Chapter 14
Chapter 14
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: First Steps Toward a Dream (6)
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‘Amazing, Shirone.’
Reina, resting her chin on her hand, smiled as she watched Shirone. With a single stern remark, he had intimidated the adults in the room. What’s more, he had fanned the flames of Rian’s fiery temper even higher.
In a way, his personality might be the most similar to her father’s. And yet, the reason Shirone seemed to shine was that his words weren't a calculated strategy, but a genuine expression of his heart.
“Puhahaha! This is a masterpiece! To think I’d get this excited in my old age! Youth truly is the best!”
The maids shrieked at the booming laughter that seemed to shake the mansion. In contrast, the direct family members sighed and turned around, recognizing the voice instantly.
A closely-cropped, blue-haired old man was standing on the second-floor balcony.
Shirone stared blankly. With a physique so massive he looked like an evolved version of Rian, the muscles on his forearms rippled as if they were about to burst.
It was Rian’s grandfather, Ogent Klumpf.
“Grandfather!”
Reina stood up, looking as if she’d just received reinforcements from heaven. She and Rian alone were struggling to persuade the black-haired patriarch. But with her grandfather here, things were different.
“You’ve arrived, Father. Reina mentioned it would take a few days.”
“Hahaha! My friend ran off with a young lass, so I came back early. In any case, this place is as noisy as ever. Youth is a wonderful thing indeed.”
“It’s not exactly a good thing. The family’s honor has been dragged through the mud.”
“I wonder about that. I’ve been watching for a while, and it seems everyone has a lot to say. How about we decide whether our honor has been tarnished after we’ve heard everyone’s opinions?”
Reina mentally shouted, ‘Grandfather is the best!’ Though Klumpf had already passed the position of family head to his son, his status as an official Grade 3 swordsman was more than enough to command the respect of the family.
“Then I’ll speak first. I only met Shirone yesterday, but he is a bright and talented child. Furthermore, Shirone fulfilled all his duties as a contract worker, and he was scheduled to leave the family today. Considering these circumstances, it’s difficult to believe Shirone held any dark intentions toward Rian, and therefore, I do not think he has sullied the family’s name.”
Reina stated her opinion concisely and powerfully, then sat down. But the tide hadn’t turned completely. They had only just managed to balance the scales.
Though the bond among those with blue hair was said to be stronger than with the black-haired, Klumpf, who had once been the head of the family, was a man of impartiality. He gave Rai, who was clearly on the opposing side, a chance to speak as well.
“So then, what are my second grandson’s thoughts?”
Rai answered in a cold tone.
“I don’t like that boy.”
The butlers began to murmur. This was, after all, a statement from the family’s most promising heir.
“But I don’t want to be bothered with it. It has nothing to do with me.”
Bischoff asked, puzzled.
“What do you mean? You don’t like him, but you don’t want to be bothered?”
“It’s exactly as I said. I do not like that boy. But I don’t want to lie about my own feelings of not wanting to care, just because I dislike him. I said I don’t want to care because I don’t want to care. I don’t care who Rian is friends with; I just want to get this matter over with and go to the royal palace.”
Reina was astounded. As much as he was her brother, his personality was self-centered to the bone. This time, however, his nature seemed to be working in Rian’s favor.
Klumpf chuckled like a boy. He enjoyed seeing the unique personalities of his family members. This, perhaps, was the very strength of the Ogent family, where two bloodlines were intertwined.
“Then finally, let’s hear the opinion of the deputy butler, who has watched the boy named Shirone the longest.”
Temuran took a step forward. Louis shot him a sideways glance, a clear signal to pick the right side. Family members could say whatever they wanted to each other, but for a butler, the most important person was his employer, Bischoff.
“For a year and a half, Shirone perfectly carried out every task I assigned him.”
Louis’s brow furrowed in displeasure. He couldn’t believe the man couldn’t even conjure a single lie. This was why he would be stuck as a deputy butler forever.
“Did you know they were friends?”
“I knew he spent a lot of time with the young master, but I did not know they were friends. However, in my humble opinion, if he were a reckless and thoughtless child, he would not have been able to categorize ten thousand books.”
Shirone’s eyes widened in surprise. He never dreamed that Temuran thought of him that way.
Louis, the head butler, asked, his voice laced with anger.
“So you’re taking Shirone’s side now?”
Temuran, like the seasoned butler he was, bowed his head with an obsequious smile.
“Not at all, sir. I, too, was shocked that Shirone, a contract worker, was associating with the young master. I am merely reporting the facts as the deputy butler.”
With that, the verdict was as good as settled. The only one arguing for Shirone’s punishment was Bischoff. Even as the head of the family, he would have no choice but to relent if the rest of the family spoke with one voice.
Rian, his tension easing, let out a deep breath. Shirone also felt his heart lighten as he turned to Rian and smiled.
But it wasn’t over yet.
“I cannot accept this.”
It was Klumpf’s final decision.
“Father.”
“Grandfather!”
Bischoff and Rian called out to Klumpf at the same time, but the emotions in their voices were polar opposites.
“I understand that you two acknowledge each other as friends. But this is where it ends. If the relationship continues, rumors will eventually spread, and you could become prey for other nobles. Therefore, Rian and Shirone should consider this a good memory and part ways here. That is the right thing to do.”
Reina was disappointed in her grandfather, but she had no words to rebut him. The family’s affairs were certainly important. Just saving Shirone’s life was a victory in itself.
Klumpf met Rian’s blazing, hostile glare with a bright smile. How could he not know the heart of his grandson, who was the apple of his eye? But he also had a duty to protect the family’s honor. The proof was that not a single person objected to his judgment.
“Shirone, what say you? I am grateful you taught my foolish grandson about friendship, but can you let Rian go at this point? It is difficult for a noble and a commoner to be friends.”
Shirone, who had been staring at the marble floor, spoke.
“I cannot do that.”
At the unexpectedly bold reply, not only Bischoff but also Reina, Rai, and even Klumpf raised their eyebrows in surprise. But the one who was most stunned was Rian.
“Sh-Shirone…”
“If I, a commoner, am an obstacle in Rian’s path, then I am fine with never seeing him again. If you still have doubts, you may kill me. But that doesn’t mean I can think of us as not being friends. Because Rian and I are friends.”
Tears streamed down Rian’s face. They were tears of shame. A part of him had been thinking that it was fortunate enough that Shirone wasn’t killed. It was he who had lacked trust.
Having finally made his decision, Rian raised his sword and shouted.
“I hereby declare, in this very spot!”
The family’s expressions turned anxious. This was different from when it was just about Shirone. Whenever Rian got this worked up, an unforeseen incident was bound to happen.
Their anxiety was spot on. Rian turned to Shirone. And before he could utter a word, he flipped his sword and, with lightning speed, plunged it into the floor.
The longsword pierced through the marble. Shirone stared blankly at his own reflection on the blade.
In that moment, Rian dropped to one knee and bowed his head to Shirone.
“I, Ogent Rian of the House Ogent, shall henceforth be Shirone’s sword.”
“What is this, you fool!”
Bischoff forgot his decorum and stood up, pointing a finger. Rian’s action was that preposterous. Even Reina, who had been on Rian’s side, wore a look of disbelief.
“Did you just… perform the Knight’s Oath?”
The Knight’s Oath.
Nobles received stipends in exchange for pledging loyalty to the royal family, but going back in time, even royals were just nobles of a certain era. Therefore, the throne could be overthrown at any time, and a knight’s loyalty was limited to the stipend and honor bestowed by the royalty.
But the Knight’s Oath was different. It was a decision to reduce oneself to a single sword, a vow to become the sword of a lord one would serve for a lifetime.
A noble who opposed the king was, at worst, a traitor. But a knight who broke the Knight’s Oath was not only treated as less than human but was also recorded in history as one who had stained their family’s name for generations to come.
Once in a lifetime. Rian had offered that incredibly weighty decision to Shirone in this very moment.
Bischoff was boiling with rage. Once a Knight’s Oath was made, it was impossible to retract. Even without emphasizing the gravity of the oath, it was clear that the moment he tried to take it back, he'd be treated as the world's biggest fool.
“Rian, what are you doing right now?”
Shirone asked in astonishment. But Rian couldn’t lift his head out of shame. He had wavered for a moment. Compared to Shirone, who had put his life on the line to protect the name of ‘friend,’ all he had done was offer mere words.
“How about it? Now there’s no turning back, right? We’re in this to the end.”
What was a Knight’s Oath compared to Shirone’s resolve? Rian, with a satisfied expression, pulled out his sword and looked around at his family. They all wore faces he had never seen before. He had caused a major incident, but still, it felt exhilarating.
Klumpf stroked his massive chin, lost in thought. Honestly, he hadn’t expected his grandson to be this immature. And yet, the reason he didn’t feel bad was probably because the boy took after him.
‘Well, if you’re going to be immature, you might as well go all out. Hehehe.’
Burying his complex feelings deep inside, Klumpf asked with a solemn voice.
“Rian, if you are willing to become his sword, does that mean this boy has the qualifications for it?”
“More than enough.”
“Then answer me this. Is the standard for those qualifications the boy’s greatness, or your own worthlessness?”
Rian thought. Is Shirone exceptional? Or am I lacking? No matter how he answered, he couldn’t satisfy Ogent. Why would his grandfather ask such a question?
“A sword does not judge. It only protects.”
Klumpf was satisfied. As Rian said, a sword does not think. It only needs to cut through what its master desires in the sharpest way possible.
“You’re all talk, for someone whose swordsmanship is pathetic. I pity your friend for gaining a sword like you.”
“Grandfather!”
Rian glared and shouted. But there wasn’t the same tension as before. Part of it was that he had already gone down an irreversible path, but more than that, everyone was too drained to care anymore.
Klumpf, true to his personality, wrapped things up briskly.
“That’s enough. Let’s end it here. Help your master up. Shirone, Rian is still an unrefined sword, but he is not one to stab his master in the foot. I’ll be counting on you to take good care of my grandson from now on.”
Shirone bowed his head without a word. To show humility here would be to damage the pride of the Ogent family.
“He is a friend I am not worthy of. Thank you for your permission.”
“What do I have to do with what that brat did on his own? Anyway, I heard the contract is over. You were planning to return home?”
“Yes. My parents will be waiting.”
“You must miss them. But since you two have become friends who have made a lifelong promise, it would be a shame for you to return just like that. Hey, Head Butler.”
“Yes, honored elder.”
“Have the carriage Shirone was supposed to take depart now. Have it bring his parents here.”
“Understood.”
The head butler left the mansion as soon as he answered. This matter was now far beyond his control.
Louis was once again reminded that the ways of nobles were utterly incomprehensible.