MI24: Invisible Hand (Patreon)

Heralded by his father and several of his most trusted bodyguards, Paul, Zhongli, Jean, and Xinqiu found themselves outside a two-story building that looked more like a house than a sword dojo. There was a small annex attached to the side, but there were currently no students to be seen.

"Hmmm...strange. I could have sworn this was the place..."

Turning to his Bodyguard, a Saint-Ranked practitioner of the Sword God School named Earhart, Amarant questioned, "Are you certain this is the place?"

Bowing his head respectfully, Earhart answered, "I am absolutely sure, my  Lord. My esquire personally dined with Sword King Augusta and his family on the eve my Lord's arrival in the city."

"I see..."

Trusting Earhart's information, Amarant took the initiative to step up and knock on the door of Augusta's home. Unless they were criminals, Sword Kings had status exceeding even Royal Knights. Amarant would not lower himself even by personally knocking on one's door.

Instead of the burly, middle-aged man that Amarant was expected, the person who answered the door was an attractive and voluptuous young woman with scarlet hair and amethyst eyes. Amarant's eyes instinctually gravitated towards the woman's ample bosom, but only for the briefest of moments before saying, "I am Amarant Notos Greyrat, Lord of the Milbots Region. Please inform the master of the house that I have brought my son and his companions for a demonstration."

Though she was more than a little surprised by Amarant's introduction, the scarlet beauty managed to appear calm as she folded her hands over her lap, lowered her head, and replied, "My husband went to the Market with our daughter. If it pleases the Lord, you and your entourage are free to enter. I will put on some tea."

While Roak was a Free City, it was still a part of the Kingdom of Asura. If a high-ranking Noble were to show up at someone's house, the option of turning them didn't exist.

"Very good. We'll take you up on your offer, Mrs...?"

"Flute. My name is Flute."

Hearing the woman introduce herself without a family name, Amarant, very briefly, regretted bringing his son along. He was feeling more than a little pent up after several weeks on the road. He had relieved himself at several points along the way, but Flute's appearance was perfectly suited to his tastes. If she wasn't married to a Sword King, he might have tried to purchase her on the spot.

After ordering his men to stay outside and create a cordon, Amarant had Paul, Zhongli, Jean, and Xingqiu enter alongside him. Flute guided them to the dining room, but before she could transition to the kitchen to prepare tea, Amarant caused her to tense as he asked, "You mentioned you had a daughter? How old is she...?" 

Though it was only for a brief moment, Flute's mask of calm cracked as she tentatively replied, "She will be turning six in the next two months..."

Raising his brows, Amarant uttered a curious, "Is that so?" before taking the seat at the head of the rectangular table.

With her back turned to Amarant and the rest, Flute formed her hands into loose fists as she bit her bottom lip. This wasn't the first time a Noble had expressed an interest in her daughter, but Amarant's status was such that they wouldn't be able to refuse a requisition offer...

Seeing Flute retreat to the kitchen, Paul couldn't help furrowing his brows as he muttered, "Father...even if it's within your power as a Lord, it doesn't seem right to insinuate you might separate a mother and child..."

Though he expected his son's words, an exasperated sigh escaped Amarant's throat before he closed his eyes and took a few moments to organize his thoughts. When he had, he opened his eyes and explained, "Even if the lass is inordinately skilled in swordsmanship, her status as a peasant places her in a precarious position. If she is half as striking as her mother, she will invariably be forced to become someone's servant. If she takes after her father, she will be assigned to safeguard a Noblewoman or recruited to serve in the Palace of Concubines. Her status as the daughter of a Sword King virtually guarantees it..."

Similar to Flute, Paul couldn't help balling his hands into fists. However, instead of biting his lip, he hung his head with an indignant expression on his face...

...

..

.

Returning a few minutes after her departure, Flute skillfully poured tea for Amarant and Paul as she said, " Forgive my late return. The magic crystal within our stove has been slow to heat as of late..."

With Flute bending over next to him, Amarant's eyes once again fell to her breasts as he hummed a terse, "I see..." before removing the ring from his left pinky finger and dropping it into his cup. It couldn't detect the poison specially concocted to kill members of the Royal Family, but it would emit bubbles if placed into liquids laced with toxic chemicals.

Though she briefly tensed due to Amarant's actions, Flute exhaled a soft sigh when the ring didn't produce any bubbles. Nobles were infamous for using fake versions of the ring to pressure people they intended to extort.

Nodding his head in approval, Amarant sampled his tea while Flute stood off to the side like a trained servant. Before she married her husband, she had spent eight years working for the Local Lord and his family. Such was the fate of most beautiful young women once they reached the age of 10. In exchange, they would receive a 'severance pay' between 10-20 Asura Gold Coins, enough money to support themselves or function as a dowry payment.

Like Amarant, Flute knew it was only a matter of time before her daughter ended up in a similar position as herself. It was just the way things were in the Asura Kingdom, so, while Amarant was silently enjoying his tea, Flute was directing periodic glances towards Paul and the trio of girls standing behind him. She didn't know if it was because Paul was the son of a Lord, but his servants had excellent dispositions and notably expensive-looking clothes.

As Flute was convincing herself that House Notos was far from the worst place her daughter could end up, the sound of the front door opening and closing reached the dining room. Soon after that, a tall and burly man with similarly scarlet hair and a stylish goatee appeared with a wicker basket in hand. Following closely behind was a very young girl whose height barely reached past his waist. She had the same scarlet hair and amethyst eyes as both of her parents. However, while that prompted many questions, it was the two small yet present mounds on the front of the girl's chest that regularly garnered people's attention.

"Hoooo-? It's been quite some time since I hosted a Regional Lord. I trust my wife has been nothing but courteous to you...?"

Though the soldiers outside had confiscated his sword, the scarlet-haired man radiated an aura that caused everyone in the room, sans Zhongli and the little girl hiding behind his leg, to tense. The rugged-looking man took notice of this peculiarity but elected to maintain focus on the middle-aged man sipping tea in his seat.

Maintaining his bearing despite the swordsman's aura, Amarant remained seated as he asked, "Sword King Augusta, I presume? You don't strike me as someone skilled in the Water God School. If anything, I would assume you belonged to the Sword God School..."

Despite his attempts to suppress it, a faint scoff emanated from Augusta's throat. He was tempted to ask what a 'mere Lord' knew of the Water and Sword God Styles, but Amarant's status was considerably higher than the average Noble's. He could effortlessly kill such a man, but it would cost much more than just his own life. Everyone even distantly related to him would be massacred, or worse, as an example.

"My disposition has changed rather drastically since my retirement. I have not upheld my title as King in many years. These days, people just call me Instructor Augusta."

"I see..."

Rising to his feet, Amarant adopted a 'casual' stance with his right hand on his as he explained, "I had hoped you could demonstrate some of your skills for my son and his companions. My son has nearly stepped into the Intermediate Rank of the Water God Style despite his adolescent age. As for his companions...this young lady here has demonstrated the ability to contend with Advanced-Ranked Swordsmen of both the Sword and Water God Styles..."

Though Augusta was moderately surprised to hear Paul was nearly at the Intermediate Rank, his eyes visibly widened when Amarant inferred that Zhongli could match swordsmen of the Advanced Rank. Even if she was a Half-Demon that aged slower than a Human, it was unheard of for such a small girl to possess such tremendous power. It wasn't like she could just hide additional muscles within her thin arms and legs.

"You mean to tell me this brat is nearing the Rank of a Saint? Just how old is she...?"

Had he not been made aware of Zhongli's true identity, Amarant might not have believed his own words. Thus, rather than take offense to Augusta's words, he nodded his head and explained, "She is presently six years old. As for the integrity of my words, I had hoped to demonstrate the truth by having my son and his companions compete against your students."

"Ah..."

Scratching the back of his head, Augusta's expression became awkward as he revealed, "I have my students complete commissions with the Guild to gain combat experience and accrue funds. They recently departed on a C-Rank Escort Mission. If everything goes well, they should return in two to three weeks."

Though he narrowed his eyes in dissatisfaction, Amarant didn't condemn Augusta for failing to anticipate his arrival. It wasn't exactly common for a Regional Lord to make house visits. If he weren't concerned about his son having no friends his age, he would not have imposed upon Augusta and his family.

"It would appear our timing was less than ideal. Unfortunate..."

Since it didn't look like his son would have the chance to demonstrate his skills, Amarant shifted his gaze to the young girl hiding behind Augusta's leg, asking, "Is that your daughter? Despite her young age, it can be seen that she takes after her mother..."

Adopting a smile that failed to reach his eyes, Augusta answered, "Yeah. Her name's Lilia. Her skill with the sword is sub-par, but she's pretty sharp for her age..."

Before his father could respond, Paul suddenly interposed himself into the discussion; his expression marred with disbelief as he parroted, "Lilia? Did you just say your daughter's name was Lilia...?"

Though Paul was the son of a Lord, Augusta couldn't help furrowing his brows when he heard the youth speaking out of turn. In spite of this, he dared not lambast Paul in front of his father. Instead, he answered with an annoyed, "Yeah, what of it? Got a problem with my naming sense, br-"

Stopping himself before he could call Paul a brat, Augusta stepped aside before giving his daughter a push forward and saying, "Introduce yourself the way your mother taught you."

"Huh? Ah, uh...please wait a moment..."

Setting down the basket she had been carrying, Lilia took a moment to smooth out some of the wrinkles in her dress before folding her hands over her lap in a way that squashed her developing breasts between her arms. Then, with an ostensibly emotionless expression on her face, she lowered her head and body nearly forty degrees as she said, "Greetings, Noble Sirs. My name is Lilia. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance..."

Nodding his head in approval, Amarant placed his hand on the stunned Paul's shoulder, stating, "This is my son, Paul Notos Greyrat, First Son of House Notos. Why don't the two of you go off somewhere while I have a chat with your parents?"

Not sure how to respond, Lilia looked to her father for guidance. He had a scary expression on his face, but he quickly nodded his head, saying, "Go. Children have no place in adult discussion..."

"Okay..."

Bending down, Lilia attempted to pick up her basket, but Augusta stopped her, stating, "Just go. Your mother and I will take care of it."

Though she was startled by her father's tone, Lilia didn't flinch. She had gotten used to him shouting in the dojo, so, after a moment of silence, she nodded her head, repeating, "Okay..." before making her way over to Paul, lowering her head, and saying, "Please follow me, Sir Paul..."

Still at a loss for words, Paul simply nodded in response to Lilia's. He was still trying to convince himself she was someone different from the person he was thinking about, but all the signs pointed to the possibility she was the same Lilia from the original Mushoku Tensei. If that was the case, he really might be loved...or perhaps cursed by fate...