I Became a Sick Nobleman

“Bwahaha.”

The moment Ruel stepped out of the room, he held his stomach and burst into laughter.

—Why are you laughing when you’re not happy?

Leo followed closely behind Ruel, his eyes wide open.

Ruel took a quick glance at Leo while inhaling Breath.

“Just because it’s a bit funny.”

He understood why the Great Man spared Hilim’s life.

Hilim was kept as a pawn for the worst-case scenario.

A means to demonstrate that the fallen Tonisk Empire still existed.

Hilim was no longer necessary.

Because the plan that had been devised was likely the Great Man’s most flawless plan.

‘Now that I know how the game works, I have to turn it over and start again.’

If the Tonisk Empire was truly destroyed, there was only one place to be wary of.

‘Kran Kingdom.’

Ruel spoke. “Cassion.” 

“Yes.” 

“Investigate about Hilim Tonisk.” 

But all of these assumptions depended on whether the words spoken by Hilim Tonisk were true or not. 

“First, you need to find out if that person is truly Hilim Tonisk.”

It was a matter that couldn’t be hastily judged; it required careful consideration.

A more cautious approach was necessary.

“I understand. I’ll prioritize this investigation above all others.”

“Okay.” 

“Ruel-nim.” Cassion’s voice carried a hint of concern as he called Ruel.

Knowing what he intended to say, Ruel interjected first. “It’s alright. We don’t have to face the Empire anymore, right?”

The number of enemies to face had decreased. 

That was sufficient for now.

Ruel was about to turn towards Tyson’s room, but instead, he headed in the direction  of the room where Banios stayed.

‘I’ll see my uncle later.’ 

If he were to meet Banios after seeing his uncle, this sense of calm would likely crumble. 

Honestly, it was frightening. 

The opponent was too overwhelming.

The more he tried to find out, the more it seemed that the Great Man’s plans extended endlessly. 

Ruel took a deep breath and controlled his emotions. 

He had to endure both fear and frustration. 

‘Let’s start by overturning the scenario created by the Great Man now.’

“Are you going to see His Highness first?” Cassion hesitated before speaking.

“Yes.”

“Would you like some cocoa?” 

Leo was the first to react at the mention of cocoa. He immediately clung to Cassion’s feet. 

—Give some to this body too. This body wants to drink as well.

“Yes. We’ll need two cups, no, three cups.” Ruel glanced at Leo with a faint smile. 

Cassion now understood that the smile was forced. He simply bowed and replied, “Understood. I’ll bring it right away.”

***

“Haha. What a humorous joke. It seems you were bored lying around. So, what book were you reading? I’m quite curious about this strange book of yours.” Banios smiled and playfully responded to Ruel’s words.

“Your Highness, please do not turn your eyes away from the truth.”

Bang!

Banios slammed his hand on the table.

—Hick!

Soon he took a deep breath and showed an expression of regret.

“I’m sorry. This, this is truly… difficult. Too difficult.” Banios furrowed his brow, struggling to control his emotions.  

Ruel felt the same way. “I find it difficult as well. That’s why I’ve come to seek your help first.”

“If only it were a joke, how pleasant that would have been.” Banios clenched his fist. He then looked at Ruel with a concerned expression. “Can you endure it?” If he was grappling with such difficulties, how could Ruel not?

“Yes. I can endure it.” Ruel smiled gently. It was a wry smile.

Banios rubbed his fingers with his thumb. In the end, the object the Great Man was after resided in the royal treasure vault. 

To obtain it, he would stop at nothing, even if it meant the destruction of humanity.

“Why go to such lengths for an item in the royal treasure vault?”

“No one besides the Great Man knows what that item is. So, please refrain from seeking it,” Ruel calmly stated.

Not knowing what the Great Man was seeking was frustrating, but hiding it with ignorance was a wise decision. 

None of the kings of Leponia were willing to surrender to the Great Man.

Setiria guarded the gates of Leponia, and without knowing which treasure the Great Man sought, nothing could be given or bartered. 

‘One thing is certain, though.’ 

Despite any cover-up, the Great Man could not enter Leponia. Several hypotheses could be made. 

“The conclusion remains the same, Your Highness. The Great Man cannot enter Leponia unless he kills me.”

“Indeed, that hasn’t changed.”

“Your Highness, you mentioned that only the king can open the royal treasure vault. Is that true?”

Banios nodded and replied, “Indeed, it is true. I have attempted to open it before, but it remained unresponsive. Unlike His Majesty, it doesn’t even react.”

Ruel’s smile grew wider as he listened to Banios’ response. Setiria was the guardian of the gate, and only the king possessed the key to the chest inside the vault. 

The Great Man had targeted Setiria and had a relentless fixation on the throne of Leponia. There had to be a reason behind it all.

‘If my thoughts are correct, to obtain that item, two conditions may need to be met.’ 

Ruel pointed at himself, indicating the first condition, “First, the barrier surrounding Leponia needs to be lifted, through killing me or any other means.”

Then, he directed his finger towards Banios, who would ascend to the throne as the next king. “Once you become king, you will have the authority to access the item from the royal treasure vault using the key.”

The barrier and the key were crucial. Without satisfying both of these conditions, the item could not be obtained.

“So, you mean to say that Great Man couldn’t use the empire to overthrow Leponia?”

Ruel nodded, “That’s correct. I’m not sure why he chose to destroy the empire, but he has the same power to bring down Leponia.”

“Yes, I’ve heard that the empire was incredibly formidable in the past,” Banios added.

“While this is all speculative, it’s important to keep these possibilities in mind. Our current priority is to overturn the scenario that he has orchestrated,” Ruel explained.

“Overturn the scenario…” Banios half-closed his eyes, contemplating the task at hand. He understood the intention, but he also recognized the difficulty of the challenge they faced.

“Now, let’s consider why the Great Man desires an alliance. Any thoughts on that?” Ruel asked.

“Perhaps it’s an opportunity for them to strike from behind, to regain the lost power of the Red Ash,” Banios suggested.

Ruel smiled in satisfaction. It was exactly what he had thought of.

The moment the three countries formed an alliance to fight an empire that did not exist, exchanges would become many times more active than now, and a natural opportunity would arise for the Red Ash to infiltrate.

Banios, stroking his chin, pondered for a moment before speaking. “So, are you suggesting that we should break the alliance with Kran before that?”

“No, quite the opposite. We must break the alliance with Cyronian first,” Ruel responded.

Banios was momentarily surprised but soon burst into hearty laughter. “You never cease to surprise me.”

Ruel’s words aligned perfectly with his earlier statement about overturning the board. It meant joining hands with the enemy while distancing themselves from their current allies. 

It was a bold move, filled with the determination to conceal their true intentions and strike at the enemy’s throat.

“We need to break this alliance to prevent them from achieving their objectives,” Ruel declared, inhaling Breath and chuckling.

“By using the empire that no longer exists, the enemy would have been hindered,” Ruel explained.

Banios questioned, “So, this is what you meant by overturning the board?”

“Exactly, but instead of completely overturning it, we need to shake it up first. Currently, both Leponia and Cyronian have expelled the Red Ash that was hiding within their borders.”

“Indeed, now is the most opportune time,” Banios acknowledged.

Knock. Knock.

—Here comes Cassion. He has brought cocoa. 

Leo opened his eyes and urgently ran towards the door.

Ruel realized he had been speaking too fervently and took a moment to compose himself. 

He settled back comfortably in his chair, savoring the sweet aroma wafting through the door.

“Give it to him first.” 

Banios looked at Leo, who clung to Cassion’s leg, with an affectionate gaze.

Leo’s tail wagged so vigorously that it couldn’t be seen, just a blur.

—This body is most happy today!

Next, Cassion placed the cocoa in front of Banios and Ruel. 

Banios hesitated for a moment, captivated by the sweet scent, before reluctantly taking a sip. “Cocoa. I haven’t had this since I was a child.”

“It’s quite delicious,” Ruel remarked, sipping it familiarly, and Banios reluctantly followed suit.

“…?” Banios’ eyes widened slightly, finding it tastier than expected. 

“It’s different from what I am familiar with.”

“Isn’t it delicious?”

“I can see why you enjoy it.”

Astell’s cocoa had a distinct flavor that couldn’t be found elsewhere. It was not overly sweet but still provided a comforting warmth. It felt like he could finally breathe now. 

Ruel continued his interrupted words, “We must spread the fact that ‘the empire doesn’t exist’ at the most opportune moment.”

Banios nodded in agreement, then hesitated for a moment. “Is that what you intend to do? I know you have a tendency to be reckless, but I’m against it.”

“Why would I do such a thing?” Ruel took another sip of cocoa, a pleased smile forming on his lips. “The most crucial task should be undertaken by Your Highness, shouldn’t it?”

Hearing about delivering a significant blow to the enemy, Banios covered his mouth, his lips curling up in amusement. “I’m proud to have you by my side.”

“I’ll take care of the fish we caught that slipped away a bit,” Ruel held his glass as he gazed at Cassion, causing a slight furrow in Cassion’s brow. 

The fact that all the fish had been caught was already known without double checking.

***

Ruel left the room as soon as he finished speaking with Banios.

His steps were unusually quick as he made his way to Tyson.

“Ruel-nim, are you going to inform Ganien of this as well?”

“Not yet,” Ruel replied, shaking his head.

After confirming that Hilim Tonisk was real, he planned to inform Garnien.

‘Maybe I should make a deal with Huswen?’

Ruel hoped that Banios would be the one to announce the fake existence of the Tonisk Empire. It would strengthen the foundation once he became king, thanks to his achievements. 

It was a deal made with that purpose in mind.

“You’re still gathering information on Adea Kran and Treitol Kran, right?” 

“Yes. I’m still gathering information. I hope you understand that it takes more time than others.”

He knew that it was much more difficult to extract information since they were princes. 

“I understand, but please hurry.” 

Time was of the essence as the enemy was moving on a larger scale.

“And you mentioned that you’re searching for adventurers in Kran?”

“Yes. That’s… correct, Ruel-nim.” Cassion sighed as he spoke. 

Not long ago, Cassion visited the Hand of the Wind Guild to disguise his subordinates as adventurers and send them to Kran. 

However, the guild master, Flenn, complained about why Ruel hadn’t given them a different mission, leading Cassion to believe that the adventurer fever had subsided. 

Unfortunately, it was just his misconception; the adventurer fever hadn’t subsided, but had only paused momentarily.

“We need to check whether the monsters have been corrupted or not. You know I’m the only one who can do so, right?” Ruel kindly reminded as he came up with a plausible excuse that left Cassion speechless. 

He couldn’t retract his previous statement about not being able to confirm the corruption among the monsters.

“If Ruel-nim falls into hot water, I think you’ll just open your mouth,” Cassion said, provoking a reaction from Ruel.

Ruel chuckled, responding to Cassion’s remark, “How did you know? I’m fine, including my mouth. Oh wait, my mouth isn’t fine either. It still hurts a little, like it’s been scraped from continuously spitting out blood.”

Ruel reacted strongly to Cassion’s slightly provocative remark.

Cassion was once again left speechless.

Ruel continued walking down the hallway, raising the corner of his mouth, and advised Cassion, “Don’t try to climb for nothing and report it after you’ve done your research well.”

There had been a moment when the barrier around the mansion weakened. For reasons unknown, Tyson had casually undone a few layers of the stacked barrier at Cassion’s request. 

Seeing that it hadn’t been reported to him yet, it seemed the investigation was incomplete. 

“Understood.”

Ruel observed Cassion’s restrained anger and wore a satisfied expression.

—Ruel, Ruel.

At Leo’s words, Ruel looked down.

—Are you okay? Ruel’s emotions are swirling again.

“Well, I’m going to see Uncle to feel better.”

—That’s a good idea! Ruel likes his uncle. Of course, this body is Ruel’s first choice. Ahem.

Leo snorted defiantly.

It was fortunate that no one else could hear his words.

Ruel sighed and looked out the window while walking down the hallway, noticing the falling snow. He momentarily pleased at seeing the snow that Leo enjoyed. He inhaled Breath as he quickened his halted steps. 

His smile slowly faded along with the quietly falling snow.

***

“Uncle,” Ruel greeted Tyson with a warm smile.

“Ruel,” Tyson’s bright smile seemed to relieve all tension.

“Are you busy?”

“What does it matter if you’re here, Ruel?”

“Do you happen to know where the quietest place in Setiria is?” At Ruel’s question, Tyson’s eyes flickered for a moment. 

It was clear that something had happened to Ruel. 

But Tyson, just as he did when he first welcomed Ruel, smiled and asked, “Do you want to go?” 

“Yes, I want to go,” Ruel replied with a smile.

Although Tyson knew that Ruel’s smile was forced, he responded affectionately as if he didn’t notice, “Well then, let’s go. It happens to be very close to the mansion.”

—This body will follow too!

Leo smiled brightly.

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