NOVEL NEXT Chapter 11 - Trial (3)
Scene 011: Trial (3)
A carriage was parked in front of the mansion. Fortunately, it seemed I had arrived just in time, but there were already people moving toward the carriage ahead of me.
One of them walked with stiff, mechanical steps—it was Count William. The other was hurrying after him, clearly in a rush.
“Count! Stop right there!” Duke Fred Isaachel called out, dressed in an elegant suit. He reached out, grabbing William’s arm and halting him.
“I told you, I haven’t finished speaking!” Fred’s voice was tense.
“I’ve said all I needed to, Duke Fred,” William replied coldly.
“William!” Fred’s unusually emotional outburst was a far cry from the composed Duke I had once known.
“Are you going through with this? I’ve let your rudeness slide so far! What am I supposed to do now if you behave like this?”
“Duke…”
“Tell me, is there a specific estate you want? I’ll make sure it’s yours for the next few years. All I’m asking in return is a loan of 1 billion Kael.”
Fred’s tone bordered on pleading, or rather, it felt more like a threat—a man using his status as leverage.
“That amount is pocket change for someone like you, is it not?” Fred, in his younger days, had been endlessly weak and pitiable. Watching him now stirred something deep inside me—an involuntary twitch.
[Personality Corruption is beginning.]
[Your current corruption level is at 10%.]
Why is it rising so quickly? What did I do?
William, his face calm like the surface of a still lake, looked down at Fred. William rarely showed emotion, but somehow, I knew—he was angry.
Finally, William spoke. “225 billion Kael.”
“Huh?” Fred blinked in stunned disbelief.
“That’s how much you owe me as of today, Duke. How exactly do you plan on paying it back?”
“Well, I…”
“Were you planning on winning it back at my family’s casino?”
“Ahem. William… I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”
One of the Ruelberta family’s main businesses was a casino for the Empire’s elite—a playground for the rich, where hundreds of billions could change hands in a single day. Some strike it rich, turning their lives around overnight. Others, like Duke Fred, lose everything just as quickly.
“Are you pretending not to know? Do you think I’m unaware of which nobles frequent my casino? The 2 billion Kael I lent you earlier this year was completely spent by last month.”
Fred fell silent.
“I am no fool, Duke.” Fred lowered his head. Was it shame? Or regret?
But Duke Fred wasn’t the man I thought he was.
“I had no other choice. I needed that money… desperately. Count, if you were in my position, you’d understand. The responsibilities of a duke are immense. Do you know how many nobles visit my home? If I borrow from them, I could repay your debt in no time.”
Thump. My heart raced again.
[Personality Corruption is beginning.]
[Your current corruption level is at 20%.]
I could only watch helplessly as my corruption rate climbed higher.
As William listened to Fred’s pitiful excuses, his expression changed for the first time—he smiled.
“You seem to know part of the situation, but not the whole story. Do you really think those nobles will lend you any money?”
Fred frowned, confused. “What are you talking about, Count?”
“Viscount Halbis, Baron Oveang, Count Snevigle, Viscount Blishou…” William listed several names. Fred’s face darkened as the realization dawned on him.
“Don’t tell me…”
“They all owe me at least 1 billion Kael each. So, no, they won’t be lending you anything. They may be part of your inner circle, but they answer to me now. I’m a businessman, Duke. I only lend money to those who can repay it. Lending to beggars is charity—and I’m no philanthropist.”
“B-Beggars?! Y-You bastard!” Fred’s temper snapped. His fist flew toward William, but William moved with unsettling precision, tripping Fred effortlessly before the punch could land.
“Ugh!” Fred hit the grass ungracefully. William dusted off his trousers.
“”I’ll deduct 500,000 Kael from your debt for that. Consider it a settlement fee for knocking you over.”
William’s pocket watch snapped open with a soft click, his brow furrowing as he glanced at the time.
“But since you’ve wasted my time, I’ll add 500,000 Kael back onto your debt.”
When William got into the carriage, he gave Fred one last look, as if he were looking at trash. No, to William, Fred was probably even less than that: completely insignificant. Fred wasn’t worth anything in William’s eyes.
For a brief moment, I felt a twinge of pity and thought about offering Fred a hand. But that was foolish.
Bang! Fred’s voice broke the tension. “You… You… Don’t mess with me! Do you really think I would let my daughter marry someone like you? Not in a million years!”
No matter how beautiful she was, I would not want someone like her as my wife either.
—–
Dinner time came again. As usual, I estimated the quality and price of the fish served. Thanks to my traits, ‘Wealthy’ and ‘Calculative’ estimating the quality and price of the fish was easy.
Even though Tristan had terrible manners, his eye for value was impeccable.
William, who had been slicing his fish with precision, suddenly paused.
“Tristan.”
“Yes?”
“Listen carefully: time is money.”
I focused on his words.
“And money is magic.”
William wiped his mouth with a napkin. “With money, anyone can be made to kneel—whether it’s a noble, a duke, or even the emperor. That’s why money is the most powerful magic of all.”
Only then did I begin to understand the curse that plagued the Ruelberta family. We were born without magic. In this empire, everyone, from the emperor to the lowest of slaves, could use magic—everyone except us, the Ruelberta family.
At first, we invested vast sums in magic research. We gathered every book on the subject, founded academies, and even ventured into the forbidden realms of dark magic. Yet, no matter what we did, the curse remained unbroken. Ironically, our obsession with magic turned into a deep hatred for magic.
William had been raised amid that madness. A man who rose above wizards through wealth and power, he ruled over them all. In doing so, he made many enemies among the nobility.
William silently rose from the dining table. “Dinner is over.” I looked at the clock. It was just after 12:55, earlier than usual, which took me by surprise. For William, meals always started and ended with military-like precision.
I soon learned the reason.
“They’re here,” William muttered as all the candles went out, plunging the room into darkness.
In the pitch black, I heard a strange voice. “Are those your last words?” A chill ran down my spine as if a blade were pressed to my throat. Only then did I understand that we were surrounded by assassins.
“Count, I’m sure you know why we’ve come.”
“Hah… To attack so boldly right after I returned from the Duke’s estate… you must be desperate for me to figure it out.”
Duke Fred, who always seemed like a pushover, had sent assassins to kill us. The air thickened with killing intent, suffocating me. Yet, William remained calm.
“Attacking us so openly means you’re confident you can kill us, doesn’t it?”
“…Yes,” the shadows responded, with a mocking tone.
“I don’t enjoy killing weaklings who can’t even use magic. But it’s my job, so I have no choice.”
The assassins prepared to strike. “I’ll warn you now: don’t bother trying to bribe us.”
“Bribe?” William chuckled. “Who said anything about a bribe? My money is far too precious to waste on trash like you.”
“…So those are your last words.”
The assassins moved, their blades aimed at William’s throat. But even in the face of death, he remained calmly, he spoke, “…Come and bite.”
The darkness lunged at him.
Crack—!
Hot liquid splashed on my cheek. When the candles reignited, I saw the carnage: assassins lay scattered, some impaled on the walls, others torn apart. The once-white tablecloth was now stained crimson.
But that wasn’t the only surprise.
Beside us stood maids dressed in black, their eyes covered with blindfolds. One of the assassins muttered in disbelief, “I’ve heard rumors… that the Ruelberta family raises monsters in the underworld.”
The leader, having lost most of his men, realized the truth. “So it’s you—the hounds of Ruelberta!”
William said nothing; he simply repeated his order.
“Bite.”