I Became the Master of the Devil

Redian stood there, holding his wrist. Additionally, it seemed he had lost his strength as his training sword had fallen to the ground.

 

“What’s wrong? What happened?”

 

“Oh, my handkerchief…”

 

I had forgotten about handing the handkerchief to Bergman as I sprang forward reflexively. It had become somewhat of a reflexive action.

 

“Oh, Princess. When did you arrive?”

 

The trainer, who noticed me, widened his eyes in surprise.

 

“What’s the matter, Rere?”

 

“Well, suddenly, the knight… dropped his sword…”

 

My presence seemed to fluster the trainer.

 

“Plus, it seems he was slightly cut by the blade as it fell. This has never happened before.”

 

It seemed more like an unexpected situation than a mistake by the trainer.

 

“Why would you suddenly drop your sword? Why?” I asked Redian, puzzled.

 

I had observed Redian’s training on more than one occasion… This guy was the one who even sent Nevil’s sword into the air.  It didn’t make sense that Redian, even in a moment of carelessness, would make such a mistake as dropping his sword.

 

“My wrist has been a bit since the monster hunting competition…” Redian then responded, still holding his wrist.

 

Ah.  The image of him collapsing to the ground, dropping Astra, flashed through my mind. This is making me soft again.

 

If anything, the hunting competition was something I had pressured him into. And the unforeseen accident that occurred was also a fact. Seeing him in poor condition afterward always made me feel sorry.

 

“It doesn’t seem swollen.” I carefully held Redian’s wrist. “Still, you shouldn’t strain it for a while. We’ll have to keep an eye on it.”

 

Maybe wrapping it in a warm towel would help.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

To my question, Redian slowly opened his lips. “…No.”

 

His silver hair slightly covered his eyes as he looked down.

 

“I’m not okay.”

 

Whether he was upset about dropping the sword or because he was feeling down, as Aeron mentioned, he seemed a bit gloomy.

 

“Not okay?”

 

I was slightly taken aback by his unexpected answer. Usually, he’d say everything was fine, and I’d have to worry about what was actually fine. It was the first time I heard him say he wasn’t okay from his mouth.

 

“If you’re not okay, then what should we do? Want to go to the medical office now?”

 

“Well…”

 

His trailing off made me lean in closer to hear.

 

“That handkerchief.”

 

Then, Redian’s eyes fell on the handkerchief I was holding. I grabbed it hastily, intending to give it to Bergman.

 

“Wrap it around my wrist.”

 

“On your wrist?”

 

“Yes. If you tie it like that, it should be okay.”

 

It seemed he intended to use my handkerchief as a bandage or a brace. But this was just a soft, flimsy handkerchief.

 

“Rere, can you see him over there?”

 

“Hiing.”

 

And there was Bergman, awkwardly standing with his hand covered in melted chocolate. That would be sticky once it dried.

 

“This is just a handkerchief, so give it to Bergman. You should rather go to the medical office to get it properly.”

 

“No. It’s Master’s handkerchief.”

 

However, my words were cut off by Redian’s firm voice.

 

“I want to use that.”

 

“…”

 

“It’s just chocolate, not like I bled on it.” Redian glanced briefly at Bergman.

 

“I-I-I’m fine, Princess. Such chocolate is nothing. I can just wipe it off on my clothes!” Seeing his gaze, Bergman quickly hid his hand behind his back.

 

Hmm. Our Rere is being temperamental again. Well, it’s just a handkerchief after all.

 

“I’ve been worried since the monster hunting competition; you seem to lack energy,” I murmured as I tied the handkerchief around Redian’s wrist. “In fact, I’ve been feeding you better and letting you sleep more than when you were in the underground castle…”

 

Not only that, but I had provided him with the best training equipment, protective gear, and professional medical staff.

 

“Your recovery seems to be slower and slower.”

 

“Because Master doesn’t pay as much attention to me as before.”

 

“What?”

 

I looked at Redian as if asking what he meant.

 

“…”

 

But Redian just shook his head with an impassive expression.

 

“Ooh, yeah!”

 

At that moment, Inein, wearing an eye patch, was seen precisely creating a barrier from a distance. Even if I leave Inein alone with an eye patch, he manages on his own like that.

 

“Come to think of it, you’re the most high-maintenance, you know?” I said as I secured the handkerchief tightly around Redian’s wrist.

 

Undeniably, among the Norma, Redian was the strongest. But compared to the others, he was unusually prone to injury and required a lot of care…

 

“Here, done. Do you like it?”

 

“So that’s how you do it.”

 

Then, someone’s voice came from above.

 

“Whether it’s monopolizing love with psychological techniques or whatever, it seems better to follow that b*stard.”

 

“Vallentin?”

 

Vallentin was coming down to the training ground, standing on the terrace.

 

“I can’t keep up.” He murmured, resting his chin on the terrace railing.

 

“When did you come out? It’s not your training time, is it?”

 

“I got bored staying cooped up.” Vallentin smiled down at me.

 

“Being too cooped up isn’t great either.”

 

To describe my warm protection as being ‘cooped up’…

 

“Really? So you preferred when you were suffering in the underground castle?”

 

As I was about to throw a joke at Vallentin,

 

“Master.”                                               

 

Redian, who lightly grasped my cheek, redirected my gaze to him.

 

“The handkerchief came loose.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“Please tie it properly again.”

 

I couldn’t afford even a moment of distraction.

 

* * *

Meanwhile,

 

“Is there something similar to burdock?”

 

“Yes? Burdock isn’t a culinary ingredient. Why would you need it from our store…?”

 

Luna, cloaked in a robe, had been wandering food stores all day. Just one thing – something that stains clothes blue like burdock. Because that was the only reason Siani suspected her.

 

“Herb like burdock? It seems you’ve come to the wrong place, but would you like me to direct you to a store that sells cleaning herbs?”

 

“No, I’m not trying to clean anything with burdock!”

 

“…Yes?”

 

But nobody seemed to understand. They just looked at Luna as if wondering what she was talking about.

 

“Sigh, you really can’t understand a word. Forget it.”

 

Stepping back onto the street, Luna wanted to throw her robe away.

 

What should I do?

 

Ah, maybe pinning it on her maid, Susan, would work? Claiming Susan accidentally spilled burdock into the mixing cake batter?

 

“No, that won’t do.” But Luna soon shook her head.

 

Hadn’t Siani said the level of a maid reflects the level of the master? It was clear people would curse her instead of Susan.

 

“Even six knights from Benio couldn’t handle it, but four knights from Felicite were unbeatable.”

 

“It was the best monster hunting competition I’ve ever seen.”

 

As she was about to move on, she overheard a group discussing loudly.

 

“In the end, Princess Felicite herself sliced the Vishnusin in half with her sword!”

 

They admired the scene from the video sphere, where Siani was cutting Vishnusin in half. Luna was vaguely aware of the event since it was the talk of the town.

 

“Be careful. It was hard to acquire this video sphere; I’ll treasure it for a long time.”

 

Inside was the scene of Siani slicing Vishnusin in half.

 

“Even the duke’s knights weren’t as good as the princess’s knights.”

 

“Where did she train such knights? I’d like to see them without their masks. Hufff.”

 

The women’s exclamations of admiration filled the air between them.

 

While she was wandering all day trying to find one ingredient,

 

If I can’t properly explain this situation, I might be thrown out of the duchy.

 

It could be a matter of whether she would be kicked out of the duchy or not. But those monstrous beings weren’t only receiving Siani’s affection but also praise from others.

 

They came from a lowly background, just like mine.

 

This was too unfair.

 

Luna forcefully swallowed her resentment and covered herself with the robe again. But she couldn’t afford to stay here any longer.

 

“But why did the monsters suddenly evolve? Was there a trap during the competition preparations? I heard a suspicious magician was caught.”

 

“Some say it happened because the knights from Felicite were cursed.”

 

Luna’s steps halted.

 

…Huh? Cursed?

 

An idea rapidly formed in her mind.

 

Right, those cursed beings were confined in the underground castle. I was already displeased with them ignoring me.

 

Luna smirked under her robe. Why hadn’t she thought of this before?

 

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