Having traversed countless realms, can you possibly be as clever as me?

Just as everyone continued to besiege Emilia, the door to the Dragon Roar Hall was suddenly kicked open.

"Stop chattering so much! What's with all that nonsense?!"

Everyone in the room stared in astonishment at the rude intruder. Emilia, who had been rescued, was initially delighted, but then immediately realized that the one controlling her body now was probably not Subaru.

"Uh—no, this person is my servant, not an intruder!"

Emilia immediately and anxiously explained to the knights who had drawn their swords, while a nobleman seized the opportunity to make sarcastic remarks.

"Is that so? The half-demon's follower is indeed extraordinary, daring to trespass into such a sacred hall. Just like the half-demon, they don't understand the rules—"

Ding! ! !

Reinhard suddenly drew his sword and stood in front of the other party, the unsheathed dragon sword aimed at this 'uninvited guest', and right above the nobleman's head, a slash had already cut a gap in the roof beam!

"Uh, please stop." The red-haired swordsman spoke with an impeccable expression and gentle demeanor, but anyone who knew him would find this unusual.

Especially the unsheathed dragon sword 'Red', almost no enemy has ever seen one worthy enough for the sword saint Reinhard to draw his dragon sword.

"This is the venue for electing the king, you..."

“Nonsense.” Tsurugi interrupted him, sneering.

"Are leaders chosen based on empty talk and speeches, or on your votes or something?"

"Stop your whining. Do you think all of them choosing one person can outweigh your choice, Son of the World?"

Reinhard frowned slightly; he had already noticed something was wrong with the person in front of him—he had Natsuki Subaru's body, but his soul was a deep red that even the world's blessings could not make out!

"I've had enough of all this red tape." Tsuruga chuckled in a low voice, an ominous, crimson aura emanating from him.

"Let's skip these pointless political steps, let's skip these boring speeches, elections, voting, and assassinations!"

"Let's decide who will rule this country through a fierce and thorough battle!"

"Strength is the only way to rule!"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

P.S.: Sigh, I don't know why things have gotten so quiet again. My subscriptions dropped a bit. I'll try to catch up on some of my thoughts when they recover. Without anyone to talk to, I feel listless and unmotivated to write...

The latest update is now available on the book club forum; your interpretation is welcome.

909

628. Reinhardt: Pressure +10086

The election venue was originally an elegant political setting where people could expound their principles and attack each other on lineage, goals, and origins.

But now, someone suddenly jumps out and tells them—let's kill each other!

Cast aside these nagging constraints, reason and rules, and they will slaughter each other.

Only those who survive are qualified to be kings!

How barbaric, how brutal, how... The greatest truths are the simplest!

"Hoo hoo hoo, although it's rude, I think it makes a lot of sense."

Priscilla covered her mouth with her fan and chuckled softly.

“Princess, refrain from speaking here—that fellow is strange, and extremely dangerous!” Aldibalan, his hand resting on the sword at his waist, uttered a low, eerie voice as he stealthily observed.

"Oh dear, the atmosphere seems a bit tense~~~" Roswaal suddenly spoke, his voice drifting over with an exaggerated smile.

"Let me introduce you. This Mr. Ang is part of my manor, but he is also Emilia's partner~~~ How about we each take a step back here, sir?"

The nobleman was already drenched in sweat and nearly wet himself, so when Roswaal offered him a way out, he was naturally happy to accept.

"Hmph, consider this a slip of the tongue, I..."

"Shut up, you clown, you dead simp! Keep drowning in your dream of resurrecting your witch master. This time, not a single letter of your lousy book will come true before the world ends!"

However, it was clear that Tsugumi had no intention of giving Roswaal any face and directly raised her middle finger.

Roswaal's expression instantly became extremely interesting, especially when it came to his teacher; his expression was like that of someone who had spilled soy sauce.

The atmosphere became tense and dangerous again, and just then Emilia spoke up pleadingly.

"Huh? No, Mr. Tsugumi, please don't do this..."

"And what are you and the others, you pointy-eared mongrels?"

Tsugumi fully embodies the spirit of a military commander and a champion of gender equality; even if Emilia opens her mouth, he still criticizes her without hesitation!

"Since your goal is just to unseal your hometown, why are you even bothering with this whole thing and choosing a king? This clown just fooled you and you actually believed him! What the hell does being a king have to do with unsealing your hometown!"

"And even if we take a step back and say the worst, there's no way you could be elected through normal means. You and that Satella look exactly alike, who would vote for you!"

"What you should do is let that lazy, aging man next to you who gets off work at five o'clock go out and threaten this bunch of useless people to obey you, instead of making everyone here, especially this useless person, play house with you!"

Emilia's pretty face turned deathly pale instantly, and then she covered her face, cried, and ran away.

This completely baffled everyone.

Wait, buddy, aren't you in Emilia's faction? Isn't that the lord you serve?

How come you even criticize people from your own camp?!

"Brother, you're absolutely right! Well said!!!" Ferut cheered, raising his fist and laughing.

"Let's burn all this disgusting stuff to ashes!"

With the election site completely thrown into chaos, someone finally couldn't hold back any longer and stepped forward.

"Enough!!!" Anastasia's knight Julius stepped forward, glaring angrily at Tsugumi standing at the door, and shouted.

The purple-haired knight maintained impeccable manners, but his tone betrayed barely suppressed anger.

"Since you are Lady Emilia's companion, why do you speak so disrespectfully to your lord? And why do you so disregard the Sages' Guild, the nobles, and the rules of the Knights! You must give an explanation!"

Tsugumi tilted her head and looked at Julius, scoffing.

"Explain? There's nothing to explain. If you're not happy, come out and fight me. You can kill me if you dare, or you'll deserve it if I kill you. It's that simple!"

Julius had already placed his hand on his sword upon hearing this, but Reinhard once again blocked his way.

"Gentlemen, please do not start a conflict here!"

Although Reinhard was trying to mediate, it was clear that the Sword Saint was significantly biased towards the rude person.

Those unfamiliar with the Sword Saint might conjure up images of sinister schemes and plots, but Reinhard is far from such a person. He is a being who can be called the embodiment of a knight, and there is only one reason for his bias—

To deal with two people who could make him draw the Dragon Sword!

Subaru is one, and the one controlling Subaru's body is another, who can even make his 'friends' issue warnings!

Honestly, he's drenched in sweat right now.

The latter's existence is undeniable; it is merely the power he has leaked. Although unfamiliar, Reinhard has no doubt that the aftershocks of their battle could send the entire royal city flying!

As for the former—to be honest, even now Reinhard still hasn't figured out Subaru Natsuki.

He may seem to have no real ability and is quite loud, but the Dragon Sword has always remained unsheathed for him.

909 >>

That means he must have one or more trump cards up his sleeve, and he never intended to reveal them.

This scene is like a game where a huge monster with unknown end-game effects stands in the front row, while five cards are face down in the back row!

Reinhard may have enough confidence in himself, but he lacks confidence in what he wants to protect. If a fight breaks out, even if he wins, the capital and everything he wants to protect will probably be reduced to ashes.

"Please, please do me a favor."

"Do you really like giving people face? Are you Shanks?" Tsugumi rolled her eyes, then her aura became even more dangerous.

"You're too comfortable with these boring things. You should fight to your heart's content! Draw your sword, Child of the World!" Tsugumi looked at Reinhard and extended her hand in invitation.

"You, blessed by the world, should not be trapped by these boring, worldly things. Let us fight and destroy all this tedium! This royal city, this capital, this country, this world!!!"

"Forget all the formalities, forget all this tedium, fight me as a single person, as a warrior!!!"

Reinhard remained silent, even sheathing his dragon sword. Seeing this dismissive attitude, Tsugumi sighed dejectedly.

I was originally planning to give Subaru Natsuki a near-death experience and then have him engage in a five-minute high-energy elbow fight, since he had accumulated quite a few Crimson Marks and wanted to have a match with him too.

However, since I have no desire to fight, there's no point in forcing him to fight.

Seeing that Tsugumi had stopped, Reinhard breathed a sigh of relief after confirming through his healing spell that she had no intention of forcing a fight. In any case, this was perhaps the best outcome for today...

“But then again,” Tsugumi’s words made Reinhard’s heart leap into his throat once more.

"I'm not exaggerating when I say your election of a champion is a joke~~~"

Tsugumi pointed at the silent nobles and sages and said sarcastically.

"Of course, I'm not saying you're all cowards who wouldn't dare fight me, but rather—"

"A country where two-thirds of the upper class has been replaced by followers of the Witch Cult, truly has a bright future ahead of it (praise)!"

These words caused an uproar. Most people looked angry, but how much of that anger was feigned? Who knows?

"...What do you mean by that?"

"I don't know if this is a local custom or something—most of the people here have had their bodies modified."

Tsurugi tilted his head and said teasingly.

"The process involves flesh and blood being reorganized and modified by the power brought by the witch's factor, followed by the implantation of altered memories. Many people involved don't even realize they've been replaced with fakes~~~"

"You're spouting nonsense! You're a madman! We've put up with you for far too long!" Li Keert stepped forward, pointing angrily at Dongjiang.

"Knights, seize this madman at once!"

"Wait, Lord Li Keert!" Reinhard immediately spoke up to stop the conflict from erupting, then stared at Tsugumi.

"You don't seem like the type to make empty promises. How will you prove that?"

If it were a common magical technique, Reinhard would be able to recognize it himself; at worst, he could just ask the world for a 'blessing that sees through altered memories'.

However, if it is the power of the Archbishop of Sin, then there is indeed nothing that can be done. The power of the Witch Factor is an existence opposed to authority, and it is a problem that the world cannot easily interfere with.

"Well~~~~ Just watch and see—"

Tsurugi immediately assumed a strange posture, right hand down, left hand up, then suddenly slammed it down and raised it up.

"The principle of regression!!!"