Step back in time a bit.

　After Sora, who had bowed to the head of the family, Shikibu, bowed to the head of the family, Sora left with his shoulder to break the wind, and in the great hall, Gilmore Berch turned his stifled voice to his lord.


''........Gokan-sama. Is it okay if you don't give that rude person a punishment?


　For Gilmore, no doubt Shikibu's anger at hearing the earlier utterance will become a thunderbolt and shoot at the sky - as he gloats, Anihan and Shikibu easily allowed the sky to leave.

　A vassal can't hold back an opponent whose lord has allowed him to leave. Anger at Sora's rudeness and hesitation at not being able to grasp Shikibu's true intentions made Gilmore's voice low.

　In response to this question, Shikibu nodded carelessly, without any air of thought.


'Good.'

But, My Lord. But, My Lord, I know that this will not be acceptable to everyone in your household. You deceive us by deceiving us and killing us by subterfuge if it is in accordance with the law of the Hokushin.


　As if to agree with Gilmour's assertions, there was an angry outcry of approval from many places in the hall. The voices included a chase after Gilmore, but more than that, one could feel the anger at Sora's arrogance.

　Five years ago, Sora, who was expelled from Onigashima after being disowned by the swordsman, should never have straddled the threshold of this house again. Nevertheless, the head of the family, Shikibu, specially relieved these two punishments, and even then, with a trial ritual, ordered him to be added to the lowest seat of the Hachibata family.

　It was an unprecedented measure for an outcast.

　But Sora, who should have prostrated himself and thanked him for the offer, kicked it away as if it were a stone on the side of the road. And then Gilmore said those words to him.

　I'm not going to be the only one who's been in a position to do that.

　--It's not that the anger that has erupted has not risen to the point of overwhelming the room. This is because the Mikenshikibu, who sits at the head, showed no reaction to the complaints of his subordinates.

　The buzz that had been building up disappeared like a receding tide, leaving the hall in a state of confusion and suspicion. Both of them were directed at Shikibu. What on earth is Mikan-sama thinking - that was the common voice in the minds of the flagellants (Kishi).

　Even Gilmore, who is skilled at understanding Shikibu's wishes, is no exception.

　For Gilmore, who is self-appointed as the leading vassal of the Gokens, this case was not interesting to begin with. This was because he could see that the unbeatable measures against Sora were a testament to the level of trust the Shikibu had in Goz Sima.

　When Goz returned from the Canary Kingdom, Shikibu trusted that ridiculous report with all his might. That's why he opened the door for a return to the sky.

　If he had been in Goz's position, would Mikado-sama have trusted his report, Gilmore asked himself?

　--The answer is no.

　The only difference is that Gilmore Belhi is not as good as Goz Sima in terms of trust from his lord, regardless of his current family status and authority.

　If Goz continues to carry Sora, Sora may indeed return to his position as a legitimate son. If that happened, the Belch family, who had formed an amicable relationship with Laguna, would fall from the mainstream and continue to decline.

　I won't let that happen. With this in mind, Gilmore was looking forward to today's event. It was against this backdrop that he was particularly hard on the sky.

　Of course, Gilmore had no intention of actively displeasing his lord, so he was going to keep his mouth shut if Shikibu really wanted Sora's return.

　However, Shikibu showed no signs of displeasure at Gilmour's verbal attack on Sora, nor did he show any signs of restraint. In the process, Gilmore came to the conclusion that Gildildan-sama intended to use this opportunity to dispose of the defective swords, so he tried to stir up Sora even more.

　As a result, the opportunity arose to put to death Sora, but even here, Shikibu did not make a move and left Sora to leave.

　Gilmore could not help but be puzzled as to where in the world Shikibu's intentions lie.

　And then Shikibu turned to Gilmore.


'Gilmore, have you finished preparing for the test ritual?

I'm sorry, sir.

Then we will perform the ritual in a quarter of an hour from now. Get ready.

'Thank you for your time. However, earlier you said that Sora-dono has no intention of learning the Itto- style of sword fighting or returning to the swordsmith's house. How would you like to do that?

That one's intentions will remain out of this. In the Kingdom of Canary, there is a master of the single-fingered sword that has completed the test ritual - this is all that is needed.


　Gilmore's eyes widened when he heard that, and he hung his head deeply.

　Next, Shikibu calls out the name of Goz, who is slumped over with a heavy heart. Goz, called by his lord, raised his eyebrows for a moment, and then immediately uttered a resolute voice.


'It's Goz,'

Ha!

Tell the sky what you just did.

Good evening, sir!


　Quickly getting up, Goz followed Sora out of the great hall. It was naturally the guest room that we were heading to, but from the state of the skies ahead, it's possible that we could have left the mansion like that by any chance.

　In order to get out of the island, you have to wait for a liaison ship, but with the current sky, you could return to the continent on your own. In that case, they would have to follow with haste.

　Goz was naturally quick on his feet, but before he could reach the guest room, he was approached by a flanker. It was his sister, Cecil, who appeared to be in a terrible hurry.


'Brother!'

Cecil. What's the matter with you?

Ibuki is nowhere to be seen.

What?


　Even though he had the blood of a swordsman in his veins, Ibuki was still not qualified to attend the Great Hall.

　The reason for having Ibuki dressed in formal attire is that I had planned to introduce her to Sora after the audience was over.

　Miken Emma, Shikibu's rightful wife, and Cecil, his side concubine, are scrambling in and out of the mansion to prepare for the anniversary of his death later on, and there are times when Ibuki is inevitably left alone.

　He seems to have been caught in the middle.

　Ibuki is a skilled child, but he rarely disobeys the commands of adults. It's not as if he was left to his own devices every minute or two. It's a very good idea to be able to have a good time.

　--It's a good idea to be able to have a good time with them.

　It's a good idea to be able to have a good idea of what to expect. Cecil also followed his brother as if he was in a hurry.

　It's not that there are no criminals in Hiiragito, but it's unlikely that a daredevil would sneak into the Mikado family. While I thought that perhaps Ibuki had left of his own volition, I couldn't think of any reason why my nephew (Oi) would disobey his mother's orders and disappear.

　I don't like to think about it, but it's possible that a demon or an interloper from another country, skilled in concealment, has gotten into the picture. First of all, let's inform Sora of the time of the test and then look for a reason to try to find out what happened - thinking that, when I turned the corner leading to the guest room.


''Hey!　Hello!　Yikes!

'What's the matter, Snake King Sword user? Is this the extent of the Ultimate Warriors' sword skills?

Shut up!　Yeah!　Hello!　Toh!


　Ibuki and Sora were practicing in the courtyard.

　Goz was stunned, wondering what had happened and how it had come about.

　The expression on Sora's face as he was dealing with Ibuki was one that Goz had never seen since their reunion in Ishqa, here.

　-- no, even five years ago, Sora had never smiled so serenely. When was the last time I saw Sora's heartfelt smile?

　Goz was astonished that he couldn't even remember such a thing.

　Behind him, Cecil let out a small, exasperated voice, "Oh..... He was happy to see that his son was safe, but that wasn't the only thing he was happy about. The scene in front of them was the very dream that Sima and her siblings had hoped for from the bottom of their hearts, but had almost given up hope of ever coming true.

　I'm not sure if they noticed the sobs, or if they had already sensed them. Sora glanced at Goz and the others and spoke to the little swordsman in front of him.


'Hmm. Apparently that's as far as it goes.''

Mmm, are you running away?

''It's a draw for today, Master Swordsman of the Serpent King Sword.

Moo!


　Puku, puffed out her cheeks and Ibuki, who was clearly not convinced.

　To such Ibuki, Sora sat down and looked at him before continuing to speak.


''For today, it's a draw. So let's settle it the next time.''

Next?

''Oh. When you're a swordsman, we'll fight again when you grow up. Until that time, you should be strong at best. You know yourself that you can't reach me with your current skills, don't you?

Mmm, I told you!　Okay, next time we fight, I'm going to beat you, no matter what.　So make sure you fight me, I promise!

Oh, I promised. - Here comes your mother and the others.


　Then Sora shuffled his chin, and Ibuki turned around and poof, his expression brightened. Tapping his foot lightly, he ran up to Goz and the others.

　After watching their backs for a little while, Sora slowly raises his gaze when Ibuki clings to Goz's leg.

　-- in the space of just a single blink of an eye, there was frost in his gaze.


'What is the time, Lord Sima?'


　It wasn't just the look in his eyes. His voice was also icy cold. A desperate temperature difference that could only be understood because it was right after hearing the voice that was directed at Ibuki.

　A block of ice slid down on the back of one of the Gokens' leading hatter (Kishi).


''A quarter of an hour later, that is what Gokan-sama says.

'So you have taken the time to visit my grave. Let us thank you for your kindness, Your Excellency.

Oh, wait!　"The anniversary of Shizuya's death will be held at noon...


　There was no reply in Goz's voice.

　After quickly turning on his heel, Sora disappeared in an instant, as if he no longer had any use for the people of this place.

　Perhaps he used his juju. It was such a quick move that Ibuki, who was clinging to Goz, rolled his eyes.