Ch 32 - 33

 Chapter 32: Work 

“I am a potion maker from another land. My potions have been 

consumed in royal courts.” 

I said as such to the gate guards, and they greeted me with the 

utmost courtesy. I was even wearing a suspicious-looking mask to 

disguise myself. 

...Should they really be letting such a sketchy person inside so 

easily?! 

When I asked, one of them responded, “If something were to 

happen, you and I would simply lose our heads. Compared to the 

possibility of Master Challotte recovering from his illness, such an 

outcome is of no consequence.” 

‘No consequence,’ my butt! I’d like to keep my head, thank you! 

But to think that even the guard could say such a thing with 

confidence... They really must have been good nobles. Emile and 

Belle’s report must have been right. I wasn’t doubting the accuracy 

of their reports, of course. 

 

And so, one of the guards led me into the manor. This was, needless 

to say, the residence of the Dorivell baronial family. I had heard they 

were looking for doctors and medicine, regardless of their social 

standing, so I decided to visit them straight through their front door. 

In disguise, of course. 

I had changed my hair, eye, and skin color, and had the jewelry I had 

worn when I attended Achille’s party some time ago. The jewelry 

would draw attention away from the rest of my appearance, and it 

would make it harder for them to recognize me without the 

ornaments, just like a girl without the glasses she always wore. 

...I’m so smart! 

 

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Plus, by wearing expensive jewelry, I could signify that I wasn’t 

wanting for money, and make them less likely to suspect me of being 

a swindler attempting a desperate gamble to rip off some rich 

nobles. It helped give me some authority, too. 

And to top it all off, I had my ‘suspicious mask.’ ...This ruined my 

authority and credibility all at once. 

“So, you’re the so-called potion maker from another land. Well? Do 

you mean to tell me that you have the Longevity Medicine?” 

“No, why would I?” 

The baron and the guard standing by near me wore the same 

shocked expression. Oh, and the guard was positioning himself so he 

could seize me right away if I made any suspicious movements. 

Even if they were a lower-class baronial house, one removed from 

any intense political strife and not the type to attract grudges... Even 

then, being the head of a baronial house, he could never be 

completely safe from resentment or unwanted attention. 

Therefore, they would obviously want to avoid any unnecessary 

danger. I may have looked powerless, but I could still be hiding 

weapons or poison. I even called myself a potion maker, so they 

should assume that I could handle poison as well. 

“I do not handle medicines of that sort. My potions are much more 

effective.” 

“Wh-What?! More effective than the Longevity Medicine? It can’t 

be... Well, I have heard of such things in distant lands, but they say 

they are quick to spoil and hard to transport over long distances... 

I’ve also heard this medicine hasn’t been made for quite some time, 

ever since the original creator passed away and its recipe was lost...” 

Huh, this place was quite distant from the Kingdom of Balmore, and I 

didn’t think they would know about it, but he seemed to have pretty 

 

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accurate information about my potions. This information should 

have been limited to the higher-ups, so a lowly baron shouldn’t even 

know about it... 

Well, babbling on with explanations was a waste of time. And if he 

didn’t want to believe me, I didn’t have to force him to take my 

potions. If he refused my help, I would just take my leave. Francette 

might end up a little disappointed, but that couldn’t be helped. 

There was no need to force my medicine on them, and as they say, 

“Those who believe shall be saved,” so I didn’t intend to go out of my 

way to take care of non-believers. 

So... 

*fwsh* 

I gestured as if I was reaching into my pocket and pulled out a single 

bottle. 

“Here’s the healing medicine, the Tears of the Goddess.” 

This wasn’t the potion being sold to the masses in Balmore, but the 

specially-made Tears of the Goddess delivered by the angel herself. 

After all, I wasn’t Shop Owner Kaoru right now, but rather the 

‘angel.’ 

“Huh?” The baron and guard blurted out as they stared at me, wide-

eyed. 

“Wha...” 

Baron Dorivell was completely speechless. 

  

 

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“As I said, this is the healing medicine known as the Tears of the 

Goddess. If you have no need for it, I’ll be taking it home... Oh, and it 

doesn’t keep well, so it will be useless unless it’s taken now.” 

The baron hesitated for just a moment. 

“...Right this way!” 

The baron led me into a child’s room. A boy of about ten lay sick in 

his bed. 

“Challotte, I brought you some new medicine! Drink!” 

Baron Dorivell accepted the potion from me and handed it to his son. 

His hand was trembling slightly, but he focused on not spilling a 

single drop with a look of desperation. Though, honestly, spilling a 

little wouldn’t really have affected the results. It seemed the boy 

wasn’t actually asleep, and sat up to drink down the contents of the 

bottle his father held to his mouth. 

Thinking about it, I did question how this noble was having his son 

drink medicine some strange girl had given him straight away. It 

would have been one thing in Balmore, where the angel and her 

deeds were well known, but... He must really have been out of 

options, or maybe he was just planning on punishing me after the 

fact if I had been lying. Well, maybe he figured not even a child 

would be dumb enough to pull off a stunt like that. Considering he 

had heard about the Tears of the Goddess, he must have been well 

aware of its instantaneous effects, too. 

“Father, I feel better...” 

“Y-You do?! Your fever—How about your fever?” 

He clearly wanted to cry out in jubilation. But, afraid of being let 

down, he was using all his willpower to control his emotions. His face 

 

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cycled rapidly between expressions, the baron still unable to believe 

in the miracle. 

“The haziness and fever seem to be gone...” 

The baron pressed a hand against his son’s head, peered into his 

eyes, checked his tongue, and eventually seemed to understand that 

the illness truly had been cured. Maybe it wasn’t some incurable, 

malignant disease... Well, by the standards of modern Japan, 

anyway. 

But even an illness that could be cured in Japan, probably with a 

single shot or even just a better diet, could easily kill people in a 

lower-level civilization like this one. Especially younger children. 

So, ultimately, I didn’t know what sort of illness this boy had, or 

whether it would have been resolved through natural means, had he 

been left alone. But to this baronial house, I was definitely 

considered the angel of the goddess, the one who had saved their 

son’s life. 

This realization seemed to hit the baron suddenly, and he turned 

toward me and kneeled. Of course, this wasn’t something a noble 

would do for an ordinary potion maker. 

It was probably much easier to believe that I was the angel of the 

goddess, rather than thinking I was some potion-making 12-year-old 

genius who happened to have a miracle medicine with an extremely 

short shelf life, handing it over without even negotiating a price. 

That is, according to the frame of reference possessed by this baron 

and his world... Yeah, I thought so, too. 

“Lady Angel, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for saving my 

son, Challotte...” 

Huh, he went straight to deciding I was the angel without any sort of 

confirmation? Don’t tell me... 

 

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“You know of me?” 

“Yes, I learned of your existence while researching various medicines 

for my son. The miracle medicine, known as the ‘potion,’ was said to 

have circulated in and around the Kingdom of Balmore for several 

years. They say a scary-look...children cri...girl with sharp eyes...was 

heavily involved in the creation and distribution of said potions. Then 

there were rumors of a girl with terrify... I mean, intense eyes, who 

was said to have stood in the shadows during the defeat and 

miraculous resurgence of the Aligot Empire four years ago, along 

with the fall of the Holy Land of Rueda and the glorious appearance 

of the Goddess Celestine. Also, there were the hidden workings of 

the secret organization, the Eyes of the Goddess, and the angel’s 

salvation for the pure of heart... With our country being so far away, 

only the upper echelons seem to have grasped the full story, but 

even a lower-class noble of little means like myself can obtain such 

information, when possessed of desperate determination to save my 

child...” 

...Okay, I get it! You don’t have to put in so much effort to avoid 

saying my eyes are scary! 

It makes me feel worse when you have to try so hard to be 

considerate about it! 

...Damn it. 

Well then, my job was done. 

Time to go! 

“Well, I’ve done what I came here to do, so I’ll be excusing myself 

now...” 

“Please wait! It would sully my honor if you were to leave without 

me repaying you! I beg of you, allow me to express my gratitude 

somehow!” the baron pleaded desperately. 

 

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Well, I suppose that was to be expected. I’m sure he didn’t want to 

part ways forever after this one meeting, but it seemed he truly did 

want to thank me, so I decided to accept the usual: a small gift that 

he could manage without putting a strain on himself. I also had to 

make sure he kept quiet about this. 

“First, I want you to promise you will never tell another soul about 

me. I don’t want to deal with rude people with empty hearts, and I 

am not a fan of laying waste to entire countries... Though, really, it 

doesn’t seem to bother Celes.” 

“Y-Y-Yes, of course! I swear by the Goddess herself!” 

Wow, he actually seems terrified... 

But I guess that was to be expected. There were many myths and 

legends of Celes destroying whole nations. In fact, the tale of how 

she left a scar on this very land was actually a true story. 

“And, hmm... Well then, I’ll accept some information as a token of 

your gratitude.” 

“...Information?” The baron looked at me with a blank expression. I 

mean, he was probably wondering what sort of information the 

angel could possibly want. 

“Do you know of any royalty in this country who suffer from a 

serious illness or injury?” 

He seemed to understand why I was asking the question. 

“N-No, not in the royal families, or among the ducal families, for that 

matter. Though, if they were keeping such news private, I would 

naturally not be aware of it...” 

Yeah, he was just a baron after all. He wouldn’t know about the 

private affairs of the higher-ups unless he was investigating specific 

families. He must have spent a lot of money and effort to get 

information about the angel and potions, too. 

 

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“What about the noble houses of marquisate rank and lower?” 

“Yes, there are several. Elderly heads of house, who have already 

passed their titles to their heirs; sick and feeble children; those who 

were injured while on horseback or in conflicts with other fiefs; those 

with lung diseases and other illnesses... When you include lower-

class nobles, life peers, and their dependents, it adds up to quite a 

lot of people.” 

I thought so... 

“So, what would you do if those people demanded that you tell them 

how your son was cured, or insisted that you introduce them to the 

potion maker who helped you?” 

Yes, this was what I was really worried about. 

The baron likely would have kept my secret if left unmolested, but I 

would have felt bad if he suffered for it. 

“Oh, you needn’t worry about that... That I’ve been searching far and 

wide for medicine, for skilled apothecaries, and have consequently 

gotten involved with charlatans, is quite well known. So, if I say one 

of them healed my son, no one could be certain which of them 

happened to have succeeded, and no one would expect me to know 

where some vagrant potion maker might be. And, just in case...” 

With that, the baron looked me in the eye and spoke with a serious 

expression. 

“Please tell me the following: ‘If anyone asks about me and tries to 

force you to speak, I will first kill them and their entire family. I will 

only speak to them afterward.’ There would be no need to actually 

carry this out, of course. The purpose is so I can say that this is what 

I’ve been told.” 

The heck is that?! How are they supposed to speak to me after I 

killed them? 

 

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Besides, their injured and sick would be dead by that point, so there 

would be no need for the angel or the Tears of the Goddess! 

Though, that would resolve the issue... 

“Please do not worry. I won’t ever reveal anything, so there will 

never be any need for you to spill blood in this particular instance.” 

... ‘In this particular instance’? He made it sound like I’d been 

slaughtering people left and right! Come on, now... Did he assume I 

was like Celes because of her particular history? I wasn’t the type to 

decimate entire countries just because I got a little fed up! ...Wait, 

had I done that once? No, no, I only flipped over a nation’s entire 

structure. It wasn’t as if I massacred its people and destroyed the 

entire land. 

I’m not like Celes, I swear! 

Well, whatever. Don’t fret over the small stuff! 

“All right, then. Here it goes. ‘If anyone asks about me and tries to 

force you to speak, I will first kill them and their entire family. I will 

only speak to them afterward.’ Good?” 

“Yes, thank you!” 

  

 

 

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All right, my job here is done. 

“Well then, I’ll be...” 

“Please wait!” 

Again?! 

“I ask that you at least accept this as thanks!” 

With that, he held out a small, weighty-looking leather bag. 

It looked just like one of those bags of gold you see people hand out 

as they say, ‘Here’s your reward!’ ...Wait, that’s exactly what it was! 

When did he even have a chance to get that ready? ...Hey, there’s 

a butler-looking guy standing behind the baron! Where’d he come 

from?! 

But he was a lower-class noble, and must have spent quite a lot of 

money looking for a cure for his son... He was probably using up all 

his available funds and grasping at straws for rumors that weren’t all 

that believable, or treatments that probably wouldn’t work, hoping 

against hope... I would have felt bad for putting more financial strain 

on him. It wasn’t as if I was wanting for money, anyway. 

“No, I don’t accept those types of payments. I only take small tokens 

of... Oh, I know!” 

With that, I took the leather pouch and loosened the strap that held 

it closed. Then I dumped out its contents onto the table. 

Ahh, this hand-feel! It was the ‘leather bag for gold coins’ reward 

that I’ve always wanted! 

“I’ll be taking this!” 

“Huh? Wh-What...?” 

The baron was dumbfounded. But I didn’t care! 

 

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This texture is absolutely amazing! Could it be buckskin? Or 

leather from some slain monster, to keep the cost low? 

In any case, this was quite enough for my ‘token of gratitude.’ I was 

way happier with this than I would have been with some Chanel bag! 

Yes, I know, I could have just asked someone where to buy a bag like 

this. But I wanted something to remember this meeting by. Though, 

to be honest, I couldn’t really think of anything else to accept as 

thanks. 

I decided to provide a follow-up explanation. 

“The coins in the bag were full of the love and care that the parents 

and servants of this house have for this child, and full of gratitude for 

the Goddess. This bag is brimming with the love that has been 

imbued into it by the coins... Are you familiar with a dish known as 

simmered beril and daikon?” 

“Y-Yes, I’ve had it before...” 

Beril was a fish that was a lot like buri... In fact, it could have been 

the same exact fish. I couldn’t tell the minute differences apart, but 

when I ate it, it seemed like the same fish. And daikon was, well, 

Japanese radish. 

With my automatic translation ability, the fish came up in my mind 

as “beril,” and the plant came up as “daikon,” though it could have 

been that it was something else entirely, but I didn’t know the 

distinction. 

What was the difference?! 

...Anyway, “simmered beril and daikon” was basically simmered buri 

and daikon. Even though he was a lower-class noble, I was a bit 

surprised that the baron had eaten this dish before. It was totally 

considered ‘commoner food.’ Well, it meant there wasn’t any need 

for explanations, so that was fine by me. 

 

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“Then I’m certain you will understand. With that dish, the beril 

seems to be the main component, but that’s not the case. The 

daikon, which has absorbed the beril’s umami, is the star of the 

show! The beril is nothing more than a component. Likewise, the 

Goddess will appreciate this leather bag that has soaked up your love 

and faith, far more than she would have the gold that has given it up 

already. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I will take my leave.” 

There, a perfect follow-up. I’d successfully evaded the baron’s gift of 

coins without making him look bad. 

This time, I can finally retreat in good order! 

 

At the baron’s house, after Kaoru had left... 

“I see... The pouch that has absorbed our thoughts and feelings has 

far greater worth than the gold coins... Are you kidding me?!” the 

baron shouted out loudly. 

“Indeed...” his butler replied, with an awkward smile, “That must 

have been...” 

“Yes. A ruse on the angel’s part, out of consideration for our financial 

situation. An incredibly obvious one, at that... She may be good at 

performing miracles, but she’s completely lacking in acting ability. 

With her s-strange mask...” 

Then he stood from his seat and went down on his knees again to 

pray, sobbing all the while, while the butler left the room in silence. 

＊ ＊ 

When I returned from the baron’s place, my guards were waiting for 

me. This time, it was the full cast of fighters: Francette, Roland, and 

Emile. I’d never consider Belle a fighter, since she’d die trying to take 

one enemy down with her. And so, Belle stayed behind to watch the 

shop with Layette. 

 

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The others stayed away from me, of course. They would have ruined 

the whole point of my disguise if they had been hovering around me. 

It would have been a dead giveaway, so they had to keep some 

distance between us and act like strangers, at least until I found 

some secluded place to remove my disguise. 

They had been waiting outside, just in case something went wrong at 

the baron’s house, but I doubt there were many in this world who 

would dare try something with me. And by ‘try something,’ I mean to 

try taking advantage of me, knowing that I am the angel. That would 

be one easy way to incur Celes’ wrath. Celes was pretty quick to 

anger, and had no reservations about killing humans. The people of 

this world were well aware of this. 

There were several well-known examples in the recent past, and 

there was a painful reminder left over in the form of a scar on the 

continent. 

Yeah, no. No thanks to using that sort of force. 

Anyway, it was time for me to go home and prepare dinner. 

＊ ＊ 

I closed down the shop for the day to go out with everyone. The 

destination? A pasture in the suburbs. It was about time I went to 

pay a visit, or they were going to get upset again. By “they,” I mean 

Ed and the others. 

So, the six of us went to practice horseback riding. 

 

“Ed, we’re here!” 

“Ohh, you’re here!” 

“Welcome.” 

“Got any sugar cubes, Big Sis Kaoru?” 

 

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Ed’s family seemed to be the same as ever. 

  

 

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“How’s life here?” 

“The food is great here, thanks to you paying extra, and we can roam 

the riding grounds and grass fields freely, and I can always be with 

my family, so I’m more than happy! I love the looks of envy the 

others have been giving me, too!” 

“Ahaha...” 

Roland and Francette were bonding with their own horses next to us. 

Oh, and they were also getting fed the special food, like corn, 

carrots, apples, and sugar cubes, of course. I had given the sugar 

cubes to the manager myself. 

...He may have been taking a cut for himself, but I was willing to let it 

slide a little. As long as it was just for his family and he wasn’t 

reselling them, that is. 

Roland and Francette were apparently the type to really care for 

their horses, brushing and providing a lot of physical contact and 

affection. They were well cared for, thanks to the additional fees I’d 

been paying, but this was something else altogether. 

The horses were saying, “Not like that! Brush along the hairs with 

more gentleness and love!” but I decided not to tell them. 

Emile and Belle rode Ed’s wife and daughter to lightly trot around the 

area, while I had Layette ride Ed. Ed’s daughter may have been 

smaller and easier to ride than Ed, but I had more experience with 

riding Ed, so I felt more confident in trusting him with Layette. 

You never knew what kind of unexpected mistake could occur with 

the combination of an inexperienced rider and a horse, so I wouldn’t 

have felt at ease otherwise. 

I told Ed as such, and he said, “That’s right, you totally get it,” with a 

satisfied expression. 

 

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We usually traveled by chariot, but there were times when we rode 

together with Layette in my arms, and she might have to ride by 

herself in an emergency some time. 

I explained this to Ed and Layette, and told them to master how to 

ride fast while prioritizing their safety. And with me translating Ed’s 

comments to Layette, Layette quickly improved her riding skills, just 

like I had. 

Afterwards, I had Belle and Layette train to escape with the two of 

them riding one horse. This was in preparation for a potential 

scenario in which I was buying time with Ed while Belle helped 

Layette escape. They protested that they would never run away 

without me, but when I insisted that it was an order, they reluctantly 

did as they were told. 

Though, in this scenario, I’d actually be making them retreat not so I 

could buy some time, but because I wouldn’t want them to see how 

terribly I’d end up devastating the opponent. 

 

“...Well? What is it, Ed?” 

“Huh...?” 

“There’s something you want to discuss or ask of me, isn’t there? I 

know you, Ed. I can tell. There’s no need for modesty between us. 

Just spit it out while we’re alone over here. Though... it would just 

sound like neighing to them, even if they were in earshot.” 

“Guess nothing gets past you...” 

After hesitating for a moment, Ed opened his mouth. 

“Thing is, there’s a good-natured old guy here at this pasture. He’s 

really nice, telling me all sorts of funny stories and keeping my 

daughter entertained with his chats. But one day, he fell asleep while 

laying out in the sun. He said in his sleep... ‘This is revenge for my 

 

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master!’ ‘Miss, that’s the murderer!’ I realized there were tears 

running down his face...” 

Hmm, maybe this old man’s a caretaker for the horses? Someone 

with a complicated past... 

“Unlike humans, we horses don’t shed tears often. Only for 

something real serious.” 

...Wait, this “old guy” was a horse?! 

Oh, he did mention that they were talking to each other. Of course it 

was a horse. 

“This old guy’s going to be put down soon. He can’t pull carriages, 

carry riders, or be a workhorse at the farm anymore. But still... Still. I 

want to do something for him! When he goes, I want him to go with 

a smile, satisfied with the life he lived!” 

 

“Ed... have you realized?” 

“Huh? Realized what?” 

“You’re shedding tears right now...” 

If Ed felt so strongly about it, I couldn’t stand by and do nothing. 

After all, Ed was my beloved horse, friend... and brother in arms. 

  

 

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All right, I’ll do it! 

“My mount and sacred horse, Ed, I will grant your wish. Stand by my 

side and strike down the immoral!” 

“It would be my honor...” 

“We will help as well, Ed!” Roland and Francette’s horses neighed. 

Were they trying to get on my good side because I’m a goddess? Or 

maybe they wanted Ed’s favor because they’re into his daughter... 

Oh, well. The greater the numbers, the better. 

This was a request from my own horse, so I couldn’t involve 

Francette, Roland, Emile, or Belle. I was doing this for my own 

reasons, so I didn’t want to drag unrelated people into it. But these 

two horses had offered to help the old horse of their own accord, so 

I didn’t mind accepting their assistance. 

It wasn’t as if they’d need to do anything, so they’d be out of harm’s 

way, anyhow. They’d simply be accomplices in this. 

So... 

“Okay. Everyone, we need to keep this a secret from Roland, 

Francette, and the others, so laugh together with me to avoid 

suspicion. Ready? Aaand...” 

“Breeehehehe!” neighed the horses, completely naturally. 

“Ahahaha!” 

 

If you suddenly saw your horse walk over to me, exchange some 

words, then start laughing in an exaggerated way... 

Yeah, you’d probably have that look on your face. That dubious, 

judging expression... 

 

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When Roland and Francette asked me what our conversation had 

been about, I told them that my jokes even land on horses, but it was 

a pun that only worked in their language, so humans wouldn’t 

understand. 

Ed pointed out the old horse in question, and I told the others I was 

going to check in with the other horses to make sure Ed had been 

behaving. 

 

“Are you Carlos?” 

“Wha—?! A talking human? Impossible!” 

... 

...... 

I suppose that was the expected reaction... 

Oh, well. I’m not really a human, anyway. All right, mode change 

time! 

“I am a friend of Celestine, the goddess of this world. You are Carlos, 

I presume?” 

“L-Lady Goddess! I am not worthy!” 

The old horse, Carlos, lowered his head in a hurry. 

“I have given my sacred horse, Ed, time to rest and spend time with 

his family in this world, but he has brought me here to fulfill a 

personal request. He claims you have been good to him, and asks 

that I grant your wish... So, as a reward for his hard work, I have 

decided to grant him his request. Now, what is it you desire?” 

Yeah, I’ll go with this setting this time. This should get him to speak 

openly. 

...But were these really horses I was dealing with? 

 

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Do horses really have a language that allows them to communicate 

so comprehensively? Just with a combination of neighs and snorts? 

They say horses are less intelligent than dogs, and dogs are 

supposedly as smart as three-year-old humans, putting them lower 

than cats, but above rabbits, in the intelligence tier list. 

Though, I’m sure there are differences between each individual, and 

it varies by type of intelligence... like numbers, pattern recognition, 

memory, and comprehension... making it hard to make a sweeping 

generalization, but... 

It was still strange that we could have such advanced communication 

like this. Celes must have... 

No, no, don’t think about it! This is just how it is! Don’t dig too 

deep into it! Just let the small details slide. In fact, don’t worry about 

the big details, either.  

It was a bit late to start thinking about this, after I had talked with Ed 

and the others so often. 

 

“Now, tell me. What is your wish...?” 

“M-My wish... Th-That is...” 

“Yes?” 

“The young mistress! My wish is to save her!” 

Thought so... 

Then, Carlos began explaining. 

He was once a riding horse who belonged to a certain noble family. 

When he was five years old, the noble husband and wife had another 

child after having their firstborn son. 

Ten years later, Carlos was given to this daughter, due to his gentle 

nature and many years of experience as a riding horse. 

 

128 

Being late in his years, the parents must have figured Carlos wouldn’t 

run around recklessly. Fifteen years was quite old for a horse, after 

all. He wasn’t a stud suitable for breeding, and since he didn’t have 

any offspring of his own, Carlos saw this ten-year-old human girl like 

he would his own child or granddaughter. 

He spent his days peacefully, fulfilling his role as this noble girl’s 

riding horse, which was likely to be the last duty given to him. 

These quiet days continued, as he thought they would until he met 

his eventual end. That’s what he thought, anyway. 

Until, one day... 

 

When the girl was fourteen years old and Carlos was nineteen, the 

carriage the family was riding in was attacked. Her parents and 

brother all lost their lives, leaving only the girl, who had stayed at 

home. 

Her grandparents were already deceased, making the girl the sole 

survivor, with no close family to care for her. Then, her father’s 

younger brother—in other words, her uncle—came into her house, 

claimed that his older brother had told him to take care of the girl if 

something ever happened to him, and demanded her hand in 

marriage. 

The girl said she would do what her father had wanted and thus 

obeyed. But one day, when the girl and her uncle passed by the 

stable, two carriage horses said in surprise: 

“That’s the guy who was ordering the attackers around...” 

Carlos heard as much clearly with his own ears. The girl had 

explained the details to him after her family had passed away. She 

had always told him everything, though she was mostly speaking to 

herself. She didn’t care whether her horse understood her or not. 

 

129 

“Say, Carlos. I don’t like my uncle very much, but if it’s my father’s 

wish, I will marry him and protect this house. Stay by my side, okay, 

Carlos? Don’t ever leave me...” 

He still remembered the words she had said to him while stroking his 

hair. 

This was a difficult request for a horse, which has a shorter life 

expectancy than a human, and this was an aged horse, at that. But 

Carlos wanted to do what he could to make her wish come true. 

Carlos felt the blood rising to his head. Something burned within 

him, like all the blood in his entire body was boiling over. 

And in contrast, there was a heavy, cold lump deep inside him. 

Anger. 

Hate. 

And again, anger. 

When the uncle went to the stable by himself to go out one day, 

Carlos tried and failed to kick him to death, and unfamiliar humans 

had taken him away and brought him out here the next day. 

He figured the people here were allowing him to live out his final 

days in peace, out of simple kindness. His life would soon come to an 

end, and he would depart from this world. 

But if there was such a thing as souls and the afterlife... If it was 

possible to curse a man to death with sheer anger and hate... If such 

a thing as demons existed in this world... 

...I shall become the devil himself, and drag him straight to hell! 

 

Heavy. That was... very heavy. But all I could say was one thing: 

“Very well, leave it to me. You shall have your revenge...” 

 

130 

Oh, no. This makes me sound more like a malevolent god than a 

goddess. 

I left Carlos behind as he dexterously bent his legs to prostrate 

himself, and joined the others. 

Then, I reported what had happened to Ed and the horse crew. This 

was all in horse language, so Francette and the others obviously 

didn’t understand what I said. 

For my report, I told them... 

“Vengeance is mine.” 

This wasn’t a reference to the title of a famous movie. It actually 

originated from a passage in the New Testament, which essentially 

meant, “Humans aren’t the ones who bring retribution to humans. It 

is my role as God.” 

“Okay, everyone, laugh!” 

If they were to lower their heads or act meekly here, Francette or 

Emile might not have noticed anything, but Roland was pretty sharp, 

so he may have found it suspicious. So, just like earlier, I wanted to 

make them think I had cracked another joke. 

“Breeehehehe!!!” I laughed along with the three horses, excluding 

Ed’s wife and child. 

Roland and Francette gave me a look, but I totally ignored them. 

Afterwards, I had the others continue bonding with their horses, and 

I headed toward the caretaker’s office. I told them I was going to 

discuss the horses’ care and settle payments, so no one tried to 

follow me. There was no perceived threat here, and everyone 

wanted to cherish their time with their horses, so this was to be 

expected. 

 

131 

That was exactly why I had used an unexciting reason for leaving 

anyway. 

 

“Please sell me that old horse named Carlos!” 

I didn’t know when Carlos would finally be put down if I didn’t do 

something about it. I decided it would be best for me to buy him, just 

in case. A nineteen-year-old horse was about eighty in human years. 

He couldn’t be too expensive. 

“He’s a mild-mannered and intelligent horse, but he’s quite 

advanced in his years.” 

“I understand that. I intend for him to spend his days gently 

interacting with humans, rather than doing any physical labor... For 

the time he has left, that is...” 

The old custodian’s eyes widened a bit as if out of surprise, then he 

lowered his head. 

“...Please, take good care of him.” 

He knew I was someone who didn’t mind spending money on my 

horses, considering I was already paying a higher rate to ensure that 

Ed was well taken care of. And I was clearly a wealthy customer, 

seeing as how I was paying for the care of five horses by myself. 

Being polite to a good customer was just common sense. 

But it seemed that wasn’t all. Taking care of animals is hard work. 

Considering how he was still doing this all the way out in the 

outskirts at his age, he must have held a deep love for horses, or 

animals in general. 

So, when an old horse that could no longer work, one that was just 

waiting to be put down, could live out its final days happily with a 

horse-loving, rich customer, there was no way he wouldn’t be happy 

about that. 

 

132 

He must have had his guard down from that happiness right now. 

Now was my chance! 

“How did Carlos end up here?” 

“Oh, you see, he was a riding horse for a noble house for a long time, 

but once he became old, he tried to harm the new master of the 

house, and was sent here to be disposed of... But like the other 

horses of the Viscount Raphael’s house, Carlos has been under my 

care for many years, and I simply cannot believe such a thing to be 

true! Carlos is smart, gentle, and loves people... But I could not 

refuse the orders his owner gave to dispose of him. So, I thought I 

could at least let him live out his final days in peace...” 

He’s tearing up. What a nice person... 

Oh, but... 

“If he ordered you to dispose of him, won’t you get in trouble for 

selling him?” 

To which he answered, “Ah, but his orders were, ‘Dispose of this 

horse. The money you get for selling the meat should be enough 

payment for your trouble.’ Which means that there is no issue with 

me selling Carlos and receiving payment for the meat. After all, as he 

said, I am ‘disposing’ of him and getting paid for the ‘meat.’ Whether 

that ‘meat’ is dead or alive is up to my personal discretion.” 

Wow, he’s all smiles right now... 

“But wouldn’t it be bad for you if the viscount finds out?” 

“...Is that an issue?” 

He was more concerned about this old horse than displeasing the 

viscount’s house! Maybe he empathized with Carlos, being in his 

later years himself? But I didn’t mind dealing with people like that. 

All right, leave it to me! 

 

133 

“...So, will you opt for the additional rates for Carlos as well?” 

Oh, right, he’ll be considered my horse now, too. 

“Yes, please. I’d like his meals, brushing, and grazing conditions to be 

the same as the other five horses.” 

There, now I’d secured Carlos’s safety. I’d even found out the name 

of his former owner. The nouns the horses used weren’t much help 

to me, after all. 

Yes, everything was going just as planned... 

＊ ＊ 

“...Even if it costs my life!” recited Emile and Belle together. 

“Like I said, your lives are more important to me than a request from 

a horse I just met!” 

No matter how many times I told them not to, these fools always 

tried to prioritize any little request from me over their own lives. 

That’s why I had to be extremely cautious about any order or request 

I gave them... 

“How many times do I have to say this?! It would be a huge loss for 

me if any of you were to die! Can you really call yourselves loyal if 

you’re willing to just throw away two of my subjects?” 

“Urgh...” they groaned, dejectedly. 

I’ve been through this routine so many times. When are they 

going to learn...? 

 

I’d learned that it was impossible for a complete amateur like me to 

covertly gather intel. As such, I had no choice but to enlist Emile and 

Belle, and just let the specialists do their work. Leave rice cakes to 

the rice cake shop, as they say. 

 

134 

Emile and Belle were members of the Eyes of the Goddess, an 

organization that supported those of my activities that bring 

salvation to the good of heart. You could say that this specific task 

would bring salvation to these two in particular, who had been 

feeling down from me not giving them any work, so whatever. 

Francette and Roland could start saying this or that if they found out, 

and I didn’t want to drag them into my personal matters or things 

involving the nobility and their betrothed, so I decided to keep them 

out of it. I had to make sure they didn’t find out... 

Layette? Well, she was always with me, so... Haha... 

“Anyway, my first order is, ‘No dying.’ 

“My second order is, ‘I’ll allow some degree of injury, but you are to 

avoid getting seriously hurt by any means necessary.’ 

“My third order is, ‘Maintain secrecy.’ 

“And the fourth is, ‘Gather information.’ 

“Don’t overextend yourselves. If you sense even a little danger, you 

must retreat immediately and report what you’ve found up to that 

point. If you’re caught, or if it seems like you can’t escape, declare 

that you’re a servant of the Goddess and bring whoever caught you 

to me. That way, I can get you back, along with the information 

you’ve obtained, and the enemy will be in my court. If you resist and 

end up getting killed, I’ll lose all of that. Which outcome do you think 

would be more beneficial to me?” 

“...Us coming back alive...” said the two, in a dull monotone. 

There, that should be enough to prevent them from doing anything 

stupid. It always takes so much effort to deal with them... 

“Okay then, focus on the main objectives. I’ll leave the rest to you 

two.” 

 

135 

I sent Emile and Belle out to gather intel, and now all I had to do was 

wait. 

Oh, but it wasn’t like they were going to infiltrate a noble’s manor or 

anything like that. That would’ve been a quick way to get them 

killed. 

Their specialty was acting like bystanders who just happened to be 

present, listening in on conversations, and manipulating 

conversations as if just making small talk, in order to get the 

information they wanted. Before, they also used that they were 

children as a tool for deceiving people, but Emile didn’t have that 

option now that he was an adult. 

Belle, on the other hand, could apparently still pull it off... 

I wondered if she looked up at people with her puppy-dog eyes and 

said something like, “Please, mister!” If I tried that, they’d probably 

think I was picking a fight, and I’d end up making them angry... 

＊ ＊ 

“...So, that horse, Carlos, was handed over to the pasture about two 

months ago to be disposed of. It was right after the viscount’s family 

carriage was attacked by bandits, and the uncle began staying at 

their house. The viscount’s daughter will turn fifteen, making her an 

adult, in four months. We still have time.” 

I didn’t think Carlos had much time left, so I was right in assuming 

that it hadn’t been very long since the incident. I was relieved. 

The daughter not being of age yet was fortunate, too. Since she 

wasn’t married due to age rather than a refusal, the uncle probably 

wouldn’t try to force her into marriage before she turned fifteen. He 

only had to wait a little longer to get married officially, so it was 

unlikely that he would do something to cause problems or make her 

hate him. The people of this world were pretty accepting of that sort 

 

136 

of thing, but royalty and titled nobility really valued lineage, so they 

cared about having a “pure” bride... 

This didn’t really apply to mistresses, but when it came to a lawful 

wife whose child could become the heir, she was expected to be 

completely celibate... Though I guess that goes without saying. In any 

case, we still had four months until the daughter’s marriage, so we’d 

be fine until then. 

You could even fix a jet plane in four whole months! 

“And they have two riding horses, four carriage horses, and two 

carriages. It seems they’ve had all of the horses for over two years. In 

addition, they have three guard dogs, which are also used for 

hunting foxes. The daughter, who loves animals, has been helping 

with their care.” 

All right, let’s start from there. 

＊ ＊ 

“An animal doctor?” 

“Indeed, with the teachings that have been passed down through 

our family line, I am able to check your animals for any issues of the 

mind and body, and thus resolve them.” 

A suspicious individual had visited the house of Viscount Raphael. 

Pale skin, chestnut hair, and kindly, drooping blue eyes. 

This was, of course, Kaoru. 

She had changed the color of her skin, hair, and eyes with a potion, 

and used adhesive and exceptional makeup skills to force her eyes, 

which were normally turned up at the corners, to droop down 

instead. 

  

 

 

137 

 

138 

  

Kaoru was a 22-year-old working adult in her previous life, so she did 

know how to use makeup. She preferred not to cake the makeup on, 

opting instead for a natural look, but she was capable of 

transforming herself to a degree that could be considered trickery, if 

she wanted. Especially now that she had things like “cosmetics-type 

potions that fix skin blemishes”... 

Hair and skin colors were one thing, but with the change in her eye 

shape, no one would ever see this girl and know it was Kaoru. 

...Which wasn’t too surprising, considering her entire raison d’être 

had been changed. 

“You look suspicious... Well, just wait here for now. You might end 

up entertaining the mistress, so I’ll at least announce you. But if this 

ends up being some sort of scam, you’ll get what’s coming to you...” 

With that, one of the guards disappeared into the manor. The other 

stayed to keep an eye on this suspicious girl. 

 

“Well then, I’ll start checking for issues now.” 

“You’d better not be planning on saying nothing was wrong, then 

charging us anyway,” the young retainer responded mockingly to 

Kaoru’s comment. 

...I say ‘young,’ but he was probably in his late twenties or early 

thirties. 

Other than Kaoru and this retainer, an old man on stable duty, an 

aging man who seemed to be a butler, and the daughter of Viscount 

Raphael—rather, the present head of House Raphael, Mariel—were 

in the stable, bringing the total to five people. The uncle in question 

wasn’t present. 

 

139 

All right, just as planned! It’s only been about two months since 

she lost her family. She should still be burdened with sorrow and 

confusion from the loss, so her retainers won’t miss this chance to 

cheer her up, considering her love for animals. I knew I wouldn’t be 

turned away at the gates! 

Of course, even if she had been, she would have just come up with 

another plan. 

This is why Kaoru had gone in with an optimistic attitude, and ended 

up being surprised that her first attempt had actually worked out. 

“...Now, let us begin.” 

Kaoru ignored the retainer’s words, facing the six horses with a 

serious expression. 

 

“I am Kaoru. I have come here to fulfill the wish of my devout 

servant, Carlos. Which of you wishes to avenge your master?” 

“Whaaaaaaaaat?!” the six horses shouted in surprise. 

“C-Carlos... Even in death, you think of our young mistress... A-

Aaaaaaahhh!” 

“I couldn’t do anything, despite still being alive... I’m so ashamed...” 

Tears fell from the eyes of the horses. 

“We would do anything for our master and the young miss!” 

“We, too, swear loyalty and shall become sacred horses as Carlos 

did!” 

“Uoooooohhh!” the horses wailed together. 

“Oh, Carlos is still alive.” 

“Whaaaaaaaaat?!” they yelled, their wailing stopping abruptly. 

 

140 

The household of Viscount Raphael simply watched the horses 

getting riled up, entirely dumbfounded... 

 

  

  

 

 

141 

Chapter 33: Road to Revenge 

Something was clearly off. 

The mysterious girl and horses continued to neigh and whinny back 

and forth. The only possible explanation was that they were 

communicating somehow, and the horses were reacting extremely 

strangely as a result. 

The members of the viscount’s household remained frozen in 

confusion, but the current head of the house, Mariel, was the only 

one motionless due to an emotion other than surprise. 

Ahh, if only I had met this girl sooner! Maybe I could have talked 

to Carlos before he died... 

Apparently, Mariel had been told that Carlos had died suddenly and 

unexpectedly. 

Kaoru’s conversation with the horses continued, regardless of what 

was going through the minds of the others. 

“Oh, I came in here claiming to be a veterinarian. I need to do 

something to make it look believable. Do any of you have any injuries 

or illnesses? I’ll make you all better. If you have anything you want to 

tell these humans, I can relay those messages too.” 

“Really?!” the horses said. 

Then, they conversed for a while in neighs and whinnies. 

“This horse says, ‘A horrible man whipped me needlessly just to work 

out his frustration. My butt still hurts.’ Did someone lend this horse 

to a piece of trash who abuses animals?” 

“Wha...” the humans replied, stunned. 

The only person I could think of was that uncle in question. 

 

142 

“And this other riding horse says, ‘My knee hurts because the man 

who sold Carlos to a stable to dispose of him rides very 

aggressively.’” 

“Ah!” said Mariel, having been rendered nearly speechless by the 

first half of Kaoru’s comment. 

“Oh...” the butler and old stable keeper said quietly. They had frozen 

up, as the truth they had decided to keep secret from the young 

mistress had just been revealed. 

But the bombs didn’t end there. If that had been a 50-kilo bomb, the 

next one would be an atom bomb. 

“And this carriage horse seems to be experiencing some mental 

anguish. ‘I hate that I have to let the killer of my master and his 

family ride me. The young mistress is being deceived. I don’t want 

her riding with him...’” 

“Whaaaaaat!!!” they all yelled out. 

They were shocked. Dazed. 

“Wh-Wha... What do you mean...?” 

“I mean, that’s what the horse is saying. I don’t know anything about 

it. You should also be aware of their other concerns...” 

Mariel was trembling, all the color drained from her face. The butler 

should have been supporting her, for fear of her falling over, but he 

was too preoccupied with his own worries. 

“The carriage leans to the left due to a faulty wheel, which makes it 

hard for the horses to run. This one’s saddle has a thorn in it, so he 

wants you to take it out. They also want apples and corn in their food 

every day, and sweets every once in a while.” 

Each of the things Kaoru pointed out were confirmed to be accurate 

by the stable keeper. A wound that seemed to be caused by a whip 

on a horse’s rear. A horse that had been favoring its left leg to keep 

 

143 

pressure off the right. A splinter stuck in a saddle. The left wheel of 

the carriage wasn’t turning smoothly... 

Did that mean the girl was right about the other things, as well? 

Could the horses really have told her such things, and could they be 

true? 

“...” 

The silence, which had only lasted a dozen seconds, felt like an 

eternity. A never-ending, dragging silence... 

Mariel seemed to finally reboot afterward, and asked Kaoru to 

translate for the horses. It was obvious what she wanted to ask 

about... 

 

“...Is what they said,” Kaoru finished interpreting for the horses. 

Previously, they had conducted various experiments, such as 

blocking Kaoru’s view of the horses by standing between them and 

making her turn the other way while keeping an eye on her, then 

having Kaoru order them to do complex movements and to neigh a 

specific number of times. 

They also asked her things that only the stable keeper would know. 

Her credibility was proven without a shadow of a doubt. Silence filled 

the room again. They knew who the culprit was, but there was 

nothing they could do... 

They could publicly accuse him, but the only proof they had was the 

word of some strange girl saying that the horses told her so. No one 

would take that seriously. The others had only heard horse noises, so 

this suspicious girl could just say whatever she wanted. And even if 

the horses could testify in the human tongue, they belonged to the 

person making the accusation, so they wouldn’t be credible 

witnesses. 

 

144 

They needed something concrete that would be considered usable 

evidence by everyone. It was impossible to match fingerprints or 

extract DNA from hair in this world; even if that technology did exist, 

it wouldn’t help find the culprit in this case. After all, the general 

population and those who conducted the trial wouldn’t understand 

their significance. 

“What should we do...?” 

Mariel’s question wasn’t the query of someone who was actually at a 

loss for what to do. There was really only one thing to do; the 

question was how she could accomplish it for certain. Mariel didn’t 

mean to ask what they should do about this situation, as such, but 

how to make it a reality. This was evident by the look in her eyes. 

She intends to do whatever it takes... 

It originally seemed that she had gotten married to her uncle as part 

of simply going with the flow, without ever thinking for herself, but 

that didn’t seem to be the case. It turned out that she thought it was 

what her parents wanted. That must be why she had agreed to a 

marriage she didn’t even want. 

But if that was a lie, and her parents had never truly wanted such a 

thing... And if the very man who had tricked her was responsible for 

the death of her parents and brother... 

Kaoru had considered withdrawing from this whole ordeal if Mariel 

was hesitant to do anything about it. She could create a potion that 

would make everyone involved forget about everything that had 

transpired in the last few minutes. The girl could marry her family’s 

killer and live a modestly happy life. 

Surely, she wouldn’t mind such a fate. Ignorance is bliss, after all. 

Carlos would be taken care of for the remainder of his life, at least so 

long as that old man was paid. Assuming the old man didn’t die first, 

that is. That said, Carlos was quite old himself, and it was far more 

 

145 

likely for a horse, which has a shorter life span than a human, to pass 

away first. 

But this girl was prepared to take action. There was no sign of 

hesitation. And so, Kaoru knew what she must tell her. 

“I actually do other work besides being an animal doctor.” 

 

This line was completely out of place in this heavy atmosphere. 

Which meant there must be something to it. Mariel gulped, waiting 

for Kaoru’s next words. 

Then, Kaoru spoke. 

“To strike down unforgivable evil, and help the powerless achieve 

vengeance. They call me the Divine Punisher of Annihilation!” 

Mariel and the others stood dumbfounded, then the girl 

remembered Kaoru’s words from earlier. 

“I actually do other work besides being an animal doctor.” 

Work. If this is her job... 

“Please, fulfill my... no, House Raphael’s request!” 

The butler and the old stable keeper didn’t seem surprised by 

Mariel’s words, nor did they try to stop her. This was to be expected. 

That’s what their calm demeanor seemed to convey. But in their 

eyes, there burned a flame of hatred. 

Kaoru’s reply was obvious: 

“I refuse.” 

“Whaaaaaat?!” 

A flat-out refusal. This was completely unexpected, considering how 

the conversation was going. The three from House Raphael stood 

agape, and Kaoru went on. 

 

146 

“I don’t do double contracts.” 

 

Confused, Mariel gave her a blank expression, and Kaoru continued. 

“I’ve already taken on a request from Carlos.” 

Mariel’s eyes widened, then she shouted out loud. 

“Oh Carlos! You care for me even in death!” 

“Ahh... Carlos...” 

“What a loyal horse he was...” 

The stable keeper and butler crumpled in tears next to Mariel. 

“Oh, uh, Carlos isn’t dead... But no one’s listening...” 

＊ ＊ 

“What? Carlos is alive?” 

“At least when I received his request, yeah. It seemed like he had a 

few years in him before he died of old age,” I explained to Mariel von 

Raphael. 

Though, it was possible that the old horse could have died an hour 

ago without me knowing, so I didn’t make an irresponsible remark 

like, “He’s alive right now.” You just never know when it comes to 

the elderly. But I had given him a potion, just in case, so I doubted 

that would be an issue. 

And so, the investigation was done, and now it was time for the 

revenge stage. 

“I will be fulfilling Carlos’s request now. Can I ask for your 

cooperation?” 

Nod, nod. 

It was time to execute the plan. I didn’t intend to have the humans 

help directly. This was a request from Carlos, on behalf of his owner, 

 

147 

the previous viscount, and this young girl. That was why Mariel, the 

current viscountess of House Raphael, didn’t want to involve the 

others, either. The only ones who would be part of this were the 

ones who were in the same position and held the same feelings as 

Carlos. 

“Please show me where you keep the dogs here.” 

＊ ＊ 

“What... is that?” 

“Creeps me out...” 

The people regarded the residence with fear and loathing. 

It didn’t seem particularly out of the ordinary, though it was a bit 

more luxurious than the average commoner could afford, the kind of 

home that a modestly wealthy merchant or a noble without a title 

would live in. Yes, nothing out of the ordinary. 

That is, if one disregarded the massive murder of crows atop the 

roof, trees, and walls, and the many dogs sitting around its 

perimeter... 

“Damn it, just what is going on here?! Why are there so many crows 

and dogs all around this house? Did someone scatter food as a 

prank?” 

Aragorn von Raphael... The younger brother of Mariel’s father. In 

other words, the second son of the previous generation of House 

Raphael, and Mariel’s uncle. Currently twenty-eight years old. 

He was a bit far from Mariel’s father in age, and Mariel was currently 

fourteen, having been born when her father was twenty, so her 

uncle was now exactly twice her age. When it came to marriage 

between nobles, a twenty-year difference in age was quite common, 

and a marriage between an uncle and his niece was not uncommon, 

 

148 

particularly when the purpose of said marriage was to protect a 

family’s inheritance. 

A second son was only considered the “reserve” in matters of 

inheritance, and as soon as the first son and heir had a child, the 

second son’s role as that reserve was greatly diminished. This was 

particularly true if the newborn was a boy, but it was also much the 

same for girls. In that case, the girl would simply be married off to a 

noble house’s second son, or even lower, and there would be plenty 

of willing candidates. 

Such a marriage would result in blood ties to that family, and such 

strategic marriages could be quite beneficial. So, if something did 

end up happening to the firstborn son, House Raphael would have 

arranged a strategic marriage for Mariel. 

Mariel would have been able to choose one of the many candidates 

with good backgrounds, charming personalities, and fine 

appearances, and House Raphael would thus have gained a strong tie 

to a powerful noble’s house. The son of the other house, who didn’t 

have a future as the successor of the family title, would become the 

husband of the future head of household, and his family would 

eventually have their grandchild as the head of a noble house, so 

everything worked out in the end. 

The firstborn son of House Raphael was clever and healthy, and 

Mariel was a beautiful and astute young girl. Whether they both 

grew up healthy, or if one of them happened to perish due to 

accident or illness, the future of House Raphael was stable. If 

everything had stayed as it was, everyone would have been happy. 

That is, everyone other than Aragorn, who had no chance of 

inheriting the family title, and thus had no other choice but to 

become a military officer or a bureaucrat. And so, he had risked it all 

on one move: hiring assassins to murder his brother, his brother’s 

wife, and his nephew. 

 

149 

Afterwards, he claimed that his brother had told him to take care of 

Mariel if anything happened to them, and so he demanded her hand 

in marriage. He figured his niece was an obedient child who loved 

and respected her parents, making her unlikely to resist his 

advances. Mariel would turn fifteen soon, making her an adult, and 

at that point they would get married, just as he had planned... 

Making him the new head and viscount of House Raphael. 

Normally, a man marrying into the family wouldn’t inherit the family 

title, and he would simply be the “consort of the viscountess.” This 

was to avoid a stranger with no blood ties ultimately inheriting the 

family title, in the case of divorce or remarriage after the wife passed 

away. But this time was different. 

Aragorn himself had a right to inherit the family title, and if his 

brother’s bloodline ended, the title would go to him. As such, there 

would be no inheritance issues if something were to happen to 

Mariel. His original plan was actually to wipe out the entire family, 

including Mariel. She ended up surviving due to her not being 

present at the time of the attack, but he was fine with that result. 

Aragorn hated his brother for making him feel inferior and robbing 

him of the family title and fortune, and now he could make his 

brother’s young and beautiful daughter serve him and do with her as 

he pleased. He was reveling in the sweet, sadistic joy that this 

thought brought him. If she refused, he would just have his assassins 

kill her, as he had the rest of her family. The title would still fall into 

his lap in the end. 

With these thoughts in mind, Aragorn was completely unconcerned 

with the future. Such incidents occurring in a short time span would 

be problematic, but the “accident” would simply need to happen 

before Mariel married anyone else and had a child. And even if she 

did have a child, they would both just need to end up in an accident 

 

150 

together. After all, whoever married her wouldn’t have the right to 

inheritance if they weren’t of Raphael blood. 

But all of this planning soon became unnecessary, since Mariel had 

immediately agreed to the marriage. The first and second in line of 

House Raphael were to be married, and so the inheritance question 

was set aside. Just a few more months... Mariel would become 

fifteen in just a few more months, then... 

His days had been spent in excitement with such thoughts, then this 

happened. 

“What in the world... How ominous...” 

With such a highly unusual thing recurring for multiple consecutive 

days, rumors had begun spreading, along with speculation. 

“A house surrounded by a mass of crows and dogs.” 

“Maybe a witch or demon lives there.” 

“Someone who made a pact with a demon could be living there...” 

From there, someone who had knowledge of the situation added to 

the rumors. 

“I heard a noble husband and wife and their child were killed there.” 

“They say he’s marrying the fourteen-year-old girl, who’s the last 

survivor in line for the title...” 

“Wait, don’t tell me...” 

“Who do you think those crows and dogs serve? The demon, or the 

husband and wife?” 

Then, the house gradually became covered in the urine and feces of 

the crows and dogs. Not just from the crows and dogs in the area, 

but crows that flew in from other regions and dogs that walked over 

out of nowhere. They all left some droppings and went about their 

business. No one could deny the involvement of something 

 

151 

supernatural after seeing such a sight. After all, this was a world 

where the existence of a goddess was an undeniable fact. 

＊ ＊ 

“Finished my shift! Can I get paid now?” 

“Yes, yes. Here’s your minced meat, bread, and corn. I made sure to 

give you the fatty bits of meat. Oh, and I put your take-home portion 

in a bag, so it’ll be easier for you to carry.” 

“Whoa, now that’s what I call service! All right, I’ll be back tomorrow 

to work hard some more!” 

The crow began to eat with glee. Many of its comrades were already 

eating nearby, and take-home bags were lined up next to them. 

If I take this home, my wife and child won’t have anything to 

complain about. What a great job... or, rather, a great feeding 

place... I found. 

The crow hoped this gig would go on for some time, but didn’t 

expect whoever lived in that house to be able to hold out much 

longer. Besides, there would be more tasks to do, starting tomorrow. 

I’ll have to work more from tomorrow, but it sounds like fun. The 

food is supposedly going to get better, so I say bring it on! 

Then came the pack of dogs, led by three dogs at the front. 

“Good work today! Go ahead and eat your fill. I’ll see you again 

tomorrow!” 

The three dogs at the head of the pack ignored the food and walked 

up next to the girl. 

The rest of the dogs bowed their heads, then began eating. Unlike 

the ones stuffing their faces without a care in the world, the three 

dogs next to the girl had rather intense expressions on their faces. 

Indeed, it was as if they stood before a big bear in order to protect 

 

152 

their master from harm. 

 

I had hired the three house dogs, the freely roaming dogs that lived 

in the area, and other stray dogs, by offering them food. Some of 

them agreed on the condition that I relay a message they really 

wanted to tell their owners, or in exchange for me curing an injury or 

illness. And so, they were all more than happy to work for me. A 

doctor who could speak to animals... 

Yes, I was a regular Doctor Dolittle. 

Some time ago, that name was abridged to “Doctor Doritoru” 

because they figured the original would be too hard to pronounce 

for Japanese children, but it’s actually “Do-little.” Though, the 

Japanese spelling wasn’t always consistent. Then, I realized 

something. 

Speaking of “Doolittle,” I needed to have some bombers. I couldn’t 

just load a bunch of military bombers onto an aircraft carrier, but I 

needed something... And that’s when I scouted the crows. 

They wouldn’t run away even if you got close enough to talk to them, 

and they were great at intimidation, with all that creepiness and 

intensity. Plus, they ate just about anything, so providing incentives 

would be a piece of cake. They were perfect! 

Animals that only ate bugs or living creatures, or were hard to find, 

or didn’t let you get close enough to talk to them, could be a real 

pain to work with. Although, it would have been cooler if I could 

have gotten birds of prey like eagles, hawks, or falcons. But this time, 

I was going for the intimidation factor rather than coolness, so it was 

fine. 

 

I’d have the crows work on dropping poop bombs all over the place. 

They’d been level bombing up till now, but starting tomorrow, I 

 

153 

asked them to add dive bombing into the mix. In exchange, I was 

giving them fruits, walnuts, and acorns as an additional reward. 

＊ ＊ 

“Ah! Damn it, get away!” 

Anyone who visited that house fell victim to the dive-bombing crows. 

Not only did they get hit by their poop bombs, but their belongings 

were stolen, and their hands were scratched whenever they tried to 

block the pesky birds. 

With such ongoing incidents, it became widely known that anyone 

who visited that house was a target, prompting a sense of anxiety 

and distrust among those visitors. A murder of crows would consider 

you their enemy... And, although they didn’t directly harm visitors, 

numerous dogs sat and stared at anyone who got close. If they 

attacked like the crows were doing, it would be serious trouble for 

the visitors. 

With these thoughts in mind, visiting merchants and delivery 

workers refused to enter the house, and their superiors didn’t 

reprimand them for their refusal. Getting involved with that house 

meant trouble. That was the consensus among the local business 

owners. 

Of course, the crow attacks weren’t limited to visitors, but also the 

residents living in the house in question. 

“Damn it, what the hell is going on?! What’s with the dogs and 

crows...?” 

Upon further investigation, it seemed that no one had been 

scattering food around the premises, after all. 

Thinking that the smell might be the issue, Aragorn hired workers to 

clean at night while the dogs and crows were gone, and even placed 

herbs that had a scent that dogs hated, but it had absolutely no 

 

154 

effect. Then, the crows that had just surrounded the house before 

became more aggressive with their harassment, and there was no 

telling when the dogs would join in. 

“There’s no way anyone could control dogs and crows. Besides, if 

such a power did exist, they could use it to become filthy rich. They 

could use the animals for shows, or make them work in the military... 

What would be the point of harassing me with it?! I never even did 

anything to deserve such treatment! This has to be supernatural in 

nature, but it’s not like it’s some sort of divine punishment...” 

Aragorn flinched. Divine punishment... Had he done anything to 

deserve such a thing? He thought about it. 

Would murdering his brother and his brother’s wife and son for the 

family estate, then tricking the surviving niece into marrying him, be 

worthy of punishment in the eyes of the Goddess...? The Goddess 

was a woman, so perhaps she would have little mercy for those with 

malicious intent towards little girls. 

Well, he may have already harbored guilt for killing his brother’s 

family... But Celestine had no interest in crimes committed by 

humans, and she would never get involved in such a thing. That is, 

unless it led to mass murder on a grand scale, or some other 

catastrophe. Or, if someone was using her name to commit evil or 

did something to otherwise tarnish her name, that is. But no one 

besides Kaoru knew that. 

The general populace understood from experience that the Goddess 

Celestine was quite careless, and didn’t mind if bystanders were hurt 

in the process of dishing out divine punishment. But due to her 

appearance and gentle way of speech, they presumed that she was 

generally a benevolent goddess who struck down evil and upheld 

justice, but also happened to be bad at controlling her powers. 

...Despite the fact that she had never done such a thing before. 

 

155 

“W-Wait a minute... It can’t be... But if it is divine punishment, she’d 

just drop a lightning bolt on me, instead of doing it in such a 

roundabout way. So the Goddess has nothing to do with this! There 

must be another reason...” 

Indeed, punishment delivered by Celestine would be swift and 

deadly. She wouldn’t waste her time with harassment like this. In 

that sense, Aragorn’s conjecture was correct. Although, really, that 

would do nothing to help him resolve his current predicament. 

＊ ＊ 

“Count Maslias should be hearing the rumors any time now...” 

“Yes, his subordinates and retainers may hesitate to report such 

rumors to him directly, but now that they’re so widespread, the 

count himself or someone close to him should hear of them, and will 

likely give an order to look into the details,” Emile responded as such 

to Kaoru’s comment. 

Count Maslias’s house was the parent house of House Raphael. As a 

weaker noble house that wasn’t particularly wealthy, House Raphael 

was part of a faction, in which Count Maslias was an influential 

figure. The house of Count Maslias was in a neighboring territory, so 

it had acted as House Raphael’s protector for generations. Of course, 

they received tribute in return, and House Raphael was expected to 

side with Count Maslias if they were ever at odds over national 

policies with other factions. 

In other words, House Raphael could not oppose House Maslias. The 

current Count Maslias was a man of character, who took care of the 

lower nobles of his retainer houses and treated them with kindness. 

He even loved the children of Viscount Raphael, Mariel and her older 

brother, as if they were his own. 

 

156 

Kaoru had heard this from Mariel herself, when she had asked the 

young girl if there was anyone other than the king who could step in 

and punish criminals, and might also be on her side. 

“Hmhmhm, soon...” 

An evil grin spread across Kaoru’s face. 

“What’s ‘soon’?” 

“Eep!” 

Francette’s voice spoke up from behind, and Kaoru let out a yelp in 

surprise. 

“Oh, um, n-nothing! I was saying, dinner will probably be ready 

soon...” 

That was bad. Clearly a bad attempt at an excuse. 

“...I see. I thought you were just preparing to dice up some meat 

scraps to feed the crows again.” 

Kaoru and Emile froze. 

“Did you think I wouldn’t notice? Haah... I would stop you if you 

were putting yourself in danger, but otherwise, I won’t try to stop 

you or get in the way. In fact, if you are working as a goddess, it 

would be my duty to aid you. I wish you would trust... or, rather, 

put... your servants to use more...” 

With that, Francette shot Emile a glare. 

It seemed that she didn’t like the fact that she had been kept out of 

the loop while Emile was part of the plan. After all, Francette had 

met Kaoru first, and she would likely be unhappy with the fact that 

she, a knight who had sworn loyalty to Kaoru, was considered to be 

below a novice like Emile. Her swordsmanship being judged was one 

thing, but to think her loyalty was seen as less than Emile’s... 

“Oh, Roland...” Kaoru began. 

 

157 

“Sir Roland is royalty. He cannot be involved in matters regarding 

nobles of other countries,” Francette replied, cutting her off. 

Kaoru was thinking: 

Francette is a noble too, so wouldn’t it be problematic for her to 

get involved with matters regarding nobles of other countries too? 

Besides, regardless of whether you’re royalty, a noble, or a 

commoner, wouldn’t sticking your neck in such business be an issue 

anyway...? 

＊ ＊ 

“Is this true?!” 

Count Maslias, the current head of the parent house of House 

Raphael, shouted to his subordinate. He couldn’t believe the report 

he had just heard. 

“Yes, my lord. I heard the servants speaking of such rumors, and 

when I investigated the residence of Aragorn von Raphael, it was just 

as they said... When I approached the gate with a small bag in hand, 

the, ah... crow, defecated directly on me, and my bag was knocked 

out of my hand. As the bag landed on the ground, it was torn to 

shreds by a pack of dogs. It was clearly a coordinated and deliberate 

act, and one that doesn’t seem possible for a human to 

orchestrate...” 

“So that’s why there are rumors of him committing a heinous act 

that brought divine punishment upon him. The only atrocity related 

to Viscount Raphael that occurred as of late would be...” 

The answer was obvious. 

“I cannot have Mariel marry patriarch-murdering scum! And, of 

course, such a man is not fit to be the head of House Raphael. Even if 

His Majesty and the Goddess allow it, I... Well, I suppose the Goddess 

doesn’t allow it, which is why this is happening. Seeing as she has yet 

 

158 

to strike him down with lightning, this must be her way of saying he 

must be judged by the hands of men. And if we were to ignore her 

wishes...” 

The stories of past incidents regarding the Goddess Celestine’s wrath 

crossed the minds of Count Maslias and his men. The incidents that 

ended up involving countless innocents in the vicinity... 

“We must head to House Raphael tomorrow morning! Send a 

messenger right away. Send a messenger to Aragorn as well, 

ordering him to go to House Raphael!” 

“Yes, my lord!” 

They would be going to Raphael Manor rather than Aragorn’s house 

because Aragorn had no title or servants, and his home was no place 

to host a meeting. Even if that weren’t the case, no one wished to go 

to an unclean house that had been stricken by the wrath of the 

Goddess. 

＊ ＊ 

“Count Maslias will be visiting tomorrow morning.” 

“I see. That was quicker than I thought.” 

It was late at night, and Kaoru was sipping tea at Raphael Manor and 

having a meeting with Mariel. Everyone in House Raphael already 

knew Kaoru was no ordinary human, and treated her with the 

respect due someone far above their own station. 

“Tomorrow morning, so the second morning bell...” Kaoru muttered 

to herself. 

In this region, saying “tomorrow morning” or “first thing tomorrow” 

in regards to work or meetings meant “at the second morning bell,” 

which was 9 a.m. in Earth time. This was unusually early for a noble’s 

house visit. 

 

159 

“He must have just heard the news today. I assume he is quite 

flustered...” 

Mariel was probably right. 

Around here, or rather, in most countries in this world, even though 

the people had great faith in and appreciation for the Goddess 

Celestine, they also contemplated her punishments with an 

incredible amount of fear and dread. This wasn’t a fear of being 

punished due to one’s own crimes. Rather... 

This was a fear of “the Goddess Celestine being so careless that 

countless innocent citizens are inadvertently struck down by a stray 

bolt of her divine punishment, resulting in destruction on a national 

scale.” 

And so, despicable acts that could incur such a punishment were 

deserving of capital punishment, and no connections, bribes, status, 

or power could absolve those who committed them. This was just 

common sense. No one would possibly accept a paltry bribe in 

exchange for the destruction of the nation, along with their entire 

clan. 

“So, this will all be settled tomorrow morning...” 

With that, Kaoru smiled a smile that could make children cry. Behind 

her were Emile, Belle, and Francette. Layette was sleeping in Kaoru’s 

lap. 

Afterward, Emile and Belle disappeared into the night, and the 

others returned to their home base at the convenience store. They 

would sleep and rest well in preparation for the morning. 

 

  

 

160 

 

161 

    

＊ ＊ 

“Wh-Why are there so many people...?” 

The following morning, Count Maslias of the parent house of House 

Raphael, along with his attendants, arrived at the Raphael residence 

to find a large crowd gathered there. 

However, the crowd wasn’t being rowdy or blocking the count’s 

path, nor were they arguing with those who were standing by the 

public road. Count Maslias found it odd, but nevertheless stepped 

onto the premises of Raphael Manor. His attendant sounded the 

door knocker, at which point a butler promptly arrived to guide them 

in. 

“Are you in good health, Mariel?” 

The count had been very supportive of Mariel immediately after the 

incident, but some distance had grown between them after it had 

settled. However, no one could really blame him for it. He had been 

spending so much time trying to help Mariel that he had neglected 

his own territory, and was reproached by his retainers as a result. 

Since then, he had been focusing on catching up on all the work that 

had piled up. 

In Count Maslias’s eyes, Mariel was indeed like his own daughter. 

“Yes, I am doing fine. And there is something I must do, so there is 

no time for me to waste.” 

With that, her gaze turned toward Aragorn. 

There were currently eight people in the room. On House Raphael’s 

side were three people: Mariel, the butler, and the under-butler. 

However, the under-butler’s clothes clearly didn’t fit properly, and 

he seemed too physically developed to be a high-ranking servant. He 

lacked an air of intellect and dignity. It was quite plain to see that he 

 

162 

was a guard in disguise. This was likely in the event that Aragorn 

decided to resort to brute force, in which case Mariel would be too 

weak to stop him, and the old butler might not be too reliable in a 

fight. 

As for Aragorn, he was by himself. He wouldn’t need a guard simply 

to visit the house of his head family, or to visit Count Maslias of his 

parent house, and a poor, unmarried noble with no title like him 

didn’t have any servants in the first place. If he went out of his way 

to hire guards just for this visit, it would be seen as an offense 

directed at the count and the current head of House Raphael, and it 

would bring the gravity of the situation into question. To Aragorn, 

this wasn’t a viable option. 

Count Maslias had come with two guards. Guards usually remained 

on standby in another room, but this time they were on watch in 

here with them. This could be perceived as discourtesy, but he did 

hold the highest position here. Moreover, this was a welcome move 

in Mariel’s perspective, as it put her more at ease. Aragorn had 

assumed that the count had come to bless his union with Mariel, or 

to discuss the ongoing relationship between House Raphael and 

House Maslias, so he thought nothing of it. 

That made seven people. The final one was... 

“A pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am Nagase... a detective.” 

“A detective?!” 

Not wanting them to know her first name, Kaoru opted to refer to 

herself as “Nagase.” She disliked lying needlessly, and wanted to 

avoid a situation where she raised suspicion by going by a completely 

different name and then failing to react to it in a timely manner. 

And rather than her name, Aragorn and the count reacted to the 

unfamiliar word, “detective,” by cocking their heads in confusion. Of 

course, she didn’t use the actual Japanese word for “detective,” but 

 

163 

a new word she had coined based on a similar nuance in this nation’s 

language. 

“Indeed. One who investigates and detects the truth. A ‘detective.’” 

Count Maslias and Aragorn wondered why this person was there at 

all, but considering Mariel had gone out of her way to bring her, and 

from that introduction, the count surmised the purpose of Kaoru’s 

attendance. As for Aragorn, he assumed this stranger was some sort 

of shrine maiden, there to perform the marriage ceremony between 

Mariel and himself. 

“Now, let’s get right to it.” 

Count Maslias took a seat and began the discussion, after only giving 

Mariel a brief greeting and without so much as a word to Aragorn. 

Mariel was the current head of House Raphael and the hostess of 

this meeting, while Aragorn was a member of a branch family and 

had no title, so this wasn’t particularly discourteous, but Aragorn had 

a displeased look on his face, despite being in front of Count Maslias, 

as he already considered himself the head of House Raphael. 

The count had taken notice, but completely ignored him. That was 

insignificant when considering what was about to happen. 

“Aragorn, I hear you have been receiving the Goddess’s divine 

punishment. The Goddess Celestine does not normally intervene in 

matters regarding individual humans. Just what sort of grave sin have 

you committed to deserve her judgment?! If you’ve incurred her 

wrath, you may have doomed this entire nation—no, the 

continent—along with yourself! Speak! What have you done?!” 

“Wha...” 

This was supposed to be the discussion to finalize the achievement 

of his ambitions, but instead he had been unexpectedly denounced 

by the head of his parent house. Aragorn was stunned. 

 

164 

“I-It’s nothing but a baseless rumor...” 

“A rumor? But is your house not currently surrounded by crows and 

dogs, and do they not assault anyone who steps within the 

premises?” 

“Th-That’s because someone fed the animals, as a prank...” 

Aragorn desperately tried to find an excuse, but Count Maslias was 

unrelenting. 

“The crows and dogs acted with coordination, accurately picking out 

their targets. Are you claiming a human could possibly pull off such a 

feat? Aragorn, do you truly believe the things you’re saying right 

now?” 

“...” 

Aragorn grew quiet, unable to muster a retort. Even he knew that 

this couldn’t have possibly been the work of a human being. 

However, even though he had been worried at first, he didn’t believe 

that this was really divine punishment. 

“B-But the Goddess Celestine has never punished men in such a 

roundabout way! In the past, she has always destroyed entire towns 

and nations with powerful lightning strikes, whirling infernos, tidal 

waves, fissures, or other cataclysms. And the last time she did so was 

several hundred years ago. Again, no matter what sort of crime has 

been committed, the Goddess has never judged an individual’s deeds 

or meddled with human affairs! She’s not concerned with the laws 

humans make for themselves, and the only time she’s really angered 

is when someone tarnishes the Goddess’s name, or uses it for their 

own selfish gain, or wreaks havoc on nature on a large scale...” 

“What...?” 

Count Maslias gave him a dubious look at first, which then turned to 

one of exasperation. 

 

165 

“You claim the last divine punishment was several hundred years 

ago... This has never been officially announced, but you do realize 

that there have been rumors spreading not just among nobles, but to 

the common people, through the priests and the merchants?” 

“Huh? What are you talking about?” 

Aragorn was perplexed by the count’s response. Then, the count 

replied with a grave tone. 

“The last time the Goddess brought divine punishment down upon 

the land was a little over four years ago. I’m sure you, too, have 

heard of these events: The defeat of the Aligot Empire’s invading 

army and the destruction of the Holy Land of Rueda...” 

“Wha...” 

Aragorn was lost for words for just a moment, then fiercely argued 

back. 

“The ones responsible for defeating the Aligot Empire’s forces were 

the guardian of the Kingdom of Balmore, ‘Fearsome Fran,’ and her 

subordinates, the ‘Grim Reapers’! Then the Goddess descended 

upon the peace conference to convince the others to end the 

conflict...” 

Count Maslias shook his head. 

“That’s inaccurate information spread by the commoners. According 

to the report directly from the delegation attending the peace 

conference, 

“‘The empire’s forces invading from the western region were 

repelled by Fearsome Fran’s party, and the Goddess sent her Angel 

to face the forces invading from the north. As a result, the Kingdom 

of Balmore sustained very few casualties and successfully captured 

all enemy soldiers.’ 

 

166 

“Also, ‘The Goddess descended upon the peace conference to state 

that the Holy Land of Rueda would be annihilated. But thanks to the 

Angel’s pleading to spare the populace, the Goddess contained 

herself to the destruction of the rotten priests.’ 

“In other words, it has only been slightly more than four years since 

the last time the Goddess expressed her wrath, and it is likely that 

she has changed her method from direct punishments to indirect 

punishments, such as through another medium entirely. Perhaps she 

does it to bully— No, no, entertain— I mean, due to some change in 

her state of mind...” 

Aragorn stood frozen, but he soon recovered and began defending 

himself again. 

“I-I’ve done nothing to deserve this! And no one has accused me of 

committing any crime!” 

Aragorn had hired “Black Ops” for the hit. Government intelligence 

organizations often had their own secret units to handle illicit or 

immoral operations, such as murder and kidnapping, but this was an 

illegal and private organization unrelated to the government groups. 

It consisted of former high-ranking hunters, those who had been 

banished, those who had been fired by their nation’s intelligence 

organization due to a highly problematic personality, and those who 

had fled from the intelligence organizations of other nations. 

These individuals were highly skilled and fiercely loyal to their 

criminal organization, largely out of necessity, so they were “reliable 

criminals” who kept secrets and contracts at all costs. This was the 

private crime organization known as Black Ops. 

He had little concern that the secret had been leaked, considering 

they were the ones who handled the entire job. It was nothing like 

hiring any random group of thugs or outlaw hunters. Aragorn knew 

he was under suspicion for “the incident,” but with no one to accuse 

 

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him and no proof to be had, he was confident that even the parent 

house couldn’t make a move against him, given that he was the heir 

to a noble house. 

However... 

“Someone has already stepped forward with an accusation.” 

“Wha...” 

Mariel, who had been quiet until now, suddenly dropped that bomb 

of a comment. 

“Uncle... No, Aragorn, the monster who plotted to take over my 

house by murdering the head of House Raphael and his entire family! 

I said someone has cast a formal suit against you!” 

Mariel’s smiling face had transformed into an expression of pure 

anger, and even Count Maslias, along with Aragorn, couldn’t hide his 

expression of shock. The only ones who were unaffected by the 

sudden change were the members of Viscount Raphael’s household 

and the mysterious girl. 

“I-Impossible! Who, what proof...” 

“Proof? No such thing is needed. After all, they directly witnessed 

the incident with their own eyes. They saw you happily chatting with 

the individuals you hired to murder my father, mother, and 

brother!!!” 

Aragorn was completely motionless, and Count Maslias was stunned. 

The count had come prepared to denounce Aragorn, but he hadn’t 

expected Mariel, who had already agreed to marry her uncle, to 

denounce him herself with such intensity. In fact, he didn’t think she 

had prepared at all for this moment, much less gone as far as to find 

witnesses. 

 

168 

“Then I’d like to see them! You’d better be prepared for the 

consequences if this is some sort of lie!” Aragorn roared back, and 

Mariel shot him down with an icy cold tone. 

“Of course. And Aragorn! You dare speak so to the mistress of your 

head family, yourself a mere untitled man of a branch house, and in 

the presence of Count Maslias of your parent house? Have you no 

shame?!” 

“Urgh...” Aragorn turned red with humiliation, but he couldn’t act 

out further in front of Count Maslias. 

Considering how events had transpired, it was unlikely that Mariel 

would willingly marry him now, even if he somehow managed to talk 

his way out of this situation. However, if Aragorn claimed that Mariel 

had gone insane with grief after losing her family, he could 

potentially force her to give up her inheritance, leaving him as the 

new head of the house. 

Aragorn quickly collected himself after coming to this conclusion. 

There was no way anyone could have witnessed the event, after all. 

It had happened on a public street corner, and his men were 

standing watch to make sure that no one had been around to see 

anything. And judging by how she phrased it, as someone having 

“witnessed the incident,” it would be safe to assume it wasn’t 

someone from the Black Ops organization. This meant she had hired 

someone to provide false testimony. He could still get through this. 

It was only natural for Aragorn to think this way. 

“Well then, please follow me, everyone.” 

“Huh?” 

Aragorn and Count Maslias looked rather perplexed as Mariel stood 

up. 

 

169 

“You wish to see the witness, correct? Please, this way.” All they 

could do was follow. 

They all stood and the seven of them followed Mariel out of the 

room, at which point the guards posted in the room next door 

followed after them. Francette was among them, of course. There 

was no way she would let Kaoru enter enemy territory alone. She 

had been listening in along with the House Raphael and House 

Maslias guards, ready to burst through the door as soon as 

something went wrong. 

＊ ＊ 

Emile and Belle went into the city after they had parted with Kaoru 

and the others the previous evening. Not to enjoy the nightlife, of 

course, but to provide publicity. 

They went around the Hunter’s Guild headquarters, the taverns, and 

other areas, spreading the following rumor, “Tomorrow, at the 

second morning bell, witness a miracle before the house of Viscount 

Raphael.” 

And this morning, they woke up at the first morning bell (around six 

in the morning) to go around the common wells and morning 

markets to spread the same message. 

No one stopped to question it, what with the rumors of House 

Raphael’s branch family’s “divine punishment” being so widespread. 

In this world, no one was foolish enough to doubt the existence of 

the Goddess or her judgment. 

Afterward, Emile and Belle went to the stables where Ed and the 

other horses were being kept, then brought them out, claiming that 

they were needed for work. Of course, this included the newest of 

Kaoru’s horses, Carlos. 

The horses would do as ordered, even without Emile and Belle 

escorting them, but if horses were seen roaming about without 

 

170 

humans around, they would be at risk of being stolen by scoundrels 

or turned over to a guard post or guild by some well-meaning 

person. 

Emile and Belle were sent to escort the horses to avoid such a 

situation, but they simply walked alongside the horses, without 

riding them. This was a key point: the horses had to move of their 

own will, without humans riding them. They walked on for a short 

time after leaving the stable, then stopped. Then, Emile and Belle 

placed masks on the six horses. The six horses began walking again. 

After some time, a group of dogs joined them from the left and right 

sides of the intersection. Several more joined at the next 

intersection. And more at the next. And more at the one after. The 

horses increased their pace to a fast walk. Emile, Belle, and the dogs 

increased their own pace to keep up. 

From intersecting side streets... Back alleys... Eaves of residential 

houses... 

Dogs, dogs, dogs, dogs... 

Dogs came running. Dogs came to join them. 

Then, when the second morning bell rang throughout the city... 

Crows came flying in out of nowhere, as if they had been waiting for 

the signal. 

Crows, crows, crows, crows... 

And so, the tanks (dogs) advanced forward, leading the fighter-

bombers (crows) flying overhead. Along with the six horses... 

In search of their prey. 

 

“Where in the world are we going...?” Aragorn was expecting this so-

called witness to be in another room, but Mariel led them through 

the front door, out of the manor, and toward the front gates. Despite 

 

171 

his complaints, he had no choice but to follow. Count Maslias and 

the guards from both houses continued following, as well. 

Behind them was a line of House Raphael’s servants. Butlers, cooks, 

maids, coachmen, gardeners, footmen, porters... and all the rest of 

the servants were in tow, their expressions hard. They all wore the 

same stoic look on their faces, as if they were barely containing a 

whirlwind of emotions. Only their eyes betrayed an intense, eerie 

glow. 

Mariel walked a few meters out from the gate, then stopped. 

There, a large crowd, having gathered from all over town, stood 

waiting. 

“...” 

The members of House Raphael and the girl seemed unfazed by the 

crowd before them. 

On the other hand, Aragorn, Count Maslias, and the count’s guards 

looked rather tense. They had no idea why there was a crowd 

gathered there. What if they had some sort of grudge against House 

Raphael and suddenly turned violent? They had far too few guards to 

hold off an attack from a crowd of such a size. Cold sweat ran down 

their backs as the thought crossed their minds. 

But even then, they didn’t allow their nervousness to show on their 

faces. As nobles, they could never show panic or seem undignified in 

front of commoners, even if they were straining to keep up a front. 

“H-Hmph, are you saying your witness is someone in this crowd? 

Don’t tell me you’re going to claim that they’re all going to testify. 

This is a mere intimidation tactic, and seeing as you have to resort to 

this, you clearly have no proof, and...” 

 

172 

“Witnesses, please step forward,” Mariel raised her voice, speaking 

over the flustered Aragorn, and the crowd parted to let six horses 

through. 

However, these six weren’t Ed and his crew, but the two riding 

horses and four carriage horses owned by House Raphael. Of course, 

these horses wore no masks. The six horses wore no saddle and were 

pulling no carriage, and were led by a coachman and horsekeeper, 

who were also on foot, stopping just in front of Mariel. Aragorn 

looked around in search of a rider who had dismounted from the 

horses, but there was no one but the men leading the horses and the 

crowd around them. 

“What witness...” 

Mariel cut him off and shouted, “Who is the one who hired the killers 

to murder my parents and brother?” 

Then, each of the horses raised their front right leg and pointed... 

directly at Aragorn. 

“The horses are the witnesses?!” Aragorn and Count Maslias shouted 

in unison. 

Then, Count Maslias continued, “You were talking about horses this 

entire time...?” 

But everyone ignored the question. 

 

Why had the horses pointed at Aragorn in response to Mariel’s 

words? The reason was simple: Kaoru had taught them several 

patterns to perform in response to Kaoru’s signals. The horses had 

simply reacted to Kaoru’s gesture of pointing at Aragorn while 

bending her hand at the wrist in front of her stomach. 

 

173 

This had all been explained prior to this meeting, so they all 

understood what this event was for. The signals were simply for 

supporting Mariel as she made her case. 

Upon seeing this, the crowd reacted. 

“Oooooohhh!” 

“The horses are denouncing their master’s killer!” 

“An ordinary horse couldn’t do this! This is the work of the Goddess! 

The Goddess Celestine was moved by the girl’s will to seek 

vengeance and the loyalty of the horses, and decided to lend them 

her strength!” 

Aragorn turned pale as the crowd continued to shout. 

“...Well? What do you have to say?” 

Count Maslias expected Aragorn to back down then and there. Now 

that the Goddess Celestine was said to be involved, there was no 

way for him to escape punishment for his crimes, after all. 

“Whatever do you mean? An impertinent child taught her pet horses 

a little trick. That’s all there is to it. What’s more, she’s a vile little 

fiend who seeks to frame her noble uncle with underhanded tactics! 

She is a disgrace to the nobility, and should be stripped of her title 

and exec—” 

 

Plop! 

 

“...Huh?” 

Aragorn felt as if something had fallen on his head and put a hand 

there to check. 

“Bird... droppings?” 

Plop! Plop! Plop plop plop... 

 

174 

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” 

Confused, Aragorn looked up to find a sight that was all too familiar 

at his residence as of late... 

The sight of fighter-bombers (crows), flying in units. 

“Look, the Goddess’s familiars...” 

“Give it up already, or the Goddess will strike you down!” 

“I hear the Goddess Celestine isn’t the best at aiming, so we— No, 

the entire nation could end up going down with you! Confess 

already!!!” 

The crowd grew louder, but if he confessed now, he would certainly 

be beheaded. After all, he would be admitting to murdering the head 

of a noble house, along with that head’s wife and heir, all so he could 

take over. The crime was even more grave than being an arsonist or 

a thief. 

“N-No! So what if a few crows came here looking for food?! The 

Goddess has no interest in human affairs... I-I mean, she must have 

sent them to denounce that girl’s evil deeds! The crows are really 

after House Raphael, and she’s the current head of House Raphael. I 

just happened to be here today, and...” 

But Aragorn’s desperate excuses convinced no one, seeing as the 

only one being targeted by crows and being pelted with dung was 

Aragorn himself. 

Just then, one end of the rowdy crowd suddenly fell silent. Then the 

silence spread through the rest of the crowd. The crowd parted from 

the back, the dividing line extending all the way to the front and 

toward House Raphael’s gates. 

Through that new path walked six masked horses, followed by tens 

of dogs, dogs, dogs... 

Clop, clop, clop. 

 

175 

Clop, clop, clop, clop, clop... 

One in the front. One each on either side behind it. And three behind 

them in the third row. The six horses walked along in an arrowhead 

formation. At the front was, of course... 

“Carlos!!!” 

There was no way Mariel wouldn’t recognize him, even with the 

mask on. It was Carlos, Mariel’s personal riding horse that she had 

known for so long. Her beloved horse that she had heard was dead 

at one point, until the mysterious girl had informed her of his 

survival. But this was no time to be celebrating their reunion. The 

horse had to fulfill his role, as he had been instructed. 

“The chief riding horse of House Raphael, Carlos! I commend you for 

seeking and finding the Goddess to send her my wishes! Now, along 

with the holy horses who have brought you here and the Goddess’s 

familiars, the crows and dogs, please witness the conclusion to this 

ordeal!” 

The horses neighed enthusiastically in response. 

“Oooooohhh!” 

 

It’s over, Aragorn... Count Maslias thought to himself. 

The horses, dogs, and crows haven’t said a word. And no one 

really knows the truth of what happened. But with her own words, 

Mariel just “created” the truth. No one will question Mariel’s words 

now, and no one will lend an ear to what Aragorn has to say... 

Count Maslias was impressed by Mariel’s execution. 

She had always been a bright girl, but that was just compared to an 

average noble girl. He never expected her to connect the Goddess to 

a riding horse... And not to a soldier riding a horse, but the horse 

itself. In fact, one normally wouldn’t think of such a thing, nor would 

 

176 

they think it possible to pull off. If someone could have foreseen this 

result, they would be far from normal. Even if they ended up being 

right. 

Perhaps I greatly underestimated Mariel... No, no, no! 

Count Maslias quickly shook his head. No matter how clever she was, 

no human could have such a connection with the Goddess. Had she 

really ordered those horses to...? 

No, I must use my common sense! 

The count looked at the horses, dogs, and crows overhead, then 

hung his head... 

Count Maslias actually didn’t fully believe in Mariel’s words himself. 

But there was no mistaking that there was something supernatural 

about these events. And whoever was responsible for these 

supernatural events was clearly on Mariel’s side, and there was no 

one he could think of that would fit such a profile, besides the 

Goddess Celestine herself. This went not just for the count, but 

everyone gathered there... 

Having witnessed the once-in-a-lifetime event of an actual miracle, 

and the moment a beautiful noble girl avenged her family, the crowd 

was all worked up, undulating like a massive wave. 

Seeing this, the count thought to himself: I must ride this big wave! 

 

“Aragorn, just accept it.” 

But Aragorn wouldn’t give up. If he confessed to his crimes now, he 

would lose far more than his reputation. Not only would he lose his 

status as a noble, he would be executed, so he was obviously going 

to struggle until the very end. 

“A-Accept what? That girl has joined forces with the devil and 

murdered her own parents, then used her demonic connections to 

 

177 

frame me for her own sins! She’s the one we should be punishing, as 

the enemy of the Goddess...” 

The count cringed visibly. 

“It seems you misunderstand something.” 

“Huh?” 

Aragorn paused after being cut off, and Count Maslias continued. 

“I may be the count of your parent house, but I cannot simply do as I 

wish to a noble of another house. Unless they try to harm me 

directly, that is. So, there’s no point in you trying to make excuses to 

me, or trying to convince me of your innocence. Even His Majesty the 

King couldn’t freely punish nobles without evidence. If he did, the 

nobles would revolt!” 

“Ah, then...!” 

Aragorn looked elated upon realizing Count Maslias didn’t intend to 

convict him. But the count wasn’t done talking. 

“Whether there’s evidence or not, the only one who can freely 

punish a noble is that noble’s head of house.” 

“...What?” 

Aragorn’s neck turned slowly, laboriously, until it faced toward 

Mariel. There, he saw Mariel’s face, smiling right at him. 

  

 

178 

 

179 

  

At first, Mariel thought no one would ever listen to a child like her, 

even if she did speak up. Her brother was to be the heir, so Mariel 

hadn’t received any education about being the head of house, and 

though she had been instructed on how to be a lady, those lessons 

had not included details on the dark side of managing a house, such 

as the head of house’s right to freely deal with a family member as 

they wished. 

But now, ever since she had resolved to get revenge, she had 

researched and studied everything she could possibly do. 

“Mariel doesn’t need evidence or witnesses to sentence you. She 

can simply say you disobeyed the head of the house or brought 

shame upon the house in order to strip you of your nobility, lock you 

in a dungeon for life, or even behead you. The reason she has gone 

through this entire procedure is to prove that it wasn’t some 

ordinary bandits who got the best of her parents, and to show the 

public that she had finally avenged her family’s killer. With the lone 

heiress getting revenge for her family, and with the full support of 

her house, she not only avoids losing face or her title, but she has all 

but ensured her stability as the head of the noble family that is 

watched over by the Goddess Celestine. Who would dare make a 

move on the noble family that has the favor of the Goddess herself? 

If such a fool exists, I’d like to meet them.” 

Count Maslias then turned to Mariel, ignoring Aragorn completely as 

he collapsed to the ground. 

“What will you do with him? I presume it would be difficult to see 

his face if he was kept alive. Someone could plot to use him 

somehow, as well. Shall I take care of him?” 

Mariel shook her head. 

 

180 

“Thank you for your consideration. But as the head of my house, I 

must be the one to get rid of my family’s shame. I only need the 

Goddess’s helping hand to guide me.” 

“I see... Yes, of course...” 

That would be more effective for when the rumors spread among 

the nobles and in the royal palace. This way, she would be known as 

the fierce and dignified viscountess, favored by the Goddess, who 

avenged her parents and brother by her own hands. 

The count couldn’t help but nod repeatedly in understanding. 

＊ ＊ 

“...Well then, allow me to go over the final confirmation of the 

contract’s details.” 

The event ended without us having to step in. Afterward, Mariel’s 

servants tied up her uncle, Aragorn, and dragged him off to the 

dungeons... So, they really did have dungeons... 

The count left after talking for some time, and we had just gone over 

the confirmation of the completed job. 

Oh, Emile and Belle had taken Ed and the others back already, and 

the crows and dogs had dispersed, for now. They were all pretty 

disappointed, since they had had a pretty good gig going. They 

wanted me to contact them again next time, but I really doubted 

there would be all that many job opportunities for seeking revenge 

like this. Well, I did give it some thought, at least, for their sakes. 

As for Carlos, he went straight to the stables here, got his mask off, 

and he’d been there ever since. Mariel already paid me the amount I 

bought him for. 

...I wasn’t running a charity, after all. I would be collecting expenses, 

separate from my retainer. 

 

181 

“I’ve received the retainer and expenses, so I’d like to discuss the 

bonus reward... As we discussed previously, I’ve permitted the 

crows and dogs one visit each to come to this house if they ever get 

injured, sick, or otherwise need help. If a dog or crow enters your 

premises looking weak, please protect them and provide care and 

food. Then, I ask that you keep records of their visit and turn them 

away if they return a second time. Likewise, if they come simply to 

beg for food.” 

“...” 

Mariel and the butler had rather awkward looks on their faces. 

Well, if they wanted to provide service for the second visits and so 

on, that was up to them. I was just pointing out that their 

responsibility, as stated by the contract, was to treat them just the 

once. 

“Dogs are one thing, but we wouldn’t really be able to tell the crows 

apart. Even if we had portraits of each one...” 

Oh. 

The butler nodded in agreement at Mariel’s rather astute point. 

Urrrgh... 

“I-I’ll leave that up to you...” 

If a crow ever got injured, they would most likely die then and there. 

I didn’t expect a lot of them to be able to make it to the mansion. 

Yes, I’ll leave it all up to them! It’s their problem now! 

And so, everything had been fully resolved. The initial job as the 

“animal doctor,” the additional horse translations, and the final 

assistance with her revenge... 

The revenge case was technically a request from Carlos, but with all 

the extra requests that came afterward, I had signed a new contract 

with Mariel to consolidate the additional issues. Otherwise, all that 

 

182 

crow and dog food would have put me wholly in the red. It wasn’t 

like Carlos was going to pay me, after all. 

“Well then, I’ll be going now...” 

“Please wait!” 

Just as I tried to leave along with Francette, who was waiting in the 

back, Mariel called out to me. 

“...Yes?” I stopped walking and asked, then Mariel and the butler 

rose from their seats, and they, along with the servants who had 

been waiting behind them, got on their hands and knees and bowed 

their heads toward me. 

“We sincerely thank you for your help, from the bottom of our 

hearts. If possible, please, we ask that you give us an opportunity to 

repay you...” 

Ahh... I didn’t really want to deal with that kind of thing... But it 

would’ve been rude of me to tell Mariel that, I guess... 

“Yes, if such an opportunity ever arises...” I said, mostly to be polite, 

as I prepared to leave for real this time... But wait, why did that 

servant girl look so worried? 

“What is it?” 

“Ah! N-No, it’s nothing!” 

Yeah, that was the expected response. 

“Tell me!” 

“Eeeeeek!!!” 

Wow, she didn’t have to get that scared... Wait, is it the eyes?! 

Are my eyes that scary?! 

No, no, I had used adhesive to force my eyes to look droopier and 

used makeup to cover it up. 

 

183 

...So what’s the deal?! 

“Speak!” 

“Y-Y-Yes! U-Um, is it okay to say the crows and dogs that helped us 

are servants of the Goddess...? We won’t really incur the wrath of 

the Goddess this time, will we...?” 

Oh, that. She thought I was just some girl who could speak to 

animals, so she was afraid I was using the Goddess’s name for my 

own gain. Her concerns were completely understandable, 

considering that this was Celes we were dealing with. 

“Don’t worry. Celes wouldn’t get angry over such a minor thing, and 

she wouldn’t complain about something I decided to do. Because...” 

“Because?” 

“Celes and I are friends!” 

Some of the other servants looked anxious too, so I figured it’d be 

fine to tell them, just to put their minds at ease. I’d already stressed 

to Mariel and all the serving staff that they were to speak of me to 

absolutely no one. 

The servants were flabbergasted, though Mariel and the butler must 

have already suspected this, as they were rather unperturbed. 

I left the house of Viscount Raphael behind with Francette, who 

seemed dissatisfied by the way I had been in the background during 

the earlier events, but she was full of smiles after seeing me being 

worshiped in the end. 

＊ ＊ 

“...So that’s what happened.” 

After dinner, Francette gave the full account of what had happened 

up until now to Roland. He needed to have this information, just in 

 

184 

case something related to this incident came up later on, making 

this a necessary process. 

“Why was I left out of this?!” 

...Even though we knew Roland would get upset. 

“That is, of course, because we cannot have you, a member of the 

royal family, getting involved with issues concerning nobles of 

another nation. If you happened to let slip your own status, or the 

need for you to reveal your identity were to arise, it would have led 

to an international incident...” 

“Then how about you, Francette? You’re a noble of our own 

kingdom! That could have led to an international incident, too, could 

it not?!” 

Yeah... I figured he’d say that... Honestly, I probably would have 

argued the same thing. 

But Francette was unperturbed. 

“In that case, I would simply have forfeited my title as viscountess 

and instead become a vagabond swordswoman in exile. I would 

have you return to the kingdom, and our engagement would be null 

and void...” 

“Wha?! Fran, you would go that far...?” 

She would have given up her nation, family, and engagement, 

becoming a wanderer without a home. But as Roland was greatly 

admiring her spirit... 

“Then, as the guardian knight of the goddess, I would spend my days 

happily with the four of us: me, Lady Kaoru, Layette, and Belle... 

Hehe, hehehe...” 

“What? That was your true intention?!” 

“Where am I in your plan?!” 

 

185 

Roland yelled, and Emile raised his own objection, as Francette 

drooled with a slovenly smile, lost in her fantasies. 

Yeah, I figured as much... 

Besides, what nation would dare exile Fearsome Fran, the reborn 

knight, the great hero who had been granted the divine blade and 

received the blessing of the Goddess? They would rather risk a war 

than lose someone like her. In fact, they might even prioritize her 

over Roland. No, seriously... 

＊ ＊ 

“An emissary from the royal palace has arrived.” 

“Let them through.” 

It was finally time. 

An emissary from the royal palace... 

“Not to worry, I’ve already sent a letter to His Majesty. This is likely 

just for confirmation.” 

With that, Count Maslias gave me a reassuring look. He had taken 

good care of me and House Raphael since even before my family’s 

passing, and I admired him greatly. He had come here hurriedly 

today purely out of concern for me, immediately upon hearing the 

news of the emissary’s upcoming arrival. With my parents no longer 

here, he was like a father to me. 

...An emissary from the royal palace. 

Indeed, the visit was to confirm the truth about the death of my 

family, my uncle Aragorn’s crimes, and how he had been dealt with, 

all of which I’d detailed in a letter to His Majesty the King. 

Count Maslias informed me that he had also explained the 

circumstances in a letter, and as such he assured me that this was 

merely a formality to confirm the details... 

 

186 

I greeted the emissary in the reception room and began explaining 

the situation, though everything had already been outlined in the 

letter, so there wasn’t much to add. 

“So, what happened to the divine horses, crows, and dogs of the 

Goddess that this horse, Carlos, brought in?” 

“Huh? I had them leave, of course.” 

The emissary, surprisingly, was a count. I had been expecting a 

common government official, or perhaps a third- or fourth-born 

noble of lower rank, one that was perhaps an untitled civil servant. 

And he did not question me about my uncle... no, Aragorn’s... 

crimes, but focused on the details of the unnatural phenomena... or, 

rather, the Goddess’s miracles. I took this to mean that they had no 

intention of meddling with the internal affairs of House Raphael, or 

how I had handled Aragorn’s disposal. Although, really, it wasn’t as if 

I had done anything worthy of reprimand in the first place. 

If they had interfered with the legitimate head of a noble house 

punishing a villain within their own family, the other nobles would 

end up fearing that the same thing could happen to them and would 

likely stand together against the royal family. The current royal 

family had a relatively good relationship with the powerful noble 

houses, so it was unlikely that they would do something so foolish, 

especially when they would not benefit from going after a small 

viscountcy like mine. 

Besides, the royal family should have been aware that Count Maslias 

wouldn’t idly stand by and let such a thing happen. Which meant 

that House Raphael should be safe, but... 

“...And did you happen to meet a young girl with scary eyes as of 

late?” 

Huh? 

 

187 

What was this about? The one I met had kindly, downturned eyes. 

Though, there was an unnaturalness about her face, like it was being 

pulled taut. 

“No, no one like that...” 

“I-I see. Then what about, o-oh, I don’t know, someone who could 

perform miracles from the Goddess...?” 

“As I mentioned previously, the only mysterious events were the 

actions of the crows, dogs, and horses.” 

“I see... Then, would you mind letting me meet those horses?” 

“Oh, um, sure, that’s not a problem...” 

When I brought him to the stables, Carlos and the other horses 

walked over right away. I’d always been close with the horses, but 

I’d been even closer with them since that day. 

“Carlos. I’ve heard of your great deeds. His Majesty was quite 

impressed, as well!” 

“Brr? Bff!” 

Ah, Carlos is blowing air out of his nose in annoyance, probably 

because an unfamiliar human is talking to him so presumptuously. 

“Whoa!” 

Oh, Carlos got a bit of snot on him... 

The emissary asked me a few more things afterward, but he never 

ended up faulting me or those of House Raphael for what had 

happened, and left these words by the king before leaving: “You’ve 

done well. Continue to protect your house, your territory, and your 

people, and faithfully serve your kingdom.” 

“You carried yourself well, Mariel! This means your actions have 

been fully, officially approved, and His Majesty has acknowledged 

you as the rightful heir of House Raphael. Though, I suppose that 

 

188 

conclusion was never really in question. In any case, I’m glad things 

turned out smoothly. Now, you should thank your servants for their 

hard work, reward them with a half day off and some extra spending 

money, and take some rest for yourself, as well. I’m sure you’re 

exhausted from everything you’ve been through. Managing your 

health is part of your duty and job as the viscountess. Rest well.” 

He left soon after, perhaps because he thought I wouldn’t be able to 

rest with him around. 

＊ ＊ 

After the count took his leave, I did as he recommended: distributed 

a small allowance and told the servants, except the guards, to take 

the rest of the day off and return before it was time to close the 

gates. 

The cooks had been dismissed as well, so there wouldn’t be anything 

for them to eat if they stayed. I told them as much, and they laughed 

awkwardly as they prepared to go out for the day. Of course, the 

funds I had given them were enough to have a fairly high-quality 

meal with plenty to spare. I called it a small amount, but it obviously 

wasn’t mere pocket change. We might not be powerful, but we 

were a noble house, after all. A viscount’s house at that, not just 

some baronial house! Now that I had some free time, I decided to go 

to the stables to pay Carlos a visit. 

“Carlos! Thank you for everything. I couldn’t have done it without 

you. If you hadn’t gotten to know the divine horse and met Lady 

Celestine’s goddess friend, I never would have been able to avenge 

my family and secure House Raphael’s future. I can’t thank you 

enough...” 

“Brr, brrrr!” 

 

189 

“I’m sorry for turning down the Goddess’s offer to give you the 

ability to speak to humans with her magical potion. I thought you 

wouldn’t need it...” 

“Breehehe, brrr.” 

“That’s why...” 

“Reehehe, brehehe!” 

“Brethat’s brehewhy, I brehehad herhehe brehegive mehehe thehe 

breheability to speheheak to brehanimals! It’s far more convenient 

this way. Now, I can also talk to the other horses and dogs, as well as 

crows and stray... I mean, independent... dogs, and properly thank 

them for their help. It’s perfect!” 

“Brehehe, breeehehe!” 

“Breeehe! Heheeebrehe, brrr!” 

“Breehehehe!” 

＊ ＊ 

“...So, you’re saying it was a normal horse that couldn’t speak the 

human tongue. Did you think I would be satisfied with such a 

report?!” 

“I’m sorry!” 

This nation of Beliscas had a king and nobles, but it wasn’t ruled by a 

single king, and national policy was made by a council of upper-class 

nobles. Moreover, merchants held much stronger sway here than in 

other kingdoms and empires. Of course, this did have its drawbacks, 

as well. Nobles, merchants, commoners, and of course, the royal 

family... they had all heard of the miracle that had occurred in a 

provincial seaside city. 

It was a somewhat, no, an extremely dubious story, about a young 

girl of a small noble house being saved by the blessing of the 

 

190 

Goddess, allowing her to avenge her family and protect her house. 

One would normally dismiss such a tale with a laugh, but the 

viscount’s heir in question had sent a report outlining her full 

account of the event, which was then followed by a report... or, 

rather, a written submission of opinions... by the count of her parent 

house. 

National policies couldn’t be decided by the king alone, but he did 

have the authority to determine whether or not there was an issue 

with a legitimate heiress punishing a family member who had 

committed a crime. He was respecting the rights of a small noble 

house, so there was no way the other nobles would actually object. 

...But this was no ordinary incident. 

The Goddess’s miracle! A beautiful, young, female head of a noble 

house who was blessed by the Goddess! And she was unmarried! 

The king couldn’t give up such a juicy story to those grubby nobles. 

This was the perfect opportunity to take in the girl who had been 

blessed by the Goddess, in order to increase his royal power and 

authority. 

At the same time, there was a very real risk of the nobles taking her 

as their own tool to further their own influence. Which is why the 

king immediately sent a count who supported the royal family to 

confirm the truth, but he had returned without any real results. It 

was only natural for him to be upset. 

“I will need to make my next move... The nobles have surely heard 

the news by now. I must hurry...”