The Villain Family’s Strongest Butler
Chapter 4
Whether my plea to spare my life had worked or not, the old man called the priest aside and spoke to him in hushed tones.
‘What on earth are they talking about?’
Surely they aren’t haggling over my price, are they?
Sitting on the sofa, I concealed my anxiety and watched the two of them.
Every so often, they would glance at me with grave expressions. Whenever the old man looked my way in particular, I felt as though I were merchandise on display at a market.
‘That side is driving me crazy enough, but what is the Grand Duke’s deal now?’
The Grand Duke sat on the sofa opposite me, staring at me intently.
His gaze was so astonishingly hot and piercing that I didn’t dare meet his eyes.
Though a table stood between us, it felt as if nothing were there at all.
Just like back then on the battlefield, when our breaths tangled across the razor-thin edge of a single blade.
‘Are you contemplating how many gold coins to sell me off for, Grand Duke?’
Just then, the priest reached inside his coat pocket and spoke.
“Here is the sap you asked for.”
Sap? What sap?
My gaze naturally drifted toward the glass bottle.
What the priest produced was a small wooden box; opening the lid revealed a transparent glass bottle.
Inside was liquid emitting a faint glow, and I could tell immediately that this water was the sap he had spoken of.
“Because it was a request from His Highness the Grand Duke, the High Priest made a special exception to bring it out. However…”
Handing it to the old man, the priest glanced at the Grand Duke seated on the sofa.
“As you know, this is the sap of the World Tree, of which very little remains, and removing it from the Temple is strictly forbidden. That is why I must ask…”
When the priest voiced his concern, the old man nodded.
“I understand. Under no circumstances will what happens today leak out.”
Only then did the priest smile, looking relieved.
“I would be most grateful if you do so. Ah, and the limit is three questions. Any more than that, and their body will not be able to withstand the World Tree’s power and they will lose consciousness.”
“Three questions…”
The old man wore a disgruntled expression. Right then, the Grand Duke answered in his stead, his eyes still fixed on me.
“Three are plenty.”
Wait, what…?
Eavesdropping on their conversation, I couldn’t help but be shocked.
‘The sap of the World Tree…?’
The sap of the World Tree was no ordinary sap. The World Tree was a tree with power as magnificent as its name, and its sap was renowned for its efficacy in drawing out the truth.
‘You intend to pry the truth from me.’
I looked up at the old man as he strode right up before me.
He held out the glass bottle to me.
“Drink.”
Glaring at him with venom in my eyes, I spoke.
“Do you expect me to drink this without even knowing what it is?”
Though I knew full well what kind of sap it was, I had to feign ignorance. That was because very few people actually knew about this sap.
Being suspected any further here would do me no good.
Then the Grand Duke spoke.
“…Do you believe you have a choice?”
“…”
I shifted my gaze to the Grand Duke, meeting his emotionless, frigid stare.
Slowly tilting his head to one side, he said,
“Ah… though you do have the choice of dying immediately without drinking it.”
Ugh, you demonic bastard.
Clenching my molars tight, I took the glass bottle and popped the stopper.
Pop— A refreshing scent wafted from the small mouth of the glass bottle. It felt as though I had stepped into a forest.
‘Fine, I’ll drink it…’
It was just as the Grand Duke said. I didn’t have a choice anyway.
Without hesitating any longer, I put the mouth of the bottle to my lips and tipped my head back. The sap swiftly poured out of the upturned glass bottle.
Gulp.
Befitting the World Tree known as the tree of God, the refreshing swallow went down phenomenally. My thirst vanished in an instant. I felt as if I were somehow growing healthier.
Smack, smack. I licked my lips in lingering relish.
No particular physical change occurred. But soon, the true value of this sap would manifest.
‘The moment the Grand Duke asks a question, that is.’
Actually, I had drunk the sap of the World Tree once before in the past.
‘It was the day I first met Serhin.’
Back then, having lost all my childhood memories, I was abandoned among ash-covered ruins.
Just in time, Serhin, the Crown Prince of the Tenasis Empire passing nearby after suppressing a rebellion, rescued me.
I had remembered neither my birth nor status, let alone my age.
-“You remember nothing?”
-“Yes.”
-“Not your name, not your age, nor any memory of your family name or where you lived?”
Though the Crown Prince’s questions were persistent, I genuinely couldn’t remember, so I had answered that it was so.
The name ‘Sia’ was given to me by Serhin at that time.
-“Then from now on, your name is ‘Sia.’ Guard my side as my shadow and my sword.”
And so, I began to learn swordsmanship.
Yet in truth, I did remember my real name.
The reason I hadn’t revealed it to Serhin was that I judged my true identity might bring me harm.
An empire in turmoil with rebels, and a child abandoned alone in the ruins.
Anyone looking at me would find my existence suspicious.
Just like right now.
If I revealed my real name, what if it was tied to the rebels even in the slightest?
‘I might have been killed on the spot.’
On the day I first met Serhin like that, he had made me drink the sap of the World Tree.
The World Tree was a tree that protected the Cadea Empire, but one day it began to wither without reason.
Taking advantage of the Cadea Empire’s chaos due to the withering World Tree, its sap was sold illicitly in secret. That was likely how Serhin had obtained it too.
Thinking back on it now, making me drink the sap of the World Tree to draw out the truth was quite infuriating, but…
‘I suppose he had no choice if he was to bring someone of unknown identity into the Imperial Palace.’
Yet for some reason, the sap Serhin gave me had no effect on me.
Whether the sap Serhin procured was faulty or I possessed a special resistance, I couldn’t say.
Thanks to that, I was able to tell lies before Serhin even after drinking it.
Which was how I managed to keep my real name hidden.
‘So you see.’
I looked straight at the Grand Duke.
‘If you brought the exact same World Tree sap, you won’t be getting the truth out of me, Grand Duke.’
Just then, the Grand Duke finally posed his first question.
“Is it true that you lost your memories?”
“…”
Inwardly, I smiled with triumph.
I didn’t know if he meant to go easy on me since it was the first question, but the question itself worked in my favor.
‘If you wanted to draw out a proper answer, you should’ve asked something more precise and meticulous.’
In fact, the Grand Duke’s question left me plenty of loopholes to slip through.
‘Because it’s true that I lost both the childhood memories of my old body and the memories of this new body.’
Since he didn’t specify exactly which period of memories I had lost, I had even less reason to hesitate.
‘That’s right. I’ve lost my memories!’
“You could say I lost my memories, but you could also say I didn’t!”
“…”
“…”
Huh?
Huhhh?
‘Just now… what did I blabber?’
An answer entirely different from what I thought flowed out of my mouth.
It was strange. Something was different from when Serhin made me drink the sap.
‘Is there something different about the sap the Grand Duke prepared…?’
No, maybe the sap Serhin brought was counterfeit.
‘Either way.’
This situation… feels completely screwed, doesn’t it?
Just then, my mouth moved again. Once more, completely independent of my will.
“Actually, I…”
“…”
“…am a very complicated person, Grand Duke.”
“…”
“So the premise of your question was flawed to begin with, is what I’m saying. Do you get it, Grand Duke?”
The Grand Duke’s eyes turned frosty.
‘Oh…’
I marveled inwardly.
While it wasn’t an answer that would blow my cover as a knight of an enemy nation, I was nonetheless faithfully answering the Grand Duke’s question.
‘But why am I being so talkative?’
Usually, when asked a question after drinking the sap of the World Tree, one only replies with yes or no.
‘And speaking casually, no less.’
It was excessively long-winded on the useless parts, and bluntly brief on what actually mattered.
Just then.
Watching me in silence, the Grand Duke turned his head toward the priest.
“Did you mix alcohol into this?”
Startled, the priest waved his hands in denial.
“N-Not at all, Your Highness!”
“…”
Hmm. A little humiliating.
I was thinking the exact same thing as the Grand Duke.
What I drank was undoubtedly just sap from a tree, but looking at my behavior, it was as if I were drunk and throwing a drunken tantrum.
‘Me, acting drunk…?’
And in front of that Grand Duke of all people…!
I bit down hard on my lower lip.
‘From now on, I will keep my mouth shut even if I have to use physical force.’
So that I won’t utter another word of nonsense.
The Grand Duke’s gaze returned to me, growing even fiercer.
‘My identity wasn’t exposed, but that answer was enough to deepen his suspicion.’
After a moment of thought, the Grand Duke suddenly issued an order of dismissal to the old man and the priest.
“Wait outside.”
“But Your Highness…”
“Count. Guide the priest to the tribute to be sent to the Temple.”
“…Yes, Your Highness.”
The old man cast an anxious glance between me and the Grand Duke before exiting the office with a resigned look.
Only the Grand Duke and I remained completely alone in the office.
‘Here comes the big one.’
From the first question, the Grand Duke would have easily deduced that I hadn’t lost all of my memories.
‘The second question will be to confirm that once again.’
From here on out is what matters.
Tense, I looked up at the Grand Duke.
The lip I was biting quivered.
After a brief silence, the Grand Duke posed the second question.
“I will ask the second question.”
Biting my lip firmly, I glared at him.
Bring it on. Come at me, Grand Duke.
The Grand Duke’s question followed.
“Do you…”
“…”
“…remember me?”
“…”
…Huh?
I had expected a decisive blow, but this was an entirely unforeseen question in its own way.
‘My head is chaotic enough as it is, so what on earth is his intention here?’
Did he really… recognize me?
No. That can’t be.
Right now, I was wearing a completely different shell. Nor had we spoken enough for him to deduce my identity.
‘Then what on earth is this question…?’
That was when a thought struck me out of nowhere.
Ah…
‘That question… isn’t meant for me.’
In other words, the Grand Duke was asking the original owner of this body.
‘Don’t tell me, Grand Duke.’
Do you know who the owner of this body is? Was that why you looked so startled when I entered the office?! Is that it, Grand Duke?!
I wanted to demand an answer right this second.
Just then, my tightly bitten lips wriggled.
‘Ack!’
The time to answer the question had arrived.
Ah, no.
If you’re going to babble whatever you want again, just don’t say anything!
‘That question wasn’t addressed to me, damn it!’
But my lips began to answer on their own, as though they possessed a separate brain.
“I remember. …And very well, at that.”
“…”
Dammit.
“A cold-blooded… brutal slaughterer. A bloodthirsty demon, the murderer of the century, a lunatic on the battlefield, merciless and vicious…”
“Stop. …That’s enough.”
The Grand Duke rubbed the bridge of his nose and cut me off, but my mouth wouldn’t stop.
“And.”
“I said that’s enough.”
“Listen until the end. This part is the most important.”
“…”
Ah… this sap really is potent.
Once more, I marveled at the sap’s efficacy.
Even though the Grand Duke told me to stop, fueled by the power of the sap, my mouth seemed thrilled to keep chattering away.
‘Fine. Go ahead and run wild as you please.’
As long as the words “I’m a knight of an enemy nation!” don’t come out, it doesn’t matter.
In a state of near despair, I let my lips do as they wished.
At that, my lips curled up into a smirk, lifting one corner of my mouth as I looked at the Grand Duke.
“The only person…”
“…”
The Grand Duke’s eyes narrowed as he stared at my mouth. Spurred on by that gaze, my lips spat out the remaining words.
“…I ever acknowledged.”
“…”
Wow…
I was continually amazed. I had marveled more here today than in my entire life combined.
I told it to do whatever it wanted, and it really went and did whatever it wanted.
‘Isn’t this basically a confession at this point?’
Please, I just wish it would shut the hell up already…
