CH 6

My father, who fought on the front lines against the forces of the Demon Realm as an enemy of the Mage brigade, withdrew from active combat and became Chief Court Mage.

The original story did not provide such detailed background information about Julion.

So, I always vaguely thought of him as a cruel figure without blood or tears.** (merciless)

Perhaps now that I had become his flesh and blood, my perspective had changed.

Even knowing the immense tragedy Julion might bring about in the future, I couldn’t bring myself to think of him as purely evil.

“Nita, Aslan. Take good care of your younger sister while I’m away.”

“Yes, Father.”

“Hey, I should be the one answering. I’m your older brother after all.”

Grumbling, Nita shrugged her shoulders, while Aslan narrowed his eyes.

“Well, hurry up then.”

“This brat…”

Before Nita could finish his words, Julion’s calm voice stopped him and Aslan in their tracks.

“Stop it.”

Julion’s calm reprimand silenced both Nita and Aslan simultaneously.

“No matter how old you get, you two still lack maturity. Even the youngest is more well-behaved.”

“Don’t worry too much, Father. I’ll take good care of my brothers.”

“….”

My older brothers turned to look at me with expressions of disbelief.

I pretended not to notice and gracefully took a bite of the freshly seared steak.

***

It was that night.

“Why are you helping me?” Clyde asked out of the blue, in between bites of the food I had brought him.

“…Why the sudden question?”

“Just curious.”

“I told you not to ask before. Who I am and why I’m helping you.”

“There are plenty of reasons. Even if I told you, I doubt you would believe me.”

As I remained silent, Clyde looked uneasy.

“…Do you intend to sell me off to someone else once you get me out of here?”

“What? What kind of nonsense is that? Absolutely not.”

I found myself unintentionally getting upset as I responded.

Just the thought of what could happen if I were to engage in such actions, considering the horrifying way the villain’s daughter had died, sent shivers down my spine.

“….”

Clyde looked at me intently, then muttered in a low voice.

“If that’s not the case, then there shouldn’t be any reason you can’t tell me.”

“Well, I suppose, from your perspective, it’s certainly suspicious.”

It was understandable for Clyde to have doubts if I were helping him without any explanation.

It was natural for him to suspect that I might have some ulterior motives or hidden intentions, considering I was helping him without any apparent reason.

After a moment of contemplation, I opened my mouth to speak.

“Actually, among the people I knew, there was someone else who was a hybrid of human and demon, just like you.”

“….”

“That person had eyes as beautiful and red as yours.”

“Beautiful? These eyes?”

Clyde asked in disbelief.

“Yes. They were red, clear, and almost like gemstones.”

“….”

“That person, just like you, lived hidden in human society and was eventually discovered and captured by the mages as an experiment.”

Upon hearing my words, Clyde’s shoulders trembled.

“I was too young at that time and couldn’t do anything. That’s why I made a vow. If something like that were to happen again, I would rescue that person before it became irreversible.”

I couldn’t entirely label what I said to Clyde as blatant lies.

If I were to replace “my friend” with “Clyde from the original novel,” it would be mostly the truth.

Of course, there were ambiguous parts that I didn’t explain explicitly, leaving room for significant misunderstandings.

However, it wasn’t appropriate to reveal the truth about reincarnation or being inside a novel.

“…What happened to that person afterwards?”

“He managed to escape, but it was already after enduring long and terrible suffering. Consumed by a thirst for revenge… they ended up annihilating not only the wizards who tormented them but also their innocent family.”

“….”

Clyde quietly lowered his gaze.

“So, you made me promise not to seek revenge in exchange for rescuing me.”

“Yeah… that’s right.”

Fortunately, Clyde seemed somewhat convinced by my story.

‘It’s something that could actually happen in this world, so it has its own sense of reality.’

“I’m sorry.”

Suddenly, Clyde apologized.

“Huh? What for?”

“For forcing you to talk about something you probably didn’t want to recall.”

“No, it’s okay. From your perspective, it was reasonable to be curious.”

Internally, I was surprised and applauded Clyde’s consideration.

To think that he could even take my feelings into account in this situation.

It was impossible for me to believe that he was the same person as the deranged tyrant in the original novel.

‘If only he hadn’t been captured as an experiment, they could have grown up as healthy and upright adult…’

“You don’t have to worry so much. There were difficulties, but that person is now living well, eating well.”

I deliberately spoke lightly, trying to change the mood.

“Yeah. He even got married to a stunningly beautiful woman. I’m so jealous of how fortunate he was.”

…While there were some embellishments in the story, it was true that Sylphia was incredibly beautiful, and it was true that Clyde became infatuated with her.

“Really?”

“Yeah. What about it?”

Clyde’s expression turned strange.

“…Did you like him?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“That person. Did you like him?”

“Ah… well, yeah, I suppose.”

To be honest, in my past life, I was someone who would go crazy over obsessive characters. In that sense, Clyde from <The Blood-soaked Beast> could be considered one of the top three male characters in my life.

While the readers were complaining that it was too spicy and unbearable, I was the only one waving a light stick in excitement.

“What did you like about him?”

Clyde’s question caught me off guard.

‘…What did I like about him?’

Well, it was his passionate obsession with the female lead that could be described as love, his unquenchable desire that kept her awake until dawn every night, and the insane and explicit dirty talk that whispered endlessly in her ears…

“…His handsome features?”

“….”

“And his attractive physique.”

Again, it was definitely not a lie.

…There were just a few parts that had to be omitted due to circumstances.

Clyde seemed slightly uncomfortable with my answer.

“Trivial things. Why does that matter?”

“It matters. It matters a lot. What else could possibly be more important if you take those things away?”

“Is that so?”

As I spoke seriously, Clyde seemed a bit dejected.

“You’re saying nonsense. Now, listen.”

I urged him to pay attention. I raised a finger and spoke.

“For example, let’s say there’s a very kind and caring but unattractive person, and on the other hand, there’s a completely stunningly beautiful person who has a contrasting personality with a cold demeanor towards you. If you had to marry one of them, which one do you think would be better?”

“Do I have to choose between just those two?”

“Yes.”

“Then obviously, a person with a good personality who treats me well would be better.”

“Bzzt! Wrong!”

“…Wrong?”

“Yeah. Think about it. No matter how kind and well-intentioned a person is, they can’t always be perfect. Everyone makes mistakes or has off days. On the other hand, even a man who is always cold and misbehaves might have moments where he treats someone else exceptionally well. When you look at it that way, isn’t the latter option better? The former may lose their humility, but with the handsome man, at least you can enjoy the view even if he’s acting out.”

“….”

“So, what do you think? Am I right?”

“I just think you like handsome men.”

Clyde said with a look of disbelief.

“That’s strange. Why wouldn’t you know that?”

I wrinkled my nose in annoyance.

“Well, what would you do then? Would you choose a genuinely kind but unattractive woman?”

“….”

Clyde fell silent for a moment, then raised his head.

“See? You’re the same.”

“That’s not it. I would choose a woman who is both kind to me and incredibly beautiful.”

This time, it was my turn to look bewildered by Clyde’s words.

“Look at this kid. You’re more greedy than I thought. Do you think such a woman is that common in the world?”

Well, come to think of it, the original female lead, Sylphia, was exactly that kind of character.