Volume 1 Chapter 12: Got the Hand!

Ashvin doesn’t remember what she did after that.

She has no memory.

In her faint recollection, it seems she shoved Marcel aside and ran away.

In fact, the fact that she escaped from the lord’s mansion and was later found sitting in the back alleys where she once spent time confirms it.

Moreover, the severed head of her younger brother—which she clutched as if it were supremely precious—served as cold evidence that the tragedy at the mansion really occurred.

Even though its blood stained her clothes, she would never part with her brother’s head.

She no longer even eats or drinks.

The only reason she stole food was for her brother.

Without him, there’d be no reason to do any of that.

Before long, she would die of exhaustion.

But that was fine with her.

If it meant she could be with her father, her mother… and her brother, she wouldn’t hesitate to die.

However, if there was one—just one—regret…

“Making that man pay…!”

The man who deceived her, toyed with her, and killed her brother… Marcel.

The fact that he continued to live carefree while only they suffered remained a burning regret.

But there was nothing she could do about it.

She didn’t think she could kill the lord’s son by herself.

He would surely have bodyguards with him.

It would be a different story if he were in peak condition, armed, and had several allies—but none of that was true for Ashvin right now.

So, she decided to die.

She longed to die—to be reunited with her family as soon as possible.

That was what she believed, yet…

“Huh? You were taken in by Marcel…”

The person she encountered turned out to be Balor, the lord’s son.

He was Marcel’s older brother—the very man Marcel had mocked as a monster.

“…………”

He glared at her sharply.

Having barely eaten, his eyes looked sunken, almost as if they were about to pop out.

Being stared at by those eyes felt like facing a phantom.

Balor almost died of shock.

“…Looks like you’ve been through quite a bit, huh? (Gyaaaaa! This person is carrying a severed head! Scary! I really shouldn’t have spoken to her!)”

Hearing Balor speak in such a know-it-all manner, Ashvin’s anger began to boil.

Yes.

This guy is also the lord’s son.

He belongs to Marcel’s family, too.

Then, she would use him. She would drain him dry, use every bit of him, and then… she would kill that man.

“I have a request, Balor-sama.”

For that reason, she wouldn’t even hesitate to bow her head to the detestable lord’s son.

While cradling her precious younger brother’s head, she bowed deeply.

“Please, hire me.”

“………… (Absolutely not. Why on earth would I take in a crazy woman carrying a severed head? She’s bound to go berserk, you know?)”

Balor said nothing. He was probably assessing her.

In the first place, the very fact that he encountered someone carrying a human head—and didn’t scream—proved that Balor was no ordinary person. That was exactly why a deal could be struck between them.

“I’ll do anything. Anything you ask. If you tell me to be a dog, I’ll be a dog. If you tell me to be a clown, I won’t mind being laughed at. If you desire this body, I’ll do whatever it takes. So…”

She bowed her head even deeper.
She didn’t care if her human dignity was trampled upon.
No matter how much she was debased, she wouldn’t care—except for that man who tormented her brother. He would never be forgiven.

“…After all that, what is it that you desire?”
“…Please, let me kill Marcel!”
“………… (I’m likely to be held accountable under supervisory responsibility! No! Do it without getting caught.)”

Balor fixed his gaze on Ashvin as if assessing her. He let out a sigh and then spoke.

“I don’t deny vengeance. But I can’t support living solely for revenge. Once that vengeance is achieved, you lose your reason to live.”

“……?”

What was he talking about?
Ashvin frowned, a puzzled expression on her face.
She had no desire to listen to any sermon.
She didn’t need such lofty ideals.

“Come to me and serve. It’s fine to build your strength for revenge, but you’ll also have to work. And if, in that process, you can find a reason to live beyond revenge, there’s no happiness greater for me.”

“…I don’t need any of that.”

She never intended to find any meaning in life.
She would kill Marcel.
Then, she would go to her family.
That was what she had decided.
So, while she was grateful that Balor was inviting her in, everything else was an extreme nuisance.

“Fine for now. But I hope that someday you’ll change your mind. That’s what I believe.”

Balor laughed softly.
His all-knowing air was irritating, but she couldn’t afford to be disliked by her new master.
She swallowed her complaints.

“I’m Balor. And you are?”

“…Ashvin.”

She gripped his outstretched hand.
In that moment, Ashvin met the supreme master to whom she would serve for decades to come.

“(Alright! I’ve got myself an exploitable minion!)”