The biwa changes shape under Astrid's gaze. It was thin and long, as if it were a human, female body.

　It resembled the rokurokubi, the female specter of the sheikh - the head of the sheikh, as told in the tales.

　When the old man gently plucked the strings, the part of his mouth that held the string would emit a charming sound. If he clawed hard, a high-pitched scream would be emitted.

　The old man's horrific humanoid biwa made neither Lord Dragnaut nor Astrid move as he played the biwa.



　The basic magic techniques of earth, water, fire and wind are all supreme in the ninth circle.

　The magic power required for each number that increases from the first circle of magic is enormous and extremely difficult to master.

　It is the tradition of wizards that those who have mastered the magic of the ninth circle will be awarded the title of sage, and their names will be engraved in the history of witchcraft - but it is rare to find someone who can make it that far.

　If only one person in a few generations could make it, it would be a fortuitous event.



　The old man's "Gagangzi" was an earth magic of the eighth circle, a great magic that was as close to the ninth circle as possible.

　What's more, the old man had succeeded in this great magic by breaking the chanting. Astrid had never seen a magician who could exercise the eighth realm by breaking chanting.

　Even the court wizards of the Canary Kingdom can barely chant the Sixth Circle. With the condition that the chanting is abrogated, even the fifth circle would be suspect.



　The other man's words of level 73 were soaked into my body with a real feeling.

　A bead of sweat appeared on Astrid's forehead.

　And beside Astrid, her father Duke groaned.



Are you a wielder of the Illusionary One-Two technique?

A baboon, indeed. He does seem to know what he's doing.

The guardians of Ogashima have been sealing the demon gate for 300 years. I know of them. But why do these guards turn their backs on our country?



　The Illusionary Itto-ryu is a martial art developed three hundred years ago by a sword saint who suppressed a demon god.

　Its power is immense, and since its founding, the Ad Astera Empire, which holds them, has never shrunk its territory, even though it has expanded it.

　The Duke himself had witnessed them in battle when he was a young boy, and the sheer power of the Illusionary One-Two Style was in his bones.

　If the wielders of the Ittoyo Isshiki Style stood at the forefront of the invasion, the unification of the continent by the Empire would not be a dream.



　But that was not going to happen. At least as far as Lord Dragnaut knew.

　The Mitsuurugi family, which unites them with the wielder of the One Sword School of Illusion, has a policy of "Do not invade and do not invade" when it comes to relations between nations.

　Even the emperor of Ad Astera could not use his swordsmen to invade the empire. The House of Gokens is the house where this is allowed. The only people that the Illusionary Itto-ryu can wield its power against are demons and demonic beasts.

　More to the point, if the enemy is a demon, they can lend their power to other countries. In fact, the Canary Kingdom once borrowed their power to eradicate the demon race.

　It was at this time that Lord Dragnoth witnessed the illusionary one-sidedness.



　The current Canary Kingdom has no intention of invading the Empire.

　Although Lord Dragnoth sees the Empire's idea of invasion as dangerous, he had no intention of carrying out a reverse invasion.

　And yet, why did the Illusionary One-Style turn on the Canary Kingdom?

　If there is only one thing I can think of--



Is this because you're protecting the daughter of an ogre?


　The eradication of the demon race's settlement, which had once lived in peace, was one of the heartbreaks for Lord Dragnaut.

　As a boy at the time, the Duke had no way to stop the country or help the demon race, and could only watch it all happen.

　The reason behind actively helping the demon race's daughter named Sparrow this time was for other reasons besides Jiria Ooks' debt of gratitude.

　The duke wondered if that had crossed the empire's mind, but the old man's answer to this was a simple one.


''Baboon, that's certainly not true. The devotees of the demon god must be exterminated. But this time it is just a matter of time. If the only person I want is Claudia Dragunot.

'You mean you attacked King's Landing to kill Claudia!

If only you had died quietly because of my curse, you wouldn't have ended up here. But I don't know how Unura did it, but he broke the curse. We've spent a year breaking off the engagement and now we've got to get well again, and we're back to normal.


　The old man bared his yellowed teeth and continued.


'The wedding ceremony between the crown prince and Sakuya-sama will be held in conjunction with Sakuya-sama's coming of age in two months' time. There is no time to curse again. Therefore, I've decided to take a somewhat forceful step. If I wanted to hide a tree, I'd hide it in the forest; if I wanted to hide a corpse, I'd hide it in the disaster. If you cover the city with corpses, no one will pay attention to the death of a duchess.

He cursed his daughter for a year to keep her from being suspected of imperial involvement, and when that is thwarted, he now distracts attention from her death by involving the people of King's Landing in it. Is that what those who fly the banner of protection and salvation will do!

'Baboon!　The country that I will protect is Ad Astera. And when the reign of Adastera shines on the continent, the people of the world will be saved. This is the protection of the nation and the salvation of the world. On the way it may trample down insects and flowers, but when the elephant walks, the ants die. But if the elephant walks, the ants will die.


　While the old man laughed with a high-pitched voice saying that, Claudia, who had been silent until then, opened her mouth for the first time here.


''-- Grandfather. Was what you said to me in the cemetery a lie?


　Hearing Claudia's voice, the old man's expression changed.

　His demeanor was clearly different from his previous one which contained a sneer.


''No! It's true that I have been sending my unshrinking spirit to you. It is true that I was impressed by the way you behaved, Claudia Dragnaut.


　The old man continued in a rather quiet voice


The old man continued, "My business is to use music to calm the raging gods and purify the evil spirits of mankind. That's not all that I do. If I am a vassal of the sword of the emperor, I will do anything to commit treason by order. Even if it means killing an inexperienced daughter with a curse.

"...you are...

Well, you're right.


　As if to interrupt Claudia, who was about to say something, the old man opened his mouth again.

　His mouth was twisted in unbearable amusement.


I received an order from the palace to break off the Dauphin's engagement so that he would not be suspected of being involved in the empire. The method was left up to me.

...What?

'So it was my idea to make you suffer from the long curse!　So that's why you attacked King's Landing tonight!　Baboon!　His screams and screams, which I've been enjoying for a year, were truly the nectar of heaven!

......

You'll have fun!　I'm so happy for you!　Life is something that shines through in difficult times. Suffer, anguish, despair, and wail!　Since the day I strangled my wife to death, I have had no greater pleasure in hearing her scream than in hearing her scream, O Claudia Dragnaut, and I will make you scream too!


　As soon as he said this, the old man strummed his biwa, which had been transformed into a heartpiece, and immediately the biwa trembled and let out a soundless sound.

　As soon as he did so, the biwa trembled violently and spat out an inaudible sound. The inaudible cursed sound immediately grabs the father and daughter of the Dragnaut and sends a sharp pain that feels like a cone being driven into their brains.

　As the father and daughter collapsed on the ground in agony, the old man turned around and asked in a calm tone of voice: ''But first, let me ask you a question.


The old man turned and asked in a calm tone of voice, "But first, I must ask you a question. How on earth did you break my curse?　That was my masterpiece, which I performed with a heart outfit. Even with a strange-looking water bottle, I was proud of it.

"...don't you know, old man?　A princess's curse can be broken by a prince's kiss.

'Baboon!　All sorcerers can't eat if a kiss is all that's required to break the spell. Well, if you can't tell me, I'll just have to take my time to find out what it is. It's the nature of a strong man to lick his tongue before his prey.



　The old man, who continued to talk a lot, was about to laugh even more loudly, when he heard the old man say "I can't listen to you anymore.

　It was as if he couldn't bear to listen to it any longer, and then it happened.

　-- A flash of blackness.

　The silent impact that exploded around the Duke of Dragonaut's residence had a pressure that shook even the black walls of the still unfolding "Gagangzhai".


''.........What is it?''


　Swallowing the words he was about to spit out, the old man narrowed his eyes.

　An intimidating feeling that makes his skin tingle. An oppressive feeling that makes his throat dry up.

　I feel a threat from inside the mansion, a threat that I hadn't felt a shadow or shape of until now.

　The old man, who was about to torture the Dragnaut father and daughter to death from now on, switched his consciousness in an instant. He realized that he was the one he had to switch to.



　Not long after, a young man appeared from the Duke's mansion.

　The old man was blind and could not see the young man, but instead he heard the sound of his footsteps.

　It belonged to a young man who had visited the cemetery just the other day. Like Claudia Dragnaut, I was impressed by the way he treated us, who were as much as begging, without insulting us.

　And there was another one that sounded familiar.


'Sola-san!'


　That voice, that name that Claudia unintentionally released.

　It was an unforgettable name in many ways for those who served the Gokens family.