Adopting the Male Protagonist Changed the Genre - Chapter 50

Chapter 8

It began with a maid returning from the annex in the evening.

“Oh my goodness, I must have forgotten the ribbon.”

“Do you remember where you left it?”

“I think it was in the annex kitchen…….”

“Ah…….”

It was a luxury item purchased with the money saved, deducting it from the wages sent home to her hometown. Despite sending pleading glances to her colleagues to accompany her, the response that came back was a polite refusal mixed with elusive excuses.

Unable to help it, she swallowed her tears and headed alone towards the annex.

It was a dim night with the moon yet to rise.

The path leading to the annex, unlike the serene charm it had during the day, exuded a gloomy and eerie atmosphere.

The sound of spindly branches swaying in the wind resembled the sobbing of a person, making her recall the long-forgotten rumors of the haunted mansion.

‘A nobleman obsessed with black magic killed his employees and offered them as sacrifices to summon the devil, I think.’

The unjustly killed servants were then said to appear as ghosts.

Finally reaching the annex, the maid swallowed dryly.

Believing in ghosts is not her thing.

However, something more horrifying than ghosts seems to be lurking in this mansion.

The maid held her breath and cautiously knocked on the servants’ side door, but there was no sound from inside.

Feeling relieved, she turned to leave, thinking it might be better to come back early tomorrow morning.

Creak.

The rusted latch made a chilling sound as the door opened.

The maid barely stifled a scream.

“Who is it?”

“B-butler!”

As the door opened, a familiar face appeared.

A young woman, suddenly appeared one day and took over the position of the annex’s butler.

Even though her presence was so faint that one might turn their head without noticing her while working, it felt as if she had always been there.

However, the reason her presence didn’t send shivers down the maid’s spine was…

‘The butler looks handsome even at night.’

It was because of her androgynous charm, with a neat face always adorned with a gentle smile.

The maid explained her situation with a much calmer heart, and Terry nodded sincerely as if expressing regret.

“Oh, that’s unfortunate.”

However, that was the end of it.

Unlike usual, she drew a line, and the maid, feeling awkward, smiled and spoke again.

“I-if you’re okay with it, I can go inside and look…”

“No need for that. I’ll handle it. Just wait here.”

“Here?”

The maid hesitated as she surveyed the darkness around her.

It would be better if she could go inside and wait.

“Well, the master is a light sleeper. If she wakes up in the middle of the night and hears any strange noises,…….”

Indeed, butler! She showed consideration for her.

There was a possibility of encountering Belinda, who had become even sharper after waking up.

There was nothing more eerie than that.

Grateful for Terry’s consideration, the maid stood by the door, waiting.

However, even after a while, there was no sign of Terry returning.

Tired of the cold and waiting, the maid cautiously moved inside the mansion.

“Butler?”

As she whispered quietly, a presence was felt from inside.

A dark corridor.

Among them, a room with the door ajar was emitting light.

It was a room that was usually locked, and the maid had no reason to think otherwise.

Approaching the door, the maid listened carefully, and there was a sound coming from inside.

“What …..should I feed…. her?”

There was no mistaking it.

It was undoubtedly Belinda’s voice.

“Fallen… have unusual….. tastes.”

Despite knowing it was not the right thing to do, the maid, as if possessed, peered inside through the slightly open door.

“….!”

A dimly lit room with only one candle.

On the walls, drenched in what seemed like blood, ghostly, indistinct figures were huddled.

As if summoning a devil, Belinda was in the chilling center of the room.

Although it seemed like she was conversing with someone, her gaze was directed towards an empty space.

Eventually, Belinda twisted the corners of her mouth into a smile.

It was a wicked smile as if crafting a cruel plan.

“Should I offer a sacrifice?”

At that moment, the ghost stories of the haunted mansion dominated the maid’s mind.

She tried to block the scream, but it was too late.

“Ugh!”

The sound of swallowing echoed out, and Belinda sharply turned toward the door.

Thud. Losing strength in her legs, the maid collapsed.

“You.”

Belinda slowly approached the fallen maid.

Even in the darkness, her unyielding gaze sparkled.

“I see you.”

The maid fainted.

Belinda, crouching next to the unconscious maid, shook her hands in front of her face.

Once she confirmed the maid was still breathing, Belinda lowered her head, covering her face with both hands.

“Oh, this isn’t good.”

Through her slender fingers, muffled cries escaped.

Belinda’s notorious reputation continued to accumulate on this day.

***

The day before the maid came.

“Belinda’s exclusive pistol, right?”

Vivian, who usually sparkled at the mention of magical inventions, strangely responded with a lack of confidence.

I nodded and explained.

“I want it to release magical energy rather than bullets. Is that possible?”

In the world of <Hirome>, guns existed, but they remained in a primitive form, not advancing any further. The reason was clear – skilled swordsmen could easily deflect incoming bullets with their blades.

Well, not to mention a mage.

‘The only things I can count on are money and intelligence.’

Excited to discover that I had magic, I had planned to take magic lessons with Leo.

However, Cheshire delivered news that instantly doused my enthusiasm.

“Too bad, Master. Unfortunately, ability users can’t learn ordinary magic.”

“What? Why the heck not?”

“I told you. Ability users have magic circles engraved in their magical power. So, even if you try to cast a simple fire spell, the magic circles overlap.”

“Still, there must be some way…”

“Some things just can’t be done.”

For this reason, I couldn’t learn magic and instead focused on training with my ability.

As Cheshire analyzed, Blanche’s ability involved a complex combination of three magic circles – binding, brainwashing, and the process of enchantment.

Currently, I have only mastered the binding and brainwashing, but if I succeeded in the assimilation, I would be able to see the world through the eyes of Kao.

Of course, it hasn’t paid off so far.

Nevertheless, for these reasons, I had to rely on my singular ability.

The firearms I currently possessed were heavy, lacked accuracy, and were ineffective as weapons. Still, they were better than having nothing.

“If I have a long-range weapon that can shoot my magical power, I can tame monsters without directly touching them.”

I figured that a gun, which I had seen countless times in my past life through media, would be easier to handle than a bow or crossbow, which I didn’t know how to use.

Besides, magic has no offensive power of its own, so firearms that fire magic have never been developed.

Still, I asked Vivian, just in case, though she didn’t seem too keen on the idea of making weapons.

“Still, with a parallel structure…”

Perhaps until now, Vivian hadn’t been uninterested but lacked confidence. Her face, which had been gloomy just moments ago, now began to show signs of excitement.

“I think it’s possible!”

“Focus on creating weapons for now instead of healing potions. I’ll cover the expenses.”

“Yes!”

With Vivian’s confident response, I felt relieved and leisurely sipped my tea.

“With a weapon like that, do you think you could defeat something like a ghost?”

Leo, sitting next to me and sipping warm milk, suddenly brought up the topic of ghosts. All eyes, including Vivian, Terry, and Pernadel, turned to me.

I wondered why he was suddenly talking about ghosts.

Leo glanced over to the drawing-room window.

I followed his gaze to check out the view from the window and soon understood why Leo had brought up the ghost story.

As we entered the end of autumn, the graveyard behind the mansion became more eerie each day.

The bare, skeletal trees, especially, contributed to the haunting atmosphere.

I signaled to Terry, and the quick-witted Terry immediately closed the curtains.

The mansion had once been rumored as a haunted house. Although Leo usually carried himself bravely, he still occasionally thought about the mansion’s ghosts.

‘Cute.’

Wiping the milk froth from Leo’s chin with a handkerchief, I was about to speak when someone beat me to it.

“In reality, ghosts don’t exist. There are merely unexplained phenomena.”

Vivian, who would one day become a ghost, spoke these words.

If it had been anyone else, I would have quickly agreed and reassured Leo, but when Vivian said it, I started to get suspicious.

I wondered if the mansion really was haunted.

As I pondered, Leo turned to Sir Penadel.

“Sir knight, have you ever seen anything in this mansion at night?”

“I’ve felt things, but I’ve never seen them.”

“……?”

Pernadel’s dry humor casts a chill over the atmosphere.