I Returned with the Cheat Holy Sword

All the thoughts Princess Illia had about Gray Chasefield could ultimately be summed up in a single word.
Terrifying.
…No, more than that—dangerous.

There were times when just being next to her made Illia feel a very real threat to her life.
So perhaps it was forgivable that, crushed by the silence all day long, she blurted out something reckless.
"Should we talk about someone we like?!"

"…"
Gray, wearing a monocle and lying on the bed reading a book, slowly turned her emotionless gaze toward Illia.
"…"

"…"
…Maybe that was a mistake.
Illia began to sweat nervously, that thought flashing across her mind.

She hadn’t really meant to provoke anything. It was just… Gray had agreed to share a room, but then treated her like a ghost. Illia had finally snapped. But seeing that expression—her skin crawled…
"Th-That, um, when girls gather, this kind of talk is normal—"
"Shut up."

"…"
"Don’t say useless things."
"Yes, ma’am."

…Of course it turned out like this.
Illia fidgeted just short of the line drawn before her chair.
It was a literal line—drawn by Gray to mark the spot where, if crossed, she’d kill.
"…"

…Tch.
To think someone would treat a member of the royal family like this.
Wasn’t this basically bullying?

But one thing was clear—Gray wasn’t completely heartless.
"You got someone?"
The fact that she responded at all proved that.

"Eh?"
"Someone you like."
"…"

Illia hadn’t expected an answer. She began to sweat again.
Someone she liked, huh…
"I don’t have anyone yet…"

When she said that, Gray clamped her mouth shut and went silent.
…Illia, feeling desperate to keep the conversation alive, scrambled for words.
"Ah, but! There was someone who liked me!"

"Oh yeah? Who?"
"My mother!"
As soon as the words left her lips, Illia’s expression began to darken.

"…She’s not with us anymore, though."
Silence.
The usually timid but cheerful princess now looked utterly gloomy—and that alone said everything about what had happened to her mother.

"…"
Watching her, Gray stood up wordlessly.
While Illia flailed in alarm, Gray reached down and calmly erased the line drawn between them.

"You can come over."
"…Huh?"
"…Wanna sleep together? On the bed."

"……Huh?"
"…Forget it if you don’t want to."
Uh.

Uhhh…
Illia’s head spun wildly as she tried to piece things together.
So this was… the Hero’s way of comforting her.

Returning to bed and pulling up the covers, Gray spoke plainly.
"…I miss my mom too."
"…"

"I ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) feel bad for you. So I’ll let you sleep with me."
Her tone was flat, and the words weren’t exactly gentle.
But this was undoubtedly comfort.

…Ah.
So that’s it.
She’s wounded too.

Illia hesitated, then walked toward the bed.
She sat politely before Gray and gave her a bright smile.
"I’m okay now! Sir Hero and the others… they’ve all become my friends, haven’t they?"

Gray’s brow twitched.
"…It’s not like I ever did anything nice to you."
She meant it.

Unlike Carlyle or Vespa, who always looked after Illia, Gray had never shown any real concern for her.
If anything, she’d often been harsh and threatening.
But still—

"You’ve taught me a lot!"
Maybe it was childish innocence, or just her innately pure nature.
Whatever it was—

"You’re my friend, Sir Hero!"
Saying that with a wide smile, directly to Gray—
There was no doubt that it came straight from the heart.

"…Yeah."
Gray replied quietly.
Maybe it was just her imagination, but her voice seemed a little softer than usual.

"In that case, keep talking. About… that stuff you mentioned. Who you like, or whatever. Just say anything."
Illia tilted her head.
"Hmm… So Sir Hero’s more interested in that kind of talk than I expected!"

"…I’m not."
It just pissed her off when Lionel opened his mouth and started going on about finding a suitable match or bringing someone home or whatever.
So even though she had no real interest, she figured she ought to know what it was all about.

"I’m just curious what it feels like. When a man and a woman like each other."
To her—
It was still an unknown emotion.

She had no idea what kind of man would even make her feel that way.
"…Umm…"
The problem was, the person getting that kind of question was a seven-year-old girl. No way she could give a clear answer.

Illia tilted her head, then propped her chin on her hand next to Gray.
Liking someone.
Being fond of someone.

Even though she didn’t know the exact feeling, she had a vague approximation.
"Isn’t Sir Carlyle cool?"
"…"

"He’s reliable, always kind, handsome, and then also…"
Before she could finish, Gray kicked her clean off the bed.
"…"

"Sleep on the floor."
Her cold voice dropped on Illia, who was too shocked to speak.
"…Huh?"

"If you get on the bed again, I’ll hit you."
"…"
"He’s not cool at all."

"…"
"Not even a little bit cool."
"…"

"So stop liking that guy. Got it?"
…Why?
***

When it came to memories of the Imperial Armory, Carlyle remembered a fair bit.
It was a familiar place to him.
Even when the Empire had begun its collapse in earnest, they’d kept this place sealed tight.

Of course, once humanity was pushed to the brink, they ended up raiding the whole thing.
The warehouse that stored every secret of the Empire. A treasury of relics accumulated through a thousand years of history.
“—Welcome, everyone!”

At the entrance to such a place, Shiona Libelle greeted them with a radiant smile.
“This marks the grand finale of our field study! Each of you is permitted to take out one item!”
…What kind of field study let you walk out with an artifact from the Imperial Armory?

At this point, they might as well be publicly announcing something horrible was going to happen.
Everyone looked pale—except Gray, who glanced around like she was used to the place.
There wasn’t a single object among the piles around them that didn’t look absurdly valuable.

“Wait… So we’re allowed to choose any one item?” Carlyle asked.
“That’s correct, Student Carlyle!”
And with that confirmation, Carlyle immediately began walking through the armory as if it were nothing.

He moved like someone who’d been here countless times.
“Um—do you not need a guide?”
“I studied a lot.”

He gave Shiona a casual answer and started scanning the room with intense focus.
[…Have you been inside the Imperial Armory before?]
To the Holy Sword’s question, Carlyle scoffed.

What a ridiculous thing to ask.
‘How many times do you think I’ve regressed?’
When it came to memories of the time when the Empire was intact, he sometimes needed the Holy Sword’s help.

But when it came to shared knowledge—this place was like his own backyard.
The Imperial Armory was one of the places he always visited in every timeline.
There was no way he didn’t know what was here.

[Judging by your picks, I wouldn’t say your taste is all that great though…]
The Holy Sword muttered as Carlyle passed by all the most legendary items without pause.
It was understandable.

The First Emperor’s sword, an amulet carved from the horn of the Mad God, the shield of the Hero who defeated the First Calamity…
Everywhere you looked, the items were outrageous.
But Carlyle was looking for something very specific.

‘All that stuff? I don’t need it right now.’
[Come again?]
‘I need something I can use immediately.’

No matter how powerful the artifact, it was useless if he couldn’t wield it. Like putting a pearl necklace on a pig.
Those relics demanded immense user ability. Carlyle had other priorities.
And then, at the edge of his vision—he spotted it.

A hardened, stone-like eyeball kept inside a glass box.
[…The Watcher’s Eye? It’s useful, sure, but hardly a legendary artifact.]
Exactly.

The monster known as a Watcher absorbed magical energy through sight and stored it in its eye.
If it was here in the Imperial Armory, that meant this one had lived for centuries, absorbing massive amounts of mana—a top-tier mana battery.
Still, among all the treasures in here, it seemed a little mundane.

But—
‘That changes if you pair it with this.’
With that thought, Carlyle moved to another shelf.

There lay a necklace labeled Tear of the Star.
[…Isn’t that the famously useless artifact?]
It was a gift from the Magic Tower to the Empire decades ago, supposedly as a sign of goodwill.

No one knew what it did.
Typical of those nasty bastards at the Tower—when no one could figure it out, they smugly claimed, “Those who don’t understand its worth don’t deserve to use it,” which reportedly gave the Emperor a stroke.
No one had figured it out. The artifact was forgotten.

Except for one person.
Carlyle smirked and brought the Watcher’s Eye close to the necklace.
Then, biting his finger, he drew an intricate sigil beneath the Tear of the Star.

He couldn’t remember which regression he discovered this in—but he did remember the Tower Master begging him on his deathbed to take this secret to the grave.
Because for them, it was deeply embarrassing.
[What are you doing?]

‘Decrypting it.’
[What?]
‘The whole point of this thing was to screw with the Emperor. The Magic Tower didn’t want to be seen bowing to the Empire, so they sent something “valuable” but completely unusable.’

They couldn’t send something worthless—that would’ve been an insult.
But they hated the idea of benefiting the Empire.
That’s the Magic Tower for you. There’s no shortage of assholes among mages.

So their compromise? A sealed item with its real power locked behind a brutal encryption—so obscure, no one even realized it was sealed.
‘This thing’s national treasure grade. One of the Tower’s top artifacts.’
And once unlocked—

It was one of the most broken tools in the entire Demon Hunter world.
[…How the hell do you even know that?]
The Holy Sword sounded dumbfounded.

The Tower was the stronghold of elitism, secrecy, and isolation. They’d never share this with anyone—not even the Emperor himself.
‘I told you,’ Carlyle smiled.
‘How many times do you think I’ve regressed?’

When it came to the knowledge within his reach—
No one in the world could match him.
Not in breadth. Not in depth.

[…]
The Holy Sword fell silent.
Carlyle turned his eyes to the Tear of the Star, now soaking up his blood.

This was the authentication phase—where the artifact recognized its user.
Then, to activate it, he brought the Watcher’s Eye into contact with the starlight-colored mana.
A wave of light surged from the necklace and devoured the Eye—leaving no trace behind.

As if it had absorbed it completely.
‘…You’re insane.’
What he just did—was like booting up a computer.

And this particular machine?
Required the Watcher’s Eye, with centuries of absorbed mana, just to turn on.
Then the message appeared.

[System Message]
▶ You have activated [Tear of the Star]!
▶ This is a bound item. Only you can use it!

▶ You can use unlimited mana for a short time!
▶ The transformation range of the [Holy Sword] expands slightly!
▶ [Holy Sword] gains the skill – “Divine Descent”!

Of course.
Carlyle grinned.