Opportunity in the Game Becomes Reality, Episode 103
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Opportunity in the Game Becomes Reality, Episode 103
26. Change (5)
Not long after Arcia and I returned to the Lord's estate of the Marquisate, we received a guest who had come in haste.
"Isn't this the first time the two of you have visited my territory?"
They bore the same Lawrence surname as me...
Rather, they were my biological father, Viscount Layford Lawrence, who passed the Lawrence name down to me, and my biological mother, Viscountess Sylvia Lawrence.
People say they're living comfortably thanks to their accomplished son, but these are people who turned down courtship from many central nobles out of concern that it might harm their son, all while holding down their territory.
In particular, my father has cut off exchanges with neighboring lords and fully withdrawn from social activities. It seems to be out of guilt and regret for not having had the power to protect me and my mother in the past he's practicing a self-imposed penance no one asked for.
Along with my father and mother came Vice, my former guard, and William, who had become the Knight Captain.
We'd only exchanged calls and messages, and I'd been too busy to visit the family home so everyone was genuinely delighted to see each other.
Vice and William had visited my territory before, but since it was my father and mother's first time, I introduced them to various parts of the Lord's estate and led them to the study.
"Nothing is as unsightly as a parent who comes to their child's estate and meddles in everything."
"You don't need to worry so much about how others see you. There's no one in this kingdom bold enough to do you harm."
"Thanks to you, is it?"
"Thanks to me and my late master, who taught me magic."
Of course, by "master," I meant none other than Grand Duke Lucas not Duke Riverdale, who was the publicly known one.
But to everyone except Arcia, the words would immediately bring to mind Duke Riverdale.
"You've got it well put together. The scale is truly enormous I suppose that's to be expected of a Lord's estate in a big city."
My mother was more interested in my surroundings than in me.
It seemed she was curious about how her son was living.
She must have wanted to visit many times over, but she held herself back admirably.
I suspect Father talked her out of it, saying they shouldn't burden their suddenly successful son with the weight of family.
There was really no need for that.
"Of course. I outrank Father and I'm richer too."
"Right, right. Our son has done well for himself."
With that, my mother, who had taken the seat across from me and claimed the spot next to me alongside Arcia, gave my back a firm smack.
It didn't hurt at all.
Mother had always had a gentle touch, and besides, thanks to my Opportunity, my toughness rivaled that of a High Knight so this wasn't even worth counting as an attack.
Still, I played along and pretended it hurt.
"Huff..."
Was our dynamic that shocking?
The maids around us covered their mouths with startled expressions.
Father shot Mother a look, but I said there was no need for that and flashed a grin at the startled maids.
"A mother can smack her child what's so surprising about that?"
"W-We're sorry."
The maids blushed and hurried away on tiptoes, and Father shook his head as he spoke.
"Isn't it because you have a fearsome reputation?"
"Pardon?"
"I may not look it, but I'm still a Lord of standing. I hear no shortage of rumors."
I'd done so many things to earn a fearsome reputation among the nobility that I couldn't even guess which rumors he'd heard.
"I treat them well, though. If you look at my online diary, there are tons of commoners cheering me on."
"Cheering from behind a screen and serving you in person are different things. To the maids, they're serving the kingdom's most eccentric noble. People don't simply love beings that exist outside the bounds of expectation."
Ah, so that's it.
I'd wondered why the more I told everyone to act at ease, the more polite they became turns out that was the reason.
I scratched the back of my head.
Factoring in my past life's memories, my father and I could be considered roughly the same age.
But unlike me who has lived a total of forty-two years across twenty-two in my past life and twenty in this one, with childhood and adolescence making up the far longer portion I can't discount the wisdom that comes from a long adult life of social engagement, which he has in spades.
My father and mother looked at my sheepish expression and smiled, as if something pleased them.
"So what brings you here? You're always welcome, but surely there's a reason you came in such a hurry."
At my question, Father wiped the expression from his face and asked seriously.
"I heard a civil war is coming."
Unexpected.
I thought you wouldn't know yet since we've cut ties with the outside, but the news traveled fast.
I nodded without hesitation.
"I hear His Majesty the King intends to abdicate. Prince Luke has no intention of letting that happen quietly. Orders will likely be issued to the viscount and baron families right before the operation begins."
I suppose I too have a faction of my own, even if it isn't large.
After all, my marquis family, the count family of Arcia, and Father's viscount family three houses are all intertwined.
"And you'll be at the forefront of the Second Prince's faction, won't you?"
"Prince Luke asked me to serve as vice-commander. So I'd be standing ahead of Marquis Hamington, the commander. As for Arcia, she's been assigned to a skirmish unit outright."
I tilted my head, unable to grasp the point Father was trying to make.
At that, Father spoke with utmost seriousness.
"If the King's direct troops ever appear on the battlefield, you must never oppose them."
"The King's direct troops?"
The likelihood of the King stepping in didn't seem high, and even if he did, I was planning to betray the Second Prince and side with the Crown Prince anyway, so there was no reason to clash with the King's faction.
After all, the King was currently backing the Crown Prince.
But Father didn't know about the betrayal plan yet, so he seemed to think we might end up fighting the King's faction.
Still, I could tell that Father bringing this up wasn't purely out of loyalty to the King.
"His Majesty the King is far more fearsome than anyone realizes. He is by no means some retired old man in the back room."
I tilted my head and asked Father for a more detailed explanation.
Because even Prince Luke, his own son, had never warned me to be wary of the King.
"I don't know about the Prius Republic, but any great power is bound to have at least one safeguard in place for the survival of its royal or imperial family. And House Rhinehearts is no different in that regard."
"That may be so, but would it be enough to sway the tide?"
I'd thought the most dangerous element around the King was the nobles who supported him to the end and remained neutral.
But Father said the real thing to watch out for was the safeguard, so I couldn't help but be curious.
"Even if there's a Grand Master?"
"What?"
A Grand Master is classified as the equal of an 8th Circle Grand Wizard.
The sight of one charging with four force swords wreathed in Aura Blade flying simultaneously is said to be terror itself but unfortunately, of the five Grand Masters on the continent, not a single one belongs to our kingdom.
The Bringham Empire has two, the Elysian Coalition has one, the Croysen Empire has one, and the Chase Kingdom has one.
The Holy Son is also a Grandmaster-class warrior, but just as the Saintess differs from a Mage, he is an entirely different being from an ordinary swordsman, so I excluded him.
And such a rare Grand Master exists in our kingdom?
That's hard to believe.
"I'm not certain. I only found out recently while organizing your grandfather's papers I discovered a hidden diary."
"Hmm..."
Grandfather, the previous Viscount Lawrence, came from a line of head stewards who served in the royal household.
Though the head steward position ended with his generation, our family had served the King in the royal household for quite some time.
But one day, Grandfather met an unexpected death, and our family's path into the royal household was cut off.
That was why Father made a strained marriage for the sake of our diminished family.
Could it be that all of that happened because Grandfather had gotten too close to the royal family's secrets?
Weighing all the possibilities, I couldn't just brush off Father's words.
"Remember this the world is vast, and the hidden talents within it are far more numerous than you imagine."
"Understood. I'll keep it in mind. If an emergency arises, I'll flee without hesitation, so don't worry."
The possibility that a Grand Master might be among the King's direct troops was surprising, but even if one appeared, I had no real reason to worry.
"Good, do that. Honor matters, but life matters more. Even if the worst happens, as long as you're alive, there will be plenty of places willing to take you in."
"But you sound like you're talking about someone else. You're part of the Second Prince's faction too, so your participation in the war is already decided, isn't it?"
But the shocking part didn't end there.
What followed was even more shocking than the possibility of a Grand Master under the King.
"Me? I don't plan to join the war."
"What?"
If you turn at the critical moment and side with me, the merits won't be small.
If we clean out the forces hostile to the Crown Prince and a Count seat opens up, it could be enough to secure you a position.
"Sylvia is pregnant. So I don't intend to do anything that might shock her. I'd like to stop you from going to war too, but that won't be easy."
For a moment, I couldn't process Father's words and rubbed my ears.
'Pregnant, she's pregnant.... Mother, you mean. Huh?'
Mother, writhing shyly, and Arcia, dropping the cookies she'd been holding.
And when Father let out an awkward cough, I finally understood and spat out the tea I was drinking.
"Cough! W-What did you say?"
"You brat, that's disgusting!"
"She's three months along. The due date is September 20th."
I'm twenty years old.
Well, my birthday's coming up soon, so I could say twenty-one.
And now I'm getting a sibling?
A sibling young enough to be my own child?
"Really?"
"Would I joke about something like that?"
I blinked, taken aback.
Father replied as if making an excuse.
"Without an heir, the Viscount family would cease to exist, wouldn't it? It worked out well."
My roots are definitely in the Viscount Lawrence family, but since I already hold a higher title, I can't inherit Father's title.
In the Kingdom of Rhinehearts, a title can only be passed to the direct heir of the Lord, and if there's no direct heir to inherit, the title and domain are reclaimed by the King.
In that sense, there's no better option for the survival of the viscount family, but....
I don't know how I'm supposed to react to this.
"Congratulations, Father, Mother."
Still, I couldn't embarrass my parents, so I offered my congratulations first.
Now that I think about it, the warning about the King was just the pretext this news was probably the real purpose.
"Mother's always looked young, so that's fine, but Father, shouldn't you take better care of yourself? When the sibling comes of age, you'll be Grandpa Ho-ho, won't you?"
"Wouldn't it work if you regularly use Recovery magic on me?"
"Understood. I'll do that."
Since it came up, I used 7th Circle recovery magic on both of them.
7th Circle recovery magic doesn't harm the fetus.
In fact, frequent exposure to high-level magic could grant a talent for mana, which is why high-ranking nobles often used this method.
"Our second child is truly blessed her older brother is a Grand Mage and her sister-in-law is an Aura Master."
"It's a daughter?"
"Don't know yet, just a feeling."
I feel drained somehow.
I let out a small laugh, calming my confused mind.
This might be the most awkward moment I've had in recent memory.
I think I need to end this war quickly.
* * *
"A sibling for Marquis Lawrence? Haha, congratulations."
At the Crown Prince's summons, I secretly went to a secluded spot in the royal palace.
Before getting into serious conversation, I mentioned the day's events to ease the mood, and the Crown Prince offered his congratulations with a cheerful expression.
"So Father says he doesn't wish to participate in this war."
"Understood. That can't be helped."
I understand since he's family, but honestly, from a third party's perspective, it might be hard to understand someone skipping a war because his wife is pregnant.
But the Crown Prince brushed it off coolly.
"The strategic differences between me and Prince Luke are fairly obvious on the surface, aren't they? There's something I'd like to reveal to Marquis Lawrence, who might be feeling uneasy about the current situation."
"I'm listening."
"Within the Second Prince's faction, there are allies other than Marquis Lawrence who will join our operations."
Then the Crown Prince brought up the story I'd anticipated.
I nodded, pretending to be surprised.
"Marquis Trenton?"
It worked perfectly the Crown Prince's relaxed expression carried a flicker of surprise.
"You knew?"
"I guessed what your Highness's next move would be. I'm glad I was right."
I was just speaking off the cuff, but the Crown Prince was deeply impressed.