“…I’ll take my leave now.”
Ekion, having finished his errands, departed from Blackmore with weary steps. Despite his evident distress over the endless demands placed upon him, he had no choice in the matter from the very start. The corpse of Ouroboros was something that couldn’t be found even by scouring the entire continent, and the opportunity to study such a rare item was something he might not encounter again in his lifetime. Hence, no matter what I demanded, he was in a position where he had to accept.
Though the things I’d asked for were quite numerous, in his perspective, any material goods could eventually be obtained with enough time. But the corpse of Ouroboros was an opportunity that, if missed, would never recur.
Would a master-level magician, one who had reached the height of magical mastery, pass up the singular chance to approach the roots of the world?
“Hey, you really drained him to the bone, didn’t you, Sixth Lord?”
“…Grand Lord.”
With a sly grin, Arkhan approached and flopped into the seat opposite me. She maintained her usual expression as she smiled lightly at me.
“Planning to completely oppose the Star Sect, huh?”
“Why, are you worried?”
“Hmm, not particularly? If you, Sixth Lord, believe it’s necessary, then so be it. The guys from the sect may be a bit stubborn, but they’re not something to overly concern ourselves with. Besides…”
Her gaze flicked toward the window. Following her line of sight, the faint image of Elfried emanating golden radiance and healing people came into view.
“Come to think of it, you’re not really wrong, are you? After all, the real Saint is on our side.”
Indeed, it was true. Agreeing with Arkhan, I nodded slightly. As she’d rightly pointed out, the moral ground was on our side. The ones who were duping the public with a fake Saint are the members of the Star Sect, not us.
“Haha, I wonder how that b*stard, the Pope, will react when you and the First Lord go against each other?”
It’s obvious—he’s going to freak out. Judging by the First Lord’s character, he likely won’t explicitly mention our deal, but any intelligent mind will be able to piece together the context. After the Star Sect sent a threatening message ordering me to stop pretending to be a saint, the situation between me and the First Lord deteriorated. And the fact that this First Lord happens to be a member of the same Council of Lords only adds another layer. Once they realize these facts, the thought of my name is sure to set their teeth on edge.
“By the way, when are you planning to leave?”
“For what?”
“I mean, the duchy. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten that the real saint who saved the duke poisoned by the lethal toxin was following you around like a little puppy.”
…That’s right, I had completely forgotten. I remember hearing from the steward that the duchy wanted to invite me to offer some kind of reward. But traveling all the way there seemed tedious, and with pressing matters piling up right before me, it somehow slipped my mind.
Noticing my silence, Arkhan seemed to understand the situation and smirked slightly.
“You’ve forgotten, haven’t you?”
“…”
“Yeah, yeah. You’ve been busy, after all. But since we’re here, do what you feel comfortable with, Sixth Lord. Honestly, it’s not that urgent, right?”
She’s right. Extracting compensation from the duke wasn’t something that was urgently critical for me. Certainly, I intended to thoroughly acquire whatever recompense I deserved, but it didn’t need to be immediately done now. The fact that the duke owed his life to Elfried wasn’t going to change over time.
Still, I couldn’t easily agree with Arkhan’s suggestion. Because I felt it was about time to set off toward the duchy.
‘Soon, the story will begin to unfold according to the original.’
I am a transmigrator. Consequently, I’ve always kept the timeline of the original story in my mind. According to my memory, the protagonist of the story should start their activities around this time. The reason I can confirm this is because the beginning of the original story happens a few months after the d*ath of the duke—but in this timeline, I accidentally saved him. Nevertheless, the event has already transpired, and from my calculations, the start of the original timeline isn’t far off.
‘The protagonist will appear soon, as well.’
The moment the protagonist of the original story begins their activities marks the real turning point where the world begins to drastically change. Although the continent is already tilting toward its destruction, once the original story starts unfolding, the chaos will accelerate.
At this realization, I immediately summoned Sir Siron waiting outside.
“Siron.”
“Yes, Sixth Lord.”
“I intend to set off toward the duchy as soon as the sun rises. Please prepare accordingly.”
“I shall immediately see to the necessary arrangements.”
Thus, as time continued, night fell.
*
As the crackling fire roared, I sat by its glow deep in thought.
Although I had inadvertently stepped into the world of magic and become a Lord, my goal had never changed—to escape the framework of the original story and live a peaceful life. Of course, I’ve been ensnared by the senile Emperor, but that doesn’t mean all opportunities have vanished.
Being a Lord doesn’t necessarily mean leading a life devoid of rest. In some ways, it might even be more convenient. The essence of being a Lord is being “the one who gives orders.” If I delegate all the tasks bestowed upon me to others, I might just be able to achieve my aims.
However, there were still some obstacles that needed overcoming.
First, the Star Sect. By now, they must be planning all sorts of schemes fueled by their anger at me—but this was not an adversary that would back off after a few defenses. It was clear that they would continuously harry me until my retirement.
Second, my background. The Count Richter family might appear on the surface to be a respectable old magical family, but beneath that lies much complexity. In the original story, they serve as the villains who entangle the protagonist and maintain close ties with the Star Sect. Simultaneously, they are the center of the faction that often opposes royal policies. Worse still, I happen to be an illegitimate child of this family.
The situation is, therefore, much more complicated than expected. If left unchecked, things are bound to get even more tangled. Although I am a Lord, my influence is still minimal. The Lord’s domain is isolated within the Magic Realm, and I didn’t have the chance to build a reputation beforehand like other Lords.
Hence, the stronger allies I gather, the better.
‘That said, the duchy is one of the necessary paths I need to take.’
The duchy, in terms of land alone, is an ideal territory brimming with prosperity. However, its central governing body, the royal house, is in turmoil. The cause lies in their precarious succession structure. Thanks to the late duke’s countless liaisons with women, there are currently ten contenders vying for the ducal throne. Among them, the first prince stands out as the leading candidate. Unfortunately, he happens to be one of the Star Sect’s puppets.
“So, should we just k*ll this first prince right away?”
Listening quietly beside me, Rudine tilted her head in confusion. It never fails to amaze me how her thought process always directly leaps to the ‘d*ath’ resolution after hearing any explanation.
“No, we can’t rush to k*ll him.”
“Why?”
“He’s quite competent. It would be a waste.”
“…If he’s competent, shouldn’t he just d*e anyway?”
“Why waste a resource if we can bleed him dry? Let’s make him a double agent instead, using half his power.”
The first prince of the duchy was a thorough opportunist. All of his actions were centered on his self-preservation, meaning he could do anything if he perceived a threat to his own safety. This was true even in the original story, where he initially sided with the Star Sect against the protagonist but quickly switched sides when the situation turned against him.
Therefore, taming him wouldn’t be too difficult.
Still, there was a more pressing issue at hand.
Rudine herself was a living calamity, harboring the soul of a Thousand Slaughter within the Seeds of Doom. Until now, Iphrashia’s ring had been slowly absorbing her murderous intent, but with the ring lost, there was currently no way to contain her Thousand Slaughter tendency.
I quietly recalled the passages from the original story about Rudine. Every time she couldn’t control her Thousand Slaughter tendencies, her soul risked being consumed by madness, leading to fits of rage. During these episodes, her inherent aggression—and desires—intensified.
Indeed.
Just like now.
“…”
Rudine, who had been staring at me, swallowed audibly. Her gray eyes were tinged red from the effects of her madness, and her crimson gaze locked onto me, flickering with a ravenous light, akin to that of a hungry beast. As she approached, she exhaled sharply in hunger.
“Rud…in…”
She strained to form her sentence, her voice hoarse and her words broken. Whether it was a plea or a warning, it was unclear as she extended her hand towards me.
“My, body…feels…strange…”
“…”
…This is trouble.
—
[Note: The provided HTML code appears unrelated to the translation request, so I omitted its translation and interpretation.]
