“Huff! Huff!”
At a time when the still-green moon hung in the early morning sky.
Ian was sitting by the window, gazing blankly outside. He had a restless night’s sleep due to many thoughts, but he was awakened by some noise.
“Form up on the left!”
“Form up on the left!”
“Forward march!”
It was the sound of the Bratz militia heading out for early morning training. Ian rested his chin on his hand and carefully observed their appearance.
‘Quite a large number for a private army.’
The number running out through the main gate one after another was not insignificant.
Considering the typical ratio of mansion garrison troops to the soldiers deployed throughout the territory, Derga seemed to have an excessive military force.
‘It’s tricky to reduce the number of soldiers. It would be a headache for me too.’
Other marcher lords reduced their military forces when they established truces.
Laid-off soldiers could return to their original occupations, tilling the land and selling goods to pay taxes to the lord once again. A truce was a means to bring not only peace but also economic benefits.
However, Marquis Derga had not reduced the number of soldiers despite having established truces since the previous generation. It was likely due to the incomplete and distrustful nature of the formality of the truce.
The marquis’s second older brother was ambushed and killed while crossing the border, and Ian was also being sent as a sacrifice with the assumption of death.
‘In this case, it would be better to break the truce.’
Logically, the military could only be maintained if the economic activities of the territory’s people supported it. Currently, there were too many soldiers compared to that number.
So ironically, it would be more balanced if battles were frequent. If the fighting continued, the number of soldiers the territory’s people had to support would decrease, and if they succeeded in conquering, they would gain new labor and capital.
Of course, the assumption of defeat was another problem, but it was obvious from the words of a man whose head was swelling. It had to be resolved before that.
‘If it’s war, then war. If it’s peace, then peace.’
One of the two had to be clearly brought about, but if it was an ambiguous situation where neither was achieved, it would only increase everyone’s suffering.
Just look at Hannah. Despite being a servant working in none other than the marquis’s estate, she was in a state of starvation if not for Ian’s errand fee.
Creak.
Ian straightened his attire and stepped out of the room. A servant was seen dozing off in the corridor. It must be the night shift in charge of monitoring Ian.
“Hey, you.”
“L-Sir Ian?”
“The air is chilly. Go inside.”
Is this a dream or reality? The servant wiped the corners of his mouth and blinked. It was the first time Ian had come out early in the morning. Until now, they had confirmed that there were no issues overnight by handing over the breakfast tray.
“Wh-where are you going?”
“I’m going for a stroll.”
At this ungodly hour? Could there be some ulterior motive?
As the attendant’s eyes narrowed suspiciously, Ian smiled brightly and gestured with his chin. His gaze was as cold as can be.
“What are you staring at?”
It meant to avert his eyes and step aside.
The attendant bowed his head as he came to his senses, but he couldn’t conceal his troubled expression. The mansion was too quiet to let Ian go, as he might harbor ill intentions, but there was no proper reason to stop him.
“Um, Sir Ian…”
“You can follow me if you want.”
Ian gave his permission as if there was nothing more to say and took the lead walking down the corridor. Even if he told him not to follow, he wouldn’t listen anyway, and there were many things in the mansion that Ian didn’t know. It seemed like a good idea to bring him along and learn this and that.
“Is that separate residence over there locked?”
“As it is for guests, it is swept and cleaned every day.”
“You’re indirectly saying it’s open. Then what about over there?”
“Security is of utmost importance for the armory.”
He’s quite good at holding his tongue.
The servant answered cautiously while gauging Ian’s reaction. It seemed like as soon as the monitoring ended, he would run off somewhere to report. Although it was clearly visible, Ian didn’t pay much attention to it. He wouldn’t be doing anything problematic anyway.
The real problem was something else.
“Hah.”
He let out a breathless sigh and straightened his back. He was putting in effort to gather information, but the first problem he noticed was the child’s physical strength.
An untrained body. He had guessed as much, but it was worse than he thought. Who would have thought that just walking around the mansion would be this tiring? He would surely die of exhaustion near the border before even meeting the Cheonrye tribe.
And the second problem.
‘There doesn’t seem to be any Gulla either.’
He had checked the well-tended garden and even the secluded backyard, but there was no sign of Gulla.
Since it was a plant with strong reproductive and survival capabilities, it would have been plucked and burned on sight. It wouldn’t be seen in human settlements other than deep in the mountains. Not being able to go outside was also a problem.
“Sir Ian, it’s daybreak. Let’s have breakfast.”
The servant stretched out a long yawn and recommended. It was about time to end the night shift. It was rude for a servant’s conduct, but considering the circumstances of this body, it was understandable. Ian nodded and obediently followed.
“Alright. Let’s go to the main dining hall.”
“Pardon? The main dining hall?”
He understood the meaning behind the servant’s question.
Didn’t he receive his dinner on a tray in his room last night? Ian must have spent every meal like that.
But Ian had no intention of doing so. He was quite hungry, and he needed to confront the members of the marquis family who held his lifeline.
“Oh my, Sir Ian? Good morning.”
“What brings you here…?”
The servants who were busy in front of the dining hall were startled to see Ian. Judging by the number of place settings, it seemed like two people had entered.
“I’ve come to dine.”
“The Marchioness and Young Master Chel are inside.”
“What about Derga, I mean, Father?”
“He went out yesterday and hasn’t returned yet.”
Tsk. He clicked his tongue for now, but upon closer inspection, it wasn’t such a bad situation. With Derga absent, it would be even easier to deal with the two of them.
“Open the door.”
At Ian’s instruction, the servant had no choice but to pull the handle. Soon, the luxurious interior of the dining hall was revealed.
The eyes of the two people who had been waiting for the main course inside contrasted. Chel’s eyes widened in surprise, while Marchioness Mary’s narrowed in displeasure.
“What’s the matter?”
Her tone was sharp.
Ian cleverly countered.
“Good morning, Mother. It’s a lovely morning.”
After a light greeting, he sat across from them.
Chel fidgeted and glanced at his mother, but Marchioness Mary, who was glaring at Ian, didn’t notice. Her expression was so vicious that it was hard to believe she was the same benevolent lady seen in the garden yesterday.
“If it’s a meal, receive it in your room.”
Despite her cutting words, Ian calmly pulled himself up to the table.
“Indeed, that’s what I did last night. But as I chewed on the bread crumbs and pondered deeply, it seemed improper.”
“What?”
“Didn’t Sir Mollin get quite startled when I drank from the finger bowl yesterday? Both of the marquis family’s only children made mistakes.”
At his words, Chel’s face turned bright red.
Mary roughly set down her knife and pursed her lips. Her eyes warned that if he didn’t shut up, she would flog him.
“Father also instructed me. To diligently pursue learning. It’s difficult to learn etiquette when dining alone with a tray, so it would be better to do so together like this.”
He lied very cleverly. Although it wasn’t an instruction from Derga, he made it seem like it was his intention.
“Mother?”
“…Sit down.”
She looked like her insides were boiling from the morning.
Marchioness Mary grabbed her fork and knife irritably and sliced the frittata. Chel seemed to have lost his appetite and sat still, glancing at Ian. Ian smiled brightly and shared a gaze with him.
“As expected, it’s better to eat at the table than on a tray. Isn’t that right, Brother?”
“Huh? Uh-huh…”
The portions were much larger. Ian satisfied his hunger with elegant and diligent movements. While doing so, he carefully observed the marchioness. From her jewelry and dress to everything she wore, they were items that would be praised as precious even in Emperor Ian’s era.
The lowly staff was eyeing the bastard’s rice bowl because they had nothing to eat, yet the lady of the house was indulging in luxury.
Overall, it was a messed-up family.
“Mother, I have something to tell you.”
“Can’t you just shut up and eat?”
“Please change my room. It would be nice if you could also provide candles.”
“Ha!”
Only then did the marchioness look at Ian. She even let out a hollow laugh as if she was astounded.
“You don’t know your place. Change your room? And why do you need candles? Being dull and unable to learn a single letter, you’re trying to engage in unnecessary extravagance. You take after your lowly mother who only has vanity?”
It was beyond insult, at the level of excretion.
Chel’s body visibly stiffened. He was clearly worried that Ian would become enraged and reveal his golden eyes, unleashing some unknown power.
“My mother is the Marchioness, so it’s only natural that I take after her. Everything you say is correct, Marchioness.”
But Ian smiled brightly and landed a blow. As if saying the lowly and vain woman you mentioned was none other than herself.
Due to his polite tone, the marchioness didn’t realize it right away, but soon she understood the offensive content and flushed red.
“…You!”
“Sir Mollin said he wanted to see my room when he comes next week.”
The marchioness was trembling and about to scream in a shrill voice. Ian cut in and interjected neatly. It was a lie, but a lie that he could handle and was useful.
“We can’t show such a room to an esteemed guest, can we? Even if we change it for just that day, he’s a perceptive person and will immediately notice any awkwardness. It’s not like there aren’t any rooms available, so wouldn’t it be better in many ways to give me one now?”
“Where do you dare to look me in the eye?!”
“If I show any shortcomings due to my dullness, the burden will fall entirely on Brother Chel. You don’t want that, do you, Mother?”
Although it was a formality, Sir Mollin was a central government official sent from the palace. It was only natural for him to keep the local aristocracy in check. If things went awry, they might really have to send Chel instead.
“I’ll do my best, Mother.”
Ian smiled brightly and chomped on the meat. So shut up and support me in every way possible, his gaze conveyed.
The marchioness was not only startled but also dumbfounded. In just a single day, how did that lifeless thing become so brazen?
Kwang!
The marchioness stormed out of her seat, clearly displeased. Chel also hesitated, glancing around before standing up.
“Brother?”
“Huh? Uh…”
Chel, who had been quietly stepping out, turned around.
“Don’t worry about yesterday’s incident. Everyone makes mistakes, don’t they?”
“Well, that’s true, but…”
“Bringing up past matters is something only petty people do.”
On the surface, it seemed like he was comforting Chel for his mistake, but the underlying meaning was to forget what he had seen yesterday. Chel only nodded silently and hurriedly ran out.
‘There will be a lot of leftover food.’
Ian glanced at the abundant table before him, raising an eyebrow. Then, after eating his fill, he pushed the rest aside. It was for the servants.
“Hmm.”
Ian savored the food very leisurely and enjoyed the view outside. Sitting alone in the spacious dining hall, he felt truly at peace. It was a sense of leisure he had never experienced in his previous life.
Then, all of a sudden, he saw his own reflection on the glass window. A small, scrawny, and unfamiliar face.
‘Ian.’
If Emperor Ian was here, where did the illegitimate child Ian go?
Ian rested his chin, facing the child’s calm face. The towering trees in the garden swayed elegantly.
Meanwhile, later that afternoon.
The marchioness, though indignant, had no choice but to move Ian’s room to the separate residence. Servants rummaged through Ian’s room to pack the few belongings and soon discovered a strange piece of paper.
“What is this?”
It was what Ian had written the previous night about the history of Bariel. However, it had been soaked in a cup of water, so the ink was completely smudged and the paper was torn from being soggy. The contents were utterly unrecognizable.
“Was Sir Ian studying or something?”
“But why did he soak it in water?”
“Why? He must have been embarrassed to even look at it himself.”
The servants stuffed the paper into the trash can without knowing what it contained. The entire mansion doubted that the illegitimate child Ian was illiterate.