Chapter 11
“Ugh!”
Daphne bolted upright.
Looking around, the outside was pitch black. Judging from the flickering light at the base of the mountain, it seemed like the sun had just begun to rise.
‘How long was I out?’
No, no.
That doesn’t matter.
First, I need to think about dealing with that quack elf brat. You’re done for, you.
“Call that elf right now…… Hm?”
Wait a minute. Something feels off.
Daphne hopped down from the bed and wobbled over to the mirror.
The Daphne in the mirror was the same as always.
Slightly frizzy blonde hair, pallid skin, and skinny limbs. She looked just as wretched as before she collapsed, but there was a subtle change.
Daphne immediately examined her body.
[Daphne Akion]
Stamina: 50 Charm: 300
Strength: 4 Magic: 1
My god.
Her stamina had gone up by 20. And that’s not all? Her body felt refreshed. It was like the feeling after getting cupping therapy from an Eastern acupuncturist, as if black blood had been steadily drained out.
—Symptoms that feel like side effects will appear.
—But they’re all part of the healing process, so don’t worry about them.
“Oh……. So he’s not just a complete quack, huh.”
Then, holding off on dealing with him.
By now, Teati is probably sleeping off days’ worth of missed sleep while making the medicine. He wouldn’t know that she had slightly opened the gates of hell and come back down.
Man, I really am a merciful dragon. Heh heh heh.
Daphne clenched and unclenched her fist repeatedly, feeling her renewed body.
Then she pivoted on her foot.
She felt like heading to the training grounds right now.
I am the great calamity. No one can stand in my way.
With that thought, she went out…….
“L-Lady Daphne?”
“Y-You’re awake? Ah, no. Why are you out here?”
“You need to rest!”
The knights who had come out for dawn training fussed and circled around Daphne.
“What. Why are you all doing this.”
Daphne looked at them pitifully as she prepared to run.
“You’re not planning to do stamina training again right now, are you?”
“You’re going to run?”
“Yeah. That’s right.”
“You can’t!”
A few knights stepped forward to block Daphne’s path.
“You collapsed just yesterday, and now you’re going to push your body like this again!”
“Absolutely not. Absolutely!”
Their words had some merit.
Just yesterday, Daphne had collapsed during sword practice.
And today, the moment she woke up, she’s out here saying she’s going to run laps on the training grounds? That’s tough even for most adults.
On top of that, not knowing that Daphne’s stamina had increased, the knights had no choice but to block her way.
But no matter how much sense their words made, Daphne couldn’t understand it. How dare they block my path? Do they know who I am?
I am the calamity. The very calamity that causes such immense agony upon touch that it splits heaven and earth, leading to death. And yet these pathetic human brats……!
“How dare you block my path? Want to get beaten and die?”
Murderous intent flickered in Daphne’s green eyes.
Oh. What’s with that glare. Scary.
The knights flinched involuntarily, but since the child in front of them was just a 5-year-old kid, they didn’t back down.
“B-But……! It’s for your safety, my lady!”
“Absolutely not! If you insist on going, just kill us instead!”
“Hey. That’s not right. Why should we die?”
“It’s just a figure of speech, you blockhead! This way, the lady might pretend to relent and go back!”
“Ah! Yes, that’s right! If you really want to go, then kill us!”
Daphne’s head tilted to one side. Her tightly pursed lips twisted like a clamshell. The breath escaping through her teeth seemed faintly black.
“Is that your wish?”
“……Pardon?”
“If it’s a wish, of course I can grant it. I’ll make sure it doesn’t hurt.”
“W-Wait a minute!”
What kind of talk is that!
The knights rushed in to restrain Daphne, who was truly emanating killing intent. That’s when it happened.
“Just let her go.”
A familiar voice rang out. It was the knight commander, Lloyd.
“The lady says she wants to run.”
He said it with a deliberately stern face.
“Isn’t that right, my lady?”
Daphne stared up at Lloyd like that. The murderous intent that had been pooling in her eyes until just now was gone.
“Hmph. At least one of you has a brain.”
With that, she snorted and began running laps on the training grounds. Her short legs wobbling as she ran looked quite cute.
But at the same time, knowing she was doomed to die anyway, it was quite pitiful. Daphne’s running form stirred up various emotions.
“It seems the lady has steeled her resolve.”
Lloyd said to the knights, who were still dazed.
“None of us can be weaker in will than the lady.”
Lloyd was telling the knights to take example from a mere 5-year-old lady’s determination, but since they knew how Daphne had trained over the past month, no one objected.
“You all run too.”
“Yes, sir!”
The knights began running in formation, and Daphne ran at her own pace around the training grounds.
***
“Damn it.”
She ran 10 laps today.
As a result, not only had her stamina hit rock bottom, but she didn’t even have the strength left to twitch a finger.
“Ugh.”
Was it because she got too overconfident from her increased stamina?
Feeling her legs trembling, Daphne flopped down flat on the training grounds.
‘But it’s effective, right?’
If she kept this up, the moment she got stronger would come eventually.
If she got stronger, she could achieve her current plan—in other words, the grand goal of becoming even stronger than in her previous life and getting revenge on the hero who killed her.
That’s what Daphne was aiming for.
‘I’ll rest a bit and then do mana training.’
Daphne thought that as she slightly closed her eyes. No, she tried to.
“So, are you saying you’ll defy the count’s orders right now?”
A strange voice came. Daphne opened her eyes and turned her head toward the sound.
There stood Lloyd and a few knights wearing uniforms different from those of the grand duke’s household.
“Didn’t the count say it was urgent? It’s already been approved by His Grace the grand duke, so are you refusing to carry out the orders?”
The knight shouted in a sharp voice, but Lloyd didn’t yield.
“Is going hunting with the count’s youngest son urgent business? I can’t imagine anything more leisurely.”
“Listen here, knight commander!”
“As I said, the vice commander and I are assisting young master Arius with his training. If the vice commander and I are absent, there’ll be issues with the young master’s training. At the very least, we can’t go to the count’s estate for a month, so inform them accordingly.”
At Lloyd’s firm declaration, the knight gritted his teeth.
“That damn kid is what’s causing……!”
“Exactly! That Arius or whatever isn’t even His Grace’s bloodline to begin with! Compared to him, our youngest young master is the true heir carrying noble blood!”
The knights mocked and sneered at Lloyd and Arius without restraint.
Hmm.
Daphne finally grasped the situation.
The ones in the other uniforms were the count’s knights, and they had asked Lloyd to go to the hunting grounds with the count’s youngest son. Lloyd refused, citing Arius’s training, but they weren’t accepting it.
“If the count finds out you refused orders over one lowly bastard like that, who knows how furious he’ll be—that’s why we’re saying this?”
“You still don’t know where to invest your time for the best results, huh? We’ll teach you. So hurry up and prepare to head to the count’s estate.”
Daphne crossed her arms and examined the knights’ faces.
They didn’t realize at all that they were saying strange things. In other words, they believed their words, opinions, and convictions were right. How utterly lowly and lamentable.
‘But me stepping in might be a bit much, right?’
This was ultimately Arius’s matter and the Akion grand duke’s household’s affair. It was ambiguous for Daphne to intervene.
‘I should just pretend I don’t know…….’
As Daphne muttered to herself, something entered her view. It was Arius, hiding behind a pillar with his ears perked up.
The lively, confident expression was gone, replaced by a frustrated look as he ground his teeth and hung his head low. With teary eyes, he looked just like a rabbit with drooping ears.
“If you’re that frustrated, shouldn’t you step out and at least curse them?”
Daphne clicked her tongue and got up. Then she walked toward Lloyd and the count’s knights.
“So, even if His Grace steps down, all those fine young masters and ladies will get kicked out anyway—why pledge loyalty to that side!”
“Anyway, I heard the lady’s going to die soon, so wouldn’t it be better to flexibly look for another way to survive?”
“Exactly. We’ll arrange a position for you…….”
“Done talking?”
“We haven’t finished…… Hm? Who’s that?”
“Me.”
The knights were startled by the sudden voice, and upon realizing the owner was Daphne, they were even more shocked, nearly falling backward.
“L-L-Lady Daphne?”
“Eek!”
Daphne Akion.
The sole heir of the Akion family.
The owner of the infamous reputation of having sold her humanity in exchange for noble blood!
They’d heard the lady rarely left her room anyway, so they wouldn’t run into her, but why was the lady here? The knights were confused.
“If you haven’t finished talking, then go on.”
“Th-That is. My lady.”
“Even if you continue, I’ll hear it as your last words.”
The knights couldn’t say a word.
It wasn’t just Daphne’s notoriety; basically, considering the difference in status, they were in a position to shut their mouths in front of Daphne.
One wrong move, and they could be dragged off for execution.
“You’re not talking, huh.”
Daphne made a face like she’d expected this and clicked her tongue.
“Arius is Arius Akion.”
And she said it loudly enough for the hiding Arius to hear.
“If you want to deny that, tell the dragon himself. I’ll personally arrange the meeting for you.”
“N-No, that’s not it!”
“We misspoke. We’re sorry.”
“We’re sorry!”
The knights seized the moment to bow quickly and apologize.
If they tried to stand on pride here, it’d be their necks for sure. Whether Daphne was a child or whatever, the best policy was to meekly admit fault.
But Daphne didn’t seem inclined to let it go here. Was it because she saw Arius, hiding off in the distance, slyly smiling and wiping away tears? In any case, Daphne crossed her arms and demonstratively lifted her chin.
“If a single apology could forgive wrongdoing, then why would punishment exist?”
“……Pardon?”
“Kowtow.”
“Pardon?”
“Your heads. Kowtow them.”
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By Anna 💓
