Death King Karnak Novel - Chapter 4

Death King Karnak

1. Something’s Wrong (3)

The head of Karnak’s family, Baron Zestrad, was one of the lower noble families of the Kingdom of Yu Steel. With a history of about 100 years, it wasn’t young enough to be called a new aristocratic family nor old enough to be called old, so you could call it a typical local aristocrat.

Karnak recalled his memories to see if he missed them, “It was a family with nothing to see.”

It wasn’t wholly barren or fertile land, but it was a place that had enough food for people to keep on living. Though the family partied during a good harvest year and shrank its tables during a bad harvest year, it barely maintained aristocratic dignity. It couldn’t even dream of those aristocratic luxuries.

It was befitting for a typical local aristocratic family. Baron Grelid was Karnak’s grandfather and always disliked this fact.

“How long must I stay stuck in this corner of the country? If you’re a man, shouldn’t you have great ambitions?”

He tried various businesses using the territory as collateral to achieve his grand ambitions. It resulted in a disastrous failure. His businesses went bankrupt one after another, he lost the fertile land of his few territories, and he died of a vase fire.

It started with great ambition, and that was the only thing that remained. Karnak’s father, Baron Kraput, who subsequently became the head of the family, tried to revive the family somehow, holding on to the barren estate and the crumbling mansion.

Of course, it wasn’t easy. It was a difficult situation to recover from because of the enormous debt.

The eldest son was quite clever and still growing up as an heir, and the awakening of the second son’s innate martial art talent and becoming a great knight enabled the family to continue its course…

“Honestly, it was only my father’s opinion that they were brilliant or excellent.”

According to the public’s evaluation, the lord’s two sons were mediocre. Why would anyone be unable to accomplish that if they received the same education and training?

It was still a fallen aristocratic family, but Baron Kraput was doing everything he could. And in the meantime, he even had a separate lover, saying he would enjoy things like an ‘aristocrat.’

He seemed to have some sense of responsibility when he said he would take responsibility after his lover suddenly had a child and brought her into the family. But the problem was that she was left unattended after being brought into the family.
Karnak’s mother, his father’s lover, fell ill and died after being harassed by the baroness all the time. He had to grow up as an illegitimate child while bearing all sorts of humiliation and interference.

“Ah, thinking about it makes me angry again…”

Karnak struggled to clear his thoughts by shaking his head. He took out a silver coin from his bosom after that.

“Anyway, that was our family’s current situation…”

He was rolling the silver coin between his fingers.

“Then where the hell did you get this money from?”

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Thanks to the horseback riding, the journey from Darha Village to the Zestrad family, which took three days on foot, was shortened to two days.

“How come you didn’t save as much time as you expected?”

He grumbled and glanced at the brown horse Barros was riding.
“Didn’t I hear you eating well? But why do these guys get tired so quickly?”

Karnak said absurdly loud, “This is strong enough for a living horse!”

“I should have ridden something like that from that time.” In the past, Barros rode a zombie horse, a skeleton horse, and a ghost horse.

“It doesn’t get tired, you don’t have to feed it, and it doesn’t poop. That’s the only advantage, right?”

However, there was a minor problem if you rode an undead horse like that, you would be charged with treason and die…

“It doesn’t matter because he was dead anyway.”

Thanks to the hard riding of the horse, they slowly got closer to their destination. Barros muttered as he looked down the hill and examined the surrounding scenery.

“Suddenly, I can see the estate. Young Master.”

“Well, human psychology is funny.”

Looking at the fields covered with green barley, Karnak smiled bitterly, “It’s a place where I don’t have any good memories, but I still feel nostalgic seeing it as my hometown.”

“I’m still annoyed.” Barros made an upsetting impression.

“Because I was hated as well.”

He was an orphan from the manor.

Since the Zestrad Territory was located in the barren north, monsters frequently invaded it. Therefore, the existence of orphans was common, and they were not particularly included. But things were a little different with Barros.

His parents scammed people around him, extorted money, and then ran away at night. Meanwhile, the child was abandoned again. However, people had a prejudgment that the lineage of the last man was also like him.

No one was willing to adopt him. However, the territory was not large enough to have a welfare facility like an orphanage. It was Karnak who extended him a helping hand that time.

Contrary to his usual shy attitude, young Karnak insisted on making Barros his servant. No matter how much he was abused as an illegitimate child, a nobleman was a nobleman, and he needed to be given an attendant, at least for the sake of his face. It was also difficult to dispose of Barros, so Baron Kraput permitted him to clean up the garbage.

“But I was the only one taking care of you, right?”

“I was the only one taking care of you, right? What are you being arrogant now for?”

Even though they were chatting, the horses keenly continued their way. The appearance of farmers also became visible as they entered the fields.

“Everyone looks busy.”

“It’s time to harvest weeds.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to hurry, though?”

“It’s just scenery.”

The identity of Karnak and Barros in the estate territories was just the foolish youngest son and the servant of a fool who encouraged foolish behavior. Since they couldn’t expect a good reaction on meeting them, they were going to hurry past…

“Ah! Lord Karnak!”

“You’re back!”

Why did the villagers greet the two of them from a distance with a smile after seeing them? Some even had tears in their eyes.

“You did a great job!”

“Oh, how hard you must have suffered…”

It was very different from what he remembered.

Karnak laughed, ‘What the hell did I do?’

But everyone greeted him as if it was natural, but he couldn’t possibly ask them, ‘Why are you happy with me?’

The two of them quickly left the place after shaking hands with them.

Barros frowned after gazing backward, “It feels like a nightmare.”

“Me too. I need to get home soon.”

Standing before a large stone wall, Barros murmured, “Young Master? What the hell is this?”

“Don’t ask me. I don’t know anything anymore.” Karnak replied while frowning arrogantly.

A panoramic view of the splendid mansion was right in front of him. A high-quality brick wall that connects left and right, an elegant garden beyond it that reflected its beauty, a stunning two-story mansion standing tall in between, a shining terrace under the sun, and various statues.

“This must be the Zestrad Mansion, right?”

“Hmm.” Karnak nodded.

It was definitely the house and building in his memory as far as the basic framework goes.

“The size of the wall is the same, the size of the garden is the same, and the building is also the same…….”

“Why is the mansion so neat?”

“I see. It’s been completely refurbished, right?”

The current Zestrad mansion of Baron was an antique over 100 years old. Honestly speaking, it was just an old-fashioned place rather than an antique.

More than a decade had passed like that as proper maintenance wasn’t possible due to poor financial conditions. But every corner of the mansion has been neatly decorated right now. It was antique, elegant, dignified, and close to the model of an aristocratic mansion imagined by the public.

“Where are we? Where the hell are we?”

Karnak was also able to understand Barros’ question. His question didn’t refer to just the mansion. It was a question about the world itself.

“Well, okay. Let’s go in and see.”

“Young Master, can shabby people like us enter such a precious place?”

Glancing at each other, the two walked towards the front door. One of the gatekeepers spotted them and greeted them with admiration.

“Ah! Lord Karnak!” He was a man in his mid-40s, a person from his memory.

Karnak nodded naturally, “I’m back, Cartil.”

Cartil asked the Baron’s gatekeepers, “Hurry up and tell the butler! The young master is back!”

“Yes!”

Karnak sighed after seeing him.

In the mansion of memory, a person from his memory rushed to greet him. It was the first ever situation that unfolded just as he remembered. However, the color was completely different. The mansion was shiny, and the servants’ clothes were clean. Laundry was a job that cost a lot of money, so he didn’t remember them wearing such neat clothes.

How could there be such a warm welcome? He could say that he never remembered them treating him so favorably. The gaze of contempt and coldness wasn’t something he could ever forget, no matter how hard he tried.

‘It looks like everything’s gone astray, really.’

Barros quietly whispered in his ear, “Young master.”

“What?”

“I don’t think I’ll be more surprised no matter what comes out now.”

“So do I.”

It took a little while for their expectations to be broken. A well-groomed old man ran out of the mansion not long after that.

“Grandpa Tafel?”

‘Right, by now, that man should still be alive.’

Tafel Plaid was an old butler who had been working since the time of Karnak’s ancestors.

“Deacon, the young master is back!” Tafel, the butler, reprimanded the doorkeeper in a strong and rather unusually harsh tone for his words.

“Be careful, Cartil. How long do you intend to call him young master?”

Then, with a gentle that wasn’t in his memories, he respectfully bowed his head to Karnak, “Welcome back, my lord.”

The two just stared at each other and blinked their eyes.

‘Did he just call young master the lord?”

‘Me?’

A lavish drawing room with elegant paintings and decorations. A teacup on the table rises from the tea plate. Karnak gave out a blank expression while looking at the teacup.

‘It’s rather…’

He had never even touched such a luxury item during his time here. He also noticed Barros standing beside him and trying his best to hide his embarrassment.

“More than half a year has passed since Lord Karnak ascended to the position of head of the family…”

He looked roughly 20 years of age and would inherit the family as the Baron as soon as he had his coming-of-age ceremony.

“Did you achieve your purpose?”

“Purpose?” Karnak asked involuntarily.

After a moment of puzzlement, the old butler asked again, “Wasn’t it because of that purpose you went on a trip?”

Alas, Karnak blurted out some words.

“Oh, I remember…”

Fortunately, the old butler didn’t find it strange.

“It’s really fortunate. The former lord who passed away will be happy too.”

‘Eh? My father died?’

The old man’s words continued to ring in Karnak’s ears.

“If Lady Isabella were alive, how proud she would have been…….” Lady Isabella was Baron Kraput’s wife and Karnak’s stepmother.

‘My God, did she also die?’

“I was at a loss as to what to do when even Tezel died, but I feel at ease now.”

“Even my elder brother died?”

At this point, he couldn’t help but wonder. ‘Then what about Parratt? What happened to that rotten man?’

He knew that he wasn’t safe for the time being. If the second brother was still alive, the position of the lord wouldn’t have passed on to Karnak. But what the hell happened here?

‘I’m dying of frustration, but I can’t ask.’

He didn’t know the reason behind all this.

‘If it’s about the purpose of my trip at this time, isn’t it obvious?’

It was to learn necromancy, the secret power he acquired by chance. It made no sense for there to be any other purpose.

‘But there was no way I would honestly reveal that reason.’

If that purpose were to be revealed, instead of a warm smile, a warm burn would be waiting for him.

‘What do you know about my purpose, Old man Tafel?’ That was the other question.

Originally, Karnak learned necromancy to obtain power and take revenge on his family. But looking at the current situation, wasn’t his revenge already over? He became the lord, the people around him recognized him, and everyone seemed to have goodwill towards him.

‘Why would I then learn necromancy when I could live comfortably like this, especially for a guy like me?’

He didn’t know. He couldn’t even take a guess.

‘If I had some of my powers, I would’ve risked suppressing his mind and digging up some information, but I’m not in a position to do that right now…’

Karnak looked at Barros while giving the impression to stop this, ‘Do something!’

It was nonsensical to convey your opinions only with eyes, but it was a different story if you had been doing that for over 100 years. Barros noticed it right away and sneakily intervened in the conversation.

“Deacon Tafel.”

“Yes, Mr. Barros?”

“Master Karnak is tired from the long trip. How about you talk to him tomorrow?”

“My sincerest apologies. I made a mistake.” The old butler clicked his tongue and got up.

“My sincerest apologies once again, My Lord. It was my negligence. Please rest first.”

“I will.” Karnak, who felt like he was walking on thin ice, sighed in relief, stood up, and signaled Barros.

‘Let’s escape from this place, hurry up.’

‘I completely agree with you, young master.’

[To be continued.]