Chapter 22
Chapter 22
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: An Unexpected Escape
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“What?”
Allen couldn’t comprehend the news he had just heard.
“Baron Paern escaped from the room he was confined to?”
“Yes! It’s all the maids are talking about right now.”
Linbelle, her violet eyes sparkling as if she’d slept well, blinked as she replied.
When he looked at Inellia, she quietly nodded in agreement. There was no reason for them to lie to him.
Especially a lie that would be so easily exposed.
“No, ha. It can’t be.”
They say you’re left speechless when you’re too surprised, and that’s exactly how he felt.
He had been confined to an annex, a separate building from the main mansion.
Baron Paern was supposed to remain imprisoned there until he was tried by my father, the lord of the county.
And yet.
A neutralized Baron Paern.
From a sunless, solitary cell.
Overpowered the guards at the door.
Without being detected by anyone.
Evading the eyes of the countless servants and maids in the mansion.
“Escaped?”
It was so absurd that he let out a dry laugh.
Was the mansion’s security really that lax?
Though they were still awkward, not yet having received proper training, it was still faster than when he had to dress himself.
“I need to see my father.”
Allen took a deep breath.
He could easily guess that his father's hand was in this. Acting emotionally, therefore, would be poison.
He paused before the door for a moment to calm himself, then raised his hand.
Knock, knock—
Contrary to his impatient heart, Allen knocked with a steady, rhythmic grace befitting a nobleman.
“Father, it’s Allen. May I come in?”
Gaiel granted him entry in his usual stiff tone.
“Enter.”
Click—
His father gazed at him with the cold expression he so often wore. Allen suppressed the rising suspicion within him and asked.
“Father, I heard the news that Baron Paern has escaped.”
“Yes, I was briefed on it at dawn.”
His father's expression remained unchanged, as if he’d already known. Allen saw no need for preamble and stated his purpose directly.
“I will form a pursuit party to track him down.”
“There’s no need for that.”
“Father.”
“I’ve already sent a pursuit party. You need not concern yourself with it any further.”
His father answered without hesitation, as if he had anticipated the question. Allen found it difficult to understand what he wanted.
What on earth is he thinking? Everything in this mansion is under Father’s control.
And yet no one saw Baron Paern escape?
No, in the first place.
“…Then where is Lord Prindal? If he were here, the baron would have been caught immediately.”
Is it even possible to escape undetected from the sensory range of a 5th-Circle mage?
Even if he had been lucky enough to escape, he would have been recaptured quickly.
Didn’t he return to the mansion with Julius?
I’m sure I saw Francisca go to meet him.
“If he had been in the mansion, there’s no way he wouldn’t have noticed.”
“Lord Prindal had urgent business arise shortly after his return and left with Lady Francisca.”
“…Is that so?”
What a remarkable coincidence.
On the very night Baron Paern attempted to escape, the 5th-Circle mage who could have detected it faster than anyone else just happened to leave the city on urgent business?
What is Baron Paern’s true identity, and what is Father plotting? No, is Father really behind this?
A sense of unease, its source unknown, wrapped around him. It was stifling, like walking through a thick fog.
At times like these, neither the black book nor his memories from before his regression were of any use.
What good is knowing the future…
…when all I have is the biased information that Allen and Julius remember?
And since it was impossible to read information from the distant future in the book, his frustration only doubled.
‘There’s too little information.’
He let out a long breath.
Either way, Father has no intention of revealing the truth.
Isn’t that obvious just from how he’s handled things?
It was the same when my brother changed, so why would it be different now?
Perhaps…
‘If I can’t find out about Baron Paern…’
“Swear it on your mana, Father.”
Gaiel merely continued to gaze at him with his deep, silent eyes.
“I will gladly pay the price for my impertinence. I beg you.”
His unwavering gaze met his father’s.
His father was always like this. Before, now, and in the future.
“Swear that you were not involved in Baron Paern’s escape.”
How long did they stare into each other’s eyes?
After the ticking of the clock had echoed through the silent room exactly thirty times, his father finally spoke.
“You are aware, I trust, that you are being impertinent.”
I know. I am well aware.
A mere heir forcing the Head of the Family to make an oath? But he had to confirm this.
Whether I…
Whether this was all a coincidence, my father’s will, or if someone else was pulling the strings from behind. Or if something else entirely was involved.
“I will take responsibility.”
I had to know for sure.
That was why Allen committed an act of impertinence he would never normally have considered.
The kind of unbefitting behavior for a noble that he usually despised. An act driven not by logic or reason, but by sheer stubbornness.
He was not at ease, but he had no other choice.
This was the only way.
“I will gladly pay the price for my impertinence. I beg you.”
Gaiel stared at Allen for a while longer, then slowly opened his mouth. He continued speaking deliberately.
“I did not aid Baron Paern in his escape. I swear this on my mana.”
Mana could be seen swirling violently around his body, enveloping him.
And then.
Nothing happened.
Gaiel spoke to him with a composed face.
“This time, Allen, I will accept this transgression as an act born from your fear that Baron Paern’s escape might tarnish Julius’s achievements.”
Allen understood the meaning behind those words.
“Everyone in the mansion knows how deeply you care for your brother, so they will surely understand.”
This was a pretext.
It was his father’s way of saving face, a clear signal for him to back down quietly.
“So, return to your room and rest from your journey. Do you understand?”
“…Yes, I understand.”
At those words, Allen obediently nodded.
After all, his father’s actions had just made it clear who had orchestrated this and who had assisted.
As Allen emerged from the office with weary steps, Linbelle, who had been waiting outside, apparently worried after seeing his stern expression when he went in, whispered softly.
“Young Master, are you all right?”
“…Yes.”
“Perhaps you should rest for a while?”
Allen shook his head at Inellia’s suggestion. He had no time to rest quietly in his room. Though he couldn't pursue Baron Paern, there were still other things he had to do.
“We’re going to see my mother. I need to introduce you two and pay my respects. It’s been a while.”
This would be a good opportunity to entrust their training as handmaidens to her while he carried out his plans.
Failing to learn more about Baron Paern was a bitter pill to swallow, but it was some consolation that he had managed to glean a little information from his conversation with his father.
Allen led them toward the outdoor terrace of the main mansion, a place his mother often frequented.
* * *
With lustrous violet hair and a youthful appearance that defied her age, she possessed an extraordinary grace and dignity. This was Eliza, the lady of the county and Allen’s mother.
“Allen, I’ve been so disappointed that I haven’t seen you lately.”
She had been smiling brightly when Allen arrived, but her expression changed in an instant, and she shot him a look of disappointment.
“Haha… I’ll be sure to visit more often from now on.”
“How many times?”
“Pardon?”
“Shouldn’t you visit four, no, three times a week?”
Allen gave a troubled smile and nodded. He knew it was impossible to refuse, given his mother’s stubborn nature.
“…Yes, I will be sure to visit four times a week.”
As Allen reluctantly agreed, Eliza beamed again and had him sit across from her.
“Yes, that’s more like it. You used to follow me around everywhere when you were little. Haven’t you noticed how lonely your mother has been lately? You, Julius, and even your father, he’s so absorbed in his own work. I’m so lonely.”
His mother spoke playfully, but it was clear she was being sincere.
That was the kind of person she was.
“But those two over there…”
His mother, who had been chattering on, turned her gaze to the figures behind him.
Linbelle was nodding off, seemingly not yet recovered from her journey, while Inellia was quietly trying to wake her.
“Are these the new handmaidens I heard about?”
“Yes.”
“You adamantly refused when I offered to pick them out for you. What made you suddenly change your mind?”
“…Well. Isn’t it a bit ridiculous for someone my age to be without a single handmaiden?”
She let out a small laugh, then asked as if questioning his sincerity.
“I might not mind… but have you considered how the other nobles will see it? They’ll likely mock you for what you yourself used to call undignified behavior.”
Allen gave a bitter smile at her deliberately teasing words.
She was certainly right.
What was the reason he hadn’t taken a handmaiden before his regression?
Was it because he had no money?
That was true.
But if he had truly wanted one, could the family not have provided him with a handmaiden?
Whether it was the daughter of a minor noble family with no fiefdom or a highly-trained, top-class slave.
If he had wanted one, it would have been possible.
But in his past life, he hadn’t.
‘Because he didn’t think a handmaiden obtained that way would be suitable for the count’s family.’
The Reinhardt family, though in decline, was still a great house that ruled over a county.
How could he, of all people, be seen with a common handmaiden?
That’s what he had thought.
However.
“Is there really any need to worry about what others think?”
Not anymore.
“Oh my? I never thought I’d hear you say that, Allen. You must have gone through a lot in Hivel.”
“Yes, well. It wasn’t enough to completely change my values. But it did provide a catalyst for a change in my actions.”
Because Julius was more important to him than the opinions of others.
This was a chance to recruit a talent who could become one of the continent’s Eight Strongest, and another who could display the power of a demigod, even if for just a moment.
What did the opinions of others matter in comparison?
“That’s wonderful. I’ve always wanted you to take on handmaidens. But…”
His mother, looking as though she’d seen something amusing, quietly placed a finger on her lips, then poked Linbelle’s soft cheek.
“Ack!”
Her head shot up with a startled expression, but she froze upon seeing his mother.
His mother began to playfully squish her soft cheeks as if she found her adorable.
“This one is cute. She still has her baby fat.”
Linbelle remained frozen, at the mercy of her touch.
“I see why my son chose you. Still so innocent. Hmm, hmm.”
From the moment his mother grabbed Linbelle, Inellia had been looking at him with desperate eyes.
Allen finally gave in to her pleading gaze and spoke.
“…Mother, perhaps that’s enough. She’s frozen stiff from nervousness.”
“Since she’s my son’s handmaiden, I suppose I should listen. Very well. So…”
After squishing her cheeks for a while longer, his mother returned to her seat and narrowed her eyes.
“What’s the real reason you came?”
“Of course, I wanted to see your face…”
“Did you come to entrust the training of those two to me?”
His mother turned her head toward Linbelle and Inellia with an all-knowing look.
“That’s not…”
“Don’t deny it. I know you’re not the type to come visit your mother just for the sake of it, Allen.”
I raised you for years, after all. Eliza ignored Allen’s troubled smile and looked away.
And in an instant, the atmosphere shifted.
“Their postures are all over the place, one is dozing off despite her position as a handmaiden, and they can’t even properly grasp their master’s intentions. At first, I thought you’d brought them here as your playthings, Allen.”
Eliza smiled cynically, her eyes narrowing as she scrutinized them.
Linbelle, realizing her mistake, stood frozen, while Inellia fidgeted with a troubled expression.
‘Even while being criticized, they show no sign of defiance, nor do they hide their emotions. That’s a point in their favor, but…’
Eliza slowly observed and assessed them.
‘Their skin is so supple it’s hard to believe they’re commoners. Are they of mixed blood? Their dispositions don’t seem bad, but…’
She threw a few more words at them, sizing them up from various angles.
Allen was used to this side of his mother, so he felt no particular emotion.
However, he couldn’t help but wonder one thing.
‘Could such a meticulous mother really not have known that Julius had changed?’
In fact, more unbelievable than his father’s change was the fact that his mother had become lost in extravagance.
She was the one who managed the household and even assisted with some of his father’s duties. That she had changed so suddenly was both surprising and always a mystery.
“Still… they both seem acceptable enough. They don’t seem like bad children.”
After observing the two for a while, she smiled brightly again, and Linbelle and Inellia let out sighs of relief.
“However, they still seem lacking to serve you, so I’ll train them for a few days. That’s why you came, isn’t it?”
Eliza smiled, looking at him with eyes that said she knew everything.
Hearing his intentions laid bare so accurately, Allen nodded as if in complete surrender.
“Yes, you’re right. But it’s also true that I was worried when I heard you were disappointed.”
“Oh, you. Of course I know.”
His mother nodded as if it were obvious and said to him.
“You have a habit of tucking your chin slightly when you’re being sincere. You should be careful about that.”
Allen gave a bitter smile as he saw the two girls gaping in surprise.
“Then, I’ll leave them in your care.”
“Alright~ And don’t forget to visit four times a week, okay?”
“Yes.”
Allen ignored Linbelle’s pleading gaze and headed back toward the mansion.
There was somewhere he needed to go.
While they were being trained, he needed to prepare to obtain *it*.