Chapter 92: Unfilial Son (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 92: Unfilial Son (2)
I had unintentionally become a "fire-attribute" filial son.
The reason I was a fire-attribute filial son, and not just a regular undutiful one, was simple.
"Still, I'll put up with it since he sends plenty of allowance."
"Thanks to him, we were able to prepare a grand wedding for our eldest."
It was all thanks to money.
As expected, money never betrays you.
"Even so, seven years was a bit much."
"To be precise, it was seven years and four months."
Of course, it seemed money couldn't solve everything.
"..."
In times like this...
"I heard the bride is a devout follower of the Goddess Church. So, I’ve reserved the Royal Cathedral."
"...?"
"...?"
"Wow...!"
I had no choice but to use my connections.
My sister-in-law was the eldest daughter of a Viscount family located fairly close to our estate.
The family itself wasn't particularly special, nor was it flawed; it was the epitome of an ordinary Viscount household.
They weren't greedy for power and possessed the mindset of the top 1% of nobles—simply wanting to manage their own territory well.
Their specialty was medicinal herbs gathered from the nearby mountains. They produced such high-quality herbs that the majority of the estate's residents were herbalists.
She had met my eldest brother at the Academy, and they became a couple around the time of graduation.
One notable detail was her status as a devout follower of the Goddess Church. According to my childhood memories, she was the one who dragged my eldest brother—who used to sleep all through the weekend—out to the cathedral every Sunday.
"So, please let me borrow the cathedral."
—I told you to go home every once in a while for a reason...
And so, after explaining the process of how I became a fire-attribute filial son to the Commander, I requested his cooperation in renting the Royal Cathedral.
Since it seemed it would take a long time to win back my eldest brother's heart, I decided to focus on raising my sister-in-law's favorability first.
Our family rank was higher, but my brother was the one who fell for her first.
In any relationship, the one who loves more is the underdog who has to follow the other's lead.
"I was just that busy."
—No matter how busy you are, the Royal welfare isn't so trash that you can't visit home once a year.
"...The past cannot be undone. But the future can be changed!"
—Those are nice words, but if your brother heard you right now, he might have killed you.
"Don't worry. I can hold my own even if I have to fight the entire territorial knight order."
—Aren't you just something...
"You were right, Commander. With money and power, most things can be resolved."
—When you put it like that, I feel like a piece of trash too!
Was I wrong?
The profession of a Training Officer was essentially a group running a Truman Show for the royals.
No matter how much it was a group created under Royal sanction for the future of the royalty, there was no denying it was a place built on deception.
If he was the Commander of such a place, wouldn't that make him trash?
—What's with that look?
"It's nothing."
Anyway, he was still damn quick on the uptake.
—Regardless. I can do everything possible on this end. But there are two problems.
"What are they?"
—One is that if the Cathedral refuses, it gets annoying for the Royal Family too. And even if the Goddess Church gives permission, it gets complicated if someone else has already booked the date you want.
He was right.
Even if Leon's religion was closer to the sword than the Goddess.
Openly messing with the Goddess Church's cathedral schedule was practically an invitation to a fight.
Furthermore, anyone who could book such a cathedral would be someone of significant status, meaning it wouldn't be easy to bump them.
However.
"Who do you think I am?"
—...?
I had a plan.
—So... you want me to apply some pressure?
The capable agent, Codename Boradori, who had arrived in the Holy Kingdom, asked with narrowed eyes.
"Ahem. Pressure? It's simply the heart of a man wishing for his beloved family to marry under the Goddess's blessing."
—While you threw your 'beloved' junior at work into hell...
"Beloved? Who? Besides, isn't the Holy Kingdom the place furthest from hell?"
—There's a saying about loving your juniors as you love your country...
"You're not even from our country..."
If he felt wronged, he should have sought asylum after graduating from the Academy.
—Ugh... No, wait. Why are you asking me for this favor? You can just ask your high-and-mighty girlfriend.
"..."
A smile spread across Boradori's face as she ground her teeth.
—Daisy! Breaking news!
"You little—?!"
Boradori immediately attempted an act of insubordination.
Fortunately, it seemed the Holy Kingdom was busier than imagined due to the appearance of the Demon Tribe.
—Still, they said they'll treat them well if they come to the Holy Kingdom for their honeymoon.
"Not a chance."
There was no way I was sending my brother and sister-in-law to a den of monsters where a RoFan heroine resided.
To prevent a sudden "Tragedy of House Smith" from occurring, I decided to just send them on a domestic trip.
After securing the right to use the cathedral with the Holy Kingdom's consent, I was able to set up a meeting with the Finance Minister under the pretext of "future negotiations."
And to the Finance Minister, whom I had worked so hard to meet, I immediately laid out my business.
"I heard your nephew has a wedding coming up."
"Why? You want to send a congratulatory gift?"
"No. Please move the date. It overlaps with the day my eldest brother wants to hold his wedding..."
"Are you a crazy bastard?"
Making the famous Finance Minister's expression go blank—that was an achievement no one else in the Kingdom had managed.
But I wasn't asking for a freebie.
"In exchange, I will donate an Elixir."
"Potions are more expensive than Elixirs these days. Let's go with Potions."
His immediate shift in attitude was absurd.
"All of them?"
"Of course. At my age, I have to listen to my younger brother's whining. You should at least do that much."
He was saying he would willingly postpone his own family event for the sake of the national treasury.
"It's a bit much for me to say this, but... are you really okay with that?"
"My brother is a jobless bum. A useless bum who contributes nothing to the country. He only lives off the title he got thanks to me. He should at least dedicate that much to the nation."
As expected of the giant who had raised a nameless Baron family to a Countship.
"If you feel bad, you can donate the Elixir as well."
...His methods were a bit petty, though.
But since it allowed me to play the part of a filial son, I decided to let it slide.
Time passed, and it was about two weeks before I had to return to the Academy.
"Now then, over here."
"Like this?"
"Groom, please smile a bit more..."
Watching my eldest brother smile awkwardly with a stiff face at the expert's direction, I recalled a famous legend from my past life.
—Don't you guys ever get married. I'm serious...
—Why?
—Just don't do it! You son of a bitch.
I wondered if the day would come when my eldest brother would say those words to us.
As I was lost in such trivial thoughts, my mother approached me.
Watching my brother and sister-in-law rehearse for tomorrow's wedding with a happy expression, she asked.
"By the way, does our third son not have a girlfriend?"
The question momentarily took my breath away, but the Essence of the Defeat Sword I learned in the Royal Family could be used even without a blade.
"No. I've been so busy I couldn't even come home for seven years."
"It's seven years and four months."
"I was so busy I even forgot those four months."
Fortunately, news from the Empire hadn't reached Leon yet.
My mother knew nothing of the legendary freshman who was two-timing a Saintess and an Imperial Princess.
"Now that the eldest has found a partner, I can breathe a sigh of relief. But the second and third don't even have a single lover at their age..."
"The third son is right here listening."
"I said it for you to hear."
"Yes, ma'am."
I quietly shut my mouth at my mother's words.
I knew I'd only lose if I tried to argue here.
"I wonder if I should start preparing blind dates."
"I'd prefer to marry for love."
"I have no intention of forcing an arranged marriage either. But you have to meet people to fall in love and get married."
"You make it sound like I'm a shut-in."
"That's right. Our third son isn't like that..."
"..."
My eyes narrowed at my mother's deep sigh.
"Our third son isn't like that"? That implies someone else is...
My eldest brother was getting married, so he was out. My youngest sister, the late-born child I'd barely seen, was out often enough that I'd only seen her two or three times since returning.
Besides, she wasn't at an age to worry about romance yet.
Which meant the problem was my second brother...
Come to think of it, he had hated outdoor activities since he was a child.
"...Adam. Our family doesn't look at people through biased lenses just because they're from the Empire. International marriage is fine, so if you have a potential daughter-in-law, bring her over."
"Mother..."
"Actually, we're even thinking of going to the Empire to meet her ourselves."
"I'm a proponent of domestic marriage, though."
"Things in life rarely go the way you want them to."
"Isn't the marriage paperwork something I do my way?"
"The paperwork might be, but life isn't. Take your father, for example. Before he even decided to get married, it had already become a 'fait accompli'..."
"...Mother."
That was the moment the secret of my eldest brother's birth was revealed.
I had always thought there was quite an age gap between us siblings.
I didn't know my brother came before the wedding.
...Actually, I didn't want to know.
"So, even if you want to, make sure to use protection while you're a student..."
"Mother..."
The mother in my memories wasn't like this.
Was this the result of a seven-year and four-month gap?
...I didn't think so.
"Still, thanks to you, the eldest is having his wedding in the expensive capital. Thank you."
"It's nothing. We're family."
"...That's right. We were family."
"Mother?"
"You didn't come home for seven years and four months, so I thought you'd been disowned."
"......I'll try to come once every two years."
I wanted to say every year, but as my mother said, you never know what will happen in life. Let's stick to a promise of once every two years.
"...Should I say thank you for that?"
My mother tilted her head at the ambiguous timeframe.
"Fine, do that."
But compared to seven years and four months, it was a godsend, so she accepted it.
A day passed, and then came the next day.
"Am I shaking right now?"
"A little? Adam. Say something to stop your brother from shaking."
"If you keep shaking, I'll tell the bride you're trying to run away because you're scared of her."
"You little—!"
My eldest brother's wedding began.
It wasn't easy to strip the "fire-attribute" title from the front of "filial son."
"Are you the third son I've heard so much about?"
"To be scouted by the Royal Knights at that age."
In Leon, known as the Kingdom of Knights, becoming a Royal Knight was a special event even for noble families.
Because of that, my parents were openly using me as a promotional doll.
"This is exhausting..."
Why was I the one suffering more when it was my brother's wedding?
I felt like I was held hostage for ten minutes every time a new name was added to the guestbook.
"Sigh."
As I let out a deep breath and prepared to receive the next guest...
"Oh? Senior, you came too?"
It seemed Senior Lucia had made the busy trip, considering it was her junior's family wedding.
I was actually a bit touched...
"I did my best."
"Pardon?"
But Lucia, who had trudged over, suddenly blurted out something nonsensical.
No, Senior. What does that mean...
"Ah, wait, no way?"
No, surely not.
As I turned my head with that thought...
"Hmm. Do I just write my name here?"
"I believe so."
Princess Hestia and Prince Ellen were writing their names in the guestbook.
...Please, just go away.