111.
Working as the acting head of the family in Ruhan’s absence, Yu Jin came to a realization.
‘There was a reason why the family head was always stuck in the office!’
The duties of Lucid’s family head were on a completely different level compared to what Yu Jin had been doing before. Ruhan had been handling all these tasks alone, and as Yu Jin tried to follow suit, he felt his energy draining in real-time. He tried to endure by taking health supplements, but it didn’t last long. Eventually, Yu Jin stood up, slamming his hands on the desk.
“This won’t do!”
There was a need to restructure the system. Yu Jin needed to delegate work to the civilian officials staying at Lucid and only do final checks himself.
‘That’s how it should be done.’
The current situation was strangely abnormal.
“You’re right, it is strange,” the head butler replied to Yu Jin’s words. According to him, Ruhan had changed the system like this after Asha’s death. Whether he was trying to forget his sorrow by constantly working, or if he had become distrustful of people afterward, was unclear. Only one thing was certain: Yu Jin couldn’t work like Ruhan. So he decided to overhaul the work system, and in the process, he received help from Leion.
Leion, who visited the day after Ruhan left the mansion, promised a lot of help, saying he would support Yu Jin. When asked why, he said it was the family head’s order.
Yu Jin learned many things while talking with him. For instance, he learned that divorce between nobles was extremely difficult. Ruhan had been following procedures to divorce Azeth for a long time, though without Azeth’s consent.
Azeth left the Lucid mansion after crying pitifully and struggling. The remaining female siblings changed their attitude from before. Roena said about this:
“We have no choice, right? We’ll eventually leave the mansion when we get married. If you don’t allow it then, we can’t go. Conversely, even if you say we have to marry someone really unsuitable, we can’t refuse. So shouldn’t we try to get on your good side now?”
Did they think Yu Jin would change just because of that after all the spiteful bullying in the past? As Yu Jin looked at her thinking this, Roena answered:
“Do you think you’re tough? I don’t think so. You still have soft spots. Really tough people are like the first mother. So we’re trying to find an opening and dig in. I’m even prepared to be beaten if you want.”
“I don’t particularly want to do that.”
“Well, let me know if you change your mind.”
Saying that, Roena placed a basket on Yu Jin’s desk.
“The cook I have makes really good pies. Try it.”
Then she disappeared like the wind. When Yu Jin opened the basket, there really was a pie inside, and even after a poison test, there was nothing unusual about it.
“Should I call this brazen?”
Yu Jin laughed out loud without realizing it. Although he really disliked Roena, he had no intention of tormenting her as she suggested. He already had one precious treasure that he had taken from her – Jinhyeon, who would have been with her originally.
He tasted a bit of the pie that had passed the inspection. As Roena had said, it was a very delicious pie.
Yu Jin’s reputation in Lucid was generally good. The civilian officials who benefited from the newly organized system praised Yu Jin. This didn’t apply to the knights who used their bodies, but that didn’t mean they disliked Yu Jin either. This was because Jinhyeon was sticking close to them and earning their goodwill.
Even those who initially glared at him for being Yu Jin’s male lover now became close enough to pat each other’s backs with smiles. Along with this, Jinhyeon’s skills were rapidly improving. It was natural, given that he was dealing with the cream of the crop among Lucid’s knights.
Days passed in this situation. Ruhan, who was expected to return within a week, was still staying in the demon realm. This fact was barely discovered because he had requested additional troops in the meantime. Most people believed that Ruhan would return victorious, but there were some who didn’t think so. And Keith was among those people.
‘Master and Aksen have clashed.’
Keith’s master, Rector, didn’t keep many subordinates because he found it bothersome, but Aksen was different. He had many disciples and subordinates, all of which became his strength. These two had joined hands to try to kill Ruhan. In this situation, it didn’t seem likely that Ruhan would return alive. If that happened, Yu Jin, who was acting as the family head, would become the actual family head.
Everything was rolling in the direction Leviathan wanted.
‘Once Ruhan’s death is confirmed.’
Keith had something to do. It was to use the brainwashing drug that Lyunne had used in the past on Yu Jin. Then Leviathan could completely take over the Lucid family.
[So, have you made a decision?]
A bird standing by the window asked in a dull voice.
“I don’t know.”
[What don’t you know?]
“I joined Leviathan to protect Yu Jin.”
[I know.]
“But to brainwash the person I’m trying to protect? Usually, people don’t entrust such tasks to someone like that.”
Because there was a high probability that they would disobey Leviathan’s orders. But Rector’s thoughts seemed to be different.
[That’s a general story. The you I know is greedy.]
“Me?”
[Yes. Don’t you want to possess Yu Jin? But as things stand, that child won’t stay by your side. He loves Jinhyeon, doesn’t he?]
“People’s hearts change easily.”
[So you’ll wait until it changes?]
The bird laughed, rubbing its beak.
[Well, do as you wish.]
“Is that okay with you, Master?”
[I might throw a fit, but I won’t kill you.]
Rector was that strong of a person. Even Leviathan couldn’t rashly dispose of him, saying he was unnecessary. With those words, the bird returned to its original form. After confirming this, Keith leaned against the window and sighed.
Yu Jin’s appearance closely resembled his mother, Asha. But his inner self had parts that resembled his father, Ruhan. He was strong and would do anything for what he wanted. If not for that, he couldn’t have pushed himself so hard saying he would protect Keith or Haruna. Knowing this, Keith was uneasy.
What if Yu Jin’s love for Jinhyeon never changed throughout his life? Just as Ruhan had chased after Asha’s corpse because he loved her, Yu Jin might do the same. Then Keith’s love would never be reciprocated in his lifetime. Keith squeezed his eyes shut. He should have thrown away the drug when he first received it from Leviathan.
If he had done that, he wouldn’t be having these thoughts now.
Keith looked out the window with gloomy eyes.
Ruhan clicked his tongue and shook the blood off his sword.
“You’re persistent.”
“You’re the persistent one,” the man standing opposite replied with a grin. The black-haired man was the most skilled swordsman among those present. That’s why Ruhan was facing him along with Adan. Although Ruhan was confident in coordinating with Adan as they had been together since childhood, the opponent was not to be underestimated. In this situation, the knights he had brought were falling one by one.
Another enemy was causing this. Whenever he chanted strange spells, the surroundings became strange. Things that shouldn’t be there appeared, or auditory hallucinations were heard. Because of this, attacks were increasingly going astray. Clearly, Lucid’s knights had the upper hand at first, but as time passed, it became the opposite.
‘My mistake.’
He had been too impatient. He had been obsessed with the thought that he might lose Asha.
‘I should retreat for now.’
As he was thinking this, the black-haired man took something out of the pouch at his waist and threw it. When Ruhan caught it reflexively, it was a human finger bone. It was just that, but Ruhan’s heart sank.
“…Asha.”
“If you follow me, I’ll give you more of these.”
The man grinned.
“What nonsense!”
Adan shouted, swinging his sword, but the man easily dodged it.
“But if you won’t follow… Well, it must be unnecessary, so I’ll dispose of it.”
“Family Head, you mustn’t fall for such words!”
Adan shouted urgently, but Ruhan’s mind had already changed. Instead of looking for a way to retreat, he stepped forward. Then he began to attack the black-haired man with fierce momentum. As he was emotionally agitated, the tip of his sword wasn’t clean. Thanks to this, the black-haired man easily avoided Ruhan’s attacks. Thus, Ruhan stepped deeper into the demon realm.
“Family Head!”
As Adan tried to urgently follow, others blocked his way.
“Get out of my way!”
Adan shouted, swinging his sword, but with many attacking at once, he was only wasting time. Anxiety gnawed at Adan’s heart.
Rector had lured Ruhan to the desired location as planned. Confirming this, Aksen’s disciple immediately activated the magic he had prepared in advance. It wasn’t magic with great destructive power, but it was magic that the public avoided and sought to eliminate. This was because it was magic that raised the dead.
