Sword Emperor, Becoming the Young Lady of a Viscount House

Chapter 13

“Lilith.”

“Yes, my lady!”

“How long until we arrive?”

“It won’t take long to reach the capital, my lady! About three weeks?”

‘How is that considered not long?’

She held back from arguing.

Beatrice slightly opened the carriage window.

While the carriage was certainly of good quality, it couldn’t compare to 21st-century cars.

Even for Beatrice, who didn’t experience motion sickness, the ride was nauseating.

The space inside wasn’t spacious either, making it uncomfortable.

“It’s raining.”

“Sir Solid must be upset.”

Lilith lowered her voice in an attempt to sound ominous.

Unfortunately, Solid was inside Beatrice’s soul.

[I’ve never been angry, though?]

In any case, rain was drizzling steadily outside.

Judging by the heavy downpour, it didn’t seem likely to stop soon.

* * *

Beatrice disliked the rain.

‘Days like this are meant to be spent at home.’

To be precise, she hated getting wet.

There were times she had to fight in the rain.

Just because it rained didn’t mean emergencies ceased to happen.

As an indispensable asset, she had no choice but to fight even when she didn’t want to.

On such days, she’d have to endure the unpleasant, clammy feeling all day long.

‘I hope it stops soon.’

As she looked out the carriage window, she suddenly noticed a knight riding alongside them.

It was Sir Chris, her escort.

Since he was a guard, he couldn’t ride inside the carriage.

He needed to monitor for suspicious individuals from the outside.

Being inside the carriage made it difficult to respond immediately.

Seeing him out there, Beatrice realized she was slightly better off inside the carriage.

She addressed the knight.

“Your name is Chris, correct?”

“Yes, my lady.”

Chris glanced to the side and bowed slightly while on horseback.

He was riding a black horse.

The carriage’s speed was slow, as it was unsafe to go fast on rainy days.

Thus, the black horse walked leisurely, allowing for easy conversation.

“Your body must be soaking wet. Are you alright?”

“…It’s part of being a knight. My lady need not worry about it. I’m used to it.”

Beatrice leaned her chin on the window frame, seemingly intrigued.

“Do you like the rain?”

“Yes.”

She didn’t understand.

Frowning slightly, she asked again.

“Why?”

“It feels nice.”

“Feels nice?”

“Yes. When I train in the rain, the water sprays on my sword. It’s enjoyable to slice through it. I feel like my training goes better too.”

It was something Beatrice couldn’t relate to, but everyone had their own perspectives.

She didn’t bother to argue.

Instead, she asked something else.

“Come to think of it, I don’t know the level of my own escort. What stage have you reached?”

She had heard he wasn’t very strong.

But she didn’t know how weak “not strong” actually was.

From her perspective, it all looked the same.

“I am a low-rank knight.”

‘What does that even mean?’

[It means he’s at the low-tier Expert level. Slightly better than your current state.]

‘So, he can use Aura to some extent.’

Beatrice quickly understood.

Her curiosity satisfied, she leaned against the carriage wall and closed her eyes.

With nothing else to do, she decided to practice some mana breathing.

The mana she gathered little by little in such moments shouldn’t be underestimated.

* * *

She wasn’t sure how much time had passed.

By the time evening approached, she heard a knock at the carriage window.

Beatrice opened her eyes.

‘I must have dozed off.’

It seemed she had fallen asleep while practicing mana breathing.

She wiped the corner of her mouth and opened the window.

“What’s the matter?”

“…My lady, there’s a commotion ahead. It sounds like a battle. Shall we turn back?”

Beatrice peeked out.

Darkness had already fallen completely.

Nothing was visible in her field of vision.

However, as Chris said, she could hear the clash of weapons.

“Can’t you assess the situation?”

“No, it’s too far. We can only guess based on the sounds.”

“Hmm…”

“I think it’s best to turn back. Your safety is our priority, and our forces are limited.”

The Cenci estate wasn’t far from the capital.

Thus, her escort team was modest.

Four regular soldiers and one knight.

This number was enough to handle bandits, but not much more.

Because of that, Chris suggested they retreat.

“No, approach slowly instead. Just until we can see what’s happening.”

“…Pardon?”

“I’m bored, and I can’t let this opportunity slip.”

This was a medieval world.

There were no smartphones or gaming consoles.

Traveling was unbearably dull.

‘I can’t miss an event like this.’

Sometimes, little impromptu events were necessary to stave off boredom.

“…Will it be alright?”

Beatrice smirked and replied.

“What, are you scared?”

“No, my lady.”

“Then let’s hurry before it ends.”

“…Understood. We’ll proceed straight until we can see what’s happening.”

“Good.”

Beatrice grabbed the sword lying haphazardly on the floor of the carriage.

The sound of clashing weapons grew louder.

A battle.

‘Perfect timing.’

It was a chance to assess the level of mana she had accumulated so far.

However.

Something caught Beatrice’s eye, irritating her.

“Hey.”

-Thud.

Beatrice kicked the seat in front of her.

There sat Lilith, dozing off while facing Beatrice.

“Ahhh!”

Lilith jolted awake with a loud gasp.

“You scared me!”

“Is this how a maid behaves? Your master is awake, and you’re just sleeping?”

After all, Beatrice had lived over 40 years in her previous life.

She had a bit of an old-fashioned streak.

“Well, I…”

Lilith lowered her head apologetically.

“My lady was sleeping too… Watching that made me fall asleep as well.”

“Enough. Get ready.”

“Ready? Have we already arrived at the village?”

Beatrice gestured toward the distance with her chin.

“No, we’re heading into a fight. Stay alert in case it gets dangerous and you need to run.”

“W-What?!”

Lilith gasped in shock, her rabbit-like eyes filling with fear.

“M-My lady isn’t planning to fight, right? Sir Chris is here, after all.”

Beatrice chuckled and shook her head.

“I can’t miss out on something this fun.”

“You can’t!”

“…Why are you shouting like that? Are you really a maid?”

“That outfit!”

Lilith had the audacity to point at Beatrice with her finger.

“I just washed it today!”

‘Here I thought she was worried about me.’

Beatrice seriously considered smacking Lilith on the head.

* * *

The carriage was under attack by unknown assailants.

Inside, a young girl was sweating nervously.

‘Something’s wrong… I can’t use magic.’

Her name was Arvanceco Airy.

She was the only daughter of Krapos’s sole ducal house and a highly regarded candidate for the next head.

The Arvanceco family was renowned as a lineage of grand mages.

Because of her heritage, she had shown remarkable talent since childhood.

Although her current power wasn’t great, as magical strength grew with age, she was confident that she would one day become a true grand mage.

Now, however, she was under attack.

The problem was that her magic wasn’t working.

For her, magic had always been a constant companion in her life.

The current situation, where she couldn’t even sense her mana, was deeply unsettling.

Airy bit her nails in anxiety.

Just then, she heard hurried footsteps approaching her carriage.

Airy, her spirits lifting, opened the carriage door.

The person running toward her was her nanny, Dora.

“What’s going on? It’s over, right?”

Her escort was a high-rank knight, an Expert nearing the Master level.

Such street thugs should have been easily dealt with.

However, Dora’s expression wasn’t good.

“My lady, you must escape.”

“W-What are you saying?”

Dora grabbed Airy’s shoulders.

Then, speaking firmly with a strong accent, she said, “From now on, you must be strong. No matter what happens, don’t look back and run as fast as you can.”

Airy was alarmed by the ominous words.

“What do you mean by that?! What about Sir Lewis?”

“Sir Lewis is down. We don’t have much time.”

Airy’s eyes filled with confusion.

“You there! Sir Deitz, help the young lady escape. If she runs through the forest, they won’t be able to track her easily.”

“Yes!”

“Hurry! We don’t have much time!”

“And you… What about you?”

“You know me, my lady. I will stay here and buy you time. With Sir Lewis down, I am next in line.”

A nanny for a duchess wasn’t just anyone.

Dora, Airy’s nanny, had been a mid-rank knight before assuming her position.

Though she hadn’t wielded a sword in a long time, she was far superior to ordinary soldiers.

She could at least buy some time.

The life of a mid-rank knight carried significant weight.

“No! I can’t leave you behind. W-Wait, if I can just use magic, those scoundrels…”

“Sir Deitz.”

“My lady, forgive my rudeness.”

At Dora’s words, Deitz forcefully pulled Airy out of the carriage.

“Let go of me! That’s an order, Sir Deitz! Let go, I said!”

To Airy, Dora was like a mother.

Her birth mother had passed away shortly after giving birth to her.

Since then, it was Dora who had raised her.

Airy couldn’t bear the thought of abandoning her.

However, the situation was dire.

No matter what, Airy’s safety had to come first.

She was a key figure as the next head of the ducal family.

The name of Arvanceco carried great weight.

Even if every life was lost, Airy alone had to survive.

Deitz subdued Airy and carried her on his back. She struggled, but it was futile. As a mage, her physical strength was no match for a knight’s.

Deitz braced his legs, ready to run at full speed.

But at that moment…

-Swish.

A masked assailant appeared out of nowhere, pointing a sword at Deitz’s neck.

“Did you really think you could escape?”

The man wore a black mask and wielded a thin rapier.

It was so close that even the slightest movement would be fatal.

Deitz froze, keeping his composure as he spoke calmly.

“My lady, run.”

As soon as he set Airy down, Deitz drew his sword to counterattack.

However…

Unfortunately, the assailant was far superior in skill.

-Clang!

“Urgh—”

The masked man wielded immense strength.

Despite his thin rapier, the attack sliced through Deitz’s body with ease.

“My lady!”

Dora’s desperate cry echoed as she fought her way toward Airy.

Airy, having been abruptly dropped, lay sprawled on the ground.

Her trembling eyes were fixed on the glinting sword in front of her.

At this moment, no one could save her.

Dora was battling other enemies, desperately trying to reach her.

But Airy’s current predicament left no time.

No matter how fast Dora moved, it was physically impossible for her to make it in time.

‘Am I going to… die like this?’

The shadow of death loomed in Airy’s eyes.

In that life-or-death moment…

-Thud.

“…What is this?”

An arrow pierced the chest of the masked assailant.

With disbelief in his eyes, he looked down at the arrow embedded in his chest before collapsing.

“Captain!”

“K-Kill her! Finish Arvanceco Airy!”

Even as he was dying, the man mumbled orders targeting Airy.

“D-Damn it!”

Another masked man moved to carry out the command.

But this time…

-Slash.

A girl appeared from nowhere and slashed the remaining man’s neck.

She spun once to control the momentum of her movement, lightly flicking the blood from her sword.

Crimson droplets scattered across the ground.

It all happened in an instant.

Airy gazed in awe at the blonde girl wielding an emerald-hued sword.