On the one-horse carriage, Khan and Carter both sat inside the carriage and entrusted the responsibility of being the coachman to Ibrahim. It had to be said that when he silently received the horsewhip from Carter, his hidden resentment was extremely valuable. In fact, he was also very curious, how long could a Demon Lord like him be willing to be his servant? What was his limit?
However, all doubts were blown away when Carter began to talk about his brother, and their previous life.
"Young master probably doesn't know, but I'm not originally from Sergio City. Before that, I lived in a rural area quite far from here. It would have taken several months to walk. My younger brother and I left the village because we didn't want to continue living in poverty, and set out to find a place where we could live in peace.
We passed through quite a few places, and the last place I stopped was at Sergio Castle. Because I was lucky enough to be hired by Count Evangeline Castle during the day of the new servant recruitment, I got a job here."
"Oh, I see," Khan said, nodding. "What about your brother? What does he do?" Khan asked as if it were a matter of course.
It would be strange if he didn't ask. After all, he couldn't say that he knew Elijah had albinism. He couldn't go out in the sun and his strange appearance would easily cause a stir. He probably wouldn't be able to find a job.
"He... doesn't really do anything," Carter admitted bashfully. "Just stays at home reading all day..."
Reading books? Then you must be a real bookworm. Khan stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"Master, you said Elijah is the chosen one of the gods. Is that true?" Carter clenched his fists, his face tense as he waited for Khan's answer.
Carter didn't ask what God had chosen Elijah to do or why, he just asked Khan if it was true. It showed that the butler was placing his trust in Khan. Carter wasn't stupid, so what he was doing now was just a test, not only for Khan but also for himself. Perhaps that was why he didn't question other unclear things, he just wanted to hear a positive answer from Khan.
Khan crossed his arms over his chest, remembering the death of his brother Elijah and the events of the Green Winter. He thought he should prepare in advance and do some necessary things if he didn't want to lose the talented butler in front of him.
"You probably know that I was kidnapped while I was in Sylvia."
Carter didn't know why his master brought this up, but he still nodded in response.
"Yes, I know. It's fortunate that you returned safely."
"If it was luck, then it would be more accurate to say it was divine mercy. I mean literal divine, not trying to gloss over the words."
Carter's eyes widened in surprise.
"Well, it's not like a god appeared before me and freed me. To put it bluntly, it was because he gave me the opportunity, drawing a path to life and escape death. Lai, that wolf was also tamed by a god."
Khan calmly used his secret lies without blinking, without his heart beating, without his legs shaking. His mouth lied smoothly.
"Wh-Which god is it?" Carter almost held his breath when asking this question, his voice also lowered unconsciously as if afraid that some invisible force was eavesdropping.
That's right, there is more than one god in this world.
Khan calmly and without hesitation replied:
"Don't know."
Carter slipped, almost falling off his chair. His heart was pounding in his chest, threatening to fall with him.
"I, I see…"
"Don't be too disappointed. After all, He is still a god who reigns supreme. We lowly servants can't just say we want to meet Him."
Hearing that, Carter also breathed a sigh of relief. He nodded and continued to sit in silence.
Khan rested his chin on his hand, watching the scenery rush past his vision.
"Didn't the young master ask why my brother couldn't come all the way to the castle to see you?" Carter was once again the one to break the silence.
"We'll know sooner or later, won't we?" Khan said calmly.
"Yes…" Carter replied with a forced smile.
He looked extremely worried, it seemed like Carter was afraid that Khan would become like the others. Seeing his brother as cursed and looking at him with contempt or fear. Either way, it was an indelible wound to both brothers.
"Don't worry," Khan said evenly. "I won't let you down."
Carter nodded, but there was still worry in his eyes.
With no intention of comforting the young butler, Khan continued to tilt his head to look at the rushing scenery outside. In his mind, he was replaying the lines he would use to deal with Elijah.
If there was a genius mage in the field of magic formations, his plan would go more smoothly. After all, this was a long campaign that required patience.
It didn't take long for the carriage to stop in front of an old inn. After getting off the carriage, Khan looked out through the window again to reassess his impression. This wasn't an old inn, it just had an old and nostalgic look. This inn needed to be repaired and renovated if it wanted to survive the storm. Khan then looked around. The houses were small, not too dilapidated but still looked more pitiful than other normal houses.
The territory Evangeline ruled was not a prosperous place, but he had not expected it to be this miserable. It seemed that his late father had not achieved anything. However, if this situation continued, things would only get worse and there was a possibility of a riot breaking out.
At that time, he was sure to be ruined.
"Is this your house?" Khan asked, tilting his head.
Carter shook his head. "I'm just staying here, master. Shall we go in?" Carter said, looking guilty. "I'm sorry to let you into such a shabby place."
"It's a bit shabby, though."
Khan did not say this, he glanced at Ibrahim who was standing beside him. His face was slightly lowered and he gave a cold assessment.
"You should feel more guilty."
Khan was sure that Ibrahim had no intention of caring for him when he said such seemingly caring words, or rather, he was just using him to make that cruel remark. It seemed that Ibrahim was very upset that he had to sit with the coachman the whole way.
Wow, old and still acting angry.
"Alright, lead the way, Carter." Khan gave him a pat on the shoulder and whispered just loud enough for Ibrahim to hear, a playful smirk on his lips.
"You should sympathize with the elderly.
Ibrahim's face fell into a gloomy expression, but Khan did not bother to look over.
Carter suddenly understood, then he sent him a passionate look of gratitude. Khan felt a shiver but still pretended nothing happened.
It was just a small stepping stone. Carter led Khan inside, but instead of going upstairs to his room, Carter sheepishly said that the brothers' room was in the basement.
"It's a lot cheaper down there," Carter explained briefly.
The owner of the inn was also old, around sixty years old. This inn often had mercenaries or travelers who were just looking for a place to sleep and save a considerable amount of money.
Khan looked around the inn until Carter led him down a ladder to the basement.
"This place used to be a distillery, but the innkeeper injured his back and stopped selling alcohol. So the basement became empty, and then I asked the innkeeper to let me live here." Carter spoke very briefly about his past, showing that he did not want to go into detail.
Khan was not curious, so he had no intention of asking further.
Down the stairs, the small space of the basement made Khan notice the simple interior of the room. It seemed to be furnished with only a few essentials such as a bed, a table and chairs placed nearby, a wardrobe and an old wooden chest with holes in some places due to termites. On the floor, on the table and chairs were books and books. Most of them were old books.
Khan didn't think Carter was in such dire straits.
"I commend your will to live, Carter." Ibrahim came down last, and after looking around, he spoke. However, his tone did not sound like praise at all.
"Elijah? Where are you?"
Carter ignored Ibrahim's teasing and immediately called his brother's name loudly, at the same time moving his feet to the wardrobe and opening it.
"Why are you hiding in here again? I told you to stay outside and wait for me to bring the young master back to see you!" Carter immediately grumbled when he saw the person inside.
Khan raised his eyebrows and walked a few more steps, then he saw a teenager curled up in the closet. His legs were folded against his chest, his arms were around his knees, and his face was bowed down pitifully. The teenager had snow-white hair, and his skin was also as white as transparent, revealing the pale veins hidden under his skin. When he raised his head to look at Carter, who was nagging, his distinctive red eyes made an impression at first sight. His pupils were very large, almost covering the whites of his eyes, making him look a bit scary.
"I… d-don't… want to…" Elijah mumbled, his voice also stuttering.
"We already talked yesterday! Stop arguing and get out!" Carter shouted angrily.
Khan didn't expect Carter to have this strange side when he was at home. Obviously, when Carter worked at the castle, he was as gentle as the earth. Even when he got angry, he quickly controlled his emotions and returned to his exemplary and polite professional appearance.
However, Carter was not very scary when angry, but it seemed that fake fear had an effect on one person.
Elijah slowly crawled out of the closet, then he reluctantly stood in front of Khan. The figure who was a head shorter than him kept hunching down, his head bowed, not wanting to raise it to face him.
"Young master, this is my younger brother. Elijah." Carter formally introduced himself, then he nervously asked. "I-is this the person young master is looking for?"
Khan nodded in confirmation. If doppelgangers didn't exist in this world, then he was the Elijah he was looking for.
"Hello, Elijah. I am Khan, Khan Evangeline." Khan did not introduce himself, in fact he had momentarily forgotten. But he thought Elijah knew who he was.
Carter had no reason not to tell him his identity.
"Um… ah…" Elijah hummed.
Carter smacked his brother on the shoulder. "Answer properly."
Elijah was silent for a moment, then sniffled, Khan could swear he heard the sound of his frustrated sniffles ringing loudly in his ears.
"H-hello sir, I… I'm Elijah… sir."
"Yeah…" Khan replied silently.
The cool image of the villain Elijah in his imagination shattered into pieces. Although he knew that Elijah before becoming a villain was not so extreme that he would lose his humanity and do anything to achieve his goals, but that didn't mean he would become someone with communication difficulties like this, right?
"My brother doesn't have much contact with strangers, so he's not very good at talking. I apologize for his poor behavior." Carter bowed, sincerely asking for forgiveness. Perhaps, Carter thought he was angry.
"Nothing. I understand." Khan shook his head.
Considering Elijah's brutal past, his condition is understandable.
"Okay, Elijah. Can we talk for a bit?"
Khan turned around and walked to the only table in the room and sat down on a chair. There were many books scattered on the table, one of which was still open. Khan glanced over and saw that it was a magic book in the magic array section.
His legs crossed naturally, Khan picked up the book that seemed to be a manual for deploying magic circles and placed it on his lap. He spoke while Elijah still hesitated, fumbling and standing still.
"What magic circles can you draw?"
Elijah was startled, he looked at his brother and received an encouraging nod from the other side. Only then did Elijah say in a low voice:
"Some… low-class defense… and some tricks."
"Is that all?" Khan asked, showing no emotion. Whether pleased or displeased, no one could tell.
"If… if there were more books on magic circles…" Elijah gathered his courage and said. "I, I might be able to draw more magic circles if… if I had enough resources and knowledge…"
"Understood." Khan nodded, then calmly asked a question that made Elijah pale. "You're an untrained mage, right?"
Carter worriedly spoke up immediately:
"Master, he…"
But the explanation that followed was completely stuck in his throat when Khan gave him a startled warning glance.
Carter pursed his lips, honestly not saying anything.
"Yes…" Elijah's reply became smaller and smaller than before.
"Why?" Khan continued to ask calmly, but he looked even more cruel, like a true villain.
"I… I can't go to school…" Elijah abruptly raised his head, his eyes red, with tears at the corners that were reluctant to spill out. "You… you know that very well!!!"
Perhaps, Elijah thought that Carter had told him about his cursed disease.
"What do I know?" Khan asked back. "Tell me frankly."
If Khan hadn't looked completely serious, Carter might have thought his master was joking with his younger brother. Carter gritted his teeth and kept silent, his hands clenching into fists. He had chosen to trust his master.
Elijah was silent, but his pale face was etched with unmasked misery. Only the devil could make such a fragile boy cry.
The evil Khan spoke indifferently:
"I'm listening."
"I… I'm cursed…" Elijah sniffed a few times, turning his face away to quickly wipe away the tears that he couldn't hold back. "I can't… go out… into the sunlight…"
"Wrong."
Khan's voice echoed softly in the small space, causing everyone to look at him in surprise, demonstrating the weight of the words he had just spoken.
"I don't know if you're cursed or not. Besides, I don't care about that." Khan nonchalantly put the book back on the table, elbows resting on the flat wooden surface and chin resting on his hand, looking at Elijah who was staring blankly. Khan said. "You can't go to school simply because you don't have money."
"...Huh?" Carter felt stupid after hearing that.
"The Mage Academy offers full tuition support for those in need." Ibrahim gently reminded Khan. "As long as he has talent, the academy will not let its precious rough gem slip through its fingers."
Ibrahim's point was, if Elijah was capable enough, he wouldn't need to pay tuition to go to school. And another point was… the young master was in a deep hole, stop showing off!
"..."
Khan was silent for a moment, then spoke gently as if he had not finished speaking before:
"Money is one thing, but power is the most important. Luckily for you, I have both."
Khan completely regarded Ibrahim as air.
"Lucky me…?" Elijah was so confused that he forgot to stutter. "I don't understand…"
"You can't touch the sun, can you? You can't look up at the sun and ask why it made me like this, can you?"
Elijah's silence did not deny, which was also an answer.
"But you have legs and arms, and your intelligence, right?"
Khan sighed, he crossed his arms over his chest, this was the action he did whenever he felt dissatisfied about something.
"You can't go out in the sun, but you can cover yourself up to avoid the sun's gaze, right? And then when the sun goes down, who says you can't go out and do what you want?
What you fear is the judgmental looks of others, what you fear is your own strange appearance. You see countless evils and misfortunes in yourself and then run away from them, while you never look around once to find the outstanding abilities you have."
Elijah stared at him, eyes wide and staring at him. His eyes gleamed like marbles, burning with the color of a sunset.
"Of course, what I said may seem subjective and generalized to you, but everyone has their own feelings about things. No one can force their own feelings and thoughts on others."
Khan shrugged and continued. His voice was as calm as a lake without a ripple:
"But I hope you will consider what I have said. You are a genius, Elijah. I do not want your talent to be crushed by prejudice."
"I am a genius…?"
"Yes." Khan did not hesitate to give him an affirmative nod. "I am certain of that. I can swear it on my honor."
"How…" Elijah mumbled something, but in the end he just pressed his lips into a stubborn line.
He was still afraid. Afraid that what the Count had just said was a lie. But what did he have that the Count would go to such lengths to deceive?
"As I said, I have money and power." Khan boasted of his wealth without shame. "I give you resources, I give you knowledge and exploration. I give you the opportunity to step out of the basement where your talent is locked up so you can prove yourself."
"What… will I prove?"
"How about proving the world wrong and you right?" Khan found himself speaking too abstractly, so he corrected himself. "At the very least, you should let the world know your name and see you in a different, more transcendent light. Isn't that what you want?"
Elijah repeated like a puppet.
"Isn't this what I wanted…?"
After that, Khan did not say another word. He had finished his speech, the rest was up to Elijah's determination.
While waiting, Khan picked up another book and opened it. He had no intention of reading anything, just flipping through the pages out of boredom. But when he came across a page with a dense network of thin, neat lines next to neatly printed paragraphs.
Suddenly, he remembered the notebook that his sister in her previous life used to write the outline of The Legend of Rebirth. Every few times when she saw that he was free, she would come over to him and show him the notebook.
He kept complaining that it was annoying, but he still honestly took the book and read what it pointed out.
His sister had been writing Legend of Rebirth for a long time. All of her writing effort seemed to be poured into Legend of Rebirth. Every time she had a new idea about the setting, she would add it to the outline, sometimes even revising it over and over again, causing the unfinished story to lose its rhythm, forcing her to rewrite and revise it. Ten years was not a short period of time, and it was also this not-so-short period of time that made him know that his sister was completely serious about writing this series.
"Sir, what do you want me to… do?" Elijah finally spoke, Khan raised his head by inertia as he raised his voice to try to express his determination. "From now on, I-I will listen to you!"
Khan was a little stunned as he looked at Elijah who was tensely showing his determination, then at Carter's relieved look, and even heard Ibrahim mumbling to check the time beside him.
Everything is real.
This is the world his sister created.
And he lives here, in the world his sister created.
Suddenly, Khan thought…
Is everything real or is reality just an illusion?
Thump.
As soon as that thought crossed his mind, Khan felt the world spinning and shaking in his vision. He heard a familiar scream, and then he found himself struggling to fall off the chair, lying still on the damp floor. His eyes were wide open, taking in the chaos, but he could do nothing as his vision blurred.
Finally, Khan's mind fell into a dark patch.
He was completely unconscious.