Chapter 28: Absolute Power
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 28: Absolute Power
Caw. Caw. Caw.
Crows, having arrived at some unknown point, sat on a branch and looked down at me. They were coveting Roland’s body as it grew cold.
A moment later, the branch they were perched on began to shake, and they took flight in surprise. It was a precursor to the fall of the thousand-year-old giant tree.
Time was short. I stripped Roland of his gear and shoved his body into the knot hole. The corpse vanished into the darkness.
Almost simultaneously, the trembling giant tree tilted and fell backward. The knot hole that had swallowed Roland’s body disappeared from sight.
“This is just like the game.”
When the relic that served as its power source was taken, the ancient ruins collapsed. Now, no trace of Roland could be found. In the end, everything had turned out exactly as I had designed.
Now, it was time for the final step.
I stuffed Roland’s equipment into my pack and turned away. My destination was the village below the mansion.
I returned to the mansion when the sun was at its zenith.
“Aah—!”
A servant sweeping the entrance hall screamed. She was startled by the wounds on my face and my blood-soaked appearance. The commotion drew everyone in the mansion.
“What is all this noise?!”
“Brother…?”
Not only the servants, but also Bertio the treasurer, Sophia, and even Aenya appeared. They were all horrified to see me. It had been worth it to return without washing up.
I set down my empty pack and said, “Bertio. Convene the vassal council. A rebellion has broken out.”
“A r-rebellion? What on earth do you mean?”
“Roland attacked me and fled.”
“Lies!”
The one to deny it instantly was Sophia. However, the wounds on my face were not something that could be dismissed with mere words. Moreover, Roland, the one who should have been most actively proclaiming his innocence, was absent.
“Bertio.”
Bertio, who had been glancing nervously at Sophia, hurried out of the mansion at my nod.
“What in the world happened?!”
“I believe I just told you.”
“I’m asking for the details! You expect me to believe that Roland attacked you and fled, just like that? Does that even make sense?”
“And why shouldn’t it? I will explain the details when all the vassals are gathered. You should attend as well, Mother.”
Leaving behind Sophia, who looked like she had much more to say, I walked toward the council room. Just then, someone grabbed me.
“Brother! What about your wounds?”
The only one to put my well-being first was Aenya. My only ally who shared my blood. That was what made her more special than her fatal beauty.
I took off my blood-stained gloves and stroked Aenya’s hair. Her trembling eyes gradually calmed.
“I’ll get them treated after the council. It won’t take long.”
Aenya looked as if she wanted to say more, but I promised we would talk later.
Bertio returned quickly. In truth, excluding the scribe who was on his deathbed, there were only four people who would attend the vassal council.
As the heir, I was joined in the council room by Sophia, the mistress of the house; Bertio, the treasurer; and Dominico, the village’s only priest.
“My, what are all these wounds?”
Dominico, the only one seeing my injuries for the first time, gasped in shock. A distant relative of Count Dresden, he was a man of leisure who lived comfortably in charge of a small parish. He had also once served as my tutor.
“Now that everyone is here, explain everything in detail!” Sophia shrieked before I could even respond. The way she couldn't keep her hands still made her look anxious.
Dominico frowned. He always boasted of his noble bloodline, and it seemed he hadn't been won over by Sophia. However, he was in a similar position to her, so he wasn't my ally either.
I asked for Dominico’s indulgence and began to reveal the truth. My version of the truth, that is.
“You are all aware that goblins have started appearing on the outskirts of the village. Sir Roland and I decided to hire mercenaries to deal with them. To be honest, we made a bet on who could kill more.”
“Get to the point! Just get to the point!”
Sophia’s outburst was so rude that even Bertio grimaced. It was unbecoming of the skilled manipulator who had won over the vassals and seized control of the family while I was busy playing the scoundrel.
Then again, wasn't Roland the man she had bet everything on and loved? It was only natural for her to be flustered now that something had happened to her beloved. The word ‘fled’ must have made her even more anxious.
For a moment, I almost scoffed, remembering the Roland who had decided to abandon Sophia in less than a minute.
“Sir Roland—no, that bastard—revealed his true colors when we tracked the goblins deep into the forest. He suddenly began killing the mercenaries who were driving the goblins, one by one, and then he tried to kill me.”
“Lies! That’s a lie! If Roland had truly tried to kill you, there’s no way you’d be alive!”
Did Sophia realize? Did she know that her own words were planting the preconception in everyone’s mind that I couldn’t possibly have killed Roland?
That wasn't all. A noblewoman with a husband was reacting far too sensitively to the disappearance of a mere swordsmanship teacher. The expression on Dominico’s face, whom she had just ignored, changed subtly.
“Ahem.”
Only after Bertio gave her a look did Sophia quiet down a little. Of course, her glare toward me was still fierce.
“You are correct. If a mercenary I thought was dead hadn't fired his crossbow, I too would not have escaped death. Seeing his chance ruined, the bastard must have judged that he couldn't catch me as I fled on horseback, so he ran in the opposite direction.”
“That can’t be. Roland abandoned me and ran away? Why?”
“Isn’t he just an errant knight whose origins and the person who knighted him are unknown? Rather, I don’t understand the trust you place in him, Mother. By any chance, do you have some kind of relationship with him?”
I subtly probed while Sophia was confused. If she confessed her affair with Roland with her own mouth, I could use it as leverage to pressure Baron Rasino. Since Baron Rasino was the one who arranged the marriage, he also bore some responsibility.
“He is…”
For a moment, it seemed Sophia would fall for my ploy. But then Bertio interjected.
“But Sir Roland has no reason to do such a thing, does he?”
Honestly, it was unexpected. Wasn't Bertio my father’s oldest vassal, aside from the scribe? I had thought his relationship with Sophia wasn't that strong, yet here he was, showing her loyalty.
“Isn’t he just an errant knight, no better than a thug? He was probably hired. It’s a bit awkward for me to say it myself, but it’s not like I only have one or two people who hold a grudge against me.”
My reputation as a scoundrel was useful at times like these.
“That can’t be. It can’t be…”
Sophia denied it, but Bertio remained silent. It seemed my explanation was plausible enough for him.
It was at this point that I realized Bertio didn't know about the relationship between Roland and Baron Rasino. And yet he still showed loyalty? I grew more and more curious about his reasons.
“That’s all the explanation I’ll give. We must catch that bastard before he escapes the manor. Father Dominico? Would you form a pursuit team with the village militia and lead them?”
“M-Me?”
“You and I are the only ones here who have trained with a sword, and as you can see, I need to treat my wounds.”
Dominico agreed with a reluctant expression. He was only attending because he was the village’s only priest; his deep ties to Count Dresden made him essentially an outsider.
Moreover, he likely had no confidence in his martial abilities, so he wouldn't put much effort into the search.
He was the perfect man for the job.
“Will the militia be enough? Our opponent is a knight. A knight. We’ll have to mobilize the entire village and even use all the servants to even catch a glimpse of his tail. Am I not right?”
Bertio said after a quick glance at Sophia. His intention was to find Roland first. But how could he find a man buried with ancient ruins? I sneered inwardly and nodded.
“Oh, Bertio. As expected of the vassal who served my father the longest!”
“Haha, it is only natural.”
The vassals filed out like a receding tide. I thought I could faintly hear Sophia’s voice outside, nagging the servants to find Roland before anyone else. The fact that she didn't even try to hide her voice showed she was clearly shaken.
I walked through the suddenly empty mansion to the dining hall. Aenya was waiting for me, having prepared various medicinal herbs on the table.
“What on earth have you been doing outside? Did your scoundrel temper flare up again? Say something, you idiot!”
Her tone was as if we had returned to the distant past. But unlike before, her words were now laden with worry.
Soon, Aenya’s warm hand touched my face. The warmth spread through my body, which had grown cold. Only then did the tension finally leave me.
I glanced at the inner door leading to the kitchen. Beyond it, a servant was preparing my meal.
“I killed Roland. With these hands.”
Aenya’s hand, which had been covering my face with crushed and minced herbs, paused for a moment. But just for a moment. Thinking I was joking, she smiled. It was a smile that trembled with anxiety.
“How does that make sense? How could you kill Roland with your skills?”
“Everyone is equal before the sword. Even a king has no way of surviving a knife in the gut.”
“But why…?”
“Are you really asking because you don’t know?”
While I was out and about, Aenya rarely left the mansion. Moreover, she was someone who was always wary of Sophia. There was no way she didn't know about the relationship between Roland and Sophia.
“Sophia tormenting you, Roland leading me to become a scoundrel—it was all planned. They intended to steal the domain from us. And behind it all is Baron Rasino.”
“Wait, then couldn’t the Baron use this as a pretext to interfere?”
Her eyes were filled with fear. After all, Baron Rasino was too formidable an opponent for the son of a mere knight to handle.
“I have a plan for everything. You don’t need to worry.”
“How can I not worry!?”
Aenya glared daggers at me. The pressure from her hand as she applied the herbs to my face grew stronger.
We were so close while she treated me that we could feel each other’s breath. I gazed past her finely shaped eyebrows, the starlit eyes beneath them, her straight nose, and her faintly flushed skin, to her slightly pouting, yet cherry-like, beautiful lips.
“Why… why are you looking at me like that…?”
Was it the stress from the life-or-death battle? In truth, I had been aroused from the moment I realized we were alone in the dining hall. My hand naturally came to rest on Aenya’s knee. Aenya sucked in a sharp breath.
But she didn’t push my hand away. As silence fell, Aenya’s eyes also wavered strangely. After all, hadn’t she subtly tried to seduce me before I left for the ancient ruins?
Gulp.
Aenya’s throat bobbed. The sound was as loud as thunder.
“Aenya? You have to continue the treatment.”
“Huh? Oh…”
Aenya’s hand, which had stilled, began to move again. But it was clumsy, as if she couldn't concentrate. In the meantime, my hand on her knee slipped under her skirt and began to travel up her leg.
My movements were slow enough for Aenya to fully imagine what I would do next.
How far had I gone up her smooth skin? Suddenly, the humidity spiked. I had only touched her inner thigh. She was far too wet to have only gotten excited when my hand touched her knee.
“You, don’t tell me…?”
Could it be that Aenya had also started getting excited from the moment we were alone?
Aenya subtly avoided my gaze.
“No, this is…”
“Hehe. Aenya. You need to focus on the treatment, right?”
Aenya pouted and applied the herbs to my face again. I caressed her inner thigh. I was in a position where I could reach her pussy at any moment by just extending a finger.
The wetness grew more intense, and Aenya was unknowingly squirming. It was a gesture asking for the next step.
“B-Brother. I…”
Just as Aenya let out a ragged breath, her eyes dripping with honey, the inner door connected to the kitchen suddenly opened.
Startled, Aenya clamped her legs together. My hand, caught between them, was stuck. In that time, the servant who had opened the door approached.
“Your meal is ready.”
The servant began placing dishes on the opposite side of the table. If she had come to our side, she would have witnessed my hand inside Aenya’s skirt.
Aenya couldn’t lift her head. Not just her face, but her neck too was flushed red. In that moment, a mischievous impulse struck me.
“Hnngh.”
Aenya looked up at me with shocked eyes. My hand, which had been wedged between her thighs, had pushed deeper inside. The servant, who was serving the meal, turned her head toward Aenya.
“Lady Aenya? Is there something you need…?”
“N-Nothing at all.”
Aenya shook her head vigorously. The servant returned to the kitchen, not hiding her puzzled expression. She hadn't finished setting the table, so she would be back soon. Aenya grabbed my arm and looked up at me.
“Brother, are you crazy…?”
Aenya, her face flushed, let out ragged breaths. The sight of her desperately holding back her pleasure was utterly captivating.
“For someone blaming me, you seem to be enjoying it a little too much, don’t you think?”
Aenya’s body was honest. I had only lightly caressed the area around her pussy, yet she was gushing with arousal. I could even see the center of her skirt, visible below the table, getting wet.
“Heuk…”
Aenya buried her face in my arm. As luck would have it, the returning servant saw her. The servant paused for a moment, then quickly bowed her head and served the food. Her flustered state was obvious.
As if just noticing the servant’s presence, Aenya also froze, her face still buried in my arm. Only after the servant had quickly returned to the kitchen did Aenya lift her head.
“What do we do! She must have found out…!”
I nodded my head.
“Yes. She’ll definitely think something is strange. She might even guess what’s happening under the table. Then the servants, who love to gossip, will surely spread rumors.”
Even as I said that, I slipped the tip of my finger, which had been caressing the area around her pussy, slightly inside her.
Aenya’s mouth fell slightly open as her body trembled. A little bit of saliva trickled from the corner of her lips. Her body, sensitized by the risk of being caught, couldn't withstand the small stimulation and reached its peak.
I lowered my head and whispered in Aenya’s ear. My hot breath made her flinch.
“You sly little vixen. The truth is, you enjoy showing your vulva to others, don’t you? In your heart, didn’t you wish the servant would watch a little longer? Aenya, you’re a hopeless pervert.”
“N-No… That’s not true…”
“Not true? Really?”
While gently caressing the entrance of her pussy with my middle finger, I pressed my thumb firmly against her clitoris, which had made its presence known.
“Aaaah…!”
This time, Aenya let out a rather loud moan. Burying her face completely in my chest, she looked up at me. Her eyes were hot, as if they were on fire.
“B-Brother. I, I… do something to me… quickly…!”
Just as Aenya stopped caring about the servant in the kitchen and began to want me, the outer door leading to the hallway burst open.
“Lord Allen! Someone says they saw Roland!”
Aenya’s face crumpled in frustration.