Chapter 3

“Wow! The sea! It’s the sea!”

The moment I saw the ocean, I started bouncing around like a fish returned to water.

I was sure Adrian was laughing at me from behind, but I didn’t care. I was simply too happy to see the sea again after so long.

I collected pretty seashells, dipped my feet into the incoming waves, and even built a crude little sandcastle.

After playing my heart out, I eventually realized the sun was beginning to set.

“Brother! I’m hungry!”

I ran barefoot toward Adrian.

I’d completely forgotten where I’d left my shoes.

The servants had set up a canopy on the beach for him, and Adrian was sitting comfortably on a mat beneath it, leisurely reading a book.

He glanced at me, snapped the book shut, and stood.

Then he strode over and effortlessly picked me up.

“Ugh!”

“Where did your shoes disappear to?”

“I don’t know. I forgot.”

“Honestly…”

Holding me securely in his arms, Adrian headed back toward the villa.

Dangling my bare feet, I enjoyed the cool evening breeze.

I wonder what’s for dinner?

My stomach was already growling.

“Brother, I’m hungry.”

“Bear with it a little longer. We’re almost there.”

“I’m huuungry.”

“…”

Although Adrian looked thoroughly annoyed, he didn’t throw me aside or anything of the sort.

That still amazed me.

The Adrian from the original novel would have undoubtedly tossed me away without hesitation.

He doesn’t really commit any evil deeds anymore…

He’s a little scary, but… does this count as successful rehabilitation?

Smiling proudly to myself, I looked at him.

Adrian frowned as though my gaze irritated him.

I simply grinned wider.

By then we’d reached the villa’s garden.

He carefully set me down on a log bench.

The matching log table in front of us was covered with barbecue dishes.

“Wow!”

“Eat slowly. Don’t wolf everything down.”

“Thank you for the meal!”

Ignoring his warning because I was absolutely starving, I enthusiastically dug in.

Salted grilled pork.

Spicy roasted chicken legs.

A variety of fragrant mushrooms.

Brightly coloured bell peppers.

Everything tasted so delicious I almost cried.

I stuffed my mouth full, swallowed in huge gulps, and washed it all down with a single gulp of juice.

Watching me from across the table, Adrian slowly shook his head.

“You’re no different from a pig.”

“What did you say?!”

Just as I was about to protest the insult, Adrian suddenly pushed another piece of food into my mouth.

Blinking in surprise, I chewed.

It was a perfectly well-done, incredibly tender piece of beef tenderloin.

“It’s delicious…”

“…Eat as much as you like.”

After filling myself to the point of bursting, I took a long, relaxing bath before climbing into bed.

Tomorrow morning Adrian would sail out onto the southern sea.

He had to complete the Emperor’s commission to investigate the sea monsters.

Which meant…

Starting tomorrow…

I’d have the villa entirely to myself.

I’ll actually be without Adrian…

A little lonely…?

Yeah, right! It’ll be freedom!

How long had it been since I’d last enjoyed real freedom?

Just thinking about tomorrow made my heart race with excitement.

What should I do first?

Buried snugly beneath the blankets, I smiled to myself.

At some point, I quietly drifted off to sleep.

The only terrible part was dreaming about Adrian saying,

“If you cause any trouble, I’ll lock you up for ten years.”

✦ ✦ ✦

“Brother, have a safe trip. Take care of yourself.”

Adrian smirked at my routine farewell.

Especially at the take care of yourself part.

After all…

Adrian Hill, the one and only master of the Magic Tower that stood at the very centre of the world, had absolutely no reason to “be careful.”

Every human, magical beast, and animal in existence could be swept away with a wave of his hand or crushed beneath his feet.

Terrifying villain…

Despite thinking that, I smiled sweetly at him.

Adrian ruffled my hair roughly.

Ugh!

Does this idiot think I’m a dog or something?!

“You’re the one who needs to be careful.”

“Don’t wander around unnecessarily.”

“Stay inside the villa.”

Good grief…

That crazy siscon…

At this rate, I was certain I’d never get to date or marry because of Adrian.

Well…

It wasn’t as if I particularly wanted to, either.

“Don’t worry, Brother. The villa is fun enough on its own. Why would I go anywhere? I’ll stay here and behave.”

“…”

Adrian stared at me with complete distrust before slowly turning away.

I waved cheerfully.

Go on.

Leave already…

Give me my freedom!

Just stay away for one month.

That was probably how long the investigation would take.

Chuckling happily, I returned to my room.

Adrian’s contracted beast followed so closely it was practically glued to my side.

What am I supposed to do with this clingy thing…?

“Hmmm…”

As I scratched beneath the black wolf’s chin, I quickly reached a conclusion.

I’ll bribe it.

Contracted beasts loved highly concentrated mana spheres.

Apparently they tasted like sweet cotton candy to them.

Since I possessed fairly strong magical power myself, producing mana spheres was child’s play.

I immediately formed one and held the glowing blue sphere out toward the beast.

It leaned forward, sniffed it curiously…

Then its eyes sparkled.

It practically looked like it was asking,

“Is that for me?”

Is this really a contracted beast…?

Or just a dog?

“Want it?”

“…!”

The wolf perked up its ears and started wagging its tail enthusiastically.

The sight was so dog-like that I couldn’t help laughing.

Keeping the mana sphere floating just out of reach, I teased it by moving it around.

“I don’t really want to give it away for free…”

“Whiiine…”

“Are you seriously just a dog?”

“Whine…”

It flopped onto its stomach, wagging its tail timidly while staring at me with sparkling eyes.

No matter how I looked at it…

It was a dog.

Adrian had given me a dog.

Anyway…

I absolutely had to win this contracted beast over.

Otherwise it’d report every single thing I did to Adrian.

Holding the mana sphere right in front of its nose, I smiled.

“If you want it, I’ll give it to you.”

“But…”

“…!”

“There’s a condition.”

“You have to do me a favour.”

The beast tilted its head as if asking,

A condition?

Contracted beasts couldn’t speak, but they were highly intelligent and understood human language remarkably well.

Grinning, I continued.

“No matter where I go…”

“No matter what I do…”

“No matter who I meet…”

“Don’t report everything to Adrian.”

“And if you’re going to make a report, let me approve it first.”

“…!”

“If you agree, this mana sphere is yours.”

“And not just this one.”

“I’ll make mana spheres for you all summer.”

“What do you think?”

Apparently my offer was extremely tempting.

The beast looked genuinely conflicted.

After a long pause…

“Woof!”

It barked and nodded.

A clear agreement.

“Good.”

“Then it’s a deal.”

“Woof!”

And just like that…

I successfully bribed Adrian’s contracted beast.

After devouring the mana sphere I’d given it, the beast rolled around on its back with obvious delight.

Seriously…

That thing was just a dog.

“I’m heading to the market now.”

“Want to come?”

“Woof!”

The wolf leapt to its feet and wagged its tail so quickly it almost became invisible.

“So you like markets too?”

Chuckling, I patted its head before slipping on a light outer robe.

Just in case, I also brought a small umbrella.

Although the sky was clear, summer weather along the southern coast could change without warning.

I was generally healthy…

But whenever I got caught in the rain, I somehow always came down with a cold.

If I wanted to enjoy my summer properly, avoiding rain was absolutely essential.

After all…

What a waste it’d be to spend several days bedridden with a cold.

I’d only just earned my freedom!

“At the market, we can buy delicious fruit skewers.”

“Want one too?”

“Woof!”

“What kind of dog eats fruit skewers?”

“Whine…”

Teasing the innocent beast proved surprisingly entertaining.

With light steps, I made my way toward the market.

It was only five minutes away from the villa.

As expected…

It was bustling with people.

And that made me incredibly happy.

Because these were…

Normal people.

Ah…

How wonderfully ordinary.

The Magic Tower is filled with nothing but lunatics.

There were basically only two kinds of mages.

Slightly insane…

And completely insane.

Either way, they were all crazy.

Living among people like that had nearly driven me mad.

Coming to a lively, ordinary marketplace like this felt unbelievably refreshing.

I wandered leisurely among the stalls, sampling delicious food.

I even bought several inexpensive but charming accessories decorated with fake glass gemstones.

Adrian hated things like these.

I loved them.

Which was why I secretly collected them without his knowledge.

“Hm?”

“Is it about to rain?”

I’d been exploring the market for around two hours when the sky began to darken.

A single raindrop landed with a soft plop.

It looked as though a downpour would begin any moment.

Having developed a keen instinct for rain, I immediately hurried back toward the villa with the contracted beast.

Sure enough…

The moment we reached the front gate…

A deafening clap of thunder echoed overhead.

Then the rain came pouring down.

Knew it!

Quickly opening my umbrella, I ran with the beast toward the villa.

Then…

Right in the middle of the garden…

Someone was lying collapsed on the ground.

Spread out face-down in a completely undignified pose.

How on earth did someone end up collapsed in front of someone else’s villa like that?

Shaking my head, I slowly approached.

Even when I made enough noise for anyone to hear…

The uninvited guest didn’t move at all.

He remained face-down.

I gently nudged what looked like a rather large body with the tip of my sandal.

“Excuse me?”

“…”

“Hello?”

“…”

“This is private property.”

“You’re not allowed to trespass.”

Looking closer…

The intruder was a tall man with pale blond hair.

About…

One hundred and eighty-five centimetres?

Roughly Adrian’s height.

His face was buried in the mud, making it impossible to see.

If I left him like this…

Rainwater would soon pool beneath him.

He’d probably suffocate.

Should I save him?

But what if he’s a criminal on the run…?

If he was dangerous…

I’d have no choice but to let the contracted beast deal with him.

If he’d happened to collapse unconscious on the Hill family’s estate…

That was simply his bad luck.

After nudging him a few more times with my foot…

I finally gave him a stronger shove and rolled him onto his back.

Then—

“…!”

My eyes flew open.

I froze so completely I almost fainted.

The man…

Was unbelievably handsome.

His face was covered in mud and rainwater.

Yet even so…

His beauty remained undiminished.

His pale platinum-blond hair gleamed brilliantly despite being drenched by the rain.

His skin was smooth and white like polished jade.

His high nose formed a graceful line.

Long, thick eyelashes rested against his cheekbones.

His lips were perfectly shaped—

Neither too thin nor too full.

Simply flawless.

“Wow…”

“What an insanely handsome face…”

I couldn’t help muttering in admiration.

Beside me, Adrian’s contracted beast growled continuously, refusing to lower its guard.

Adrian’s familiar could distinguish those who harboured hostility toward its master.

So then…

Who exactly was this man?

…Wait.

This face…

I’ve definitely seen it somewhere before.

The contracted beast tugged anxiously at my clothes, trying to warn me away.

Ignoring it, I crouched down and studied the man’s face more carefully.

Now that I looked closely…

It really was familiar.

Somewhere in my memories…

I’d seen a younger version of this face.

Softer.

More boyish.

But unmistakably the same…

…Ah!

The instant I remembered who he was…

I nearly dropped my umbrella.

Holy hell!

I’d seen him once.

Exactly once.

At the Imperial Palace banquet four years ago.

Normally Adrian never took me to events like that.

But that day had been a special exception.

I’d finally been allowed to visit the Imperial Palace.

And from a distance…

I’d seen this man.

Back then he had still looked more like a youth.

Even from afar…

He’d shone brilliantly enough to dazzle everyone’s eyes.

But he had been someone I could never approach.

Someone I absolutely must not approach.

Because—

Why is the male protagonist here?!

He…

Was the male lead.

The destined nemesis of villains…

The man who would one day execute both my brother…

And me.