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[Translator - Kiteretsu]
[Proofreader - Kyros]
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Chapter 13
He focused his gaze on the numbers in the document.
Reading through it twice, he was able to memorize every single number, down to the last decimal point.
‘One piece of evidence secured.’
But this alone wasn’t enough.
He needed a decisive blow.
‘It’s about time they walked into the trap.’
Just then, the butler hurried back.
“Here is the wine you requested.”
“Thanks. You’re not upset with me, are you?”
“N-Not at all! How could I possibly feel that way!!”
“Good. You know, even though I act like this, I actually like you a lot.”
“Th-Thank you! I am always loyal to you, Young Master!”
After exchanging such a ridiculous conversation—
The butler rolled his eyes nervously before speaking up.
“Um… Young Master. Actually, I have something to tell you.”
“Hm?”
“There are some friends looking for you. The ones you used to be close with. They wish to meet you discreetly. At… the usual place.”
Chris stared at the butler.
He was smiling as if trying to be friendly, but Chris could sense the emotion hidden in his eyes.
‘Hostility.’
“Ah, I personally think it would be best if you didn’t associate with them. Their reputation isn’t exactly the best…”
Chris smiled.
If the butler were truly concerned, he wouldn’t have delivered the message at all.
“I’ll meet them.”
“Young Master?”
“Didn’t you hear me? I said I’ll meet them. Pass the message along.”
The butler’s eyes widened before he bowed his head.
“As you command.”
Chris smirked.
‘Caught you.’
He knew.
The rat had stepped into his trap.
It was time to catch the rat.
What kind of people were a scoundrel’s friends?
Naturally, they were of the same kind.
Children of fairly influential families—disgraced heirs.
They were the original friends of the previous owner of this body, Christian.
“It’s been a while, my friend!”
“I heard you’ve changed. It was so amusing.”
Chris only gave a slight nod as he watched the men approach him, pretending to be close.
‘They said they were the sons of the estate’s landowners?’
The Magus Empire, the world of the demons, had a societal system similar to that of the outside world.
There were estates, and there were estate residents.
However, the key difference was that instead of knights and nobles ruling over the people, it was demons who had mastered demonic energy that held dominion.
As a branch of the Dark Demonic House, the House of Khazar controlled vast lands. The ones gathered here were the children of lower-ranking officials who managed the estate on behalf of the count’s family.
“Still, to think you’d insult the young lady of the Venomous Demonic House. As expected of the most degenerate among us—Christian!”
“Yeah. Christian is the one closest to being an actual dog.”
Chris smirked as he listened to them, pretending this nonsense was some kind of joke.
His so-called friends tilted their heads at his unusual reaction.
Something felt different.
“We haven’t seen each other in a while, but you’re awfully quiet. Are you not happy to see us?”
“Ah… it’s nothing.”
Chris simply smiled.
“Let’s just head inside.”
The place they had met was the busiest district of the largest city in the Khazar County.
Stepping into a building tucked away in an alley, an unexpected scene unfolded—something unimaginable from the outside.
A dimly lit tavern.
A place that dealt not only in alcohol but also in various illicit activities.
“It’s an honor to serve you again, Young Master!”
The manager, with a sly grin, came out and bowed deeply.
“How may I serve you?”
“Just as we discussed.”
“Yes, of course! Please, come inside!”
One of his friends spoke up, and the manager swiftly responded.
Inside a spacious room, lavishly prepared appetizers and strong liquor were soon brought in.
‘Wait… isn’t this whiskey from the Carn Empire? Even Carn Empire nobles would have a hard time getting their hands on this, and yet here it is?’
Chris clicked his tongue.
And that wasn’t the only surprise.
“This here is someone we’ve specially prepared for you, Young Master.”
A girl—perhaps in her late teens?
She had a delicate face and was trembling as she stepped inside.
She was here to serve drinks.
‘Pathetic.’
Chris frowned.
For reference, his current body was only fifteen years old.
And yet, not only was he drinking heavily, but he was also being served like this.
Judging by the looks around him, it seemed like a normal occurrence.
Truly, what a disgraceful degenerate.
‘And they’re no different.’
Chris narrowed his eyes as he observed his so-called friends.
“What’s wrong? You don’t look too pleased. Did the Count scold you too harshly?”
“Or is it that you don’t like the girl?”
Chris shook his head.
"Come on, just drink."
"Alright, I'll pour you a glass. Here!"
One of the so-called friends poured a drink.
Chris lifted the glass to his lips.
He had no intention of drinking it—he was only smelling it.
Sure enough, there was a 'scent' in the alcohol.
A scent that others wouldn't have noticed.
But Chris had spent years in the backstreets dealing with illegal activities, and he instantly recognized what was in the drink.
It was drugged.
'So that's their plan.'
He had known from the beginning that this meeting was a setup by that rat, the butler, Kox.
He had been wondering what kind of scheme it would be, and now he had his answer—they were trying to get him addicted.
'They wouldn't just stop at making me high. They would have planned something that would make me commit a terrible mistake under the influence.'
He already had a guess.
Chris glanced at the trembling girl.
"What are you doing? Hurry up and drink."
The so-called friend who had poured the drink urged him again, sounding nervous.
Chris held out the glass to that friend instead.
"I'm not in the mood. You drink it."
"What? B-But…"
The guy stuttered.
"C-Christian, I poured this drink for you. Of course, you're the one who should drink it…"
"You're not refusing because you're afraid of the drug in it, are you?"
"!!"
Their faces hardened.
Chris snapped his fingers.
A one-star dark magic spell, Slumber’s Descent, was cast.
The trembling girl collapsed into a deep sleep.
His so-called friends widened their eyes at the seamless display of magic.
"Christian? Since when could you use dark magic?"
"Shut up."
"W-What?"
"I said, both of you, shut up. You're disgusting."
Chris grabbed each of their heads with a different hand—
BAM!
He slammed them onto the table.
"Keugh!!"
"Kraaaagh!!"
He didn't stop at just one hit.
Again and again, their faces were smashed into the table.
Blood splattered everywhere in an instant.
The surprising thing was that despite the loud commotion inside, no one outside was coming in to check.
Because Chris had already cast Silence.
"S-Stop…"
"W-Why are you doing this…?"
Chris shrugged.
"You really don't know why I'm doing this? Then I guess you need to be beaten more."
BAM!!
Once again, their heads were slammed into the table.
They tried to resist in their own way, but it was futile.
After easily subduing them, Chris used another one-star dark magic spell, Dark Bind, to tie their hands and feet.
"S-Stop!! W-We were wrong…!! W-We only drugged the drink to… to make you enjoy yourself more, Christian!"
"Bullshit."
BAM!!
He repeated the process.
Until their screams of pain turned into confessions of their sins.
"P-Please… s-stop. A-At this rate… we'll die…."
"You're speaking too casually."
BAM!
"AAARGH! W-We're sorry! W-We were just following orders! Christian, you—n-no, you were the one we were told to drug!"
"And what were you planning to do after drugging me?"
They hesitated.
Chris slammed their faces into the table again.
BAM! BAM!
"AAACK!! W-We… we were supposed to frame you for the girl's murder!"
Chris let out a hollow laugh.
Even in the Magus Empire, murder was a serious crime.
Fights between mages sometimes led to "unintentional killings," which were often overlooked, but killing an ordinary civilian without reason was strictly forbidden.
In other words, they had set up a perfect trap to utterly destroy him.
"Who ordered you?"
"T-That is…."
"It was the butler, Kox, wasn't it?"
Their eyes widened.
Realizing that Chris already knew everything, they hung their heads in defeat.
"Y-Yes… that half-vampire bastard was blackmailing us… we had no choice."
As expected.
Now that Chris had confirmed the rat’s identity, he fell into thought.
‘Why?’
Why was Kox trying to bring about Christian’s downfall?
There shouldn’t have been any personal grudge.
‘Well, I'll find out once I catch him.’
Chris didn’t dwell on it further.
He drew a dagger and pressed it against their throats.
"You did something worth dying for, so you wouldn’t have any complaints if I killed you, would you?"
"P-Please… spare us…!!"
"And why should I do that?"
Chris asked indifferently.
Realizing he was serious, the two of them trembled uncontrollably.
"Please, just spare us! We'll do anything if you let us live!"
"We'll even become your slaves if that's what you want, Lord Christian!"
It was a desperate plea, spoken without thought, purely out of a desire to survive.
But unexpectedly, Chris reacted to their words.
"Do you swear that you can truly do anything?"
"Y-Yes! Anything!! Even if you tell us to become dogs!"
"Are you sure you can swear on that?"
"Y-Yes!! We swear!!"
Chris's lips curled into a smirk.
"I'll gladly accept your oath."
Sizzle.
With a horrifying sound, as if a branding iron was being pressed into flesh, a symbol briefly appeared on their foreheads before fading away.
Chris had just activated Mark of Binding, a terrifying dark magic spell that allowed him to enslave someone under specific conditions.
"From now on, obey my every command."
Their eyes widened in shock upon hearing the order.
Now, it was time to cut off the head of the rat caught in his trap—Butler Kox.
* * *
Count's Estate – Count's Office
Count Khazar stood by the window, his expression heavy.
"Christian went into the city?"
"…Yes, that is correct."
Butler Kox bowed his head.
"My apologies. I should have stopped him somehow."
"No… how could that be your fault?"
Count Khazar let out a long sigh.
Butler Kox had reported that Chris had gone to an illegal tavern with his delinquent friends.
What he might be doing there… the Count didn't even want to imagine.
‘If I hadn't gotten my hopes up, I wouldn't be this disappointed.’
He thought this time would be different, but once again, it was the same.
Just as Count Khazar's expression turned bitter—
Suddenly, the commotion outside his office grew louder.
"What is going on?!"
The moment Count Khazar furrowed his brows, BANG!—the door to his office swung open.
A mage rushed in, his face pale as a sheet, shouting,
"This is bad!!"
"…What happened?"
Count Khazar's heart pounded uneasily.
"They say the Young Master has committed murder in the city!"
* * *
The Count's estate was thrown into complete chaos!
"W-What do you mean? Murder?!"
Count Khazar's hands trembled.
"His friends rushed to the estate and informed us immediately!"
"Bring them in!"
Moments later, the friends who had been with Chris earlier appeared.
Seeing their battered, utterly broken expressions, Count Khazar's brow twitched.
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[Translator - Kiteretsu]
[Proofreader - Kyros]
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