Mastermind
Copyright© 2026 by FantasyTranslater
Chapter 6
Life in Rodmill brought Alon a great deal of satisfaction.
Although it had only been about three days, life in Rodmill offered him everything he imagined a typical noble life should be.
He could wake up whenever he wanted.
Sleep whenever he wanted.
Eat whenever he wanted.
Rodmill was a place where Alon could effortlessly live out what he believed were the three activities that brought the greatest happiness when done freely.
Sigh
While the funeral of Leo Palatio, the eldest son of the Palatio family, was taking place, Alon let out a silent sigh as he looked ahead.
Leo lay pale and lifeless, just like Tonio and the late Palatio Count before him.
Alon couldn’t help but show a somewhat baffled expression.
‘I have no idea where to even start with this mess.’
The reason for Alon’s confusion was that Leo’s death didn’t align with how he had envisioned it. Everything seemed to be twisted.
‘Leo’s death was supposed to happen six years from now.’
He shifted his gaze to Leo’s body, scanning it thoroughly.
The wounds were hidden by the ceremonial clothing, but...
A ‘Moonflower.’
As per the kingdom’s tradition, significant scars or mortal wounds were marked with a blue flower known as a Moonflower, which was native to the kingdom.
One of these Moonflowers was placed over Leo’s chest.
‘ ... Killed by a sword piercing the heart.’
While contemplating Leo’s cause of death, Alon couldn’t help but wonder who had committed such an act.
‘There are plenty of suspects if I think about it.’
He knew that Leo had been causing trouble in the underworld, doing all sorts of reckless things. It wasn’t surprising that something like this could have happened to him.
After all, Leo had likely killed over a thousand people, directly or indirectly.
Despite this, Alon kept questioning the situation because he knew Leo’s future.
‘Who could it be...? Who killed Leo?’
With these thoughts, Alon looked around.
Quite a few people had gathered for Leo’s funeral.
Servants, retainers, and knights of the Palatio household were present.
He had heard that some nobles had visited to pay their respects, but by the time Alon returned, they had already left.
In other words, the only people attending the funeral were those who worked for the Palatio family.
And...
They were all trying their best to avoid Alon’s gaze.
A servant who used to make casual jokes about how Alon would have died on the streets if he’d been born a commoner was now sweating profusely and bowing his head.
A knight who had previously picked fights with Alon every time he stepped out of the mansion now deliberately averted his gaze to avoid looking at him.
‘It’s understandable that they’d be worried about their jobs now that the third son they mocked has suddenly become the heir of the family... ‘
Even so, Alon noticed something more subtle in their reactions that caught his attention.
Whenever Alon’s gaze landed on a servant, they would tremble slightly, their hands shaking.
Earlier, when Alon’s eyes met a knight’s and he gave a slight shrug, just as he usually did, the knight fumbled and dropped his ceremonial sword, causing an awkward scene in the middle of the funeral.
These behaviors made it clear how the servants currently perceived Alon.
‘They’re not just suspicious ... They’re almost certain it was me.’
Two hours later,
“Young Master.”
“Yes?”
“It’s beyond what I imagined.”
“ ... How bad is it?”
“At this point, you’ve become the hidden power of the Palatio family, someone capable of wiping out Avalon in a single day.”
Alon realized that he had unknowingly become the rumored mastermind holding immense power within the Palatio family.
“I was just ... toasting some bread...”
Alon’s quiet lament as he recalled his time in Rodmill, where he had been making a simple piece of toast while such rumors about him spread through the Palatio household.
“In the time it took you to make that toast, you’ve become the hidden mastermind controlling sword masters.”
“I’m not in the mood for jokes.”
“I’m not joking, Young Master. That’s truly the rumor going around.”
“ ... How did such a rumor even spread?”
Alon frowned, utterly baffled by the situation. In response, Evan began explaining the information he had gathered from the guild.
A short while later,
“In summary, a day after Leo’s death, Avalon, the organization he controlled, disappeared from the underworld without a trace?”
“Yes.”
“And ... people think I’m the one responsible.”
“Exactly.”
“ ... Why?”
“Because you’re the only one who benefits from this situation, Young Master.”
“When you put it that way ... it does make sense...”
Indeed, it was a situation where Alon couldn’t avoid suspicion.
Leo had been killed shortly after Alon left the mansion for Rodmill, and Avalon, the organization Leo managed, was wiped out soon after.
In such a scenario, it was obvious that Alon stood to gain the most.
He had a perfect alibi, being away in Rodmill, while securing his position as the heir to the Palatio family.
Moreover, with Avalon’s destruction, the ties to the underworld that had clung to the Palatio family like sticky tar were completely severed.
In other words, any influence the underworld might have had to bother Alon was now entirely eliminated.
“But ... Are you sure you didn’t do it, Young Master?”
“ ... You were right there with me, buttering the toast.”
“That’s true, but everything fell into place so perfectly that I just had to ask.”
“Are you doubting me...?”
“I wouldn’t say doubting, but you do sometimes give orders without explaining the reason behind them.”
Alon fell silent at Evan’s words. It was true.
Instead of replying, Alon began to think.
‘Are there any groups in the eastern region that could have taken down a major underworld figure like Avalon? The Hundred Ghost Night Parade? No, they won’t appear for another six years ... Then the ‘Root’ organization? No, they’re based in the east, so they wouldn’t have come all the way here... ‘
Alon shook his head.
No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t think of any organization capable of wiping out Avalon in an instant.
As he was about to abandon his thoughts, a realization struck him.
“ ... Ah.”
“Ah.”
He recalled something Evan had mentioned before and asked,
“Evan.”
“Yes?”
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