LP 1.10 The New Servant

This wasn’t the first time Lucian had been subjected to a magical prank.

His lands in Callot, at the western edge of Izelant, still held quite a few ‘such things’, and people’s perceptions were a bit more lax there.

Moreover, he hadn’t been particularly well-behaved even from a young age. If his curiosity was piqued, even if it was a deadly poison, he wouldn’t be satisfied until he had tasted it, so he had experienced quite a few of those things as well, half by his own will and half by circumstance.

And most of those magical pranks ended insignificantly. Most were nothing more than illusions, failing to become meaningful obstacles in his life. Perhaps it was because of those experiences that he hadn’t made a serious effort to acquire a Mage.

But this time?

Lucian, who had been sitting astride the sturdy walnut desk with his arms crossed, pressing his brow for a long time, suddenly swung his arm without warning.

Crash—!

A southern-style vase with a narrow mouth and a gilded geometric pattern flew through the air and shattered to pieces on the stone floor. The shoulders of the retainers gathered in the room flinched and twitched, and some who had fragments flying to their feet stumbled backward.

The atmosphere in the room was so heavy it felt like one couldn’t even make a sound.

Lucian wasn’t the type to openly show sensitivity, despite his finicky temperament. But occasionally, he would suffocate those around him as if he were utterly determined… It seemed that was the case now.

“…….”

Mylotte, one of those who had stepped back to avoid the fragments, repeatedly opened and closed his mouth with an awkward expression.

As one of the few witnesses to the events of last night, he was feeling a rather peculiar sentiment.

It was a night that made one want to go insane in many ways. The supposedly resolved magic potion problem had recurred, Lucian was completely incapacitated, and in the midst of it all, Sir Mathers was suddenly seen mobilizing the army of Ollet.

Sir Mathers was Bastian’s father-in-law, and Ollet was the southern gateway to the Osterbelt domain encompassing the capital and its outskirts, so the size of the stationed troops was not small. The cavalry there was not a force to be moved without prior notice.

The target worth Bastian making such a reckless move of utilizing the army privately without warning was undoubtedly Lucian first, rather than his absent older sister Arabella. But Lucian had limited troops he could mobilize in the capital… and he wasn’t in his right mind at the moment.

That damned magic potion.

He thought he had fallen into a trap. As expected, that Mage couldn’t have performed the detoxification properly. No matter how simple-minded and scatterbrained he seemed, it was something he shouldn’t have let his guard down about.

He immediately had that Mage brought back, but he couldn’t just sit back and wait. How could he trust that bastard twice?

With the magic potion’s effects recurring, Lucian was in a state where he couldn’t even properly support his body due to the sudden, extreme dizziness and headache, and he didn’t like leaving his lord alone like that… but in a situation where no one could be trusted recklessly, it was also difficult to assign someone else.

His heart was impatient, his contemplation brief.

‘Your Highness, I will go to the Gaikrux delegation.’

He was thinking of somehow finding another Mage. To Lucian, who was slumped over with his hand covering his eyes, Mylotte urged him, again and again.

‘Only Sir Gosrick and I know you are here, so it should be fine for a while. Do not open the door for anyone. Understood?’

And then, of all times.

When he heard that Gosrick had sent that Mage up, he felt a sense of dread. That Mage must have made the first move and done something, his vision swam dizzily.

But what he actually saw upon entering was the Mage, stripped naked, crawling along the floor….

As he thought that far, Mylotte tightly closed his eyes and gulped down saliva, trying hard to drive that memory from his mind. —So, that was really, really, unexpected.

Because Lucian, for someone who looked like that, was unexpectedly… on the chaste side.

Mylotte, the son of a Callot noble, had been watching Lucian since he was around ten years old.

Lucian had been designated as the successor to the Callot lord since he was seven, always had a pretty, handsome face, and his body grew faster than his peers.

Perhaps it was only natural that all kinds of temptations reached out to him. Furthermore, as someone who would become the next lord, appropriate sex education was necessary. Of course, it wasn’t the kind of sex education that taught chastity. Wasn’t the primary goal of the ruling class reproduction, after all?

And Lucian wasn’t the type to avoid or shy away from such matters either.

So, he could have been as dissolute as he wished if he had wanted to. There were people lining up telling him he could act as he pleased.

So Mylotte was surprised when he showed little interest in ‘that sort of thing’— even seemed somewhat annoyed by it. No, because just looking at his appearance, one would think something….

‘Putting it in, shaking it, coming. Isn’t that all there is to it?’

Lucian frowned and grumbled. His tone suggested he found it somewhat disgusting.

‘You find that fun?’

And when he asked back with a stern face, Mylotte frankly couldn’t find the words. Well, that’s… I didn’t think it was that unenjoyable….

‘If your life is so boring that you find something like that fun…. Try using your time more meaningfully, Mylotte.’

A rather rude hand tapped Mylotte’s shoulder repeatedly.

Perhaps Lucian wasn’t so much chaste as he was someone who had gone mad for a different kind of stimulation. That is to say, the kind of stimulation involving blood splattering and lives hanging in the balance.

Since Lucian had experienced the battlefield from a fairly young age, well, maybe he found that kind of thing more thrilling than safe sex.

This is why you shouldn’t send someone to the battlefield at too young an age, Mylotte had thought to himself.

Then, after he came to Ostbrahe to assert his claim to the throne, he no longer had the time to be dissolute even if he wanted to be.

However, while he was spending four whole years reclaiming the Eastern Seven Stars, repeatedly engaged in grueling labor, there was one time a crazy adjutant smuggled a prostitute into his tent….

It wouldn’t have been a problem to just turn a blind eye, let him relieve his pent-up sexual desires, and then send her away. But unexpectedly, Lucian flew into a rage.

He dragged the man out, asking if he thought war was a joke, had him executed in front of everyone, and even went so far as to chop his standard in half with an axe and have him demoted.

Needless to say, after that incident, his unit voluntarily became the most ascetic unit in Izelant.

Well… anyway, as a vassal, it’s better for one’s lord to be a bit chaste rather than excessively debauched. Moreover, asserting his claim to the throne in Ostbrahe was, as he himself said, no joke.

Sex is the easiest trap to bring someone down, and Lucian had never had much difficulty avoiding it until now.

So, last night’s event was truly an unexpected affair in Mylotte’s eyes.

The fact that Lucian laid hands on him even though he mistook him for a male prostitute, no, even though he mistook him for a male prostitute sent by Bastian.

Of course, that Mage’s appearance was a bit….

…As he thought that far, Mylotte cleared his throat unnecessarily, ahem, ahem.

“So, to summarize.”

Spending time like this only in meetings wasn’t very desirable either. And right now, Lucian was being sensitive like that, but at least he was ‘in his right mind’.

Strictly speaking, from the moment dawn broke again, as if by magic.

“First, the magic potion isn’t resolved. Presumably, there’s some problem from at least sunset to sunrise. Second, those damned Ollet cavalry entered the eastern wing of the castle and then just retreated before sunrise. So it’s definitely related to Bastian, but we don’t know the reason. Sir Mathers had an audience with His Majesty right after dawn and returned safely to Ollet, so it seems they don’t intend to make an issue of it. And third.”

Mylotte extended his thumb, index finger, and middle finger in order.

“There’s the Mage. We don’t know his identity or intentions, and what’s more, last night, ahem, there was an unfortunate incident. The worst part is that it’s also uncertain whether these three problems are independent or interrelated.”

“…Regarding the Mage, for now.”

Eydrick cautiously interjected.

“I think we might need to wait and see a bit.”

“…….”

“If he had some intention, wouldn’t he have tried to escape when we first released him? But he didn’t. He just cleaned all day….”

…and when we brought him back again, he followed obediently. Eydrick hesitated for a moment before adding.

Lucian, who had been silent for a while, frowned irritably again and rubbed his brow.

“How is it that every time, someone comes out to take his side.”

His sensitive gaze swept across the room. Gosrick was composed, and Eydrick took a step back with an embarrassed expression, bowing his head.

Anyway, to put it bluntly in terms of conclusion, it ultimately boils down to the question of whether to kill him or let him live.

Regarding this incident, there’s only a strong suspicion and no physical evidence.

The only remaining link was the servant who brought in the wine at that time, but just three days later—that is, while Lucian still hadn’t regained his senses and everyone was distracted—he was found hanged to death in his cell. It might look like suicide at first glance, but who knows if it really was.

The Gaikrux bastards, as always, seem to have no intention of cooperating at all, and we have absolutely no intention of letting them chatter about this everywhere and giving them an unnecessary handle.

So, the only current clue to the incident was the Mage. The method of keeping the Mage alive to interrogate him, to win him over….

Or the method of killing him to end all matters and simply cover it up.

If the Mage dies, the magic potion’s mischief ends too. A backlash when the mana dissipates? That kind of thing is usually proportional to the Mage’s ability, and this Mage’s condition seems too shoddy for there to be anything significant.

He was generally a lucky person, and honestly, in the course of his life so far, this was a gamble worth taking once.

…That might be better. Surely better than continuing to be played by an unknown magical trick from sunset to sunrise.

It seems like it would be better, but….

“That one.”

It was an ambiguous pronoun, but its referent was clear. Mylotte answered promptly.

“I’ve cleared out an empty room for him for now.”

“…….”

“He was surprisingly docile.”

When Mylotte last reported, he seemed rather dazed, if anything. He considered whether to put restraints on him, but felt it would be a bit awkward, so he just posted a guard.

“Bring him here.”

“…….”

“No, I’ll go myself.”

“Yes, yes?”

It was a welcome thing that Lucian, who had only been listening until now, made a decision and moved…. But Mylotte unconsciously jumped and blocked his path by about half a step. Lucian’s slender gaze bore down on him.

“You, what.”

“Ah, no, it’s just that.”

Mylotte rolled his eyes. Well, aside from not trusting that Mage….

“…You’re going to see him yourself?”

Anyway, that person was… the victim, so to speak, of… a sexual act… that occurred without clear consent….

Ha— Lucian, having read Mylotte’s wavering eyes, laughed as if exasperated.

“Then what should I do?”

Wasn’t it obvious that whether to kill him or let him live, he first needed to see him once to decide? Moreover.

“Did I do it because I wanted to?”

Of course, if you trace the causality, the very creation of that magic potion was wrong…. While Mylotte hesitated, Lucian roughly shoved aside the shoulder of Mylotte, who was blocking his path, and passed by.

The remaining retainers exchanged uneasy glances. Among them, Mylotte, who was at a loss for what to do, hurriedly chased after him a step too late.

---

Until he heard the tidy knocking sound, Kosha was just ‘being’. He wasn’t sure how long he had been like that. Just sitting still on the bed, not really thinking about anything in particular.

No, perhaps it was because he had too many thoughts that they all became equally meaningless.

And knock, knock— the sound of knocking on the wooden door shattered his formless musings. Startled, he turned to look and saw that the firmly closed door was now open. And….

He was there.

Lucian was standing leaning obliquely against the doorframe. His hand was placed on the door as if knocking. His frame, which filled the doorframe, was surprisingly impressive.

Not knowing how to react to someone knocking on an already open door, he could only gulp down saliva, when Lucian spoke first.

“May I come in?”

A quiet voice, precise pronunciation, that uniquely polite way of speaking that disregarded the other’s social status.

Only then did he seem like the Lucian he knew, not the strange ruffian from last night. His stiff body relaxed a little. Kosha nodded his head.

It didn’t even take three steps to get closer in the small room.

The already large man seemed even more enormous as he stood close. The sense of intimidation was considerable, but he didn’t feel that strange sensation of his whole body being crushed like last night.

Under the gaze that bore directly down on him, Kosha flustered, not knowing what to do. Should I stand up too? …But if I stand up as well, won’t it be too close? It already feels like our knees might touch….

Tch— Just as he thought he heard a small click of the tongue, the other man turned his body first. Still, it was a solitary cell, so for a servant’s room, it could be considered high-class, but it was inevitably small and spartan. He pulled over the room’s only piece of furniture, a wooden chair, and sat down, roughly matching their eye levels.

It was just when the searching, bluish-gray eyes felt piercingly sharp, and Kosha rolled his eyes to avoid the gaze.

“…Regarding last night’s matter, my apologies were insufficient.”

The words flowed out slowly. Startled by the completely unexpected words, Kosha flinched.

“It was not my intention.”

Although the atmosphere felt somewhat high-handed for someone apologizing…. Maybe it felt that way because he was unnecessarily frightened. Kosha nodded his head in a daze. Well, he had no choice but to nod.

And after watching his expression for a moment, he cautiously added.

“I-It’s alright.”

His voice, which had been hoarse like a dried-out tree trunk from overuse, had returned somewhat after resting for half a day. Lucian, who had been staring at Kosha for a moment, tilted his head obliquely.

“It’s a relief that communication is smooth.”

…A strange Mage. He doesn’t even seem to have the minimum of self-respect.

His long hair, which had been damp, was now dry. His thick, curly hair had thin strands, so once completely dry, it looked a bit frizzy. His face, bowed down, was smudged and dirty-looking with something.

He was wearing a single loose tunic—who knows where Mylotte had scavenged it from—so overall, he wasn’t very tidy. More than that, why was a man growing his hair out like that?

Since Lucian detested dirty things to an extreme degree, this current appearance was hardly satisfactory to his eyes…

But he did have a decent face.

Yeah, he did get annoyed and ask Mylotte if he did it because he wanted to. But wasn’t the biggest problem with this troublesome, multi-layered magic potion that it ultimately made Lucian ‘do as he pleased’? Without caring in the slightest about morals, laws, norms, or the gaze of others.

So, in other words, last night’s incident was something he committed because he ‘wanted to’.

And Mylotte probably already knew this too. That’s why he chased after him in a fluster like a rat with its tail on fire and is now lurking around.

…But, is that possible? He’s just a man, after all.

He did seem appealing enough to consider keeping him around once…

But even that, he wasn’t sure about now. Anyway, the Mage was filthy right now, and he didn’t even feel like looking at him closely.

Maybe he really was bewitched by something last night. It was night, his nerves were on edge, he wasn’t in his right mind, and the room was dimly lit, creating just that kind of atmosphere.

“Since communication is smooth, let me ask you something.”

Lucian, having finished his assessment with a mild face, changed the topic.

“Your face has healed, I see? I remember it being quite injured.”

It was a somewhat brazen question coming from the person who caused the injury, but Lucian was nonchalant.

Anyway, the ‘Mage’ he remembered was consistently a dirty, pigsty-mop-like appearance. His face was swollen and puffy. So when he appeared suddenly in a clean state, it was only natural he didn’t recognize him.

Wasn’t that the root cause of this incident, if you think about it.

“How did it heal in just one night? Magic?”

“…Yes, probably.”

“Probably? So, are you intentionally leaving it like that now?”

Lucian tapped the corner of his own mouth. Kosha fumbled along his own mouth, following his lead.