Chapter 18

Shokoku Shouri grinned with a hideous smile and observed the Stone Golem through his binoculars. The latest magical binoculars showed the scene as if the Stone Golem were right in front of him, with a clear resolution.

Adventurers were desperately using magic to try to hold down the Stone Golem. Behind them, Yami and his group were talking.

"Buying time, huh. As expected, Yami is not that strong."

Even though he used a valuable summoning gem, Shouri wanted to confirm Yami's abilities. One Topaz gem cost 3 billion yen, but he didn't hesitate. One reason was that it could be restored.

In front of the powerful summoned creature, the Stone Golem, Yami and his group were using the adventurers as bait to try to escape.

"The Stone Golem is hard. I imagined that it could be damaged but not defeated, but is this all it can do? It seems to have potential but is not a threat."

The Stone Golem is not just a lump of stone. Its material is made from Topaz, a magical gem. Even though it looks like stone, its hardness is the same as Topaz. Moreover, physical attacks are ineffective unless imbued with magic. It is the strongest summoned creature.

Shouri twisted his mouth in a pleasant manner and licked his lips with his tongue. At the age of nine, he had an ugly personality that took joy in bullying others.

If they only had the skills to run away, they were not worthy opponents for Shouri. If they knew the story, they should have at least been able to stop the Stone Golem's movements.

"The protagonist hasn't been exiled from the ducal family yet. That means there is no one to help. The rest is to let the Stone Golem rampage and watch the adventurers die, feeling satisfied."

The adventurers cannot match the Stone Golem. Even Shouri himself would struggle against it. Currently, he is using magic to seal its movements, but once the mana runs out, those adventurers will be minced.

"In the original story, those who used that magic against vicious monsters were all killed when their mana ran out. To be able to see the same scene in real life, I'm so lucky."

Indeed, the mob adventurers tried to stop the monsters summoned by the enemy organization. Shouri, with a sneer, watched the hardworking adventurers, thinking, "Well, well, you're just a stepping stone to show the protagonist's strength."

He laughed, saying, "It's because of your good behavior," and planned to kill the adventurers, return the summoning gem, and explain to the ducal family that it was a rampage or a mistake in instructions. He wouldn't care if a mere adventurer, not the eldest daughter, died.

"Thirty billion yen to kill them. What lucky trash. Be grateful... What?"

While muttering, he looked through the binoculars again.

A small, young girl was running cutely. The petite girl with gray hair raised her mace and headed towards the Stone Golem.

Without activating her 'Magical Armor,' she was running with the weak physical abilities of a nine-year-old, but her speed was incredibly slow.

"Hey, hey, that girl who's a candidate for my harem. Don't push yourself. You can't do anything."

Her beautiful gray hair fluttered, and her ice-blue eyes were sharp, with a beast-like smile that exuded a sense of intimidation. Her appearance was so beautiful and noble that it was like a majestic lion, making one stare in admiration.

The small girl, even at nine years old, raised a matchstick-like mace in front of the Stone Golem. Does she think it's a game?

"That level of strength can't even scratch it. Ah, what a waste, such a cute girl."

Behind her, Yami and his group were following with dark swords, but it was futile. The hardness of the Stone Golem cannot be damaged by ordinary attacks.

"Will Yami die? That would be troublesome... But, it's fine. However, it's not good to kill the healer. It's worse than killing Yami."

There are only 30 healers in Japan. If he kills one, even as the son of a duke, he will be held accountable. Shouri is well aware of his position. He is not a thoughtless villain like the Shouri in the novel.

What would happen if the healer were killed? Even though she is not a main character, it would certainly worsen his position. His younger brother, though weaker, has similar talent. If he takes the position of the eldest son before the main story begins, it could lead to his downfall.

The Shokoku ducal family has money and power, but no family love. He could be mercilessly exiled to a branch family and live a life like a slave in a dungeon.

"Can't be helped. I'll order the Golem not to kill that cute girl."

In fact, Shouri likes that girl. Because she is a beautiful girl not in the main story and has silver hair, which he likes.

As a big fan of the original, Shouri suspected that there might be a story correction, a fate of the world, when it comes to obtaining heroines.

He could prove it in his duel event. If the story correction works, he will lose. If not, he will win. It was a bet, but he couldn't avoid it. He thought he would win because he had trained and become stronger. Even with a correction, it shouldn't be a problem in combat.

However, human hearts are different. It might be difficult to obtain heroines other than those who foolishly make themselves targets. Because events are just the tip of the iceberg. The heroines probably like the protagonist due to accumulated interactions. It's impossible to interfere with all events.

There is still time before entering the academy, so he can't confirm, but if there is a story correction, even if he defeats the protagonist, it will be difficult to obtain the heroines. However, that girl is not a character in the original. He can take action to obtain her without hesitation.

Of course, being a healer is a drawback, making it difficult in reality, but it's much better than trying to appeal to heroines while suspecting the story correction.

As a big fan, he remembers the events of the protagonists. But in reality, it's a crap situation. Conveniently saving heroines from monsters, unconsciously saying the words heroines want to hear and making them fall in love, accidentally entering the women's bath and starting an erotic event with a heroine—these are not allowed in reality.

Moreover, it's almost impossible to prevent them because it's unclear when they start. Novels don't describe when events occur.

So, he has given up. Because he has given up, he is interested in a beautiful girl not in the story. He wants to obtain the girl who survived due to the actions of the reincarnated Yami.

So, he tried to command the Stone Golem through his thoughts not to attack that girl. Since she can't even scratch it, it wouldn't be a problem to leave her alone.

"No, it's good to save her in a crisis. I'll be the one to save her like the protagonist."

The Stone Golem's rampage. He glanced back and secretly observed those standing in fear and confusion. They wanted to stop Shouri but couldn't because of his violent nature.

He could make one of them a scapegoat. A young and inexperienced vassal tried the summoning gem and caused the rampage. Then, the genius fire user of the ducal family would stop it. This way, he wouldn't have to kill Yami, and his position wouldn't worsen.

Thinking everything was perfect, Shouri praised himself and gave the command to the Stone Golem.

"Golem, do not attack the gray-haired girl or the black-haired girl. Kill the rest."

He observed the situation. The gray-haired girl was already in front of the Stone Golem. But the Golem should ignore her.

However, the Stone Golem reacted to the approaching gray-haired girl, raised its arm to strike, and was stopped by a light chain.

"What?! Hey, Golem! That girl is not a target!"

Panicking, he spoke. As Yami and his group approached, they reacted similarly, and the Stone Golem became more agitated.

"Master... Summoned creatures cannot recognize anyone other than their master. Everyone is an enemy. That's why I advised you to use them from a distance."

The butler cautiously approached and informed Shouri unexpectedly.

"What?! I didn't hear that! No, that's why they only use one at a time?"

He recalled the original. The enemy organization used powerful summoned creatures that even the protagonist struggled against, but he never thought they could use them in large numbers. He accepted it as a convenient plot in the novel. But in reality, it's a different setting, which surprised him. He thought they weren't used just because they were rare and expensive.

He had read the original comprehensively and the settings of magic. Shouri, who considered them equivalent to gods, had overlooked the explanations. He only needed to send mana and make them follow his commands.

"Damn! What do I do? Retreat the Stone Golem..."

Reluctantly, Shouri considered recalling the Stone Golem. He wanted to see the adventurers being minced, but he couldn't prioritize incorrectly.

Preventing his own downfall is the top priority. The fate of those reincarnated as minor characters. A cliché. But if his life is at stake, he can't laugh it off. Preventing his downfall is his top priority.

So, he tried to command the Stone Golem to stop fighting and return. The magical chains wouldn't last long, and the mana would run out soon.

"Retreat... Huh?"

As he tried to send his thoughts, he was surprised.

Because he saw an unexpected scene.

"Take this!"

The gray-haired girl shouted and swung her matchstick-like mace with all her might at the Stone Golem.

An attack that should not have caused any damage, but the Stone Golem wobbled, and cracks began to form in its body, which had the hardness of a gem.

"Huh? Wait, wait, wait! Can that girl use a martial technique effective against stone?"

Shocked, Shouri pulled his face away from the binoculars. When he looked through them again, she was continuously attacking. With each attack, the cracks in the Stone Golem grew larger.

"Hey, 3 billion yen! Stop, stop, please!"

A 3 billion yen magical gem. Moreover, a rare and irreplaceable item. If the summoned creature is destroyed, the gem will shatter and become worthless.

Shouting and panicking, Shouri forgot to recall the Stone Golem and watched the mysterious scene.

Thus, the Stone Golem, which was thought to be breaking, tore the light chains and began to attack.