Chapter 4: Housekeeper Pete

In the study, the spot where Sharvella had been standing was now occupied by the old housekeeper, Pete.

However, ever since Pete was called in by Sharvella, Kaios had been sitting at the desk reading a book, not saying a single word to him. After about ten minutes, Kaios still hadn't spoken. Pete finally couldn't help but ask, "Lord, what would you like for dinner? I will have someone go..."

"Did Big Guy tell you?" Kaios interrupted.

"Tell me... what?" Old Pete asked in astonishment.

Kaios looked at him and said, "Didn't you run into Big Guy when you were coming over?"

"I did. He was guarding the stairway and looked... quite happy? What did you tell him, Lord?" Old Pete asked in confusion. "Sharvella as well, she looked very happy. Did you pardon her, Lord?"

"Pardon? Do you really think my coma has anything to do with her?"

"This..."

"Old Pete, Dominic the Great Mage came to see me to confirm that I was indeed beyond saving and certain to die, didn't he?" Kaios's tone suddenly turned chilling.

Pete's body shuddered violently, and his upper half vanished with a WHOOSH. Startled, Kaios craned his neck forward to look over his desk, only to realize that the old housekeeper had instantly dropped to his knees, prostrating himself on the floor.

"Lord! I am absolutely loyal to the Li family and to you, Lord! The Noke family will never betray the Li family!" Pete pleaded sorrowfully.

Kaios replied faintly, "I'm not the only one surnamed Li."

Pete's voice grew even more anxious. "You are the only legitimate heir to the Li family, Lord! I am only loyal to you!"

"When did they apply for arbitration at the Holy Protection Palace?" Kaios asked again.

Pete hesitated for a moment before whispering, "It should have been... yesterday. When Dominic the Great Mage came over yesterday, Trist was also outside."

After saying this, Pete's voice relaxed significantly, as if he understood that making excuses or lying was useless now. He had accepted his fate.

"Lord, I failed to stop them from submitting for arbitration. It is an unforgivable sin; please punish me, Lord. I am at fault, but the rest of the Noke family... Harvey and the others, they are absolutely loyal to you, without a single treacherous thought. If they had known the real purpose of Dominic the Great Mage's visit, they would have fought to the death to stop him... It was I who hid it from them. The blame rests entirely on me..."

Kaios leaned back in his chair and stopped looking at the kneeling housekeeper. Instead, he slowly flipped through a large tome next to him—the simplified genealogy of the Li family. Soon, he found a line: "Trist Li, born in..."

The Trist that Pete mentioned was most likely Trist Li, the eldest son of his Uncle Fan Bo'er Li.

Kaios thought for a moment and asked, "How much do you think my coma has to do with them? If it was them, what method did they use?"

"This... After you fell into a coma, Lord, I immediately called Physician Grossman over to confirm that you had not consumed anything poisonous. Later, Grand Physician Qin also came and confirmed it. You showed no signs of poisoning, Lord. All the symptoms originated from within your own body."

Kaios thought rapidly, weighing the pros and cons.

As a transmigrator looking at things from a third-party perspective, if Pete hadn't directly or indirectly participated in the original host's death, it was actually understandable that he had tacitly allowed Trist and the other branch descendants of the Li family to use the Holy Protection Alliance's rules to strip the original host of his Soul Subordination Contract ownership. After all, the original host had clearly been beyond saving, and Pete was just trying to protect himself; no one wanted to die pointlessly alongside the original host.

However, understanding it was one thing; he certainly wouldn't say it out loud. Furthermore, he couldn't confirm right now that Pete had absolutely nothing to do with the original host falling into a coma. Even the two physicians and the great mage that Pete mentioned could have been bribed.

"After waking up today, I forgot many things. At one point, I couldn't even remember my own name. But no matter what, I trust the Noke family, you, and Harvey. From now on, I need you to keep an eye on the people in the manor for me and see if anyone is acting unusually."

Hearing Kaios's words, Old Pete looked up in astonishment from the floor. After a few seconds, as if realizing something, he hurriedly pressed his forehead to the ground again and said with a trembling voice, "You are merciful, Lord. I will definitely not betray your trust. If there is a traitor in the manor, I will definitely root him out."

After letting the housekeeper Pete leave, Kaios began to search the study again for interesting books to read.

He discovered that the most prominently displayed and easily accessible books in the study were all related to the arts. There were books like *Peanut's Landscape Paintings Collection*, *Mr. Gao's Three Lectures on Painting Techniques*, *Basic Theory of Holy Protection Music*, *Basic Principles of Light and Image Recording*, and *Appreciation of the Ten Great Paintings of the Saintly Protection Celestial Splendor Hall (Volume One)*.

In secondary positions were the Li family's genealogies, annual records, family albums, and other similar items and books, as well as various materials related to the Holy Protection Alliance, the Three Kings, and the Saint Protection Academy.

Yet those books that Kaios deemed extremely important—such as *Seventeen Questions on the Essence of Magic and Spiritual Energy*, *Magic System (Fourth Edition of Saint's Protection Academy)*, *Core Continent Geographic Basics*, *Where is the inland boundary?*, *Common Plants Atlas of the Holy Protection Alliance (1)*, *Holy Protection Alliance Maritime History*, *Main Continent Chronicles*, and *Five Hundred Years of Brilliance in Yulang City*—which were related to this world's power system, geography, and history, were surprisingly placed on the deepest and hardest-to-find bookshelves.

Some foundational theory books on the Spiritual Energy System weren't even on the shelves at all; he found them in several boxes piled in a corner of the study. He wondered just how much the successive Lords of the Li family loved art.

However, to the current Kaios, this otherworld's basic information and power systems were his highest priorities to understand. Having died once, even in an otherworld, he had no desire to die again. Heaven knew if he could transmigrate yet again after another death. He had to keep his little life safe and then live it well.

Following a knock on the door, Sharvella's pleasant voice rang out, "Lord, dinner is here."

"Come in," Kaios said. He watched as Sharvella pushed the door open and walked in carrying a food tray.

After being out of sight for just a few minutes, Sharvella looked even more radiant. In particular, the way she looked at him held an undisguisable adoration and admiration, much like a fangirl finally seeing her idol up close.

He wondered if it was because of her recent appointment as his Personal Guard. But hadn't she said she was always meant to become his Personal Guard? Kaios couldn't quite figure out Sharvella's train of thought, but he didn't dwell on it too much, his gaze falling on the food tray.

Looking at the dishes on the tray—which leaned heavily towards Chinese cuisine in both cooking and plating methods—as well as the pair of chopsticks, Kaios naturally found it hard to conceal his surprise. This world had far too many similarities to his previous world. It was hard to believe there was no connection between the two.

"You haven't had dinner yet either, right? Go have someone bring another set of tableware over so we can eat together..." Kaios said casually.

But halfway through his sentence, he saw that Sharvella's previously sparkling eyes were now filled with terror. She waved her hands repeatedly, unable to even speak coherently. "I... no... this is... I will, later... Lord..."

Judging from her expression, she hadn't even looked this terrified earlier when Old Pete said he wanted to subject her to a Spirit Burst-Devouring Body and execute her.

"What are you thinking? I meant that you should go and eat your dinner," Kaios corrected himself. He knew that as a recent transmigrator, he still couldn't quite grasp the mindsets of people with different statuses in this world. Therefore, in the short term, it would be safer to avoid forcing his own values and cognitive systems onto others.