I Became a Sick Nobleman

—Ruel is the most cautious of all.

Ruel silently stroked Leo’s head.

—Don’t be scared.

What could he be scared of?

Even though Ruel didn’t know why, he couldn’t deny those words.

“I know it’s better for Fran to go to Kran with me.”

—Then why are you opposing it? Leo tilted his head curiously.

Ruel didn’t have an immediate answer.

He had always entrusted dangerous tasks to the shadows while being exceptionally cautious with Fran.

In that contradiction, Ruel finally realized why he was opposing it.

Finally, he understood what Leo was saying.

Ruel whispered softly,

“…Because they’re weak.”

He was still afraid of his father, who was thinner than his own arm and still relied on a respirator.

“If they’re weak, they’ll die quickly.”

That’s why he couldn’t escape from sadness and saw that image overlapping with others.

Leo blinked his eyes and continued to look at Ruel.

“But…” Ruel took a deep breath. “I suppose I have to trust, right?”

Since Cassion said he would protect Fran and Tierra, he must keep his word.

Finally, Leo smiled brightly.

—Just trust this body! This body is a great purifier!

“Cassion.”

“You’re quick to call.” Cassion appeared with a sigh.

He glanced at his watch, realizing that he had left Ruel’s room only a minute and 43 seconds ago.

Ruel smiled as Cassion sighed, regardless of whether it was a complaint or a sigh of relief.

“Tell Fran and Tierra to pack in advance.”

Cassion was momentarily curious about Ruel’s sudden change of heart. “Ruel-nim, why…”

“Now go.”

Ruel interrupted Cassion’s words and waved his hand.

It seemed Ruel had no intention of providing an explanation. 

Cassion briefly lifted the corners of his mouth, observing Leo rubbing his face against Ruel’s palm. 

“Understood. Then.”

Confirming Cassion’s left, Ruel called Leo.

“Leo.”

Leo’s eyes sparkled as he looked at Ruel.

—Yes?

“If Cassion promises to give you ice cream, you’ll fall for the temptation just like that, right?”

—This, this body…

Leo’s eyes trembled greatly.

He avoided Ruel’s gaze.

—This body will never, ever give in to ice cream. This body can overcome this time.”

Ruel chuckled softly.

Even if he made such a determination, Leo’s mouth would easily succumb to ice cream.

—It sparkles!

Leo became even more excited when he saw the light coming from Ruel’s ring today.

—Ruel! The ring is sparkling! Hurry, hurry and take it!

Leo urged him on, but this time Ruel was ready and connected.

“Are you okay?” Ruel immediately asked about Ganien’s well-being.

-There’s no need to worry. They withdrew just before the conflict broke out.

“Withdrew?”

-Yeah. I guess they didn’t have any intention of escalating things on their side. They had a considerable number of scouts, but it was insufficient for a full-scale battle.

‘The Empire avoided conflict?’

Not scouts, no declaration of war, and they even avoided direct combat. 

Ruel’s face also suddenly hardened at this strange situation.

-I have no idea what the Empire is thinking.

Ganien let out a deep sigh.

-In any case, we’ve been debating this situation all night, so I was a bit late because I took a short nap.

“It looks like no conclusion has been reached.”

-That’s right. We have to prepare for war, we have to wait and see. Also, it was still too early to be sure about either of them, etc.

“What about His Majesty…?”

-Oh, he’s right here. Let me hand it over.

‘…?’

Ruel had no choice but to stop talking, startled by Ganien’s sudden action without warning.

-Ah, can you hear me?

Huswen’s voice could be heard.

When he told Ganien about the balance of the world before, it seemed to be revenge for that time.

‘Don’t be petty.’

Ruel grimaced, but his voice remained steady.

“I greet the brightest sun of Cyronian. I apologize for not being able to meet you in person and having to communicate through the device…”

-Such greetings are fine. How is your health?

“Thanks to Your Majesty’s concerns, I am now well.”

-That’s good to hear. However, before I talk to you, I need to confirm one thing.

“Please feel free to ask.”

-Is the story you communicated through Ganien true?

“Yes, it is an undeniable fact.”

Huswen let out a long sigh.

-I believe in you and am looking for warlocks and those with dark attributes on a large scale.

“Your Majesty should also stop hunting monsters for a while.”

-I am aware of this fact, but monsters are continuing to attack my people.

“I’m not asking Your Majesty to stop all attacks. Naturally, monsters that attack Your Majesty’ people must be killed. However, please maintain a minimum defense line and stop any unnecessary attacks.”

Ruel asked Banios the same thing.

The monster has become corrupted.

Probably due to the black water.

In any case, regardless of the reasons, the monsters attacked humans, and even if they were the Guardians who were monitoring the Great Man, they couldn’t stop their countermeasures.

-I will give your request some thought.

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

-I personally believe that what you just asked about, what the Empire has done, is a deception.

Ruel stroked Leo as he listened to Huswen’s words.

-I was raised by my grandfather to believe in the Empire’s might. The Empire is not a place for such petty behavior.

Huswen also had similar thoughts.

“Your Majesty, I have a quick question. Please allow me.”

-Allowed.

“Your Majesty, why do you think the Empire suddenly declared itself abolished? As far as I know, at that time, the empire swept through the three countries for unification.”

Ruel spoke in his own way about the fact that the three countries were completely destroyed by the empire.

-At that time, I heard that the situation in the three countries was dire.

For a moment, Huswen’s light laughter could be heard.

  

-Anyway, then the Empire suddenly stopped fighting. Then it declared itself abolished, and there were many rumors about it. What my grandfather told me was this.

It was supposed to be a tense moment, but instead, Ruel was taken aback.

Kuroo kuru.

Leo and the spirits gathered around him, their ears pricked up.

‘It wouldn’t be fun to listen to.’

-They say a black light has descended on the empire.

“Black light? What is that?”

-My grandfather said that heavenly punishment came down, but I think a civil war broke out. In fact, there were quite loud voices calling for the war to stop in the empire at that time.

‘It’s a civil war.’

It wasn’t an impossible story, but it wasn’t a clear answer.

-You’re in charge of the mission heading to Kran again, right?

“Yes. They nominated me and made me the representative of the delegation.”

-They will surely use you. Be careful. Kran is a poisonous place, and if you let your guard down, they may bite you.

Even Huswen is as wary of the Kran as Ganien.

He could almost sense his anger, even more than Ganien’s.

“Your Majesty, I have heard that Kran is sending an envoy to Cyronian.”

Huswen immediately snorted.

-You don’t know how much I laughed when I heard that. But I’m still worried because I don’t want my personal feelings to get mixed up.

“Your Majesty, if it would not be too presumptuous, I would appreciate it if you could delay the departure of the delegation from Kran for the time being.”

Relations between Kran and Cyronian were not good.

Cyronian had his reasons for delaying the delegation, but Leponia did not.

-I will hear the reason first.

Huswen approached cautiously.

“Your Majesty, if it wouldn’t be too presumptuous, I have pondered this matter deeply. Although uncertain, I have come up with two possible hypotheses.”

Ruel inhaled Breath for a moment.

-Keep talking.

Huswen urged Ruel.

Ruel laughed lightly at those words.

Huswen also seemed to have doubts about the current situation.

“One is, as you may have guessed, the hypothesis is that Kran and the Empire joined hands.”

-I already guessed it from the fact that the Tonisk Empire came from Kran.

“The second is the hypothesis that the Tonisk Empire was not abolished but rather collapsed.”

A sound of a chair being dragged could be heard. 

Huswen rose from his seat. 

-The empire… The country was not abolished but destroyed?

“Yes, there is no evidence to support this yet, but isn’t it quite possible?”

-… Hahaha. If it were someone else saying this, I might have been furious, but since it’s your words, I will take them into consideration.

Ruel couldn’t help but smile at Huswen’s calm warning.

He knew how ridiculous this must sound to Huswen but surely he wouldn’t simply brush it off. 

It was settled then. 

“Your Majesty.”

-Tell me.

“I am aware that Your Majesty’ birthday is coming up soon.”

-Yes, I am delighted that you remembered.

“Would you please invite me?”

-You are quite… 

Huswen paused for a moment. Then his soft chuckle could be heard. 

-Quite an interesting fellow. What should I do about this temptation?

Huswen quickly caught on to his intentions. 

He was truly perceptive.

Ruel was currently in the process of creating a pretext that would allow him to move freely within Kran. Officially, he hadn’t been announced as the representative of the delegation heading to the Kingdom of Kran.

If Huswen took the initiative to officially invite him, it would give him a pretext to travel to Cyronian whenever he pleased, along with his safety.

Being the representative of the delegation was important, but the birthday of a king of a country was equally significant.

-Of course. No. It is only natural that I invite you, isn’t it? 

Huswen’s laughter continued to resonate. 

“I hope you will make it lively and festive.” 

-Okay. After all, it is an opportunity to strike at the back of Kran. How could I not grant permission?

“Thank you for granting my request.” 

-But remember, don’t forget that our relationship is mutual, and I am allowing this.

“I feel the same way, Your Majesty.”

Huswen burst into laughter once again. 

It was a genuinely joyful sound.

-If you’re tired of Leponia… Oh, I may have gone too far. Come to Cyronian whenever you feel comfortable. I’ll show you around the beautiful places of Cyronian properly.

Huswen’s intention to invite him was blatantly obvious. 

However, Ruel pretended not to notice and responded, “Yes, when the time comes, I hope Ganien can guide me through the beautiful places of Cyronian.”

There was still a debt that Ganien owed him.

***

“Ruel-nim.”

Just as Ruel was about to open Tyson’s door, Cassion appeared from Ruel’s shadow and called out to him.

—Whoa!

Leo was startled and quickly backed away. 

Ruel chuckled as he glanced back and saw Leo hiding behind his leg.

—Don’t laugh. This body doesn’t get surprised! 

Leo growled and playfully bit Ruel’s shoe.

Kuroo kuru.

The spirits pulled Leo’s fur.

—Ah, this body didn’t bite him hard. Ruel is not hurt by this body’s teeth.

Kuroo kuru.

—It’s true.

Ruel smiled and spoke at the sight of the spirits trying to protect him from Leo.

“What’s going on?”

“There are two things I need to tell you.”

“Tell me.”

“I heard news that they are recruiting adventurers in Kran.”

“Why adventurers?” Ruel inhaled Breath as he walked into the room. 

He noticed that Tyson seemed to be absent momentarily.

Ruel took a seat and looked at Cassion, who closed the door before answering his question.

“There is a day every year in Kran when monsters run rampant, and it is said that now is that time.”

Ruel laughed for a moment.

As Cassion frowned, Ruel urged him again.

“Oh, go ahead.”

“They say it usually happens around summer, but this time it came late.”

The corners of Ruel’s mouth rose.

“Every year, monsters run rampant temporarily. Is that possible?”

“Yes, it happens in Leponia as well as Cyronian, but it seems to be particularly severe in Kran,” replied Cassion.

Ruel didn’t jump to conclusions. 

Surely there were experts who could shed light on the matter.

“Contact Jan,” Ruel said.

“Understood,” Cassion said, taking out the communication device and contacting Jan.

After about 30 seconds, Jan’s voice came through, sounding slightly surprised.

-Who is this…?

“It’s me.” 

-Child, why did you contact me with this? You startled me. 

Jan’s voice quickly brightened.

“I was a bit tired, so I contacted you this way.” 

-Alright, from now on, use this method to reach me. I don’t want to burden you.

“I had something to ask, so I contacted you again. Are you busy?” Ruel inquired.

-Not busy. I was just receiving news from the spirits and opening the gates to bring them in. 

Jan denied it, even though it could easily be described as busy.

He must have thought Ruel might abruptly end the call again, as he swiftly brought up the events that had been happening.

After listening to the story for a while, Ruel laughed at Jan’s words as he occasionally checked to see if he was listening to his story.

How long had Jan been waiting for Ruel’s contact?

Jan’s fondness for him was evident even across the communication device, but it was different from Tyson’s affection.

-…So, there isn’t much news at the moment, right? Okay. What do you want to ask? 

Jan finally asked after the long conversation.

Now that the lengthy conversation was over, Ruel finally got to the point.

“Is it possible for non-corrupted monsters to go on a temporary rampage?”

-A rampage, you say. 

Jan pondered for a moment before responding. 

-Non-corrupted monsters don’t display aggression. They only attack the Great Man. But you say it’s temporary.

The possibility of a Great Man causing monsters to go berserk in Kran was very low. 

It’s not just Kran where the monsters go on rampages; it happens in the three nations as well. 

However, as Jan said, it bothered him that it was temporary.

‘Could it be related to corruption?’

It was difficult to confirm whether the monsters had been corrupted or not. 

Even if Rupina’s eyes had returned from black to gold the other day as a sign, there were too few examples to be certain.

Perhaps some beings were originally black-eyed.

“Thank you for letting me know. I will send my people over soon, and I will rely on you for assistance.”

-Of course, I don’t know how many will come, so I’m not sure what preparations to make. I can’t leave this place…

Ruel looked at Cassion and made a light waving motion with his hand. The communication device turned off.

“I’ve disconnected it.” 

Ruel inhaled Breath while listening to Cassion.

“It seems corruption is a possibility. It will be difficult to confirm with the shadows,” Ruel said.

Since the monsters would prey on the spirits, it was also impossible to confirm through the spirits.

“Indeed. It seems you’ll have to personally confirm this part since I can’t communicate like you, Ruel-nim,” Cassion suggested.

“Is there anything else?” Ruel asked, patting Leo’s stomach.

“The person we rescued from the Red House, previously owned by Luruan, wants to have a conversation with you.”

“I heard they haven’t fully recovered yet?” 

“Yes. Their mind is still not entirely stable. However, after conveying your words as instructed, they momentarily came back to their senses.” 

“And are they back now?” 

“Yes. So you need to hurry.” 

Ruel inhaled Breath. 

“It seemed that the person had suffered greatly under the Great Man.”

“I also thought so at first.” Listening to Cassion’s words, Ruel stood up. 

It seemed he would have to meet Tyson later.

“He claims to be the Crown Prince of the Tonisk Empire,” Cassion revealed.

Author's Thoughts

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