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[Translator - Kiteretsu]
[Proofreader - Kyros]
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Chapter 12
Bang!!
With a force like roaring flames, Count Khazar burst into Chris’s room.
Chris, his face flushed from drinking, greeted his father.
“Father? Hiccup.”
“What do you think you’re doing?!”
“What else? Day drinking. Nothing beats drinking in the afternoon. Care for a glass, Father?”
Seeing his son completely drunk, Count Khazar clenched his fist tightly.
The air was thick with tension, as if he might strike Chris at any moment. The servants nearby held their breath.
But then, Count Khazar turned his back with slumped shoulders.
“…Do as you wish. I won’t expect anything from you anymore.”
Hearing those words, Chris thought to himself.
Hmm, I feel a little bad. But I can’t exactly give him a heads-up.
His current behavior was all an act.
A bait to lure out the rat.
Seeing him revert to his old ways, the rat would soon make a move. And when it did, Chris would strike first and exterminate it.
But he couldn’t explain that plan to Count Khazar.
There’s a saying: ‘To fool your enemy, you must first fool your allies.’
If his father knew in advance, he’d give something away—no matter how small. And then, the rat would become cautious and avoid the trap.
Still, seeing him like that leaves a bitter taste… But this is for the good of House Khazar, too.
At that moment, the banshee floated over, swaying playfully.
[Ohoho… Are you worried about your father? My, my… Our young master is quite the devoted son.]
“…For the love of—can you please stop saying ‘watta’?!”
[But ‘watta’ is ‘watta.’ I don’t see the problem. Now then… please, have a drink.]
Using her poltergeist ability, the banshee poured Chris a drink.
Being served by a banshee—what a life.
Not an experience he wanted to repeat.
[But still… plotting something like this. Truly impressive, young master.]
The banshee had agreed to help Chris with his plan.
In return, he had promised to grant her one favor in the future—within reason.
[Although… what impresses me even more is something else. You actually managed to modify the 4-star curse spell, Seal of Restraint… and in such a short time, too.]
Over the past fifteen days, Chris hadn’t just been training his body.
He had also been studying black magic.
He mastered several basic 1-star spells.
But he didn’t stop there. He even learned the 4-star curse spell, Seal of Restraint.
For someone at the level of a 1-star sorcerer, it should have been impossible to use a 4-star spell.
So how did he do it?
He modified it.
Adjusted it so that even someone at a 1-star level could cast it.
“I told you, didn’t I? I’m a genius.”
Chris replied nonchalantly as he downed his drink.
Then, he grimaced.
Damn it, I really need a drink.
In reality, the drink in his hand wasn’t real alcohol.
The banshee, who had agreed to cooperate, wouldn’t allow it.
[Ohoho… Young master, you’re underage. No real alcohol for you. You’ll have to settle for a fake drink.]
“…I’m a delinquent. What does it matter?”
[Even so, underage drinking is absolutely forbidden. No exceptions. Ohoho…]
For a ghost that craved the blood of maidens, the banshee was oddly strict about certain things.
Thanks to her, he had to rely on his past life’s alchemy knowledge to remove the alcohol content from his drinks.
His drunken appearance? Just an act, using a secret technique he had learned in his previous life.
He had mastered all sorts of skills, including the ability to look drunk without actually being intoxicated.
Well, might as well take this chance to rest. It’s a shame it’s not real alcohol, though.
He enjoyed lazing around, indulging in pleasure.
Since he was already pretending to be a wastrel, he figured he might as well take a proper break.
Not bad! If the rat takes its time falling into the trap, that just means I get to slack off even longer.
Just as he was about to fully enjoy his long-overdue rest—
Bang! The door was thrown open once again.
Turning his head, he saw an unexpected figure standing there.
Teren?
It was his younger brother.
Teren was breathing heavily, glaring at him.
What’s with him?
Chris was momentarily caught off guard.
Face flushed red, Teren strode over with heavy steps.
Then—
Grab.
He seized Chris by the collar.
“!!”
“What do you think you’re doing?!”
Teren exploded with anger.
“Is this all you amounted to?! Was all that arrogance just to show me this pathetic sight?!”
Chris felt a moment of surprise.
He could see the genuine fury in Teren’s eyes.
It was unexpected.
I thought he hated me.
He probably still did.
But it wasn’t just hatred.
If it were, there would be no reason for him to be so sincerely enraged.
He was disappointed.
And disappointment meant he had expectations—expectations that things would be different.
You don’t expect anything from someone you purely despise.
So, in his own way, he really did see me as his brother.
With that realization, Chris reached a conclusion.
As expected, Teren wasn’t the culprit.
The rat was someone else.
In that case—
I’ll have to use Teren.
Chris opened his mouth.
“Let go.”
“…What?”
“I said, let go.”
Just as Teren was about to snap in anger—
Their eyes met.
“!!”
Teren’s pupils trembled faintly.
He sensed something was off.
Chris was lounging around decadently, but he wasn’t the same as before.
That heavy, suffocating presence he had felt last time pressed down on him once again.
Chris raised a hand and loosened Teren’s grip on his collar.
To his surprise, Teren didn’t resist and stumbled back helplessly.
It wasn’t a matter of strength—he had been overwhelmed by sheer presence.
“Let me ask you one thing. What am I to you?”
“…….”
Teren clamped his mouth shut.
What was he?
The disgrace of the family. A detestable bloodline.
That was what Teren had always thought of his older brother, Christian.
But—
That day, after their bare-handed duel—
Cracks had formed in his belief.
After some hesitation, Teren answered.
“You were nothing but a repulsive piece of trash to me. Just the sight of you was nauseating. I wished you would disappear forever.”
Blunt words, laid bare.
“And now?”
“…Now, you’re someone I want to crush properly.”
Chris chuckled.
That meant, in his own way, Teren had acknowledged him as a rival.
And now, seeing Chris like this, he was furious.
“Well then, Teren. Do you think your brother has reverted to the same repulsive trash he used to be?”
“……”
No.
He could tell instinctively.
Then why was Chris acting like this?
“…You have some kind of plan, don’t you?”
“That’s right. I think there’s a rat in the family.”
“!!”
Chris subtly revealed a piece of his plan.
Teren’s eyes widened.
“You’re saying there’s a rat in the family? Are you serious?”
"Yeah. I can’t say for sure who it is yet, but there’s definitely someone."
“How dare they…!!”
Teren grit his teeth.
“That’s why I need a favor from you.”
“A favor?”
Chris looked at Teren.
Unlike him, a degenerate, Teren was the well-behaved young master, recognized by the family.
And since he was still young, he wasn’t fully shackled by others’ expectations.
He was the perfect person for the job.
“Come closer.”
Chris whispered into Teren’s ear.
As Teren listened to the details, his eyes widened as if they might tear apart.
* * *
After that, Chris indulged in the life of a debauched wastrel.
He slept as much as he wanted, ate whatever he desired, and drank—well, not actual alcohol, but everything else was fair game.
It was bliss.
‘As expected of a noble family. Even the food is top-tier.’
If only his attendants weren’t ghosts, it would be perfect.
Of course, he wasn’t completely wasting his time.
While lounging in bed, he was secretly practicing black magic.
After all, magic could be trained while lying down.
‘Everything I read in the archives is in my head. I just need to master it while lying here.’
Thanks to that, his spell proficiency had skyrocketed.
Before he knew it, he had become adept at a significant number of 1st-tier black magic spells.
At this rate, wherever he went, he could confidently be called a 1st-tier black mage.
And in between, he caused trouble.
If he just quietly ate and drank, he wouldn’t seem like a true wastrel.
He had to make sure the rat fell into the trap as soon as possible, so he put on the most convincing performance of a degenerate noble he could manage.
* * *
“What is this?”
“W-What’s the matter, young master?”
“This isn’t the wine I ordered, is it? Call the butler!”
“T-The butler is currently busy with other matters….”
“Busy? Then I’ll just go find him myself. Hiccup.”
When he arrived at the office, the butler, pale as a sheet, shot to his feet to greet Chris.
“Y-Young master, what brings you here…?”
Instead of answering—
Splaash!
Chris flung the wine, soaking the vampire butler’s pristine white suit in deep red.
The butler, Cox, turned crimson with rage.
Chris watched him with an amused smirk.
‘I can’t just throw a fit at anyone.’
So he focused his torment on the most suspicious person—the butler.
At every opportunity, he sought him out, picked fights, and harassed him over petty matters.
‘Let’s see if he holds it in this time too.’
The impeccably groomed beard quivered slightly.
But surprisingly, the butler held back his anger once again.
“H-Have I done something to upset you, young master? If there was a mistake, I will correct it immediately.”
Chris let out a small “Hooh.”
Even after being drenched in wine, he endured it.
His patience was remarkable.
“The servant brought the wrong wine. Does this mean the butler is looking down on me?”
“Of course not! I will ensure the correct one is brought at once!”
“Bring it yourself.”
“…Pardon?”
“Don’t order the servants. You go and bring it yourself.”
The butler hesitated.
Chris didn’t miss the way his uneasy gaze darted around before settling on a particular section of a document.
“Well… I was in the middle of handling some work.”
“You’re going to continue working in that state? You’ll need to change your clothes anyway, won’t you?”
The butler forced a trembling smile.
For the very person who had thrown the wine to say something like that—it was clear he was barely suppressing his rage.
“I’m being considerate and letting you go take care of it. I’ll keep an eye on things here, so don’t worry. Or… are you truly looking down on me?”
“N-No, of course not. I’ll go at once.”
At Chris’s sharp demand, the butler had no choice but to leave.
He must have thought that a wastrel like Chris wouldn’t have the ability to make sense of any documents, so he let his guard down.
Now alone, Chris’s eyes gleamed.
‘Let’s see what kind of tricks you’ve been pulling.’
He was almost certain the butler was the rat.
‘If… he’s not, then I’d feel a little bad. No, never mind. He definitely is.’
If the butler really was a rat hiding within Count Khazar’s household, then he was most likely tampering with administrative records.
And unlike the stubborn-minded zealots, Chris was exceptionally skilled at reading such documents.
He understood the meaning behind numbers.
He could tell which entries were suspicious.
Just by looking, he could grasp the bigger picture.
And in the short time before the butler returned—changing his clothes and retrieving the wine—
“Bingo.”
A sly grin spread across Chris’s lips.
He had found exactly what he was looking for.
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[Translator - Kiteretsu]
[Proofreader - Kyros]
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