The Villain Family’s Strongest Butler
Chapter 29
Ed left as soon as he heard my answer.
The moment Ed stepped out of the room, the furball whispered.
[By the way, Butler.]
“Yeah?”
[That human just now.]
“The aide?”
[Don’t know about that, but he’s no human, you know?]
“…….”
Well, look at that.
‘Did it notice the beastman blood running through him?’
Did one beast catch the scent of another?
‘Well, it does love sniffing things out.’
I tapped the bridge of the furball’s nose and chuckled.
“You’re right. He’s from the Beastman Tribe. He might be slippery as a snake, but he holds real power in the Grand Duke’s residence, so you’d better stay on his good side.”
[Not a snake. A wolf, a wolf.]
“Oh?”
I wondered if he could actually be a wolf, and he really was?
‘He seemed much closer to a snake or a fox.’
I said to the furball once more,
“Don’t cause any trouble while I’m gone.”
[I won’t cause trouble!]
“And get along with that wolf from earlier.”
[……You’re leaving me with that wolf?]
“Why?”
[He’s a dog, a dog! Who in their right mind leaves a cat with a dog?!]
“Strictly speaking, he’s not a dog, he’s human. There’s just a tiny bit—a very tiny bit—of wolf blood in him.”
[He’s a dog! A dog!]
“Now, now. I’ll put in a good word for you.”
[No! I hate it!]
“What if he gives you meat for all three meals, as much as you want?”
[……Huh?]
At the mention of meat, the furball instantly quieted down.
Just as I thought.
‘This little guy really takes after me.’
The next day. A bleak dawn, long before sunrise, with even the moonlight tucked away behind thick clouds.
Tap, tap. Kadrian tapped the gem on my collar twice and spoke.
“Our second outing, Butler.”
“Yes, Your Grace. I shall attend to your comfort once again.”
Kadrian let out a low chuckle as he boarded the carriage.
Before climbing in, I glanced back for a moment.
My eyes met the furball’s.
[Can’t you just take me too??!]
“…….”
I won’t cause trouble, I’ll be good, please?!
Held in Ed’s arms, the furball looked at me with pitiful eyes.
I said to Ed,
“Please take good care of the furball—I mean, Byeol.”
“Do not worry. I shall serve meat for all three meals and provide a wide assortment of snacks.”
[Oh?]
The furball’s ears perked up.
[Have a good trip, Butler! Take all the time you need!]
“…….”
That little rascal…….
I responded with an amused smirk before stepping into the carriage.
This carriage was slightly larger and more opulent than the one we had taken to meet the High Priest.
‘They said this one is only brought out for important business at the Imperial Palace.’
Sitting down, I discreetly surveyed the interior.
The carriage’s exterior had already been dazzling, clad in the Grand Duke’s golden-crafted crest like a suit of armor, but the inside was even more breathtaking.
For starters, it was exceptionally spacious. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say an entire bedroom had been transplanted inside.
Ornate patterned curtains hung from each large window, the seats were upholstered in luxurious reddish-brown velvet, and the high-grade rug laid down by the carpet-obsessed aide lent the entire space a lavish, cozy warmth.
Flanking the windows were small lamps reminiscent of miniature chandeliers.
‘Magic stone lamps.’
Unlike ordinary lamps, they produced light purely from the mana stored within magic stones.
They were said to be convenient because there was no hassle of refilling fuel—one simply had to swap out the magic stone. On top of that, their brightness could be adjusted, making them immensely popular among the nobility.
‘The Grand Duchy never fails to impress.’
It was a moment that made the Grand Duke’s wealth feel vividly real.
The carriage slowly set off.
Through the window, I caught sight of the furball cradled in Ed’s arms.
At first, it had hated being held by Ed, claiming he smelled like a dog, but now it was rhythmically kneading his chest with its front paws as if giving him a massage.
“…….”
Was it already corrupted by materialism, or just remarkably sociable?
Watching the Grand Duke’s residence recede into the distance, a strange realization struck me.
‘Huh? This isn’t the road to the Imperial Palace.’
The carriage was traveling in the exact opposite direction of the road we had taken to meet the High Priest at the Imperial Palace.
Gazing out the window, I turned my attention to the Grand Duke.
Today, as usual, he sat with his arms crossed and legs folded, his eyes closed.
“Your Grace.”
He replied without opening his eyes.
“What is it?”
“It appears the carriage is heading in a different direction.”
“…….”
At that, Kadrian opened his eyes. Beneath slowly lifting lids, sunlight-kissed violet eyes turned toward me.
They reminded me of a violet galaxy unfurling across the night sky I had seen once before—deep, serene, and as mysteriously enchanting as an illusion.
As I stared into those eyes for a moment, the Grand Duke spoke.
“There is somewhere I must stop.”
“Ah.”
Just as I was about to ask where that was, he closed his eyes again.
It was a clear sign that he would take no further questions.
‘Tch.’
The carriage continued to roll on for a long time.
Had we headed straight for the Imperial Palace, we would have arrived long ago.
The sky outside the window had brightened before I knew it. With the sun up, the outside scenery came into sharper focus.
Watching the scenery pass by, I realized far more time had elapsed than the journey to the Imperial Palace ever took.
Whenever hunger began to set in, we stopped by villages to eat meals and buy snacks to munch on inside the carriage.
Even with the prolonged journey, there was never a moment to feel hungry.
The view outside the window shifted with every passing moment.
Popping pieces of dried fruit bought for snacking into my mouth one by one, I took in the scenery.
Then, feeling a gaze upon me, I turned my head and met the Grand Duke’s eyes.
“…….”
“…….”
The Grand Duke looked back and forth between my face and the dried fruit in my hand.
Without a word, I casually held out a piece of dried fruit.
“Would you like some?”
“…….”
The Grand Duke looked down at the offered dried fruit, then spoke.
“So you eat things other than meat.”
“……Suit yourself if you don’t want it.”
I swiftly pulled my hand back.
‘What an utterly rude Grand Duke.’
In front of his subordinates, he acted dignified and spared his words, but whenever it was just the two of us, that irritating mouth spouted nothing but aggravating remarks.
‘This feels strangely familiar…….’
Ah.
The realization struck me out of nowhere.
‘That jerk of a Grand Duke. He was just like this on the battlefield.’
I wasn’t Sia right now, and this wasn’t a battlefield either.
Yet just like the Grand Duke on the battlefield, he was acting obnoxious again, as if he were treating Sia.
‘Still, he bought me food, so I’ll let it slide.’
Perhaps he already knew that keeping my belly full softened my temper.
Pouting, I popped another dried fruit into my mouth. Sweet, tart, and chewy, it was truly a delicacy.
Thoroughly chewing the dried fruit, I reached into the paper bag to pull out another.
It was then.
Click—.
The Grand Duke took out his pocket watch.
‘That pocket watch!’
With my hand still inside the bag, I stared intently at the pocket watch.
‘Ugh, I can’t see it from this angle.’
From where I sat, the inside of the lid was invisible. In fact, far from seeing the lid, the Grand Duke’s large hand gripping it obscured the entire watch.
‘It’s going to be impossible to check like this.’
Having checked the time, the Grand Duke clicked the pocket watch’s lid shut and slipped it back into his inner coat pocket.
At the same moment, I turned away as if nothing had happened, pulling a piece of dried fruit from the bag and popping it into my mouth.
The Grand Duke drew back the curtain and checked outside. Then he murmured softly,
“We have arrived.”
We’ve arrived? My eyes went wide as I looked out the window too.
At that moment, a subtle, mysterious energy swept through my body.
Or rather, it would be more accurate to say that I had penetrated into a space enveloped by that energy.
‘A barrier.’
Once we passed through the barrier, a village that hadn’t been visible just moments before revealed itself.
‘Huh?’
But something was off.
‘Fields and buildings that seem untouched by human hands for years…….’
To call it a ruin, there lingered a slight sense of order; yet to call it an inhabited village, there was a complete absence of any sign of life.
When I looked at the Grand Duke with puzzled eyes, he spoke.
“This is the Kentrow Territory.”
Kentrow Territory?
I searched my memory of the books I had read to study the Cadea Empire. But nothing about the Kentrow Territory came to mind.
As I pondered deeply, the Grand Duke continued.
“It likely wasn’t in any books or maps you have read, Butler.”
“Yes, it is a place name I have never heard before.”
The Grand Duke nodded. His gaze remained fixed on the desolate territory outside the window.
“Because this land…… was erased from history, along with the family that once ruled it.”
“…….”
At his words, I turned my head to look outside as well.
‘Erased……?’
Not vanished, but erased?
There was one thing his choice of words made clear.
‘……It means it was deliberately hidden.’
In the Tenasis Empire, there were occasional cases where names were erased from the historical records.
Most were cases of high treason.
‘Even in such cases, though, they might erase the family’s name, but they wouldn’t abandon the land itself like this.’
They would have granted it to another noble or reclaimed it for the Imperial Family to use in some way.
Yet in this family’s case, even their land had been cast aside.
In this Cadea Empire, where every corner was said to flourish under the Divine Protection of the World Tree.
I asked tentatively,
“Who was the original master of this land?”
