RATH 21

TL: Eevee

TLN: Let the chaos begin.

3. And so the story begins. (5)

In, Instructor! Please!

Yep. Not happening. This is your punishment for trying to blindside your benevolent instructor.

Repent as you scream in pain!

Kuaaaaaaaagh!

He, help me!

No, no just kill me!

I bat away his hand that was reaching for his sword as he crawled towards it.

I will not permit you to die.

No, noooo!

-Yes! Ahhh, thats the feeling I wanted to feel this so much

It feels like my minds getting polluted by the metal bats ecstatic moans. At this rate Ill become a sadist.

This is why I didnt want to use this thing. But it cant be helped now.

Ple, please kill me

Kuaaaaaaah, no, nooooo!

I mainly focus on beating the ones who are crawling around drooling on the ground.

Since the ones who have already been hit enough are the ones going uuuuuhhhhhh while plastered to the ground like a wad of chewed gum all I have to do is hit the ones that are still moving.

Ah especially, I need to give my disciple a special extra beating. Since hes a beastkin as well as being sturdy as hell he holds on well.

Kuaaaaaak! Stop, please stop!

-Haaang, its been a while oppa.(1) I see you still have that nice meaty texture you did back in the day!

Since a brats shouts of joy and a brats shouts of pain are both ringing in my ears its giving me a headache.

In that case I should reduce the sources of noise by one at least.

Kuaaaaaaak!

-A perfect 17 consecutive hits! Owners combo is perfect!

One by one I reduce the numbers.

I did consider finishing them off, but Ill leave them here to tie up the empires forces.

-Owner? Why arent you hitting them more? Hurry, hurry! Aru is, feeling really good right now, so nows the best time to hit them!

Ahh, this goddamn sadist. Its voice ringing in my head is making my head hurt but I still have work to do.

Since it seems like the organizations washed their hands of me, I scattered the AER evidence that I didnt need any more and fired a signal flare that Id secretly pocketed.

-Owner, owner! If you play with fire at night then youll piss your pants!

Is this thing serious. But if I get caught by the princess then Ill piss even more so it doesnt matter!

Due to all my weird-ass experiments the fact that this thing has an ego was a stroke of fortune but the personality that got in it is the worst.

Its said the sword the emperor uses is silent and stoic, and its also knowledgeable of a thousand styles, so even if youre just wielding it then itll even act as a swordsmanship teacher, but this thing goes haakhaak and tries to turn its wielder to the path of the sadist.

-Eh? Owner, did you just diss me? Youre telling me that Im worse the empires sword? This cute and beautiful goddess Arcadia, is worse than that old sword?!

And our minds are linked disgustingly well it reads my mind every now and then, so its annoying as hell.

Even though I want to craft another one, the dwarves are refusing to, plus this is the only success among countless failures, the general consensus among the craftsmen that made it is that its creation might as well be a miracle.

And since I need to find a new workplace too

Even if I try to make another one with the gold I pinched from the empire and pinched from the organization the cost is a problem.

I chucked in all sorts of legendary metals to the point that mithril was the cheapest metal present, and the alloy produced underwent painstaking engraving work to link together hundreds of sorcery and magic formations, to create an ego sword, no an ego bat with 108 curses and 256 blessings, the production costs involved in that was massive enough to be able to compare it with the imperial budget.

Thankfully since I was on pretty good terms with other races so even if they dropped the price to the manufacturing cost, the price was still astronomical!

Thankfully during the great war I pawned off all the other expensive things the nobility of other kingdoms had on hand and so I barely became free of debt.

Although it didnt take too long for me to fall into debt again.

No, youre the best.

-Haang, of course.

Now, since its about time for the empires soldiers to arrive lets get away.

Even if the Darksword is caught, whatever happens, happens. The princess could kill them for letting me get away, or she could just lock them in the dungeons because she never trusted them in the first place.

Or she could take them in secretly and use them as hunting dogs to track me.

Hm. Should I have just killed them right here right now?

But the signal flares already been shot.

So no matter what happens,

Thats also musubi.(1)

#5 Their story: A certain empires story.

Your Majesty, please enlighten your lowly subjects.

Please enlighten your lowly subjects.

Ah, even the local market would be quieter than this.

Your Majesty, being discreet with your words in these meetings would be

Its not like you havent already cast silence spells around us anyway.

Ahh, your little shit. If you know then shut up before I have to use it.

Hoho, look at this buddy. Im the emperor?

Then do I just need to start a revolution?

Im sorry.

Seeing the emperor who had his head bowed and looking absolutely not like an emperor at all, his head of security and long-time friend Arten sighed.

So why did you poke Howling which was sitting nice and fine. We left that place alone because it was too annoying to bring down.

My scary daughter said she was going to destroy it just to kidnap a single man.

Like father like daughter. Why the heck are both of your scales of imagination so damn massive. To think shed destroy the empires biggest organization all because she wanted to kidnap a man.

Dunno. I dont know about the other kids, but since its Atia I need to listen.

Mmnn to think shed still be alive.

Yeah, I didnt think shed survive either. Although my heart hurts as a dad it cant be helped as an emperor.

Do you even bother taking care of your kids? In that case you might as well sort out that damn successor problem already.

The empires right to the throne has always been a bloodbath with plenty of history and tradition behind it. I beat the crap out of all my brothers for this seat. But unlike my time I still minimized the number of massacres, you know?

Yes yes, no need to be so humble.

I was always a pretty talented guy.

For a moment Arten was tempted to throw a punch but barely held onto the limits of his patience.

Its the emperor. The one in front of you is the emperor. No matter how trash he is, and hes a wretch that deserves to be thrown out in the burnable trash, but hes still the emperor, he muttered as he clenched onto his staff tightly.

Alright then you talented asshole. So your talented daughter threw a fit to get rid of Howling, and the morons that got nice and fat off Howling are crying for an explanation so what are you going to do.

What else. Leave them. My boy has already listened to his sister and taken the army out. So what.

The fuck you just say you retard?

Hey, Im the emperor?

Artens face suddenly contorted in fury that even took the emperor aback.

Oi, does it make any sense at all that the Crown Prince left and I didnt know about it? Im the chief of security for the imperial family. My subordinates are guarding this place like a fortress and the damn Crown Prince of all things can slip by without even a word in my ear? And where the hell did he get those soldiers from?

Ah, if you mean that, thats easily solved if he takes the soldiers that guard the imperial palace. They can leave without you none the wiser, highly experienced and usable without anyone knowing anything!

Oh, thats it.

Listening to those words Arten made an expression that said Ah, I didnt think of that!

And he said to the emperor who looked very proud of himself.

So, that your last will and testament?

Oi, hold on?

Looking at Arten who was steadfastly ignoring the shocked emperor and continued to cast his incantation, the emperor hurriedly grabbed onto Artens legs and begged.

Um, Lord Arten? Um, could you please listen to me?

Youre interrupting my cast. Go sit down in that corner over there and wait for a comfortable death.

Excuse me? This is treason?

Hm? So what. So todays the day that I get to tick treason off my bucket list!

Kuaaak! To think there was a villain so close that aimed for the emperors throne!

The moment the emperor stood up and shouted, the incantation was complete.

Now, burn, Deaths Hellfire.

Eh, wait up, this is no joke!

Kang!

The emperor shouted while instantly drawing his sword and slicing the white flame into two, but all Arten did was click his tongue and mutter tch, it failed. under his breath.

Oi, even though were friends this is still treason?

From a very long time ago, they said the whip was the cure for stupidity.

Oi, even if I used your subordinates willfully, theyre still my subordinates in the end as well?

And if you take away all the palace guards before that, whos going to stop a potential actual treasonous plot.

You and me?

You think thats possible?!

It isnt?

For a moment Artens mouth closed. Now that he thought about it it actually did seem possible.

He was a archmagician who was one of the best in the continent, and aside from assorted lords of Magic Towers of a significantly large scale there were few that could match him.

And the emperor in front of him wasnt just some moron that seemed like a crazy punk, he actually was a crazy little fuck, and back when he was still the Crown Prince he was known with one of the five greatest titles of swordsmanship in the continent, the Sword King.

In terms of pure skill, he was stronger than the most famous of them all, the Sword Star.

We could?

See?

Seeing Arten nod his head and lower his staff, the emperor relaxed and sheathed his sword.

The friend in front of him was a very excellent talent. Disregarding his title as the strongest magician in the imperial palace he also dealt with all sorts of the imperial familys problems big and small, a splendid talent that could even do the emperors work for him!

So from now and in the future, he would need to work hard for him-no, the empire.

If only for the sake of his free time!

Haa since youve already gone and done it, it cant be helped.

There we go, thats my buddy.

Your friends specialties are giving up quickly and sorting out messes.

Alright then. Now. The demonstrations.

Do we need to just call it a riot and beat them down again?

Looking at Arten who sighed as he lifted up his staff, and the emperor who brushed the sheath of his sword, there was only one other person that was beside the emperor who had been listening in on the entire conversation.

As the substitute for the imperial familys personal knight orders captain who was currently on duty protecting the Crown Prince, the vice-captain of the imperial knight order who was there for the first time thought.

Is the empire really going to be alright like this!

As a loyal subject of the empire, he began to sincerely worry about the empires future.

***

The criminal always returns to the scene of the crime!

-Owner, owner. Even if no ones around dont make it obvious that owners crazy. Im blushy blushy.

Even I wouldnt want to hear Im crazy from you.

I lightly retort back to the metal bat as I stuffed magic stones into a bag with dimensional storage magic.

If you wondered where we were, then answering would be human nature!

The cave where I chucked those trainees into!

Retrieve all the magic stones from here first, then move back to my office and destroy the important documents.

From there I can collect the important gear and items and either gap it from the empire, or operation dark under the lantern, I need to think which one Ill be using.

Ah that reminds me. I havent done something important.

Hello, juniors?

Wanna get hit?

No sir!

When I lifted the metal bat in front of the homunculi that were still holding JoXX poses as always they immediately bowed down.

As expected of existences that had the memories of my former disciples.

The promised contract is over. Ah, except you.

With those words the figures turned wavy and vanished into the silver.

-Damn it, its finally over.

-I did this seeing the blasted payment and I thought I was gonna die of irritation.

-We can say goodbye to those monsters.

-Haha, goodbye, hell!

-Wait, were going back to hell though?

-Thats our home so thats okay.

Ah, wait! Take, take me too!

I heard a grumbling from a doppelganger that was contracted at the same time but I ignored it and collected up the metal.

Even if they look like this theyre oddities that were created in the process of making the metal bat.

Although I can see quite significant damage and cracks on them, with a bit of repairs they should be reusable.

Shut up and for now, turn back to your normal form. Your jobs nearly over anyway.

Really? Really?

Really.

I packed away the other one that faded wavily back to its normal form, and once I opened the hidden passage that led to my office, hm? Hello?

Was there still some bastards left?

Kang!

A swords flying my way?