Chapter 22. A Well-Raised Bastard?! (3)
As Astein began to speak, four men slinked out from the alley.
“Hehehe. Well, what do we have here? Looks like we hit the jackpot today.”
From their thuggish appearance, it was clear they weren’t just ordinary passersby.
Whistle~
One of the men whistled, scanning Astein from head to toe, then snickered.
“Damn, what kind of guy has a face this pretty? Ugh, I got all fluttery for no reason.”
“Let’s take a closer look. Ho~ Not bad at all, huh?”
A burly man leaned his face right up to Astein’s and sneered.
“Wow, even better than that chick we saw earlier to—”
That was as far as he got.
Suddenly, he dropped like a puppet with its strings cut.
Thud.
The other three men, who’d been laughing, simultaneously turned their eyes toward him. Their faces quickly turned pale as they confirmed he was dead.
Faced with a reality that didn’t feel real, all three instinctively began cursing and stumbling backward.
“Shit!”
“Goddamn!”
“F-Freaking monster!”
Astein frowned as he wiped a splatter of blood off his cheek. That irritated gesture snapped the three back to their senses.
“Y-You crazy bastard!”
“You’re dead, you hear me?!”
Maybe it was the confidence that came from having the numbers advantage? As if trying to deny their brief flicker of fear, the three men simultaneously charged at Astein.
He looked at them with cold indifference, then lazily raised one hand and slashed it horizontally.
Swish.
A short, clean snap.
That was the last thing they remembered.
Astein stared down at the now-lifeless bodies with boredom, muttering quietly.
“That’s what you get for looking at me with those filthy eyes. If you’d kept them to yourselves, maybe you wouldn’t have died like this.”
His gaze gleamed with a chilling light, like condensed blood glinting in the shadows.
These men had been lurking around the Wires estate for days, casting ominous glances.
‘Scum of the earth.’
Astein shot a sharp glare at Soda, who was lurking by his feet.
“Didn’t I tell you this area should be cleared out?”
— I’ve been framed!
Soda clung to the hem of Astein’s pants with his front paws.
But Astein merely pushed the cat aside with a nudge.
“Letting you roam freely turned you into a pampered stray.”
— Pampered?! That’s so unfair! You’ve no idea how hard I worked, practically coughing up blood!
“Save your excuses. When I gave you those two years, it meant take full responsibility.”
— You’re joking, right?
“I’ll give you another chance to think.”
Astein lightly kicked Soda in the side and flicked his fingers. At the tip of his finger, a blue flame ignited.
He blew gently.
The blue flame floated in the air before drifting down over the tangled corpses.
Then—
Fwoosh—
The flames voraciously devoured them.
“…!”
From a distance, Soda clutched his aching belly and muttered a curse.
— That crazy master of mine!
It was a clear declaration: fail to do your job properly, and you’ll end up just like them.
The next morning.
Elluciana and her companions took a public carriage to the House of Angels.
The House of Angels was an orphanage Simon had established ten years ago to celebrate Elluciana’s recovery after a near-death experience.
Since then, Elluciana, Simon, and Astein had visited the place every weekend to spend time with the children.
However, due to Elluciana’s recent work, it had been nearly a month since their last visit.
‘I wonder if the kids are doing well?’
Feeling a pang of guilt, Elluciana quietly slid open the carriage window.
Just then, the carriage stopped, and the coachman knocked on the outside wall.
“Ma’am, we’ve arrived.”
The three of them stepped out in front of the orphanage’s main gate.
It was a clean and tidy two-story building—remarkably well-kept for something on the outskirts.
Back when the orphanage was first founded, Simon had been extremely enthusiastic. His support at the time was more than generous.
They had spent an unnecessary fortune just acquiring the land.
And that was just the start.
From food, clothing, and shelter to basic literacy education, and even etiquette lessons taught to noble children—and vocational training for those who wished—it was all offered.
Thanks to this, most children who grew up in the House of Angels were able to find decent jobs and lead fulfilling lives.
But now, with the family fallen from grace, continuing that level of support was no small burden.
Even so, it wasn’t something she could give up on easily—because she, too, had once grown up in an orphanage.
In her childhood, dozens of children would have to share a single item. Back then, at least she had access to schools.
But here, even basic human rights were lacking. From that perspective, the House of Angels was the children’s only beacon of hope.
She couldn’t bear to take away that hope—their one possible escape—from those bright-eyed kids.
“It’s been… a long time.”
“Haha, just a month, my dear.”
“I bet the kids have grown a lot.”
“Don’t be too surprised, Lucy. They shoot up fast at that age. Come on, let’s not stand around here. Let’s go in—they’re probably waiting.”
Simon pushed open the well-oiled iron gate.
Clank.
Though the sound wasn’t loud, every child playing in the courtyard turned to look at once. Simon entered first, followed by Elluciana and Astein.
An awkwardly short silence fell.
Then, a very young child beamed and shouted—
“Noona!!”
That was the trigger.
The children all screamed with delight and ran toward the group.
“Lucy unnie!”
“Wow—it’s the Viscount!”
“Viscount! Play with us!”
Elluciana and Simon were instantly surrounded by children. The noise was so loud it was dizzying.
Still, their faces lit up with wide smiles.
“Kids, don’t push! You’ll get hurt!”
Astein quietly stepped back a few paces and watched from a distance.
Elluciana glanced at him briefly, but a tug on her arm from a child drew her attention away.
Crouching down to meet their eyes, she smiled and said,
“Michael, is that you? Have you been eating well?”
She tousled the curls of a little boy.
Five-year-old Michael grinned from ear to ear and replied loudly,
“Yes, noona! I chew every bite, every day!”
“Good boy, Michael. No wonder you look taller.”
“Really?”
“Of course! You’ve grown this much!”
“Hehe.”
Blushing, Michael smiled shyly. A girl next to him suddenly leaned in.
“Unnie, what about me?”
“Our Jessica’s gotten so pretty! So pretty I almost didn’t recognize you!”
“Pfft—what kind of answer is that?”
Jessica stuck out her lip, but the compliment clearly pleased her, and she beamed.
“I missed you, unnie.”
“Noona, me too.”
“I missed you lots!”
Elluciana pulled Michael and Jessica into a hug. The two kids wrapped their tiny arms around her.
That set off another chorus of “Waaaah!” as the other waiting children threw themselves at her too.
Watching from a tree branch, Astein suddenly turned his gaze away.
A moment later, he silently slipped into the building.
Later
Clink.
Angela, the headmistress of the House of Angels, placed a cup of tea in front of a chubby man.
“I’m sorry this is all I can offer you, Mr. Pablo.”
“No need to apologize. I didn’t come here for hospitality.”
The man politely lifted the cup and sniffed the tea.
‘Tch. Bottom of the barrel.’
Worse, it seemed old—it even had a musty smell.
Pablo set down the astringent-smelling cup and turned to look at the dignified man seated across from him.
‘So that’s the Viscount Wires.’
He sneered internally as he examined Simon, who had just entered the parlor.
He looked just as soft-hearted as the rumors said—like someone who’d give you anything if you asked.
‘I’m almost embarrassed for coming so well-prepared.’
Pablo was here under the pretense of sponsoring the orphanage.
But his real goal was Elluciana, the only daughter of Viscount Wires.
Had the Wires family still been prosperous, this would’ve been laughable.
But now? With them on the verge of ruin, he figured he might have a shot at that coveted spot beside her.
He might be a commoner, but the Taark Merchant Guild was a top-tier organization even within the Empire.
‘This is my chance to become a noble myself.’
If he married Elluciana and inherited a title, he’d gain noble status. And even if he didn’t, any children they had would still be nobles.
‘Either way, I win.’
Angela, unaware of Pablo’s dark intentions, smiled sweetly.
