"Excuse me, Count... Would you mind double-checking whether the correct documents have been submitted, just to be sure...?"

The clerk, drenched in sweat, handed me the papers again.
Without even looking at them, I pushed them right back.

There was no issue with the papers.
Yuria and I had reviewed them together yesterday, and I had spent all night proofreading them—there was no way the documents could be wrong.

"Um, but... The title of your paper seems a bit strange. It says, 'Establishing the Basic Framework of Black Magic'... is that correct?"
"Yes, that's correct. It's not a completed paper yet, but it's the basis for the presentation, so I submitted it as related documentation."
"...."

The clerk’s face instantly went pale.
Although he was smiling, his expression clearly showed he wasn't truly happy about it.
It made sense.
Submitting a research paper on black magic to an academic conference, and planning to present it at the conference, was something he probably hadn’t seen before.

'It’s better to prepare them for the shock now than spring it on them unexpectedly on the day itself.'

Today, I had come to submit intermediate documents for the academic conference.
The submission of these documents was voluntary.
If special facilities or preparations were needed for the presentation, most people submitted paperwork ahead of time to request them from the conference.

Of course, I didn’t need to submit intermediate documents, but I did it anyway.
Rather than revealing everything at once on the day of the presentation, I wanted to give them time to prepare for the shock.
By notifying the conference in advance, I hoped they might add extra security or take other precautions.

"Please wait just a moment..."

The clerk rushed off, and soon a gray-bearded old man appeared.

That man...
I remembered him from the Imperial Palace, though I couldn’t recall his name.

"Greetings, Count. I am the chairman of the conference."
"Hello."
"Well... I’ve looked over the documents you submitted. However, I have some doubts about whether this paper can truly be completed, and if it does get completed, whether it can be explained without contradicting the established principles of magic theory. I understand you were invited to participate due to an agreement with the headmaster of the Imperial Magic Academy, but if you’d like, I can speak with them and try to delay your presentation to next year or beyond..."
"I appreciate the offer, but that won't be necessary. It's true that time is tight, but it's not something that needs to be postponed until next year."
"Eh? So, are you really planning to present on this research topic...?"
"...."

When I nodded, the chairman’s mouth slowly opened.
His expression seemed to say, 'Has this guy finally lost it?'
It made sense.
Based on his previous impression of me, he was probably worried that I, Count Vermont, was using this academic conference as a platform to promote some cult-like beliefs.

"Did you actually read the entire paper?"
"Eh? Ah, no... since you said it was incomplete..."
"Please, take a look. Even though it’s unfinished, it’s quite interesting. Black magic is not just a realm of fantasy and legend—it fits perfectly within the existing mana system, and the evidence for that is contained within."

"Really!? Oh, bring me my magnifying glass right now!"

The chairman frantically opened the paper and searched for his magnifying glass.
I decided to leave him to it and make my exit.
Truth be told, calling it an incomplete paper was generous—it was more of a bundle of experimental data with no organization...
It would probably take quite a while for them to interpret it.

Before I could hear the chairman’s angry complaints, I decided to leave as quickly as possible.

Just as I was about to head back to the carriage...

"Silvia, return—Gghh?!" "Master, get down!"

In an instant, Silvia drew her sword, and before I knew it, I was pressed flat to the ground, with her weight forcing me into a prone position.

"Ah! You're much quicker than I expected! You’ve even gotten faster since I saw you at the palace!"
"...."

Clang!
Silvia swiftly turned her body and swung her sword,
and suddenly, Reinhardt appeared right in front of her, grabbing her sword with his gauntlet.
There was no sound, no indication of his presence, so when did he approach?

"...What is this nonsense?"
"Hahaha! Sorry, Count. I have this habit of acting first when I see a strong opponent. Until now, I thought only my sister and the captain of the guard were the only ones who could match me. I never expected a knight of Vermont to have this kind of skill..."
"Please step back."
"Even if the opponent is a member of the royal family, you don't hesitate to draw your sword. Impressive."

[The Evil God, 'Kali,' expresses great displeasure at the opponent's rudeness.]

Wham!
Silvia kicked Reinhardt in the chest, creating distance between them.
The moment Silvia let go of her sword, Reinhardt's gauntlet was left holding only empty air.

"Ughhh!"
"...I apologize, Master."

Silvia quickly pulled her sword from my neck and pointed it at Reinhardt again.
Reinhardt's eyes widened in surprise.

"What was that!? A sword that disappears and reappears!? What kind of trick is that?"
"Please... stop coming closer. My knight has already been quite startled."
"I’m sorry to have startled you! But I can't help myself, I just have to satisfy my curiosity!!!"
"...!"

Grinning with excitement, Reinhardt kicked the ground and charged toward her.
Ah, I had forgotten.
This man, upon reuniting after five years, had immediately pointed a sword at his own sister.
Even though he had been demoted and removed from his position as the commander of the 4th Legion, I knew his troublesome personality hadn't changed at all.

"Not even a swordmaster can react to my speed, huh! How did such a monster end up in Vermont!?"

Swish, swish.
To my eyes, Reinhardt appeared to blink out of existence and then reappear again, but Silvia was tracking his every movement with her eyes.

With both hands raised in guard, she slowly approached, and Reinhardt threw a punch at her.
Every time he did, Silvia’s sword would clash against his gauntlet, sending sparks flying in all directions.

"Speed, similar to a swordmaster, but no aura? You and I must be from the same kind of breed!"
"Tch...!"

At first glance, it seemed like Silvia was holding her ground, but upon closer inspection, she was being slowly pushed back.
She hadn’t used any magic yet, and Reinhardt still hadn’t drawn a weapon, only using his gauntlets to fight.

In terms of skill, Silvia was clearly being overpowered.
There was no other way to look at it.
Did I need to help with some black magic?

'Just one more step, and we can exhaust Reinhardt.'

This was getting out of hand.
Clenching my fist, I prepared to activate the skill 'Black Magic.'

"Let’s see if you can unleash your full power, knight of Vermont... Huh?"

"...?"

In that moment, a small droplet of blood shot into the air.
Reinhardt froze mid-motion, and Silvia also seemed surprised, standing still.

Thud.
The drop of blood hit the ground, and Reinhardt's cheek was left with a shallow cut, from which tiny beads of blood began to form.
What was this? A small wound, and now he stops?

"That just now..."
"Grab him! Reinhardt is causing a ruckus again!"
"Dammit! I’m sorry for the trouble! Let’s meet again, Count Vermont! And Vermont’s female knight!"

Hurry up!
From afar, soldiers were shouting as they chased after him,
and Reinhardt hurriedly fled before they could catch up.

How could a person be so carefree...?
I had expected him to be gloomy after being demoted from the 4th Legion command, but he hadn’t changed at all.

Shaking my head in disbelief, I climbed into the carriage.
Silvia followed but seemed a bit slow to do so, as if lost in deep thought.

"Silvia."
"Ah, yes. Huh!?"

With a quick move, I twisted her joints and brought her down,
and to my surprise, she collapsed easily.

Apparently, she hadn’t expected it at all.
Only then did she snap out of it, her face turning red as she lay beneath me.

"Could you... move, Master?"
"This is payback for earlier. No matter how urgent the situation is, you don’t push your master to the ground."
"I’m so sorry..."
"So, what exactly were you thinking to get distracted enough to let me knock you down?"
"You remember when I slashed Reinhardt’s cheek, right?"
"Yeah."
"When I did that... my sword didn’t even touch his cheek."
"...What?"

Silvia took my hand and helped me up, speaking with a serious expression.
There was no hint that she was joking.

"Then, that means you successfully released your aura, doesn’t it?"
"Not at all. I’ve seen Charlotte’s aura enough to know it wasn’t that. But what was strange was that after the blood drop splattered, I felt the sensation of my sword cutting through skin, even though Reinhardt had already moved out of the way and what I cut was empty air."
"...?"

After listening to Silvia's serious explanation, I was stunned.
From what she was saying, it sounded like...
Her sword could cut through the past?