Tamed A Blackened Slave Man - Chapter 64: If The Dog Bites Its Owner

TL Note : Hey Ara here! All of these dukes, earls and marquesses might be a bit confusing, so here’s a quick explanation to the empire’s rank system: Emperor -> Crown Prince -> Grand Duke -> Duke -> Marquess -> Earl -> … -> Commoner -> Slave

Hope that helps!

‘I will provide tenfold of what you ask for, you say.’

Pondering over what Cassadin had just said, the Emperor quickly racked his brain. The man standing before him was someone who defeated Damian, whom not even the Emperor could do anything about, by an overwhelming margin of skill.

Though he was now only a toothless lion, the Emperor himself also had his share of experience on the battlefield in the past.

Through his accumulation of skill over the decades, the Emperor immediately realized that Cassadin’s swordsmanship was far superior to Damian’s, even before he had collapsed because of his heart.

He felt that he could use the man standing in front of him to keep watch on Damian.

Above all, though, the Emperor wanted Cassadin. He knew that if it weren’t for his status as a slave, then Cassadin would be able to spread his wings and soar high into the sky.

If the Emperor decided to give him those wings, would this man become loyal to him? Or would he stab a sword into his back?

As he keenly watched Cassadin, the Emperor thought more.

‘Shall I try and give him those wings? It will not be too late to take them back, even if the dog bites its owner.’

Finally, after intently staring at Cassadin for quite some time, the Emperor slowly opened his mouth.

“…Will the title of Marquess be enough?”

To the Emperor’s response, the imperial knights all paled as if they had just heard something utterly ridiculous.

“Your Majesty! That is too much of a reward for him!”

“Giving a Marquess title to a mere slave is unheard of!”

“Your Majesty, please reconsider…!”

The Emperor raised his hand and halted the imperial knights. They had no choice but to keep quiet, which led to them chewing on their lips nervously.

“I will ask you again. Will the title of Marquess be enough?”

One could say that the title of Marquess was the biggest prize that had been given to anyone in the entire history of this event.

There had been some winners in the past who had wished for a rank, but the Emperor had never declared a title as high as a Marquess before.

That would be natural, as the Emperor usually gave them knight titles or the Baron title at most.

Even if the fighting competition was a stepping stone for rising up the ranks, the Emperor judged it wouldn’t be wise to give those whom he didn’t know well high ranks.

Just considering today, had Damian not participated in the event, the Emperor wouldn’t have also mentioned the title of Marquess to Cassadin.

It was because he had won over Damian, who was praised as the best swordsman in the Empire, that the Emperor took interest, and Cassadin was able to raise his own value.

In response to the Emperor’s offer, Cassadin placed his right hand over his chest and bowed.

“There are no words that can express the appreciation I hold for this unimaginable honor.”

While a faint smile drew across the Emperor’s face, the expressions of the imperial knights only darkened even further.

Not giving a single glance at the knights who were glaring at him, Cassadin then stared the Emperor directly in the eyes and asked him.

“May I ask one last thing from Your Majesty?”

How bold of a man he was, maintaining such confidence in front of him, the Emperor. Just what was it that he wanted that a Marquess title did not fulfill?

But the Emperor did not dislike this about Cassadin. It was better to have one who knew exactly how much they were worth and was willing to bargain for that worth than one who was ignorant and didn’t know their own worth.

“You may speak.”

“If a war ever breaks out, I request that the Serkia Family does not participate in it.”

Why was he asking for such a thing when he had already left the family? With his eyes narrowing, the Emperor, answered him.

“That is not a request that I can fulfill, as it is set by the laws that all men within the Seville Empire must participate in the war. Though you may not have known with your previous status as a slave.”

“…If Your Majesty allows it, I wish to participate in the war instead.”

Once Cassadin obtained the Marquess title and became a citizen of the Empire, he would need to participate in the war anyway. So, there was no reason for the Emperor to fulfill Cassadin’s wish.

Just as the Emperor opened his mouth to turn down the request, Cassadin spoke up once again.

“I will stand in the lead on the frontlines. I will lead every single battle into victory.”

One could have interpreted that statement as arrogance, but it was full of certainty.

‘Does he really trust his swordsmanship skills that much?’

Had the Emperor heard this before seeing Cassadin’s skills, he might have thought the man was speaking nonsense.

But after witnessing with his own eyes that Cassadin possessed swordsmanship skills that surpassed even Damian’s, the Emperor also knew that these were not empty promises.

‘But no matter how skilled he is, what if he fails to return victorious on the front lines?’

Wars have many unknown variables. No matter how amazing Cassadin was at combat, if he didn’t have the proper commanding ability and tactics to support him, the battlefield would only provide him with miserable defeat.

If that happened, then it would only make the Emperor look foolish for supporting the man.

Eyes squinting even further, the Emperor asked Cassadin.

“What you have just claimed is not something to be taken lightly. Let us say that I do fulfill that request. What will you pay in return if you fail to win the war?”

“Your Majesty can take back everything that was given to me.”

His answer didn’t hold a single hint of hesitation. But it was the words that followed that surprised the Emperor.

“In addition to that, I will pay all of them with this worthless life of mine.”

This man was putting his life on the line in order to participate in the war in place of the Serkia Family. Even if they had taken him into their care when he was a gladiator slave, this seemed like a bit too much.

Not to mention that it was he who left the family, and now he’s asking to fight in the war for them? The man called Cassadin was difficult to understand.

The Emperor peered at Cassadin with curiosity. His deep purple eyes, which seemed to be made from amethysts themselves, twinkled brightly.

“May I ask why you are going so far as to put your life on the line?”

“Earl Zigen had provided me with many things, though we are no longer family now. It had been bothering me that I left the family on my own accord because I didn’t want to be a burden to them.”

“……”

“Also, my sister, who had been the one to take me in as their family, treated me as not a slave but another human being. So I desperately want to repay that kindness.”

Attempting to repay favors one has received is a good attitude to have. And above all, since Cassadin was the one who wanted to repay the kindness he received, there was no reason for the Emperor to refuse his requests.

‘With the law being the law and the public keeping watch, it’s impossible for the Serkia Family to avoid participating in the war even with their exclusive healing abilities. That just happened to be a problem I had been thinking about.’

The healing abilities that the Serkia Family possessed were able to heal almost all diseases. But that ability was only limited to those with adept healing abilities and mental strength.

In that sense, Aren was the most skilled healer in the history of their family. Their healing abilities usually didn’t manifest until their mid-teens, but Aren was already able to heal dying animals at the age of nine.

As the person to manifest their healing abilities the earliest before she was eleven, one could say that Aren was already the most powerful healer at the youngest age.

And Earl Zigen was Aren’s father. A corner of his mind had been feeling anxious every time there was news that their neighboring kingdom was at war.

‘They say that Elsia in the northwest is slowly expanding their territory. They’d only been a small country just a few years ago.’

The war was one thing, but the Emperor was worried that if the Earl went out to battle and returned as a corpse, then Aren’s mental state might deteriorate and completely collapse.

Since her healing ability also depended heavily on a strong mental state, it would be a great loss to the empire if Aren’s healing abilities disappeared.

That was how useful of a person Aren was to the Emperor, but the story changed if she tried to take the seat next to Leon.

Aren did say that there was another man she liked, but he wasn’t sure if she was telling the truth.

‘Not to mention that Leon is currently taking an interest in Lady Serkia, which is not good news. And I am still suspicious of the relationship between the Lady and Damian.’

It would all be fine as long as Cassadin became his loyal hunting dog.

Though they were no longer family, they must still be quite close. He even declared that he would go to war instead for the family that he just left.

‘Only he himself will know whether he will be loyal to the Serkia family, which had once been his family, or me, who gave him the title of Marquess. Let’s see how he will answer to a test.’

After sorting through his thoughts, the Emperor nodded to himself and opened his mouth.

“Very well. I will accept your request.”

“…Thank you, Your Majesty.”

“But before I bestow upon you your prize, I have something I must ask you.”

Stroking his beard, the Emperor then asked Cassadin.

“Let’s say that you have a dog. If one day that dog attempts to bite you, what will you do with the dog?”

Cassadin almost immediately answered the Emperor’s question.

“I will first try to train it.”

“Train it?”

“Yes. There must be a reason why the dog is suddenly biting its owner after all.”

“Oh, then what if it continues to bite the owner even after training it?”

“Then.”

Suddenly pausing, Cassadin slowly inspected the Emperor’s expression. His golden eyes, which glowed like the sun, were glittering sharply. Those were the eyes of someone testing him.

Realizing that the Emperor was testing him, Cassadin gave him the answer that the Emperor wanted to hear instead of his true thoughts.

“I will kill it.”

“…Kill it, you say.”

“Indeed. A dog that is unable to recognize its owner even after being given a chance is a useless animal. Since it judged me, who fed it and provided it shelter, as an enemy, I judge there is no reason for it to be kept alive.”

The corner of the Emperor’s lips loosened after hearing Cassadin’s answer. His wrinkled eyes, which contained golden irises, then curved into a thin arch.

“Hahahahah!”

Laughing aloud, the Emperor placed his hand on Cassadin’s shoulder. Seeing the wide smile on his face, Cassadin knew that he had passed the Emperor’s test.

Standing on top of the stage, the Emperor then announced loudly that the winner of this fighting competition had been given the title of Marquess, and had originally been a slave. The audience murmured amongst each other at this news, but no one dared to protest against the Emperor’s word.

After announcing what he had to say, the Emperor turned his head to Cassadin.

“The award ceremony will be held tomorrow. I will also bestow upon you the title of Marquess at that time.”

“Thank you. Your Majesty.”

“I will send a carriage tomorrow, so come to the palace. If you wish, you may come right now. There are enough rooms in the palace.”

“I am afraid to say this, but there is something I must say to the family that took me in, so it will be difficult for me to head to the palace today.”

Hearing that, the Emperor narrowed his eyes, and then he called one of the imperial knights who had been standing nearby and whispered something into his ear.

The imperial knight bowed, then ran towards the royal seats. When Cassadin cocked his head in confusion, the Emperor smiled and explained what had happened.

“I ordered the people of the Serkia Family to attend your award ceremony tomorrow.”

“……”

“Though they are no longer your family, there has once been a time they had been, is that not true?”

What an old fox he was. Cassadin thought to himself.

It was clear that the Emperor planned to judge every aspect of him tomorrow, including whether he would remain loyal to the Serkia Family or become loyal to the Emperor.

Maintaining his expression, Cassadin bowed to the Emperor.

“I greatly appreciate Your Majesty’s consideration.”

“Then, we will meet again tomorrow.”

The Emperor patted Cassadin’s shoulder one last time before taking his leave. As soon as the Emperor’s gaze left him, Cassadin peered up at the royal seats.

When he gazed upwards, he found Aren smiling brightly at him. But unlike the smiling woman, Earl Zigen was staring at him with his jaw dropped open in shock.

Then a smile spread across Cassadin’s expressionless face.

The events of that day’s fighting competition became a hot issue that swept across the entire Empire. And not even a day after the event had happened, half of the entire Empire had heard of the news.

Cassadin, the gladiator slave who had been adopted into an Earl’s family, won against Grand Duke Damian in the fighting competition. In addition to that, the Emperor had promised him the title of Marquess as a prize.

Some of those who heard this unbelievable news judged it as nonsense, and those who had seen the match with their own eyes couldn’t hold back their surprise.

Meanwhile, in Damian’s territory, the news also spread to a slum that was located in the north.

The sound of men talking traveled between the old and shabby houses.

“The Emperor said that he would give the winner of that competition the Marquess title, the one right below Duke? Hah! Wow! Rumors really shouldn’t be trusted.”

“I’ve heard this directly from someone who watched the event. It isn’t a rumor; it’s the truth.”

“Are you saying that there’s someone who’s able to win against His Grace in a fight? Lies. His Grace hasn’t lost his position as winner in the Swordsmanship Competition for the past ten years. And, he’s going to become a Marquess when he was a slave before? Try to make it more realistic next time.”

A woman who had been listening intently to the conversation that the people were having in the back alleyway then stepped into view.

Though the woman’s clothing was worn and tattered, her face was too pale for someone who lived in the slums, and the ginger hair that came down to her shoulders reminded those who saw it of a wheat field in the fall.

When the large pink eyes found under her long eyelashes blinked toward the men, they all stopped talking and stared at the beautiful woman who had suddenly appeared in front of them.

Looking at the men who were gazing at her with stunned expressions, the woman smiled and started to move her rosy lips.

“That rumor… Can you please tell me more?”