Instead of My Beloved Sister, I Married a Monster - Chapter 48

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 48

While the three people sitting across from him couldn’t close their mouths in shock, Jens continued his story in a bitter tone.

“Back then, I was a hot-blooded man in my twenties. When you suffer together in such harsh conditions, camaraderie inevitably sprouts. I believed I could save those poor people. I thought that if I exposed Frank’s hidden corruption, he wouldn’t dare touch us anymore.”

Having finished speaking, Jens fumbled through his front pocket as if craving a cigarette. All he found inside were a few specks of old dust.

Jens blew the particles off his fingertips with a puff and looked up at the empty air with eyes full of regret.

He was now in Litberck.

No other words were needed to explain his life.

“Living is a miserable thing. You get slapped by trials and humiliation constantly, yet you can never stop. But what’s even more terrible than that is living so miserably and dying without ever winning once. Everyone here lives with that mindset, unable to die.”

“…”

“So what I want to say is just this: Please have pity on us. Let those people who have lost everything rest briefly in his shadow. We don’t need any other help besides that.”

Evnia silently looked into Jens’s eyes for a moment.

A man who had lost everything and was barely clinging to the one life he had left, a cruel existence where even that was burdensome and he had to give up everything else.

In a way, his conduct was flawlessly admirable.

He decided to move within predictable limits rather than draw in power he couldn’t handle.

It was a prudent attitude befitting someone who had been responsible for many people’s fates.

But even so, was the choice he made truly the right decision?

An answer chosen solely to avoid failure?

“I understand what you’re saying.”

Evnia quietly nodded.

While Jens’s expression brightened, Hanna was greatly agitated.

It seemed she had expected Evnia to readily promise help after hearing the other party’s difficult circumstances.

“Lady Evnia…!”

“Miss Hanna.”

Count Max quietly restrained the anxious-looking Hanna, as if reminding her of the position a personal maid should maintain.

Though that wasn’t what Evnia had hoped for, it was fortunate that she could continue the conversation without interference.

Evnia opened her mouth again with a calm attitude.

“But before you go back, could you listen to my story for a moment?”

“…Speak.”

Jens agreed after a moment’s hesitation.

He couldn’t just kick out a guest he had invited after only saying what he wanted to say.

Having received Jens’s permission, Evnia slowly turned to look toward where Litberg Castle was located.

What actually came into view was only the broken and cracked interior of the house and the faint light streaming through the gaps.

“At Litberg Castle, there’s also a friend of Lord Ram living there. He looks to be about ten years old at most, but he’s actually very old. He says he’s over five hundred years old, but he stopped counting after that, so even he doesn’t know his exact age.”

Everyone except Evnia looked puzzled at this sudden beginning.

Since this was the expected reaction, Evnia continued her explanation without stopping.

“Since he’s that old, most people probably look like young children to him. Mr. Jens would probably be like a newborn baby in front of him too.”

“Look here, miss. What exactly are you trying to say…?”

“He happened to give me some advice recently. He told me not to be trapped in my own thoughts and to look at the world broadly, saying it’s not good for young people to habitually give up on everything. It was good advice, though it didn’t really resonate with me. If there’s one big regret I have from living my life so far, it’s that I’ve given up on everything too late.”

“…”

“Giving up isn’t really a big deal, you know. You just jump down lightly like this before climbing too high. Then at least you won’t get seriously hurt. Even if you don’t achieve great success, you won’t completely fail either.”

Evnia said this while playfully lifting her index finger slightly and then dropping it.

She didn’t bother mentioning what things she had failed to give up on in time. This wasn’t a concern for herself anyway.

Jens slightly furrowed his brow as if he finally realized what she was talking about.

Evnia looked at him with a direct gaze and asked.

“What do you think, Mr. Jens? How should I live?”

“That’s… kind of an unfair question. Even I have things I’d never want to say in front of young people with bright futures ahead of them.”

“Feel free to speak comfortably. I’m still looking for answers too.”

A big sigh escaped from Jens.

After raising both hands and dry-washing his face for a while, he glanced nervously at the people from Litberg Castle sitting across from him.

“…If I do as you say, that is, if I really commit that crazy act of requesting protection from Litberg Castle… what would happen?”

That was a question even Evnia couldn’t be certain about.

If there was one thing Evnia knew for sure, it was that the great master of that castle wasn’t the heartless being Jens thought him to be.

Of course, she would need solid grounds to move his heart.

After a moment’s consideration, Evnia asked.

“First, could I hear more details about the corruption Baron Schwager committed?”

* * *

☆★☆

Baron Schwager and

10 Reasons Why We

Can’t Get Along

☆★☆

Ram’s face contorted strangely as he looked at the title of the report Evnia suddenly presented.

His expression showed he had no idea what this was about.

“…What is this?”

“You said last time that you were going to Baron Schwager to suggest getting along well. I hoped you wouldn’t do that.”

“No, that wasn’t literally about getting along well…”

Even while answering in such a bewildered voice, Ram obediently took the document Evnia handed him.

Seeming curious about what was written inside, he immediately flipped past the cover to check the next page as soon as he held the report.

It was a reaction that made the effort she put into catching his attention worthwhile.

‘I guess flashy pictures really do catch the eye.’

Since the flyer Hanna made seemed to work surprisingly well, she had applied it to the report too, and it produced satisfying results as expected.

Thinking she should make good use of this method next time too, Evnia calmly began her tattling.

“Baron Schwager is actually a really bad person. When I looked into it, he really is a textbook evil lord who squeezes the lifeblood out of his territory’s people.”

“I expected that from the moment I met that woman who claimed to be the baron’s family.”

“You mean Countess Janet?”

“Yeah, it was my first time seeing a baron’s sister, not even the baron’s wife, walking around dripping with jewelry like that. Sure enough, he’s been up to all sorts of things, hasn’t he?”

Ram whistled as he skimmed through the densely written text.

Having grasped that it was a well-organized collection of Baron Schwager’s corruption, Ram closed the file with a thud.

It seemed he was more interested in how Evnia had obtained this information than in the baron’s expected corruption.

He patted the empty space on the sofa, gesturing for her to sit next to him.

“So, where did this deadly material suddenly come from? You couldn’t have personally experienced events from over 15 years ago. I didn’t see anything like this when Max was moving his stuff either?”

“Mr. Jens, Baron Schwager’s cousin, gave it to me.”

“…Huh? Who?”

It seemed a more detailed explanation would be needed to convey the situation without misunderstanding.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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