I Became a Sick Nobleman

The shabby old man seemed like he would pass out with just a light hit from himself. How pathetic. Suddenly, everything seemed hollow to Ruel. Must he truly endure such agony because of this insignificant person? Ruel sniffed for no apparent reason.

It was so miserable to feel that his own suffering was nothing. All because of that guy. With wavering eyes, Ruel briefly glanced back. Ganien shared his anger, and even Cassion was frowning. Next to Ganien, Leo’s ears drooped, and his eyes were slowly wavering.

—Ruel.

“Cassion.” Ruel spoke up. “Take him away.”

“Are you serious?” Cassion bit his lip.

Ruel was being sacrificed due to the desires of that pathetic old man. No, he had lost much more than that. Yet Ruel instructed him to be taken away.

Logically, it made sense to remove the one who was knowledgeable about the Red Ash, but this felt wrong. Such a command was not one a human should issue.

Ganien hesitated, then finally voiced, “Ruel, are you truly going to let him go like this?”

Ruel coldly smiled as he pondered Ganien’s words, “Just let him go? Me? No chance.”

“For whose benefit?” Ruel turned back to Nehils.

“It seems you haven’t sworn the oath of mana. Correct?”

“Y-yes. I have not sworn the oath of mana since my father’s time as he acknowledged the family I have served all this while.”

“You said you’d be my dog?”

“Yes.”

“Then be a loyal dog. Don’t you want to watch as the Red Ash, which you served, crumbles piece by piece?” Ruel raised the corner of his lip. His smile was incredibly cold.

***

Stomp.

Ruel walked on, feeling the snowflakes against his skin. He had made Nehils sign a magical contract with the condition of obedience. After that, he confirmed once more the facts he had mentioned earlier, and the result was that it was all true.

Stomp.

‘My guardian is likely…’

Ruel halted his thoughts. He refused to dwell on it further.

Sigh.

Ruel gazed up at the sky and let out a deep breath. Slowly, his face contorted in anguish.

“Ruel…?” At Ganien’s cautious voice, Ruel turned around.

All eyes were on him.

‘I told them to go in first.’

The door he had asked Jan to open was already ajar. Jan was crouched in front of the door, looking at Ruel with concern.

“Please enter first, Ruel-nim. I’ll follow right behind.” Cassion suggested as he watched Ruel hesitantly pacing in circles. It was Ruel who should step through the door first now. Did he feel colder than usual, trembling slightly? Something felt awry.

—Cassion is right. Ruel looks very cold.

Leo ran over and rubbed his face against Ruel’s legs.

“I’m alright. Just need a moment to clear my mind.” Ruel forced a smile. His chest felt like it might burst. Anger filled him to the point where his head throbbed.

“You don’t seem well at all. Why not step inside for now?”

“Yes. You appear uneasy. It seems you might collapse any moment… Oh!” Ganien instinctively lunged forward.

Although it seemed a bit late, fortunately, Cassion was close enough to catch Ruel just in time as he began to collapse.

“C, child!”

Jan exclaimed in surprise as he called out to Ruel. Ruel was shaking all over.

—Cassion, why is Ruel acting like this all of a sudden?

Leo gazed at Cassion, his eyes trembling.

Ganien quickly checked on Ruel. It wasn’t a seizure caused by illness; it seemed the problem lay with his heart. Ganien shook his head at Cassion’s questioning gaze.

“Don’t worry, Jan. Ruel is fine. There’s no need to fret. And Leo, you don’t have to be alarmed either. It’s just a bit chilly, that’s all. Isn’t that right?” Ganien glanced at Cassion, awkwardly smiling to reassure Jan and Leo.

Cassion already had a syringe in hand. Even though Ruel’s trembling wasn’t due to a seizure, it hadn’t subsided. This symptom was concerning.

“No.” Cassion’s response differed from Ganien’s, causing tears to well up slowly in Leo’s eyes.

—Then why did Ruel collapse again? This body doesn’t like it when Ruel is unwell.

“No, Ruel didn’t collapse due to illness.”

Upon Ganien’s explanation, Leo regarded him with a gaze that seemed to question the truth.

“Isn’t that right, Cassion?”

“I don’t know.” Ignoring Ganien’s pleading gaze, Cassion calmly injected the syringe into Ruel’s arm. Jan and Leo, who had been quiet for a moment, started to fuss again.

“Hey! Why can’t you just agree with me?” Ganien frowned.

***

Blink, blink.

When Ruel opened his eyes, he was startled to see Jan so close.

“A-are you okay? Is there anywhere else that hurts?” Jan asked in a worried voice.

“I’m fine.”

Ruel felt embarrassed; he hadn’t expected to faint. Still, he hadn’t been that weak lately. He was probably on edge because of the dreams and Nehils.

Kuroo kuru.

Beep.

Bell bell.

The sounds of various spirits filled the air, accompanied by the scent of flowers.

—Ruel… sniff.

Leo’s sniffling voice reached his ears.

—This—this body was so startled.

Leo rubbed his face against Ruel’s hand. His palm quickly grew wet.

Ruel lifted Leo up. Leo’s tears fell one by one onto his face.

“You said you wouldn’t cry anymore.”

—Sniff… this—this body did not cry.

Leo moved his front paw to wipe away his tears, but it didn’t reach.

“Sure, you didn’t cry.”

Ruel placed Leo on his stomach and petted him until he stopped weeping.

Once Leo’s sniffles subsided, Ruel called out to Jan.

“Jan.”

“Tell me.”

At that moment, as Ruel raised himself, a sudden wave of dizziness hit him. The world spun before his eyes, but he managed to steady himself with his hand.

“Sorry, could you please open the door to my room?”

Ruel was unsure how much time had elapsed, but he had delayed too long.

“Of course.”

“I’m sorry…”

“Child.”

“Yes.”

“I’m so happy I can help you. Everything I do is because I want to help you, so please don’t apologize anymore.”

“Alright, I won’t.”

When Ruel beamed, Jan smiled in return.

As a gust of wind swept in, Ruel turned his head in that direction to find Cassion and Ganien engaged in a bare-handed spar. The spirits gathered around them, their pure eyes sparkling, creating a very unusual sight.

Both Cassion and Ganien seemed to be enjoying themselves, but Ganien seemed to be having the most fun. No wonder he couldn’t find Cassion.

Pointing towards them, Ruel asked, “Is it alright to fight here?”

“If the spirits enjoy it, then I’m fine with it too,” Jan replied, beaming brightly. They say early education is crucial. Ruel felt a tinge of concern that the spirits might be uncovering something new.

***

Ruel opened his eyes to a soft feeling against his face. Turning his gaze, he saw Leo’s paw.

‘Ah, right. I’m back in the room.’

After Cassion and Ganien’s duel, he had requested Jan to open the door, and they had returned to the room. He must have looked quite ill when he collapsed, as Fran had scolded him.

‘I remember being told to take care of my health, but after that, I just fell asleep… I can’t recall what happened next.’

“Are you awake?” Cassion asked, as he usually did.

Suddenly, a sweet fragrance wafted through the room. Leo, who had been softly snoring, twitched his nose and blinked his eyes open. He scanned the room cautiously. With so many people in Ruel’s current living space, he had to be vigilant.

“Fran left at dawn, and Noah is outside, so feel free to make noise.”

Upon hearing Cassion’s words, Leo finally grinned widely and exclaimed,

—Cocoa! This body is always ready for food!

Instead of speaking, Cassion gestured towards Leo’s food bowl. With his tail wagging, Leo trotted eagerly to his bowl.

“What’s the current situation?” Ruel asked, and Cassion replied.

“Fortunately, it is said that you are recovering quickly after obtaining an antidote to the poison.”

“What about Princess Jayel?”

“Due to her status as a princess, she’s not imprisoned but confined to a room. However, the situation appears to be escalating, and there are discussions that she might end up in prison.”

“Right. The poison must have come from Jayel’s room.” Ruel smirked. He had almost been poisoned by the Red Ash as well, so this was just payback.

Cassion handed him a cup of cocoa, “Please have this for now.”

“I’m not sure if it’s morning… but you want me to drink it right after waking up?”

“I think you need it.”

“Well, I guess I can’t refuse.” Ruel drank the cocoa before asking Cassion about the other situations. Feeling the warmth in his stomach, Ruel found his heart at peace.

“It seems Prince Adea handled things well.”

“Yes. We gathered evidence from Princess Jayel’s room and the witnesses from the reception to pressure her while sending an apology letter to Leponia as well.”

“Now my presence in the Kran Kingdom will become awkward. After all, the leader of the delegation nearly got poisoned, how troublesome that must be.”

It seemed that if Huswen dispatched someone for him, he could depart without objections.

“By any chance, do you plan to leave for Cyronian now, Ruel-nim?”

“Yes. It’s about time to depart.” Ruel raised the cup to his lips once more. “Before that, I need to lay some groundwork.”

“What do you mean by that?”

The corners of Ruel’s mouth curled up.

“Kran is especially strong in religious beliefs. That so-called Hela or whatever always talks about mercy and having faith.”

“Are you planning to shake the foundations of the religion that is the pillar of the Kran Kingdom?”

“That’s right. Here, a warlock might have to play a villainous role unintentionally, but it can’t be helped.”

The warlocks and religion have always had a close yet distant relationship, haven’t they?

At Ruel’s words, Cassion made a complicated expression and spoke up, “Ruel-nim.”

“What is it?”

“May I ask you something?”

“Go ahead.”

“You’re not trying to use a warlock to manipulate the Kingdom of Kran into declaring war, are you?”

“That’s exactly it.”

Ruel chuckled as if he found it amusing.

“This is just a diversion, after all, even the Great Man can’t help but be affected. We have to prevent the board from shaking.”

Cassion felt a shiver run down his spine at Ruel’s words.

“Ruel-nim.”

“Tell me.”

“While you were sleeping, we received communication from Billo.”

Ruel’s expression stiffened.

“They say two corpses, including that of Trino Setiria, have gone missing.”

“As expected.”

Ruel’s hand trembled slightly as he held the cup.

“Contact Jan. Tell him to inform Mayre that the rampage of monsters in Leponia is the doing of the Great Man… No, never mind.”

Ruel paused mid-sentence.

Thinking it over, he realized there was no one capable of purification.

‘Damn it.’

Ruel didn’t yet know how many among the devotees of darkness heading toward Leponia could truly wield the darkness. He had to go.

‘But not right at this moment.’

Jan had forced open the door to bring not only himself but also other spirits to the spirit’s home, because of that, Jan’s wings had lost their light. Jan needed to rest now. He had told Jan to stop working for a while before coming to his room, so he must be resting now.

‘Should I open the door? No, that would be unstable. Besides, I can’t leave my current position.’

As a sudden headache intensified, Ruel exhaled and drank some cocoa.

‘Let’s think calmly. I need to consider my priorities.’

“Ruel-nim.”

Ruel looked at Cassion.

“I understand the urgency of the situation. However, acting hastily doesn’t always lead to good decisions. How about taking a moment to rest and gather your thoughts?”

“Cassion.”

Ruel called Cassion’s attention and glanced at Leo.

“Excuse me for a moment.”

Cassion refilled Leo’s empty bowl with cocoa and settled down to listen.

“Please, go ahead.”

“Just keep in mind, this isn’t set in stone. Consider that as you listen.”

“Understood.”

Ruel told Cassion about the dream he had had. Cassion’s expression grew darker as he listened. Even after Ruel finished, Cassion struggled to speak before finally saying with difficulty, “Isn’t that why they sealed the body because they couldn’t destroy it?”

“That seems likely.”

“Is there any way you can find a method to destroy the body?”

“Well, I wonder if I can find a way that even the people before me couldn’t find.”

“By the way, Ruel-nim, you seem to be a descendant of heroes. That’s why you’ve been caught up in so many matters…”

“I don’t appreciate that title at all, so drop it,” Ruel replied in a slightly gruff tone before taking another sip of cocoa.

“Will you be able to endure?” Cassion asked Ruel with a serious gaze.

For a moment, a weighty silence hung between them, but since the question was expected, Ruel chuckled lightly and responded.

“What will you do if I can’t endure? Just let him take my body? Just imagining it gives me the chills.”

No matter what the Great Man was looking for, nothing would change. He needed Ruel, and Ruel had to stop him.

“I feel the same way. I don’t want to serve him as a master.” Cassion frowned and shook his head.

“So, Ruel-nim, when you mention buying time, are you referring to the period needed to find a means to destroy his body?”

“No, it’s the time to destroy everything he’s designed and for Leponia to establish a systematic defense. That’s why.”

Ruel was looking further ahead. The battlefield would inevitably be Leponia.

“Cassion.”

“Yes?”

“Quietly summon Prince Adea.”

“Understood.” Cassion rose from his seat. Just as he moved to conceal himself, he paused momentarily to receive a note handed to him by one of his subordinates in midair.

[Task completed.]

Though concise and lacking specifics like “who” and “what,” Cassion grasped the message well enough. There was only one assassination mission he had assigned.

Cassion smiled and said, “Ruel-nim.”

“Yes?”

“The assassination task has been carried out.”

With that, Cassion vanished. Ruel’s lips also curved upwards. The mission to eliminate the mad warlock was accomplished. The groundwork was set.

‘Now I can start my plan.’

Ruel contacted Huswen. He was the first person he needed to contact to shake things up.