13 A Rose Dedicated to Dio (13)

“Why are you angry, Dio?”

Mumuno’s question caught Dio off guard; he had expected an apology, yet the first words out of this guy’s mouth were still questions directed at him.

Dio’s face darkened to an almost inky black as he stared coldly at Mumuno, silent.

The little nuisance was always putting on airs. His eyes reddened as he retorted indignantly, “How can I know what I did wrong if you don’t tell me? I’m not a mind reader, and you’re always bullying me—shouldn’t you be reflecting on that yourself?”

His anger only grew as he turned his face away, refusing to speak any further.

The childish quarrel between the two was simple and pure.

Dio thought perhaps he had overestimated this guy’s cleverness; after all, he was still a fool. He sneered, “You really had fun this morning, huh? You used to be nobility, right? You probably had lots to talk about with that noble’s son. Even if it’s just a dog, you two could laugh heartily together.”

His words dripped with bitterness; it was clear he was jealous and dissatisfied.

Mumuno immediately shot back, “You don’t like playing with me, so I have to find someone else, don’t I? Besides, I didn’t do anything wrong — just playing a little game and you get angry. Why can’t you just join us?”

“Besides, dogs are such loyal and adorable creatures. What reason do we have not to like them? What’s wrong with playing with them?”

He wore an expression of defiance. Since arriving at the Joestar household, he had even dared to talk back to Dio, launching into a tirade.

Dio scoffed, “Yeah, loyal indeed—at least more so than some fickle brat who can’t make up his mind.”

Mumuno knew the barbs were indirect insults and puffed out his cheeks in displeasure.

“So you really like that dog, huh?” Dio’s gaze drifted toward Jojo and Danny.

Mumuno wasn’t sure if he was talking about the dog or a person.

Still sensible enough not to further provoke Dio, he shook his head. “No, I still like you best, Dio.”

Dio snorted, not believing a word of it.

Mumuno added, “Next time, don’t be so fierce with me, okay? I get scared.”

He rubbed his eyes, looking rather pitiful.

Dio’s chilly eyes glanced over him and then he leaned in, extending his hand.

Mumuno hesitated but didn’t move away.

Dio was pleased with this small concession; he gently wiped Mumuno’s thin eyelids. Indeed, the skin was delicate and, a little hurt, the redness around his eyes deepened, making him look quite pitiful.

“You’re really that upset? I only asked you a couple of questions and you get like this, such a crybaby. You’re really fragile.”

Though his words were harsh, Dio’s tone softened significantly.

He then said to Mumuno, “Listen, that noble brat isn’t sincere with you. He only looks down on us poor people because he thinks he can control us. Who knows how much he despises us inside. Only I truly care about you.”

“Oh, alright then.” Mumuno was clever; he didn’t quite believe this but wouldn’t say so.

Seeing him obedient, Dio was even more pleased and deliberately said a few more words, all hinting that Mumuno should stay away from Jojo.

“But he’s still the master of this household. We can’t go too far against him, right?” Mumuno caught the implication and asked.

Dio replied, “Then we’ll just be better than Jojo, stronger than him. We’ll crush his standing in George’s eyes, leave him broken and depressed, and eventually, the inheritance will fall into our hands!”

Mumuno looked at him in surprise.

He hadn’t expected Dio to include him in the plan to divide the spoils, nor that Dio would speak so naturally about it. Maybe it was just to win him over with promises.

Still, he said, “You really think highly of me. I don’t even believe I’m capable enough to scheme for someone else’s inheritance.”

Mumuno knew Dio was wicked but hadn’t realized he had secretly coveted the Joestar family fortune from the very start—this was truly excessive.

Anyway, he wouldn’t let this guy succeed.

A real man should fight for himself, not be a traitorous ingrate!

After talking to Dio, Mumuno turned away, forgetting his earlier warnings, and went back to playing happily with Jojo.

Dio’s expression stiffened as he watched.

A wave of weariness rose from within, no longer burning with anger as before.

He had come to terms with it—so long as Mumuno didn’t hold him back on important matters, he could do whatever he wanted.

His bottom line was gradually lowering.

In the afternoon, the Joestar family welcomed an old tailor.

George had hired him to make clothes for the two boys; their wardrobe was scant, mostly hand-me-downs from the slums. Their outfits were mostly suspenders and shirts—limited styles and extremely uncomfortable.

Dio measured himself ahead of Mumuno and Jojo, then slipped away quietly to the doghouse outside the manor.

Danny was gnawing on a bone inside his kennel and immediately grew alert at the noise.

His black nose twitched as he sniffed the unfamiliar scent, then stood up barking fiercely at the intruder.

Dio’s face darkened; he snapped, “Quiet! Stop barking!”

But Danny ignored him, barking even more.

Dio glared, but remembered his purpose and didn’t waste time arguing with a dog.

He tossed a piece of meat with bone, carefully selected from the kitchen, in front of Danny. Surely, this dumb dog would be tempted.

“You’re Danny, right? Good boy. If you listen to me, you’ll get plenty more of these.”

Dio’s plan was simple: since Mumuno liked this stupid dog and it obeyed Jojo, he would take control of the dog so both of them would have to answer to him to get near it.

His scheme was clever but destined to fail.

Dogs aren’t like humans who understand complicated nonsense; their emotions are keenly perceptive, and they can sense whether someone truly likes them.

Someone like Dio, harboring ill intentions from the start, would be immediately detected.

A puppy has no malice; it simply disliked this bad guy.

Danny not only refused the bone but barked at Dio even more fiercely.

The plan went awry from the start, which displeased Dio greatly. His gaze darkened ominously at Danny.

“Stupid dog, you won’t listen even when I’m being kind? Just my luck—I saw some circus dog training tricks before coming here. Maybe I’ll try those on you.”

He sneered.

Danny sensed danger instantly and stopped barking, tucking his tail and whining as he retreated into his kennel.

*

After the tailor finished measuring Mumuno, quite some time passed.

The elderly tailor moved slowly, a common trait among the aged.

Yet his work was meticulous and flawless; the clothes he made were impeccable, and the apprentices he trained were excellent. That’s why he was the Joestar family’s exclusive tailor.

Mumuno finally got a moment to rest and sighed in relief, only to realize something was off—Dio was nowhere to be found.

Jojo was listening to his father George’s instructions, and the servants were all busy, but Dio’s figure was absent.

A bad feeling crept into Mumuno’s heart.

Knowing Dio well, Mumuno hurried on his short legs to Danny’s doghouse, where he indeed found the arrogant Dio.

The very guy who had earlier scoffed at joining their group and disdained playing with dogs was now remarkably at ease with Danny.

No, it was more like Dio was the only one at ease...

No matter what command he gave, the pied puppy obeyed without question, seemingly too afraid to disobey.

Yet, subtle signs showed the dog was not entirely compliant and was still somewhat fearful.

This was... extreme.

Dio hadn’t been here long. What tricks had he used to make Danny so obedient?

Mumuno called out, “Dio, what are you doing?”

Actually, Dio had already noticed Mumuno but remained silent, wanting him to see clearly that even a dog could be tamed by him. If Mumuno wanted to play with the dog again, he’d have to obey Dio’s rules.

His voice made Danny perk up.

The dog recognized Mumuno’s kindness and recalled the fun they had playing earlier. Wagging his tail, he tried to approach happily.

But Dio immediately ordered the dog to stop.

Mumuno was baffled. “What are you doing?”

Dio smiled faintly. “If you want to play with him, you have to ask me first.”

Mumuno never imagined Dio could be so childish. His face scrunched up. “I don’t want to. If I can’t play with the dog, then I just won’t. I can always sneak off to play with Danny when Dio’s not around—he’s got too many plans every day anyway.”

Besides, he heard from Mr. George that soon they’d be sent to a school in town.

With Dio’s competitive nature, he would be too busy with studies to bother with them.

So the little nuisance planned to slack off as much as possible.

Dio didn’t expect to be thwarted by Mumuno again today. The repeated failures of his plans darkened his mood.

He snorted heavily, “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Mumuno braced himself, expecting some kind of threat from the cruel and ruthless villain.

It seemed even the villain had grown patient with him.

Mumuno lifted his chin defiantly, “I won’t regret it.”

Dio felt a little crazy himself, unusually gentle toward Mumuno. He knew Mumuno had been spoiled by a privileged life before and thus was a bit willful and spoiled. For him to hold back and only sulk a little now showed he probably knew he had other people to rely on besides Dio.

Though it annoyed him, it was still bearable.

If it were Jojo, Dio would never tolerate such an attitude. If Jojo dared treat him like this, he would make sure Jojo suffered.

Just like how he treated Jojo’s beloved dog Danny.

Dio had spent great effort training the dog to obey him perfectly, always acting when Jojo and Mumuno were unaware.

All this was to keep Jojo’s most cherished things away from him.

And he had succeeded.

No one knew what methods he used, but under his control, Danny became extremely docile, obedient to every command, afraid to step out of line.

He even began to ignore Jojo’s commands.

Before Dio came, Jojo had been Danny’s favorite master, and the dog would wag its tail happily whenever he appeared.

Jojo was heartbroken.

If he told his father George about this, he would be harshly scolded for making an issue out of nothing—dogs liking someone is just a dog’s business. George couldn’t allow jealousy simply because Dio won the dog’s affection more easily.

But Mumuno keenly noticed that Danny had grown much thinner and that beneath his mottled coat were barely visible wounds.

He could tolerate many things, but this made him furious beyond measure, his fists clenched tight.

The little nuisance wasn’t just angry as before; this time, he decided to give Dio a lesson he wouldn’t forget.

A man who crossed oceans and lived nobly as a nobleman better know how to protect himself.

Mumuno gave a slight laugh; he was far from the simple, harmless appearance he showed.