The Sword Master’s Son-in-Law

– A Hero’s Companion

The Demon’s Gambit.

If the Holy Woman’s assassination was their doing…

‘Then why did the Pope aid them? Could it be…?’

A matter of utmost urgency presented itself.

To hear the Pope’s account, directly.

Thus, Letty and I immediately sought him out.

The Pope greeted us in his chambers.

However-.

“What business brings *you* here?”

“Your Holiness…”

He did not appear to be in good spirits.

The proof being.

The Pope’s grimace directed squarely at Letty.

“My greetings, I am Arthas.”

I interjected, hoping to mediate, introducing myself to the Pope.

The Pope met my gaze, and spoke.

“A pleasure. I am Adeodatus.”

I began by questioning the Pope.

To glean whatever information he possessed.

“Do you perhaps recall a b*stard child by the name of Pete?”

“I… recall.”

“Why did he suddenly depart from this place?”

“I do not know.”

The Pope began to recollect Pete.

His expression grew increasingly peculiar.

At the same time.

My sigil grew warmer.

‘They clearly did something to the Pope.’

Some form of mind magic, undoubtedly.

But how was the Pope susceptible to it?

‘Shouldn’t his holy power protect him?’

I continued to press the Pope about Pete.

As a result.

The Pope’s face twisted further and further, until, finally, he collapsed.

Letty beside me wore a look of startled confusion, but

for the moment, at least, all seemed settled.

“It seems the Demon orchestrated your assassination after all, Letty. The Pope’s collapse now is likely due to some restriction or compulsion.”

Anyone could see the Pope’s reaction was deeply troubling.

Reti nodded, seemingly accepting what I’d said.

“…Having seen it with my own eyes, what choice do I have but to accept it? But I still can’t understand it, not in the slightest.”

I, too, agreed with Reti’s words.

I didn’t understand it either.

How could the Pope, of all people, have his mind controlled by a demon?

Someone so full of divine power.

If we wanted to find the answer to that question…

“First, we need to undo the magic controlling the Pope’s mind, I suppose.”

Then, after hearing his side of the story, we might finally know.

.

.

.

The magic dispelled from the Pope.

His gaze was no longer the hazy, unfocused look I’d seen before.

Clear, deep eyes.

His eyes changed to the gaze befitting the leader of a major organization.

“It feels like the fog in my mind has lifted. I thank you.”

The Pope expressed his gratitude.

Judging from his appearance alone, the magic was definitely undone, so now it was time to hear his side of the story.

I questioned the Pope about the truth.

And…

I ended up hearing a story that was quite shocking.

“…You truly had a…b*stard child?”

“Well… I don’t know if it truly exists or not. However, I did have such an experience. A mistake of a single night, so to speak. When she told me she was carrying my child…I couldn’t bring myself to… abandon her.”

The current Pope was an elderly man with white hair.

He said the b*stard child appeared to be around twenty years old.

If that was the case, then the Pope’s age at that time must have been middle-aged.

“I… I see.”

It truly was an astonishing revelation.

I was taken aback, but Reti beside me was equally stunned.

“Excuse me, Your Holiness… is that really true?”

“Ah… Saintess…”

The Pope looked at Reti and wore an embarrassed expression.

He must have recalled trying to assassinate the Saintess under his own command, albeit influenced by a demon.

“I am truly sorry for that.”

The Pope’s sincere apology.

Reti hesitated for a moment at his apology.

Judging by the tears welling up in Reti’s eyes, she must have been recalling all the hardships she had endured.

“…It’s alright.”

Honestly, if I were Reti, I don’t know.

If I could bring myself to forgive the Pope here.

But—perhaps it was the heart of a saint.

Merciful.

Reti forgave the Pope, who had committed a wrong.

On the grounds that it hadn’t been his intention.

“Because the source of all evil lies with the Ma’in.”

“I am grateful for your forgiveness.”

“However…!”

In an instant, Reti’s expression turned cold.

Certainly not the sort of expression one would expect from a saint.

“Haldert… I hope you will see to it that he, at least, receives proper punishment.”

Haldert.

The name of the cleric whose face I had punched.

The cleric who often made insulting jokes at Reti’s expense.

Reti had not forgotten that grudge.

At Reti’s words, the Pope nodded in agreement.

“I will see to it that he is properly punished.”

With that, the questioning came to an end.

The Ma’in’s magic.

The Pope, who had suffered under it, also needed time to rest.

On the way back, I asked Reti,

“Um… this might be a strange thing to say, but—”

No, it *was* certainly a strange thing to say.

“Why won’t you forgive Haldert?”

The Pope, who had orchestrated her own assassination.

She forgave him, but not Haldert.

And there must have been many other high-ranking priests who had ignored Reti.

Reti smiled at me, and answered my question.

“Well… the Pope acted under duress, but Haldert acted of his own volition.”

The high-ranking members of the Pope’s faction.

Even before Reti, their enemy, they had maintained a certain degree of courtesy, Reti added.

Even if they were complicit in the assassination.

But Haldert was different.

Even before the saint, Haldert showed no respect.

“And to say more… it wasn’t just five years ago, it goes back quite a while.”

Haldert.

It wasn’t really something that started five years prior, but rather,

Ten years ago.

Almost from the very first time they met, she said.

At first, they were merely subtle digs,

but they grew more frequent, and for the past five years, quite severe.

“Until now, I’ve been trying to just bear with it…”

Lettie said, glancing at me once.

Then, her face flushed crimson.

“He even criticized me in front of my… partner. I simply couldn’t endure it any longer.”

Ah.

So that was it.

But wait a moment.

“Lettie…”

“Yes?”

“Don’t we… no longer need to pretend to be lovers?”

“Huh…? Why?”

Lettie’s tail, which had been swaying, drooped instantly.

She looked on the verge of tears.

I had a feeling I’d said something wrong.

“Because the danger of assassination is gone, isn’t it?”

The danger of assassination.

That was the reason for our lover’s pact.

With the danger gone, the pact should be null and void, logically speaking.

“Oh… that’s right.”

Lettie seemed to realize that fact as well.

She nodded in agreement with my words.

Then, abruptly.

As if wringing something from her mind, she clutched her head with both hands.

And then-.

“Ah, not yet, it can’t happen now!”

“Why?”

“Well, that’s…”

Lettie fidgeted with her fingers for a moment, then clenched her fists, her face brightening as if she had an inspiration.

“If we break up now…”

“If we break up now?”

“It’d be… a rather complicated situation!”

“A complicated situation?”

“Well, it’s…”

The story Lettie told me next left me dumbfounded.

“So, you’re saying… as part of the plan, we deliberately spread the rumor to the people that the Hero and the Saintess were lovers?”

“Y-yes…. So, if we break up right now… the people will become uneasy.”

“Uneasy, you say…”

“Well, two former lovers going off to defeat the Demon King together? They’d be beside themselves with worry, I’m sure.”

It couldn’t be helped.

Perhaps it was a slightly exaggerated notion,

but the thought crossed my mind that it could escalate into national protests.

Letty saying it alongside me solidified that idea.

Considering that, there was no other choice.

“At least until we defeat the Demon Lord, we’ll have to maintain the facade of a couple.”

“Yes!”

Letty responded with a bright smile, seeming genuinely pleased.

Meanwhile.

A single possibility suddenly dawned on me.

‘If this story… gets back to Count Messiah, or even that old coot…’

The mere thought sent a shiver crawling down my spine.

*

While the factions were being reorganized under the Pope’s guidance,

I went out for a stroll.

And naturally, I met Amelia.

A woman older than myself, with black hair and violet eyes.

I found myself curious about one thing concerning her.

“Why don’t you ever offer an opinion?”

I’d met Amelia countless times recently.

And each time, I’d fed her something new.

But.

She never seemed to actively desire to go.

“…Because you choose for me.”

“No… It’s not that I choose, but that I could ask you but you have no opinion. Because you don’t say anything, I end up having to choose.”

It was as if she lacked a self.

Amelia seemed to be missing something.

As proof of this,

Amelia’s reactions to the food were consistently similar.

Repeating phrases like, ‘I liked this,’ or ‘This is fine.’

Frankly, I wasn’t sure if she genuinely liked anything.

“Me choosing… I’ve never done that before.”

Perhaps Amelia was a high-ranking noble.

I had heard that young ladies of high noble families were often like dolls, accepting whatever was given to them.

“Hmm… Still, shouldn’t you try it at least once?”

Well, wandering alone like this,

maybe she wasn’t the daughter of a high-ranking noble.

“I understand.”

With those words, Amelia grasped my wrist.

And began leading me along.

The place Amelia brought me, on her own accord.

It was—

“This place?”

The café where Amelia and I had our first meal.

“Yep.”

Amelia headed inside.

I followed after her.

She ordered the same thing as last time.

And as Amelia devoured her food, she wore a smile I hadn’t seen before.

Seeing that smile, I felt a certain relief.

That she was finally able to choose what she wanted.

That she’d be fine even without me now.

‘That’s a load off my mind.’

The day I had to leave to defeat the Demon Lord,

I felt certain Amelia would be alright on her own.

*

‘It was worth the wait.’

Today, Ameri finally received the news she’d been so eagerly anticipating.

The Hero.

She’d heard it once from Peter,

but this was the news that the Hero would finally reveal himself in a public gathering.

Ameri’s mission, the important mission she was given.

Finding the Hero was only the beginning.

That’s why Ameri was in the Heavis Holy Kingdom, where the Hero was most likely to appear.

‘To think the Saintess and the Hero were lovers, I didn’t know.’

The Hero and the Saintess.

Ameri didn’t really understand the concept of lovers.

So, she didn’t dwell on it.

Among the throng of spectators, Ameri waited only for the Hero.

As the ceremony progressed, the Saintess appeared first.

Golden hair.

A nun’s habit that covered her from head to toe, yet somehow revealed her figure.

For some reason, Ameri compared herself to the Saintess.

The Saintess, who she knew to be younger than her.

Perhaps it was because the Saintess was taller than her, and well-endowed.

Ameri felt a strange sensation.

‘Is that the kind of body men like?’

Ameri shook her head, suddenly realizing what she’d been thinking.

‘Why am I even thinking about this?’

Normally, she would have just let it go.

Something felt… off.

Athers’ face flashed through Ameri’s mind.

Caught off guard by the sudden appearance of Athers’ visage, Ameri shook her head fiercely.

‘Athers isn’t what’s important right now.’

The opportunity to see the Hero she had so eagerly awaited had finally arrived.

Useless thoughts.

Such things needed to be pushed aside.

And so, she refocused her attention on the public ceremony.

But then—

“Uh… what is this?”

The words slipped out of Ameri’s mouth before she could stop them.

And for good reason.

It was the Hero’s turn to appear.

But emerging from the wings was someone she knew all too well.

“Why is Athers there…?”

Athers stood beside the Saintess.

Her friend, wearing a stiff smile, was waving to the crowd.

Ameri, a person naturally lacking in strong emotion,

for the first time, experienced a sensation close to having her heart drop in shock.