Chapter 16

Koku Katsuyori slowly walked up the hill, gnawing at his nails. His face seemed to be in a good mood, but there was also a hint of anxiety.

"Pretty common, huh? I see, so there were other reincarnated people besides me."

Muttering to himself, he glanced back. There was a group from the Teisei family, and at the center, Yami could be seen, protected as if by a guard. There was also another girl, one he had never seen before, who was incredibly cute.

"Master! You mustn't go off on your own!"

The butlers, who had been searching for him after realizing he was gone, ran up, drenched in sweat and out of breath.

He snorted at their foolish faces and walked past them.

"Hmph, I won't be taken down by mere monsters here. I won't even get a scratch."

There was something he needed to confirm.

"Hey, wasn't Yami Teisei attacked by a wraith when she was in kindergarten?"

And she was supposed to have been abandoned by the branch family after slaughtering the other kindergarten children. However, from the look of things, she hadn't been abandoned. Her black hair didn't spread out like wakame, and her face didn't have the black panda-like circles or the ear-piercing "kihihi" tone.

Then there was only one answer: she didn't kill the kindergarten children when she was in kindergarten.

"Yes, I've heard the story about her defeating the wraith. The girl standing next to her has a holy attribute, and they worked together to defeat the wraith."

The butler had heard the deceptive rumors spread by the Teisei family and believed them to be true. The Teisei family had spread these rumors to protect Yami, who had been injured, and to protect Miu, who had been hurt by the Teisei family.

The Teisei family, who had tried to take in Miu despite hurting her, were shameless. The Hakuno family had spread rumors to counter this, but in the end, they had spread a rumor that was close to the truth but not quite the same.

However, Katsuyori was convinced by this explanation. He muttered to himself in a low voice, so no one could hear.

"I see. The original story was that the cute girl was also supposed to be killed. But she prevented that."

It was certain. Yami Teisei was a reincarnated person, Katsuyori was convinced.

A typical reincarnated person. Reincarnated as a fat person, then slimming down and becoming handsome, or beautiful. Or working so hard that they become so capable that everyone praises them as a genius.

The common thread is that they become a completely different person from their original character. Yami fit this description perfectly. She was a clear reincarnated person.

When he joined the group of the Duke's family on the hill, he kicked the butlers away and ordered them not to come near him, then sat down under a thin tree to gather his thoughts.

"Is there a possibility that she could become an obstacle to me? ... But it seems she doesn't know this world is 'The Night of Magic'..."

There is a pattern where someone reincarnates without knowing the story of the novel. The puzzled look on her face when she saw Katsuyori suggested she had never seen him before. She was probably not lying.

This is a rare pattern. In such cases, the protagonist, who knows the story, helps and becomes friends with the reincarnated person, or even becomes lovers.

"But she's creepy. I'll pass."

No matter how beautiful she had become, the creepy appearance and personality of Yami in the original story still lingered in Katsuyori's mind, and he had no interest in her.

"If I were to make her part of my harem, it would be that gray-haired girl."

He smiled lecherously, thinking of the gray-haired girl. Her hair, which was as lustrous as silver, reached down to her back, and her ice-blue eyes exuded a strong charm. Her face was like a cute flower, and her body was petite. It was exciting to think about how she would grow up.

She would have surely become friends with the girl who was supposed to be killed in the kindergarten massacre event if she had lived a virtuous life without knowing the story. And the story would have changed, with the wraith possessing someone else.

It was certain that she was a character who was originally supposed to be killed. This was supported by Yami's treatment.

What he had realized after reincarnating in this world was that the nobility could get away with anything. After all, even if he lightly burned a servant, he could cover it up, even if it caused serious injuries. Yami could have been covered up as well.

The reason she wasn't covered up was probably because of the gray-haired girl. He had learned in this world that gray hair was a sign of a holy attribute, a sign of a healer.

Healers were rare. There were only thirty out of twenty thousand mages. Even the Marquis family probably couldn't cover up the incident involving the girl who had awakened as a healer. His guess was probably close to the truth.

His guess was probably correct. After all, he knew all the settings of this world. Katsuyori was, in a sense, a god in this world.

Katsuyori praised himself for his genius and thought about how to deal with the situation.

There was a possibility that she could become an obstacle. Yami was normal, so there would be some changes to the story. At the very least, the event where she infiltrates the academy as a member of an enemy organization wouldn't happen.

"But even without her events, there wouldn't have been a problem. The story didn't break even when she was completely cut from the anime. If anything, it was cleaner without the stalker creepy event."

The Teisei family would appear occasionally afterward. The protagonist, who had protected Yami, would go to the Teisei family to complain. The Teisei family was a samurai family, with a strict father.

There was a tear-jerking story, and later, Yami would reflect and participate in the monster stampede with the family's samurai. He was just a minor character, and after that, he didn't appear again. In the anime, the support part was taken over by another family, and his absence didn't even cause any discomfort.

So, excluding Yami wouldn't be a problem. It wouldn't be a problem, but caution was necessary. If she knew the story, he would have killed her without hesitation. Even if she was the eldest daughter of a Marquis family, and killing her would cause problems for him, the risk was worth it.

Because if she knew the story, she would definitely get involved. Mob reincarnated people do that. They spout unnecessary righteousness and get involved to help the protagonist.

But she didn't know this was the world of the novel, and she didn't know the story. She was a character who was completely cut from the anime. She was just that kind of opponent. It might be dangerous to take action. No, in such cases, it could lead to a situation where he would stir up trouble.

The former freeter, who called himself an otaku, recalled novels where taking action led to tragic results. However, it was also possible that not taking action would lead to destruction, so he gnawed on his nails, frustrated.

The group from the Duke's family watched Katsuyori, who remained motionless, in silence. They understood that it was dangerous to speak to him at such times.

Katsuyori carefully considered the differences between the real world and the novel world, gathered information, and thoroughly compared them.

This included the power dynamics among the nobility, which were not mentioned in the novel and could lead to destruction if overlooked.

If he were to take action, now was the time. The Teisei Marquis family was a warrior family. Although they were completely cut from the anime, their power was not to be underestimated, even by the Duke's family.

If he missed this opportunity, it might become difficult to take action. Feeling anxious, Katsuyori decided to use a temporary solution.

"Hey, didn't you have a summoning stone for a meat shield?"

Standing up and brushing off the dust, he called to the butler who was standing quietly to the side.

"Yes, as you instructed, I have prepared it for emergencies."

"Bring it here."

"? What are you going to use it for?"

"Just bring it."

The butler nodded and went to the storage area, returning with a trunk. He opened it with a click, and inside was a small gold box wrapped in shock-absorbing material.

Katsuyori casually picked up the box, took out the key, and opened it. Inside were large gemstones: a ruby, an emerald, and a topaz. How many carats were they? Their value would easily exceed a hundred million.

Moreover, these gems contained burning flames, violent winds, and swirling dust, evidence of the magic they held.

These were items Katsuyori had brought as a precaution. He didn't consider himself a typical mob protagonist. Because of his sleazy thoughts, he always considered the possibility of something terrible happening.

Therefore, he also made efforts to keep his actions at a level that could be covered up by the Duke's family's power. More importantly, he considered the common pattern of sudden problems, such as being attacked by powerful monsters or large numbers of monsters, which could lead to death.

Katsuyori considered himself a cautious man.

So, he had prepared summoning stones to use as a meat shield in case of such an event. These contained summoned creatures that would absolutely obey their owner.

After all, he had no popularity. He believed that his subordinates would abandon him and run away if he were attacked by powerful monsters. Instead of trying to be virtuous and kind, he thought it was better to solve problems with money.

In the original story, there were scenes where the enemy used gems containing sealed monsters. There were various monsters, some of which even the protagonist struggled against.

Knowing this, Katsuyori had bought and prepared these gems. It cost a fortune, but he had begged his father to buy them. It was then that he realized why the enemy didn't use these gems in large numbers to kill the protagonist. They couldn't casually use gems worth billions.

"Fire is no good. Wind and earth, maybe."

He set aside the ruby, which had a burning glow. Its killing power was too high, and if he were pursued, he couldn't cover it up.

He nodded at the emerald's glow. Then, he shook his head and set it aside like the ruby. The wind-type summoned creature had extremely weak defense. It could confuse monsters, but not intelligent humans.

Since he didn't intend to kill, the wind-type summoned creature's firepower was a bit too high to use as a show of non-lethality.

So, the only option left was the topaz.

It moved slowly but had high durability and a powerful single attack. It would only die in an accident. It would also be possible to escape.

He could pretend to be in a hurry, and it wouldn't be strange for the others to watch from a distance.

"Stone Golem, release yourself from the seal."

'Activate'

Using this command word, the topaz glowed, and a brown magic circle floated above the gem. The topaz's glow intensified, and everyone squinted and covered their faces with their arms.

After the light subsided, a stone golem, about five meters tall, stood there. The summoned creature, with pillar-like limbs and a rock-like torso, stood quietly.

Katsuyori, after confirming its appearance, approached and whispered his orders.

"Go for a walk. Destroy any obstacles."

And so, Katsuyori slowly smiled.