I Accidentally Created a Villainous Organization

Chapter 88: The Holy Sword, and the Oath (4)

Chapter 88: The Holy Sword, and the Oath (4)

The road from the station to our destination.

Naturally, I ended up walking alongside Lucy.

Of course, given her personality, it was rare for her to start a conversation on her own.

Still, the conversation flowed more smoothly than I expected.

Spending time with Siel, who rarely speaks first, had gotten me used to initiating conversations with quiet people.

While we exchanged casual small talk for quite some time, an interesting topic emerged.

“Why did you join the Imperial Knights?”

It was just a lighthearted question on my part. But for some reason…

The moment she heard it, Lucy’s expression darkened. It was the first time she remained silent instead of responding sincerely to my question.

I wondered if I had unintentionally touched a nerve.

Just as I was about to assure her that she didn’t have to answer if it was difficult to talk about…

“…It was because there was someone I admired.”

Lucy, who had been frowning as if recalling something, finally spoke.

“There was someone who saved me when I was in mortal danger. I wanted to become a knight to help others, just like they helped me.”

It should have been a heartwarming story. Yet, for some reason, her face turned a little pale.

However, I couldn’t bring myself to ask why.

Because of what she said next.

“…It was a hero. A hero with the same name as you who saved me.”

The moment those words left her lips, I too was at a loss for words.

Until now, no one had known about the previous hero.

Miss Rubia, Siel, Lien—no matter who I asked, no answers came. Neither books nor records held any trace of the hero.

Yet, this unexpected lead came from Lucy.

“…Why on earth did I forget something so important?”

Lucy murmured in a bewildered tone.

Afterward, I questioned her about the previous hero multiple times.

Her story was straightforward.

A man with black hair saved her from a burning mansion that was under attack.

And when she saw his brilliantly shining sword, her younger self instantly realized that the man before her was the legendary hero from the rumors.

She couldn’t recall what happened afterward or why everyone had forgotten about the hero, but…

This alone was a significant discovery.

At least now, I could confirm the existence of a previous hero.

The protagonist of the previous generation undoubtedly existed.

It seemed highly likely they were based on the character I had created.

After all, Ian was a nickname I frequently used. Black hair was the default setting when I didn’t bother customizing the character.

The previous game didn’t mention Lucy or the Valierre family, so the story seemed to have diverged a bit.

But at least the hero’s existence was now certain.

‘In other words, someone deliberately erased the hero from this world.’

How had the original story been twisted?

Who was responsible for this anomaly?

Why were people’s memories erased?

There wasn’t enough evidence yet to answer these questions.

However, the most likely suspect was obvious.

‘What the hell did the Empire do?’

When a troublesome situation arises, blaming the Empire is usually a safe bet.

This time, too, it had to be their doing.

My face naturally contorted into a scowl.

Even Lucy, who had personally witnessed the hero and carried a vivid memory of him, had only just regained her recollection.

This meant someone had cast a mental manipulation spell strong enough to affect someone as powerful as Lucy.

Considering that such mental manipulation could only be performed by high-level magic users like archmages…n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

The sheer scale of what was happening made it impossible to guess the extent of the monstrosity behind it.

The situation was overwhelmingly bleak.

My head spun just thinking about it.

But I brushed off my worries with a single deep breath.

‘In the end, what I need to do hasn’t changed.’

The more hidden truths were uncovered, the clearer it became that the opponents I would face in the future would be formidable.

But sitting still and taking it wasn’t an option. I had to do everything within my power.

All I could do was keep moving, gathering strength and preparing for the eventual apocalypse.

And that, as always, was what I did.

As I walked, lost in thought, a peculiar noise began to echo in my ears.

The sound of hammers striking.

The clanging of metal against metal created a resounding racket.

The lively atmosphere and unique scenery caught my attention.

The blacksmith’s district.

Our destination unfolded before us.

****

In front of us was a row of blacksmith shops.

Lucy and I walked through them side by side.

Though the shock from earlier still lingered, walking down this street was undoubtedly a unique experience.

It was a space I frequently visited in the previous game to gather equipment.

‘Some things have changed, and some haven’t.’

Over the past decade or so, some shops seemed to have closed down, while others continued to operate, albeit with new faces running them.

But there was no use dwelling on the past forever.

Hoping to lift my mood, I decided to check out the state of one of my favorite blacksmith shops from the previous game.

However, instead of noticing the shops, my eyes were drawn to Lucy.

For some reason, she was staring intently at one particular smithy.

“Did something catch your eye?”

Before Lucy could answer, a dwarf approached us.

“You can’t know just by looking, can you?”

The dwarf beckoned us over, encouraging us to take a closer look if we were interested.

It was an exceptionally skilled sales pitch.

After a moment of hesitation, I decided to play along.

‘Well, I did need something like this.’

With the Empire and the final boss increasingly appearing to be linked to the Black Fangs mercenary group I was sheltering, investing in weapons and armor for them didn’t seem like a bad idea.

It wouldn’t hurt to gift my people some high-quality gear.

With that thought, I followed the dwarf into his smithy.

Displayed were swords and armor, each piece dazzling and exuding an air of quality.

The prices were steep, of course. Dwarven-made equipment tended to be that way.

I picked up a sword to inspect it.

“Can I try swinging this?”

I asked, just in case.

“Of course! How else would you know if it suits you without trying it out?”

The dwarf declared confidently.

He seemed awfully assured of his craftsmanship.

I carefully swung the sword, taking great care to avoid any accidents like those that had occurred at the training grounds.

And then… my expression filled with doubt.

‘What’s wrong with this?’

I wasn’t exactly an expert on swords, but even I could tell that something was off about this one.

The balance was completely off.

There was no satisfying sense of sharpness when wielding it.

And that wasn’t the only odd thing.

The label claimed it was made of the rare orichalcum metal.

Yet it was absurdly heavy.

According to the game’s lore, orichalcum was supposed to be lighter and stronger than other metals.

This sword, however, defied all those expectations.

I immediately returned the sword, feeling a strong sense of unease.

Something about it felt... wrong.

As I was just about to leave the smithy, however, the dwarf grabbed my arm.

“What is the meaning of this? How could you treat such a precious sword like this?”

He pointed to a scratch that hadn’t been there when I handed the sword back. A scratch that seemed to have magically appeared just moments ago.

Though his tone was furious, the subtle smirk on his lips betrayed his true intentions.

The situation was obvious.

‘I had a feeling something was off.’

From the beginning, this was likely his plan all along—to lure us into this trap.

As I frowned and prepared to argue with the dwarf about his blatant deceit…

“Do not worry, my lord. I understand your intentions. Leave this matter to me.”

Lucy stepped forward, positioning herself between me and the dwarf.

Her words were calm but decisive.

She was telling me she understood what I wanted and would handle the situation herself.

I hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

‘This could be a good chance to learn more about Lucy.’

Despite the Geass, her unpredictable behavior up until now made her an uneasy subordinate. I was curious to see how she would outmaneuver this con artist.

The moment I nodded, Lucy walked briskly into the smithy.

She declared boldly:

“It was you who said we could test the sword, was it not?”

A logical point. It was, after all, the dwarf himself who had allowed us to try out the sword.

I couldn’t help but be slightly impressed.

Lucy was a warrior, not a strategist, so I hadn’t expected such a sharp rebuttal.

Curious to see how she would follow up, I watched her closely.

And then, Lucy said:

“In that case, I’ll try swinging it myself.”

Her words were... startlingly unexpected.

Lucy grabbed a random sword, exhaled deeply, and assumed a flawless sword-drawing stance.

...It was then that I realized what was about to happen.

But by the time I understood, it was already too late to stop her.

“Third Form: 『Whirlwind Dance』.”

Her sword danced through the air, tracing mesmerizing arcs.

Everything in the smithy—every piece of merchandise, the forge, all the tools, the walls, the pillars—was sliced apart.

-BOOOOOM!

A massive explosion echoed as the entire smithy collapsed in an instant.

The dwarf, I, and everyone else present were left utterly speechless.

Without uttering a single word, Lucy had silenced any argument before it could even begin.

It was, in its way, a perfect form of “persuasion.”

…Though admittedly, it was a bit too physical.

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