I Became a Sick Nobleman

“Ruel Setiria. Yes, you! It’s you!”

Glen was excited and tried to get up immediately, but it was impossible with his crushed foot.

“I’ve been waiting for you, enduring this cold place. Let’s make it quick.”

Ruel inhaled Breath and looked at Cassion.

The warlock, whose mind was corrupted and who held hands with Red Ash, was a madman.

Was Glen any different?

He had been raised by the Red Ash since he was a child.

Faster than inflicting physical pain, the confession potion would work wonders.

Cassion nodded, forcing Glen’s mouth open to administer the confession potion.

“What is your name?”

Ruel asked for a name as an example.

“Glen Syria.”

Though his voice was weak, Glen said his name correctly.

Confirming that the confession potion was effective, Ruel adjusted the blanket that had slipped down and asked, “Is there a mana oath placed on you?”

“There is… I swore an oath of eternal loyalty to the Great Man until my death.” 

Loyalty.

It was a very subjective and ambiguous condition.

Ruel decided he needed to approach this situation cautiously.

Since an oath of mana was involved, there were many things he couldn’t ask.

“This place operates for the Great Man, right?”

“That’s correct. This place exists for the Great Man.”

“The reason Death is confined here is also for the Great Man, isn’t it?”

“Yes. Everything is for him. For his stolen past.”

‘A stolen past?’

Ruel felt puzzled, but this wasn’t something he needed to resolve immediately.

He continued the conversation calmly and without wavering.

“Ruel Setiria must die for the Great Man. Is that right?”

Glen shook his head in response.

“No. Ruel Setiria must not die.”

In an instant, Ruel frowned.

That was not the answer he had anticipated.

‘Is the confession potion really working?’

As Ruel was taken aback by the unexpected response, Glen suddenly started to weep.

“This place…”

Ruel’s eyes subtly wavered.

Deep guilt clouded Glen’s eyes, “I’ve ruined everything. It was a task entrusted to me by him… a humble servant.”

“What did you ruin?” Ruel asked with a stern expression. His stomach churned at having to look at his disgusting face, let alone the man’s tears.

“I messed up the way for him to return to Leponia, breaking through the damn barrier surrounding it. That was something I should have accomplished.”

‘Is he talking about using black water to destroy the barrier?’ 

Beyond killing the adventurers and monsters, he had thought there must be another reason for hiding death within the wall.

A sense of futility washed over him. 

“Ruel Setiria.”

“…?” Suddenly, Glen spoke Ruel’s name.

“He was a Devotee of Darkness born in Setiria after hundreds of years,” Glen continued while tears streamed down his face.

“Ruel Setiria, he was supposed to be the next vessel for the Great Man…”

“What?” 

Ganien was taken aback, and Cassion grabbed his hand with difficulty, his face contorted.

‘I am… to be the next vessel for the Great Man?’ 

Ruel felt his mouth go dry, and it seemed the ground was slowly crumbling beneath him. 

His complexion turned pale as if all the blood had drained from his body. 

His heart raced uncontrollably behind heavy eyelids.

‘So… the Great Man only sees me…’

One by one, pieces began to fall into place. 

‘The mark that the Great Man left on me.’

It was something that had never been present in the previous head of the household, Trino Setiria. 

There had been times he questioned why Trino had not received such a mark if it was indeed possible. 

It wasn’t that it couldn’t be done; it was that it hadn’t been done. 

Trino Setiria was not a devotee of darkness.

‘The mark was a symbol indicating the next in line.’

Ruel Setiria survived for five years after being marked.

‘It was not that I survived… but that I was left alive.’

The mark he left could be reversed at any time if he wanted. Hadn’t he experienced that in his second meeting with him?

Even if the actions of the Red Ash trying to kill him were sincere, ultimately, he was the one controlling everything.

He designed the plan so that Ruel wouldn’t die, wouldn’t doubt, and would only look forward.

The overwhelming truth made his senses begin to dull. 

He could no longer tell if the wind brushing against his face was cold.

‘Yes. I should have realized it when the one who knows about the power left by the hero—or rather, the power left by the Great Man—kept trying to kill me.’

As if assisting the growth of insufficient strength. 

To think that he had claimed victory without realizing he was being played. 

There was a reason behind everything. 

He was the prey, and the Great Man was enjoying the hunt.

‘That crazy bastard.’ 

The back of his head throbbed. It felt as if all his efforts had turned to ash, leaving him feeling utterly dejected. 

‘Damn bastard!’ 

When he first met the Great Man, it might have been by chance that the Great Man found him, but everything—the desire to kill him, the stabbing—had all just been an act.

“Wait for me.”

When he met the Great Man for the second time, the words he had said while pointing at him echoed in his mind.

“Now my time has come.”

‘He didn’t mean it as a declaration of war; he was saying it was time for him to take over my body!’ 

A hollow laugh escaped his lips. 

It was a bitter mockery of his own foolishness for not realizing anything while merely nurturing his power.

To grasp the fading sensation around him, Ruel clenched his fist tightly. 

It felt as if everything he had been holding back was ready to pour out at any moment.

It seemed like he would fragment and disappear into pieces at any second. 

The taste of blood lingered from biting down on his lips too hard. 

“Then…” 

Ruel began to speak but inhaled Breath sharply. 

His breath was becoming ragged again.

‘Calm down.’ 

He had to compose himself and extract everything he could from Glen for now. It was imperative. 

Remembering the summit he had seen in the mountains that day, he took a deep breath. Don’t look back, just slowly move forward.

“The deaths that gathered here were the materials needed for the next vessel, weren’t they?”

“Yeah, that was it…”

“The black water is still here, isn’t it?”

Ruel gritted his teeth as he asked.

“It’s not enough. We need more, more. If we’d collected just a little more here… then it would have been enough for the price. I’ve ruined everything!”

“Then can’t you just break the barrier in Leponia with the black water?” 

Glen suddenly looked up at Ruel.

A deep anger could be seen in his eyes.

“That damned Setiria and the Royal Family’s conditions weren’t just a stupid rock and a key! If the final condition isn’t met, then it’ll go ‘boom!’”

“Explode? What?”

“What the Great Man is searching for he has long been yearning for.” 

Ruel furrowed his brow at Glen’s vague words. It seemed that to retrieve ‘something’ from the royal treasury, another condition needed to be fulfilled.

“To think Setiria—how absurd! That it would impose additional conditions without anyone knowing!”

Listening to Glen rather than interrogating him, Ruel remained quiet.

“The third condition, something the Great Man wanted, something that Setiria would definitely take… Cough!”

Glen spat blood before finishing his sentence. 

‘So, this is where it ends.’ 

It appeared his loyalty had limits. 

Though disappointing, Ruel had still gathered more useful information than he expected.

Ruel inhaled Breath.

His fingertips trembled as he held Breath. 

The previously dilated pupils of Glen snapped back into focus.

“Setiria. Setiria! Do you think you have won? The Great Man is above you…”

Ganien stepped in front of Ruel, and soon after, Glen’s head fell to the ground.

“It seems he has lost his usefulness,” Cassion said, wiping the blood off his dagger. 

“Yeah.” Ruel replied flatly, looking at Leo. 

Leo’s eyes flickered.

Sensing Ruel’s tumultuous emotions, Leo flattened his ears and shivered. 

His anger and sorrow were immense.

The emotions were so deep that Leo had no idea what to do. 

—Ruel…? 

“Ruel.”

Ganien and Leo called Ruel almost simultaneously.

It was obvious what they would say.

“His plan has failed.” Ruel said, stroking Leo.

Regardless of whether the Great Man had viewed him as the next vessel, it was already over. 

He had released the death that had been deeply trapped, and now he would no longer be taken over.

Though uncertain, Glen had implied as much.

“I tore it down.” Ruel managed a slight smile, but the expression looked almost precarious, as if emotions would burst forth at any moment.

“Are you… okay?” Ganien cautiously asked, but Ruel remained silent.

—He’s not okay. Ruel is still holding it all in. This body knows.

He could only listen to Leo’s sobbing voice and gently press Leo’s head away from the sight of Glen’s corpse.

He turned his gaze toward the place where the monsters were gathered. 

Knowing that the Great Man had secretly prepared a significant gift, it seemed only fitting that he should repay that kindness in some way.

“Cassion,” Ruel called out. Cassion approached him, subtly signaling for Ganien to remain quiet. 

Ganien hesitated—how could Ruel be so composed after hearing such news? 

He himself felt his heart racing in surprise. 

Yet, he was told to stay still.

“If you get a message from the delegation, handle whatever you can on your own.” 

At Ruel’s final words, Cassion looked at the place he had been briefly looking at. 

There were only monsters there.

“Are you planning to put an end to this situation, Ruel-nim?”

“Yes.” Ruel nodded.

Since earlier, he had been hearing small voices, one by one.

Too significant to ignore, yet too faint to listen closely.

Different voices, but the content was the same.

It was asking for help for the Guardian.

They asked for the release of the Guardian from this place.

Realizing the astonishing truth, he couldn’t afford to wallow in despair. 

Regardless of the reasons behind the monsters’ rampage, now that death had been unleashed, it was time to bring this all to an end. 

There was no reason to continue this pointless fight. 

That had to come first. 

The reasons for the rampage could be investigated later through the monsters themselves.

“Hikars.” Ruel called out, and Hikars promptly responded.

“Yes, what is your command?”

Hikars’s eyes held many emotions but he remained silent.

No, he couldn’t dare to say anything to Ruel.

“I hope the things you’ve heard here do not leave your lips.”

“Of course. I’ve already forgotten what happened today and what we talked about.”

Satisfied with Hikars’s wise judgment, Ruel smiled contentedly.

Ruel inhaled Breath and started walking again. 

The shadows would take care of the cleanup. 

“Ruel.”

Ruel stopped in his tracks after only a few steps, turning to face Ganien.

“Let out a scream or something. I’ll pretend I didn’t hear it.”

“I can’t just scream as much as I’d like; my throat isn’t that sturdy.”

“Then get angry or something.”

“My body reacts quickly—it’s a bit sensitive.”

What he had said to Ganien was all true. 

Even in situations that deserved to be cursed at, his body was too weak and sensitive to properly express his emotions. 

The trembling in his hands and the dizziness that had started after he had gotten a little angry hadn’t stopped yet.

“Fuck!” Ganien exclaimed as he kicked his foot. He then looked at Ruel with a frustrated expression.

“What the hell is this? What’s going on? You’re the victim. You should be the one who’s most angry… Why, why are you the one holding it in?”

Ruel chuckled. 

“Then go ahead and do it for me.” 

“Is this how it’s always been?”

“What do you mean?”

“Every time something like this happens, have you always held it in?”

“Yeah.”

Ganien ruffled his hair in frustration. 

Ruel smiled, almost mockingly, and retorted.

“Why?” 

“Why, you ask!” 

Was it really okay to just hold it in like that? 

The thought of someone taking his body from him was disgusting and terrifying, yet it had actually happened.

How could anyone remain indifferent in such a situation? Ganien glared at Cassion.

“Cassion! At least you…” 

“You want me to offer some petty consolation?” Cassion scoffed. 

Ganien was taken aback by his behavior, “What…?” 

“Consolation? What good would that do? I don’t know what Ruel-nim is feeling. That’s why I can’t interfere, you idiot.”

If Ruel himself could endure it, what could Cassion, who wasn’t involved, say? 

Ganien bit his lip, loosening his clenched fist. 

He couldn’t say anything to the meaning of his pointless meddling. 

“Ganien.” Ruel called out to Ganien. 

At the unchanged voice, Ganien’s eyes trembled. 

“Thank you.”

Ruel smiled and then resumed walking forward. 

Ganien, clutching his head in frustration, was at a loss for words. 

He finally realized just how much Ruel was carrying on his shoulders, unable to let anything go. 

Cassion and Hikars followed behind Ruel.

As their figures grew distant, Ganien slowly began to move his feet. 

Taking a deep breath, he called out to Ruel once more.

“Ruel.”

“What is it?”

“You fool. You stubborn fool…!”

Ruel chuckled at those words.

“Are you actually laughing?”

“I am.”

Ganien sighed.

“Feel free to talk whenever you want—drop the titles, the nation and rank. I’ll listen as your closest friend.”

“Sure.”

Ganien was certainly someone who could offer that kind of support.

But now was not the time.

Ruel walked and walked, inhaling Breath.

He came to a halt, finally facing the monsters that had been waiting atop the mountain, now charging toward the adventurers below. 

Watching this unfold, Ruel commanded them with a bright gleam in his green eyes.

“Everyone, stop.”

Zzing.

His head throbbed.

-Did you call us?

-Is this what you wish?

-Did you stop us?

The monsters halted in unison, all eyes on Ruel. 

Hundreds, no, thousands of voices echoed simultaneously.

It felt as though someone was gripping his head and shaking it, but he had to endure. 

If the Great Man were to take everything from him, he would make sure to bring down everything the Great Man had in return.

He had to.

With great difficulty, Ruel forced his mouth to open.

“…Yes. I have stopped you.”

No more would he be used by the Great Man.

“Now, do not be bound here.”

He wished for their suffering to end.

“Return to where you belong and do what you wish.”

Drip.

Blood trickled down.

When Ruel staggered, Cassion and Ganien caught him.

-If it is what you wish.

-I will do as you say.

-What you wish is what we wish.

The gathered monsters began to disperse instantly. 

The sudden shift in their behavior startled the adventurers, whose murmurs echoed around, but Ruel laughed.

This was it.

This was enough.

No one needed to be sacrificed.

No more death would occur.

The snow touching his face grew cold again.

The wind howled as if it could tear his ears off.

Ha.

As Ruel exhaled, white breath rose into the air. 

Struggling to keep his heavy-lidded eyes open, he gazed at the snow falling around him. 

Even though he was tired of it all, the snow drifting gently around him looked as beautiful as flower petals.