the beach ball in her hands.

Riselia then took Leonis by the hand. Her fingers were noticeably cold, but that was to be expected of an undead creature.

“I’ll teach you how to swim, Leo,” Riselia said.

“I can use underwater movement and water-breathing spells.”

He could even walk on the ocean floor by using a gravity sphere.

“But swimming in the water feels good,” Riselia insisted.

“The human body was never meant to move underwater— Aah!”

Riselia gently tugged Leonis by the arm, causing him to lose balance in the water…

Boing.

Leonis’s face collided with the pillowy chest that’d been hovering right in front of him. All of the sudden, he was overcome by a soft, enveloping sensation.

“Aaaah, Leo!” Riselia cried.

“…I-I’m sorry…hack, horf!” Leonis hurriedly pulled away, but the moment he let go of Riselia, he swallowed a bit of water and started coughing.

“Don’t worry, just relax. Leave everything to me…” Riselia held on to Leonis’s body securely as he thrashed and choked. “You can calm down; I’m not letting go.”

“…O-okay,” Leonis said, pulling his face out of the water.

Riselia’s face was right in front of him. Her faint-pink lips seemed tantalizingly close. Wet, silver hair hung over the slender nape of the girl’s neck. Leonis felt his body heat skyrocket and his pulse accelerate.

My word. A human body is so incorrigible…

“Stay calm. Dip your head into the water, slowly,” Riselia said, backing away while still holding Leonis’s hands.

“…”

Awkward though it undoubtedly was, Leonis did as she instructed.

“Kick your legs in the water… Right, just like that.”

Tch, why must a Dark Lord such as I endure this humiliation…?

Looking away from the breasts bobbing in the water in front of him, Leonis kicked his feet.

“I’ll add swimming to your training curriculum tomorrow,” Riselia noted.

“N-no, thank you,” Leonis said, blowing bubbles with his face half-submerged.

18:30 Imperial Standard Time.

In her office aboard the ship, Altiria, fourth princess of the Integrated Empire, was preparing for the mixer.

“The outfit suits you well, Your Highness,” complimented one of her ladies-in-waiting.

“Thank you.” The princess smiled gently.

She wore a brilliant party dress the color of white lilies, which helped accentuate her golden hair. Sitting in her arms was a spirit called a Carbuncle, wagging its puffy tail. Standing in front of a full-length mirror, Altiria brought a hand to her chest in silent contemplation.

Miss Riselia and that boy were so dashing.

The memory of the boy, Leonis, lingered in the princess’s mind.

He was younger than me, but he was already a Holy Swordsman.

Altiria had long yearned to be a student at Excalibur Academy. As it happened, she was set to join the royal knights’ academy in the Imperial Capital next year. One day Altiria hoped to be a dashing knight who rushed to the rescue, just as Riselia and Leonis had done today.

And I would love to speak to that lady with the cannon…

The pigtailed Holy Swordswoman who’d blasted that giant Void had been invited to the princess’s party as well. Regrettably, that unknown girl had refused to attend. She’d said she’d only done what was necessary and departed without giving so much as her name. That one had been the most gallant of them all.

It was a firm wish of Altiria’s to be a Holy Swordswoman when she got older, just like that mysterious pigtailed girl. Her status as a princess prevented her from being able to fight Voids on the front lines, though.

“May I enter, Your Highness?” The voice of a knight of the royal guard came from beyond the door to the room.

“What is it?” Altiria replied, nodding to her attendant.

Understanding the meaning of the gesture, the servant opened the door, but then…

“Aaaah!”

The knight knocked the lady-in-waiting to the floor.

“…Wh-what are you—?!”

Before Altiria could scream, royal guards armed with firearms flooded into the room.

“Such insolence! What is the meaning of this?!” Despite Altiria being a twelve-year-old girl in a very confusing situation, she maintained a dignified demeanor befitting one of her status.

“Just getting ready for the mixer, Your Highness…,” replied the knight, peeling off his own face.

“What…?!”

Beneath the facade was a beastman with the head of a black lion. Altiria immediately recognized the man as the leader of the Sovereign Wolves, a radical terrorist organization responsible for the Parliament Hall occupation incident back in the Imperial Capital. This was the anti-imperialist Bastea Colossuf.

“Help! Someone, come help!” Altiria let loose the loudest shout she could muster.

None came to her aid, however, despite the royal guard being stationed on the same floor.

“Heh-heh, you waste your breath, Princess.” A dark elf woman entered the room with a mystifying smile on her lips.

In one of her hands was a pitch-black sword that gave off an eerie sort of mist, and in her other, she carried the corpse of a knight, which she carelessly let slump to the ground.

It was the captain of the royal guard.

“A-Arcus… N-nooo!” Altiria screamed.

Stouthearted as she may have tried to be, Altiria was still a child. Her mental fortitude had its limits.

“You might want to hire some better-trained bodyguards if you intend to keep yourself safe,” mocked the dark elf woman.

“Suppression of the main bridge complete,” said a voice from Bastea’s communication device.

“Understood. We’ll be right over,” the lion-headed man responded. Grabbing Altiria by the arm, he said, “I must ask you to come with me, Your Highness.”

“L-let go of me!” Altiria demanded futilely.

“Be quiet,” Bastea snapped, raising his sharp claws to Altiria’s face.

It was at that moment, however, the Carbuncle curled in Altiria’s arms bit Bastea’s hand. The man flinched from the pain, creating a momentary opening.

“Run!” Altiria screamed.

The spirit fell to the floor and took off like a startled rabbit, disappearing into thin air. It had vanished into the spirit world, which overlaid this one. No one could see it unless they had a spirit user’s eyes.

“Jiraf, go after it,” Bastea said, clicking his tongue and issuing an order to one of his men. Turning his attention back to his captive, he asked, “Is that spirit the Hyperion’s master key?”

Altiria didn’t answer. Her jade eyes glared defiantly at Bastea.

“Fret not, we have a spare prepared.” The dark elf woman grabbed Altiria by the chin and sneered. “Letting the spirit run off was a wasted effort, brave little princess. Heh-heh, heh-heh-heh…”

“Aaah… Nng…” Altiria’s eyes clouded over with despair.

Please, someone… Someone, save me…! Altria silently pleaded. For some reason, the face that drifted to the forefront of her mind was that of the boy to whom she’d spoken earlier in the audience chamber.