How to Replace Dad 41
“What nonsense is this.”
The blacksmith old man shoved Antonio.
The man who had risen from his seat glared at us with a cold face.
“If you have nothing more to say, please leave.”
Antonio said.
“I saw a note left by the late Tekari. The handwriting is that of an old man.”
“What kind of handwriting is that when you don’t even know how to read?”
“Now you know? Right, miss?”
“Anyway, that’s what I’m saying. I don’t know who Tekari is or anything!”
While Antonio and the old man shouted at each other, I looked around the blacksmith shop.
Although I had deceived the other members to sell the materials, these weapons were definitely excellent.
It wasn’t just the shield.
Well, spears, crossbows…
All of them had a quality that you wouldn’t see in the corners of the north.
“I want a Tekari one too, okay?”
“I said it’s not like that! Get lost!”
The old man pushed me and Antonio out while saying.
Antonio shouted “This old man!” but I calmly said.
“If we leave, you’ll be going back?”
“…!”
The old man flinched.
Antonio frowned deeply and said.
“Going back?”
The old man looked at me.
I didn’t avoid the old man’s eyes.
“We didn’t come to take you to the Tekari family.”
The old man snorted, blowing a snot bubble.
He walked briskly towards the stove as if not intending to deal with me.
Then he picked up the fallen lunch box and said.
“Please go.”
“Really.”
“I’ve heard such stories countless times in other places!”
“…”
“I can believe it. I’m not trying to disturb your peace. So, honestly, tell me. Do you know what those who said such things did afterwards?”
“…”
“As soon as I heard the answer from you, they tied me up to hand me over to the Tekari family.”
“…”
“Do you think I would believe that?”
So they didn’t make excellent weapons on purpose.
Because they thought it would repeat if their identity was revealed.
Antonio narrowed his brows.
“The young lady is a person who keeps promises─.”
I reached out and stopped Antonio’s words.
There is no word as cheap as ‘trust’ for someone who has been betrayed.
So…
Isn’t that too wasteful…?
“What is?”
“Handing over the old man to the Tekari family. If we lock him up and make him create weapons at the Tekari level, it would be fine, but why…?”
“W-what?”
“I can understand the minds of the people who handed over the old man to the Tekari family. They must have been the kind of people who valued money more than weapons.”
“That is… .”
“But if we have to say, we value weapons more than money, right? That’s right, Baron Antonio?”
Then Antonio’s eyes sparkled.
“If we lock him up, he’ll make them right away?”
“What do you mean! No way!”
The old man flinched and hugged the shield again.
I smiled faintly.
“It would be useless even if we handed you over to the Tekari family. Of course, I have no intention of locking you up either. That was just a joke.”
This blacksmith shop is the only blacksmith in San Miguel.
They’ve already made weapons of excellent quality.
Moreover, looking at the old man’s stubbornness, even if locked up, he wouldn’t make weapons at the Tekari level.
If he had bitten his tongue, he would have bitten it.
After hearing such stories, the old man cleared his throat.
“…Then why did you come?”
“Do you know the relic of Tekari? The one relic that entered the imperial family and the 7 noble houses, and the remaining one.”
The old man said while clearing his throat.
“It must be the last relic.”
So that was the last relic.
Anyway, that wasn’t important.
“Do you know where it is?”
If you know, you don’t need to ask to make it.
Then the time would be greatly reduced, an enormous gain!
“If I tell you, will you quietly return? Hiding my identity?”
“Yes!”
The old man put down the shield.
And he picked up the book placed under the pot on the table.
And flipping through the pages, he said.
“Let me see. The person who handed over the relic of the late Tekari… .”
“…”
“Why?”
“…Is this book perhaps…?”
“It is the diary of the late Tekari. Well, it is also called a secret book.”
I was so shocked I grabbed the secret book.
Smudges and food stains.
No preservation magic was applied.
Wow.
With the hot preservation method, I was silent for a moment.
The old man searched the secret book again.
“Here it is. It was given to Leon Dola Yopis. As a reward for saving a life.”
Antonio laughed “Haha”.
“Good. He’s not a great duke.”
“…”
“Young lady?”
It didn’t go well.
I closed my eyes tightly.
Yopis.
The vassal of the Andres Duchy who tried to kidnap me, and the one who taught me, bears the name of that castle…
***
San Miguel Castle.
The vice-commander sighed and said.
“Confirmation is complete. Leon Dola Yopis is indeed the founder of the Yopis Baron family.”
The commander, vice-commander, and Yuis listened to the story from the blacksmith shop for me and Antonio.
First, that the late Tekari was the blacksmith old man.
Here, the vice-commander and Yuis’ eyes almost popped out at how surprised they were.
And that the last relic might be in the Yopis Baron family.
The vice-commander ordered Yuis to investigate the family tree of the Yopis Baron family immediately.
And it was confirmed that the relic was indeed in the Yopis Baron family.
“Of all things, in the family of such a dangerous person… .”
The Irregulars who knew it was the one who tried to kidnap me frowned.
I said.
“Even in the Yopis Baron family, they probably don’t know about the relic’s existence. The baron family had a time when it was extremely poor. If they had known about the relic, they would have sold it then.”
“It’s likely buried together in the ancestors’ tomb.”
The vice-commander nodded.
Then he soon narrowed his brows.
“The Yopis fief is in the Andres estate, so invading the 7 noble houses’ estates is certain.”
“That’s not the case.”
“What?”
“The Yopis family cemetery can’t be in the Andres estate. It has been contaminated by ghosts. Because of the danger, it was relocated.”
“That’s good.”
At the vice-commander’s words, I nodded.
“That’s right. But the problem is… .”
“What problem?”
“Only Raphael Yopis knows where that tomb is.”
“…”
The Irregulars fell silent.
Antonio grabbed his sword.
“Shall I kidnap him?”
“He’s not the type to spill the beans if threatened.”
“Then what do we do?”
“We have to meet him.”
“He was the one who tried to kidnap the young lady last time?!”
“Now he’s the daughter of the San Miguel lord, so he can’t easily touch him. I’ll bring a bodyguard, so don’t worry too much.”
But Antonio and Yuis had worried faces.
“But… .”
“Would that guy care about the bodyguard… .”
At that moment.
“I will accompany you.”
It was the vice-commander.
I was startled and looked at him.
“Vice-commander?”
“Yes.”
Well, if it’s the vice-commander, even if a bunch of knights from the Yopis family come running, it would be fine, but…
“It must be busy.”
“My role in San Miguel is the captain of the knights. There is nothing more important than protecting the master.”
The commander also gave him strength as something.
In the end, I had no choice but to nod.
That night, I wrote a letter to Baron Yopis.
A few days later, Baron Yopis sent a reply agreeing to the meeting.
***
The herb picker’s shelter in the mountain where Baron Yopis had tried to kidnap me.
I bowed my head to the bent-over herb picker.
“I forgive your rudeness in asking about my well-being now that you know I was in trouble.”
“How is that the young lady’s fault. Rather, I received help. I heard earlier that you are the daughter of the San Miguel lord.”
This herb picker was also in danger because of the people Baron Yopis brought.
But the Irregular who came to pick me up saved the herb picker too, so he was safe.
I said with an embarrassed expression.
“Baron Yopis must have a bad memory of the old man, so thank you for arranging the seat.”
“What is difficult for a life savior?”
The kind old man who said that kindly gave me a ride in the carriage and left the shelter.
I sat in the seat prepared by the old man.
The vice-commander who came with me said.
“Did you prepare the sword?”
“Yes.”
“In case of emergency?”
“Don’t think of stabbing with the tip, but cut with the blade to make the pain known first. Then the person will instinctively shrink. And if there’s a gap, run away. Right?”
Following what I learned before, he listed them one after another, and the vice-commander smiled faintly.
“Excellent student─.”
At that moment.
“If you just memorize it blindly, it’s useless.”
The door opened and a leisurely voice was heard.
It was Baron Yopis.
He had opened the door and approached me with a smile.
“As expected, your quality is better than that of San Miguel.”
He said that and sat on the opposite side of me.
I picked up the teacup and said.
“No.”
Baron Yopis chuckled.
“You were taught that reality judgment comes before ego, but why did you think that? The educational level is different from the start.”
“Educational level?”
“If it were me, I would have taught how to persuade the opponent rather than an attack that is likely to be eaten.”
“…”
“In a way that can never be rejected.”
Baron Yopis glanced at the vice-commander.
“Fools are like that. They think what is necessary for us is necessary for others too. But for noble people, there is a method only for nobles.”
“So?”
“What do you plan to do in a place that can’t do anything but that kind of education. If you are with fools, you will only fall together.”
The vice-commander’s gaze became cold.
Baron Yopis’ smile deepened.
I put down the teacup and said.
“Lord Lorenzo is a better teacher than the baron.”
The vice-commander flinched and looked at me.
Baron Yopis’ eyebrows twitched.
“Why did you make such foolish judgments.”
“Because Lord Lorenzo has sincerity. Unlike the baron.”
“Oh. It seems you drank bad water. I was taught that what cannot be seen with the eyes is useless.”
I looked straight at Baron Yopis and said.
“Etiquette, eloquence, management, etc., the baron can teach better. The baron is a great ‘instructor’.”
“…What?”
“But what I need is not an instructor but a teacher.”
“What’s the difference?”
“A person you can sincerely respect.”
The vice-commander’s eyes looking at me trembled thinly.
Baron Yopis let out a laugh.
“You mean that?”
“If you insult Lord Lorenzo, I won’t forgive you.”
His expression changed instantly.
The smile disappeared from the baron’s face.
***
Raphael Yopis clenched his fist.
Calling such a thing a teacher?
If insulted, won’t forgive?
Amazing.
But Yustea’s eyes were quietly burning.
Like the moment she threw a gauntlet at the grand duke who insulted Baron Yopis.
That day was the day of the party at the Andres estate.
At that time, the Yopis baron, who was not well-known, was assigned the central table at the party, and the children of the great families showed displeasure.
The grand duke, whose personality was fiery, poured champagne on the Yopis baron and insisted that he didn’t know the subject.
Yustea didn’t hesitate and threw the gauntlet.
“W-would you dare to make an enemy of my family because of a mere vassal?”
“He is not a mere vassal. He is the one who taught me everything.”
Because of that, she was severely scolded by the late Andres duchess, the grandmother, but Yustea did not beg for forgiveness.
Even after being imprisoned for two days without drinking a drop of water.
Baron Yopis asked.
“Why didn’t you beg for forgiveness.”
“If I do, it means I admit I was wrong… .”
“What?”
“I don’t regret throwing the gauntlet at the grand duke. If there is someone who insults the baron, I will do it again.”
That Yustea was now holding the dirty hand of a knight.
Then she frowned with a “Hmm.”
I said, proud, don’t get discouraged.
Baron Yopis’ gaze became cold.
“Then what is the purpose of calling me.”
Only then did Yustea, who had let go of the vice-commander’s hand, look at the baron.
“To make a deal.”
“Can you give me what you need from me, young lady?”
“I’ll get rid of the ghost of the Yopis family for you.”
“…A ghost, you say?”
“It’s quite a big obstacle, right? The ancestors’ bones are contaminated by ghosts, and even after relocation, people don’t gather in the Yopis fief. The people fear that the ghost brings misfortune.”
“…”
“No matter how successful the baron becomes, the foundation of nobility is the fief. Don’t you want to revive the fief?”
“So what do you want from me.”
“Money. There is a lot of money needed in San Miguel.”
The vice-commander sighed inwardly.
Amazing.
Not only finding the location of the Yopis family cemetery, but also extracting money.
San Miguel was a business that only left money.
Baron Yopis asked.
“The amount?”
“50,000 gold.”
That amount is a preparable amount.
“Good. How long does it take to prepare the exorcism?”
“No preparation needed?”
“…What?”
“Let’s go right away.”
Time is short on our side.
Soon, the merger of Valboa fief will be discussed.
Yustea smiled brightly.
***
Success!
Baron Yopis obediently guided us to the family cemetery.
As expected, it was near the Andres in the east.
Inside the carriage heading to the cemetery, the vice-commander said.
“It’s dangerous, so young lady, please only get out of the carriage.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re not really going to exorcise the ghost.”
“I’m going to.”
“What?”
“I have to receive the 50,000 gold.”
“You know the exorcism method?”
I don’t.
The ghost itself cannot be physically exorcised.
Only by removing the objects contaminated by ghosts.
But I can.
I am an air purifier that passes through all contaminations.
When the job of Purifier is like this, it is useful.
The vice-commander had a bewildered expression, but I just smiled.
Time passed, and the carriage stopped at the destination.
I got out of the carriage with a dumbfounded expression and looked at Baron Yopis who came in another carriage.
“You made a cemetery 30 minutes away from the Andres estate?”
“As long as it’s not inside the estate, isn’t it fine?”
“Other vassals would faint if they knew.”
“If they don’t know, it’s fine. Then shall we go?”
“The baron is here.”
“It is necessary to check if the contamination is complete.”
“Who said not to check? It’s fine to check after exorcism.”
“You don’t want to tell me the exorcism method?”
“Yes. Where is there a fool who sells secrets.”
When I raised my head, Baron Yopis shrugged his shoulders.
I entered the cemetery with the vice-commander.
Carrying a lantern, I carefully read the tombstone in front of the cemetery.
“Luis… Gemma… Alondos…. Ah, here it is. Leon Dola!”
Under the pretext of exorcism tools, the vice-commander took out a shovel from the bag he brought.
At the moment when the vice-commander was digging the ground hard.
Whoosh─!
The flow of air became strange.
And a human-like figure surrounded by mist approached.
“Husband… husband, where are you….”
“I hate… .”
“It’s painful… Let’s go together….”
Chilling voices echoed in my ears.
That’s a ghost.
A monster that cannot give physical power to humans but breaks their minds.
A swarm of ghosts rushed in.
“Ghost! Step back…!”
The vice-commander wrapped me in one hand.
However, the ghost in front touched me.
Then…
“Husband, where…?”
One ghost that touched me disappeared like burning.
The ghosts stopped and looked at me.
“Eh… Hello?”
I waved my hand slightly.
At that moment, the ghosts panicked and started running away.
“What the hell?!”
“I don’t know, run!”
I looked at the vice-commander.
“Aren’t ghosts supposed to leave contaminated bones?”
“…They must have been scared enough.”
But it wasn’t too much of a performance.
It was embarrassing for people.