Chapter 74: A New Realization

The emperor’s verdict was a shock in itself.

At first glance, it seemed like a considerably lenient punishment.

After all, sentences to work for the imperial family for a few years were occasionally handed down.

As a way of showing some mercy, that is.

‘But why send him to our house?’

Trevor Warren was already a burdensome existence.

He was someone who drew everyone’s attention, wasn’t he?

But just let him idle around and eat for free?

‘Of course not.’

Duke Carius’s territory and the Midias region were different from ordinary domains.

Because it was set up so that anyone not participating in the family business couldn’t survive. This was the will of the first Duke Carius to ensure it didn’t become a threat to the imperial family.

It wasn’t something that absolutely had to be followed, but there was no reason to break it.

‘It’s a pretty good excuse.’

If someone tried to take root in Duke Carius’s territory, I could chase them out citing the ancestor’s command.

But that only applied in ordinary cases.

Object to a verdict handed down by the emperor?

Sure, if you wanted to hold hands with your family and die in the most miserable way possible.

“This is a headache.”

I frowned as I looked at Trevor Warren.

The guy was holding his head high, glaring with his eyes wide.

This bastard really was a lunatic beyond imagination.

To see him not the least bit cowed after all that ordeal.

Come to think of it, in the courtroom, he was all apologies, bowing and scraping.

‘He probably couldn’t act up in front of the emperor. But why with me?’

As I stared at him incredulously, he snorted and shot me an insolent look.

“It’s only been a few days since I beat you, and you’re back at it. Maybe I need to hammer you every day to knock some sense into you?”

“……”

“Look down, punk.”

When I brandished the Communication Rod, Trevor finally averted his gaze.

Crazy dogs really do need the stick, huh?

I sank into deep thought.

Could I reform this rotten bastard while putting him to proper use?

If it were up to me, I’d assign him to border duty.

The imperial guard knights would return to the palace soon anyway.

Now that I’m back, they won’t keep lending troops.

‘The problem is whether this guy will do the work properly.’

Even in the strict imperial army, he did whatever he pleased.

Here, with relatively loose supervision, he’d probably hole up somewhere and sleep all day.

It might be better to keep him with me and monitor him constantly.

‘No, that’d be a hassle.’

It’d probably just torment us both.

If he were at least cute, maybe.

Spending every hour with a guy like that would be bad for my mental health.

So I decided.

“Butler Xavier?”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

“Send that guy to the worker dormitory.”

“But there are no confinement facilities there at all.”

“No need to lock him up. He’s on community service, right? Just make him work like the other laborers.”

“Pardon?”

Butler Miller Xavier’s eyes widened.

Even if he’d received a community service order, he was the heir to a count’s house.

And a tremendous talent close to Grand Master level.

“There’ll be quite a discord.”

“If he doesn’t listen, call me. I’ll beat the hell out of him.”

When I shot him a chilling glare, Trevor’s expression twisted.

He seemed thoroughly offended by the order to treat him like ordinary laborers.

Well, born a high noble, he’d have a strong sense of privilege.

Making someone like that do menial work?

‘He’ll feel immense self-loathing.’

That was precisely the punishment for this guy.

Not going to prison was a mercy in itself.

That place was no exaggeration to call hell on earth.

‘If I leave him just to Butler Xavier, he won’t be controlled.’

He might pull some nonsense when I’m not looking.

It was time for a new monitoring system.

But then, a man loitering nearby caught my eye.

‘Oh? He’s here?’

I immediately prodded Trevor and said.

“You see that guy?”

“The knight who was with you. Pretty skilled, but far below me.”

“What’s important is his affiliation.”

“What’s that got to do with me?”

“Imperial Guard Knights, Black Agent.”

“……”

Trevor Warren, who’d been sneering, clamped his mouth shut.

Black Agents were knights trained in advanced espionage.

The emperor’s eyes and ears operating in the shadows.

There could be no more terrifying existence for this guy.

“He’s aware of everything. Better be careful. Unless you want to see your whole family wiped out.”

Trevor couldn’t speak for a while.

Then, following Butler Xavier’s lead, he trudged away.

His slumped shoulders seemed to reflect his mood.

“Go in.”

“Damn, this is a dormitory…….”

Trevor Warren scrunched his brow deeply.

The place Butler Xavier guided him to was just a single room waiting barrenly.

Of course, it wasn’t that shabby.

A bed, desk and bookshelf, a large wardrobe, and even a wooden window with shutters.

The toilet and shower were shared, which was a bit inconvenient, but it had most necessities.

“Ha!”

But to Trevor, it looked utterly worthless.

The more he saw, the more absurd it felt, and empty laughs kept bursting out.

It felt worse than an imperial army barracks.

And no wonder—he was the vice legion commander of the Western 1st Legion.

Now reduced to community service, but originally a figure who’d risen to a position as high as a border count.

Knock knock!

As he sat on the bed sighing heavily, someone suddenly knocked.

“What is it?”

When he asked sharply, a baffled reply came.

“Isn’t this Trevor guy’s room? 307, right?”

“Yes.”

“What? Yes? Is that how you answer? It’s way past time.”

“What’s he on about.”

Ignoring the voice outside, Trevor flopped back on the bed.

Community service or whatever, he planned to just train personally and waste away the 10 years.

But the visitor seemed unwilling to leave him be.

Thud thud thud thud!

“Come out already!”

The door pounded persistently.

Enough to worry it might break.

Trevor had no choice but to get up.

Even a highly trained knight couldn’t withstand noise pollution.

Slam!

“Ah, seriously!”

He yanked the door open irritably, and suddenly something flew at his face.

What he reflexively caught was a rather thick set of clothes.

“Change quickly and come out. Dawdle, and I’ll knock again.”

“……”

The man who’d tossed the work clothes looked about Trevor’s age.

Burly and tanned, he gave off a healthy vibe.

“Huh!”

The absurdity grew as the guy left without waiting for a reply.

But he couldn’t disobey.

He’d said he’d knock again if he didn’t come down soon.

Trevor grumbled to himself as he slowly changed into the work clothes.

“Not too bad, actually.”

Just plain, thick clothes, but the texture was quite nice.

The lining must be good material.

As he trudged out of the dorm, the man from before was waiting.

“Let’s go.”

“Go where?”

“No time, so hurry. Ah, call me Bernard.”

Soon, Trevor held a large axe in his hand.

Plus, a helmet-like hat on his head.

Bernard had swiftly handed them over one by one.

“Tie the chin strap tight.”

“What?”

“It’s got a buckle. Geez, this is why newbies are tough.”

Unhesitating hands brushed under his chin.

Soon, the iron hat with holes punched in it fit perfectly.

Oddly, it felt more comfortable than a regular helmet.

“Today we’re chopping walt wood. The different-colored ones are moldex wood. We only work on this side.”

“You’re telling me to be a lumberjack?”

“No work, no food. No pay, obviously.”

“I don’t need that crap?”

“From what I hear, you came penniless. How you gonna live without money?”

“Well, I’m…….”

The words that he was a count’s heir and didn’t need to worry about that rose to the tip of his tongue.

But he couldn’t spit them out.

What was his current situation?

Here in Duke Carius’s territory with nothing, no connections.

Essentially no different from the burly guy in front of him, Bernard.

And indeed it was.

The two had to chop walt wood together today.

“Need strength?”

“A fair bit.”

“Then let’s start from there. Better to focus on big trees.”

“Isn’t small easier?”

“Quality differs. Needs at least 10 years to be soft and white inside.”

“Mix in small ones, no one would know.”

“Sure, the factory folks might not. But I know.”

“……”

Trevor looked at Bernard oddly.

A mere lumberjack talking like a craftsman.

But the other shrugged as if it were obvious.

“It’s a precious opportunity from His Grace the Duke, so gotta give my best. Come on, let’s work.”

“Opportunity my ass…….”

Bernard started chopping trees, spacing out appropriately.

Trevor stood with an uncomfortable expression, then slowly raised his axe.

This soft wood should go down in one swing.

Woooong!

As he roused his aura, a low vibration hummed.

But the result was completely unexpected.

Swoosh—! Thud!

“Hm?”

Far from slicing clean through, the blade just embedded deeply.

It should have cleaved in one go, but this was strange.

Yet Trevor was close to Grand Master.

He quickly spotted the issue.

“The handle’s too long for proper aura transmission.”

Swords had the hand close to the blade.

So it was no different from gripping a metal lump and rousing aura.

But axes had handles ten times longer than the blade.

Of course, adaptation didn’t take long.

Thud! Thwack! Crashhh—!

House-sized walt trees toppled one after another.

It was like the god of logging had descended.

The surrounding laborers looked surprised but soon ignored him and focused on their work.

Seemed like competitive spirits had ignited.

“This is pretty good.”

Axes weren’t suited for rousing aura.

So it unintentionally became training.

If he didn’t handle power delicately, the aura manifestation would break.

He excitedly chopped trees for a while, when someone suddenly called him.

“Hold up.”

“Too bad. I was on a roll.”

“Just stop for now.”

“Why?”

“It’s break time. For logging sites, 30 minutes rest after an hour of work.”

“……?!”

Trevor wore an uncomprehending expression.

Rest half the working time?

Today he chopped a lot using aura, but normally?

Probably a dozen or so trees at most.

Hire people with good money for just that?

“Must be out of his mind.”

The last words were aimed at Duke Carius, of course.

But it didn’t take long for Trevor to gain a new realization.