By Zephyria 
The child, with sunlight on her head and neatly tied hair cascading down her back, laughed for a long time. I didn’t know what I had said that was so amusing, but I was glad she was happy. It was torture to resist the urge to reach out and touch her flushed cheeks and the tips of her ears, which were red with mirth.
I watched Sierren’s tinkling laughter for a while, but soon enough, various worries filled my head. I hesitated for a long time whether to speak or not, but as her laughter subsided, I voiced my concerns.
“Still, Sierren.”
“Hic… ha, haha. Yes.”
“…I hope you won’t do that again, like last time.”
“…Huh? Like last time…?”
“Yes. When you met my parents, you were a bit…”
Even back then, I thought it was a little strange. But according to Marianne and Shayden’s advice, it was no different from begging for a son in front of my parents.
Even for someone as easygoing as me, it would be incredibly embarrassing to show that kind of behavior in front of both sides of the family. I didn’t want to hear unnecessary comments, so I had to firmly warn her.
Remembering that incident seemed to embarrass her as well, as Sierren stammered and then blurted out an excuse.
“That, that time it was so sudden…”
“Whatever the reason.”
“Okay… I won’t…”
Good girl, I coaxed the child and this time I pushed the swing for her.
I don’t know how long we sat on the swing, but when I finally stepped onto the ground, it felt like the soft earth was pushing me back. It was so funny that I burst out laughing.
Before the New Year Festival ended, Rubel and I rode the swing together in the same way several more times.
❖ ❖ ❖
Is there anything that passes as quickly as time?
On the tenth day of the New Year, I heard that Wesley Kiadris had returned to the Yuil Mountains.
I was quite disappointed to have missed this opportunity. Wesley wouldn’t be able to do anything reckless in the palace, so it would have been safer to confront him there. But it was better to improve my skills further so that I could protect Rubel from any threat, so I decided to do that.
I decided to put aside the worries that troubled my mind. So, I bid Rubel farewell early and returned to the townhouse before the eleventh day.
The more immediate problem was dealing with my Mother and Father, who kept chuckling whenever they looked at me.
It was a dinner party to celebrate the long-awaited reunion of the whole family. William and Seiren kept glancing at me and smiling subtly, repeatedly suppressing their laughter.
Thinking that my parents were just teasing me, my two younger siblings, who didn’t know why, also kept grinning at me. The tips of my ears grew hot. I avoided their gaze, cutting the large chunks of meat on my plate, but I couldn’t stand it any longer and opened my mouth.
“…Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Oh, it’s just… I just think you are really our son…?”
“…Father?”
“I just… yes, I just want you to be happy… somehow…”
What strange things are they saying? I stopped eating in disbelief and looked at William, who said something very funny.
“…Could it be that when we had the fishing bet last time, you even used your aura to beat me…”
“What are you talking about? No, I didn’t.”
“You didn’t have to go that far, we would have allowed it anyway.”
“I’m telling you, I didn’t.”
There’s a limit to how much you can twist things. If this goes on, they’ll say that even my baby talk was to ask for permission to be with Rubel.
I just kept denying my parents’ various teasing remarks, trying to change the subject.
“When are my grandparents and maternal grandparents coming?”
“Well, they’re getting old, so… they said they’ll come at their own pace, so I think they’ll arrive around five days before the graduation ceremony.”
“They’re planning to come at least two days before, so there’s no need to worry, Mika. Everyone has decided to gather here.”
Knowing that I was changing the subject, Mother, who was about to tease me again, smiled sweetly and answered kindly. Father immediately added an explanation. The two children were excited to see their grandparents again after a long time, chirping happily, which was so cute that a faint smile spread across my face.
The Valentia townhouse had many rooms for guests, so even if we invited all the paternal and maternal relatives, there would be plenty of space.
The Duchy of Valentia couldn’t be left completely empty, so my maternal cousins, who were the heirs, decided to stay in the duchy. But I heard that my Uncle and Aunt were coming to the capital, saying that they wanted to see me once before I went to the Yuil Mountains.
It was both amusing and pleasing that my relatives cared for me so much, so I nodded easily.
When the topic of the Yuil Mountains came up, Mother’s expression became melancholic. I took out a handkerchief that I had prepared, halfway expecting her to cry and worry, but thankfully she didn’t shed any tears.
Instead, Mother made an expression that was hard to tell whether she was smiling or crying, and poked at the sherbet that was served for dessert with a teaspoon.
I thought she was acting like a child, no matter how old she got, and just smiled.
“To think that you’re already graduating… It feels like just yesterday that you were toddling around and scolding Ii.”
“Children are bound to grow up someday.”
“But, I thought you would stay the same forever, Mika.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know…”
When Mother tilted her head, Father quickly chimed in.
“Maybe it’s because you were always the same until you entered the academy.”
It was Father. I thought he was just groaning and being bothered by Asdel, who was complaining about being scolded by her brother, but it seemed he had been listening to everything.
“…Hmm. Is that so?”
“Yes, you said the same things when you were three years old…”
I couldn’t help but laugh at that.
Indeed, after being born into this new world, I had always been anxious.
I respected my parents, but if I saw them doing something wrong, I would follow them around and scold them. I always carefully observed my surroundings, and I tried to scrutinize the appearance of the people coming and going to see if they had any malicious intent. After I first held a wooden sword, I was always busy training with it.
The me before entering the academy and the me now are completely different people.
I knew that best. I had only known that people should learn even as they get older as a proverb and had not put it into practice, but I was very fortunate to have learned and realized so much through such a good method.
The current me was a man who felt closer to Ernhardt than Namgung.
There were hundreds of faces I was familiar with in Sierren’s social circles, and I had memorized thousands of names. Counting currency in the Sierren way felt easier than exchanging iron coins. I knew not only how this land was shaped, but also where and in what form the plants and animals were located.
I crammed many things into my head that I had no intention of knowing or needing to know in the Central Plains.
And now, I was about to set out to become stronger in the Sierren way. I had heard and learned about the three hundred or so problems that arise when the Mana concentration in the atmosphere is high, but since it didn’t apply to me, who could easily handle Mana and aura like beads in my hands, I only knew about them appropriately.
However, even though I had become a Sierren person, it was beyond my control that my parents still looked so lovely and young to me. I just laughed amusingly and answered.
“It’s all thanks to my parents’ love for me, both then and now.”
“…Oh my.”
“Isn’t it very difficult to listen to and put into practice a child’s words without dismissing them as childish? Since you two have loved me and listened to my nagging, it’s only natural that my three-year-old habits are still the same.”
My parents were silent for a moment, then pushed aside their desserts and got up to hug me tightly. Still, I was glad that I had grown bigger, so it was easier to hug and comfort both Mother and Father than before.
After spending a pleasant time with my family, I went to my room alone and prepared my will.
If I were just going to look at it myself and get rid of it, I would have just written down what was necessary. I had no intention of becoming Ernhardt’s heir right now, and the personal assets I had set aside were not things I had earned myself, but things I had received from my relatives, so it didn’t matter to whom they were passed on.
But if I died in the Yuil Mountains, three representatives from the family and one representative from the country would review the will.
One from my parents, one from my grandparents, and one from my maternal grandparents. These three would be the family representatives, so naturally, the whole family would know the contents. It was unfamiliar to think about how they would live and feel after I died.
What was it like in my previous life?
It was a land where so many people died. Even before the Demonic Cult emerged, I often saw people dying from swords. I thought I would die like that someday, but I was never afraid.
My biological parents had weak Martial arts, so they died a little after the age of fifty, like most people in the Central Plains who didn’t practice Martial arts.
Father told me to live well before he passed away.
Mother thanked me for growing up well before she passed away.
I was embarrassed that I hadn’t gotten married and given them a grandchild, but I was proud that I had worked hard in the military, so the Namgung Clan’s main family gave me a decent funeral.
So, after sending off my direct relatives, I had no one to leave a will to, even if I wanted to. If I died by the sword of an evil enemy, the Martial artists of Namgung would avenge my death, and if I died naturally, I could have a funeral in the name of Namgung. I believed that and lived my whole life without leaving anything behind.
Since I died in such a big battlefield, I probably couldn’t even leave my body intact.
But if I died in this land… there were already too many people who would cry their eyes out to count on both hands. Somehow, I was even embarrassed to feel so pleased about this. I chuckled and wrote down the names of the people who would grieve on a piece of paper.
Yes, since I have no property to leave behind, I should leave my heart. I decided that.