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chapter 07
It seemed the man had simply aged far too quickly.
People whose faces age early usually keep that same appearance as they grow older, Adel thought.
Just as he had before her regression, the man never told her his name.
Not that Adel cared.
There was no point in building a friendship when their strange arrangement of living together was only temporary.
“Well then, I’m off to work.”
Despite not having touched a single bite of breakfast, the man stood and prepared to leave.
Is he that desperate for money?
Considering the condition of the house, it certainly wasn’t a place anyone could proudly call comfortable.
Still, Adel wasn’t exactly overflowing with compassion.
It’s none of my business. If supporting me became too much of a burden, he’d just kick me out.
Once he left, Adel patted her now-full stomach and remembered the child she had almost forgotten these past few days.
“I’m full now… Guess it’s time to go check on my subordinate.”
Duke Usder Rogato awoke with a shiver, a cold breeze brushing across the silent study.
When did I fall asleep?
He blinked in confusion.
His head had been tilted back against the chair, and somehow he had drifted off while working.
That had never happened before.
He quietly set down the pen in his hand.
“I must have been more exhausted than I realized.”
Muttering to himself, he turned his head—
“Ugh!”
A sharp pain exploded across the back of his skull.
For a moment, he couldn’t even breathe.
It felt exactly as though someone had struck him with tremendous force.
He immediately reached behind his head.
Nothing.
No wound.
No swelling.
There wasn’t the slightest trace of injury.
Perhaps it’s simply fatigue… or a severe migraine.
Whoooosh—
Another icy gust swept through the room.
Only then did he notice the shattered window.
Broken glass littered the floor, and among the glittering fragments lay a small stone.
Apparently, that stone had smashed the window.
“What happened here?”
He was far too light a sleeper to have slept through the sound of breaking glass.
Had someone broken into his office?
The scene was suspicious in every possible way.
Yet strangely…
He couldn’t remember anything.
No memory of what he had been doing before falling asleep.
No idea why the window had been destroyed.
The harder he tried to remember, the worse his headache became.
Finally, he shook his head.
“This is pointless.”
He rang the bell for a servant and ordered the study cleaned.
Being carried over Adel’s shoulder, Vincent replayed everything that had just happened.
Did that really happen?
It was so absurd that it felt like a dream.
Yet the constant swaying as tiny Adel sprinted through the forest with him slung over her shoulder like a bundle of firewood made his stomach churn.
The growing nausea proved this was painfully real.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
The steady rhythm of Adel’s footsteps echoed along the narrow mountain trail.
No…
Definitely not a dream.
Just a little while ago, Vincent had been standing in his father’s study.
For once, instead of leaving for the Imperial Palace, the duke had worked from home.
The entire estate had been on edge.
Everyone except Vincent.
He had been far too excited about becoming Adel’s subordinate, happily swinging a tree branch around while practicing swordsmanship in the garden.
Apparently, the Duke had found the child hopping around outside his study window unbearably irritating.
He could have simply closed the curtains…
Instead—
Vincent had been summoned.
“How dare you disturb me while I’m working!”
Today’s weapon was a long, thin switch.
Where does Father even find these things…?
The duke’s collection of objects suitable for beating people seemed to grow larger every day.
Once the duke started, dozens of strikes were guaranteed.
Vincent took a deep breath to calm his trembling heart.
Silently, he rolled up his trouser leg.
His pale little calf was exposed.
The duke casually swung the switch through the air a few times, warming up.
Whoosh!
The sharp sound slicing through the air made Vincent flinch.
Even so, not a shred of sympathy appeared on his father’s face.
The duke raised the switch high.
Just as it was about to lash across Vincent’s leg—
Crash!
A stone suddenly flew through the window, shattering the glass.
“What in the— Gah!”
The duke let out a short scream.
Then collapsed face-first onto the floor.
Vincent stared with wide, round eyes.
His father wasn’t moving.
An assassin…?
Am I next?
His entire body trembled.
Then—
A familiar voice called out.
Adel climbed smoothly through the broken window.
“Don’t worry. I used an extremely professional technique. There’s no chance it failed. He’ll probably lose about thirty minutes of his memory.”
Afterward, Adel calmly lifted the unconscious duke back into his chair.
She even paused to think for a moment before placing a pen back into his hand.
Every single step she took was so practiced that Vincent could only stare in stunned disbelief.
His recollection ended there.
…That wasn’t a dream?
What exactly is an “extremely professional technique” that erases thirty minutes of memory?
And how does Adel know something like that?
Also…
Is it really normal for me to be carried around by a girl who’s smaller than I am?
Adel showed no signs of tiring.
She continued running at an unwavering pace with Vincent still slung over her shoulder.
Ever since meeting her, everything he thought was common sense had been crumbling away.
“We’re here.”
Looking ahead, Vincent saw a small clearing.
It was much smaller than the room he slept in, yet somehow felt spacious.
He hadn’t even known such a place existed nearby.
His eyes sparkled as though he had just discovered a secret hideout.
Without ceremony, Adel dumped him onto the ground like unloading baggage.
“Th-thank you…”
“You memorized the route, right?”
Vincent nodded.
“From now on, run here every day.”
“…What?”
Adel looked at him as if asking, Sounds easy, doesn’t it?
“Your goal is to carry me on your back and finish this trail in ten minutes.”
She paused.
“…It’ll probably take you fifteen years.”
Though she muttered the last part under her breath, Vincent heard every word.
Oddly enough, his pride wasn’t wounded.
The gap between them was simply too overwhelming.
Instead, excitement bubbled inside him.
He couldn’t wait to begin.
Adel had discovered this clearing entirely by accident.
If she hadn’t spent her spare time sprinting around the hills near the construction site where she worked, she never would have found it.
Watching Vincent eagerly wander around the clearing like a child exploring a playground, she sighed inwardly.
This is bad.
How had this scrawny little boy grown into the terrifying swordsman she remembered from the future?
It made no sense.
If not for his expensive clothes and neatly groomed hair, no one would believe he was the only son of a noble house.
His arms and legs were frighteningly thin.
His shoulders slumped from years of poor nutrition and constantly watching other people’s moods.
The arrogance typical of noble children was there…
But it felt awkward.
Like he was merely imitating his father.
Should I find him something to eat?
Adel stared at his frail frame.
Ironically, she herself was barely scraping by.
Well…
More accurately, it was the nameless mage temporarily taking care of her who was struggling financially.
“Don’t they feed you at home?”
Vincent’s face instantly turned bright red.
So I guessed right.
“Then steal food from the kitchen.”
“…What?”
“At this rate you’ll collapse halfway through training.”
Her advice was completely sincere.
Fortunately, unlike the adult Vincent she remembered, this child hadn’t yet become impossible to deal with.
He obediently nodded.
Seeing him quietly waiting for further instruction, Adel finally got to the point.
“The first thing you’ll learn…”
She looked him straight in the eye.
“…is stealth.”
“Stealth?”
Adel let out a quiet sigh.
She had worked so hard trying to raise the future villain into a decent person.
Yet his own father seemed determined to ruin everything.
If my future villain goes down the wrong path because of this, are you going to take responsibility?!
Of course…
She couldn’t exactly solve the problem by cutting off the duke’s head.
If Vincent lost his guardian at such a young age, the emotional shock might twist him even further.
Teaching a little boy to strike first before being beaten wasn’t exactly healthy either.
Which left only one option.
He had to learn how to hide.
“When something dangerous happens, you hide.”
She closed her eyes.
“Watch carefully.”
Adel emptied her mind.
Then she began synchronizing the flow of energy surrounding her with the world around her.
When it finally felt as though she and the world had become one—
Vincent gasped.
“H-Huh…?”
Adel was still standing right in front of him.
He knew she was there.
Yet unless he deliberately focused, her presence became so faint that she almost disappeared from his awareness.
Even while she walked right beside him, he couldn’t accurately follow her movements.
“This is a technique that erases my presence.”
Her voice suddenly came from behind him.
Vincent nearly jumped out of his skin and spun around.
There stood Adel, hands clasped behind her back.
When did she get there?
For the briefest moment, she radiated the composed presence of someone in their thirties rather than a little girl.
Vincent rubbed his eyes and looked again, wondering if he had imagined it.
