NOVEL WEB Chapter 12 - Trial (4)
Scene 012: Trial (4)
My heart lurched the moment I saw them.
They went by many names.
In the underworld, they were the Hounds of Ruelberta. On the battlefield, they were known as the Saints of Death or the Extermination Maids. But no one knew their real names anymore – these victims of the Ruelberta family’s inhuman magical experiments.
“Kill every last one of them!”
“—Ugh!?”
One by one, the maids tore through the assassins. Their movements were blindingly fast. Their power was overwhelming. An assassin raised his arms to block a maid’s flying kick, only to be hurled into a wall. Another had his jaw shattered by a delicate yet devastating punch. One fell as his spine snapped.
Unarmed, the maids utterly dominated the assassins, who were armed to the teeth with deadly weapons. They moved like Grim Reapers—deathless and fearless. The assassins fought desperately, scrambling for an escape.
“What kind of monsters are these?!” one shrieked.
“Just die already!” another howled.
The assassins roared in the shadows, poison darts flew, daggers slashed at arteries, and hidden weapons struck vital points. But nothing worked. Not even poison. No matter how many times they were cut, the maids kept moving. Even with blades buried in their flesh, they pressed on relentlessly.
They wouldn’t stop until every last assassin was dead. Panic spread across the assassins’ faces. This wasn’t a fight anymore; it had become a massacre.
[Personality Corruption intensifying.]
[Your current corruption level is at 30%.]
As the carnage unfolded, I felt myself slipping, overwhelmed by a growing force inside me. The consumption by corruption. At first, I didn’t understand what it meant, but now the pieces were falling into place.
[Personality Corruption intensifying.]
[Your current corruption level is at 40%.]
The maids weren’t unscathed: one had lost her fingers, another had been slashed open, her ribs exposed. One had even lost her left shoulder, yet none of the maids bled; they were corpse dolls, immune to pain, driven only by their orders.
The maid protecting me had her eyepatch knocked loose, revealing the face of a young woman. Her vacant eyes stared ahead, with blood from an assassin dripping down her cheek like tears.
[Personality Corruption intensifying.]
[Your current corruption level is at 50%.]
William watched the slaughter without a flicker of emotion. His gaze was cold—no pity, no sadness, not even fear. That was just who William was.
And then I realized what had been boiling up inside me this whole time. It wasn’t fear—it was rage.
[Warning.]
[Corruption accelerating rapidly.]
[Your sense of self is fading.]
[Current Corruption rate: 60%.]
“…Ugh!”
A splitting headache hit me like a hammer. I couldn’t take it. I collapsed to the floor.
“Damn witches!”
The timing couldn’t have been worse. I felt a thick arm wrap around my neck.
“Count! If you don’t want to watch your son die, tell those maids to stop! Now!”
The leader of the blood-soaked assassins held me tight, his blade pressing against my throat.
“One more step and he bleeds out!”
He wasn’t bluffing. I could feel the cold steel biting into my skin.
Without a word, William flicked his hand. The maids, who had been closing in froze.
The leader of the assassins sneered.
“Hah! I thought you were heartless, but I guess you’ve got some fatherly feelings after all.”
“I have a question for you,” William said quietly.
“What…?”
William slowly rose from his chair.
“Tell me, what price would you put on sentiment?”
The assassin scowled. “What kind of nonsense are you spouting, Count?”
“As I thought, you’re too ignorant to understand.” William turned to me. “Tristan, answer for him.”
The pain in my skull throbbed, and the assassin’s grip tightened around my neck. I couldn’t speak. Couldn’t even think clearly.
William’s voice came again, calm and unyielding.
“Is it difficult for you too? Then I’ll change the question. How much is the love between a parent and a child worth?”
I already knew the answer. I had always known what kind of man William was; he didn’t need to say it.
Through gritted teeth, I forced the words out.
“It’s… worthless.”
“Correct.”
In a single, fluid motion, William drew something from his coat. It gleamed silver, but it wasn’t the watch he always carried with him.
Bang!
A gunshot cracked the silence. The assassin leader’s body jerked violently, a clean hole through his head. A faint trail of smoke curled from the barrel of William’s gun.
“Hm… I’ll need to have the gunsmith tune this. The rifling’s off.”
The leader’s lifeless body crumpled to the ground.
“Cough…!” I gasped for air, free from his grip.
William didn’t say a word. He didn’t offer comfort or reassurance. But I didn’t care.
[Warning.]
[Corruption accelerating beyond control!]
[Corruption rate nearing 70%.]
[Maintaining your sense of self is becoming difficult.]
By now, my mind was engulfed in a storm of rage.
I spoke, feeling as though I might cough up blood.
“…Why did you do it?”
William, calm as ever, glanced at me, his face devoid of any emotion.
“What exactly are you referring to?”
After a moment of contemplation, realization seemed to dawn on him. His expression brightened slightly.
“Ah, I see. You mean capturing them alive would have been more valuable, right? As expected, you’re sharp.”
“Stop talking nonsense!”
My voice came out louder than I intended, startling even myself. But William didn’t flinch. His cold, unwavering gaze remained fixed on me—his only son.
“Do you believe that an atrocity like this could ever be forgiven?”
William’s eyes flickered as he finally understood.
“Ah, now I get it.” He gestured towards the motionless maids standing like statues nearby. “Yes, the investment was worth it. They don’t tire, they never question orders—truly incredible inventions.”
“THEY’RE STILL—!”
[Warning]
[Corruption is being rapidly consumed!]
[Corruption nearing 80%!]
[It’s becoming difficult to maintain your identity!]
I grabbed my head, trying to suppress the boiling rage.
“They’re still…”
William tilted his head slightly, confusion flickering across his face. His black hair, tied like mine, shifted as he moved.
“Strange, isn’t it? They have no feelings, no thoughts of their own. They’re nothing more than puppets, yet you still refer to them as ‘they’?”
“Disgusting. Your way of thinking… makes me sick.”
“I see. I’ll take that under consideration.” He nodded, that small, dismissive gesture fanning the flames of my fury.
“After everything, you still consider yourself human?”
“I am human, without a doubt.”
“Don’t make me laugh! You’re no human!”
“Is that what you think?”
The moonlight filtered through the window, casting the room in a cold, silvery glow. I clenched my fist so tightly it hurt, knowing that if I didn’t, I might lose control and strike him.
William’s calm voice interrupted my thoughts, breaking my concentration.
“Humans… they rarely remember their childhood. Do you know why?”
I stayed silent. He didn’t expect an answer.
“Because those memories don’t matter. That’s why we forget them.” He walked towards the window, the pale moonlight accentuating his usual cold and unshaken demeanor. “You’re still young, Tristan. In time… you’ll forget today as well.”
I swallowed hard. “You have no right to decide what I remember.”
William shook his head as if I had proven his point. “You’re still just a child.”
“What…?”
“You’ve already forgotten your past.”
“…What are you talking about?”
A cold dread crept over me as I asked. William sighed and gestured toward the maids.
“Earlier, you referred to them as ‘they.’ Mary, Rika, Cynthia, and Beth,” he named them one by one. The number matched the maids before me, but something was off. I was certain I had never heard those names before, yet hearing them now, rage surged within me.
William waved his hand, and the tallest maid removed her blindfold. She revealed a plain, emotionless face.
“Mary was the one who changed your diapers.”
Thump.
The next maid uncovered her face, young and missing an arm.
“Rika always prepared your snacks.”
Thump.
The third maid revealed her face, shoulders mutilated.
“Cynthia was responsible for your education.”
Thump.
The last maid, the youngest, stood closest to me. William’s gaze lingered on her.
“And Beth… Beth was foolish enough to fall in love with the ‘young master’ she served.”
Stop it.
[Warning]
[Corruption nearing 90%!]
[Maintaining your identity is becoming nearly impossible!]
“It seems you’ve forgotten even the names of the women who raised you.”
[Condition met!]
[Tristan’s locked memories are flooding in!]
Memories I had tried to bury rushed back in waves, painful and unbearable. I lunged at William.
“Mary was like a kind mother to me!”
Smack!
My fist connected with his face, sending pain shooting up my arm.
“Rika always smiled, even when the kitchen was chaotic!”
Smack!
“Cynthia was my only teacher!”
Smack!
I turned toward Beth, the maid closest to me.
“Beth… Beth was the first girl to ever say she liked me.”
My fists trembled. They ached. But my heart hurt more. The rage, overwhelming and unbearable, filled my eyes with tears.
“You… you took them all away! Everything!”
Tears streamed down my face as their voices echoed in my mind. These weren’t just memories—they were Tristan’s. Memories he had buried long ago.
Before I realized it, my hands were around William’s throat. Still, his gaze didn’t waver.
“…Hate me, Tristan,” he whispered.
[Corruption nearing 95%!]
“Just as I hated my father, you must accept the wrath passed down through the Ruelberta bloodline.”
[Corruption at 99%!]
He pressed something cold and heavy into my hand—a revolver, which he aimed directly at his chest.
“Let your rage consume you. Pull the trigger.”
My finger trembled on the trigger. The tragic legacy of the Ruelberta family, soaked in blood and despair, weighed on me like a mountain. I was consumed with hatred – for my father, for William, for this cursed lineage.
But… I let go of the trigger. Swallowing my rage, I spoke through gritted teeth.
“I’ll end this curse that has plagued our family here and now.”
I refuse to give in to rage. Not until I’ve uncovered every hidden truth in this family. Not until I’ve saved the world the players destroyed.
I will endure.
“…Is that your final answer?”
Our eyes met, and for the first time, William’s gaze shifted. No longer empty, he looked straight into my soul.
“I see…”
He took the revolver from my hand and spoke softly. “You don’t need to forgive me.”
Bang!
A cloud of blood filled the air.
[The trial has ended!]
[You have passed the Sin ‘Wrath’ test!]
[Settings have been altered!]
[A new trait has been unlocked!]
[You have obtained the trait ‘Patience’!]