My Disciples Became Scoundrels - Chapter 86

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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When the Noble Daughter proposed that House of Morban become Balanus’s patron, the Duke of Morban fell silent. Instead, he looked at me once.
“Would you accept our patronage?”
Was there any backing in this country as powerful as House of Morban? It was an offer anyone would welcome. I bowed my head quietly.
“I’m sorry, but it seems difficult for us to accept your patronage.”
“Why is that?”
“There is infamy attached to us—the stigma that the invasion fifteen years ago was Balanus’s fault.”
Of course, this was an excuse. We refused because we would lose more than we gained by accepting patronage.
“Even with that infamy, it would bring harm to the House.”
Once a patron emerged, there were things we could not do. Like a beast that wears a leash.
There was also what the Baroness had said.
“Someone among the high nobility knows something about the invaders, I hear.”
What if that high nobleman was Morban? What if he had hidden that information?
He might well be our enemy. I could not take such a man as a patron.
“Dein, that’s just infamy. It doesn’t matter!”
The Noble Daughter seemed eager to draw me to her side. But she did not have the initiative.
The Duke gently wrapped an arm around his daughter’s shoulders. His expression was soft yet resolute.
“We’re grateful you saved her life. But we cannot be caught up in scandal ourselves.”
I saw through that excuse as well. The Duke of Morban never seemed to have intended to patronize us from the start.
The Noble Daughter did not resist. Like a well-trained cat. Only then did the Duke smile at me with benevolence.
“I cannot be your patron, but neither can I simply send you away empty-handed. If there’s anything you wish for, speak it.”
A duke would grant me almost anything I asked—within reason.
After a brief silence, I spoke.
“I would like to visit Ustia Temple.”
We were searching for Kihano. More precisely, we needed the ability he possessed—the Truth-Concealing Authority.
That authority likely existed among other priests as well. But Ustia Temple was not a place anyone could simply enter.
Unless a figure of the Duke’s stature made the request.
“Why do you wish to visit the temple?”
“I would like to inquire about a priest I once knew.”
The Duke asked nothing more. Not who we were searching for, not what we intended to do upon meeting him. He withdrew his gaze.
“I’ll send word to the temple. My daughter needs to rest, so you may take your leave.”
I bowed and withdrew, leaving the Noble Daughter watching with obvious reluctance.
We had not gained a patron. But we had gained an opportunity to make contact with Ustia Temple.
I recalled the Duke’s face from just moments before. That expression which revealed neither emotion nor thought easily.
One day, I wanted to bring him before Kihano as well. I wanted to ask him.
Whether there was falsehood in his words.
Whether he knew anything about us, about what happened fifteen years ago.
16. Reasons
The world beyond the window was growing dimly bright. The particular dampness of dawn drifted in through the panes.
As I passed through the corridor, loud snoring echoed. Cesare must have kicked off all his blankets again.
Jenia was in the bathroom. She was asleep in the bathtub in slime form.
Bella would scream if she saw this. I lifted Jenia into my arms and laid her on the bed before leaving.
Arkel and Bella’s room was quiet. The two of them were surely sleeping peacefully. The storage shed where Gai stayed had three locks on its exterior door.
I unlocked the padlock and peered through the gap. Gai was asleep on the new bed I’d bought him. He hadn’t run away.
After confirming everything was safe through the night, I came downstairs. I wondered if the Guardians might stage a sudden attack, but things remained calm.
While the children slept, I prepared breakfast. The smell of stew drifted up, and heavy footsteps thundered from above.
“Hey, Master’s cooking again!”
“Cesare, why didn’t you wake up first?! You were supposed to do it today!”
“Stop hitting me. I’m sorry!”
The children came thundering downstairs. Cesare’s face had gone pale.
“Did you sleep well?”
“Yes! Master, let me prepare the meal now. Come on!”
“It’s nearly done. Take it to the table.”
At that, the children’s faces fell with what looked like despair. How earnest they were, wanting to do the housework in my stead.
Gai, who came down last, took his seat, and the table was finally complete. As he sat, he made light conversation.
“And now I’m allowed to share meals with you. Your treatment of your prisoner is remarkably generous.”
“A prisoner still needs to eat.”
At first, Cesare had been reluctant about eating together. But the other disciples persuaded him.
Bella’s argument was logical.
“I want to talk with Gai as much as possible. In case we have a Regression. Even if not, information is necessary.”
Arkel was all efficiency.
“What’s the benefit of eating separately? Your mood?”
Jenia’s face lit up.
“I like looking at Gai’s face. I want to eat while watching him.”
I was, in a way, a blend of Jenia and Bella. I needed information. And I wanted to see Hayden’s face while he ate.
Cesare stopped refusing to join us at the table. Though he looked displeased about it.
I was quietly spooning up stew when the disciples grew remarkably quiet. Even the usually voracious Cesare was picking at his food.
Nothing but the clink of spoons against bowls. Gai looked at me with sudden gravity.
“Master, I’ve been meaning to confess something today.”
Was he about to say something foolish on a full stomach?
“This is food waste——”
Bella, sitting beside him, rushed to cover his mouth. Too late, though.
I glanced at the five bowls on the table. They were nearly untouched.
“My cooking must taste terrible.”
Jenia nodded vigorously.
“Yes. It’s awful.”
“Jenia. We agreed to keep that secret.”
“Oh!”
At Arkel’s words, Jenia glanced around nervously. So that’s why she’d volunteered for meal duty lately. Bella rose from her seat.
“I’ll make something fresh. From now on, not a drop of water will touch your hands, Master.”
Was that a threat?
When the new stew arrived, they all began eating at speed. The bowls emptied in moments.
How bad had my stew really been? In any case, it was pleasant to watch them eat well.
Dinner finished, I turned to Gai, who looked deflated.
“Done eating? Head upstairs.”
“Yes, yes. As always.”
His footsteps climbed the stairs. I glanced toward the parlor beyond, then looked away.
We had things to discuss among ourselves. Gai was ultimately not one of House of Morban, and he was a risk. In moments like this, he couldn’t be part of it.
“The Ustia Temple still hasn’t given an answer, I hear. We’ll have to wait a bit longer before we can visit.”
About ten days had passed since we’d rescued the Noble Daughter. It seemed that even for a Duke, getting permission from the Temple was difficult. Cesare spoke around a mouthful of bacon.
“What about the investigation into those guards who attacked her?”
“Not from the Duke, but the Noble Daughter told me.”
The Noble Daughter had summoned me a few days earlier, saying she wanted to buy Bullets. When I arrived, she’d prepared a full dinner.
She’d chattered away at the table for hours. I heard several stories that afternoon. About the guards who’d betrayed her, for instance.
“Each of those guards’ families had lost someone during the invasion of Aspenhel.”
The disciples’ expressions hardened. Bella clicked her tongue in disbelief.
“Is it a matter of grudge? Personal revenge by the guards? Or are their entire houses part of the Guardians?”
“Nothing’s been confirmed yet.”
“We weren’t even the cause of the invasion, and they died for nothing. With no proof, it’s just foolish.”
False evidence would have been better than nothing. With no evidence at all, proving our innocence was harder still.
I counted the dead from the invasion in my head. Even a conservative estimate was several hundred. Were we inheriting resentment that multiplied by that number?
The disciples fell silent. Reading the weight of the atmosphere, I spoke.
“That covers what I needed to tell you. If anyone has something to say, speak. Is there anything you want to buy, anything you need?”
Money had come in thanks to the Duke. We’d received a reward beyond just the introduction to the Ustia Temple.
At my words, Cesare raised his hand. Looked like he wanted something.
“We understand there are Guardians scattered around everywhere. But honestly, there’s something else that’s been bothering me.”
“Something bothering you?”
“Master, isn’t your muscle mass severely lacking?”
Was he joking? No—his expression was far too serious for a jest.
“I’ve been watching closely, and for how much you exercise and eat, you don’t gain any muscle at all.”
He grabbed my wrist and turned to look at the other disciples.
“Don’t you all think so? Look at this forearm. It’s practically skeletal. Not gaining muscle is abnormal.”
The children, who’d seemed confused at first, began to shift their expressions.
This wasn’t something I could talk my way out of anymore. I withdrew my arm and spoke.
“Since I came back from the dead, my body hasn’t been the same as before. That much is true.”
In fact, much had vanished from my body. The edges and lifeblood that had been carved into me were gone without a trace.
My recovery had been slow as well. The fact that muscle didn’t stick easily was likely connected to that.
“But it’s not critical. There’s nothing that needs solving right now, and nothing I can solve either.”
“No, it is something that needs solving right now.”
Cesare spoke with unusual firmness. He rarely put so much weight behind his words.
“And your hair seems to be falling out too! That’s a problem!”
“You must be seeing things. Jenia, stop counting my hair.”
I barely managed to stop Jenia from running her tentacles through my locks. My muscle mass was indeed diminishing, but my hair was intact.
Bella, who had been lost in thought, finally spoke.
“You should visit a healer. I know someone quite skilled.”
“A healer?”
“Yes. Even if they can’t treat you, examining your body might…….”
Her eyes gleamed quietly.
“……reveal something about the nature of resurrection, don’t you think?”

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