The female devils I saved came to my door

During the dry and hot midsummer, Charles ended his tour and returned to his residence with his two students. Together with Sirna, he cast a spell to cover the roof with a layer of unmelting ice.

They would buy dried fruits and candied fruits from merchants and make refreshing cold drinks and desserts.

The two girls would sit in the cool cabin, happily eating desserts while listening to Ciel's class as if telling stories.

Ciel was studying the high-level magic in the magic book in private - he actually wanted to learn some high-level spells, but he didn't have enough talent.Sometimes he would fall to the ground in disgrace because of a failed spell.

At this time, the two girls would help him to the bed and rush to apply medicine and feed him.

When the short summer ended and the coolness of autumn arrived with the first cold rain, they continued on their journey.

Travel between the manor houses in Ipoli that are about to harvest, and use elemental magic to assist the manor owners in harvesting barley and oats, or block the annoying autumn rain to buy time for drying the grains.

When they returned to their residence after completing their mission, the door of Shire's house was already piled with bacon, beer in oak barrels, large bread, potatoes, radishes and onions presented by lords from various places.Make his home look like a farmer's market.

They didn't have to buy food all winter long.

When winter comes, snow once again covers the roads, and people who are afraid of the cold retreat into their houses to avoid the severe cold, Charles summarizes the achievements of the year.

He compared Sirna's progress and achievements, and the teacher Charles was very satisfied.

Over the past year, Sirna has not only made rapid progress in magic studies, but her reputation has also become more and more famous.

Lords and nobles were grateful to her, and commoners and farmers worshiped her.

Her portrait already hangs in several churches in Ipoli.

In the portrait, a beautiful girl wearing a dark blue corset dress is smiling, with a hazy halo behind her.

The priests would ring bells, hold up church books, and according to Ciel's request, they would loudly publicize the deeds of this magical girl during their preaching, boasting her as if she were an angel descending to earth.

There are even believers who come all the way from outside Ipoli just to see if she has angel wings as rumored.

Sirna was a little scared when faced with all the adulation and attention at first.But over time, she became accustomed to people's admiration and support, and became accustomed to being the focus of the crowd.

She is becoming more and more dominant.

Charles believed that as long as the old king passed away and he stood up and shouted to everyone, "Let our lovely saint Hilna be our queen!", they would all respond immediately.

But, after all, what the system told Ciel was that "Sirna will become the empress of the empire that rules most of the continent."

But Ipoli, this country is considered medium to small in the Greater Hessen region.

The Great Hesende region is also a famous bad land in the Western Continent: there are many swamps and mountains, the winters are long and wet, the summers are short, and the autumn harvest season is rainy.

The wastelands that are difficult to develop are full of ticks that can suck people dry. If you take off your clothes and sleep in the wild for a night, you will be completely eaten out;

The lush root system of weeds can take root to a depth of five to six meters, making it difficult to colonize the land. Even if a magician burns the land with fire, it will be difficult to eradicate it;

It is said that in many forests there are still the innocent souls of those who lost their way and died in vain, and they will come out to cause trouble when people's hearts are wandering...

This place can't support many people, and it can't be compared with the big countries in the Western Continent that sit on the fertile land of the Great Plains.

The combined wealth and population of the entire Greater Hessen region cannot even support a decent regular army.

A blessing in disguise, of course.Although the Great Hesende region has always been a state of dispersion and numerous states, there has never been a large-scale war or invasion by foreign enemies.Other big countries generally looked down upon this broken land - it was too troublesome to cross those swamps and dense forests to conquer it, and even if they conquered it, it would be difficult to recover.

In a place like this, even if Charles supports Sirna and becomes a queen here, it seems to be of no use.

We can't let Sirna sit on the throne, and Charles takes these landowners and lords from the backcountry and launches a group of farmers carrying rakes and hoes to go on a massive expedition, right?

Therefore, Charles was also very confused. Is what he was doing useful?Can it really lead Sirna to become the great queen she was destined to be, as the system said?

But looking at Sirna now, it all seems worth it.

At least she was having a good time.Everyone believes that she is a saint who can bring good luck to people and a magician who can make the country prosperous and happy. People's respect and recognition of her have indeed given her satisfaction and happiness.

She enjoys this kind of life very much.

So, thinking about it this way, it seems that I can feel relieved.

However, in contrast, Lovna has not been very happy this year.

Because Lovna's mother knew very well that her daughter had no abilities, didn't like farm work, and liked to be lazy and play. She had never suffered a loss because of Charles, and she could play happily and carefree every day. She was very happy. How old are you and not married yet?

Most of the women her age were married and had children by this time, but she was still as leisurely as a child.

This is not the way.

There is no way Ciel can take care of her for the rest of her life.

Therefore, every time she came home, her mother's nagging would make her upset.

She is not Sirna, she is not a "saint" respected by everyone, she is just a village girl with the title of princess.

If he hadn't met Charles and gotten acquainted with Silna, her father wouldn't even have remembered the name Lovna.

She has no power to protect herself or the capital to be respected, so she just wants to be carefree and enjoy life.So she could only rely on Ciel, but she couldn't even help him.

Her mother knew that this kind of happiness without foundation could not last long.

Lovna herself knew this.

"Teacher Charles, can I stay with you...and Hilna for the rest of my life?" She could only vaguely ask her worries.

"I don't know. There are too many possibilities involving a person's future. I can't predict it accurately. However, Lovna, of course I can take care of you when I am here, but when something happens to me, you have to learn to be on your own. take care."

Lovna was startled: "Teacher, how could you have an accident? Didn't you say you would stay in Yipoli from now on? Are you going to leave?"

"No one can be sure about the future. Maybe I will encounter a reason to leave. People have to grow up, and Hilna has done a good job. She doesn't need me and can take good care of herself. "

"But I don't know magic, and I'm not Sirna... Without Teacher Charles, I, I really..."

"You always do some housework, right? Sometimes you help me cook, tidy up clothes, sweep the floor and make the bed. When I fainted due to a spell cast accident the day before yesterday, you were the one who helped me to the bed. You are very good."

"But that's a job that anyone can do." Lovna tugged at her long hair in distress: "What I want to learn is the ability to protect myself and support myself. I hope others can respect me and treat me Treat it as someone as important as Sirna, although I know it is unlikely... If I can only rely on others, then I will have to get married sooner or later."

"Don't you want to marry?"

"Actually, it's not that I don't want to get married at all, I just don't want to marry someone I don't like. If the person I like also likes me, then I will be very happy..."

At this point, Lovna blushed and changed the subject: "However, I hope that Teacher Charles can teach me my real skills and let me help you. I know that Teacher Charles, you met before you came to Ipoli. I can survive all kinds of dangers and know all kinds of powerful swordsmanship, medical skills, horse riding, and driving... I don't have any magic talent, but I know that Teacher Charles, you are very powerful without magic, can you teach me these skills?"

Charles looked at Lovna's expectant eyes and did not refuse.

Lovna is not good at mental work, so it is definitely impossible for her to be responsible for clerical records and accounting.

So we can only see how her physical fitness is.

Her physical condition was outstanding among women. After all, she exercised regularly and was always well-nourished and had a slender figure, but that was the end of it.

She couldn't lift the light sword, she couldn't pull the long bows, and she couldn't even twist the noose of the long crossbow.

Riding a horse and driving a car is also unrealistic.Girls aged fifteen or sixteen can usually only ride donkeys or mules.

"Then I can't help you with anything, teacher?" She was a little desperate.

"...I'll think of a solution." Seeing the girl's aggrieved and frightened look, Charles could only continue to think of a solution.

Finally, he found a way to make Lovna's wish come true.

-----------***----------

Driving a carriage, he took Lovna to a private property outside the country of Ipoli.

The lord here is the old man who sent the magic book to Ciel.

"Hey, Mr. Charles! Long time no see!" The old man was still wearing the dirty big robe and the weird pointed hat.

He always had that naughty smile on his face, and when he saw Charles, he was so happy that he opened his mouth from ear to ear, and began to introduce himself to his current situation:

"You came to see me again! Great. Mr. Charles, did you know that I finally successfully copied the hundreds of fairy tale picture books you gave me last time. I also made many copies and gave them to I gave it as a gift to my old classmates and old friends. They all liked it very much and asked me to print more and give them to them."

"It would be a good thing if more people could see my works." Charles nodded and said, "I have hundreds of fairy tale books like this, do you want them?"

"Oh? There are hundreds more! Of course, the more, the merrier!"

"I can bring it to you, but I hope you can do me a favor." Charles pulled the embarrassed Lovna: "Forge some talismans and alchemy weapons for this student of mine. I know you are the Great Heisen I am the best alchemist in Germany, so I take the liberty to ask you to help me."

Only then did the old gentleman notice Lovna, and he narrowed his eyes: "Of course I'm willing to help you, but...eh? Is this girl the one I saw at the market? She doesn't have any magic talent. Did you make a mistake?

"I heard that your student is the magic genius Sirna, who is known as the saint. Why don't you bring that one with you? Is it okay to build weapons for this girl with no magic and weak strength? Wouldn’t it be… a little redundant?”

After hearing this, Lovna couldn't help but lower her head.

"The saint you heard about is named Sirna. She shouldn't need these weapons." Charles didn't say much: "This is Lovna. She is also an important student of mine. She is Sirna." 's sister, who needs your work more than her sister."

"Okay, it's a deal."

The old magician entered his alchemy workshop with two guests.

The deserted workshop was bustling with activity.

Beside the unattended forge, the automatically raised hammer is striking the red metal ingot; jumping light balls of various colors are jumping between test tubes and flasks containing strange potions; black runes on the wall appear from time to time. It lights up and dims sometimes; inside the iron box with the seal engraving, there seems to be some ferocious living creature that is making a mad noise, and it has to be tied up with heavy chains to barely stop...

The old magician put on a pair of small glasses, raised his staff and knocked on the ground.

The tape measure that flew automatically danced around Lovna quickly and calculated her various values.

The old magician wrote down the numbers and tapped the staff again.

In this deserted workshop, the invisible workers received orders.

The cylinder roared, the smoke from the boiler became even hotter, and the jumping elements and light balls trembled, like the cheers of a crowd at a party.

Lovna was so shocked by the boiling noise that she covered her ears.Charles and the old magician remained calm and waited for the result.

Next to the forge, the hammers hit the metal ingots harder. The molten iron in the crucible floated in mid-air and roughly took shape without the need for a mold.

The medicinal liquid of unknown purpose gushes out from the automatically opened bottles and jars, pouring onto the shaping alchemy product, and colorful mist emerges with a sizzling sound.

Finally, a short knife only one length longer than the arm, and three matching metal runes the size of coins were successfully made.

"Here, Mr. Charles." The old magician handed over his works confidently: "These should be worthy of your gift of hundreds of fairy tale picture books."

The three runes can respectively temporarily enhance strength and speed, heal and reduce minor injuries, and create a stun flash.

The short sword is not only light and dexterous, but also has the power of elements attached to the sword head. It can be equipped with various types of elemental attacks, and even a girl can wield it.

Tie the three runes with hemp rope, put the short knife into the scabbard, and give it to Lovna.

Lovna got this weapon and was very happy.

"Lovna, I will teach you how to use a knife when I go back. Once you learn it, you can help me."

"Yes!" She replied happily: "After I complete my studies, will I be the swordsman to protect the teacher? When the teacher goes out, I can stand behind the teacher and protect you with a sword? Great!"

"Not entirely. In fact, I would rather you protect Sirna."

"Ah?" The smile on Lovna's face slowly faded: "Silna, she doesn't need my protection, right?"

"I am an adult, and I can protect myself. Hilna is your sister, younger than you. Although she is a female magician that everyone admires now, she is not mature yet. As her best friend, you , of course you have to protect her. If you protect her well, it will be the greatest help to me."

Hearing this, Lovna actually felt a little sour in her heart, but she still nodded: "I will definitely do what the teacher wants me to do."

"Don't be too disappointed." Charles saw that she still had some expectations, so he leaned over and comforted her: "After a long time, when I am old, maybe you can use this knife to protect me."

"Okay!" The girl, who had regained her energy, hugged this precious weapon tightly - a treasure she had acquired in exchange for hundreds of fairy tale picture books.

From now on, she must become Teacher Ciel's protector!

………………

Incidentally, this knife was the one placed on Ciel's neck hundreds of years later.

23. Arrival of unexpected guests

When the winter snow fell, the old priest of Ipoli was leading his priests, humming hymns in praise of the Heavenly Father, and wiping the stained glass of the church.

Thanks to the help of Charles and Hilna, their church was expanded and renovated this year. It is now spacious and warm, especially the preaching hall, which is enough to accommodate many believers.

As always, they are taking advantage of everyone's free time in winter to prepare various ritual masses and collect donations from believers.

But just as they were enjoying themselves, two uninvited guests appeared.

A priest heard the knock on the door and thought it was believers who were impatient to send money. He planned to politely ask them to wait for a few days, but when he opened the door, he was stunned.

There were a man and a woman. The man had a rough appearance but a tall and strong figure. The woman had scars on her face and was even taller and stronger than the man next to her. She looked even more fierce.

Both of them wore silver-white robes embroidered with gold patterns, necklaces made of four-color orbs, and lightweight standard swords at their waists.

This is the monk's uniform that only paladins wear.