A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

The flowing azure dress and long hair are a testament to the woman's vitality.

This stands in stark contrast to the dejected Bray.

The old man who had been chatting with Bray earlier had a glint in his eyes, then he chuckled and left, leaning on his cane.

"The spring is beautiful, and the princess is beautiful too." The old man muttered something unintelligible as his figure gradually disappeared into the distance.

Neither Bray nor Virginia knew any of this.

The girl was simply enjoying the time she spent with the person she liked.

She forgot the rules of the court, forgot the noble children who pestered her every day, and forgot her status as an outstanding student in the academy.

All I wanted was to be with Bray.

Ah, how I regret the choices I made in the past because of my cowardice.

Therefore, she needs to be a little bolder now.

If you don't even muster up this courage, then you've completely lost to that other optimistic girl.

“Very well, Your Highness, it won’t be a problem to steal his heart in one fell swoop.” Blanche muttered to herself, hiding in the corner.

"Does my brother really have a so-called 'heart' that can be stolen?" Lux seriously doubted whether her brother was attracted to women.

"Wait a minute, Blanche, look! My brother is so bold!" Lux was so shocked that she couldn't close her mouth, as if she had seen something unbelievable.

"What is it? What... is it!?" Blanche raised her eyelids and saw Bray put his arm around Virginia, whose face was flushed.

"Mr. Bray!!!? This is so sudden..." Feeling Bray's warmth, Virginia was so embarrassed that she wanted to find a hole to crawl into.

Just now, Bray suddenly pulled Virginia into his arms.

But Bray's expression was completely different from what Virginia had expected.

Calm, even a little wary.

Bray held Virginia in his right arm and gently pushed the blade of his longsword out slightly with his left thumb.

Several passengers nearby were curled up on the ground in pain.

Thorns stretched out from their bodies, and roses bloomed on their flesh.

"Old man, stop right there."

The old man, who had already walked quite a distance, did not stop because of Bray's words.

That's right. What kind of logic is it to stop just because someone tells you to?

"What did you do?" Bray asked the stupid question.

Most people wouldn't answer that.

However, this old man is different; he will definitely answer.

"It's nothing, I just conducted a small experiment."

"I'm so sorry to have disturbed the peaceful life of the precept-holder," the white-haired old man said in a voice completely different from before.

"I was very happy listening to your introduction of the scenic spots."

Their previously unsteady steps became lighter.

The cane used to assist walking was also held in his hand and twirled around.

The old man took a few dance steps, and after a strong gust of wind blew by, his hunched figure became tall and straight.

A masked man in a tuxedo appeared far away from Bray, twirling a cane in his hands.

"However, I'm very curious, you shouldn't be able to find me."

"Because you did not use your cunning after I was around you."

"Why did I suddenly realize he was a villain?"

“I used it,” Bray said.

"Huh? Oh!!! I see." Jonathan's mask first showed a puzzled expression, then burst into exaggerated laughter.

"It was used the instant those people lay down," Jonathan said, patting his mask in sudden realization.

"That's really straightforward. I thought you would hesitate for a minute or two before using your cunning."

Jonathan originally planned to leave leisurely before Bray used his mind control.

Unexpectedly, Bray used his cunning the moment he saw someone fall.

Don't you think it's just that someone has fallen ill?

“Mr. Bray, who is he?” Virginia took a deep breath, recovering from her shyness, and frowned as she looked at Jonathan.

"A clown."

"That's right! A clown! This little man is a very, very polite clown!"

"What I like most are things that are unplanned and unexpected."

“I don’t like peace, I only like chaos,” Jonathan said, clapping for himself as if his words had been incredibly inspiring.

While Jonathan was spouting nonsense, those who had fallen began to be devoured by the roses.

Thorns enveloped those people, gradually becoming part of the roots.

He drew his sword.

The concept of suppression can be achieved as soon as the sword is drawn; once drawn, the suppression effect will be even stronger.

However, the plight of those people did not improve.

“This is not just a concept, sir.”

“They’re just roses, some that have grown too vigorously,” Jonathan explained to Bray with a bow.

But if the "Final Strike" was ineffective, why didn't Jonathan attack Virginia in Bray's arms, or Lux and Blanche who were hiding?

“Mr. Bray, try cutting through these thorns and roses with your sword.” Despite not having obtained much information, Virginia remained relatively calm and offered Bray her suggestion.

The instant Virginia finished speaking, Bray swung his sword and shattered the thorns and roses on one of the people.

Once the thorns and roses were firmly struck, they immediately withered and fell from the people.

"Hmm? This is really bothering me." Jonathan flicked his top hat.

But judging from his tone, Jonathan didn't seem to care about what had just happened.

"Oh dear, sir, are you feeling particularly annoyed lately?"

"Besides me, there's another guy named Marek who takes turns ruining your peaceful life."

“Yes, it’s annoying, really annoying,” Bray said honestly.

How could he not find it annoying? First Marek, and now Jonathan.

"That's true, you must be very annoyed."

"However, I am quite pleased to see you like this."

"Because interesting things always happen around you."

“I’m keeping a distance of about a hundred meters from you right now,” Jonathan said.

"It's a real shame, but at this distance, you can't fulfill your wish to cut down the villain." He seemed quite pleased with himself and even danced a little on the spot.

"Do you want to destroy this city?"

“No, of course not.” Jonathan held up a finger and shook it.

"I just want to see how far a person... or rather a dead person, can be twisted."

"The dead cannot be brought back to life."

“Yes, that’s an ironclad rule,” Jonathan didn’t deny it.

Therefore, I have no intention of 'resurrecting' a dead person.

"By the way, Mr. Bray, you don't need to think about cutting me up anymore."

"After that, I won't show up in person anymore, hahahahaha." Jonathan leaned back, making a gesture of laughing loudly.

"Splash." Then he fell down and into the spring he had been in before.

With that fall, Jonathan completely vanished.

"That person...is he gone?" Virginia asked uncertainly.

Although that clown-like man was violently knocked away right in front of her.

But who can be sure that the strange fellow has really left?

“She’s gone,” Bray said, releasing Virginia.

He glanced around at those who hadn't completely lost their chance of rescue, then swiftly cut down the thorns and roses.

Unfortunately, there were still a few people who could not be saved in time.

Those who couldn't be saved eventually lost all human form and became nothing more than the roots and stems of that plant.

"Looks like my relaxing vacation is ruined," Bray muttered.

Bray felt that this time, it wasn't that he happened to be in the place where Jonathan wanted to cause trouble, but rather that Jonathan deliberately came to the place where Bray was to cause trouble.

If that's really the case, it's a real headache.

"Phew..." Virginia leaned against the wall and let out a heavy sigh.

Facing Jonathan directly was like facing some terrifying thing, making Virginia afraid to even breathe. It was already quite an achievement that she didn't collapse to the ground.

"Oh right, Lux and Blanche!" Virginia remembered the other two.

“They’re fine.” Bray glanced around as he used his Mind's Eye.

The two people who had been secretly following him and Virginia were unharmed.

Now I'm worried about the safety of Naruto and Levi, who are far away.

Well, actually, Naruko shouldn't be able to die no matter how much she tries, especially with Levy watching over her.

“…” Bray frowned, as if he felt something was wrong, and squatted down to pick up the withered plant.

"Mr. Bray, be careful!" Virginia called out after seeing Bray's movements.

Perhaps this plant will rise from the ashes again.

“It’s alright, it’s completely withered.” Bray shook his head, indicating that Virginia didn’t need to be too nervous.

He simply had a strong sense of déjà vu after seeing these roses and thorns.

Bray was not a botanist and could not distinguish between plants that looked alike.

But he always felt that this thing looked a lot like the thorny roses near that old house.

If Naruko were here, she could use her intuition to verify it.

Intuition is a very vague thing, but Bray will trust her intuition, after all, he has been helped by Naruko's intuition many times.

"Please explain what happened here." Just fifteen minutes after the incident, a group of Clinton's guards rushed over and surrounded the people at the scene.

Bray looked up at the unfriendly-looking guard, and almost sighed, guessing that he was being treated like a bad guy.

"Get out of here!" A furious shout rang out as Bray was trying to figure out how to resolve the situation.

Blanche stood behind the guards, glaring at them.

Not only was the princess's private time with the salted fish ruined, but these late guards were also incredibly arrogant!

"Who are you? This place is..."

“But what? You’re surrounding Princess Virginia and her guards.” Blanche raised her hand and pointed at the group of guards.

"Your Highness?" A guard exchanged a glance with his companion.

The Will Empire currently has a regent emperor and a princess.

There's also the Crown Prince, who has virtually no presence, at the border.

Although the royal family no longer holds real power in the Will Empire, its status remains prestigious.

Neglecting members of the royal family is still considered a serious crime.