Chapter 9
Chapter 9
A Reliable Younger Brother
“Out! Out! Ouuuut!!!”
Evangelin pointed at me wildly, tears welling in her eyes.
“You’re out! Out! How dare you flick your master’s head! This is outrageous! Completely absurd!”
“You mean outrageous and absurd.”
“Ugh! I said it wrong on purpose! Don’t look down on me just because I’m twenty and don’t even know ten idioms!”
“I never mocked you that specifically.”
“Anyway! A guard knight hitting their master is unacceptable! I hereby declare you disqualified! Get out! Leave our estate immediately!”
“…Calling this hut an estate feels like a stretch.”
“Ouuuuut!!!”
Now Evangelin was just repeating “out” like a child throwing a tantrum.
She stomped her feet, genuinely furious.
It was both cute and pitiful.
“Out! Out! Out! Even a kind angel like me can’t forgive this insult! Get out! If you don’t leave right now, I’ll call the butler and maids to throw you out!”
Setting that aside, she really seemed angry.
How should I calm her down?
I needed to become her guard knight.
While I was thinking about how to soothe this young lady—an adult in age but a child at heart—someone stepped forward.
Her younger brother.
If I remember correctly… Louis Polignac?
A boy barely around ten spoke up.
“Noona. This person probably already knows we don’t have any butlers or maids. So stop putting on airs. It doesn’t mean anything in our situation.”
“Louis! Whose side are you on! Your beloved sister was practically beaten to death and you’re not even angry?!”
“He just flicked your forehead. Don’t exaggerate.”
“That’s so mean! You’re cold! Cold like ice cream! Cold like a parfait! Ah, now I want parfait and ice cream.”
“Noona, step aside for a moment.”
Louis pushed Evangelin—who had started drooling at the thought of dessert—aside and approached me.
“Excuse me, may I ask your name?”
“Solomon. Unfortunately, I don’t have a last name. I’m a former slave.”
“Mr. Solomon. As you guessed, you’re the only one who wants to become my sister’s guard knight. But that doesn’t mean we can accept you without question. You could be dangerous.”
“That’s reasonable.”
“I’d like to hear about your background first.”
“My background…”
A normal guy born into a normal family with parents who were both teachers, finished basic education, hobbies were MMA and gaming, dislikes tsunderes, and currently worried about being transported into a game world—
Yeah, I couldn’t say that.
Louis wasn’t asking about me.
He was asking about Solomon.
Thankfully, since Solomon was a character I played, I knew everything about him.
Explaining was easy.
“There’s nothing much to say. I was a slave. If there’s anything notable, it’s my physical ability. I’ve always been strong, so I was considered the best worker wherever I went. I didn’t want to live my whole life as a slave, so I escaped the slave trader and came here.”
“If you were a slave, you should know how valuable money is. Then why would you work without pay? That’s the most suspicious part.”
“I didn’t get paid anyway. I was a slave. If I become a guard knight, I can enter the academy, right? I can get an education there. That alone feels like a huge benefit. And I can eat proper food with nobles. Do you know what slaves eat? Bread mixed with sawdust and expired soup. At least the academy will provide decent meals.”
“…So your situation improves compared to now. That makes sense.”
Louis rested his chin on his hand, thinking carefully.
Sharp kid.
He’ll grow into something big.
“But I still don’t know if I can trust someone with no experience. You might have other motives.”
“What are you worried about?”
“For example… that you might be a vagrant after my sister’s body…”
“Don’t worry.”
“Why?”
“My ideal type has at least a three-digit IQ.”
“Ah… so you’re not interested in my sister.”
“…What? At what point in that conversation did I get excluded as a romantic option? Louis, I don’t understand.”
Evangelin tilted her head, demanding an explanation.
Louis blushed.
“That’s exactly why, noona.”
“Huh? Why?”
“That’s enough. Noona, I need to talk to Mr. Solomon. Take Luna and Lucy outside for a bit.”
“What? That’s dangerous! What if this mean man hurts you!”
“That won’t happen.”
“How do you know?”
“I just have a feeling.”
“Louis!”
“Please do as I say.”
In the end, Evangelin reluctantly took her sisters outside.
Louis told me to wait, then suddenly flung the door open.
“Eek!”
“Noona, I told you to stay outside.”
Evangelin had been eavesdropping with her ear against the door.
Caught red-handed, she turned pale and quickly ran off with her sisters.
Louis shut the door and returned.
“I’m sorry about my sister.”
“No, it felt like watching a sitcom. It was entertaining.”
“So, why did you want to speak with me alone?”
Even I couldn’t predict this.
Louis wasn’t an important character in the original story.
Because… no, better not go into that.
Nothing good would come from it.
Anyway, Louis crouched down and pulled out a box from under the bed.
Inside was a pile of crumpled banknotes.
He handed it to me.
“It’s not much, but please consider this your salary.”
“This… for me?”
I glanced at the table with nothing but boiled potatoes.
Even if it wasn’t much, it must be a lot for them.
“Please take care of my sister. She may seem foolish, but she’s actually very kind. She knows she’s not smart, so she works twice, three times harder than others. She might cause trouble at first, but she’ll grow. I believe that. Please trust her and stay by her side.”
“So… can I take this as you accepting me as her guard knight?”
“Yes. Honestly, we have no other choice. It’s impossible to find someone willing to work without pay in such a short time.”
“I see… but I said I don’t need a salary. So I can’t accept this.”
I tried to return the money.
But Louis refused.
Despite his young age, his expression carried firm determination.
“Then use that money to find a new home for my sisters.”
“A new home? You already have this hut.”
“This hut will collapse soon.”
“You mean because of debt collectors?”
“…You knew? How?”
Of course I knew.
Louis Polignac.
In the original story, he was just briefly mentioned.
“Evangelin’s younger brother was taken by debt collectors and his fate became unknown. After losing him, Evangelin became much darker.”
I had skimmed over their story before.
But seeing it in reality, I realized it couldn’t be reduced to a single line.
“…The debt collectors are coming today.”
“Then use this money to pay them.”
“It’s useless. The interest has piled up too much.”
“Then run away with them.”
“That won’t work either. They’ll chase my sister and siblings. They’re already talking about selling her.”
“…And you think sacrificing yourself will make her happy? Your sister isn’t that kind of person.”
“…Even so… she’s not someone with a good memory. She’ll forget me and adapt to a new life. I believe that.”
“That’s an insult to her. I don’t think that little of her.”
“…But we can’t all starve to death. Someone has to sacrifice themselves.”
Honestly, Louis wasn’t important to my journey.
In the original story, he was meant to die.
From my perspective, it would be easier to follow the original path.
Take the money, leave, and enroll in the academy with Evangelin.
The sisters could be sent to an orphanage.
That would be enough.
That was the logical decision.
“…Alright, Louis. I won’t let your sacrifice be in vain.”
“Thank you… Mr. Solomon.”
Fortunately, Louis thought.
Fortunately, Solomon was smart.
Not foolish.
Not hypocritical.
Not frustrating.
Fortunately.
Watching Solomon leave the hut with the money he had saved coin by coin, Louis waved quietly.
‘Goodbye, Mr. Solomon.’
‘And goodbye… noona.’
‘Luna, Lucy… goodbye.’
For a moment, frustration and sorrow surged in his chest like lava.
He almost shouted.
‘Don’t go.’
‘Take me with you.’
But he bit his lip and endured.
Because those were words he must never say.
Solomon grew smaller in the distance.
Soon, he became just a dot in the night.
Still close enough to call out.
‘No. Don’t shout. Noona might hear.’
‘He seems smart.’
‘He’ll convince her and take her to the academy.’
‘He’ll send my sisters somewhere safe.’
‘Then my sacrifice will mean something.’
‘So don’t shout. Don’t break your resolve.’
‘Don’t make yourself hate yourself…’
In the end, Louis endured.
Only after Solomon disappeared completely did he break down in tears.
“Aah… ugh… aah…”
Tears fell endlessly.
A protest against his fate.
He should have lived well as a noble.
But everything was ruined because of his brother.
He believed in himself.
If given the right environment, he could succeed.
But that was just a fantasy.
His reality was being crushed under poverty.
If his death could save his family—
then it was worth it.
He had decided that.
But still…
tears kept falling.
“Sob… someone… please help me… it hurts…”
“Haha! Who would help you, idiot! You know this place is deserted! You’re finished! Tell us where Evangelin is if you don’t want to die!”
“I… can’t…”
“Stubborn brat. Kill him.”
“Kill…”
Death.
The cold word brushed past him.
Was this really the end?
He couldn’t accept it.
“I… can’t die like this…”
He forced himself to stand.
His whole body screamed in pain.
Still, he staggered forward.
The leader laughed and waved his men back.
“What? You going to fight?”
“I… am the third son of the Polignac ducal family… I won’t bow to scum like you…”
“That family is long gone. Still talking nonsense?”
“I won’t… just take it anymore.”
“Then hit me. Go ahead.”
The man mocked him.
Louis clenched his fists.
“Don’t underestimate me!!!”
He charged with all his strength.
‘I want to land at least one hit!’
‘I want to make him scream!’
At that moment—
“Gwaaaargh!!”
With a grotesque scream, the man was blasted through the ceiling.
“…Huh? I didn’t even hit him yet?”
Louis stopped.
Then he saw—
A muscular man blowing on his fist.
“Hey, Louis. I thought about it—what you gave me earlier wasn’t enough. If you want to hire me properly, you’ll have to pay ten times that later. Make sure you survive until then.”
Solomon had returned.
With Evangelin.