I Thought I’d Reformed the Villainous Heroine. But Their True Nature Remained Unchanged, and They Were Still Being Doted On—I Just Don’t Have Enough Lives. - Chapter 15

The Start of a Strict and Tough Adventure

Right after the painting finished, I rushed into Dad’s office.

I had asked the servants and heard that Bakudou was there right now.

It looked like the teacher was deep in conversation with Dad. A map was spread out on Dad’s desk, so maybe the monster damage had increased.

“Excuse me! Teacher, I have a request!”

“What’s this all of a sudden? Young Master, don’t you have a greeting for your father?”

“A greeting for Dad?”

Dad was sitting at his desk. He looked like he wanted some parent-child communication.

It wasn’t that I hated him, but for some reason it was hard to be straightforward with him.

“Teacher! Can we take my training to the next level—no, can we crank it way up?!”

The teacher glanced at Dad’s sad expression before answering.

“…I don’t plan to spoil you, but you’re doing well, Young Master.”

“I want to work even harder!!”

“Hmm, you’re already right at your limit right now… Still, I do have an idea.”

“I’ll do it, I’ll do it, right now!”

“At least listen to what it is first, geez. Well… it’s just practical training. You’ll just fight monsters out in the field.”

Practical training. I got it, I thought.

Even though I’d been training with the teacher and Myris, I still got shown the clear difference. Not just in strength, but in judgment too—the gap was huge.

The number of times you’d survived deadly situations and the difference in real combat experience showed through even in practice fights.

“I’ll do it! I’ll fight monsters with everything I’ve got! I’ll make it through deadly situations!”

“Listen, Young Master. I can’t do it without the master’s permission—”

Dad folded his hands and smiled casually.

“Why not? Our son says he wants to grow.”

With that strong-looking gesture, I frowned.

Well, Dad really was crazy strong.

In the original story he wasn’t a playable character and didn’t appear much, but he was described as a pretty powerful one. He could probably overpower the current Ilza, who hadn’t awakened her unique spell code yet.

After Mom died and with how I was acting, he seemed a bit down, but it looked like he was back to his old self.

Bakudou said with a troubled look.

“Is that really okay, Master Dust?”

“I want to act like a proper father and push my child off a cliff sometimes.”

“That’s the reason…”

“Tahaha~ Thanks to you, Bakudou, my son’s foundation is solid. Yeah, it’s about time to raise the level a notch. As a mage.”

Those words left me really confused.

Was he still expecting magical talent from me?

“Dad… I don’t have any talent for magic…”

“Whether you do or not, what does it matter, Gant.”

“Huh?”

“It’s advice from me. Go out into the wide world, despair like crazy, and learn from it.”

Dad said that and smiled cheerfully.

Was he just dumping it all on me? Seriously. Like I don’t despair all the time already.

※※※

Two days later.

And that’s how I ended up going on an expedition for practical training.

It seemed the map Dad and the others had been staring at showed that monster appearances had indeed increased. I received a direct request from the Eisenburg head to investigate mana contamination and take on monster subjugation.

I slung an adventure bag on my back and hung a sword at my waist.

Then I climbed into the horse carriage, left the territory, and headed for the destination.

I was going to Rubel Lake.

It was a really big lake that also served as a water source for the nearby area. Monsters had started showing up here and there around the lake, so they wanted me to check if there was any large-scale mana contamination.

If mana contamination was left alone, dungeons could form. We couldn’t ignore it.

Well, leaving it to a kid meant it was a low-priority, low-danger request.

“But that doesn’t mean I can let my guard down!”

Even if they were weak monsters, I wasn’t in a position to relax.

I renewed my determination. Yeah, I was renewing it, but…

“…Why are you two here?!!!”

My voice echoed through the forest area leading to the lake.

It was loud enough that birds flew off flapping in the distance, but Myris just stayed calm.

“Young Master~ if we include Big Brother Number Three, that makes three, right?”

“Are you counting that thing as a person?! And it’s upgraded again!!”

Big Brother Number Three stood there solidly, blending in with the forest trees.

Unlike Number Two, it had a sturdy build.

The body was still cloth, but I think the frame was even stronger this version. Big Brother Number Three was carrying travel bags for two people.

Ilza said proudly.

“You finally noticed. Yes, this is the new Big Brother.”

“I didn’t want to notice. Uhh…”

“This time I improved the output. The overall weight increased, so speed dropped a bit… but it’s perfect as a baggage carrier for long trips.”

Ilza happily explained Big Brother Number Three’s specs.

The power source inside Big Brother Number Three was groaning “Do whatever you want,” but I was scared of how I was starting to get used to it a little.

At least it seemed they’d purify it once the energy ran out…

I looked at Myris.

“…Isn’t carrying luggage the maid’s job?”

“I’ve never carried anything heavier than a spoon.”

“What kind of princess are you!! Isn’t this supposed to be my training?!”

“Master said there’s no way he’d let Young Master go alone.”

When Myris said it like it was obvious, I shut my mouth.

I could fight now, but I was still developing. Heck, it wasn’t even clear if I’d keep developing. Even though I’d been left alone a lot, they weren’t that irresponsible.

Having escorts made sense.

“What is it, Young Master? Am I just too cute?”

“…You ended up earning Dad and the others’ trust.”

“This world is survival of the fittest. Nothing earns trust like power~”

Myris laughed in a wicked way.

She had become our personal attendant in both name and reality. She kept her background hidden, but she’d shown Dad and the others enough combat ability as an escort.

Dad had let it slide, but the teacher had definitely given her suspicious looks.

She was supposed to be just a maid, yet she could actually fight like crazy—it was way too suspicious.

But Myris had handed the teacher a short sword.

‘I will never betray the two of them. If you can’t trust me, you can kill me right here, Teacher.’

‘That’s quite the resolve. I can tell you’re serious. That alone tells me a bit about your background.’

‘I’m resolved to serve Young Master for life~’

‘…Understood. I’ll believe in that loyalty. …………Young Master is going to have a tough life, huh. Must be the bloodline.’

It really is tough. Things that are tough might happen.

And seriously, stop using me as a tool, Myris.

“An adventure with my little sister and a maid… The tension is just…”

“Hehe, it seems Big Brother Gant can treat it like a picnic.”

“N-no, that’s not it! I’m about to fight monsters! I won’t let my guard down! You can’t get in the way of my training!”

“I understand. As your little sister… I’ll just support Big Brother quietly from the shadows. Forever.”

That sticky sweet tone almost made me stumble over my words.

“U-uh… y-yeah… Ah! Myris, you stay out of it too! Unless it’s really serious!”

“Leaving yourself that insurance is just like you, Young Master.”

Both of them smiled at me, and I frowned.

Do they really get it?

With all that, we kept moving through the forest while staying ready to fight anytime.

The air gradually got more humid. The sound of the wind grew stronger too. The open lake must be close.

When we finished climbing a small hill, the view suddenly opened up.

A big lakeshore spread out right in front of us.

A cool breeze blew through and cooled my heated body. The water surface sparkled quietly, almost soaking into my eyes.

“Whoa, that feels nice… I almost forgot there are monsters…”

Whoops, no no. Letting my guard down is the enemy. I had no idea where the monsters might be hiding. I was about to check my equipment, but.

“Here, put the chairs over there… Yes, let’s set it up in this spot.”

Ilza gave instructions to Big Brother Number Three and Myris, and had them prepare chairs and a table in the open area.

My stepsister sat down gracefully on a chair, and Myris took out a bottle to prepare some tea.

“Um… what are you doing?”

“We got tired from walking, so it’s break time.”

“…You were walking using magic power, right?”

“Big Brother, even so I’m still a girl, you know? I’m younger than you and a girl who’s worth protecting.”

“Worth protecting, she says…”

There were probably fewer people who could actually protect Ilza.

But it felt off. She seemed way too relaxed, like she wasn’t worried about ambushes at all. Well, she could probably handle them easily.

Hm…? Ahhhh?!

“What’s wrong? Big Brother Gant.”

“W-w-what do you mean what’s wrong…”

“Hehe, the tougher the adventure, the more important rest is, right? Right now let’s spend some gentle, truly relaxing time together. It’s fine… monsters won’t appear around this lake for a while.”

From that gentle smile, I sensed an evil presence.

Ilza! You wiped out all the monsters near the lake?!?!?

They’re hostile creatures, but still hostile creatures!

Uwooo!! You’re turning this whole adventure into nothing but a picnic!!!