Chapter – 95
Carlyle took Frey to the Sigmund family’s secret vault and showed it to him.
“This place…….”
“It’s a place our ancestors prepared for emergencies. It’s forgotten now.”
“W-wow. This is an incredible place.”
As he said this, Frey’s eyes were wide open.
The Sigmund family’s secret vault stored various top-grade potions, elixirs, and items.
Even in the eyes of Frey, who wasn’t yet an adult, there were numerous objects that seemed to be of considerable value, so it was no wonder his eyes widened.
“From now on, take whatever you need from here. You can have all the elixirs.”
“Really?!”
“Of course, for real. Would I give you fake ones?”
Carlyle said with a light laugh.
“You’re giving them to me, so I’ll take them all.”
“Gasp!”
“Don’t hesitate to consume all the elixirs. That’s how you’ll get stronger quickly.”
“What about you, hyung?”
“I took them a long time ago.”
“Hey, that’s a lie. You haven’t taken a single one.”
“I said I did.”
“That doesn’t make sense. If you really took the elixirs, it doesn’t make sense that you’re still so weak.”
“……?”
Since the Sigmund standards were different from the norm, Carlyle seemed like a weakling in Frey’s eyes.
“R-really, you took them?”
“I didn’t take many.”
“I knew it.”
“…….”
“Anyway, I didn’t know you’d give me such a gift. But why did you suddenly show me this place?”
“Thought I’d act like a hyung for once. Ah, is this the first time?”
“Gasp…….”
“What, you don’t like it?”
“How could I not? It’s just sudden.”
“I suppose.”
“Thank you so much, hyung.”
Frey sincerely expressed his gratitude to Carlyle.
“I didn’t know you had this side to you. I see you in a new light.”
“Ugh.”
Carlyle made a disgusted face.
Having been an only child in his past life, he had no siblings, so this kind of relationship and conversation felt extremely awkward and was utterly mortifying.
“It’s nothing special, so don’t make a big deal out of it.”
“How is this not a big deal?”
“If I say it’s not, then it’s not.”
“……Hmm.”
When Carlyle glared at him, Frey quietly lowered his head.
“Anyway, handle things yourself from now on. I’ve shown you, so.”
“I can’t do that.”
“What nonsense is that now?”
“These things here are what our family’s ancestors left behind for their descendants, right?”
“That’s true.”
“How can I monopolize them all by myself? I should tell Father and we should share them together.”
“……You’re something else.”
Carlyle pressed his hand against his forehead as a wave of dizziness assaulted him.
He remembered that Frey van Sigmund was fundamentally a righteous and good person, to the point that monopolizing something was unimaginable to him.
“Annoying. Eat them all right here, right now.”
“I can’t do that. This is our family’s……”
“Do as you’re told.”
“That goes against morality.”
“Oh really?”
Carlyle grinned, picked up a nearby top-grade mana potion, and hurled it violently against the wall.
*Crash!*
The vial shattered into pieces, and the liquid inside splattered everywhere.
“Even after this, will you still not eat them all?”
“G-gasp!”
“Choose. Either consume all the elixirs right here on the spot, or watch me smash every single one of them to pieces.”
“That’s too extreme.”
“The world is originally extreme.”
“What’s wrong with sharing them together harmoniously?”
“That’s exactly why we’re in this state.”
“W-what do you mean by that?”
“The reason the North, our family, lives so艰难ly compared to the power we possess is precisely that. Being unnecessarily altruistic, not knowing how to calculate profit and loss, willingly accepting sacrifice.”
“That’s the responsibility and duty a strong person must naturally bear.”
“Keuk.”
Carlyle twisted his smile maximally.
“This is why brainwashing is scary. So you live like that your whole life, and for generations, you just end up being tenant farmers.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about, hyung.”
Frey frowned.
“You’ll understand gradually.”
Carlyle smiled meaningfully.
Even Frey, once he experiences the storms of the world, would inevitably get tainted to some extent when the time comes.
“Now, shall I break an elixir this time?”
“W-wait!”
Frey urgently stopped Carlyle.
“Okay, okay. I get it. I’ll do as you say. Please don’t break them. What a waste.”
“You should have done that from the start.”
“But you have to drink some too.”
“I told you. I’m giving everything here to you.”
“My conscience won’t be at ease that way.”
“…….”
“Let’s share them. Okay?”
Frey pleaded earnestly.
“I said no.”
“Hey, you need them too, hyung. You’re the one active on the battlefield right now. How can I eat them all? Let’s eat them together.”
“……Sigh.”
“Let’s split them half and half.”
“That won’t do. One-third. I take 1, you take 2.”
“Shouldn’t you, being weaker, eat more?”
“Hey, seriously.”
Carlyle opened his eyes sharply and glared at Frey.
“Are you looking down on me?”
“That’s not it! Absolutely not!”
“Listen. I’ve already compromised a lot on this.”
“Ah, alright.”
Eventually, the brothers agreed to divide and consume the elixirs stored in the secret vault in a certain ratio.
‘So hopelessly good.’
Looking at Frey, who was beaming, Carlyle clicked his tongue inwardly.
Not only does he treat the world’s worst troublemaker with the respect due an elder brother, but he even offers to share the elixirs…
“But why did you plan to give all of these to me?”
“I told you. To act a bit like an older brother.”
“Hey, that’s excessive even for acting like an older brother?”
“……Is that so?”
“You must have felt some greed too, hyung.”
“Not really.”
Carlyle answered with a light laugh.
“It’s more convenient for me if you grow stronger quickly. If I take them, I’d have to work even harder.”
“Haha…….”
“So, be a good younger brother from now on.”
“Okay!”
Frey answered with a “Woof!”, as if he were a loyal puppy.
“Keuk.”
Carlyle laughed without realizing it.
* * *
Frey van Sigmund.
One of the main characters in the game [Overlord] and the lord leading Dekaron.
He was truly a monster among monsters.
As the individual with the most outstanding talent among the direct bloodline of the Sigmund family, his potential was fearsome even though he wasn’t yet an adult.
That much was clear just from watching him consume the elixirs.
“He really is a monster.”
Carlyle clicked his tongue.
*Whoooooosh!*
Frey, having consumed the elixirs, was swept up in a storm of mana, sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed.
It seemed to be the process of absorbing the energies contained within the various consumed elixirs.
‘As expected, the efficiency is different.’
Carlyle anticipated a significant difference in absorption rate between when he consumed the elixirs and when Frey consumed them.
Otherwise, despite taking the same elixirs, Carlyle only experienced a slight reaction, while Frey wouldn’t have been engulfed in a whirlwind of mana.
After about 2 hours had passed.
“Phew.”
Frey opened his eyes with a refreshed expression.
“Finished?”
“Uh-huh.”
“How do you feel?”
“Thank you so much, hyung.”
Frey grabbed Carlyle’s hand firmly.
“It feels like I did almost two years of training all at once.”
“Two years, you say?”
“Yep.”
“That’s amazing.”
The time of an ordinary person and Frey’s time are different.
Two years of training for Frey would be no less than ten years, if not more, for an ordinary person.
“Hyung, did you take your elixirs?”
“Not yet.”
“Take them quickly. I’ll help you.”
“How will you help?”
“Our family has its cultivation technique, right?”
“Ah, that.”
“You haven’t learned it yet, right?”
“That’s right.”
The Sigmund family possessed a cultivation technique for handling mana, a secret art that only those with Sigmund bloodline could learn.
Whether one learned this technique or not created a difference of more than double not only in combat power but also in growth speed, making it essential for a Sigmund.
However, Carlyle hadn’t managed to learn the cultivation technique yet, again due to his past behavior.
They didn’t teach it to him, thinking it would be unmanageable if the already troublesome troublemaker became stronger by learning the technique as well.
“Since you’ve been doing well lately, hyung, Father will probably soon permit you to learn the cultivation technique.”
“Whatever.”
When Carlyle answered brusquely, Frey looked at him as if to ask what he meant.
“Hyung, if you’re a Sigmund, you must learn the cultivation technique. You’re active on the battlefield now too.”
“They’ll teach me when the time comes, I suppose.”
“Anyway, sit here. Since you don’t know the technique yet, I’ll help you.”
“How exactly do you plan to help?”
“When you take the elixirs, I’ll assist the absorption using the cultivation technique. The efficiency will be at least three times better than just consuming them normally.”
“Is that possible?”
“Yep.”
“Hmm.”
Carlyle felt a bit bothered, but the prospect of increasing the absorption rate of the elixirs made him sit down cross-legged somewhat awkwardly.
“Like this?”
“Yep.”
Frey placed his palm on Carlyle’s back.
“From now on, when you take the elixirs, I’ll help. You just close your eyes and focus.”
“Alright.”
Following Frey’s instructions, Carlyle laid out his share of the elixirs and concentrated his mind.
A few hours later.
“It’s definitely different.”
Carlyle felt as if he had been reborn.
As a result of absorbing the various elixirs with Frey’s help, he felt incomparably stronger than before.
“Thanks for the help.”
“Hey, it’s nothing. It’s only natural for a younger brother to help his hyung. And you gave me the elixirs as a gift too. I’m the one who should be grateful.”
“You rascal.”
Carlyle let out a light laugh and moved his feet.
“Let’s go. It’s getting late.”
“Okay.”
Carlyle and Frey left the Sigmund family’s secret vault side by side.
* * *
The next day.
Carlyle, summoned by Grand Duke Guntram, headed to the audience hall.
“Ugh. Uncomfortable.”
“Please bear with it a little, young master.”
“What am I supposed to do about it being uncomfortable?”
“It won’t even take an hour.”
“Ha.”
Carlyle let out a deep sigh.
“Why exactly do we have to do these formalities?”
“It’s your first promotion, isn’t it?”
“Promotion, my foot.”
Carlyle snorted.
“Originally, I should have been commissioned as an officer, but because of that ‘Proof of Nobility’ thing, I’ve been stuck as a private, and now I’m just getting back my proper rank, right?”
“You have proven yourself worthy of fulfilling the responsibilities and duties of a Sigmund, so it’s fitting to commemorate it.”
“Ugh.”
Thinking of Maranello as an old fogey internally, Carlyle went to the audience hall, knelt on one knee before Grand Duke Guntram.
Not only Grand Duke Guntram but also members of the Sigmund family and retainers were already there waiting.
“Carlyle van Sigmund.”
“Yes.”
“You have proven through ten real battles that you have the qualifications to become an officer.”
“That’s right.”
“Normally, you would have been promoted to Second Lieutenant today, regaining your status as an officer. However.”
Grand Duke Guntram clenched his eyes shut as if trying hard to suppress his anger, then continued speaking.
“As a soldier of the Dekaron army, you have committed a serious crime.”
“What do you mean by that?”
Carlyle replied in a bland voice.
He had been so quiet for the past few months, and now suddenly he’s committed a serious crime?
“Are you saying you have never held a sword to Knight Christian’s neck, made him bleed by cutting it, showered him with abusive language and insults, and threatened to kill him?”
“I did, didn’t I?”
Carlyle answered, recalling the situation at the time.
“But, what’s the problem with that? I just did what needed to be done.”
“Urgh.”
Grand Duke Guntram grabbed the back of his neck.
*Twitch!*
Seeing the convulsion on his face, it was clear he was straining to hold back.
“You brat, no matter how many hundreds or thousands of times I tell you, you won’t understand, so I’ll just deliver the verdict simply and clearly.”
Grand Duke Guntram tightly closed his eyes and spoke.
“Private Carlyle van Sigmund.”
“Yes?”
“You disrespected, threatened, and attempted to kill a superior officer. However, considering your contributions on the battlefield and the circumstances at the time, I will not refer you to a formal court-martial. Instead… your punishment will be replaced with disciplinary action.”
“What disciplinary action will you impose?”
In response to Carlyle’s provocative question, Grand Duke Guntram answered.
“Your promotion to officer will be postponed.”
“……What?”
“Until you slay three Heroes, you will serve as a Private.”
“Ha.”
Carlyle let out a deep sigh as if dumbfounded.
