After walking for quite some time, the three of them finally arrived in front of the main hall.
The guard who had been leading the way stopped before a massive door. Hera stood several steps behind him, while Zeldryn remained at the back, continuing to endure the pain spreading throughout his body.
The guard reached for the handle and slowly opened the door.
"Please enter, my lord."
He stepped inside first to lead the way. Hera followed behind him, while Zeldryn entered the hall last.
Ever since they had begun approaching this place, Hera's expression had continued to worsen. Her steps had become stiffer, both hands clutched the sides of her uniform, and her gaze remained fixed on the floor. Zeldryn could see all of it clearly from behind her.
'Why does she look that terrified?' Zeldryn thought.
However, the moment his gaze shifted toward the center of the hall, he immediately understood the reason.
The scene before him was completely absurd.
A fat young man with blond hair sat comfortably in one of the chairs. His face still looked quite young, and he was probably somewhere between eighteen and twenty years old. Both of his feet rested on a table covered with fruit, bread, and various other foods.
The young man picked up a piece of fruit, took several bites, and then tossed what remained back onto the table.
"OI, SERVANT! BRING ME MORE FRUIT! HURRY UP!"
A female servant standing not far from the table immediately flinched.
"Y-yes, sir."
She quickly approached and picked up the nearly empty plate. The fat young man watched her movements impatiently.
"You're so damn slow! Do you want me to report you to Lord Zeldryn, huh?!"
After saying that, he burst into loud laughter.
"HAHAHAHA!"
When the servant was about to turn away, the young man suddenly slapped her backside.
The servant's entire body stiffened. Her face turned pale, but she did not dare turn around or say anything. She merely bit her lip and carried the plate away.
Not far from him stood another young man who looked to be around the same age. He was thin and had black hair. His face was still youthful, but there was a cunning look in his eyes.
The thin young man stood extremely close to a young female servant, gripping the girl's face with one hand and forcing her to look at him.
"Hmm. Now that I see you up close, you're actually quite pretty."
The servant tried to turn her face away, but his grip on her chin immediately tightened.
The black-haired young man smiled faintly.
"You'll be serving me tonight, Miss Servant."
He stroked her cheek with his thumb.
"Or would you rather be punished by Lord Zeldryn?"
The servant's body immediately began trembling. Tears were already gathering in her eyes, but she did not dare refuse or ask for help.
Seeing all of this, Zeldryn felt his blood begin to boil.
'Who the hell are these two bastards?' he thought.
He wanted to walk over and beat both of them right then and there, but he restrained himself. He still did not know who they were.
Seeing how boldly the two young men behaved inside the mansion, Zeldryn briefly wondered whether they might be related to this body.
'Could they be this body's brothers?'
The possibility immediately felt strange. The two of them used Zeldryn's name to threaten the servants, and they addressed him as Lord instead of speaking casually as close family members normally would.
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Zeldryn looked toward the guard standing not far in front of Hera. The man remained silent with both hands clenched into fists. His jaw tightened as he watched the two young men mistreat the servants, but he did not dare intervene.
Zeldryn then shifted his attention toward Hera, who stood directly in front of him. Just as he had expected, she looked as though she might vomit at any moment. Her hands trembled even more violently, her shoulders were tense, and her gaze remained fixed on the floor as though she could not bear to look at either man.
'So they're the ones who have been frightening Hera this whole time,' Zeldryn thought.
While Zeldryn was still trying to understand the situation, the fat blond young man happened to glance toward the entrance of the hall. His laughter immediately stopped.
The piece of fruit he had been about to put into his mouth froze in midair as his eyes widened upon seeing Zeldryn standing behind Hera. He hurriedly lowered both feet from the table and quickly placed the fruit back on the plate. After correcting his posture, the young man signaled to the thin man with his eyes.
The black-haired young man followed his gaze. The moment he saw Zeldryn, he immediately released the servant's face. The girl quickly stepped backward and stood near the wall with a pale expression.
The fat young man rose from his chair.
"Ahem."
He straightened his clothes and tidied his blond hair. The crude behavior he had displayed only seconds earlier disappeared completely, and a wide smile appeared on his face.
"Honorable Lord Zeldryn."
He bowed with an exaggerated motion.
"I, Henry, your friend and most loyal follower, am very pleased to see that your condition has improved."
After introducing himself, Henry glanced at the fruit he had previously tossed carelessly onto the table. He immediately picked it up and arranged it neatly on the plate, as though Zeldryn had not witnessed what he had done only moments earlier.
Henry then walked closer while wearing a sorrowful expression.
"I was truly devastated when I heard about what happened to you last night."
He shook his head before placing one hand over his chest.
"It deeply pains me to know that you were surrounded by those barbarians. If only I had been there, I would certainly have fought them."
Henry looked at Zeldryn with an expression filled with false conviction.
"Even if I had to sacrifice my own life to save you."
The thin black-haired young man also began walking toward them.
"Yes, yes. Absolutely. That is completely true, Lord Zeldryn."
He bowed slightly.
"I am Aeglo, your friend and loyal follower. I was also deeply saddened when I heard about the incident."
Aeglo wore a gloomy expression that looked entirely fabricated.
"I could not even sleep last night because I was so worried about your condition."
Zeldryn merely stared at the two of them without saying anything.
Henry and Aeglo.
Neither name caused any memory fragments to surface inside his head. However, judging from how suddenly their behavior had changed, Zeldryn could already guess what kind of people were standing before him.
Only moments earlier, the two of them had been shouting at the servants, threatening them, and treating them however they pleased. Now they stood politely in front of Zeldryn while wearing expressions filled with concern.
The sight felt extremely familiar to Reka. Back when he had still been working in his previous world, he had often encountered people just like them. People who would insult their superiors behind their backs, only to transform into the most loyal dogs imaginable the moment their boss appeared in front of them. They would continue licking someone's boots for as long as that person possessed money, status, or some other benefit they could exploit.
'How nostalgic,' Zeldryn thought.
The corner of his lips twitched slightly in disgust.
'I haven't seen bootlickers this revolting since I got fired.'
Henry and Aeglo continued walking toward him. Because Hera stood directly in front of Zeldryn, the two young men had to pass her first.
Hera's body immediately became rigid. She lowered her head even further and stood completely still, as though hoping the two of them would simply pass without doing anything.
Henry only glanced at Hera briefly before walking past her.
Aeglo, however, stopped directly beside the girl.
He turned his head, and a faint smile appeared on his face as his gaze traveled from Hera's injured cheek down to her bandaged hands.
Hera began trembling even harder. She did not dare raise her face or say anything.
Aeglo stared at her for several seconds before finally continuing forward to follow Henry.
Zeldryn, who stood directly behind Hera, saw everything clearly. He had seen the way Aeglo looked at her, the way Henry used Zeldryn's name to threaten the servants, and the way the two of them treated the mansion as though it belonged to them.
Even the guards did not dare reprimand them because the two young men believed they were under the protection of the previous Zeldryn.
Zeldryn was finally beginning to understand the situation.
'They aren't related to this body,' he thought. 'They're just two bootlicking bastards who have been taking advantage of Zeldryn's name.'
The previous Zeldryn had most likely considered Henry and Aeglo his friends and loyal followers. In reality, the two of them had only been using him to enjoy the mansion's food, facilities, servants, and the lifestyle available to nobles.
They were also much older than Zeldryn. Yet instead of feeling ashamed for taking advantage of a twelve-year-old child, the two of them had lived comfortably while hiding behind the Giorry family name.
'Maybe these two bastards are also part of the reason the old Zeldryn became even more stupid,' he thought.
Henry finally stopped directly in front of Zeldryn. His smile grew even wider as he extended one hand, apparently intending to touch Zeldryn as though they were close friends finally meeting again after a long separation.
Before his hand could reach him, however, Zeldryn slapped it away.
Smack!
Henry froze, and Aeglo immediately stopped beside him. Hera slowly raised her face in surprise, while the nearby guard widened his eyes at what had just happened.
Zeldryn stared at Henry's hand with disgust before slowly raising his gaze toward the fat young man's face.
"What the hell do you think you're doing, bastard?"