"Ransom? How much are you demanding?"
"Huh? Why are you asking this? What does it have to do with you?"
"Young Master Robert probably thought that if the ransom we demanded was not commensurate with his own value, then Marquis Bahod would not pay the ransom, and he would surely die."
At that moment, Volth accurately grasped what I meant.
"Huh? What do you mean? Isn't the ransom always better the higher it is?"
"If it were a wealthy merchant's child who was kidnapped, that might be the case, but the Anglus family is different. Given Marquis Bahod's character, his four children each have their own value in his heart, but only as props, without any element of love."
"Therefore, none of his children would be worth using half of the family's wealth to protect. That being said, a man who values the family's reputation above all else would avoid the shame of his own child being kidnapped and killed because he didn't pay the ransom if possible."
"This means that as long as the ransom barely meets his assessment of Young Master Robert's value, he will definitely pay the ransom to minimize the impact of the incident. If the ransom is too high and fundamentally damages the Anglus family, then he will definitely not pay the ransom."
"Ha! What an 'excellent father'! He has truly broadened the horizons of an ordinary person like me."
"Based on the financial situation I've gathered at the Anglus family, young master Robert is worth roughly 10,000 gold coins. The extortion letter I left in young master Robert's room also states this amount. By now, Lady Lucia should have already discovered that letter and is discussing what to do with Marquis Bahod."
"Haha! I can already picture the Marquis slamming his fist on the table!"
I'm not sure what 10,000 gold coins means in this world, but since Volth thinks it's an amount that Marquis Bahadur will definitely pay, it means there's still a sliver of hope for me.
"This kid actually had a look on his face that said he might be saved, it's hilarious."
Carol grabbed my hair and then kicked me hard in the stomach.
"Gah!"
The excruciating pain returned once again.
"Now you understand your position a little better, right?"
"No...don't do this...what...what did I do to you?"
"Ah, I don't have any deep resentment towards you personally. If anyone is to blame, it's because you were born into the Anglus family, the child of that scum marquis. And you probably won't be any better when you grow up. I'll just avenge those who will be bullied by you in the future."
What this woman is saying is complete nonsense!
"Hahaha! How does it feel to be stepped on? You nobles love doing this kind of thing, don't you? I've been stepped on by Lady Teresa quite a few times!"
I never did such a thing. What Carol did was simply taking her anger out on me, but no matter how unreasonable she was, I could only helplessly endure her rage. I've come to realize that arguing with her will only bring more humiliation.
Compared to being alive, human dignity is actually insignificant.
I must be patient...
We must continue to be patient...
"Carol, don't go too far. Just in case we need him as a hostage."
"What's wrong, Volth? I remember you were also tormented by that family, weren't you? Don't you feel any desire to vent your anger?"
"Yes, but Young Master Robert himself didn't do anything too outrageous to me. Even if I vent my anger on him, I still can't feel good."
"What a touching master-servant relationship! If you hadn't suggested kidnapping him in the first place, I almost would have believed you, hahaha! That's great, Young Master Robert! Your kindness to Volth has been 'rewarded'! You must be so moved that you're crying! Ah, I'm already crying, although it might be for other reasons, hahaha... Well, for Wors' sake, I'll restrain myself a bit."
Really? Will she really let me go like this?
"Ah, don't misunderstand. By 'restraining,' I mean I won't cause irreversible damage to your body. But wouldn't it be a waste to give up such a rare opportunity? If you can be saved, you can still live a normal life. Anyway, I'll let you experience what I went through when I lived in Anglus. Don't worry, look at me now, I'm still healthy and active, so the impact isn't that big, right?"
Carol's smile was so chilling. I don't know what Carol went through while living in Robbie, but it certainly wasn't something good that could make her smile so terrifyingly.
"Anyway, let's pull out your fingernails first, then a few teeth, and to prevent you from running away, it's best to pull out your toenails too? Look, I even brought the tools with me, I'm such a capable maid! Don't worry, you're still young, the things that are pulled out will grow back quickly."
The content was even more brutal than I had imagined.
"No, stop joking. I... I'm just an 8-year-old child."
"Oh, so you know how to use your age as a shield, young master Robert is really clever. But isn't there a saying that children's education should start early? I think only by experiencing similar things can one understand the value of gentleness. Young master Robert might become a very gentle nobleman in the future. Ah, it seems I have a talent for being a teacher? Should I try to work in that direction in the future!"
No! This woman has gone mad! Nothing I say will work!
"Volth! Please, Volth! For the sake of all these years we've known each other, please talk to her! I've always considered you a friend, and haven't we had a very pleasant time living together?"
"Hahaha, young master Robert, how can there be a friendship between master and servant? You have been receiving one-sided service from Walls all along. That kind of relationship is not what you call friendship. At least Volth has never considered you his friend. Don't flatter yourself."
is that so?
Carol's words were a wake-up call. My relationship with Wors was unequal from the start; I had taken Volth's service for granted from the beginning. Even without doing anything excessive to him, wasn't it arbitrarily calling this relationship "friendship" nothing short of aristocratic arrogance?
"..."
Volth remained silent, essentially acknowledging Carol's viewpoint and her subsequent actions. As if unable to bear witnessing what was to come, he turned and opened the door.
I watched him leave the room in despair, wanting to say something to stop him, but no sound came out of my throat.
Don't want...
I don't want to accept this fact...
Who will...?
Someone please save me...
.....
[ WARNING — Host Vital Signs Below Critical Threshold ]
[ WARNING — Mental Integrity Approaching Collapse ]
[ Detected — Awakening of: ████████ ]
[ Initiating Emergency Contingency Protocol… ]
[ …Activation Failed ]
[ System Error Detected... ]
[ Reattempting Initialization… Failed... ]
[ Deploying Error Correction Subroutine… ]
[ Correction Failed — Primary Protocol Compromised ]
[ Primary Contingency Plan: TERMINATED ]
[ Switching to Secondary Contingency Protocol… ]
[ Analyzing Root Cause of Threat… ]
[ Accessing Akasha Records… ]
[ Target Identified: "Carol" ]
[ Threat Classification: Immediate / Lethal ]
[ Secondary Directive Initialized ]
[ EXECUTION ORDER: "ERASE THE THREAT AT ITS SOURCE." ]
...