The Villainous Noble Son Wants to Capture His Stepsister! - Chapter 11

I stood before the target, focusing all my attention.

My left hand gripped the koiguchi (the sheath’s mouth), while my right hand firmly grasped the hilt. I positioned my left foot slightly behind and lowered my stance.

The target before me was a massive log—so thick that a grown man would struggle to wrap his arms around it.

If I didn’t angle my blade correctly, the impact would simply bounce off.

I exhaled deeply, then inhaled just as deeply.

And then—

“Hah—!”

I drew my katana in a flash.

At the same time, the compressed water stored within the sheath was released, propelling the blade forward at high speed.

Controlling the water’s flow, I coated the blade in a thin layer of liquid before swinging with all my might—

With a single horizontal slash, the log was severed cleanly in two.

The lower half remained standing, while the upper half tumbled to the ground with a dull thud.

“Ooooh!!”

Cheers erupted from the gathered servants and knights. Some even broke into applause.

Feeling a little embarrassed, I scratched my cheek as Heliotrope quietly approached.

Her usual cool and composed expression seemed just a bit softer today.

“That was impressive, Master. You’ve finally begun to perfect your Iai.”

“Thanks. It’s all thanks to your help, Heliotrope. Though… it still took me over a year.”

◇

It had been nearly two years since I reincarnated as Kraut.

I had originally hoped to achieve this milestone in just one year…

But honestly, during that first year, all I did was study, practice swings, and go on a strict diet. Damn it!

Developing high-speed Iai using water magic was no small feat.

Actually, no—calling it difficult would be an understatement. It was a nightmare.

The word difficult had lost all meaning after I had to repeat it to myself so many times.

I had to compress water under high pressure, release it in a controlled burst, direct the force along a single vector, and then coat my blade with the remaining water before striking.

It was practically flipping physics the middle finger and daring reality to do something about it.

And of course, I had suffered countless failures along the way.

My katana had flown off into the distance more times than I could count.

I had been soaked to the bone by stray water splashes.

I had even dislocated my shoulder when the force was misdirected.

After being beaten down every single day, desperation naturally kicked in.

To improve my magic control, I spent hours in the duke’s massive garden meticulously watering plants.

Each plant had different water needs, so I had to carefully adjust the amount I used.

It turned out to be surprisingly good training.

Not to mention, I got along well with the gardeners.

Reincarnating in another world, only to spend my time practicing magic by becoming a human watering can, was definitely not what I expected.

◇

On another note, I think I had grown fairly close to Heliotrope over these two years.

She was still my sword instructor, but for some reason, she continued being my personal maid as well.

Since I had already freed her from slavery, there was no obligation for her to stay.

That said, she still scolded and insulted me on a daily basis, so now I wasn’t sure if we were actually close or not…

But occasionally, she smiled at me, so I’d like to believe she trusted me at least a little.

…Even if she still gave me cold, judging stares far more often.

Speaking of which, Heliotrope had always been a beautiful battle maid, but over the past two years, her beauty had leveled up even further.

She was tall, slender, yet still had all the right curves.

Wait. Why do I sense bloodlust?

She was probably sixteen or seventeen now, meaning she was still growing.

Even my father, who had recently returned to the estate, had been unable to stop himself from ogling her.

Oi. Quit that, old man! That’s my personal maid!

By the way, as expected from a medieval fantasy world, this place allowed polygamy.

(Women could have multiple husbands too, in case you were wondering.)

My father, being the perfect example of an aristocratic scumbag, had several concubines and mistresses on top of my mother, the duchess.

I never saw them since they didn’t live in the Veltheim estate, but they were probably staying in our capital mansion or another residence.

Yeah. Really living up to that villainous noble reputation, aren’t you, Dad?

I had already told Heliotrope that if my father ever tried anything, she should use my name as an excuse to reject him.

Not that she would let anything happen to her by force—she was too strong for that.

But my father was a reigning duke, so if she ever ended up hurting him, it would turn into a huge political mess.

For some reason, when I told her this, she had looked… strangely meek.

It left quite the impression on me.

◇

And now, dear readers, I know you’ve been waiting.

I may have kept you waiting too long.

After two grueling years…

After countless struggles…

After fighting through setbacks and failures…

I have finally—FINALLY—succeeded.

I DID IT. I FINALLY LOST WEIGHT!!!

Drumroll, trumpet fanfare—(provided by me).

I endured pain, but I made it! I’m so proud of myself!

…What? I’m acting weird?

Yeah, I know.

But can you blame me?!

My body mass was literally cut in half!

Now, I was the picture of a refined nobleman—a sleek, silver-haired pretty boy.

With this character design, I wouldn’t have just been some throwaway villain in the game.

Seriously, Kraut, why didn’t you put in a little more effort from the start?!

Oh, right. Because the devs needed a loser noble for the plot.

Figures.

Anyway—the diet challenge is complete.

I had also perfected my original Iai technique.

It was time to move to the next stage.

The Villainous Noble Reform Project, Phase Two—commencing now.