Chapter 41
Chapter 41
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 41
Chapter Title: An Actor in the Slums
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In his past life, Julius's fame earned him an equal number of enemies.
From nobles of neighboring territories to dark mages, heretics, and even demons.
People bearing all sorts of grudges orchestrated countless plots to kill Julius.
Acandus Paern.
He was one of the countless many who held a grudge against Julius.
The reason Allen remembered his name was simple.
‘He was just that impressive.’
Many bore grudges and sought revenge against him.
But Acandus was special, even among them.
His father, Baron Paern, had lost his life opposing Julius's rise as the heir to the countship.
Even after his death, the family's wealth was plundered by Julius.
To avenge his father, Acandus embraced those who held personal grudges against Julius and led them.
In the end.
He succeeded in driving Julius into a corner.
‘...Though he unfortunately failed to kill him.’
The fact that he had managed to corner Julius—something even dark mages, heretics, and demons had failed to do—came as a fresh shock to Allen.
His reason for seeking Acandus out now was also to bring him to his side.
‘The domain's residents who incited the crowd during the Harvest Festival.’
His hand had reached one of them.
That was why he had asked Inellia to track him, eventually finding Acandus in Karvil, a town about three days' journey from El Lound.
Now, nearly a month later.
Allen had succeeded in grasping his location, the scale of the forces he had gathered, and, to some extent, his current situation.
“On the surface, he's a drunkard who hangs around back-alley thugs…”
But behind the scenes, he had a hand in the Harvest Festival incident and was gathering others who held grudges against Julius.
“The situation has changed, but he hasn't.”
Unlike in the past life, his entire family had been shattered, so his thirst for revenge would be even stronger, not weaker.
In contrast to the past life, where it ended with his father's death, this time his entire family was destroyed, branded as tax evaders who fled before trial.
‘And that's not all.’
Julius, the very cause of the family's downfall, was praised for rooting out corruption, while his father's fate—whether he was alive or dead—remained unknown.
Gathering people in secret despite having fallen so low must be in preparation for that revenge.
-Clatter.
Allen opened his eyes in the carriage heading toward Karvil, the city where Acandus was staying.
“He is worth recruiting.”
The future Acandus possessed a value that warranted Allen making a personal appearance.
‘I can't do everything alone.’
It was already a struggle just to improve my own skills. And I'm supposed to gather and lead people on top of that?
‘It's not efficient.’
I might be able to lay the groundwork that way in the beginning. But once I head to the academy? That will become difficult too.
That's why I need someone competent enough to act in my stead—to gather those with grudges against Julius, manage them systematically, and work in concert with me.
‘A more suitable person would be hard to find.’
He has the grudge, and he has the ability.
“Even if I do recruit him, it's unclear whether he'll trust me…”
But trust is something that can be built over time.
The carriage, quieter than usual, proceeded toward Karvil.
* * *
The carriage passed through the checkpoint without any trouble.
As long as he didn't reveal his identity as the heir to the countship, passing through quietly was not a difficult task.
Allen left the carriage at a modest inn and followed Inellia to the tavern where Acandus was staying.
He didn't forget to pull on a mask and robe to hide his identity.
The path through the slums was a complex web of tangled alleyways.
Though it was noon, a dark atmosphere lingered, and crudely built shacks outnumbered proper buildings. Vagrants and the homeless sat listlessly by the roadside, and wary eyes watched from the cracks in windows.
She skillfully navigated the streets, which were filled with filth, garbage, and a foul stench.
Along the way, a few thugs blocked their path, but she dealt with them with a cold expression.
-Thump.
“…Gurgle.”
“…Ghak.”
After a quick glance at the fallen men, their lower bodies soaked in blood, they walked on for some time.
“Is that the place?”
“Yes, he is in there.”
A tavern in a corner of the slums.
A crooked sign hung precariously, and the place was so dark it was hard to tell if it was even open.
“I'll take the lead from here.”
Allen walked forward without hesitation and opened the tavern door. Startled by his sudden action, Inellia quickly followed behind him.
-Creeak.
The old wooden door shrieked as it swung open.
Perhaps due to his confident stride, he could feel gazes converging on him.
Allen's senses quickly swept through the tavern.
Rotting wood barely supported the ceiling. Rats and insects scurried about, and a musty odor, a mixture of cheap liquor and drugs, filled the interior.
‘…To think he'd plot his schemes in a place like this.’
-Clomp, clomp.
As Allen stepped into the tavern, the boisterous noise died down.
His gaze fell upon one man.
A man downing his drink, seemingly oblivious to the surrounding commotion.
Brown hair, green eyes.
‘He looks younger than I remember.’
The stench of alcohol wafted from him, a testament to how much he had drunk.
Allen ignored the piercing stares directed at him, removed his mask, and sat down in the seat next to the man.
“Two bottles of whatever you have here, please.”
He spoke, but no one moved.
“None? Then some food would be fine…”
Allen spoke again as if it didn't matter, but still, no one moved to take his order.
“Hmm, the service here is rather poor. What a…”
“Allen Reinhardt.”
Thud-
Acandus slammed his bottle on the table and spoke. Allen wasn't surprised that he knew his name.
‘He's my enemy's brother. Of course he'd know my name.’
What was more puzzling to Allen was his lack of a more violent reaction. Had he expected this? If so, his response was far too lukewarm...
“You know my name?”
“Know it? Of course I know it, heh…”
His hazy eyes focused as he sneered.
“You're the brother of the bastard who threw my life into the gutter. How could I not know?”
-Scrape.
The men in the tavern began to surround him.
They moved with practiced ease, closing in on Allen. Inellia's eyes grew cold.
As if they weren't even there, Allen smiled amicably and asked.
“Aren't you curious about my purpose here?”
“It's obvious. It's about the Harvest Festival.”
“And yet you're just sitting here?”
Acandus chuckled to himself as if he'd heard something hilarious, then answered the question.
“So what? Should I fight back? Run around, sharpening the blade of revenge, gathering trash like this? Or should I just run away right now?”
“Yes. You should live, even if it means doing that.”
“Khaha… I guess you want to mock me? But…”
SLAM!
“You've got the wrong guy, you bastard!”
He shoved his gaunt face right in front of Allen's, snarling as if chewing on his words.
Inellia flinched at his actions.
With a neutral expression, Allen stopped her from stepping forward.
“What's the point of resisting? Fighting back would only satisfy your vile desires, wouldn't it? If you're going to kill me, just do it cleanly!”
“And if I'm not? Are you willing to believe that?”
“You're not? Someone like you, who couldn't even trust his own father, dares to speak of trust?”
Acandus's expression crumbled in an instant, and he suddenly burst into tears.
Inellia was taken aback by his erratic mood swings.
“My father wasn't that kind of man either. Embezzle money? Squeeze the people dry? Pfft…”
He cried, then laughed, then cried again. Witnessing this bizarre display, Inellia instinctively took a step back.
“He started changing suddenly a few months ago, right. Was it around the time rumors spread that the good-for-nothing had changed?”
His eyes glazed over as he muttered blankly, as if recalling the past.
“Is that why you planted a kid at the Harvest Festival to incite the crowd?”
Acandus spoke mockingly, admitting the truth.
“Yeah, I did. The great Lord Julius is like the rising sun, so what else can a fallen piece of back-alley trash do?”
His admission confirmed Allen's suspicions.
‘I knew it… Baron Paern, Baron Vellon, they were all pawns set up in advance…’
If so, then their opposition to Julius's succession in the past life was likely also part of a calculated plan.
As sacrifices, meant to make Julius shine.
“That's all a rat like me could do, so I had to do something. Compared to him, I'm not even worth a candle's flame.”
Acandus's face was a mixture of anger, regret, guilt, and self-loathing.
‘Anyone else would see this as the typical end for a vengeful man…’
But he wasn't.
Because Allen knew what he would do in the future.
And because he vaguely understood why he was acting this way.
“Enough with the act. Didn't I tell you from the start? I have no intention of killing you.”
“Stop with the bullshit and just kill me already. Or do you want to torture me?”
Allen stared intently at him as he scoffed, pretending not to understand.
“Why are you doing this? You must have already figured out my intentions, haven't you? Or do you really want to die?”
At first, it was puzzling.
But as time passed, he began to understand his exaggerated behavior.
‘He was thinking.’
Wondering if I was really here to capture him, or if I had something to say.
Since Allen had come with just a handmaiden instead of soldiers, Acandus must have decided it wasn't a bad idea to at least attempt a conversation.
‘Judging by his state, he seems to have expected someone to come looking for him.’
He might not have expected it to be Allen, but the fact that he didn't show any panic proved his competence.
That's why he was acting.
To probe my intentions, to confirm my purpose.
‘Even if I were here to capture him, he must have been confident he could create an opening to escape.’
Otherwise, he would have already tried to escape through a pre-planned route.
To him, the forces he had painstakingly gathered were a waste, but not worth weighing against his own life.
“Who? Me?”
He burst out laughing as if he'd heard a joke.
But Allen's senses could detect the subtle quickening of his heartbeat.
This isn't enough.
‘In that case.’
“Why would I be crazy enough to talk with my enemy's brother…”
“Baron Paern.”
He paused for a moment before continuing, as if to say, 'So what?'
“...have a conversation…”
“He is still alive.”
Allen's next words made Acandus freeze.
“What?”
Allen met the eyes of Acandus, who was staring wide-eyed in genuine shock.
He quickly changed his expression with a look of regret, but he knew it was too late.
“You know it's too late. Why don't we talk?”
Since Allen had put it that way, he realized he could no longer hide it and finally spoke.
“Alright, I'm glad you really want to talk… What do you want?”
Allen shook his head.
“We can discuss that slowly. But… there are too many unnecessary eyes here.”
Allen's gaze shifted to the thugs surrounding them.
After all, these thugs were merely pawns Acandus had gathered for his disguise.
“Inellia.”
“Yes.”
She moved.
“Just enough so they don't die.”
At his signal, Inellia launched herself at the thugs as if she'd been holding back.
“Lord Acandus…!”
“You said we could make a score like always…!”
“S-save…”
They cried out Acandus's name, but he watched them with emotionless eyes, paying them no mind.
“Is that your true self?”
To his question, Acandus replied with a smirk.
“They were never my comrades to begin with.”
A few minutes later, everyone except the three of them was writhing on the floor.
Acandus stopped Inellia as she was about to throw them outside and shouted loudly.
“Marvin!”
Allen's senses picked up a homeless man who had been lying near the tavern get up and enter.
“Yes, boss.”
“Clear these guys out. And don't let anyone in for a while.”
“Understood.”
The man called Marvin gestured outside, and dozens of other homeless people entered, swiftly carrying the thugs away and disappearing.
“Are they the real ones?”
“No point in hiding it now. That's right.”
Acandus didn't believe a word Allen said.
Even now, he doubted whether dropping the act had been the right choice.
‘Was I too hasty? If I had just run before we even started talking…’
His original plan was to hear him out, accept a reasonable deal if offered, and if not, create an opening to escape.
He had been confident he could do it.
‘But…’
Their strength was greater than he'd anticipated.
Even his mere handmaiden displayed movements that could not be taken lightly.
‘If I'd known, I would have been more cautious… Tsk.’
His perspective may have changed after his family's fall and living the life of a commoner, but he was fundamentally a nobleman.
‘It's a waste of the time I've invested so far, but it's not like I can't gather them again.’
All he had were his underlings from the slums, who had nothing to their names.
Just because I have nothing, my thinking shouldn't have become so narrow...
‘My greed got the better of me.’
Acandus forced himself to compose his expression and spoke.
“So, what did you want to talk about?”
Allen didn't beat around the bush and answered directly.
“Don't you want revenge on him?”
“What?”
Ignoring the confusion on Acandus's face, Allen spoke in a calm tone.
“I am going to kill Julius.”
As if stating the obvious.
“So, come work for me.”
If you want to kill him.