"Why the hesitation? Speak."
"Give me the position of heir."
The Marquis shut his eyes tightly, as if he'd expected this. But I wasn't done.
"Would you actually grant that?"
"Choosing the heir is within my authority. And I said I'd grant any wish if you won the bet. If that's what you want, I'd have to honor it."
He said he'd agree, but his expression was far from comfortable.
If I became the heir now, both he and I would be tangled in all sorts of trouble.
"You say you'll grant it, but you don't look happy about it."
"Ahem…"
"If I became heir, it'd cause problems. There'd be pushback, your reputation would take a hit, and my siblings and your wife would probably throw a fit."
"Cough…"
The Marquis kept clearing his throat, clearly embarrassed by the truth.
"My greatest wish is to be heir. But out of consideration for you, I'll step back this once."
"Tch, thank you."
Honestly, I had no interest in it. Becoming heir would mean constant one-on-one lessons with the Marquis, mandatory knight training, and a life of asking permission for everything—zero freedom.
With my plans to master the Sichuan Tang Clan and hunt for hidden opportunities across the world, I had no time for that. If everything goes as planned, the Rox Marquisate will naturally become mine, so there's no need to rush.
"Then what's your real wish?"
"You acknowledge I'm giving up the heir position, right?"
"Of course. Truly, thank you."
By giving up a wish I didn't want, I put the Marquis in my debt. Perfect outcome.
"I want Arin and Cryde to be my knights."
"What?"
The Marquis rubbed his ears, thinking he'd misheard.
"Arin, my current butler, and Cryde, the trainee knight I faced yesterday—I want them as my knights."
"That's your wish?"
"Yes."
Yesterday, Arin said she wanted to be a knight. And Cryde, a rough gem now but destined to become a powerhouse, I decided to claim.
"You sure that's it?"
"Yes."
The Marquis was clearly curious about my reasoning.
"Give them the best education and training. And since they're mine, make sure no one else can touch them."
"Of course."
He nodded as if it were obvious.
"Well done, Arin."
"Thanks to you, Marquis. Truly grateful."
Arin bowed deeply in gratitude.
"No, thank Yuren. Speaking of, what about your butler? We don't have any spares."
I'd already thought of that.
"There's a guy named Peru in the mansion's kitchen. I want him as my butler."
"Peru?"
"Yes. But I'd appreciate it if you made it look like you chose him, not me."
"Is something going on?"
"Yes. I'll explain later."
"Alright. I'll wait."
The Marquis, now fully trusting me, didn't press further. Probably thanks to his high affection.
Speaking of, I've never used Creator's Eye on him.
[Creator's Eye activated.]
[Name: Willington Rox]
[Traits: Swift Sword Lv4, Aura Adaptation Lv4, Sword Emperor]
[Affection: 74 (Trust)]
His trust-level affection explains why he's so receptive. I don't know his original affection, but it must've risen a ton since I first woke up, when his eyes were cold.
"Oh, and let Arin keep living here."
"No need to ask."
The Marquis smiled lightly.
"I'll make it happen quickly."
"Thank you. I'll take my leave."
"I don't know exactly what you're up to, but I trust you."
I returned a bright smile at his show of faith and left.
"Whew."
Exhausted, I flopped onto my bed as soon as I got to my room.
"Thank you so much."
"No big deal. I'm the one who should be sorry—my wastrel antics delayed your chance."
Arin shook her head vigorously, denying it.
"I'm not sure I'm worthy of being a knight…"
"But you want to, right?"
"…Yes. I'm happiest with a sword in hand."
Her rising affection let her open up a bit.
"That's enough."
"But I have a question."
"What?"
"Why Peru as your butler?"
"Oh, him."
"I need to know who he is to hand over my duties."
"Fair enough."
After a moment's thought, I decided to be honest.
"He's a spy."
"…What?"
Arin leaned in, shocked.
"What do you mean?"
"Karox and Kaina sent him to kill me."
"Karox, the Silver Eagle Knights' leader?"
"Yep."
"And Kaina, the current Marchioness…"
"Right."
Arin looked at me, confused.
"How do you know he's a spy? And if you know, why make him your butler? That's dangerous!"
"It's fine. I've made it so he only follows my orders now."
"What does that mean…"
"I've got my ways. I'll use him to squeeze plenty out of Kaina and Karox."
Arin, understandably, stared blankly, unable to follow.
"You'll see in time."
I grinned.
"Oh, and keep waking me up every morning."
"I'm staying in the mansion, so it's no trouble, but why?"
"Imagine waking up to your face every day, then suddenly to some gruff guy's. It'd ruin my morning."
Arin said nothing, but for a fleeting moment, I thought her lips twitched upward.
"Did you smile?"
"No."
"Looked like it."
"Not at all."
As the servants prepared to leave for the day, I stepped out of my room.
"Young master, need anything?"
"No, I'm good."
A servant spoke to me first—a new experience.
"Alright then."
"Keep up the good work."
"Thank you."
Servants used to bow in fear and scurry off. This was a first.
I got cheered yesterday too. My image is finally changing!
"There's the young master again."
"What's he up to?"
Two maids sweeping the first floor whispered about me. They thought they were discreet, but my hearing, enhanced beyond human limits, caught every word.
"He used to scare me so much I'd tremble just passing by, but now…"
"Now?"
"Honestly, isn't he kind of cool? I thought the second young master was the handsomest, but the young master's the best."
They glanced at me while chatting.
"You said you wanted to quit because he scared you."
"Hey! That was then. He's different now—looks and personality. So my feelings changed too."
"So that's why you yelled 'Young master, you got this!' yesterday?"
That was you cheering for me? Thank you.
"Gah! How'd you know? You were working and couldn't go."
"Word spread. Everyone knows Tiren's got a crush on the young master."
Her name's Tiren. I'll remember that.
"Ugh."
"But yeah, that face is unfair."
"Right? So cool."
My face is worlds apart from before, so I get their reaction.
Being acknowledged feels this good, huh?
As the maids finished cleaning and put away their tools, the guy I was waiting for appeared in the lobby.
There he is.
I used a newly learned skill on him.
[Using Whispering Voice.]
Whispering Voice, or simply Voice Transmission, lets me send my voice secretly to a specific person, unheard by others.
[Hey.]
"Eek!"
The target, Peru, clutched his ears in shock.
[Don't freak out. It's Yuren.]
"Eep!"
Telling him not to panic was too much, as he kept flinching.
"Peru, what's wrong?"
"N-Nothing."
His yelp drew others to the lobby.
[Come to my room tonight.]
Peru nodded, grimacing.
"Such a scaredy-cat."
Having delivered the message, I returned to my room and practiced Ten Thousand Poison Magnetic Spirit. Since reaching the 3rd Star, I could sense external presences even during training, so I could cultivate anytime.
Knock, knock.
Peru's here.
"Come in."
"Greetings, young master."
"Been well?"
"Yes…"
He looked anything but well, with dark circles under his eyes.
"Why'd you call me?"
"Your job's changing soon."
"What?"
I got straight to the point.
"The Marquis will assign you as my butler."
"Huh?"
I repeated what I'd told the Marquis.
"I see."
"No issue accepting the role—it's a huge opportunity. Refusing would raise suspicion."
"Right."
"Once you're my butler, Karox and Kaina will give you more orders. More poison, or different kinds."
"Probably."
Peru nodded vigorously in agreement.
"After my performance yesterday, they'll be even more desperate. They want their kids—the second or third—as heir."
"I saw you yesterday. You were amazing."
"Thanks. Anyway, fleece them for all they've got and buy Snake Mind."
"Snake Mind? The poison extracted from a hundred venomous snakes?"
"Exactly."
As a poison expert, Peru knew it by name alone.
"Extort as much money as you can to buy it."
"Understood."
"Any poison left?"
"What? The poison I gave you…"
"I consumed it all that day."
"What!"
I could read his dilated pupils. He no longer saw me as human—more like a monster.
"Young master, are you a mage?"
"A mage?"
"Yes. That message magic earlier…"
He thought my Voice Transmission was message magic.
"I've heard there are dark mages who handle poison with magic, unlike us poisoners who work directly."
"Oh?"
The image of dark mages isn't bad yet, since their true nature is revealed much later. Maybe being called one doesn't matter.
"Did I ask something I shouldn't?"
Seeing my silence, Peru trembled, scared.
"Think what you want. You got my orders?"
"Yes. Should I buy only Snake Mind?"
"Hm, get about five vials. If there's money left, buy a variety—none of what you got last time."
Any poison will help.
"Got it. But what do you use them for?"
"For what?"
"Yes. I need to know for proper packaging."
"Oh, right. I'm consuming them all."
"Gah…"
Peru, now sweating coldly, stared at the floor.
"You can go."
"Y-Yes! I'll get to it. Work hard—er, sorry, good luck!"
He's way too freaked out.
Everything moved quickly.
A few days later, Peru was appointed my butler. Arin completed a week-long handover and joined the knight training.
She seemed to adapt well, looking a bit brighter each morning.
"Young master, time to wake up."
"Ugh…"
"What's wrong?"
"Getting woken up by a beauty every day, then by a guy? It's annoying."
"What!"
Today, Arin was off for external training, so Peru had to wake me. Seeing his face first thing soured my mood.
Arin's definitely better.
"You really hate it."
"Look at your face. Of course."
"Ugh. But I've got news you'll like."
"Hm?"
Peru pulled a small pouch from his pocket.
"That pouch…"
"Yes. The item you've been waiting for is here."