I Became a Sick Nobleman

        

***   

         

“Ruel-nim.”

Cassion stopped in his tracks, not taking the documents Ruel had been working on, and spoke up. 

Ruel, looking exhausted, looked at him from the bed. 

When Ruel’s hand paused, Leo looked at Cassion. 

“Why? Did something go missing?” Ruel’s expression involuntarily turned sour. 

After checking the documents multiple times, it seemed that something had been accidentally left out. 

“Prince Huan is coming. It seems we need to prepare.” 

Leo’s ears perked up at Cassion’s words. 

—Ruel has decided to play with this body. This body, this body has been waiting quietly by Ruel’s side…

‘Just a little while ago, you were happily running around the room with the spirits.’ 

Ruel looked at Leo as if in disbelief. 

But Leo, who didn’t know how to lie, seemed to be saying that playing with the spirits wasn’t really playing. 

Leo fell down helplessly, as if his soul had gone out, and leaned against Ruel.

And then it started whimpering and tried to cover its face with its short front paws, but it didn’t work.

—This body is sad because it cannot play with Ruel, and it is sad that the feet of this body are short.

“Cassion, ask Astell to make just one ice cream.”

—Is it for this body?

Leo sniffled and looked at Ruel with expectant eyes.

“Yes.” 

With Ruel’s answer, Leo’s ears perked up and he bounced around the bed with joy. 

—This body is happy now! 

‘…Ha.’ 

Ruel let out a bitter laugh. 

In the meantime, Leo ran to Cassion and pressed his face against his leg. 

—This body wants to eat it right now. Quickly, tell Astell. 

“I will call Fran.” Cassion looked at Leo attached to his leg, then spoke to Ruel. 

“Alright.” 

Watching Cassion and Leo leave, Ruel inhaled Breath. 

‘Serti is doing well.’

Ruel didn’t know how much he had laughed upon hearing that Huan foolishly touched Serti. 

‘He should have been more careful with Serti, even if he was ignorant of everything else.’ 

Huan knew how much Diagos cherished Serti.

It was an intentional move.

However, Huan would not have known that precious things have different depths.

Huan may have thought he had Diagos’ weakness, but in fact, he rubbed the wrong way.

He ignited Diagos’s anger.

He underestimated the importance of the title ‘father’ had.

There was no way that Huan, who always received and only took, would know.

The small embers burned brightly and became fire, which would soon become a huge flame that would drive away the rest and Red Ash.

Ruel laughed happily.

Now was the time to make his move.

“I rushed here as soon as I heard that you woke up. It seems like I was too hasty. I’m sorry,” 

Huan looked at Ruel with an apologetic face.

Half of Ruel’ face was covered in bandages, and his pale complexion was enough to make anyone feel sorry for him.

“I… I’m the one who should be sorry. Your Highness came all this way and I’m just lying here like this,” Ruel replied, feeling guilty for causing concern.

“Don’t worry about it. How’s your body feeling?” Huan asked, showing concern.

“I’m fine, thank you for worrying so much. It’s not as bad as it looks, I’ll get better with time.” 

Huan sighed in relief, patting his chest. 

The sight was so disgusting that Ruel frowned.

“Are you sick? I’ll call a doctor right now.”

“No, it’s just a mild discomfort,” Ruel replied, trying to endure the pain without inhaling Breath.

“Perhaps…,” Huan hesitated, then cautiously asked, “Has the culprit been caught?”

“Not yet. I couldn’t identify who did it,” Ruel replied in a grim voice.

“I know. That’s why I rushed here,” Huan replied cautiously, as if sharing a secret.

Ruel immediately got up and then lay down again, complaining of pain.

Huan stopped him and comforted him.

“Calm down. You shouldn’t get up yet,” he said.

“Who is it? Tell me, Your Highness!” 

When Ruel pretended to be angry and raised his voice, he found it harder to breathe than before.

Huff. Huff.

Ruel’s breathing became a little rough, and his eyes were filled with desperation.

Huan lowered his head and answered, “It was Adoris.”

“His… Highness A, Adoris, again! Me…again…!”

Ruel shouted again, and his breathing quickly became more rapid.

“Are you okay? Your breathing sounds too rough,” Huan asked, furrowing his brow. It sounded like he was struggling to breathe.

“C-Cassion… Huf… Huff,” Ruel gasped, clutching at his clothes in distress, causing Huan to immediately get up from his seat.

If Ruel died like this, it was obvious that it would be attributed to Adoris’ actions.

Huan opened the door and shouted, “Summon the doctor right away!”

Fran and Tierra, who were waiting outside, along with Cassion, hurriedly ran in.

Ruel’s breathing was not normal.

“Your Highness, please stay here for a moment,” Cassion politely asked Huan and followed her.

Swish.

Fran immediately closed the curtain and hurriedly asked Ruel to inhale Breath.

“You need to breathe. It’s okay. Just breathe slowly,” Fran said as she administered the Breath several times until Ruel was able to breathe normally.

‘Crazy…’ 

For a brief moment, it seemed like his deceased father was expressing anger.

Ruel deliberately did not inhale Breath to show Huan that he was not in good condition.

‘I’ll never, ever do something like this again.’

Ruel was exhausted and closed his eyes for a long time before opening them.

He really thought he was going to die.

It was better to be sick honestly.

“Are you okay?”

Ruel nodded slightly in response to Fran’s question.

“Is Lord Setiria okay?”

Huan anxiously asked as he heard the heavy breathing subsiding.

Fran was just pulling up the bed curtains when she saw Ruel.

She heard him stifle a groan.

This wasn’t something that was announced in advance; it was real pain that had come over Ruel.

Fran urgently reached out to Tierra. 

“Tierra, painkillers. Quickly!” 

“I understand!” Tierra handed the painkillers to Fran from her bag. 

“I will hold him.” Cassion rushed over and held Ruel. 

Ruel’ hands, clenched into fists, trembled. 

After the painkillers were administered, Ruel’s fists gradually relaxed. 

Fran, holding another painkiller, watched over Ruel’s condition. 

It seemed that the pain didn’t come back in succession. 

Fran breathed deeply and sighed with relief. 

Soon, Cassion went out of the curtain and bowed his head to Huan. “Your Highness, I am truly sorry, but this is beyond…” 

“It’s okay. There’s no need to apologize. It’s my fault for suddenly showing up.” Huan bowed his head.

“I deeply appreciate your mercy, Your Highness.” 

“I will come again next time. Please take care of Lord Setiria. You don’t need to follow me.” 

“Yes, Your Highness. Please be careful.” 

Cassion opened the door and bowed until Huan left. 

The door was soon closed, and the curtain was drawn. 

Watching Ruel inhale the Breath with his trembling hands, Cassion asked Fran, “How is Ruel-nim?” 

“He’s feeling drained due to temporary pain. But other than that, he’s okay.” 

“Is that so?” Cassion took out a handkerchief just in case. 

“I’ll be okay with a little rest.” Hearing Ruel’s weak voice, Fran welled up with tears of sadness. 

As he said, it would be okay after resting for a bit, but the pain was also eroding his mind, so it was a problem.

“Mr. Ruel.” Fran sat back down and looked at Ruel. 

“Tell me.” 

“Even if the pain doesn’t occur, you should take painkillers for a while, just like before.” 

“I guess so.”

“Are you okay?”

“It doesn’t hurt now.”

“Are you okay, not just physically but mentally? Aren’t you tired?”

Ruel could not answer the sudden question right away.

He soon smiled and comforted Fran.

“It’s okay.”

“Enduring is not the only answer. Please tell me at anytime,” Fran insisted. 

“Alright,” Ruel responded calmly, causing Fran to hesitate in approaching him further. 

Fran stood up. “I will leave now. I’ll come running back anytime, so don’t worry.”

With that, Fran bowed to Ruel and then left with Tierra and Cassion. 

After walking a few steps, Fran called Cassion. 

“Cassion.” 

“Yes, please speak,” Cassion responded. 

She hesitated several times before calling Cassion, who spoke first. 

“Is Ruel-nim’s condition worsening?” 

“His condition is okay. But more importantly… Is Mr. Ruel okay here?” Fran asked, caressing her own chest. 

Cassion, who was closest to Ruel, answered carefully after a brief hesitation. 

“He’s still holding on.” 

“That’s a relief,” Fran said, feeling reassured. “But there may come a day when he can’t hold on mentally. Pain can gnaw at the mind as well as the body.” 

“I’m worried about that too.” 

“I’m not well-versed in psychiatry, but when Ruel receives external stimuli, he tries to internalize everything. So, he may have already reached his limit,” Fran pointed out sharply. 

In fact, Ruel had hit his limit after hearing that he was a medium blocking the Great Man. “Please keep a closer eye on Ruel,” Fran requested. 

“I understand.” 

“Alright then.” Fran bid farewell to Cassion and walked down the corridor with Tierra. 

Cassion twirled his hair and entered Ruel’s room. 

“I’m fine, so don’t do things that you don’t want to,” Ruel said, staring at Cassion sharply. 

Cassion chuckled. “I know. I wouldn’t do it unless you ordered me to, Ruel-nim.”

Ruel was trying to pet Leo out of habit when he remembered that Leo had gone to play with Aris.

Feeling embarrassed for no reason, he put his hand on his stomach and asked Cassion.

“What about Diagos?”

“It seems he’s completely back to himself. He’s quietly gathering evidence related to the incident from five years ago,” Cassion replied.

“Have you located the information that Huan gathered to pin Adoris?” Ruel asked.

“It has been located and there has also been confirmed reactions to your recent reenactment, which suggests that he actually believes in it,” Cassion responded.

Ruel smiled with satisfaction. 

The relationship between Diagos and Huan had been twisted by Serti.

For the stage, the four heads of the family were looking for Red Ash hidden in the territory, and the king and princes were looking for Red Ash hidden in the Royal Palace.

Now there were two things left for him to do.

Ruel poured mana into the ring.

“Your Highness.”

-I’m ready.

“I am ready too. Please tell me the location of the place where you meet Cron.”

        

***      

       

“It is an honor to meet you.”

As soon as Cron saw Banios taking off his cloak, he bowed.

He had never expected to meet Banios only in a small village near the capital, swayed by Banios’s persistent persuasion. 

Isn’t Banios also being recruited by Red Ash anyway?

No matter how likely Adoris was to become the next king, he would never favor Cron. 

It was better to choose something that fell close by rather than to reach for something unattainable.

“Nice to meet you.”

At Banios’ words, Cron’s mouth didn’t loosen from the smile when Banios spoke.

“Thank you for your hard work coming all the way.”

Even though it was winter, Cron continued to wipe off his sweat and led the way to the seat he had prepared in advance.

“I’ve rented the entire building to ensure your comfort.”

“Thank you,” Banios sat down and smiled leisurely. “Have you considered my proposal?”

It was a proposal to empower Banios himself to ascend to the throne.

It was a very simple, yet also heavy proposal.

Cron sat down and answered thoughtfully.

“Yes, I have thought about it, a lot.”

“I personally hope that your answer is positive,” Banios poured a drink for Cron and himself. 

“I think that if you want to become the so-called king, the priority is to recruit the nobles, but in reality, it is ministers like you who run this country.”

Cron wanted to agree wholeheartedly, but it was a risky statement for someone of his humble status to handle.

“Isn’t that right, Cron?” Banios asked, not bothering to look at Cron’s expression, shaking the glass again.

“Whatever your conviction is, if it can be your strength, I would be delighted,” Cron replied cautiously.

“Ha ha, my apologies. I was too hasty. Let’s forget about our conversation just now, and could you give me an answer to my proposal?”

As soon as Banios’ gaze fell on him, Cron felt his heart stop. 

The efforts he had made to rise to the position of judge unfolded before his eyes like a painting in an album. 

He had thought this day would come someday. 

He had thought that someday, someone would need him.

Cron took a deep breath, put on the strong expression he had practiced in front of the mirror many times, and spoke, “Your Highness, my conviction is…”

“It’s the Red Ash, isn’t it?”

“Red Ash….?”

Cron was taken aback by the sudden unfamiliar voice and looked urgently in the direction of the sound.

The door opened, and someone was coming in.

Ttak. Ttak.

The sound of a cane echoed cheerfully.

“R-Ru-Ruel Setiria!”

Cron pointed his finger at Ruel and shouted.

Nonsense.

Didn’t he just wake up from a carriage accident?

“How dare you call my name so recklessly?” Contrary to his words, Ruel looked at Cron with a mischievous smile.

Ruel approached Banios and bowed.

“Your Highness, it’s been a while. You seem to have lost a little weight.”

“It’s not just a little, it’s quite a bit. I have been doing quite a run around,” Banios joked.

Cron couldn’t comprehend the situation. Ruel’s sudden arrival was unexpected, and instead of being rude to him, he was surprisingly friendly.

“We can catch up on things later. Let’s deal with this matter first,” Ruel said, inhaling Breath and sitting next to Banios.

“Aris.”

At Ruel’s words, Aris entered and stood next to Cron.

Finally, Cron understood the situation. The two of them had plotted against him.

Cron pointed at Ruel and shouted, “You, you! You—agh!”

Aris lightly broke Cron’s finger that was pointing at Ruel.

“Aris, my order hasn’t been given yet.”

As if he didn’t care about Cron, who was suffering from a broken finger, Ruel pointed out Aris’ unruly attitude.

“I apologize. I couldn’t help but act when his finger pointed at you. I will be more careful,” Aris said apologetically, and Banios took a sip of his drink, seemingly indifferent to the situation.

The true appearance of Ruel and his escort, which he did not recognize, was unfamiliar to him.

“Is it okay for the noise to come out?” Banios looked outside.

Even if Cron had rented the entire shop, he couldn’t control the noise.

“Yes, it’s fine. Please don’t worry,” Ruel showed a faint smile to ease Banios’s concern.

Outside the door, Tyson and Cassion were waiting.

How reliable they were.

Ruel put his clasped hands on his stomach, enduring the dizziness that came after the warp magic used by Tyson.

To synchronize the timing, they had no choice but to use warp magic to avoid the surveillance of the Red Ash.

“Luruan’s henchman and a member of the Red Ash. Quite an interesting combination, isn’t it?” 

Cron glared at Ruel, holding his finger.

“You’ve deceived all of us,” he said.

“I’m a bit busy, so let’s wrap this up quickly.”

Ruel looked at Aris and pointed to Cron with a nod.

What Aris presented to Cron was data containing records of how he freely used Luruan’s money and power.

Although there was a hierarchical relationship between the two, they had been friends since childhood, and that relationship lasted for 20 years.

Ironically, Luruan genuinely trusted Cron, but to him, Luruan was merely a means to climb higher and a necessary pawn for his schemes.

Cron, with a doubtful look, gazed at the stack of documents in front of him but made no attempt to touch them. 

“Don’t you want to see it?” 

Ruel confronted him, not wanting to waste any more time on the rascal.

“This is evidence of your exploitation of Luruan. What do you think will happen if this falls into Luruan’s hands?” Ruel directly challenged him. 

Only then did Cron hastily grab the documents, surprised and flustered. 

“H-How did you…?” His breathing quickened, and his eyes widened.

“The process is not important now. Isn’t that right, Cron?”

Ruel smiled arrogantly.

Rip!

Cron hastily tore up the materials.

The sight made Ruel burst into laughter.

“Tear it all you want. The originals are in my hands.”

“You, you bastard!”

Author's Thoughts

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