What if you are reborn as a demon after a funeral?.

"Ha! I'll never trust adults like you again! People like you are all filthy and disgusting... Waaah?!"

As soon as she dismounted, she walked quickly ahead, made a face at Ash, and happily trotted ahead.

But who could have predicted that, just as she passed an alleyway, someone would cover her mouth and drag her to a dark corner, leaving only a few muffled shouts echoing in the air.

"Aren't you happy too soon? I told you not to be impatient." Ash covered his face and shook his head, unable to bear the sight, but he couldn't help but want to laugh.

He then heard Alice's curses and the dull thud of a punch... Alice must have been punched again in a fierce resistance.

"...In terms of treatment, it's quite pitiful, but why don't they understand the principle that extreme rigidity is easily broken? In this situation, they should compromise first, ah, no, struggling should also be considered an instinct?"

He dismounted, scratched his head, and walked forward, troubled as to how to react to Alice's plight.

Subconsciously, I felt that he had brought this upon himself, but the other person was indeed a child... He had been spoiled since childhood, and of course, it was also possible that his grandfather had a bad influence. So, upon closer reflection, his current behavior was actually quite normal.

"However, this personality makes people subconsciously believe that whatever they encounter is their own fault. Indeed, how one conducts oneself in daily life determines how others perceive them. Hmm... I also need to learn from this experience and strive to make others see me as a good person, so that I can stand on the moral high ground and point fingers at others in any situation."

Ash muttered to himself as he quickened his pace and entered the alley.

As soon as they entered, they saw Alice being gagged by a burly kidnapper, her face flushed red, and her once fair cheeks swollen.

Before Ash could say anything, the burly butler slowly appeared from behind the kidnapper, a meaningful expression on his face. He grinned at Ash and said:

"What's going on, kid? Have you suddenly had a change of heart and want to be a good guy? Or have you forgotten that we're your comrades?"

"What are you thinking? I just suddenly realized that no matter what the actual situation is, as long as you give other people the impression of being a good person, then no matter what problems occur later, other people will have a good impression of you from the start."

What's the point?

"It doesn't really mean anything, I just thought it would be more fun this way," Ash shrugged and explained frankly.

"...Interesting?" The butler seemed a little confused, but quickly shook his head, temporarily setting aside his displeasure, and asked in a deep voice:

"You're getting off topic... What's wrong with you? Why did you bring this kid back? Are you trying to back out now? Do you think you'll even survive if you do? Do you think this kid's family will let you off the hook? Are you some kind of masochist who really wants to be some kind of lousy tutor for this mad dog, only feeling happy when this kid beats you to a pulp?"

"It seems like something's going on here. No matter what you choose, it's unwise to stand with this brat."

Ash nodded seriously, agreeing with the point of view, but as soon as he finished speaking, he noticed that Alice's face had turned ashen.

Although her mouth was covered and she couldn't speak, she probably felt betrayed once again, and her eyes were filled with anger as she looked at him.

"Don't look at me like that. Your personality flaws are too serious. You can't blame me entirely." He shook his head and sighed helplessly.

The steward walked over at that moment, patted him on the shoulder, and said earnestly, "That's right. If you realize your mistake and turn back, I can still give you some money. As long as you behave yourself and don't cause any trouble, you'll still get a hundred gold coins."

"That's wonderful, but..."

"What? A hundred isn't enough?" The butler, who had already walked past Ash, paused, silently pulled a dagger from his sleeve, and the moment he finished asking the question, he suddenly raised his arm and swung the dagger fiercely towards Ash's neck.

However, before the dagger could fall...

In the pitch-black night, several silent slashes suddenly appeared, striking the butler's body with lightning speed.

In an instant, all the butler's movements came to an abrupt halt, and he froze on the spot.

Ash, however, acted as if nothing had happened, continuing to walk at his own unhurried pace toward the two kidnappers.

As he walked forward, without turning his head, he replied, "A hundred gold coins are certainly not enough. Rather than trying to outmaneuver someone, I actually prefer to keep everything to myself."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a "poof" sound was heard.

The butler's arm, which had been raised high, suddenly fell down on its own.

Immediately afterwards, he was like a broken toy being dismantled, instantly turning into a pile of flesh, and crashing heavily to the ground with splattered blood.

.............................

The bloody and terrifying scene before them added an even more sinister atmosphere to the already dark alley.

Alice, whose heart was about to stop beating, could even hear the sound of the robbers behind her swallowing in the deathly silence.

"W-What's going on? Wind magic?" The robber holding Alice nervously backed away, while the other held a sword to Alice's neck, sternly warning, "—Don't come any closer! If you mess around, you won't get a single copper coin!!"

"A threat? A good plan, but..."

"—Don't underestimate us! I've already seen through your magic!! If you make any unusual move, I'll immediately...!"

"I hate threats the most."

Alice, whose mouth was covered and whose neck was held to a sword, suddenly couldn't hear anything after hearing his words.

The two robbers behind him seemed to have vanished suddenly, without making a sound. Even the sword in front of them turned to dust and drifted to the ground with the evening breeze.

Ash's figure suddenly vanished from in front of her and reappeared behind her without warning, patting her shoulder and smiling as she looked on in confusion.

"Let's go."

"--babble?!"

Compared to feelings, Alice was so frightened that her body trembled and she reflexively turned to run away.

But before he could take a single step, Ash grabbed him by the back of his collar and lifted him up with ease.

She ran for ages with her legs dangling in the air, unable to leave the same spot. Finally regaining her senses, she suppressed her resistance, turned back with a taut face, and declared, "I'd rather die than live like a broken tile!" "I'd rather bite my tongue and die than go with you!! You...big liar!!"

"...What are you thinking? Biting your tongue to commit suicide will only cause massive bleeding, it won't actually kill you immediately. I'll heal you every time you bite it. I'd like to see how many times you can bite it."

"I...I...!" Alice was so frightened by his words that her small body trembled, and she looked like she was about to wet herself.

This made him clear his throat, and he laughed as he changed his words, "Ahem... I wasn't trying to scare you. I was actually going to say—didn't you see I was saving you?"

"But didn't you just say you wanted to be alone..."

"That was just a bit of my personal quirk. I had no intention of actually cooperating with them. Besides, I'm a kind-hearted person and can't bear to see children suffer."

As he spoke, he gently placed her back on the ground, a soft smile on his face. He even patted her head and coaxed, "Look at me, you'll understand when you see me, right? Don't I look like a good person?"

"...Really?" Still in shock, Alice didn't dare to push his hand away for a moment.

"Of course, almost everyone who has been a parent has the same idea."

"...But on that street just now, nobody came to my rescue..."

"That means they weren't kind enough."

"But....."

"what?"

"You're so powerful, you should be able to get here quickly when I'm being attacked, right?" Remembering his exaggerated speed, Alice, who had calmed down a bit and realized that he wasn't an enemy and didn't intend to betray her, couldn't help but show a suspicious expression.

Ash, however, maintained a polite smile and silently looked up at the sky: "Speaking of which, the weather is pretty good today. Tomorrow will definitely be sunny."

"—So you were lying after all?! And such a lame excuse for changing the subject!?"

"Okay, let's go back and have a drink~" Ash ignored Alice, who was stomping her feet in a fit of rage, patted her head, and silently got up and walked out of the alley.

Despite her burning resentment at his attitude, Alice hesitated for a moment before quickly catching up: "Wait, wait! Aren't you going to say anything to me?!"

"What are you saying? Haven't I said everything I needed to say?"

"—Can't you even apologize?!"

"You're so annoying, be quiet or I'm leaving you behind."

"Waaah..." Alice whimpered, glancing around fearfully before quietly following behind him. She then snorted and turned her head away, muttering softly, "Who asked you to take me? I can go back by myself."

Despite saying that, she really didn't miss a single step, which made Ash laugh as he reached back and patted her head again.

The healing light instantly restored her swollen face to its original state, making Alice, who was still angry, feel somewhat complicated.

.............................

.............................

Upon returning to the castle, Alice completely relaxed, feeling as if she were home. She collapsed weakly to the ground, and a group of people immediately surrounded her, showering her with concern and care.

But before Alice could even feel happy, she struggled to her feet and pointed at him, yelling at the top of her lungs, "Apologize to me now...!"

"What are you apologizing for? Have you forgotten what you said?"

"When did I ever promise to keep my promise? Humph!" Alice crossed her arms, arrogantly and openly reneging on her promise.

“Is that so? Then…” Ash nodded silently, and without saying a word, he pushed through the crowd and, just as Alice turned around in fright to run away, he skillfully grabbed her by the back of her collar.

They dragged her away from the scene and, to everyone's astonishment, took her to the stables, pinned her down on a haystack, and slapped her across the face.

"I shouldn't have wasted that time. I should have just hit you directly from the start. It would have been much simpler and more convenient that way."

"—Go ahead and kill me if you dare! If you don't kill me, I'll absolutely... Waaah!"

"You just suffered because you didn't listen to me, so why are you acting all high and mighty now? Seriously... don't you want revenge?"

"Anyway, Grandfather will take revenge! I don't want you anymore...!" Although her butt hurt a lot from the spanking, Alice still looked back at him with her teeth bared, which aroused his interest: "Hey~ I'm sorry, even if you want to get rid of me, it won't be easy."

As they were talking, on that very day, from the stables of the lord's manor, came the young lady's angry curses and muffled groans of pain.

Although some people initially wanted to rescue him, the lord himself forbade any "rescue."

So on that very day, Alice, representing the hard-bone faction, was so tearful she couldn't walk, yet she refused to use healing magic, paying the price for her broken promise.

Even when Ash was too lazy to say anything, she still had to explain the situation to her grandfather. Naturally, she hoped her grandfather would severely punish Ash and the nobles from the neighboring town, however...

The reality was quite different from what she had imagined—neither of the two people she wanted to teach a lesson were punished.

Externally... since Ash didn't intend to become their family's patron, Sauros could only claim that Kyrie Isaac had saved them, thus announcing that their family had recruited a sword master and demonstrating their family's strength.

Needless to say, Ash was not going to be punished at all; in fact, he was given the authority to beat her up, and no one could stop him.

That perverted nobleman... lacked physical evidence, and was protected by a powerful nobleman. He even pretended not to know or understand, and accused Sauros of killing his people arbitrarily, making it impossible for Sauros to take action against him.

The other party's shameless behavior infuriated Alice, but what she found even more unacceptable was...

At breakfast time in the early morning, Ash and Sauros were the first to start eating at the table, while Alice and his parents watched silently from the side.

In the noble families of this world, the hierarchy is more stringent than one might imagine; if the head of the family hasn't finished eating, no other family member can eat.

Alice, starving, could only glare at Ash from the sidelines. After a long while, she finally couldn't hold back any longer and pointed at him, saying, "Grandfather! Why is this guy allowed to eat with you?!"

"Because he is the Sword Emperor! Isn't that reason enough?!" Shaoluos roared at the top of his lungs.

"But I'm not convinced!" Even though she lost in terms of momentum, Alice showed no intention of saying anything.

"Then you fight him!"

"We can't beat them!"

"Then shut up!!"