No Dark Secrets In This Book

Episode 40

Anyone who understood what that meant would inevitably feel devastated.

“I have a tolerance to poisons, so I don’t die easily,” he said.

‘Then does that mean you’ve been poisoned so frequently?’

What for, could it be because he’s a Demillang? Are those targeting the Demillangs trying to go after the young master? Ryuseong hated his background that made him understand why he ended up like this. The life that made him comprehend why he became broken.

And at the same time, he was puzzled.

‘Why doesn’t the Demillang family actively protect the young master?’

He knew Cassice would skillfully make even his own injuries part of his scheme. But shouldn’t adults not do that?

The Cassice Demillang family seemed to love him. His great-grandfather also seemed to cherish him.

Even if he tries to lure himself into a trap, shouldn’t the adults forbid it…?

However, it seemed the butler who served him wasn’t unfamiliar with feeling dumbfounded.

Vincent remembered how bitterly his young master, who uttered such words without hesitation, held back tears the first time he was poisoned. He remembered the humanity he had to throw away to become so indifferent. So he felt a pain as if his heart was being sharpened.

The medical professor, another adult, approached the pain from a different perspective. He knew what kind of agony was inflicted when a human’s organs dissolved. And the fact that someone who had been accustomed to pain to the point of not even being aware of that level was just a student, the fact that a young man who had just become an adult and should have been enjoying college life like others…

It gouged his ribs.

***

Regarding the fact that those gentlemen have grim expressions when I’m the one who ate the poison…

I don’t know what the problem is, but hmm. Okay.

“…Let’s put a hemostatic agent on the arm and administer the antidote first.”

Anyway, the situation has improved!

Although everyone still had grim faces, unlike before, they stopped fighting.

The homeroom teacher tore off the tattered tissue from my arm, ran various tests, and said certain poisons and other poisons had been combined. Thanks to that, the butler, who had instructions on what medicinal ingredients to decoct and feed me, wrote the contents on a talisman and burned it. Then that message would reach the pharmacist who had the twin talisman.

‘Wow, in a world with cell phones, it’s awesome that they can still communicate with that.’

Isn’t this the perfect setting for schemes and conspiracies to wriggle around?

It would also be great for secretly dating couples to exchange notes.

‘The dating market would be thriving too.’

In the midst of that, there was something interesting. The butler told me to ask him to pull my shoulder holster, as if he didn’t want to use the Academy’s infirmary supplies.

But what can I do with one arm missing? I pretended to fumble and pull, and when I looked at Ryuseong, he perfectly understood and started groping me. If I say it like this, does it sound perverted? I am indeed a pervert.

“Yes, the one with the yellow sticker. No, that’s light yellow.”

“……”

I teased him with something silly, but Ryuseong just silently took out the hemostatic agent.

Actually, the butler seemed to feel uncomfortable with Ryuseong from the Hanra faction taking out the hemostatic agent, but when I gestured with my eyes to stay still, he shut his mouth.

‘Fortunately, he has that much sense.’

Soon, white hemostatic powder was sprinkled on my mangled forearm. It pisses me off that it hurts more now after applying the hemostatic agent than before treating it, but would Cassice Demillang show such weakness? That would be impossible, so I decided to endure it with all my might.

“The personnel for the arm surgery…”

“We will prepare them on our side.”

The butler spoke firmly and decisively. I wondered why we came to the infirmary then, but I thought it couldn’t be helped to get the antidote prescribed. The sooner the antidote is used, the more likely it is to prevent them from cutting my stomach open and fiddling with my organs after general anesthesia. In the original story, Cassice Demillang hated not knowing what would happen when he was unconscious. The butler must have thought to cater to his master’s whims.

But then Eipl intervened.

“Hey. Vincent. I’ve been curious from earlier!”

Eipl, who was strangely frowning at me, said,

“Weren’t you attacked by an assassin disguised as Demillang? Then those who were thought to be on the Demillang side could have been switched out and could tamper with the antidote or scalpel, no?”

“……”

“Woah, don’t get angry! What I mean is, not everything you think is safe can be safe. We should also consider if what we think is unsafe is actually true. It’s like saying to test the stone bridge before crossing. Right?”

He had a point. There’s no guarantee that the personnel from Demillang are safe.

Still, Cassice Demillang hates anesthesia, so hmm.

“Maybe, I think I can endure the arm surgery without anesthesia.”

“What?! Is Duke Cassice Guan Yu?!”

Damn, do you have to say it like that? Honestly, I almost laughed. I felt like my belly button would fall off from holding back laughter, so I couldn’t say anything for a moment, and everyone was looking at me with strange expressions.

But was what I said that odd?

“If I’m awake, I can be wary of any funny business no matter what the professor does.”

“……”

“My, my, what are you worrying about? If I can’t endure it and thrash around, hold me down, and if I scream, gag me.”

“No, what…”

“What can’t be done to keep me alive? Don’t argue over something trivial.”

I’m being completely genuine, but I don’t know why everyone is reacting like they’re seeing Guan Yu.

“…First, you need to take the antidote. The surgery is a problem to consider after that.”

Poof!

“Oh, it’s here.”

“……”

The antidote was summoned with perfect timing!

Although the butler and I had a battle of nerves, the homeroom teacher fulfilled his duty as a doctor. He requested to have it tested to ensure it was made with safe ingredients before consumption, and the butler allowed it on the condition that he personally dispense a small amount for the examination.

By the way, I had no energy to give my opinion.

Actually, I wondered how I could trust the butler, as blood was slowly refluxing up to my throat. I was forcibly swallowing it down.

“Ugh.”

“Don’t hold it in.”

At that moment, Ryuseong grabbed my chin. I unconsciously coughed and thick blood flowed down between his fingers. Damn it. Once you start vomiting blood, it smells and feels even more disgusting.

The homeroom teacher’s hands hastened as he tested the antidote. As soon as the results showed no problems, the antidote was immediately fed to me, and I half-vomited and half-swallowed it. Fortunately, they sent a generous amount, so after a few attempts, I was able to drink a sufficient dose of the antidote.

But as I said before, it hurts more after pouring the hemostatic agent or antidote than before. The feeling of my guts being pierced by a heated skewer…

“Shall we start the arm surgery?”

Everyone tried to dissuade me, but this was my genuine and wholehearted opinion, no more, no less. If it’s going to hurt, it should hurt all at once; it would be troublesome to divide the pain into morning, afternoon, and evening. While undergoing the surgery, I was in so much pain that I thought I would die several times, but I endured it all and finally drove the homeroom teacher crazy.

I’m saying I really had surgery without anesthesia.

‘Hmm. An impressive feat.’

Honestly, I almost died. I thought the pain in my arm would be forgotten because my stomach hurt, but both my stomach and arm hurt vividly. Still, I didn’t make a sound or writhe while biting my lips. Even I think my endurance is the best.

‘I thought I shouldn’t faint, so I was able to endure even a riot.’

I couldn’t fall asleep properly because I was conscious, but I was in a state where it was difficult to distinguish between friends and foes. In that state, when I was half out of it, I vaguely saw the moon rise and the sun rise. Then when I opened my eyes, there was a zombie in front of me.

‘Oh shit, you startled me.’

It wasn’t a fake, but a real zombie. That meant our principal was in front of me.

Did he notice I was startled? But the principal didn’t say anything, so I thought it was fortunate. Because Ryuseong was beside me and the butler was at my bedside.

If I got teased, I might have gotten pissed and fainted.

“You killed a lot of people.”

But when he throws such a direct ball, I rather wish he had teased me… I rolled my eyes.

‘It seems difficult to brush it off as a joke, right?’

Well, even I didn’t know I would be so unscrupulous about killing people. I was shocked last time with the assassination attempt on the chauffeur, but I guess since those bastards threw the first punch, I don’t give a damn at all.

‘Guilt is bullshit and nonsense.’

If someone wants to kill, they should at least see their own grave site before coming. Isn’t that the basics?

Perhaps, the principal also seemed to understand my feelings.

“It’s not that you did wrong, but it’s become too big to cover up. You’ll have to undergo a police investigation, and there’s a limit to brushing off the Demillang family’s contact now, so you’ll have to prepare soon.”

“Yes, I will take care of it.”

“…You almost died.”

“So, are you happy about that?”

The principal stared at me for a long time.

“You fool…”

I didn’t care what he was thinking. After confirming that the butler was glaring at the principal with full readiness at my bedside, I smiled and said,

“I pity the butler trying to confront Teacher Damyeon, so how about you leave?”

“For now, I handled your injury as the butler said.”

“What?”

“He told me not to tell anyone.”

It seemed Cassice had been hiding his injuries until now. I didn’t know well because he got caught a few times in the original story, but come to think of it, he had to hide to get caught. Oh, I couldn’t catch this simple fact.

Jeong Ian, please use your brain.

“Do you really intend not to tell even your parents?”

You said you haven’t told them so far? Then I should do the same.

“Yes.”

But when Bagaji heard the answer – I don’t know if such a thing exists – his expression somehow became gloomy and miserable. No, should I say it became devastating?

‘……?’

What is it? I didn’t faint, you know? I achieved legendary acting genius, so what’s the problem?

‘Why is everyone going crazy?’