The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - LLD Chapter 27: A Guest Visits the County (2) (Part 2)

As the eldest daughter of the House of Whitewolf, and as Adrian’s younger sister,
if she could just be of help to him—that was enough.

Titles like “Lord” or “Head” held no meaning for her.

Adrian picked up the document.
He began reading it, line by line, with careful attention.

Serapia’s heart pounded in her chest.

‘Maybe now… he’ll understand my feelings just a little.’

She waited for Adrian’s response with a heart full of hope—
And soon, he spoke.

“I have no intention of becoming the head of House Whitewolf.”

It was an answer she hadn’t expected at all.

“…What?”

“Even less do I plan to be the lord of this county.”

“B-but…!”

“Isn’t that good news for you?”

“It’s not!”

Serapia shouted and shot up from her seat.
Then, realizing what she had done, she quickly covered her mouth with both hands.

“…Hhk!”

She sat back down and lowered her head.
Thankfully, Adrian said nothing more.

When she cautiously raised her eyes, she saw him calmly eating again, as if nothing had happened.

He didn’t look like he believed a word she’d said.

“Is it… because of me?”

“It is.”

Adrian didn’t even bother to deny it.
He didn’t seem to see the point in lying.

And that hurt.
It hurt a lot.

“Then why did you come back to the family?
If you don’t plan to be the head or the lord, why—”

“There’s something I need to do.”

“Something… you need to do?”

Serapia asked, but this time, Adrian offered no response.
He simply continued eating, letting the clatter of utensils fill the silence.

It seemed he had no intention of telling her what that “something” was.

Even so, Serapia wanted to ask.
But the cold look on Adrian’s face silenced her.

Her gaze dropped without her realizing it.
Biting her lower lip, she whispered:

“…Once you’re done with that ‘something,’
Are you going to leave the family again?”

“When I’m done.”

Adrian quietly put down his fork and knife.
He wiped his lips with a napkin and stood up.

“One way or another, you and I won’t have any reason to meet again.”

Until then—

“I hope we don’t run into each other.”

And with that, Adrian left the dining room.

Serapia was left sitting there alone.

Every time she tried to take a step closer to him,
Adrian took ten steps back.

She didn’t dare to hope for the love of a brother.

But couldn’t they at least live like a normal pair of siblings?

“…….”

Apparently, even that was too much to ask.

Her chest ached.
But Serapia didn’t give up.

If she were the type to give up over something like this,
she would’ve done so long ago.

‘He said he has something to do.’

Adrian had clearly said he had a task to complete within the family.
Whatever it was, he didn’t intend to tell her.

Even so—

‘It means… he’s staying with the family for now.’

They would live under the same roof.

Which meant… she still had a chance.
A chance to change his heart.

‘I will.’

Serapia vowed again and again.

It happened the moment I stepped out of the dining hall.

◆Serapia’s Affection Level toward you is now at [Trust].
◆A character in a [Trust] state believes in you completely, relies on you, and will follow you unconditionally.
◆Serapia is willing to suffer personal loss for your sake.

…To be honest, I couldn’t understand it.

There are two people in the family I must kill.
Serapia and Kai.
My Affection Level toward both of them is [Hatred].

I harbored a strong, aggressive intent to destroy both Serapia and Kai without fail.

But their feelings toward me couldn’t be more different.

Kai’s Affection Level toward me was [Loathing].
Serapia’s Affection Level toward me was [Trust].

Kai was the normal one.
Serapia… I simply couldn’t make sense of her.

I didn’t recall ever being kind to Serapia. From the moment she was adopted into the family, I resented and hated her.

And yet, why did she [trust] me?

That’s what puzzled me.

The current Serapia wasn’t the fallen witch I remembered.
She may possess the power of frost, but she wasn’t the Monarch of Frost.
The sudden meal invitation Serapia proposed—
The only reason I accepted it was because she was so different from the Serapia I remembered.

Could she be putting on an act right now?
Was she hiding her true intentions behind a mask and deceiving me?

Maybe back when I was just a degenerate, I might’ve fallen for it.
But not now.

As a former commander of a special operations unit, I’d interrogated and tortured countless Imperial soldiers—and endured it myself as well.

I’m only exaggerating a little when I say… just by looking into someone’s eyes, I can usually tell whether they’re lying or not.

Which is why I can say this:

…She wasn’t.

The written oath, the Affection Level—everything pointed to the same truth.
Serapia truly [trusted] me.

But the Serapia I knew was definitely a fallen witch.
The Monarch of Frost who mercilessly massacred our allied forces and took Ian’s left arm.

So what was it?

What turned Serapia into the Monarch of Frost?

In my previous life, I left the family without learning anything. I wandered the streets like a vagrant.
Driven by starvation, I once ate a raw heart—and lost my mind.

Until I met Ian, I lived no differently from a monster.

From the day I abandoned the family—
From the day I ran from the Ice Troll, what exactly happened in the County of Whitewolf?

“…Enough.”

I brushed off the thought.
Dwelling on it wouldn’t do me any good.

Even now, I can clearly recall the image of the Monarch of Frost slaughtering my comrades.

Serapia must not be allowed to live.
The only reason I haven’t killed her yet is because of Ian.

Besides, I currently have no intention of becoming the Lord of House Whitewolf.

If Ian comes to find me, we’ll begin preparations to form an allied force. In the meantime, I need to devour the powers of rare monsters scattered across the continent.

I have no time, no luxury, no reason to remain stuck in this remote northern land.

But…

“It’s not Ian…”

The guest who visited the County this time wasn’t Ian.

It’s been almost a month since I returned to the past.
Ian should’ve visited me long ago.

And yet, there’s been no sign of him at all…

“He must not know I’ve returned to the past.”

It seems Ian isn’t aware that I’ve regressed.

Predation [S+]

My ability to devour the heart of a living being and acquire their powers.

However, whether I was absorbing the ability or merely copying it—I still didn’t know.

If it was absorption, it meant I had taken the power away from Ian.
If it was duplication, then both Ian and I would possess the ability.

But regardless of absorption or duplication, one thing was certain—
Ian possessed the ability to regress.

Because I didn’t have any skill like Regression [EX].

“Ian definitely returned to the past with me.”

But Ian might not be aware of that.
He might not realize that I returned as well.

That much I could guess from something he once said to me—

Right before the final battle with the Emperor,
Before Ian handed me his heart,
He said this:

—“Adrian.”
—“What.”
—“There’s one last thing I want to ask of you. Will you grant it?”
—“Take out the word ‘last’ and maybe I will.”
—…

Ian never said yes.

Last.

He called it his last request.
But why would Ian use the word “last” with me?

If he had the power of regression, he never should’ve used that word in the first place.

Translatin_Otaku

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