WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Haruto
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Pushover Young Lord in a Romance Fantasy Won't Take It Anymore ◈
Chapter 77
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“Is that the conclusion you reached after much thought?”
“Yes.”
Father closed his eyes slowly, arms folded.
Selena, who had been glancing at me from the corner of her eye, turned her gaze to Father. Celine fidgeted with her fingers, looking uneasy.
“I respect your choice. The wishes of the person concerned come first, after all. Selena, what do you think?”
“I...”
Becoming House Head had been her lifelong dream.
But achieving it like this was not quite the dream she had wanted.
Selena’s way was to prove that she was the most qualified of the three siblings and earn the position herself.
After hesitating for a long while, Selena finally spoke with a faint sigh.
“I also think it would be too much alone. But if Astin supports me, as he said...”
Warm fingers brushed the back of my hand. Selena lightly ran her fingertips over it.
“I want to become House Head. I will faithfully fulfill my duties and prove myself worthy.”
She had spent her whole life fighting the stigma of being born to a concubine, trying to earn everything alone without anyone’s help.
Yet she had acknowledged her shortcomings and reached out to me.
The sharp venom that had once filled her expression was gone. Seeing her relieved face, I felt that the ending I had known in my first life had truly been changed.
“I see.”
Father still looked regretful. He seemed to want me as House Head that badly.
Well, it would not last long. Once he saw Selena’s abilities, he would have no choice but to acknowledge her.
“No one would object to either of you. Then it is right to decide according to your own wishes.”
Father stepped forward, passing Celine and me before stopping in front of Selena.
Grab.
He firmly took both of Selena’s shoulders, as though encouraging her.
“Selena. Are you prepared?”
“Yes, Father.”
“You will be very busy starting tomorrow. Clear your schedule.”
A satisfied smile appeared on Father’s lips.
He drew Selena and me together by the shoulders. Our shoulders pressed together without hesitation.
Father’s hands resting on us were rough and callused.
He was the iron-blooded House Head who had spent his entire life suppressing his feelings for the family’s sake.
For once, he looked as though some of that heavy responsibility had been lifted from him.
“It is good to see.”
This sight must have been unfamiliar to him.
Until now, Selena and I had been no better than enemies.
Seeing siblings who had once been bitter rivals grow close overnight, Father looked deeply pleased.
“Selena. Listen carefully to your younger brother’s advice.”
“Yes.”
“Astin. Support your elder sister well.”
“Yes, Father.”
At last, Father’s gaze shifted to Celine.
Snap!
Celine snapped to attention, her face tense. She looked more disciplined than either of us knights.
“Celine.”
“Yes!”
“Continue as you have been.”
“...!”
“Ease your sister and brother’s hardships. Fulfill your role as a place of rest for them.”
I agreed.
Selena would strengthen the house from within as House Head, while I would serve as the House Head’s sword and block threats from outside.
Celine just needed to remain the ridiculously adorable youngest sibling. Our little source of healing.
Of course, she should also continue training in magic.
“Can you do that?”
“Y-Yes! I can do it!”
Celine clenched her tiny fists. Her tightly pursed lips were just so damn adorable.
Unable to resist, I covered her head with my palm.
Celine paused briefly, then stretched out her neck like a puppy.
“?”
A warm touch covered my head. My head turned to the side.
Just as I was stroking Celine’s hair, Selena gently smoothed mine.
Now that I thought about it, she really did enjoy doting on younger siblings.
Her movements were overly cautious and clumsy.
The awkward touch felt strange, but I did not move away.
Was this how Celine had felt when she found me dependable? It was not a bad feeling.
“Ha ha...”
Father broke into laughter as he watched us.
Perhaps because it was the first time we had seen him laugh, all three of us looked at him.
Father cleared his throat, looking embarrassed.
“That concludes our business. Selena and Celine, you may leave. I still have something to discuss privately with Astin.”
“Yes.”
“Okay!”
Selena gave Father a slight bow and turned away. Celine copied her, then hurried after her.
“Astin.”
Before leaving, Selena spoke as though casually letting it slip.
“I’ll come to your room later. There’s something I want to discuss.”
“I’d like that.”
“I’ll come too, Brother.”
“Of course. I’ll have some refreshments prepared.”
Creak.
The two left the office, and the door closed.
Only Father and I remained in the room.
Naturally, his eyes focused entirely on my face.
“I want to know the real reason you refused the position of House Head.”
So he had not given up on it after all. The Holy Sword Keeper came to mind for some reason.
When it came to trying to pass off a heavy responsibility, the two were no different.
“Did I not just tell you everything? I am not suited to the duties of House Head.”
Father’s bird-of-prey eyes narrowed.
“I received the report on the battle you fought in the Ashen Forest. I do not believe your limits are so small that you would give up merely because something does not suit you. You must also have considered your sister.”
“Not at all.”
I really had not, but he would not believe me. Selena and Father were both seriously mistaken.
Father looked about to say something, then pressed his lips together.
He seemed to know that continuing to question me would only exhaust us both.
“How is your body?”
“I’m fine. I could jump onto the front lines right now without issue.”
“That is a relief. To be honest, I have regretted much these past days.”
Father let out a deep sigh before continuing.
“Cardenos is a house tempered by a double-edged sword. I too returned alive from countless deadly situations. Standing at death’s threshold is what brought me to this position.”
Abandoned in deadly situations, or tempered by them.
It was Cardenos’s brutally harsh family creed.
Those born with Cardenos blood had only two choices. Die, or grow stronger. There was no other path.
“Still, the trial placed before you was too harsh. It was your choice, so I respected it, but I regretted it time and again during the five days you were unconscious.”
“...”
“I am glad you returned alive. My son, you are my greatest pride.”
“Why are you saying something so embarrassing?”
His expression was stiff, but he said everything he wanted to say. It was slightly disorienting.
Something warm swelled in my chest, but I did not dwell on it.
Father turned his eyes away from me and looked out the window. The emotion had vanished from his own eyes as well.
“House Rosenthal has begun to move.”
“That was expected.”
I had expected Rosenthal to interfere even during this celebratory mood.
No, they would be even more likely to do so because of it.
“They are disparaging your accomplishments as a fraud and stirring public opinion.”
“They are being ugly to the end.”
“It is such an absurd achievement. That makes it easy to exploit.”
Come to think of it, even I found it unbelievable.
And when doubt remains, incitement becomes easy.
“The Magic-Martial Exchange used to be a friendly contest between swords and magic. It is no longer that. The fate of Cardenos and Rosenthal rests on it. For the time being, focus on developing the Ashen Forest and the upcoming Magic-Martial Exchange.”
I nodded readily. It was what I wanted anyway.
I had linked four rings and inherited Ashen Power.
I was ready to treat the upcoming Magic-Martial Exchange as a lesson for Rosenthal.
“This is the last matter.”
Scrape.
Father opened his desk drawer and took something out.
He placed it lightly on the desk.
It was parchment stamped with a golden wax seal representing the Imperial Family.
“This is an imperial decree that arrived from the Imperial Palace today.”
Father tapped the decree with his fingertip.
“They will hold a ceremony honoring your achievements and open the Imperial Family Treasury for you.”
The opening of the Imperial Family Treasury.
For a twenty-year-old, it was an unprecedented reward for merit.
I kept a calm expression without showing surprise. Inside, I was cheering.
Lucia had the Holy Sword, but there was a weapon meant for me.
The one that had been left untouched for centuries in the Imperial Palace Treasury.
“Astin. You have yet to be formally knighted, correct?”
“Yes. That is true.”
A fact I had forgotten came back to me.
I had led the Ashen Forest expedition to success and ultimately defeated the Demon King.
Yet I had not received my knighthood because I had been occupied with handling the aftermath of the expedition.
Of course, my martial ability and qualifications had long since exceeded the requirements.
“Be proud. His Majesty has said that on the day of the ceremony, he will personally confer knighthood upon you.”
A knighthood granted personally by His Majesty the Emperor.
It was an honor beyond the reach of most nobles and knights, even if they devoted their entire lives to it.
For a knight of the Empire, there could be no greater joy.
I should have bowed my head in overwhelming gratitude, but...
I did not accept the decree and instead pushed it back.
“Honor is nice. But I do not wish to receive knighthood from His Majesty.”
Father’s eyes filled with confusion. A low groan escaped through his closed lips.
Soon, he gave a slight nod.
“You need not feel burdened. Your accomplishments are guaranteed by the expedition and the Holy Sword Keeper. You have more than enough qualifications, and His Majesty will regard it as an honor as well.”
“This is not about feeling burdened. I simply do not want it.”
“...What do you mean?”
Father’s eyes opened wide like torches. His emotional reaction was stronger than when I had refused to become House Head.
“Astin.”
“Yes.”
“Do not ever say that again. Those words could be taken as insulting the Imperial Family.”
“...”
“I will tell His Majesty that you gladly accept. Understand?”
“I said I do not want it.”
Ha...
Father pressed a hand to his forehead and let out a long sigh.
“My son. Why do you keep trying to give your father such grief?”
His gaze, filled with deep reproach, settled on me.
He had every reason to be upset. I was rejecting the greatest honor a knight could receive.
“I am sorry, Father.”
I could not deny it. I had caused Father much worry over the years.
His black hair, once thick like a lion’s mane, was now streaked with gray.
The lines in his fierce eyes had grown deeper than the scars left by battle.
His broad shoulders, which had endured while carrying the future of his people, were weighed down by the years.
“But I have already made up my mind. I will not change it, no matter what.”
Father had grown older day by day under the weight of family and house.
A large part of that decline was the karma I had earned during my days as a worthless brat.
I did not know it in my first life. No, I had known and refused to admit it.
‘Only now.’
As a member of this house, and as his child.
I knew Father’s hardships better than anyone. I deeply understood all that the iron-blooded House Head had endured.
Just as I had spent my life trying to save the world, Father had spent his life trying to save his house and family.
“I want to receive knighthood from you, Father.”
“...What?”
I could not give that honor to anyone else.
It was both my duty as his son and my sincere wish as a knight.
Father’s eyes, which had been burning with anger, went still.
His face froze before me, trembling faintly.
That frozen expression reminded me of the training ground shortly after I regressed.
A laugh escaped me without my realizing it.
“To me, that would be the knighthood I would be most proud of.”
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