༺ Time of the Day ༻
Elden was ignorant.
With a nature born of madness, he was far removed from academia, a fighter by life’s journey, preferring to battle with his body rather than his mind.
His mind was filled with pleasure and greed instead of wisdom and knowledge, and he spent his nights as the rowdiest troublemaker on the streets, far more suited to be a ruffian from the slums than a noble from a count’s family.
And such a person was best suited to trample on others with his fists and seize benefits.
Elden Rapellion was just like that.
He spared words and not his fists.
Sometimes he struggled to recall even words he knew, spitting out forced sentences.
Those who mocked him were mercilessly punished, and he thus covered up his lack of education by shunning academics.
He was the one who had stolen the honor of being the top graduate for himself.
It was natural for him, who could not wield eloquent speech or sophisticated rhetoric, knowing and having experienced Lermian’s confusion was also natural.
‘…What is this?’
Different.
The beastly ferocity that used to glint in those red eyes had turned gentle, and the lips that used to spit out crude words now sharply uttered dazzling ones.
Defeated.
She had lost the verbal duel.
She had not anticipated a fierce battle, declaring war in an attempt to see through him, only to face defeat.
It felt like arguing with a different personality.
Perhaps after graduating from the royal academy, did he reform through some incident?
Or rather, did he lose his ego in an accident and then awaken?
If it were to be considered, the latter seems overwhelmingly more likely, but there was no record of such a significant accident in the candidate’s evaluation that would lead to loss of self.
Could it be…
‘Has he really… changed?’
Impossible.
He was an experimental subject with a near-zero chance of success.
Surely, it was a meticulous act.
Perhaps with the help of magic or some trickery to mimic another personality, even deceiving Gelwood with such high-level assistance.
‘Or…’
Did he realize that the youngest daughter of the Winterfell Grand Duke was Erinysia Belloc from her days at the royal academy?
It seemed utterly unlikely, but without such a reason, forfeiting such an excellent opportunity was incomprehensible.
Especially since, almost as if making amends, he had realized he was ‘a villain unfit for the Grand Duchess.’
Elden Rapellion was one to gladly wield a bloodied sword for gain.
He was certainly not the type to let go of the sword’s hilt when on the verge of securing a benefit.
‘Strange. Really strange.’
If only there was even a small clue.
Cruelly, the eyes of Elden Rapellion looking at her seemed too sincere.
His voice was also infinitely grave and polite.
Unbelievably so.
‘You must not be fooled.’
Lermian steeled her heart.
It’s a ruse.
A cunning ruse that must not be fallen for.
A person’s nature does not change.
In time, the hidden motives will surely be revealed.
Therefore,
“See you again, Prince Elden Rapellion.”
She gave an answer contrary to his expectations.
There was never an intention to accept the withdrawal.
It was merely to uncover the truth that she had come.
The problem is,
‘…I found out nothing.’
Wondering if he had resorted to forbidden dark magic, his motives were difficult to discern.
If so, it’s time to retreat a step, prepare all possible scenarios and hypotheses, and investigate again.
Fully prepared.
If it turns out he had been deceiving everyone, hoping for a stroke of luck, the weight of his sins would only become heavier.
Should the deception have been for the sake of winning the Engagement Battle, he must pay the price in full.
For that moment, Lermian called Gelwood.
“Advisor.”
“Yes, Grand Duchess.”
“Could you investigate whether Elden Rapellion has had any major incidents not known to the public?”
“Understood.”
“And look into his actions after graduating from the academy as well.”
There’s always a reason for the unexpected success or failure of an experiment.
It seems that those who appear to have changed their nature have merely learned and are hiding it, pretending.
However, Elden Rapellion was not the type to know and still not learn.
There must be a hidden reason.
She would unearth and find that reason, no matter what.
She had never failed to solve a problem before.
For that, Lermian was prepared to use every tool at her disposal.
“And please assign a watcher to Prince Elden Rapellion, secretly.”
Furthermore,
Lermian felt a subtle thrill at encountering a problem of such notorious difficulty.
**
“I’ll be going then.”
“Yes.”
Hooded, Lermian returned to the Second Grand Duke’s castle and parted ways with Gelwood.
As she ascended to the upper floors and removed her hood, she wondered,
‘I wonder if Marien has arrived?’
She had only asked to bring one experimental material from the basement of the main castle, but there had been no word for hours.
As her thoughts turned to Marien’s non-return, Lermian’s steps quickened.
Having entered the Grand Duke’s family as a maid and now in her first year, Marien was someone incredibly precious to her.
They got along well, comfortable as friends, and were intimately close, with no secrets between them.
Moreover, Marien was knowledgeable and intelligent, excellently assisting in magic and alchemy experiments.
In many ways, Marien was indispensable.
Lermian called out with a worried voice as she entered the sealed upper floor.
“Marien?”
Fortunately,
“Lady-!”
Hearing Marien’s voice from beyond the door of the sleeping chamber, Lermian breathed a sigh of relief.
Thank goodness.
With countless people residing in the vast Grand Duke’s castle, incidents occur almost daily.
The probability of getting caught up in such turmoil was high, always a concern.
If it wasn’t for the experiment’s complex names and shapes, she wouldn’t have asked Marien to run errands.
Being limited in contact on the sealed floor, Marien was the only one she could ask.
Bang!
Lermian swung open the door of the chamber.
And saw Marien standing there with a crutch.
Her eyes widened in shock.
“What, what’s this?”
Rushing over and removing her mask, Lermian examined Marien’s bandaged foot, propped up on a stand.
“Are you hurt?”
“Ah… I’m a bit hurt.”
“How? How much? Where?”
“It’s okay. I just sprained it a bit. I slipped down the stairs.”
“You should have been more careful. Does it hurt?”
“It doesn’t hurt now. They said I’ll be fine after a few days of rest, so don’t worry.”
Phew.
Lermian sighed in relief and helped Marien to sit on the bed.
“Tell me if you need anything, anytime. You know that, right?”
“Eh. How could I possibly?”
Lermian furrowed her brows and frowned.
“Sigh. You’re going to be scolded. You said you need to rest for a few days, so rest well.”
“Hehe… By the way, where have you been? I was worried.”
“Ah.”
A relationship without secrets, without barriers.
Since there was no need to hide whom she had met, Lermian mentioned his name.
“I went to see Elden Rapellion. To find out the reason for his withdrawal declaration.”
And at that name, fear reflexively took hold of Marien’s face.
“Eek.”
《If you spill the beans, you’re really dead.》
The chilling murder threat that had burrowed into her ears resurfaced.
“Why?”
“Ah… Haha, well, he’s a scary person, right…? That’s why I was startled. Haha.”
Elden’s chilling warning not to cause trouble.
Its effect was still valid.
**
“Yawn.”
The next morning dawned.
The day the regrettable character trio’s final evaluation was to begin.
He stretched and woke up from sleep.
Chirp chirp chirp, the clear chirping of five birds lined up on the branch next to the window.
For the regrettable character trio, it might have been like a solemn symphony to start the final evaluation, but for him, it was like a refreshing rhythm.
Even though his escape plans had become vague.
‘Maybe I should wash up.’
There was no clear answer regarding the withdrawal declaration.
He needed to prepare for the evaluation.
According to the official schedule, AM 10:00, finally, he would have a meeting with the Third Grand Duchess of the North.
He had to at least dress minimally to show the minimum courtesy.
He was about to head straight to the bathroom after getting out of bed, but a knock at the door caught his attention.
Knock knock.
“Come in.”
It was the butler, Rendler.
“Are you awake, sir?”
“What brings you here so early in the morning?”
Wondering what it could be so early, he waited for an answer, and Rendler gestured from beyond the opened door.
And then,
“……”
Three maids entered the bedroom.
Wearing risqué maid outfits with crucial areas like the chest and groin provocatively cut out.
Then he remembered.
Elden Rapellion.
In the original story, he always began his bathing routine attended by beautiful maids.
Different maids every day.
Because he was a figure of unbridled power.
However, there was no description of him abusing or molesting the maids in the original.
Elden simply enjoyed the comfort of having beautiful maids wash his body.
For a mere commoner like me, it wasn’t comfort but awkwardness and discomfort.
And to think that even in the Grand Duke’s castle, this ancient decadent bath ritual was still enforced.
Even in a male-dominated society within a world of absolute aristocracy, the fact that Elden Rapellion couldn’t break away from these decadent baths even when participating in the Engagement Battle for the sake of rebuilding his family, shows just how distinct his character was.
“The maids are here to assist you with your bath. Will you proceed now?”
“No need. Dismiss them.”
“Pardon?”
“Just go. And tell the steward from tomorrow on, I’ll wash myself.”
“Pardon?”
Rendler’s reaction was to be expected.
From the moment Elden Rapellion became aware of his sexuality, he had this kind of bathing ritual every morning.
For over ten years.
Of course, having beautiful maids attend to one’s bath might be close to a fantasy for some.
Unable to resist the tyranny of power, dragged in like livestock to the slaughterhouse, receiving entertainment from them was inevitably uncomfortable.
Rendler asked again, baffled.
“To bathe… by yourself… do you mean?”
“Yes. Just want to enjoy some solitude and organize my thoughts, so no need for any…”
“Indeed…!”
Before he could finish speaking, Rendler, touching his philtrum and choking up, quickly entered the bathroom.
As expected.
“Sob.”
Leaving Rendler behind.
And…
After taking his bath, he emerged from the bathroom to be informed of an unexpected development.
A significant change had occurred in the original plot within just 30 minutes.
“What? The evaluation has been postponed by a day?”
“Yes. It starts tomorrow now. There are also minor changes to the 15-day planned schedule, so they’re distributing a new schedule.”
It seems Grand Duchess Lermian has a lot on her mind facing a puzzling problem.
Wiping his head with a towel, he looked out the window.
With the sudden postponement of the final evaluation, the regrettable character trio must be busy.
Not to mention the scheduled changes, they would need to establish new strategies accordingly.
Although it was irrelevant to me, who had expressed a desire to withdraw.
“Here’s the new schedule.”
Rendler, as the steward of the household, also needed to prepare responses accordingly, trying to hand me the schedule.
“No need.”
He looked at me, puzzled by my refusal.
An unexpected day had opened up.
It was time to make good use of it.
To take a break from the suffocating and tedious Grand Duke’s castle, even if just for a while.
There were things I’d always wanted to do if I ever found myself transposed into the medieval era.
“I’ll go out for a change of scenery, so leave the scheduling to our steward’s discretion.”
A moment for relaxation, a break.
Rendler, folding the schedule, said,
“Then I’ll inform Knight Rachel to accompany you.”
“Rachel?”
“Hehe. It’s been a while since you’ve worked together, but surely you haven’t forgotten the family’s guard knight?”
Quickly revisiting Elden’s memories, the face of Rachel, a guard knight, came to mind.
A face with long purple hair in the front and a short ponytail at the back, one of the Rapellion family’s guard knights.
Her face was pretty, but she exuded the sternness characteristic of a guard knight.
A name that had never appeared in the original, only coming to mind after sifting through Elden’s memories.
Especially since there was no need for personal guard knights within the Grand Duke’s castle, I hadn’t encountered her since the possession.
‘But then again.’
As befits a legendary womanizer, it seems he appointed a [female knight] as his personal guard. Yet, considering there are no memories of him abusing or oppressing her, it must have been the instinct of the weak to bow to the strong.
Given the memory of flinching from her anger, he must have treated her cautiously.
Careless behavior could have led to a slit throat.
Of course, seeing the ‘careful’ efforts in those memories to make Rachel his own shows what a strange character he was.
Having conquered and experienced everything he desired, perhaps he felt a [challenge] towards Rachel, whom he couldn’t conquer.
Those who have everything intensely feel the desire and competitiveness for what they can’t have.
And considering the memories of Rachel, even he, a battle maniac, was cautious around such a strong figure.
‘After all, it’s natural to entrust one’s protection to someone stronger than oneself.’
Clearing his thoughts, he spoke to Rendler.
“I was just confused for a moment. Tell Rachel we’re leaving immediately.”
He wanted to roam the city alone, but it made sense to bring at least one reliable guard knight for a first outing in a strange city.
Especially since Elden Rapellion had many enemies.
As he stepped out of the bedroom,
Rachel, dressed in casual clothes with her sword at her back, bowed and said,
“I will accompany you, sir.”
“Let’s go.”
Thus, I started walking through the city streets with Rachel.
