Chapter 88: Crossing the Bridge of No Return (2)

Until now, Grain had never been acknowledged by anyone, so there had been constant gossip about his succession to the Marquisate.

Rocio had deliberately brought that up.

“Ugh… What exactly are you planning to do for me?”

Grain rubbed his temples, as if trying to shake off the lingering effects of the incense.

“Are you not sick of your current position?”

“It sounds as though you’re implying you’d help me rise to the seat of Marquis.”

As his mind slowly cleared, Grain realized that he now held the initiative.

Rocio’s expression shifted slightly in surprise at the sudden change in his demeanor.

“If you have the ambition, we came to help you reach it.”

“How exactly?”

“If you could provide us with a few pieces of information about the current lord, we’ll take care of the rest.”

At that proposal, a puzzled smile spread across Grain’s lips.

“It sounds as if you’re suggesting I help you kill my grandfather… Is that not it?”

“Marquis Kataroan is a man who should have long since stepped down. And rather than kill him, we simply intend to make it… difficult for him to move.”

Upon hearing that explanation, Grain fell into deep thought.

In truth, even before his coming-of-age ceremony, Grain had always harbored ambitions for the lord’s seat.

However, after his parents died, the position he should have inherited returned instead to his grandfather.

He had always been compared to both his grandfather and his deceased father.

“What exactly do you want me to do?”

“Soon, Marquis Kataroan will be going on an inspection of the northern coast, won’t he? All we need is the precise timing and information on his escorting knights.”

“And you’ll handle the rest?”

At his question, Rocio’s lips curled into a sly smile.

“Of course.”

“Hmph… And who exactly are you people to make me such an offer?”

That was the most crucial point.

Grain did not overlook it and pressed further.

“We are merely people who wish to see you, Lord Grain, inherit both the Marquisate and the lordship.”

“Don’t tell me you were sent by Duke Alito Kright from the royal capital?”

At that question, Rocio’s expression hardened.

For the first time, the man who had seemed nothing more than a careless idler carried a heavy seriousness in his tone.

“There’s no need for you to know who we are.”

From Grain’s perspective, the only person at odds with his grandfather, Marquis Kataroan, was Duke Alito Kright.

“I heard you were living like a drunken wastrel all this time… So this is what you’ve really been waiting for, isn’t it?”

“I didn’t know when, but… I had some idea it might come.”

Grain had been continuously receiving information from his own network in the royal capital.

He had been waiting for this very opportunity in his own way.

Marquis Kataroan sat alone in his office, quietly staring out the window.

Just then, he noticed a carriage entering through the mansion gates.

“Click…!”

The carriage stopped in front of the main building of the mansion.

Moments later, the door to Kataroan’s office was knocked upon, and his grandson, Grain, staggered slightly as he poked his head inside.

“Uh… I’m back.”

“…Off wasting your time again in the North Gate district, I presume?”

“Well, as always…”

“Useless as ever… When will you come to your senses and think about succeeding me?”

At that question, Grain’s brow furrowed.

“Would you say that after actually giving me a chance?”

“What?”

“I’m already thirty-four. It’s been decades since you took that seat again, Grandfather. Have you ever once given me an opportunity in all that time?”

Marquis Kataroan stared at him with a hardened face.

Of course, it wasn’t that he didn’t understand his grandson’s feelings.

But after losing his son and daughter-in-law, the grief that weighed on him had been immense.

To forget that pain—and to keep the territory stable—he had remained as lord even in his old age, unable to retire.

“With the way you behave, how could I entrust anything to you?”

“Have you ever even tried entrusting me with anything?”

At the persistent retort, Marquis Kataroan shook his head.

“You should have tried doing something before asking that!”

“…I’ll be returning to my room now.”

As Grain left the room, a long sigh escaped the Marquis’s lips.

“Phew… What am I to do with him…”

As he muttered to himself, the words of Prince Raion surfaced in his mind.

[Do you intend to keep letting him live like a hopeless fool?]

Marquis Kataroan wanted nothing more than to retire and live in peace.

However, his only grandson had failed to earn the recognition of the territory’s people.

If he handed down the title and lordship as things were, the land he had built over a lifetime might collapse.

Moreover, within the royal capital, the King’s faction was under threat from Duke Alito Kright and Queen Elina’s faction.

Because of that, Marquis Kataroan could not yet step down.

“First, I’ll have to meet that person again and speak with him once more.”

Marquis Kataroan summoned his administrator and ordered a carriage to be prepared.

When Grain returned to his room, he was facing the head butler, Lobus.

“I heard an important guest visited?”

He was in the middle of receiving a report about what had happened while he’d been away for several days.

“It seems a nobleman recently registered through the Adventurers’ Guild as an S-rank adventurer—a Swordmaster. The Marquis personally met him and spoke with him.”

Head Butler Lobus had already pledged his loyalty to Grain.

That was why he had been reporting all the various happenings within the mansion to him.

“A noble who’s also a Swordmaster? Did you hear which family he’s from?”

“They said he was from the Dragonia family in the Arenvatz Territory. Judging by the fact that it’s not a famous one, I suspect it’s just a family that barely managed to preserve its name.”

As the head butler, Lobus knew almost every noble family by name, so his guess was a reasonable one.

At that, Grain tapped his thigh with his finger and muttered,

“A noble Swordmaster, huh… That’s like a dragon being born in a swamp. If I can win him over, he could become one of mine. My grandfather hasn’t already tried to win him over, has he?”

“I didn’t hear their conversation, but I don’t believe so. If such an offer had been made and answered, the Marquis would have at least mentioned something to me.”

At that reply, Grain slowly nodded.

“I suppose so.”

“In any case, it’s certain that the man came to the Praizen Territory to restore his family’s honor.”

A noble family’s restoration depended on either being appointed as a lord by the royal court or forming ties with high-ranking nobles.

Without either, they were nobles in name only.

Thus, many fallen families would produce skilled knights or sorcerers to build connections with powerful houses.

“Did you find out where he’s staying?”

“They said Administrator Orbas brought him from the Adventurers’ Guild.”

“I’ll go meet him myself tomorrow morning.”

A Swordmaster was a valuable asset.

Having such a powerful individual nearby ensured that even others would not dare to treat him lightly.

Early in the morning, Raion opened his door when told that someone had come to see him.

Standing before him was the heir of the Praizen Territory and grandson of Marquis Kataroan—Grain Pelican.

“And you are?”

Raion recognized his face well enough but pretended not to.

Meanwhile, Grain, confident that this would be an easy negotiation, put on a smug expression.

However, the moment the door opened and he saw Raion in person, he flinched in surprise.

“…So, you’re Raion Dragonia?”

“And who might you be?”

At Raion’s curt tone, Grain frowned.

At the same time, the butler standing beside him, Lobus, stepped forward.

“How insolent! This is Lord Grain Pelican, the sole heir of the Pelican Marquisate!”

“So?”

Despite Lobus’s outburst, Raion didn’t bat an eye.

That made Grain let out a short laugh.

“You’re quite the confident one. I came to have a conversation, that’s all. May I come in?”

“Suit yourself.”

The two entered the room.

As Lobus fetched a chair from the side, Grain immediately sat down.

“I heard you visited my grandfather’s mansion the other day at his request. Is that true?”

“If you’re the Marquis’s grandson, then yes. Is that what you came to confirm?”

At the continued informal tone, Lobus’s face turned red.

“You wretch! How dare you speak so disrespectfully to the young master of the Marquis’s house!”

“You dropped the formalities first, didn’t you? Then I’m allowed to do the same.”

“You little—!”

“Enough. I’ll handle this. Lobus, wait outside.”

“But…”

“I won’t repeat myself.”

Only then did Lobus open the door and step outside.

Once they were alone, Grain, still smiling faintly, spoke.

“Let’s get to the point. I want you to come under my command.”

“Why?”

“My grandfather must have offered you a knight’s position within our territory, correct? Rather than serve him, I’d prefer you join me—the one who’ll inherit the Marquisate.”

“Why would I?”

At Raion’s counter-question, Grain assumed some kind of unexpected offer had been exchanged.

“What did my grandfather promise you? Whatever it was, I’ll offer you more.”

“And what exactly will you give me? You might regret throwing around promises so carelessly.”

For the first time, Raion’s response was a bit longer.

Thinking the discussion was finally moving forward, Grain’s lips curved into a confident smile.

“Anything.”

“Even your own life?”

Grain’s expression stiffened for a moment.

“…My life, you say. Well, I suppose a Swordmaster’s ambitions wouldn’t be small.”

“You’re not understanding what I meant.”

“No, I understand quite well. You’re asking whether I’d stake my life to help raise your family back up, aren’t you?”

At that twisted interpretation, one of Raion’s eyes twitched.

‘He’s even worse than the rumors said. What kind of delusional confidence is that?’

He was even more insufferable than what Raion had heard about him in the future.

Raion stared straight at Grain and replied,

“Who said I was trying to rebuild my family? I never had any such intention.”

“…What? Are you saying you didn’t become an adventurer in the Praizen Territory to restore the Dragonia family’s name?”

“I don’t know what nonsense you’ve heard, but I have no intention of serving anyone. If we’re done here, Lord Grain Pelican, you may leave.”

With that, Raion opened the door for him.

Realizing something had gone wrong, Grain gave up on persuasion and stood up.

His face flushed red with frustration as he went downstairs with Lobus.

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