Chapter 173

“…Gideon, did you finish reading it?”

“Yeah, I finished.”

After reading through everything left behind by the man named Jayward Mainac, I took a moment to gather my thoughts.

It seemed absolutely necessary to organize them.

“Noona, can you check if I read this right? Hundreds of years ago, there was a ducal family called Mainac.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“The Mainac Family served the Empire for centuries as its sword of protection… and even discovered and stopped the Isrinbloom Family’s rebellion before it happened.”

Lisa nodded at my words.

Up to this point, it seemed I had understood correctly.

“But in the process, the Mainac Family suffered great losses—the head of the family was killed, among others—and the Isrinbloom Family took that as an opportunity.”

“Yeah. They pinned everything on the Mainac Family. Then, they went further and erased the existence of the Mainac Family itself from history.”

“…Bedir must’ve been thorough.”

I looked back through the text again.

Bedir was fully aware that he had been defeated by the Mainac Family at the time.

So he erased them completely to ensure they could never interfere again,

and it seemed that he had even hidden his own existence.

“Bedir must have realized that his power was weakening, so he decided to wait for the next opportunity. Meanwhile, he eliminated every possible obstacle to his future plans, erasing even records about himself. That’s why no one’s been able to find anything about Bedir all these years.”

“And now, he must’ve decided it was time to act again.”

“I don’t know exactly what he did to the Isrinbloom Family, but… after hundreds of years, he somehow made contact again with the eldest son of that family.”

After finishing my sentence, I looked again at the skeleton— or rather, at what remained of the man named Jayward Mainac.

Nothing but bones remained, but even so, I looked at the man who had died so long ago.

“Mainac… The Mainac Family, huh.”

“The Pure-White Mainac. And… that Evil Dragon called you that, remember? The descendant of the Pure-White Mainac.”

“Yeah, that’s right. And according to this record, the person known as the Wanderer of Water had white hair.”

A ducal family erased from history by a Record Erasure Sentence.

And I was… the sole heir and head of a fallen baron family.

“And according to this writing, it seems the Protected Zone for Other Races originally belonged to the Mainac Family. But after the family disappeared, a distant branch took over that duty.”

“You mean the Kyrgram Family?”

“That’s the most likely possibility. The reactions from the other races also fit that… A distant branch of the Mainac Family who knew nothing about the truth. That descendant… is me.”

I replied to Lisa’s words with a wry smile.

Things were unfolding quite differently from what I had imagined.

“There are still a few questions left. One of them is why I’m the only surviving member of the Kyrgram Family, and also how exactly the Mainac Family was erased so completely from history…”

“We’ll have to investigate that step by step. Even if they erased every record, if we search every corner of the Empire thoroughly, something will turn up.”

“Yeah. Let’s hope so.”

Lisa gazed at me in silence for a while.

Then, she smiled faintly.

“By this story, even if it’s a distant branch, you’re still the only surviving descendant of the Mainac Family, right?”

“Well… for now, I guess you could say that.”

“Then you’re just like me—a descendant of a ducal house.”

“This is… a little different. The Mainac Family isn’t a ducal family anymore.”

I replied calmly, but Lisa shook her head.

“You never know. Once the full truth comes out, you might become the fourth Duke of this Empire.”

“That probably won’t happen. A duke? That’s ridiculous.”

Whether I became a duke or not— honestly, it didn’t really matter to me.

What matters is uncovering my family’s truth. And stopping whatever the Isrinbloom Family is plotting. That’s all I need to focus on for now. Everything else comes later.

Of course, I’d have to restore my family one day, but that was a matter for the future.

If I couldn’t stop the current conspiracy, there might not even be a family left to restore.

“Well, anyway. I’ll call Lord Jason here for now.”

“Yeah, he should probably know about this too.”

“Agreed.”

I took the Crystal Sphere from my pocket and contacted Jason.

It took a few minutes before Jason finally answered.

—Ah, sorry for the delay. The guards just passed by. Why? What’s going on?

“I safely entered the basement I mentioned earlier, but there’s something here I’d like you to see, Lord Jason.”

“…So, what you’re saying is… technically, you’re a descendant of a ducal family?”

After Jason came down to the basement and read everything Jayward had left behind, that was his first reaction.

“The Pure-White Mainac… the ducal family erased from history. You’re saying you’re the last surviving descendant of that family?”

“If everything written on this paper is true, then yes.”

“Uh, yeah. That’s right. Everything written here has to be true first, of course. But if this really is true… I can’t believe such a secret existed in the Empire’s history. And you… wow, that’s incredible. You’re a descendant of that family? You came down to this basement just to find this…”

“Yes. Honestly, I’m quite surprised myself.”

The Mainac Family—once the Empire’s fourth ducal house.

I had never even heard the name Mainac before.

Perhaps the records had been truly erased, because even in the game, that name never appeared.

“Anyway, Lord Jason, let’s set my story aside for now. I’d like to discuss the other contents written on this paper.”

“You mean how the Isrinbloom Family tried to start a rebellion long ago?”

“Yes. Do you happen to know anything about that?”

“No, nothing. This is my first time hearing about it, just like you.”

Jason scratched his head and reread the document left behind by Jayward Mainac.

Then, he looked at me.

“Once all this is over, I’ll ask my family to conduct a thorough investigation. No matter how well the records were erased, there must still be hidden documents somewhere—like this one. Even if they’re outside the Empire.”

“Thank you.”

“And these writings, left behind by your distant ancestor in the last moments of his life…”

Jason carefully folded the worn pages and slipped them into the inner pocket of my coat.

“Keep them safe. They might serve as important evidence later.”

“Yes, I understand.”

“Good. Still… this is all unexpected. A ducal family erased from history, the last surviving descendant of that house, and the rebellion once plotted by the Isrinbloom Family—none of it was within my expectations.”

Jason looked both perplexed and deeply intrigued by everything that had happened.

Then he pointed toward the bookshelf that had been pushed aside.

“Let’s put that back the way it was. At least until all this is over, it’s better if we keep this place hidden.”

“Yes, that makes sense.”

I stirred my Aura and moved the bookshelf back into its original position.

Just before restoring it completely, I looked once more at Jayward Mainac.

‘So the document I found in the game back then… belonged to this man.’

I still didn’t know why I had come to this world.

Maybe it was a prank from the being who spoke to me at the beginning, or maybe it was the desperate wish of Jayward, who lay here.

But now, those things no longer mattered to me.

To be precise, I decided not to think about them for now.

Stopping the Isrinbloom Family comes first.

As I’d said before—if I couldn’t stop them, the family I hoped to revive might vanish completely.

Before anything else, that had to take priority.

“By the way, Lord Jason, did you find anything else in this mansion?”

“No, I looked around just in case, but there was nothing else of note. I think we’ll have to find a way to open that vault I mentioned.”

“But didn’t you say it could only be opened by someone of the Isrinbloom bloodline?”

“That’s right. So I was thinking about finding one of their blood relatives.”

Jason let out a quiet sigh.

“But that’s easier said than done. For now, Lord Rage, Lord Eisen, and Lady Sara—those three are still in Lysquare. Same with Lord Dilug.”

“Couldn’t there be at least one in this mansion?”

“Unlikely. Unless they’re part of the head family, most of their relatives live elsewhere in Muktaba. Families like the Hawkbat or Balmuth households tend to live together, but not the Isrinbloom Family.”

“I see.”

I searched my memory for a moment at Jason’s words.

He was probably right—it was unlikely that anyone of the Isrinbloom bloodline remained in this mansion.

Still, that didn’t mean there was no chance at all.

“It’s possible that one of Lord Dilug’s siblings is currently staying here. Since Lord Dilug is away for the Tournament, they might be temporarily living in the mansion.”

“That makes sense. Someone from the Isrinbloom Family has to be guarding the mansion, after all.”

“But even if we find one of them, can we actually make that person open the vault?”

“That’s another issue, yes. But we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

With those words, Jason turned his head toward the exit of the basement.

“If we’re done checking things here, let’s move out.”

“Understood.”

“Noona, you’re coming too. But hey, Noona… are you sure you can move quietly while carrying that greatsword?”

“I’ll try.”

“Yeah, please… do your best.”

Jason, Lisa, and I headed straight up to the ground floor.

Once aboveground, Jason took the lead, guiding us through the corridors.

“Wait here for a bit. I’ll check if the area’s clear.”

“Understood.”

Lisa and I hid behind a nearby statue.

We waited for Jason to finish checking the surroundings and return—when suddenly—

“Huh? Hey, what the—why are you here?”

Jason’s surprised voice echoed from the opposite end of the hallway.

Lisa and I, unable to suppress our curiosity, quietly moved toward the sound.

And there, we found Jason standing face to face with someone completely unexpected.

“What kind of question is that? This is my house, you know? Well… not for much longer. I just came early to pack up my things… But why are you here when you were gone throughout the Tournament? And… Gideon? Lisa unni? Why are you two with him?”

Sara looked at us with a puzzled expression, tilting her head slightly.

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