Chapter 19
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Chapter 19
My expression crumbled. Baraha Islaf was a squire to Baron, the Vice-Commander of the Changtian Knights? The moment those words reached my ears, a single thought crystallized in my mind: *I'm ruined*. No wonder Bread had cowered like a whipped dog the instant he saw Baraha.
"You were a squire?"
"Yeah. For the past two years. If I say I'll train you, the Cadet Representative won't have much to say about it. You won't get tangled up with that bastard either, and his club won't dare spout nonsense."
A swarm of fools and their club spouting drivel seemed far preferable to receiving instruction from the squire of the Giosa owner whose neck I'd slit. I shook my head urgently.
"I'm fine, senior. You don't need to go that far for me."
"I'm doing this because I need to. Once you become an official squire, we'll be working together often. My lord is the Vice-Commander, and you're his squire, aren't you?"
"...Ah."
I'd been so preoccupied with Yurien that I'd completely forgotten. Becoming Yurien's squire meant I'd frequently encounter the other Giosa owners. Any one of them might remember the erased past. Suddenly, the future loomed before me in suffocating darkness.
Baraha shrugged his shoulders.
"Seeing how the Cadet Representative brought in some fool as his replacement, if I leave things as they are, I'll have a rough time when working with you. So I figured I'd teach you in advance."
"Th-thank you..."
I didn't want to be entangled with him, Baron's squire. Yet I couldn't refuse. I had no grounds to refuse. Even if I avoided him, once I became a squire, I'd inevitably keep crossing paths with the other Giosa owners anyway.
'I need to coordinate my hat and gloves better. And buy more cosmetics.'
I'd need to dress more elaborately. Unrecognizable at any cost. I thought this drearily. Meanwhile, Baraha seemed to be contemplating something, counting on his fingers before nodding. He turned and spoke.
"Come along for now. I have something to give you."
"Yes, understood."
He began walking away from the Training Grounds. I followed in his wake. From behind, his back was remarkably broad. He wore only his cadet uniform without a jacket, and beneath the taut shirt, well-developed muscle was plainly visible.
With such a striking physique and his position as Baron's squire, why did I have no memory of killing him? Among the victims of Agenka that I remembered, this man was not among them. As I walked behind him, I continued sifting through my memories. Then something suddenly surfaced.
"Did the Vice-Commander visit the Cemetery again today?"
"Yeah, well. Having lost his squire like that... It seems he remembers on days like this when the rain and lightning strike."
"Was that monster subjugation three years ago? It feels like it was just recently."
"The damage back then was enormous."
A conversation between guards beyond the double doors. It wasn't precise, but that was roughly the gist of it. I remembered it because nearly every time thunder rumbled and rain poured, similar conversations echoed—not just once, but repeatedly.
I lifted my head, my face gone pale. When I annihilated Agenka, this man didn't exist. He had already died in an accident before that. And three years before my time in prison would be this very year.
During this year's monster subjugation, Baraha Islaf dies. And the Vice-Commander, who stood against me to the end to save the citizens of Agenka, will visit his dead squire's grave whenever lightning strikes.
I walked in a daze until I nearly collided with Baraha, who had suddenly stopped. We stood before the Male Dormitory.
"Wait here for a moment."
Baraha turned to me and spoke, then disappeared into the dormitory. I stood motionless in that spot. My gaze drifted to the ivy climbing the dormitory's red brick walls, but I wasn't truly seeing it. Students passing in and out of the dormitory glanced at me in my dress and whispered, but none of it registered.
I was thinking.
I had turned back time to be happy. I wanted all the people who died by my hand to live again. Everything else—honestly, I hadn't given it any thought. I had never deeply contemplated what it meant to turn back time.
'It's as good as knowing the future. And if I know it, I can change it.'
I had returned to change the past. By returning, I had already achieved half of what I desired. So I hadn't considered what I could do with information about the future.
I knew of major events yet to come. I was swept up by the Demonic Sword and, after overcoming it, was too busy gathering Giosa to know the details. But there were certainly significant events that reached even my ears. And I had the power to change them.
'I could try to change what I can reach.'
This didn't mean I'd meddle in everything. Only within the range my hand could touch. Because I didn't want to see those around me suffer. Subtly, without being noticed, carefully.
For instance, like saving Baraha Islaf, who will soon die.
'I can test whether the Giosa owners remember with this.'
If they remembered the erased time, those who were Giosa owners would know far better than I. That Squire Baraha dies in the coming monster subjugation. Then they would naturally move to save him. By watching that, I could discover who remembers. If no one prevents his death, then I will.
'There's no reason to let it happen if I can prevent it. Yes, I'll save him.'
I closed my eyes, then opened them. My violet eyes gleamed with crystalline clarity.
"You've been waiting?"
Baraha Islaf emerged from the Dormitory and approached me. He held a book in his hand. In his enormous grip, what should have been an ordinary-sized tome looked like a pamphlet. He extended it toward me.
"For now, read this today. It's your assignment."
I accepted the book. Upon inspection, it was less a book and more a collection of notes and memos bound together. The worn leather cover, marked by countless hands, bore the title "Squire's Manual."
"It contains the experiences of senior cadets. You don't need to return it. Keep it, and when you take on a junior squire of your own, pass it along to them."
"Thank you."
"Well then, I need to visit Lord. Read that, and come to the Training Grounds tomorrow morning at this same time."
"Senior..."
"Hmm?"
"...The Changtian Knights' monster subjugation happens every spring, doesn't it? Could I accompany them as a squire?"
"That'll be difficult this time. It's May 10th, so it's before your probationary period ends. We wouldn't take a probationary freshman—only official squires."
"Is there no way to participate?"
I asked with slight urgency. Baraha looked down at me quietly, then smiled.
"You want to gain real combat experience?"
"Yes."
"More proactive than I expected."
"It's only natural for someone who wields a sword."
"But you're not obsessed with swords, are you?"
Baraha asked casually. I hesitated. Is it that obvious? The truth was, I didn't particularly love swords. Given everything I'd experienced, that was only natural. I wielded them because I was skilled at it and because they were useful—nothing more.
"Does it show?"
"Well, never mind. If you want to participate, place in the top three of the upcoming freshman rankings. We take the top three freshmen as temporary squires."
Normally, rankings were conducted across all years without distinction. However, newly admitted freshmen underwent a special ranking among themselves immediately after enrollment. This was to reference their abilities when drawing up matchups for the next ranking tournament. The entrance examination scores were a composite of multiple factors, making them difficult to apply directly.
"You only take the top three?"
"The Changtian monster subjugation isn't a spectacle like other nations conduct. It's real combat. You need that level of skill to avoid being a hindrance."
"I see..."
"Lacking confidence, top-ranked freshman?"
Baraha asked provokingly. His golden eyes observed me with playful intent. I smiled, lifting the corners of my mouth.
"Not at all."
I grasped the hem of my dress and performed a slight curtsy, then looked up at him to answer.
"I look forward to your guidance during the monster subjugation, Senior Baraha Islaf."
It was a calm declaration. Baraha's eyes sparkled with satisfaction.
"Good. A cadet designated as a squire on the first day of enrollment should be capable of that much. I'll look forward to the freshman rankings, Echinacea Loaz."
"Thank you."
"Do your assignment well. I'll check it tomorrow."
Baraha left with a smile. I turned, clutching the book. As I headed back to the Dormitory, the Demonic Sword chattered in my mind.
[Master, didn't you say you wouldn't aim for too high a rank? And now you're going for third?]
"No. First."
[Huh?]
"I've already become a squire anyway. There's no reason to keep avoiding the Giosa Owners."
There was no longer any need to avoid the upper ranks to steer clear of the Giosa Owners. In fact, having been appointed as an exceptional Squire, it would be far more advantageous to suppress the other cadets' suspicions and grievances through overwhelming skill. Of course, I would maintain a level of competence that was reasonably believable.
"I need to ensure that no more whispers about night duties or anything else ever circulate again."
As Echinacea smiled coldly, the Demonic Sword asked with evident bewilderment.
[You're really angry. But why didn't you kill them?]
"If I killed everyone I was angry with, I'd be a murderer."
[You used to do that, didn't you? So that makes you a murderer.]
Echinacea stopped abruptly in her tracks. There was no one around—which was precisely why I had bothered to respond to the Demonic Sword at all. I gazed down at my right palm with eyes that had lost all warmth, now gleaming like amethyst.
"You have no right to say that, Demonic Sword."
[Hey, I didn't control you! You accepted the killing intent!]
"...."
I clenched my teeth. Before the regression, during those early days after awakening Bardegiosa's consciousness and gathering the Giosa—I had committed acts indistinguishable from those of a murderer under the Demonic Sword's influence. Though different from the shell that had possessed me, those deeds had made it abundantly clear that this was a blade specialized in slaughter.
Whenever I became consumed with rage toward someone, the mana composed of killing intent dwelling within the Demonic Sword would follow my murderous will and slay the target. My body would instinctively discover the optimal path to kill. It was an ability the Demonic Sword possessed—for all Giosa wielded special powers.
At first, I hadn't known the Demonic Sword had such a function.
I had learned of Bardegiosa's power for the first time thanks to an information broker in the Back Alley.
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