The Villainous Son Loves His Mother - Chapter 53

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The wound on my chest had completely healed.
Mother had made quite a fuss, but it was only a shallow cut on the surface, so there were no real complications. It had healed completely, even superficially.
Well, I was glad Mother was worried about me, but being bedridden for so long had become terribly boring.
The healer told me that I no longer needed treatment, and I was finally released from my cramped bed

But that hardly mattered.

Mother had been unusually subdued these past few days.
Normally, she would have rejoiced more openly at my recovery, but instead, she kept staring at her letters with a troubled expression.
It wasn’t that I childishly wanted her to be more enthusiastic.
I simply couldn’t shake this nagging concern.
In the end, I couldn’t help but ask,

“Mother, is something troubling you? You’ve seemed preoccupied lately.”

Mother lowered her head slightly before turning to face me.
That small gesture alone told me she was struggling to say something.

“It’s nothing… Hein, is your chest wound truly no longer painful?”

“Yes, it’s completely fine. I plan to return to the Academy tomorrow… More importantly, Mother, if you have any concerns, please tell me.”

When I said this, Mother gave a troubled smile.
But her smile seemed strained, almost awkward.

“…It’s just a trivial matter. It has nothing to do with you.”

“If Mother is troubled, how could it not concern me? Aren’t we family?”

Perhaps that was a slightly manipulative way to put it.
But I genuinely felt that way.
Mother shook her head and produced a letter.

“Here… It’s a letter from the Eldenbloom family. It says that the Empire’s recent policies towards demi-humans are suspicious, so they’re asking for feedback from the central government. That’s all.”

The Racial Hierarchy Law, huh?
The Eldenbloom’s House was Mother’s birth family. A prestigious lineage with a strong Elphen heritage, they had long maintained their reputation in the Empire through their cultivation of knowledge and magical prowess.
But if the Racial Hierarchy Act were revised to further exclude demi-humans…
The Earl’s House would not only find itself in an increasingly precarious position, but could even face a threat to its very survival.
However…

“But doesn’t the Racial Hierarchy Act not apply to noble houses in the first place?”

That’s why I hadn’t given it much thought.
When I said that, Mother lowered her eyes slightly again.

“There’s talk of a law revision… No, I’ve said too much. I’m sorry, Hein. It’s alright. It’s true I’m from the House of Eldenbloom, but I would never tarnish the name of the Duke’s House—”

“What are you talking about!”

Mother was trying to keep me from worrying.
But hearing her say that only made me more determined to speak up.

“I see. I understand now. I’ve heard about Imperial Chancellor Digitalis. She intends to use the dull-witted Emperor as a puppet to purge all Demi-Humans from the Gaines Empire.”

There are various theories about why the Prime Minister hates Demi-Humans, but it’s widely known that Digitalis despises them all.
I believe it’s wrong to discriminate against individuals based on their race.
For someone with such outdated sensibilities regarding discrimination to steer the Empire is beyond presumptuous.
As expected, the sheer dull-wittedness of these inferior scum never ceases to surpass my expectations.
Alright, once Mother seizes control of the Empire, I’ll establish an inferior ranch where all the Empire’s inferiors will be confined. This will prevent further degradation of the human species.

“Hein?”

While I couldn’t care less about the other Demi-Human nobles, the fact that Mother’s own family is being treated with such contempt…
Perhaps I bear some responsibility for this.
Until now, I’ve mostly left the defense of the Imperial Capital to Duke Sarion’s House.
There have been exceptions, of course, but Duke Aster’s House has never taken bold, public action.
Being praised by inferiors only disgusts me, and every time I see those lowly nobles sucking up to Mother, I feel an overwhelming urge to slaughter them all.
When Damian died, the inferior nobles around us scoffed that Mother could never manage Duke Aster’s House. I remember every one of their names.

“Hein, are you listening?”

Ah, so the solution is to achieve something so monumental that even the Empire’s upper echelons can’t interfere.
I’m not doing this for the Empire.
This is Mother’s time to lay the foundation for her dominion over this nation—and eventually the world—and bring about lasting peace.
I’m doing this simply because I refuse to let anyone obstruct her.
With that in mind, I began to consider the anti-Empire nations in the surrounding regions.
I’ll crush any one of them and drag them into servitude under the Empire.
Even a lowly vixen like Digitalis would fall silent if I presented her with an entire country as a gift—Ugh!?

“Hey, Hein!”

I felt a cold palm on both of my cheeks.
Mother put her hands on my cheeks and started kneading them.

“M-Mother, please stop…”

“No, I won’t stop. Why are you looking so troubled? You were thinking about something strange, weren’t you? You have that look on your face—like you’re planning to do something drastic for my sake.”

“N-no, that’s not it…”

“I’m your mother. I know you better than anyone.”

“Drastic? Well, I might have been considering something… uh… something significant, but… ah… yes, it’s a good thing, you see… a countermeasure? …A countermeasure, that’s it!”

What kind of countermeasure?
A countermeasure against what?
Even I don’t understand what I’m saying.

“A countermeasure? …A countermeasure… A good countermeasure? …Perhaps against an attack by the Former Demon Lord’s Army?”

As expected of Mother.
Exactly!

“That’s right! Lately, there have been signs of the Demon King’s revival within the Former Demon Lord’s Army… If I recall correctly, Gramman mentioned something like that.”

“Well, if Gramman said so…”

Grumman is trusted a lot by Mother.
An inferior old man…no, sh1t…
He’s trusted not because he’s old, but because he’s competent.
Well, Gramman never actually said that, but let’s pretend he did.

“Despite the signs of the Demon King’s revival, this generation’s Hero hasn’t been chosen yet. As the future head of Duke Aster’s House and the ‘Spear of the Empire,’ I can’t afford to sit idly by. So, um, I need to come up with a plan…”

“You’re right… This should be my responsibility… I’m burdening you with this…”

My mother’s energy was fading, so I desperately tried to smooth things over and somehow managed to get through the moment.

・
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・

That night…

“Did you summon me, young master?”

“Gramman, how’s your injury?”

“Thanks to the elixir you gave me, it’s completely healed…”

“I see,”

I nodded, showing Gramman the map.

“What’s this…?”

“Gramman, the place you went to settle accounts with recently—wasn’t that one of the former Demon Lord’s Army camps on the Maristel Continent?”

“Y-yes, that’s correct. It’s undoubtedly the main camp of the Western Army of the Former Demon King, a notorious Demon Army composed primarily of Dragonkind.”

“Good. Now tell me everything you saw there—the layout of the camp, any notable enemies, everything. Don’t ask why.”

The idea had struck me during my conversation with Mother. If it were the Demon, that should be fine, right?
Mother was kind-hearted. Even though she championed anti-imperialism, she might not approve of the wholesale slaughter of humans.
But the demons were humanity’s enemies. There shouldn’t be any problem with butchering them all, right?
Still, to avoid any unforeseen setbacks, I needed to gather as much information as possible beforehand.

Once I had all the details, I’d personally storm the Maristel Continent.
Then I would deliver the head of a demon general to the imperial castle.
As a reward for this achievement, I would be able to extract a condition that, at the very least, special consideration be given to the Eldenbloom family.
If they couldn’t accept the conditions, I could just throw out the demon’s head or something, saying, “Then this will happen to you next.”
Even I’m terrified by my own brilliance—it’s undeniably a flawless plan.