"Why…?"

Count Kaelen Thornvale shivers, his body trembling from a mix of both fear and deeply suppressed rage. His deep glare is directed at the ground, but the person he intends it for is only a small distance from him.

The man sits comfortably, his laid-back body completely still as he hums with a casual demeanor.

Who else would it be but the Leviathan?

"Why did you do that to the Aditi Estate? You… said it would only be Javier Aditi…"

"Hm?" The Leviathan pauses for a moment, staring at the Count with a look of sheer incredulity.

"When did I ever say that?"

"B-but you—!" Count Kaelen gasps in exasperation. "Sir, look, the matter is blowing up in the Kingdom right now. We've operated in the shadows for so long, but doing this… it risks everything."

Naturally, the Count doesn't feel any kind of remorse for the death of Javier's Household.

Many more would be dying in the war he intends to cause.

What he is most worried about is how the Leviathan completely went back on his word and caused such a scene. If the matter is deeply investigated, isn't there a chance that he could be implicated as well?

In this world, there are all kinds of Potions and Armaments in existence.

Who is to say there isn't a way to track down the culprit?

Even if they can't do anything to the Leviathan, that doesn't make Count Kaelen safe.

In fact, it is the contrary.

Without the Leviathan, he would be the next on the chopping block. The worst part is that the target himself, Javier Aditi, is still alive!

The Leviathan didn't even do as he promised!

"We had an agreement… Sir." Count Kaelen tries to speak in his most reverential tone, but his anger undoubtedly seeps through.

Everyone has their limits in the end.

Even though he is good at pretending, moments of desperation can force a man to expose the true face beneath their mask.

Besides, hiding things from this Leviathan is pointless anyway.

He can only choose to be honest—especially since he needs some kind of reassurance.

"You idiot…" The Leviathan sighs, slowly shifting his gaze towards him. "Do you consider yourself so important that the Kingdom would break its long-established vow of silence to investigate?"

"Vow of silence?"

"Why do you think there is no record of Leviathans or their actions in the Randalorion Kingdom? Do you think I'm the only one who has ever set foot here?"

"A-ah…!"

"Granted, this place is very unimpressive, and there isn't much allure for Leviathans, but a Kingdom still has its uses. Your Royal Family must have borrowed the strength of a Leviathan at some point, the same way you're borrowing mine, and in exchange, they have actively tried covering up the actions of Leviathans."

"I-I see…"

"They won't pursue the matter. I've been causing a little bit of slaughter every now and then, just to probe, but they still haven't done anything about it." The Leviathan chuckles softly. "I suspect that as long as I do not reach their bottom line, they'll continue cleaning up after me. How convenient…"

"B-but, what about Javier Aditi? He's still alive… and…."

"You've been getting on my nerves lately." The Leviathan suddenly sighs, his blood red eyes slowly shining with deep malevolence.

His blond hair sways gently, and he suddenly appears right in front of the Count.

With a single hand, he grabs him by the neck, easily raising him with no effort at all. Despite their height and weight difference, Count Kaelen finds himself completely helpless against the power of this man.

"Argh… kurgh… M-Mercy…!" He pleads, whimpering like a child.

"Who are you to admonish me like a child?" The Leviathan smiles eerily at him. "Everything you've managed to acquire and achieve thus far is because of me. Do you think yourself wiser than I am? Do you believe yourself stronger? Shall we contest?"

"N-not at all… s-sirrr…"

"Then why the criticism? In a gathering, only the one who is better—whether in strength, wisdom, or influence—holds the right to criticize another person. Or am I wrong?"

"N-not at all, sir!"

"Look at you… chubby and flabby like a baby…" The Leviathan's dark face brightens considerably as he stares at Count Kaelen in amusement. "I could easily kill you, even go as far as rip out every single organ from you, without you even realizing you're already dead."

"… Eeek!"

"Yes, that's right… squeal for me!" The Leviathan starts laughing at this point, tossing the Count to the ground as if he were nothing but a dirty rag.

"Squeal like the rat that you are, and only speak when spoken to."

"U-understood."

"Did I tell you to speak?"

"S-sor… I mean… a-ahhh…." At this point, the shivering Count simply falls to his knees and remains silent, sweat dripping from his face as he presses his forehead on the cold, hard ground.

"Pfft!"

Even more laughter erupts from the Leviathan.

"Don't be so serious, man! I'm just messing with you! Even pigs have the right to speak, regardless of their circumstances. The same goes for weaklings. I won't penalize you for speaking, so don't worry about it…"

"Y-yes, sir…"

"As for why Javier is still alive, don't worry so much about it." The Leviathan waves dismissively, a flash of amusement hidden in his devious eyes.

"I'm just playing with him a little. I did have the intention to test something else, but it looks like he isn't what I thought he was. Maybe he received help from one in the past, which is why he was able to stop all your plans, but why would that person not help him now? Maybe… hmm…"

To Count Kaelen, the words of this Leviathan contain far too many mysteries for him to possibly decipher. Even now, he doesn't understand what it is that the man speaks.

However, this isn't the first time that this man has gone on his own and spoken to himself.

Such is the profundity of how Leviathans think.

"Javier Aditi is certainly not a Leviathan, and even if he has had some help in the past, it seems that it is no longer applicable. In that case, there's no problem killing him now…" The Leviathan whispers, his eyes gleaming with far more seriousness than he let on.

As a Leviathan, he would naturally be cautious of other Leviathans.

Since so many conveniences and coincidences piled up to help Javier, he naturally suspected the involvement of a Leviathan. But—

'Why would he allow me to kill his family? If he were a Leviathan, particularly the kind I suspect, he would have seen it coming. I even gave him an out, but it seems he isn't as special as I initially thought…' The Leviathan sighs, partially in relief and also disappointment.

He wouldn't want to offend a fellow Leviathan over someone as paltry as the Count, but he also desired to network with someone like him.

In this backwater place called the Randalorion Kingdom, Leviathans are simply too rare.

"Oh well, now that I've confirmed everything… I'll just kill him at my convenience." With that thought in mind, the Leviathan proceeds to his chair, relaxing once more. 'I should watch how he reacts, just to be sure, and then wrap things up in the most interesting way…'

That would be the smartest way to go about it.

This man knows it clearly.

He sees all.

He knows far more than the likes of Scholars and Kings could possibly comprehend.

How can such an astute person be foolish?

Not at all…

Leviathans are not like that.

They are as gods among men—the ones who move the world.

*************

"So that's what happened…"

I mumble a little, my gaze a little dark after listening to Uncle's retelling of what happened during his Academy days.

The summary is this:

Alaric Duskryn, in an attempt to network with all the powerful students of the Academy, organized a retreat in a famous Haunted House during a certain Summer Holiday. Uncle Damon was in his second year at the time, and he was one of the few Knights invited, since he was in the Silver Wing.

He would act as an entourage, one of the errand boys essentially.

However, Uncle Damon had his reasons for joining this expedition. One was his intentions to also network and secure benefits for himself, and the other… was because he had grown rather infatuated with one of the Noble girls.

The feeling was mutual, and they were actually in some kind of secret relationship.

But—

'Everything went awry when a mysterious man suddenly appeared, telling them they shouldn't have come to such a restricted area. In the end, everyone was slaughtered by the man, and he burned down the house.

By the time Uncle Damon regained consciousness, he was outside, with Alaric Duskryn as the only other survivor.

The mysterious man spared their life, and Alaric forced him to keep everything a secret.

If they didn't… the killer would reappear to finish the job.

"I later learned that something awful had happened in that building a while back, making it a restricted area. The blame fell on one of the deceased Nobles, and Alaric got away scot free, even though he was the one who organized the event. I lost my Scholarship, since I was involved in something so horrid. I got blamed for their deaths, and even though there were no charges… I still suffered that loss."

"Why didn't you tell on Alaric?" I ask with mild anger.

"He saved my life…" Uncle Damon smiles helplessly, shrugging a little. "I figured I owed him that much at least. Besides, implicating him wouldn't change my predicament. In fact, it would only make it worse, since I would be making an enemy out of him. Finally, my accusation could be dismissed due to my low status and lack of evidence."

At this juncture, I can't help but sigh in complete understanding.

Uncle Damon's decision was wise.

If he went ahead to accuse Alaric, not only would he not regain his Scholarship, and then make life more difficult for himself due to making an enemy out of the Heir of a Barony, he could have also been expelled or punished severely if they labelled his actions as slander.

Slandering a High Noble is an incredibly steep offense.

I'm certain Uncle Damon took all of these factors into consideration.

"For years, I lived in fear… frightened that he would show up and complete the job." Uncle Damon admitted. "Eventually, that powerlessness turned into rage… pure fury. I was angry at Alaric for inviting us to such a place, I was angry at myself for being so weak and unable to protect the girl I loved, but most especially… I was furious at the one who made me lose everything!"

I see now… My Uncle's goal of finding Leviathans wasn't borne from scholarly interest, but an obsessive desire for some kind of revenge—perhaps closure.

"You weren't there, Javier. You didn't see him…"

Uncle Damon sighs, his eyes moist with tears as he shivers in absolute dread.

"He was blond… with dark ebony skin, and crimson eyes. A portion of his skin seemed to have burn marks, and he was dressed as an ordinary traveler. What drives me crazy the most is how friendly and seemingly harmless he seemed at first, like a gentleman who means well. His voice was playful, even as he killed everyone, almost like everything was a game to him…"

At this point, Uncle Damon stops speaking, nearly choking on his own words.

I can see the sheer horror and fear in his eyes.

Fear mixed with hate.

Just what kind of sight did my Uncle see to make him so overcome with emotion?

"In any case, after I got over the crippling fear, I made it my goal to seek that monster out… to find him no matter what! I wanted to prove his existence to the world, exposing him for what he is, and hopefully get another chance to fight him and avenge Emilia…"

Emilia is the girl my Uncle loved in the Academy.

She was the daughter of an Earl, so nothing was ever going to come of their relationship.

But—

'It seems, even if the romance was brief, she meant the world to my Uncle.'

"I was supposed to support the Aditi Household after graduation. That was the plan—to find a job and help my family, who sacrificed so much for me. But… how could I live with myself knowing that such a horrible monster freely travels this world?" He grits his teeth, his eyes burning with immense hate and an unstoppable passion.

"The Leviathans are real! Finding them... there's nothing more important to me than that."

I nod calmly.

I would be lying if I said I don't understand my uncle.

Even now, as I sit in silence before him, I am seething with pure rage aimed at this imaginary enemy whom I haven't met for a moment in my life. Based on Uncle's description of events, I can tell that this is likely the same person who attacked the Aditi Estate and slaughtered my family.

However, what is most peculiar is this—

"That man… no, that Leviathan… he used no Armament or Potion, yet his strength and speed were unlike anything I had ever seen in my life. He could easily kill everyone and butcher them to pieces in the fraction of a moment. If not for his twisted sense of fun, we would all be dead in a single second. There were powerful people in that building, even a few who had a B Grade Armament, like the Princess, but none of it mattered."

—The Leviathan's power.

"That's why I wanted to find clues to other Leviathans. If I could somehow borrow their power, maybe I could have my revenge. But… all the clues I have gotten have led to dead ends. It's almost as though these beings do not exist…" Uncle Damon finally concludes with a deflated sigh, frustration etched in his countenance.

"Wielding mysterious powers and possessing a history that stretches to the earliest point in mankind's history with the Rites of Exaltation…" I mumble slowly.

It's strange.

In this world, it is unheard of for humans to wield mystical powers on their own. Instead, to match the power of the Magivores and the mysteries of nature, we harness the magical properties of Special Resources to make Potions, Armaments, Spells, etc.

And all of these things secrete leftover particles of their existence called Trace Elements.

No single human is an exception to this.

So, the very existence of this mysterious figure is an anomaly—an aberration.

No wonder the Leviathans are revered so much, and their powers were sought after by Professor Alaric, even causing such a great commotion.

It's no wonder that Uncle Damon hasn't been able to find them after so long.

But, I am not my Uncle.

"You don't have to worry, Uncle… I will fulfill your wish and find that man." I slowly rise, glancing at the ruins of my Estate for the last time, before proceeding to Leon, who has remained kneeling for so long.

"Stand up," I tell him. "The Aditi Household is no more. You are no longer bound by your obligations, so you are free to go."

Leon's family is one of the few who live in this territory, all of whom serve as our stewards. His family is by far considered the most loyal, which is why an aide for the air was chosen from it. But that is all in the past now.

There is no Aditi Household any longer, so the stewardship system means nothing.

"No, Young Master… no, Lord Javier…" Leon slowly raises his head and turns to me.

His eyes are swollen and red, but resolution shines within it.

"The Aditi Household still lives in you, and so does my loyalty to the Main Family." With a stern, loud voice, Leon bows his head subserviently before my feet and declares without an ounce of hesitation in his tone:

"Lord Javier... I swear my loyalty to you alone."

I smile.

It is a gentle, but sad smile.

This is truly in line with Leon's character.

He is a man who is only able to live for the sake of others.

Since that is who he is, I will certainly make use of him and keep him by my side.

Without having to compete with my father for his attention, I can be guaranteed that—just as in my past life—this young man will be completely loyal to me.

"Good," I speak out. "Then rise up."

He readily obeys.

"We can no longer stay here, so we'll head to the Academy City, which will be our base from now on." I declare, casting a glance at Uncle Damon. "Do you have anything you'd like to take from your house? We can branch by there before leaving here for good."

"No. I already took all the important things from there a while ago."

"That's good."

Since the Academy City is my business's headquarters, and I have a lot of connections there, it should be no problem settling in there.

But, I don't plan to remain in Loria for too long.

I need to figure out a way to track down that Leviathan, no matter what! That means I'll be needing Uncle Damon's past experiences to help in narrowing down the scope. I believe that with both of us working together, we stand a greater chance of working towards a solution.

Even if I have to splurge all my resources to seek out that person, I will!

My promise to my family—I will fulfill it.

That man will suffer!

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