When the Mid-Boss Villainous Noble Recalls Memories of a Past Life and Gains Game Knowledge. I Will Never Accept a Future Where I'm Called the Jealous Earl - Chapter 9

If she opened the door even for a moment, she would realize I was the Count. But as things stood, it seemed impossible to reveal my identity.

“If you agree to cooperate with me for a certain purpose, there’s no charge,” I tried again.

“No! You nobles just want to sell us strange medicines at high prices!” the girl shouted back, her voice shaking with anger.
I sighed. Time to take another approach. I tried to explain the situation without intimidation, persuading her in every way I could think of, but nothing seemed to work. Even when I introduced myself as Count Dicaman, her response was always the same—a loud command for me to leave.

“Lord Karyl, allow me,” Mina said, stepping forward.
“Can you manage it?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

“The girl is too agitated for persuasion,” she noted.

“Is that so? Do what you must.”

With a nod, she uttered a spell, “Open, reveal the door!”
It was a forceful tactic, one I had planned to reserve for last, but Mina entered the room without hesitation.

“We’re coming in,” she said calmly.

“Don’t come in!” The girl’s voice cracked as she tried desperately to push Mina away, tears welling in her eyes. Guilt prickled at the edges of my mind, but I followed Mina inside, flanked by the guards.

The room was sparse: a small shelf, a worn table, a chair, and a cot where a woman lay, eyes closed, her breathing labored and uneven.

At a glance, I understood. This woman was gravely ill with the Red Stone Disease, perhaps a week away from death if she was lucky.

“Calm, bring peace to the heart,” I whispered, casting a spell to soothe the frantic girl. The tension drained from her, and she slumped to the floor, breathing raggedly.

“First, an apology. My maid overstepped her bounds,” I said, bowing my head slightly.

The guards and Mina glanced at me, shocked into silence, but I gestured for them to remain still.

“Let me properly introduce myself. I am Karyl Dicaman, head of House Dicaman. I am here seeking a cure for the disease plaguing this duchy.”

“You… you can save my mother?” The girl’s voice was soft, hesitant, but there was a glimmer of hope in her eyes now that she had recognized me.

“That is my intent.”

She looked at me, her expression torn between hope and doubt. “But we don’t have any money…”

“There’s no charge. My treatment is experimental and might not work. I understand if you feel uncomfortable treating your mother as a test subject, but without intervention, she won’t survive the week.”

Her face fell, the weight of my words extinguishing the light in her eyes as she stared blankly at the floor.

“But… it could make her worse, right?” she whispered, a tremor in her voice.

A raw, anguished cry, spoken from the depths of her heart.

“No treatment will begin unless you agree. If you refuse, say so now.”

“I don’t know… I don’t know what to do!” She clutched her head, sobbing.

A surge of guilt flickered within me, but it was drowned out by a deeper wave of frustration. Part of me knew this was a cruel question to ask a child, yet I couldn’t help the feeling gnawing at me.

“Enough!” The word ripped from my throat before I could stop it.
Everyone froze, the room caught in the weight of my voice.

“Your mother is still alive, isn’t she?” I shouted. “You’re desperate to save her, even if you don’t know how. I understand that pain, that helplessness! But I received news of my father’s death only after he was gone—I didn’t even have the chance to be with him at the end!”

As the silence settled, the realization struck like a hammer. The bitterness, the anger—it came from envy. I envied this girl for having what I had lost: the chance to be there, to fight for someone who still had a chance at life.

“You have two choices,” I said, my voice steadier now. “Take this chance, however slim, or spend her last days in peace by her side. But choose—make that decision yourself.”

The room fell silent, the girl’s sobs softening. She sat unmoving, eyes downcast, and I knew this had gone as far as it could.

“Come, Mina. We’re leaving.”

“Yes, my lord,” Mina whispered, though doubt shadowed her expression.

As we stepped outside, the cool air stung my heated skin, and I took a shaky breath. The weight of everything bore down on me.
“Is this truly alright, Lord Karyl?” Mina asked as we walked away.

“It has to be,” I muttered. “Now, let’s find another patient—”
Bang!

The sound of the shack’s door flinging open behind me froze me mid-step.

“Please, save my mother!” the girl’s voice rang out, cracking with desperation. She stood in the doorway, head bowed low in a plea.

Relief washed over me. She had found her resolve, a strength I wished I had possessed. She chose hope.

With renewed purpose, we turned and walked back into the shack, ready to do whatever it took.