Go through the basement.
　Hmm. At this rate, it's going to lead out of the dormitory as expected.
　And to Shenoubeil Castle, the enemy's stronghold.

　Avril and I, after separating from Lara and the others, made our way into Shenubail Castle.

''Are they okay?

　Averill asks.

'Don't worry about it. Lara, Marise, and Cynthia all work with me a lot, so they're used to this kind of thing. I'm sure the other students will be able to lead us.
'How many shenanigans have you guys gone through at your age...'

　Avril is stunned.

　Shura.
　After all, there's a previous life for me, too.
　

We must hurry. "We must hurry and get to that mastermind you speak of.
Wait a minute. I need to gather information first.
"Gathering information?

　Instead of answering Avril's question, I began to move through the castle of Shenubail.
　What is the state of the castle and where is the mastermind hiding?
　I want to know where the mastermind is hiding.

　The inside of the castle is also on high alert.
　Inside the castle, armor-clad people are strutting around everywhere.
　By the way, they are just ordinary armor that can be found anywhere.

　Is it a group of knights or something?
　Probably, the mastermind must have read that I will somehow get into Shenoubeil Castle.

　I'm not going to be the only one who has a problem with that.

''Kill them as soon as you see them!　That man says that a boy named Kurt is riding into the castle.
'Hahaha!　It's just a kid, right?　I'm going to kill you.
If you defy him, you'll kill us too. Don't let him get away with it.

　To declare things.

'I guess we're being licked,'

　Averill sighs.

'Oh. I've already made my way into this castle long ago and they're a bunch of dumbasses.'

　Now, even so, who is this "man" they talk about?
Is it the one who creates the White Armor?

　But is the one giving instructions and orders to the men in armor a higher level - a king or princess?
　Then it seems likely that the mastermind I have in mind is waiting there.
　However, it's also possible that the king and the mastermind are the same person.

　While thinking about this, as I proceeded through the castle.

No, stop it I haven't done anything wrong!
Shut up!

　A child and a wild man, two voices.
　I also heard a punch to the stomach.

　I stopped and hid in the shadows to check on them.

'The castle is in turmoil now. "The whole castle is in turmoil right now because Master Fosind of the House of Fosind has been killed by a boy named Kurt. But if a filthy slave is wandering around the castle, you can't blame him for being angry, right?

　The man in the guffawing armor laughs.

　He is further dismissed by the man, and lying on the floor is a small boy, about eight years old.
　His clothes are in tatters. There are bruises all over his body.
　The boy looks at the men in the armor and shudders, bobbing and shaking.

　Still, he was stout and stout.

'Oh, you guys always do!　You are not going to beat up on us slaves because of your munchies!

　He let out a powerful word.
　But that didn't sit well with the man.

'Slaves don't talk back to each other!　And ... treat them?　What are you talking about, I'm just trying to educate you.

　I took the child's hair and forced him to stand.

'I've always been pissed off to begin with. You're always looking at us like we're the rebels.
Yeah, well, that's nothing compared to how you guys beat me up!
"Huh you filthy slave, you can't talk back to me. There's a huge gap between you and me. It's called status. And yet........even though you're a slave who does your own chores, I can't stand the thought of you being in the same room with me!

　The armored man spat this out and continued to punch the child in the stomach.

The man said, "Even if you are a slave, you don't know what the boss will say if you kill him easily. But ... if I kill you now, there will be no problem as long as you blame Kurt or someone else. The only thing I can think of to say is that I'm sure someone else will find Kurt and his bastard even if I don't.

　The man in the armor kicks the child.
　The child, who was lighter in weight, was lifted into the air and slammed into the wall with it.

'So!　Now, gentlemen, I'm going to give you a fun, fun education!　Be prepared for that. Try not to die, hahahahahaha!

　Fear in the child's eyes.
　It was clattering and shaking so much that I could see it from here.

'Kurt what are you going to do?'

　Averill looked up at me.

　I had no righteousness to help that child. I'd get into trouble, and I didn't feel the need to stick my neck out.
　But.


'You're telling an interesting story. Will you share it with me?


　It doesn't feel good to overlook something as disgusting as this.

　And it's a good opportunity.
　Let me tell you a little story.

　I appear in front of the man in armor.

''Anh?　I've never seen your face before... well, no way!
I don't have to tell you who I am. Oh, and there's no point in shouting. We've put a perimeter around you, so it will look like nothing's going on from the outside.

　As he said this, he approached the man in armor with a slow gait.
　The man in armor held his sword at the ready.

"Stupid guy!　You jumped in here for a reason. If I kill you, I'll get plenty of money for my services later on from the man. He might even give me the land. When that happens, I'll stop doing all this knightly stuff and live happily ever after!
It's a big dream.
"DIE!

　The fearless and reckless man attacked with all his momentum.

　His stance is also messed up.
　If that was the case, he wouldn't be able to cut even a single piece of Orihalcon's armor in half.
　For a guy like this to be calling himself an Imperial Knights... I sighed at the low level of the Empire.

''Zero one second.''

　That's how long it took him to get to me.
　Just as he was about to cut me down, he pulled his magic sword from its sheath and flashed it at me.

''Haha, that's a good response!　That Kurt guy isn't much of a... hmm?

　Then the man in the armor noticed.

'Hey, why is your sword broken?

　The man in the armor shifted his gaze to the sword, which was snapped off from the root.

　It was simple.
　The moment he was about to slash, I simply swung my magic sword to match it.

'You're using a very soft sword. I thought you were a cake sponge or something.
Oh, no.　This is a sword made of Orihalcon. It shouldn't be easy to break....
Then it can't be helped. Orichalcong is made of a soft material.

　I raise my right hand and activate a spell called Nightmare on him.

'Come to think of it, I'd love to live comfortably in my own domain.
What do you mean...　Oh, ahhhhh!

　A man screams.
　Now, through my magic, he is being shown a 'dream' of living in a remote area.

　There are no fields to cultivate and no fiefdoms there.
　I'm sure you'll be able to find a lot more than you need to know.

There's nothing to eat, and there's no water. Nothing to eat, nothing to drink, nothing to drink. Nothing to eat, no water, nothing!　And the demons are attacking us!　No, I don't want to.......I want to go back to King's Landing!
If you're serious, you can make it out of that situation. At best, you'll do your best to live a life of leisure.

　I don't think that's going to happen, though.
　A man who has been shown the Eternal Dream will eventually have a mental breakdown.

'Kurt. Even though the opponent had it coming, you're still able to use some pretty terrifying magic.
What do you mean? I'm making his dreams come true with this wonderful magic.

　I responded to Avril, and then I looked back at the child.

'Oh, thank you...!　They almost killed me. My brother is so strong!
'Hmm, I'm glad to hear that. Since I'm in a hurry, can you tell me a few things?
Talk?

　The child nods his head.

'Who is this ... what is it that is setting this up?　The ones who are trying to kill me.
'Oh, the king!　I think he's probably in the 'throne room' because he's playing with his spare time.
What kind of a king is this?

　When asked, the child shook his head and continued.

'I don't know ... because I've never seen the king's face. I mean, all the people in the empire haven't seen the king for a long time.

　You haven't seen the king?
　What does that mean? Does it mean that I haven't been in front of people?

　But the word 'everyone' is stuck.
　This girl must also be working in the castle.
　If so, it is not surprising that she saw the king at least once.

　And yet, no one has seen him before...?

I think we should go to the throne room. I'll find out what's going on in there. Thank you. Just a few more steps and you'll find an underground passage. That should give you access to the outside.
Uh-uh!

　I showed him where the underground passage was, and the kid ran in that direction, looking like he was going to miss it.

'Kurt, are you sure that was a good idea?'
What?
Maybe that child will tell you about us. That would be a problem.
Don't worry. I cast a cloaking spell on you earlier, and at the same time I cast a silencing spell on you. If you try to talk about us, you won't be able to speak properly.
'Did you do that in a moment?　He's a smart guy....

　No wonder.
　After all, the Imperials in the Empire have been filthy for a thousand years now.
　I don't think it's her, but just in case, it's more than enough to get her out of trouble.

　Moreover ... this helping of people wasn't just about blowing up a disgusting guy.

''Hmph.''

　I grabbed the head of the man in the armor, whose head was a flower, hard and slammed it down hard on the floor as it was.

　The fainting man.
　I ripped the armor off the man and I put it on.
　It's a little big and hard to move, but if I can compensate for the details with magic, I'll be able to walk.

I'm sure it will be easier to walk around the castle with this. It's also easier to gather information. I don't want to waste my magic power before the decisive battle with the mastermind.
Yeah, I didn't think you could do that.... that's Kurt for you... huh?

　Avril rolls her eyes.

'Armor is for one person.
Yeah.
Don't you have one for me?
'None. I mean, I don't have armor that fits Avril's size. Sorry, but you'll have to continue to use cloaking magic.
Uh-huh...

　When I said that, for some reason, Avril looked unconvinced.