Chapter 136
Chapter 136
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 136
Chapter Title: Hostile Takeover
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The Kasta estate, befitting a count's family, was located in the heart of the city, but unlike the Graves family, it had no garden.
After all, unless you were one of the four great families, there were hardly any clans with the insane wealth to create a garden in the middle of the city.
*Swoosh.*
The shadow of the main building, standing tall in the center of the estate, rippled like the sea. From within, the shadow whale, Orca, shot up, its mouth gaping wide.
A man in a red mask leaped from Orca's mouth, landing on the ground with a light roll.
The man in the red mask waved casually at Orca as it flapped its tail and dove deep into the building's shadow, its job done. He then scanned his surroundings.
After confirming no one was around, he entered the main building through a window.
"An intruder—"
A maid walking down the hall spotted the man in the red mask and was about to scream, but the moment he removed it, her pupils dilated as if she were possessed, and she collapsed to the floor.
A smile touched the man's hideous face, a sight so grotesque that anyone without a strong stomach would immediately look away.
"Dreaming of turning your life around by catching the master's eye? A shame. If you weren't just a maid, you might have been useful."
He possessed a Talent called 'Desire Rampage,' which allowed him to see into others' desires and amplify them until they burst forth.
Using this power, he had driven someone on a diet to die from binge eating and had drawn out a monk's lust, turning him into a pervert overnight.
And that wasn't all. He had reverted a reformed villain back into a murderer in a single day.
He was the natural enemy of all beings with desire, a walking disaster.
Was that why?
At some point, he had become one of the Four Calamities, infamous throughout the Infinite World.
"Now, where would the head of the house be..."
A calamity of the Infinite World.
Amor, the one who held the reins of desire, once believed no one in this world could suppress him.
That is, until he met Lee Si-woo.
*Tsk, I don't know how I ended up in this mess, tangled up with such a ruthless bastard.*
In truth, he still couldn't believe he had become Lee Si-woo's subordinate.
There was no living creature in this world without desire, and he was the master of desire.
And Lee Si-woo was practically the incarnation of desire itself.
Therefore, under normal circumstances, Lee Si-woo should have been powerless against Amor.
*That mask is the problem, that damn mask...*
Just as he was about to stimulate Lee Si-woo's unchecked desires and bring him to ruin...
Lee Si-woo had donned the Faceless Mask, and Amor was forced to submit helplessly.
In the face of its divinity, Amor's Talent was useless.
*Tch, if only I'd known beforehand that the mask had restrictions, I wouldn't have been so easily devoured by him.*
Lee Si-woo was extremely reluctant to wear the mask normally.
It was to avoid needlessly consuming the divinity he had gathered to face the Five Divine Seeds.
So, if he had just put up a half-hearted fight and then fled, Lee Si-woo probably wouldn't have pursued him.
That cheapskate would never use his divinity for a mere chase.
*Well, it's a meaningless hypothetical now that I'm stuck serving the guy.*
As Amor walked down the hall, the maids and servants unfortunate enough to cross his path collapsed one by one, like puppets with their strings cut.
It was because Amor had sent their innate 'desire for sleep' into a rampage.
Soon, Amor passed through the long corridor and arrived at the room of Rubin, the head of the Kasta family.
*Creeak.*
Lord Rubin, who had been lying in bed about to sleep, was startled by Amor's sudden appearance and shouted.
"Who are you! How dare you enter this place?!"
Amor nonchalantly sat in the chair beside Rubin's bed and spoke.
"No need to be so surprised. I'm a messenger from Alma Graves."
"What? From Alma...?"
"Hmm, it seems pointless to ask, but he insisted I do. Rubin Kasta, are you willing to abandon all your current plans and negotiate with us?"
Rubin, judging Amor to be a messenger of surrender sent by Si-woo, smirked.
"Alma's messenger? Heh heh, that young whelp must be getting desperate. I suppose he never dreamed Voluf had collected such evidence. So? Is he going to beg me not to sue?"
Amor picked at his ear and sighed.
"Looking at you, it seems you have no intention of negotiating."
"Negotiate? I can, if you wish. On the condition that Alma kneels before me and apologizes."
Amor shrugged.
"You're spouting nonsense. That monster kneeling to you? Hmph, your family would probably be wiped out before that happens. Well, as expected, negotiations have failed... Now then, let's take a look inside you."
Amor's pupils swirled.
Rubin, who had unwittingly met his gaze, froze.
He felt those unsettling eyes piercing through his very mind.
"Ugh, you bastard, what are you... doing..."
After peering into Rubin's mind, Amor burst out laughing.
"Well, look at this. A father who covets his daughter-in-law? Now this is a masterpiece."
The moment he saw Amor's eyes, Rubin seemed to lose his mind, his head drooping like a broken robot as his fingertips trembled.
He had been consumed by Amor's Talent, Desire Rampage.
The whites of Rubin's eyes showed as veins bulged on his neck, his body shaking uncontrollably.
A moment later, Rubin suddenly turned his head toward something.
Seeing his gaze fixed on his son and daughter-in-law's room, Amor spoke.
"Go, Rubin. Go, and express every last bit of your secret desire."
As Rubin let out a monstrous scream and ran, Amor switched his smartphone to recording mode and followed.
Amor chuckled and muttered.
"Ah, it's going to be an enjoyable night for a change."
* * *
"My lord. Here is the list of corporations sponsoring Acumen's mercenary company."
After checking the names of the seven or so companies, Lee Si-woo spoke.
"Begin acquiring these companies. If they refuse, use the Scales of Absurdity to duplicate their products and sell them at a ridiculously low price. Oh, and if any of them are sensitive about their reputation, it might be a good idea to bring Amor along."
"Shall I ensure all these companies withdraw their sponsorship contracts?"
"It'd be a shame to stop there. A mercenary company would obviously venture into the Infinite World, right? To get artifacts and resources."
"Should we use The Decapitators to raid their ships?"
"That would be the fastest way to get Acumen to surrender."
Just then, a middle-aged dark elf in a fine suit burst into the room. It was Rubin Kasta.
The moment he saw Lee Si-woo, he snapped.
"The video. Hand it over."
Lee Si-woo, his legs crossed, tapped his foot.
"For nothing?"
Rubin's eyes narrowed at Lee Si-woo's informal tone.
"Are you trying to see this to the bitter end? Look here, Alma. Even a cornered mouse will bite a snake. What you're holding is something I can never accept..."
Lee Si-woo let out a dry laugh.
"Accept?"
Rising from the sofa, Lee Si-woo stuffed his hands in his pockets and circled Rubin like a shark.
"Still can't grasp the situation? Hey, Rubin. Get a grip. What do you think will happen if I send this to the press? Wow, the headlines will be something else. 'Psychopathic Lord Attacks Son and Daughter-in-Law.' Something like that, maybe?"
Rubin clenched his fists tightly and lowered his head.
"...I'll hand over the evidence we collected. And I'll give an interview stating it was all the woman's fabrication."
"No. You have to tell the truth about everything. That this was all a scheme by the Kasta family to frame me, that the evidence was fabricated. Also, that the 'victims' who flocked to the foundation were fakes you hired."
"I-if I do that, our family is finished. How can a family that openly opposes the Graves survive in the Demon Country?"
"You know that well. Which is why you should have known your place. How dare a stray dog bite a lion's ankle without knowing its place?"
Shaking with rage at Lee Si-woo's insult, Rubin shouted.
"You're the one who started it! If you had at least given us a hint, Alma! No, if Voluf's crime hadn't been so vile, this never would have happened!"
Lee Si-woo lightly tugged on Rubin's tie and murmured.
"That's right. I started it. But... I'm allowed to. You're not."
"What... did you say?"
"What do you mean? It's romance when I do it, an affair when you do."
Lee Si-woo released the tie.
He looked down at Rubin, who had stumbled and fallen on his rear, and continued.
"Negotiation? Bargaining? There's none of that. You have only two choices. Confess everything and slowly fall to ruin. Or be engulfed in all sorts of filthy scandals and be destroyed overnight. Well, if I were you, I'd choose the former. The latter... is just too pathetic. A father who coveted his son's wife? Could you even live with the shame?"
Rubin glared at Lee Si-woo, who was clicking his tongue and shaking his head, with bloodshot eyes.
"What if I... what if I declare war?"
"Who? You? With me?"
"If I throw caution to the wind and focus all my power on attacking you, I guarantee I can kill you, and you alone."
Lee Si-woo grinned.
"Interesting. Go ahead."
"...You're so naive, Alma. You're not the entire Graves family, just its youngest son. If our family puts its mind to it, we can easily..."
"Stop talking and just do it. But can you handle the consequences? What if that guy you met that night pays you another visit? Do you think you'll be able to keep your sanity then?"
Having said that, Lee Si-woo narrowed his cold eyes and lifted Rubin's chin with his index finger.
"Rubin Kasta. War? Try it if you dare. But remember this one thing. The day you pick a fight with me will be the last day of the Kasta family."
"For a youngest son with no real power base, you're certainly confident. Fine, we'll see. In a few days, you'll find out exactly who doesn't know their place!"
"My, my, how stubborn. Then again, maybe this is for the best. A sharp young man is more useful than a fossil with a rigid mind."
Lee Si-woo sent a text message on his smartphone, and the door opened to reveal Rubin's son, the eldest of the Kasta family.
Vince Kasta walked in.
Vince stared at Rubin with an ice-cold expression.
"By whose authority do you declare war, Father?"
"V-Vince! How are you here?!"
"How? Is that something a father who tried to assault his son's wife two days ago should be asking?"
"...You know it too. It was a mistake. An unavoidable one, brought on by that bastard Alma's scheme..."
"No. It wasn't because of a scheme. Let's stop lying and be honest about our desires. Yes. You coveted my wife, and I coveted your position."
At Vince's confession, Rubin pointed a finger and raised his voice.
"You, you...?!"
"Our lifespan as dark elves is quite long. But you had me at a young age, so I am growing old alongside you. At this rate... I'll never become the head of the family until I'm on my deathbed. Frankly, there's no guarantee I'll even outlive you."
As Vince continued his dangerous remarks, an agitated Rubin spoke urgently.
"Vince! Snap out of it! You're being played by Alma Graves! He's using you!"
Lee Si-woo spoke in a languid voice.
"This is boring. Vince, I'll give you the video. You handle it from here. You know... what I want, right?"
Vince bowed his head to Lee Si-woo.
His desire for the family headship, ignited by Amor, had turned him into a runaway train who would stop at nothing to achieve his goal.
Yes, to the point where he wouldn't hesitate to remove even his own father.
"All the false rumors against you will disappear as of tomorrow, and everything will return to its proper place. Furthermore, Rubin Kasta, who in a fit of madness coveted his daughter-in-law, will be confined to a mental institution starting today. Permanently."
"Vinnnnnce!"
An enraged Rubin lunged at Vince, but Lee Si-woo blocked him, rendering him helpless.
In truth, both Vince and Rubin were pathetically weak in terms of personal combat ability.
With levels barely reaching 400, they were so weak that not even the Si-woo from his Granada days, let alone the current one, would have had trouble with them.
It couldn't be helped.
The power of nobles came not from their own strength, but from the vast networks and influence they possessed.
Of course, there were exceptions like the four great families, but comparing them to a mere count's family was absurd in the first place.
The gap between them was simply too vast to put them on the same level.
Lee Si-woo, who had easily subdued Rubin by grabbing his neck with one hand, spoke.
"I told you to just know your place. Why did you have to go and make things difficult? What a pain."
"Alma... you bastard... I'll never let you get away with this..."
*Thwack!*
Lee Si-woo chopped the back of Rubin's neck, knocking him out.
He wanted to kill him right here and now, but he held back.
If the head of a count's family died in his residence, the situation would escalate uncontrollably, regardless of the circumstances.
"Take him away. You are now the master of the Kasta family. Oh, and as we agreed, we'll say you uncovered all of this. A son who stopped his father's mad scheme to slander the Graves family. That should keep the scandal from getting too big."
"Thank you."
"But don't forget. You're my man now. And the Kasta family, too."
"...I will keep that in mind."
"Well, people's minds change. You might have a change of heart once you return to your family. But if that happens..."
As Lee Si-woo trailed off, Vince quickly shook his head.
"That won't happen. I don't have the guts to challenge the master of Amor, one of the Four Calamities."
"Hmm, so you knew about Amor?"
"Yes. He is the only one who can draw out desires and manipulate people as he pleases. And the master who commands Amor..."
Vince looked at Lee Si-woo with a strange heat shimmering in his eyes.
"...is one of a kind. The master of The Decapitators clan. Crown."
Lee Si-woo chuckled.
"I was wondering why you gave in so easily. So you recognized me."
"More than that, I was surprised. A scion of the Graves family is Crown? And... Lord Alma, the one treated as an outcast, no less."
"Hmm, it'll get out eventually, but for now, I'd like to keep it a secret."
"Of course. A promising unlisted stock is always better when fewer people know about it."
"Good, then go. And keep your mouth shut."
"...Thank you, Crown. For giving me this opportunity."
"Enough with the flattery. And stop calling me Crown. What if someone hears you?"
Vince took hold of Rubin, bowed deeply to Lee Si-woo, and left the room.
Once the room was quiet, Harman, who had been looking at his smart pad throughout the conversation, spoke up.
"My lord. Adrian Vampire. He says he is free tomorrow... What are your orders?"
Lee Si-woo's eyes gleamed.
"Adrian? Excellent. I was just thinking I wanted to see the face of the bastard who touched my woman. So? Where did he say to meet?"
"He asked you to come to the Vampire family estate, but since it's enemy territory, it feels unsettling. My lord, perhaps it would be better to arrange for a different location?"
"No, this is even better. It's a good chance to go there and see the Vampire family's strength with my own two eyes. That way... I can wipe them all out without leaving a single ant behind."