Semi-Coercive Imperialist

[Name: Pexi von Arzen]

[Birth: November 1, Imperial Year 1012, Capital Arcadia]

[Status: Eldest daughter of the Arzen Family]

[Affiliation: Sentio Magic Tower, 5th-tier Wizard]

Pexi von Arzen.

She ranks fairly high in the 9-tier wizard system. Considering there are only seven active 8th-tier wizards, zero 9th-tier wizards at present, and only three throughout history, she is essentially an elite who, if she continues her career, will at least reach the 7th-tier.

Like this, the Ezenheim race generally handles mana well. After all, their method of communication inherently involves mixing their own waveforms and mana.

“Ezell. The report is……?”

Pexi tilted her head while looking at me, who was beside Ezell. Ezell introduced me.

“This is Maximilian. A knight affiliated with the Sentinel Knight Order.”

Pexi looked back and forth between us and then smiled brightly.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Pexi, 5th-tier… Ah, you probably don’t know this kind of greeting, Sir Knight.”

“I do. Wizards always attach their tier when introducing themselves.”

“It’s our own kind of hierarchy awareness, it’s a bit embarrassing.”

The voice of a noble. Even her speech is flawless.

I asked casually.

“By the way, haven’t we met somewhere before?”

“Uh… I’m not sure?”

Without changing her expression, she pretended not to know. Well then, I’ll pretend too.

“Hm. I must be mistaken.”

“What brings you to the Sentinel, Sir Knight?”

“There’s a case I’ve been assigned to lately. So, I was wondering if there’s a wizard who might assist with cooperation…”

“Eh? That’s what it was?”

Ezell lightly tapped my shoulder. Pexi chuckled and asked again.

“I see. What case is it?”

It was the question I’d been waiting for.

“I’m tracking the ‘Brain-Eater’.”

I continued, observing Pexi’s change in expression.

“You’ve heard of the Brain-Eater, right? One of the victims was a wizard.”

“Yes. I know. It was a horrific incident.”

As expected, calm. She only showed reactions that were natural and matter-of-fact.

Ezell beside me also grew serious.

“Brain-Eater… Max. I think I can connect you to a wizard related to tracking. I just met one last week, actually.”

“Ah, really?”

In truth, I don’t need it.

Pexi looked at her wristwatch and then raised her eyebrows.

“Ezell, send the report up once it’s compiled. I have something to do. And Sir Knight, I hope you catch them for sure.”

“Yes.”

I gave a polite nod. Pexi left in a hurry to somewhere. Watching her back, I deliberately muttered.

“…She’s beautiful.”

Just loud enough for Pexi to hear.

Ezell let out a short laugh.

“You do have an eye. She’s quite well-known.”

“Really? Are you close with her?”

“I got to know her after entering the Magic Tower, so it’s been about three months. Why? Are you interested?”

I nodded right away.

“Yeah. Could you introduce me?”

There was a strange glint in Ezell’s eyes for a moment, but she soon gave a sly grin and tapped my shoulder.

“This guy… You’ve finally grown up?”

The engagement between us had been completely nullified. Ezell’s family hadn’t liked me from the start, and Sebestian never cared about my private life anyway.

“Yeah. I want to talk to her a bit about the Brain-Eater, too.”

“Hmm. So you’re going to use the case as a pretext?”

“Well, something like that.”

Ezell smugly patted her own chest.

“Alright. Just leave it to me and wait.”

Her smiling face was bright.

***

After returning home from the Magic Tower, it was time for Freya’s swordsmanship lesson.

Somehow, I had ended up walking the path of Ebenholtz again, but I no longer had any complaints. Improving my individual combat ability was essential. Within a few years, I would become the top assassination target for both the Revolutionary forces and the Ezenheim race.

“Hoo…”

Repeating the Ebenholtz Breathing Method, I drew up the pure crystals I had deposited in my body since childhood. I spread mana throughout my entire body, tempering my bones, muscles, and blood vessels.

Thump─

Even the virus resonated with me.

Thump─

Breathing is harder than I thought. The mana particles claw at my internal organs, it’s quite painful.

“Krrg……”

Through the pain that felt like my heart and lungs were burning, I opened my eyes.

At some point, Freya was standing right in front of me.

“The rhythm of your breathing is good. The mana circulating between your inhalation and exhalation is also refined very cleanly. You’ve learned mana breathing very well.”

“……Thank you.”

“Now stand up. Any more and your organs might tear.”

I raised my body. Staggering, I looked at Freya.

To be honest, this woman was still full of mysteries. Was there someone like her before the regression? I wasn’t sure. It was probably a fake name, of course, but I didn’t recall anyone even similar.

“Now, let me see it. Your sword.”

“Yes.”

Time for homework inspection.

I drew my long sword and swung it through the air. The sword flowed out like a stream of black water, graceful. I didn’t use any force. I simply cut naturally.

────!

The sound of the long sword slicing through the wind, a clear resonance as if cutting through space.

Through it, Freya’s dagger flew at me like lightning.

Whoosh!

“What the-! What are you doing?!”

I jumped back in shock. The dagger grazed my cheek and embedded itself into the tree behind me.

“I told you not to move.”

Freya replied coldly.

“What?”

“It’s disgraceful. The sword of Ebenholtz is a graceful sword. It is a sword that resembles the moonlight of a silent night. You must not move so frivolously, nor should you swing so extravagantly.”

“…….”

I swept my hair back. I was a little angry.

Freya kept comparing the sword of Ebenholtz to nobility.

“But tell me, what’s so good about a sword being graceful? We don’t swing a sword for others to admire-”

“Because only then can you reach the pinnacle.”

“……The pinnacle?”

Freya stretched out her arm. The dagger stuck in the tree returned to her grasp.

“I’m not asking you for shallow flair just to look good. Flair is nothing more than vanity. In contrast, grace comes from within.”

“What does that have to do with the pinnacle?”

“Think about the magic circles of wizards. Do they draw them carelessly? Of course not. They complete their spells by putting all their strength into every single stroke. If even a little is off, the magic collapses.”

At her sudden comparison to wizards,

I realized something.

“The pinnacle of Ebenholtz is more than just swordsmanship. It is a perfect ‘formation of swordsmanship’ completed through the trajectory of the sword. That is the Secret Sword of Ebenholtz. To achieve that, you must build perfect habits from the very beginning.”

Freya swung her sword. From her clean trajectory, rays of light scattered. My eyes widened.

“When holding a sword, always maintain a composed and orderly posture. Also, make sure no sound is made when you swing. That’s your second task.”

To cut without making a sound.

A task more difficult than swinging ten thousand times.

“Try it.”

“……Yes.”

I swung the sword for now.

Bwoooong─!

It made a sound. Of course it did.

Bwoooong─!

The more I became conscious of the noise, the duller and noisier the sword became.

“Use not only your arms but your whole body. Eliminate unnecessary waste of strength.”

Freya’s calm advice.

I closed my eyes.

“Instead, focus on the subtle movements that begin from your toes. Just shifting your center of gravity will naturally move your body.”

The sole that steps on the ground, the ankle that pushes off the earth, the hips that rotate.

Through all of it is formed the line of the sword technique.

“Move your entire body like a sword.”

The arms are merely the endpoint reached by the strength of the swordsman. The sword is not wielded as a separate part of the body. You must sense the sword being projected through the flow of your entire body.

Then, the loud air-splitting sound gradually subsided.

I firmly suppressed all other distracting thoughts.

Nobles do not show emotion. They do not display. They only maintain composure.

They are merely refined.

……A refined sword.

I trained all through the night until I collapsed from exhaustion, lying flat on the ground. The rustling leaves felt like a bed. A full moon hung in the sky.

Suddenly, blocking half of that light, Freya looked down at me.

I looked up at her.

──When elegance reaches its pinnacle.

Her words spread faintly, echoing in my ears as if I were submerged in water.

──A sword that resembles moonlight…

The blade gleamed. Like the silent moonlight, dozens of strands of silver radiance bloomed in the air, overlapping.

It was serene.

It was brilliant.

Yet never luxurious.

A silent sword dance.

──It becomes the most free kind of sword.

Without a doubt, truly elegant.

At the very least, this woman does not lie.

I gently closed my eyes.

And fell into a deep sleep.

***

The next morning. With my stiff body, I went to work and sat in the knight’s office when I received a document.

At the same time, I realized that I had quite a few obstacles in my way.

“……Damn.”

In a knight’s court, the sentencing opinion of the knight is essentially a “recommendation”, but even so, the one who presides over the court is still the judge.

Even in a crumbling Empire, there were still those who tried to uphold their conscience.

──[Notice of Deferred Judgment]──

Case: Conspiracy for insurrection and affiliation with the Revolutionary forces at the paper mill

Defendants: Daniel Mateo and 2 others (Fatima Müller, Maria Schulz)

Court Division: Criminal Division No. 3

Judge: Klaus von Limperck

Order

. The judgment on this case is to be deferred, and the case is to be returned to the assigned knight for further investigation.

Reasons

. The charges against defendant Daniel Mateo are clearly substantiated even with the submitted evidence alone.

. However, the charges of conspiracy and organizational affiliation against defendants Fatima Müller and Maria Schulz are significantly insufficient to prove their crimes beyond a reasonable doubt with the current evidence submitted.

. In particular, the prosecution’s claim labeling certain defendants as members of the “Revolutionary forces” appears to be based entirely on the subjective judgment and interpretation of the investigating knight, without any objective material evidence.

Therefore, unless the level of involvement of the two defendants with the organization is clearly and specifically proven, the court cannot sentence the two to death.

Accordingly, the court defers the sentencing and requests a thorough and complete reinvestigation and submission of additional evidence by the knight.

────────────

The judge assigned to the case had rejected my death sentence recommendation.

“…….”

I set the notice down. I ran a hand roughly through my hair.

I had no choice now.

I picked up the terminal and called Schatz.

“Schatz. Second mission.”

─Yes. I’ve been waiting.

Klaus von Limperck. Is he part of the Revolutionary forces? I don’t know yet. At the very least, if he rejected it even after seeing the name Ebenholtz, he’s someone who won’t bend his beliefs, even if it costs him his position.

“Judge Klaus Limperck. Run a background check.”

Thus, for efficient negotiation, the first thing to do is identify what the opponent values more than themselves.

“Focus on family relationships…… especially centered on children.”

I have to grab and shake those kinds of things.