The double life of a count’s bastard

Episode 16

“You’re an asshole!

Rousseau glared at Kevin, barely holding back the urge to punch him in the face to wake him up.

Rousseau wasn’t short, but Kevin was at least a head and a half taller than him.

Add to that the well-proportioned figure of a knight cadet who had earned a good reputation at the Capital Academy.

“Russo, you look the same.”

Kevin glanced down at the flask in Russo’s left hand and let out a small sigh.

“What’s wrong with being a bum? It’s a lucrative job if you come from the right family, like me.”

Cackle.

Rousseau lifted the bottle to his mouth, Lily blushed as a sister with an embarrassing brother, and Kevin chuckled.

“Rousseau, for the Count’s sake, doesn’t live such a vain life anymore, even if it’s for the capital academy…….”

“What’s the age difference, you’re already talking down to me, I’ll live my life on my own, mind your own business!”

Rousseau waved his hands in the air as if he didn’t want to hear it, and Kevin gave him a pitying glance as if nothing had changed.

“I don’t care what I do because that’s just the way I am, Kevin, but aren’t you supposed to be the one acting straight?”

Russo narrowed his eyes and looked at Kevin.

He didn’t like his three-year-old brother’s attitude, but Kevin’s expression hardened slightly as if he’d been warned to behave himself.

“What are you talking about, what have I been doing or how have I been acting…….”

“Hey, you’re going to walk out on me, I hear you’re on pretty good terms with Mellin of the Hamptons, aren’t you?”

The question was unexpected, and Kevin’s face fell in confusion.

“Melyn?”

Kevin’s ears perked up at the sound of Lily’s question.

“Muh, I don’t know what rumors you’ve heard, but they’re untrue! No, I mean, I’ve met Melin once because the Earl of Hampton invited me to a party, but…… Oh, Jean, it was just a meet and greet, nothing happened…….”

Gibberish.

Kevin’s relaxed demeanor quickly turned red as he blurted out a string of disorganized words.

In particular, he repeatedly excused himself by saying it was a misunderstanding and then glared at Russo, who asked him why he had brought up such a useless story.

At this point, Russo was well aware of Kevin’s frustration, but he played it off as if he didn’t know.

“I may be a mess, but I pride myself on being very clean, at least when it comes to my relationships with women, Kevin, and you’ve already started that dirty rumor, so what are you going to do about it, save face, and still have the nerve to bring up your engagement to Lily?”

“Gee, dirty rumors!”

Kevin shook his head frantically as if to say that it was untrue and that Lily shouldn’t believe him.

But.

“I’ll go to …… first.”

Lily turned and walked away, a disappointed look on her face, and I could see her shoulders drooping down to her hips.

“Lee, Lily…….”

Kevin, who had been staring in disbelief at Lily’s backside, turned to glare at Russo, his eyes fierce.

“Russo!”

“Then why are you acting like you’re going to start a dirty rumor?”

“Never! I’ve never done anything shameful!”

“I didn’t see it with my own two eyes, so how do you know?”

Rousseau’s condescending smirk gave Kevin the urge to punch him in the face.

But rationalizing that such flippant behavior would do him no favors, he cleared his throat and spoke seriously once more.

“Russo, let me be clear, I have never done anything shameful to Lily! I merely exchanged pleasantries with Melin, so don’t embarrass me with any more speculative remarks!”

“Of course.

Rousseau believed Kevin’s sincerity.

Kevin was handsome enough to be called the most handsome man in the empire, and it was widely believed that he was also a man of character and integrity.

But!

‘When he got engaged to Lily, he boldly proclaimed that he would protect her for the rest of his life…….’

Rousseau could never forgive Kevin for cutting off contact and rushing off to marry Melinda just as the Slater household began to crumble.

It was a dream, but it made her so angry that she wanted to go back and smash his smug face a few times if she could.

Of course, he could understand Kevin’s position to a certain extent.

If he were the Marquis of Keita, he would have drawn a line in the sand to avoid any further marital entanglements with the failing Slater family.

Kevin, like Rousseau, was a powerless third son with no support system, so he would have been unable to resist the Marquis of Keita’s wishes.

Besides.

‘The Earl of Hampton would be a good enough base to give Kevin wings.

Kevin’s goal in life is to become an imperial knight.

Rousseau knew that, as the third son, I had a perverse desire to prove you wrong by being more successful than my two older brothers, who were born first, and to get the love and attention I never received from my father, the Marquis of Keita.

How did he know?

‘Because you drank heavily and talked in front of me with a tongue twister.’

A dream experience, of course.

In any case, Rousseau couldn’t see Kevin any better now that he knew what he was living for, what his goals and objectives were in life.

Above all!

“A man’s word is his bond!

He knew Kevin was a decent enough human being, except for the perverse desire he had for the Marquis de Keita, but as long as he could never get out of his father’s shadow, Rousseau had concluded that there was no point in keeping him on good terms.

“Kevin.”

“Why!”

Kevin shouted back, his voice harsh.

He glared at Rousseau, not with the eyes that had won the hearts of countless women, but with the fierce glare of a predator facing its enemy.

Any further he would be able to experience the spectacular swordplay that had earned Kevin rave reviews at the Capital Academy.

It was too much for the bare-chested Rousseau to handle, but he didn’t back down.

“I’m warning you, stay away from her anymore.”

“What do you care…….”

“Because he’s my brother!”

Boom!

Rousseau shouted and threw the bottle of liquor in his hand violently.

“You know what kind of asshole I am, don’t you?”

An asshole, that is, the asshole who got both his hands and feet in the door of Count Slater.

“I hate you, I hate the look on your smug face, I hate the way you stoop to please your father, and crucially!”

Russo continued, glaring straight into Kevin’s hardened face.

“The last thing I want is for you and Lily to get engaged, so get the fuck out of my sight one more time and I’ll show you exactly what you’re capable of!”

Kevin flinched and took a step back, feeling Russo’s aura of being able to do anything to you, no matter what you do.

“Man, I’m intimidated by this guy.

That’s ridiculous.

This is Kevin, whose talent and skill were among the best in the Imperial Academy, and who had received nothing but praise from countless instructors.

Even if he were to face a fourth-ranked knight right now, he was confident that he wouldn’t lose easily, and that he could single-handedly defeat Russo in front of him.

Rousseau was once said to be the greatest genius on the continent, but that was before the age of ten.

After the age of 10, he became a drunken bastard who dropped his sword and carried a bottle of liquor as he does now.

A pathetic human being.

A worthless bastard, the sole blemish on the great Earl of Slater.

But how come…….

‘Damn it, if I fight a man who has nothing, I’ll be the only one who loses in the end!’

Defeating Russo right now would be as easy as slitting a child’s wrist.

But Kevin realized that even if he did, he would never be the victor.

He couldn’t even predict what Russo would do to him if he looked into those venomous eyes.

Kevin’s excitement was tempered by the realization that he was not to be messed with, at least not while he was protected by the Slater hedge.

“Don’t make light of an engagement between families. Russo, even if you’re against it, Lily and I have no choice but to get engaged if the Earl of Slater permits us.”

Kevin gave him a cold dose of reality and turned away.

Only a madman would be crazy enough to go against Count Slater’s wishes.

But.

“I won’t warn you twice, if I catch you messing with Lily, I’ll break every hair on your head!”

Kevin shook his head as Rousseau continued to yell at him, wondering how such a crazy person could have been born into the Slater family.

Russo watched Kevin’s back as he walked away, and decided that was enough of a warning.

Of course, it’s unlikely that Kevin would give up so easily.

At this point, Lily would be the best bride for his ambitions.

The Marquess of Keita will push for Kevin and Lily’s engagement if only to further cement his ties to Count Slater.

“We’re not quite there yet.”

With Lily and Kevin’s engagement not happening for another two years, Russo has little reason to be impatient.

“If you’re going to be engaged and married to the best man in the world, you can’t afford to get caught. Lily, you have only this brother to trust.”

It was one of Rousseau’s many plans to make sure that his only sister Lily would be happily married to the best man in the world.

* * *

“Do, master!”

“Why are you so white in the face again, eek!”

“Where have you been drinking like this again? Didn’t the Count ask you to go into your room first!”

“It’s on me! Hiccup!”

“Where did you learn to say such things? All right, let’s go inside!”

Marquis Keita, who was making a circuit of the mansion, clicked his tongue when he happened to see Rousseau being dragged drunkenly by the hand by the butler in charge.

“Pfft, even Count Slater must have a headache.”

The Slaters are dragons, and that’s where Loach was born.

At first, his talent for surprising everyone made him a favorite, but even that was short-lived as a child.

“This is why blood is deceiving.”

My blood is different from my brothers.

He was half Russo, half commoner, and the Marquis of Keita thought it was no wonder he looked the way he did.

“Look at him and never forget it. No matter how good you are, you can never surpass your noble blood.”

“I will keep that in mind.”

Kevin, who had been standing behind his father, the Marquis of Keita, bowed his head and replied dutifully.

His fists clenched tightly behind his back, his head bowed, and his expression was grim.

“Noble bloodline, you know that better than anyone, why would you want me to have a blooded wench like that wretch?

After letting out an inward shout of rage, Kevin’s clenched fists loosened, and his expression turned into a slight smile.

“What did you say happened with that asshole yesterday?”

“Nothing much, I just gave him a few words of advice and he couldn’t stand me and tried to pounce on me.”

“Tsk, you don’t know your stuff, you’re not going to live long.”

The Marquis of Keita turned away as if watching any longer would stain his eyes.

“It’s not good to cause a ruckus, but it’s even worse to be seen dodging a mere wretch.”

Marquis Keita spoke in a low voice, and Kevin understood immediately what he meant.

The implication was that he could handle his share of assholes in moderation.

“If you ever try to jump in without knowing the subject again, I’ll teach you a lesson.”

“Of course. That’s what a real nobleman should do. A half-wit like him could never do it, could he?”

“You are right, Marquis.”

At Kevin’s answer, the Marquis of Keita gave a small chuckle of satisfaction.