I Became The Villain's Master

33

“Lionel,” I uttered, my gaze nonchalant as I pulled back the robe.

“Do you have any idea what you’ve done? Leaving the family without our consent! I barely managed to stop Father from kicking you out of the family.”

“It would’ve been better if he had.” I couldn’t help but reveal my innermost thoughts.

“What?”

Lionel’s face contorted, and I hastily redirected the conversation, my throat emitting a hollow cough.

“So, why did you come looking for me? I fail to see how my moving out concerns you.”

I wanted to know the reason why Lionel sent his servant to find me.

“…Rosette. You’ve received a marriage proposal. Return to the family, accept the proposal, and humbly kneel for forgiveness, and I’ll grant you special leniency.”

As expected.

Swallowing my sarcasm, I responded, “I still don’t know what I did wrong, and I have no reason to return to the family.”

As I attempted to turn away, Lionel firmly seized my arm, his frenzied eyes disconcerting me.

“Do you think I don’t know you ran off for that parasitic guy?”

“Let it go. I moved out legally. Don’t you know that according to imperial law, you can legally move out at the age of 20?”

“So that’s your justification?” Sion vehemently held back Lionel’s arm.

“Then I should hold you responsible for what you’ve done to me. That way, it’ll be fine, right? That guy will go to jail, and you’ll come back to us.”

I was amazed at how he came to that conclusion. I glared at Lionel with murderous intent, signaling Sion with a subtle nod.

“I’ll handle this myself, Sion.”

Just as I prepared to articulate my intentions, an unforeseen event unfolded.

“Rosette! What is happening here?”

Inexplicably, Louis and Helena materialized out of thin air. Caught off guard, I instinctively clamped my mouth shut, while Lionel’s eyes widened as if he had encountered a ghost.

It was understandable. After all, it was an exceedingly rare occurrence to see the Magic Tower mages, scarcely glimpsed in a lifetime.

“Louis, Helena?”

“Oh, I was just passing by and thought I saw a madman going on a rampage.” Louis remarked, his gaze fixated on Lionel with an unfamiliar intensity.

Lionel sank to the ground, murmuring in disbelief.

“M-mage…”

The position of a mage in the Empire was high. Even the Emperor gave them a certain amount of honor. Hence, it was quite surprising to have two mages appear, something we couldn’t see every day.

“Sir Lionel. Do you want me to make sure you’ll never be seen again?”

Helena smiled as she posed a chilling question. In an instant, I found myself nodding, a spontaneous reaction to the unexpected turn of events. Honestly, I wasn’t thrilled about Lionel coming over.

“Well, I’m sure the lady won’t mind, right?” Louis asked sarcastically, and Lionel stood up, denying the reality of the situation.

“It’s absurd,” he muttered, his voice dripping with disbelief. “How can one possibly impersonate a mage? Besides, Rosette has no ties with mages.”

His pride appeared to render mages utterly invisible. With a disparaging click of his tongue, Louis nonchalantly twirled the bear-shaped lollipop in his hand.

And then, in a blink of an eye, Lionel’s body contorted in an unnatural manner, as if defying the laws of nature itself. A miracle, or so it seemed.

My eyes widened in astonishment, mirroring Lionel’s own bewildered gaze.

“Help me!” He cried out, his voice tinged with terror.

However, unlike my awestruck response, Lionel’s face was filled with fear. He struggled, his limbs flailing, his eyes looking at me for aid. However, I played the part of the oblivious observer, intentionally averting my gaze.

“Ro-Rosette! Don’t you dare… ugh!”

“Could you please keep it down?”

Before long, Lionel fell eerily silent, as if life had been abruptly snuffed out. Helena floated towards him through the empty air.

“You see, Lionel,” she began, her voice dripping with menace. “Rosette here is actually sponsored by the Magic Tower. So, should you dare to trouble her again, your family might disappear from the empire.”

“Helena, that’s enough for now…” I pleaded, attempting to contain the escalating situation. Louis, who curled his lips with disappointment, withdrew his magic, and made Lionel collapse to the ground.

“Lionel,” I said, moving closer to Lionel, who struggled for breath.

“Stay away! H-How on earth did you… become acquainted with mages? I won’t… stand by idly…”

“Shh.” I hushed him gently, my fingers brushing away specks of dust from his disheveled hair. Lionel recoiled in shock, his hand instinctively touching the ground.

“Go and deliver the message. There’s no need for you to return and abandon your futile notions.”

“You’re… insane,” Lionel stammered, unable to fathom the reality before him. Without even sparing a thought to brush off his soiled attire, he scrambled away, vanishing into the distance.

I exhaled a weary sigh, my eyes tracing the path he had taken. The intervention of the mages had resolved the immediate crisis, but I couldn’t help but wonder how things had escalated to such an extent.

“I did well, didn’t I, Rosette?”

“You did the right thing to ensure that wretch never dares to return.”

Well, that worked out well, didn’t it?