I Became a Childhood Friend With the Villainous Saintess-Chapter 91: Count Eshk’s Territory (5)

Chapter 91: Count Eshk’s Territory (5)

I launched myself at the count’s guard, boots slamming into the ground.

An empty chair toppled over on the way, clattering loudly. Someone from the count’s side would surely come to investigate.

Thankfully, I wasn’t too late in closing the distance.

A sword is only useful when it’s swung by an arm.

In close quarters like this, as long as you’re cautious, it’s not much of a threat.

He probably planned to draw his sword and subdue me—but for me, it was enough to let him try drawing it.

The count’s guard—Alion—spoke in a low voice.

“There is no personal grudge.”

“Yes, well. I know.”

I grabbed the hand that went for the sword and yanked it forward, then kicked away his footing, rendering it useless.

I had planned to throw him to the ground, but he held his stance. freeweɓnovel.cѳm

Considering the physical gap between us, the force I used could’ve snapped a leg.

As expected of a count’s personal guard. Even in a disadvantageous position, he responded well.

Despite his sword arm being locked down, he struggled to break the deadlock with everything he had.

Not bad. He’s clearly been trained hard.

Wherever he picked it up, he doesn’t seem short on real combat experience either.

But see—I’m good at brawling too.

I grew up rough, you know.

Terion should’ve been a bit more competitive.

“Guh!”

I landed a solid punch straight into Alion’s nose.

A satisfying, meaty hit. I held back a little since killing him would be troublesome, but my fist was already smeared with blood.

Of course, he didn’t just take the hit quietly.

Getting hit once doesn’t mean you let yourself get hit twice.

You don’t rise to become Count Eloran guard just by slacking off.

My father, who served as a guard for Grand Duke Eilencia, was a Swordmaster.

He wasn’t exactly common, but this guy had probably at least brushed the threshold of Swordmastery.

He just picked the wrong opponent today.

Natural physique, technique, experience—there wasn’t a single thing I fell short in.

In less than a minute, Alion was on the floor, face bloodied beyond recognition.

He had drawn his sword—but not once had he swung it.

Before he passed out, I landed five clean hits.

‘Maybe I went overboard?’

Eh, he’ll be fine.

This is the Eshk Count’s estate. I’m sure there’s a priest or two lying around somewhere.

His nose might be a bit smashed, but it’s not like he’ll end up disabled.

“I didn’t kill him. It’s not a critical wound either—he’ll wake up in an hour or two.

Under normal circumstances, threatening a Saintess would warrant a formal response from the Church, but… well. We can’t treat a High Noble count like any other commoner, can we?”

I muttered, and Sirien responded with a sweet smile.

“Just a little scuffle, really. My knight doesn’t appear hurt at all, so I see no need to press the matter.”

“If the Saintess is willing to overlook it…”

“You’ve done well, my knight.”

With the most benevolent expression in the world, my Saintess thoroughly scratched at the count’s pride.

Even in moments like this, we were perfectly in sync.

The count now stood without a guard. I, on the other hand, could arm myself at any moment.

Sirien’s divine aura coiled near the count’s body. It didn’t make physical contact, but it must’ve felt like a blade pressing against his throat.

Truth be told, she could’ve killed him right then and there.

She simply didn’t want to deal with the aftermath.

“Perhaps the count should look into hiring better guards. If you’d like, our Church could dispatch a few Protectors to give some training.”

“You wench…”

“Oh my, perhaps your etiquette instructor is the true sinner here. Surely such a failure should face proper punishment.”

The count didn’t get the chance to respond.

Because the parlor door, which had been shut tight, suddenly swung open.

The one who stepped inside—

Was Dersian.

“Are you two all right?!”

He must’ve been in the middle of receiving mourners but ran over the moment he heard what happened.

Dersian was out of breath, clearly having rushed.

Still—“you two,” huh.

His reaction was… interesting.

There was no doubt which two he meant. The fact that he worried about us first, so naturally, made it pretty clear where he stood.

“Are either of you hurt? I’ve already called for a priest—they should be arriving soon.”

“We’re fine. It’s the count’s guard who was injured. Please see to him instead.”

“The count’s guard… hmm.”

Dersian’s gaze swept across the drawing room.

I followed his line of sight.

The count sat stiffly, his face twisted in rage, while his guard lay sprawled out on the floor.

What caught our attention was the sword lying near the guard’s hand.

I made a show of wiping the blood off my knuckles right in front of Dersian.

A subtle yet deliberate display—I hadn’t used a weapon.

And I hadn’t laid a single finger on the count.

Anyone could piece together what had happened from that alone.

Dersian turned to look at the count. His gaze wasn’t particularly respectful.

Though his words were polite, the tone was unmistakably that of someone questioning a suspect.

“Count. May I ask what happened? From what I see, it appears your guard was the one who drew his sword first.”

“My guard simply… lost his temper. Once we return to the estate, I shall see that he is properly disciplined.”

“Well then. We’ve got nothing more to say either.”

“Understood. Let’s adjourn for now. We’ll have our people tend to the guard’s injuries.”

Thank goodness.

The anger had mostly faded from Sirien’s voice.

It seemed she felt a little better now.

And if she hadn’t, I would’ve been the one left to calm her down.

“No. No need for treatment. Just have my knight moved to the carriage.”

“Yes, sir. Then, since the count is ready to depart, see him safely out… all the way to the border of our domain.”

He hadn’t actually said he wanted to leave, and yet Dersian ordered him escorted out.

It was, for all intents and purposes, an expulsion.

The count seemed to realize that too—he shut his eyes tight and swallowed his emotions.

Once the count was gone, Sirien was the first to speak.

“I’m sorry. We really didn’t need this kind of trouble right now.”

“You’ve nothing to apologize for, Saintess. On the contrary, we’re the ones who must apologize for allowing such an incident to occur on our land.”

“Ah, and about the chair—we were the ones who broke it…”

“Please, don’t worry about it. The two of you are already benefactors of House Eshk. And our house never treats benefactors poorly. Nor do we forget our grudges.”

Dersian stared down the hallway where the count had left.

He wasn’t someone who bowed even to the Grand Duke of Eilencia. There was no chance he’d lower himself before the likes of count Eloran.

As expected, Dersian then offered something surprising.

“If the two of you wish, I can lodge a formal protest.”

“It’s fine. We’ve already agreed to let this go, so I’d appreciate it if you would too, Count.”

“…If that is the Saintess’s will. But I won’t forget what happened.”

“Thank you.”

That stubborn, steadfast personality—when it’s on your side, it’s incredibly reassuring.

Honestly, I always thought if anyone would end up at odds with us, it’d be Dersian, even more than the crown prince or the Golden Duke.

The crown prince is quick to judge situations.

True to his role as a male lead in a romance fantasy, he’s overly devoted to the female lead—but when her influence doesn’t extend, he’s actually quite reasonable.

In the original work, it was Elise who ruined their relationship, so as long as I avoid that pitfall, we should be okay.

As for Harmenia’s Golden Duke… well. His personality is so strange that it’s hard to say.

Maybe if I get to him before he falls head-over-heels for the heroine, I can still make it work.

He’s curious by nature, so he might be the perfect opportunity to leverage the perks of being a transmigrator.

But Dersian… he was the one I never felt confident about.

No matter what I said, I never imagined he’d take our side.

I’d vaguely planned to deal with him myself—not send Isha, but take action directly. Cut him off at the root.

Had we not crossed paths in the Northern Mountains, I probably would’ve tried to assassinate him at some point.

And yet, Dersian had ended up being the first to stand with us.

Not only that, he was actively shielding us.

The world truly was full of surprises.

Sirien smiled playfully.

“Looks like we were the ones receiving help this time. Would you like something in return?”

“In return? I only did what I should as a member of the House.”

“Is that so? Still, since you said you won’t forget what happened, we won’t forget either. I tend to be very… firm when it comes to favors and grudges.”

[TL: Join Patreon to support the translation and to read up to 4 chapters ahead of the release of "I Became a Childhood Friend With the Villainous Saintess" and 5 chapters ahead of the release of "I Accidentally Created a Villainous Organization": /Jade43 ]