The Villain’s Aide Has Run Away - Chapter 96.1
Leslun, who had been standing outside the door, flinched for a moment.
His eyes widened slightly, startled by the sudden movement. Then, he slowly lifted his head to look up at Kailos.
Their gazes met. It was a brief yet strangely quiet moment.
“You’re back?”
Kailos’s voice was unexpectedly gentle. A calm smile spread across his face.
At those words, Leslun gave a small nod.
His eyes seemed a little more serious than usual, and his movements appeared cautious.
“Thank you.”
It was a short greeting, but it carried far deeper meaning.
Both of them knew exactly what it meant for Leslun that Kailos had allowed him to meet Count Camilo.
Hearing that, Kailos raised the corners of his mouth and opened his arms.
He spoke with a sly smile.
“If you’re really that thankful, then… give me a chance to hold you.”
Though said playfully, the emotion behind the words was sincere.
Leslun’s eyes wavered.
Kailos did not force him. He simply waited.
After a short silence, Leslun slowly stepped toward him.
One step. Then another.
Quiet but determined footsteps.
When he finally stood within reach of Kailos, Leslun opened his mouth.
“I’ll be heading to the Academy.”
Kailos’s brows twitched slightly. His expression, which had just been bright with anticipation, faded.
His arms were still open, but his face began to show confusion and disappointment.
“…You came this close just to say that?”
He was clearly sulking.
***
Inside the room belonging to the heir of House Byweiner. Even the family head could not enter without permission. The door opened carefully.
When the butler, with neatly brushed gray hair, entered, the man lounging on the sofa glanced up at him.
“Young Lord Brian.”
To the Empress, he always acted polite and soft-spoken; to his younger brother Kail, he was cold beyond measure. But here, Brian could finally relax. His unfocused eyes turned toward the butler.
“Count Camilo was captured?”
“Yes, sir.”
Brian ran his hand once more over the small glass vial he had been holding.
Fine patterns were etched along the slender glass surface, and the transparent liquid inside rippled like waves.
“Pathetic.”
A noble who did nothing but talk big had finally fallen into the very trap he had set himself.
Collapse always came in an instant.
With a bitter smile, Brian set the vial down.
What it contained was no ordinary medicine.
He recalled how much effort and how many resources he had poured into creating that one vial.
“How long did it take to make this again…”
He murmured to himself and briefly looked out the window at the distant sky.
It was not a drug made overnight.
It had taken years, and even the number of test subjects roughly counted reached hundreds. It was the result of Brian’s obsessive efforts to create a medicine that did not exist in this world.
And it wasn’t only time.
Every ingredient inside was a rare material that could not be easily found anywhere. He had gone to great lengths to obtain all kinds of herbs, animal organs, and even parts of spiritual beasts.
Because the ingredients were difficult to acquire, they were also difficult to handle. Mixing even one of them incorrectly could instantly turn it into poison.
When he gave it to Count Camilo, he had described it as a drug to help the Crown Prince rest comfortably. But in truth, it was something that disturbed the drinker’s mind.
It heightened the body’s senses while suppressing its instinct to resist, and most importantly, it was a restricted potion designed to work only on a designated target.
It did not affect just anyone.
It contained nearly the same components used in the necklace crafted for a guardian spirit beast. In other words, it was structured to react only to bloodlines connected to such beings.
The fact that it had no effect on the Empress, whose bloodline was not intertwined, proved that it could not work on just anyone. At best, it was meant to affect only the direct royal line.
That was why he had thought it safe. He had been certain it would never be exposed.
But because of his foolish brother, the potion ended up in the wrong hands.
“What is that aide, exactly…”
Brian tilted his head.
“Why did it work on him?”
By all logic, nothing should have happened.
“Could he be of royal blood?”
He had already investigated Leslun. Though his parentage was unknown, he possessed none of the traits of the royal family. Yet…
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