Chapter 2
Chapter 2
The male lead who is supposed to kill me is strangely pure
It has already been more than ten years since I was born into this world, but my memories of being a newborn still make my blood boil even now.
Do you know how disgusting it is for a grown adult’s mind to be forced into a baby’s body and suck on a mother’s breast? Maybe some people would feel something else from it, but I wasn’t one of them. They say gluttony is a sin? I learned painfully just how much of a sin it feels like.
And don’t even get me started on how inconvenient it is to have a body that can’t even control basic bodily functions. I somehow managed to overcome that through relentless effort and got past it before my second birthday. I think that was the period in my life where I tried the hardest.
From the moment I could read, I started gathering information about this world.
And then I understood everything.
I had been reincarnated into this world.
“Ah.”
Into a romance fantasy novel. And not just any novel, but that damn one that ended with a single line saying, “The world has ended.”
“Luca? Luca, where are you!”
A woman’s voice called out desperately, searching for Luca.
Luca. That was my name in this world. Luca Griffir.
At the same time, that name belonged to a villain. A third-rate villain at that. If I had to choose, I would’ve preferred being the final boss type. At least then I could’ve used the power and lived quietly without doing anything evil. Not that I’m unhappy with my current life.
In my previous life, I was an orphan, but now I’m surrounded by more love than I ever thought possible.
Why did the original Luca become such a villain even with this kind of love?
“You said a guest was coming today, didn’t you?”
I remembered. Today, my mother said the son of an old friend was coming. The Griffir territory was a rural area in the Empire, known for being a newly wealthy noble house, so high-ranking guests rarely visited. But this time, the guest was a noble. A duke’s son, apparently.
“You were reading again, weren’t you? At your age, you should be playing outside more!”
“Ah, mom. I understand…”
“Sigh. Other families are worried because their sons only play outside, but I’m worried because ours only reads books.”
Even as she said that, her expression was full of pride and happiness for her book-loving son.
“Come on! You need to wear something nice too!”
My mother hurried around, preparing for the guest, hoping I would become friends with him. Well, if he was staying for a while, it made sense for her to wish that.
Parents always want their children to get along well with others.
Under her care, I changed into neat, simple clothes without anything excessive.
“Oh, looks like they’ve arrived. Let’s go.”
“Yes.”
My mother grabbed my hand and led me toward the main gate of the mansion.
“Mom, you said the guest today is from a duke’s house, right?”
“Oh? Did I not tell you?”
“Hmm, no.”
“The Aurelion Ducal House.”
“What?”
Aurelion Ducal House? Wait a second.
“Lia!”
Lia was my mother’s name. A woman had just stepped down from a carriage that had arrived, wearing elegant clothing, and called out her name. So this must be the friend she mentioned.
“Amanda! How have you been?”
“Of course… well, saying I’ve been fine would be a lie. You know how things are these days. The atmosphere around here is getting dangerous. So I thought it would be better to leave my child here than keep him with us.”
“I understand… Ah, right. Let me introduce my child. Come here, Luca.”
“Hello, Madam Aurelion.”
“Hello. You can just call me Aunt Amanda, dear.”
“I couldn’t possibly do that to someone so beautiful.”
The boy’s words made Amanda laugh softly, clearly amused.
“You’re quite the talker. Oh, come here, Evelyn.”
Right. I remembered.
Evelyn Aurelion.
“Hello, Madam Griffir.”
The boy who stepped forward greeted my mother politely. Silver hair, blue eyes, and an aura that made it obvious he was someone special.
Evelyn is the male protagonist of the original story.
The one who will cut my throat.
“Hello to you too.”
“Ah, uh…”
When I looked at the boy who would one day put a blade to my neck, I instinctively averted my eyes.
Luca Griffir. Me. Or rather, the Luca who died in the novel had a rather insignificant life.
He was just a foolish side character in Saint Fairy Tale, a story centered around a Saint, who became jealous of the male protagonist Evelyn’s talent at the academy and eventually destroyed himself.
At first, Evelyn ignored his minor pranks since he wasn’t interested in others. But the moment he tried to target the heroine, the Saint, his head was cut off instantly.
“Hmm.”
But thinking about it… maybe I just need to behave properly, right? I won’t even go to the academy. Then I won’t die!
Except if I do nothing, the world ends. For no reason at all. Wouldn’t it make more sense if they at least told me why before throwing me into this place?
If I ever meet the person who sent me here, punching them in the face is on my bucket list.
“Hoo.”
“What are you thinking about so hard?”
“Huhwaah!”
What the—this is my room, right? I didn’t even hear him come in.
Evelyn smiled as if reading my confusion.
“I thought sneaking in might be fun, so I suppressed my presence.”
“Ah.”
Come to think of it, wasn’t he supposed to be a cold, expressionless type? The Evelyn I knew from the novel wasn’t like this at all. He wasn’t some gentle smiling boy like this.
“Good thing my room is right next to yours. Honestly, I was a bit scared being alone here… hehe…”
…Is this really the Evelyn from Saint Fairy Tale?
The Evelyn I know wouldn’t even come to someone’s room. He would just say things like “not interested” or “yeah” in short replies.
Evelyn and I were both turning twelve after our birthdays this year. That meant there were still six years until the academy, the start of the main story.
So what the hell happened in those six years?
Maybe puberty hit him weirdly.
Well, I also had a phase where I thought being uninterested in others was cool, so maybe I can understand it.
“You can just call me Evelyn. My mother said we should get along. Actually, this is a secret, but I didn’t have any friends in the capital… other kids were scared when they heard I’m from the Aurelion Ducal House…”
For a moment, tears almost welled up in my eyes. I actually found this kid scary earlier? What a sin I’ve committed.
“Yeah, Evelyn. You can just call me Luca too.”
Evelyn blinked in surprise, then smiled brightly.
“Okay! Luca!”
As expected of the future male lead of a romance fantasy, even as a child he was ridiculously good-looking. I thought I was decent-looking too, but standing next to him felt like the difference between planets.
“Hmm, then! As a friendship celebration, let’s sleep together!”
I said it just to get close quickly, like kids usually do.
“W-what? T-that’s a bit too soon… Sleeping together is something only adults do…”
Looking at his face turning completely red, I realized I had made a mistake.
“Ah, sorry. I think I came on too strong.”
“No, it’s my problem! You don’t need to worry about it!”
If anything, he looked worried about ruining our relationship, so he hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“Then… do you want to spar?”
In this world, there exists a force called mana. Every living being is born with it. Some even call it the force of life. It’s not wrong either, since completely depleting it doesn’t necessarily kill you, but it does cause immense suffering.
Mana is something everyone is born with in a set amount, though it can slightly vary as one grows. That’s why talent plays such a huge role in it.
Mana can be used to form contracts with spirits. If you contract a fire spirit, your mana is converted into fire attributes, allowing you to use fire magic.
But there is another path.
Physical training.
By strengthening the body, mana adapts to it and transforms into something called aura.
Based on swordsmanship, strengthening the body alone is called Sword Beginner.
Imbuing aura into a sword is Sword Expert.
And forming a blade of aura itself is Sword Master.
Sword Masters are incredibly rare, with only five existing in the entire Empire, the largest human nation. They are beings who can wipe out entire battlefields alone.
Among them, the most talented and the one destined to reach the highest peak is Evelyn.
So I never once thought I could win.
“Go first, Luca.”
“I won’t hold back.”
Even though he gave me the first move, I didn’t feel offended. I knew I was at least five levels below him.
But I had no intention of losing.
I trained seriously in my own way.
I dashed forward, kicking off the ground.
Clang.
Our wooden swords collided, and the enhanced physical strength reinforced by aura produced a heavy sound.
“You’re strong.”
Evelyn still looked relaxed as he evaluated me.
Good. That means he’s underestimating me.
Now.
A flash of light burst out, blinding his vision for a moment, while mine remained clear.
“Wah! W-what is this!”
Tap.
My wooden sword lightly touched his neck as he panicked.
“I win.”
Evelyn stared blankly, unable to understand what had just happened.