I Became The Guardian Of The Future Villain

 

“Head Butler!”

Just then, a servant called out to Albert.

“There’s a guest here.”

“A guest?”

“Yes, someone named Gillian. They say he used to work here, but since I’ve only been here a short while, I’m not sure if it’s true… Should I send him away?”

At the mention of the name, Albert furrowed his brow.

“A guest I didn’t invite. Send him away…”

“Oh, wait! Gallian is the son of the late butler, isn’t he?”

Albert halted, momentarily distracted by Daisy’s words.

‘This is a problem. If I send him away without even meeting him, Daisy will surely think something’s off.’

While they weren’t particularly close, they had worked under the same roof, so there was some level of familiarity.

“What brings Gillian here? It’s been almost five years since he left, hasn’t it?”

With Daisy still curious, Albert quickly masked his expression.

“Indeed. It seems he has something to discuss with me.”

“I wonder how Lightner is doing. He went back to his hometown with Gillian for recovery, didn’t he?”

“If something had happened, wouldn’t he have contacted us?”

“Well… that’s true. The duke has been sponsoring Lightner’s medicinal needs.”

Albert’s shoulders trembled slightly.

“How did you know that?”

“The lady mentioned it the other day. She said Lightner’s illness is rare and requires expensive herbs. After working at the duke’s house for over ten years, the duke personally mentioned he should do that much for him.”

‘Right, Daisy was somewhat close with the late duchess.’

“Yes, that’s correct. But please don’t mention this to anyone else. Others might start making demands of the duke after retirement.”
“Don’t worry. I understand that much.”

Relieved that Daisy hadn’t asked more questions, Albert followed the servant to where Gallian was supposed to be waiting.

It was the back entrance mostly used by servants.

Waiting there was Gillian, looking slightly thinner and more worn than before.

“Albert!”

Seeing Gallian’s bright smile, Albert clicked his tongue.

“Albert! I’ve been sending letters, but why haven’t you replied…!”

“Ah, I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I’ve been so busy lately. Shall we move to another place to talk?”

Even though it was the back entrance, there were still ears passing by.

Albert led Gillian to a secluded spot away from the main estate.

“You’re quite impatient. It’s not like you work in the duke’s house anymore, so you can’t just show up unannounced.”

“I apologize for that, but the situation is urgent. Why haven’t you been sending the herbs?”

Gillian’s anxious expression made Albert’s lips curl slightly.

“Herbs?”

“Don’t play dumb! The supply has suddenly stopped for months! I’ve been sending letters, but…!”

“Ah, I know about that.”

“You know…?”

He wondered if his letters had been lost or if Albert simply hadn’t received them since leaving the duke’s estate.

“Does that mean you’ve intentionally been ignoring my letters?”

Albert responded with a sly smile.

Gillian’s hands trembled with anger.

He recalled his father, lying sick and on the brink of death, and couldn’t help but grab Albert by the collar.

“Are you laughing at something so serious?”

His fierce glare sent a chill down Albert’s spine, but he merely chuckled.

“Five years.”

“…What?”

“It’s been five years since your father collapsed and the duke’s house began to support you.”

Even when Gillian’s father had suddenly retired, and when they needed the expensive herbs, the duke had cherished their long-standing relationship.

“You’ve been well supported for those five years; what more are you trying to get?”

Gillian could only tighten his lips in response.

“Having such a shameless face is one thing. Do you know that the duke and duchess passed away in an accident?”

“…Yeah.”

“Yet you didn’t even attend their funeral.”

“That’s… there were circumstances! I wanted to attend, but my father’s condition suddenly worsened…!”

“But you could have at least shown your face.”

Gillian had already felt guilt for missing their funeral.

He hadn’t done anything to repay them for all they had done, and he hadn’t even had the chance to tell his father yet.

As the guilt he’d buried deep inside resurfaced, his previously furious expression began to shift.

Albert didn’t let the opportunity slip.

“Your attitude is the problem. Before you raise issues with others, you should reflect on yourself. How dare you act so shamelessly…?”

“Yeah, it’s entirely my fault for not attending the funeral. But when I heard about their passing, I wanted to drop everything and come immediately.”

“Anyone can say that.”

Even in the face of Albert’s mockery, Gillian had no retort.

Overwhelmed with shame and guilt, he squeezed his eyes shut.

Then Albert’s eyes widened.

Gillian had knelt before him.

“Feel free to blame me, call me an ungrateful wretch. But please… just this once, help me with the herbs. I’ve tried everything to get them, but they aren’t available in the regular market.”

“…It’s unusual for you to kneel. You must be really desperate.”

“Since I stopped giving him the medicine, my father’s condition is deteriorating by the day. At this rate, he really… won’t last a month.”

As Gillian struggled to speak, he dropped all his pride and tears welled in his eyes.

He clutched at the hem of Albert’s pants.

“Please, I beg you! He’s my only remaining family! I can’t let him go like this! I’ll do anything…!”

“Ha!”

Gillian paused at the sharp laughter directed at him.

When he looked up, he saw Albert desperately trying to suppress his amusement.

The gleeful glimmer in Albert’s eyes sent a shiver down Gillian’s spine, and he instinctively felt that something was off.

“Hahaha! What a sight, Gillian…!”

“…Albert?”

“It’s such a drastic change from the Gillian I saw five years ago at the duke’s residence.”

Gillian.

He was the only son of the head butler, Lightner, and had been mentioned as a candidate to succeed him alongside Albert.

In fact, he was essentially the next head butler.

Even without his father’s influence, Gillian was a promising talent in his own right.

“I hated seeing someone younger than me acting all high and mighty.”

“…”

“Why? Is this your first time hearing such things?”

Beyond just hearing it for the first time, Gillian was realizing how despicable Albert truly was.

“You were always quiet, coldly observing your surroundings…”

“That’s because it’s work. There’s no room for unnecessary emotions. I’ve always been like this. I can’t stand anyone being above me.”

He hated having Gillian’s father above him, and the idea of a colleague becoming his superior was unthinkable.

“It was exhilarating when you and your father left the duke’s service so suddenly.”

“Could it be that my father’s health declining suddenly…?”

“I understand what you’re thinking, but that was just a coincidence. Don’t you remember? I was the one who noticed your father’s illness and found the right herbs.”

Yes, he knew.

That was why Lightner had chosen Albert as his successor.

“Anyway, no further sponsorship will be given.”

Gillian’s hands twitched in response.

“Continuing to support someone as ungrateful as you, who didn’t even attend the funeral, is absurd. You should give up. At the very least, with some sense of decency, you should be kneeling at the duke’s grave instead of coming here.”

Albert roughly shook off Gillian’s hand that clutched at his pants.

“Oh, and even if I were to grant you my immense generosity, I still can’t help you with the sponsorship.”

Gillian’s empty eyes were fixed on Albert.

Albert still wore a smirk as he narrowed his eyes.

“The new guardian hates unnecessary spending, you know. If you want to blame someone, blame them.”

With that, Albert turned his back and waved dismissively as he walked away.

Gillian could only kneel there, feeling pathetic as he watched Albert fade away.

For a while, he couldn’t do anything, just filled with disgust at himself for being mocked. Finally, he stumbled to his feet.

His legs were numb from kneeling too long, making him sway for a moment.

If there hadn’t been a wall right in front of him, he probably would’ve made a fool of himself again.

“…Let’s go.”

Looking like a defeated soldier, Gillian trudged forward weakly.

The administrative building was located at the highest point of the chest area, so he had hitched a ride on a cart to get there.

Now, he had to walk back alone on the long road.

Instead of worrying about his bruised pride or how he had been ridiculed, he should have been focusing on how to save his father right now.

His mind was too shattered to recover.

In the end, Gillian couldn’t even make it to the city and slumped down under a tree, burying his face in his hands.

“…What do I do now?”

He thought meeting Albert would solve everything.

That single hope had carried him this far, but it slipped through his fingers like sand, and now he felt completely lost.

He couldn’t think of anything he could do anymore.

After sitting there dazed for a while, he suddenly heard the sound of hooves.

With the rattling noise accompanying it, it sounded like a cart was passing by.

Whoa—whoa—!

No, the cart he thought was just passing suddenly came to a halt.

Gillian lifted his head in confusion.

Then he saw someone getting off the cart.

“Is that you…?”

His eyes widened as he recognized the familiar face.

━━━━━ ∙ʚ(✧)ɞ∙ ━━━━━

“Wow!”

After two hours of nonstop travel, they arrived at the abandoned mine.

Leonhard, who had dozed off in the cart, burst out cheering as soon as he stepped outside.

Even though it was an abandoned mine, remnants of the past were everywhere—mine tracks, shovels, pickaxes—and a few miners were busy moving around.

“Your Highness, it’s dangerous to run around like that.”

Lloyd and two knights quickly came up beside Leonhard.

Still, Leonhard couldn’t contain his excitement and darted around.

“Your Highness! Don’t touch anything!”

“Okay! I won’t touch anything!”

Well, at least he responds well. But with the way he’s bouncing around, it feels like he’s gonna cause some trouble…

“Well, the knights will handle it.”

Hestia quickly shifted her gaze away from Leonhard and followed him inside.