Chapter 2
Chapter 2
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: Grasping and Shaking the Weakness
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The door opened, and a familiar face appeared.
"Philip."
His hair was streaked with white, but his face was taut without a single wrinkle. Even his upright gait exuded elegance.
He worked solely for Ovest Territory and was loyal only to the lord.
...Or so Diego believed.
"I'm sorry, Young Master."
Philip wore an expression of deep regret.
"Please forgive me for failing to supervise the servants under my watch."
He had long been in Abel's pocket. He had aided Abel's misdeeds and personally handled the dirty work from the shadows.
Taking advantage of his father's frequent absences, Abel had completely taken control of the castle's household staff. He terrorized them, committing acts of violence and murder as the absolute ruler.
That was Abel's current image.
"This way."
Philip gestured to the side, and two waiting servants approached. They threw the young servant they were holding into the room.
"Ugh!"
The servant sprawled on the floor slowly lifted his head. His face was drenched in fear.
"Ugh, ahh..."
"We caught him trying to flee beyond the castle walls."
Philip informed me before glaring at the servant.
"To dare interfere with the Young Master's affairs."
His voice was cold as ice.
"Young Master, please dispose of him as you see fit."
Philip bowed his head to me. The servants standing behind him and the one on the floor all lowered their heads as well.
'This scene...'
A sense of déjà vu made me furrow my brow. I tried to deny it, telling myself it couldn't be.
My father slapping Abel's cheek and leaving, the butler personally dragging in the servant and forcing him to kneel.
It was one of the episodes burned vividly into my memory. There was no mistaking it.
'Today is that day.'
I finally realized at what point in the original story I had possessed this body.
"Fuck."
I lost count of how many times I'd cursed already.
"...!"
Philip flinched and straightened up, while the servants' eyes darted wildly.
"Ha."
I had no time to mind their reactions. Propping my chin, I pressed my throbbing forehead.
'I didn't realize it was this urgent.'
Requiem appeared right in the heart of autumn, precisely on October 15th.
And that day was,
'Only 10 days away!'
It was an incredibly tight deadline.
"Ha..."
I let out repeated sighs to calm my surging anger. The more I thought about it, the more my stomach churned, but there was nothing to be done.
"Hoo."
Lifting my twitching eyelids, I saw
"Y-Yo, Young Master..."
The trembling servant.
'What did Abel do at this point?'
He beat this servant until the castle buzzed with it. The servant's limbs ended up broken, leaving him unable to walk for the rest of his life.
If I followed the original, I'd raise my fist here.
'Too much hassle.'
Besides, I didn't have time for that. I had a mountain of urgent tasks—why bother beating a servant?
'More than anything,'
After scrutinizing the servant's face and build, I came to a conclusion.
'If this guy is who I think he is...'
It wouldn't be a good choice to punish him right now.
I straightened my body, which had been leaning on the armrest. The chill filling the room pressed in on me.
They were all terrified, watching me simmer with rage. The atmosphere was as if I'd already sentenced the servant to death.
'I'm not angry because of this guy.'
Instead of jumping up and swinging my fist, I waved my hand dismissively.
"Let him go."
"Pardon?"
Philip's eye twitched.
"-!"
"...!"
The servants behind him widened their eyes. Fear and confusion mixed on their faces as they exchanged glances.
Their unexpected reaction surprised me inwardly.
'What are these expressions?'
I'd expected shock mixed with relief, but this was different.
"Y-Young Master!"
The kneeling servant grabbed my pant leg.
"I'm sorry! The lord noticed too quickly, so I...!"
He began banging his head on the floor.
"I covered for you, saying you'd gone to the village as you ordered, but he didn't believe me at all!"
A desperate cry mixed with sobs burst out.
"I won't make the same mistake again! Please, just... not that place...!"
That place?
'Ah, I see.'
The place the castle servants feared most, accessible only to Philip and Abel.
The basement warehouse, originally for old books and items, was now filled with torture devices, groans, and the dank stench of blood.
Abel was a pleasure-killing maniac who toyed with humans there.
I understood why they were even more frightened. Staring expressionlessly at the servant wailing below me.
I had no intention of comforting him, but he was too noisy.
"When did I say to send him there?"
At my low murmur, the servant hastily backed away. His body shook like a leaf in the wind.
"Y-Young Master, I... I..."
A cold rebuke frightened people more than fiery shouting.
I brought a finger to my lips.
"Quiet."
The servant hurriedly clamped his mouth shut.
His shoulders shuddered, and soon he shed silent tears streaming down.
Philip and the servants' faces turned ashen. They averted their eyes as if unable to watch the tragedy unfolding before them.
Seeing that, a chuckle escaped me.
'This really makes me feel like the villain.'
Ah, of course, he had been one.
I waved my hand as if shooing a fly.
"If you understand, take him and get out."
The two servants rushed over and grabbed him. The servant had lost all will to resist and didn't move.
Once they were gone, Philip spoke.
"Young Master, wouldn't it be better to leave it to me?"
"To you?"
"No need to waste your time on scum like that."
A resolute light gleamed in Philip's eyes. He was prepared to dirty his own hands.
"Just leave it to me. I'll make sure he never repeats such a mistake."
At a glance, he seemed the devoted butler full of loyalty.
But.
'A sly old fox.'
I already knew Philip's two-faced nature.
He pretended to faithfully assist Abel's games while secretly smuggling out slaves. Unable to stop Abel, he helped the victims another way.
Even now, that was his plan. Talking as if he'd get his hands bloody, but really intending to spirit the servant away.
Truly touching dedication. And utterly pointless.
"I said let him go."
I stated firmly, as if it wasn't worth reconsidering.
While conveying with my eyes a warning that the servant's limbs needed to stay intact until I called for him again.
"......"
Philip's eyes trembled. He seemed unable to even guess what I was thinking.
"......Understood."
The reluctant reply came.
"Leave."
I didn't help with Philip's pointless fretting. No need to.
"Yes."
Without specifying a destination, Philip deftly led the way.
Our destination was the lord's office.
I sat naturally at the lord's desk, scanning the surface.
Documents, quill pens. The positions of every item, drawer heights, reachable depths.
All of it was familiar to Abel. All bore the traces of his touch.
"Bring them."
With a flick of my hand, Philip placed a stack of documents on the desk.
"These are the ones the lord was handling urgently before he stopped."
I pulled the papers toward me, and he stacked another pile beside them.
"These are lower priority; they can wait a bit longer."
I began sharply reviewing the documents. They concerned taxes and commerce in the territory.
Diego thought his son Abel was just a good-for-nothing idler...
"Young Master, your approval, please."
In truth, Abel had extended his reach to territory management during his absences.
Diego spent most of his time at the border, handling urgent dispatches from there and dealing with lesser matters upon return.
He believed the butler filled the gaps well.
'No territory runs smoothly on that alone.'
In reality, everything passed through Abel's hands.
Abel subtly intervened in affairs by approving dispatches in ways Diego wouldn't notice.
Thus, Diego's house arrest order meant nothing to Abel. In the father's absence, Abel wielded unchecked power in the castle.
"Hmm..."
Either way, it was good for me now.
With an expressionless face, I quickly skimmed the documents.
I needed to understand and internalize them as fast as possible. The more I did, the more options I'd have.
While inputting the territory's systems into my head, I began calculating how to use them.
'First priority is learning swordsmanship.'
Building stamina or strength I could do alone. But swordsmanship required a teacher.
In the original, Abel never got that chance his whole life. His father, Diego, forbade it.
Having early sensed Abel's nature, Diego never taught him the sword. Only heir lessons and desk studies.
'Excluding Diego, who could teach Abel swordsmanship...'
No one in the castle, at least. Diego deliberately kept no guards there.
The territory's strongest knight, he spent most time at the northern border with the best knights and soldiers.
If they failed against monsters, Ovest Territory's fall would follow soon.
'Better to advise honorable suicide than beg for life in disgrace.'
Thanks to this policy, Abel roamed freely in the castle. I'd maintain it for now too.
'Then I need to look outside the castle.'
Options narrowed to territory guards or knights under Diego.
But Abel had no authority over them. They wouldn't defy the lord either.
'So how?'
I reached for the list of territory knights, scanning it for useful names.
"-!"
Spotting one, my eyes gleamed.
'This name...'
A sly smile spread across my lips.
'Yes, this one will do.'
He'd make an excellent swordsmanship teacher.
Decision made, I slammed the document stack down and pushed back my chair to stand.
"Young Master?"
Philip, pouring tea beside me, looked puzzled.
"Prepare for going out."
"Ah, you're heading out."
A complicated expression crossed Philip's face. Wary of where this wild troublemaker might bolt to.
"Understood. Destination?"
Slipping on the coat he offered, I grinned.
"Cadre."