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[Translator - Pot ]
[Proofreader - Kawaii ]
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Side Story Chapter 1: Theodore Haksen (1)
Hello. My name is Theodore Haksen. I'm 10 years old this year.
You don't know who I am? That's okay.
I didn't tell you my name expecting you to recognize me.
But my uncle is a little different.
Just mention his name and everyone knows who he is.
The Emperor knows him, kings know him, and high-ranking nobles all know him too.
Even farmers working in the countryside know about my uncle.
So who exactly is my uncle, you ask?
My uncle is...
"Damien Haksen."
At my single statement, the faces of the men surrounding me go blank.
It's a familiar sight.
Everyone gets shocked when they hear my uncle's name.
I can predict what reaction will come next like threading beads on a string.
"Pff, bwahahaha! Did you all hear that? He says Damien Haksen is his uncle!"
"Kahahaha! In all my life, I've never heard such bullshit!"
Just as expected.
I've seen this reaction so many times that I'm not even angry anymore.
"Kid, do you even know who Damien Haksen is before telling such lies?"
"The world's greatest warrior, the greatest swordsman of all time, the Sword God—whatever title you give him, he's an absolute being that makes sense!"
"The Empire's Emperor crawls before him... no wait, every nation on the continent bows their heads like slaves to that man, and you're saying he's your uncle?"
You all know exactly who he is.
That's right. This is the kind of person my uncle is.
Rumors tend to be exaggerated, don't they? But when it comes to my uncle, that never happens.
No matter how much you exaggerate, it can't match the real thing.
Oh, but who are these men, you ask?
Well, you see...
"Even if you don't want to die, how can you tell such ridiculous lies? Huh?"
"Kid, it's so absurd I almost believed it for a second."
An old smell of blood.
Murderous intent flowing from their eyes.
Old, rusty weapons in their hands.
Just from this description, you can tell, right? These men are bandits.
And I was on my way to play in the city when I had the bad luck of running into these men.
I worked hard for a whole month to finally trick my mother and uncle into letting me out, only to meet bandit uncles.
I really have no luck.
"Hey kid, tell me honestly. Is this all the money you have?"
The bald man asks while looking at the copper coins piled on the ground.
"Yes, this is really all I have."
"You're a noble, right? Why are you so poor?"
"Only 80 copper coins? Even our damn dog would be worth more than this."
How very rude.
I saved up every penny to have fun at the festival in the city.
Oh, our family isn't poor. Gifts come in from all over the continent every day.
We're constantly building new warehouses because there's no room to store all the gifts.
But Mother only gives me a small allowance because she doesn't want me to develop wasteful habits.
Recently, my uncle felt sorry for me and secretly gave me spending money, but he got caught by Mom.
So my uncle got scolded terribly by Mom...
"Hey, I'm asking you one last time. You really don't have any more?"
The man who seems to be the leader points a dagger at my throat as he asks.
Even by eye, it looks incredibly sharp.
He must have worked really hard sharpening that blade.
But you know what? I'm not scared.
"No, I don't have any more."
"I thought I'd smell some money for once... what bad luck."
"Boss, what should we do with this kid?"
"What do you mean what should we do? Just kill him."
Seeing how he orders someone killed without any hesitation, he must have done this many times before.
These uncles are much worse than I thought.
"Rather than killing him, why don't we just sell him? The kid's already got such distinct features for his age... I think he'll become incredibly handsome when he grows up, don't you think?"
"You got a place to sell him?"
"I know a madam well, and we could get at least 20 gold coins. I heard noble ladies looking for pretty boys are increasing these days, so supply is short."
"Is that true?"
The boss grins wickedly.
He looks very vile and meaningful.
"Uncles, why don't you just let me go instead?"
At my words, all the bandits' attention focused on me.
This is a bit burdensome.
"What did you just say?"
"It's not too late yet. If you let me go, you'll at least be able to preserve your lives."
"Ha, this little brat is bold, isn't he?"
The boss lets out a scoffing laugh as if he can't believe it.
But his eyes are full of murderous intent... I guess he's gotten really angry.
"You know what I hate most? Cocky little brats. Hey, teach this kid some manners before we sell him."
"Yes, boss."
"Don't hit his face since it might lower his value."
Sigh.
For once, I let out a deep sigh.
Why do people always bring trouble upon themselves?
Or is this what the priests call karma?
"You're sighing? This bastard still hasn't come to his senses. Let's give him a beating first."
The fat man raised his fist high.
Wow, with all those calluses on his knuckles... it would really hurt if he hit me.
But that fist never came down.
Swish
Because a familiar black line was drawn between me and the fat man.
"Huh?"
"What?"
The bandits' gazes focused on the black line. They all looked confused.
"H-hey guys, what is this?"
"I-I don't really know either."
The bandits don't know, but I do.
I sighed deeply and muttered.
"That's why I told you to just let me go..."
The black line split open wide, creating a black hole.
Something walked out from inside.
A giant height close to 3 meters.
Thick arms and legs reminiscent of tree trunks.
Gray skin reminiscent of ash.
Crimson eyes that seemed to drip with blood.
Say hello. This is my uncle... Damien Haksen.
"..."
After coming outside, my uncle first glanced over me and the bandits.
He's probably assessing the situation.
Fortunately, seeing how calm he is, the bandits' survival chances might have increased a little...
"Grrrrr."
Oh, correction.
He just lost his reason.
"Um, excuse me...?"
Wow, the boss actually spoke to my uncle.
He's really brave, as befits a leader.
"D-Damien Haksen, sir...?"
"Grrrrr."
"P-please calm down a little..."
"Grrrrrr."
But my uncle has already lost his reason.
There's no way words would get through.
"S-so... y-your nephew is safe."
"Grrrrr."
"L-look! N-not a hair on his head has been harmed!"
"Grrrrr."
"E-excuse me? J-just wait a moment..."
"GRAAAAAAAH!"
Letting out a beast-like cry, my uncle kicked the boss away.
That's as far as I could see.
The moment he was kicked, the boss disappeared.
"B-boss!"
"The boss disappeared!"
The remaining men shouted in panic.
I know where the boss went.
I've seen this scene more than once or twice.
Where did he go, you ask?
To the sky...
He flew up into the sky.
My uncle's kicks can crumble castle walls like sandcastles.
"Grrrrrr!"
My uncle's gaze turned to the remaining bandits.
The bandits' faces turned white as paper.
"R-run! He's crazy!"
"Waaaaah! Mom! Mommy!"
The bandits scattered and started running away, but... there's no way they could escape from my uncle.
Every time my uncle moved, the bandits disappeared one by one.
They're all probably flying above the clouds.
They say when my uncle is this powerful, he can kill people just by releasing his killing intent.
But do you know why he does it this way?
It's because of me.
He kicks people far away like this so I don't have to see corpses.
But does my uncle know?
This is scarier...
After people disappear, blood and flesh pieces fall from the sky a little while later...
"Huff, huff."
Only after sending all the bandits flying did my uncle's anger subside.
"Theo!"
Oh no, my uncle is going to scold me.
"I told you not to go outside the castle alone!"
"Waaah... Uncle, I'm sorry."
It seems like my uncle won't forgive me easily this time.
He only let go after grabbing and shaking my cheeks several times.
"Sniff..."
"Let's go home now."
My uncle knelt in front of me.
I can see his incredibly broad back.
I obediently climbed onto my uncle's back.
I really love it when my uncle carries me.
Some people think my uncle's gray skin is dirty.
Like a corpse or something? But that's wrong thinking.
What corpse? My uncle's body actually smells really good.
"Uncle, can't you keep this secret from Mom?"
"Then I'll get scolded by your mother, so no."
People say my uncle isn't afraid of anything, but they're wrong.
He can't do anything against my mom, grandpa, grandma, and my younger uncle.
As an exception, he's not afraid of my dad.
Rather, my dad seems to be afraid of my uncle.
Oh, and there's another being he's afraid of.
"Uncle."
"What."
"The aunties asked me to ask you. They want you to choose one of them quickly."
"Cough."
My uncle's body shook greatly.
Whenever I bring up the aunties, my uncle gets flustered.
Because there are quite a lot of aunties.
Some are in the Church, some in the Empire, some in mercenary groups...
"That's... well... returning to a human body comes first..."
"You're not avoiding returning to a human body because of the aunties, are you?"
"T-there's no way that's true."
Hmmmm.
Something seems suspicious, but I decided not to ask any more.
I really love my uncle.
So I don't want to make him uncomfortable.
"Uncle."
"What."
"I love you."
"Don't say such embarrassing things."
My uncle chuckled and added one more thing.
"I feel the same way."
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[Translator - Pot ]
[Proofreader - Kawaii ]
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