The Villainous Aristocrat's Efforts Led to a Genuine Harem - Episode 11

Episode 11

…That battle that had been so fun at first became boring after just a single day.

Just when is the Necklace of Growth going to drop?

If this were a game, I could’ve just left it running with a turbo controller and checked back the next day.

But doing all that manually with my real, flesh-and-bl00d body? Honestly, it was torture.

I found myself apologizing in my heart to the game’s protagonist.

I had no idea how tough it was to grind like this—it always felt so easy in the game. I’m truly sorry.

And perhaps that apology for my sins had some effect—

I finally noticed a necklace drop. It was separate from the usual magic stones.

Because I had been grinding like a machine, my reaction to the drop was delayed.

I did a double take and then immediately rushed over to the item.

This is… no doubt about it…!

It’s the Necklace of Growth that helped me so much in the game!

“Yesssssss!!”

I picked up the necklace. I was recalling the week of grinding it had taken to get here.

It had been rough…

I even got tackled by a Stone Rabbit a few times when I spaced out.

But those days were finally over.

I quickly put on the necklace, let out a light breath of relief, and activated my spatial magic.

With the entrance in front of me, I connected the exit to the Mold teleportation stone and passed through immediately.

I’d gotten the item. And my level had increased at least a little—so it was time to move on to the next phase.

I activated spatial magic again and returned to the city of Vale.

Then I headed to the guild. And as usual, I sold off the magic stones and materials I had collected.

“Oh, Ryō-san! With this quest completed, you’ll be promoted to F-rank adventurer.”

“I see.”

…Apparently, I had met the promotion requirements by completing enough quests from the Cave of Silence.

In this world, adventurer ranks increase automatically once you accumulate enough quest completion points.

In the game, you could see exactly how many points you had left until a rank up—but in this world, that information isn’t made public.

It’s managed on the guild’s side and not shared with adventurers.

The staff inserted my adventurer card into a box-shaped magical device that looked kind of like a computer.

The card was sucked in. And a short time later, with a sound like a microwave, it was returned and handed back to me.

I accepted the card with a smile from the staff member.

Sure enough, the letter G had changed to an F.

Pretty convenient device.

I was just about to head home, thinking that, when—

“P-please, I’m begging you! It’s an emergency request!”

A desperate voice rang out. I turned my gaze in that direction.

—

—Some time earlier—

(Reem’s Perspective) 

Before me, everything was stained red.

A High Wolf had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. And—as if fate itself had planned it—it lunged at my father. It sunk its sharp fangs into his chest.

Bl00d sprayed from the wound. His scream of despair melted into the darkness of the night.

No matter how much I screamed, no matter how many tears I shed, that cruel scene wouldn’t stop.

I saw my father’s apologetic expression as he looked at me.

After my mother died of illness, he had lovingly raised me—my beloved father.

The light faded from his face. And eventually… his head slumped like a puppet with its strings cut.

Seeing that, all I could do was scream and sob—

—I suddenly sat up with a gasp.

Looking around, I saw wooden walls… I realized I was in my own room.

The scene I had just witnessed had been a dream.

“…Seriously, what kind of dream was that?”

I sighed at how vivid and real it had felt.

…Like a child. My whole body was drenched in cold sweat.

My breathing was ragged. I could feel my heart pounding violently.

I closed my eyes and took deep breaths to calm down—

But the scene from the dream replayed in my mind.

My father, being killed by a High Wolf…

That couldn’t happen. There were no wolf-type monsters near this village of Strite.

It was just a dream.

Yeah… a dream.

Sometimes dreams like that just happen.

…But even so, the fear lingering in my chest wouldn’t go away.

I pulled a towel from my bag—it had been placed in my room.

…It was the towel soaked in Lord Reis’ sweat. It was something I had received about a week ago.

As I suspected, his scent had changed.

Even the first time I smelled it, I’d noticed that Lord Reis’ scent had clearly changed.

Now, it somehow had a calming effect.

“…It’s the first time someone’s scent has changed like this.”

A person’s scent can change slightly based on their condition.

For example, sweat from nervousness smells different from sweat after pure physical exertion.

But the core scent—its essence—doesn’t change.

It’s like adding seasoning to a tomato dish… no matter what you add, it still smells like tomato.

Which is why, no matter how much someone’s scent changes, if I hated it before, I’d still hate it.

But Lord Reis’ scent…

It had literally changed 180 degrees.

From a smell I disliked… to one I liked.

…It happened around the same time his aura shifted.

“…I wonder why?”

Even though I kept sniffing Lord Reis’ scent, the mystery remained unsolved.

I’ll have to get another towel from him and continue my investigation.

Now that I had calmed down a bit, I carefully sealed the towel and stored it away.

Then, I stepped out of the room.

Our house wasn’t very big. And we only had one servant.

She had already started preparing breakfast. But she looked at me with concern.

“What’s wrong, Claire?”

“M-Miss… um, there’s a report that an unfamiliar monster was spotted outside the village. The master went to investigate.”

“…”

When I heard those words, an uneasy feeling welled up inside me.

…Because I was reminded of this morning’s dream.

“When did Father leave?”

I tried to ask calmly. But my voice was probably a bit rushed.

“About thirty minutes ago. I think he’ll be back soon, though…”

Right as she said that, the door opened in a rush.

I turned instinctively—and there was my father. He was holding his abdomen.

Next to him was Sonalta, a soldier from the village. He was supporting his shoulder.

“Father!?”

I called out in panic. And my father slowly lifted his face, forcing a smile.

A smile that looked like he was straining just to make it happen.

Claire quickly brought a potion and handed it to my father. He then drank it and looked slightly more relaxed.

“I’m okay. I just had a little skirmish with a High Wolf, that’s all.”

“…I-I’m sorry, Miss Reem. Boril protected me…”

Sonalta-san was standing beside him. He lowered his head apologetically.

Shaking my head at him, I couldn’t ignore the words my father had just said.

“…A High Wolf appeared near the village?”

“Yeah. We confirmed about six of them… And probably more out there.”

“…No way…”

“They’re most likely monsters summoned by the Demon King’s army at random.”

…Monsters showing up outside their usual habitats are often said to be summoned by the Demon King’s army.

The exact reason can only be known by asking the army itself. But it’s widely believed they do it to disrupt human lands.

My father sat down in a chair and turned his gaze to Sonalta-san.

“Sonalta. Use the underground passage and send troops to Mold immediately. Bring some valuables from the warehouse with you.

…With the village’s barrier device, we might be able to hold out for a few hours at best. Just hurry.”

…It takes about two hours on horseback to get from the village to Mold.

There was a chance of being attacked by monsters along the way. And even if they arrived and explained the village’s situation, then posted a request as a formal commission… whether they would make it in time was doubtful.

…No, definitely not. It’s impossible.

“…O-okay! I’ll give the orders right away!”

Sonalta-san nodded and immediately ran out of the room.

“…Father. Does that mean the teleportation stone can’t be used anymore?”

“Yeah, it seems it’s no good. Right now, we’re managing thanks to the deployed barrier device. But that won’t last long… I just hope reinforcements arrive before it fails—”

“M-Mold is a big city, so… we’ll be fine, right?”

I asked that because I felt more anxious than usual—I just wanted some reassurance.

No matter what, I couldn’t get this morning’s dream out of my head.

I asked to drive it away somehow, but… Father’s expression was grim.

“Who knows… To be honest, even the tax payment the other day was just barely made… We don’t have much budget left. If they’re willing to move with the money we sent with the soldiers, that’s great—but whether *that person* who manages Mold will act or not…”

…The noble in charge of managing Mold on behalf of the Validor family was also the same kind of person as the Validor family itself.

So I understood what Father was trying to say.

If there’s money involved, he might move—but if there’s no profit at all, he absolutely won’t lift a finger.

“H-how about the guild…?”

“…Adventurers prioritize rewards above all. The question is how many will accept the job with the little money we have.”

…In other words, we had no choice but to handle this with the village’s current strength.

And when it came to the village’s strength… the strongest person here was Father.

After him, Sonalta-san and I were about equal.

As for the soldiers, we didn’t have a large organized force like the Validor corps.

Even if we gathered every available hand, we’d only have about fifteen people.

Even assuming only the six High Wolves that were sighted earlier…

Considering Sonalta-san had been overwhelmed and Father injured in that encounter…

I couldn’t believe we had enough strength to handle them.

The front door suddenly burst open. And Colt-san rushed inside.

He was a trainee soldier, younger than me.

…There were two more young soldiers like him. And together, including them, our total village force numbered fifteen.

“Sonalta-san! I’ve told the villagers to evacuate through the underground passage!”

“…Got it. Reem, you and Claire-san should evacuate there too.”

“…Eh?”

I opened my eyes wide at Father’s words.

He looked back at me with a serious expression.

“…In case something happens to me, someone has to take responsibility for this village. And you’re… engaged to the Validor family. You’re the only one who can protect this village.”

I understood what Father meant.

I also understood that it was the most logical choice in this situation.

But… just because something is right doesn’t mean I can accept it.

I shook my head at my father.

“…No. If we’re clearly lacking fighting strength and you send me away to safety… then even those who could’ve won might end up losing.”

“But—”

I could see that Father was worried about me. Not as a noble, but as a parent.

…Then, I wanted him to understand this too: I wasn’t a noble now either—I was just a daughter, worried for her father.

“You’re the current head of the Strite family, right? To protect you and this village, we have to take the best course of action….We’re already short on strength. If I also leave the battlefield, it’ll directly affect the morale of the troops.”

“…You’re right.”

I silenced Father’s objections with logic.

Even though he still seemed to have something on his mind, I didn’t exchange any more words with him.

…Right now, I needed to prepare for combat and check the situation.

I took the rapier that had been placed in my room and gripped it tightly.

…It’s okay. I’ll be fine.

I’ve only had a few actual combat experiences.

But in training, I’ve gotten strong enough to almost beat Father.

…I won’t let it turn out like that dream.

No matter what, I’ll protect Father.

To calm my nervous heart, I took one sniff of Lord Reis’ towel. I then proceeded to put on my gear.