The first rays of light peering through the curtains announced the beginning of the day.
Euphemia, who lazily opened her eyes, soon felt annoyed upon waking up being embraced by Ferzen.
As soon as she got away from him and tried to leave the bed, the traces of last night's events presented themselves to her, as the entire room reeked of a musky odor.
"… … "
Euphemia vividly recalled her shameful and lewd appearance from last night.
But the memories of her lewdly locking Ferzen in his position with her legs, forcing him to go even deeper, filled her with an indescribable sense of shame.
She could still hear him whispering into her ear, praising her for doing well.
But even in the midst of last night's affair, Ferzen remained unperturbed by everything. His poise was impeccable.
This made her even more upset.
He was the one who, under the pretense of his need for an heir, had his way with her again.
"... "
What did he think when seeing her reduced to a pleasure-seeking sow?
Maybe she was always like this.
Perhaps it was for the best that I never looked him in the eye.
If he had looked at her with contempt or disgust….
No, even if he were to look at her like that, Euphemia doubted she would have loosened her legs around Ferzen's waist.
'I'm pathetic… '
Euphemia sighed, as a self-depreciatory smile formed on her lips.
Because this was the consequence of her choices, there was nothing she could do but to endure, even if her life now seemed hopeless
But to live a helpless life was something terrifying.
No matter what you do, the results won't change.
-Squeak!
Getting her feet off the bed she carefully got up.
"Ah…?!"
However, her legs failed her, and so Euphemia collapsed on the floor.
"What's going on…"
Mustering all her strength, Euphemia barely got up with her trembling legs, but at that moment, something dripped down her lower half, so she closed her legs in panic.
Even a fool could realize that this substance was, in fact, Ferzen's seed poured in her last night.
So in her panic, Euphemia picked her underwear that was nearby and tried to clean her vagina, but thanks to the warm temperature of Brutein, the semen didn't harden and constantly dripped out, with no signs of stopping soon.
"... "
Seeing this scene, Euphemia smiled bitterly and threw the now stained underwear on the bed.
"You dirty bastard… damn just how much….:"
Is this how it feels, being a solitary flower in the middle of the desert?
No matter how hard it tries, in the end, it will end up withering all the same.
– Rustle
Ferzen, who until now was in deep slumber, slowly opened his eyes and stared at Euphemia's figure sitting by the bedside.
"I haven't even woken up properly yet..."
"Don't you know only the lowborn can wake up early?"
"You're being childish."
"... "
How can he maintain the same prideful and obstinate attitude as soon as he wakes up….
"I will call the maids here, so fix your nightgown, or do you prefer to show your exposed bosom to everyone?"
"You don't need to tell me that…. "
Noticing her state, Euphemia quickly fixed her one-piece dress at Ferzen's words.
"Look at this… You won't be able to wear it again."
Then, as he looked at Euphemia's sticky black underwear, which had been curled up and thrown on the bed and carried a rather fishy stench, Ferzen clicked his tongue.
"Aren't those your so-called desired heirs? I guess it's still a dirty thing, no?"
At the sight of Ferzen holding her semen-coated underwear, Euphemia couldn't hold back her snarky remark with a sly smile.
"I had the most pleasant sleep. Did you not? I wonder what soured your mood this morning…"
"... "
Is he messing with me?
Euphemia turned her head away from Ferzen, choosing to ignore his words.
Ferzen too didn't say anything. Instead, he lifted the bell placed near the bed and waved it.
Then, after hearing a slight commotion outside the doors, the maids in waiting gave the door a light knock and proceeded inside the room.
"Clean this room and change the bed sheets… also, prepare a bath for my wife. But avoid the use of strong perfumes or fragrances."
"At once, My Lord."
"There's no need… I can take a bath by myself."
Euphemia tried to get away from this situation because it would be a rather shameful event if those servants saw the traces of last night's affair and the semen still leaking from her body.
"Euphemia, foolish is the master who mistreats his servants, but an even bigger fool is the one who denies them of their purpose. They won't feel grateful for your 'kindness'. It's just unsightly. Your consideration is misplaced and a nuisance."
"Your consideration for me… is too a nuisance. You know this as well, so please don't make me any more miserable than I already am."
Not interested in listening to Euphemia's little rant, Ferzen stood up.
"Understand this Euphemia. There are no absolutes in this world, and the closest thing we have to this concept is the 'law.' Therefore, if you feel shabby in my presence, that means you are the problem, not me."
"... "
"From this point on, if you have something to say to me, then be worthy of my attention."
"Crazy Bastard."
"We had a long night, and you exceeded my expectations, and this too is worthy of a reward. Inform the servants of your tastes and they shall prepare your favorite food."
After saying his piece, Ferzen left the room.
* * * * *
After taking a bath and changing my clothes, I summoned Chris and asked him if he had already procured a skilled artist.
"My lord, he is waiting for you in the drawing-room."
"Now?"
"It seems that he has some urgent business in Rosenberg, my Lord."
"Hum… come to think of it, Rosenberg should be hosting some sort of culture festival soon. And it seems our artist won't let an event like this be unappreciated."
After dismissing Chris, I went down to the drawing-room on the first floor and faced the anxious artist.
"M-my LL-ord!"
"Sit."
"Yes!"
His behavior reminds me of a restless stray dog, unsightly but bearable – for now. As I didn't want to waste my time, I drew a rough portrait of the Main Character, Ciel Midford, and handed it to him.
"Now, I will describe to you this man's characteristics in detail, feel free to use this sketch as a reference. Since the head butler brought you here, your skill must be good. Impress me and I'll double your pay."
"My lord! your drawing skill is really-"
"Stop with this meaningless flattery and begin your work."
"Yes, Yes..."
Art, to some extent, is a basic skill for the aristocracy.
So, Ferzen's body naturally contained some skill in this aspect, which in these circumstances is a rather fortunate thing.
No matter how well I explained, there is only so much that can be conveyed through words alone. So it's better to express them in a painting.
Therefore, had I handled my information in the wrong way, this would become an abstract painting rather than a portrait.
But thanks to this sketch with Ciel's prime characteristics, this scared rabbit of an artist understood the description I gave him derived from the novel and was able to draw Ciel Midford perfectly.
Of course, this painting wasn't a 100% match, but it's good enough.
"It's passable."
"I'm not worthy of such praise, My Lord!"
"Now go. Chris will handle your recompense."
After collecting the portrait, I got up and informed Chris to reward this artist generously, and went into my Lord Brother's office.
"And this is…"
"I know it's a little too much, but do give it a read, as these are some rather important documents."
After handing over Ciel Midford's portrait, Jeremiah gave me a giant pile of papers.
"These are the dossiers of your soon-to-be colleagues who were selected as professors, and those who will become your students."
"I see… Thank you."
This is something extremely vital for me, as Ferzen secluded himself from most social events.
Therefore, bowing my head to my Lord Brother, I left the office and found a peaceful place in the gardens of our state to read the dossiers.
"... "
No, to be exact, I tried to read them.
This World's printing industry has developed quite well, as now most important documents are now printed instead of being handwritten.
However, some of the letters printed were out of symmetry, so just by looking at them, I could feel my head throbbing a bit.
Sure, this was annoying, but I didn't have the compulsion to tear these documents apart, so I steeled myself and tried to read them….
"... "
My head hurts.
Not only because these letters were out of symmetry.
In addition, on the very first page, the profiles of 2 people were shown
And the information about these two characters gave me a headache.
—–
[Lizzy Poliana Claudia (18 years old)]
The youngest daughter of Viscount Claudia.
Rumored to possess immense talent and expected to be promoted to a Euclid-class Warlock within 1 or 2 years.
Viscount Von Claudia died three months ago, and his second son is now the heir to the title, as his firstborn is a member of the Imperial Templar Knights.
—–
"Lizzy, Lizzy… … "
She's present in Ferzen's memories.
But if I can remember her name, this means that either she made an impression on Ferzen or she and Ferzen had some grievances between them.
"... "
But of course, chances are that this 'Impression' wasn't on the positive side.
Since Ferzen's 'Episode' with his older brother, Jeremiah, their sibling relationship had been strained.
Truth is, calling it 'strained' would be an oversimplification.
So on Jeremiah's 17th birthday, a banquet was held to celebrate his coming of age ceremony, Ferzen on this occasion, was the first one to arrive in order to apologize to his brother and also congratulate him.
Part of the reason that their relationship is now 'normal' is because of this event.
But the problem is that Ferzen should have gotten out there sooner.
But he didn't do that. Ferzen was happy that he and his older brother were now on good terms and decided to hang out a little more in order to enjoy his presence.
'I'm going to go crazy at this rate….'
Unlike Jeremiah, the second son of Brutein – Ferzen, never appeared in any social event.
And when a high noble who also happened to be a shut-in appeared by chance, many nobles sent their daughters in order to greet him.
At the time, Viscount Von Claudia was one of them.
The problem is that his daughter, Lizzy, asked him to dance, as the courting etiquette dictated.
I'm not entirely sure if Viscount Von Claudia was motivated by her greed or simply thought his daughter could offer some comfort to the secluded young master of Brutein.
As for the result, it was disastrous.
During the dance, Lizzy made the wrong move, causing Ferzen to step on her, spraining her ankle.
Up to this moment, everything was going as planned.
[I apologize, I apologize…]
Seeing Lizzy's situation, Ferzen's obsession was triggered, and he…
– Stamp!
The memory of that event was so vivid that I had to shake my head in order to clear my thoughts.
Lizzy was only 10 years old at that time.
Ferzen's action of thoroughly smashing the young lady's ankle was borderline psychotic.
But the strange thing about this is that even though Ferzen acted according to his obsession, he didn't feel good at all.
For the first time in his life, Ferzen was… Terrified.
'This can't be a coincidence, can it?'
Suddenly I lost my will to read the next dossier.
But I mustered up the necessary courage as this could be vital information…..
"Fuck... "
The Alfred family.
As soon as I saw that name, I threw those documents away.
A Marquis house that is comparable to Brutein in both power and influence.
I was… afraid of what I would recall.
Truth is, there was no need for me to even feel any sort of emotion if this world was just fiction.
But this world was real… and I was the Villain.
Therefore, these 2 'characters' on the dossiers were supposed to be a kind of "Paving Stone" for Ciel Midford's ultimate goal of exacting his revenge against me.
"... "
What can I even say about this?
Once again, I realized that Ferzen Von Schweig Brutein was an evil that needs to be exterminated.
I thought that things would be easy if I could just bring Euphemia to my side and prepare the trap for the Main Character, but I was naïve.
"Hahaha... "
Could it be that I'm interpreting this narrative in the wrong way?
That the real protagonist was Ferzen all along.
But I let go of this stupid possibility.
Because if Ferzen were to be the true Main Character, then correcting his evil deeds should be as simple as cleaning the laundry just by throwing them in the washing machine.
'There's no way that would happen…. '
They would have to think that there was sure to be a misunderstanding about my actions.
That what I did was caused by an external factor or that I had a noble objective behind my actions.
The purest form of an evil deed is that there are not even a bit of the 'behind-the-scenes' motives.
Even if it was revealed that some of Ferzen's sins were caused by his Obsessive-compulsive disorder, no amount of whitewash was ever going to fix that.
Ah, how nice it would be to be able to clean my sins with the protagonist's halo…
Revealing my condition will only become a weakness to be exploited.
Okay...
I am the villain. It is time I accept that fact.
But there is only one question – Who did the title of the novel 'Struggling to Survive Together' refer to?
'I miss my old life…..'
The spring breeze carried a handful of emotions from a certain lone man.
Sorry for the delays, guys, we were finishing the last touches and stuff in order to launch the advanced chapters. And speaking of that, here's how's it gonna work for this novel>>>
The weekly releases are going to be 3ch/week for 'free' chapters, if u wanna read ahead and consequentially help our group, you subscribe for this novel's tier/plan on the official Genesis kofi with I will be linking here
If you're for some sick reason like this novel and me soo much that you gonna get that membership tier you're gonna have access to 5 advanced chapters, which is more or less 2 weeks of chapters, So to make it simple: U gib big boss money, big boss gonna put u 5 chapters ahead of everyone.
Oh, for now, we using Kofi to handle all these sponsored chapters nonsense(fr guys I'm the most misinformed dude ever, I didn't even know what Kofi was until 1 month ago….)
Anyways, this is all for me