The Reincarnated Villainous Young Master's Guide to HappinessCh12 - Town

Edited by: bafflinghaze


The week passed with no more abnormalities in Nazareth’s behavior. Save for a missing member in his brother’s group of retainers, Aurelion’s informants assured him that his brother’s activities were still in the “resting period” since his last assassination attempt.  jzUDPd

Speaking of which, he hadn’t heard from those nobles who poisoned him a few weeks ago. The incident was pinned on his brother, but no one could explain the disappearance of the true culprits. 

His spies reported it was his brother’s doing. Apparently, they had foolishly offended him.

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The world of the aristocracy was a dog-eat-dog society. One day, they thought they were the champions of the world. The next? They’ve angered his brother and disappeared in a whirlwind of smoke and ashes, reputation tarnished, penniless, and with no home to fall back on. 

Aurelion almost pitied them. qcr7vn

Almost.  

Of course, whether he agreed or disagreed with his brother’s methods, the “solutions” didn’t stop stupid people. There would always be others, circling him like poisoned moths to a flame. 

They all thought they could imitate his brother, but in reality, they had no guts to truly understand what the other was capable of. 

This game he and his brother played could never be understood by the likes of outsiders. It took years upon years to figure it all out. One would think it was a political ploy—a facade of discourse that would supposedly weaken the Odum Family. 

C34Ku9

Nazareth’s attempts at his life were always rigidly scheduled. By the time they both entered the Junior Division, Aurelion had already figured out the pattern. 

As a result, he was never caught off guard by the attacks thereafter. As for the occasional abnormalities, they never measured up to his brother’s ruthlessness. 

His years of dealing with his scummy brother had ironically saved him. No ordinary poison could beat what he was given when they were children. No amount of third-rate assassins could compare to whatever assassins’ guild his brother was somehow subscribed to. As for his reputation? His brother’s reputation would always be the worst.  

He and Guinivere were saints compared to Nazareth. The world knew that.  vQp1LU

The world assumed that. 

It was no fault of their own for their assumptions. 

Somehow, in Nazareth’s own shitty way, he protected them, whether he realized that or not. 

Not that anyone liked his methods besides himself.  5bO3rt

Life was cruel, Aurelion mused, but not unbearably so. 

The Odum Family held a lot of power, but they also had various enemies. Not only did he have to worry about Nazareth, but there were also others who desired his death. 

Aurelion couldn’t help but sigh. 

Things were simpler when Nazareth was the only one trying to kill him. He knew he shouldn’t be so nonchalant about these things, but he hadn’t had a normal childhood since he was, like, five. CnGf0Y

As life changed and the battlefield of Noble Society continued to shift, he chose to be comforted by the constants in his life.

The sky was blue, the Manor was cold. 

Chrysanthemum Garden.

His mother had the face of an ax murderer and his father would always be socially awkward.

Guinivere was cute in her own frosty way and Nazareth was the demonic wraith haunting their home.  iAS gM

These facts were what grounded him and put his mind at ease. 

At least, his mind was at ease, until last week. 

His mind was at ease until Nazareth happened. 

Because of course, Nazareth would happen.  8FdliL

Aurelion was currently sitting in his study room with a report of his brother’s activities piled on top of his table.  

Rainier had secretly delivered his reports to him in the middle of the night. The reports were well organized and to the point, though one particular detail caught his eye.

“So he intends to remove the markings on your face?” OL4Dy8

Rainier nodded his head, his lips remaining subtly upturned in a faint smile, giving away nothing of his thoughts. 

Aurelion didn’t bother scrutinizing him. It was hard to read Rainier when he wore the blindfold. 

He eyed the man’s posture.

Rainier’s back was pulled taut and straight. There was a slight tension on his shoulder that could be overlooked if not for the current topic of their conversation.  AV1rlw

“Young Master Nazareth believes his new project would undo the marks. He confirms these are the final drafts.” The servant brought out a large stack of papers, no doubt copied from the papers he managed to find in his brother’s bedroom.

Aurelion raised a brow. The amount of paper that Rainier took out from his jacket was a lot. It made him nervous once it was placed in front of him. 

His brother’s new project… it seemed more complicated than he expected. 

The papers had what looked to be hand-drawn diagrams etched from a pen. There was nothing particularly special about them. The color of the ink seemed normal, too. It didn’t look like blood.  fuJtS3

He took a quick look at the diagrams, flipping through them with some interest. Soon, however, his expression turned unsightly at the images in front of him. 

This…

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What was this…?

The diagrams looked like they’d been drawn by a three-year-old! Q MFdc

Aurelion brought the drawings closer to his face. 

The symbols on the papers consisted of crooked lines weaving together haphazardly. In the very center were wiggly lines that halfway encircled another diamond-like shape which questionably looked more like a big and ugly circle with three dots.

Overall, it appeared as if there were several attempts to make the lines “loopy” and whimsical, but failure was inevitable. 

He skimmed through the uglier drawings.  NHXvGK

Each diagram was marked with prototype numbers—or at least, he assumed they were prototype numbers.  

The impressionistic pieces that were his brother’s drawings were difficult to understand. It gave him a migraine the longer he looked at them. 

There were no labels to indicate what each line meant, and no step-by-step instructions on how he got this design. It looked like he’d just doodled some random pictures and called it a day!

Nazareth never labeled anything. One would wonder how he was able to make sense of his creations. It could be a mix of obsession and genius, and though impressive, it was equally terrifying. 4QcTyE

They found nothing about Rainier’s mark. They were likely burned years ago. But some of these sketches looked eerily similar to the one on the servant’s face.

No matter how trashy the artwork was, it couldn’t hide his brother’s frightening ability. 

But how the hell did this turn into that?

He shot a glance at Rainier. The servant didn’t like taking off the blindfold, but Aurelion remembered what the marks looked like. He looked back at his brother’s drawings and couldn’t help thinking that the final product was like night and day.  2PRXC6

He slowly turned the papers over to prevent himself from having to look at the headache-inducing nightmare and sighed.

“Were you able to find any notes?”

Rainier was quiet for a moment. 

“Yes…” he eventually answered and then proceeded to bring out another stack of papers from his jacket.  2Q4Cb1

Where was he hiding all of them?!

We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.

“Dea atfs jgf… P mbeiv cba vfmlqtfg atf ifaafgr.”

Chrysanthemum Garden.

Cegfilbc afcrfv. Ljv tlr ygbatfg kglaafc tlr cbafr lc mbvf? Qts vlvc’a Ejlclfg ulnf la ab tlw olgra?

“Vtbk atfw ab wf.” e2ip5O

Ejlclfg kbgvifrris rilv atf rajmx bo qjqfgr bnfg ab tlw. “P qgfrewfv atfs wluta yf erfifrr. P qijccfv ab olcv yfaafg mbqlfr jcv atgbk atfrf jkjs…”

Aurelion drew in a breath as he brought the stack closer, preparing for the worst. 

The moment he opened the notes, he stiffened. 

Well… Rainier wasn’t completely wrong. 6JmWOi

He stared dumbfoundedly at the papers for a long time. 

Why the hell is the writing so messy?! 

He roughly grabbed the first sheet of paper and stared at it. His eyes squinted, trying to make out the words. He tilted the paper slightly. 

“His handwriting is remarkably atrocious,” his eyes landing on a specific word. “Is that supposed to be a ‘J’?” dB3igA

Rainier examined the paper patiently. “I believe it’s a ‘T’, Master Aurelion.”

Aurelion didn’t even question how the servant was able to read the letters with the blindfold covering his eyes. 

“Huh…”

The two of them tilted their heads perfectly in sync with one another as they attempted to read the scribbles.  k4PcLo

“Why does he need ten cats?”

“That says ‘liberal use’, Master Aurelion. We are reading the instructions.”

Aurelion didn’t say anything after that. He and Rainier spent the next fifteen minutes trying to read his brother’s notes. 

Eventually, he put the papers down and gave up. He could feel his eyes hurting just by looking at the mass of scribbles.  PoNkSL

“Keep an eye on him for now,” he pinched the bridge of his nose, “I suspect he intends to do something with these drawings. We can’t have him selling them to the underground market.”

“Yes, Master Aurelion.”

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Aurelion began reorganizing the papers into separate stacks. One to the Magic Tower, another to the Literary Institution. The third will be his master copy. 

After placing them into neat stacks, he noticed Rainier hadn’t left yet.  WpVN25

Turning to the servant, he asked, “Is there anything else?”

Rainier remained standing with perfect posture. 

And then, his next words raised Aurelion’s paranoia to the max. 

“The Young Master requires me to accompany him to town tomorrow.” WVlyrc

Aurelion didn’t speak for a long moment, his gaze falling on the notes and the diagrams in front of him. 

It couldn’t be he was selling to the market so quickly… could it?

“What for?” he demanded. 

“He is in need of supplies and intends to purchase them,” was the perfunctory answer.  SRDPwb

Aurelion frowned, his face growing cold. “Has he mentioned what he needed to buy?”

Rainier shook his head. 

With narrowed eyes, Aurelion said, “If he tries anything, you know what to do.”

“Of course, Master Aurelion.” sWGtHT

The next day, two carriages were parked at the entrance of the Odum Manor. 

Neo stood in front of one of them with Rainier and eyed the other curiously. 

Today, he was dressed more simply. The weather had grown warmer, so he had Rainier forgo a jacket and merely wore a waistcoat over his button-up. The servant had done his hair into a small tail to keep it away from his neck and face. The feeling of a breeze every so often tickling the back of his neck was quite refreshing.  YcbH3r

“Is Aurelion leaving for the palace again?” Neo asked bemusingly. 

Guinivere had left the manor in the morning to visit her friends, and their father and mother already left for the palace before sunrise. 

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It was only him and Aurelion in the manor today. 

Rainier offered a hand and helped him into the carriage. “The Second Young Master has not told the staff of his itinerary.” JckxSr

In other words, he didn’t know. 

Neo glanced back at the manor. “He must be busy…”

Aurelion was a busy kid. The world they lived in required him to play adult despite his age. 

When Neo was fifteen in the modern world, he joined a group of delinquents and went around beating people who littered in broad daylight. BOQ20f

At fifteen, Aurelion just recovered from being poisoned by some no-named nobles and returned to working on the numerous reports he, as the heir of the family, needed to write, sign, and stamp. 

“What of Young Master’s itinerary?” Rainier suddenly asked, bringing him out of his thoughts. 

Neo noticed the man’s Capable Servant aura flaring a bit more… intensely, today. He seemed more charming and professional than usual. 

Did his father give him a raise? gjUx0z

Amused by the thought, he answered honestly, “I require the assistance of an apothecary.” 

After spilling the Warrior Blood Blossom extract all over his desk, he went through his current inventory and found there were several ingredients he needed to replenish. 

“There are many apothecaries in town,” Rainer said, in a tone that sounded too much like he was trying to inquire something more in-depth. 

Neo thought the question was silly, but he understood the servant’s curiosity and lack of foreknowledge. It was the first time he was bringing Rainier with him to visit the apothecary.   d8G9Qn

As Nazareth, there was one apothecary he went to often, mostly since the owners were the only people who were willing to sell him the materials he desired. 

Nestled between the slums and a bakery, in a dilapidated shop looking on the verge of collapse, many people assumed that the owners were mere snake oil salesmen. 

“Is there a specific—”

“Ortho and Artho are fine,” Neo absentmindedly responded with the name of the apothecary, unintentionally cutting Rainier off as his mind drifted back to his plans.  qYQufh

Did the Bushlime go by weight or number? Would he ask for sixteen ounces of Bushlime or ten slices of Bushlime?

Most importantly… 

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How could he convince them to sell him boiled salamander water? 

Neo didn’t notice the way Rainier fell silent. The servant’s covered gaze remained on him for the rest of the carriage ride.  2j4m9

Aurelion boarded his carriage ten minutes after his brother left the front gate. 

“Follow him,” he ordered the driver.

“Yes, Master Aurelion.” mM7GkK

The carriage pulled into town and drove through its streets. Eventually, the bright and clean roads slowly turned dreary and filthy. 

Eventually, they came across a carriage with the Odum emblem parked in front of an alleyway which was situated in an area known for being a dangerous neighborhood. 

The elegant carriage looked painfully out of place with this type of backdrop. Rainier was standing in front of it with the carriage drive. 

Aurelion looked around. mnpAf0

His brother was likely somewhere in the area. 

The buildings looked run-down and dirty, and looked like a place his brother would go to for his nefarious plans.  

Aurelion put on the brown cloak he brought and tugged the hood over his head. He stepped out of his carriage and turned to the driver. 

“Go to the outskirts of the street and wait for me there,” he instructed. IjWOGe

The man nodded wordlessly and drove away. 

Aurelion hid behind a building and waited.

Eventually, after a few minutes, his Nazareth emerged from the alleyway with a bundle of something in his arms and another man following close behind him. 

From this distance, he could barely make out the man’s identity, but he had white hair and olive skin, and looked oddly familiar.  vqgiEk

“—Don’t drink it,” the man said with a hearty laugh. 

“I know, you even labeled it this time.” He heard his brother respond in an exasperated manner, which was odd and unthinkinkable, because Nazareth didn’t do exasperation. 

Story translated by Chrysanthemum Garden.

“I don’t want you to poison yourself, lad. The smell isn’t very distinct…” The man trailed off. 

There was a moment of silence between his brother and the man. Aurelion couldn’t see them from where he hid, but he could hear them. His muscles tensed as the silence stretched for a moment longer. BM98by

All of a sudden, he heard a cold snort, followed by a statement that made no sense. “It’s reptile cooked in water. The boy is perfectly capable of identifying it,” the man chided… himself? “He even added lavender dye and shoved the tail inside for you, boy. It pains me to see such wasted material be used as a label.”

“About that…” His brother trailed off. “Can I not get a bottle with a tail next time?”

Another roguish laugh flooded the area. 

Someone aggressively slapped someone on the back. His brother made a muffled “Oof!” sound.  6jxTzi

“As long as you don’t die of salamander poison, lad!”

A long pause. 

And then—

“Careful, Artho! He’s delicate!” KrEAbe

Aurelion wondered why there were so many delays in the conversation. Who in the world was his brother talking to? 

“Young Master,” he heard Rainier’s steady footsteps approach. 

“Did you bring the flowers?” his brother asked. 

“Florist Graham sends his regards. He is disheartened by your lack of presence.” Rainier answered.  BaU2ek

“Is that so?” His brother said, his voice sounding amused. 

“Shall I call the carriage?”

“No. Achilles is just down the road. Let’s walk.”

With each second, Aurelion grew more and more confused. He assumed his brother’s activities would be more sinister, but… why did it sound like he was having a normal outing? FQrRAM

“We will await your next visit, Step-Nephew. Please bring the tail back if you have no use for it.”

Aurelion flattened himself against the wall of the building as his brother and Rainier walked past him. 

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He took a quick peek after a few seconds and saw the master-servant duo walking a fair distance ahead.

Checking that the coast was clear, he secretly started to follow them.  1JR9oD

So focused was the younger Odum as he stealthily trailed behind his formerly crazy brother, he didn’t notice a group of suspicious-looking people following him.  

They all met each other’s gaze, nodding in the direction of the Odum Heir.  

Their target was unaware and unprotected. The price of that head was worth more than their current lives. Regardless if they lived or died, nothing mattered more than the death of that boy.  RkVeyP

Rainier spotted Master Aurelion the moment he passed the building. The servant didn’t call him out on it. Instead, he redirected the Young Master towards St. Achilles in an attempt to stay his focus on the cemetery and not the suspicious-looking figure following them. 

Master Aurelion was good at many things but a career in espionage was not in his future.

Neo noticed his brother hiding behind the building while he was speaking with Ortho and Artho.  pObkBd

Aurelion wasn’t exactly being discreet.

Now that he was following him, he couldn’t have looked more obvious with the way he kept peeking his head out from behind a shop or building every two seconds. 

A few shop keepers and vendors in the area were glancing at his brother strangely.   

So yeah. LHT9d

It was clear as day that his little brother was following him. 

Eventually, he allowed Rainier to steer him toward St. Achilles. 

The people at the gates checked him in, and as routine required him, he placed his bouquet on the gravestone, lit the incense pot, and held a long conversation with his mummy.

Once that was done, he planted some more dandelions on the hill, and went down to meet with Rainier.  jNnbJ5

“Where to next, Young Master?”

They went back on the main road leading to the shopping district. 

Chrysanthemum Garden.

Neo glanced behind him and saw Aurelion duck behind a woman shorter than him. 

In his mind, the long-buried teasing-older-brother side of him reared its smiling face. WsNGpd

Neo decided to take his servant on a date. 

Aurelion was going to despise him. 

“Let’s stop by that cafe. Would you like to drink something?”

The way Rainier went silent was music to his ears.  1GwS0O

With a face that remained both icy and expressionless, Neo hooked his arm around Rainier’s and dragged him off.

“Wait… Young Master!”

They entered The Lover Cafe. 

gDh9ji

What the hell?

Aurelion followed his brother to a cafe and watched as he and Rainier sat uncomfortably in front of each other while waiting for their drinks to be served. 

The cafe’s decor was full of pinks, reds, and whites. The design consisted of lace and tulle. Their table was carved in the shape of a heart. Everywhere around them, men and women alike were holding hands and showing more public displays of affection than was necessarily appropriate. 

Aurelion wasn’t the only one looking. iaXZ3W

The other customers in the cafe were also staring at them weirdly. 

When the serving staff came with a cup of coffee and a glass of ice water, the two drank their respective drinks in silence.

Both drinks had hearts in them. The ice in the ice water was heart-shaped and his brother’s coffee was somehow pink. 

About ten minutes later, his brother and Rainier left.  LdU0gO

And went shopping for jewelry. 

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Neo stopped in front of a jewelry store. 

“Young Master?” Rainier inquired in a curious tone. He had recovered from whatever the hell he had just experienced in the couple’s cafe and was back to being his usual charming self.  VscmBi

Neo approached the window where a display of trinkets was laid out. He saw a lovely hairpin with a small ruby jewel. It decorated the center of the silver hairpin simply, but it appeared very elegant. 

There was something about the design. He felt like he’d seen it before.  

“Do you think Guinivere might like this?” he asked, pointing to the hairpin. 

The store owner—who noticed Neo’s interest in the display—quickly came out with the most enthusiastic customer-service smile plastered to his face. qMnBA6

“Good day, My Lord. Has something caught your eye?”

Neo gestured to the hairpin. “This one, Sir. How much is it?”

The store owner’s eyes landed on the hairpin and became excited. “I see you have noticed the work of Leroy Pierrot. He is a new and upcoming designer. Very good at what he does. The store has nearly sold all of his pieces,” he boasted proudly. 

Neo frowned. Leroy Pierrot? Was there such a person in his last life? Hb0m7T

Why did the name sound so familiar?

“How new are we talking about? A month? A year?” 

The store owner shook his head. The smile on his face grew even brighter. “Last week! There were over eighty pieces originally, but almost all of them have been sold. He’s even broken the Fleur de Lis Family’s record of the fastest sales period. The man is an absolute genius!”

Huh.  Td5Xuj

“What of the remaining pieces? Can I have a look at them?”

“Oh, of course, My Lord. Please, follow me.”

They go to a room filled with jewelry. The store owner brought out two small boxes and opened them.  

“Not including the hairpin, these two are the last ones.” MrnHdT

Neo examined the jewelries presented to him. 

Simple and elegant. 

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Pierrot seemed to favor gold and silver metalwork. There were hardly any jewels, but the designs were appealing. 

There was a bangle shaped like a long nail bent into a circle that caught his attention. It looked familiar, but he didn’t know where he’d seen it.  bM0Tno

“What about this one?”

The second box held a silver hair stick with a sharp tip on its end. The design was obviously made for self-defense. The blade-like shape of the metal wasn’t easy to notice in the face of the intricate carvings that reminded him of tree branches. 

The store owner began to boast. “This is a one-of-a-kind piece, My Lord. If you ever find yourself in a dire situation, just stab at ‘em until they run. The end is as sharp as a knife.”

He demonstrated this by bringing out a block of wood from under the table. Holding the hair stick in one hand, he aimed it down at the block of wood with a bit of force.  3e0hdB

The tip sunk into the wood with ease. 

Neo was impressed. 

Not only was the hairstick an accessory, but it also functioned as a weapon. 

Ordinary hair sticks in the market could be made into weapons if one so desired and was creative enough to utilize whatever was on hand, but most were delicate and would break after a few uses.  sOhERq

The hair stick in front of him looked sturdy enough to kill, and they could be easily hidden as simple accessories. 

Neo pointed to the chests, “The hairpin and these two. How much for all three?”

The store owner’s eyes turned into coins as he and Neo began haggling. 

Eventually, the two of them settled on a price that was satisfactory for both parties.  26CbjS

“Thank you,”

“Most certainly, My Lord. Would you like them gift-wrapped?”

Neo picked up the hair stick with a blank expression. 

“Just the hairpin and the bracelet. Rainier, can you help me wear this?” ESHwTc

Aurelion watched as his brother came out of the jewelry shop with a knitting needle in his hair. 

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It was… 

Not a bad look, per se, but very out of character for his brother.  H57djt

Never once, in the ten years since Aurelion knew of Nazareth, had he seen the other wear anything more than a ribbon in his hair. 

And that happened a week ago when he found himself sitting in front of the other in the Western Garden. 

Aurelion believed he was a very adaptive person. 

He’d adapted the first and second time someone who was not his brother tried to kill him. He’d adapted when he first realized what being the Crown Prince’s childhood playmate would mean for his future. 3pDwlo

 Hell! He’d even adapted to carrying weapons on his person since he turned twelve!

But adaptation was hard when the one constant in your life suddenly changed. 

He always believed Nazareth would be the same ten years from now. 

Always so cruel and vindictive and spiteful.  IEBCXc

The other was the control variable in his life, unchanging and persistent.  

Until now. 

Aurelion—for a foolish moment—became too distracted with his thoughts. He didn’t have the time to react when he was suddenly pulled into an alleyway. 

8NdqMo

Step 12. As your younger brother stalks you on your shopping trip, try not to lose him to a kidnapper. 

Leave a Comment

22 comments

  1. Aurelion, my dear, you’re cute but I always got secondhand embarrassment when you hide from your brother or stalk him :”)

    Thank you so much for the chapter ✨

  2. Uh oh, that’s maybe not good… Does big brother have to go and rescue his silly little brother?

    Thanks for the update!

  3. Thank you for new chapter.

    Aurelion’s way of stalking is kinda funny and cute?

    I hope nothing dangerous will happen to him.

  4. Kkkkkk “try not losing him to a kidnapper” !! omg his little bro is so foolish, detected in the beginning, what a failure (≧▽≦)

    Thanks for the chapter!

  5. i saw the new cover and was reminded that this series exists, so i binged. i wonder how many titanics the odum family could sink? the teacher was wonderful. i like how there’s a summary at the end of each chapter, and that you call them steps. i wasn’t expecting much of the word ‘guide’ in the title, so it’s a nice addition. i like how the experiences from the first and second life don’t just get ignored. there’s still more stuff i have to say, but i can’t find how to put it into words.

    thanks for writing! ♡♡♡

  6. Ooooo! Are we going to witness a ruthless, protective, mama bear Neo now?

    And that teasing big brother smile… ah those two brothers are so cute