Sanet Village.

　The estate of Agnes Member's father, Viscount Member, who recently became a maid.
　Here my father and I were invited.

　The village is celebrating this day.
　There is a 20 meter high plateau in the central square, and at a distance is the grand dignitary's table where we are.

　The high ground is the star of the festival, from which boys are jumping down from it one after another.

　A bungee jump where both feet are tied up with magic strings and dropped head over heels.
　Even if you fall down by magic, the bungee jump is safe and secure, but it is also very scary.

　The boys have been flying through it since a while ago.

　Boys even younger than me, just 10 years old, naturally scream at the 20-meter bungee, but very rarely do they scream.
　But very rarely, there is a boy who can barely hold back his screams.

　The villagers, as well as me, my father, and outside spectators like Viscount Member, applaud the boy generously.

　The magic cord will never kill or even injure you.
　Even knowing that, there aren't many children who don't scream when they are dropped headfirst from a height of 20 meters.

Interesting coming-of-age ritual.

　While watching a 10-year-old boy, still screaming and peeing, being unstrapped, the father gives his opinion.
　To which the Viscount Member replies.

It is an old tradition in our village, that from the age of ten years old, a child of our village can try it and if he can do it without screaming, he will be recognized as a full-fledged adult".
Well, it's more reasonable than a blanket assessment of your age. It's much more reasonable than a blanket statement of age.

　Father said with a straight face.
　You've never sounded more sensible than you are now," he said with a straight face.

"Alec was an adult from the moment he was born.

　It was the same father as always.
　As expected of the guru of "Father and His Merry Friends".

That's our father.

　On the other hand, the member Viscount is also very reverent to me, though he is normal when talking to his father.
　If this is the case, he's on the verge of joining the church.


　The coming-of-age ceremony was a big celebration for the entire Thanet village.
　Except for the boy who was very nervous about the challenge, all the adults around us were having a big feast, drinking and singing, and they treated us in the VIP section one after another.

Some of the girls are quite serious, too.

　I found a group of girls a short distance away from the high ground, watching with a look of more seriousness than the boys, in a way.

　The girls were about the same age as the boys, around ten years old.

They were old ladies back then.

　The member Viscount broke down and happily answered my question.

Since you can become an adult from 10, the boys will aggressively seduce the girls from early on. If you succeed in this, you'll be able to grow up, own a house and a farm, and even get married.
That's a big challenge.

　So that's what it means to be an adult.

　It comes with a proviso that you are successful, but in this village, you can get married at age 10.

Alec has been engaged to Angel since he was one year old.
"Father, it's barren to compete with each other.

　Incidentally, as a nobleman, son of a nobleman and a baron, I could have married at the age of one, as my father said, if I had wanted to.

　Political marriages, succession problems.
　There are so many reasons why a nobleman should marry a man even if he is older.
　In some cases, you can even get married in your belly--or even before you are born--without getting engaged.

　So it's sterile to bring it up, and I change the subject.

"So, I guess that's the boy over there with all the swagger, the one who got it last year.

　I pointed to a boy hunched over on the other side of the plateau.
　He's almost the same age as the kids challenging now, hunched over like a little lord.

　The member Viscount asked the villagers around him.

It seems so. So only one of them succeeded in the ritual last year?
I see. . it's kind of a big deal.

　If you were the only one who succeeded last year, then there are kids your age who are trying again this year.
　You look down on them from below, looking up at them from a position of success, so it's only natural for you to be like that.

That's just plain rude.

　Suddenly, I heard the voice of the member viscount's reprimand.
　When I looked, I saw that the member was angry with the villagers I had just heard about.

What's the matter?
I'm sorry. The villagers told me that if the Father of the Nation honored him, this year's child would have the courage to do so.
It's not good.

　When the father heard the story, he answered immediately.

"Yes, it's quite true.
"Refusing to talk about it makes me doubt Alec's brawn. It would make you question the brawn of Alec to refuse it.

　Dad, lifting me up as usual, but this time I agree.
　No, little or not, I don't care.

　I don't care if it's little or not. If I'm just going to say a few words to the boy to get other kids fired up, I don't see why I should say no.

"Yeah, let's do it. Can you get him, please?
Oh, your generosity is impressive. I'm impressed. Hey, boy!

　The member Viscount immediately sent instructions to the villagers, and they began to hurry about.

　While waiting for the boy to be brought in, I spoke to father.

"Father. How is Chosen now?
You have tried to get close to Alec on several occasions, and I've been very persuasive in the mansion.


Is that so?
Yes, as expected, given the Duke's private orders, I will obey them. But what's the matter, is it enough of a punishment?
"I've been thinking about that as well. Eliza advised me to 'cut' her off.
"Don't do it, don't do it, Alec.

　Father's reaction was a little unexpected --

"It really makes you question Alec's mettle to do so.

　--And it was the same as always.

"I have a message from His Majesty the Emperor.
It doesn't matter.

　And your father said flatly, "I don't care what the emperor says.

　Your father is also a totally steady man when he dismisses the Emperor's words as irrelevant.

Anyway, I've been thinking about her for a while now.
"Mm, I'm rooting for you, Alec.
"Is there anything you can do for me or rely on me, Father?
"When Alec needs to do that, that's when the world will end!　Then let us perish with an open mind.

　Please be a little blunt, father.
　It's all right.

　Meanwhile, a boy from earlier came to the guestroom where we are.

　It's a pretty girl about his age with a girl behind her.

Is that his wife?
"I guess so. You have a look on your face that says you're all in the books.
Hmm?
That's what being a man - a grown man is all about.

　Your father, unusually - this time he said something serious.
　Adult, wife, life's balance.

　I'm not as old as I look.
　I have memories of previous lives, and I lived long enough to be called "old man" in a previous life.

　That's what you're trying to say.
　I've seen thousands of people who say that when a child is born, it's all accounted for all their lives.

　And then a boy with the same look on his face--a young couple--came to the honored guests' table.
　The boy is confident and nervous and the girl is sweating profusely on her forehead, purely out of nervousness.

　The challenge is paused, all the participants in the festival are looking at the honored guests' table.

　Now, I was wondering what to say to the other boys (、、、、、、) since they are all looking at you.

"Uh-oh, uh-oh, uh-oh ......

　Almost in front of me, within speaking distance, the girl suddenly cowered, held her stomach and began to suffer.
　The next thing I know, people are rushing to see what's wrong.

"Whoa!

　The girl's body suddenly swells up, from a cute figure to a deformed - demonic dragon form.

　The soul eater, a demon dragon that feeds on the soul of a baby while changing its host.

　The demon dragon blows away everyone around it, including the boy, and swings its paws at me.
　The open claws are so huge that they could cover the guest room by themselves.

　Why such a little girl?　The question, "What's going on?" slowed my movements by a few seconds more than usual.
　Those seconds of bewilderment that would have looked like a stick-up to anyone who knew me well.

　As my initial reaction was delayed, a shadow flashed in front of me.

　Right beside me, a village girl who's been quietly serving me all along.
　She stood in front of me with her arms outstretched, shielding me from the soul-eaters.

　She moved without hesitation, a move that did not spare her life in the slightest.

Rude!
"...... Chosen!

　The voice, the language, and the profile that stared straight at the demon dragon.
　It was the Chosen that your father had left behind in the house.

　She defended me with a movement that didn't even scare me to death.

　I didn't have to. ...... I was confused, for sure.

　I was confused for sure, and my initial reaction was delayed.

　So the demon dragon soul-eater beat me to it, but that was nothing to me now.

　I grabbed my right hand and pulled back and then swung it out.
　Over Chosen's shoulder, I collide with the demon dragon's claw.

　Mischief.
　The VIP's pedestal is slumped a little.

　Boom!
　The soul eater was blown twenty meters into the sky, higher than the ceremonial eminence.

　He created a homunculus at the drop of a hat and used Herschel's secret formula to pull the soul out and back in again.
　The baby's soul was drained out and the dragon quickly reverted to its original form as a little girl, and slowly landed on the ground, wrapped in my power.

　It's like a momentary illusion, as all the people present feel as if they've been pinched by a fox.

"Hmph.

　Chosen is the same, with the same arrogant tone.

"You are a blunderer, aren't you?

　Without a care in the world, not caring about the change in soul-eaters.
　He threw up on the now fallen girl.