I Became the Butler of the Seventh Princess, Who’s Regressing Into a Child - Episode 51

Episode 51

Just as I was about to rest in my room, the mansion grew alarmingly noisy. Sensing something was wrong, I rushed out of my room—only to nearly bump into Rinyan. She seemed to be on her way to find me.

“Whoa—ah! Good timing, Rondo, there’s trouble…”

“What happened?”

“Someone’s attacked the mansion… and it’s just one person. They’re incredibly strong.”

“…I see. Is Lian safe?”

My first concern was for her. If someone was bold enough to assault this mansion, I could only assume it was one of Vanz’s minions—likely here to silence a traitor or… to go after Lady Luciana.

“We’re all safe.”

“…Alright, understood.”

In that case, I needed to get to Lady Luciana immediately. Her room should be heavily guarded by soldiers, so she should be safe… or so I hoped. Sprinting down the hallway, I soon found soldiers collapsed on the floor. They seemed to be breathing, but they bore deep wounds. It was as if from a blade.

“Rinyan, please tend to them! I’m heading for Lady Luciana’s room!”

“…Understood.”

They hadn’t been killed, likely because the assailant wanted them injured but alive. When we’d attacked Vanz’s facility before, we’d learned that any wounded would need immediate care. And attackers often preferred injuring over killing in such cases—it could slow down a response while someone tended to the wounded. This tactic would give the assailant time to achieve whatever their true goal was. And that was likely what this intruder had in mind now.

Anxiety twisted in my chest as I activated [Acceleration], propelling myself toward Lady Luciana’s room. The moment I arrived, I found the room in shambles. Elena lay unconscious by the wall. The guards were similarly out cold, lying sprawled across the floor.

In the dim room stood an unfamiliar man. A sinister, glowing blade was in his hand. He was standing over Lady Luciana.

“Lady Luciana—!”

At my shout, the man turned to look at me. I immediately activated a double [Acceleration] and launched a kick at him, hurling him out of the room. Following through, I leaned out the window to track his fall. I heard Elena let out a faint groan, so I turned back for a moment.

“Elena, look after Lady Luciana! I’ll go after him!”

“…Understood, Rondo-san.”

Leaving Lady Luciana’s protection to Elena, I jumped out the window to pursue the man. He glanced at me, raising his sword. He didn’t seem to have any intention of fleeing. I drew my sword and brought it down. It led us into a swift exchange of strikes.

The man’s blade emitted an eerie glow. And even with only one arm, he moved with unrelenting precision. It kept me constantly on the defensive.

“…!”

“…No way—”

After trading a few blows, I realized instantly. I took a step back, putting distance between us. And he let out a long sigh.

“Well, well, don’t tell me… you’re the old man’s apprentice, too?”

“Are you talking about Klaus-san? So, you’re his…?”

“Watch it with the ‘you’—I’m your senior in this apprentice thing, got it? Never heard of the legendary Gushinus, your illustrious elder?”

“….Gushinus? So that’s your name.”

“That’s right. I’m the disciple who earned a reputation for cutting down a hundred adventurers. Didn’t the old man ever mention me?”

Klaus-san had once spoken of an apprentice who’d gone down a dark path. It must have been him.

“Maybe not. Seems to me Klaus-san never considered you a true disciple.”

“Keh! Makes sense! The old geezer was trying to kill me just now. Poor me, right?”

“…What?”

So, Klaus-san had tried to stop him… and yet here he was, standing before me.

“Yeah, that’s right. I took down the old man. Though, with the commotion, I didn’t have time to finish him off. Heh…”

“I see.”

From the smug confidence in Gushinus’ smile, it didn’t seem like he was lying. But it didn’t matter. My priority was to protect Lady Luciana. I just had to defeat him quickly and then go check on Klaus-san.

Suddenly, tendril-like appendages extended from Gushinus’ sword and pierced into his arm. 

……A cursed blade. 

It was the same weapon that the enemy used in the game—a blade that drastically boosted stats at the cost of continuously draining the wielder’s HP. Gushinus’ stats were likely off the charts.

“Alright then… let’s get started!” 

Gushinus shouted, charging toward me. I met his cursed sword with my own.

Our movements were similar, but only just. Gushinus had far more experience in real combat. His style echoed Klaus-san’s but had many deviations. It was enough to throw off my reactions. Even with double [Acceleration] activated, I was barely keeping up.

Our shared background in Klaus-san’s teachings meant that our moves sometimes overlapped. Yet whenever our swordsmanship clashed, he had the upper hand. The years of experience were clearly on his side.

But completely changing my approach wouldn’t work either; he was far too skilled for anything hastily put together to succeed. Trying to overpower him head-on, I only ended up being pushed back by the cursed blade’s power.

“What’s wrong, apprentice of Klaus? Are you as useless as that old man?” 

His mocking laughter filled the air as he intensified his attacks with a strange, ominous energy.

“…!”

Then, without warning, Gushinus unleashed a technique—[Celestial Severing Blade]. He executed it at a completely unexpected moment, catching me off guard.

“Die!”

He shouted as he activated the skill. A dark energy, bolstered by the cursed sword, shot toward me. I reacted too late and barely managed to activate [Barrier]—”バリア” (baria) in time.

…But it only held for a moment. His attack shattered it with ease, and I was sent flying.

“Ugh…!”

I slammed into the ground, nearly blacking out. I forced myself to stand.

“Oh? Not down for the count just yet, huh?”

“…Yeah, something like that.”

I took a small, steadying breath. To be honest, I was in deep trouble. Continuing to fight like this wouldn’t bring victory.

But then… I noticed Lady Luciana watching worriedly from the window. I couldn’t let her see me falter.