Chapter 79
Chapter 79
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 79
Chapter Title: A Useful Traitor
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"An opportunity like this is rare, so I'd be glad to accept, but... I'd like to know more about why you're entrusting this specifically to me. If it's alchemy, the Magical Tower should be available."
"If they could have solved it that way, they would have long ago. Damn quacks! They take the money and can't even solve it—how can I not be angry! Those damn bastards!"
Whether he'd been burned quite badly by the alchemists and mages of the Magical Tower, the head of the Valderian family was venting his rage.
This was something Beonald deeply sympathized with as well. Honestly, it was hard to tell whether mages were seeking truth or just money—they were practically insane about money.
"Especially during the era when the Empire was fracturing, those Tower bastards fought amongst themselves over 'that person's' research materials and assets until the Tower itself collapsed, making the chaos even worse. The world's most pretentiously clever idiots! That's why their standards have fallen to this state!"
"But my own alchemy level isn't that high either. Moreover, I don't even know if what I learned is... correct 'that person's' knowledge."
"The fact that you reached that level starting from zero, without being taught by anyone, means you're no ordinary talent—it means you have ability. Besides, based on Kedron's story and seeing you in person, you seem to know how to conduct yourself, which I like. Or do you have some complaint against our Valderian family? Huh?"
'...Does this household all end up following their ancestor's footsteps? After 500 years and mixing with other bloodlines, that tendency should have weakened by now, shouldn't it?'
Beonald was inwardly dumbfounded, but he thought there was no choice but to accept anyway.
For one, it was a family whose inner workings he knew to some extent, and besides, it was the household of a loyal subordinate, so he felt drawn to them. Plus, they had even prepared relics for him, so there was no reason to refuse.
Additionally, if he went to their main estate, there might be even more records and relics, and he might also find an objective way to locate Benofis.
'Things might get easier than I thought.'
"So, prepare to depart for the Valderian territory immediately. The relics, of course, aren't here; they're at the main estate."
"Huh? Right now, you mean?"
Beonald looked at the Valderian family head with surprised eyes, but he seemed serious, already standing up and heading toward the door to call a servant.
Beonald hurriedly tried to dissuade him, but he seemed to have already made up his mind.
Of course, he couldn't be dragged away like this, so Beonald desperately began to appeal that it wasn't yet time to go.
'Damn! To think I'd end up pleading with a descendant of Kerwel!'
"The relics are there, so shouldn't we go there? If we go north by carriage without stopping, we can arrive in about four days."
"Please wait a moment, Family Head. No matter what, I am a student who just entered the Academy. I understand your urgency in investigating the relics, but I still have much to learn."
"I'll support you in that. I'll arrange a private tutor, so you don't need to worry about anything else. I'll give instructions to prepare everything for meals and the journey. Let's go quickly."
"Family Head, please calm down. I'm still a novice, and I have much knowledge and data to learn, which is why I applied to the Imperial Academy here. Unless one goes to the Magical Tower! There's no place on this continent with as rich a collection of data and knowledge as the Imperial Academy's library. Or does the Valderian family have such materials within?"
"Hmm? Uuuummm......!"
Finally, the Valderian family head stopped moving and sank deep into thought.
An issue that couldn't be solved by brute force had emerged, so he had no choice but to stop.
'This ignorance is hereditary too, and even the way he grunts when stuck is exactly the same. The blood truly runs strong...'
'If you're stuck there, then? So... grrruh~ grrruuuh~ grrruuuuuh~'
Thinking of his ancestor, Beonald waited for him to reach a conclusion on his own, but the Valderian family head didn't stop grunting.
Whether his tenacious refusal to give up was also a family trait, he wasn't easily convinced by Beonald's opinion and kept grunting as he searched for a solution.
'In the past, I was the lord, so a single word from me would have ended it, but now he's in the superior position... Hoo~ How frustrated must the generals under that Kerwel fellow have been?'
"...Then what should we do?"
"First, please allow me to continue my studies at the Imperial Academy. The investigation can proceed during vacation periods, and after graduation, I will work under you in earnest. Of course, if in the meantime our opinions diverge and our connection is severed, I swear to the Goddess that I will forget everything that happened in this mansion and with the Valderian family."
"Hrrrrmmm......"
An oath to the Goddess. Moreover, upon hearing it, Beonald's opinion wasn't entirely wrong, and a reasonable compromise of investigating during vacations had been proposed, so the Valderian family head eventually conceded, pretending to be persuaded.
"Hmm, fine. Let's do that. Can we communicate through Kedron?"
"Yes, please do."
"Good. Then eat before you go! Kedron has likely already prepared!"
"Ah, understood."
Thinking it was just an excuse to bring him, Beonald was surprised to hear that a meal had actually been prepared, and he found himself obliged to join the Valderian family for dinner.
Following the Valderian family head down to the dining hall, a long, massive table was filled with numerous family members of the Valderian household all seated together.
'...Wh-what is this?'
Beonald was astonished looking at the Valderian family's dining table. Like Vikings or mountain bandits, bread, meat, and alcohol were piled up like mountains.
Various whole roasts glistening with oil, even meat that appeared to be from monsters. The issue wasn't just preparing such quantities for every meal; one had to wonder if even an enormous fortune could sustain it.
'Do they still eat like this? Traditions are truly terrifying...'
'It's our house! I'll do as I please! How can one eat nibbling like that? Eating like this is more comfortable.'
Kerwel, the ancestor who founded the Valderian family 500 years ago, was not originally of noble birth and was famously indifferent to dining etiquette, piling up alcohol, meat, and bread like mountains and devouring them indiscriminately. Who would have thought this would become a family tradition maintained even after 500 years?
"Ahem! Sorry for the delay. I was too late due to work. Eat heartily!"
"It's food!"
'I should have forced him to stop back then...!'
Watching the dining scene where noble family decorum was nonexistent, Beonald was overwhelmed with guilt that he should have dissuaded Kerwel 500 years ago.
The only saving grace was that children weren't given alcohol, and each person had a large bowl of fresh vegetables in front of them, ensuring balanced nutrition.
'Oh? That fellow?'
"Brother Kedron, eat more meat. Will that be enough?"
"Right, right. Even if you maintain dining etiquette outside... at home, eat comfortably."
"You need to eat a lot to build strength."
"I'm fine. So, you all focus on your meal."
Kedron Valderian, who had called him out and reprimanded him at the Academy. Amidst this chaotic, market-like meal, he alone was elegantly cutting a steak and garnish on a single plate, calmly drinking bread and wine—the epitome of noble dining.
Without realizing it, Beonald went to sit beside him and began his meal.
'Kedron... was it? Usually, even if one observes etiquette outside, inside they follow the family's customs... He's unique.'
"What is it?"
"Senior, you're from this family, but you eat differently."
"Our family permits eating as one pleases. We don't care how others eat. Therefore, me eating like this isn't particularly different."
Saying so, Kedron continued his meal elegantly. Beonald, being a guest, couldn't act so willfully in another's household and ate according to the family's style. Meanwhile, he inwardly admired the sprout of change that had finally emerged within the Valderian family.
'That's right. After 500 years, it's about time for a variant to appear.'
"What? Do I look amusing? The sight of me not following the family's customs and doing as I please?"
"No, not at all. On the contrary, I view it positively. You're someone who maintains order within the Academy, but conversely, within this family, you're someone who desires change."
"I simply think it would be good if our household considered being more 'noble.' Because we don't, we're called barbarians by other nobles, and outside we're trampled for being nobles... Whatever we do, I want at least one thing to be solid. That's my sentiment. Hoo~"
Beonald perfectly understood the emotion felt in Kedron's sigh.
Once you receive a title and become a 'noble,' it's only natural to maintain the authority and dignity befitting that title. However, this Valderian family had made 'not caring about such things' a tradition for 500 years, causing headaches.
Beonald keenly felt his responsibility once again.
'I should have reformed Kerwel's mindset. The descendants are suffering. But wait, if this fellow's words are true, then the Valderian family's standing isn't that good? This Kedron fellow gave off the vibe of a leader among noble factions, didn't he?'
"You seem completely clueless. Didn't you think it was strange from the moment we started spending huge sums to investigate 'relics' left by the ancestor?"
"Well, if they're ancestral relics, one could still want to examine them. Who knows what treasures might be there? The Unified Empire era before the Fracturing was quite prosperous."
"Hmph, that's just chasing illusions. Anyway, our family isn't even properly established as nobles to begin with, so we're being pushed around left and right, and the Family Head has no intention of changing. When times change and situations change, one must adapt."
It was peculiar to mention change while advocating for commoner order and common sense, but from another perspective, it was about wanting to restore a family tradition that was bizarrely strange to something more proper for nobles, so one couldn't say it was inconsistent with Kedron's disposition.
"And... let me say this again now, what I did to you before wasn't out of personal feelings either. If I hadn't stepped in, you would surely have been harmed by other nobles with emotional biases, or a conflict would have erupted."
'This fellow, he's unexpectedly decent? The fact that he questions when family traditions are odd... Whether his mother raised him well or it's his innate nature, his thoughts coexisting on tradition and common sense while also considering change—not bad at all.'
Beonald stored the image of such a Kedron in his memory.
After finishing the bandit-party-like meal, Beonald boarded the Valderian family carriage and safely returned to Deren's secret mansion.
"You've returned, Lord Beonald! Since you suddenly went to the Valderian family, I wondered if something had happened."
"Just what did you do to get dragged to the Valderian family?"
"It was nothing major. I'll finish the map work first. Ask Sane for the general story. There are parts I shouldn't speak of. Then."
Leaving the explanation to Sane, Beonald returned to his map work.
Outwardly, he showed no sign, but inwardly he was filled with another wave of excitement and joy.
He wanted to burst out laughing, wondering if things could really go this well, and float on happiness, but he had to restrain himself.
'I was already thinking of finding a way to reach the Valderian family somehow, but for them to come to me... Things are going too well. Finding Benofis will be very smooth.'
The friendly relationship now established with the Valderian family, plus the fact that they'd even take him to the Valderian territory during vacation under the pretext of relics—nothing could be better.
Moreover, once he knew the location of the Valderian territory, finding his own territory, Benofis, would be as easy as taking candy from a baby.
'Even if the Valderian family's territory location changed from 500 years ago to now, at least that level of record should remain. Plus, I can request maps under the pretext of relic mechanisms or puzzles, making it even more optimal! Just in case, once I complete this map! I can find Benofis!'
With eyes full of conviction, Beonald stared intently at the chaotically scattered maps like a puzzle, fitting them together, drawing new parts, and continuing his work.