Chapter 126 The Butler’s Lament
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
I carried Akahorus’s head through the manor, making my way to the reception room where Oscar—the head butler of the Grimlock family—waited. I intended to present it to him as a souvenir.
”Hey, Oscar. Finished cleaning up yet?”
I called out as I opened the door. Oscar, who had been on his hands and knees scrubbing bloodstains from the floor with a rag, snapped his head toward me, his face contorted in shock. The man was a notorious perfectionist, yet his usually immaculate tailcoat was slightly disheveled. A single bead of sweat traced a path down his cheek.
Two of my security men stood rigidly against the wall, keeping watch over Oscar.
”I got blood all over myself when I chopped off that ill-mannered brat’s head. I’m going to change and take a bath. You—finish cleaning this room thoroughly, then take this head and get back to the frontier territory.”
One of my guards stepped forward and placed a heavy sack before Oscar, its weight making a dull thud as it hit the floor. He slowly opened the mouth of the bag for Oscar to see inside.
Within lay Akahorus’s severed head, eyes still frozen wide in despair—the warmth of life not yet fully faded from the flesh.
Oscar’s entire body began to tremble uncontrollably. His face betrayed utter disbelief.
”W-What have you done… T-To so easily kill such a brilliant young talent… You have committed an irreparable act, my lord!”
”Couldn’t be helped. If I hadn’t killed him, he would have killed me. If he didn’t like that, he shouldn’t have picked the fight in the first place.”
Oscar’s face had gone pale. Whether he was even listening to my perfectly reasonable argument, I couldn’t tell. He seemed lost in desperate thought.
”…If you could so easily defeat Lord Akahorus, who had fully merged with a demon… then that demon Ashraf possesses power far beyond our estimates—dangerous power indeed. But there’s no way a warrior of that caliber would obediently serve someone with Zero Mana like you!”
When Oscar learned of that brat’s death, he never once considered that I had defeated Akahorus in a duel.
Admittedly, it was Ashraf who had struck the killing blow—
So he wasn’t entirely wrong.
”Yeah, well… you’re not wrong. I do use him because he’s convenient, but he has a mind of his own. Always moving behind the scenes. He’s dangerous—you’re right about that.”
My casual admission caused Oscar to finally drop all pretense of composure. He shot to his feet, fury blazing in his eyes—but fear and desperation mixed within that gaze.
”…! Are you telling me you’re letting a demon run wild without any control whatsoever!? Why haven’t you bound his actions with a proper contract!? How foolish… to leave a demon of such power and danger unchecked! Do you have any idea what irreparable calamity this will eventually bring upon the Grimlock family—no, upon the Asgard Kingdom itself!? Have you considered that your actions might be the height of irresponsibility!?”
…He yelled at me.
His polite speech had cracked in places—he was genuinely furious.
But I wasn’t leaving Ashraf unchecked because I wanted to. I had no choice. The demon was beyond my control, so I let him roam free.
Besides, I’d done my homework. I’d pored over ancient texts written in archaic language, delving deep into the nature of these so-called “demons.”
And after that long pursuit, I’d reached a conclusion: it was better to leave an incomprehensible entity like a demon alone than to foolishly try to bind it.
The higher-ranking the demon, the more beyond human control they became.
I’d established friendly relations with Lucifiel, the princess of the Demon Realm, but that was largely because she was the daughter of the Demon King and an angel—and a Light-attribute mana user to boot.
Ashraf was a different story. There was nothing I could do, so I let him do as he pleased. That was far better than deluding myself into thinking I had control, feeling false security, or wasting energy on futile efforts.
All I could do was become stronger myself.
And serve as a deterrent against Ashraf.
That was the optimal solution.
”Even if you say that, it was the old man who created the opportunity to summon Ashraf to the human world in the first place. I don’t think I should have to bear that much responsibility.”
I kept my tone as light as possible. Oscar was getting worked up, taking things too seriously. Stress wasn’t good for you.
”Besides, if he ever does something truly insane, I’ll handle it. That’s good enough, right? So that’s that. I want to change and take a long bath, so I’m heading out.”
I turned toward the bathroom. Behind me, I heard Oscar groan under his breath:
”…No. This fool. I need to do something about that dangerous demon Ashraf as soon as possible. But what can I possibly do…”
No matter how capable this butler of the Grimlock family was among humans, he had no effective means of countering an irregular existence like that “Teleportation Demon.”
In the first place, whether Ashraf actually bore any “malice” toward humanity at all was something nobody could even begin to determine.
For now, he faithfully followed my orders.
(…Worrying too much isn’t good for you either.)
I had only one expectation of Oscar now.
To finish cleaning this room without a single oversight, restoring it to its original beautiful state.
That was all.
To wash away the day’s filth, I took a long bath. Lilia carefully scrubbed my back, cleansing every inch of my body. Akahorus’s blood had only gotten on my clothes, but I had her wash every corner thoroughly just to be safe.
I soaked in the hot water until my body was warm. When I emerged from the bath, Oscar had already left the manor. He must have departed with the pitiful Akahorus—now reduced to nothing but a head—to report the events at the manor to my father in the distant frontier territory.
He’d just arrived from the frontier, and now he was making the return trip immediately.
What a thankless task.
That afternoon, after a thorough rest, I contacted the theater through Communication Magic. There had been that irregular duel disturbance, but today was still a holiday.
There was plenty of time left.
I decided to resume exploring the Elven Forest “Sylvain”—it had been a while. Things had been hectic lately, and my life’s work of collecting Magic Materials had been put on hold.
The dwarves’ full-scale forge newly installed in my manor’s garden was almost complete. All the various equipment I’d acquired secondhand at a bargain through the Zaitz Merchant Guild had been moved in.
The environment for forging my own sword was now ready.
All that remained was to gather the finest Mana materials—
To breathe life into that blade.
I let my thoughts drift to that approaching moment, my heart quietly—but undeniably—racing with anticipation.
Now then. Time for adventure.
—
Summary:
The protagonist presents Akahorus’s severed head to Oscar and orders him to return to the frontier. Oscar erupts in fury over the protagonist’s reckless handling of the demon Ashraf, but the protagonist dismisses his concerns with casual indifference. After a cleansing bath, the protagonist decides to resume his Magic Materials expedition in the Elven Forest, leaving Oscar’s alarm unresolved and the true danger of Ashraf unexplored.
—
Trivia:
Oscar never once considered the protagonist could defeat Akahorus in a fair fight.
The protagonist has studied ancient texts extensively to understand demons.
Lucifiel is the daughter of the Demon King and an angel, possessing Light-attribute mana.
The protagonist’s forge was built by dwarves and is nearly complete.
The hero’s life’s work is collecting Magic Materials.
Ashraf currently follows orders but acts autonomously and may harbor unknown intentions.
The “Teleportation Demon” is considered an irregular existence beyond human means of control.
Oscar departed immediately to report to the protagonist’s father in the frontier territory.
—
Translation Notes:
Notes:
• Akahorus – A brash, arrogant reincarnated mob character brought by Oscar to replace Xenos as the next Grimlock family heir. A small brat with immense mana, multiple attributes, and a demon fused to his left hand, he speaks like a crude delinquent, trying to make Lilia his Magic Slave. Sent by Xenos’s father from the Frontier to kill Xenos, he is driven insane by Ashraf’s mana and later decapitated by Xenos.
• Grimlock – Xenos’s family name.
• Oscar – Head butler of the Grimlock family and Gaius’s confidant, he is a tall, lean man in his late forties with gray hair, silver-rimmed glasses, and piercing azure eyes. A professional yet secretly seething “shadow ruler,” he serves as strategist, spymaster, and Xenos’s protective, stoic bodyguard. Though hostile toward Xenos, he maintains composure while managing the estate, even under humiliating orders.
• Ashraf – Job: Teleportation demon; Relationship: Guardian of Xenos’s mansion; Note: Guards against potential attacks.
• Lilia – Xenos’s fiercely loyal, trauma-resilient Head Maid is a lovely, pale, busty woman with long dark hair, a chest tattoo, and a nullified crest. Dressed in a black uniform, she maintains refined, icy elegance when disciplining others, especially Elenor. While formal and efficient with guests, she masks deep, jealous anxiety for Xenos, finding her greatest joy in serving him and sleeping by his side.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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