How To Live As An Academy Extra Villain.

If you want to read it for a cheap price until the last chapter, patreon.com/Makima02

The atmosphere remained tense throughout, and the mansion was now surrounded by an even tighter security perimeter.

I barely managed to soothe Adele's grief with the promise of a bigger and more beautiful new bear, but instead, she clung to me even more. She wouldn't even get off my lap even during meals.

And my father allowed Adele's clinginess without reprimand. After narrowly escaping an ordeal too much for a child to bear, none could rebuke her etiquette breaches.

I made a point to implore the healer not to tell my father about my condition. I didn't want to add to his worries in these already troubled times. The healer, though looking conflicted, seemed to have honored my request, judging by father's reaction later. He was, after all, a loyal member of our estate and understood my concerns.

Thanks to that, my father believes that I was not attacked in the dream, but that it was just a near miss. I can't even imagine what would have happened if my father had found out that I was on the verge of death.

And even though I was worried that things would drag on into a quagmire, the culprit was surprisingly caught in a very short time.

"Kill me, my lord…I cannot bear to show my face after this disgrace…"

"Enough of that. This was hardly your fault."

In the study, maid head Roberta was kneeling before my father's desk. Even when my father tried to persuade her to get up, Roberta didn't budge.

The mastermind was someone very close by. It was Sarah, Adele's personal maid.

Based on various circumstances, it was concluded that this incident could not have happened without inside help, and a high-intensity investigation was conducted among the servants.

And then, decisive testimony came from one of the maids who shared a room with Sarah; that dawn, Sarah had quietly gotten out of bed and left the room, and then returned after a while.

At the time, it seemed like she had just gone out to take care of something, but after the incident, I thought there was something strange about it.

After hearing the testimony, the room in question was thoroughly searched, and soon traces of sleeping potion were found.

In addition to that, it was found that the other people had fallen asleep easily that day, and that the maid who had testified had a cold and her nose was blocked, so she couldn't smell properly and couldn't sleep.

As soon as the suspicious circumstances were caught, Sarah was arrested by the soldiers without resistance. She was washing clothes in the laundry room as if nothing had happened, but when she saw the soldiers, she gave up and didn't resist.

She now awaited interrogation in the underground prison.

"Hmph…"

Seeing Roberta's continued stoic penitence, my father's expression became increasingly troubled.

Sarah was a young maid who had recently been transferred to the Reed's to take care of Adele.

Most of the servants in the lead had been working there for a long time, so they were quite old compared to Adele, and my father had hired a new young maid in the hope that she would be able to take better care of Adele.

And Roberta, who was moved by Sarah's bright and cheerful personality and her unfortunate family background, had recommended her to my father, and my father had approved her appointment, respecting the head maid's opinion.

However, the reason Roberta was apologizing for her own guilt was because the maid she had chosen had committed such a terrible act.

"Very well. I will pretend I did not hear your request, so take your leave."

"But my lord…I cannot simply…"

"I said enough. I trust a steadfastly loyal servant like yourself would never defy your master's orders. You look utterly exhausted, so rest today and return to your duties tomorrow. That is an order. Hudson?"

"Yes, My Lord. Roberta, please rise. You must obey the Count's orders…"

The butler standing by the side nodded at my father's words. Then, he approached Roberta and helped her up, leading her out of the study.

My father watched them leave and shook his head as if he had a headache, "Tsk tsk, devoted as Roberta is, her heart is too tender for her own good."

"I, Father…"

"Yes?"

"I hesitate to even ask, but…are you certain Roberta is above suspicion?"

It was a question I had managed to ask after much hesitation, but my father replied in a nonchalant tone as if it were nothing, "What? What else were you going to say…"

"My apologies…"

"Don't worry too much. Even putting aside the decades of our relationship, Roberta and Hudson are bound to us by a master-servant contract of the highest order. The same goes for Laurel and Russ. They would never have such thoughts, and even if they did, their heads would explode right then and there."

"…Isn't that a bit extreme?"

"Perhaps. But they have to be able to endure that much for the sake of their duties. It is a basic contract that any family of a certain size has, and more importantly, they would never enter into a contract unless they wanted to. Does that clear your doubts?"

"Yes. Thank you…"

"Good. Now, how fares Adele?"

"I had a hard time keeping her from clinging to me just now… And I've given strict orders to keep everything out of Adele's ears."

Adele was likely buried in a mound of strawberry cake and apple juice by now, having succumbed to the head chef's strategic bribery with treats after witnessing my struggles.

"Well handled. She must have been very shocked, and it will only be harder for her to cope if she finds out that the person who took such good care of her was the culprit. How dare… to treat kindness in such a way…"

My father's expression, which had been nodding in agreement, suddenly filled with anger. It seemed that the thought of Sarah was making him furious. And I felt much the same way as my father.

"Father. Then what do you plan to do with that maid?"

"What can I do? I have to make her pay dearly for what she has done."

My father took a few deep breaths to calm himself down before answering.

"It's all for the best. I just received word that the inquisitors from Westford will be arriving today, so let's take this opportunity to get rid of all of them once and for all."

"From Westford? Suddenly?"

Though surprised, I saw no downsides – their presence could only help restore order and security.

For some reason, I thought of Lazarus, the senior inquisitor from Westford. I didn't have any hard feelings towards him, even though he had interrogated me. In fact, he had helped me in many ways, and thanks to him, I was able to receive the Saintess' Absolution.

Perhaps I would even encounter him again?

"I remember when I replied to him and asked for a favor, and it seems like he has graciously granted my request. If they come, we will be able to catch the remaining culprits more easily. Just bear with it for a little while longer."

Father patted my shoulder reassuringly as he spoke.

* * * * *

"Laurel. Where are you going in such a hurry?"

"Young Master?"

After leaving my father's study, I ran into Laurel on the stone steps in front of the mansion. A beautiful knight with sparkling blonde hair, but her personality and speech were also as sharp as a knife.

It was the first time I have seen Laurel again since the day I greeted her on my first day at the Madehaven. If I had to choose the three busiest people right now, I would say my father, Russ, and Laurel.

"To the underground prison. You know, that maid? I've been ordered to get her to confess her accomplices by any means necessary."

"Is that so? Then I'll accompany you."

"Pardon?"

Laurel looked dumbfounded, as if she had not expected my words at all. It was a rare sight to see such an expression from her, who is always so picky.

But it lasted only a moment before she shook her head dismissively. "I cannot allow that. I've orders to extract the truth about her accomplices. Surely you understand the implications?"

Laurel's words meant torture. I didn't like it either, but I still thought it was a necessary process.

"Of course I understand. Do you take me for a fool?"

"No, but for one lacking such experience, to witness the…unpleasantries firsthand…"

"I want to hear it myself too. Why did she do this to us?"

"I suppose…"

"I'll tell my father about it, so you don't have to worry about that. Is that okay? Let's go."

Laurel frowned and looked troubled for a moment, but she no longer said the same stubborn refusal as before.

Truth be told, such unflinching obedience ill-suited her nature. As I expected, a glimmer of intrigue had already rekindled in her eyes.

I followed Laurel for a long time, and soon we arrived in front of a small castle. Heavily armed soldiers were about to salute Laurel, but they were startled to see me behind her.

But even that was only for a moment. They exchanged glances, then saluted respectfully and opened the castle gate.

Just in front of the door was a staircase leading down to the basement, and I followed Laurel down the stairs.

The air had changed drastically even though I had only passed one door. What filled this place now was the stench of blood and iron.

At the bottom of the stairs, I saw a stone floor dimly lit by torches and a corridor leading off from it.

"Laurel! What took you so lo-…Young Lord?!"

And then I saw a familiar face again.

Russ, who was about to reprimand Laurel, widened his eyes in surprise when he saw me.

"My lord! Why ever are you…Laurel, did you bring him along again?!"

Russ seemed to think that Laurel had brought me here. Laurel shrugged her shoulders and looked at me silently, as if asking me to defend her.

"Russ. I came here because I wanted to. Laurel is not to blame this time. In fact, she tried to stop me."

"My Lord…"

Russ closed his mouth as I stepped forward.

"I cannot disobey your will. But are you prepared to witness such atrocities unfolding? You understand the gravity?"

"I'm ready. I need to know the truth."

Russ sighed deeply before turning away at my resolute answer.

"I understand. But just in case, it would be best if you remained as quiet as possible. Have you learned how to hide?"

"I know basic hiding. Is that not enough?"

"In these dim confines, it should. Go ahead and hide now."

As I faded from perception, Russ and Laurel led the way down another descending flight of stairs.

As we reached the deepest cells, a shackled female figure came into view.

"Nngh…"

Even though she saw us, the woman made no resistance, only showing a slight sign of movement. She seemed to have already accepted her fate.

As if in preparation for any eventuality, Laurel stayed close to me. Russ opened the cell door alone and entered the cell where Sarah was bound.

Then he took out a small vial from his arms and shook it lightly in front of Sarah's eyes. A bright golden liquid was gently swirling inside the bottle.

"Since you insist on sealing those traitorous lips, we have no recourse but harsher persuasion. Blame falls solely upon yourself for this necessity."

With those words, Russ unstoppered the vial. Grabbing Sarah's jaw, he forced her mouth open and upended the vial's entire contents inside.

"Kkhh…kkhah! Ggghhrk!"

"This is too much for you. Don't spill a drop and drink it properly."

"…Gghhkk! What is this…urrgh!"

Sarah sputtered and coughed violently, shooting Russ a defiant glare that went unfinished as she gagged on the gag stuffed in her mouth.

Undisguisable terror seeped from her widening eyes.

"This is the top-grade amplification potion used by the most experienced trackers. It will make all your senses as sharp as possible. It is usually diluted with water or alcohol to adjust the concentration, but what you just drank is the original."

Russ continued speaking calmly, taking something out of his toolbox next to him — a crude, oversized pair of tongs, wrought of heavy iron, clanged into view.

Holding the tongs before Sarah's fingertips, he continued speaking dispassionately, "There will be no more need to force you to answer. You will soon want to do it yourself."

*Snnkkt!*

Russ' motion was instantaneous. Before Sarah could even grasp the situation, a sound like a tree root being pulled up came from her finger.

"MMMMMMRRRGGHHHH!! RRRNNGGGHHH!! HHHNNGGGRRRGHHH!!"

Sarah's agonizing, silent screams reverberated thunderously throughout the underground cells.

If you want to read it for a cheap price until the last chapter, patreon.com/Makima02