SSS-Rank Hunter Reborn: Private Tutor to the Count's Bastard Son

"Silver hair that held moonlight. Golden eyes that contained the sun. A boy with dark skin that resembled the night. Pretty like a doll? Such a mundane expression would be an insult to the boy's face.

Then the boy's face turned this way. Looking at those large eyes, you'd feel the urge to be sucked into them. Except for one thing—the powerful hostility dwelling in his gaze."

The novel's description wasn't wrong at all.

The moment he faced the boy, his breath suddenly caught.

There were three reasons.

The first was his otherworldly beautiful appearance that didn't seem human.

The second was the intense hostility that would make even a decent adult hesitate, and the last was the overwhelming emotion welling up from his chest.

'Silvan Arcdute...'

The protagonist of the novel he'd been reading consistently for years.

The character he'd felt the strongest attachment to was right before his eyes.

That fact alone filled Ferda with deep emotion.

He wanted to go over and talk to him.

To tell him that he remembered every step of his growth process. That he remembered what mindset he'd lived through eight cycles with, how much hardship he'd endured. He wanted to tell him all of that.

While he was desperately holding back that intense urge, Burke suddenly spoke up.

"Young master. You sent away another servant today."

His tone was polite, but his eyes weren't.

Eyes that looked down on a subordinate.

"Didn't I tell you? That no one should get hurt inside here."

Words filled with reproach flowed out.

But there was no reaction from Silvan. He just hid under the blanket with only his face peeking out a little, baring his white teeth and growling.

Like a beast.

"Come to think of it, I think I told you this too."

Burke let out a slight sigh.

His eyes narrowed.

"...When someone asks you something, you answer."

Then he took one step forward.

That was all, but Silvan was visibly shaken. His small shoulders trembled, and the hostility in his eyes diminished. Instead, another emotion crept into that gap.

An emotion called fear.

"That guy..."

The lips that had been locked tight like a padlock slowly opened.

A suppressed groan burst out.

"H-he tried to take off my clothes."

A trembling voice, somewhat clumsy speech.

Just from one sentence, you could tell he hadn't received proper education.

Hard to believe he was the third son of a Count's family.

"So I just pushed him a little."

"It was to attend to the young master."

"I'm not a doll. I can do it by myself."

At Silvan's answer, Burke frowned. He wasn't good at hiding his true feelings.

After being frozen for a while, Burke stepped back. Then he pointed at Ferda and continued speaking.

"Today I came to introduce a new tutor. This is..."

"I don't need one!"

Before Burke could finish, Silvan suddenly shouted.

His golden eyes filled with anger.

"I don't need any of it. Send him back to the forest! I don't want to be here..."

"Young master."

This time Burke cut off Silvan's words.

His eyebrows twitched roughly.

"Enough. Before my patience runs out."

At the same time, a fierce aura began seeping from Burke's body.

It was the same aura he'd used to pressure Ferda before.

Of course, Ferda's expression didn't change one bit. If he were scared by this level of aura, the title of former hunter would be wasted on him.

But Silvan was different.

"Uh, ah, ah..."

His dark skin turned pale white.

His body trembled and fear filled his eyes.

Only when light tears formed in Silvan's eyes did Burke withdraw his aura.

"Hah! Huff!"

Silvan gasped for breath.

After a moment, he raised his face, his spirit broken.

Seeing this, Burke finally smiled coldly, satisfied. Then he continued the introduction he'd left unfinished.

"This is Ferda Inosid. The second son of Baron Quarten from the south. He came with the Count's recommendation and is an excellent teacher, so he'll be more than capable of teaching the young master."

This was the first he'd heard of it.

But he wasn't clueless enough to show it.

They must have prepared a suitable background for a tutor. After all, they couldn't introduce the tutor to a Count's family as a vagrant mercenary from a fallen noble house.

"Well then, I'll be going now."

At those words, color returned to Silvan's face.

He seemed that happy about Burke leaving.

But that was short-lived.

"I'll see you again Thursday morning."

At Burke's next words, Silvan's face darkened again.

Click—

The door closed.

Burke's footsteps gradually faded beyond the door.

Only after quite some time had passed did Silvan raise his body slightly. His pointed ears, which had been buried in the white blanket, came into view.

"Ah!"

Did he realize it?

Silvan hurriedly hid his ears.

Anyone seeing those pointed ears would know that Silvan was a half-elf.

A mixed blood with dark elf heritage.

But that was already a known fact.

What caught Ferda's attention was something else.

'Why is that...'

His eyes trembled slightly.

Because he was seeing something he shouldn't be able to see.

=====

[Name]: Silvan Arcdute

[Level]: ??

[Talent]: ??

[Strength]: 10/?? [Stamina]: 9/??

[Agility]: 14/?? [Magic Power]: ??/???

[Charm]: 95/?? [Luck]: ??/???

*The higher the affection rating, the better the educational effects.

=====

Why could he see another person's status window?

Ferda was puzzled by this. This hadn't existed on Earth either. You could see it if you used stat measurement machines or special magic, but he wasn't doing either right now.

While pondering this mysterious phenomenon.

Ferda's gaze fixed on one particular spot.

'What's that about?'

The affection rating that had achieved minus 100.

Ah, this might actually hurt his feelings. Ferda clutched his head and staggered.

"...I don't trust anyone."

Then Silvan suddenly spoke.

Eyes full of hostility reached Ferda.

"So don't come near me."

Right now, Silvan was like a wild beast.

There was no one in this mansion he trusted. Not even his blood-related father.

Knowing this well, Ferda obediently stepped back.

"Don't talk to me either."

He'd been doing that from the start.

He hadn't spoken since Burke left.

"Don't even look at me."

Yikes, that might be a bit harsh.

But right now it was better to comply. Silvan Arcdute at this time was no different from a wild animal.

To befriend a wild animal, you first need to lower the subject's guard. And to lower their guard, it's best to take plenty of time and wait for the subject to approach you.

Hmm, so the most appropriate response right now would be.

"Got it."

Let's drop the formal speech first.

He'd used casual speech in the original too, and there were no problems.

Then Silvan's eyebrows twitched.

"I clearly said not to talk to me..."

"You didn't say not to answer."

As soon as he finished speaking.

=====

[Notification]: Affection decreased by (1).

*Current affection: -101

=====

You don't need to tell me that.

As Ferda sighed internally, Silvan continued.

"...Don't answer from now on either."

A somewhat sulky voice.

With those words, Silvan pulled the blanket over his head again.

Left alone, Ferda wandered around the room and sat on a sofa in the corner. It was a bit stiff but had decent seating.

Feeling the texture of the sofa, Ferda didn't talk to Silvan, didn't look at him, and didn't even answer him.

Three full hours passed like that.

Ding—

The bell announcing noon rang out.

Time to get up. Ferda rose from the sofa and walked toward the door.

Then he turned and bowed slightly toward the pile of blankets.

"I'll be going now for today."

He didn't listen for an answer. He didn't need to.

He'd obviously be treated like air for a while anyway.

Thud—

The door closed.

As he walked down the corridor and was about to go down the stairs, he ran into someone.

"Oh!"

A boy with light brown hair.

Someone he didn't remember. Probably a servant.

"You're already coming down?"

A puzzled face.

Well, that made sense. He'd come to announce that class time was over.

He couldn't say he knew from reading the novel, so he'd have to make something up.

"Where's the bathroom around here?"

"The bathroom? Oh, at the end of the west corridor on the first floor..."

"Right, thanks."

After roughly patting his head, Ferda went down the stairs.

The boy stood there dazed for a moment, then shouted after Ferda.

"I'll wait by the bathroom! I need to show you to your quarters!"

Oh right, he needed to be shown to his lodging too.

Ferda nodded, remembering the forgotten fact.

***

The quarters were spacious and comfortable.

One leather sofa, a desk and chair that looked brand new, plus a bedroom attached.

It was more than enough for a mere tutor.

"If you need anything, just call anytime!"

The brown-haired servant bowed his head.

Instead of answering, Ferda stared intently at the servant's face.

"Is there something on my face?"

Maybe the obvious staring made him uncomfortable?

When the servant asked, Ferda shook his head.

"It's nothing. You can go now."

"Yes, then I'll excuse myself."

Click—

The door closed. Ferda's eyes narrowed.

"That guy's status window isn't visible."

Unlike Silvan, he couldn't see the servant's status window.

It wasn't just the servant. He couldn't see the status windows of the eldest son's knights who had attacked him, or Burke Logwood either.

Based on all the data so far, there was one conclusion.

"So I can only see the protagonist's status window?"

Ferda muttered quietly.

The performance was ambiguous, but not bad. Actually, it worked out well.

"Teaching will be a bit easier now."

Nothing was as objective an indicator as a status window.

A smile formed on Ferda's lips.