I was reincarnated as the carefree duke’s second son, and somehow, my random remarks got me treated like a hero
《Side Julia》
My world was a cold and dark place. Beast men value strength. The strong become clan leaders, and life is lived under the rules set by the strong.
Strong males can have their way with females, while weak males are treated as mere laborers, exploited and used.
My father was a weak male. My mother was violated by another male, and he couldn’t protect her. I was sold into slavery.
That’s why I wanted to become strong. That’s why I became who I am.
At first, because I was still a child, I wasn’t forced to do anything with my body. But after being taken to a distant country far from the Beast men Kingdom, a place called the Academy City, there was a slave trader who wanted to sell me as a female once I started to grow.
I was scared. I didn’t want it. So, I desperately ran away.
Why am I so weak?
I hid, I ran, but I was hungry. No one helped me. I knew it was wrong, but scavenging through discarded garbage wasn’t enough, so I stole food from a cafeteria.
My clothes were dirty, so I didn’t enter from the front. I went in through the back and stole the prepared food.
But I was quickly caught and chased.
When I was cornered, I thought it was over.
“Let’s go apologize. I’ll pay for it.”
“Huh? Are you stupid?”
“Haha, maybe I am.”
It was the first time. Being treated kindly, being scolded, having someone apologize with me—it made me so happy, but I didn’t know what to do. I was hungry, and I really…
I didn’t know if it was okay.
I ate under the name of Fly Eltor. The cafeteria owner initially shouted, “You’re lying!” but from the next day onward, I was really able to eat.
The owner even said, “Eat as much as you want. I can bill the noble for what you eat,” and started giving me more and more luxurious meals.
While living like this, his female caught me.
“If you’re going to be by Fly-sama’s side, you need to clean up!”
The females forced me to wash my body. It had been a long time since I had a bath, and it felt so good. My whole body was covered in filth, so I…
“So, you’re a slave, huh?”
“Ugh…”
Slaves have a mark called the “slave crest” that appears on their backs. No matter how much you run away from your master, as long as this crest exists, you can’t escape being a slave.
My life is one of weakness, oppression, and being forcibly taken by strong males.
“Your name is Julia, right?”
“Huh?”
A blonde, curly-haired female hugged me and said it would be okay. I didn’t understand what she meant by “okay.”
“You are fortunate. I don’t know how much hardship you’ve endured until now. But the fact that Fly-sama found you will lead you to happiness.”
I didn’t understand what she was saying at all. But being by Fly’s side made me feel incredibly calm and at ease. After a long time, I took a bath, was dressed in clean clothes, and was brought before Fly.
“Wow, you’re so fluffy!”
He said that and patted my head.
“Stop it!”
I told him to stop, but deep down, I was really happy. Having someone pat my head felt so good. And Fly smelled nice, unlike the other dirty males. He was strong and kind.
“Haha, sorry, sorry. Elisabeth, Irene, thank you for bathing Julia.”
“You’re welcome. But Fly-sama, it’s about time you showed your face at the academy.”
“That’s right. We want you to see us in our uniforms.”
“Yeah, yeah. After this matter is settled.”
I wanted him to stop talking and just keep patting my head. I wanted him to focus only on me.
“An incident?”
“Yeah, I wasn’t just wandering around aimlessly. I was observing humans. And I found out something interesting.”
It was a difficult conversation for me to understand.
But he kept patting my head, so I was happy and started to feel sleepy. I could eat as much as I wanted, take a bath, and have my head patted.
For the first time in my life, I felt happy.
♢
After that, my days were spent following Fly around.
When I was hungry, I ate with Fly. When I was by his side, he would pat my head. If something happened, he would run away with me.
Occasionally, females named Elisabeth and Irene would come to visit, and it became my job to inform him.
I was useful to Fly. That made me feel proud and happy.
“Hey, Julia, there’s something I want to ask you.”
“Something you want to ask?”
“Yeah. Beastmen can use beast transformation instead of magic, right?”
“Huh?!”
“What’s wrong?”
I can’t use beast transformation. I never could. That’s why I’m weak.
“I see. So you can’t fully transform into a beast, but you can partially transform. Huh? Isn’t that actually the strongest?”
“Huh?”
“Because beast transformation is risky, right? If you fully transform, you might gain strength and speed, but you definitely lose dexterity. But if you can partially transform, you can strengthen only the parts you need, and keep the rest as is. That could lead to some interesting changes, don’t you think?”
Fly’s ideas were things I had never thought of before. Could the power I always thought was weak actually become strong?
