Chapter 9
I recalled last night, when I'd swung the iron pipe around.
If this keeps up, rumors are gonna spread that there's some punk in the capital beating people with an iron pipe.
I clicked my tongue softly and swung the pipe in wide arcs.
Well, it's still better than a sword.
If I put even a little strength into it, he'd drop dead on the spot, but if I controlled it right, I figured he wouldn't die.
"Let go! Let me go! What do you want? Money? I'll give you as much as you want, just let me go!"
"You nobles... hic! You think everything can be solved with money... urk. Unfortunately, money won't fix this one. Kghk!"
The man laughed sleazily as he reached for the woman's body. She began trembling violently, frozen in place, unable even to resist.
Thud!
I slammed the iron pipe—wreathed in black aura like it was possessed by a demon—right in front of the man's feet.
"H-heek!"
The terrified man yanked his hand away from her and stumbled backward. His rat-like cowardice, after so boldly groping her moments ago, made my brow furrow in disgust.
...Revolting.
Trash should be cleaned up by the first person to spot it. I stepped forward, planning to handle this neatly.
"W-who are you!"
The startled man yelled at me. Ignoring him, I approached the woman, who was equally shocked by the menacing pipe.
"Are you all right?"
My voice, distorted eerily by the magic tool, filled the alley.
She flinched but managed a nod.
"You've got dirt on your dress."
To calm her, I deliberately brushed the dirt off her dress with gentle care. It was meant to ease her tension, but she seemed to stiffen even more.
...I'm no good at this stuff.
Having chased magic beasts since childhood, I'd always been awkward with people.
I roughly yanked the iron pipe from the ground, where only the tip remained embedded.
"Who—who are you! Hic! Why are you doing this!"
His tone switched instantly to polite speech, his eyes darting wildly, his expression servile. His weakness toward the strong and bullying of the weak made my mood sour even more.
"You asking 'cause you don't know, you horny mutt?"
I intoned in a chilling voice, advancing slowly. The man trembled like an aspen tree, backing away, but a dead-end wall blocked his retreat. His face drained of color.
"J-judging by your clothes, urk, you're a commoner too, right?"
The cornered man shouted.
"If you're a commoner too, hic! You know how they treat us! The nobles treat us like dogs and pigs! Even that woman there—ugh—she looked at me like I was filth as she passed by!"
He pointed accusingly at her. She shuddered violently.
This empire's class system was crystal clear and rotten to the core. Poor commoners stayed poor forever, while rich nobles stayed rich. Commoners weren't even allowed to speak to nobles without permission. Nobles treated commoners like slaves.
It was a filthy, unfair world.
I turned to look at the woman. When our eyes met, her rigid expression paled, and she shook her head frantically.
"N-no! I did call him filthy, but...! He was drunk and bumped into my shoulder...!"
"Does getting bumped give you the right to call someone filthy?"
Isn't that a bit much?
She clamped her mouth shut like a clam at my retort. Her eyes trembled.
Lifting her bowed head, she shot back venomously.
"So does that mean you're planning to hurt me now?"
Her eyes brimmed with fear, but her tone was stiff with pride.
She's scared I might turn on her now... but she won't drop her pride. A perfect noble.
"See that! Urk! She won't even apologize!"
The man bellowed, reeking of booze. A glance his way, and he was yapping excitedly.
"Nobles are all scum! Hic! They think we're dogs licking their feet! If you've lived as a commoner, urk, you get it!"
His rage bordered on madness. I could easily guess the life he'd endured as a commoner.
I crossed my arms and listened silently until he crossed the line he shouldn't have.
"That's why I've got the right to hurt nobles! Hic! Ignorant noble bitches like her deserve to get roughed up a bit!"
Thud! The pipe slammed into the ground right beside his face. He collapsed in shock, too stunned even to scream.
"What a load of crap."
I wanted to clean out my ears. Sneering, I stepped toward him. His sprawled body shook pathetically.
"Why—why!"
"I don't know or care how much you've suffered at the nobles' hands or what kind of life you've lived."
Crunch. I yanked the firmly embedded pipe from the wall in one pull. Fear flickered in his eyes. Paralyzed by my killing intent, he couldn't even lift his face as I hooked his chin with the pipe and forced it up.
"All I know is this:"
I was plenty familiar with noble abuses myself. I'd once had to backtrack on a journey because of a noble's request, and I'd dealt with one who forced me into his bed, claiming he admired me.
If forced to pick between liking or hating nobles, I'd choose hate. Not all nobles are bad, but every one I'd met was inhuman scum.
I'd long detached emotionally from that breed.
But even so.
"No harm justifies causing harm to someone else."
Nothing justifies wrongdoing. A crime is a crime, nothing more.
"But perpetrators should suffer a bit."
The black aura writhing around me like serpents surged ferociously into his body.
"Gaaahhh!"
The fool screamed as he unwittingly swallowed the aura. His piercing shrieks annoyed me, so I bound his mouth and wrapped his entire body tight with it. He thrashed futilely, helpless.
Aura, being one with nature, was the ultimate weapon when swung with killing intent, but under a Sword Master's control, it wasn't poison when entering the body.
It just rampaged through every limb, letting them taste hell.
In an untrained, unrefined body, aura caused the worst agony. Overkill, plain and simple.
I'd planned to just whack him lightly with the pipe, but he pissed me off. This is my punishment for wrongdoers.
I whipped my head around. The woman, who'd been staring blankly, jumped and widened her eyes.
"I'll finish up here, so you should go."
It was pretty rude for speaking to a noble, but since I'd helped her, I figured she'd let it slide. I waved her off.
She stared at me intently with hazy eyes, cheeks flushing pink as she spoke.
"What's your name?"
I'm telling you to leave—why's she still here?
I narrowed my eyes questioningly, and she hurriedly added,
"A reward! I want to repay you for saving me!"
Her frantic addition sounded like a hasty excuse. Puzzled, I shook my head.
"No need. I didn't do it for a reward."
She bit her lip anxiously at my firm refusal. Boldly approaching without a hint of fear, she grabbed my hand.
"Th-then how about dinner with me? I'm really grateful."
"Sorry, I have prior plans."
Aria's waiting.
She seemed reluctant to let go, but my head was filled only with the need to get to Aria quickly.
But...
I stared at the hand clutching mine momentarily. It was trembling badly.
Her face is way too pale. Pupils dilated too.
This looked just like the prelude to passing out.
Too rough an ordeal for someone who's lived her whole life as a noble.
She was barely hanging on, but she wouldn't last long before fainting.
"Ugh..."
I'm not heartless enough to leave a collapsed person on the ground. I was willing to provide aftercare by dragging her to the scouts.
As I reached out to catch her staggering form,
"My name is Llewellyn Decardo."
I froze.
"If you ever want that reward, come to the Decardo Marquisate..."
Thud.
She collapsed limply.
Finally snapping out of my daze, I took a clear look at her features.
Gloriously wavy rose-gold hair. Vivid green eyes like summer leaves. Sharp, cat-like features. Lovely lips that made anyone want to kiss them.
The epitome of a clichéd villainess in appearance.
The empress of high society, Llewellyn Decardo.
The woman now collapsed before me was the main villainess from the novel Fairy's Night: Llewellyn Decardo.
So that presence I've been feeling all this time...
Chills prickled across my skin. It had been ages since I'd felt this eerie sensation after becoming a Sword Master.
A Sword Master like me wouldn't miss another person's presence in this alley. From the moment I'd entered, I'd sensed someone powerful watching.
I'd ignored it because they felt weaker than me, and before donning my mask, I'd confirmed no eyes were on me.
As long as my face stayed hidden, I figured it didn't matter if someone saw this.
But if the one I'd saved was Llewellyn, and the watcher was that person, things had gone horribly wrong.
Fairy's Night's main villainess, Llewellyn Decardo. The youngest daughter of the Decardo Marquisate, pinnacle of wealth, dubbed the "Money-Eating Rose."
Until Aria appeared, Llewellyn ruled high society and harbored a one-sided crush on one of the male leads, Rainer Ainheart.
She turns twisted after learning Rainer loves Aria.
A textbook mass-produced villainess.
I gazed down at her collapsed form with mixed feelings.
Future Llewellyn bullying Aria? No big deal. I can stop it.
My life was already dedicated to Aria. Whatever future Llewellyn did wasn't a worry.
The problem is I just saved Llewellyn now.
Cold sweat trickled down as I sensed the presence beyond.
The novel detailed how Llewellyn fell for Rainer—to highlight his heroic justice as a male lead.
As written in the original, the trigger for Llewellyn falling for Rainer was...
None other than Rainer saving her from a dire assault.
Right here, right now—that was supposed to be Rainer's moment.
Tap.
"I've been most impressed by you."
Because of me, the original plot was derailed.
Someone leaped down from the wall, landing behind me. I gritted my teeth at the overwhelming presence.
Damn it!
I swallowed hard, unable to turn at the sound of excited footsteps approaching.
I wanted to vanish into thin air.
Rainer Ainheart.
A powerhouse on the cusp of Sword Master, heir to the Ainheart Marquisate, captain of the Imperial Palace's 2nd Knight Order, and at the same time...
"You're a Sword Master, aren't you."
...a crazed sword fanatic.