AN: I know some of you wanted Vain and Wynn to return, and they will, but they won't for a while. They'll be mostly on the sidelines of some scenes and appear in some surprising places.
Also... yikes... Sorry about how late this chapter was too. You probably won't like my excuses, but I didn't like the first, second, and third drafts of this chapter that I wrote. This is the fifth draft by the way, I deleted the fourth one by mistake and had to write it all over again.
Happy New Year Everyone!
Chapter 10: Cathartic Reunion
The entire time, from the prison, to the carriage, all the way to the mansion of the Karsten household, his sister hadn't let go of him a single moment. He was effectively glued to her side. He would've made a bigger fuss about it, but he could see his sister desperately needed his company right now, so he didn't begrudge her for it.
Now, they were sitting on one of the couches in the office of Crusch Karsten. Well, his sister was sitting on the couch. He was sitting on his sister's lap, being treated to tea and other snacks a maid had set down on the table earlier.
Man, nobles have some fancy stuff, he idly thought as his gaze swept around the room, taking in the furnishings and the decorations. Although it wasn't gaudy, the room was high-class enough that even his eyes could register it. Sheesh. This much wealth in one room gives me anxiety.
"First," Crusch said as she took a seat at her office's table. "I'd like to offer you my gratitude on discovering and simultaneously cracking down on criminal activity within my territory."
He looked up from the snacks, "Hm? Oh. You're very welcome. But I don't think I can accept your gratitude. It was a complete coincidence after all." I can't let her know that I was just wandering around and found it by accident. He had just been following a feeling and found the site by accident. It wasn't something to really be praised for.
"Either way," she didn't push on the issue, moving on. "Although you and I may know one another indirectly, proper introductions are in order." She put a hand over her chest, "I am Crusch Karsten, daughter and heiress of the current Duke Karsten."
Lugh, awed by her dignity, bowed his head in greeting, "I'm Lugh. Although you're already aware, I'm Ciel's brother."
The noblewoman nodded, "Yes, I have heard much about you from Ciel. But some things still elude me."
He tilted his head in response, to which she promptly responded with a raised finger, "First, your sudden arrival and the knowledge of your survival."
All he could do was scratch his cheek, "Ah... Yeah, I don't really have an excuse for that one. It took me some time to sort myself out, but even, it doesn't really excuse how long it took me." His sister pursed her lips at his response, looking unsatisfied, but didn't say anything, letting Crusch continue.
The noblewoman looked at him with an observant eye, "...Well, moving on then. The main concern would be your current standard of living."
"Hm? What about it?" Lugh asked. He'd been living fairly decently until now. He wasn't absolutely poor, but he had got by with some help at the start and could manage his own life fairly well now.
"She's talking about how you've been living until now. Or more specifically, where," his sister said from right next to him.
"Oh. Again, what about it?" He asked, genuinely confused.
"Whether you are to continue to do as you please, or move in with your sister," Crusch simplified for him.
"Of course, he'll be coming to live with me," Ciel stated.
"Wait, do I not get a say in this?"
Crusch put a chin to her hand, "Legally, your sister is someone of age and should naturally take custody of you until reach adulthood, as well as providing education befitting your age."
"I'm sensing a "but" here," he responded, after seeing Crusch trail off.
The noblewoman shrugged, "I doubt she could keep you here if she tried. Not with your abilities."
"Huh?" Lugh was momentarily confounded, unable to process what she meant, until-
-His head whipped around to his sister, "You told her? About me?"
She had the decency to look embarrassed, "This was while you were missing and thought dead. I... needed to talk to someone." His sister looked downcast, and he felt a twinge of guilt for making her go through with it at all.
With that as her reasoning, he couldn't even be mad, much less, frustrated with her. All he could do was sigh, "...This might cause some problems for me down the line." He looked towards Crusch, who was still sitting at her desk, "Uh, no offense."
"None taken. If it comforts you, the truth would have come out eventually, especially given the manner in which we found you," she replied, looking unbothered. "That's how it is when it comes to keeping secrets. You weren't particularly subtle back with those slaves, either."
Another sigh escaped his lips. He wasn't particularly aiming to hide it per say, as it was very necessary for his job. And also, because it was necessary for him to free those slaves. He could imagine all the headaches it would cause if the knowledge became widespread. It was no joke to say that he could be pulled on from governments from each of the major powers to be used as some sort of tactical weapon.
"However," Crusch continued, "If you wish for me to keep my lips sealed on the matter, and to assist you in keeping it secret, we could come to an arrangement."
"That's what I expected..." His head fell, before he raised it to look at the noblewoman dead in the eye, "Is there anything particular you want for me to do? Ah, I won't accept requests like assassination, all right? That's a world that I don't want anything to do with if I can avoid it."
Crusch smiled, "No, I won't request you to do anything unethical. Ciel would get mad at me if I did so. Instead, I wish to form a cooperative relationship with you. One based on give-and-take. For example, if I require your assistance in handling anything that might be beyond what we can handle. And in return, I will assist you in covering up your tracks."
Lugh hummed thoughtfully, "That's a pretty kind offer, vague as it is." The cogs in his brain turned as he considered the benefits and demerits. There were no obvious demerits at first glance. He could expect the resources she had to become available to him as well. But... that meant the baggage that came with those resources would also be his to bear as well. But having a noble cover up his tracks would be very useful for procuring alibis.
"So? Have you come to a decision?" The noblewoman asked, gaze sharp. She was observing him carefully for any lies.
"I think that'd be acceptable, given that we can each at any moment reject any request that the other considers to be breaking the condition of what they consider "cooperative". Is that all right?" Lugh accepted. There wasn't really a reason for him to refuse, but he wanted to try and avoid getting entrapped so he added the last part in to give them both an out if necessary.
"Just fine," Crusch stood up from behind the desk, walking over to him. He rose and met her, grabbing her proffered hand and shaking a few times to officially close their agreement. "It'll be a pleasure working with you."
"To a fortunate partnership," he responded. But despite the conditions their unlikely alliance was made upon, he still couldn't help but feel uneasy about how easy it was.
"That was pretty tense, wasn't it?" His sister said, skipping down the hall as she guided him around the building. "I mean, you were able to negotiate with Lady Karsten herself."
"And why didn't you say anything while that was going on?" Lugh asked her as she dragged him around.
"Well, I didn't know when to really cut in there, besides at the end," she said, lightly knocking her head as if to say, 'my bad!'
"Hah..." He sighed and massaged his shoulders to release the tension in them. "Well, anyway... This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't spilled the beans..." He cast a judging look her way.
She shrank away from his gaze, "I'm sorry. That wasn't my secret to tell."
But he simply shook his head, "Don't worry about it. What's done is done. And it's my fault to begin with anyway. Shall we continue the tour now?"
"Right!" His sister's mood became brighter as she focused on showing him the layout of the mansion. But just as they were about to head off, his sister stopped in her tracks. "Hey Lugh..." Her voice sounded uncharacteristically weak. "Why did you take so long to find me?"
It was a question he dreaded answering. "I... don't- Hm, what should I-" The words escaped him. Excuses came up in mind one after another, but they all fell away as he took into account what lying to her would do to their relationship. "Words, Lugh," he reassured himself. "I was being an idiot."
"That you were." His sister didn't give up on questioning him. "What were you doing?"
"Trying to find the culprit," his voice lowered in tone, and his mood followed.
"You were chasing after the Great Rabbit?" His sister's eyes were wide. "Do you know how dangerous and- and- stupid that is?"
He looked down, before offering a half-smile to reassure her, "Yes. But I'm taking some time off and got some really good advice. Which was to come and see you."
"...Looks like I'll have to thank the person that did. You can tell me about what happened, y'know?" Ciel responded. She didn't look satisfied. Not one bit. But she seemed willing to accept his answer for now.
A demure "thanks," was his only response. They spent the moment together in silence, enjoying the peace and tranquility for a little, while they still could.
An unfamiliar ceiling... Lugh woke up facing the ceiling of a luxurious, spacious room. The events of the previous day came back to the forefront of his mind, and he worried about what might happen in the future. His knowledge was only so useful if the events played out in the same way. If serious changes had already occurred, more than half of his knowledge became useless.
Starting the morning with nothing but worries... He got up from the bed, swinging his arms around and lightly stretching his muscles. Guess I'll go do some morning practice.
After changing his clothes, he left the building to go outside. An open area that he spotted from a window on his tour with his sister. When he arrived, to his surprise, he wasn't the only one there.
"Hah!" A girl was swinging a wooden sword in the field when he arrived. Specifically, the future Duchess and noble, Crusch Karsten was practicing her swordplay. She stopped once she saw him observing him from the side.
"Good morning," Crusch greeted.
"Morning," he responded.
"Come to practice?" She asked him, slightly out of breath.
"Yeah, otherwise I'd feel weird," he said, stretching his legs and arms.
She smiled, understanding, "If you'd like a spare wooden sword, I can get one for you."
"Really? That'd help a lot, thanks," Lugh responded. His original plan was to simply do some body exercises to keep himself in a good condition, but a practice sword would be a good substitute.
The noblewoman disappeared for a back into the building, before coming out with a second wooden sword. She handed it to him, hilt first, which he accepted with a simple thanks.
He was soon in the motion of swinging his sword, sweat dripping under the constant, unrelenting exercise. The burn in his arms had become long familiar to him now, and he relished in it. Although simply swinging one's sword didn't do much in training up their skill, it was wonderful for building up strength. Crusch was also swinging her sword next to him, but stopped after a while. She turned to him, "It might be impudent of me to ask, but would you join me in practicing my swordplay?"
He stopped swinging, "What did you have in mind?"
"A practice match. I've heard a lot about you, but I'd rather confirm it with my own eyes," she was quick to respond. Perhaps this was her goal for offering him the wooden sword the entire time? Well, he had no reason to refuse, so he went along with it.
"So, when should we stop? On contact?" He asked her, as they took position facing each other.
"Until one of us surrenders," Crusch said, facing him with her sword in a two-handed grip. "On my count."
He nodded, showing he understood, taking a one-handed sword stance.
"Three..."
Lugh observed her from his spot, taking in the distance between them. He was memorizing the length of her sword, and thinking about the options he had available to him. There was a considerable difference in height and reach, but he wasn't discouraged.
"Two..." Crusch, raised her sword till its tip was pointed at him.
"One..." Lugh, as if responding, shifted his sword so that its tip was pointed towards the sky. This would allow him to block or dodge with minimum movements.
"Go!" Without hesitation, Crusch closed the gap between them with a straightforward charge. He could read her intentions. She was trying to strike him down with an overhead swing.
Waiting until the right moment, he closed the gap between them further, putting him out of her sword's effective range. They were close enough that he could touch her without fully extending his arm. Which was exactly what he did, in the form of a palm strike at her abdomen.
"Gagkh!" The noblewoman made a noise as her stance broke and was thrown off balance. She stumbled back, before falling and landing on her bottom, dropping her sword as she did.
"Is that enough-" He attempted to ask, but stopped as he saw her climb back to her feet and take her sword in her hands once more.
"I haven't surrendered yet," Crusch said, wiping her mouth. "Those were our conditions, no?"
Outwardly he sighed, but inwardly, he couldn't help but respect her for her persistence. He had hit her hard enough to incapacitate most people of their ability to even stand, but she had managed to get back to her feet almost immediately. But his attack was still effective. Her stance was shoddier, and he could see some clear gaps forming where there weren't before.
"Right," Lugh agreed, taking up his stance once more. This time, out of respect, he made the first move. He closed the distance between them in a few steps. His speed seemed to have caught her unaware, as he noticed her eyes widen a moment before she struck out wildly at him.
Sloppy, he parried the blow, knocking her hands upward and leaving her even further open, before his sword came back around faster than she could bring her guard back up. With an audible thunk her sword was sent flying upward and away. He held up his sword towards her jugular.
"I surrender," Crusch said, hands up to display her inability to continue.
Lugh let out a breath as he lowered his practice sword, "Thank you for the match."
"Looks like the stories your sister has told us aren't exaggerated," Crusch said, retrieving her wooden sword. "Your skill with the blade was exemplary."
"Thank you," he accepted her praise. "But it's not really a product of my efforts, so it's difficult to be commended for it."
She waved him off, "A Divine Protection is no different from the mana, talent, or luck you're born with. In short, it's simply another tool that you have access to."
"...I don't think what I am fits that bill though," Lugh said, smiling wryly. Divine Protections were a little more than simply being born wealthy or having a lot of mana.
She nodded this time, "It's true. If you scoured all of history, I doubt there'd be any that could approach you... Oh, perhaps there is one after all."
"Hm? Who?" Was there perhaps a prior example of someone possessing multiple Divine Protections like him after all? It seemed a bit farfetched a story, but it was confirmed that there were previous example of people coming to this world after all. It wouldn't be impossible to think that someone with similar circumstances as him reincarnated into this world. But her next words weren't what he expected at all, although in the end, it wasn't really a surprise.
"-The current generation Sword Saint from the line of Sword Saints, Reinhard van Astrea."
Lugh stared up with wide eyes at the person they had encountered in the hallway. He was simply returning back with his sister when they met him. It was also just as much of a surprise for the other party, and he was currently under the scrutiny of cat-eared demi-human girl- no, boy.
Wearing a blue, frilly dress, with black leggings. She- he was walking around him, looking him up and down. "Ciel, who's this boy?" The androgynous boy asked Lugh's sister.
"That's my brother. You know, the one I was talking about?" Ciel informed.
The boy's eyes, swung back to Lugh, "So you're the famous Lugh I've heard about? Ferris is Ferris nya."
Nya? "My sister has been talking quite a lot about me, it seems," he responded politely, offering a handshake to Ferris.
"Ferris is one of the best healers in the kingdom, you know? I'm proud to be his friend," his sister said, sticking her chest our proudly.
Lugh looked Ferris up and down. Seeing things in reality was often different from animation and was often disappointing, but the description of femininity was not exaggerated in any sense of the word. There was a reason why they were called traps. On first glance, scratch that. On second and third glance, unless you were informed, one would not know that Felix Argyle was a man.
Although the reason behind it was wrong, his sister made a knowing face after gauging his reaction, "Ah, yeah. Despite the way he looks, he's a guy."
He looked back towards Ferris. The feminine cat boy was both a popular internet meme and source of confusion, specifically with his gender. "So... Ferris, was it?"
His sister chimed in again, "Ah, his real name is Felix Argyle."
The aforementioned cat-boy pouted as he shook Lugh's hand, "That name isn't cute, so call me Ferris, okay?"
"Right... Will do," after their handshake, they stewed in silence for a moment, before his sister came up with a solution that saved them all from the impending silence.
"Well, why don't the two of you get to know each other a little better?" His sister clapped, trying to keep the conversation flowing.
"Even if you tell me that," he made a troubled smile at his sister's antics. Was she trying to acclimate him to everyone in the mansion so that he wouldn't want to leave? That was pretty sly coming from his sister. "Are you really trying to keep me here?"
His sister pouted, "There's nothing wrong with that, is there? I mean, I need to make up for lost time. Or rather, you need to make up for lost time."
"Isn't that what I'm doing now? I'm on temporary probation, or some forced vacation. Either way, I can't really stay here forever," Lugh explained. There were many things left back at the capital, both figuratively and literally. He'd left many of his things back at Rom's place, including Reina's spear, and he needed to pick up his father's sword from the smithy. But he trusted the people he left them with. Rom wouldn't steal from him, and Tyson's professional pride was as strong as the metal he forged.
"Hm? Vacation?" His sister tilted her head, looking back at him. "What, don't tell me that you've got a job or something?" She laughed, thinking it was nothing more than bravado.
"Oh, right, I forgot to mention to you. Yeah, I have a job," he replied nonchalantly.
"Eh?" His sister stopped laughing. "Wait, you're serious?!" Her shocked face made him laugh, which became indignant a moment later as she realized he was making fun of her.
"Yeah, I do," he said when he managed to stop laughing. Her reaction was priceless. He regretted not having a camera or a phone to record what just happened. Alas, the conveniences of the modern world were not one of the abilities he was given at reincarnation.
"Oh yeah, what do you do?" She raised an eyebrow, challenging.
Lugh paused for a moment, considering the demi-human healer that was listening in as they bantered. Would it be fine if he just told her here? Hmm... What to do. She'll find out eventually anyways, right? "I work as a contractor."
His sister paused, letting it sink in, before bursting, "You work as a hitman?!"
"Oww..." "Owie nya..." Both he and Ferris clutched their ears at the sudden increase in volume.
"No... not that kind of contractor. Although I am an arm for hire," Lugh explained, rubbing his ears. "You know, odd jobs like looking for someone's pet, guarding a merchant, or killing demon beasts. All safe and not dangerous things."
"Killing demon beasts is a "safe and not dangerous" job? Did I hear you correctly just now?" His sister was shaking in front of him. Not in fear or uneasiness. In rage.
Uh oh, time to get out of here, "-I'm going to go eat dinner, it'd be bad to make her wait!" He dashed off down the hall they were in, leaving an angry Ciel and amused Ferris behind.
After Lugh disappeared down the hallway, Ciel let out a sigh, "As always, he's been so..."
"He's an interesting kid nya," Ferris said. "Especially when we grasped hands."
Ciel stopped in her tracks. Her tone lowered as she delivered her next words, "...What did you do? If you've done something, even if we're friends-"
"I didn't do anything!" Ferris put up his hands in a gesture of non-resistance. "You don't have to go all mama bear on me, Ferris just checked him for wounds or diseases, nya."
"Did you find anything?" She asked, tone becoming normal.
"He's all OK, nya," Ferris responded with a cute smile. "I was just shocked at how strong and robust his body was."
"Of course!" Ciel put a hand to her chest, "If we're talking about my brother, he's probably the strongest warrior that's ever come out of our village."
"You'd praise him that much nya?" Ferris raised a perfect eyebrow. Although he'd heard stories of Ciel's brother being some kind of genius fighter, he hadn't paid that much attention. The only thing he noted was that he supposedly had multiple Divine Protections, which in and of itself was incredibly hard to believe.
"Yep! Anyway, we should probably get to dinner," Ciel said.
"Mhm! Wouldn't want to leave Lady Crusch alone with a boy nya," Ferris said, quickening his pace.
Daily sword practice between Lugh and Crusch had become normal after their first bout. In the morning, they'd practice against one another, although today happened to be slightly different. The two of them were outside in their usual space, at nighttime. This was a test of his [Divine Protection of the Moon], or so it was supposed to be...
"Go, Lady Crusch!" A feminine voice cheered from the side.
Today they had spectators in the form of his sister and Ferris, who were both watching from a safe distance away. Lugh was fighting strictly on the defensive, blocking each one of Crusch's attacks with clockwork precision and efficiency.
"Looks like you've been telling the truth..." Ferris said, voice coming down from his intense cheer. "Frankly put, your brother is a monster."
"You haven't seen anything yet," Ciel said, eyes glued to the spar. Her lady was attacking her brother with swift strikes but each of them was repelled with the same ease one would feel when breathing. Her brother was engaging in simple swordplay, and hiding most of the abilities she had been witness to before. Although Ferris was impressed with her brother's skill, it really didn't compare to how easily he could kill her lady if he went all out.
"I'm envious..." Ferris muttered, voice low enough to not be heard.
After another futile attempt at forcing him into a corner, Crusch stepped a few paces backwards to catch her breath, leaning on her practice sword.
"-What's wrong?" Her opponent's young voice entered her ears. "I still haven't moved from the same place I started."
The taunt burned in her veins, and she looked up. It was true, her opponent hadn't moved a single step from when they started. I'm being beaten so easily... Her opponent hadn't even needed to attack her directly. He had just let her exhaust herself on his guard, never letting her through. There was a gap between their levels of skill, one so large that she couldn't even fathom where his strength began and ended. And this feeling hadn't changed at all from when they practiced in the morning, showing her that even strengthened, he was still holding back against her a great amount.
"I'm realizing again how amazing you are," Crusch said, taking up a stance once more. Lugh smiled, giving the universal motion for "come get me", and brought up his sword to guard as Crusch charged once more.
After a sufficient amount of time, the noblewoman called it for the day, having nearly exhausted herself trying to break his guard. Lugh admired her swordsmanship and diligence, reflecting her serious and straightforward personality, but in the end, it would never reach him.
"Good work Lady Crusch!" Ferris came over with a skip in his step as he handed his master a towel.
"What, no towel for me?" Lugh asked his sister as she approached.
"Do you even need one?"
"I still sweat," he responded.
Ferris came over, still cheery, "That was supposed to be one of your many Divine Protections, right?"
"Yeah," he scratched his cheek sheepishly.
"Can you show me another one?" Ferris asked, hands clasped together and batting his eyelashes. That expression could tempt even men but he shook off his creeping thoughts. That way lies hell.
"I'm not really sure whether or not that'd be okay..." He trailed off.
"-If it wouldn't be too much trouble, I'd like to see as well," Crusch said as she approached them.
Lugh let out a sigh. He had expected this to a degree, and they had refrained from being invasive with their inquiries. He sent a look towards his sister, asking for confirmation. When he got a nod back, he held up the wooden practice sword that he'd been using horizontally.
"Is this practice sword important?" He asked Crusch.
"No? Why-" Before Crusch could finish her question, he swung a knife hand at the blade. There was no resistance as his hand parted the wood in to two clean pieces. The half that he was still grasping stayed in his hand as the bisected piece landed on the floor with an audible noise.
Ferris' eyes were as wide as dinner plates as he saw an impossible phenomena occur in front of him. Crusch said nothing, widened eyes being the only indication of her surprise, while his sister stayed by his side, unsurprised.
"And this must be..." Crusch trailed off.
"The [Divine Protection of Severance], which, put simply, lets me cut things easily," Lugh answered.
"Another! Another!" Ferris cried.
"Maybe another time," he said, smiling wryly. "I want to wash myself."
"Aww..." Ferris made a sound of disappoint, only to be scolded.
"It's already asking a lot for someone to reveal something personal. We should be satisfied with what he's showed us," Crusch admonished.
"Yes, Lady Crusch..." His ears flattened on top of his head, clearly disappointed.
"-But it's truly amazing. We came here to test your [Divine Protection of the Moon] but I couldn't tell whether it was in effect at all," Crusch remarked.
"Well, if I'm not careful I could really hurt you," he answered. He bowed as he left the scene, "Have a good rest of the evening."
"Have a good night," Crusch responded.
"Ah, wait Lugh!" His sister cried, following him with quick steps. She took a quick bow towards Ferris and Crusch, wishing them a good night before following her retreating brother back into the mansion.
She had already known this, but Crusch saw the difference between their levels being driven in again. Despite having just sparred against someone who was still a child, she had come out defeated. Both during the day and the night time, she hadn't been able to really pressure him. Her competitive spirit burned as she swore to train harder, gazing at the back of the white-haired child.
Lugh stared at the ceiling of his oversized guest bedroom. The sheets beneath him were softer than anything he'd ever felt before, and the softness of the pillows put clouds to shame. But the size of the room brought him discomfort, and he stood up and approached the large glass windows that led to the balcony right outside of his room.
He exited and observed the beautiful gardens and the fountain in front of the mansion itself, admiring its beauty under the moonlight. The railing of the balcony reached up to his chest, as it was designed to fit guests that were adults, not children. With a heave, he lifted himself up onto the railing and sat on it, swinging his legs carefreely.
"Man, the sight here is amazing."
"-Isn't it?" A voice called out from the side.
His head whipped around, and his hand went to his waist to reach for a weapon that wasn't there. His body tensed, but relaxed immediately when he saw his sister behind him.
"Don't do stuff like that," Lugh sighed as he relaxed his guard. "I could have taken your head off by mistake."
"Uwah, that's scary. Don't say stuff like that," his sister said, hands up in surrender. She was quiet for a moment, before asking, "...Hey, are you really against wanting to stay here with me?"
"That's not quite it," he shook his head. "If I had to say, it'd be more like there are some things that I have left to do?"
"Couldn't you wait until you're a little older?" His sister asked. "I've still got some reservations about you running around as a hired arm doing dangerous jobs, even if I know how good you are."
"...No, not really," he responded. He was scrambling for information, and time wasn't on his side. He only had a couple of years, and there were things he wanted at hand. More knowledge about the political situation, as well as traveling to Kararagi and Vollachia if possible.
"Is there a reason?" His sister asked. "I can't stand that I have to let you risk your body to live when you can do that by simply staying here."
It was a reasonable concern. He was sure that in this place he could live comfortably and work under the future leader of the Karsten household, but... I want to keep my options open. His general approach to a majority of the candidates were ones he made up on general assumptions of them, so he needed room for error in case things went horribly wrong. Committing early wasn't a bad idea, but it could also cost him.
For Emilia, his general approach would be simply friendship. She was mentally young, and would appreciate honesty. For Anastasia, he could market his services and sword-arm. Anything that could give her a profit would lead to being on her good side. For Crusch, he could assist her in the defeat of the White Whale. This would also secure a positive relationship with Wilhelm. The two he didn't have any concrete approaches towards were Priscilla and Felt. Priscilla's motivations were a mystery to him, and Felt's desire to leave the slums had a high pride attached to it that refused the help of others to do so. It really was a stroke of luck when he met her way back then when she robbed him.
"Well?" His sister's prodding shook him out of his thoughts.
"I'm preparing for the future," he said, deciding that a little honesty would be necessary here.
"For what? Can you feel something?" She was taking his words seriously. Her brother's possession of multiple Divine Protections alone made his insight valuable.
"...Something, I guess. I can't really be sure of it, not anymore," he whispered the last bit, so as not to be heard by his sister. As time dragged on, the likelihood of things happening in the same way in the anime dropped significantly. "Either way, you should stay here, working for the Karsten family."
"Then why won't you do it with me?" His sister demanded. "Work here with me. I'm sure your talents will be greatly appreciated. Crusch has told me that she'd welcome you with open arms."
"I'm not sure that being here is suitable for my future. At least, not yet," he amended, wanting to placate his sister's worries, as well as to buy himself time. If the Royal Selection happened properly, then his relation with Felt would make things awkward. "I'll give you an answer eventually, though it might take a couple of years."
"Years?!" Ciel's eyes were round. She probably wasn't expecting such a large window of time.
"Yeah." He needed time to observe and witness each of the candidates in action.
"Ugh," his sister let out an un-ladylike groan. "I won't be able to convince you otherwise, will I?" When he didn't answer, she sighed. "Fine. But we still have some things to talk about-"
"-Ah, wait," he interrupted, pointing upwards. "I think we'll have a better view if we go up."
"Go up?" His sister made a confused noise. "Go up where-"
By the time his sister responded, he had literally swept her off of her feet in a bridal carry. Taking a few moments to re-balance himself and adjust to the increased weight, he leapt upwards.
"Whaaa-!" His sister screamed as she suddenly felt the weightless feeling of being in the air. She clung tightly to her brother as he leapt high.
"Don't worry, we'll be fine!" Her brother yelled over the sound of the wind. He was leaping mid-air and she realized that her brother was utilizing the [Divine Protection of Sky Walking] to reach the roof of the mansion. A couple of leaps in the air later, and they were now sitting on the perfectly tiled roof of the Karsten mansion, admiring the night sky.
His sister was breathing hard, "...Don't do that ever again."
Lugh couldn't help but snicker at her reaction, "It's only a little height. Nothing to be afraid of."
"To you maybe!" She cried. A little slip, and the fall could've been fatal. She shivered at the thought. She let out a sigh as she adjusted to the situation, "Anyway-"
But her brother wasn't paying attention to her anymore, simply craning his neck around to get a view of the entire area around them. From the water fountain that decorated the front of the mansion, to the gardens behind them and more.
She let out a sigh for what felt like the umpteenth time that night, "Hah..."
There was a commotion going on in the main yard where he'd found himself training. By the time he got there, there were already two people, one of them being Crusch, sparring in the middle, with an onslaught of guards watching from the side. Guards that weren't carrying the flag of the Karsten family.
"Halt!" One of the unfamiliar guards called out to him from the side.
Lugh stopped in his tracks, "What?"
"You aren't permitted to go any further," the fully armored guard stated, hand on the hilt of his sword.
As he stood off against the guards, ready for a confrontation, a voice from behind them called out, "What's going on?"
The voice's owner was Crusch, and the guards saluted as she made her way past them. When she saw him, she made a sound of understanding, "He's a guest of mine. He can be let through."
"But..." The guards' hesitation was only brief, before the second individual that was sparring with Crusch spoke up, "You heard her. You can let him through."
"As you command, your majesty," the guards saluted.
A man with blond hair the color of gold, and eyes reminiscent of shining rubies was standing with wooden sword in hand. He was dressed in a white button-up shirt and dark pants. This man and Crusch had been sparring in the court before Lugh had made his way to the field.
"Who's this?" Lugh asked. His question caused the guards behind him to tense, and even without looking, he could tell that they were itching to put their hands on their swords. Crusch looked surprised at his question, as the man behind her walked up to stand next to her.
"Let me introduce you two to each other," Crusch said, after having overcome her surprise. "This is Fourier Lugnica, fourth prince of the Lugnica Kingdom." The man nodded as he was introduced, putting a hand through his hair.
The royal family? Lugh was momentarily caught off-guard. His knowledge recalled that the entire royal family had passed away, which was the cause of the entire royal selection to begin with. But this man in front of him was actually a member of the soon-to-be deceased royal family?
"Fourier, this is Lugh, a guest of mine," Crusch introduced him next, to which he appropriately nodded.
After a moment, he spoke up, "Would it be appropriate if I kneeled?"
The prince gave a short laugh, "No, that won't be necessary." He turned to Crusch who was standing at his side, "You didn't tell me you were taking care of a kid. Whose child is he?"
"He's not one of mine," Crusch said, shaking her head. "He's Ciel's brother."
"Oh?" The prince turned to look at Lugh. "I didn't know that Ciel had a brother."
With that statement, Lugh roughly understood how much the prince knew. If Fourier had no knowledge of Ciel having a brother, that meant, by extension, that the prince hadn't heard anything from his sister. This relieved him immensely as he knew that for the Royal Election events to take place, it meant that the man standing in front of him would eventually die.
The prince walked back to the area that he and Crusch had been sparring in. He suddenly turned to look Lugh in the eyes, "Are you any good with the sword?"
He glanced at Crusch as he contemplated his response. Would she call him out for lying? "...I've had some practice." As he gave his response, he gauged Crusch's response. When he was sure that she wasn't going to oust him, he let out an internal sigh of relief. He wasn't too sure whether or not she would out him to Fourier.
"Would you care for a bout with me?" The prince asked, a bold smile on his face. Of all the things to come out of the prince's mouth, this wasn't one he expected.
"...Huh?" This was the second time that he had been caught off guard within the span of a couple minutes. It took him several moments to respond, "I think that it would be disrespectful for me to cross blades with his majesty... And I'm surely too young to be a match."
"Why not give it a try?" Crusch interjected from the side. "Even if you lose, there's much to be learned in practicing with Fourier."
This woman! He cursed mentally. Was she trying to get him found out without breaking their agreement? Especially in front of a member of the royal family? If he became found out to the highest authority in the country, he could expect to be face some sort of restriction moving forward. Although the idea of approaching and offering his talents wasn't terrible, being forced to do so made him detest the idea.
"Hah..." He let out a sigh. If he refused any more, it'd be disrespectful. "If you're fine with me..." If I'm gonna remain hidden, it's best to half-ass this.
Crusch stepped aside and handed him her wooden sword as she made her way past him. As he took up the wooden sword and faced the prince, he thought about how to not lose face.
Winning is out of the question here. Pride aside, it does nothing for me, he turned the situation in his head. If he was going to purposely lose, he had to make it convincing. Giving up too easily would backfire on him and probably give the prince a negative view of him.
"On my count..." Crusch arbitrated from the side. As she counted down from three, Lugh kept an eye on the prince as he contemplated on ways to lose. Should I go hard at it for a little, make him think that I was trying hard? Hm...
"Go!" The noblewoman called while swinging her raised hand down to initiate the start of the match.
-Lugh made the first move, closing in on the prince with the wooden sword held out. A predictable attack, he went for a wide swing at the prince's torso, which was blocked by the prince's timely guard. He fought his instinct to immediately follow up with another strike, and instead backed off with a few steps. Obvious attacks like the ones he was making now would've been unthinkable normally, but the situation called for it.
This time, it was the prince who closed in, using his superior reach to thrust his wooden sword at Lugh. It took all he had to not give into the temptation to parry and sweep his opponent off of his feet, instead choosing to dodge to the side, leaving him open to the prince's following attack.
He's not bad... A little below Crusch's level, I think?
Fourier pivoted on his thrust and swung the blade in a spin that caught him in the side. Lugh fought down the temptation to strike back at the prince, instead gritting his teeth and taking his attack.
That little... That hit would've knocked out anyone else my age! He tumbled to the side. Faking everything was tedious, but he got up with shaky legs to fool the onlookers. "I surrender," he put his hands up. "That hit took all the fight out of me. As expected of your majesty."
Crusch was frowning off to the side, but nodded, calling the end of the match.
"No, no," the prince denied. "I'm still not a match for Crusch. But still..."
"Is there something wrong?" Lugh asked.
The prince shook his head, "It's not you. I apologize for asking to spar so suddenly. I had a hunch, but it turned out to be wrong."
"What kind of hunch?"
"I'm not quite sure, but I thought I'd be able to figure it out if we crossed swords," Fourier said. "Either way, that was a good bout. You're quite talented. A little older, and you might be a good fit for the knights."
"Haha, surely not... I'm still lacking in ability," Lugh smiled, lying through his teeth.
"You're very mature. I apologize if I hurt you with that last strike. I've still got a way to go with controlling my strength," the prince apologized. He looked genuine about his apology, and Lugh let go of his frustration.
"No, no, it was a good learning experience," he said, assuaging the prince's worries.
He let out a breath of relief as the prince walked away to talk to Crusch. Here's to hoping that act fooled him.
As the pair of Crusch and Fourier were walking in the hallway leading up to her office, Crusch asked a question, "How was he?"
"He's pretty good with the sword. In a couple years he might be as good as I am," Fourier said. Was she asking him because she intended to enlist him?
"What do you think about him?"
"He's pretty mature. He wasn't fazed by my hostility," he admitted. "I thought he'd be better though."
"One of your hunches?" Crusch asked.
"Yeah," he admitted again. When he met Lugh, and during the spar, he got the feeling that the child was hiding something, although he couldn't quite place his finger on what it was. He stopped when he realized something, "If he's Ciel's brother... Then that means..."
"-He's the lone survivor," Crusch confirmed.
"Then as we suspected, the cause was-"
"-One of the Three Great Demon Beasts, the Great Rabbit," she finished.
Fourier sighed as he put a hand through his hair, "Poor kid." He pitied Lugh through and through. Was the cause of his maturation the massacre? Anyone forced to go through something so horrible could leave them scarred for life. Especially the Great Rabbit. It was notorious for leaving nothing behind. The contradiction gave him pause. Hm? An underage child being the sole survivor? An unlikely story, even if we consider that they all sacrificed themselves to save him-
He shook his head to get rid of his suspicions. He didn't have enough evidence to prove his theories, and in the end, they might have truly sacrificed themselves to save him.
"Let's discuss what you came here for," Crusch said, taking a seat on a couch in her office. The guards that were assigned to him took post outside the office.
"The slave trade incident," Fourier nodded, uncharacteristically serious, sitting down across from Crusch. He had received a letter from her regarding a recent incident. Illegal slave trade was happening right under their noses, and she had called him to get his insight.
"Right. Interrogation revealed them to be part of a larger organization," Crusch said, sliding over a piece of paper detailing the incident to him.
He picked up the first sheet and glanced over it quickly, "...No information found from the interrogation found other than them being connected to a larger party?"
Crusch nodded, leaning forward, "The ones we found knew almost nothing. They were grunts who just handled the goods."
Fourier let out a sigh, "I'll get a knight corps on this as soon as I get back. If this happened in your territory, then it's not farfetched to think-"
"-That they might be in the capital as well?" Crusch finished for him.
He nodded, getting up, "Do you mind if I borrow your bath before I head out?"
"Oh? Busy?" Crusch raised an eyebrow.
"A little," he admitted. "I'd stay for the evening, but I've also been called by Father."
Crusch nodded in understanding, before smiling, "Don't forget to see Ferris before you leave. Otherwise, he'll give you an earful about it later."
"I know," Fourier responded, smiling wryly.
Lugh sighed as he made his way out of the restroom after washing his face. The morning's affairs were exhausting. The prince? Here? Things were happening left and right when he least expected it. The situation had gotten so complicated that he felt like quitting, but at the same time it had excited him. An element that he didn't foresee. The royal family was a mystery in the anime, and even the little he had read online hadn't revealed much about them. He left the bathroom, thinking, when-
"-Lugh!" His sister called out to him from the side.
"Ah!" He screamed in surprise, jumping.
His sister laughed; his reaction was enough to send her bending over to contain her laughter.
"Jeez, don't do that," he complained. "How did you find- don't answer that, I already know."
"Teehee," his sister smirked.
"Sheesh, stop stalking me with your Divine Protection," he complained. "It's scary when I know that you can always tell where I am but not the other way around."
"Consider it my love for you," his sister said, sticking out her chest.
"Yeah, yeah," he grumbled, as he started moving. The two of them were comfortably walking down stairs towards his room.
"-Oh yeah, did you know that the prince of the Lugnica Kingdom came over today?" Lugh asked his sister. According to his earlier conversation with Fourier, he learned that the prince and his sister were acquaintances.
"Ohhh, so that's what all that commotion was about. Yeah, I saw the fancy carriage outside," his sister confirmed.
"Have you met him before?"
"Yeah, he's come over a couple of times since I started staying here. Judging by your tone, I'm guessing that you did too?"
"This morning, when I went to train. Ended up having a bout with the prince," he said, rotating his arm.
"Oh? How'd it go? You won, right?"
"Nope," he popped the 'p'. "Lost, straight up."
His sister was staring at him with wide eyes, as if he'd grown a second head, "W-what? How? That doesn't even make sense! How do you lose against people?!"
"Now you're just being mean," he puffed out his cheeks. "I'm not some kind of monster. I'm not invincible."
"There's no way that that guy beat you. He can't even beat Lady Crusch!" His sister denied strongly. Her cheeks were flushed, eyes wide. He'd be worried if it wasn't his fault that she looked this stressed.
"Oh yeah, I lost one-hundred percent on purpose," he admitted freely.
His sister stumbled on her next step, "What?!"
"Like I'm going to out myself in front of the prince," he scoffed. "Are you crazy? Crusch is an exception given that she already knows."
"-Hey, you better attach 'Lady' to your address. It's fine when it's with me, but in front of others you'll get in trouble," his sister warned.
"Right, Lady Crusch," he amended. "Either way, I've got no desire to show my hand so early."
"I still can't see why not," his sister grumbled. "It doesn't make any sense why you wouldn't want to climb up the ranks as fast as possible."
"I can't travel around freely if I'm stuck serving the country," Lugh said. He had no desire to have his movement restricted by going public. Even if he didn't, simply being affiliated with a country would make it hard for him to move about between countries. He wanted to be able to visit every country before the Royal Selection started. "And I think most countries wouldn't like it if a foreign soldier crossed their borders."
His sister shrugged, "Anyway, yeah, the fourth prince of the country comes by here often enough."
"That's information that I could've used when I met him without preparing myself," Lugh grumbled.
His sister paused, finger on her lips, "What did you think of him?"
"Hm? I thought he was a charismatic and nice enough guy," he said. "An all-around confident and good-looking nice guy. Wish he'd tone down the energy a little though."
"So that's your impression of him?" His sister asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Pretty much."
His sister hummed thoughtfully, before skipping down the hallway as they were approaching his room, "Come on!"
"Fine, fine, the faster we get this game over with, the happier I'll be," he said as he followed after her. They'd spent time together in his room playing an old form of chess whenever he had off time or whenever they felt like it. Although he roughly knew the rules, he was still an amateur, and had lost multiple times to his sister, much to his frustration.
"Where did you even pick up this game anyway?" He asked.
"I play it with Lady Crusch whenever she has some time off. Ferris does too, by the way," his sister said cheerfully as she started setting the board up and its pieces.
Lugh sighed, mentally preparing himself for a taxing game. I hope someone gets us soon.
Felt scowled as she moved across rooftops. They were the quickest mode of travel, and she only made use of roads when she needed to lose someone. Her experience with racing Lugh had taught her that winding pathways and mazes of alleyways weren't useful when one was trying to reach a certain destination in the shortest time. Her scowl deepened as she remembered their way of parting.
Damn him... Things became so complicated when he was around. But she could begrudgingly admit that it wasn't unpleasant to have him around. Not that she'd admit to him or anyone else anyway. He'd been gone for almost two weeks now, and although she was loath to admit it, she was starting to miss him. Just when he managed to catch a break, he had gone off somewhere to meet his sister.
She growled as she nearly slipped on a tile and nearly fell off the building she was currently on. She quickly climbed down into the alleyway, not wanting to tempt fate and chance another potential fall. "Fuck him..."
"Felt, is it?" A voice called out from behind her.
She turned quickly, and saw a man dressed in shabby clothes standing at the end of the alleyway behind her. "Huh? Who the fuck are ya?"
"Nothing you need to worry about. I'll be having you come with us," the shaggy man said, approaching her.
"I don't think so!" She dashed in the opposite direction, her senses warning her of danger. I need ta get the fuck outta here-
-But it was too late, as an armored fist blindsided her from the path she was taking to escape, knocking her unconscious. A large, light-skinned man with messy brown hair stepped out from the shadows, dressed lightly in leather armor with gauntleted fists.
"Thanks," the shaggy man said, as he caught up to where Felt was.
"You really want this girl?" The armored man asked, lifting up the unconscious Felt by the arm.
"Her features would sell for a hefty price," the shaggy man said.
"Man, you've got a seriously fucked up hobby, dressing like a bum to catch kids," the armored man said, shaking his head.
"I'm the type of guy who likes to mix both business and pleasure after all," he responded, cackling. The shaggy man looked towards his new quarry, "Well, this girl is purely business."
The armored man frowned, "Well, I'm good as long as I get paid, but you're sure your information is correct, right?"
"No need for the worry. Her little boyfriend's been gone for at least a week now," the shaggy man said.
"You're sure?" The armored man's worries didn't abate at his partner's reassurance.
"What's to be so scared of? He's just another kid, isn't he?" The shaggy man frowned this time as well. "We made the plan to snag her when she was away from the old man's side, but we had to delay it because you were too cowardly to get mixed up with the other kid."
"That's no ordinary kid," the armored man snapped.
"Yeah, I know, he's some super young merc, right?" The shaggy kidnapper crossed his arms. "I still don't see why we couldn't have called on more men to kidnap him as well. His looks would go for a good price."
The armored man shook his head, "If you wanna try your hand against the Demon Slayer then go right ahead. But if you do, I'm out."
"Demon Slayer?" The shaggy man burst into laughter, "What kind of tacky ass nickname is-"
The armored one approached the shorter, bum-looking man, towering over him by nearly a head, "I'm telling you only once, so clean your ears and listen."
The shaggy kidnapper gulped as his laughter died in his throat, but didn't say a word, prompting his partner to continue. "Demon beasts are bad, bad news. Even for the average merc, you'd need at least a whole team of them to take down one of those nasty bastards. You hear me?" His partner nodded furiously, not wanting to sour his partner's mood any more.
"So when some kid starts doing work as a solo merc, everyone around him expects him to die within... a week or so? But that doesn't happen y'see. The opposite happens. He completes his mission and brings back the heads of an entire damn pack of Wolgarms. But this can't possibly be true, right? He has to be cheating somehow, with someone else's help. So, some of the mercenaries around him go to investigate, violently. Rough as it is, the merc life is still one of competition after all. Can't have all these adult mercenaries losing to some kid now, it'd be bad for business."
The armored man's tone lowered and deeper in pitch, "So they go to ask him what's up, possibly even beat him up for the reward money. But it ends horribly." The shaggy kidnapper was listening closely now, entranced by his partner's story.
"Those experienced mercenaries? Toyed around like children before being beaten unconscious. The worst thing? He didn't kill any of us. No, with an uncaring face, he knocked us out, one by one," the armored man put rubbed his arms as he visibly shuddered. Recalling the experience shook him to the core. "They- no, we, couldn't do a damn fucking thing against him while he beat us all." He looked up at his partner, "So when I warn you that someone is dangerous, you listen to me, understood?"
"...Yeah, I got it, sheesh," The shaggy man rubbed his neck. He paused at the hole in his story, "Wait, if he's so well-known, why isn't he more famous?"
"To those in the mercenary circle, he's pretty well-known, especially locally. But outside of that? Many people don't care for mercenaries other than them being strong. After all, we're the ones you hire to do dirty work. No need to give us any more attention after that," the armored man grunted.
"Shit. So that's why he's called the Demon Slayer?" The shaggy man asked.
"He also specializes in demon beast requests," the armored man said. "But information's hard to come by on him. He doesn't talk about his achievements, so his reputation isn't well-spread beyond those in the know."
The shaggy man cursed, looking around the alley, "Time to get out of the capital. Any longer and we'll be found out." The two men retreated further into the darkness of the alley, carrying an unconscious Felt with them as they disappeared.
Q&A:
Noxynox: Not even a Re:Zero fan but I like this story. And for a question, is he going to be stronger than Reinhard at some point? Without spoiling how ofc just yes or no. And will there be romance?
By the laws of this world, Lugh can never be stronger than Reinhard. That probably disappoints some people, but that's just how it is, at least, without the story becoming an extremely brainless power-fantasy. As for romance... Good question. I'm mostly undecided on that part, and that's due to how young our main character is (physically).
Iulian0909: I don't know all the Re:zero timeline, but when exactly does Felix get saved and starts following Crush. I know for sure that Whilhelm follows her 1 year before Subaru shows up or something like that.
Ferris and Crusch are childhood friends from long ago. Comparatively, Wilhelm has been with them for a much lesser time.
Burning Moonlight: A pleasant surprise for me to find a story and receive an update for it soon. I liked the update and I look forward to reading more of it. Now, since Crush is aware of Lugh's blessings and Lugh having bonded with the street rat princess, how'd his sister's own servitude towards another candidate pan out. So, when's Lugh going to seek professional help for his trauma. Otherwise he'd end up being your run of the mill OP perfectionist weirdo with inhuman grace and no personality flaws.
I can't give too much detail without spoiling, but he's going to face his own reckonings in the future, and the split between candidates will be a real issue for him because of how indecisive he is on who he wants to follow.
Guest: When's the next update?
Hopefully soon, I really want to push out chapters for you guys, but life always gives you something to do. I'm also waiting on this to answer some questions in case someone picks up the last update a bit later.
demen123: can you please make it once in 2 weeks.
Hopefully. But uh, you saw how long it took for this one to come out.
Fate Rider 88: What Kind of Girl do Lugh likes or prefer? Yeah Im asking just for fun. Great new chapter happy to see Lugh reunited with his sister. Keep up the good work author.
If we talk about physical attractiveness, Lugh prefers Priscilla. Personality wise, he prefers girls like Crusch and Emilia. Somewhere in the middle of their two personalities.
Comrade Broseph: Was it the divine protection of the goddess of wisdom that let him find the slaver hideout? Also I'm pretty sure you made a typo when you mentioned how the capital of Lugunica is one of the most important capitals. It's one of the most important cities, but there is only one capital by definition. Unless you are from South Africa. I'm really glad that Lugh and Ciel are finally reunited. It was long overdue but that just made their reunion sweeter.
It's weird, but I remember reading from the source that Lugnica had more than one capital. Given that a majority of the spoiler stuff I know is from the web novel there is bound to be an element or two that was dropped from the light novel, but that's where I got it from. As for how he found the slaver hideout? You're pretty much on the nose with that answer, although the specifics will be kept hidden because that's not all it does.
WildlyLaughing: Yeah! Loved the reunion, can't wait for the next chapter. Also, about how big would you say Ciel's Divine Protection of Seeking was?
I think at her best condition it can spread around the size of a small city. The better the image she has of what she's looking for, the greater her chances of success. She has only one "little brother" so she'll find him with 100% accuracy if he falls within the search range because he's the only one who fulfills that condition.
demen123: The the divine blessing of severage able to cut anything even authority's like how reid cut subarus cor Leon's even tho its not intangible?
The [Divine Protection of Severance] cannot cut through [Authorities] because in the Re:Zero universe, the latter has a higher priority than the former. Not directly, at least. Whether or not he can cut intangible things relies on his own growth from hereon out. Same reason why Reinhardt couldn't cut Regulus in their battle.
tamagat: oh? is lugh gonna apprentice under wilhelm "sword devil" astrea?
Just to note, Wilhelm van Astrea joins Crusch roughly a year before the election, whereas currently in the story we are several years before the election. As for your question... Spoilers.
The-Anti-Akuma: Dang, I really wanted to see more of the family interactions... But this chapter has been super believable. I could so see this happening to Lugh. Hmmm... Question... Hmmm... Does our MC have any short or long term plans besides killing the Great Rabbit?
Lugh primarily wants a role to play in the Royal Selection and the events he knows, which is what he's preparing for, and make a positive change on them. He wants to make a pivotal change.
Guest: I have not watched much of Re:Zero yet I like your fic. To better understand the world of Re:Zero I would like to ask just how strong Lugh is. I get that he is quite a big deal, especially for his age and all and him dominating village competition but where does he stand among worlds youngsters and among worlds true powerful ones? Thank you.
Just possessing multiple Divine Protections qualifies your existence as "strange" in Re:Zero. Especially for Lugh, who possesses an array of powerful combat related Divine Protections. Amongst the world's youngsters and fighters, it'd be difficult to say. Among people his age, he's unmatched. Except Reinhard, who's a little older. It's difficult because there are different definitions of strength. Physically, he might not even be second place among people close to his age. Unless the moon is out. That's when his strength gets enhanced after all. Then he's just behind Reinhard in his age group.
InkBlotches14: Question: What is Lugh's favorite color? Welcome back! I was beginning to fear the worst despite myself these past few weeks, thinking thoughts like: "When will I get to see Lugh again..?" Anyways... FUCK YES! I've been looking forward to the all-awaited reunion these past few chapters and to see it finally be written genuinely moved me to tears. Thank you for blessing us with another phenomenal chapter. I love this series more than words can describe, and I'll be looking forward to whatever you make next! As always though, make sure to pace yourself!
Lugh's favorite color in general is light blue and cyan. His favorite hair color (regardless of gender) is black. Eye color, he's not sure about. And thanks for the support! Really warmed my cold heart xD.
Thanks to everyone who reviewed!
So, no matter how much Lugh wants it, his status is being spread slowly, but surely. Maybe not slowly, given that Fourier has an inkling of what he's like after all. Bit of a slower chapter overall, I really wanted to be able to wrap things up at the Karsten household as soon as possible, with a hint of some new enemies on the horizon at the end of the chapter.
Oh god, I built up to this emotional moment and now I feel like I haven't been able to fully satisfy anyone. But I think that's just how it is sometimes. Despite it being a fantasy world, life just isn't like that sometimes, and I've been trying to portray it by making the reunion sort of not all "everything is better now". No, there are some very real problems left over, some they can't fix right away. I just hope my writing ability managed to convey that properly.
Crusch is blown away by our protagonist's insane skill, Ferris is envious, his sister is frustrated, and Lugh's thoughts are in turmoil. Next time on-
Divine Protection Encyclopedia:
[Divine Protection of Wind Indication]: Enables Crusch Karsten to read the wind and see invisible things like the wind. It also allows her to read the situation of someone else's emotions, allowing her to tell if someone has lied or not.