I Returned with the Cheat Holy Sword

The time when Carlyle experienced the greatest number of loops was already after the Empire had collapsed.
Which meant—he’d never really paid much attention to the process of the Empire’s collapse.
“I have some guesses, though.”

[⋯⋯They’re probably exactly what you think.]
About ninety percent of it was the First Prince and Second Princess. The remaining ten percent was the vultures clinging to them, looking to line their own pockets.
If it were just ordinary fools, blinded by greed and eating away from the inside, they could’ve been culled quickly.

But a traitor on the inside—who’d made up their mind to utterly annihilate their own side—and happened to be competent?
That was as fatal as it gets.
To the Empire, they were a tumor comparable to cancer. That damned man and woman.

And if you considered the final words the Emperor left upon his death, it was even more telling:
“The lion has been corrupted by evil. People of the Empire, resist.”
He was saying, with his own mouth, that the highest authorities of the very nation he had ruled all his life had rotted to the core.

“So, I was curious.”
[Curious? About those bastards?]
“What they were like before the demons got to them. That kind of thing.”

When Carlyle met the First Prince and Second Princess in the post-collapse timelines, they were already so contaminated by demonic lies that having a proper conversation was impossible.
In some timelines, he’d even prioritized eliminating them above all else—only to discover that once the Empire’s downfall was confirmed, they always ended up like that.
Which meant—how should one put it?

It was hard to believe they had voluntarily betrayed humanity and turned into monsters on their own. The timing was just too consistent.
It made more sense to think the demons had rigged things beforehand to ensure they would turn.
⋯⋯Discarded after use.
They’d played a critical role in toppling the Empire, so the hunting dogs were devoured once they’d outlived their usefulness.

So Carlyle had a fair bit of interest in what they were like before the “fall.”
Not out of any personal concern or curiosity—just that if he could understand it, maybe he could find a clue to nip the problem in the bud before they lost it completely.
Though, honestly, given what he’d heard about their behavior even before the corruption, he didn’t expect much.

And on that note—
[Hey there! You must be Carlyle, right?]
—his first encounter with them was going to be very different than he imagined.

“⋯⋯.”
As Carlyle stood there dazed, the hologram of the Second Princess, projected in the center of the table, spoke cheerfully.
[Sorry, sorry! I wanted to come meet you in person, but I absolutely couldn’t get away from the palace.]
With an easygoing laugh, the pink-haired woman pressed her hands together in an apologetic gesture. Carlyle just stared blankly at her.

The affable smile on her face, the dark bags under her eyes—nothing about her looked like the villainess who would destroy an empire.
⋯⋯Honestly, she looked more like a white-collar worker dying from overwork.
[I should have personally greeted the Empire’s hero, but I’ll make up for this slight later, I promise!]

“⋯⋯Hero?”
[Yup! That’s what everyone’s saying! A catastrophic-class demonic beast almost caused massive damage, and you stopped it!]
“⋯⋯.”

There were at least a dozen problems with that sentence alone.
First of all, that incident had happened just a few hours ago. The fact that the news spread this fast was suspicious in itself.
And also—why the hell was she apologizing?

From her perspective, he’d basically stolen her thunder, killed the catastrophic-class beast she was likely aiming to claim for herself.
[I mean, seriously, I really want to talk at length, but I’ve got so much to do, so, uh—sorry, can I get back to you later?]
“⋯⋯.”

[I know it’s rude, contacting you first only to blow you off! But I’ll make it up to you later, I swear! I promise in the name of the Second Princess!]
⋯⋯And now she was all but begging him to forgive her.
None of this resembled the image Carlyle had built of the Second Princess.

Not even close.
She looked genuinely overwhelmed with work. Even while talking to him, her hands were in constant motion, flipping through and signing papers at breakneck speed.
[I’ll be in touch again! Sorry!]

“⋯⋯.”
The call cut off with a soft click. Carlyle stared, dazed again.
What was even the point of calling?

The conversation was… bizarre.
To summarize:
‘There’s a new hero in the Empire and I wanted to honor you, but I’m too busy. Sorry. I’ll make it up to you later.’

⋯⋯That was it.
Carlyle had imagined something more ominous. Intrigue. A manipulative offer. Some underhanded political maneuvering.
But what he got was a light, fleeting, and—strangely sincere—gesture of goodwill.

“⋯⋯.”
Just in case, he turned to look behind him. Shiona and Felix, who had been seated in case something happened, both looked just as stupefied.
They clearly hadn’t expected that behavior from the Second Princess either.

“⋯⋯Is she always like that?”
“Not a chance.”
“Absolutely not.”

The firmness of their replies made it clear.
Carlyle had just received… special treatment.
And the upcoming meeting /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ with the First Prince?

Somehow, it was even more absurd.
Just like with the Second Princess, the First Prince’s hologram appeared—a handsome young man with blue hair, who began to speak in a solemn tone.
[It’s good to meet you. You must be the hero of this incident—]

Before he could finish, the prince coughed violently.
His disheveled hair and sunken eyes made it obvious what state he was in.
“⋯⋯Your Highness. Forgive my impudence, but should you not rest first?”

The Second Princess had looked overworked, but this man? He was practically a walking corpse.
It was hard to imagine just how insane his workload must be.
[The military inspections have been relentless. Apologies. But someone like you—such a new rising star—is worth taking the time to speak to.]

“Rising star… you say.”
[Of course. Even in a vast Empire like ours, someone of your caliber deserves direct commendation.]
“⋯⋯.”

⋯⋯This was following the exact same pattern as the Second Princess.
[I’d love to host you for dinner and have a proper conversation, but given my condition—]
He broke into another bloody-sounding cough, and his attendants looked on with genuine concern.

⋯⋯Which was honestly the most baffling part.
Because their expressions were unmistakably sincere.
True worry. The kind of reaction no one would have for a tyrant or a future destroyer of a nation.

[Someday, I’ll make it up to you. Come to the palace when it’s convenient. I’ll be waiting.]
“⋯⋯To the palace, sir?”
[Yes. Don’t hesitate. You’ll always be welcome.]

The line cut again.
“⋯⋯.”
What was this?

It didn’t match any scenario Carlyle had prepared for.
He’d thought they might be plotting, scheming, or trying to cover up the incident by manipulating him somehow.
But instead…

‘⋯⋯Why the hell do these people like me?’
The two interactions he’d just had—they were brief, and blown away as quickly as a summer breeze—but they were unmistakably genuine.
And kind.

“⋯⋯.”
Even Shiona and Felix hadn’t expected that. So clearly something was off.
The empire’s worst villains—meeting them turned out to be a much softer experience than he’d ever imagined.

***
“⋯⋯What the hell was that.”
Lying on his bed back at the dorm, Carlyle muttered blankly.

The Empire’s worst supposed villains… honestly didn’t match any of his expectations.
No ambition. No twisted ideology. No eerie, sinister presence.
⋯⋯Just people completely buried under mountains of work.

[Even so, it’s still true they destroy the Empire.]
“⋯⋯Which just makes it weirder.”
The logic didn’t hold up.

What confused him most was that they seemed to command a decent amount of trust from those around them.
True, heartfelt trust like that doesn’t come cheap. Especially not for people supposedly conspiring to ruin the entire country.
“Why the hell do those bastards seem so normal?”

[I mean… odds are there’s some secret agenda.]
“They didn’t feel like they were hiding anything.”
If they were just putting on a mask, there’d be subtle tells. But Carlyle didn’t get any such sense.

He’d gone through enough timelines to be pretty damn good at sensing hidden agendas.
But this felt… clean.
Even Felix—who’s had more than his fill of royalty—had reacted with complete bafflement.

That was what really didn’t make sense.
“⋯⋯I need to dig deeper. Something’s off about both of them.”
[Yeah, fine. You do that. But… are you prepared?]

“Huh? Prepared for what?”
[⋯⋯Did you forget your plans for tonight?]
“⋯⋯.”

Oh. Right.
Shit.
A chill slid down his spine.

Of course.
-System Log
▶ Event ‘Private Rendezvous with the Hero’ has been added.
▶ There is a chance for a relationship to develop between the Holy Sword and the Hero!

The incident from earlier today… wasn’t over yet.
“⋯⋯Miss, you’re not going to kill me, right?”
[⋯⋯I told you, she’s not going to do anything that bad.]

Probably.
⋯⋯Probably.