Published: January 4, 2026
Having been nearly assassinated and completely weakened, Lawrence entrusted matters to his son Linus.
If help had arrived just a little later, Lawrence would have died outright. The method used made the death look natural, without leaving external wounds.
Since help arrived in time, it meant that although he was weak, he had no injuries.
As long as he survived, all that was needed was rest and recuperation.
Leaving Lawrence in his son’s care, I headed to have Pascal make amends.
Pascal’s mansion was located in the middle of Nishil city, a fairly grand building.
There was, predictably, a gatekeeper at the entrance, but I strode forward without hesitation.
“Stop! Who goes there?”
The gatekeeper was diligent in his duties, pointing a spear at me as he questioned who I was.
“Is Pascal here?”
“You dare speak to the magistrate without honorifics!? Who do you think you are?”
“I am Noah Alarate.”
“Noah or whatever—ah, Alarate!?”
The lively gatekeeper suddenly went pale, his face losing color quickly.
Although he might not know my face, he definitely recognized the name Alarate, a royal family name.
It seemed he also knew that I had entered the fief.
“C-Could it be… your highness the thirteenth…?”
“Is Pascal here?”
“Y-Yes! Inside the mansion!”
“Hm.”
I nodded and slipped past the gatekeeper into the mansion.
Leaving the stunned man behind, I strode deeper inside.
Near the main gate, I encountered another man who appeared to be a butler, judging by his attire.
Unlike the gatekeeper, the butler seemed to recognize my face and, before I could introduce myself, he hurriedly knelt down.
“I was unaware your highness would visit; please forgive my rudeness—”
“Where is Pascal?”
I cut him off and asked as I moved forward.
The butler hastily stood and followed behind me.
“H-He is in the inner chambers. I will summon him immediately; please wait in the reception room.”
“Fine.”
I continued on, entering further inside the mansion.
I headed toward what the man called “the inner chambers.”
On the way, I passed several servants and maids, but seeing the butler’s anxious demeanor as he attended to a noble like me, no one tried to stop me.
When I entered the inner room, Pascal was there, half-undressed like a prostitute, flirting with a woman.
He was drinking, eating lavishly, and playing around with the woman—a very obvious way of enjoying himself.
Upon seeing me enter, Pascal’s face twisted with displeasure.
“I told you—no one is to enter until morning…”
Pascal spoke while looking at me.
The moment he recognized me, he was left speechless, mouth agape.
“W-Well, well, Noah-sama. Forgive the unsightly scene—”
“Spare me the excuses. You tried to silence Lawrence, didn’t you?”
“Th-That’s not true. Why would I try to silence Lawrence?”
“I never said Lawrence. The relationship between you and Lawrence right now, at best, is like magistrate and criminal. It’s not the kind of relationship you’d normally associate with silencing someone.”
“Ugh…”
Pascal gasped for breath.
Then he began to tremble violently.
“...Bahamut.”
“At your command.”
“Teach him a lesson.”
I said this as I linked the armor ring and summoned Bahamut.
The spacious room in the magistrate’s mansion instantly felt cramped from Bahamut’s imposing presence and massive form.
“Make sure he doesn’t become a wreck, but punish him severely.”
“His life?”
I shook my head.
“People are treasures... and hope. Even if he’s like this now, he might still change in the future.”
“As expected of my lord. I apologize for not understanding your deeper intentions.”
“It’s in your hands.”
“As you command.”
Pascal, who continued trembling and couldn’t even lash out in defiance, was left to Bahamut’s mercy as I departed from the mansion.
From within, a continuous, agonized scream echoed—like all the pain in this world concentrated into sound.
☆
That night, in the inner garden of the mansion,
I returned and quietly read.