Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: An Earnest Wish
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‘I have to crush them completely.’
It was only natural to stomp out a weed before it could grow.
Carlyle knew all too well the kind of influence Hector and Gunter would have on the Sigmund family, so he decided to take this opportunity to set them straight.
“You… you bastard!”
Gunter, blood pouring from his nose, snarled at Carlyle.
“Is that any way to talk to your older cousin?”
“Like hell you’re my cousin!”
Gunter lunged at Carlyle.
*Thwack!*
Carlyle’s fist slammed into Gunter’s solar plexus.
“Huuuuurrrk!”
Gunter let out a long, wheezing gasp.
“Gack, gaaack, gaaaaack!”
Clutching his chest, Gunter couldn’t even breathe.
*Crack!*
Carlyle grabbed Gunter by the hair and slammed his head into the ground.
*Thud!*
Gunter twitched like a frog hit by a stone.
“G-Gunter! Ugh!”
Hector, finally coming to his senses, cried out for his fallen brother.
“Carlyle, you son of a bi—”
*Squeeze!*
“What was that?”
Carlyle asked, grabbing Hector by the throat.
“I can’t hear you. Say it again.”
“Ghk, ghurk!”
“What was that?”
“Ghk, gack!”
“I said I can’t hear you.”
Hector seethed at Carlyle.
‘This… this bastard… How am I supposed to say anything if you don’t let go… Ugh!!!’
He was supposed to say something, but with Carlyle's hand clamped around his throat, he couldn't utter a single word.
“Why aren’t you talking?”
“Ghurk, ghk, ghk!”
“So rude. Your older cousin is asking you a question.”
“Ghuuuuurk!”
Just as Hector was about to pass out.
*Smack!*
Carlyle's hand struck Hector's cheek with force.
“Agh!”
*Thump!*
“Hah, haah!”
As Hector, who had been sent flying with a short scream, gasped for breath.
“You… you…!!!”
Gunter, belatedly regaining consciousness, snarled at Carlyle and reached for his waist.
*Stomp!*
“Aaaargh!”
Gunter screamed as Carlyle stomped on his wrist.
“Surely you’re not planning to draw your sword on your older cousin.”
“Uwaaah!”
“You wouldn’t. Right?”
Carlyle slowly increased the pressure on Gunter’s wrist.
*Crack!*
Gunter’s wrist bent at a grotesque angle, and a shard of white bone pierced through his skin.
“I-If Mom finds out, she won’t let you get away with this…”
“Will you be able to tell her?”
“……?”
“Dead men tell no tales, they say.”
“N-No way.”
*Shing!*
The tip of Carlyle’s sword stopped right in front of Gunter’s nose.
“Y-You crazy bastard!”
Hector was startled by the sight.
“You! You’ll really die if you do that! Do you think you can get away with killing us?”
“I don’t care.”
“What?!”
“I kill two people and then die. Isn’t that a win for me?”
Carlyle replied with a blank expression.
A chill ran down his spine.
Hector was utterly terrified by Carlyle’s demeanor.
‘Wow, he’s completely lost his mind!’
Hector became genuinely afraid of Carlyle.
That blank face, that nothing-to-lose attitude—this wasn’t the Carlyle he knew.
Before, he would have foamed at the mouth and resisted, but he’d always become docile once overpowered…
‘Sh-Should I run?’
But Hector couldn’t bring himself to abandon his twin brother, Gunter.
“Put down your sword and kneel.”
“What?!”
“Want me to put a hole in your brother’s face?”
Carlyle poked the bridge of Gunter’s nose with the tip of his sword, and blood began to stream out.
“A-Alright! I get it! I’ll do it!”
“Watch your tone.”
“…Understood.”
In the end, Hector unbuckled the sword at his waist and knelt before Carlyle.
He was afraid that if he didn’t, Carlyle would actually kill Gunter.
***
*Smack, smack!*
A crisp sound echoed through the dark alley.
*Smack!*
“Ugh!”
*Smack!*
“Agh!”
Carlyle said nothing, simply slapping Hector and Gunter in turn.
“W-We were wrong! Cousin! Aaargh!”
“Cousin, your arm must be getting tired… Agh!”
Hector and Gunter cried and begged, but Carlyle didn’t even blink.
He just kept slapping them, silently, without uttering a single word…
Thanks to him, the brothers’ faces swelled up to at least three times their normal size, as if they’d been stung by a swarm of bees.
“If you ever buzz around me like flies again, I’ll kill you for real. Understand?”
They nodded vigorously.
“If you tell anyone what happened today, I’ll kill you.”
They nodded vigorously.
“From now on, live quietly like mice. At least when you’re around me.”
They nodded vigorously.
Seeing Hector and Gunter nodding their heads up and down in terror, Carlyle decided that was enough.
He couldn't scare them any more than this, and beating them further seemed like a waste of time.
“Take this and get lost.”
Carlyle tossed a potion to the brothers.
“Split it. You’ll be fine then.”
With those words, Carlyle casually walked out of the alley.
“……”
“……”
Hector and Gunter stared blankly at Carlyle’s retreating back for a while.
“Is that… really the Carlyle we knew?”
“I-I don’t know. He’s terrifying… Ugh!”
Gunter trailed off, clutching his broken arm in pain.
“Let me see. Ugh. That’s bad.”
“It’ll heal, right?”
“First, we should try the potion Carlyle… no, Cousin Carlyle gave us. But I think we need to set the bone first.”
“What…?”
“We have to push the bone back in. If it heals like this, you might never be able to use your arm again.”
“……”
“I’ll set it on three.”
“B-Be gentle.”
“One, two…”
*CRUNCH!*
“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH—!!!”
Gunter’s scream echoed deafeningly through the narrow alley.
***
Hearing the faint scream in the distance, Carlyle smirked.
‘After all that, they should keep quiet for a while.’
From what Carlyle could tell, Hector and Gunter were thoroughly terrified.
He could probably expect them to keep their mouths shut and lie low for the time being, without running to their parents.
Of course, he had no idea when they might act up again…
About two hours later.
‘Should I call it a day and head back?’
Carlyle decided to give up on finding any Lingering Wills for the day and go home.
He had wandered all over until late at night but hadn't found a single trace of one.
‘I’m a bit thirsty. I should grab a drink before I go back.’
With that thought, Carlyle left the alley and headed for the square.
Just as he was about to reach the square.
*Ting!*
The status window appeared.
[Notification: A trace left by the dead has been detected.]
[Notification: A Lingering Will remains somewhere nearby.]
‘Huh?’
Carlyle’s eyes narrowed at the completely unexpected discovery.
For a Lingering Will to remain in such a busy place, not some specific location…
‘Where is it?’
Carlyle focused his mind and strode through the square, trying to sense the Lingering Will.
“I-It’s the Young Master!”
“Gasp!”
“Let’s get out of here.”
The domain’s residents, who had been milling about the square, scattered in all directions upon seeing Carlyle.
In the blink of an eye, the bustling square, crowded despite the late hour, became completely empty.
‘Being a scoundrel really has its perks.’
Carlyle thought to himself as he continued his search.
And the place where he found the Lingering Will was none other than…
*Whoooosh!*
‘The fountain?’
The large fountain situated in the central square.
He could feel a strong Lingering Will emanating from the fountain, which was adorned with a statue of the first head of the Sigmund family.
[Notification: Lingering Will discovered.]
[Notification: Reading the trace left by the dead.]
Soon, the memories of the dead—or more accurately, the *many* dead—that lingered at the fountain unfolded before Carlyle’s eyes.
It wasn’t the memory of a single person.
- Please watch over my husband and let him return safely from the war.
- Please help my mother’s illness get better soon.
- Please help us have a bountiful harvest this year.
The memories of people who had made wishes at this fountain over hundreds of years.
The powerful desires of people earnestly wishing for something had accumulated to form one massive Lingering Will.
*Ting!*
[Notification: Lingering Will read.]
[Notification: The Lingering Will can be absorbed.]
‘Now’s not a good time.’
Returning to reality, Carlyle surveyed his surroundings with a troubled expression.
Even if people were actively avoiding him, it was impossible for the vast central square to be completely devoid of a single soul.
There were too many watching eyes to absorb the Lingering Will from the fountain right now.
‘No choice. I’ll just have to wait.’
Carlyle sat on the edge of the fountain, deciding to wait until it was later at night.
In this world, very few people wandered about after 9 p.m., so if he waited a few hours, he should be able to absorb the Lingering Will without being seen.
As the night deepened, the people in the square disappeared one by one until the vast space was completely empty.
Only the occasional lamplighter roamed about, checking the condition of the streetlights.
‘Perfect.’
As soon as he confirmed the coast was clear, Carlyle reached his hand toward the fountain.
[Notification: Lingering Will absorbed!]
[Notification: You have acquired the skill !]
[Earnest Wish]
Category: Prayer
Skill Level: 1
Duration: 60 seconds
Effect:
- Luck +150%
- Critical Hit Chance +15%
‘Nice.’
Carlyle was satisfied with the effects of [Earnest Wish].
[Luck] and [Critical Hit Chance] were rare stats that were very difficult to acquire even in the game.
Among the thousands of items, there were less than ten that guaranteed an increase in Luck and Critical Hit Chance.
So, acquiring a skill that guaranteed an increase in both at the same time was extremely encouraging.
And that was just at level 1; he could only imagine how useful it would become as it leveled up…
‘Glad I looked around. It paid off.’
Carlyle nodded in satisfaction and turned to head back toward the inner castle.
***
After that, Carlyle found no more Lingering Wills and continued to train his swordsmanship, preparing for the battlefield.
Several months passed, and the time for Carlyle to leave for war drew near.
“Do I really have to wear this? It’s so uncomfortable.”
Carlyle grumbled as he put on the ceremonial attire—the official uniform of the Decaron army.
“Young Master, the commissioning ceremony is…”
“I know, it’s an important ceremony.”
If one were to name the most important event in the Sigmund family, it would be none other than the [Commissioning Ceremony].
The ceremony, where a member of the Sigmund family pledges to fulfill their responsibilities and duties as a noble by serving in the military, was taken very seriously.
But what made the commissioning ceremony even more special was something else entirely: the [Succession].