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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: TushChen
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Looking back, I saw a girl with well-groomed, luxurious, and showy blonde hair flowing down below her shoulders.
Wearing lavish clothes and making a feigning expression, the girl had a flawless white complexion and an arrogant smile.
At the age of 10, she already exuded an elegant, beautiful, and noble demeanor. However, her slightly sharp eyes harbored a unique malice and ferocity at the same time.
She was none other than Yuria Rodmas, the third imperial princess and daughter of the current emperor, Gaian Rodmas.
Yuria Rodmas was currently receiving a magic education at the Deinhart household.
Recognizing her talent as a mage, the emperor entrusted his daughter’s magic education to my father, Duke Raon Deinhart.
However, whether it was due to her original disposition or that three months had passed since she came to the Deinhart household… Since arriving at the castle where the emperor and empress’s interference was minimal, she had acted as she pleased.
“Yuria Rodmas, Her Imperial Highness… Sigh…”
Upon seeing her, Nias glanced around and greeted her with a deep bow. It was textbook behavior, but… She bent her waist too deeply forward, about to fall over. I gently grabbed Nias’ forehead to lift her up.
‘She really seems a bit airheaded…’
Once I helped her maintain her posture so she wouldn’t fall, she at least managed to hold it for now. I removed my hand from Nias’ forehead and looked at her with a casual smile.
“Ah, Your Highness. Are you on your way to receive magic lessons now?”
“No, well, there’s nothing left for me to learn, but I’m going because I was told to. I’ve already mastered most magic, you know?”
I inwardly scoffed at her delusion.
She was indeed a genius. However, she wasn’t a genius to the extent of surpassing the geniuses who had existed on the continent until now. What should I say, an average genius?
Yuria was under the impression that her talent was innate when, in reality, my father was simply teaching her at an appropriate level while considering her abilities.
“I still lack knowledge… Watching Your Highness, I learn a great deal.”
At my seemingly flattering words, she nodded her head while letting out a hollow laugh.
“Learn well, you weakling. Well, before reaching my level, a frail guy like you might just die anyway. Right?”
Yuria walked over to me with giant strides and spoke condescendingly.
“Even though you were chosen by the superior star of Gaunis. But in reality, that’s nothing special, right? In the face of true talent, even a superior star is meaningless.”
This was the reason for her picking a fight. Because I was designated as a hero by a higher-ranked star than her.
As you can see from how she speaks, Yuria is a villainess in the original work. She makes the protagonist’s life miserable from a young age by picking fights with him.
Later on, even after entering the academy, she became an executive of the student council and obstructed the protagonist at every turn.
If she had died refreshingly, it would have been fine. Still, the author kept her alive in an unsatisfying way without any proper comeuppance, which became a cause for negative reviews.
Naturally, even after I possessed the protagonist, she picked fights with me like this at every opportunity. Until now, I had been enduring it, not wanting to cause unnecessary commotion.
“There must be a difference in talent.”
Regardless of how she took my words, Yuria laughed mockingly at my flattery.
“Well, you understand it properly. There’s a difference in talent between you and me. Hmph, I should have been the one chosen by the star, not you…”
“You’re right about that.”
Just when I thought it was over and felt relieved, this persistent girl, as if searching for a target to unleash her malice, rolled her eyes, and her gaze landed on Nias.
‘Ah, damn it.’
I should have just hidden her. Even if Nias got picked on, I couldn’t really protect her.
It was because of this damn achievement. Because later on, after entering the academy, I had to join the student council.
“What’s that? Why is she wearing a rag?”
“…You don’t need to mind it.”
“No, it bothers me. Hey, you. Who are you?”
Yuria asked as she elegantly walked towards Nias. Nias, who had been keeping her head down, shuddered her shoulders intensely.
“I- I’m Nias… Your Imperial Highness. As of yesterday, I’ve been working as Young Master Leonhart’s exclusive maid.”
At Nias’ answer, Yuria smiled faintly.
“This weakling’s? …Hmm. Is that so?”
Yuria grabbed Nias’ hair and lifted it so her face was visible to her. Nias’ eyes were damp with fear.
“You, what’s wrong? Are you afraid of me?”
“I- I… N- nothing… Y- you didn’t do…”
Nias stammered. Yuria’s eyes narrowed as she looked at Nias.
“Nias… Ah, I see. You’re from that Count Nimford family? The one that picked the wrong side and went completely bankrupt? Kyahaha! What’s this? You’re the daughter of a traitor? Is that it?”
Yuria burst into laughter while looking at Nias. I knew that laughter. It was the kind of laughter that delights in digging up an anthill before wreaking havoc on it.
No, Yuria would go a step further… She would set it on fire.
“Wow, so that’s why you’re wearing this ragged thing? Hey, is this even allowed in the ducal household? No matter how much of a maid she is… The daughter of a traitor. What should we do about this?”
Flames ignited in Yuria’s hand and began to flicker in front of Nias’ eyes. The terrified Nias trembled and tried to escape, but her hair was already tightly gripped in Yuria’s hand.
“Even if I burn you to death… It doesn’t seem like it would be a big deal.”
I couldn’t bear to watch any longer. There was a limit to tormenting someone. Physically destroying them was an act that went beyond that limit.
Just as I was about to intervene, unable to watch any further, when Nias’ eyes should have just stayed still, a fierce determination swirled in them.
“N- no, it’s not!”
“What?”
“It’s not… a rag! Young Master gave it to me. As a gift!”
Really? That’s what you’re going with? And it’s not a gift.
Nias spoke with tears welling up in her eyes out of fear. However, contrary to her words, Nias tightly closed her eyes, perhaps afraid of the fire.
“The nerve of you…! What’s so special about this ragged thing?!”
As Yuria grabbed the blanket Nias was wearing and tried to snatch it away, Nias clung to it until the end. Angered by such resistance, Yuria’s face turned bright red with rage.
“Let go of this! If you don’t let go…!”
The flames gathered in Yuria’s hand grew larger as her emotions intensified. And Yuria, unaware of the fireball in her hand, was swinging her hand towards Nias’ cheek.
Magical flames. Once the fire starts spreading, it engulfs the entire body several times faster than ordinary flames. There would be almost no time to react.
‘Ah, damn it.’
Snap-! Whoosh.
As I snapped my fingers, a sudden gust of wind blew through the hallway. The next moment, the flames gathered in Yuria’s hand disappeared as if washed away.
“Huh, what?”
I grabbed Yuria’s wrist where the flames had been extinguished and pulled her towards me.
“That’s enough, Your Imperial Highness. I will properly discipline her.”
What I just used was “Void” attribute magic.
It was a magic that nullified the activation of magic itself. From now on, within a radius of about 5 meters, the use of magic was prohibited for all those with inferior mana compared to me.
It couldn’t be used against the curse-type magic Nias used, but it was possible with regular magic.
Initially, it was an attribute magic that only existed in the settings and never appeared in the original work.
However, I, who had mastered the settings, was already training to learn void attribute magic. Thanks to that, I could already use this magic to a certain extent.
“Y- Young Master…”
Nias uttered my name with a tearful face. When she looked at me with such grateful eyes, it made my heart ache instead. Because at first, I had no intention of helping her.
*Ding!*
“Leonhart, what are you going to discipline? Just wait and see. I will…”
I tightened my grip on her wrist.
“She is my maid. Only I have the right to discipline her.”
“You…!”
Yuria got angry and reached out her hand to use magic on me. I scattered that magic again.
When magic didn’t come out, the flustered Yuria reached out her hand forward several times. Each time she tried to use magic, I scattered it.
“Fire… Fire! Huh?! What’s going on? Why is this happening?!”
“It seems like you’re not in good condition today. It would be best for you to rest.”
“That can’t be…! Even this morning, I was in good condition!”
Looking at Yuria like that, I added a remark with the intention of tormenting her.
“Or, if I may be so bold, could it possibly be… the early symptoms of magic disability?”
At those words, Yuria’s complexion turned pale. Magic disability, a sporadic illness afflicting mages, was a condition where one suddenly becomes unable to utilize mana.
According to the setting, no cure had been developed for it until now.
“Th- that can’t be! Me, having magic disability…?”
Yuria had the expression of someone who had lost everything in the world. It was understandable, as Yuria believed that her talent and genius as a mage were the very powers that could overturn her disadvantageous birth as the third princess and seize authority.
“No! No! That can’t be…! Fire! Fire! Why won’t it come out?!”
Plop.
Transparent droplets fell to the floor. They were the tears shed by Yuria, filled with despair.
“This can’t be happening… No way. What should I do? I… I… Without magic…”
I looked at Yuria, let out a small sigh, and reached out my hand.
“May I take a look?”
“What? What do you know… You’re inferior to me!”
“Well, who knows? There might be something I can do.”
Yuria placed her hand on top of mine with a slightly disoriented expression. I held her hand and pretended to examine it momentarily, then chanted a plausible spell.
Yuria watched what I was doing with an anxious expression, her eyes glistening with moisture.
“Try casting it again.”
Yuria chanted the spell with a half-doubtful expression as I spoke after finishing the chant.
“Fire… Kyaah!”
At that moment, flames ignited once more in Yuria’s hand. Looking at the fire brilliantly blazing again, Yuria gazed at me with astonished eyes.
“H- how did you do it? Magic disability is an incurable disease, right?”
“Who knows? I merely lent you some of my mana. Perhaps it wasn’t magic disability after all.”
Yuria stared at the flames burning in her hand as if entranced.
“…Thank goodness.”
Yuria sighed with relief, stroking her chest. When I offered Yuria a handkerchief, she snatched it from my hand with an indignant expression and wiped away the overflowing tears.
“Thank you…”
Yuria said, blushing her white cheeks as if embarrassed by the commotion she had just caused. I smiled and nodded.
“Don’t mention it, anything for Your Imperial Highness.”
At my words, Yuria’s shoulders trembled. Yuria’s eyes wandered aimlessly for a moment, then she suddenly slapped my hand away and exclaimed,
“Y- you’re younger than me and a weakling! What do you even know?”
It didn’t seem like something a 10-year-old would say. Yuria glanced at me after saying that and walked away with steps that seemed like she was running away.
She was probably going to receive lessons like this anyway. Then we would inevitably run into each other…
*Ding!*
Ah, damn it. I didn’t want to gain favorability in this way because it felt like I would gain an unnecessary amount of it.
To achieve the hidden route, all I had to do was join the student council led by Yuria.
‘Surely this won’t… change anything, right?’
I was pondering deeply when I heard Nias’ voice from behind me.
“Young Master… Th- thank you.”
I turned around to face Nias. She was holding the rag I had given her with both hands, looking at me with hunched shoulders.
“Don’t get the wrong idea.”
“Pardon?”
“I told you, didn’t I? That only I can discipline you. That’s all there is to it. I can’t let Her Imperial Highness dirty her hands because of a lowly being like you.”
A glimmer of sadness flashed across Nias’ face.
“…I thought… Young Master protected me. So…”
She really looked sad. Even though I felt a pang of conscience… I forcibly spat out the words.
“You’re mistaken.”
I spoke to Nias in a blunt tone.
“From now on, only I can torment you.”
“Only… Young Master?”
Nias repeated those words. As if she didn’t understand why they bothered her.
*Ding!*
No, under what conditions does it increase? There didn’t seem to be any commonalities… But I was consistently succeeding.
The problem was that I started to feel a sharp killing intent once again. If I had to guess, it seemed that Nias herself wasn’t aware of her true feelings and mistook them for hatred towards me.
‘I still need to be cautious.’
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Nias was watching Leonhart walk away, leaving her behind. Whenever the Young Master said cruel things to her, her chest felt uncomfortably ticklish and stuffy.
Her heart ached as if pricked by a large needle while simultaneously, a fluttering sensation rose.
Simply because she was tormented?
‘No. It’s strange.’
As the demon king, she should have come to use the hero.
‘From now on… only Young Master can torment me?’
Nias repeated those words inwardly. It was an extraordinary emotion she had never felt in her long life.
The odd hesitation felt in the Young Master’s words and actions. Despite the harsh words, a warm and kind emotion was sensed there.
It was clearly different from when the princess mistreated her. Nias disliked this feeling.
It seemed to interfere with her plan. A sense of crisis slowly creeping up from deep within was felt.
‘This won’t do. At this rate…’
The plan is to use a brainwashed hero to seize the world. Before personal feelings slowly mixed into that plan…
‘I have to kill him. I’ll kill him and find another hero.’
Nias sharpened the blade in her heart.
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Ok nvm, she’s indeed the demon king.. Damn.
Lmao, she is into being owned
More like she wants to be humbled, not only is she a masochist it’s quite telling that she chose to become a maid to the only guy who has an actual chance of defeating her, she wants companionship, but is so superior to everyone around her that the only way she can conceive of it is by being dragged down from her pedestal(and even then she wants her schemes to be constantly thwarted by her target, because can she can’t admit to herself she doesn’t want to be in control anymore)