The Duke Dad I Chose Can’t (Really) See Well - Chapter 25

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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 25

“Anyway, good work today. You’re still far from catching up to this genius’s mind, though.”

“….”

“See you tomorrow.”

With those words, Max walked away. At the same time, Ralt leisurely approached me.

He naturally tucked me under his arm and asked.

“New icicle, did you have fun today? Max has been looking cheerful all day ever since you came.”

“…Yes. I had fun.”

“That’s strange. You sound like you have no energy. Don’t tell me Max was bothering you?”

I shook my head.

It really wasn’t bullying, and I was also too focused on my thoughts to properly hear what Ralt was saying.

A genius inventor and a crazy psychopath.

‘Mad Max’s’ first murder would happen right here in Stukkyia.

And in just a few days.

But the Max I had seen so far didn’t match even the slightest hint of murder.

‘Of course, psychopaths are very good at hiding their true nature, so even that could be an act….’

Could all of that really be an act?

Really?

My head was starting to hurt from the confusion.

“Well, if his sibling had grown up, they would have been exactly your age.”

Ralt’s words suddenly captured all my attention.

My eyes snapped open. I felt like I had heard something very important. So that means….

“Mister, what did you just say?”

At my words, Ralt blinked.

“Did I say something strange?”

“Just now… you said if Max’s sibling had grown up.”

In other words, didn’t that mean Max’s sibling hadn’t lived to grow up to my age?

“You… don’t tell me you didn’t know?”

Ralt, who had widened his eyes in surprise, sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

“Damn. I said something I shouldn’t have. I thought you knew….”

Grinding his teeth, he seemed to think there was no point hiding it now and looked at me with a serious expression.

“Just listen once and forget about it. It’s not exactly a pleasant story.”

Ralt slowly opened his mouth.

At the words that followed, I couldn’t help but widen my eyes.

“Max is an orphan. He lost his entire family during the religious war and survived alone.”

* * *

“Since it was such an incident, I couldn’t ask for details. But it’s certain he lost his entire family during the war.”

“He takes such good care of you that I thought he saw his sibling in you. He said his dead siblings were exactly your age. That’s why we didn’t stop you two from spending time together….”

On the way back to the castle, I mulled over what Ralt had told me.

But no matter how much I thought about it, it didn’t make sense.

‘The first person Max killed was… his own family.’

Max’s first murder from his past was revealed thanks to the Temple’s investigation.

After the nickname ‘Mad Max’ was born, the Temple conducted a massive investigation into his history.

That’s when a cleric accidentally discovered records of an old case.

The perpetrator had killed a young couple and small children before fleeing.

The scene was truly hellish, so horrific that there wasn’t a single intact corpse.

‘Especially the body presumed to be the husband was missing one leg….’

It was a case filled with malice, but the perpetrator hadn’t stolen anything. There were no signs of ransacking or evidence of money being stolen.

All that remained at the scene were the victims’ corpses and documents with the family members’ names written on them.

Thanks to those documents, they were able to identify the victims, and here they discovered something peculiar.

Among the dead children, only one child’s body was missing.

The clerics thought the perpetrator had kidnapped the child and proceeded with the investigation.

However, Stukkyia was a place where various problems occurred. The perpetrator was never caught, and the case was closed as unsolved.

That case resurfaced years later.

‘The missing child. That child’s name was Max.’

The family that died horribly.

The child who survived alone.

The child who survived and went on to kill others.

After that, the case was given a different name.

The crazy psycho. Stukkyia’s eldest son. ‘Mad Max’s’ first murder.

‘But….’

“You don’t need to thank me. My brother said we should share when we have something delicious.”

“I love our family more than anyone else in this world. I’d do anything to protect my family.”

Max’s face when talking about his brother and family looked incredibly happy.

“Where are you going to fit with that small body? Just stay still. I’ll do it.”

“You! I told you not to hold hammers! How can someone so tiny handle something so dangerous! Put it down right now!”

Would a crazy psycho who killed his family and ran away care so much about a child he wasn’t even close to?

Honestly, I didn’t know. I had never had such a precious family myself.

But there had to be something hidden. There definitely had to be….

The complicated, tangled worries couldn’t be resolved even when night came and the next morning arrived.

I was walking through the castle with a somewhat gloomy heart to eat breakfast.

Someone blocked my path.

“Good morning, little lady.”

Monocle glasses. The same serene face as always and hands politely placed in front of his chest.

It was Butler Caron.

“Good morning, Butler.”

“The weather is quite cold today as well. To commemorate such a cold day, I just came from lowering the temperature in my master’s room by exactly 5 degrees.”

However, the words he spoke were somewhat at odds with his politeness.

“So I hope Lady Hanisha will dress warmly… Oh my.”

Caron, who had been speaking continuously, suddenly made an ‘oops’ expression and lowered his hands.

Then, without giving me a chance to say anything, he spun around and bent his knees.

His broad back instantly filled my vision.

“Please get on.”

“Huh…?”

“I momentarily forgot. Lady Hanisha is absolutely not someone who should walk on her own two feet.”

“….”

“How presumptuous of me to leave my side empty. I’ll offer my back instead. Come, please get on.”

Caron spoke again with a determined expression.

…He was definitely teasing me about being tucked under the blacksmith thugs’ arms.

I took a step back and spoke in a grumpy voice.

“…I don’t want to.”

“How unfortunate. I could have carried you quite well.”

Caron got up with a face that showed no regret at all.

“But you don’t look well. Is something wrong?”

“No, nothing really…”

I was about to say nothing happened, but decided to trust Caron and asked him.

“Well, what should you do when you want to have an older brother?”

“Oh. You wish you had a sibling? That’s unexpected.”

I didn’t answer. It wasn’t a question I expected an answer to.

“Well. An older brother…”

Perhaps judging it as a child’s nonsensical question, Caron thought for a moment then answered clearly.

“You could ask someone to become your older brother.”

“…What?”

Caron spoke to me as I hesitated.

“An older brother is literally an older brother, so you can’t give birth to one. Then you just need to make someone older than you, Hanisha, into your older brother.”

“…”

“People who want to become Hanisha’s older brother would probably line up… Do you happen to have someone you’d like to make your older brother?”

Caron asked again, but I couldn’t answer.

I felt like I’d been hit hard in the head with something.

‘…Right, that’s what it was!’

In an instant, the misaligned puzzle pieces began fitting together.

‘Max really wasn’t a psychopath after all. Max was just…!’

This wasn’t the time to be standing around.

“Excuse me, Butler! Thank you!”

“As thanks, if you’d consider me as an older brother candidate, I’d be grateful…”

I didn’t listen to Caron’s remaining words and ran to the workshop. I had something to say to Max.

However…

“Huh? Max? Max took a few days off?”

“V-vacation?”

“He said he couldn’t come in for a few days because of something very important. Does anyone know what it was about?”

“Well. From what I heard, he said there was something very important at home… I don’t know what it was, but he seemed really excited. But why are you asking, newbie?”

The thugs asked, but I could only gape.

I wasn’t certain. But I had a gut feeling.

Maybe Mad Max’s first murder was about to happen!

I asked urgently.

“Do you know where Max’s house is?”

“Well. I’m not sure about that…”

The thugs tilted their heads.

But his first murder happens at home. I need to find him as quickly as possible and stop him…

As I pondered, I suddenly felt a sensation at my feet and looked down.

My eyes widened.

‘Right, you never know…’

Maybe it’s not completely impossible after all.

‘A way to find Max’s house!’

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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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