Lucian's eyebrows twitched.
'The Lion Heart Sword.'
It was a swordsmanship style that only the chosen successor and a handful of the closest confidants were permitted to learn. Even among ancient styles, it was renowned as one of the strongest, famous for its exceptional ferocity.
From knights to the lowliest peasants, there was no one who didn't know the name of the Lion Heart Sword. Everyone had heard of it at least once, whether through childhood stories or regional folklore.
And now, Grand Duke Sigmund had just offered to teach it to him.
Lucian bit his lip hard to suppress his rising emotions.
'Finally...!'
In his past life, despite scouring every corner of the continent, he had never managed to obtain a high-level swordsmanship style. Even the one he had eventually clawed his way into was nothing more than a degraded version of what ordinary knights learned.
To a mere mercenary, even that had been precious, but Lucian could never truly be satisfied.
How many times had a knight he once defeated with ease returned years later to beat him senseless with superior techniques? Every time he lost and barely escaped with his life, he was plagued by a maddening sense of self-loathing and a thirst for high-level swordsmanship.
But now, the ultimate style—one that transcended mere "high-level"—was shimmering right before his eyes.
"I will head to the training grounds first thing tomorrow."
"Do not overexert yourself."
"It is not overexertion. My body is already fully healed. Resting any longer will only cause my recovered muscles to grow dull."
The Grand Duke narrowed his eyes, but Lucian stood tall, squaring his shoulders as if to prove his point.
Only after scanning Lucian's frame did the Grand Duke's brow relax. He seemed to recognize that the boy's physical condition wasn't a bluff.
"If you insist, then do as you wish. However, you alone shall bear the consequences of failing to look after your own health."
"I will keep that in mind."
"I shall leave the matters regarding House Roglan to you. Stir the pot as much as you are able. If the results are satisfactory, you may look forward to a reward."
"I will not disappoint you."
"You may go."
Lucian bowed and exited the Grand Duke's office. His heart, which had been pounding since the moment he heard about the Lion Heart Sword, was still thumping loudly in his chest.
'This is just the beginning.'
In his past life, Lucian had lacked almost everything needed to achieve his dreams. His bloodline, his swordsmanship, and even his physical vessel were barely above the bottom of the barrel. With such a pathetic foundation, no matter how hard he struggled, he could never rise above being a mere mercenary captain.
'But now, I have everything.'
Therefore, the coming age of chaos would be different. Above all, now that he possessed the right bloodline, the ceiling on his potential had effectively vanished.
Lucian intended to go as far as he possibly could. Just how high could he reach with this knowledge and power?
Suppressing the corners of his mouth that kept trying to curl upward, Lucian began to map out the future in his mind.
Immediately after Lucian left, the Grand Duke summoned Edwin.
Edwin turned pale as he read through the documents detailing the Marquis's plans.
"Your Grace."
"If you intend to apologize, don't bother."
"It was my incompetence..."
"I told you to stop. I was the one who ordered our intelligence to be concentrated on the borders. With our counter-intelligence full of holes, what could you have done?"
"Even so, I should have noticed. This is Kelheim, the heart of Valdek. It is my failure that the enemy held a dagger to our throat in our own home without me realizing it."
"A dagger? Hardly."
The Grand Duke snorted at Edwin, who was bowing his head in shame.
"If it were a threat on the level of a dagger, you would have noticed. You didn't see it because it was merely the equivalent of someone poking us with a fingernail. It's not that you're incompetent; it's that Bernhardt caught us off guard."
"You consider an attempt to poison the territory with drugs to be a mere fingernail?"
"Read further."
Edwin's eyes returned to the documents. After reading for a while, he shook his head with a bitter smile.
"They put all their effort into not getting caught. At this rate, the drug would spread slowly, and they'd barely make any money."
"Exactly. Once you subtract the costs of distribution and manufacturing, there's practically no profit. Their goal wasn't money; it was to damage my reputation."
The House of Valdek, humiliated by drug peddling happening in its own backyard. It would be the perfect ammunition for his political rivals to mock him. They could even cite it as a reason to oppose the Emperor whenever he tried to entrust the Grand Duke with an important task.
"But even so, he crossed the line. To pull a stunt like this while the Empire is wavering... this is practically treason."
"He was never a man of loyalty. This is hardly surprising."
"In any case, thanks to my third son, we avoided the embarrassment. It was a stroke of luck."
"Pardon? Do you mean the Third Young Master provided this information?"
"I'm told the man in charge of sales switched his allegiance to the boy. It's just a guess, but it's likely that servant from the underworld who joined recently."
"The one named Hugo?"
"Yes, that Hugo. Isn't it absurd? An underworld boss switching sides just because one plan was discovered."
The Grand Duke chuckled and leaned back in his chair. He had let it slide earlier, but it wasn't a matter to be taken lightly.
"What power does my third son have to command such loyalty? If the man were going to switch sides, he would have gone to someone with more influence. Or he would have just given up and fled."
"Then the fact that he went to the Third Young Master means he was personally persuaded."
"Persuaded... Yes, I suppose so."
That wasn't wrong, but the word felt insufficient to describe it. Would a jaded underworld boss really flip so easily just from a few words? Based on nothing but a blank check promising to fulfill a lifelong dream?
'Not a chance.'
The man had been playing a dangerous game between a Marquis and a Grand Duke. He likely had more grit than most knights and a mind that worked like a clock. The fact that such a man swore loyalty to Lucian and handed over his own life meant something specific.
It meant Lucian had demonstrated not just reliability, but overwhelming capability. Enough to make even a man as cautious and cunning as a viper fold completely.
"At any rate, it's earlier than planned, but since the boy has proven his worth, there's no reason to wait. I intend to start teaching him the Lion Heart Sword tomorrow."
"An excellent decision. As for his swordsmanship instructor..."
"I'll ask Sir Eisen. I feel bad for calling back a man who has already finished his service and is resting comfortably, but there is no one better suited for the task."
"Understood. I shall relay the message immediately."
"Oh, and do not touch the organization mentioned in the documents. The boy said he would shake them up from the inside, so I want to see what he can do."
Edwin flinched at the Grand Duke's words. He understood the desire to test his son, but wasn't the gravity of the situation too great? If things went wrong, they could end up being toyed with without ever getting a chance to strike back.
"Your Grace, I apologize, but this matter..."
"I know what you want to say. That it's too important to be used as a test?"
"Not only that. The Third Young Master has no experience with this kind of intrigue. Even if it goes well, it won't be as efficient as me stepping in."
"True. But even with that risk, I want to leave it to him."
"Did you see something in the Third Young Master?"
"Not 'something' exactly, but his eyes were right."
The Grand Duke believed that one could catch a glimpse of a person's life through their eyes. For instance, a noble lady who had lived her entire life in comfort would still have a trace of innocence even when ordering a criminal's execution. Conversely, someone from the bottom who had grown up rough would always have a flicker of suppressed murderous intent in their gaze, no matter how humble they acted.
The same applied to the Grand Duke's sons. No matter their innate talent or dignity, it was hard to hide the greenness typical of noble young masters.
But today, there was no such greenness in Lucian's eyes.
"He had the eyes of someone who has been to the battlefield."
"The battlefield, you say...?"
"As you know, there is a difference between the gaze of a brat who has only read heroic epics and a soldier who has had his ears clipped by blades on a battlefield."
When Lucian offered his own neck as collateral, he was clearly the latter. It wasn't the reckless bravado of a youth or a solemn vow of determination; it was the look one only sees when someone truly stakes their life. At the very least, none of his other children were capable of such a gaze yet.
"Capability and resolve are two different things, but since he showed that much resolve, I suspect he has a plan to match. I want to see just how much he can achieve."
"If that is your wish, Your Grace, then I shall follow it."
Edwin bowed and withdrew. No matter how important the task, if the Grand Duke prioritized the cultivation of his successor, it was the steward's duty to honor that. At the same time, he felt a flicker of anticipation regarding the Third Young Master's results.
After all, even Edwin couldn't match Grand Duke Sigmund's eye for people.
Upon his return, Lucian immediately summoned Hugo.
"Can you drag the Marquis's involvement out into the open?"
"Drag it out? Meaning?"
"I mean, can you lure them in so they can't just cut their losses and run?"
He didn't even hope to put the Marquis on trial. It would be enough to gather just enough evidence that he couldn't wiggle out with mere denials. Even if it was only a slight increase in exposure, there was a world of difference between a tail and a leg. The "bleeding" the Marquis's house would have to endure to prove their innocence would be incomparably greater.
Hugo grinned at Lucian's words.
"That won't be difficult. A representative from the Marquis's house is scheduled to visit twice more."
"Twice?"
"They'll come in person to oversee the manufacturing and the first sale. They always visit before a project starts to make sure I'm not just pocketing the funding and idling."
"What is the representative's status? If it's just another disposable pawn, it won't mean much."
"He tried to hide it from me, but I had him followed and discovered his identity. It's the Marquis's fourth son."
"...!"
Lucian's eyes widened. If a son was involved, the Marquis's house couldn't deny their connection to Hugo. Even if they tried to deny it, they would have to cut off the fourth son and everything associated with him. If they weren't expecting Hugo's betrayal, it would be a devastating blow.
"Can you handle it alone? I can't move. If Valdek gets too deeply involved, they'll catch on."
"The prey is coming to me on its own; why would I need help? I'll let you know when the time comes, so don't you worry."
Hearing the confident assurance, Lucian decided to leave the matter entirely to Hugo. Since Hugo had been directly commissioned by the Marquis's house, he knew the details better than anyone. It was better to let Hugo exercise his full capabilities rather than interfering with unsolicited advice. Especially since he already knew the man was more than capable.
"Hans, you said you were retraining the servants? How is it going?"
"To be honest, there's not much to teach. Everyone snapped to attention after that last incident. As for the work itself, they've all been here longer than I have, so there are no issues there."
"Still, you never know when the effect will wear off. Keep a close eye on them and report anyone who starts slacking off immediately. People don't change easily."
"If anyone is that foolish, I will inform you at once."
After reiterating the future policy to his two confidants, Lucian went to bed.
The next day, as soon as the appointed hour arrived, he headed to the training grounds alone. A man was already there waiting for him, just as the Grand Duke had said.
"It has been two years since the Grand Duke's birthday. It is good to see you again, Third Young Master. Do you remember me?"
Despite the old knight's casual and humble attitude, Lucian couldn't relax. He had heard the man's name so often it had practically left calluses on his ears even before his reincarnation.
'Eisen Brightner.'
The right hand of the former Grand Duke and a loyal subject who had served House Valdek for three generations.
And before him stood the only survivor among the five knights who had earned the title of Sword Saint on the continent.
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