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Translator: uly
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: How to Survive as the Second Son of a Magical Noble Family (1)
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"Poor guy."
That was my reaction after finishing one chapter of the book.
It was unavoidable.
A genius whose name would shake the world ends up living as a complete cripple due to his brother's jealousy, only to be killed by him in the end.
Lucky for me, it was just a side character's story. Otherwise, I might've been so pissed I'd slam the book shut.
'At least it came out that the brother ruined his little brother's life.'
Even after death, that side character was saddled with all sorts of infamy and cursed by the entire nation.
Not even his family shed a single tear at his passing. That says it all.
Anyway, the villain lost both his honor and fortune before dying at the protagonist's hands, so the ending was decent enough.
'No, even so, this crosses the line.'
No one else to kill, so he goes after his own brother? All for a shot at climbing the ranks?
'Nah, it's not like any of this really happened.'
I tried to brush it off, but someone nearby clicked their tongue again.
The emotional drain had worn me out. The satisfaction of seeing revenge taken was huge, given the ordeal, but fatigue was inevitable.
I closed the book, turned on my phone, and set an alarm.
'Just ten minutes.'
A quick nap should shake off these excess feelings.
Better to tackle the next chapter with a clearer head.
With that thought, I flopped onto the bed.
* * *
'...Fuck.'
When I woke up, the world was pitch black.
Ten minutes? More like ten hours.
No other explanation for the midday nap turning into total darkness. My body felt heavy from oversleeping.
'...But...'
Why can't I see?
My eyes were open, but everything was an indistinguishable void.
I fumbled around frantically. Nothing but rough stone under my hands.
'Stone?'
I fell asleep on a bed. Where'd this stone floor come from?
Is my bed suddenly a stone slab overnight? I entertained the absurd idea for a second before reality hit and my face hardened.
I opened my mouth to shout, but only a weak wheeze came out. I strained my throat to force out sound.
"Ah, ah."
At least it was intelligible.
I couldn't yell, but if someone came close, I could ask for help.
'Guess I should move.'
I rose slowly.
Even blind, I could feel my balance was off.
I placed my hands on the ground more carefully and pushed up with my legs.
Clank—
"...?"
Metal clashing against metal.
In this already terrifying situation, why would moving one leg make that noise?
Just to check, I shifted my leg again. Something was around my ankle.
'...This is insane...'
No matter how I sliced it, this was the worst-case scenario I could imagine.
Once I grasped the situation, the terror I'd been suppressing crashed over me. I pinched my nose to steady my breathing before it could turn to panic.
"Hoo."
Stay calm.
No one else around.
Even chained, I had time to assess.
I reached down and felt my leg. Cold metal gripped it.
Luckily, no attempts to yank it free yet—no wounds. Some give, so blood flow was okay.
Break this, and I could run.
'No phone, of course.'
Like they'd leave that in a setup like this.
No expectations, no disappointment. I stayed composed and groped around.
Then, voices from afar.
My heart raced. Before I could brace, a pinpoint of light pierced the blackness, blooming into a full glow.
After so long in the dark, the light stung my eyes.
"Been well?"
A soft voice wrapped around my ears.
Someone approached, backlit in blinding white.
I blurted desperately.
"Hyung... Brother."
'Huh?'
Did I even have a brother?
No, that wasn't my line. I meant to ask where the hell I was, not spout nonsense.
But as if mocking my confusion, my mouth kept spewing terrified pleas.
"S-Sorry... I, I messed up. Never again..."
"What? No. What are you talking about, Luca?"
"Never again, Brother. I was wrong. I'll do better from now on. Promise. Please, spare me..."
"Luca."
His sharp tone silenced my frantic babble. He glared, face twisted in a frown.
A stranger's glare was a relief, all things considered.
Every time I opened my mouth, unknown dread flooded my mind, derailing any attempts to analyze.
Only now, with my wits clearing, did I process his words.
'He just called me Luca.'
Obviously, I'm not Luca.
Coincidentally, the book I'd read before bed had a Luca... but probably unrelated.
Mistaken identity, a kidnapping alias I didn't know, or both.
Whatever, they had reasons to keep me alive overnight. More time to figure things out.
I rolled my eyes, feigning fear.
'No immediate threats.'
The room was shockingly bare. Two guards by the door. No physical way past them.
I had to convince them I wasn't Luca by piecing together the situation.
As I clamped my mouth shut, the 'brother' softened his stern facade.
"You must've waited a long time. I was just coming back from checking on your condition."
"...Condition?"
"Yes, you were right. It wasn't that you skipped your medicine."
Medicine?
Out of left field.
The vague context and familiar tone grated—like he'd known me forever.
'...But...'
Even as I dismissed it, unease swelled. Unlike before, outlines were forming.
No need to pry; he gazed sympathetically and continued.
"Your illness has worsened. The dosage you've been on won't cut it anymore. I should've noticed sooner—my fault. Sorry for the misunderstanding."
"...Illness?"
"What? Damn... You must've been in agony. What the hell have they been doing?"
His sharp question made the door guards stammer excuses.
While he berated them, I raced through my thoughts.
'Your illness,' medicine, brother, Luca.
My heart pounded harder.
Impossible not to recall the book's character now.
That 'Luca' had a brother and an incurable disease requiring mystery meds.
Absurd coincidence furrowed my brow.
He mistook it for shock at the worsening condition and offered comfort.
"We upped the dosage, so you should be fine now. More than that, thinking of you trapped here for a week breaks my heart. Understand—we can't risk you rampaging like before due to the illness... It was all for your sake."
He gestured; one guard handed over a black wooden box.
Backlight revealed the contents: tiny crystal vials filled with inky liquid sloshing with the box's motion.
Something I'd never seen—and yet intimately familiar.
If the 'brother's' life-ruining drug from the book existed in reality, it'd look exactly like this.
"...This is..."
"Right, looks just like what you've been taking. Just higher concentration and more volume—no need to worry."
He dangled a vial before my face.
"At least you'll make it to school on time now. Thought you might never go back. Lucky, huh?"
"..."
"Speaking of, heard you downed two vials yesterday already. Communication lag, I guess. Gotta test if this batch works—nothing for it."
He rambled on pointlessly.
No time for that.
Luca had no illness.
No 'rampages' like the brother claimed.
No need for meds or basement lockup.
Healthiest guy around, blessed with untouchable talent—yet living like this? All the brother's doing.
In a magic-driven world, birth order means squat.
Titles pass to the strongest mage, then house head.
The talented brother would've ascended effortlessly without lifting a finger.
'If Luca hadn't been born.'
Unlike brother manifesting magic at six, Luca wielded superior power at three.
No one doubted he'd be the family's greatest mage ever.
With a stronger heir, brother schemed to seal Luca's magic.
That 'medication'? No cure—poison to kill magic.
Luca drank it lifelong, lost his magic as intended, and withered toward death.
My eyes fixed on the clear vial in his hand.
He'd said the 'illness worsened.'
In his terms: Luca's magic too strong to suppress anymore.
'Misread skipped doses 'cause the poison lost effect.'
Add my weird outbursts, and the picture cleared.
No brother mistakes no poison for defiance and locks his brother in darkness.
Then claims it's for his good. Shameless.
'Still, better than later.'
Post-graduation, adulthood—brother locks Luca away again, then kills him personally.
Slow poisoning not satisfying enough.
But here I was, called by that twenty-year-old corpse's name, in his shoes.
'Crazy.'
I finally looked down at myself.
Light revealed unfamiliar clothes from some bygone era or place. Shaggy hair blocking vision, skeletal frame, unnaturally pallid blue-tinged skin.
Not my body. Dead certain.
Easier to buy I had the fabricated illness, drank the poison, wasted to twenty, and died—an extra's life.
Especially with my instinctive apologies and terror toward this 'brother.'
My mind transferred into that mad novel's side character.
No other explanation.
Implausible? Every sensation screamed reality.
Crazy situation, sane senses. Confirming it oddly relieved me.
"Got carried away with the preamble."
Sensing I wasn't listening, he tapped the vial to grab attention.
The black poison swirled, glinting blue.
With a gentle smile, he cooed softly.
"Drink it now, Luca."
"...!"
The servants' eyes widened. Mine too.
Already double the usual dose.
Now this stronger version?
'...Theoretically, lethal.'
Servants thought so; one piped up urgently.
"Y-Young master...!"
"Something to say?"
Tone soft, intent clear.
They exchanged glances, apologized, and filed out.
Just us in the vast basement now. He scanned my face, smiled warmly again.
"You won't die. Trust me. You know it's all for you."
As if. He knew the risks better than anyone.
Only possible if he valued his brother's life less than a fly's.
'...Fucking psycho.'
Nails dug into palms.
Pulse thundered in my ears.
Barely contained fear breached like a burst dam, overwhelming me.
As breaths shortened, white light flashed before my eyes.
Ding—!
[Chapter 0. Every Beginning is Difficult]
Proposal: Make the optimal choice. (0/1)
* Route 1 ― [Chapter 1. If You Help Yourself, God Will Help You Too (1)]
* Route 2 ―