I Became the Narrow-Eyed Villain in a Dropped Novel

Chapter: 123.

“I told you to rest, why did you crawl out here?”

“I am resting.”

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“I came out with the doctor’s consent.”

At Til’s expression, which was much fiercer than usual, I immediately sold out Raphel.

He only told me not to move around vigorously, so I wasn’t exactly ignoring the doctor’s recommendation.

“Just sitting and questioning isn’t that big of a deal, is it? I’m not even doing it myself, just watching.”

“Do you know who you were up against? Tarif, the executioner of Stetten. That old man who they say has no equal in a one-on-one fight.”

I knew.

Because while I was lying there unable to move for nearly half a day, I heard it until my ears bled.

Not just Til, but Kaseph, Ede, and even Wilhelm, who I thought wouldn’t know much about this sort of thing since he was a former thief, came by to say a word.

“It’s good enough that we drew, isn’t it.”

“…Fine, whatever. Seeing you acting the same as usual is actually a relief.”

Til, who had been muttering with a face full of dissatisfaction that didn't match her words, opened the door of the shabby warehouse.

It was a cave-cum-warehouse where water dripped, by no means a place for people to stay, so the count shadow corps didn't use it.

Of course, it was a different story if you were a prisoner.

“Hello, Ivan. Seeing you looking healthy makes me feel good too.”

“……”

Ivan, tied firmly to a stone pillar, kept his mouth shut and turned his head away.

He was a mess, as if a rough interrogation had already taken place before I arrived.

“And you are… who are you? I don’t think I’ve seen you before.”

“The curse-weavers who were cooperating with the Ravens.”

Til answered on behalf of the two trembling demons.

Unlike Ivan, they weren't tied up, but the way they stayed put in the corner wasn’t much different from being tied up.

“This time, you’re subjects for interrogation too.”

“We told you everything we know! We were just doing as we were told!”

“We’re going to take the time to reconfirm that. Together with our friend tied up over there.”

As Til pointed at Ivan, the demon’s tail trembled.

“What race is that?”

“I didn’t know either, but I asked Noah’s group and they said they’re called Moisyen. Their nickname is little rats.”

Looking at the long, thin tail and black eyes, they certainly did look like rats.

While I was observing, the two curse-weavers shrank even further.

“You said there haven’t been any results so far, was it?”

“Even after using advanced techniques, that bastard won’t open his mouth.”

He must be a pretty high-ranking member within the Ravens, and one sent directly by the Duke, so he would be tight-lipped.

“Then he won’t open it in the future either, will he?”

“Probably. That’s why I’m going to try a cross-examination.”

At the word cross-examination, the curse-weaver’s face turned pale.

It was pitiful, but what could be done, it was his karma.

The curse-weaver, who hesitantly came over to Ivan’s side, sweated profusely and moved his hands restlessly.

“Let’s start from the beginning.”

“Uh, um, my name is….”

“I’m not curious about that, so let’s skip it.”

Til’s voice, as she began the interrogation, was subdued, unlike her usual self.

Is she always like that when she interrogates?

“You said you’re not from Leitche. How did you come to cooperate with Leitche.”

“As I said last time, we were just doing as we were told from above….”

“Right, you did. If you say something similar one more time, you can expect to never be able to use one of your fingers for the rest of your life.”

It was a very moderate measure, but it seemed to have been quite a shock to the curse-weaver.

The curse-weaver stammered, constantly wiping away his sweat.

“It’s true. Our commander told us to cooperate… Ah.”

“A commander, now something worth listening to is coming out.”

“Aaaaaaaargh!”

With a cracking sound, the demon grabbed his finger and rolled on the ground.

“It’s not even that bent, aren’t you overreacting?”

“If you get caught trying to hide something again, your other fingers will end up like that too.”

Seeing our nonchalant reaction, the curse-weaver nodded his head vigorously.

I understood why he said he would bring Raphel.

The plan was to break, fix, and break again.

“I, I wasn’t trying to hide it, I just thought it wasn't that important so I didn’t say any….”

“Enough with the excuses. If there’s a commander, that means there’s a group. What does it do?”

“It’s, it’s not that great of a group. If I had to say, it’s more like a group of unemployed people….”

“Unemployed?”

“Because we used to work for the Vestol Assembly. Before that… we were barely getting by.”

The demon who appeared to be the assistant answered instead.

The curse-weaver, clutching his swollen finger, looked at his assistant with a flustered expression.

“If you say that much, no, never mind. It’s not like those bastards will protect us anyway.”

“Don’t talk to yourself.”

“Do you know that there were rumors that the Vestol Assembly was researching curses in the past?”

“It was revealed to be a false rumor, wasn’t it.”

“That’s half right and half wrong. It was never actually used on the battlefield, but they did research it.”

I roughly understood what had happened.

They researched it thinking it might be useful during the war, but it had no practical application, so it was eventually scrapped.

Just looking at this incident, using curses from a distance required a lot of preparation and had many variables, so it would have been useless on the battlefield.

“Then it should have ended there, why did you decide to stick together?”

“The commander boasted that there would definitely be someone who would buy what we researched….”

The curse-weaver glanced at Ivan.

Ivan just stared straight ahead with no change in expression.

“So Leitche bought it.”

“I don’t know the exact details! Really! What would a mere demon know?”

“Alright, let’s move on. What was the purpose of the experiment.”

“Didn’t I tell you befo… It was to create a trap! The Duke of Leitche said it would be helpful in catching someone, that’s all I know!”

The curse-weaver quickly changed his attitude before Til’s face could contort further.

It was a rather wise decision.

Even I had rarely seen her look that angry.

“So who was the target?”

“Anat.”

Til answered instead.

I discreetly examined Til’s face. It was plainly visible on her face that she wanted to smash something right away.

“Anything to say?”

Til glared at Ivan with bloodshot eyes, but Ivan continued to keep his mouth firmly shut.

Bang!

Til’s fist slammed down right next to Ivan’s head.

Blood streamed down his face, which was cut by stone fragments, but Ivan still didn't open his mouth.

“If what this little rat is saying is true, your master’s life ends there too.”

“Do you think he’ll talk if you do that?”

“I know.”

As I stopped her, Til ground her teeth and turned away.

While she cooled her head for a moment, I decided to ask the questions.

“Was the experiment conducted with the purpose of targeting only one person. The Duke of Leitche must have more than one person he dislikes.”

“Tha, that is, the research had two directions. One was to tie down one person, and the other was to cast a curse on an entire region.”

He was saying that the experiments in Ruhindorf and Kranacht were for the curse to be cast on an entire region.

“Was he planning to submerge a place he dislikes entirely in a curse?”

“Uh, that’s probably not it. Of course, it’s not impossible, but it can’t be controlled….”

“But you actually did it, didn’t you. Though it was a completely different place that got cursed, not Ruhindorf.”

“No, no, that was an accident that happened because of a problem with the relay station, it wasn't the original purpose, please believe me!”

The demon’s words quickened, as if he took it as a reprimand.

Well, if he was going to be scared on his own, there was no harm to me.

“Do you know how many people died?”

“Eh… Didn’t everyone in that village that got unlucky die? That’s what the calculations say.”

If Anat hadn't dealt with it right away, that might have been what happened.

I raised my voice slightly.

“Are you proud of it?”

“No! I’m sorry. Originally, it was supposed to be an incident where the people in Ruhindorf would just collapse like corpses for about a week and then it would be over….”

I thought that alone was quite serious, but I decided not to press him further, as pushing him too hard would only make him hide in a rat hole.

“I’m different from that hothead over there. I have no intention of punishing you for that. However, you must speak clearly.”

“O-of course.”

“What must I do to find out the reason the Duke of Leitche is researching curses and his plans on how to use them.”

The curse-weaver’s eyes began to move busily.

After darting around between me, who was smiling, Til, who was still not over her anger, and Ivan, who was saying nothing, he decided on an answer.

“I don’t know about the bigger plan. We’re just foot soldiers.”

“Foot soldiers? Hmph.”

As Ivan, who had kept his mouth tightly shut until now, uttered a word, the curse-weaver’s eyes widened.

“No, that’s not it… Keck!”

In an instant, Til had the curse-weaver by the throat.

The assistant didn’t know what to do as he watched his kinsman struggle, lifted into the air.

“You answer. Are you guys foot soldiers?”

“We’re not foot soldiers! So p-please put him down and talk!”

As the curse-weaver’s face gradually turned purple, the assistant shouted urgently.

As he was released from Til’s grasp, the sound of coughing echoed in the cave.

“We were mainly in charge of important research since our time in Vestol, so we’re definitely not foot soldiers. But they didn’t share the most important details with us demons.”

“Then that’s the same as not knowing.”

“S-still, they did tell us where to assemble after this job was over. There’s a map too, so you can go there.”

“Where is it?”

“It’s an island in the strait between the two continents.”

An island between two continents.

It was mentioned that the place where Valheit died was also an island between the Black Continent and the White Continent.

I would have to check the exact name and location, but this alone was enough to know the Duke of Leitche’s goal.

He was entering the final preparations to kill me.

In addition, he would also be preparing to kill or capture Anat.

“This alone seems to be enough to nullify the cooperative relationship between the Duke and us, Ivan. What do you think.”

“It’s not for me to say.”

“And yet, the fact that you opened your mouth means you have something to say on another matter, is that right?”

As I asked with a grin, Ivan reluctantly nodded.

“Have you had thoughts of betraying your master?”

“How could I?”

A familiar yet unpleasant voice was heard.

Everyone’s gaze turned to the door.

I grimaced without realizing it.

“To think that a distinguished guest would come to such a humble place in person.”

“Aha, if it’s a place where the Count is, then I suppose it’s not so humble. Of course, the smell is hard to bear.”

“…In any case, it’s a pleasure to see you, Your Grace.”

The Duke of Leitche greeted elegantly and entered the warehouse.

Til looked ready to grab him by the collar at any moment, but she was stopping her body from moving with surprising self-control.

“I trust that the cooperation between the Eight Council and us is not so shallow as to be shaken by such a trivial matter.”

“How did you get here?”

“Are you completely ignoring what I said? Well, to answer your question, the Ravens have their own way.”

So this was why Ivan suddenly opened his mouth.

I don’t know the exact method, but it seems he informed the Duke of the current situation.

“Were you aiming for the Commander?”

“Aiming? How can you use such a word? I was worried about her, so I was looking for a solution in my own way.”

It was a ridiculous excuse, but Til couldn’t charge at him right away.

Because she couldn't fight another member without the Commander's order.

“I came to make a proposal.”

“I refuse.”

I replied with a bright smile.

The Duke flinched, as if it were an unexpected answer.

“Oh my, you have to at least listen.”

“Your punishment will be decided after convening the Eight Council. Until then, there are no proposals I will accept.”

“…You’ll regret it?”

Seeing the corner of the Duke’s mouth twist made me feel good.

“You don’t have to worry. The one who will be regretting it is you.”