to shout, the others joined in.

“What the hell should we tell the butler?”

“Everyone will look down on us!”

“Archduke!”

Everyone raised their voices in unison, denouncing the Archduke’s decision.

“Ha-ha-ha-ha,” 

Then came a chuckle, breaking through their loud voices.
It was, of course, the Archduke’s laugh, mocking the situation.

The low-pitched laughing, mixed with a strange metallic sound, scratched the listeners’ ears.
It was a grotesque and eerie sound.

The servants’ heads raised.
Their tongues stiffened.
Their movements ended.

“…….”

Their lips were shut, but the Archduke’s ominous laughter continued.
Because the jeers were not intended towards the servants.
He was sneering at himself.

How stifling and ignorant I was in the past.

He had believed that if he showed goodwill first, the other person would reciprocate with kindness.
Even if the other person did not immediately react with good intentions, he was certain that his honesty would pay off one day.
No, he’d wanted to believe.

After a while, the Archduke withdrew his chuckle and turned to them.
His eyes no longer conveyed any emotion.

The servants shrank even more in the face of that glassy gaze.

“What is my last name?” He asked, motioning with a finger to one of the servants.

The terrified servant responded in shock.
“Ah! Yeon, it’s Mr.
Yeon!”

The Archduke, whose surname was Yeon, nodded his head, satisfied with the answer.
“Right, and this clan, the Luoyang Sword Clan, belongs to the Yeon family.”

He then pointed out another servant and asked again.
“What is my name?”

The person who was pointed out had no clue why and answered with a shudder.
“Sohyeon!”

Yeon, whose first name was Sohyeon, asked another servant again.
“What is the position of Sohyeon Yeon in this family?”

The designated servant swallowed dry saliva and responded.
“You are the Archduke.”

Archduke Sohyeon Yeon smiled.
But the smile was merely a form, devoid of emotions, and terrifying.

“Sure.
I am Sohyeon Yeon, the Archduke of this family.”

It seemed as though a spark of fire was blazing from his eyes.

“So, what are you to rebel against that archduke?” He asked everyone this time, smirking.
“Are you aiming to be the clan’s leader?”

At those words, all of the servants paused for a second before prostrating themselves on the spot.
They were uneducated and stupid, but not so stupid that they didn’t see death approaching them.

“Ahh, forgive me!”

“Absolutely no rebellion!”

“How can low people like r……!”

Their neat servant’ uniforms dirtied.
And even more so than the bare feet of Archduke Sohyeon Yeon’s naked feet, which they had mocked.

“Shhh…!” Sohyeon Yeon lifted a finger to his mouth.
Then, the servants who had their heads buried in the ground stopped breathing.

“It’s my fault you’re lazy, so I won’t hold you accountable.” He cracked a bright smile.
“So everyone, pack up your things right now and leave.”

The servants began thanking him as soon as he finished speaking.

“Ahh! Thank you!”

“Thank you, Archduke!”

He smiled twistedly as he gazed down on them.
When he treated them infinitely well, all he got was backbiting and resentment.
But when he squeezed them mercilessly, he received thanks!!

Human nature was just ludicrous.

Sohyeon Yeon quickly shifted his attention away from them.
He didn’t throw out all the servants just to teach them a lesson; there was a more weighty reason.

With this, all of the unnecessary ‘eyes’ were removed at once.

Many of the Pure Silver Garden Pavillion’s servants were spies, reporting every action Sohyeon Yeon made to other factions within the clan.

He’d known about them before, but he’d disregarded them since he was apathetic about power.

It would have been easy for him to punish the servants who had the guts to report on their master’s actions, but he chose not to.

‘No need to beat the grass to scare the snake.’

There was no need to draw attention to himself.
Not yet, at least.

“There, you.” He shouted at the first servant that entered his sight.
The servant was trying his very best to get out of the Pure Silver Garden Pavilion in a hurry.
His belongings didn’t seem to be properly packed.

When he saw Sohyeon Yeon gazing at him, he collapsed on the floor in a panic.

“Yes yes! Archduke! Please order me!”

While answering with his head on the ground, his luggage and clothes rolled on the floor.
But neither he nor Sohyeon Yeon gave a damn.

“Tell the butler, no….”

Sohyeon Yeon’s eyes narrowed.

“Tell the head butler to select and send someone to help me.”

The Head Butler was someone in a position where the lower classes couldn’t even look him in the eyes.
It was he who issued instructions to such a servant.

Evidently, the servant now realized who he had served, but it was too late.

“Yes, yes! All right, Archduke, I will keep that in mind.”

“And…”

His subsequent question was absurd.

“Where is the sun?”

“The sun… do you mean?”

The incomprehensible question of Sohyeon Yeon, who was looking up at the sky with a scowl, left the servant bewildered.
However, he eventually did respond, “There, it’s floating over there.
It’s blindingly white and so bright that it’s hard to even look at it.”

“Really?” After hearing his answer, Sohyeon Yeon tilted his head slightly.
He then motioned for the servant to leave.

The servant bowed deeply in greetings and then hurried away.

“That much?” Looking up into the sky, Sohyeon Yeon could only see warm sunshine.
The sun was nowhere to be found.

“Huuh! even the sun has turned its back on me?”

The words of the ruler of darkness were still ringing clearly in his ears.

[From now on, you will breathe in the darkness, strike down the sword of condemnation in the darkness, and become the reverend of darkness who punishes all the evil of the world!]

Kachti’s Notes:

 

Some changes:

Luoyang Sword Family = Luoyang Sword Clan

The ruler of darkness(Demon) = The ruler of darkness(Monster)