The Bastard of the Blood-Fiend

“If she wakes up, it’s going to be another disaster.”

I sighed, looking down at the unconscious Eri. Once we arrived at the mansion in Sanctum Hill, the maids took Eri and moved her to the annex. I left the rest to the head maid: bathing her, dressing her in new clothes, and feeding her. Meanwhile, I prepared fifty reasons why this child needed to be raised in our family’s annex to persuade my father and mother. The child is bright, she has the talent of a Mage, and so on...

They gave their permission before I could even list half of them.

— “Julian is finally acting like a spoiled child…!”

I couldn't thank my mother enough for interpreting it as me being spoiled.

***

The next morning arrived. I received a report from the head maid.

“She woke up last night, ate her meal, and went right back to sleep.”

“She didn’t cause any trouble?”

“No. However…”

“However?”

“She kept rustling around, as if the bedding was uncomfortable.”

Ah. It was probably ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠her first ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠time using a cotton quilt. It was something I had enjoyed naturally since birth, but for a commoner, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you usually had to be part of the wealthy middle class to even touch such a thing. To Eri, who had been a Limbus Pit orphan, it must have been her first time under such a blanket.

“Shall I wake her, Young Master?”

“I will wake her myself.”

“Pardon?”

Again. The head maid was looking at me with that strange expression again. It was the same look the servants gave me when I appeared in the kitchen.

“I have something to explain to her early in the morning. Oh, could I trouble you for a packed lunch today?”

“Ah… yes…”

The head maid looked slightly confused. A guy who usually made his own lunch every day was asking for one because he was busy—it must have triggered a different kind of cognitive dissonance. Leaving the bewildered head maid behind, I headed to the annex.

Hmm. My sweet home, seen after such a long time. Though it was technically in the past tense now, since I lived in the main building.

I opened the door to the room I used to use. I saw a cotton quilt puffed up like a boa constrictor that had swallowed an elephant. It was wriggling, so Eri must have been tossing and turning inside. Or perhaps the quilt was digesting her.

I pulled back the quilt and said, “Wake up.”

At the sound of my voice, Eri rubbed her eyes and lifted her head. As soon as she saw me, her eyes went wide.

“…Who are you?”

Eri glared at me irritably. It was a natural reaction. I wasn't wearing my crow mask right now.

Eri’s gaze swept over me. Guardedness rose on her face. She was assessing my worth. It was a habit ingrained in her from the red-light district, where it was crucial to judge who you could pick a fight with and who you couldn't.

“Hey.”

Having finished her assessment, Eri pulled the quilt toward her and asked, “How long have you been here?”

Based on her calculations, she must have thought I was either a fellow captive or a servant. This power of misunderstanding of hers really hit me at the most inconvenient times. She probably thought I was a senior who’d been dragged here with her, and she was trying to establish the hierarchy in advance.

Does she think Teacher Schnabel is some kind of orphan collector?

It would be fun to keep acting like a servant, but unfortunately, my schedule today was packed. I didn't have time for games, so I told her the truth immediately.

“It’s me.”

“Since when have we met—”

“I told you yesterday that your mouth is the window that determines your value. Be careful with your words. This is your last chance.”

“…”

Silence. One second. Two seconds. Three seconds.

“…Bweh?”

Eri’s mouth hung open.

“L-Liar. Teacher Schnabel is a gnome over 150 years old. He was kicked out of a ducal household and his face was burned…”

“Did you actually believe that?”

“Everyone says so!”

“I have never admitted to such a thing.”

Eri’s pupils wavered.

It took time for the still-sleepy Eri to accept the reality that all these settings were lies.

“…Ueh? Teacher? You tricked me?”

“I have never told a lie.”

She had the face of a child who had just been told that Santa Claus didn't exist. Why did I feel guilty when I hadn't done anything wrong?

“No way… You were my age…? Uwaaaah!! That’s impossible!”

Eri pulled the quilt over her head and screamed. What kind of fantasy did she have about me to react like that?

Just then, the door opened and a maid entered.

“Young Master, breakfast is ready.”

Eri’s head turned slowly toward the maid. Then she looked back at me. Me. The maid. Me. The maid.

“Y-Young Master…? Not the attending physician…?”

Eri’s voice cracked. She must have assumed I was a guest or the personal physician of this Baron’s family. Well, what kind of Young Master would go down to Limbus Pit at this age to see patients? Logically, her thinking was correct.

“Not the one being eaten…?”

“If I had to choose, I’m the one doing the eating.”

I sighed and pulled the quilt completely off Eri.

“Eat and get ready. It’s the weekend, so we’re going somewhere other than the clinic.”

“S-Somewhere else?”

“The Merchant Guild.”

“M-Merchant… Guild…?”

Eri’s eyes lost focus. Thinking she might faint again, I quickly clapped my hands right in front of her face.

Clap!

“Mommy!”

“Get a grip. Eat and come out.”

As I left the room, I instructed the maid, “After she eats, put her in outdoor clothes and bring her to the front entrance.”

“Understood, Young Master.”

***

An hour later.

Eri, who appeared in front of the entrance, looked like a completely different person. Her red hair was neatly brushed back. A white blouse and a navy vest. A knee-length skirt and leather shoes. She didn't look like a vagrant from the red-light district, but like the daughter of some merchant family.

“…It’s strange.”

Eri tugged at her collar as if it were uncomfortable. “I didn't know clothes could be this uncomfortable.”

“You’ll have to get used to it. They’re your clothes.”

“R-Really? These are mine?”

I took the glitching Eri outside. A black sedan was waiting.

“Get in.”

As we got into the car, Eri asked cautiously, “…Where are we going? No, where are we going, sir?”

Her honorifics had changed. Now that she knew I was a Young Master, it seemed she felt uncomfortable using casual speech.

“You don’t have to use honorifics. I’ll be wearing a mask when we’re outside anyway.”

“…Okay.”

The car started. On the way, Eri asked carefully, “But why do you wear a mask?”

“To protect myself from bad energy.”

“Not to hide your identity?”

“I’ve never hidden it.”

My personal information security level hadn't changed much since my days in 21st-century South Korea. If I slipped a few coins to an information broker in the red-light district, my real face and identity would probably be out in the open. Most people seemed to stop investigating as soon as they found out I was from Sanctum Hill. Since there was even a rumor that I was a healer whose face was scorched at a ducal house, they were likely afraid of getting caught up in a succession battle. Well, I understand, as nobles are basically like celestial dragons to the poor.

Still, it’s not like they’d eat me if they knew my real face.

The car kept driving. Unlike yesterday, we weren't going up; we were going down. Leaving Sanctum Hill, heading toward Civitas Square. The white marble outside the window turned into ash-colored bricks.

“This is… Civitas Square.”

“Yes.”

“Isn’t this the commoner district?”

“That’s right.”

“Why would you be in a place like this… Ah.”

Remembering that I was a Young Master who frequented Limbus Pit, Eri stopped talking. In the meantime, the car stopped. We had arrived in front of a five-story building in the middle of the bustling street. On the front of the building was a sign engraved in brass.

Eri muttered, looking out the window. “…A merchant guild?”

Instead of answering, I opened the car door and got out. Eri followed.

As soon as we entered the building’s lobby, the employees all bowed in unison.

“…Director?”

She looked up at me.

“Bweh?”

“You’ll have to get used to it.”

I had been burdened by this treatment at first, but after a few years, I’d gotten used to it. “Let’s go in.”

Eri followed, creaking like a rusty machine.

*

The guild leader’s office. When I opened the door, a portly middle-aged man jumped up. A greasy face, glistening eyes, and flashing gold teeth. He was the quintessential impression of a nouveau riche. But I knew that, unlike his appearance, he was a pretty decent person. He was a guild leader with a conscience that didn't fit this world—he had no shady dealings and handled transactions faithfully.

He was so conscientious that the guild almost went bankrupt right before I brought in Quinine and Insulin.

Well, that was exactly why I’d chosen him as my business partner. It was the protagonist’s duty to save a merchant who was stupidly kind. However, after the guild grew rapidly thanks to those two drugs, the guild leader’s image, having tasted the flavor of money, was turning more and more into that of a vicious nouveau riche. His words and actions were one thing, but his physiognomy had a greater influence. Still, he hadn't been this fat when we first met.

Should I try making a diet pill later?

If I worked hard on making diabetes medication, I might get lucky and make one. I heard they were made that way in the world I used to live in, too. Well, let’s put aside stories of the distant future.

“Oh! Young Master! Welcome!”

The guild leader approached, rubbing his hands together. “Would you like some coffee?”

“I’m still 12.”

“Ah, you said you’d drink it at 18. I always forget! Haha! Then I’ll make it tea. We have some Darjeeling that came in this year.”

“Thank you.”

The guild leader signaled to his secretary. While the secretary prepared the tea, the guild leader brought a stack of documents from his desk. Sitting on the opposite sofa, he handed me a copy.

“This is the revenue for the last quarter. Quinine rose 12 percent compared to the previous quarter due to increased military supply, Insulin rose 15 percent thanks to successful marketing among diabetic nobles, and Colchicine rose 8 percent due to high repurchase rates among gout patients…”

Numbers poured out. I didn't think she would understand, but I handed the documents I’d finished reading to Eri, feeling like she should study them.

“One, two… uh… uhhh…”

There were so many zeros that I could see Eri trying to count them with her fingers before giving up.

Once I finished checking the documents the guild leader had handed over, it was my turn. I took my research journal out of my leather file.

“I have good news, Guild Leader.”

“Oh? A new drug?”

“If you call an improvement a new drug, then yes.”

The guild leader’s eyes sparkled. I opened the research journal and showed him. “I succeeded in improving the purity of insulin. It’s a method of crystallization using zinc, and the purity has increased by about 30 percent compared to the existing one.”

“Th-Thirty percent?!”

Thirty percent was a conservative estimate. I was a medical major, not an alchemy major. Perhaps that was why I was still unfamiliar with the technology of this world. Even though I did it, it improved by 30 percent, so it was obvious that people familiar with alchemy would achieve even better results. Upon hearing that, the guild leader jumped up.

“Th-Then the inflammation problem at the injection site…!”

“I think it will be almost resolved. The risk of hypoglycemic shock will also be greatly reduced. The duration of action will also increase.”

I pointed to the conclusion of the research journal. Zinc-crystallized insulin also had a slower absorption rate, so the number of daily injections could be reduced… anyway, it was just an innovation. The guild leader’s hand holding the journal trembled.

“Ohhh…! Young Master… No, Director, you really are…! H-Hic…!”

Soon, the guild leader couldn't hold back his overwhelming emotions and burst into tears. It was a bit gross, but there was a reason for such a reaction. Existing insulin often caused the injection site to swell up significantly due to impurities, or patients would collapse due to failure in concentration control. Thanks to that, it had earned the stigma of being a “deadly drug for a deadly disease.” And because of the aforementioned side effects, despite being an innovative drug that treated diabetes, the market’s reaction had been lukewarm. Nobles were such conservative people, after all. But with this improvement, those problems would mostly be solved. It would probably become a filial product that stood side-by-side with Quinine. The guild leader, who had already tasted the glory of Quinine, sensed this and was reacting that way.

“How many months will it take until it’s available on the market?”

At my question, the guild leader, who had been holding his fist to his mouth, counted on his fingers. “If we lock the factory doors and grind the alchemists to the bone… five months… no, three months is enough!”

“Development period is four months, add six more months to that.”

“Pardon?”

The guild leader blinked. Why would I want to delay taking out this lovely golden egg? Such resentful emotions were conveyed clearly through his eyes. But I had a line I couldn't cross.

“It’s the clinical trial period. We need to administer it to at least 50 patients and collect side-effect data. We can’t release it to the market before then.”

I didn't want the drug I made to go down in history as one that left behind harmful side effects. I wanted to be the perfect protagonist of a misunderstanding story. However, unlike me, the guild leader wasn't a man with such aspirations. He was a man who moved strictly according to money, profit, and the logic of this world.

“Ah, well… Young Master. To be honest, other merchant guilds don’t do that. Once the drug is finished, they’d sell it immediately because it would sell out even if they didn't have enough…”

The guild leader was right. Honestly, morality is a luxury item in this world. In my previous life, pharmaceutical companies would go bankrupt if side-effect issues broke out, but in this world, you could just hush it up and cover it. A patient who suffered side effects? Where would that patient be? Oh my! The witness must have taken a wrong turn outside the wall on their way here and gone missing! How could this be! Why are the missing person’s belongings outside the wall? With our guild’s scale, even that was now possible. But I didn't want to do that. That wasn't something a protagonist of a misunderstanding story would do.

“I know. That’s why we’re going to differentiate it.”

However, in this world, persuading people with morality ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠takes too long. They often pretend to be persuaded only to pull strange tricks behind your back. So, you have to persuade them with the logic of money.

“Guild Leader. Who is the main customer for insulin? Is it the commoners?”

“No. It’s the noble lords.”

“Yes. They are very suspicious. They are people who would even use slaves to verify what goes into their own bodies.”

“Ah, don’t tell me…!”

“We have to show them that we are putting this much effort into it so that the nobles can feel safe administering the drug. They won’t have any complaints even if we raise the price.”

I persuaded him with a sort of premium strategy. Even if the world changes, shows like this always work.

“Such deep meaning…!”

The guild leader clapped and marveled. I gave him one last warning. “However, you must not test it sloppily. The moment the nobles think this is just a show, it will backfire.”

“I will keep that in mind, Young Master!”

The guild leader bowed deeply. I nodded and moved on to the next agenda.

“And there is someone I would like to introduce to you.”

I pointed to Eri, who had been like a wooden stake stuck in the ground throughout the meeting. “She is my personal assistant.”

“Ho. So you’ve finally taken on someone.”

The guild leader’s gaze turned to Eri. A girl who was fidgeting, unable to shed the traces of being from the slums. If it was the guild leader, he would have guessed her background. The smell of Limbus Pit doesn't just disappear overnight. But the guild leader didn't show it.

“But for what reason did you hire this person?”

“I brought her because she has the talent of a Mage.”

“A Mage! As expected, your eye for talent is…!”

“…”

I gave him a look telling him to stop the flattery. It was going to wear thin, really thin. The guild leader cleared his throat and straightened his clothes. Then he reached out a hand politely to Eri.

“I am Gustav Meyer, leader of the Merkur Merchant Guild. I look forward to working with you, little lady.”

Eri just nodded blankly. She still had a face that couldn't grasp the situation.