The Cornerstone (1)
Erdin Lobel was the second son of the Lobel family.
There is a saying that goes something like this. In a household with three children, the eldest inherits every scrap of the parents’ trust, the youngest is smothered in everyone’s affection—and the middle child is left in that awkward, neither-here-nor-there limbo.
Erdin Lobel was the living embodiment of that saying.
Granted, his family had six children rather than three, but his situation was scarcely any better.
Arnold Lobel, the firstborn, possessed a uniquely arrogant and greedy nature; he loathed the idea of anyone taking what he considered his.
In that regard, Erdin was Arnold’s most dangerous rival for the position of family head, and for that reason he had lived under Arnold’s constant checks and harassment since childhood.
One of the reasons Erdin had eventually abandoned any ambition for the seat of power was precisely that steady pressure—Arnold’s bullying.
As a result, a tangled mess of desires had taken root in Erdin’s heart and fermented into a complicated stew of emotion.
Resentment, jealousy, rage, despair, helplessness, the thirst for revenge, the craving for recognition—on and on.
Having concluded that his own talent and ability would never be enough to surpass his elder brother, he had long since cast aside any grand ambitions.
Arnold’s harassment had gradually faded, and Erdin had settled into the role of the family’s somewhat frivolous spare son.
In a way, his position had been not so different from the Robon Blædwin of the past.
Then, recently, the long-dormant feelings of revenge and rage had begun to boil up again.
I can do this.
When Gast had sworn loyalty to him and handed over every scrap of credit.
When he had successfully completed his mission as captain of the subjugation force and earned his father’s recognition.
And then—
You pathetic bastard. A Lobel taking help from a Blædwin? You’ve got some nerve. How dare you go before Father to claim credit without a shred of shame?
When he had watched Arnold try to tear him down and keep him in check with that vicious tirade.
In that moment Erdin truly understood.
Ah. So even one modest achievement is enough to make that man feel threatened.
That’s all he is, when you get right down to it.
And just as Gast said, if things continue this way, the Lobels might well drop out of the Four Great Houses altogether.
That thought took hold of him.
If I start working at it now, maybe I really can climb the mountain I once believed I would never cross in my entire life—my brother Arnold.
Gulp.
Standing before the main gate of the Blædwin family head’s hall, Erdin Lobel found his mouth bone-dry.
Even as he walked up to this door he had agonized hundreds, thousands of times. Is this the right choice? Or isn’t it?
But in the end—
Creeeak—
Erdin pushed open the doors of the family head’s hall.
Dozens of knights stood arrayed on either side; retainers clustered in front of them. At the far end of the blue carpet that ran down the center sat Ted Blædwin, the Iron Knight, upon his seat of authority, looking down with eyes as cold as a midwinter frost.
Erdin drew a deep breath, walked the length of the carpet, dropped to one knee before the Blædwin family head, and bowed his head.
“Erdin Lobel, knight of Lobel, greets the head of House Blædwin.”
His voice was lower and more solemn than usual. He had set the atmosphere carefully—and from somewhere nearby, a snort of laughter broke the silence.
“Pfft.”
It was Robon.
“Ah—sorry.”
For a heartbeat the hard-won composure Erdin had maintained threatened to shatter, but he held on.
“Very well. I have seen clearly enough the efforts the knights of Lobel made on Blædwin’s behalf this time.”
“You honor us.”
“Even though it could easily have soured our relationship with Lahen, your people did not hesitate to draw their swords for us.”
“We simply did what we believed was right.”
The gazes of the Blædwin retainers resting on Erdin shifted noticeably. So this fellow actually has a serious bone in his body and a working brain? their expressions seemed to say. At the same time some of them were clearly thinking, Why is he acting like this all of a sudden?
“This matter is quite serious and could yet become a major problem. Your courage is therefore more than worthy of praise. If there is something you desire, speak.”
Erdin swallowed hard.
This was the gamble of a lifetime. The most dangerous wager he had ever made—and perhaps ever would.
“I, Erdin Lobel, second son of Alfred Lobel and a knight of Lobel—”
Thump. Thump. Thump.
“—wish to become the next head of House Lobel.”
His heart felt ready to burst.
He rose to his feet and looked Ted straight in the eye with a seriousness he had never shown before.
“I wish to break the long-standing chain of grudges between Lobel and Blædwin, and to build a relationship in which each house becomes a true asset to the other.”
Murmurs swelled on every side.
It was an extraordinary proposal—and at the same time, snickers rose to join the whispers.
“Not Arnold Lobel, but Erdin Lobel?”
“Who does he think he is, claiming he’ll erase the bad blood between the two houses?”
“He met the head of Lahen with our lord and now he’s completely forgotten his place.”
Even the open contempt left Erdin unmoved. He had heard it all a thousand times before.
“You’re asking Blædwin to back you on the strength of yesterday’s achievement? You’re overvaluing your own contribution.”
Ted’s reaction was much the same—exactly what Erdin had expected. He answered at once.
“I am not asking House Blædwin to help me.”
As he spoke he turned his gaze to the right. At the end of that look stood Robon Blædwin.
“I simply wish to maintain a close relationship with Robon Blædwin from this day forward.”
Every eye in the hall swung toward Robon. Clearly he had not seen the remark coming; he made no attempt to hide his bewilderment as he pointed at himself with one finger.
“……Me?”
Not long after the audience in the family head’s hall ended, the key figures of the house moved to the grand conference chamber to discuss the recent incident.
The chamber was a vast circular hall, rather like a coliseum: a round stage in the center surrounded by tiered seats rising high around it.
Ted Blædwin, the family head, occupied the central seat of honor. To his left sat the principal retainers; to his right, the Council of Elders. This was the place where the great and small affairs of the house were debated.
Standing in the center of the stage like a criminal on trial, Andersen began a detailed account of the events.
“In the past I was a member of the Empire’s Demon-Slayer Unit.”
The moment Andersen’s history came into the open.
“The Demon-Slayer Unit?”
“What’s that? Did the Empire even have such a unit?”
“First I’ve heard of it.”
The younger people present all seemed to be hearing the name for the first time, but the family head and the elders reacted quite differently.
Small wonder—the Demon-Slayer Unit had been the Empire’s elite secret special forces, created specifically to deal with demons.
Its members served as living bait to lure demons out, then fought and killed them. They were the elite of the elite.
Demons were monsters on an entirely different level from mere magical beasts. To face such creatures, one had to become something of a monster oneself.
But as the Empire gradually gained the upper hand, it discarded every one of those monsters it had created.
It erased their traces and obliterated their very existence. Unless you had fought on the front lines in that generation, you would never even know they had existed.
That was why the reactions in the chamber split so cleanly.
“……Impossible. The Demon-Slayer Unit was wiped out to the last man.”
“He’s right. They can’t still be alive.”
“Enough. The Council will hear Andersen’s full account before speaking.”
At the family head’s rebuke, Andersen opened his mouth again.
“There were… circumstances. Until recently my circles were broken and I was little better than a half-cripple who could barely cast. But after I met Robon Blædwin, my life changed. I recovered my circles, and I found a purpose again.”
“That is not what we wish to hear. Explain how you came to be captured by Lahen.”
“I received word that Fallen Ones had appeared in Eidras. Under ordinary circumstances I might have ignored it, but this is the nation to which Robon Blædwin belongs, is it not? I wanted to help. It is the work I do best.”
He recounted the entire sequence of events from beginning to end without omitting a single fact.
The account was so detailed and concrete that everyone present felt as though they had lived through the situation themselves.
It was impossible to dismiss as a lie. If it had been false, Andersen should have become a storyteller rather than a mage.
“Then let me ask you this.”
One of the elders cut in sharply.
“If you truly were a member of the Demon-Slayer Unit, then no matter how many years have passed or how far you have withdrawn from the front lines, you would never have been captured by mere mages of Lahen.”
Andersen slowly nodded, as if conceding the point.
“You are correct. Anyone present that day could have escaped if they had chosen to. But had I done so, the harm might have fallen upon Robon Blædwin.”
Understanding the implication, Ted spoke quietly.
“Someone there would have recognized you.”
“Yes.”
That was precisely why Andersen had not resisted. If he had fled, the arrow of suspicion would have pointed straight at Robon.
“Why do you care so much for Robon?”
“Because he… is the benefactor who pulled me out of the shell I had become—after I had given up on everything and was living like a wreck.”
Night in Blædwin territory was different from night anywhere else.
Especially around the RMEL laboratory.
“You’ve got to be kidding me. All of these are glowstones? How much money did you make?”
Erdin gaped as he climbed the mountain path. Along the road leading to RMEL, bright yellow bulbs blazed, driving back the darkness.
“They aren’t glowstones. They’re called light bulbs.”
“Light bulbs?”
“Yes. Devices that produce light with electricity, he says.”
Gast relayed what he had heard from Robon.
“Incredible. So they don’t need mana stones?”
“Correct. Lady Cernia, will you be heading to the training grounds later as well? The Blædwin knights train under lights even at night.”
“……So that’s why the Blædwin knights are so strong.”
Cernia looked at the bulbs with open envy.
“Don’t worry. Once I establish a cooperative relationship with Robon Blædwin, we’ll be able to obtain things like this as well.”
The three of them arrived at the laboratory. Abar, dressed in brown overalls, came out to meet them.
“You’ve come to see the Director?”
“Yes. Where is he?”
“This way, please. I’ll show you.”
The laboratory was fairly large.
Three stories high, with enough space on each floor for seven or eight small rooms.
About the size of one of Lobel’s smaller annexes. Considering the scale of Lobel buildings, it was quite sizable for a research facility.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
“The knights of Lobel are here.”
“Ah, perfect timing. Tell them to come in.”
Robon’s voice floated from within.
When they opened the door they found themselves looking into a laboratory the size of four or five ordinary rooms combined.
There wasn’t much inside relative to the space, but the place had only just been built, so that was understandable.
“Erdin. You said earlier you wanted to work with me, right?”
“Huh? Uh—yeah.”
Back in the Blædwin family head’s hall, Erdin had made his proposal with a certain swagger, but it had not been accepted on the spot.
Robon, what do you think?
I’m not sure.
There you have it. Don’t bring this to me—go ask the man himself, Robon Blædwin. The choice is his.
And that had been the end of it. If he could not persuade Robon, he would not even be able to return to Lobel.
“Hurry up.”
“O-okay.”
Robon was snapping at him as if ordering a servant around, yet Erdin could not bring himself to get angry. Once you throw the gamble of a lifetime, the power balance becomes crystal clear.
“You—Gast. Dip these copper wires in the solution, pull them out, and dry them over there so the coating is as even as possible. Erdin, once the wires are dry you wrap them in this leather. Cut the leather to size—very evenly. Here’s a ruler; match the markings. Exactly. Got it?”
“Huh? Uh… what am I supposed to do again?”
“For crying out loud, we’re busy. Don’t make me explain it two or three times.”
“……”
Erdin’s face flushed crimson in an instant. Gast glanced around, not knowing what to do, while Erdin took a long breath and finally nodded.
“Understood. Just… explain it one more time.”
“Fine. This is a ‘ruler’—it has numbers marked at regular intervals. You look at the numbers and cut the leather to the same size. Clear?”
“Got it.”
“And…”
Robon glanced at Cernia, who was still standing awkwardly in the back. She met his eyes, scratched her head, and stepped forward.
“I’ll help as well. What should I do?”
“You take the leather Erdin cuts and wrap it snugly around the coated copper wire. Abar, take the wires soaking in the rubber solution outside to set.”
“Understood.”
The knights of Lobel began bustling about, following Robon’s orders.
“Hey! Do you think that rubber solution grows on trees? That stuff is money! Money! I already blew every last mana stone on the milling machine and extracting sulfur—I’m broke!”
“R-right, got it.”
“You there! Where are you putting the ruler? Here! Right here! If you cut it wrong like that you’re wasting leather! Are you going to go hunt a troll for more? Huh?”
“Damn it! How was I supposed to know when I’ve never used one of these before?!”
Pushed past his limit by Robon’s scolding, Erdin shot to his feet. Instant silence fell over the laboratory.
“Then go back to Lobel.”
Erdin’s pupils trembled violently.
“That’s not—”
“Then do it properly. Weren’t you the one who came asking for my help?”
“……Fine. I’ll do it! I will!”
Erdin dropped back into a crouch, grinding his teeth as he resumed cutting the leather.
I’d rather go hunt a troll!
Robon supervised them, privately astonished.
They’re actually doing it?
Honestly, he had expected them to spit a few curses and storm out long before this. Erdin for sure, and the two knights as well.
Given the long, bitter history between Blædwin and Lobel, breaking that kind of enmity was never going to be easy.
If he was going to take them in, he needed to smash their hostility and useless pride first. Accepting Erdin would come only after that was done.
Besides, cooperating with him was a burden for Robon as well. Most of the family still hated the Lobels.
“If you want to quit, quit now. I’m not going to stop you.”
Yet even under Robon’s prodding, the three knights simply kept working in silence. Watching them, Robon felt his own aversion soften just a little.
They’re adapting surprisingly fast. Three high-quality laborers…
At this rate, the electricity supply facilities might be finished sooner than he had thought.