Chapter 4: Countess Sergia (2)

Judel opened the head maid’s door and strolled in slowly, with an air of arrogance.

“Young Master Judel?”

“Ah, there’s something I wanted to ask.”

As the head maid abruptly stood up to approach Judel, he gestured for her to sit back down.

“There was a maid slacking off in the annex, and she even lied.”

“The annex… Do you mean Chloe?”

” Yes, that’s right… What? Did I do something wrong?”

‘Did this noble brat really come all the way here just to complain about something so petty…?’

The head maid’s expression flickered with disbelief, but she quickly composed herself before Judel could notice and continued speaking.

“Chloe is currently working… as the exclusive maid for… that person residing in the annex.”

“…Is that so?”

Judel’s expression soured.

Judel held immense pride in his family lineage, even though he was often dismissed as merely the second son overshadowed by the eldest.

His pride in his family, renowned as the Empire’s most prestigious house of magic, surpassed anyone else’s in the household.

The existence of an illegitimate child, something that should never have been allowed in such a family, was incomprehensible to him. He couldn’t understand why his father and elder brother let it be.

‘Why on earth does Father let that bastard live? He has Brother, and he has me. What more could he possibly desire…?’

Judel clicked his tongue and walked out of the room. Although left with a lingering unease, he decided that since he hadn’t seen anything concrete himself, stirring things up would be pointless. He resolved to bring up the matter of this illegitimate child during the family dinner later that evening.

---

It was time for the weekly dinner where the entire Count’s family gathered.

Apparently, it was a gathering for fostering family ties, where everyone shared what they had done during the week, discussed their academic progress, and caught up.

In reality, it was nothing more than a routine reporting session, far removed from a warm family meal, where everyone simply reported their week’s activities to the father.

‘What could I, the second son who hadn’t even attended the academy yet, possibly contribute here? I had to carefully choose a topic that wouldn’t displease Father’.

“Erben. How was your meeting with Marquis Karian?”

“Marquis Karian is unchanged, Father. He still believes that illness and aging can be overcome if only high-density mana could be transplanted. His research progress… remains the same.”

“…Perhaps it’s time to pull back. The Emperor has started tending to public sentiment. Although this might be temporary, now is not the time to act recklessly.”

The Count’s hand, which had been cutting his meat, paused momentarily. It was a conversation they didn’t fully include me in, but I could grasp the gist of it.

“Alright, Judel. What did you do this week?”

“I…”

Should I bring this up? The atmosphere wasn’t as tense as I’d expected. Father didn’t seem particularly displeased, and my brother… was the same as always. He didn’t even glance my way, as if I held no interest for him whatsoever.

Swallowing nervously, I decided to broach the subject of the illegitimate child.

“I wish to speak about… Judith, who is in the annex.”

“…What did you say?”

I saw Father’s eyebrows twitch significantly. A clear sign that I had struck a nerve. It wasn’t a topic for the dinner table, but if not now, I’d never get a chance to speak to Father at all.

“The illegit… Judith. How long do you intend to keep her in this house? She is merely a half-breed carrying our family’s blood. Isn’t it likely the outcome you desire won’t materialize…?”

“…Is that something for you to worry about?”

“I understand your intentions, Father. I know you are keeping her here to prevent rumors from spreading. However… you are not someone incapable of dealing with a mere child of about ten.”

“Ha!”

Father let out a loud scoff upon hearing my words. I didn’t understand. Even Mother seemed surprised by Father’s loud derision and stopped cutting her food.

“You claim to know my intentions? Fine. If you truly knew my intentions, then I understand why you’re so concerned about Judith.”

“What do you mean by—”

“Are you afraid of losing your current position to a mere bastard?”

“I would never entertain such thoughts…!! I am your son, Father! How could I lose my place to a mere half-wit?!”

How could my existence, born between my father, the greatest mage in the Empire, and my mother, the top graduate of the academy and author of numerous magical theses…

How could I possibly fear being overshadowed by a mere half-wit…?

“Yes, you have a point. She’s just a ten-year-old brat. Killing her without letting word slip out would be trivial.”

The Count resumed cutting his meat, then lifted his fork and stabbed a piece forcefully.

“It won’t be too late to discard her after we see the results, will it?”

“…But it’s unlikely you’ll get good results.”

“Then what are you afraid of? If you’re so confident, she’s just a half-wit. Why not simply ignore her?”

I was speechless. Right, it was something I could just ignore and leave alone… Just… Just a half-wit bastard child of a common whore.

No matter how much Father valued people solely based on their magical talent.

There was no reason for me to lose out to a mere bastard…

Was there…?

“Just because you can’t surpass Erven despite your efforts doesn’t mean you should lash out at others.”

“…What… did you say…?”

“I’m telling you not to vent your inferiority complex on others.”

My teeth clenched. My brother, Erben, hailed as the family genius. The great mage expected to lead the next generation of magic. There was a vast wall between him and me.

My dream was to overcome that wall and gain recognition…

But it seemed Father never had any expectations for me from the start.

“…It seems I worried needlessly.”

“As long as you understand. Let’s finish our meal.”

Only the clinking of cutlery against plates echoed in the spacious dining hall. I knew it too. The fact that surpassing my brother was difficult.

Still, I thought Father might hold some expectation for me… To him, I was just an ordinary mage, not even a spare for my brother.

After the meal, Father and Mother left, leaving only my brother and me. As I was about to leave as well, my brother spoke to me.

“Pathetic fool.”

“….”

“You seem to have the leisure to worry about a mere bastard?”

My brother rose from his chair and approached me, his gaze filled with contempt. His eyes were so cold that I turned my head and stared down at the floor.

“To think you’d show jealousy or an inferiority complex towards a mere illegitimate child…”

“I was just…”

“Does it feel good, feeling inferior to a mere brat who hasn’t even manifested her mana yet?”

Shoving past my shoulder, my brother whispered one last piercing remark very quietly as he left the dining hall.

“Who truly is the disgrace of this family…”

-Bang!

The dining hall door slammed shut, leaving me alone.

Right… With no particular skills or talents, I was afraid of Judith’s existence.

Even if she was born of a street whore, she was still Father’s child.

If she truly possessed magical talent surpassing mine, then I would become…

A legitimate child worse than an illegitimate one. That, I absolutely could not allow.

In that case… isn’t now, while Judith still lacks mana, the perfect opportunity?

If I can’t kill her, then I’ll educate her. Yes, educate her to be beneath me.

I’ll break her thoroughly right now and place her under my thumb.

Then, even if that vermin possesses better talent than me, it will be useless.

I’ll utterly crush her spirit, turning her into a s*ave who cannot refuse my commands.

For a vermin-like child who lived on the streets,

It would be a fitting place.

---

“So you’re that vermin’s exclusive maid? Why didn’t you tell me?”

“…That’s because…”

I had to think of an excuse. No, wait, why? Yudell wasn’t supposed to care about Judith yet, so why now…?

Even thinking about this felt like a waste of time. I had to somehow divert Yudell’s attention from Judith, but… I couldn’t think of how.

“…Seems like you have no intention of answering? Fine, whatever…”

Judel’s gaze shifted towards the annex. Judith would be inside her room, so she wouldn’t be visible, but…

“Go bring the vermin child out.”

‘Damn it… What happens if I refuse? Will I suffer the abuse Judith endured in the original story? But still… I’m a maid working for the family… No, would these people even care about a mere maid?’

My mind wouldn’t work properly. All I could do was tremble helplessly before Judel. He was a noble, and I was a maid.

I couldn’t help at all.

As I stood there, pale and trembling.

-Creeak

The sound of the annex door opening reached us.

Turning my head, I saw Judith opening the door and stepping out. With a blank, emotionless expression, she walked out of the annex and approached Yudell.

Judel watched her silently. And Judith slowly walked up, staring back at Judel with the same blank face.

Yudell dismounted from his horse and stood before Judith, looking down at her.

Apparently displeased by Judith’s impassive stare, he raised his hand and struck her cheek.

-Slap!

“You lack manners.”

Blood trickled down Judith’s still-young skin where she had been forcefully struck. Her cheek flushed red, and blood flowed from her lip, which must have split.

She could have screamed, but she merely stood up silently and faced Judel again, her expression blank.

“Young Miss..! Are you alright…?”

“…”

I rushed to Judith’s side and examined her cheek.

Ignoring my concern, she turned her head away without a word and approached Yudell again.

This seemed to bruise Judel’s pride, as his face flushed red, and he raised his hand once more.

This time, seeing the hand coming down even harder and faster, I ran forward and shielded Judith with my body.

-SLAP!!

A stinging sensation reverberated intensely through the back of my head. If he had hit Judith with that much force, it wouldn’t have ended with just a wound. Tears welled up from the sharp pain ringing in my head.

“This is not a matter for a mere maid to interfere in.”

I couldn’t move.

Because I knew this abuse wouldn’t end with just this one time.

All I could do was block the blows with my body like this.

Because there was truly nothing else I could do for her. I had no power, no position. All I had was this transmigrated body.

Still, to keep Judith from dying, to keep Judith from getting hurt.

There was no other way but to shield her with this body.

Interpreting my actions as defiance, Yudell raised his hand even higher. He began beating me until his own hand turned red.

Even though it was Yudell, he was just a child who had recently entered adolescence. The full force of such a child hurt, yes, but it was bearable.

“Huff… Huff…!”

How long had he been hitting me? The beating stopped as he seemed exhausted, panting heavily. Judith, held in my arms, was unharmed.

Relieved by that one fact, I held Judith’s shoulders tighter.

“Right… Now even a mere maid dares to ignore me?”

I heard a strange sound from behind me. The sound of air rushing rapidly, a fierce whistling wind.

It sounded similar to the description of the wind magic used in the original story.

-Craaack!!

A pain like being struck by a whip shot through me. But this wasn’t an ordinary whip; it felt sharp, something scraping at the wound, and a hot sensation flowed down my back.

The wound stung, and I could feel the wind entering through the torn fabric of my clothes.

Turning my head, I saw something made of translucent wind emerging from Yudell’s hand. The wind whip mentioned in the original story. A long whip of wind was held in Yudell’s hand.

‘Crazy bastard… What do I do?! What do I do?! Surely… Surely he wouldn’t kill me…?!’

-Craaack!!!

“Agh..!!!”

The wind whip struck again. I screamed in pain, wanting desperately to fall to the ground and beg for my life. But… looking at Judith in my arms, I just couldn’t do it. I gripped Judith’s slightly trembling shoulder firmly.

“Move. If you move now, I’ll even have you treated.”

“….”

“Fine… You’ll ignore me to the very end.”

I saw Judel’s shadow as he raised his hand high. I squeezed my eyes shut and tensed my body, bracing for the pain, but then I heard a bursting sound from behind me.

-Pang!

“Huh?”

I had gritted my teeth, waiting, but nothing happened. When I turned back to look at Judel, he was staring at his own hand with a stunned expression, as if he didn’t know what had just occurred.

-Pang!

-Pang!

-Pang!

Every time he tried to do something with his hand, only the sound of air bursting could be heard. Judel kept staring at his hand, looking perplexed.

Taking advantage of his diverted attention, I grabbed Judith and ran towards the annex. The wind stung the open wound on my back, causing sharp pain, but now was not the time to cry out or react to the agony.

“Hey?! Hey! Don’t you run!”

-Slam!!

I entered the annex and locked the door. If he decided to break in, there was nothing I could do.

All I could do was pray he would give up and leave.

After locking the door, I peeked outside through the window. I saw Yudell arguing with someone who had arrived on horseback.

They were partially obscured by the fence, making it hard to see clearly, but I could hear Yudell’s voice shouting frantically in the distance.

Then, Yudell mounted his horse and followed after the other person. Who could it be…? Did the Count himself come…?

Only when Judel was completely out of sight could I finally relax. The pain from my wounds, dulled by tension, now felt much sharper.

Judith stood beside me, her eyes red and welling up, staring only at me. Thinking about how scared she must have been, I gently stroked her hair.

“It’s okay now…”

“Chloe… why did you do that…? Why? You didn’t have to do this…”

Her tear-filled eyes looked up at me. Without crying loudly, just with brimming tears, Judith gazed at me as I gently touched her swollen cheek.

“Because this is all I can do…”

We managed to get through today like this, but if he came back, we’d be helpless.

In times like these, there was no choice but… I felt I had to talk to Erven or the Count, who usually maintained a stance of ignoring Judith, at least for now.

Since the Count intended to keep Judith under his thumb until her mana manifested, perhaps he would at least prevent Yudell from coming here until then…

Other than holding onto such positive thoughts, there was no other way.