episode_0008

“Hey, put that down! Are you our maid?! Oh, are you going to tell Dad?!”

“……”

In the darkness, a displeasing silhouette faintly visible, cursing thoughts brushed through my mind.

Pig Confucius Ethan. Nicknamed Hyumdan.

Matching that title, witnessing the chubby figure since childhood, instinctual disgust formed in my mind.

Unlike our first encounter, unable to lose consciousness, I had to face Ethan’s face head-on and experience discomfort.

Apart from the bloated face like a burst steamed bun, clustered unpleasant features in the middle of his face.

A stumpy height and an equally protruding belly as if exaggerated due to the game “Luminor Academy,” but confronting it directly was undeniably unpleasant.

Having faced this appearance forcibly several times while conquering the Release route in my previous life, there was personal malice involved.

“Should I just kill him?”

Even I was surprised at how naturally such thoughts arose, given the betrayal of wasting my 500 hours on futile efforts because of him, unable to conquer Release’s ending as a virgin in the last moment.

Although I detested Release, the main heroine who wasn’t a virgin, what I despised most in the game was this damn Ethan.

Even if this guy didn’t take Release’s virginity in every episode, I wouldn’t have wasted time seeing Release’s ending nearly thirty times.

Moreover, he probably wouldn’t have posted persistent insults about Release being a promiscuous woman in the LuaGael, nor would he have possessed the character of Release in this damn game.

And he wouldn’t be waking up two hours earlier than his commute time to chew on raw garlic.

Essentially, the cause of all the pain I was experiencing.

With a knife in hand and only one door behind me as the exit of this warehouse, even at midnight, I could cleanly deal with him and escape if done well.

…Of course, if caught by Harold, who would release all his forces to track me, the punishment wouldn’t end at mere execution.

If there were branching points like in the game, now, at this moment, was the time to make a decision.

Perhaps at this crucial moment that could change my life, I ultimately made a bold judgment.

“…Well, what’s wrong with this kid?”

Instead of killing this damn Ethan on the spot, I decided to leave him alone for now.

It was right to hate Ethan because of my memories from my past life, but that was only because he was the ‘Pig Confucius Ethan’ who devoured Release’s virginity and hindered my conquest.

It was rather strange that I, awakening from a curse, harbored animosity towards this little kid with flesh.

It would be too pitiful for him to die for crimes he hadn’t committed yet.

If I could just escape from this guy, maybe he wouldn’t be as irredeemable trash as the Ethan in “Luminor Academy.”

…The essence of a person doesn’t just disappear somewhere, so I couldn’t be sure, but at the crossroads of my life where I stood, I wrestled with various thoughts and finally came to a conclusion in my heart.

Suppressing the momentary urge for vengeance, I put away the dagger I held in my hand.

“S-Sorry, Master Ethan. I made a mistake due to my ignorance turning into fear.”

“……Huh?”

“Perhaps it was a relief that it was Ethan Doyen who had intruded upon the esteemed Blackwood family, as I had thought to confront the intruder with my feeble strength. ‘Uh, y-yes…,’ ‘Would you kindly forgive the mistake born from the ignorance of a foolish maid? I, too, shall completely forget about today’s incident where Ethan Doyen left his bed in the middle of the night.’ ‘Oh, okay… I forgive you…’ In truth, even if the target before me was of a certain age, any excuse would fall flat.”

“Noticing the person was a noble, particularly by not drawing a weapon immediately.”

“Even if one possessed the intelligence of roughly a 17- to 18-year-old, they would have realized that I harbored ill intentions momentarily. And if so, though not now, eventually, in some way or another, heads would roll. However, while Ethan before me was indeed 18, strictly speaking, he wasn’t 18, which luckily allowed for a smooth transition in conversation.”

“An 18-year-old… no, an 18-year-old who isn’t 18. What does that mean? Well, the lad was cursed at the age of thirteen, causing him to slumber for five years. The curse Ethan endured for the past five years is known as the Erosion Curse. Quietly leaving it be would swiftly corrode the body, activating after a year to claim one’s life—a rather grim curse indeed.”

“In fact, it was a curse implemented to a certain extent in the game, where if one were afflicted during battle, they had to recover using special items. Neglecting a character under the curse would result in penalties such as departure or death during the story progression.”

“And I utilized it to eliminate rival male characters in my past life. Some heroines couldn’t be conquered in their maiden state without eliminating rival males (childhood friends, male siblings, fiancés), so using the curse accidentally during battles to kill them happened more than once.”

“I don’t particularly feel guilty about it now; I’m simply highlighting how dangerous the Erosion Curse is. It’s a curse so potent that even key characters in the game couldn’t escape its grasp.”

“So, how did a little squirt like him manage to endure the Erosion Curse for five years? Well, that was thanks to the ancient magical device Harold used, the ‘Eternal Chronometer of Eterna.’”

“The Chronometer could halt a user’s physical time for up to five years. Upon confirming his son was afflicted by the Erosion Curse, Harold made Ethan use it. During Ethan’s five-year slumber, Harold tirelessly collected the necessary items to lift the curse from various places.”

“In the end, when the effects of the magical device wore off and Ethan woke up, he successfully lifted the curse, protecting his son.”

“To be honest, I don’t think he’s worth going to such lengths to protect. Well, there’s no point in nitpicking over game character setups, so let’s move on. What I wanted to talk about was Ethan’s ‘five cursed years.’”

“While using the Eternal Chronometer of Eterna, one’s physical age doesn’t progress—it’s a complete standstill. Therefore, although Ethan appeared to be 18 in terms of birth age, his body and mental age were that of a 13-year-old, younger by 5 years.”

“Relative to his previous life, he was at most at an elementary school level. No matter how noble he may be, it’s impossible for a mere 13-year-old to discern the murderous intent I briefly held. Besides, he wouldn’t want to tell his dad about sneaking into the kitchen due to late-night hunger.”

“The night is late, Master Edan. It’s time to return to your bed.”

“….”

“If you find the quiet darkness of the corridor unsettling, I can accompany you.”

“That’s not necessary.”

*Rumble rumble.*

As Edan finished speaking, a sound resembling that of a ticking clock emanated from someone’s stomach, presumably a navel clock.

It had been over a year since Lillis had eaten three square meals at the right times, so it was easy to deduce who the owner of that sound was.

“You said you came in because you were hungry! What’s wrong?!”

“Piglet.”

“There’s nothing wrong, Master. At your age, it’s natural to feel hungry in the middle of the night.”

It was quite audacious for someone to barge into the kitchen in the dead of night, even going as far as to reason why.

Through this situation, one could infer to some extent how Lillis and Edan initially met in the original story.

Although not included in the official game setting, when considering that the game “Luminor Academy” was created based on this world, it was likely that Lillis and Edan’s first meeting wasn’t much different from the current scenario.

Due to Lillis’s appearance, her role shifted from a greeter to a kitchen maid, working alone in the early hours of the morning due to the senior maid’s punishment, which led to Edan sneaking into the kitchen in the early hours to have a conversation with her, thus introducing Edan to Lillis for the first time.

Of course, in the game, Lillis probably didn’t overdo it with Edan or magically slice vegetables while chewing garlic.

“I’m hungry… Is there any leftover food?”

“Do you think there is?”

“The Blackwood family follows the principle of consuming dishes made on the same day, so unfortunately, there might not be anything suitable for you to eat.”

“I’m hungry!”

“What do you want me to do? Just starve.”

At 18 or 13, Edan was still Edan. The fact that this brat, with his annoying behavior, managed to irritate me was frustrating.

The issue was that unless I got rid of this kid quickly, I wouldn’t be able to proceed with today’s tasks.

Even though he was only 13, common knowledge like non-nobles not being able to use magic should have been ingrained in his mind.

Leaving him alone in the kitchen was out of the question, so the most diplomatic solution was to feed him something and send him off.

“If you’re truly hungry, please sit in the dining hall. I’ll prepare a simple snack for you.”

“Huh? Maids can cook too?”

“I can’t handle anything complicated. But if you’re hungry, what choice do we have?”

“Yay!”

A week after deciding to escape from Edan, here I was, taking care of him. It made me question whether I was handling this situation properly.