Villain Family’s Strongest Butler - Chapter 49

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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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Episode 52

I swallowed hard under Cardrian’s murderous gaze.
“What do you think you’re doing?” he asked.
His voice was glacial—the kind that made you think he’d draw his sword and press it to your throat without warning. Pure fury.
Those violet eyes, darkened nearly the color of blood, transcended beauty and carved something closer to terror into the space between us.
That razor-edged presence pressed against my skin.
I kept my gaze lowered and spoke with deliberate calm.
“Your Highness. What is a Steward’s duty? Is it not simply the management of the Estate?”
…….
Instead of an answer, those savage eyes fixed on me like a noose tightening around my throat.
I opened my mouth again.
“It is also my duty as Steward to attend to the condition of the Head of Household.”
…….
“So I shall examine you now.”
It wasn’t a question. It was a statement—a directive delivered with the tone of someone who would tolerate no argument.
I stepped closer to him.
‘There it is.’
Faint, but unmistakable—the smell of blood.
‘He’s wounded.’
I began scanning him methodically, moving from point to point.
Yet contrary to what I’d expected, his appearance was pristine.
Aside from slightly disheveled hair, there was almost nothing visibly wrong.
When I tilted my head in confusion, Cardrian spoke in a flat, dismissive tone.
“Done looking? Then leave.”
…….
Normally, I would have nodded, turned, and left without hesitation. But something told me I couldn’t do that today.
At the very moment his cold dismissal reached my ears—
A richer scent of blood rose from his left arm.
I fixed my gaze on his left arm and spoke.
“I believe……”
…….
“I need to examine you further.”
…….
I lifted my gaze and gave him a deliberate smile. A muscle twitched along his brow.
I met his eyes with unwavering resolve, letting my conviction pass between us without words.
“Your Highness, forgive me.”
…….
“Remove your shirt.”
…….
…….
A stretch of silence fell.
I’d braced for an outburst, but instead, Cardrian simply complied—stripping without protest.
Rustle. Thud. Rustle. Thud.
In a handful of movements, the garments fell away like shed skin, pooling at his feet.
While he undressed, I spun quickly and gathered what I’d need for treatment.
Every room in the Estate was stocked with a First Aid Box, so I didn’t need to leave.
‘Hemostatic Agent, good. I have what I need.’
If the wound wasn’t deep, simple measures would suffice.
‘The blood-smell isn’t that strong, so it’s not a serious wound.’
Cardrian often slipped out before dawn and returned sometime later.
Each time, he reeked of death—that sour, coppery stench of old blood.
It was a reek that buried his usual cool, clean scent beneath layers of corruption.
But the blood I smelled on him now was different. It was fresh—the hot, raw copper of torn flesh bleeding.
That’s how I knew with certainty: Cardrian was hurt, and somewhere on that body lay the wound.
‘How dare……’
Whoever the bastard was—
I clenched the bandage in my grip hard enough to tear it.
‘But I haven’t even touched him yet……!’
Of course, seeing that Cardrian was wounded, the enemy was surely already beyond saving.
Still, the anger wouldn’t subside.
If I was going to wound him, I should be the one to do it. If I was going to slit his throat, I should be the one to do it.
Only I should ever be allowed to wound Cardrian.
‘That duke is mine…….’
How dare they wound what belonged to me. Even assuming the man was already dead, the fury wouldn’t dissipate.
All I wanted was to dig up his grave and rip him to shreds.
This wouldn’t do.
‘Next time, I’ll have to follow him.’
Just in case Cardrian got hurt again.
I picked up the box and went to him. Cardrian sat at the edge of the bed, his shirt removed.
Sure enough, his exposed left arm bore a long, finger-width gash.
Foolish duke. Getting himself wounded like that…….
I muttered curses under my breath while carefully examining his arm, taking care not to open the wound further.
‘But will he take me with him next time he goes out?’
Maybe sneaking after him was the only option? No, wait—because of this dog collar, I can’t go anywhere without permission anyway…….
‘What do I do.’
I began formulating a plan to follow him while scrutinizing his wound carefully.
It looked like it had been made by something very sharp, and fortunately, it didn’t appear to be poisoned.
“It doesn’t need stitches.”
I soaked a clean cloth in disinfectant and gently wiped away the wound and any foreign matter around it, then sprayed liquid hemostatic agent over it. The blood that had been seeping out stopped quickly the moment the agent touched it.
Once I confirmed the bleeding had stopped, I retrieved the ointment developed by the House’s physician.
“This is a medicine Larnus developed.”
I took a small amount of the ointment on my fingertip and gently rubbed it over his wound.
“It will help the wound heal quickly and prevent inflammation from developing. ……It will sting a bit.”
“…….”
Of course, Cardrian’s expression didn’t change at all.
‘This is the same medicine the head cook Rend rubbed on the back of his hand and then spent thirty minutes hopping around the back garden complaining about the pain.’
If Cardrian hadn’t lost all sensation, his hand would definitely be burning and stinging by now.
‘What a cruel man.’
After applying the ointment completely, I prepared a bandage.
“Could you raise your arm a bit?”
Cardrian obediently lifted his arm. I wound the soft bandage around his pillar-like arm and secured it firmly.
“Let me know if it feels too tight.”
Cardrian, who had been silent until then, opened his mouth.
“……You’re quite skilled. I didn’t know you could do such things.”
“This was also recorded in the Book of Balloth Rune—.”
“No, there’s no such content.”
“…….”
“Did you think I wouldn’t have memorized the Book of Balloth Rune?”
“Tch.”
“What?”
“Nothing, sir.”
Ordinarily he’d let most excuses slide, but now he was being quite persistent.
I tidied up the bandages and medicines from the treatment and opened my mouth to steer the conversation elsewhere.
“Where were you out visiting today?”
“…….”
Sure enough, Cardrian didn’t answer. Click, click. Only the sound of me organizing the box filled the silence.
I closed the box lid and fastened the latch, then looked up at him.
“Is it a place you can’t even tell your Steward about?”
“…….”
Cardrian pressed his lips firmly shut.
What stubbornness. I clicked my tongue inwardly and let out a sigh.
‘Fine then. Since when did we even have conversations like this.’
The situation wasn’t particularly good anyway, so it seemed better to back off for now.
‘Let me feed him something delicious, and once his mood improves a little, I’ll try again then.’
With that thought, I picked up the box and rose to my feet, offering Cardrian a smile as smooth as a drawing.
“Sir.”
“……What.”
“You don’t need to tell me such things.”
“…….”
“Instead, don’t carry all the burden alone. Don’t you have advisors? Jayden is fine, Allen is suitable too — why not find someone you can truly open your heart to?”
I knew a rebuke was coming for overstepping my place, but I wanted to say it anyway.
‘It would be even better if you shared those secret thoughts and feelings with me.’
Isn’t that how trust is built?
As I suppressed an inward smile, Cardrian let out a soft snort of derision.
“If you’re about to spout nonsense about sharing burdens, then don’t say anything at all.”
“…….”
Ah, this man. He’s twisted. Thoroughly twisted in temperament.
‘But he’s right. It aligns with my own outlook on life.’
Curiously enough, we see eye to eye on things like this.
I nodded in agreement.
“You’re absolutely right. Everything you’ve said is correct.”
“…….”
At that, Cardrian’s brow furrowed.
“Didn’t you just tell me to open up?”
“That’s advice for ordinary people, Your Highness. Not for someone like you.”
“What sort of person am I?”
“One who has many enemies?”
“…….”
I wiped the smile from my face and spoke with solemn intensity.
“For someone like you, worries are a burden carried until death itself. Because revealing them could become your weakness.”
“Ah, is that why you hide so much from the Steward? For fear of exposing your weakness?”
“…….”
I ignored his last remark and retreated with a quick smile, stepping backward.
“Which is why you should hide things too. Don’t let me get hold of your weaknesses.”
“……Where are you going?”
“If you keep getting injured like this before the Hunting Festival, you might fall behind even me.”
“…….”
“Sleep well, then.”
That’s all from me!
I hurried from the room.

***

“A weakness…….”
I know it. It’s a phrase that appears often enough in common counsel.
But…….
‘Every time I see that person, I feel a strange sense of déjà vu.’
Cardrian stood before the mirror, studying his reflection.
The snow-white bandage wrapped tightly around his left arm. Those skillful hands inspecting the wound beneath it carefully.
She was more adept at bandaging than Larnus, his personal physician.
She was a person he couldn’t understand, no matter how he tried.
And more than that.
-“For someone like you, worries are a burden carried until death itself. Because revealing them could become your weakness.”
The moment the Steward’s words reached his ears, another person came to mind.
-“Listen well, Cardrian. Worries are something you carry alone until you die. The moment you speak them aloud, they become your weakness. Do you have some death wish about letting me get hold of that?”
The words of the Female Knight, once his enemy, echoed in his memory.
The two figures seemed to overlap.
‘Am I losing my mind……? Or……?’
In one corner of Cardrian’s heart, another question took root without his knowing.

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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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