When I opened my eyes, I couldn't believe it. But somehow…
I ended up in the world of Tree of Savior Master, an RPG game I used to play with my brother. And the worst part? I'm in the body of one of the most annoying secondary villains in the game.
— The Butler Victor —
Of course, I say that because I lost count of how many times I died fighting this irritating butler.
Despite being an absurdly strong character, depending on the player's choices, the routes could change drastically. That's why Butler Victor was one of the characters with the highest rate of bad endings.
He was always involved in schemes, whether against the Rosenberg family or the protagonist himself. And if you ended up facing him, it would surely be one of the hardest fights in the game—considered the fourth most difficult battle by the players.
And all of this is thanks to the crazy characters this game has. After all, every decision the player makes, or even the way they choose to interact with characters
—down to a small choice of words
—can completely change the course of the story, affecting future routes.
At this current moment in the story, I'm 13 years old, serving as the butler to the daughter of Duke Alfred Rosenberg.
Melissa Rosenberg, the Duke's third daughter, is a very beautiful and cunning girl, with golden hair and scarlet eyes. But she has a horrible personality—arrogant and full of herself.
Knock… Knock…
After a light knock on the door, Victor receives permission and enters the room.
"Why did it take you so long to bring the tea I asked for?!"
Melissa exclaimed while sitting at her desk, reading a grimoire about fire magic.
"Apologies for the delay, Miss Melissa."
"You're always like this. I'm tired of hearing your excuses.
Why don't you just admit that you're useless?!"
She spoke with a cold expression, casting a disdainful look toward Victor.
"I'm very sorry, Miss,"
Victor replied softly, bowing his head.
"All right, you may leave now."
This girl is horrible. On top of being complicated, it seems like she's never in a good mood. And she's always so demanding… this is simply troublesome.
Victor began thinking to himself as he walked away from Melissa's room, heading toward the mansion's kitchen where he usually stayed until she summoned him again.
And speaking of trouble, in a week Melissa will enroll in the Magic Academy. That's why she's been so dedicated lately.
There, she'll meet Clarisse, one of the protagonist's many love interests. This will trigger a rivalry between them and the other heroines vying for the protagonist's affection, causing various problems and dragging them into complicated situations.
Which could ultimately lead to my death. That is… if her father doesn't kill me first.
After all, because of Melissa's horrible attitude toward all the servants, the head butler, Leopold Krauss, has concocted a plan to have her killed. Using the money he's been stealing from Duke Alfred, he hired assassins to do the job.
Basically, the head butler convinced the guards at the north gate and Miss Melissa's personal butler—Victor—to form a plot to assassinate her.
Since I wasn't yet in Victor's body at the time, I couldn't prevent my involvement in this situation.
I even offered the assassins double their fee to cancel the "job"—which would basically mean I'd have to work nearly my entire life to pay them—but those lunatics refused.
And even though Melissa is a four-star character and one of the strongest in the game, she's still just a child in this timeline. She hasn't unlocked her aura or even discovered her magical category. So even she could die.
And if she dies, I'll definitely be next.
If this route ends with Miss Melissa's death, the head butler Leopold will betray us, placing all the blame on me and the estate guards.
The guards will be imprisoned, and I'll be hanged for the crimes of murder, conspiracy, and theft.
Victor reached the kitchen and stood frozen in front of the door, his hand on the doorknob, still lost in thought. Suddenly, the door flung open forcefully and hit him squarely.
"Hey, boy! How many times have I told you not to stand around daydreaming in front of doors?!"
shouted the man with a worried expression as he grabbed Victor's head with both hands, checking for injuries. This man was none other than Gustav Adler, the Rosenberg family's head chef.
"I'm fine, Mr. Gustav. Really, there's no need to worry,"
Victor exclaimed as the huge cook shook him.
"How can I not worry when you're always wandering around like you're on another planet?! Well, it's good you're okay."
"I have to go out to get more supplies. Can you keep an eye on the kitchen for me?"
"Yes! Of course. I was planning to stay here anyway."
"Great. I'll count on you then."
After Gustav left, Victor was practically alone in the kitchen, falling back into his thoughts.
The attack will happen in three days, when the Duke leaves for business in the Royal Capital.
I need to resolve this situation without leaving any traces. And I also have to figure out how to deal with the head butler.
Since I took over Victor's body, I've been working nonstop, fulfilling that girl's demands—which is exhausting.
But more importantly, I started studying to learn how to use magic.
As one of the Rosenberg family's personal butlers, I have access to places and "privileges" other servants don't.
Like the library, where I can even borrow books to read. I've been using most of my lunch breaks—and even pulling all-nighters—studying magic.
Luckily, the language in this world is the same as my original world.
And the magic system is the same as in the game. There are basically six categories of magic:
Enhancement
Emission
Transformation
Conjuration
Manipulation
Specialization
Each with its own traits, strengths, and weaknesses. Since I became Butler Victor, my category is Manipulation.
This means I can use my aura to control "animated" or "inanimate" objects.
In the game, Butler Victor wielded swords taken from defeated enemies, controlling up to thirty swords at once.
It was a nightmare to deal with, as it was almost impossible to find an opening to attack.
But since I don't have access to any swords or similar weapons, I decided to use needles as substitute weapons.
They're lighter, easier to control, consume less magical aura, and best of all—they're easier to obtain.
Because they're small and rarely used in the mansion, the maids didn't pay much attention to their disappearance. I managed to gather fifteen needles this way.
It's not much, and I'd love to get more, but if I asked any other servant to buy a large number of needles, it could raise suspicion.
And since I'm just a simple butler, I'm not allowed to leave the mansion unless I'm accompanying Miss Melissa.
But I believe they'll be more than enough to face the assassins. The real problem will be the head butler.
He's a three-star character, and even though I already know his ability and magical category, it will still be very difficult to deal with him since he also has a restriction contract.
In addition to the magical abilities mages can use, they can also develop contracts with specific conditions or restrictions.
Leopold is a Conjurer, meaning he can create "objects" from aura.
In the game, Leopold conjured a pocket watch with a seemingly simple ability: he could slow time within a two-meter radius around him.
And as if that wasn't enough, he had a restriction contract that allowed him to see lines of the future for two full minutes. This way, he could predict his enemy's movements.
The restriction was that after activating this ability, he couldn't slow time again and would be blinded for twenty-four hours.
Restrictions and conditions are different from the normal rules for creating abilities. The greater the "restriction" or "condition" to form a contract, the stronger the ability.
Well, I've also developed my own abilities, so all I need to do is protect Melissa and somehow defeat Head Butler Leopold and the assassins.
My plan is to capture all of them and expose the head butler's entire scheme.
But they won't hold back against me. Knowing Leopold from the game, he'll do whatever it takes to achieve his goals—even kill anyone in his way.
The question is… if my plan fails…
Will I have to do the same?