Chapter 37: Not Forgiven, Not Whipped

-Udang tang!!

The extra hurriedly stood up and knocked over a chair.

A loud crashing noise echoed, but the extra didn’t even glance at the fallen chair.

They were too busy apologizing to me to spare any attention for that.

“I-I’m sorry, Young Master! I misspoke! Please forgive me!”

Perhaps they figured that bleeding only from the forehead was better than being whipped until their entire body was covered in blood.

The extra pressed their head to the floor in a bowing posture, as if performing a deep kowtow.

So hard that the thud was audible.

I never thought I’d see a scene from a historical drama up close like this.

The phrase “Please kill me!” almost slipped out of my throat.

Still, I held it back.

Because I knew the other party wouldn’t hear it as a joke.

‘I really don’t understand. What kind of satisfaction do people get from looking down on others? Why are they so desperate to crush those beneath them?’

Suddenly, a murmur broke out.

It wasn’t the group of extras who had been chatting earlier about Yor’s appearance.

They were too frightened, realizing that if things had gone wrong, they themselves might have been the ones flat on the floor.

So, they stayed silent, tense and alert.

Then who was making the noise?

The newly arrived spectators were the source of the whispers.

They observed from a distance with eyes full of curiosity.

The uneasy feeling inside me grew even stronger.

But now was the time to willingly become a spectacle.

To prevent a repeat of today’s incident.

“Did you just say ‘Young Master’? You were calling him ‘that guy’ or ‘that bastard’ just moments ago. How did it suddenly become ‘Young Master’ now?”

“I-I was wrong…!”

“Who said I wanted an apology? When you’re asked a question, you answer.”

“W-well, that is…”

“Then what’s your point? Calm down and explain slowly.”

I advised them to stay calm.

At the same time, I maintained a composed and steady tone myself.

Pretending to be angry would be less effective than this—it would amplify the fear the extra was feeling right now.

‘The more angry I get, the more ridiculous I look to those watching from afar.’

An arrogant character who doesn’t lose composure is often depicted as noble by birth.

So I intended to portray myself as extremely arrogant, yet elegant and dignified.

Straightening my back, I kept my head facing forward.

Only my eyes lowered to look down at the extra, bowing their head so deeply it nearly touched their feet.

“C-calling the Young Master that way makes me feel like I’m superior to him…”

“That’s just a delusion.”

“Y-yes, it’s just a delusion. I was foolish and arrogantly unaware of my place! I’m sorry! I was wrong! I won’t do it again!”

“Your faults aren’t limited to that alone, are they?”

“I apologize for all my other statements as well!”

Begging for forgiveness, the extra once again pressed their head to the floor and raised their voice.

Then they cautiously raised their head to look up at me—blood trickled from their forehead.

Others would see that blood too, and some might feel sympathy for this extra.

‘Or maybe not? Since they arrived late and don’t know the full situation, people might already see them as an innocent, pitiful victim. And I, as a villain who causes trouble for no reason.’

I couldn’t let public opinion sway that way.

“What do you mean by ‘other statements’? Saying it was absurd for me, a direct descendant of House Austri, to receive the Familiar Egg? Or saying that from now on, you would decide who gets the Familiar Egg based on your own standards? Or, if it’s not that, were you trying to represent the opinions of the Four Great Ducal Houses and the royal family?”

A gasp of “Huh!” rose from the spectators.

Glancing sideways, I saw them whispering amongst themselves eagerly.

They were probably asking those who came earlier if what I said was true.

“I-I never said such things…”

“Are you seriously going to deny your mistakes?”

“N-no! I did say those things, but not with that meaning…”

“You spoke in such a way that it can only be interpreted that way. You’re not some child; you should have thought about how your words might be received before speaking.”

“I-I’m sorry…”

“Why are you apologizing to me?”

The extra admitted with my own mouth that my words were true.

Now no one could sympathize with or defend them.

In fact, I could even go further and make everyone hate this extra.

What if others believed those reckless remarks were true and spread the word everywhere?

What if they had almost made a grave mistake?

Just hinting at this was enough.

‘But if I say such things, I might be accused of arbitrarily representing the royal family’s stance… Besides, there’s that saying about a cornered rat biting the cat. Enough, enough!’

This level of pressure should suffice.

In front of many onlookers, I forced an extra who carelessly spoke about the Possession Body to their knees, proving I was not someone to be trifled with.

Now it was time to finish this.

“I will not whip you. Not because I forgive you. The few lashes you might have received wouldn’t be enough for the heavy consequences of your reckless words. If people saw you punished physically, some might pity you. And above all… I don’t think it’s my role to punish your faults.”

I saw the extra’s pupils shake wildly as they looked up at me.

They must have realized that being whipped by me here would have been the lightest punishment.

But still…

“P-please don’t do that! Just hit me instead!!”

Saying that loudly in the middle of the dormitory lobby felt a bit off, didn’t it?

As the one being asked, I felt extremely awkward and uncomfortable.

“You’re not only thoughtless and loose-tongued but also shameless.”

I scowled deeply and turned sharply toward the male dormitory building.

Rumors spread a month later that the extra had taken responsibility for their words, dropped out, and secluded themselves at home.

***

At the time, I thought, ‘They found a way to avoid direct punishment and keep the family’s name clean.’

But that was a story for another day.

At this point, I didn’t care about any extras.

Because they were just disposable characters making brief appearances.

Meanwhile, Yor was someone who would be with me for life…

“Haaak…!”

As I climbed the stairs to my room on the fifth floor, for some reason, my baby dragon suddenly snarled and became angry.

Fortunately, no one was around the stair landing where we stood, so I lowered my voice to try and understand Yor’s mood.

“Why are you suddenly angry?”

“Myaong, myao, myaoo, myamyat, nyaooong…!”

Even though I knew asking open-ended questions would get this kind of response, why did I keep making the same mistake?

I deeply reflected and asked again.

“Do you think I was too lenient?”

“Myo.”

I hadn’t been lenient at all.

I had actually been incredibly harsh.

Earlier, I thought, “That guy will be completely ruined socially now.”

In some ways, that might have been even more ruthless than the original Karvald Austri.

If that extra hadn’t mentioned the royal family, I probably wouldn’t have gone that far.

If I used that as an excuse, would that make me a bad person?

“Myo! Myo! Myoo!”

I quickly shook off those thoughts.

Yor was clearly angry at me for jumping to conclusions.

“Oh, now that I think about it, ‘myo’ was the answer to subtle questions that can’t be answered with a simple yes or no, wasn’t it?”

“Yaong~”

“In that case, this conversation might get long, so let’s go back to my room first…”

“Kyao!!”

“Yeah, I see. You want to talk here…”

That was troublesome.

No one was around now, but this was a place any male student at Valhalla Academy could come and go.

Someone could pop out at any moment.

This wasn’t a suitable place to soothe a familiar’s heart and have a deep conversation.

Especially since I had to act as ‘Karvald Austri, arrogant and self-centered.’

‘Yor must know that too, right?’

If I just headed back to my room, Yor would have to follow.

But I didn’t want that.

‘How could I ignore the gentle baby dragon who had lovingly embraced and comforted me?’

Let me think.

If Yor really wanted to talk here, there must be a reason.

I pondered and came up with a plausible hypothesis.

“Could it be… you suddenly thought that not only that guy but also the other students involved in the conversation deserve punishment? And that’s why you want to go back to the lobby right now and scold them?”

“LF!”

“That might be difficult. By now, they’ve probably dispersed or mingled with other students, making it impossible to tell who’s who. Unless you memorized their faces, but since they were just extras, you probably didn’t pay close attention…”

“Of…?!”

Seeing my troubled expression, Yor looked shocked.

They must have been very angry at those students.

“Sorry. Although they didn’t directly criticize you, their words could have hurt your feelings, and I didn’t consider that. Their talk shocked me in many ways…”

“Nyanayat, nyanyang, nyaaa..! Myamyamak!!”

I sincerely apologized to Yor, regretting my mistake.

Then Yor flew around me, unsure what to do, before suddenly puffing up and getting angry.

It didn’t seem directed at me…

“When I said I was shocked, were you more angry at them?”

‘Could it be that Yor was worried I was upset because of their words from the start?’ So they came back…

“Myo, mya!”

“Were you saying ‘let’s go’?”

“Nyaong~!”

‘How could something be this adorable…?’

I was overwhelmed with emotion.

I shouldn’t have.

I shouldn’t have let my guard down and broken character.

“Thank you, Yor. I don’t even know how to express how much this means to me. Thanks to you, I feel so much better. You don’t have to worry about me anymore. The reason I was shocked was…”

“Huh.”

***

While I was softly smiling and continuing, a sound that shouldn’t have been heard at this timing came from somewhere.

“…Yor, was that noise just now you?”

“Mya, mya…”

Even though I knew the answer was no, I asked Yor, trying to escape reality.

Yor shook their head, looking embarrassed.

I closed my eyes tight, took a deep breath, then slowly opened them and turned my head toward where the noise came from.

So… it wasn’t eavesdropping on our conversation, just some concern that led them to follow… but…

“S-sorry…?”

‘Was the phrase ‘Anyone could pop out at any time’ I thought earlier foreshadowing?’

The person who awkwardly spoke up was none other than Reysir Daudabina.

Out of all the students, of all people, to catch the original character breaking character.

Cold sweat ran down my spine.