Chapter 1
Chapter 1: Since Things Have Come to This, Let's Eat First
Chapter 1: Since Things Have Come to This, Let's Eat First
The window was covered with thin, nearly transparent leaves, allowing the morning sunlight to filter in gently, filling the room with a warm glow. The scent of wood permeated the air, creating a pleasant and soothing atmosphere.
A cool breeze blew in from the courtyard, causing him to shiver slightly as he involuntarily opened his eyes. What caught his attention was not the modern European-style furniture in the room, but the reflection in the mirror a short distance away. It revealed a handsome face with cold green eyes that couldn't quite hide a hint of confusion and sleepiness, as if trying to keep people at bay while also appearing harmless.
He raised his hand to touch his face, and the black-haired, green-eyed youth in the mirror mirrored his action.
"Where am I...?" Lanchi murmured.
It seemed that he had traveled through time and space. The familiar face in the mirror belonged to a character from their company's new game, "Thorn Lionheart," which he, as the lead artist, had helped develop. Just as he had been offering incense to the planner's mother along with his colleagues, his brain felt like it had disconnected, and the next moment, he found himself in this unfamiliar place.
At the same time, a flood of information rushed into his mind, and he struggled to make sense of his new situation. His brows furrowed deeper as he realized that he had not transported into the body of a hero with limitless potential or a despicable villain.
Instead, he had become an insignificant side character from an extra story arc in the game, "The Rise of Talia." This young man, named Lanchi, had little going for him besides good looks, wealth, and a not-so-bright mind! Due to the fact that he had been assigned to illustrate the important character "Talia," he had also ended up drawing all the other characters related to her story arc, including Lanchi himself.
He never imagined that he would one day become this minor character, Lanchi...
Fortunately, he had taken professional pride in making sure Lanchi was very handsome in the game.
He couldn't help but ponder as he covered his chin.
"Now, why did this rich young master end up failing so miserably?"
Even though he worked in the art department, he occasionally played the game and had access to some character background information.
Soon, he recalled—
There was someone out to get the rich young master Lanchi.
And that person was none other than the protagonist of the extra story arc and the game's anticipated late-game super-villain—Talia, the exiled princess of the demon tribe.
At this point in time, the powerful Talia had not yet risen to prominence and appeared to be just a destitute young girl, but her strength was already formidable. To survive in the human realm, she had been concealing her true nature.
Unless pushed to the brink, her inner brutality and savagery remained hidden.
In the extra story arc, Lanchi was the first human to provoke Talia after her exile and trigger her anger.
The catalyst for their feud was Lanchi's killing of Talia's dark messenger pigeon, which she had sent out to gather information.
Two days later, when Talia found Lanchi, the young master, unaware of the seriousness of the situation, not only failed to apologize but also hurled a barrage of insane insults at Talia, who looked like a beggar.
He even boasted about roasting her other messenger beasts and hosting an amazing barbecue party for her!
In the end, the foolish Lanchi brought about his own demise as Talia, true to her word, struck him down in an instant. She took a large sum of gold coins and seized his family's ancient heirloom, the ["Poem of Compassion"].
These plundered riches became Talia's crucial seed funding for her quest to restore the demon tribe's nation.
In a sense, Lanchi was indeed Talia's greatest benefactor.
"I don't want to be Talia's number one bro!" Lanchi exclaimed, sitting up in bed as if waking from a nightmare.
Calm down. Think positively.
Things weren't as bad as they seemed.
Since he knew about the grudge between Lanchi and Talia, all he had to do was avoid making the same mistakes!
As long as he didn't anger this powerful demon tribe leader and safely escorted her out of his family's territory, everything would be fine!
At this moment, in this new world, Lanchi felt a surge of motivation and vigor that he hadn't experienced in a long time! It must have been the blessings of his law-abiding and virtuous past life.
From now on, his wonderful life as a rich young master would begin!
Financial freedom, no more overtime! Wealth and influence, what a dream!
Just then, a soft knock on the door interrupted his train of thought.
"Young Master, are you awake? You asked me to wake you up early yesterday..."
A faint female voice could be heard from outside the door, presumably having noticed the movement inside the room.
"I'm awake," Lanchi replied, getting out of bed. He almost tripped over a pile of wine bottles by the bed as he stepped onto the floor.
He paused for a moment, taking in his surroundings.
Indeed.
Since his predecessor had only turned sixteen last month, he had developed the bad habit of alcoholism.
As a result, his memory over the past month felt somewhat fragmented.
It seemed that his predecessor often went on drunken rampages and did foolish things while intoxicated.
It was unclear if it was due to drunkenness that "Lanchi angered Talia" in the original storyline.
Alcohol truly is detrimental. Lanchi sighed inwardly as he changed into a fresh set of clothes.
As soon as he stepped out of his bedroom, he noticed a maid standing by the door, trembling.
She seemed compelled to carry out the young master's orders but was also afraid that the young master, now awake, would fly into a rage and scold her.
"Good morning," Lanchi said calmly.
"Eh?" The maid exclaimed in surprise, instinctively making a sound as she assessed Lanchi's mood for the day.
"My lord is already waiting for you in the dining room," she said to Lanchi after a moment's pause.
Lanchi nodded. He knew that in this life, his parents were still alive, so he was not an orphan.
However, they were busy managing the family business and had, in recent years, largely adopted a hands-off approach when it came to Lanchi.
Even his father's presence at home these days was a rare occurrence, according to Lanchi's memories.
Lanchi walked through the corridors of the mansion, thinking to himself.
All the servants, without exception, shrank back, bowed deeply, and then quickly scurried away as if fleeing.
Lanchi sighed inwardly; his predecessor had certainly caused no shortage of trouble for those around him.
Although he didn't have many memories of being drunk, it seemed that his predecessor would become irritable and throw things when intoxicated, so it was no wonder the servants were afraid.
...
Soon, Lanchi arrived at the dining room.
At the end of the long table sat a middle-aged man, his father.
"You're late again," his father stated without any hint of reprimand, merely stating a fact.
"Sorry, I won't drink to excess again," Lanchi replied.
There was no longer any need for self-destructive behavior.
Lanchi was quite satisfied with the life of a wealthy young master.
He had only one life goal from now on—
To live a carefree, stable, and peaceful life.
"Have a seat," his father said, clearly surprised by Lanchi's attitude.
After a moment's hesitation, he nodded and agreed. "Okay."
Lanchi sat down at the table, eyeing the lavish spread that defied his definition of breakfast.
For some reason, he felt something was amiss.
Unconsciously, he lifted his head and stared at a dish in the center of the long table.
It was a golden-brown roasted pigeon, evenly coated with fragrant spices and perfectly sliced, maintaining its shape.
"This is..." Lanchi asked, his expression strange as he slowly pointed at the pigeon.
The more he looked at it, the stronger the sense of deja vu became.
His father didn't respond immediately, and a distant attendant also looked at Lanchi with a confused expression.
Today's Lanchi seemed very odd to them; he was just unusually gentle.
"It's the pigeon you shot down yesterday. The servants prepared it for breakfast as per your request," his father said, glancing at Lanchi. "You drank too much last night and don't remember, do you?"
Lanchi: ""
Yesterday?
The pigeon I shot down?
Lanchi, feeling extremely uneasy, quickly reached for a dish he didn't recognize and pretended to be calm.
Even though the roasted pigeon on the plate was now in tatters.
But upon closer inspection of its shape and contours.
Lanchi was convinced beyond a doubt that it was Talia's pigeon, the familiar of the Great Demon Tribe.
After all, he had drawn Talia's familiar himself.
"Are you alright?" his father asked, seeing through Lanchi's unusual behavior.
"I'm fine, just dealing with the after-effects of drinking. Alcohol is truly harmful," Lanchi replied with a smile, continuing to eat his breakfast.
Glancing at the remains of Talia's familiar, Lanchi felt a lump in his throat.
His predecessor, you were truly naive...
To treat someone else's familiar in such a manner.
If she doesn't kill you, it would be a disservice to her title as the Demon Tribe's monarch! Lanchi thought.
He wondered if there was any way to save the pigeon, now crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.
The answer was no.
So the most reasonable thing to do was clear.
He should destroy the evidence thoroughly, cheer up, and recover from his hangover.
Finally, he reached out, picked up the pigeon leg, and popped it into his mouth, biting into the salty, oily, and crispy meat. The wonderful flavor exploded on his tongue.
Content, he decided to feed the bones to the dog later.
...
(End of Chapter)
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