The Terminally Ill Young Master is the Mad Dog of the Underworld - Chapter 22
Chapter 22: As Cunning as a Serpent, as Strong as a Lion
I had my reasons for suspecting that my mother might hold the key to curing my terminal illness.
“Even Grunewald couldn’t find a cure for this incurable disease.”
If that were the case, it could be a hereditary disease passed down through the maternal line.
If my terminal illness was indeed a family history handed down through my bloodline, then someone on my mother’s side would surely know how to solve it. Wouldn’t they?
And my mother, who might know this secret, was currently in seclusion.
“Then I have to meet her somehow.”
I wasn’t going to pin all my hopes on the elusive Ereshkigal, which was as difficult to find as plucking stars from the sky.
“Oh, dear.”
Who would have thought that recovering my memories would lead to such a burdensome task? The weight on my shoulders, burdened with increased grudges, felt heavier than yesterday.
“But I won’t turn away from it.”
The mad dog Karzan and the terminally ill young master Allenvert were all merely parts of the vessel that was ‘me’.
…And the only way out of this endless cave was to keep walking forward endlessly. I’ve never been a man who lacked perseverance.
As promised, the butler came to find me when the story ended.
“I apologize for the delay.”
“It’s alright. It couldn’t have been easy to resolve the unprecedented situation of the fifth young master of Grunewald attacking his elder brother and returning in tears.”
“Thank you for your understanding.”
The butler maintained his composure even at my joke. He was a well-trained man. Julia would have flared her nostrils.
“Thanks to the healing potion, young master Barclava’s wound seems to be healing quickly. Fortunately, it was only a minor fracture.”
“It’s thanks to his well-trained body.”
I praised Barclava’s training.
“But how will higher ones punish him for the sins of his tongue?”
I asked arrogantly, crossing my legs.
“The second lady has ordered young master Barclava to be confined. She will send a gift to you as a form of apology.”
“I see.”
I’m not a man to refuse gifts.
“Is that all?”
“I believe other matters are still under discussion.”
“Who’s discussing it? The second lady? The head butler? Father?”
“The second lady and the head butler.”
The butler answered as if he had been waiting for the question. Had he anticipated my questions? Competence is revealed in small details.
‘Perhaps the head butler was like this in his youth.’
His straight back, expressionless face, cultured gestures, and plain yet neat appearance. If someone asked me what kind of person a butler should be, I would show them this man.
He was a type that was difficult to find in the underworld. A typical person living in the light, so to speak.
I felt a little awkward around him.
“Your Highness.”
“Speak.”
The butler bowed his head after straightening his posture.
“Actually, starting today, I will be serving you.”
“You?”
“It has been vacant until now, but as the fourth young master of the dukedom, Your Highness is essentially of a rank equivalent to a count or viscount among the nobles. It is only proper to have a butler.”
“Is this part of the compensation for this incident?”
Perhaps, but it’s also a wise decision. A competent butler can be a valuable asset, especially in times of uncertainty.
“I understand. I appreciate your service.”
“It is my duty, Your Highness.”
The butler’s reply was concise and respectful. He was a man of few words, but his actions spoke volumes.
“Well then, let’s begin. Starting today, you’ll be my shadow. Show me what you’re capable of.”
“I will do my best, Your Highness.”
The butler bowed his head once more and turned to leave.
As he walked away, I couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of anticipation.
Perhaps this would be the beginning of a new chapter in my life.
“I would appreciate it if you would think so.”
Were they finally going to treat me like a young master? If so, then Grunewald was even more results-oriented than I thought.
“How do you plan to serve me?”
“It’s traditionally the role of a butler to accompany the noble, manage the entire household, and oversee the servants. This is a lot for a mere servant to handle alone.”
I replied.
“In other words, you’ll be both my adjutant and secretary.”
“Exactly. While Peter is a loyal young man, he hasn’t had the full training one might expect for a servant.”
“True enough. He’s rather ignorant, generally speaking.”
I willingly agreed with his appraisal of Peter’s shortcomings.
“…Therefore, supervising the servants strictly and, if needed, providing them with training will also be part of my duties.”
“That’s welcome news. Particularly if you could teach Peter a few things.”
“Yes, of course.”
The butler didn’t smile this time. Had he learned some kind of meditation to cultivate impassivity?
“Also, as I’ve trained in the martial arts, it is also my duty to take a blow for Your Highness, if necessary.”
“That’s harsh. Are you hinting at something? Like there’s an assassin after me.”
“That’s not the case.”
“Good. You’re a straightforward man.”
It’s rare to find a man like him. I should be grateful for the head butler’s selection.
“Then there’s one thing I’d like to ask of you.”
“Command me.”
“To rehabilitate my body after a long bout of illness, I need to exercise, don’t I?”
“That’s correct.”
“Prepare a training ground by tomorrow morning.”
The butler asked.
“It won’t be difficult. Would you like to train in martial arts?”
“As I said, I want to focus on my physical health first.”
“Understood.”
It was so easy to talk to him. He was clearly a well-educated man.
“Then, let me formally introduce myself. My name is Olivier. I will be serving Your Highness from today onward. Please call me by my name.”
The butler bowed his head.
“I will, Oliver.”
“Then I’ll take my leave.”
“Wait a moment.”
I stopped Olivier from leaving.
“Actually, there’s one more thing I want you to do.”
“What is it?”
I smiled and said.
“I’ll tell you tomorrow.”
There are two ways to annoy people. One is to stop talking mid-sentence, and the other is…
***
Barclava’s face was red with shame.
“Damn it, aaaargh!”
Unable to control his rage, Barclava started smashing the furniture around him.
“That damn bastard! I’ll kill him!”
He had been subjected to all sorts of insults and ridicule from Allenvert, whom he had so despised. His wrist was twisted, he was knocked to the ground, and his knuckles were broken. What a disgrace!
‘How can I ever hold my head up again?’
Even more painful was the fact that he had to remain completely silent, like a dead rat, in front of the guards and servants.
How much they must have laughed at him.
They must have gleefully spread tales of his disgrace.
‘Opening their foul mouths and spitting out filthy saliva. Those bastards.’
Barclava’s eyes turned bloodshot from the delusions of persecution and anger that bubbled up in his mind.
“…….”
The guards watched his behavior, ready for any unforeseen incidents, but they showed no sign of trying to stop or comfort him.
Not only that, but the butler and the servant didn’t dare to interfere either.
They knew that when Barclava was like this, they had to let him rage until he calmed down.
Of course, it wasn’t that there was absolutely no one who could calm him down.
“The second young master has arrived!”
The man Barclava feared most appeared.
“Brother?”
Barclava shut his mouth as if nothing had happened.
His expression was half pitiful, half pathetic, and the servants lowered their heads and averted their eyes, pretending not to see.
“Greetings to the second young master.”
The guards greeted him as if they were meeting a superior.
“You’ve all worked hard because of our youngest.”
The beautiful young master, with an aura that commanded attention and a cold sneer that froze the crowd, spoke.
“Leave.”
Seeing the guards and the butler leave as if they had been the second young master’s men from the beginning, Barclava suddenly felt like a man on a lonely island longing for the tide.
“Barclava.”
“Yes, brother.”
Barclava straightened his back at the voice that made him forget even his thoughts and humiliation.
“Give me your hand.”
“……?”
Hesitantly, Barclava extended his left hand.
“Not that one, your injured hand.”
The second young master grabbed the right hand, which he extended hesitantly.
“Aaargh!”
“Be quiet.”
Slap!
Barclava, who had twisted his body and screamed, was slapped on the cheek and forced to swallow his tears.
“……Hic.”
It was as if he were receiving the violence he had intended to inflict on Peter.
“Barclava.”
“Yes, brother.”
The second young master’s white fingers wiped away Barclava’s tears.
“I told you not to be foolish.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You were completely toyed with by that fellow from beginning to end. What are you, that you would insult the fourth lady in front of the servants and throw the family lineage into the gutter?”
Barclava’s blood ran cold.
“That’s because Allenvert slandered me.”
“Don’t make excuses. If you’ve been taken advantage of by someone else’s slander, you should at least be ashamed of yourself.”
The second young master looked at his younger brother with contempt.
“Allenvert has been hiding in his room for seven years without even training in martial arts, and now you’ve broken a bone after falling for that fellow’s trick. What a pathetic sight. How can someone as pathetic as you be my younger brother?”
Barclava wiped away his tears.
“I’m sorry. I’ll try to fix this somehow—”
“Shut up. What are you going to do?”
“I mean, somehow I’ll—”
“Specifically, what are you going to do?”
“…….”
“Don’t just blurt out anything to get out of this situation.”
The second young master was sick of his brother’s incompetence.
“If things could be solved with just willpower, why are you here, taking a slap from me?”
He muttered.
“You’re too young, really. And Mother doesn’t know about this yet.”
“Ah……!”
“Go tell her yourself.”
“B-brother.”
It wasn’t his concern what Barclava would hear from his mother.
“Barclava.”
Instead, he asked.
“Are you saying you actually lost to someone who can’t even use mana, someone who isn’t even 1st tier?”
“No, it’s not like that.”
Barclava bit his lip.
“I can’t understand it, but… his movements were impossible without the aid of mana. It’s true.”
“I’ve never heard that he’s trained in martial arts properly.”
“I don’t understand it either. How could he move like that after just reading a martial arts book for one night?”
“Hmm.”
The second young master stroked his chin.
Barclava wasn’t that bad at martial arts. If he continued to train for another five years, he would become a pretty good martial artist among the young noblemen. Hadn’t he foreseen that?
‘On the other hand, Allenvert went into seclusion at the time he should have started training in martial arts properly.’
It was originally a battle he wouldn’t stand a chance against. So how did he overpower Barclava? Could it be that he really managed to accumulate mana in his body just by reading a book in a single sitting yesterday?
‘Even so, he would have only barely reached the 1st tier.’
The second young master could only imagine the same possibilities as the butler and the clan head.
‘Was he secretly training in martial arts while deceiving everyone? If so, then he’s quite cunning.’
He was judging Allenvert based on extremely common sense.
It was a highly rational attitude, and it was definitely the best inference he could make with the limited information he had.
In fact, to anyone…
It was undoubtedly more believable that Allenvert, who had awakened from a fever and learned martial arts in a single day, easily toyed with a 3rd tier opponent, than the other explanation.
‘The head butler must have felt something when he met him directly.’
But stirring up the hornet’s nest again wasn’t a good idea, especially after such a commotion.
‘I should have anticipated Barclava’s incompetence. That was my mistake.’
…And it was also true that Allenvert’s response and skills were beyond his expectations.
“Barclava.”
“Yes.”
The second young master sighed and ordered.
“Go and reflect on your actions for a few days.”
“Yes, brother.”
Barclava quietly breathed a sigh of relief, finally feeling liberated.
‘Allenvert.’
Walking down the corridor, the second young master thought about his long-forgotten brother.
‘I don’t know what kind of delusions you have.’
A mixed-blood with a lowly lineage, and even then, he couldn’t benefit from anything since his maternal family was exterminated.
He even wasted all the time he should have been developing his strength and skills holed up in his room. And now he’s dreaming of vain dreams?
…It’s pathetic to the point of being pitiful.
There’s nothing as disgusting as someone who is incompetent but greedy.
‘If he proves unworthy, I’ll crush him without hesitation. But if he’s useful…’
“It wouldn’t be bad to keep him under my thumb like Barclava.”
After all, the title of the fourth young master of the Grunewald dukedom was valuable.
“I’ll need eyes and ears to watch him.”
A reply came from the darkness.
“I will prepare.”
———