Episode 154. Comfort Was Needed
The Grand Duke of Artaeum, observing the situation through the eyes of a field mouse, ran to the bathroom in one breath and cast a spell.
Summoning a field mouse before him, he transformed into his own form. Then, he teleported to Baku.
Baku, the surefire way to clear his name.
It was foolish not to use magic in a situation where he could die.
The Grand Duke teleported to Neruan and approached Baku. He then struck Baku in the head, knocking him unconscious. Baku, who had been raging until just now, hung his head helplessly.
"Your Highness? What can I do if you come like this!"
Neruan shouted in shock.
There were already so many eyes watching him. How dare he escape like this!
Neruan, unaware that the Grand Duke of Artaeum had left a field mouse behind as a substitute, was on the verge of fainting.
The Grand Duke didn't answer Neruan's words, but opened the fallen Baku's mouth. He then removed the remaining poison from his mouth.
Fortunately, it hadn't passed through his esophagus, so his life was not in danger.
"You experimented on poison day and night, and now you don't care about your own life."
Neruan rushed to the Grand Duke as he muttered to himself.
"Now that you've saved his life, let's hurry and go back to prison!"
Neruan grabbed the Grand Duke by the collar and shook him.
The Grand Duke, already weak from the magic, was tossed around by Neruan's hands.
"How can I trust you and go?"
Even as he swayed like a reed, the Grand Duke didn't spare any harsh words for Neruan.
"Don't worry, and go back. It's just a matter of time before he confesses."
"I can't go."
"Go ahead."
The Grand Duke of Artaeum, observing the situation through the eyes of a field mouse, ran to the bathroom in one breath and cast a spell.
Summoning a field mouse before him, he transformed into his own form. Then, he teleported to Baku.
Baku, the surefire way to clear his name.
It was foolish not to use magic in a situation where he could die.
The Grand Duke teleported to Neruan and approached Baku. He then struck Baku in the head, knocking him unconscious. Baku, who had been raging until just now, hung his head helplessly.
"Your Highness? What can I do if you come like this!"
Neruan shouted in shock.
There were already so many eyes watching him. How dare he escape like this!
Neruan, unaware that the Grand Duke of Artaeum had left a field mouse behind as a substitute, was on the verge of fainting.
The Grand Duke didn't answer Neruan's words, but opened the fallen Baku's mouth. He then removed the remaining poison from his mouth.
Fortunately, it hadn't passed through his esophagus, so his life was not in danger.
"You experimented on poison day and night, and now you don't care about your own life."
Neruan rushed to the Grand Duke as he muttered to himself.
"Now that you've saved his life, let's hurry and go back to prison!"
Neruan grabbed the Grand Duke by the collar and shook him.
The Grand Duke, already weak from the magic, was tossed around by Neruan's hands.
"How can I trust you and go?"
Even as he swayed like a reed, the Grand Duke didn't spare any harsh words for Neruan.
"Don't worry, and go back. It's just a matter of time before he confesses."
"I can't go."
"Go ahead."
"I said I can't go."
"...You don't trust me?"
"Yes."
Neruan's expression was hurt by the Grand Duke's words, which he answered without a second's hesitation.
“...How can you say such things without a second thought? I work so hard for Your Highness, the Grand Duke. I can’t even sleep four hours a day, devoting all my energy to clearing your name. Yet, Your Highness, the Grand Duke doesn’t even realize how much I’ve worked for you and keeps causing trouble. I told you never to use magic, and even now uou ignores me—”
“Don’t worry. I’ll put someone in prison to replace me, so nothing will happen.”
The Grand Duke, who had been quietly listening to Neruan, finally interrupted due to the incessant nagging.
Seeing Neruan’s suspicious gaze, the Grand Duke finally added,
“I can’t use teleportation right now anyway. I’ve already depleted quite a bit of my magic power.”
It wasn’t a lie.
Using so much magic at once while his mana was unstable made him feel nauseous. His body lost all strength.
‘Well... His Highness the Grand Duke wouldn’t have escaped without a second thought, would he?’
The Grand Duke suddenly appeared and made him lose his composure for a moment.
Taking a step back and thinking about it, it seemed unlikely the Grand Duke would have used magic without any preparation.
“Leave Baku to me.”
Grand Duke Artaeum muttered, his gaze fixed on the collapsed Baku.
“You said it would be difficult to use magic right now. What are you planning to do?”
“...”
The Grand Duke stared blankly at Baku, then turned to Neruan. Then he spoke with a meaningful voice.
“We just need to move his heart.”
If Neruan’s approach had been aggressive, the Grand Duke intended to take a more inclusive approach.
He would understand Baku’s loss, stimulate his loyalty, and lead him to tell the truth.
“Ugh...”
Soon, Baku, who had been losing consciousness, opened his eyes with a groan.
His eyes were still covered with black cloth, and he could see nothing.
“I'm... not dead?”
It was a powerful poison. It was so deadly that it could kill the moment it passed through the esophagus, yet he was still alive.
Before being captured by Neruan, he tried to get to Cedric.
He tried to close his eyes using the poison he had spent a lifetime experimenting with on Cedric, but Neruan caught him just in time.
Despite the emergency, Baku remained calm and did not spit out the poison. He left it in his mouth in case of any brutal torture.
He thought death was better than torture. Although Neruan did not inflict physical pain on Baku, he felt so distressed that he wanted to die.
Cedric, his master, was more precious than his own life. He could not bear tohear that he had killed him.
"I see you've come to your senses."
As Baku trembled, the voice of the Grand Duke of Artaeum reached his ears.
Baku furrowed his brow and quietly closed his mouth.
"... A different voice than before."
He realized there were two people before him, not one.
"There was definitely only one at first."
He hadn't suspected that one of them was the Grand Duke. Not only had he never actually met the Grand Duke, but he hadn't even imagined that someone who should have been imprisoned could be here.
"...Why did you save me?"
He hadn't died despite biting the poisoned capsule, likely thanks to the help of his captors.
Baku's joy at being alive was completely gone. Instead, his voice was filled with resentment.
"...Why didn't you just leave me alone?"
He'd been robbed of the chance to close his eyes in peace.
Those were the days when he'd lost the will to live, to the point where the saying, "I'm living because I can't die, " resonated deeply.
The Grand Duke of Artaeum stared at the helpless Baku before speaking politely.
“I would like to apologize for what my subordinate said.”
“!”
“!”
Neruan and Baku flinched simultaneously.
They hadn’t expected the Grand Duke of Artaeum to offer an apology.
Neruan was deeply uncomfortable with the Grand Duke’s words.
Baku was a villain.
The deeds Cedric and Baku had committed were horrific.
They were so cruel that they would not hesitate to conduct immoral biological experiments for the benefit of their family.
Whatever the reason, the sight of the Grand Duke apologizing to Baku was deeply uncomfortable.
Perhaps sensing Neruan’s gaze, the Grand Duke of Artaeum glanced at him.
The Grand Duke brought his finger to his lips, making a gesture for him to remain silent.
His apology wasn’t out of affection for Baku.
It was simply part of a strategy to get what he wanted.
“I don’t think you killed Cedric. So, forget about that.”
“...”
The Grand Duke’s strategy seemed to have worked, and Baku, who had been grumbling, fell silent.
“I’m sorry.”
The Grand Duke threw words at Baku that he didn’t mean.
“Who doesn’t know that you served Cedric terribly? Someone like you would never harm his master.”
“...”
“And... Don’t feel too guilty about Cedric’s death. Cedric passed away in an unexpected accident.”
“...”
Baku listened to the Grand Duke of Artaeum’s words in silence. He found himself listening intently to the Grand Duke’s words.
“So, it wasn’t your fault.”
For a moment, he couldn’t hold back the emotions that welled up in him.
It was strange.
He was the same gang that kidnapped him, tied him up, and spewed insulting words about killing Cedric...
How could those words be comforting?
Baku's nose tingled.
At those vicious words, giving him a bottle and medicine...
A single, insincere word sent a pang through Baku's chest.
His eyes grew moist.
The pitch-black cloth covering his eyes darkened, like ink spreading.
He couldn't even remember how many decades it had been since he'd shed tears.
He hadn't even shed tears when he lost an eye.
But then, tears streamed down his face at the words of the Grand Duke of Artaeum.
He desperately needed words of comfort.
He desperately wanted to be told that Cedric's death wasn't his fault.
After Cedric's death, every day of Baku's life felt like hell.
The guilt of not being able to protect his master tormented him.
He knew exactly who had killed Cedric, but even revenge was impossible. He couldn't harm the one who had killed him.
The culprit was the person Cedric loved more than anyone else in the world. That's why Baku couldn't do anything.
No matter how much he hated them, he couldn't harm them, not even a single hair.
All he could do was hate himself for not being able to prevent that moment.
“Ugh... Ugh.”
A sound escaped his lips, trying to hold back a sob.
“It’s not your fault.”
Hearing that same indifferent comfort once again, his tear ducts welled up.
Baku, who had been weeping silently, finally broke down into sobs.
Cedric’s death felt like his fault.
He blamed himself so fiercely that even shedding tears was unforgivable.
“Master... I couldn’t save you... Please never forgive me.”
Through tears that nearly choked him, all he could say was, “Don’t forgive yourself.”
“Master... Master... Master!!”
The sobs echoed mournfully.
The cloth covering her eyes had long since soaked through.
Baku needed a moment like today.
A time to truly mourn Cedric’s death.
He desperately needed this moment.
Cedric might have been infamous to others, but to Baku, he was a precious person he had to protect.
Even a villain who seemed heartless was, after all, human.
He crumbled helplessly in the face of the death of his beloved.
The Grand Duke of Artaeum didn’t fret.
He remained silent, allowing Baku to let Cedric go.
It was a long time before Baku finally spoke.
“...Let it go.”
Having calmed down somewhat, Baku spoke calmly, along with the words for his release.
“The real culprit who killed Cedric went unpunished.”
“...I’m not interested in finding the culprit.”
“Your master, whom you devoted your life to, is dead, and you don’t want to catch the culprit? That’s very strange.”
“...”
Baku didn’t respond to the Grand Duke of Artaeum’s words.
“You do know, don’t you? Who is the real culprit who killed Cedric?”
“...I’ve heard all sorts of nonsense.”
He quietly denied the Duke.
“You couldn’t do anything because you knew who the culprit was.”
“Nonsense.”
“Someone Cedric cared for so much that you couldn’t do anything.”
“....”
Baku didn’t want to answer the Grand Duke’s questions about the culprit.
“I won’t ask about the culprit.”
“!”
“I just wonder if this is okay.”
The Grand Duke of Artaeum studied Baku with sharp eyes with each word he uttered.
So that he wouldn’t miss a single reaction to his words.
“You intentionally hid Cedric’s body. Then, you had a change of heart and dug it up again.”
Baku swallowed hard at the Duke’s words.
Everything the Duke said was true.
The Grand Duke’s voice, as if he knew everything, made it impossible to relax.
“I know why you did this.”
“...I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
The Grand Duke of Artaeum ignored Baku’s still feigned ignorance and spoke his mind.
“You would have hoped that the culprit who ignored Cedric’s death would truly regret and apologize.”
"...You don't trust me?"
"Yes."
Neruan's expression was hurt by the Grand Duke's words, which he answered without a second's hesitation.
“...How can you say such things without a second thought? I work so hard for Your Highness, the Grand Duke. I can’t even sleep four hours a day, devoting all my energy to clearing your name. Yet, Your Highness, the Grand Duke doesn’t even realize how much I’ve worked for you and keeps causing trouble. I told you never to use magic, and even now uou ignores me—”
“Don’t worry. I’ll put someone in prison to replace me, so nothing will happen.”
The Grand Duke, who had been quietly listening to Neruan, finally interrupted due to the incessant nagging.
Seeing Neruan’s suspicious gaze, the Grand Duke finally added,
“I can’t use teleportation right now anyway. I’ve already depleted quite a bit of my magic power.”
It wasn’t a lie.
Using so much magic at once while his mana was unstable made him feel nauseous. His body lost all strength.
‘Well... His Highness the Grand Duke wouldn’t have escaped without a second thought, would he?’
The Grand Duke suddenly appeared and made him lose his composure for a moment.
Taking a step back and thinking about it, it seemed unlikely the Grand Duke would have used magic without any preparation.
“Leave Baku to me.”
Grand Duke Artaeum muttered, his gaze fixed on the collapsed Baku.
“You said it would be difficult to use magic right now. What are you planning to do?”
“...”
The Grand Duke stared blankly at Baku, then turned to Neruan. Then he spoke with a meaningful voice.
“We just need to move his heart.”
If Neruan’s approach had been aggressive, the Grand Duke intended to take a more inclusive approach.
He would understand Baku’s loss, stimulate his loyalty, and lead him to tell the truth.
“Ugh...”
Soon, Baku, who had been losing consciousness, opened his eyes with a groan.
His eyes were still covered with black cloth, and he could see nothing.
“I'm... not dead?”
It was a powerful poison. It was so deadly that it could kill the moment it passed through the esophagus, yet he was still alive.
Before being captured by Neruan, he tried to get to Cedric.
He tried to close his eyes using the poison he had spent a lifetime experimenting with on Cedric, but Neruan caught him just in time.
Despite the emergency, Baku remained calm and did not spit out the poison. He left it in his mouth in case of any brutal torture.
He thought death was better than torture. Although Neruan did not inflict physical pain on Baku, he felt so distressed that he wanted to die.
Cedric, his master, was more precious than his own life. He could not bear tohear that he had killed him.
"I see you've come to your senses."
As Baku trembled, the voice of the Grand Duke of Artaeum reached his ears.
Baku furrowed his brow and quietly closed his mouth.
"... A different voice than before."
He realized there were two people before him, not one.
"There was definitely only one at first."
He hadn't suspected that one of them was the Grand Duke. Not only had he never actually met the Grand Duke, but he hadn't even imagined that someone who should have been imprisoned could be here.
"...Why did you save me?"
He hadn't died despite biting the poisoned capsule, likely thanks to the help of his captors.
Baku's joy at being alive was completely gone. Instead, his voice was filled with resentment.
"...Why didn't you just leave me alone?"
He'd been robbed of the chance to close his eyes in peace.
Those were the days when he'd lost the will to live, to the point where the saying, "I'm living because I can't die, " resonated deeply.
The Grand Duke of Artaeum stared at the helpless Baku before speaking politely.
“I would like to apologize for what my subordinate said.”
“!”
“!”
Neruan and Baku flinched simultaneously.
They hadn’t expected the Grand Duke of Artaeum to offer an apology.
Neruan was deeply uncomfortable with the Grand Duke’s words.
Baku was a villain.
The deeds Cedric and Baku had committed were horrific.
They were so cruel that they would not hesitate to conduct immoral biological experiments for the benefit of their family.
Whatever the reason, the sight of the Grand Duke apologizing to Baku was deeply uncomfortable.
Perhaps sensing Neruan’s gaze, the Grand Duke of Artaeum glanced at him.
The Grand Duke brought his finger to his lips, making a gesture for him to remain silent.
His apology wasn’t out of affection for Baku.
It was simply part of a strategy to get what he wanted.
“I don’t think you killed Cedric. So, forget about that.”
“...”
The Grand Duke’s strategy seemed to have worked, and Baku, who had been grumbling, fell silent.
“I’m sorry.”
The Grand Duke threw words at Baku that he didn’t mean.
“Who doesn’t know that you served Cedric terribly? Someone like you would never harm his master.”
“...”
“And... Don’t feel too guilty about Cedric’s death. Cedric passed away in an unexpected accident.”
“...”
Baku listened to the Grand Duke of Artaeum’s words in silence. He found himself listening intently to the Grand Duke’s words.
“So, it wasn’t your fault.”
For a moment, he couldn’t hold back the emotions that welled up in him.
It was strange.
He was the same gang that kidnapped him, tied him up, and spewed insulting words about killing Cedric...
How could those words be comforting?
Baku's nose tingled.
At those vicious words, giving him a bottle and medicine...
A single, insincere word sent a pang through Baku's chest.
His eyes grew moist.
The pitch-black cloth covering his eyes darkened, like ink spreading.
He couldn't even remember how many decades it had been since he'd shed tears.
He hadn't even shed tears when he lost an eye.
But then, tears streamed down his face at the words of the Grand Duke of Artaeum.
He desperately needed words of comfort.
He desperately wanted to be told that Cedric's death wasn't his fault.
After Cedric's death, every day of Baku's life felt like hell.
The guilt of not being able to protect his master tormented him.
He knew exactly who had killed Cedric, but even revenge was impossible. He couldn't harm the one who had killed him.
The culprit was the person Cedric loved more than anyone else in the world. That's why Baku couldn't do anything.
No matter how much he hated them, he couldn't harm them, not even a single hair.
All he could do was hate himself for not being able to prevent that moment.
“Ugh... Ugh.”
A sound escaped his lips, trying to hold back a sob.
“It’s not your fault.”
Hearing that same indifferent comfort once again, his tear ducts welled up.
Baku, who had been weeping silently, finally broke down into sobs.
Cedric’s death felt like his fault.
He blamed himself so fiercely that even shedding tears was unforgivable.
“Master... I couldn’t save you... Please never forgive me.”
Through tears that nearly choked him, all he could say was, “Don’t forgive yourself.”
“Master... Master... Master!!”
The sobs echoed mournfully.
The cloth covering her eyes had long since soaked through.
Baku needed a moment like today.
A time to truly mourn Cedric’s death.
He desperately needed this moment.
Cedric might have been infamous to others, but to Baku, he was a precious person he had to protect.
Even a villain who seemed heartless was, after all, human.
He crumbled helplessly in the face of the death of his beloved.
The Grand Duke of Artaeum didn’t fret.
He remained silent, allowing Baku to let Cedric go.
It was a long time before Baku finally spoke.
“...Let it go.”
Having calmed down somewhat, Baku spoke calmly, along with the words for his release.
“The real culprit who killed Cedric went unpunished.”
“...I’m not interested in finding the culprit.”
“Your master, whom you devoted your life to, is dead, and you don’t want to catch the culprit? That’s very strange.”
“...”
Baku didn’t respond to the Grand Duke of Artaeum’s words.
“You do know, don’t you? Who is the real culprit who killed Cedric?”
“...I’ve heard all sorts of nonsense.”
He quietly denied the Duke.
“You couldn’t do anything because you knew who the culprit was.”
“Nonsense.”
“Someone Cedric cared for so much that you couldn’t do anything.”
“....”
Baku didn’t want to answer the Grand Duke’s questions about the culprit.
“I won’t ask about the culprit.”
“!”
“I just wonder if this is okay.”
The Grand Duke of Artaeum studied Baku with sharp eyes with each word he uttered.
So that he wouldn’t miss a single reaction to his words.
“You intentionally hid Cedric’s body. Then, you had a change of heart and dug it up again.”
Baku swallowed hard at the Duke’s words.
Everything the Duke said was true.
The Grand Duke’s voice, as if he knew everything, made it impossible to relax.
“I know why you did this.”
“...I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
The Grand Duke of Artaeum ignored Baku’s still feigned ignorance and spoke his mind.
“You would have hoped that the culprit who ignored Cedric’s death would truly regret and apologize.”
“!”
The Grand Duke hit Baku squarely on the spot.
He flinched unconsciously and wiggled his fingers.
The Grand Duke of Artaeum silently observed Baku’s movements before calling his name.
“Baku.”
A quiet voice rang out.
“Don’t let Cedric go like this. Don’t you feel sorry for your master who died innocently?”
Baku's mind went blank for a moment, as if he had been hit in the head.
The Grand Duke hit Baku squarely on the spot.
He flinched unconsciously and wiggled his fingers.
The Grand Duke of Artaeum silently observed Baku’s movements before calling his name.
“Baku.”
A quiet voice rang out.
“Don’t let Cedric go like this. Don’t you feel sorry for your master who died innocently?”
Baku's mind went blank for a moment, as if he had been hit in the head.
Previous Next
Comments
Post a Comment