“Finally, some time to myself.”

Even after returning to the mansion, Callius had been busy with no chance to rest.

First, he had to finish off the remaining corrupt nobles. Orcal’s third squad was currently carrying out that mission under Callius’ orders.

‘I’ll have to give Orcal something, too.’

The poor man had been working without rest ever since he’d been subdued by force, so Callius was feeling a bit sorry for him.

Although he had started off with a rebellious heart, if people aren’t rewarded for good work, efficiency is bound to go down the drain.

“Once the TD potion is finally synthesized, I’ll let him have the first dose.”

The TD potion decoction that Beatrice and Callius were working together to synthesize, was nothing less than a miraculous elixir that no amount of money could buy.

A potion that used dragon and troll blood as ingredients.

Of course, the maximal concentration was still only somewhere around 0.003% at best.

But if you mixed in other herbs to double or triple the efficiency, it became a completely different story.

It’d become a unique, singular elixir.

‘It may not be as good as holy water, but the healing effect will be outstanding, and it’ll also have a strengthening effect on the muscles and bones.’

Of course, the initial prototypes would definitely have some side effects, until a proper finished product could be released.

But this was only a minor inconvenience, as the effect would gradually get better as research continued.

Sure, any minor error could turn the elixir into lethal poison, but that was just a matter of luck. Have bad enough luck, and you can break your nose even when you fall on your back.

Somebody destined to die might die from just a little cold, whereas somebody destined to live might survive even a lethal gut wound or a mouthful of poison.

“Other than Orcal, Orphin’s doing well too. The sixth squad is also working hard as a group after that beatdown from the Golden Lion Knights.”

Peter was now focusing on guarding the place and teaching the children.

Apparently he was inspired by seeing Genos’ skills from up close, so he was training hard to see if he could realize something from it.

“The kids are doing fine on their own, so there’s nothing to worry about.”

There was no need to worry about the children’s swordsmanship, as Esther was guiding them.

When it came to Flora, she beat Rinney and Rivan one after another, but then she suffered multiple losses against Emily in a row, so she was now more focused on her swordsmanship.

“Next is Beatrice’s underground workshop and expanding the mansion… it just keeps getting bigger and bigger.”

However, this was an investment for the future, so there was no point in being stingy.

Although it’s all started with attracting Flora, seeing the kids practicing hard next to the sweaty meatheads didn’t feel too bad.

The guys in the sixth squad were also putting more effort into their training because the children were there to watch.

“It’s hard to find time, that’s all.”

Callius had been so busy organizing everything that only now he had some personal time.

Sorting the papers strewn on the table back together in neat piles, Callius leaned back and buried himself in the office chair.

Putting his hand into the air, he pulled out a sword.

A sword with Gid’s severed hand still attached to it.

「Sword of Sorrow – Dirge[1]」

Grade – Spirit

Infused Soul – A hundred souls

The Sword of Sorrow crafted by Nurturer Gid. A hundred knights were sacrificed to create a single sword, yet their souls failed to unite.

Unique Ability – Cold Fury

「Cold Fury」

• If you become furious without losing your calm, the sword will become stronger. Conversely, the more excited you are, the less powerful the sword will be.

「Unfused Soul」

• The infused souls could not completely unite. By feeding the sword a certain amount of lifeblood, it is possible to unite the souls and raise its rank.

「Haunted Sword」

• If someone with weak mental strength holds this sword, their mind will be devoured by nightmares and hallucinations.

“This is the first sword I’ve seen that’s got so many attributes attached.”

The unique ability was amazing, too.

‘Cold Fury’.

It was sensitive to the wielder’s rage, and got stronger the angrier they got.

“It’s not unheard of for swords to respond to specific emotions. There are a few.”

They were called ‘heart swords’, and this was apparently one of them.

Since the story behind its birth was one of grief, that seemed to have influenced its ability. Although it was a little strange.

Don’t get sad – get mad.

Ever since waking up in Callius’ body, he’d gotten into the habit of constantly suppressing his emotions, because of his erratic nature whenever he got excited.

For him, this unique ability was a good fit.

Whenever he got excited, his maniacal nature popped out, and this had threatened his life more than once.

Because in the beginning, the unfamiliar feelings of a maniac had often surged up during battles, and he’d almost died many times over.

Thus, Callius had trained himself to always keep his emotions in check, even while fighting with his sword in hand.

“Then the next one… says the souls weren’t properly fused. As long as that happens, the level will rise.”

‘Unfused Soul’.

By devouring the lifeblood of living beings, unity of soul could be achieved.

This was similar to the Predator Sword that he also possessed, the difference being that the latter devoured souls instead of blood like this one.

“I wonder, if I cut it with the Predator Sword, whether that’ll absorb the souls and become a vision sword straightaway?”

Of course, Callius had no intention of actually doing that.

Even if it succeeded, how could he take such a gamble without knowing how useful the change would be?

Anyway, the fact that this was also a growth-type sword, was quite promising.

It already showed strong power, so how powerful would it be if it became a vision sword?

“And…”

Finally, ‘Haunted Sword’.

This was the most difficult part.

Callius was still holding Gid’s severed arm, not the sword directly.

Whenever he tried to touch the sword itself, his ears would almost be deafened with a sharp, keening howl.

If he didn’t pull back, all kinds of nightmares and hallucinations would begin assaulting him.

Ominous and vexing.

Still –

“I’ll just have to try it.”

Callius threw away Gid’s hand, and grabbed the sword’s hilt while rousing divine power withing his whole body.

As soon as he grabbed it, the deafening howl was there to greet him.

‘It’s worth a try.’

After five or ten seconds, the unknown voices circling around his ears grow deeper and deeper.

Suddenly, white shapes began to become visible, and their outlines became more and more vivid.

“Disgusting.”

Perhaps because they’d been melted in the furnace till their forms became unrecognizable, the knights he saw looked cruel and disgusting beyond words.

They couldn’t even speak properly because their lips had melted shut, so they could only emit bizarre-sounding groans.

After fifteen seconds, once their shapes had filled the surroundings, the scenery changed in an instant.

As twenty seconds passed, Callius was swinging his sword before he knew it.

Drowning in the emotions of the knights who were butchering their own brothers.

It could only be called an apathetic, indifferent rage.

At that point, Callius let go of the sword.

Clang!

“Ten seconds is my limit.”

The sword that fell on the floor became silent with a final wail as if it were a pity, and frost was already forming around it.

Was it because of the hallucinations?

The whole office was frozen as if winter had come.

Callius understood that he’d used the sword’s power without realizing it after falling into the hallucination.

He could only use the sword without huge drawbacks for about ten seconds.

Right now, he had no choice but to only use it judiciously, as a trump card.

But –

“Ten seconds is plenty.”

Callius had no lack of swords, anyway.

It was fine to consider this sword as an occasional trump card.

Even a small use of its ability had frozen over the whole room. With judicious use, it could even outshine the Thunderbolt Sword in large-scale battles.

“Since the Blue Thunderbolt Sword falls into the demonic sword category, I can’t use it too openly.”

The Sword of Sorrow – Dirge could fill that gap.

After he finished thinking, Callius immediately put the sword back into subspace and got up to open the window.

“I’ll need Bruns to come clean all this up.”

As the frost began to melt, the room was becoming more and more humid.

The documents he’d corrected with so much effort shouldn’t get wet and ruined, so he started sorting them out –

And he found a letter.

“The royal coat of arms?”

A pair of curved wings in a tiara shape were embossed upon the enveloper.

When Callius opened it to take a look –

He quickly grasped the purpose and intention of the letter from the contents, hidden under all the verbiage.

“It’s about time.”

Many nobles had died.

And accordingly, many positions had been vacated. Small skirmishes were still taking place near the border, and there were many knights who’d made a name for themselves.

So this letter was a kind of invitation.

To a place for public dialogue.

Of course, as a formal event it was bound to begin with a ball, so in a way, it was also a venue for socialites’ debut.

“I see. That’s why the Golden Lion went to the palace.”

The date was next week.

There was nothing to worry about.

Although he hadn’t received any missions from the Order since becoming the captain of the sixth squad, so it couldn’t be said his position was rock-solid, but he was nevertheless a count, and he was earning merits every day in his own way.

He’d accomplished enough to meet the queen once, which was also what he wanted.

‘Clara von Agatha Bright.’

The Cowardly Queen, Clara.

An unlucky queen who, if he didn’t change the gears of history, was destined to lose her life once civil war broke out within the kingdom.

And her killer would be the prince, her own family.

Callius had no intention of letting the queen die so helplessly.

If the queen lived, so would the country, and if the country lived, so would the sword survive.

“Please, be the person that I hope you are.”

Callius couldn’t help but make such a wish.

Time passed like running water.

The construction of Beatrice’s underground workshop, by craftsmen who had been introduced by Helena, was progressing at a steady and unhurried pace, and the training of the sixth squad was also going smoothly.

The children were continuing to train on their own.

Who knew why they worked so hard without even being asked, but the desire to be strong fuelled the hearts of both the children and the adults alike.

“There must be knight training centres for children in Carradi, so why is it getting more and more crowded here every day?”

“There, you have to pay ten silver coins every month. And they don’t teach very well, either.”

“You sound well-informed.”

“Count, do you know why Emily knows that?”

It was Rinney who butted in.

“It was when she first arrived here. She wanted to see Carradi’s swordsmanship, so she went around smashing the signboards of all the knight training centres she came across. Oh, and you even beat up the strongest of the apprentice knights, right, Emily?”

When Rinney finished her story, Emily avoided my gaze as if she was feeling shy.

Apparently, she’d broken into and made a mess at all the knight training camp after coming to Carradi.

Naturally the number of kids here were increasing, since nobody in Emily’s age group dared to compete with her – even apprentice knight six years her senior couldn’t beat her.

Above all, there was no fee, so the parents were very satisfied, and the swordsmanship instruction and training that the children received wasn’t lacking either.

The reason for their dogged persistence was clear, as the sixth squad practiced right next to them.

Although they’d been handily beaten up by the Golden Lion knights, from the children’s point of view, they fell into the ranks of the strong.

‘This might get bigger than I thought.’

Anyway, they were just little kids.

If I had to consider the probability of a mishap –

Then Vivi worried me more.

“There’s no sign of waking up.”

He’d been sleeping for quite some time.

He didn’t eat, didn’t drink, didn’t play, and just slept.

Like the dead. Almost literally.

When I got close, his tail wiggled a little, but that too was only momentary. He’d fall back into deep sleep again.

I’d checked him for diseases, but I couldn’t be sure.

“Vivi isn’t going to die, is he?”

“No. His body is perfectly healthy.”

While he slept, his body grew larger.

He used to be between a small and a medium-sized dog, but now he could be considered a large dog.

“Is he hibernating?”

“It’s similar. He’s growing stronger while sleeping.”

However, his wild instincts would also become stronger.

I was just hoping that I wouldn’t have to kill Vivi with my own hands.

After stroking his coat once, it was time to climb into the carriage.

“Well, I’m off.”

“Bye. Are you going to see the queen?”

“Yeah. I’ll buy a gift on the way. Is there anything you want?”

“No. Grandpa gave me money, a lot.”

Meaning Bernard? Or was she talking about Elburton?

Anyway, it didn’t matter.

I tapped Emily on the forehead.

“I’ll be back soon, so don’t get into any trouble.”

“I’m not a child.”

“Nope, you still are.”

I raised my eyebrows as I looked at Emily covering her forehead, and got on the carriage.

“Hey! It’s the count’s carriage!”

“Count! Have a safe trip!”

“Good luck~”

The children who saw the carriage sent off their greetings. After that, Peter and the sixth squad, too. The knights looked on without a word.

Taking the sight in once, I ordered the coachman to start.

“Let’s go! Haw! Haw!”

Looking back at the mansion that was growing smaller and smaller, I smirked.

“A bunch of weaklings have gotten together.”

But somehow, it wasn’t a bad feeling.

Editor’s Notes:

[1] 비탄 (lit. sorrow/grief/lament). Not using Sorrow as the name because it’s already titled the Sword of Sorrow. Other contenders were Threnody, Lament and Keening. Which one do you prefer?