Chapter 121
Chapter 121
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 121
Chapter Title: Reincarnated as the Plum Blossom Sword Master in a Count's Family
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The timeline of the original story, White Phantom, where the protagonist of the novel, Kyle Prukus, ventures out from the mansion into the city every now and then, had arrived.
Kyle, having reached the Expert level, realized that training alone wouldn't elevate his realm further. He stepped outside the estate in search of a breakthrough.
That's when he encountered a female adventurer and learned about adventurers. The problem was that she was being chased by bandits. During her adventure, she had run into the bandit gang, killed them, and fled to the city of Pterus.
The adventurer woman had done nothing wrong. On the contrary, she deserved praise for eliminating the bandits. If she hadn't fled from them, her fate would have been either slaughter or being sold into slavery—two grim possibilities. Escaping to a major city was the right call. Even the most brazen bandits wouldn't dare rampage like wild beasts in a big city.
The issue is that this adventurer woman got tangled up with Kyle, the second son of the Prukus Count family.
Kyle had a strong sense of justice. Ignoring a woman in danger? That would betray his beliefs.
And Kyle possessed power. He wouldn't dream of using the Prukus family's influence for something like this. He tried to handle the bandits alone. And as an Aura Expert, he naturally succeeded.
Many city dwellers now knew Kyle was an Aura Expert. Taking down the bandits was a righteous act. It was only natural for the citizens to hail Kyle as a hero.
But right now, back at the mansion, the eldest son of the Prukus family, Gent, has returned.
Gent must have felt a sense of crisis. His younger brother had reached the Aura Expert realm at a younger age, and the city folk were praising Kyle. Kyle's feat wasn't confined to the city; it was slowly spreading throughout the entire territory.
If Gent had been the officially designated heir, he might not have cared. However, no successor had been chosen for the Prukus family yet. Gent was merely the most likely candidate at the moment.
Gent made his move politically.
Kyle Prukus was currently locked in the family dungeon.
The apparent reasons were two-fold. First, fighting bandits within the city, where civilians could have gotten caught in the crossfire. Second, acting unilaterally without informing the family.
Elaine's decision to imprison Kyle stemmed more from the second reason than the first. Of course, the biggest factor was Gent's behind-the-scenes maneuvering.
Still, it's just a few days in the dungeon at most.
The servants would tend to him constantly, so it wasn't real prison life. Not just a bed and blankets—they'd keep the dungeon warm with magic tools. He'd eat meals prepared by the head chef himself. It was merely residing in the dungeon.
Elaine had sentenced him to a few days there as punishment for acting on his own without family approval.
The dungeon's already been cleared out long ago.
Originally, the Pufrek Bandits and the low-rank parasitic demon Saphin were imprisoned there, undergoing torture.
I knew the original story was about to start. I couldn't just leave them there.
Officially, they were reported as executed, and I smuggled them out. No one cared about the execution of some bandits, making it easy.
Right now, the Pufrek Bandits and Saphin were probably still being tortured in a house on the outskirts of the city. I'd installed cameras, so I could check remotely via laptop.
"Yuria."
I called out to Yuria as I rose from my chair.
"Yes, Master."
Yuria approached and straightened my clothes. I accepted her touch familiarly.
"What about that woman?"
The woman I was asking about was the adventurer Kyle had helped.
Her name was Claudia Lebre. A tall woman with red hair. She wielded dual swords. Silver-rank adventurer. Her current skill level was peak Aura User.
And one of the five heroines in the original story.
I hadn't seen her myself. Yesterday, when the incident happened, I was rolling around in bed with Yuria.
"She left the city last night. Shall I assign someone to tail her?"
"No need. It's fine."
Claudia didn't know Kyle had been imprisoned. Elaine had tightly sealed lips about it, as it wasn't good news.
I hadn't done anything to Claudia because I didn't want to alter the future with my actions. Kyle would meet Claudia later and grow stronger. True to her heroine status, Claudia had a significant role in the original story.
If things follow the original, Claudia should be active in the labyrinth city of Rabit.
I already knew her location, so no need for a tail.
"Let's head to the dungeon. I need to see Kyle."
Yuria and I went to the dungeon. As expected, servants were bustling about to minimize Kyle's discomfort.
I was Kyle's brother. I bypassed the servants' obstruction and reached the deepest cell where Kyle was held.
Kyle wasn't on the plush bed but sitting cross-legged on the hard stone floor, eyes closed in meditation.
"Brother Kyle."
I called out to him. Kyle slowly opened his eyes. He looked at me first, then at Yuria beside me.
"Eugene...! What brings you here?"
"I came because I was worried about you... but you look perfectly fine. Guess I didn't need to bother."
"The servants have been taking good care of me. Still, thanks for coming. And Yuria too."
I noticed Kyle's gaze lingering unusually long on Yuria.
I'd learned recently that Kyle had a crush on Yuria.
Considering Kyle's tastes, Yuria fits perfectly.
Yuria was stunningly beautiful on the surface. Serene yet flawless in her duties. Kyle himself seemed oblivious, but he was definitely smitten.
But that Yuria rolls with me every day... Heh heh.
All Kyle knew about Yuria was her outward appearance. He had no idea she was an assassin on the verge of Aura Expert, that beneath her gentle facade she was ruthless enough to torture without hesitation, or what sounds she made when pinned beneath me.
This guy's so dense he probably doesn't even realize he's in love with her. Without someone pointing it out, it'll take him forever to figure it out on his own.
Kyle was hopelessly clueless about romance.
I smirked inwardly and placed my hand on Yuria's shoulder. Her height still edged mine out a bit, making it slightly awkward, but no issue. Yuria stood still, showing no reaction.
Kekeke.
I didn't miss Kyle's eyebrow twitching.
"...Eugene. Why are you suddenly grabbing Yuria's shoulder?"
"Oh. Suddenly got dizzy..."
"Dizzy? You're an Aura User who can handle mana."
"True, but having mana in my body doesn't cure heart conditions. Yuria, you okay?"
"No, it's fine. Supporting Young Master Eugene is the duty of his exclusive maid."
"......"
Kyle shut his mouth. With Yuria saying she was fine, he had no grounds to intervene.
"Uh, uh... S-sudden dizziness..."
I glanced at Kyle, then deliberately staggered, collapsing toward Yuria's chest.
Yuria didn't dodge this time either. Instead, she grabbed my shoulder and pulled me into her embrace. The back of my head pressed against her breast.
"Falling here would be trouble. I'll support you, Young Master Eugene."
"Ah. Thanks."
I looked at Kyle. His expression was utterly rotten. He probably didn't even realize how bad he looked.
Enough teasing...
I pulled a key from my pocket. The key to the ancient warrior training ground I'd found here years ago. An ancient relic.
In the original story, Kyle was supposed to find it, but I'd snagged it first. Been using it well. Thanks to it, Yuria and I had grown considerably stronger.
"That key...?"
"It's an ancient relic. Lets you use the ancient warrior training ground. You love training, right, Brother Kyle? Figured you'd get bored in here, so I'll lend it to you. Use it for a while. You can even come out of the dungeon; no need to return it right away."
"An ancient relic is incredibly valuable. You're lending it to me...?"
"Brother Kyle. We're brothers."
"Eugene...!"
Kyle's face lit up with emotion. He knew how precious ancient relics were. Even family hesitated to lend them out.
"Here. Train with it. I'll tell the servants. You can even pretend to be in bed the whole time."
"Thanks, Eugene. I won't forget this."
"No big deal."
Yeah. Don't ever forget that I lent you this one-of-a-kind treasure.
I chuckled inwardly.
Lending the key wasn't out of kindness.
Kyle needed to get stronger to be useful. A weak Kyle was worthless. The ancient training ground would strengthen him quickly, just like in the original.
Above all, I can obtain Kyle's combat data.
I was the master of the ancient training ground's Kartman. I could have the AI Kartman collect Kyle's data. From it, I could analyze or even decipher Kyle's Plum Blossom Swordsmanship.
The moment Kyle slips from my control... I'll kill him.
If I can't control him, better to eliminate cleanly.
"Urgh."
I staggered again.
"Young Master Eugene!"
Yuria hugged me tightly to keep me from falling.
"Sorry, Yuria. Feeling rough today. Brother Kyle, I think I need to rest."
"Take care and get some good rest."
Kyle watched us with a complicated gaze.
Supported by Yuria, I moved away from Kyle.
Once we were out of earshot, I groped Yuria's ample breast and said,
"Yuria. Front or back—which do you want to do?"
Yuria let out a small laugh at my question.
"...Whatever Master desires. I like either."
"Then both, why not."
Looks like another hot night ahead.
"Fuck."
My face was crumpled like crumpled paper as I left Elaine's office. The curse slipped out automatically.
Something unexpected had happened today.
It wasn't annoyance or anger at Elaine. She had merely relayed the message.
Count Ention Prukus. So this is how you play it?!
To cut to the chase, I'd been granted a barony and territory by Ention.
The granted territory was the port city of Tebra. A half-day's carriage ride from Pterus, where the Prukus mansion was—relatively close.
To be precise, once Ention returned to the mansion in a month, I'd officially receive the barony and have to depart for Tebra.
Protesting was impossible. Ention had already decided, and it was a done deal. In my position, I had no choice but to accept.
Barring something extraordinary, the odds of Ention reversing his decision... were less than 1%.
This is basically kicking me out of the Prukus successor race entirely.
This happened because I'd shown too much talent. I'd brought modern goods to make money and even bought a mana awakening potion. Achievements made solely on my own merit, without family support.
Seeing that, Ention judged me fit to be a lord and granted me Tebra—a tiny port city with just 5,000 people.
Damn it. How did it come to this!
Tebra wasn't a good city. It had sea access, but no ships came. Because nearby was the much larger Slaveid Port City under Count Slaveid. Slaveid dwarfed Tebra.
Tebra survived as part of Prukus territory, but that was it. In my eyes, it had zero growth potential.
I can't give up the Prukus count title here. I need to find a way somehow...
My furious strides halted abruptly.
I'd run into Gent in the hallway.
Gent, with his goatee, smirked and waved at me.
"Eugene. What's wrong? You don't look happy."
"......"
The moment I heard Gent's irritating voice, a lightbulb went off in my head.
This guy.
This bastard whispered poison into Ention's ear.