I Became a Sick Nobleman

“P-purification?”

—That’s right. Hick, it’s purification. This body will prove it.

When Leo answered with tears in his eyes, Ruel blinked with his mouth open.

“I didn’t know.”

Ruel wiped the dripping water under his chin.

He himself became Ruel, but all he knew was that he was a sickly nobleman.

Ruel recalled the time when a shadow enveloped Nintra and carefully organized his words.

“It wasn’t purely my will to use magic, I followed my instincts.”

His voice was weak. Ruel closed his eyes for a moment and inhaled Breath.

“My uncle said that the dark attribute is very rare, and there is very little information about it… Is it because of my blood or magic?”

Ruel, who was marked by a Great One, was able to live for five years thanks to the blood flowing through his body.

Cassion killed him in the novel, he did not die because of his illness.

“Anything else?”

“…what?”

Ruel opened his closed eyes.

“You know, whether you were descended from a hero, called by God, or something like that.”

“Cassion, are you serious or joking?”

“I’m asking you seriously.”

Ruel sighed.

“Yes, I would ask that, too. But there’s only one thing I can tell you.”

He was out of breath quickly.

Ruel continued after inhaling Breath.

“…I don’t know.”

Why can he control the monsters? How he managed to do purification.

“I have a great master.”

Despite Cassion’s sarcastic remarks, Ruel stretched out his hand and asked for a snack.

“I’m hungry.”

Ruel checked his strength as he ate the meat pie Cassion handed him.

Crunch.

To my delight, they have all increased.

‘As expected, when you reach the limit, you grow faster.’

How much more blood should I vomit?

Crunch.

Ruel asked, chewing the meat pie hard. 

“Then why is it so noisy around here? This is a soundproof carriage.”

“You saved the village.”

Ruel frowned.

He could see that he had saved the village.

But something was wrong.

It sounded like people were shouting something together.

“Ruel-nim saved the village from a strange monster engulfed in black blood, and as a result, the Royal Knights saw Ruel-nim vomit and collapse. The title ‘Noble of Darkness’ was given to honor Ruel-nim’s sacrificial spirit.”

Cassion raised one corner of his mouth and clapped his hands with a great deal of ridicule.

“Wh, wh… what?”

He got goosebumps.

“It’s a ‘Noble of Darkness.’”

“Who gave that nickname?”

“The leader of the Blue Knights was excited to grant it. No one opposed the title.”

“Crazy bas—”

Ruel angrily recalled Ganien as if he were going to tear him to pieces.

“Stop it.”

“That is impossible.”

“Why?”

You have to face reality yourself to know why.

Cassion opened the window only a little.

The cold wind followed with a strange sound.

“We see the lord, the Noble of Darkness!”

“O Noble of Darkness. We welcome you!”

“The Noble of Darkness…”

“Close it.”

At Ruel’s order, Cassion closed the window regretfully.

“Did you hear that?”

Ruel buried his face in his hand.

“First of all, we couldn’t stop you from using magic and saving the village. However, the power that turned Nintra into a bizarre monster and the magic Ruel-nim used were hidden to the public. The Noble of Darkness is known as the title that came out because of what Ruel-nim wore, so don’t worry.”

In the end, the title Noble of Darkness did not disappear.

“Is it possible to kill Ganien? Cough, cough.”

The sound of Ruel’s complaint was mixed with the sound of coughing, Cassion laughed out loud.

“Sadly, he’s out of my league. I don’t want to kill him.”

Cassion stopped his laughter at once and continued, as if he had never laughed, “I have something to tell you.”

“What is it?”

He held out a bottle of black water from his pocket.

“Nintra had it. We’re still investigating it.”

Leo sniffed and looked at the bottle.

He tilted his head at once.

—It is water that smells like the man who had gone out of nature’s order.

Ruel occasionally frowned at the stabbing pain within his body.

“Try a drop on Leo.”

Leo said he couldn’t purify it, but he still saw purification happen just by touching it.

Cassion dropped just one drop on Leo.

Shiiiijikjik.

It melted away quickly.

Ruel inhaled the Breath quietly.

“Always move with the Great Purifier.”

The handwriting he saw when he gained the third power seemed to be useful advice.

‘Did you already know about the existence of the black water?’

Tap. Tap.

Ruel tapped his thigh.

It was a pain in the ass.

It was all the more deadly because it was not mentioned in the novel.

“I don’t know if you saw it, but aura didn’t work against it.”

Ruel remembered the scene.

The severed head had stuck back together. He was not a zombie, and he was still alive even after his head was cut off.

If anything appears like this in the future, how should we respond?

“What happened to Nintra?”

“He’s alive.”

“He’s alive?”

Didn’t he get beheaded several times?

“Yes, to my surprise, he’s alive. Now that the Knights have him, I’m going to take a look for the opportunity to question him ourselves.”

“Yeah, whether you’re planning your own play or whatever you do, be sure to bring him here.”

—This body can’t purify…

Ruel grabbed Leo’s mouth.

This pessimism was not good.

Because the opponent was Leo, he didn’t want to hear any more.

“It’s fine because I can do it.”

“You can, but your body can’t hold out. Are you planning to collapse again?”

Cassion, who seemed to have a shadow of Billo, pressed the nagging in his head and brought up only what he had to say.

“Will you come forward if this happens again?”

“Did you dispose of the Red Ash hidden in the royal knights?”

Cassion’s eyes frowned as Ruel avoided answering.

There was only one person influenced by the black water this time.

If there are two next time.

No, if it’s more than that.

Ruel will do the job, I’m sure.

His life depended on it. Cassion did not let it go.

“Please answer me straight, Ruel-nim.”

“Who can do it?”

Cassion looked at Leo.

He had to do it, not just in the name of the Great Purifier.

“I’m not dying.”

“You’ll die next time.”

Even though his heart was aching, Cassion stared intently at Ruel.

“…was it serious?”

Ruel did not know what had happened to himself because he was in a daze.

“It was serious.”

Ruel shut up. Cassion did not say nonsense.

“I will definitely find a way to deal with the black water. So don’t cross the line, you promised me you wouldn’t risk yourself again.”

Since the Plane incident, Ruel has always stayed behind.

This case was unavoidable, but what about next time?

Will he be able to stand behind the frontlines next time?

Ruel thought it was impossible.

He was the only one who could purify it for now.

“Cassion, I’m different compared to then and now.”

“It is no different.”

Ruel’s forehead was wrinkled.

“Cassion, keep the line.”

“…I’m sorry.”

“I don’t do anything stupid.”

I’ll step up when I have to, and I’ll step down when I have to.

Cassion sighed and answered the question Ruel asked.

“Torto killed him himself. I haven’t figured anything out.”

“I caught Nintra, so that’s enough.”

There was no longer a story to be heard from the pawns.

“When will we arrive?”

“We’ll be there in two hours.”

“What’s the schedule?”

“Most of the events have been canceled due to Ruel’s illness. However, you will need to attend the welcome ceremony held by the Royal Family, even for a brief moment. Also, discussions related to alliances, dinners with nobles, and a welcome parade for the people… .”

Although most of them were canceled, the sound of Cassion listing out one event at a time made it feel too long.

—Wow, that’s a lot. Ruel is great.

“Yes.”

Ruel answered calmly and inhaled Breath.

According to the data provided by Banios, the presumed stronghold of the Red Ash was near the capital.

It’s supposed to be dark under the lamp.

Who would have known that the stronghold was one of the most frequented bars in Cyronian?

The owner of the bar is Count Bianne Chen.

He was one of the noblemen who confronted Ganien in the novel.

Ruel smiled suspiciously.

With that smile, Cassion sighed again quietly.

“Cassion.”

“Yes.”

“Look for Bianne Chen and the bar.”

Although various events have been canceled, it will take more than three days if the royal family holds the several remaining events, including the welcoming ceremony.

It was a shame to just waste that time.

“His Highness must have investigated it.”

“You know, Cassion? I don’t trust the investigation unless it’s my person.”

What if the bar run by Bianne Chen is not really the stronghold?

If Banios had investigated and the second prince noticed this, but induced him to obtain false information.

There were many possibilities.

So Ruel wanted to carefully look at everything once more himself.

“All right, I’ll look into it.”

***

As soon as Ruel got out of the carriage, Ganien asked, “What about your body?”

Ruel glared at him as if he were going to kill him. 

“Why? What’s wrong?”

“If you hadn’t attached that title, my body would have felt a little less painful.”

“Oh, it’s a good name, right? I don’t usually have a knack for naming, but it came out really well this time. Even within the Blue Knights, they say it’s okay…”

Ruel grabbed Ganien by the collar.

The self control that Ruel had been holding back burst when he saw Ganien’s smiling face.

“Erase it, now.”

“Ruel-nim, we have a lot of eyes watching us.”

Cassion pointed out the surrounding gazes and reminded him quietly.

He understood how he felt, but it was not good to make a fuss in front of the palace.

“Whew…”

Ruel managed to come to his senses.

It’s not a new kind of annoyance, but until he met the royal family, he would have to listen to the familiar sound of ‘Noble of Darkness.’

He dreaded it.

“Hey, you didn’t like it? But what should I do? It’s all known now. I can’t change it even if I remove it.”

Ganien scratched the back of his neck.

Ruel’s stomach hurt as he thought about his ruined name.

“Do you think it’s weird, too, Aris?”

Ganien looked at Aris for help.

“Be honest.”

Aris gulped at the gaze of the two and loosened his itching mouth.

“I personally think it suits Ruel-nim very well. I don’t know what to say because I think about the bravery Ruel-nim showed me at that time.”

His eyes were so shiny.

Like a child facing a treasured object, Ruel turned his head away.

‘…I shouldn’t have asked Aris.’

—This body was very surprised, too! It was great! Ruel’s name may be preceded by greatness!

Leo rubbed his face against Ruel’s body.

It was very cozy with its tail wrapped around its neck.

“Lord.”

At Torto’s voice, Ruel turned his head.

Chickk.

With reverent vigilance, Torto opened his mouth.

“I would like to pay tribute to the courage and spirit of sacrifice that the Lord has shown. Thank you!”

While traveling under his protection, the mysterious creature without magic was able to kill all of his men.

But he lived. He was saved by Ruel.

Chiikk!

Following that, the Royal Knights stared at Ruel with firm eyes.

“Oh, this was a first.”

Ganien looked at the scene with satisfaction and gestured towards the Blue Knights.

Unlike the royal knights in red capes, the knights in blue capes moved forward in line with Ganien’s instructions.

“Lord Setiria, I would like to express my gratitude to you as a knight who protects the Kingdom of Cyronian. Thank you.”

“Thank you!”

Ruel smiled lightly at the salutes of the two Knights.

‘Can I rip something of his out?’

This wasn’t Setiria and there was no obvious action.

“Cough, cough.”

Perhaps because of his lack of energy, Ruel stumbled for a moment.

“Ah…”

Sighs leaked out from all over the place.

Knowing the amount of blood they saw at that time, the Knights expressed concern at Ruel’s uneasy appearance.

He just collapsed for two days and now he’s up.

He may not make it even if he walks.

One of the Blue Knights nudged Ganien on the side and whispered something, and Ganien opened his mouth.

“I’ll bring a stretcher. Please wait.”

Ruel’s face crumpled right away.

I was afraid of what other titles would be given to me if I was carried on a stretcher to the royal family, as if the Noble of Darkness was not enough.

“That’s enough.”

It wasn’t that I couldn’t walk because I didn’t have the strength.

Ttak.

Eyes followed the sound of the cane.

It was like watching a newborn baby learning to walk.

‘This is driving me crazy.’

He couldn’t reveal the power of recovery he held within his body.

—Ruel. Ruel, everyone is worried about Ruel.

Leo’s voice was very excited about what was going on.

When Ruel inhaled Breath, the Knights flinched.

“May I ask what that is?”

Torto opened his mouth very carefully.

Ruel didn’t want to tell him because he didn’t know what else they would react to.

“Nothing.”

At the same time as he said this, he looked at Ganien softly with a threateningly look to keep his mouth shut with his eyes.

Ganien nodded his head violently.

Ttak.

The sound of the cane was heard again.

The two knights looked at him anxiously and followed closely behind him.