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Chapter 14
Upon hearing that Ralph had been taken to his bed, I decided to pay him a visit right away.
Poor Ralph… how on earth did he end up getting beaten like that?
See? If you live kindly like me, you can walk down the street without getting punched. Isn’t it nice?
Anyway, I decided to go see Ralph for a hospital visit.
To see if the education had paid off—
…No, to see just how badly he was injured.
But it’s not proper manners to visit someone empty-handed.
So, I decided to bring flowers as well.
“Young Master, will this do?”
As I had asked beforehand, Marianne handed me a flower basket she had carefully chosen and arranged herself.
As expected of Marianne. Her handiwork was impeccable.
“Looks good. I’ll take this one.”
If I had left it to Nerlin… things would have turned out very differently.
As I accepted the flower basket from Marianne, Nerlin, standing beside her, pouted.
“Young Master, do you really have to go? That Ralph… well, you know.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“You know…”
She trailed off, but I knew exactly what she meant.
It was no secret that Ralph and I didn’t get along. Which was all the more reason for me to go.
Just imagine it—Deyan Pador, showing magnanimity by visiting Ralph despite his petty behavior!
There couldn’t be a better way to improve my reputation within the family.
Smiling at Nerlin, I said:
“It’s fine. We’re the same age, and we’ll have to live alongside each other in the future, so I should go.”
“…Sigh. Understood.”
Leaving Marianne and Nerlin behind, I headed for the mansion where Ralph was staying.
When we arrived, I stepped down from the carriage and saw that others, too, were making their way toward Ralph’s mansion.
Was there a line?
Well, it made sense. Ralph’s father, Ian Pador, was one of the true powers in the family.
Strictly speaking, my father didn’t care much about family affairs outside of swordsmanship, so Ian Pador was practically the one running things.
Even so…
I lifted my gaze toward Ralph’s estate.
Impressive. Almost as big as the mansion I live in.
That guy Ralph, living way above his station, owning an entire mansion to himself?
“Shall we go?”
“Yes, Young Master.”
Bator, my butler, went ahead to announce our visit. Soon after, word came for us to enter.
Whether Ralph wanted to refuse or not, he wouldn’t be able to.
Even if his father was the second-in-command of the family, the family head was still someone else.
How could they turn away the youngest son of the Pador family head?
“Hmm…”
As I climbed the stairs, the servant who had escorted us gave a signal to the butler waiting there.
“Sir Deyan has come to pay a visit.”
“Please wait a moment.”
The butler didn’t let me in right away. Instead, he went inside first to relay the message.
And then…
“What?!”
Well, now, that was quite the reaction.
Isn’t he making it a bit too obvious how much he dislikes me?
Even from outside the door, Ralph’s voice carried loud and clear.
“I don’t want him here! I said no! Throw him out immediately!”
“That’s not possible, Young Master. How could we possibly drive out Sir Deyan?”
“If I say throw him out, you throw him out! Why so much backtalk?!”
“Your father will not look kindly upon it.”
“Ughhh…!”
After a brief commotion, the butler emerged again, bowing politely.
“Please, come in, Young Master.”
“Alright, you’ve worked hard.”
“Ah… yes.”
Commending his effort, I stepped into the room.
Inside lay Ralph, swathed in bandages from head to toe.
Honestly… what a drama queen. Not a single bruise, not a bone broken, yet he’s wrapped up like a mummy.
“I heard you were badly injured. Looks like it’s true.”
Ralph replied in a curt tone.
“Why are you here?”
Why else?
I came to humiliate him.
To show him how it feels when the very person he snarled at ends up seeing him beaten to a pulp. How mortifying would that be?
There’s nothing more shameful than this.
Hiding my true intentions, I put on the warmest smile in the world.
“Why else? A family member gets hurt, of course, I’d come.”
“Family?! What the…! Urrrghhh!”
Ralph flinched and tried to move, but his face twisted in pain as soon as he did.
“That damn…! If it hadn’t been for that masked bastard—!”
“Ah, I heard. You were attacked, weren’t you?”
“Are you making fun of me?”
“Not at all. Don’t worry about him. The family is putting in every effort to catch him—just leave it to me.”
I took his hand—a gesture meant entirely for show.
The servants watching us flinched at the sight.
“You? Do something? Let go of my hand!”
Ralph jerked his hand away and panted furiously.
“I’ll catch him. Me! I’ll do it myself! That time, I was just caught off guard!”
Caught off guard, my foot.
Talking big just because I’m not calling him out in front of everyone.
Clearly… a bit more education—no, revenge—is in order.
Pathetic dropout.
“That’s right, Ralph. You’re a genius. Of course you can do it.”
“W-what?”
My words seemed unexpected. Ralph’s lips trembled faintly.
What a child. You can see the delight all over his face from just one compliment.
Shall I praise him a bit more?
“Not running away in that situation… Honestly, I was impressed. If it were me, I would’ve bolted…”
Look at the corners of his mouth creeping upward.
“Mmm…?”
“You’re remarkable, Ralph. I think I may have been mistaken about you. You truly embody the spirit of the Pador family.”
“Heeheehee?”
Was it that one part of Ralph wanted to keep his composure, while another part of him was itching to bask in the praise?
His lips twitched like there was an earthquake on his face.
“You’re amazing, Ralph!”
“Heheheh! Well… I am pretty amazing!”
His cheeks flushed like ripe peaches, and he rubbed his nose.
“You’re the best!”
“That’s right! I am the best!”
“So… even if you run into that masked man again, you won’t run away… right?”
“Uh…?”
Ah, so he was scared.
“Or… is that not the case?”
“Of course not!”
That’s better. And you’d better not run next time either.
For my sake—
…No, for your sake. I’d hate to have to bother chasing after you again.
Honestly, if Ralph ever mouthed off to me again, I was fully prepared to give him periodic supplementary education.
Noticing my gaze, Ralph forced his chest out.
“If that guy shows up again, he’s dead! I’ll kill him myself, seriously!”
“Now that’s the Ralph I know!”
“Hmph… You’re not so bad yourself. Finally decided to treat me as your elder brother, have you?”
Look at him, dropping his guard just because I gave him a few compliments.
Utterly puffed up with pride. Tsk.
Ralph clicked his tongue irritably, muttering under his breath.
“Damn it… I should be training for the Trial Valley, and here I am in this state.”
“Trial Valley?”
“What, you planning to enter too? Don’t bother, you’ll just get hurt!”
Was that genuine concern… or an insult?
Either way, it jogged my memory.
The Trial Valley…
A tournament hosted by the family.
If I recalled correctly, children under adulthood would enter the valley and face a series of trials.
Though the event was organized by the family, it was renowned across the entire continent. Participation was optional for most—
…but within the Pador family, it was practically mandatory.
“Well, someone like me wouldn’t belong in the Trial Valley, right, Ralph?”
Surprisingly, Ralph looked a bit guilty when I agreed so readily, and coughed awkwardly.
“I… wouldn’t go that far… Ahem.”
Was it because he appreciated my visit?
This was unlike him. Looking at him now, I wondered—
If I’d been a little more flexible in the past, maybe my relationship with Ralph wouldn’t have turned out so sour.
That aside… the Trial Valley.
It wasn’t something I’d thought about much—it carried a somewhat humiliating memory for me.
But thanks to Ralph, it came back to me.
As a son of the Pador family, I had participated out of obligation, though it wasn’t exactly a fond experience.
In fact, I’d deliberately erased it from memory.
And maybe, in a way, I’d been lucky.
Back then, I was eliminated at the second trial.
The third trial… was where the incident occurred.
Everyone except Ralph had died there.
Thinking back, why hadn’t I found it strange at the time?
This time, though… the Trial Valley felt different.
In my first life, I thought it was an accident.
But after all the conspiracies and dark schemes I’d experienced in the martial world, my perspective had changed.
The incident at the Trial Valley…
That single event eventually grew into something massive—enough to engulf the entire continent.
And among its consequences… was the fall of the Pador family.
There was no way that had been a coincidence.
For reminding me of it, I offered Ralph my thanks.
“Thanks, Ralph. Turns out you can be useful sometimes.”
Ah… maybe I’d let too much of my true thoughts slip out?
Sure enough, Ralph frowned.
“What… what did you just say?!”
“Hahaha, nothing.”
“Tch! You little—!”
“So… will you heal in time? You really should be resting…”
“Do you think I’m you? Lying around uselessly?!”
That temper of his… The servants’ faces darkened instantly.
And the darker they looked, the more it pleased me.
Alright, I suppose this is a good point to take my leave.
As magnanimously as possible.
“I’m just saying this because I’m concerned… Don’t push yourself too hard. Even if you can’t participate, everyone in the family knows where your heart is.”
I forced a smile and rose from my seat.
“Of course I’m going to participate! What, do you think I’m you? I’ll recover in no time—this kind of injury is nothing!”
Ralph puffed himself up proudly, and I put on a slightly bitter expression to match.
And the servants saw it.
As the door opened and I descended the stairs, their whispers drifted over to me.
“Did you see that just now…? Poor Sir Deyan…”
“Sir Ralph went too far. How can he treat someone like that when they came out of concern?”
“Still, I’ve seen Sir Deyan in a new light. To come visit Sir Ralph even in that situation… What a broad-minded man he is.”
“Exactly… sigh. If only his body were in normal condition, he’d truly be the one most suited to the Pador family.”
The purpose of my visit had been splendidly achieved.
The servants had seen it, they were already talking about it—now it was only a matter of time before the rumors spread throughout the household.
Thank you, Ralph.
Thanks to you, my position within this cramped family circle is shifting.
And the more the rumor spreads, the more it will grow.
By the time it reaches the last of them, it will probably sound like this—
“Ralph is the pettiest of the petty! And Deyan’s heart is as vast as the heavens!”
I couldn’t help but laugh.
.
.
.
After visiting Ralph, my mansion was suddenly home to a rather unusual scene.
It was no wonder—right now, the head maid, the maids, and even male servants with an interest in embroidery were all gathered in a circle, needles in hand, creating a lively tapestry of activity.
“Young Master, why are you so good at embroidery?!”
Nerlin compared her work to mine and pouted in defeat.
Honestly, hers was… unidentifiable. If I had to put it into words, it looked like a tomato that had been thoroughly stomped on.
Nerlin truly had no knack for handiwork.
“Really? Marianne seems to be doing just fine.”
Marianne, flustered by the compliment, covered her face with her embroidery. Unlike Nerlin’s, hers was properly done…
Hmm? Was that my face? That was a little embarrassing.
Nerlin scowled at her own disastrous piece.
“Well, Marianne’s always been good at this.”
Marianne answered modestly.
“Compared to you, Young Master, or the senior maids, or the head maid… I’m nothing.”
She blushed, looking shy.
Nerlin, still pouting, went back to her embroidery—but her patience ran out quickly.
“I told you, embroidery just isn’t my thing…”
I offered her some comfort.
“It’s fine, Nerlin. No one’s good at it from the start.”
“…Alright. Besides, you’re going to keep doing this anyway, right?”
I nodded silently.
Yes.
The embroidery circle was a little tradition I had recently established in my mansion.
It was surprisingly good for training one’s focus, and when everyone gathered together, it restored a sense of calm to the mind.
But more important than that—far more important—was that, during these sessions, threads of information naturally wove themselves together like stitches in the cloth.
For me, that was the true value of this gathering.
After all, no matter how much I remembered about the past, I didn’t know everything.
My memories could be distorted, and because they were based solely on my perspective, they were inevitably fragmentary.
To assemble those fragments into a fuller picture—cross-checked and multifaceted—I had begun this little circle.
Its effect had been greater than I’d expected.
And here, I could naturally start drawing out information about the Trial Valley.
Because the Trial Valley was the very first future I needed to change.
Before anything else, I needed to check if there was anything I didn’t know—or couldn’t remember.
When it came to properly handling what was going to happen at the Trial Valley, even the smallest bits of information could be important.
I casually set the bait.
“By the way… does anyone here know much about the Trial Valley? It’s opening again soon, and it occurred to me… I really don’t know our family’s events all that well.”
Just that much was enough. A small hook.
They’d bite on their own—nibbling like fish, bringing me a net full of information.
And sure enough…
Marianne shivered as if something spooky had passed over her.
“I know. It’s the place where Lord Schnell Pador defeated a demon. Even now, only knights are allowed to enter.”
Another maid chimed in in agreement.
“Yeah, it’s totally creepy, right?”
“You too? Same here.”
“Of course it’s creepy—it’s a place where monsters appear.”
Nerlin smirked at the frightened Marianne and the other maid, clicking her tongue.
“You idiots, that was ages ago. It’s been completely purified now, and the knights guard it. What’s the problem?”
The three young women’s chatter soon broke open the dam, and the rest of the maids joined in.
“Nerlin’s right. These days, knights even train in the Trial Valley, and it’s used as a venue for competitions.”
“That’s true… Oh! And I heard there’s a special gift given only to the winner of the Trial Valley.”
“Rumor says it’s a fruit formed by absorbing the mana of the valley itself! If you eat it, you’ll be able to lift boulders!”
“I heard that too—it’s the blessing of the heavens bestowed on the Pador family!”
“Oh, please. There’s no such thing.”
“There is! That’s why people flock here from all over the continent. For nobles under adulthood, winning the Trial Valley is one of the highest honors—the honor!”
Nerlin… the way you’re talking, you’d think you had won it yourself.
This is the power of the embroidery circle—gather together like this, and small talk naturally swells up like cotton.
Still… nothing useful yet. Not anything I can really work with.
I needed higher-quality information—something like details on the participants.
That was the most important thing to me.
So I kept listening.
“But this year’s competition is going to be fierce. Rumor has it the spear prodigy from the Tral family, Sir Andrew, is participating.”
“Oh, I heard that too! And the son of the Whale Merchant Guild is coming. They say he’s filthy rich—rumor is he sleeps on piles of gold every night…”
“If you pass the Trial Valley, you get the privilege of becoming a knight without having to take the Knight Temple’s test…”
How wonderful—without me even prompting them further, the information just kept coming.
Listening to them, I could piece together situations I hadn’t known about, like knitting together fragments of memory into a complete pattern.
Now I could recall the Trial Valley perfectly.
Except… for one thing.
I still didn’t have any information on the person I most needed to know about. I’d known he had hidden his identity, but I’d hoped to catch at least a fragment of information about him here.
Nothing.
I’d have to find that out myself.
Before the conversation could spiral endlessly, I decided to wrap up today’s topic.
I cleared my throat.
“Alright, then. I suppose I’ll have to participate too.”
“W-what?!”
Every gaze in the room snapped to me.
These people…
You’re practically beating me with your eyes.
“Is it really that surprising?”
“N-no, of course not!”
“Young Master, of course you can do it!”
Lies.
Ah, the experience I’ve gained from living as a Shadow Lord in the underworld of Jianghu… sometimes it’s just inconvenient.
Not a single one of them actually believes me.
Should I just drop the act and pierce their foreheads with my needle?
Trial Valley… Now, I’ll participate if only out of sheer spite!
---The End Of The Chapter---
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