I Became the Narrow-Eyed Villain in a Dropped Novel

Chapter 126:

I sipped my tea and scanned the report.

It had been so long since I had a chance to relax in the soft chair at Headquarters, I was practically moved to tears.

Although the contents of the report were anything but relaxing.

"All sorts of things happened while I was away."

The biggest incident was the conflict between the First Duke and the Emperor.

They weren't yet at the point of drawing swords on each other, but the atmosphere was gradually getting more heated.

The saving grace was that it hadn't escalated into a major problem yet.

Both Blaiher and Johann Geller were cautious men, so there was plenty of time to respond.

Next was Blaiher's Imperial Guard.

Regardless of the reason, half of the Imperial Guard personnel who had been supporting us were dead, so it was only natural for them to demand an explanation.

For several days, I had to diligently write letters to prove that I hadn't deliberately sent them into a death trap.

The compensation for the deceased Imperial Guards also cost a fair amount of money.

At least it was fortunate that I hadn't just been going around apologizing.

Blaiher and the Imperial Guard, who understood that the Ravens were the culprits, quietly began to investigate Leitche.

'I don't know what the Duke is planning, but I hope this keeps him in check, even just a little.'

Thinking that, I pushed aside the letter from the Imperial Guard, and another troublesome report appeared.

[Ravens' Internal Movements and Future Cooperation]

It was only a few pages long, but just reading the title made me sigh.

"I don't know if it's fortunate or unfortunate that we didn't sever our ties completely…."

Surprisingly, the Duke of Leitche didn't leave the Eight Council.

If he had, it might have been easier to deal with him as a stranger.

Instead, the Duke expressed his long-held regret.

He had said he needed time to reconsider the extent of their cooperation due to the recent unpleasant incidents.

Yet he hadn't withdrawn the Ravens.

On the one hand, it was good that we could continue to use the convenient Ravens' communication network, but on the other, the Duke could also continue to receive support from Cesare's smuggling business and Professor Zain's technical assistance.

Headquarters didn't have the power to tell them to stop cooperating, and even if they did give such an order, the organization wouldn't listen.

'In the end, it's a matter of how we use Regina.'

Regina was the only one within the Ravens whom we could potentially pull to our side.

No one who wasn't a member of the Duke's family would dare to show even a hint of resistance to the Duke's will.

More importantly, we had even secured a hostage so she couldn't refuse to cooperate.

It would be much easier and more convenient to use Regina than to search for a potential traitor.

Knock. Knock.

"Come in."

I answered in a cheerful voice, having been waiting for that sound.

The frail-looking Raphel awkwardly entered the study. ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by novel{f}ire.net

"Um… is there a specific greeting I should use when I come in? This is my first time working with an Imperial noble."

"Til usually comes in saying, 'Hey, you son of a bitch.'"

"…I'll take that as a no."

Raphel cleared his throat and sat down.

I had meant for him to make himself comfortable.

"You must be tired from stirring up Headquarters these past few days. You don't look well."

"Well… if I'm going to do it, I might as well do it properly."

I decided not to tell him that there had been many complaints about him examining each of the unhealthy Headquarters staff and bringing in medical and research equipment.

"So, how was the health of our Headquarters' friends?"

"They're not healthy, are they? I can't say anything since they must be busy, but enduring the pain to work is a bit ...."

"They are passionate enough to come and work in this secluded place. If you think it's too much, you can take care of them with a doctor's recommendation."

"That Strategy Head… Doruga, I think. He seems to need a break. He has too much on his plate."

"…I'll consider it."

From what he told me, the health of Headquarters wasn't as bad as I had thought.

Maybe I could work them a little harder.

"Did you meet the patient I asked you to see?"

"Yes, his condition is quite serious."

Raphel's face darkened.

While I hadn't been paying attention, the condition of Benjamin Leitche, whom we had held hostage, showed no signs of improvement.

It wasn't that we hadn't taken any action.

His sister, Regina, visited regularly, and we even assigned a personal physician.

And yet his condition was serious.

"What exactly is his state?"

"Physically, there are no noticeable issues. Though the self-inflicted wounds are a bit troubling."

"Then he's fine, isn't he?"

"When people think of sickness, they only think of injuries or diseases, but a sickness of the mind is also a sickness."

Raphel spoke with a firm tone.

Why was he stating something so obvious?

As I just sipped my tea without a response, Raphel seemed flustered.

"Um… aren't you surprised?"

"What's so strange about a person having a sickness of the mind?"

"Well, most people would say that's nonsense. That it's just faking it."

"If you live long enough, you experience all sorts of things."

I deflected the conversation appropriately.

I had briefly forgotten that what was common sense to me might not be common sense in this era.

For some reason, Raphel nodded with an impressed expression.

"So many people can't even acknowledge that simple fact. My professor used to argue with the Assembly because of it… Anyway, Mr. Benjamin's condition is not good."

"Specifically, what's wrong?"

"I'll have to observe him more closely, but the current symptoms are insomnia, sudden anxiety, excessive self-preservation, aggression…."

"I see. So he's in a very serious state."

"He also shows signs of drug addiction. It doesn't seem to be a common sedative; it looks like he used a unique drug."

Was he talking about the truth serum Regina used?

It's not like that kind of drug would be good for the body.

"I thought it was administered by the previous physician, but it wasn't?"

"He probably used it when his sister came to visit. She's quite confident in her pharmacy skills."

"Hmm, I'd really like to know what that drug is."

Raphel's tired eyes sparkled.

He didn't look like a doctor worried about his patient; he looked like a researcher who had discovered an interesting subject for study.

'He was under Professor Zain, so is he also a mad scientist?'

While Raphel was setting up his examination room and research lab, I did some digging of my own.

It was out of pure curiosity rather than any specific intention.

I received a simple resume stating that he had worked as an assistant for Professor Zain for several years and had left due to a difference in opinion, along with a letter written in Professor Zain's own hand.

'He's a clever fellow, but his head is filled with flowers. His skills are good, so he'll be a help. Use him well.'

I honestly couldn't believe that that inhuman professor had written such a letter, and I even suspected one of his assistants had written it.

In any case, if that stingy man said he was capable, I didn't need to worry.

"When is that sister of his coming again? I'm not curious about the drug, but I feel I need some help to properly examine the patient."

It really didn't sound like he was doing it for the patient.

Well, at least he was interested in the patient, which was a good thing.

He was better than that physician who said he didn't want to see the patient unless it was for money.

"You're in luck. You won't have to wait long. She's scheduled to visit Headquarters as early as tomorrow, or two days from now at the latest."

"What's her name?"

"Regina Leitche."

"…Leitche?"

Raphel's face quickly hardened.

Come to think of it, I hadn't told him that Benjamin's last name was Leitche.

"You mean he's related to the Duke of Leitche?"

"Yes, the patient, Mr. Benjamin, is the Duke's eldest son."

"……."

"I understand that you're not happy about him being a member of the Duke's family. The Duke killed your colleague from the People's Medical Center."

I rushed to fix the situation.

It would be a headache if he decided to quit.

At that point, I would have no choice but to put a knife to his throat.

I didn't want to do that to a doctor whom I planned to use well in the future.

"No, it's alright. It's the People's Medical Center's philosophy to treat any patient."

"To put your mind at ease a bit, they're both on bad terms with their father. The Duke is by no means a good father."

"Thank you."

It didn't seem to help much, but at least he didn't storm out.

I secretly opened my Status Window, leaving Raphel lost in thought.

[Relationships]

Ernesto Israpel (-11 / Improving!)

(-) In a cooperative relationship with Professor Zain!

(-) Forced into a contract!

(+) Recovered the bodies of his colleagues!

(+) Treated him well considering he was dragged here by force!

This was a very good relationship by Valheit's standards.

I felt a sense of pride that the relationship, which had started at ?

30 when I first brought him, had recovered to this extent.

"Count?"

"Go on."

I pushed the Status Window aside and gave a light smile.

Fortunately, Raphel didn't seem to have noticed that I was distracted.

"Is your face alright?"

"Oh, you mean the injury from before. As you can see, it's fine."

I pulled at my cheek and smiled to show him not to worry, and Raphel looked at me with a look of wonder.

"That's an injury that would have taken a human almost a year to recover from, yet it's completely gone."

"I'm not an ordinary person."

"Since you're alright, I'll be going now."

As Raphel bowed politely and left, a small murmur he made entered my ears by chance.

"Is he even human…?"

"Yes, so don't you worry."

"I'm sorry."

I clicked my tongue as I watched Raphel scurry out of the study.

I need to be more careful next time.

"On that note."

I manipulated the scroll still floating next to me, and Valheit's Death Probability appeared.

It was still stuck at the 30% wall and hadn't gone down.

That meant the turning point that had appeared as an alert had not yet been resolved.

'Will it only be resolved if I eliminate the Duke?'

It didn't look like something I could resolve quickly.

The good thing was that the pace at which the chapters were progressing had slowed down significantly.

'Still, I don't have time to spare.'

I had rested enough, so it was time to move again.

Meeting Regina was important, but it was a waste of time to only focus on that.

"I can't just be on the defensive."

I pulled a document from the corner of my desk.

I signed the end of the document, which was labeled as an operation plan.

***

Regina was busy preparing for her visit to the Eight Council Headquarters.

She had to pack medicine for her brother and finish the report on the recent internal situation of the Ravens.

On top of that, she also had to handle the request her father had sent.

'I just hope I don't get more work.'

Of course, Regina knew.

It was rare for a day to go by in the Ravens without an increase in work.

"What is it?"

Regina asked in a half-resigned voice, and her subordinate, who had been waiting quietly, approached.

"We just received a message from the Grand Duchy."

"Tell them it will take a few more days to handle the matter the Duke requested."

"It's a message from the Grand Duchy, not the Duke."

Only then did Regina get interested and turn around.

It was rare for the Grand Duchy to officially contact the Ravens.

After all, the Duke of Leitche's intentions were conveyed directly to the Ravens.

That meant it was a more administrative and public matter.

"What is it?"

"The Eslick Empire has officially sent a letter. They say they need help handling the matter."

"Why would they need us for a public matter like that?"

"The Leitche soldiers have been reported to have trespassed on their waters and attacked merchant ships. The problem is that our military hasn't done any such thing."

"……."

She had a rough idea of what was going on.

Someone was impersonating Leitche.

At the same time, it wasn't hard to guess who that someone was.