FANSiA Originals and KakaoPage
I Became the Genius Bastard of a Noble Dark Clan
[Author/Original: Yuin]
[TL: Dekor]
[PR: Spades]
Episode 28
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Tern stomped off in a huff, and the mages assigned to escort Chris to the Tyramine Count's territory approached.
"Shall we depart?"
"Sure."
Chris spurred his horse.
A few days later, he arrived at the Tyramine Count's territory.
---
"Noisy place."
Chris remarked, eyeing the castle.
It was larger than the Kazar Count's castle.
'Honestly, in terms of branch family prestige, the Tyramine family does outshine us.'
The three branch families.
The Kazar family was the newest, having split off in the current generation.
The other two had longer histories, steeped in tradition.
"So, do we just wait here?"
"Well… the Tyramine family was supposed to send someone to greet us."
The mages with him looked flustered.
Normally, when a noble visited by appointment, courtesy demanded a welcoming party.
Yet no one had shown up, leaving them standing awkwardly at the castle gate.
Time passed.
Still, no one appeared.
The mages' faces grew redder by the minute.
This was clearly a deliberate slight against Chris.
"Such insolence!"
"Don't worry. They're just ignoring me because I'm a disgrace. Calm down."
Chris yawned, brushing it off casually.
'Cliché move. But it works out.'
He thought with a cryptic smirk.
'For my plan, it's better if the Tyramine family treats me like this.'
His plan.
He wasn't here just to show off his skills.
He needed to prove his eligibility for the Black Sanctification and steal the Black Pill.
'No easy feat.'
He'd devised a strategy for it.
And for that strategy, the worse the Tyramine family treated him, the better.
After a long wait, someone finally came to meet them.
"Sniff, sniff, are you Young Master Christian from the Kazar family?"
A dwarf with a crooked nose and a scruffy face.
A hobgoblin!
"Who're you?"
"Sniff, sniff, I'm a servant of the Tyramine family. Sniff, sniff, here to fetch you."
The mages accompanying Chris scowled.
The Magic Empire didn't discriminate against demi-humans. They even tamed magical beasts for labor.
But hobgoblins were considered the lowest caste, even in the empire.
Sending one was a gross insult.
"You…"
"How dare they."
The mages' faces flushed with anger.
Chris had already won their loyalty back at the Kazar estate.
They took the insult to him personally, seething with rage.
To make matters worse, the Tyramine family's rudeness didn't stop there.
"Take us to the count's manor."
"Sniff, sniff, no need to go to the manor."
"What?"
"Just find a place to stay in the city. I came to tell you so you wouldn't wait for nothing."
"!!"
The mages looked ready to explode.
Telling a guest to fend for themselves?
It was an unprecedented slight.
"Outrageous!!"
"Such disrespect!!"
Chris raised a hand.
"Calm down."
"But, young master! We can't let this slide!"
"I'll teach this goblin a lesson first!!"
As his men refused to settle, Chris spoke softly.
"Didn't I say to calm down?"
"!!"
They fell silent.
His voice was even, almost flat, but somehow it carried weight.
The mages froze, unable to utter another word.
They'd felt an inexplicable pressure from him.
They stared at Chris in shock.
'How does the young master have such presence?'
'No, it's not just presence. It's… intimidation?'
Powerful mages could exude an aura, projecting mana to overwhelm others—a skill requiring at least 4-star mastery.
But what they felt from Chris wasn't that. It wasn't mana projection.
It was the sheer weight of his presence.
"…"
The air grew still, and Chris turned his impassive gaze to the hobgoblin.
The hobgoblin stiffened.
Under Chris's crushing stare, the creature's face drained of color.
Then Chris flashed a grin.
The oppressive aura vanished like a lie.
"Find my own lodging, you say?"
"Y-yes? Yes! Exactly!!"
Still reeling from the lingering chill of Chris's presence, the hobgoblin answered frantically.
"Is that Count Tyramine's order?"
"N-no, it's not! The count is away. It's the third young master's command."
Chris nodded.
The third son of the Tyramine family.
The leader of this Black Pill Hunt and the one who'd opposed Chris's participation in the Black Sanctification.
He was pulling the same petty stunt now.
'Just as I expected—adorably predictable. Perfect.'
Perfect.
Chris meant it.
He smirked inwardly.
The hobgoblin spoke cautiously.
"I-if… it's inconvenient, I can take you to the manor."
"No need. Wouldn't want to impose. But the Tyramine family's covering the lodging costs, right?"
"Y-yes, yes!! Of course! Just bill it to the Tyramine family!!"
Chris shrugged.
"Got it. I'll be off."
As Chris walked away without fuss, the hobgoblin let out a relieved sigh.
It cast a surprised glance at his back.
'I thought he'd throw a fit like the rumors say, but he's different?'
Different was an understatement.
The hobgoblin shivered.
'That pressure earlier.'
The memory still sent chills through it.
This wasn't just any hobgoblin.
It was a Hobgoblin Lord.
A superior breed with high intelligence and strength.
Within the Tyramine family's beast brigade, it held a respectable rank.
Yet it had been cowed by the gaze of a boy who looked barely fifteen.
'Has he changed?'
The hobgoblin tilted its head.
Perhaps Christian wasn't the disgrace the rumors painted him as.
But.
Late that afternoon.
Chris caused a scene.
The Tyramine family was thrown into chaos.
A lodging bill had arrived.
100,000 lupe.
For reference, 100,000 lupe could buy a small hotel in the countryside.
The reason for the astronomical bill was simple.
Chris had bought an entire luxury mansion in the city to stay in and charged it to the Tyramine family.
The start of Chris's "disgrace" plan.
---
Chris lounged in his newly purchased, upscale mansion, relaxing.
The mages who'd come with him stammered in panic.
"Y-young master."
"Yeah, what?"
"Is this… okay?"
"What's wrong? They told me to find my own place, didn't they?"
Chris grinned.
"As the eldest son of the great Kazar family, I can't possibly stay in some measly hotel, right? It's got to be a mansion like this to stretch out comfortably."
"…"
"Don't just stand there—relax. Actually, I'm thirsty. Go into town and grab some drinks."
"D-drinks? But you're not of age—"
"We're not at home. Who cares? Just keep quiet about it. Get the finest stuff. Velut whiskey, if they have it. Bill it to the Tyramine family, got it?"
Velut whiskey.
A bottle cost at least 1,000 lupe—an exorbitantly priced liquor.
"Grab something for yourselves too. Since the Tyramine family's footing the bill, go wild—no need to hold back."
Chris's voice was gleeful.
He was genuinely thrilled.
'When else do I get to burn through someone else's money like this? Gotta enjoy it to the fullest.'
The Tyramine territory was known for its pleasures, after all.
Chris was resolved to bleed the Tyramine family's coffers dry.
BAM!!
The mansion's door slammed open.
"Who's there?!"
The mages went on guard.
"Hah. Who, you ask?"
A boy appeared.
Around Chris's age.
Blond hair, red eyes, with a sharp, irritable demeanor.
"I'm Alos van Barron Tyramine, third son of the Tyramine family."
Alos!
The star of this Black Pill Hunt and the one who'd schemed against Chris behind his back.
"Where's that disgrace, Christian?"
"Your words are harsh."
"Harsh?"
Alos snarled fiercely.
"You call it harsh after racking up a 100,000-lupe lodging bill?"
For the record, the mansion's cost had been billed to Alos.
Saddled with a 100,000-lupe tab, Alos was livid.
"Christian, you filthy—"
"I'm right here."
Christian descended from the upstairs bedroom, speaking casually.
"You, you—"
Chris's eyes briefly scanned Alos.
'He really hates my guts, doesn't he?'
Alos's glare was venomous.
Beyond dislike—it was loathing, contempt.
'Good. I can crush him without a second thought.'
For now, Chris offered a greeting.
"Been a few years, huh? Nice to see you again."
The Kazar family.
The Tyramine family.
Both were branch families of the Dark Mana Clan, sharing the same blood.
They'd naturally met before, so Chris spoke with deliberate familiarity.
"Nice? You call this nice?!"
"Hmm, we're kin, but you don't seem thrilled. I'm happy to see you, though. What, you're sulking over a bit of money?"
"What? WHAT?"
"I never imagined the honorable Tyramine family would get so petty over a few coins. Especially after turning away a kinsman without even offering a place to stay."
Alos was momentarily speechless.
Chris was a guest and kin in the Tyramine territory.
Kicking him out without hospitality was undeniably the Tyramine family's breach of etiquette, no matter how bad his reputation.
Having been in the wrong first, Alos had little ground to stand on.
"You don't even know how to treat a guest. Seems the Tyramine family's upbringing is sorely lacking."
"You, you—"
"Or not? If it were me, no matter how much I disliked someone, I'd never stoop to such classless behavior. I wonder what kind of education you got."
Alos clenched his teeth.
His pale skin flushed red with fury.
"…Shut your mouth before you regret it."
The air grew tense, teetering on the edge of explosion.
A fight seemed imminent.
But Chris didn't stop.
Instead, he sneered, crossed his arms, and spoke in a grating tone.