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Chapter 7
It Feels Strange Now.
On the way back to the estate, we stopped near the scarecrow that was standing there in ragged clothes.
The ox pulling the cart was exhausted and needed rest as well.
The dark sky had already begun to brighten faintly.
It was the time when hardworking farmers started moving.
“Young Master? What brings you here again…?”
The farmer who had given me the straw hat approached.
“I finished my business and am returning to the estate. Sadly, the straw hat could not return with me. But don’t worry. It fulfilled its duty well.”
“Yes….”
I grabbed a handful of silver coins from a pouch in the cart and handed them to him.
One gold coin was equal to a commoner’s monthly wage, and ten silver coins made one gold coin, so this was still a large amount of money.
“Take it.”
“This is…?”
“The price of the straw hat. Use it to buy new clothes for the scarecrow too. He works day and night watching over the birds.”
“I think this is far too much for that.”
“Don’t refuse. Just take it. Instead, bring us some water and food. At this rate, our little ox is going to die.”
I pointed at Sriven, who was collapsed on the ground.
“Ah, yes.”
The farmer brought bread and water, and we sat down to eat.
While stuffing food into his mouth, Sriven spoke.
“Young Master, this time I realized something clearly. I am not built for physical labor.”
“That’s not certain. Everything is hard at first. This is probably your first time pushing your body to its limit.”
I pointed toward the farmer tilling the field with a hoe.
“That farmer over there probably struggled even to wake up early at first, let alone work the fields. But he worked hard to survive, and eventually he became used to it.”
“But I’m more confident in using my head than my body.”
“We’ll see about that.”
Sriven stared at me before adjusting his glasses.
“Young Master, before Baron Scalen captured me, I actually—”
“Stop.”
I cut him off.
“Your past does not matter to me right now. More importantly, I can’t even tell if it’s true or not, so it would only interfere with my judgment.”
“……”
“I will judge you only by what you do from now on. I’ll listen to your past once you no longer look like the manager of Pleasure Village to me. Understood?”
“I understand.”
“If you’re done eating, let’s go. We’re almost there, so we should arrive before sunrise.”
“Yes.”
At that moment, the farmer approached us.
“Young Master, are you leaving?”
“Yes.”
“Please visit again.”
The farmer bowed respectfully.
In my previous life, the residents had never once told me to come again, not even as empty words.
Even if they never said it openly, their eyes were always filled with discomfort.
I had clearly killed bad people in the same way as before.
So what was different?
It probably wasn’t simply because I gave him money.
My head was starting to hurt, so I decided to think about it later.
“I’ll come again.”
“Yes. Please travel safely.”
I nodded and climbed onto the cart.
Seeing that, Sriven asked nervously,
“Can I really pull this any farther?”
“If you don’t want to die, then you have to.”
“Ah….”
Sriven hesitated, so I sat on the cart and looked toward the farmer.
“Hey.”
“Yes?”
I pointed at Sriven.
“Don’t you need an ox for the fields? You can take him if you want. He talks a lot, but if you beat him, he works hard.”
Sriven quickly grabbed the cart handles.
“We’re leaving now.”
“Wow, the ox can speak human language….”
“Moooo….”
The cart quickly moved away from the fields.
* * *
When we returned to the estate, Father, Mother, and Aren were waiting for me in the garden.
As soon as I stepped down from the cart, Father asked,
“Aren told me you suddenly went on another pilgrimage. So what exactly is all this?”
Father looked back and forth between the cart full of treasure and the ox collapsed on the ground.
Mother was giving water to the exhausted ox.
“You should hear the details from him.”
At that moment, Sriven finished drinking water, stepped forward, and knelt before Father.
He explained everything.
How he secretly ran Pleasure Village under Baron Scalen’s orders…
How I burned the entire place down…
And more.
“So not only that, but the plague that ruined the crops half a year ago was also Baron Scalen’s doing….”
After hearing the story, Father stroked his chin.
“I always felt uncomfortable whenever I met him. So that smiling face was hiding such thoughts.”
I nodded.
“He’s a truly rotten bastard.”
“But Kael.”
“Yes, Father.”
“As far as I know, you caused many incidents in the past, but you never actually took someone’s life.”
“That’s true.”
“But according to this story, it sounds like you killed everyone there. Most people would hesitate to kill. Did something happen during your pilgrimage?”
His tone was not accusatory.
It was filled with concern.
“You could say that.”
“I see….”
Father smiled bitterly and looked at me.
“Kael.”
“Yes.”
I prepared myself for a lecture.
In my memories, Father had always been strict and righteous.
But instead—
“You did well.”
“…What?”
“What? Did you think I would scold you for this?”
I nodded, and Father continued.
“If you had left those men alone, our residents and territory would have become even more endangered. You only carried out the duty that should have been mine. Rather, I should be thanking you.”
“I see.”
“However….”
Father looked directly at me.
“Why did you leave alone without permission?”
At that question, I could not help but smile slightly.
“Father.”
“Yes.”
“When have I ever moved after asking for your permission?”
“……”
Father suddenly went silent, looking strangely moved.
Mother and Aren immediately joined in.
“That’s true, dear.”
“Even when Brother left for his pilgrimage, he only left behind a letter.”
I nodded.
“It feels strange now, Father.”
Father pressed his aching forehead and let out a deep sigh.
“Anyway, why did you bring that man here? From what I heard, he was running Pleasure Village under Baron Scalen’s orders.”
“Ah, I thought he would be useful as a financial officer.”
“A financial officer?”
“Yes.”
“Hm….”
Father stared at Sriven thoughtfully.
“Baron Luminar.”
Sriven quickly stepped forward.
“This territory’s reporting system is poorly organized compared to its size. The proof is that you remained unaware of Pleasure Village until now.”
“That’s true. I only heard rumors that suspicious establishments were appearing throughout the territory.”
“So I believe it would be good to divide the territory into districts and appoint leaders for each one.”
“Leaders?”
Sriven nodded.
“Yes. That way, you can quickly understand what problems exist in each area and the condition of the farms.”
“Hm. That does sound useful.”
“To be honest, the Luminar territory has enormous potential. That’s why Baron Scalen is targeting this place.”
After thinking quietly, Father spoke again.
“However.”
“Yes.”
“Can I really trust you? A financial officer would handle not only the territory’s finances but many important affairs as well.”
“Well….”
For the first time, Sriven fell silent.
Father carefully watched him before nodding.
“Well, fine. Since it costs me nothing anyway, I can observe you for now. Kael may be a troublemaker, but he doesn’t act without reason.”
“T-Thank you!”
Sriven’s face brightened immediately as he stood and bowed deeply.
Watching him, I thought to myself that this bastard would somehow survive anywhere.
Though honestly, I expected Father to accept him.
Father was too much of a good person.
Maybe I was born carrying all the darkness Father lacked….
I sighed and headed toward the estate.
“Sriven, come inside. I have questions for you.”
“Yes, Young Master.”
As sunlight poured down on us, I suddenly looked up.
Just as I promised Aren, I had safely returned to the estate before morning.
“Mission complete….”
Aren hurriedly followed behind me.
* * *
The next day.
Benedict received various pieces of advice about territory management from Sriven.
‘He truly does seem capable.’
There was a reason Baron Scalen entrusted Pleasure Village to him.
If Sriven worked hard as financial officer, the condition of the territory would definitely improve.
Of course, it was still too early to fully trust him.
‘Still… Kael has definitely changed after returning from that half-year pilgrimage.’
First of all, his madness seemed even stronger than before.
Previously, Benedict could somewhat predict him.
Now, he had no idea where Kael might jump next.
Even his strength had become incomparable to before.
Otherwise, he could never have returned so unharmed from the enemy base known as Pleasure Village.
‘I just hope that strength does not go down the wrong path. Though thankfully, he does seem to care about the family and us now.’
The Kael of the past always looked like someone who would abandon his nest and family at any time in pursuit of freedom.
But the current Kael was clearly watching over those around him.
Like an eagle observing others from high above.
Was it only his imagination?
‘Please… don’t go too far away.’
Benedict did not know what happened during Kael’s pilgrimage, or what kind of prayers he made to the Goddess to change this much.
Because Benedict never asked deeply about it.
And Kael never spoke of it first.
So Benedict simply waited for the day Kael would tell him himself.
“F-Father!”
At that moment, Aren burst into the office.
This situation felt strangely familiar somehow.
Benedict ignored the feeling and asked,
“What is it? And without knocking?”
“L-Look at this!”
Aren hurried over and handed him a letter.
Benedict tilted his head and read it.
「Everyone…. This Kael Luminar is leaving for the Holy Kingdom’s capital.
I will return as the family’s proud troublemaker and a glorious Inquisitor.」
Benedict blinked several times before speaking.
“An Inquisitor?”
An Inquisitor.
A group that punished those who persecuted followers of Ella or threatened the Holy Kingdom and the continent.
Though technically equal to priests, they possessed authority powerful enough to make even high-ranking nobles tremble.
“Why would you become one?”
Was Kael seriously trying to become a true follower of Ella?
No matter how much he changed, he was not that kind of person.
But if not, then why would Kael want to become an Inquisitor…?
Wait.
Another reason…?
“N-No!”
A terrifying realization suddenly struck Benedict, and he jumped to his feet.
“Not him! If that bastard becomes an Inquisitor…!”
Kael’s overflowing madness.
The overwhelming authority of the Inquisitors.
Benedict could not even imagine what kind of disaster those two things combined would create.
He clutched his head before sharply turning toward Aren.
“Aren! Where is Kael right now?”
“I-I don’t know either. That letter was the only thing left in Brother’s empty room….”
“Ah….”
Benedict’s legs gave out, and he collapsed into his chair.
“F-Father!”
“This can’t be….”
He had forgotten.
Even an eagle was still a bird that could fly anywhere.
And this eagle could soar farther than any ordinary bird of prey.
“It’s already too late….”
Once a madman had taken flight…
Benedict could only wait for Kael to return on his own.
(To be continued)
