PT | Chapter 4.2

As Gray stepped into the attic with Johan trailing behind, Aubrey’s situation instantly intensified. Gray, arms crossed and chin lifted in his usual arrogant manner, looked particularly intolerable. The problem escalated with Johan standing beside him; their resemblance, not just in demeanor but also in appearance, was striking and unsettling.

Even for the butler, the sight of them together was daunting.

“My lord, young master, what brings you here?”

Gray cut in sharply before the butler could finish.

“It’s dangerous, so you better leave, butler.”

“Dangerous? What do you mean by that…?”

Before the butler could finish, servants flooded in behind Gray, their target clear. Aubrey had no chance to resist properly as the hands that supported him earlier now seized him with brutal force.

Aubrey had a hunch about what Johan intended. Despite the previous day’s clash with Gray and the upset he’d caused his father, this seemed an extreme reaction. In desperation, Aubrey exclaimed.

“Wait, wait, just a minute! Let’s solve this through conversation!”

“Words from a slick tongue are worthless. Father.”

Dragged to the center by the servants, Aubrey found his hands bound. Even amidst this, Gray’s irritating voice rang clearly, and Aubrey glared at him directly.

“It’s you with the slick tongue! Have you already forgotten the favor I did for you yesterday?”

He had caught Gray trying to sneak out his father’s business plans with Dalton. Had he told his father right away, Gray would have been destroyed. But instead, he had given Gray a hint that he knew about his plans—a life-saving gesture. Could he really treat his savior with such disdain? Aubrey’s eyes flashed with fury.

Watching Aubrey, Gray smirked.

“Yes, you showed ‘favor’ by confessing you were conspiring with Dalton to steal father’s business plans.”

“What?”

“All your scrambling around had a reason then. You’re about to graduate. Were you planning to betray father and the house and then run away?”

“What??”

That was Gray’s doing, not his.

Of course, Gray, who took immense pride in being a member of the Wiidin household, would never leave the family, even if the sky fell down. He had simply tried to make some extra money by enlisting Dalton because his father hadn’t given him enough power.

Then, Gray pulled a thick file from his belt and waved it lightly.

Just as Aubrey realized what was happening, he lashed out.

“This backstabbing bastard, trying to pin everything on me…!”

“Gag him.”

At Johan’s command, the shocked Aubrey turned to his father.

It’s not true, he wanted to say, don’t believe Gray’s words—but before he could get further, a gag was forced into his mouth. It was pulled tight and fastened behind his head as if it had all been prearranged. Then, Aubrey’s hands, bound together, were hooked to a chain hanging from the ceiling.

His wrists, linked to the chain, pulled tight, fixing him to a pole in the corner of the room. In an instant, Aubrey was hung like meat in a butcher’s shop, hands above his head.

He had to stand on tiptoe just to touch the ground, a very uncomfortable position. Struggling to maintain balance, Aubrey turned back, wanting to show his father that this was all Gray’s manipulation.

But then, a chilling voice broke the silence.

“Go fetch my whip.”

“…Please, wait.”

This time, the butler who usually intervened did not; he realized it was not his place to step in.

If things continued, Aubrey’s back might be flayed open. It was unjust for this treatment when standing up to his father. It was all Gray’s scheme—cunning and malicious. Aubrey regretted letting his anger get the best of him the previous day, inadvertently assisting Gray in covering up his own misdemeanors.

Caught off-guard this time, too many things had slipped past him.

Aubrey pulled at the chains, attempting to free his hands, but to no avail. The servants had been well-trained in this kind of restraint.

If this had been his first experience, perhaps it would have been bearable. But having been whipped before to the point of losing flesh, he was terrified. As Aubrey bit down on the gag, pulling incessantly at the chains, a large, firm hand touched his back.

“Don’t resist too much. You’ll hurt yourself even more.”

“…”

The creepy whisper next to his ear made Aubrey’s frown deepen.

Gray, relishing the control, smirked at Aubrey’s struggling form. Imagining kicking Gray’s smug face, Aubrey lunged toward him.

“Oh, dear—”

Gray leaned back, avoiding Aubrey’s desperate strike, his eyes narrowing.

“My dear little brother seems quite fired up. If only…”

At that moment, Gray’s hand tightened around Aubrey’s waist, squeezing so hard the flesh might tear. Leaning in close, he whispered menacingly.

“Why complicate things by snooping around and finding out about Dalton?”

“…”

Apparently, Gray thought Aubrey had been investigating him and had uncovered his deal with Dalton. Otherwise, how would he know about their secret dealings? But to frame his own actions on him was outrageous.

Aubrey glared with rage and disgust, but Gray was unfazed, instead tearing open Aubrey’s shirt with a sharp rip, buttons flying. Exposed, Aubrey shuddered, and then a horrifying sound echoed from behind.

Whip!

As the whip cut through the air, hitting the wooden floor, Aubrey turned frantically.

The mark from Gray’s choking the day before was still on his neck. He should show his father, make him see why it was there. But Aubrey momentarily forgot that since yesterday morning, he had done far too much to upset his father.

Whip! Crack!

“…!!”

The whip lashed across his back, forcing Aubrey’s mouth wide open in a silent scream. Instantly alert, then darkening into pain, the burning spread through his body, and he gasped for air, struggling. Before he could even brace, the second strike came, from his right shoulder across to his left waist, eliciting a muffled cry from behind the gag.

In the chaos, Aubrey caught a glimpse of Gray in the distance, arms crossed, his face filled with sadistic pleasure, enjoying the sight of Aubrey in agony.

It was clear now; in this life too, Gray was his nemesis. No, worse than that. Could a half-brother, a beast aroused by his own family’s distress, truly be considered human? If Aubrey survived this ordeal, he vowed to prepare thoroughly to send Gray to ruin.

As the third whip struck, Aubrey groaned through the gag, the pain searing through every nerve as he awaited the next cruel blow from his tormentor.

–

Johan Wiidin had always held high hopes for Aubrey, who was keen and resembled him a great deal. He preferred Aubrey as his heir over the three sons he had with the marquis’ wife, as only then would he feel completely satisfied with what he had usurped.

In his recurring lifetimes, Aubrey had been the exemplary son who met the marquis’ expectations several times. During those times, the marquis was known among his acquaintances as a remarkably kind and generous father. But what would happen if the situation was reversed?

The answer was all too simple.

This mess right here.

“…….”

After coming to his senses following a long unconsciousness, Aubrey opened his eyes but remained silent. He simply stared blankly before burying his face in the sheets.

This incident was his own fault. He had been too complacent with Gray. However, separate from that, his father had gone too far as well. Even though he knew what kind of person his father was, it still stung every time something like this happened, making him realize how far he still had to go.

He was just a father in name, and he himself was nothing more than a disposable object, easy to whip.

Lying face down on the bed because of the wounds on his back, Aubrey muttered to himself as if talking to himself.

“I should just leave, graduation or not.”

Receiving a formal diploma would give him a valid reason to leave the mansion. That was the only procedure needed. But if it kept going like this, it would be for life. Better to bribe someone with the investment funds he had saved up and leave for a place without his father or that pest Gray.

There, he could just live as he wanted. And when the time came, he’d burn up in flames. Maybe then a new life would start.

“…….”

Suddenly, his heart raced and his head throbbed.

He had been gradually giving up in the face of unchanging, repetitive scenarios, yet there were still things that unexpectedly surged forth. Why me? Aubrey, with countless unanswerable questions, gripped the sheets and murmured.

“Just die already…….”

What would happen if he set fire to the mansion when he left?

But even if he did that, Lennock would survive and awaken as a great sin. In the end, nothing would change. Aubrey let out a sigh that was almost a groan. Then, with a creak, the rusty door opened. By now, he couldn’t care less who entered or left. But if it were Gray, it would be different.

He recalled the exhilarated eyes that had watched him being whipped in agony. A chill ran down Aubrey’s spine, and he hurriedly lifted his head, only to find a blond man who resembled Gray but had a more meticulous demeanor standing right by the bed. It was Danvers, the third son of the Wiidin marquis family.

As the illegitimate child of the marquis, Aubrey had never been on good terms with the Wiidin brothers. Although his relationship with the eldest, Gray, was the worst, the second and the third were somewhat indifferent. The second, Jill, was obsessed with alchemy, and the third, Danvers, was similar to the marquis—consumed only by honor and power.

If Aubrey had been a son the marquis could be proud of, perhaps his relations with Danvers might have been even worse than with Gray. But in this life, Aubrey lived as he pleased, often talking back to the marquis and sabotaging his plans, becoming a troublemaker.

And now, lying whipped and sprawled out, he appeared to pose no threat to Danvers, who was bubbling with the desire to inherit the marquis title. This seemed like a moment when Danvers could dismiss him as a rival.

Danvers was a meticulously calculating man but honest with his emotions. The look he gave Aubrey was gentle, and the corners of his mouth were slightly raised. Seeing this, Aubrey couldn’t help but speak.

“Do you enjoy seeing me lying here, whipped? You’re practically splitting your face grinning.”

“Don’t make unnecessary fuss over your own fault that led father to whip you.”

“Before spouting that nonsense, have you considered how foul my mood might be?”

You might ask if it hurts or if I’m okay, but only sharp retorts would come back.