◈ REAPER SCANS ◈
Translator: Regressed Translator
Editor: leef
Discord: https://dsc.gg/reapercomics
◈ Return of the Disaster-Class Young Lord ◈
Chapter 23 | Labyrinth (5)
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“...So let me get this straight.”
Bandages covered her cheek, layers of gauze wrapped around her shoulder, and even a dented steel gauntlet clung to her arm. The dark elf maid bore all the marks of a fierce battle—her entire body told the tale. Yet, with a blank expression, she spoke.
“While I was fighting two high-level awakened individuals practically to the death, Young Master was… loafing around?”
"Hey now, it’s not like I was goofing off. I was busy with my own stuff," Dion protested.
“Yes. Busy looting the empty Purgatory Manor, I’m sure.”
“That was hard work, you know. If I hadn’t grabbed the spoils, it would’ve been a total loss.”
“You are so shameless, I bet you could parry swords with your cheek.”
“Parsha, watch your words,” Arsha cut in calmly.
Parsha, who had risked her life to take down the Black Knight and Ruba, then sprinted through the labyrinth in hopes of saving Dion, fell silent. Perhaps she felt it was unfair that he hadn’t helped her, because her criticisms had been sharp. BUt when Dion himself spoke up on her behalf, she hesitated.
“It’s alright, Arsha. She’s right to be upset. I really didn’t help her, so a little scolding is fair.”
“That’s not true at all,” Arsha said, her tone gentle but firm. “A personal maid is supposed to be of help to her master. She shouldn’t expect her master to rescue her, now should she? Especially when Lord Dion already showed our tribe such mercy by freeing us from Purgatory Manor.”
After capturing Silan, Dion had immediately headed for Purgatory Manor with Arsha.
With all the soldiers either deployed or dead, rescuing the imprisoned Dark Elves hadn’t been too difficult. If Dion had delayed and word had gotten out, smuggling out hundreds of Dark Elves would have been impossible. He had even helped them escape pursuit by using multiple Gates, allowing them to relocate far earlier than planned. Arsha’s gratitude was natural. However—
“It’s really nothing to call a favor. I just took care of what was mine.”
“…Of course,” Arsha replied, turning her gaze aside for some reason.
Parsha watched the boy’s quietly confident expression, then spoke in a flat tone, “It’s good you brought my people here, but let’s not forget we still have a problem.”
“You mean with the Lord of Little Magic City, right?”
“No way he’ll just sit quietly after this.”
Dion had reduced the man’s son to cinders, wiped out two high-level awakened ones (along with three hundred soldiers), and even looted the Purgatory Manor. This was practically a declaration of war. It wouldn’t be surprising if the lord flew into a rage and tried to kill Dion immediately. Yet—
“I doubt he’ll care that much.”
“What nonsense is that?”
“Think about my family. If I dropped dead tomorrow, do you think anyone would bat an eye?”
Parsha fell silent.
"Indeed, I share the young lord’s opinion," Arsha said. "From the start, it was Silan who provoked Dion. Now that Silan is dead, the Lord of Little Magic City won’t risk being charged with rebellion just to avenge him, especially when he has more than one child."
Parsha did not deny the logic, but her voice turned frosty.
“Whether he wants to leave it alone or not, someone else won’t.”
Dion exhaled. “That’s…”
“Right… someone else. So, you’re thinking one of my siblings was backing that little son of a bitch?”
Dion had dismissed Silan with those exact words before, and Parsha nodded without hesitation.
“Doesn’t it seem likely?”
“Yeah. Maybe the Lord of Little Magic City was in on it, too.”
“So Silan bullying our tribe wasn’t solely about me, was it?”
“No way that yappy dog would pick a fight with House Unlicht’s citizens without some higher-up pulling the strings.”
Many of Dion’s brothers or sisters might pressure the Dark Elves just to harass him. One specific sibling came to mind as the prime suspect.
Parsha’s tone hardened. “So you already know they’ll move next.”
“Probably. Now that the little son of a bitch is gone, they’ll realize I’ve awakened.”
“…And you still sound this relaxed?”
“It’s fine. Even my siblings can’t touch me right away.”
“They’ll just aim somewhere else, that’s the real issue.”
“Which is why I said it’s fine.”
Parsha stared at him. Dion simply met her gaze with unwavering confidence.
After a moment, he added, “If they stir up trouble elsewhere, it just buys me time.”
For a moment, both Parsha and Arsha stared at him as if he were some irredeemable scoundrel. Then, with a subtle frown, Parsha turned to her mother.
“…Young Master is shameless by nature, so that’s not surprising. But Mother, what were you thinking?”
Arsha blinked. “What do you mean?”
“When Young Master spouted nonsense about taking you as a concubine, you didn’t deny it.”
Arsha stiffened. “That… well…”
Parsha’s voice turned ice-cold, like a biting winter wind. “You’re old enough to know better. Are you losing your senses?”
"Back then, that really was the best option, and you know it," Arsha countered, though her voice was subdued. "Declaring I would become his concubine was the only plausible justification for moving our entire clan without suspicion."
“It would’ve been a convincing plan if it didn’t lead to all this chaos. Such a pity.”
Arsha fell silent.
She staged that little “engagement” show in hopes of averting a larger crisis and keeping everything quiet, only for Silan’s madness to escalate. No one could have foreseen such extremes, yet the outcome was undeniable.
Parsha pressed the advantage.
“The real problem is that you were prepared to shoulder any disgrace, no matter how humiliating.”
Arsha remained composed. “Compared to the shame Young Lord Dion would suffer if this lie were exposed, my suffering is nothing.”
“Being treated as a cast-off courtesan by that idiot is… nothing?”
“It is a small price to pay for preserving our clan.”
“How can you say that?”
A mother willing to bear any infamy for her people’s sake and a daughter unable to accept that sacrifice—Parsha and Arsha were locked in an intense back-and-forth.
Then Dion, who had been quietly listening, tilted his head. “Uh, there’s something odd about what you’re saying.”
“…What is it?”
“You keep calling it a lie. But I never lied.”
Parsha’s brows furrowed. “I’m referring to that nonsense about taking my mother as your concubine. What else?”
“That wasn’t nonsense,” Dion replied, blinking. “I never said anything I didn’t mean.”
“...Pardon?”
“I told you, I’ve fallen hard for that mature charm.”
“That was… just something to get us out of that situation, right?”
“Why would I tell such a blush-worthy lie? Of course I meant it.”
Parsha fell silent.
Dion tapped his chin, then brightened. “Oh, right, there’s a custom for moments like this, isn’t there?”
Arsha, the dark elf clan leader—and now, in name, Dion’s wife—blinked in alarm as he turned away from her to address Parsha directly.
“Ms. Daughter, may I take your mother as mine?”
Parsha’s expression was unreadable.
“Well, even if you say no, she’s already mine anyway.”
There was no taking it back. He had already claimed her.
With that carefree smile, Dion declared it a done deal. The dark elf mother and daughter stared at him, stunned, as if they’d just been swindled into some bizarre marriage scheme.
『Name: Arsha
Race: Dark Elf (High)
Title: [The Last Daughter of the World Tree]
Classes:
【Spirit Shaman】☆☆☆☆ Lv0 (Inactive)
【Lord】☆☆☆ Lv2
【Civil Official】☆☆ Lv6
【Archer】☆☆ Lv10
【Village Chief】☆ Lv10
Traits:
【Noble Flower (SR)】
【All-Rounder Beauty (R)】
【Blessing of the World Tree (R)】 (Inactive)
【Rapid Fire (N)】
【Administration (N)】』
『【Noble Flower (SR)】
1. Your charisma increases (Large).
2. You are a better ruler (Mid).
3. Your plant affinity increases (Small).
4. You attract conflict (Mid).
5. You’re worse at lying (Large).
—A beautiful flower is held in lofty regard by all, yet inevitably draws swarms of pests.』
◈ REAPER SCANS ◈
Translator: Regressed Translator
Editor: leef
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Meanwhile, in Remnant Moon City, known for its perpetual night, held a single castle that glowed day and night—the Sleepless Castle. A domain of the Blood Night Mage House Vlad, its size and splendor were unmatched.
But despite its grandeur, the mood within had grown grim
It wasn’t just because Gerald, a gatekeeper, had been found dead. Sudden, violent deaths were common in the Centuriate Cities.
The real trouble had begun a few days later when people—housemaids, stablemen, soldiers, cooks’ assistants, even high-level awakened individuals—started vanishing one by one. Some disappeared in groups, others vanished days apart. The tension in the castle was suffocating.
So the gatekeepers had grown extra vigilant.
Gerald had been the first to die in this recent spate of disappearances, and the sense of crisis ran high. People could guess, at least vaguely, what these “disappearances” meant—which only heightened the atmosphere of dread.
Clank.
“Who goes there?
“State your name and origin.”
When a stranger arrived at the main gate, the guards naturally stepped in to question him. They could tell by his bearing that he was of noble descent, so they remained polite —but firm. Under normal circumstances, a commoner stranger would have been ejected without a second glance.
The response they received was swift and brutal.
Crack!
“...Huh?”
“Aaaargh!”
In a flash, both gatekeepers collapsed, their legs broken. The visitor, looking down at them as though they were insects, sneered.
“To think such lowly creatures would dare question my pedigree. They don’t know their place.”
“My lord,” a pale-faced maid behind him stammered. Her dark circles and haggard appearance made it clear she hadn’t slept in days. “They only did it because they truly don’t know who you are…”
“Their ignorance in itself is a crime.”
“But—”
“Are you contradicting me?”
“N-No, never!”
She flinched, clearly terrified, yet mustered the courage to speak again—whether out of loyalty as a personal maid or fear of what might follow.
“But, my lord… how will we find our way inside now that we’ve lost their guidance?”
“I need no guide.”
“W-What do you mean…?”
Ignoring her trembling concern, the visitor strode forward. Surrounded by guards with glowing red eyes, he flashed a chilling smile.
“If that useless little brother of mine won’t bother crawling out on his own, I’ll just force him to come out.”
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