I Returned with the Cheat Holy Sword

“The above is the material you requested.”
Inside the Headmaster’s office, Sior’s voice echoed softly.

On the desk, multiple magitechnical video orbs he had brought all glowed simultaneously.
All of them had captured the same subject.
Every second of Carlyle Belfast’s life inside the academy had been recorded without omission.

“Is it satisfactory, Cardinal Felix?”
The other person nodded calmly and without hesitation.
A request to verify whether this student was truly capable.

“It’s more than sufficient.”
“……”
Headmaster Sior leaned deep into the back of his chair and quietly studied Cardinal Felix.

A man who could manipulate the political balance of nations from his chair like a puppet master was now focusing with unsettling intensity on the every movement of a single student.
His smile was one of parental pride, as if watching a child grow up well.
…No matter how you looked at it, it didn’t suit him.

“You seem more interested in that one than the Hero herself.”
“Mm—won’t deny it. Lately, this side’s more entertaining.”
Sior burst out laughing at how openly Felix, the Hero’s strongest supporter, admitted he was paying more attention to someone else.

“The Hero would be pretty upset if she heard that.”
“She wouldn’t. After all, Chasefield’s daughter has always been the highest priority.”
However—

“It’s just that... this one feels like the rudder that can steer her.”
Hearing that, Sior silently nodded.
“So this request for a field study or whatever it is—that’s why? Bringing along people other than the Hero?”
“Mm—something like that?”

“Cardinal Felix.”
Sior smiled as he kicked his legs up onto the desk.
It was probably the boldest possible insult to commit in front of a High Cardinal of the Orthodox Church, but he didn’t care in the slightest.

And that was only natural.
Because he was a Hero. The former strongest human alive.
A man more powerful than even the current Hero who wielded the Holy Sword.

“I like you. That’s why I cooperate without complaint, no matter what you ask for.”
“Oh my.”
“You’ve blocked more disasters than I can count. Didn’t you even prevent a war that could’ve engulfed the whole continent?”

Cardinal Felix was a perfect example of what happens when a smart person abandons morality and leans into pure force of will.
She shrugged with a smile.
“I just got lucky.”

“There are plenty who complain about your extreme methods—but speaking as someone who’s carried all of humanity on his back, I have no problem admitting how useful you are. However—”
Felix was still smiling politely.
So was Sior.

And that made what came next feel all the more disturbing.
“Recently, I received reports of demonic cultists moving in the capital. Coincidentally, the exact same location you requested for this ‘field study.’”
“……”

“Filthy animals. They kill for pleasure, turn it into worship, force parents to murder their children, then have the siblings eat the corpses. These incidents keep piling up. And that’s not something rookie students should ever be caught up in.”
“Agreed.”
“Cardinal Felix. Are you planning to involve my students in something horrific?”

“……”
“I’m not telling you not to. At least not when it comes to the Hero. Sooner or later, she has to face these things anyway. But—”
Sior’s smile deepened.

His voice, however, turned razor cold.
“Don’t go too far.”
“……”

“If my ordinary students get hurt because of your schemes, I will personally turn you into a saint.”
There’s only one guaranteed way to canonize a religious figure.
Martyrdom.

This polite threat of murder, delivered to one of the continent’s most powerful individuals, carried no emotion.
And that very lack of emotion made the conviction behind it even more chilling.
This former Hero—

Like all Heroes, including Gray—
Had both the strength and the gall to carry out what he said, and not an ounce of concern about the aftermath.
“Bring them back whole. Sane. All of them. Got it?”

“…I promise.”
Felix answered just as calmly.
“—That is, if they’re ordinary students.”

The nuance in that reply made even Sior frown.
“So there’s someone you don’t consider ordinary? I said my limit was anyone except the Hero.”
“Yes. Understood perfectly.”

Felix’s gaze remained fixed on the video playing across the desk.
Footage of Carlyle.
“It’s just… one student doesn’t seem very ordinary at all.”

As if—
His abnormality was something on par with a Hero.
***

Right after the special exam wrapped up safely before Gray’s arrival.
Sure, Gray had stormed in ranting about how someone called him here but then didn’t show up, glaring daggers at Carlyle…
But all in all, things had passed without any major incident.

“Ugh, I’m so tired…”
Honestly, he just wanted to rest.
So many accidents and crises in just a few days.

Which is why—
He really wished people would stop throwing new crises in his face so casually.
“Field trip?”

Carlyle asked in a suspicious tone.
The one who had just told him he could participate, Siona, was still smiling brightly.
“Yes indeed! Isn’t it exciting? It’s a school trip, a picnic!”

“With the Cardinal?”
“Even better, no? Her Eminence Felix is a real beauty!”
“……”

“Sir Hero, Carlyle, Vespa, even the princess is going! A chaotic, wild, silly-silly picnic!”
…This woman’s energy was way too much every time they met. He never got used to it.
But beyond that, the most suspicious part was the fact that Felix was the one proposing this.

I think you should go.
‘…Seriously?’
If the Holy Sword hadn’t said that, he’d probably have hesitated a lot more.

The capital around this time period… it’s a place where anything could happen. If Cardinal Felix is calling on me, it’s not without reason. She must’ve sensed a major incident coming.
‘Can you be more specific?’
The most likely is the “Black Market Massacre.” A demonic summoning ritual. I’m pretty sure it was around this time.

Supposedly—
It was the first known attempt to summon a demon from hell by slaughtering hundreds and using their corpses as a gateway.
Felix likely called Gray because of that.

“…Tch.”
So much for a school trip.
She was clearly recruiting support ahead of something awful.

‘But then why bring me and the others too, not just the Hero?’
…I don’t know.
The Holy Sword groaned.

And that’s *exactly* why you should go. It’s never good to stay in the dark about what she’s planning.
‘That’s true.’
He had a strange trust that Felix wouldn’t harm him or Gray—but that didn’t mean she’d always act clean or fair.

–Specialty Info–

You closely resemble the person who gave the Cardinal a reason to fight for ordinary people.

You may be more deeply connected to that past than even the Cardinal realizes.
However, even those who fight for a good cause must sometimes be reined in.
Please help the Cardinal balance her ideals and methods!

▶ A “Scheduled Trait” has been unlocked.
▶ Scheduled Traits are guaranteed to activate eventually, regardless of conditions.
▶ Use the Cardinal’s emotional attachment to develop the trait!
♠ Regret: 0%
♠ Guilt: 0%
♠ Obsession: 0%
…The fact that this showed up made it all the more urgent.

If her “extreme methods must be adjusted,” then who knows how she might go off the rails?
The truly weird part was…
How was he supposed to develop things like regret, guilt, or obsession?

Would Felix even feel those emotions toward him, of all people…?
“……”
Well, that was a problem for later.

“Professor Siona.”
“Yes!”
“Shall we go? Picnic-picnic.”

“Picnic-picnic!”
He wasn’t sure about “chaotic, wild, silly-silly,” but the picnic-picnic itself got underway smoothly.
And clearly, they didn’t entirely mean to skip the actual fun.

“—Wowww—”
The moment they arrived at their assigned lodging in the capital, Vespa let out a long gasp of amazement.
It was a massive, luxurious hotel, grander than anything Carlyle had seen even in his past life on Earth. He had to tilt his head all the way back just to see the ceiling.

The bright lights and lion statues—a symbol of the Empire—lined the entrance and lit up the evening sky.
“Th-this place is where top-ranking foreign dignitaries stay—basically a state guesthouse—”
Princess Illia, pale as a sheet, stammered out her words.

…No way should students be staying here. Maybe Gray, the current Hero, but no one else.
The Gray Cardinal lived up to her name—she didn’t invite people without treating them grandly.
And that grandeur… came with complications.

Carlyle, Siona, Vespa, Gray, Felix, and the princess.
A total of six.
Even a building this massive couldn’t handle that number without overlap.

And so came the inevitable problem—
“Looks like we can’t get single rooms.”
“Don’t you dare.”

“…No matter how much you swear, that won’t change the logistics, miss.”
Gray’s face twisted like a demon.
To someone as sensitive as her, not having a single room probably felt like the end of the world…

“So how are the rooms split?”
“Well, the room assigned to you, miss, is a double. That’s the one with the fewest people.”
The remaining four were in one room.

And the quietest, smallest room had been reserved for Gray, of course.
“……”
Even so, Gray pressed her temples with a deep scowl.

“Then I’m choosing my roommate.”
“Of course. Who would you prefer?”
“……”

Her gaze settled briefly—no, rather lingered—on Carlyle.
…In fact, it lingered long enough to make him nervous.
“Miss? Surely you’re not choosing me—”

“You snore.”
“……”
“You probably grind your teeth, too. No thanks.”

…Ah.
So that’s why she was analyzing him.
“I want the quietest, calmest person possible.”

“Hmm—then?”
“……”
Her gaze dropped.

To someone far shorter than her.
“E-eeek—?!”
Princess Illia went pale as a ghost the moment their eyes met.

“I’ll take her.”
…Huh. How unusual.
Gray voluntarily choosing a child?

“She looks easy to knock out if she annoys me.”
“……”
“And she’s the weakest. Less effort.”

Illia’s face had gone from pale to paper-white.
But this was Gray.
If anyone tried to argue, she’d probably just knock them out.

‘…Good luck, Your Highness.’
There really was nothing else to [N O V E L I G H T] say.
***

System Message
▶ An event has occurred related to [Variable: The Holy Sword’s Suggestion – Raising the Hero’s Princess]!
▶ A bond may be formed between the two targets.
▶ This may have a significant impact on the “Main Event”!