Even a Scoundrel Gets Tired

156 – At That Hour, In the Manor (End)

With Duke Iris also

having assembled

at the manor,

it was Reinhardt who ultimately felt the first stirrings of unease.

Due to the wounds

he had sustained earlier,

he could no longer secure

his position of physical dominance.

In the end, that vagabond too had come to capture him.

Because, the actions

available to him now

were already predetermined.

Creak─

The grip on the sword in his hand gradually began to tighten,

and soon, a blue slash tore through the air.

Severance(絶).

One of the most fundamental movements of the sword, the foundation of all swordsmanship.

Even that most basic of basics

could morph into an attack

boasting immense power for someone.

And if that someone

were a Sword Master?

Then a truly terrifying strike would emerge.

Shwooosh─

The sound of ripping air was heard.

As the blue slash sliced,

everything it touched turned to dust,

*Clang*—

Someone stepped calmly forward to meet the attack.

His fingers played over

the gauntlet wrapped around his arm.

“It has been far too long since my last battle.”

*Crack*—

Once more,

the sound of impact tearing through the air.

The slash, which had been hurtling toward him,

split into two pieces,

hurtling past on either side,

and Reinhart, witnessing

this entire spectacle,

showed surprisingly little agitation.

Rather, as if he expected as much,

he calmly assumed a stance

for the next attack.

As if he had foreseen this outcome.

“Reinhart, would you be willing to try talking again?”

*Thud, thud*—

The head of the largest merchant guild in the Empire,

and the patriarch of the Iris, one of the four great Houses,

Wendel Iris’s

footsteps echoed,

and the weight of the

gauntlet on his right hand

caused the ground to cave in of its own accord.

The earth gave way beneath his feet,

as he was familiar with the fact, he kept

advancing.

“…Talk?”

“Yes, talk.”

Conversation—it was the best option that Iris could

conceive of.

No need to worry about the

Reinhart family collapsing entirely,

or waste their own

There was no other way,

no matter how hard he pondered.

How many avenues were there

to overturn a decision

decreed by the Emperor himself?

Nay, did such an avenue even exist?

And yet,

to lose Reinhardt completely,

that, too, felt like squandering.

For in any case,

he was a key client,

and judging from

his taciturn,

inflexible nature,

he simply couldn’t imagine

the man embroiled with devils.

Somehow, he had to orchestrate a parley,

create even the slightest window

to mitigate Reinhardt’s transgression.

‘…Still, I cannot shake this unease.’

But this was, by all accounts, a gamble.

A lifelong merchant, staking everything on a wager.

It was not conduct befitting

a merchant who valued efficiency

above all else,

but he couldn’t bear to leave it as it was.

For while there was

no profit whatsoever for him,

the losses would be considerable.

And a merchant,

simply cannot live on losses alone.

“Hold, Iris. Are you quite mad?”

“Didn’t you say we already

attempted to parley?”

Naturally, not everyone could agree with this proposition;

the two Dukes immediately voiced their dissent

at his impulsive notion.

In their estimation,

The time for parley had long since passed, you see.

Even after Charlotte had striven,

requesting conversation some three or four times,

he refused it.

Indeed, from then on,

he’d been practically spitting daggers at them.

The option of dialogue was already erased from their minds.

“Parley, you say…”

“Precisely, if you would remain

in our custody as such…”

“Iris!”

“…Hahaha, you two truly are a stubborn pair, aren’t you?”

Lenuil, genuinely,

as if irritation was bubbling to the surface,

screeched in a voice unbecoming his years.

Charlotte, now,

as if resigned,

sat upon a chair she conjured from her shadow

and began to rest a moment.

Such assuredly negative reactions.

But for Duke Iris.

No, the merchant, such things were of no consequence.

Compared to the benefits

Reinhardt’s family would grant him,

he was more than willing

to endure a little harm

to those who were not

even members of his own house.

Besides, from the brief observation he’d made,

Reinhardt’s physical condition

did not appear to be so favorable.

If his body had been in

perfect shape,

there was no way he could have so easily blocked his slash from moments before.

No matter that he was the

head of his own family,

even if his slash had not been at full power,

even considering his physical state…

If only it were even a fraction better…

That previous strike,

instead of being so easily parried,

would have sliced clean through

his gauntlet, and then some.

Besides, from his

shoulder, droplets of blood

were falling, steadily.

The faint trace of Rueniel’s

mana, and the way smoke

hissed from the wound,

made it clear his condition was far from normal.

No matter how his body

boasted superhuman resilience,

there was no way he could

be unscathed after taking the Duke Rueniel’s magic head-on.

Thus, he couldn’t help but

possess a certain degree of

conviction.

If they stalled for time,

Reinhardt would be at a disadvantage due to blood loss,

and refusing the offer meant he’d automatically have to face him as well.

He couldn’t help but feel confident.

“…Coming this far only to talk?”

“Indeed. Since the dawn of time,

dialogue has resolved all manner of problems─”

“Cut the crap.”

“…What?”

And just like that, his confidence

vanished without a trace.

Because the impossible

had just occurred.

He wondered if he had

misspoken somehow, gazing into his face,

but not a flicker of uncertainty marred his expression.

The previous words

were no idle boast.

“…I can offer one more chance─”

“Unnecessary.”

In case she might have misspoke,

for the possibility,

Iris gently inquired once more,

but what returned to her was

an outright refusal,

and at the same moment, the Luniel

Duke’s head snapped around,

Charlotte, too, slowly rising from her seat.

One wore the expression

of a broken stream,

the other, the knowing look of expectation.

“…Are you aware it’s a foolish

choice, Reinhardt?”

Perhaps resenting his immediate

rejection of her proposition,

Iris glared at him

with piercing eyes,

but even that gaze

failed to reach Reinhardt.

He merely scoffed,

mocking her in response.

“…How regrettable, truly.”

“There is nothing to be gained

from speaking with you lot.”

Indeed, as he said,

nothing might change.

After all, the Emperor was now,

determined to erase

the Reinhardt family.

The Reinhardt family had long been a thorn in the Imperial eye.

Constantly threatening the

authority of the Imperial family,

cultivating influence

in every direction,

and if that weren’t enough, inspiring envy even among the knights, it would be a lie to say they weren’t a bother.

So, for them,

this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to

completely eliminate the Reinhardt family.

It had been, truly, so long

since a great fish

had taken the bait.

And what fisherman would release such a catch?

Truly, so long

that the direct summons of the Four Houses,

all of it, stemmed from this,

this act he’d committed.

He had to show them all.

To the Imperial Family, that a clear justification existed

to eliminate Reinhardt.

And Reinhardt,

he too vaguely sensed

this truth.

That even if he were now

to obediently follow the Emperor’s command,

the Emperor would not

leave him be.

‘I have no intention of being a docile lamb, never.’

“Stand aside. I must see the Emperor.”

Steel in his heart, once more,

he swung his sword with all his might

at the men approaching.

How it had come to this no longer mattered to him.

He felt not a sliver of regret

for the deeds he had done.

Casting out his own kin?

It was something other nobles did as a matter of course, and

unlike those nobles,

he could be proud that he had not

dirtied his hands with sordid affairs.

For “the past” to be exposed, it was too ancient, and

back then he had surely

left not a single shred of evidence.

If only he could escape this crisis,

nothing could hold him back.

“Clear the way…!!”

There was no room for other thoughts now.

Only the stark recognition

that these people threatened his

House.

His mind held

only one thought now.

To protect this “perfect” family,

that he had finally built.

Reinhardt Ryu Heavy Sword Technique Second Form, Infinite Severance.

A vast wave engulfed him.

*

‘Damn it… why me!!’

‘…’

‘Why did I have to receive

such a useless talent…!!’

‘…’

‘Soon… Father will

decide on a successor…!!’

‘…’

‘Like this… I can’t become the head of the family, my brother… my brother will rise…!!’

‘…’

‘With effort alone… I can never… surpass my brother…’

‘Hey, boy?’

‘Who… who are you?!’

‘I’ve been listening for a while now, I have.’

‘…?’

‘Boy, do you desire power, you do?’

‘…Why would I tell you that?’

‘Boy, won’t you

make a deal with me, you won’t?’

‘…Are they just

letting crazy people wander around the mansion these days…?’

‘We could grant you power, boy, we could.’

The curtain on a transaction that no one noticed

had been unfurling since

a distant past.