by Hyougetsu
“Here you go. This is important to you, isn’t it?”
“Th-Thank you very much, Lord Veight.”
I wasn’t equipped to console a bereft young boy. I didn’t know how. So instead, I smiled impishly and said, “Incidentally, I still haven’t told you the third reason why I saved your life.”
“Oh yes. I completely forgot.”
Ryuunie nodded to me, and I said in a conspiratorial whisper, “Well you see... That third reason is a secret.”
“Huh?”
Ryuunie blinked in surprise, and I winked at him.
“Don’t think you’ll always get all the answers, young prince. And don’t forget, I’m an evil foreigner who came here to use all of you.”
“Umm, I’m not sure that...”
Ryuunie stiffened, unsure of how to answer. I grabbed his hand and placed the wooden block I’d picked up into it.
“You should be as wary of me as you would be of stepping on thin ice. Remember, just as your grandfather and father were men of the Doneiks family, so too are you.”
“O-Okay! Hang on...”
If you instantly agree when someone who tells you to be wary of them, that means you’re not being wary of them. Smiling, I went back to my seat and looked out of the window. Fathers, huh? ...I’m still carrying on your will, Demon Lord.
I purposely took a few days to return to Kinjarl Castle, which Eleora now occupied. Had I returned sooner, Ryuunie would have had to see more of the horrors of war than necessary. I’d wanted to give him some time to calm down and sort out his feelings. Furthermore, if there were any other assassins after his life, I’d planned on luring them out somewhere deserted so I could dispose of them. But in the end, we saw no one suspicious.
While I’d managed to successfully rendezvous with Eleora, we’d have to part again soon enough. Officially, I was no more than a Meraldian diplomat who’d assisted Eleora’s faction during the rebellion. So long as I was the one looking after Ryuunie, everything was fine. But the moment Eleora met the prince in an official capacity, her station would force her to take action. Which was why I had Ryuunie guide me and my werewolves to the detached villa he spoke of without stopping to meet with Eleora.
The Doneiks family was so rich that they had multiple stately mansions dotting the land around their castle. As far as I could tell, the Doneiks treated mansions like rooms. Each one was dedicated to a single person or purpose. There was a villa that was the equivalent of a reception room, one which was the equivalent of a library, and so on.
“All of Meraldia’s viceroys were pretty rich, but these Doneiks guys are something else,” Fahn muttered, half in disbelief and half in exasperation. I turned back to her and replied, “If you own a bunch of huge mansions like this, you need to employ a ton of servants to take care of them all. Which actually helps make sure that all the people living around here have jobs.”
“Ah, I see.”
It was both the privilege and the duty of wealthy nobles to spend their wealth. According to Ryuunie, there was also one other reason that the Doneiks possessed so many villas.
“It’s easier to hide things and people when you have this many mansions to choose from,” he said. “If it looks like something you’re trying to hide is about to be found out, you can always move it to a different mansion. At least, that’s what Father said.”
“I see. That does make sense.”
Ryuunie tightly gripped the wooden knight I’d delivered to him and added, “My family made a lot of secret agreements with people, and it needed somewhere to hide all the documents proving those deals took place. Apparently a lot of the stuff they did had to be written down on paper, even though you normally don’t want to leave behind evidence of your deals.”
It sure must be tough...being born into a family of schemers like this one. It appeared the mansion we were heading to, the one Ryuunie and his parents called the Knight Lily Mansion, had been home to his mother’s parents. In other words, the Bolsheviks. This was where the Doneiks had conferred with their longtime allies. And supposedly, a lot of heirlooms and other articles important to the Bolsheviks were housed here. Ryuunie’s mother and grandmother had brought a lot of Bolshevik memorabilia with them when they’d married into the Doneiks family, and so Ryuunie came here often with his father and grandfather for their sakes.
He led us through a wide garden and we entered the massive stone mansion. The place we ended up in was an unassuming guest room. The room had plenty of doors leading out of it, but the young prince told us that they were all dummies to hide the important passage within this room.
“This is the only way to reach the secret room.”
As he said that, Ryuunie moved one of the paintings hanging next to the bookshelf. There was a clicking noise, and Ryuunie slid the bookshelf away to reveal a new, hidden room filled with bookshelves.
“Wow, that’s awesome!”
Monza stepped toward the tiny room, but Ryuunie hurriedly held out a hand to stop her.
“Ah, wait! This is just one of the steps you need to do. If you actually walk into that room the whole thing will reset, and you won’t be able to reach the real secret room.”
Isn’t that kinda overkill? How mistrusting are you guys? It seemed when you had as much money as the Doneiks, you could just spend it on whatever you wanted. The fake hidden room was packed to the brim with books, but apparently they were all dummies, or just regular novels. Nothing secret. The Doneiks really took their privacy seriously. It almost felt like concealment had become a goal unto itself for them, rather than a means to an end.
The real secret room turned out to be behind the cupboard of the guest room next to this one. Seriously, you guys don’t have to be this suspicious of everyone. The real secret room was relatively small, but three of its four walls were covered with shelves that reached up to the ceiling. All of them were stuffed with rolled-up scrolls, thick ledgers, and sealed envelopes. Ryuunie turned to me.
“This room houses a portion of the Doneiks family’s secrets.”
“This is just a portion!?” Fahn exclaimed, as she looked up at the shelves in amazement.
“Yes. All of the dealings we had with Mother’s side of the family, the Bolsheviks, are recorded here. There are other secret rooms too, but I haven’t been taught where all of them are yet.”
As he spoke, Ryuunie picked up one of the envelopes and handed it to me. I opened the envelope and took a look at the documents within. They appeared to be a report about a particular baron who opposed the Bolsheviks. Apparently he made a big show of looking pious in public, but was a huge womanizer in reality. The report mentioned that the Bolsheviks had purchased a number of the female servants working for the baron in order to fabricate a scandal against him.
I started flipping through the rest of the documents, looking for anything interesting. It seemed the baron eventually ended up sullying the virtue of some countess, and died dueling her husband, who was defending her honor. Incidentally, the countess’ husband had brought four armored knights with him for said duel. The baron’s rapier had been crushed by one of his opponents’ maces, and he’d then been beaten to death. The “duel” had been more of a lynching.
However, that truth had been completely erased by the Doneiks, leaving the publicly recorded fabrication behind. The documents even bore the signature of the previous Lord Bolshevik. These fabricated documents were forged with such skill that they’d stand up to scrutiny in court.
“I’m guessing these documents are here to prove that the Bolshevik family owes the Doneiks family a debt for their assistance?”
“I wouldn’t know,” Ryunnie replied, cocking his head. “Father told me I wasn’t allowed to read any of these. At least not until I got older.”
Your dad made the right call. Most of the other documents detailed various military pacts the Doneiks had made with other houses, the marriage alliances that transpired, and what kind of bribes and money laundering went on where. None of these dealings were
the least bit legal, of course. Furthermore, from the brief skimming I did, I learned that the Bolsheviks were attempting to sabotage the influence of the Sonnenlicht Order within their domain. I had no idea why, but it was clear that the Bolshevik family was on bad terms with the church.
Jerrick, who’d been examining the engineering that went into all the mechanisms that hid this room, suddenly asked, “Hey boss, are all these papers worth anything?”
I momentarily stopped stuffing documents into a wooden crate and looked up at him.
“If we have these, we’ll be able to read the Bolsheviks’ next move. We’ll know what they’re scheming, and what they’re afraid of. Ah, hand me some nails and a hammer please.”
“Here you go, boss.”
I finished packing the last of the documents into the box, then nailed the lid shut with the hammer.
“By betraying the Doneiks, the Bolshevik family managed to preserve their influence and power through this civil war. In fact, because of how much their betrayal contributed to Prince Ashley’s victory, they’ll have even more influence in court now.”
I had no doubt secret negotiations of that nature had been what ultimately convinced the Bolsheviks to defect. But that wasn’t good for us. Ideally, only Eleora would come out of this war in a stronger position than before.
“So what you’re saying is all those papers are a weapon to keep Lord Bolshevik in check?” Jerrick asked as he nodded in understanding.
“Exactly. Make sure to grab every last scrap. I don’t want to leave a single document behind.”
“You got it, boss.”
As Prince Ivan had claimed, that wooden knight turned out to be hiding a treasure trove. These documents would be extremely important in asserting our dominance over North Rolmund. Closing my eyes, I offered a silent prayer for the departed prince.
“Prince Ivan, you most certainly held up your end of the bargain.”
Though, I had a sneaking suspicion half of the reason Prince Ivan had done this was to get back at the Bolsheviks for betraying him. Well, it doesn’t matter either way. I looked up and smiled at Ryuunie, who was quietly watching us work.
“Ah, my apologies for ignoring you, Ryuunie.”
“U-Umm, Lord Veight. I lost to your army, and I’m barely even an adult. You don’t have to be so polite to me.”
“You’re saying the exact same things your uncle did. Well, I guess if you’d prefer I stay casual with you, I can.”
Ryuunie smiled and gave me a small nod. With how mature he was acting I’d unconsciously started treating him like an adult. But he was still a kid. Being too polite with him would probably just make him uncomfortable.
“Errr... in that case, Ryuunie.”
“Yes?”
“This might be the last time you’ll be able to visit this mansion.”
“You’re...right.”
Ryuunie fully understood the position he was in. I pointed to the stack of boxes next to the one I’d just packed.
“We’ve got some extra boxes left over. So why not pick out some mementos of your mother to bring with you?”
Ryuunie’s expression perked up.
“Can I!? Ah, in that case, can I borrow four boxes, four soldiers, and a secretary? I want to catalogue everything I’m taking!”
For a kid, he sure was organized. I guess that’s a Doneiks upbringing for you. I tasked a few of my werewolves to help him out, and Ryuunie happily bounded out of the room.
“This way!”
As I watched him vanish into the bowels of the mansion I called out to his retreating back, “Ryuunie! I’m sure you understand, but please keep your luggage to things that’ll fit in these crates!”
“Okaaaaaay!”
I had the feeling he’d try to cram in a piano or a chest of drawers or something if I didn’t warn him.
“Also once we’re done packing everything, we’ll be visiting your mother’s grave! I’ll be waiting for you at the Knight Lily field, so don’t take too long!”
“Okaaaaaaaaay! Ah, please put that box there! We’ll start with the second floor! Follow me!”
Is he really gonna be alright...
I waited for Ryuunie by the flowerbed Prince Ivan had made for his wife’s grave. I wasn’t a horticulture expert, so I had no idea when lilies were supposed to bloom. Probably spring or summer. But right now we were in the dead of winter. So naturally, the lilies weren’t in bloom. As Ryuunie approached the flowerbed, he looked up at me with a despondent expression.
“I forgot, Knight Lilies only bloom in the early summer... Umm, should I get some other flowers?”
I smiled gently at the prince.
“No need. Knight Lilies are what your mother liked best, right?”
“Huh? Y-Yeah.”
I knelt in the field of flowers and used my specialty: strengthening magic. More specifically, I boosted one of the flowers’ life force.
“Even if it is the dead of winter, I’m sure your love for your mother will...see, it bloomed after all.”
As I talked, the flower sprouted a bud which grew and bloomed in the span of a few seconds. A single red flower stood out among the field of hibernating plants.
“Woooooooooow!” Ryuunie’s eyes went as wide as saucers. “Th-That’s amazing! I don’t believe it! How’d you do that!? ...Err, how did you do that, Lord Veight?”
It’s fine, you don’t have to use my title or anything. I smirked to myself as I watched Ryuunie blush with embarrassment at his social faux-pas. With an exaggerated flourish, I waved my hand at him and said in a purposely arrogant tone, “The truth is, I’m actually an evil wizard. I came all this way from Meraldia to kidnap you.”
The first half of that was the truth, and the second half was starting to look like it’d end up becoming the truth, so I wasn’t really lying. I plucked the blooming flower and handed it to Ryuunie.
“Here you go, Ryuunie.”
“Thank you very much, Lord Veight!” Ryuunie’s smile was sincere. After he finished placing the flower on his mother’s grave, he turned back to me and asked, “Was that really magic, Veight!?”
“Yeah, it was. I’m not as skilled as Eleora, but I do know how to use a bit of magic. Mostly I can strengthen people’s muscles and skin and bones. I can use that magic on plants and animals, too.”
I’d cast strengthening magic on plants a lot back when I started my training. Casting magic on myself was pretty simple, since I’d been able to notice the slight changes inside my own body, but casting it on others had proven challenging. Figuring out how to regulate the amount of mana I used had been quite an ordeal. The first time I’d tried it on potatoes and pumpkins, I caused them to blow up, which got me scolded by Fahn and my mom. Even after I’d gotten some more experience, people complained that my enlarged vegetables didn’t have any taste, or that I’d multiplied just the leaves of a plant but not the fruit.
“I’m not capable of making all the flowers bloom at once, and I still mess up from time to time, since I’m not a plant specialist. So I’m afraid you’ll have to make do with just this one flower.”
“That’s more than enough... Thanks to you, I was able to give Mother a proper send-off.”
Ryuunie looked down sadly at his mother’s grave. He was clearly reluctant to leave. As the disciple of a necromancer who’d been reincarnated once already, I didn’t have much emotional attachment to graves. Of course, I realized my view on death was far from the norm. In an attempt to cheer Ryuunie up, I decided to talk to him about my own experiences.
“My mom’s still alive, but I lost my dad when I was still a baby. I don’t even know what he looked like. It’s not exactly the same thing, but I do kind of understand what you’re going through, Ryuunie.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Actually, the man I looked up to like a father died recently. Even though I managed to avenge him, killing his killer won’t bring him back.”
The old Demon Lord had been more than just my boss. He’d been my l
ife mentor. Not only that, he was the only other reincarnator I’d met. I really wish he could have lived for longer than he had. I can’t even complain to you about leaving me behind.
“U-Umm, Veight? You look kind of...”
Realizing I must have let my emotions show on my face, I hurriedly put my smile back on.
“Don’t worry, I’m fine. Sorry, I was just reminiscing a little.”
“O-Oh.”
Ryuunie looked worriedly up at me. What kind of expression was I making? In an attempt to change the topic I pointed to the earring in Ryuunie’s hands.
“By the way, how come that earring uses blue jewels? The Knight Lily’s a red flower, isn’t it?”
Surprised by the sudden change in topic, Ryuunie looked down at the earring. Sorry I keep springing topic changes onto you. Ryuunie searched through his memories for a few seconds, then replied, “Umm... Well, there’s this legend about the origins of the Knight Lily. Supposedly, the Knight Lily was originally a blue flower, but...”
Long ago, a young knight was betrayed by his comrades and slain on the battlefield. He was buried in a field of Knight Lilies, but for some reason, the flowers that bloomed atop his grave were red instead of blue. Fearing that he’d cast some curse from beyond the grave, his murderers asked around about the red flowers, causing rumor of their existence to spread. Eventually, those rumors reached the knight’s hometown, and from that point on, the Knight Lily began to be associated with regret and revenge.
“But when the knight’s lover learned about these rumors, she went to visit his grave.”
When she finally reached it, she plucked the red lilies on his grave and took them back home to cultivate in her garden. Under her tender care, the red flowers turned blue once more, and the blue Knight Lily came to be associated with mercy and love.
Blushing awkwardly, Ryuunie finished off his tale.
“That’s why Father always said that the blue Knight Lily is a sacred flower that protects the people you love.”