The Laughing Swordsman

Talon remained calm despite what Oddryl said. It was not that he didn't care about his sister, but he knew freaking out now would have no meaning. As for the other children, they could all die and he wouldn't mind.

Talon wished to ask about his sister, but thought it would make his intentions too obvious. Instead, he decided to express interest in the subject, so he could ease into it.

"Oh, why are children selected? Are adults unable to take on the transplant?"

Oddryl waved his hand dismissively.

"It's not so much the adults themselves, but the fact it's so much easier to mold children into what you want them to be."

Talon tilted his head to the side.

"Ah, how does this help with the transplant?"

Oddryl smirked.

"Children are... easier to convince. By the time they realize something is wrong, it would already be too late. On top of that, there are certain qualities that greatly improve success."

He sighed.

"First, the boy must not die as their limbs are cut off. If they are strong on top of that, then the resulting demon will be proportionally stronger as well. A small bonus. Second, the girl must be very submissive and obedient. If they reject too violently, the transplant will cause them to implode."

Talon nodded, trying not to think too much about what Oddryl just said.

"I see. Why aren't the highest scorers of each group selected? Won't they be the most suitable to create demons?"

Oddryl raised an eyebrow.

"What? You want to have your limbs cut off?"

Talon shrugged his shoulders.

"I simply assumed I was excluded from the experiment, else I wouldn't be here. My reason for asking simply stems from curiosity."

Oddryl let out a small snort.

"Smart one, aren't you?"

He chuckled.

"Originally we would use every child, but we realized it was a waste. While the transplant makes one stronger, it also cuts off their path for growth. Your meteoric rise is proof that decision was correct."

Talon did a small bow.

"You flatter me."

Oddryl sighed.

"As for the maid, that was just because some of the giants couldn't bear seeing all of the well-trained maids go. However, compared to nurturing a powerful force, they were secondary."

He tapped his finger on the table.

"Speaking of, another factor is the two bodies must be of a similar size. That means we manipulate the rankings in the case the first place maid is more suitable for experimentation due to their size. After all, not only is obedience subjective, making it easy, but a good maid isn't that important anyway."

Oddryl shrugged his shoulders.

"We usually just push the first place maid down to fifth so they are relatively high, but won't be closely compared with the other top rankers. That just so happened to be the case for your selection process."

The corner of Talon's lip twitched.

...His sister ranked fifth.

From what he gathered, that meant his sister would be living an easy life if it wasn't for the fact he was the winner of his group. Instead, she was being experimented on because of him.

Anxiety began to swirl within Talon, like a whirlpool. However, he quickly brushed it aside. This was an opportunity to slip in a question without being too conspicuous. There was no time to be anxious.

"Oh, speaking of, I think my sister ranked fifth. Do you think it's possible for her to be excluded from the experiments? If possible, I don't want my family to be hurt."

Oddryl narrowed his eyes.

"...And why do you care?"

Talon shrugged his shoulders.

"Well... if the giants can get maids, it shouldn't be too much to ask to have the last top rank maid. Because she is my sister, it is unlikely she will stir up trouble while serving me."

Oddryl laughed.

"I suppose an arrangement can be made."

Talon felt his heart leap to his throat.

"Thank-"

"But."

Oddryl raised his hand, cutting Talon off.

"Your sister has already been prepared for the transplant. While she doesn't have to go through it, that doesn't mean she will be free."

Talon felt like he was sent from heaven to hell. However, this was already better than he expected.

"What do you mean?"

Oddryl cleared his throat.

"Should the empire come under a disastrous threat, we will activate a special trigger among the transplanted. This will also affect those that are only prepared, or in other words, your sister."

Talon nodded.

"Then so long as the empire does not come under this threat, it will be fine?"

Oddryl chuckled.

"Yes. I doubt the empire will experience such an event, however."

Talon did a small bow.

"Thank you for the clarification."

Oddryl smirked.

"No problem."

With that, the meeting was over. Although Talon did not believe he slipped up, there was something about how Oddryl talked that made it seem as though he was seen through. 

Talon couldn't shake this uneasy feeling. Once the truth was out, the empire was no longer on the same side as him. As promised, his sister was given back to him as a maid. However, there was a strange black mark at the bottom of her neck.

From here, Talon wanted to lay low and draw as little attention as possible. However, being promoted to one of the giants made some of the other giants interested in him. Talon tried to distance himself, but realized that only made them more curious.

Why was it so hard to remain inconspicuous?

It was then he came to a realization.

The empire did not try to hide the fact it collected children, but announced it loud. Ironically, it was a method that worked far better than collecting them in secret. Secrecy begets investigation, while laying it all out for people makes them lose interest.

And so, Talon discarded his armor and wore a smug smile all the time. Then, he switched out his sword for overly flashy scissors.

People lost interest in an overconfident teen quickly. And so, he could spend time happily with his sister.

...Well, until now, that is.

Talon kneeled before the white door.

And opened his mouth.