Chapter 27
Life in the main house was a series of adjustments.
“Have you woken up, Sir Reagan?”
When I opened my eyes in the morning, a soft feather blanket wrapped around my body, and beside the bed, Sheryl—now assigned as my personal maid—was preparing warm water for washing.
“Please let me know when you are finished washing. I will assist you with changing.”
“Sheryl, I have perfectly fine hands and feet.”
“Yes. However, you tend to wear your clothes in a crooked and improper manner. A man who will become the face of Benheim cannot walk around dressed worse than a street thug. That would disgrace not only Miss Renia but the entire family. As your maid, I cannot allow that.”
Even something as simple as getting dressed required a maid’s involvement.
Not only that—even when eating, they would interfere, telling me to follow proper etiquette.
“…I can’t get used to this excessive kindness.”
It was burdensome.
After living for over a decade as a mercenary, camping in rough and harsh environments, this luxurious life in Benheim didn’t suit me at all.
“You must get used to it. You are now officially Benheim’s son-in-law.”
“…Tch.”
As Sheryl said, it had already been three months since my engagement with Renia was officially announced.
At first, the retainers looked at me with suspicion when I moved into the main house. But as they realized I wasn’t a shady person, they slowly began speaking to me.
Of course, the person I met most often was Renia. She would come early in the morning and open my door without knocking.
“Reagan, are you awake?”
Just like now.
She burst into the room with a mischievous smile.
“You’re up. Come on, hurry. Flowers are starting to bloom in the garden. It’s perfect for tea.”
Renia grabbed my arm and smiled brightly.
Like this, she dragged me all over the Benheim territory almost every day.
There was no special reason behind her actions. She had always been the type to follow her mood—if she wanted to do something, she had to do it right away.
“Oh right. Sheryl said it’s going to snow a lot this winter. Have you ever seen snow?”
“I’ve seen it plenty.”
“I’m jealous. It doesn’t snow much in Benheim, even in winter. But maybe this year we can play in the snow.”
Honestly, our relationship felt less like an engaged couple and more like close friends. We were still young, so that was natural.
Of course, there was one person who didn’t like it.
“Ahem! It’s noisy this early in the morning.”
Arno stood across the hallway with his arms crossed.
At first, he used to glare at me like he wanted to kill me. But after three months, he seemed to have gotten used to me and no longer treated me badly.
Still, whenever he saw me with Renia, he looked at us with suspicion.
“Renia, don’t spend too much time with him. People will talk.”
“Why would they? We’re engaged. Everyone knows that.”
“We haven’t even had the ceremony yet! You’re not even adults! You never know what might happen!”
“Why are you so angry?”
“Anyway!”
Arno’s face twisted.
Renia covered her mouth and giggled, clearly enjoying his reaction.
Well, it just meant he cared a lot about his sister. I decided to see it in a good way.
“So, Reagan, what time are you coming to the training hall today?”
“Maybe after lunch.”
“I’ll be waiting. I’m going to win today.”
Arno turned and left.
“He’s going to lose again.”
Renia muttered as she watched his back.
For the past three months, I had been training magic with Arno in the main house’s workshop.
The training there was similar to what I had done with Brock, but the efficiency was on a completely different level. The library was filled with rare magic books, and the workshop had top-grade mana stones.
Being able to use such high-quality mana stones freely—something even money couldn’t easily buy—was heaven for a mage.
“My brother is determined to reach the 4th Circle before you. Recently, he’s been pushing even the top researchers of the magic tower, studying day and night. I’ve never seen him train this hard. It’s all because of you.”
“Really? That’s good news.”
It really was.
Arno would one day become the head of Benheim. The stronger he became, the stronger the family would be.
I had no intention of standing still either. To push him forward—and to defeat the Magic Emperor—I had to become stronger.
My current level was mid 3rd Circle. I needed to aim for the 4th Circle.
And the only way was to keep training.
“Oh right, Reagan. Do you have time this afternoon?”
Renia suddenly asked.
“I always have time. Why?”
“There’s somewhere I want to go with you.”
“I feel like we’ve already been everywhere.”
In the past three months, we had visited every place in the territory.
Through that, I realized how much Renia loved Benheim.
The reason she had shown such intense hatred toward the Magic Emperor in my past life… was because she loved this family.
“There’s one place we haven’t been. I’ll wait on the garden bench this afternoon. And don’t be too harsh on my brother.”
With a smile, she waved and left.
Not long after, in the training hall of the main house—
Boom!
With a loud crash, Arno rolled across the ground.
“Ugh! Tomorrow! We’re doing this again tomorrow! I’ll definitely win next time!”
He shouted, breathing heavily.
Despite his confident words earlier, he had lost to me again.
Still, I liked that he didn’t give up.
So I decided to give him some advice.
Mostly to tease him.
“First, let me give you some advice—”
“Don’t!”
“You use magic too properly. If you keep being so predictable, no one will fall for it.”
“What are you talking about?”
“If you want to win, you need to be shameless and cunning. Use everything you can.”
Arno glared at me.
More specifically, at the blue sword in my hand.
“You monster… you actually completed that thing?”
“Not completely. But it’s close.”
It was a sword I created by imitating Lucen’s magic.
But unlike the crude version from three months ago, this one was on a completely different level.
I didn’t just feed it aura anymore.
I engraved Benheim’s rune letters into the mana circuit that formed the blade, greatly increasing its durability and power. Then I compressed the aura to its limit to maximize cutting ability.
At this point, unless it was a famous sword, anything it clashed with would be split in two.
Ting.
I flicked the blade. Even though it was made of mana, it produced a clear metallic sound.
“Well, this should be enough.”
A sword made with magic, yet harder than steel and sharper than aura.
A mix of Lucen’s form, Benheim’s method, and my own energy.
A patchwork creation.
But its power was real.
“I told you. Use everything you can.”
“You stole another family’s technique and modified it. Where is your pride as a mage?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t grow up as a mage like you.”
“Ahh! You shameless bastard!”
Arno shouted in frustration.
But since I had won, he had nothing to say.
“Just wait. No matter what tricks you use, true tradition will win in the end.”
“Sure. I’ll look forward to it.”
With a faint smirk, I left the training hall.
I had a promise with Renia.
When I reached the garden bench, she was already there, smiling brightly.
“How was my brother?”
“He said he’ll win next time.”
“Same as always. Let’s go.”
“At least tell me where we’re going.”
“Outside the territory.”
I frowned.
Just a few months ago, she had gone outside and almost been kidnapped by dark mages.
“Is that really a good idea?”
“Of course not. If my father knew, it’d be one thing, but Allet would definitely go crazy trying to stop us.”
“Then how are we getting out?”
“I know a secret way.”
I sighed.
So we were sneaking out.
“If we get caught, this will be a disaster.”
“Don’t worry. We won’t get caught.”
“…That’s not the problem.”
“I’ll take full responsibility. And if something dangerous happens, you’ll protect me like last time, right?”
“….”
She covered her mouth and laughed when I narrowed my eyes.
She had always been like this—preferring wild places over neat gardens.
“Fine. But if we get caught, you’re taking all the blame.”
“Ahaha! So cold!”
She laughed and pulled me along.
“So where are we going?”
“You should know. It’s where we first met.”
“First met…?”
Then I realized.
“…The cemetery?”
Not exactly a place for a date.
We crossed Benheim’s walls. Renia, wearing a robe, moved confidently as if she had done this many times.
Soon, we arrived at the cemetery.
“Here.”
She stopped at the same place as before.
“I didn’t get to greet her properly last time.”
“….”
It was where her mother was buried.
Renia quietly pulled weeds and brushed dust off the tombstone.
“You’re wondering why my mother isn’t buried in the family mausoleum, right?”
“If it’s a difficult reason, you don’t have to say.”
“It’s not that.”
She smiled bitterly.
[Lilian Isilia von Benheim]
She looked at the name for a while before speaking.
“My mom was actually a commoner. She wasn’t even a mage.”
“That’s surprising. I thought magic families always married other magic families.”
“That’s usually true. But my father fell in love at first sight. He chased after her without caring about his dignity.”
I couldn’t help but smile imagining Stern like that.
Renia laughed too.
“When she died, the elders were furious. They said she couldn’t be buried in the family tomb because her blood was impure. My father almost destroyed the council, but he stopped because of her last wish.”
“….”
“She said she didn’t want to hear their nagging even after death. She preferred an open place like this.”
“That makes sense.”
“The family doesn’t like me coming here either. They see my mom as a stain. That’s why I used to sneak out.”
“I can see why your father dislikes the elders.”
I silently helped her clean the grave.
Commoner blood.
Maybe that’s why, in my past life, she had opened her heart to someone like me.
“Say hello. This is my fiancé.”
After cleaning, Renia spoke brightly.
“He’s a bit rough and blunt, but he’s actually pretty decent. And he said he fell in love with me at first sight. Isn’t that funny?”
I frowned, and she laughed.
“Reagan, you should greet her too.”
“…Nice to meet you.”
“Haha, what was that? That’s funny.”
She hit my back playfully.
It didn’t feel bad.
In my past life, she had never told me about her mother.
Back then, I was just a comrade.
But now, I stood beside her as her partner.
I quietly spoke toward the grave.
“…This time, I will protect you.”
“What was that?”
“Nothing.”
I returned because of Renia.
I didn’t know why she sent me back instead of herself.
But I wouldn’t waste this second chance.
No matter what, I would kill the Magic Emperor.
And protect the girl beside me.
“Let’s go back. It’s getting late.”
“Okay.”
By the time we returned, it was already dark.
Renia quietly opened the door—
“I’ve been waiting.”
“…Ugh.”
Stern was standing right there.
Of course.
There were too many eyes in Benheim for us not to get caught.
“Renia, where have you been?”
“W-well…”
She swallowed nervously, then quickly hid behind me.
So much for taking responsibility.
I sighed.
“…Actually, I was the one who took her out—”
“That’s enough.”
Stern raised his hand.
“You went to see your mother. I won’t stop that.”
His gaze fell on Renia’s dusty shoes.
Instead of anger, his eyes were calm.
“It’s late. Go wash up.”
He waved his hand.
Renia ran off in relief.
As I followed, he stopped me.
“Reagan, stay for a moment.”
“Is something wrong?”
“Yes. I have something to discuss.”
After confirming Renia had gone, Stern spoke again.
His gentle expression was gone, replaced by a cold, sharp gaze.
“We have located the dark mage Markel.”
Renia’s uncle.
The traitor.
At last, we had found him.
