208 Lesson 1

.

Kazuya had asked for Zwei's assistance to look into the cleric's past. He was confident in the resourcefulness of the Eberbach information network since it had been the foundation of the inescapable net that the human side possessed in his previous life.

Zwei didn't see anything suspicious about this request as he always saw the hero as a very cautious person. The old butler's wariness of the church also made him think that looking into them before giving them any kind of trust was essential because of what the church of light had become today.

Rather than being an organization that used to serve as a place of hope for people, the church of light of today was only an organization in name. In reality, the so-called organization was more similar to a kingdom that was highly protective of its interests.

This was what some people already realize but turn a blind eye to. The church's influence was so enormous that even powerful figures were afraid to speak badly of them in the presence of people that they didn't trust. One declaration for them was all it took to put a stain on one's reputation. Being branded as a heretic or someone connected to evil was the knife against the throats of anyone who was potentially scheming against them.

"There doesn't seem to be anything amiss, Kazuya-sama," Zwei mentioned after handing him a report. The old butler glanced towards Sodina who was having tea at the same table and hid a smile at the interest she tried to hide.

This was one of the reasons why Sodina was specifically asked by her father to stay behind. Instead of gaining experience on the battlefield, what she needed the most was to be influenced by someone who acted the way Kazuya did. She needed to learn how to be cautious and calculative. This was not something that Elrich wanted her to experience the hard way so he wanted her daughter to realize it by observing other people.

To Sodina, her father was someone that did no wrong. Everything he did was something that she did not think about much. This was why Elrich had trouble making her realize what she lacked.

"Thank you, Zwei-san." Kazuya read through the detailed report and indeed did not find anything amiss.

Jorelle was an orphan who was adopted by one of the merchants that had decided to settle down in the capital after his properties were damaged by monsters in another town. His talent in healing magic was discovered by one of the young trainees of the church and afterward, he was accepted as a trainee in the capital's church.

It was a relatively ordinary story in which no one would take a second glance at. His talent wasn't anything extraordinary either. The only thing that stood out was that aside from providing charity to different parts of the capital, he had applied for the training regimen that aspiring paladins would take.

"What's so interesting about a common cleric? Aren't you just prying into someone's private life? Is that a hobby of yours?" Sodina who was being ignored suddenly spoke.

"Ojou-sama…" Zwei looked at her with slight disapproval.

"It's fine, Zwei-san. This isn't the first time I've met someone like her." Kazuya sighed. "(I hate to admit it but I've said similar words before.)" Though Kazuya understood why Elrich wanted his daughter to spend time with him, he still couldn't help but feel a little bitter about it.

The hero knew from the young lady's actions that his methods were working. She clearly didn't like him. The only reason why they spent time together like this was because of the arrangements that Elrich made before he left. As a guest in his house, it would have been inappropriate for him to refuse requests that were made to help with the intentions he mentioned.

"It would be better for her to understand rather than explaining it to her. Experiencing it herself would probably not give any guarantee that she would be able to reflect on it after all." Kazuya placed the report on the table before turning towards the young miss of the Eberbach family.

"Hey! What do you mean by that!?" she was annoyed at being looked at like she was dumb.

"I mean is there is a high probability that you would have died before you had the chance to reflect on what happened to you." Kazuya gave her a cold smile. "Let's make the recent events as an example… Since you are the heir of the Eberbach family, Let's say that there was an attempt on the duke's life. It may or may not have been successful but aside from the fact that you are aware that it was an assassination, what would you do as the person who was left in command?"

"Find out who was responsible!" she immediately answered. Just the thought about her father being assassinated was enough to make her look hostile towards Kazuya.

"Alright, let's say that the culprit you were able to find was the church of light. What would you do next?" Kazuya calmly looked back at the agitated young lady.

"The church of light…" She was slightly taken aback at the emergence of an unlikely culprit. She thought that it had something to do with the report that he was reading but since Zwei said that there was nothing wrong earlier, she didn't think much about it. "I would gather the forces and attack!"

"Forces? What forces?"

"Assassinating a duke of the Zweifel kingdom is a clear declaration of war. We would be able to gain the help of the kingdom and deploy forces that are not affiliated with the house." Sodina declared. She might have not been as knowledgeable as her father regarding military affairs but as she was a noble of a military family, she knew more about these things than the average noble.

"(As expected…)" He had already expected this response and inwardly sighed. Kazuya really couldn't help but dislike this person. She was a clear reminder of how he simply viewed things in the past.

"What? Cat got your tongue?" She smugly looked at the hero after noticing him ponder about her reply.

"What if the kingdom doesn't support going to war with the church of light?" Kazuya remained calm and asked another question.

"What? Run out of ideas?" She snorted at him. "It doesn't matter, the holy capital may be big but it is nothing that the Eberbach forces in full force cannot take care of. Asking for the kingdom for assistance is our right and would have made things easier but if those bastards don't want the reputation of going against the church of light, the Eberbach family does not care what people might think. We will not compromise with scheming bastards who hurt our own!" she confidently declared.

"I see…" Kazuya leaned back on his seat and closed his eyes. This was the conclusion that the young lady of the Eberbach house had come up with.

"[You strongly remind me of the master I used to serve.]" a voice resounded in Kazuya's mind.

"(I wonder if you were thinking the same thoughts as me as I look at this girl…)" Kazuya thought to himself.

"[Bright, kind, talented, just and couldn't stand evil. It was hard not to be attracted to her brilliance.]" the voice inside his memories described the girl who was in front of him right now.

"(You forgot to mention extremely naïve, gullible, and foolhardy. Was it because you didn't think so? Or was it for my sake?)" Kazuya couldn't help but wonder.

Zwei, on the other hand, had a disappointed look on his face. He didn't try to hide it and it didn't take long before Sodina herself noticed that the two men had grown quiet after her answer.

"What are you two being so quiet for?" the hero was one thing but she couldn't help but doubt her confidence after seeing the reaction on Zwei's face. He was a seasoned commander and one of the very few people that her father looked to for a second opinion.

"You would have been dead before you even made it to the holy capital. That's why we've remained silent." Kazuya opened his eyes and spoke coldly. "If you really did intend to do what you just said, not only would you be dead, the majority of your most trusted personnel would have suffered a foolish death with you."

"What!? Why!?" Sodina was genuinely shocked. So far, she had done what her father did after what happened to her. She turned towards Zwei who only gave her a nod as he too agreed with Kazuya's opinion.

"Do you really think that going up against the church of light is as simple as that? Though it was indeed unexpected of you to consider the fact that unlike the present situation, the church of light is an outside force, if we take the present circumstances into consideration, your judgement in seeking the kingdom's help as a whole is a foolish choice." Kazuya opened his eyes and stared at her.

"My summoning is a joint effort between the Zweifel kingdom and the church of light. From what I've learned, your father was against this decision. Do you think that the kingdom will openly attack one of their main collaborators after getting rid of a thorn on their side?"

"But, we're…" she couldn't continue saying that they were from the same kingdom. As the matter stood, it was one of the most influential people of the king's faction that was found responsible for the attempt on her life.

"Even if they agreed and sent their forces, it would only be on the surface. They would have gotten rid of you easier since you wouldn't expect someone striking you from your own side."

"!!"

"That wasn't your only mistake. Even if you didn't seek outside help, taking the full force of the Eberbach household could also be considered a wrong move." Kazuya turned to Zwei who gave him a nod of confirmation.

"The Eberbach family or any other house for that matter is not without spies. Whether they are aware of it or not, there are people that belong to other factions right under your noses. They may not be positioned very high but they are still aware of the movements of your forces. That will be enough information for the enemies to gain an advantage over you."

"That…" she couldn't deny that fact. She would often be told about specific people that she should avoid by her father.

"Even if we don't take those people into account, there are also the people who would most likely be betrayers in the future."

"What do you mean by that!? That's preposterous!" she didn't believe that those who were loyal to their family would betray lightly. After experiencing what her escorts did for her not too long ago, she had faith in the people that served their house.

"Is it really? How much do you really know about your people?" Kazuya smirked. "Can you definitely be sure that all of your people would pick your house over their beliefs of the goddess? Would everyone be willing to stay under the banner of the Eberbach household after everyone that would stay under your command are branded as heretics?"

"I…" she shivered.

"This is the importance of things such as information." Kazuya seriously gazed at her. "You may have taken things for granted because your father is quite good at handling these sorts of things but this is what you should eventually start thinking about. It may save your life some day or at the very least, give the duke some weight off his shoulders." Kazuya didn't waste any more time and stood from his seat.

His point seems to have already made it across to the other party. Sodina was left frozen while staring blankly at the table in front of her. The young miss of the Eberbach family would need to digest the facts that were thrown at her. Kazuya did not intend to do this for the duke but after being constantly reminded about how he used to be like, Kazuya couldn't help but give her a piece of his mind.

"Thank you, Kazuya-sama." Zwei bowed towards him with gratitude.

"It will not be able to fix everything I find wrong about her but this would at least wisen her up a bit. You guys really do spoil her too much."

"After the mistress' loss, the duke couldn't bear teaching her about the darkness of people. He only hoped that she would one day realize this and ask for guidance."

"sigh… why do I have to pick up the slack of doting fathers…" Kazuya complained. "Anyway, I'll leave you to follow up with whatever this girl needs." Kazuya walked away.

"Please do not hesitate to ask if you need further assistance." Zwei reminded.

"I don't think there would be a need to. I trust that your information is already very accurate." He left the room and thought about the report he just read.

"(From all that information, it seems that there should be something should have happened to that guy before I found him. He isn't the person I've met in the past.)"

.