The Genius and Calamity of the Villainous Noble: A Brilliant Prodigy Unaware of Their Reincarnation as the Game's Antagonist Defies the Scenario and Dominates with Talent and Hard Work - Chapter 1.32

“Phew…”

Father, Eurus, and Lirisha.

The deaths of the current head, the heir apparent, and the second-in-line would be a major advantage for my claim to the title of Duke of Reinhardt.

No, rather—if I wanted to become the head of the family immediately, eliminating these three was an absolute necessity.

With them gone, the path to claiming the title of Duke had become significantly clearer.

The second son was currently studying abroad in another country, the second daughter was already married into another family, and the third daughter—who was younger than me—was being raised in a relative’s household due to certain circumstances.

None of them were in a position to challenge my claim.

“The seeds have already been sown. Now, I just need to reap the rewards… This is nothing more than a formality now.”

Having fully grasped the details of the necromantic magic Father had cast on Lirisha, I proceeded to dismantle the spell etched into her body and erase any trace of its information.

“…I can’t leave all of this behind, after all.”

While some evidence of Father’s experiments needed to remain as proof of his crimes, it was far too dangerous to leave such highly volatile necromantic research intact.

It was tedious work, but to prevent this knowledge from falling into the wrong hands, I carefully erased the most crucial aspects of the research.

“Alright… That should take care of────!?”

At that moment.

What alerted me was nothing more than sheer coincidence.

“Tch—!?”

The faint sense of unease that prickled at my back suddenly sharpened into unmistakable killing intent.

I twisted my body on instinct, leaping away from where I stood.

“Who’s there!?”

Sword drawn, I turned my gaze toward the spot I had been standing just moments ago.

And there—

“…What?”

What I saw was something I couldn’t believe—something I didn’t want to believe.

“Mari…na?”

Standing behind me—standing where my would-be attacker had just been—was Marina.

Her hand gripped a dagger.

The very same Marina I had parted ways with before coming here.

Yet here she was, standing in this place, holding a weapon, in the exact spot from which I had sensed the murderous intent aimed at me.

“Ahh… I missed.”

Her voice was thick with killing intent.

“…What? What are you saying?”

Faced with a situation I had never even considered, I stood frozen, unable to comprehend what was happening.

I could only let out a confused murmur as disbelief washed over me.