The banshee had an incredibly beautiful face.
Perhaps, before she died she was a pure and pretty young girl?
She even wore a maid’s outfit, targeting the taste of those with certain specific preferences, but what good does it do?
She was just a banshee.
Moreover, a sinister and cunning banshee.
“…I came to see the books.”
[Yes… I will guide you. Which genre… do you… desire?]
This place was a library of dark magic.
Back in his previous country, the ‘Realm of Light’ considered these books forbidden, possessing one of these books was enough to warrant execution.
[Blood magic? Destruction? Summoning? Curses? Ah… we don’t have books related to necromancy.]
Necromancy.
It refers to the dark art of dealing with the undead.
‘That’s a pity.’
Necromancy could indeed be considered the pinnacle of dark magic.
The power to raise an army on one’s own!
‘Necromancers specializing in the undead are ranked among the top few in the Twelve pillars of the Empire.’
Necromancy strictly prohibited the external dissemination of necromancy teachings.
Therefore, finding books related to necromancy within the Magic Empire was extremely difficult… as ‘Gossip of Darkness,’ a companion in the hero’s party, had told him.
“Are all other related genres available?”
[The basic ones are all here. Ah… there are no books on… Devil… Pacts.]
Banshee explained.
[Dark Magus family… prohibit contracts with Devils.]
Christian nodded.
He was aware of this.
Contracting with Devils was, surprisingly, mostly taboo even within the Magic Empire.
‘The Magic Empire pursues the power of darkness, not to worship evil.’
There was a clear difference between the two.
The Empire valued the strength that comes from harnessing dark powers.
What is defined as ‘evil’ outside is often regarded as evil within the Empire too. There are differences in standards, of course.
Contracts with devils are also taboo.
Because devils pursue evil.
Human sacrifices, murder, others’ suffering, greed, etc.
These are values dear to devils.
‘The issue is that the Magic Empire doesn’t outright ban contracts with devils.’
While they are considered taboo and prohibited, they’re not ‘banned.’
It’s up to individual freedom.
Therefore, there are quite a few mages who secretly make deals with devils, and they formed the Army of the Magic Empire that will later confront Crusade Union.
Christian had to rise to the top of the Magic Empire and stop those who, under the banner of Devils, sought to destroy the world.
‘First things first, though. I need to swallow up the Dark Magus family.’
Banshee’s maid outfit fluttered eerily.
[Which… branch of dark magic would you like to focus on? Since it’s your first time… maybe… explore several branches?]
That was the usual approach.
Magicians from the allied faction also learned various kinds of magic up to the 2-star level before choosing their specialty at 3-star.
Christian would naturally follow this method, but…
“I need to learn a specific dark magic first. Bring me all the books I mentioned.”
Banshee was flustered by Christian’s request.
[But…? That book is…?]
“Why? Aren’t all the books in here available for reading?”
[But still…]
Banshee hesitated again and asked.
[Isn’t it… a 4-star… dark magic?]
4-star!
A realm referred to as ‘Prime.’
Currently, Christian was asking for a spell book that typically only experts could handle, without even knowing the basics.
[I doubt… you will understand it.]
“No, I will be able to.”
Christian simply stated the reason.
“I’m actually a genius.”
[…….]
Banshee was silent for a moment.
It’s like…
Our young master is… really, oh, so adorable, that kind of expression?
[Ohoho… Not only is our young master… stylish… but a genius as well. Truly… what a man.]
“Quiet down and just bring it. I need it.”
[Yes, understood. Excuse me… but may I ask… why you are searching for that spell?]
Christian paused before responding.
“To catch a rat.”
‘Rat.’
He meant the person who had thrown him a dreamstone while he was in the Punishment Dungeon.
In the Count of Kazar’s house, there was someone secretly wishing for his downfall.
It was about time to catch that rat.
“That spell would be perfect for it.”
Christian looked at the title of the book the banshee had brought.
-The Mark of Binding.
It was a dark magic notorious even in the Crusade Union, capable of making others act as if they were one’s slaves under certain conditions.
And a few days later.
Banshee was shocked by what Christian was doing.
* * *
As time passed, Christian led a monotonous daily life.
By day, he trained physically at the training grounds, and by night, he read dark magic books in the library.
‘Physical strength is power! To get stronger, building basic stamina is essential… Damn, running laps is really tough.’
Christian grumbled to himself.
He was the lazy genius type.
He did not prefer sweating it out with hard work.
However, even for a genius, there was no shortcut to building physical strength.
‘I can mimic the execution of swordsmanship with a rough glance, but building muscle and stamina must be done physically. Damn, I’ll just have to endure it by imagining the riches and glory I’ll enjoy later. Riches and glory, riches and glory!’
Perhaps because of the strain, his expression hardened, and he looked even more arrogant and mischievous than usual.
The demons around him were impressed.
“Our young master, the rascal, really seems to have changed.”
“How many days has it been? It hasn’t been half a month, has it?”
“He seems to have gotten a bit fitter too.”
Predictions that he would soon revert to his old self proved wrong.
Christian came out every day to train, and the results were gradually becoming visible.
When he first appeared at the training grounds, his body had been frail from a life of debauchery, but now, his muscles were beginning to show, creating a much more impressive appearance.
Especially his endless running laps with a perfectly arrogant expression that didn’t falter at all.
At that moment, the knights thought to themselves.
‘The future looks promising.’
‘Perhaps there will be a shift in the succession plans.’
Everyone now knew of Christian’s remarkable talent.
If he continued to apply himself and didn’t revert to his old ways, the succession plans of the Count Kazar family could be completely upended.
It might not be Theren who was originally marked for succession, but Christian who could succeed the Count Kazar.
‘Aware of this, Theren has also been focusing much more on his training than before.’
The demons saw Theren practicing with a sword in a corner.
After being thoroughly beaten by his brother Christian, Theren had been focusing solely on training without saying a word.
Meanwhile, Christian smirked at the murmuring of the demons.
‘Succession to the Count Kazar family? I couldn’t care less about such trivialities.’
To ordinary demons, the Count Kazar family might seem grand and significant, but not to him.
What he desired was the main house of Dark Magus family.
The side branch, the Count Kazar family, was something he was willing to leave to Theren.
As long as Theren caused no trouble.
‘It wasn’t Theren who played tricks on me, was it?’
Christian narrowed his eyes.
It seemed unlikely on the surface.
Tern didn’t appear to be the type to engage in such sinister schemes.
But one never knows.
The person who would benefit the most from his downfall was his younger brother Theren.
‘Well, I’ll find out soon enough.’
Christian looked around.
Unlike before, the gazes fixed on him were now friendly.
Everyone had acknowledged it.
The rascal had changed. At the very least, he was trying to change.
The time was ripe.
Christian suddenly stopped his physical training.
The demons spoke to him in a friendly tone.
“Are you leaving, young master? You’re heading back early today.”
“I’m done with this stuff.”
“…Pardon?”
Their eyes widened.
“Got tired of it after a few days. Sweaty, dirty, and annoying. I guess this much effort is enough.”
With that, Christian raised his hand and dropped something to the ground.
It was the wooden sword he had used for the last fortnight.
Thud, thud.
The discarded wooden sword lay haphazardly on the training ground floor.
“Yo, young master?!”
Though it was just for training, throwing a weapon away carelessly was an action that no honorable demon should ever take.
“What are you doing?!”
“What?”
Christian twisted his lips.
“I do what I want. What does it matter to you lowly ones?”
“!!”
“Why? Did you really think I had changed? I pretended to be diligent for a few days as a gesture of reflection for my past mistakes, but this should be enough.”
The atmosphere in the area turned tense.
The demons sent looks of dismay and shock.
From a distance, his younger brother Theren was watching with eyes wide open.
Regardless, Christian looked around mockingly at everyone and then left the training ground.
After entering the mansion, he called for the butler.
“Did you call for me, young master?”
Cox, the half-vampire butler, appeared hurriedly.
“Bring me some wine.”
“…Pardon?”
“Are you deaf?! Bring me wine! Now!!”
The sudden outburst made the butler’s face turn red.
No matter how high-ranking a count’s progeny he was, it was exceedingly rude to shout at a butler like that.
But that moment was fleeting.
The butler bowed hastily.
“Ah, yes, sir. Right away.”
The butler hurried away, and Christian watched his retreating figure with a secretly darkened gaze.
‘That guy is the most suspicious.’
Just now, Christian had intentionally been rude.
He wanted to see how the butler would react.
In a flash, several emotions flickered through the butler’s eyes.
First, there was anger and forbearance towards Christian’s rudeness.
So far, these were reactions that could commonly be seen.
However, Christian didn’t miss one emotion that faintly mixed in behind the butler’s eyes.
‘Joy.’
Why had the butler felt joy at Christian’s behavior just now?
‘I’ll find out soon enough.’
Christian smirked.
He had set a trap.
A trap to catch the rat that was gnawing at the Count Kazar family.
* * *
Christian has reverted to his old rascal ways!
That news heated up the mansion.
The employees shook their heads in disbelief.
“Figures. It lasted about a fortnight at most.”
“A fortnight is quite long to endure.”
“Trusting him was foolish.”
As expected, these were the reactions.
The response from the Black Marsh Knights was even more intense.
“To think I believed that guy had changed. I must have been out of my mind.”
“F***ing brat. Just try showing up at the training ground again.”
“If he even comes near the training ground, we won’t let him off.”
They had sincerely believed in Christian’s changed behavior, and their disappointment fueled their anger even more.
But the person most angered at this moment was someone else.
It was his father, Count Kazar.
“This brat!!”
