The Villainous Son Loves His Mother - Chapter 8

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The extermination of the Inferior Lizards was mostly complete.
I’d set the coordinates rather haphazardly, so some had slipped through, but I’d scared them enough that it shouldn’t be a problem.
Still, what was going on with the Imperial Capital’s air defenses?
Wasn’t that Duke Sarion’s House’s responsibility?
No matter how many of those flimsy barriers they strung up—barriers barely capable of catching birds—they’d be utterly useless against Dragonkin.

“Just a flower without fruit, hopelessly incompetent.”

“Idiot.”

“Scum.”

“Fool.”

I clicked my tongue, spat on the ground, and hurled curses as I hurried back.
That said, it’s still slower than sound.
I don’t know the exact reasoning behind it, but if you fly faster than sound, your clothes end up getting damaged.
I could cast a defensive spell, but it wouldn’t be able to suppress the deafening roar.
Every Inferior Lizard in the Imperial Capital would be jolted awake and thrown into a panic.
That would complicate the cleanup and trouble Mother.
So, suppressing my impatience, I made my way back to the mansion at a snail’s pace.

・
・

Within minutes, the mansion came into view.
Mother was frightened, so I jumped out the window as it was an emergency, but I returned through the main gate.

“Lord Hein! Why are you outside…? No, more importantly, the alarm sounded just moments ago. It was a Level Two alert. As one of the Twelve Noble Houses, the House of Duke Aster received an urgent summons from the Imperial Castle just now…”

“It’s over. All is well.”

I cut off the gatekeeper Gaddem mid-sentence and conveyed only what needed to be said.

“Ha! Then that flash truly was… No, my apologies! Understood. I shall make the necessary arrangements at once.”

“All is well.”

Gaddem wasn’t inferior.
He possessed both intelligence and strength.
Unlike other Inferiors, Gaddem could grasp my meaning from a few words and act accordingly.
He might not be much to look at, but so what?
The other Inferiors were all terrible in every way except for their appearance.
Gaddem, on the other hand, possessed the bare minimum skills required of a gatekeeper, and his imposing appearance alone was enough to intimidate the pleb.
So what if he wasn’t human?
Duke Salion’s House might boast an illustrious lineage and noble status, but they couldn’t even stop a single Inferior Lizard.
Well, none of that mattered now. Mother was waiting.
I hurried back to the estate.

–
–

“Hein! You ran off so suddenly! I was worried sick!”

“Mother, I apologize. But that insolent Inferior Lizard targeting the Imperial Capital has been annihilated by this Hein in a single strike. Also, Gaddem informed me that orders for a counterattack have been issued from the Imperial Castle. Rest assured, I’ve entrusted all cleanup operations to Gaddem.”

I buried my face in Mother’s chest as I delivered my report.

“Hein… I know very well that you are strong. But as a mother, I can’t help but worry about you. Please forgive me for being such a worrisome mother…”

There was nothing to forgive. It was entirely my fault for causing her such concern.
I felt like I was the most incompetent person in the world, and even worse than inferior.

(How utterly incompetent I am. Would I be better off dead?)

But Mother gently embraced me, comforting me in my despair.

“…Hein, there, don’t cry anymore. You’ve been crying so quietly lately, and honestly, it hurts my heart even more. …Alright, I’ve decided on your punishment. If you truly feel bad for making me worry…”

Mother closed her eyes.
What terrifying punishment would she impose? Would she demand I steal a kiss from her lips?
It felt too greedy, and guilt welled up inside me.
But I mustered my courage and kissed Mother’s lips—Mama’s lips.
Ah, Mama!
I love you so much!

◆◆◆

In the “original history,” the half-ogre Galdem was said to have made a significant contribution to the Hero’s party’s defeat of the Demon King.
Though celebrated as a hero in later generations, Galdem’s life was, in truth, filled with hardship.
The root of his suffering lay in the deep-seated prejudice against demihumans that permeated the Gaines Empire.
Born as a half-ogre, Galdem was scorned as an “impure child” because of his heritage.
He was born as the result of an unfortunate event and endured unspeakable treatment from a young age.
Forced into brutal labor by slave traders and worn down both physically and mentally by repeated abuse, Galdem’s life was one of constant torment.

It was Hein from the original timeline who first took an interest in Galdem’s robust physique.
After purchasing Galdem out of mere curiosity, Hein never even bothered to ask his name, treating him as nothing more than an indestructible toy and subjecting him to further abuse.
It was none other than Azel who rescued him.
Witnessing Hein’s brutal treatment of Galdem, Azel challenged Hein to a duel, wagering Galdem’s freedom.
Before his awakening, Azel wouldn’t have stood a chance against Hein, but the awakened Azel was a different story.
Azel triumphed over Hein, rescued Galdem, and nursed him back to health.
Given food, clothing, and treated like a human being for the first time, Galdem quietly shed tears and swore loyalty to Azel—or so the original timeline went.

In this parallel world, Hein had been raised with a strong emphasis on his mother’s well-being. Sensitive to Helga’s slight shyness, he avoided hiring too many servants for the estate.
However, maintaining the estate required a certain number of staff.
Therefore, Hein decided to prioritize quality over quantity.
This led to Gaddem being employed as the gatekeeper.
Duke Aster’s Estate in this parallel world was teeming with elite personnel chosen for their exceptional abilities.
Incidentally, the reason for the different name from the original history lies in Gaddem’s condition.
When Hein asked for his name, Gaddem weakly replied, “Ga… dem…”
This was because Gaddem had been severely weakened by abuse from slave traders.
As a result, “Gaddem” became his permanent nickname.