The Loser Lord Who Kept Getting Sweet Revenge and Somehow Rose to the Top - Chapter 18: Let’s Crank Up the Murder Intent

Chapter 18: Let’s Crank Up the Murder Intent

“…Gyuaahh! Gyagyaaahh!!”

Comet’s warning snapped me back to reality—enemy siege engines were swiveling toward us, aiming mana-charged boulders right at him! Damn, fast judgment—Reebok wasn’t called the Strategist for nothing.

As much as I hated it, I couldn’t finish off Van or Shakara here. If I lingered, Comet would be turned into target practice. Clicking my tongue, I pulled the reins and urged him back toward our lines.

“Wahahahaha! Look, Talia! That Sean is tucking his tail and running away! That’s the punishment for all the trouble he caused me—remember this, loser mutt!”

Count Shakara actually broke formation just to point his left hand at me, laughing hysterically and hurling insults. God, what an insufferable piece of garbage!

But Comet wasn’t the type to ignore trash talk like that.

“DrrrRRRhhh… GRAAAH!!”

“GYAAHHH!? Y-Yuuuuhhh! H-HOT, TOO HOOOTTTT!!!”

Turning my head just enough to glance over my shoulder, I saw some distance between Shakara and the black-armored knight guarding him. Perfect. I aimed Comet’s breath to graze past. The knight noticed and tried to intercept—but too late.

Dshuuu!

Comet’s fireball blasted by, skimming Shakara. The left arm he had been pointing at me with melted clean off, and the aftershock seared the entire left half of his face into a blistered mess.

A beat later, Count Shakara realized what had happened. Nose running, he toppled off his horse, thrashing and wailing in raw agony.

“GYAAAaAAHHH! My arm—my aaaarm! It’s gone! My arm is gone!! Aaaaahhh, burned by mana flames—it won’t heal, no regeneration magic works! Gimme back my arm, somebody, pleeease!!”

“Just from a graze?! Tch… Pursuer! Grab that sniveling fool rolling around and get us out of here!”

Van barked the order, and the black knight hefted the writhing Shakara onto his horse before retreating.

“Grrruuu~♪”

Comet purred in satisfaction, pleased with the payback. But I knew better. That had been a blunder. The moment Van called himself my father’s killer, my head blanked out, and I let my emotions swing the strike wide. I was still too immature… damn it.

―In the end, the Imperial army moved in perfect sync with Van’s group, disengaging smoothly from the fight and pulling off a clean retreat.

After the Imperial army retreated, I reported everything to General August—including my blunder. But since the whole invasion itself had no clear purpose, he didn’t treat it as a failure.

From what I’d seen, the Grand General suspected the invasion’s real goal had been to smuggle Van and his group across the border. Either way, with the Empire harboring them now, he ordered the border defenses tightened.

When I returned home from the battlefield, I gathered everyone—Kiriko, Linna, and of course Princess Crim, who had basically made herself at home by staying over as usual. In front of them, I explained how I’d encountered Van, and how he had openly declared himself my father’s killer.

That’s when Gou, looking pained, finally spoke.

“…Sorry for keeping this to myself until now. I’ll tell you everything. Van Nod Ryber—our father—was a genius researcher in magical technology. But as a human being, he was absolute trash. When our mother got sick and died, he faked his own death just to abandon me and Sis, leaving us behind while he ran off.”

Wow. Even by trash standards, that was a new low. No wonder even Linna looked genuinely shocked.

“It started just before I came of age. I was in town and spotted a man who looked exactly like that trash father of ours. The thought hit me—he might still be alive. So when I turned of age, I left this mansion to track him down. 

But the bastard kept moving from place to place, never staying still, so catching him was damn near impossible. I did manage to learn that he was trying to finish his life’s work—the ‘Golden Armor’ he poured all his talent and research into…

And during that time, he apparently went crawling to the late Lord Tourmaline for money. Demanded either Kiriko’s salary or some kind of ‘child liquidation fee’ in exchange for cash. The late Lord Tourmaline was furious. Said a man who abandoned his kids had no right to come back later and treat them like property to be sold off. He told him flat-out: Kiriko and Gou are like my own children, and tossed that garbage right out on his ass.”

Kiriko’s face was frozen in shock—clearly her first time hearing any of this. Guess that happened while I was serving in the army. Yeah… my old man was the type who didn’t talk much, but when he did, he meant it. Figures.

“But that’s what set my father off!”

Gou spat the words through clenched teeth, his whole body trembling with rage.

“That piece of living trash—that worthless debt in human form—poisoned your parents. He slipped them toxins he created in his research, faked it as illness, and murdered them…!”

Overcome by rage and regret, Gou broke down, tears streaming freely. That raw emotion alone was proof enough—everything he’d said was the truth he had confirmed for himself.

“I see… so that’s how it was…”

“…The sins of that trash father are also my sins—for failing to catch him. I wanted to deal with him myself, even if it meant dying together, before Sean or Sis ever had to find out… I’m sorry!!”

With that, he dropped flat to the ground, slamming into a perfect dogeza.

“Keeping silent, acting on my own—it’s all my fault! I’ll take full responsibility! If you need to blame someone, blame me! Sis knew nothing!”

I watched Gou trembling there on all fours, then lowered my gaze, stepped up beside him, and went down on one knee.

“―As for Van, your father, killing my father… neither you nor Kiriko need to shoulder that. That’s that, and this is this!”

“…Sean…”

“The only thing that makes me upset with you, Gou, is that you didn’t tell me sooner. We’ve been together since we were kids. I wish you’d trusted me enough to share the burden instead of carrying it alone. That’s the only complaint I’ve got.”

“Ugh… uuuuuhhh, Brother…!!”

I gently rubbed Gou’s back as he wept on his knees, letting him cry it all out.

“Let’s take him down. Together.”

“…mm.”

“We’ll beat the crap out of him, drag him through living hell, and make him pay. All of us, together.”

“…Mm!!”

“From now on, don’t carry everything on your own. Promise me that.”

“…Yeah!!!”

I pulled Gou into a slow, steady hug to calm him down as he bawled like a child. No matter how old he got, he was still the same reckless little brother who needed someone to look after him.

“Ahhh my Master…”

“Seriously the best everrr~ ♡”

I decided to ignore Linna puffing her chest out like she’d just won first prize and Princess Crim bouncing with over-the-top excitement.

Kiriko, who had been quietly watching our exchange, finally let out a huge sigh of relief, pressing a hand against her deceptively enormous chest.

…Kiriko and Gou were already family to me. They had been for a long time. With that feeling in my heart, I smiled back at Kiriko.

―But just as the mood softened, the doors suddenly burst open. A breathless messenger, mud still clinging to his boots, rushed in from a fast horse.

“―――Lord Tourmaline! Reinforcements have arrived from the neighboring kingdom, and His Majesty urgently summons you! The Imperial Navy has launched an invasion by sea into our ally’s lands!! And leading the vanguard… is none other than the traitor Shakara!!”

“Hell yeah, Sean!! That bastard’s dead meat this time!!!!”

“Damn right! I’ll smash that fool straight into hell!!”

“Hyah-haaa! May I join too, Master?! This time I’ll definitely get to rip him apart!!”

“Gyaw gyaw gyawww!!”

“Leave the estate to us. Go forth with our prayers for victory.”

“I’ll have my personal royal ship prepared at once! The helmsman steering it is famous for dodging almost anything the moment you shout ‘Dodge!’ so you’ll be perfectly safe!!!”

…Yeah. Quick adaptability—that’s the one thing my household really excels at!!!!!!!! Also, Princess, wow—you adjusted to our brand of chaos way too damn fast!!!!!!!!