TUSM 4

Chapter 04

There was one unfilial son in my novel.

Grand Duke Caius Lucifenia.

The second son of the late emperor, he was a man who, after the former emperor and empress and the crown prince all met mysterious deaths, voluntarily renounced his right to the throne and stepped down to a ducal territory. Put simply, he was the current emperor’s nephew and Fabian’s older cousin.

Why was he an unfilial son?

Simple.

He was more popular than the male lead.

Why do readers go wild over a black-haired sociopath?

Caius wasn’t even the second male lead, nor was he a major supporting character with lots of screen time. He merely appeared a few times in passing as someone connected to the mastermind, and later helped the protagonists when they dealt with that mastermind.

And yet, every time Caius appeared, the comment section erupted without fail.

Why wasn’t Caius the male lead?

At least make him the second male lead.

I’ll admit it. In many ways, he was an attractive character. And for reasons different from Charlotte’s, he was pretty pitiable too.

But still—how could a supporting character be more popular than the male lead? Was that even possible?

And now, Caius was being an unfilial son in an entirely different sense.

“C-Could you please put the sword away?”

“No.”

“Ghk.”

What a shamelessly immoral bastard. Pointing a blade at my throat without warning? I mean, I’m not your parent… but hey, I’m the author who created you.

You brat, where are your manners?

…That’s what I thought, but only internally.

I couldn’t afford to lose my head—literally—on the escape route I’d finally found. I was an ordinary citizen who cherished her life.

“When I heard that the capital’s worst witch had chosen my territory as her place of exile, I wondered if you’d finally decided to die. But judging by your expression, I guess you’re not eager to die just yet?”

Of course not!

I came all this way to live!

I looked at Caius with wronged eyes, clamping my mouth shut and shaking my head like a madwoman.

Caius tilted his head slightly and slowly scanned me from top to bottom with those yellow eyes of his. Then, as if in a generous mood, he lowered his sword.

“Phew.”

I finally let out the breath I’d been holding.

I lived.

That was terrifying.

I thought I was going to die the moment I arrived.

On top of that, my neck stung—maybe the blade had grazed my skin. When I touched it lightly, blood came away on my fingers.

“Crazy…”

I really almost died.

Honestly, no matter how much he hated dark magic, wasn’t this a bit lacking in basic decency?

I sulked for a moment, then stopped.

Since the moment I became Charlotte, I’d realized I wasn’t exactly in a position to lecture anyone else about decency.

Sigh.

If I’m Charlotte, who am I supposed to blame?

“Y-You made a good choice. This is an exile decreed personally by His Majesty—swinging a sword the moment I arrive really wouldn’t be appropriate.”

“You’re right. Since it’s His Majesty’s order, I’ll try to restrain myself for the time being.”

That really sounded like I’ll kill you eventually.

I took a step back from him.

“Um… since you’ve spared my life, may I ask one small favor?”

“No.”

At least hear me out before refusing.

I cautiously held out the hand fitted with the restraint device.

“I can’t move my hands. If you could just help me with this…”

I’d been wearing the restraints for three straight days. My skin was rubbed raw and scraped, throbbing painfully whenever I moved. My wrists looked twice their normal size.

In the pitch-dark dungeon, I hadn’t realized how bad it was. Seeing it under natural light, it looked serious. I was truly at my limit.

“I really can’t use my hands right now. And just in case you’re worried—if you take them off, I won’t do anything reckless. I’ve already been chased all the way out here. I’m not that foolhardy.”

Afraid he’d refuse again, I rambled on with explanations. I didn’t forget to look at Caius with the most harmless expression I could manage.

What happened next was instantaneous.

Slash—clang!

A cold, gleaming arc flashed before my eyes, and the restraints on both wrists were cleanly sliced in half, clattering to the floor.

…Huh?

What just went by?

I stood there dumbly, unable to process what had happened, when Caius smiled as he slid his sword back into its scabbard.

“Oops. I almost cut your wrists off too.”

I… almost lost my hands just now?

So stunned I couldn’t react, I stood there with my hands still awkwardly extended long after the restraints were gone.

“Be careful. As you can see, I lack a sense of chivalry.”

Caius’s eyes curved into crescents.

Those bright yellow pupils gleamed slickly under the sunlight.

I saw madness in them.

“And feel free to use dark magic whenever you like. That way…”

He bent down and whispered softly by my ear.

“I’ll have a proper justification to kill you. Right?”

He wasn’t just an unfilial son.

He was a thoroughly, irredeemably unfilial bastard.

A noble exiled for committing a crime is stripped of all authority immediately upon transfer.

Most were then driven, by the order of the lord of the exile territory, into the harshest regions and forced to live as ordinary civilians.

Which meant that, ordinarily, I should have been building a shack somewhere in the Lucifenia mountain range by now.

“Now then, let’s talk.”

I glanced once at Caius sitting on the sofa opposite me, then once at the comfortable reception room of the ducal castle.

“Why are you here?”

That was my question.

I thought he’d remove the restraints the moment I arrived and have me build a shack with magic. So why on earth had I been dragged here instead?

After cautiously reading the room, I answered,

“Because it’s… the farthest from the capital?”

“Judging by your attitude, it doesn’t seem like you came here wanting to die. I’m curious what sort of twisted scheme you’re plotting.”

He’s not listening.

“W-Well, the dark magic I placed on His Highness the Crown Prince was designed to be lifted as the distance increased. So I chose the farthest territory…”

“Or are you the type who enjoys gambling with your life?”

If you’re not going to listen, why even ask?

“Then why did you, Your Grace, go out of your way to bring me all the way here…?”

“What, you don’t like it?”

“It’s not that I dislike it, but… shouldn’t an exiled person not be staying in the lord’s castle?”

“Ah, you’re an exception.”

Caius smiled faintly.

“You’re a witch.”

His sharply curved eyes and yellow pupils glinted ominously.

He’s calculating whether he can kill me again.

“If I were to let a witch roam freely in my territory without a leash, who knows what might happen.”

Let roam freely?

I’d appreciate it if he didn’t talk about me like I was a wild animal. No matter how socially ruined I was when I came here, I still had basic human rights.

“So what choice do I have? I have no option but to keep you close and keep an eye on you.”

I avoided Caius’s brazen gaze.

Eight years ago, the former emperor and empress and the crown prince were murdered under mysterious circumstances. Not only had the entire imperial family line died at once, but parts of their bodies had even vanished—an unprecedented incident.

Tragically, the culprit was never caught. Not even a trace was left behind.

Caius was convinced that the one who killed his parents and brother had been a dark mage.

In other words, as long as I used dark magic, I was a suspect in his eyes.

“…If I may point out something you seem to be overlooking, Your Grace, I’m not bold enough to attempt murder. Of course, I am a born genius who can use both white magic and dark magic—though I struggle to handle even one properly.”

“Thanks for the information I didn’t ask for.”

How rude.

“What matters is that you can use dark magic at an advanced level.”

“I was eleven at the time.”

“Didn’t you just say yourself that you’re a born genius?”

He really never loses an argument.

I clamped my mouth shut and stared at Caius in protest with disgruntled eyes.

It had no effect, of course.

“Charlotte.”

Leaning back against the chair, he looked down at me from an angle.

“I’m not particularly patient.”

“……”

“If you won’t tell me why you insisted on setting foot in my territory until the end, I’ll have no choice but to regard you as an intruder and cut off your head. What do you think?”

A chill ran down my spine.

He’d clearly said earlier he’d restrain himself for a while.

And now this?

“Haah.”

It couldn’t be helped.

Honestly, I’d expected this reaction from the moment I was dragged into the reception room. Caius was notorious for his suspicion—second to none in the empire.

If anything, this was better for me. I’d planned to live quietly in a shack and then approach him with a proposal later. Now I could get straight to the point.

I folded my hands neatly on my lap and spoke politely.

“…Um, by any chance, are you in need of a temporary exclusive court mage?”