Surviving As An Obsessive Servant

Even though Edric was stepping into the imperial capital for the first time in his life, he felt no strong emotions.Even the hunting festival—where countless nobles participated to uphold their family’s honor and prestige—was nothing but tedious.He just felt suffocated.‘…Lobel has no intention of telling me the truth about his wound.’He had given Lobel plenty of chances, yet Lobel never told him anything properly.Why did a mere attendant have such abilities? What was the wound hidden beneath his bandages?Instead of answering, Lobel either dodged the question or outright lied. So Edric had stopped pressing him.There was surely a reason behind it.But as time passed, his emotions began to change.‘…Does he not trust me that much? I’ve changed a lot—I’m even the heir now…’For the first time in his life, Edric felt hurt.He had shown Lobel everything.The secret of his Deep Tribe bloodline, the truth about his mother, his miserable, wretched past…He hadn’t told Lobel these things because he wanted to, but in the end, he had revealed them all.And even if there was something he hadn’t shared yet, if Lobel had asked, he would have told him without hesitation.But realizing that Lobel didn’t feel the same way—that stung.Had he told Rimson or Evo instead?It was childish, and he knew it.Yet, the thought kept nagging at him. Constantly.Lately, he couldn’t even focus on his studies. No matter how hard he tried, the words on the pages wouldn’t sink in.It surprised him to realize that he still had such an immature side.But it was undeniable.The more he saw Lobel, the deeper these emotions became.‘…Lobel must have his reasons. I’ll just wait, like I always have.’Pushing down his feelings, he pulled his crossbow closer to his chest.Then he raised his head and checked the situation beyond the boulder he was leaning against.If the old records were correct, the silver deer would definitely appear today.That was Edric’s goal.As he scanned his surroundings, he thought of the noble boys who had mocked him at the start of the hunt.[Ah, so he really can walk. I guess the rumors were true.][But how long do you think that’ll last? He’ll just embarrass himself in the end!]Lobel had heard them, too.In fact, he had looked even angrier than Edric, glaring daggers at the nobles.If Rimson hadn’t blocked Lobel’s view with his massive frame, there might have been a full-blown fight.Edric recalled the family crests embroidered on their hunting uniforms and aimed his crossbow into the depths of the forest.Before he crushed their families, he would first catch the silver deer and humiliate them completely.Once he obtained the Moon Dagger, their foolish pride would be nothing but dust beneath his feet.Then, after about an hour of waiting—As expected, a shimmering silver figure appeared in his vision, flickering like a swiftly moving light.Without hesitation, Edric instinctively pulled the trigger.And in the distance, the glimmering figure came to a sudden halt.‘…I did it.’Lowering his crossbow, Edric stood up.But then, a sharp, acrid scent brushed against his nose.‘…..!’A strange, creeping sense of unease began to spread through him.He had felt this exact feeling once before.On the same day he saw his mother having tea with the lady next door.That day, his mother had passed away without leaving a single word behind.‘…….’Slowly, stiffly, he turned his head.All he saw was eerie stillness.There were no visible flames anywhere. The sun was setting over the towering trees.Yet, the unsettling silence remained. And the burning smell refused to fade.Edric’s expression went completely blank.He didn’t even bother picking up his crossbow before he bolted toward the scent.The doctor’s warnings about overexertion never even crossed his mind.When he finally arrived—Lobel was gone.Only the tied-up horses and the royal guards remained.Lobel and one of the horses were missing.Gripped by a suffocating sense of dread, Edric shouted, his voice almost a snarl.“Lobel! Where is Lobel?!”“If you mean the silver-haired attendant… he said his horse suddenly started vomiting, so he went to find water for it.”“…Alone?”Edric’s sharp question made the surrounding guards look visibly taken aback.It was as if they were asking: Why would we assign guards to a mere attendant?Edric cursed his own foolishness.But there was no time to regret it now.Before his mind could even process the situation, his body reacted first.He dropped to the ground and pressed his ear to the dirt.“Y-Young Master! Please get up!”The horrified knights tried to pull him up, but Edric ignored them.He had heard about the legendary abilities of the Deep Tribe.One of them was the ability to listen to the sounds of the earth.And sure enough, as he stayed completely still with his ear to the ground—A sound, almost like a scream, echoed in his ears.‘…That’s not a human voice.’The resonance was too strong.‘…A cave.’A nearby cave immediately came to mind.Without hesitation, Edric leaped onto his horse and raced toward it.The knights, sensing the urgency of the situation, hurriedly followed.When they arrived at the cave’s entrance, thick smoke was billowing out in a chaotic swirl.Because of the wind direction, the smoke wasn’t rising into the sky but instead spreading further into the forest.Without a second thought, Edric moved to enter the cave.But the flames raging at the entrance made it impossible to set foot inside.His lips trembled with despair.“Why is there fire here…?”“Signal flares! Get the signal flares up!!”Ignoring the knights who were lighting signal flares to call for backup, Edric turned his attention elsewhere.His eyes landed on a sheer cliff—a massive waterfall.Without hesitation, he started moving.He stripped off his cumbersome jacket, discarded all his heavy belongings, and readied himself.There wasn’t a single moment of hesitation.Then, Edric fixed his gaze on the raging waters of the waterfall—so strong it could sweep away even a large ship.And then—A loud splash shattered the air as something plunged into the water.“Young Master!!”  ****   I waited for Young Master in the shade of a tree, keeping watch over the two horses.But then, a problem arose.The prized horse, Andrea—a gift from the Duchess—suddenly vomited yellow bile onto the grass.“Andrea, Andrea. It’s okay. Just drink a little, alright? You’re such a good girl, my pretty Andrea.”I panicked but quickly gave her all the water from my bottle, gently stroking her mane to calm her down.But there was no improvement.I felt small tremors beneath her skin, and her body temperature was dropping fast.As I held her close in my arms, trying to soothe her, an old memory resurfaced.The horses in our trade caravan had shown the same symptoms before…And back then, they hadn’t survived the night.I frantically searched through the emergency medicine I had brought, but it was useless.Everything was meant for people, not horses.‘…Damn it.’I was worried about Andrea, but I was even more worried about Young Master.If something happened to the horse the Duchess cherished so much… it would be a disaster.He had just managed to secure his position as heir—I couldn’t let the Duchess find an excuse to attack him now.‘At the very least, I need to get her more water. And once Young Master returns, we’ll treat her right away.’Having made my decision, I informed the nearby knights.“If Young Master returns before I do, please tell him I’ll be back soon.”“Got it.”They looked a bit annoyed but didn’t refuse.After that, I headed to the lake I had seen earlier.It wasn’t far, so I arrived quickly.“Andrea, it’s alright. You’ll get better soon. Here, drink up.”I scooped up water with my hands and brought it to her mouth.After repeating this several times, some life finally returned to Andrea’s dull eyes.Just as I sighed in relief and stood up—A sharp pain struck the back of my head.Through my blurred vision, I saw a smiling face.“Thanks for making this easy. Goodbye.”‘That attendant from the capital earlier…’I tried to scream, but something was pressed against my mouth before I could make a sound.By the time I regained consciousness, my entire body was bound with ropes.Everything around me was pitch dark.I couldn’t breathe properly.‘I… I can’t even make a sound.’There was cloth wrapped over my mouth and nose.At first, I thought I might be blindfolded, but no—there was nothing touching my eyelids.It was just that dark.‘…Where am I?’In the silence, all I could hear was the steady drip of water and my own unsteady breathing.The hunt was still going on, so I couldn’t have been taken outside the capital.‘That means…’When I shifted my aching body, my back pressed against something hard.It wasn’t dirt.It was cold and damp.‘…Did they lock me in a cave?’The last thing I remembered was that sneering attendant’s face.But no matter how much I thought about it, I had never met him before.There was no reason for him to have a grudge against me.Which meant this wasn’t about me.It was about Young Master.Most likely, someone in his household wanted me gone.It was a terrifying thought, but the fact that they hadn’t killed me outright meant they were just trying to scare me.‘…It’s okay. Young Master would never leave me behind. He’ll come for me.’Even if we had grown distant lately, there was no way he would abandon me.The moment he realized I was missing, he would do whatever it took to find me.I wasn’t completely free of fear, but acknowledging that fact helped me calm down.Because more than anyone else, I believed in him.‘That’s right… I just have to wait. He’ll come for me.’But before I could fully relax, my throat suddenly burned.A sharp, acrid smell reached my nose.It was a scent I had smelled before in Denkart—whenever the servants burned garbage.Smoke.It was smoke.And just like being struck in the head all over again, terror gripped my entire body.Fire.