CH 3

Count Dormund, currently the most influential aristocrat and the one in charge of the southern part of the Empire.

The capital of the empire was in uproar over the rumour about his son who was a rascal.

“Didn’t Lord Bill of Count Dormund’s family got beaten up?”

“What, that Count Dormund’s son got beaten up?”

“Who would dare touch that count Dortmund’s son?”

The rumours couldn’t avoid getting attention.

The eccentricities of his rascal son, Bill Dormont, were notorious among the sons of many noble families.

Because of that,It was time for gossip-loving reporters and aristocrats to get to the bottom of these rumours.

Then an entirely unexpected person emerged in the rumour.

“I heard that the son of the Duke of Bavaria did that?”

“Son of the Duke of Bavaria?”

“But… Wasn’t the Confucius Of the Duke Bavaria handicapped?”

“…He was beaten by Confucius of Duke Bavaria who can’t even speak properly?”

Everyone was scratching their heads at the cause of the incident.

It was only natural.

How can a ‘mute Confucius’, who can’t even speak properly, turn Bill Dormund into a mess?

So It was a time when distorted speculations went rampant.

Yonel looked at her son with a smirk on her face.

“Thanks to my son, I am able to defeat Count Dormund, even if it’s only through a rumour.”

“Huh? What did my brother do so that my mother beats that scary person!”

“Sigh!. Irene. How many times do I have to tell you that he’s not a scary person!”

“Eh… but he’s still scary to me.”

Arthur’s sister intervened in their conversation.

Irene Bavaria’s comment made Yonel chuckle.

Arthur, who was next to her, also smiled in the same way.

‘Irene is still cute as always.’

‘If there was one good thing about coming back to the past, it was being able to have a meal with family once again.’

‘It’s the most precious time I’ve been longing for…but it won’t last long like this.

‘I went back to the past, but nothing had changed.’

The House of Bavaria was still crumbling, and traitors were everywhere, inside and outside of the mansion.

‘If left alone, my family will perish again.’

And the end of a noble who has lost his family is death, or shame close to death.

Naturally, Arthur had no intention of standing by and letting it happen.

Not only would he prevent that future, if possible he would also kill all the people responsible for it.

‘The surest way to get rid of trouble is to cut it in the bud.’

‘Among the trouble, the most threatening figure was the butler next to me.’

Sebastian.

With that thought, Arthur opened his mouth and shouted.

“Give me more steak,butler!”

Sebastian, who was lost in thought, flinches.

However, soon Sebastian regained his senses and complied with Arthur’s request, albeit a bit late.

Watching Sebastian’s behaviour, Arthur thought to himself.

‘Kain Dortmund… One of the main culprits who caused the downfall of the Bavarian family. If that person seeks revenge for what happened, she will surely do it through Sebastian….’

The question is how to get rid of this man.

When It was time to cut the steak that Sebastian had brought with him.

Yonel gets up from her seat and walks over to Arthur’s side.

“My son. Mom will cut it for you.”

“Yes!”

“You have to eat well to recover from your illness. Judging by your fighting skills, once this illness is cured, you will become a great knight.”

Everyone in the restaurant laughed at Yonel’s joke

Except for Sebastian

Arthur shouted at the thought that suddenly came to his mind as he looked at that sight

“Mom!”

“Yes?”

“I have a wish!”

Yonel’s eyes widened.

Meanwhile, Arthur twinkles his eyes and asks her , “I want to go to Lake Heinen!”

* * *

It’s been two weeks since Arthur expressed his desire to go out.

“Going out….”

Yonel  was pondering about this matter, while pushing away her duties as a duke.

If he had been an ordinary child, she would not have had to worry so much about him going out.

It was natural for a 15-year-old boy to prefer being outside rather than inside the house.

‘However, my son Arthur Bavaria had a disability. ‘

‘He stutters when he speaks and has lower intelligence than his peers. As a result, I couldn’t help but worry greatly even about just one outing.’

However, on the other hand, it was also true that she had doubts about whether it was right to stay indoors just because he had a disability.

“It must be suffocating… being inside the mansion all day long. Besides,it was the first time he said he wanted to do something “

Arthur was a gentle child.

‘I don’t know if it was because of his disability or his low intelligence, but he was naturally kind and smiled at everyone.’

‘So, unlike most children, he never asked for anything.’

‘He was always looking out for other people’s feelings, so he tried to accommodate them as much as possible.’

‘The child, who always answered with “yes,” shouted that he wanted to do something.’

‘As a mother, it was heart-wrenching to not be able to fulfil this request.’

“Okay. You can go outside…besides, Lake Hainen is nearby.”

Yonel made up her mind and allowed Arthur to go out.

They were ready to go right away.

“My son. Be safe.”

“What about Mom…?”

” Mom has a lot of work to do, so she won’t be able to come with you, but you can go with your sister, Irene.”

Arthur nodded.

“Yes, I’ll be going, Mom!”

“Okay…. Go and have some fun. Tell Sebastian if you need anything.”

Yonelle winked at him.

The Bavarian knights who were waiting walked to Irene and Arthur’s side.

As if on cue, the luxury limousine started up.

Whirring, whirring, whirring!

Irene laughed in delight at the sound of the magical engine starting.

Watching with a smile on his face, Arthur muttered

“I finally get to make a contract with a spirit.”

Having absorbed the power of Ville Dormund’s bloodline a few days ago, Arthur could see spirits that he had not been able to see before.

But for some reason, he couldn’t make a contract with them.

He suspected it was because of the location

‘To make a pact with the spirits, you need to be close to nature.’

So he asked his mother to take him out to Lake Heinen.

Lake Heinen, the largest of the lakes near the capital of the Empire, would be a good place to make a pact with the water spirits.

With that in mind, Arthur lifted his head as the limousine stopped and the door opened.

“Brother!! Let’s go!”

At his younger sister’s excited cry, Arthur nodded his head.

The accompanying retainers and knights quickly inspected the area around Hainen Lake.

Although the lake was located near the capital, it was not a part of the downtown area, so there was a possibility of unfortunate incidents happening.

Once the inspection was completed, the outing of the Bavarian siblings began.

“Brother, look at this flower! What’s its name?”

“I’m not sure… but it’s a pretty flower.”

“Really? Shall I put it on your head, brother?”

Arthur nodded 

Irene placed the flower in his head as if she had been waiting for it.

Irene burst into laughter as Arthur, who had a flower in his head tilted his head.

“ Brother is pretty!”

Arthur also smiled at her with a pleasant smile

Just then, Irene stood up and pulled him by the arm.

“Let’s go over there! to Lake Heinen!”

Arthur didn’t resist.

After all, that’s what they came here for in the first place.

He followed Irene’s lead and approached the lake.

“Wow,This lake is so clear.”

“Yeah, it does look clear.”

“Is that why we came here, brother? Because this lake is pretty!

“Yeah. that’s right.”

As he chatted with Irene, Arthur stealthily dipped his hand in the water.

Irene, who was quick on the uptake, shouted.

“‘You can’t go in there, brother, it’s dangerous!”

Irene was still young, but she knew that her brother had a disability.

She tried to stop him from falling into the lake, but he made the first move.

“It’s okay, Irene.”

Irene looked up and saw Arthur’s hand on top of her head.

Taking advantage of that gap, Arthur muttered.

‘Is the Water spirit here?’

A humble call.

But there was no response.

So Arthur awakened the power of the bloodline imprinted in his body.

At that moment, with a strange tremor, the Bavarian bloodline that had devoured the Dormund bloodline awoke.

In the midst of it all, Arthur spoke once again.

‘Is the Water Spirit here, and if so, can you answer me?’

At Arthur’s question, a slight vibration occurs on the shore of the lake.

Arthur’s eyes sparkled at this turn of events, then a small fairy suddenly appeared.

[“Did you call for me?”]

The corner of Arthur’s mouth raised.

Not only did the fairy appear, but she answered him, so it seemed that the location was the problem.

After thinking this far, Arthur turned to the water spirit and asked.

“Yes. Would you be willing to sign a contract with me, Undine?”

[TL note – Undine is a mythical water spirit or nymph that is commonly found in German folklore. They are often depicted as beautiful female figures who inhabit rivers, lakes, and other bodies of water]

Undine replied with an amused expression.

[“…A contract? But I don’t even know your name yet”].

“Oops, I was in a hurry and made a mistake, I apologise for that, Undine.”

Arthur bowed his head and apologised politely.

Undine’s eyes softened as she watched him.

Raising his bowed head, Arthur asked again.

“My name is Arthur Bavaria, can we sign a contract now?

[…?]

Undine narrowed her eyes.

What’s wrong with this man?

* * *

Sebastian looked at the Bavarian siblings playing in water and thought.

‘It’s  becoming ambiguous… very ambiguous.’

He had been a serf, taken in by Kane Dormund, the current lord of Dormund a long time ago.

But his life took a turn when he was appointed as butler of House Bavaria by orders of count  Dormund, who asked him to monitor the House Bavaria.

But a few days earlier, something had happened and this successful life was on the verge of being shattered.

After the mute Arthur Bavaria had beaten Bill Dormund to a pulp, the current head of the family’s household, Kana Dormund, had asked him for an absurd favour.

“Let’s turn that half-imbecile into a full-fledged imbecile.”

“Yes? But my lady…”

“That imbecile has turned my son into a rascal! What will the nobles in the capital think of our family if we stand idly by? We must retaliate!”

It was impossible to stop an angry Mrs. Kana.

She even went as far as threatening to pressure him if he didn’t comply with her wishes.

And this threat proved fatal for Sebastian.

Although he leads an affluent life, this tightrope walk between the two families has always weighed heavily on his mind.

And Mrs. Kana’s threats were enough to make him lose his patience.

“Anyway, Kane Dormund. My lord will cut me down if things go wrong.’

He was a man who, no matter how frugal he was, would mercilessly discard something or someone without any remorse when he made a mistake, shedding neither blood nor tears.

It was too much to hope that such a man would still care about him after his identity was discovered.

With that thought, Sebastian turned to Arthur Bavaria, who was getting up from the water.

“If he had lived like an idiot, why did he cause an accident? If he was an idiot, he should have lived like one… If he had lived like that, things wouldn’t have escalated like this.”

As he rubbed the poison in his hand and blamed his young master for his stupidity, he hardened his resolve.

A week later.

Arthur Bavaria would become a real imbecile, not a half-assed imbecile.

By his own hand.