[Acquired the awakening skill <Heavenly Punishment (SS – level)>]
[Agility increases with skill awakening.]
‘Heavenly punishment?
Skill: Heavenly Punishment is a skill of the constellation <Thunderbolt>. When used, the <Natural Punishment> skill, which sends a voltage of 1 billion volts down on the target, was one of the most frequently used skills during his time as a favorite of the constellation .
‘I didn’t expect this to come out.’
Unlike <Origin> or <Well of Mana>, <End of the Sword> was a constellation connected to Fragarach and did not have a separate skill.
So he thought it would be connected to the skills of other constellations, but he didn’t know that it would be connected to the skills of the constellation that had completely lost its power.
“The fact that a skill came out means it hasn’t been completely obliterated.”
The negative thoughts he had been avoiding vanished, replaced by a sense of relief and joy.
“I hope everyone is doing well.”
Ian, recalling the constellation that were making a lot of noise on Earth, took out another star candy.
[Acquire the awakening skill ‘SS level <Tsunami of the Origin>.’]
[Strength increases with Awakening Skill.]
“As expected, it’s a skill of <Origin>.”
<Tsunami of the Origin> was a skill that generated a wave as tall as a 63-story building, sweeping away demons.
It required tremendous control, but as a <Origin> player, he could sweep away demons without harming allies.
Not harming allies made it one of the skills often mentioned when people talked about Ian, the Origin player.
Thanks to it, this skill came to represent Ian.
“The last skill is from <Well of Mana>.”
<Well of Mana> was the only constellation on Earth to have sworn four skills.
Even for players, depending on the grade of the constellation, they might not receive skills, so it caused quite a stir that <Well of Mana> bestowed four skills upon players.
“I wonder what skill will come out.”
Ian put the last star candy into his mouth.
The skill window appeared before Ian.
A faint smile crossed Ian’s lips.
***
Meanwhile, what he needed to pay attention to wasn’t just his own condition.
For Rose, he also needed to check the state of the territory where she would live in the future.
“I didn’t expect it to be in such a mess.”
Although it was written in the novel that only debts remained when Ian died and Rose inherited, the situation was severe.
Moreover, the ledger was a mess.
Ian clicked his tongue.
“If only writing down amounts made it a ledger.”
The carcasses of monsters sold in the territory were monopolized for sale by the upper class currently operated by the deceased.
However, the prices of monster corpses vary greatly depending on the parts, and Count Cale’s merchant was selling the entire corpse rather than dividing it into parts.
And at exorbitant prices.
If the original Ian had been interested, he would have meticulously embezzled, but since he was always confined to his room, he was ignored and dealt with roughly.
The profits from the sales went to Count Cale, the leader of the upper class, under the pretext of business, but the money didn’t come back.
Moreover, other upper classes had borrowed money for ridiculous reasons and hadn’t repaid it for over a year.
The mansion seemed rich from a distance, but upon closer inspection, it was all debt.
Debts piling up due to the upper classes.
Ian clicked his tongue once again and closed the ledger.
If he could, he would have immediately confronted the groups that were leeching off the mansion.
But that wasn’t possible since Ian was soon going to leave.
An ownerless mansion was the prey they should protect as upper classes, but to external enemies, it was easy pickings.
For now, as much as he didn’t like it, it was better to leave it alone since it served a purpose.
Ian sighed as he rose from his seat. There was much to do, so he needed to prepare himself first.
“Sebastian. Is Rose still asleep?”
“Yes, she’s still sleeping.”
Rose, who was coloring in front of Ian for a while, fell asleep right there.
Although she could be put to bed on the couch, lately, she had developed a habit of rolling around in her sleep, making it inevitable to send her to her room.
Ian sighed and rose from the sofa. There was much to be done, and he needed to prepare himself first.
‘Should I wake her up and take her with me?’
Ian momentarily considered waking her up but soon abandoned the idea.
His sister’s words that a child sleeping was for growth came to his mind.
“Sebastian, if Rose wakes up and looks for me, bring her.”
“Yes.”
Leaving a message in case Rose woke up before the training was over, Ian headed to the courtyard.
***
Rose rubbed her eyes with small fists.
As her still sleepy eyes wandered around, a familiar space came into view.
“This is Duke’s room.”
Muttering to herself, Rose crawled to the edge of the bed unsteadily.
Carefully, she took one step after another, descended from the bed.
“Where did the Duke go?”
Rose, with her neatly braided hair messed up due to sleeping, opened the door with disheveled golden hair as she turned from the bed.
“Are you awake?”
A maid, with a mischievous look, looked down at Rose.
Facing the sharp gaze, no different from the people she used to live with in the same village, Rose flinched and huddled her body.
“W… where is the Duke?”
“He went for training. Don’t disturb him, stay in the room.”
“…. I want to go to the Duke.”
The maid’s eyes widened sharply.
“Don’t come out, go back inside. Can’t you understand?”
“The duke….”
“Young lady!”
Rose’s body trembled.
“You shouldn’t disturb the Duke! Do you know how difficult it is for him because of you?”
“Heidy! Come here for a moment!”
“Huh? Okay.”
When Heidy, addressed as such, forcibly turned Rose’s body and pushed her into the room, Rose tumbled to the floor due to her strong force.
“Don’t come out! Don’t make Duke angry at me! Got it?!”
Heidy sharply closed the door, making a loud thud.
“That scared me.”
Rose’s voice echoed in the silent room.
The fear she had forgotten in Ian’s arms crept up gradually.
Her eyes welled up, and her vision blurred.
Rose lifted her trembling body and headed toward the bed.
Unable to see Ian right away, she wished she could at least lie down on the bed to feel his scent.
Unlike when coming down, going up wasn’t easy.
Jumping and hopping, her attempts to get onto the bed were futile.
“…. It’s scary.”
Rose, unable to see Ian or get on the bed, looked at the rope beside it.
She knew that pulling that rope would bring the kind grandfather to her.
However, the rope adjusted to the bed’s height was just out of Rose’s reach.
Rose, looking at the tangled rope with her misty eyes, turned her head toward the door.
“Duke.”
Although she looked with hopeful eyes, anticipating Ian might open the door and come in, the door remained closed.
Rose, nibbling her lips, cautiously moved towards the door.
And gently opened it.
She thought sharp gazes would pierce her, but Heidy was nowhere to be seen.
“She’s not here?”
The area in front of the door and the corridor were empty.
Rose quickly opened the door and rushed out of the room.
Despite always clinging to Ian, she knew the way well as they visited the same place every day.
In case Heidy caught her, Rose, running with all her might, felt her breath rising to her throat.
Her legs wobbled a few times, but Rose managed to reach a staircase resembling a cliff without falling.
“Haahaa.”
Rose, panting heavily, grabbed the staircase railing.
Then, she cautiously started descending one step at a time.
“Oh my, it’s the young lady.”
“Shh. Be quiet. Don’t startle the young lady.”
When one maid murmured while watching Rose carefully descending the stairs, another maid poked her in the side.
“Isn’t she adorable?”
“Exactly. Look at her moving down with those short legs.”
“What about her hands? Look how confidently she’s holding onto the stair railing.”
A male servant approached the whispering maids and asked.
“Shouldn’t we help her?”
“I want to, too. But the young lady is quite reserved. I’m afraid she might get startled if we approach for no reason.”
“Ah.”
The servant nodded.
The sudden appearance of the young lady concealed her face quite a bit.
When Ian was around, everything was peaceful, but when she was alone, the servants hesitated to approach, afraid of startling her.
It was like looking at a timid puppy. Cute and adorable, making you want to hug, but the trembling appearance was pitiful.
So, the servants who liked Rose could only watch from a distance. They couldn’t approach her.
“But why is the young lady alone? Where is the duke?”
“The duke went for training, and it seems the young lady was taking a nap.”
The maid’s answer made the servant grin.
“What about the butler?”
“Suddenly, a guest arrived, so he went there.”
“Ah. But didn’t the butler leave someone in front of the door before going?”
Just like the duke, the butler cared a lot for the young lady. Even if she fell asleep inside the lord’s room, there was always at least one maid in front of the door.
“It was Heidy.”
“Why did the butler leave the young lady with her?”
“Well, why not leave her with Heidy? It’s not like she’s a stranger.”
The presence of the young lady who suddenly appeared wasn’t universally welcomed. Among those who didn’t like it, Heidy was the most representative.
“Well, she behaves well in front of the butler, doesn’t she?”
“Is that behaving well in front of the butler or in front of the duke?”
With a bitter taste in his mouth, the servant asked.
“Young lady, is it okay to leave her like that?”
“Since she’s come down all the stairs, there’s no danger, right? The duke seems to be coming to look for her… It should be fine. Hey, let’s get back to work.”
“Okay.”
Shortly after the two maids and the servant turned around, Rose walked toward the vacant lot that had been closed off by Duke Ian’s order. She took a deep breath, covered herself with a large landscaping tree, and stuck her head out to look at Ian.
“Wow.”
Ian’s straight posture as he wielded the sword was impressive and beautiful even to Rose, who knew little about swords.
Forgetting her fear as she ran over, Rose couldn’t take her eyes off Ian.
How long had he been swinging the sword? Ian wiped the sweat with a towel handed to him by the servant, his sweat hindering his movements.
“Young lady!”
Startled by the sharp voice from behind, Rose turned her head.
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