Chapter 7: Master

While I was eating alone with Lucius, I asked Lucius about the village chief.

“So the grandfather who took you in didn’t have a very good relationship with the village chief?”

“Yes. They say he didn’t have a good relationship with the village chief’s wife. In the end, he ended up becoming the village chief’s wife.”

“Hmm.”

I looked around Lucius’ house.

There were traces of another man who lived here and there, different from Lucius.

His touch was domestic and warm, and he had taken care of everything so that Lucius could live quietly even if he was left alone.

“He must have been a good person. People tend to leave traces of their lives in the places they live. The guardian who took Lucius in must have had a huge influence on him as he grew up.”

That’s why he was taken away by someone like the village chief’ In comparison, the village chief was really disgusting.

He had strange fantasies about me, with eyes that had shown him having touched many women in his youth.

“The picture is being drawn. Did the village chief If Lucius was in that situation, his lover would have been treated badly in a place Lucius didn’t know about. I would have cried and given up, saying that I was no longer someone who could be with you. It’s the way of the world that good people suffer. But that’s not my concern. The village chief’s love story isn’t important to me. What’s truly important is the holy sword. “The holy sword, you know. It’s quite impressive.”

“How do you feel after seeing it? Is it a holy sword?”

It’s too early to make a judgment. I think I should stay a few more days and check.

“Actually, I know.”

It’s a holy sword. Its unique shape pierced my memory so well that I couldn’t call it a fake. If it had been a fake or just a regular holy sword, my heart wouldn’t have suddenly felt phantom pain.

“It’s definitely not fake. I know’

The holy sword here The reason everyone says it’s a lie is because the true form of the Holy Sword has not been revealed. It’s sealed and stuck in the ground.

“I have to do something about it.”

Either destroy the Holy Sword Or make the one who uses the Holy Sword join my side.

Unfortunately, I’m an undead, so I can’t wield the Holy Sword.

Even if I’m not purified by the Holy Sword’s influence, the Holy Sword is a sword that belongs to the living, so it must be wielded by a non-undead.

“Lucius, have you ever held the Holy Sword?”

“Huh? Oh, no. All the young men in the village hold it once on the day of their coming-of-age ceremony”

“You haven’t held it yet?” Surprising, “Aren’t you an adult? Have you held the Holy Sword yet?”

“Yes. I’ll be given the chance to hold it once tomorrow on the day of my coming-of-age ceremony, but…”

Lucius smiled bitterly and sipped his tea.

“But what difference would that make? Haha, someone like me would be a warrior.”

“You said I could do anything, but I can’t hold the Holy Sword?”

“..It’s not like I can just say I want to do it.”

Lucius shook his head, mocking himself.

” Hey, Lucius.”

I patted his chest toward him.

” If you want to be a hero, can I let you?”

“Is it possible?”

“If you really want to.”

I reached out to him in a low voice.

“Do you know what qualities a hero needs? Powerful swordsmanship? I can teach you that. Great strength? The Holy Sword will support your strength, so it’s okay, and you can cultivate it in the future. That’s what a hero is.”

Thump. I lightly punched Lucius in the face with my fist.

“This is it, this.”

“…”

“What do you think? Are you willing to do it?”

“Am I really entitled to such an honor?”

“Of course.”

If not for a first-class fool like you, who else would take up the holy sword and become a warrior in my place?

I swallowed my words and patted Lucius on the shoulder.

“You can do it. Maybe this is fate. As a witch who awoke again to seal the Demon King, you were the first warrior I met in the village of the Holy Sword.”

“If it had been someone else…”

“Still, I would have chosen you.”

Because you’re a fool.

“I’ve lived a long time. I can say with certainty that I have an eye for people. How many warriors have I met during that time?”

Only the warriors I personally buried can walk three laps around the parade ground.

“But you have to know that. Warriors aren’t chosen by someone else. I’m the one who provides opportunities among the many who have the qualities of a warrior, and you’re the one who makes the choice”

You are the warrior I’ve chosen. Be my slave while enduring evil and brute force.

“Do you want to be a warrior?”

“I don’t know anything yet.”

Lucius knelt on one knee in front of me like a knight.

“So, will you teach me the way?”

“The way?”

“How to cultivate strength, how to wield the holy sword, and…. what I should do as a hero. Please show me the way.”

“Of course. But first, I must do this.”

I stood up from my seat and picked up a wooden stick from inside the house and placed it on Lucius’s head.

“Will you become my disciple?”

“Yes!”

“Will you receive my teachings, follow my orders, and risk your life for me?”

“Yes!”

What a fool.

To follow such a one-sided slave contract.

“I don’t even need a Gears.”

To this guy, his conscience is his Gears.

There’s no need to cast a compulsory command spell, and neither should you.

Because… Out of all the fools I’ve ever seen, this guy is one of the three fools I can confidently count on one hand!

“Good. Then from now on, you are my disciple.”

“Then can I continue to call you Witch?”

“Hmm..”

Witch.

The tone of the word is a little strange, but it’s not a bad sound.

“Only call me that when there’s just the two of us. If my identity is revealed, others might question me.”

“Ah!”

“What do you know?”

“Then..”

Lucius opened his mouth cautiously, feeling embarrassed.

“Can I call you Master?”

“Master? That seems appropriate.”

“Ah…. Haha…”

It seemed like Lucius had never had anyone as a master.

Well, if there was a church in this rural town, the priest would probably teach reading and writing as a volunteer, but this didn’t seem to be a place like that.

That made it easier. Since I could control Lucius however I wanted.

“T-but Witch. What if I can’t hold the holy sword…?”

“What?”

“Then I can’t become a warrior?”

“Puhahaha!!”

I burst out laughing.

I couldn’t hold back my laughter, so I lightly tapped Lucius on the head with a stick.

“What are you worried about? He who holds the holy sword is a warrior, but not all warriors hold the holy sword.”

“Huh?”

“I told you. These are the qualities of a hero.”

I lightly placed my hand on Lucius’ chest.

“From the moment you decide to become a hero, you are a hero. Don’t worry. I have all the ways to cultivate the strength you lack.”

“Ah..”

“All you have to do is follow me. Do you understand?”

“Yes!!”

Lucius grinned brightly like a docile lamb.

****

Red, witch’s blood!!!

“Haa, I’m going crazy.”

The village chief’s wife was completely crazy.

The village chief didn’t know whether it was because she was jealous of the young woman who came in, or because she was comparing her beautiful youth with her miserable present, or because she had been given some kind of revelation telling her to truly sacrifice the Red Witch.

“Father, what should we do?”

“Let’s just tie her up and wait.”

The village chief and his son tied up the village chief’s wife and started an emergency meeting.

The coming-of-age ceremony was tomorrow, and since the village chief’s wife was in such a strange state, the two of them might have to take charge of the ceremony.

It was possible to proceed. The only worry was that she would go crazy like this after the ceremony.

“How about we try it like Mother said?”

“What? Let’s sacrifice the Red-Handed Witch? You mean that child?”

“We don’t know yet whether she’s a child or not? Whether she’s a suitable sacrifice..”

He chuckled.

The village chief’s son rubbed his fingertips with a sinister smile.

“We’ll have to see for ourselves.”

“Ha, you.”

“Father. Don’t worry. I’ll mobilize my younger siblings to check.”

“I’m not just going to check.”

“The moment midnight strikes, the real coming-of-age ceremony will take place. Hehe…”

The village chief covered his face with his hand.

His eyes were quite sinister, but there was nothing he could do to stop her.

In this small village, there were few secrets the village chief could hide.

Even if that person was his son.

“He’ll be at Lucius’s house. He’ll be asleep. Is that okay?”

“Of course. What’s so great about Lucius? He’s just a guy who’s good at hunting and shooting arrows. The three of us can catch him first, and then tie him up with rope or knock him out.”

Even though it was a crime, the attitude of the village chief’s son, who spoke confidently, showed no hesitation.

“Father. I’ll check first. Do you know? If we really offer him up as a sacrifice, maybe Mother will come to her senses?”

“Ugh”

“What’s wrong? It’s not just for a day or two.”

“Haa”

The village chief carefully got up from his seat.

“And call me too”

***

It was night While I was sleeping in Lucius’s bed.

Sesses.

I heard footsteps near the house Several.