Given his knowledge of the novel's plot, it would be foolish not to use that to his advantage.
The protagonist, who is his older brother Sylas—would gradually gathers powerful and loyal allies as the story progressed.
These allies were brilliant, strong, and essential to Sylas's success.
However, one ally in particular stood out: the first character to become Sylas's loyal subordinate.
That same person was the one who, in the original story, ultimately killed Rocco and sealed his bad ending.
And so, Rocco knew what he had to do.
If I can win him over first, I might just survive.
"This won't work… I absolutely need to make that man my ally…"
Rocco's hand that was clutching the pencil, trembled violently.
N-not out of fear, of course.
It was a warrior's trembling.
Yes, that's it.
A valiant shiver…
Regardless, leaving the protagonist's most loyal servant—that man—unchecked and heading into the pivotal birthday party was not an option.
His strategy to win his brother's favor could still fail, after all.
Preparing for the worst, and gathering allies for a potential escape was essential to the plan.
The person Rocco aimed to recruit was none other than one of Sylas's future devoted subordinates: a notorious figure who had once terrorized the entire kingdom.
He was known simply as "Georgio the Hyena."
Though Georgio the Hyena was infamous as a deranged serial killer, his murders weren't as random as people believed.
A closer look revealed a pattern among his victims.
However, since both the perpetrators and victims were from the slums and were considered less than human—the esteemed kingdom's guards never bothered investigating properly.
As a result, Georgio was hunted as a mere sadistic killer, living life on the run.
Then one day, Sylas who is recognizing Georgio's motives and ideals, extended a hand to recruit him.
Wounded and hiding while being pursued by the guards, Georgio was saved by Sylas.
That was the turning point—Georgio fell entirely into Sylas's camp.
"Sylas was so cool in that scene…" Rocco murmured, recalling one of his favorite parts of the novel.
The moment played out vividly in his mind:
In a filthy slum alley, Georgio lay on the verge of death, collapsed near a garbage heap.
The sound of footsteps echoed, approaching closer.
Then appeared a beautiful young man with flowing, lustrous long hair—Sylas.
Sylas stood tall while gazing down at the fallen Georgio, his presence commanding and unyielding.
Then, he spoke a single line.
"You're mine now."
Those words stirred something in Georgio's heart.
For a man on the brink of death, the figure before him was nothing short of a savior.
And Sylas followed up with the final push that sealed Georgio's fate.
"I don't care about your motives or your past. If there's someone you want to kill, then kill them. In exchange, you will become my shield."
"Take every bullet, every blade. I'll purchase your life."
Sylas had bought Georgio—as a disposable shield.
With enemies attacking him daily, Sylas, being a true mafia leader, sought someone to absorb those blows in his place.