Ch. 1 - Prologue

Today, Ardion was fully absorbed in his magic book, barely even noticing me.

It was a relief for me. 

Watching him put in effort made me want to do a better job. 

Well, now that Ardion had been completely raised, it was time to leave.

Yet the thought of leaving this mansion caused me to ponder Ardion’s future.

It reminded me that he would soon leave the mansion because he would be sent to take part in the war. Rowell had sent him away.

I was incapable of stopping Rowell. First of all, I lacked mana, and based on the original story, Rowell harassed Ardion until the end.

But still, I was glad he had a good time here. At least, he wasn’t throwing tantrums anymore.

Although he laughed less than normal people, it wasn’t really a problem.

In a daze, I looked at Ardion, who had been seriously reading the magic book since earlier.

Occasionally, he would glance at something else, but that was all. 

I didn’t want to disturb him any further and rose from my seat. “Master, I will take my leave.”

Ardion just kept looking at the book. I didn’t expect an answer from him, but it was somehow embarrassing when he kept silent.

Thus, I cleared her throat and released a sigh as if nothing had happened. “Now that I remember, you will soon leave the mansion, Master.”

Ardion's eyes, which displayed no emotion, hardened in an instant. He raised his head and looked at me. “I’m not leaving.”

He spoke in an unusually low voice as his green eyes shined darkly. While I looked at him curiously, Ardion stood up.

He was tall, to the point I had to look up at him. 

“Laila.” Ardion took a step closer.

These days, since he had been diligently learning swordsmanship, his broad shoulders were noticeable. Additionally, he was so large that he overshadowed me.

I involuntarily took a step back while Ardion stopped in place.

“There’s something I’ve wanted to ask a long time ago.”

His voice low and suppressed, Ardion looked straight into my eyes. “Laila, do you love me?”

"Pardon me?”

“Do you love me?”

“… Master."

“Because I love you.”

I was utterly surprised by what he said, staring speechlessly at him.

But Ardion approached me with a grin on his face. “Laila, tell me you love me. If you say so, I will give you everything I have. Hm?”

I was in disbelief. What did he mean by giving me everything he had?

Within his eyes, I noticed something that glimmered darkly—obsession. It was a look I had never spotted from him before. Just when in the world did you start thinking about me obsessively?

❋ ❋ ❋

“Laila!”

A loud voice abruptly called my name. I rubbed my eyes and climbed out of bed.

Bluntly trespassing into my room, Benji said, “Duke Orchid is calling for you. Hurry up.”

In an instant, I felt sour inside. Duke Orchid claimed he was a distant relative of mine, but at the same time, he made me do all the dirty work related to his family.

But in reality, we were far from being family. An illegitimate child born during the ancestors’ era adopted a daughter, and the adopted daughter got married and gave birth to my mother. (TL note: So, in short: ancestor ->  illegitimate child -> adopted grandmother -> Laila’s mother -> Laila.)

Duke Orchid could have someone else do it, but the reason for using me was obvious. The duke wanted to exploit me at a low price. Especially since I knew how to use magic to a certain extent, it made me pretty unique.

What kind of dirty work will I do today?

I wasn’t treated well here.

Right from the start, I was aware of what kind of place this was: Mana is Given to Anyone, a novel I had always read.

By the time I accepted that fact, I was already Laila, a tired slave of Duke Orchid, a slave who did all the dirty work.

For example, for minor matters, I would stalk the people who insulted Duke Orchid in social settings or tinker with their carriage wheels.

Although I wasn’t doing those things now, I was still obligated to visit his office regularly.

“Laila, wake up quickly. If you don’t go, only we will be in trouble.”

I knew that disobeying Duke Orchid would lead to other’s troubles, so I had no choice but to crawl out of bed.

After climbing the stairs from my room in the basement and walking down the long hallway, I eventually arrived in front of Duke Orchid's office.

The front door was shining in cleanliness, more majestic and larger than any other room’s.

I stared at the door and knocked on it, but no sound came from the inside. 

Again, I had no choice but to open the door myself.

Upon entering inside, the foul smell of smoke assaulted me. I frowned and covered my nose with the sleeve of my dress. The smell was his favorite cigar.

Whatever he put in his cigar had an utterly repulsive smell.

Duke Orchid was sitting on the sofa, sipping tea. In front of him was a burning cigar lightly emitting white smoke.

“You called for me, Your Grace,” I said, still not lifting my sleeve from my mouth.

Duke Orchid spotted me late and frowned. “Do you know what time it is? You did not even wake up early!”

I glanced at the clock and said in a dry voice, “It is exactly 5:34 in the morning, Your Grace.”

“Laila, your work seems to be taking a toll on you. You keep talking back to me.”

“…”

“You do that even though I, your uncle, give you a huge amount of money.”

My uncle? If I thought about it, he wasn’t even my relative. And a huge amount of money? I wanted to burst out laughing, but I couldn’t.

The reason I was forced to stay in this place for far too long was simple. In the original story, Laila had done what Duke Orchid told her to do and mistreated the male protagonist.

After accomplishing the task of taking care of the story’s male lead, I would escape from this hell because I could only survive if I raised the male protagonist properly.

It really wasn't according to Laila's will based on the story. It was just something she had no choice but to do because of her so-called relative…

Ardion didn't care about that. Well, even I didn’t believe that.

Duke Orchid reclined his back on the sofa and fiddled with his cigar. “Laila, do you remember that your mother is still in the hospital?”

He was talking nonsense, but I still nodded. He claimed that her family had committed grave sins, all of them.

But in fact, Laila's entire family died five years ago.

“Still, here is a letter your mother barely managed to write in her last moments.”

If I were Laila, who knew nothing, my expression would have relaxed for a moment after receiving that letter. But even this letter was faked. It must have been written by Duke Orchid’s wife after grumbling for a long time.

Even without opening it, the content was obvious.

The words written in each letter were always the same: “I'm doing well here, so listen carefully to Duke Orchid.”

In the past, the innocent and naïve Laila had been loyal to Duke Orchid, saying she was grateful for everything. But that Laila was gone.

I took the letter with my trembling hands. Nowadays, my hand tremors happened more often, so I needed to quickly obtain the right mana for myself.

Duke Orchid nodded in satisfaction and picked up his cigar as I took the letter with trembling hands.

I badly wanted to be sarcastic to him, but I chose to keep things simple. “What is the matter, Your Grace?”

Duke Orchid smirked and winked at the butler. The butler quickly dragged something out of another room.

I narrowed my eyes and stared at the coming sight towards me.

The butler was holding a child.

To be precise, it was a trembling child who was observing the office warily. In an instant, I met the child's green eyes, making me speechless.

A grumpy voice sounded. “This is the child Rowell left in my care.”

Yes, the person holding the butler's hand was a child who looked around 13 years old.

There were leaves and dirt all over his face, as if he had been rolling around in the forest, and his clothes were either torn or darkened.

He felt familiar somehow.

He clearly had the face of a child, but I felt as though I had seen him somewhere before. Well, this child was quite handsome.

With sharp eyes, a prominent nose, and small lips, he was charming.

As I stared at him intently, the child frowned at me even more.

Where did I see him before?

He was really familiar…

Then lightning struck my mind. His green eyes… a deep color resembling a forest…

Just then, I remembered a name from deep in my memories.

Ardion.

The child glaring at me now was none other than Ardion, the male lead of this novel.

In the original story, he was a ruthless man who killed Laila, but he had yet to have that power. Right now, he was just like a wary kitten.

After that realization, my face suddenly brightened. Finally, the day to freedom is not far away!

I almost cried out in joy. If I took care of Ardion well, I would obtain mana and then be able to run away from here! Furthermore, I had already compiled all the information about the duke's evil deeds.

However, contrary to my positive expression, Duke Orchid shook his head as if he were seeing something disgusting. “I don’t know what Rowell is thinking. He was taking care of this child, but now, he discarded him to me.”

I said nothing. Considering Ardion’s current state, Rowell evidently hadn’t cared for him.

The only thing he did was neglect.

I looked at Ardion's face, who gave me a wary expression. Still, I had the heart to smile at him.

But he fiercely glared at me. He appeared dissatisfied with everything in this room, not just with me.

Duke Orchid crossed his legs, took one look at Ardion, and nodded at me. “I can’t educate this child like my own, so you have to raise him.”

Coincidentally, I had a childcare teacher’s certification. My job in the real world had been related to childcare, so I wasn’t surprised. Moreover, it was something I had experienced in the real world.

Duke Orchid looked at me, seemingly examining my face. “I thought you’d be surprised, but you are not?”

“Do I need to be surprised, Your Grace? I just have to do what you tell me.”

With me accepting the task convincingly, Duke Orchid was more than satisfied. “Alright, let’s put sense into this. Don't teach him things like arithmetic or history. Instead, teach him to remove mana. We need to extract all the mana from this one.”

Feigning my curiosity, I asked, “Why do we need to remove his mana?”

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