How to Live as a Tyrant’s Spoiled Brat Chapter 2

How to live as a tyrant’s spoiled brat Episode 2

(02)

What magic happened?

Has the dragon’s flames and my death both been in vain?

Going back in time was something I had never heard of or seen before.

But the ceiling and Rudy’s face that I saw before my eyes were so familiar.

Is this reality or just a dream?

Countless questions raced through my mind.

“Mr. Valen. Why are you like that today? You’re saying things you don’t usually say.”

Rudy came to me with a worried expression.

“Did you have a nightmare?”

The voice sounded so familiar that I almost cried.

I said, catching my breath.

“Yeah, I think so. It was a very, very long nightmare.”

It was a nightmare that lasted 40 years.

“I’m glad you’re up. Would you like to change your clothes now?”

Rudy pushed in a neat shirt.

“Take it off here?”

“Yes. You’ve always been like that.”

“Me? Always been like that?”

Now that I think about it, that’s what happened.

Until I was twenty, I naturally showed my naked body to my maids and servants like other royals and nobles.

“Are you still half asleep?!”

At her shouting, I quickly unbuttoned my pajamas, exposing my upper body.

My body was reflected in a large mirror.

There were white and blue veins visible here and there.

His muscles were well-developed, firm and slender, and he was clean without a single scar.

It really was the same body I had when I was seventeen.

I changed into the shirt and pants Rudy had given me and looked around the room.

From the walls to the carpet, it was vivid as if I was in a memory, but there was something strange about it.

“Was there something like this before?”

There were two noticeably large bookshelves. They would have been too big to fit in a library, let alone a room.

Those two bookshelves were packed full of books.

Of course, it wasn’t a novel or anything.

Introduction to public administration, law of inheritance, military science, geography, history of imperial warfare, diplomacy, and theology.

These were books filled with valuable knowledge worthy of their titles.

“What are all these books?”

And these were books that had no connection to my life whatsoever.

“Are you still half asleep? You read it every single day. You said it was the basic knowledge that you absolutely had to know to live like royalty. You kept talking about the content, so much so that I could almost memorize it.”

I frowned and looked through the bookshelf.

They were expensive books, all written on parchment and finished with metal, wood, and leather.

“That can’t be true.”

There’s no way I could have collected something like this.

In my youth, I was a pitiful second-rate loser in the imperial capital.

He spent his days addicted to alcohol, women, gambling, and drugs, and he donated all of the royal pension to the red-light district.

I lived my life fighting with other rascals in similar situations, stealing from each other, and laughing at fate and myself.

“You practiced your sword diligently, and even though I told you not to, you brought me a book of grimoires. You also met with other royals every day and passionately discussed the future of the empire.”

“I?”

I looked Rudy over from head to toe.

Every time I looked into those green eyes that sparkled as clear as an emerald, memories came flooding back sporadically.

“Yeah. That’s right. That’s right. That’s right.”

I wasn’t a loser from the start.

I once lived hard.

With the mindset that he would die tomorrow, he cut off all attachment to worldly pleasures and studied swordsmanship and the study of kingship as if he would live forever.

How did I end up like this?

I don’t remember much from my teenage years because I took too many drugs.

But obviously, after someone died, the shock changed.

“I’m telling you this in case you forgot, but today we have plans to meet with other members of the royal family starting at nine o’clock.”

“At nine o’clock? Rudy. What day is it today?”

“Have you forgotten that? It’s April 30th.”

“April 30th, year 1 of the reign.”

At that moment, a severe headache raced through my head.

A memory that I had ignored for 40 years since my previous life struck my mind like a bolt of lightning.

The moment Rudy’s green eyes closed was vivid in my mind.

An audience room filled with red.

A wine glass that was breaking.

Jaylilith laughing on the golden throne.

I leaned against the wall, pressing my temples hard.

“The Great Purge.”

“yes?”

“There is one month left until the Great Purge.”

I opened my eyes and muttered like a madman.

“And then you die.”

“I’m dying? What are you talking about, scary people?”

“It was the ‘crime of not properly assisting Valencianus.’”

“That is a mortal sin. But you are saying that I am not properly assisting Your Majesty? I have served Your Majesty since I was thirteen and You were nine.”

Rudy playfully took it back. He must have thought I was making a weird joke.

“Well, that can’t be true.”

I tried to smile bashfully and turned around.

Yeah. That can’t be.

You know everything about me, from the clothes I like to the foods I can’t eat.

But the problem was that he died for that sin.

“Look at my mind. What have you been doing up to this hour? Are you hungry? I’ll prepare breakfast for you.”

Rudy looked startled and headed towards the side door of the room.

I reached out my hand, saying, “Wait a minute,” but she had already run away.

“… … .”

My head hurt.

“I wonder what happened.”

Until an hour ago, I was a 57-year-old sword expert and the last subject of a tyrant, but then I was suddenly transported back in time to about 40 years ago and became a 17-year-old boy.

I wanted to just sleep a little longer and think about this strange reality, but I couldn’t stand the wind blowing at Rudy who would soon bring morning.

I gritted my teeth and chased after Suma.

Then I heard the sound of boots being pressed from afar. It was a familiar sound, the metal gongs hitting the floor.

“article?”

I often moved with knights in my past life.

Sometimes I was chased by knights, and sometimes I chased with the knights.

I could tell it was them just by hearing their footsteps.

I opened the door and looked into the hallway. At the same time, I could hear doors slamming here and there from upstairs to downstairs.

As I was looking toward the stairs, wondering what was going on, someone spoke to me.

“Valencian. Go in quickly. The knights have come to conduct a surprise inspection. If you make a mistake, you might be dragged in too.”

A woman was peeking out from the room next to mine.

He must be two or three years older than me.

Although his eye color was red, unlike mine, I could tell he was from the same royal family by his brilliant white hair.

“Knights?”

I asked back, and the woman looked frustrated.

“If we get caught, it’ll be a headache. His Majesty sees us all as thorns in his eye. If we get caught with even one fault, we’ll be dragged to the dungeon or killed in a horrible way.”

Jaylilith was particularly cruel at the beginning of her reign.

A word that brings back memories.

The knights’ footsteps grew louder.

A scream was heard from downstairs.

“For a member of the royal family to possess a grimoire without permission is a crime of conspiracy to commit treason.”

“I didn’t know. I didn’t even know there was such a thing.”

“Your Majesty, it has been over a year since His Majesty the Emperor enacted the law. It has also been almost a year since all the children of the late emperor were brought to live in this palace. Don’t you think it is too shameless to say that you didn’t know?”

“Hee, heek!”

“Seize the book of magic and take His Highness the Grand Duke to the main palace. His Majesty will decide what to do with him.”

The knights went in and out of the rooms.

“I was ordered to confiscate all the books within April.”

“Hands off! Do you know what book that is?”

“Execute.”

“Ahh!”

The screams grew louder and louder.

“There are letters exchanged with my maternal relatives.”

“I just asked how you were doing!”

“If you erase these letters, it will read: ‘Send five knights of the House to get me out of the Red Moon Palace.’ Do you have anything else to say?”

“Can you close your eyes just this once?”

“Take it and go.”

Finally, the knights came up to the floor where I was.

“Your Highness the Grand Duke of Siegheim. Are you there?”

“Yes. I am Zigheim.”

A man walked out of the room next to me.

“The maid of the main palace confessed everything. She ordered the Emperor to put poison in his food.”

“What are you talking about!”

“Treason is punishable by death, even for members of the royal family.”

“I feel wronged!”

“Feel free to complain. There is no need to use formal language anymore. You are a criminal who attempted to assassinate His Majesty the Emperor!”

Siegheim tried to throw a punch, but the knights were faster.

They drew their swords, stabbed Zigheim in the thigh tendon, and held him captive.

Finally they came to my room.

“Your Highness, Grand Duke Valencian. I will go in for a moment.”

I opened the door calmly as if I had been waiting and looked at them.

I survived under Jaylilith for 40 years.

How to respond to sudden changes in circumstances was engraved in my soul.

“Come in.”

A full-body plate armor of brilliant platinum, a helmet completely covering the face with a short tassel, and a cloak with white patterns embroidered on a black outer fabric.

It was the Platinum Knights who protected the imperial family.

Here, ‘Imperial Family’ refers to the Emperor and his entire family, but in the current Empire, the word is used to refer only to one individual, Jaylilith.

“Your Majesty, Valen. I am here… …!”

Rudy, who had returned through the side door, looked at the knights and staggered as if he was about to drop the tray he was carrying.

I quickly supported her.

“Your Majesty Valen.”

Her voice trembled as she called me.

Two ‘Platinum’ knights entered the room, and four soldiers were waiting outside the room.

The knight looked around the room and said.

“His Highness the Grand Duke of Valencian.”

“I’m listening.”

“As the closest blood relative of His Majesty the Emperor, I believe you are aware of the many conveniences we have provided you so far.”

Was it like that?

“I allowed him to continue his studies, and I turned a blind eye to his encounters with members of the royal family who harbored impure intentions. I even allowed him to continue practicing swordsmanship.”

I see.

To that extent, it is right to give convenience.

“His Majesty the Emperor does not wish for his people to gain power that can be used against him, whether it be through knowledge, sword, or magic.”

It’s like a previous life.

The moment this thought occurred to me, vague memories began to come back to me little by little.

The knight pointed to shelves and bookshelves.

“Those books and that sword are things that should have been confiscated a long time ago.”

There was a sword sitting on the shelf.

“His Majesty the Archduke Valencian is the only one in the empire who can now claim succession.”

First of all, I am Jaylilith’s twin brother.

“I believe you know whose grace it is that such a person is still alive.”

He was right.

Even if I were Jaylilith, he would have held me back.

“Your Majesty intends to oppress your relatives even more in the future. I will stop here for today. I hope you make a wise choice.”

“… … .”

Perhaps thinking that silence was a denial, the reporter added one more word.

“The way for the Grand Duke to help His Majesty the Emperor is not by accumulating knowledge or power, but by not becoming a burden or arousing his guard.”

“I see.”

Bam, the door is closed.

Rudy put the tray down on the table and sighed in relief, tears welling up in his green eyes.

“Your Majesty. Are you okay? I thought you were being dragged away as well.”

“sorry.”

“yes?”

I staggered towards the desk.

Now I remember something.

What happened before the days when I was living like a dog, soaking in drugs and alcohol?

Why I became a loser.

I opened the lower left drawer, took out some miscellaneous stationery, and swept the bottom of the drawer with my hand.

It had been decades, but I remembered this space.

There was a small hole in the wooden board.

I picked up the quill, stuck the tip into the small hole, twisted it, and lifted it.

A thin wooden board was folded back to reveal a double drawer.

Rudy’s surprised gasp was heard.

“When did you make that?”

The double drawer was full of letters.

“I’ve made up my mind. How should I live this life?”

[I will contact my parents and prepare 3,000 soldiers.]

[I contacted my cousin who became an ivory tower wizard.]

[It seems that the Southern Count is watching this direction. If we do well, we can get the Sword Master on our side.]

[Think about it carefully. It’s quite possible.]

[A woman a hundred times in the line of succession ascends to the throne. What nonsense… … .]

[Valencianus, I hope you will choose righteousness over blood relations.]

“Your Majesty Valen.”

Rudy shuddered when he saw those titles.

I walked over to the smoldering fireplace and turned the drawer upside down.

Colorful paper and parchment crackled and burned.

“I was crazy. I was doing something like this. That’s why I lost you.”

The royal family members imprisoned in this palace, my half-siblings, are preparing for rebellion by contacting their respective maternal families.

She’s trying to involve me, her twin brother, in the name of succession.

And this rebellion ends in failure.

I couldn’t take either side and just looked like I was neither here nor there.

They almost died, but survived as full-body siblings, and Rudy died for not being able to serve his master properly.

From then on, surveillance will begin.

You won’t be able to learn studying, magic, or swordsmanship.

At that time, I had no intention of learning.

Experience is a teacher and charges a high tuition.

I paid the price for my indecisiveness with the death of someone precious to me.

How long had I been living in a state of insanity like a lunatic? By the time I finally picked up my sword again, my body was already ruined and I would be unable to reach the highest level.

I recalled something that happened about an hour ago.

A dragon from beyond the boundary that came down through the clouds.

The price for his indecision was Rudy’s death, and the price for his years as a scoundrel was the fall of the empire and the death of Jaylilith.

But by God’s help or the devil’s trick, I was given another life.

I was given a chance to save Jaylilith and this empire.

I don’t intend to waste a single second of this life.

But if we get through today, there will be tomorrow.

“Rudy.”

“yes yes?”

“Can you bring me some alcohol and a glass?”

First, we need to get through the impending purge.

It should not be a nuisance to the government and should not cause trouble to the border.

We must constantly send signals that we have no interest in power.

I already knew how to do that.

Although it was not my intention, I proved my lack of lust for power by being debauched for several years in my past life.

okay.

Let’s become a dog again.