Cast Honor Aside part 2

 

In his own office, Hyoue received a visit from Astraea’s avatar.

It was a rare occurrence.

「This is an urgent consultation. It concerns a plan to strengthen Kou himself—his swordsmanship. First, we must decide whether to execute it at all.」

「Execute it. We’ll hammer out the details.」

Without moving a single eyebrow, Hyoue answered immediately.

「I am an AI. Emotion and sentiment are foreign to me. If I am discourteous, please forgive it. Kou is deeply attached to the person named Shuuji—your grandson.」

Astraea was blunt.

She only knew of Shuuji through knowledge—through what she’d heard from Kou and Master.

With humans like Hyoue, she’d learned that speaking plainly worked best.

「Yeah. I figured. I’m grateful for it.」

Hyoue understood Kou’s complicated feelings—he knew the shape of the bond between the two.

But this time, Kou had finally stepped over whatever had held him back.

「He thinks he should’ve learned while he was being invited. That it’s too late now. That