The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen-Chapter 345: The way back

Inside the carriage heading back to Hamel.

－Rattle, rattle.

Having given up my spot for the injured to use the teleportation device, I passed the time in the carriage, chewing on dried meat.

－Chew... chew...

“When are we going to get there?”

One thing was clear: we wouldn’t arrive today. The distance from the northern region to Hamel was considerable. At the earliest, we’d arrive tomorrow. At worst, it could take up to three days.

“Haaa...”

I wasn’t feeling sleepy.

I considered taking a nap to pass the time, but sleep didn’t come easily. So, instead, I decided to go over the events of this journey while I lay there with my eyes open.

“Hmm...”

There wasn’t much else to do.

‘How much money do I have left...?’

Opening my wallet, I couldn’t help but let out a bitter laugh as I saw how empty it had become. It seemed like I had spent more money on this trip than I initially thought.

I had started with 200 gold, but now I only had 50 left. Three years ago, spending that much would have been equivalent to blowing three months’ worth of living expenses in one go. Wow.

“I really spent a lot.”

Meals, souvenirs for the young lady, and staying in luxurious accommodations all contributed to more expenses than I had expected. Even though it was a small dent compared to the money I had saved, I realized my spending habits had increased lately.

“...Money really is the best.”

Next time I come with the young lady, I’ll splurge a little more. After ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) all, money is meant to be spent.

“Haaa...”

I stuffed the wallet back into my inner pocket and shifted my thoughts away from money. After all, more important things had happened on this journey.

‘The heretics...’

This time, we had faced three Apostles.

There was the Apostle of Compassion, who had filled Olaf’s place, Ellicia, the Apostle of Patience, and the Apostle of Temperance, who, according to the novel, had been killed by Mikhail.

If it hadn’t been for the Apostle of Compassion, the journey would have been easier, but dealing with heretics is never simple, and there had been plenty of unexpected variables.

“Hmm...”

The heretics’ greatest strength is their Apostles. In this battle, we succeeded in killing one of the seven Apostles—Temperance, a particularly difficult opponent to face.

Of course, the four knights who guard the Pope were technically the greatest and most central power of the heretics. However, those knights rarely ever moved, so we didn’t need to worry about them too much.

They were so elusive that some Apostles had never even seen their faces.

When the Empire eventually engages in an all-out war, those knights will appear spectacularly, but that’s a tale for the distant future—nothing to concern myself with right now.

What was certain was that Temperance was out of the picture. To be precise, he hadn’t died, but the treatment he was receiving was worse than death.

Ellicia, the Apostle of Patience, was now on our side, and in place of the deceased Olaf, the new Apostle of Compassion, an elf...

－Sir Lowen. －... －Are you hurt? －Sigh. －Wow... The Empire’s Sword is injured. Is our nation doomed? －Are you mocking me? －Yes. －...

Apparently, this elf managed to wound Lowen and escape. Lowen insisted he hadn’t let his guard down...

“Ah... Things are getting complicated.”

I didn’t know where this monster had come from, but the appearance of someone not from the novel left me feeling confused, so I clicked my tongue, wearing a faintly awkward smile.

‘I don’t like unexpected developments.’

If we could have retired that elf back then, we could have dealt a greater blow to the heretics.

‘Forget it. I’ll just focus on resting for now.’

Even though I felt some regret, there was no point in dwelling on it. We had achieved what we set out to do—we obtained the Holy Sword, and unexpectedly, the demonic sword as well. The gains far outweighed the losses on this journey.

‘Speaking of which... an elf...’

－...An elf. －...Who are you? －Oh... um. －... －Let me untie you first.

I vaguely recalled meeting one long ago, but my memory was hazy—it was a long time ago.

Was it around the time when I raided that slaver’s camp at age 12?

‘Hmm...’

As I strained to recall the past, the demonic sword at my waist, which had been silent for some time, cautiously spoke up.

－Master...

Its voice was timid, almost crawling.

It was strange to think of such an object, a demonic sword, as pitiful. Was it really a demonic sword?

－Um... Master.

I glanced at the sword and responded.

“Yes, Mr. Demonic Sword?” －Oh... Are you using honorifics with me? －Yes? －Why are you...? －Hmm... because you’re older? －Ugh...

The sword seemed hurt by my comment, so I shook my head and rephrased. You can’t undo spilled water, but with words, you can dress them up and make them more acceptable.

“It was just a joke. Your form is so beautiful that I assumed you must have been a noble in your past life, so I used honorifics. Did it make you uncomfortable?” －No... not at all. “Well, that’s a relief.”

An awkward silence filled the space. The sword’s shy demeanor made the silence even more pronounced.

“...” －... “...”

Breaking the silence, I finally asked the sword. If it had called me, it should speak up, after all.

“Why did you call me?” －Oh, um... “Yes?” －I had a question. May I ask it? I’ll answer any questions you have in return. “Haha... You can ask me anything. No need to hesitate.” －Okay, then I’ll ask. “Go ahead.” －Huu...

The sword took a deep breath before asking a question I hadn’t anticipated.

－Master... are you perhaps not human? “What?”

Not human? What kind of question was that? I had never heard anything like it before, and I couldn’t help but laugh. I shrugged my shoulders.

“I’m not sure what you mean.” －...That is... “I am human... but... hmm.” －...Ugh. “If you look at it from a complicated perspective, I suppose you could see it that way.” －...! “But why do you think that?”

After a brief pause, the demonic sword timidly replied, saying it thought it had seen something strange during the trial.

－I’m not sure, but when I saw your memories, there were so many that I couldn’t handle them. “What exactly did you see?” －I don’t remember. I couldn’t see everything. “I see...” －I could only see the most painful memories. Specifically, the saddest ones. “There’s nothing like that in my memory. That’s odd.” －That’s why I was surprised, too. I wasn’t sure it was even possible... Anyway. “Yes?” －There were also a lot of terrifying women. “Women?” －Yes... I can’t quite recall, but there were about seven of them. They were incredibly scary. “...”

I nodded along vaguely to the sword’s strange words. I could tell it was worrying about something, perhaps struggling to adapt to this new environment after being dormant for hundreds of years.

“I look forward to working with you.” －Yes... “I’ll try my best to avoid bad situations.” －I’m not too concerned about that. I’m not kind enough to criticize those sorts of things... “Well, that’s good to hear.”

I wondered if Mikhail was going through something similar with his Holy Sword. He was probably having a conversation with it right about now, though I figured it wouldn’t be as fun. That sword was all about protecting the world, with a clear sense of purpose. It didn’t seem like the type of sword you could have an interesting conversation with.

On the other hand, this demonic sword...

－...Just don’t be too harsh on me...

It was so timid that I didn’t know how to continue the conversation.

As I patted the sheathed demonic sword, Caliburn, I spoke softly.

“Caliburn.” －Yes...?! “Is that your name?”

Caliburn trembled slightly before answering.

－Yes... but why do you ask? “I thought it would be better to call you ‘Caliburn’ instead of ‘Mr. Demonic Sword.’” －Yes... I’d prefer that. “Then I’ll call you Caliburn.” －Y-yes... Thank you.

What a funny sword. It could even get embarrassed.

I started chatting more with Caliburn, explaining who I was and where we were headed.

－So, we’re heading to Hamel. －Hamel... that’s in the Empire, right? －That’s right.

Since the journey to Hamel was long, I had plenty of time to talk with Caliburn. Surprisingly, it made the time pass without feeling lonely.

It wasn’t bad. Talking with Caliburn was more enjoyable than I expected and certainly kept the boredom at bay.

－So, you’re traveling with a bear, a noble lady, and a wizard? “Yes.” －I’ll do my best. “Huh?” －Even though I don’t have a body, I’ll do my best to help.

I liked its bright attitude.

Caliburn also shared a bit about itself. As Shuen had mentioned, before being sealed, Caliburn was once the progenitor of a vampire clan.

It was once the king of many subjects. Some even called it a wise ruler. However, it didn’t seem to want to talk about how it became sealed or why it became a demonic sword, so I didn’t press further.

It probably wasn’t a pleasant story.

Still, I was glad that, before being a demonic sword, it was a “woman.” If it had been a chatty man, I probably wouldn’t have enjoyed the conversation as much.

I could finally see it.

“Uuung...”

The sulky face of the young lady riding the bear.

“Eeeek...”

The young lady, sitting atop the bear, was turning her head as she noticed the carriage passing by the mansion.

She was probably wondering if I was in the carriage.

“Uuuueek...”

Smiling at the young lady’s innocent expression, I opened the window and waved with a grin.

“That’s her.” －...Oh... Oh!? “The young lady I serve.”

Ignoring Caliburn’s startled reaction, I waved at the young lady, smiling brightly to signal that I had returned.

“Young Lady!” “Eek?” “Young Lady!!!” “Eeeeeek?!”

I was home.

“I brought you some chocolate.” “Ricardoooo!!!!”

Finally, I was home at last.