I’m the Only One Who Can Put the Tyrant To Sleep – Chapter 100

Author: Asternkm

The presence of the man locked up in the underground cell was jarringly out of place.

Until now, Ian had ruthlessly killed anyone who got in his way—Duke Spiegel, the maid, even Marriott.

So why had he kept this man alive and imprisoned?

Because he needed him.

‘The reason he needs him… is it because this man is Ian’s Guide?’

But if that were true, there was one more thing that didn’t add up.

A Guide wasn’t someone who interfered—they were someone who helped. There was no reason to treat a Guide this horribly.

In fact, Ian’s hair changing color meant he had successfully awakened. There was no reason to imprison a Guide after that…

‘Ah…!’

There were two conditions required for awakening: Both parties had to be adults, and They had to genuinely trust each other.

If the second condition wasn’t met?

Given the kind of person Ian was, this seemed entirely plausible. He only saw people as tools. He didn’t give his trust to anyone.

‘Then how did he awaken…?’

I stared at Ian, trying to find an answer. Then, as if I already knew the truth, I tried to bait him.

“Awakening with someone you don’t even trust—how curious.”

“How do people trust anyone? That’s what I find curious.”

Ian replied with a serene smile, then turned to glance at the man in the other cell.

He didn’t deny what I said.

Which meant—it was true. That man was his Guide.

‘Then in the original story… did he lie to Floria too? But why?’

Whatever the answer was, it would likely explain why Ian had kidnapped Floria now. He needed her. Just as in the story, so too now.

There was one more thing I wanted to know: If he didn’t trust his Guide, how had he received the Guiding?

But I also sensed that I shouldn’t give Ian too much information. I had to extract knowledge from him—without giving away my own.

As I hesitated, carefully choosing my words, Ian stood up and walked toward me.

I flinched, but he smiled reassuringly.

“Mind if I come a little closer? A fair conversation is best had face to face.”

“…What—”

Without hesitation, Ian reached through the bars and pulled something from my ear.

“You, I quite like. But those people listening in—not so much.”

Slip— I felt something leave my ear.

A moment later, the communicator was in Ian’s hand.

“Just as I thought… You let yourself get ‘kidnapped’ on purpose. I’m guessing others are tracking this place too?”

Ian tossed the device to the ground and crushed it underfoot.

I stared at the broken communicator and swallowed hard.

My connection to Caesar was completely severed.

“Now, let’s talk—just the two of us. If you’d like, I’ll tell you my story.”

“…Your story? You mean, about all the terrible things you’ve done?”

“Of course. If you’re curious.”

It didn’t make sense.

‘He suspects I’ve been followed… so why is he so calm?’

According to Caesar, this was just a small, ordinary cabin. Nothing about it screamed backup forces or secret armies.

‘Does he think he can handle everything alone?’

If so, the reason must be his ability.

‘What kind of power does he have…?’

But Ian didn’t know about Caesar’s ability either. No one could predict the outcome of a confrontation.

And since he was willing to tell me his story, I had no reason not to listen.

I quickly nodded.

“I want to hear it. Go ahead.”

“Knew you’d say that.”

Ian smiled brightly and began.

“We’ll have to go back a few years. I first started to suspect something was wrong when I found out the Crown Prince had monthly outbursts.”

I noted that he referred to Caesar not as ‘His Majesty,’ but as ‘the Crown Prince.’ But I didn’t bother correcting him.

“I thought there must be a reason for those outbursts. Because I too… was experiencing the same pain, once a month.”

Even without me saying a word, Ian seemed eager to talk—like he’d been waiting for someone to finally listen.

“But then, oddly enough, the Crown Prince’s outbursts stopped. It was around the same time his hair color changed… and the same day a certain maid was transferred to his quarters.”

He looked at me and nodded.

“You, of course. I realized it was you who calmed his outbursts. That made me wonder: what about mine?”

I couldn’t help glancing toward the man lying in the next cell. Ian didn’t spare him a glance.

“I started researching. It didn’t take long before I came across a legend. A legend about a woman with red hair. That was when I realized—someone must exist just for me. That contact was necessary. So I left the capital and traveled the empire.”

“Ah…”

The sound escaped my lips. Now I finally understood why Ian had disappeared from the Duke’s mansion.

He paid me no mind and continued.

“By chance, I found the person. Looking back, it’s strange, isn’t it? That you and the Crown Prince were so close by, and that I found the person within a few months in this vast empire.”

“…Did you feel something? Some kind of pull?”

“Maybe… Anyway, I made contact with the person. The outbursts stopped. But I gained no power. The red-haired woman in the legend was said to use fire— Was that just a myth? No, I knew it wasn’t.”

The legend didn’t contain many details about the awakening. I, having read the original story, knew of the two required conditions. But Ian wouldn’t have figured them out easily.

“So… what did you do?”

I finally asked the one question I’d been working toward.

What had he done to awaken? And why was that man lying in such a state?

Ian answered without hesitation— as if it were no big deal.

“I chose to absorb my Guide.”

“…What, you—absorb?”

My jaw dropped at the word. I never expected that term.

“My Guide suppressed my outbursts through contact. There must be some quality in the person that did that. So I thought—why not absorb the person entirely?”

I found Ian’s logic horrifying. No reasonable person would ever consider this.

‘Rather than forming a deeper connection, or growing emotionally close… absorption?’

I didn’t even want to know what ‘absorb’ meant exactly.

Ian looked pleased with himself and continued:

“And indeed… I gained power.”

I was even more shocked. Such a ruthless method actually worked?

With that, my fear of Ian grew. He would go to any extreme to reach his goals.

“It was faint, unstable… but immense.”

Ian’s wiry gaze locked onto me, sending a chill through my body.

“What… kind of power is it?”

I asked, though half-expecting him not to tell me. After all, I was his enemy—and why would he reveal his hand?

Ian studied me with silent intent, then reached forward.

His hand hovered near my ear—but he wasn’t holding anything.

“Hmm… what should I give you?”

He muttered to himself. Then suddenly, a dagger appeared in his palm.

“How’s that?”

Frozen, I stared. Ian had just created that dagger from thin air?

“This is my ability: Creation. I can make anything. Isn’t it remarkable?”

His question expected a response, so I nodded the only way I could—I couldn’t let him stop talking.

Luckily, he continued:

“Now, the harder question: how is this possible? How can something appear out of nothing…”

He studied the dagger in his hand.

“I needed to understand my power better. So I left the Empire and wandered the lands, seeking things I’d never seen—experiencing things I’d never experienced. And then—”

“Wait. Were you the wandering alchemist people talked about in the Gobet province?”

I interrupted Ian. I remembered rumors of a mysterious alchemist with strange powers from the Gobet region.

“That alias did follow me for a time.”

I exhaled, taken aback.

‘So that was Ian… and I didn’t recognize him even when he stood before me?’

Ian pressed on:

“Through that journey, I discovered my limits. I cannot create things that definitely don’t exist. But I can create things that could exist.”

“Could exist?”

“If, for instance, you assume that there aren’t any fully grown red apples in this world—and all I have is a seed…”

“So you can create an apple, because the possibility exists?”

“Exactly. In other words, I can make anything that has possibility. Imagine how thrilled I was when I realized that!”

Ian’s excitement was palpable. And I began to tremble at what he might do with that power.