I Kidnapped the Hero’s Women

[Translator - Peptobismol]

[Proofreader - Demon God]

Chapter 97 - Sword Sheath (1)

‘Finally, we can leave this cursed fortress city.’

With the incident wrapped up, we were practically chased out of Ester, using the excuse that the real Monster Wave was about to begin.

Sure, there was the minor issue of us breaking down part of the city wall.

But if you think about it, we actually did them a favor by giving them an opportunity to repair a wall that hadn’t seen maintenance in hundreds of years.

So really, we didn’t do anything wrong.

That’s what I decided to believe.

“Master, I’m staying behind in the fortress. Since it was our side that damaged the wall, it’s only right that I help with the defense in that area…”

“Shut up and get in the carriage.”

“Huh? Ah! Master! Please let me fight! I beg you…!”

With her gaze dripping with regret as she stared at the fortress city, I shoved Sylvia into the carriage.

Though she didn’t seem to be resisting with much force, I was almost exhausted from the effort and nearly collapsed.

Having apparently given up, Sylvia sat quietly in her seat, staring at me with a pout.

“What are you so upset about? Just say it.”

“It was the perfect opportunity for my new sword’s debut in actual combat. And yet… it all slipped away…”

“Well, that’s your fault. Imagine if you’d just drawn the sword beforehand.”

“Aaah…!”

Sylvia groaned in frustration, biting her lip as if in pain.

Instead of being happy the battle was over, she was disappointed.

I just couldn’t understand it.

Are all swordsmen like this?

“I exist to protect you, Master. I suppose I should be relieved that there was no need to draw my sword…”

“But you’re still disappointed, right? Go ahead, draw your sword now. Let’s see it, I’m curious too.”

“Oh! If you wanted to see it, you should have said so sooner!”

Sylvia, who had been sulking, suddenly brightened up and jumped to her feet.

Excited, she tore off the half-unwrapped leather sheath and prepared to fully unsheathe the sword—

“Huh? Why won’t it come out…?”

“…What the hell are you doing?”

“Something’s wrong. There’s no obstruction, but it’s stuck like it’s glued in place…!”

“Let me try.”

It was just a simple leather covering.

With Sylvia’s monstrous strength, there’s no reason it should’ve been too difficult to rip off, and it didn’t seem like it was stuck or sealed in any way.

Watching her struggle to pull it out looked more like she was miming than anything else.

Unable to bear the frustration any longer, I reached out for the sword.

“This is easy.”

“Wha…?”

Ssshh.

The sword slid out of its leather wrapping effortlessly as soon as I grabbed it.

I shot a look at Sylvia, who stared back in disbelief.

Why was she making such a fuss over something so simple?

But just as I was about to say that—

“Ugh! The light!?”

“Master, it’s dangerous!”

The blade, now freed, began to emit a bright light.

In an instant, everything before my eyes was engulfed in blinding white light, so intense that I couldn’t see a thing.

Was it about to explode!?

Sylvia, panicking, tried to pull me away from the sword.

At that moment, the sword’s silhouette flickered—

And then, in a flash, it was absorbed into my chest.

“Huh…?”

And that was it.

The blinding light that had filled the area vanished as if nothing had happened.

As if it had never even been there.

Blink. Blink.

Sylvia and I locked eyes, both of us blinking dumbly.

“Master! The sword’s stuck in your chest!!! I’ll… I’ll pull it out!”

“Hey, hey! How are you going to pull it out?”

“I’ll cut your chest open and—”

“That’ll kill me!”

“A-Ah! What should we do?”

Sylvia, having raised her hand as if ready to cut my chest open, immediately gave up and collapsed into a heap.

The sword, which had been right in front of us, had disappeared.

I hadn’t seen it clearly because of the flash, but one thing was certain: Sylvia’s sword had been absorbed into my body.

“H-How do you feel? Do you feel like you’ve been stabbed or something?”

“Strangely enough, I feel fine.”

“T-That can’t be right.”

“There’s nothing we can do for now. We’ll head back to the Vermont estate and ask Jacob what the hell kind of sword he made.”

“Understood, Master…”

Sylvia finally calmed down and pulled her hands away from my chest.

It was an odd sensation.

Why would Sylvia’s sword be absorbed into me?

Did the sword somehow recognize me as its master the moment I touched it?

Just in case, I placed my hand on my chest and gave it a tug.

Maybe I could pull the sword back out this way…

But nothing happened.

I couldn’t make sense of any of it.

Since my body didn’t hurt, it was probably best to head back and figure out what had caused this strange phenomenon.

Just as Sylvia was rummaging through the baggage compartment to retrieve a spare sword to replace the one she’d lost—

“Huh?”

Whoosh!

The sword she had grabbed slipped out of her hand and tumbled to the ground.

Did her hand slip?

As Sylvia reached down to pick it up again, the sword seemed to pull away from her as if repelled by a magnet.

“W-What’s going on…?”

“Try picking up another weapon.”

“They’re all the same! The moment I touch them, they slip out of my hand…”

Not just swords—even daggers, spears, and other weapons flew out of Sylvia’s grasp the second she touched them.

It was as if her hands had become incapable of holding any weapon.

Sylvia stared down at her hands in shock, then slowly turned her gaze to me.

Suddenly, her eyes widened as if she’d realized something.

“Master. I think I know what’s going on.”

“Whatever it is, keep your distance and explain.”

“This strange phenomenon started after I touched that bizarre sword, and the light flashed. The sword is definitely the cause, don’t you think?”

“I’d have to agree with that…”

“Please open your mouth, Master. I’ll retrieve the sword from inside you. Removing the sword should fix everything.”

“Hey, hey! Don’t… Mmmpf!?”

“Please don’t struggle. I’m doing this for you, Master. Just count the stars in the night sky; this’ll be over soon.”

“Waaahhh!!!” @@novelbin@@

In an instant, Sylvia pinned me down, leaving me completely immobilized.

Then she forced my mouth open, trying to shove her hand inside.

What kind of lunatic does this!?

How can you possibly think a sword that entered my chest would come out through my throat!?

This is grounds for demotion. Definitely demotion.

Just as I was preparing to yell at her, Sylvia’s hand gripped something inside my mouth.

Then, with a tug, she pulled it out.

“What the…?”

“…?”

Ssshh.

A long sword smoothly slid out from my mouth.

And the moment Sylvia let go, it transformed into a flash of light and was reabsorbed into my chest.

Sylvia and I both sat there in stunned silence.

“Master… It seems I can only use the sword that’s inside your body…”

“….”

…What a ridiculous conclusion.

Alright. I’ve decided.

The moment we return, I’m grabbing Jacob by the collar.

“Get off me. You’re heavy. Why’s your butt so unnecessarily big?”

“Wha—! How dare you say that to a lady…!”

***

“What did you just say? There’s a blacksmith in Vermont that can harness mana flames? That’s impossible! There are only a handful of people in the entire Empire who can do that…!”

“Hmph! It’s true! There’s this huuuuge forge, and an insanely strong fire burns all day long! And there’s even a Great Spirit in the Vermont estate!”

“A G-Great Spirit!?”

Inside the carriage, the children chatted away.

Merilda, sitting across from Charlotte and Julia, kept gasping in awe.

Apparently, the Vermont estate was home to a giant Great Spirit, serving as a mascot.

Swords coated with mana-infused fire were mass-produced daily, and Vermont Security had hundreds of talented employees.

It was all so hard to believe.

Was she being teased because she had grown up in the remote Ester region?

That didn’t seem to be the case, though.

Merilda’s curiosity about visiting the Vermont estate only grew stronger.

‘They’ve already become close friends, haven’t they?’

Watching from a nearby seat, Yuri smiled at the sight.

Perhaps it was because Aslan and Sylvia were riding in a separate carriage, leaving the children on their own, that the atmosphere inside was so lively.

In the meantime, the three of them had grown quite close.

Still, wasn’t it a bit too casual for them to be speaking so informally to the Duke’s daughter?

Not that Merilda seemed to mind…

“Yuri, you said you live in the capital, right?”

“Yes, I’m currently studying at the Imperial Magic Academy.”

“You’re working and studying at the same time? That’s so cool… Could you show me around the academy sometime? I’d love to visit the school where you study…”

“Of course. Just let me know in advance, and I’ll clear my schedule and plan a visit.”

Merilda, having slyly moved closer to Yuri, leaned her head on his shoulder.

Charlotte and Julia’s jaws dropped in shock.

Was she really speaking so politely and sweetly… just to Yuri?

“She’s really…”

“Hold it in, Charlotte.”

“Ughhh…!”

Charlotte was dying to reveal that Yuri was actually a girl!

She was practically shaking with the effort of keeping it to herself.

Meanwhile, Julia was doing her best to cover Charlotte’s mouth and hold her back.

“But what kind of person is Count Vermont? From the rumors I’ve heard, he has terrible taste, and they say he’s a vicious brute… But the Count I met didn’t seem that way at all. Oh, though, I almost misunderstood because of his gloomy appearance…”

“What’s wrong with how Aslan looks…?”

“J-Julia! Hold it in!”

Julia, about to explode in anger, was quickly silenced by Charlotte’s hand over her mouth.

Sure, Aslan’s a bit dark and brooding, but if you get used to it, he’s actually kind of nice!

And when his eyes are closed, he even looks a little handsome.

How dare people talk so casually about someone they don’t even know well!

Julia was fuming inside.

“It seems I have many misunderstandings about him. Could you help clear up my misconceptions?”

“….”

Sitting up straight, as if ready to listen, Merilda gave them her full attention.

Yuri, too, though she pretended to be indifferent, subtly leaned in to listen more closely.

Charlotte and Julia exchanged a glance.

‘This is our chance.’

It was their opportunity to let Yuri know what kind of person Aslan really was.

A chance to correct her misconceptions.

Both Charlotte and Julia opened their mouths at the same time.

“Aslan is…”

“Mister is…”

[Translator - Peptobismol]

[Proofreader - Demon God]