The Grand Duke silently drew his sword and beheaded those at the front. The movement was so fast that my eyes couldn’t even see it.

“W-what is this!”

The bandits hesitated, shocked at the sight of their comrades’ heads being cut off as smoothly as cutting leaves, without even using aura.

But the leader didn’t stop, as it wasn’t his life at stake.

“It’s just a petty trick! Charge! Kill them!”

“Uaaaah-“

The bandits charged forward despite the fear in their eyes, as if they had foreseen their future. They seemed to have lost all ability to judge the situation rationally.

Slash-

The result was, predictably, each one being cut down one by one by the Grand Duke alone.

It was a quiet end without even a single scream.

Slash-

“Gack- Die!”

Slash-

The one-sided slaughter continued with no room for the knights or us to intervene, and the bandits retreated only after losing half of their comrades.

“R-retreat! Stop! You, what on earth are you!”

At the leader’s scream-like shout, the Grand Duke opened his mouth.

“Which territory are you from?”

It was an unexpected question. I thought he would annihilate them all, but there must have been a reason he didn’t use his sword energy. Perhaps he wanted to spare those with circumstances.

However, the bandit leader, though trembling with fear, shouted back in anger.

“What?! D-don’t try any tricks!”

The Grand Duke, without changing his expression, asked the next question.

“Why did you become bandits?”

“Stop talking nonsense!”

Thud-

Roll-

Twice. The Grand Duke gave exactly two chances before cutting off the bandit leader’s head.

I tried to calm my nauseated stomach from the strong smell of human blood that had been spreading.

Seeing me grimace in discomfort, Sion asked with concern.

“Lady Lora. Are you alright?”

“No. Could you not make me talk? I need to breathe only through my mouth.”

While we were whispering, the Grand Duke turned his gaze to the deputy leader. The deputy stared blankly at the leader’s head that had fallen at his feet and muttered with a vacant expression.

“Boss…”

“I’m asking you.”

The deputy’s head slowly rose to stare at the Grand Duke.

“Will you die here as a bandit? Or will you open that mouth?”

At that, he gritted his trembling teeth once before opening his quivering lips.

“And who might you be to do this?”

Kindly enough, the Grand Duke removed his robe to reveal himself. His splendid golden hair and golden eyes shone brilliantly in the sunlight.

Thud-

At that moment, the bandits who recognized him each fell to their knees, trembling with fear.

“Huh- Kalschmitz!”

“We have committed a mortal sin!”

The deputy leader crawled forward on his knees and buried his face in the ground. Then, with an attitude completely different from before, he began to offer excuses.

“We were originally residents of Hellin village. A plague swept through our village, but the lord didn’t reduce our taxes, so we committed these acts to feed our wives and children! We have committed a mortal sin!”

“We have committed a mortal sin!”

The deputy leader finished speaking, lifted his head, and shed tears.

The remaining bandits behind him also began to cry, saying they had no choice, and started telling their individual circumstances.

“I lost my wife and children to the plague, Your Highness!”

“Your Highness! My wife was taken from me by the lord!”

The Grand Duke, who had been watching them without emotion, raised his hand.

“Enough.”

At that, those who had been squeezing out tears fell silent instantly. Then, a benevolent smile appeared on the Grand Duke’s lips.

“He seems to be forgiving us.”

“Thank you, thank you…”

It was the moment when the bandits’ expressions were gradually brightening.

Swoosh-

Shuuung-

My vision turned red.

The Grand Duke had sent out his aura to behead them. It was a merciless act.

“Hup.”

Someone swallowed hard. And after that, there was silence.

In the stillness where even breaths were taken carefully, the Grand Duke’s gaze suddenly turned toward me. I flinched, having been in a daze wondering what had just happened.

Coming to my senses and meeting his cold eyes, he curved the corners of his eyes.

And with the same kind smile as before, he opened his mouth.

“Shall we go?”

For a moment, I barely managed to smooth out my expression, which was about to crumple.

Even I had to admit that the Grand Duke, standing alone in pristine condition amidst the sea of blood he had created, was honestly a bit frightening. In fact, he looked somewhat insane.

But contrary to my inner thoughts, my survival instinct prettily curved the corners of my eyes.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The Grand Duke was holding a sword right now.

***

The knights began clearing the bandits’ bodies to one side of the road. My companions and I were taking in the scene with complicated expressions from behind.

At that moment, the Grand Duke made an unwelcome proposal.

“My lady.”

“Yes.”

“Would you come ride beside me?”

Composing my stiffening expression, I smiled brightly at him and asked.

“Why?”

“I would like you to keep me company.”

“Unfortunately, I lack both conversational skills and the ability to lead a horse at the front.”

I declined indirectly with a bright smile. I thought this would be enough for him to understand, but he rejected my tactful refusal.

“Conversational skills don’t matter, and you can ride with me.”

And then he made an even more burdensome suggestion.

I had no choice. If I pretended not to understand, I would have to reject him directly.

“I’m sorry, but, huh?”

Just as I was about to voice my refusal, Demian desperately mouthed “watch your words” from behind the Grand Duke.

Sigh. Such is the burden of being the head of a household.

Making a living was already difficult enough, and having dependents made it even more so.

Fine. It’s not like the absolute power holder in this hierarchical society was asking for s*xual favors, just companionship.

The Grand Duke wasn’t very patient. He couldn’t wait even that brief moment and urged me.

“I’m curious about your answer, my lady.”

“Well, what I meant was…”

Clop-clop-

Feeling the Grand Duke’s interested gaze on my face, I rode my horse toward his side.

And looking at his face, I smiled brightly.

“I meant that despite my lacking skills, I’ll try my best to be entertaining.”

“I look forward to it.”

He loosely curved the corners of his mouth. Joy reflected in his slightly folded eyes.

And as soon as we started moving, I pretended to faithfully fulfill my role as a companion and asked the question I had been curious about.

“By the way, Your Highness, weren’t you going to spare the bandits’ lives by listening to their circumstances?”

Then, from behind, I heard Demian’s predictable sigh.

Contrary to Demian’s concern, the Grand Duke was generous. He answered with a gentle smile on his lips.

“No.”

“Then why?”

“In case there were others left at their hideout, I wanted to find out so I could eliminate them.”

He answered while pulling the reins to adjust the horse’s direction.

Since he hadn’t put his robe back on, his fine hair flowed with gravity and then returned.

As I stared at him, the Grand Duke tilted his head curiously.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Because Your Grace’s beauty in the sunlight is dazzling.”

“Your beauty is dazzling as well.”

Huh-

Cough-

As soon as his words ended, sounds of people swallowing their breath came one after another from behind. Some even choked.

The Grand Duke wasn’t the Grand Duke for nothing. Look at how he responded without even blinking an eye.

I chuckled and guided my horse to avoid the bloodstains.

“You flatter me.”

The Grand Duke matched his pace to mine as I slowed down to navigate around the bloodstains.