The Trial of Honesty (2)

Theo von Reinhafer.

The patriarch of House Reinhafer is lost in thought.

Sitting on his throne, thinking for days, contemplating over and over again.

About his youngest son, Nox von Reinhafer.

'Nox, he must kill me one day. To prevent the tragedy from repeating itself. It is the only way.'

I knew.

I thought I knew better than anyone.

That there are secrets in House Reinhafer, and that he has a responsibility to bear because of his tragic past.

'As did my Father. And his own Father before him'

The previous generation, the previous family head, was no different.

At the end of the day, they all died a tragic death.

What he was going through now was even worse.

To end it, to stop passing on the tragedy, someone had to kill him, someone who was his own child, someone who was worthy, someone who truly deserved this position.

Only then would this hellish curse be lifted. 

Theo had known this all too well, long ago.

But why?

Theo had been watching Nox's growth lately, and for some reason, he'd been feeling a little agitated.

The child had suffered tragedy with the death of his mother.

But he'd overcome it, and whenever he thought of his son taking revenge against the Archduke Paimon, he couldn't help but feel a tingle in the pit of his stomach.

Irony, they say.

It was said that the heart of the patriarch of House Reinharbour was braver than a lion, hard as steel and impenetrable.

Theo himself had thought so.

No, he had fooled himself, but since the death of his former wife, something had begun to change within him.

Moreover, Nox von Reinhafer.

Every time he watched his youngest son's progress and ambition, he suddenly thinks of it.

I wonder if I could give him the title of Lord Patriarch, not by my heart like the rest of the family, but by my will alone… such an unattainable fantasy.

But it's all for naught.

It was so from the beginning, but the devilish whispers I heard a moment ago only added to my conviction.

[Nox von Reinhafer to Theo von Reinhafer…]

[He is willing to kill you if necessary].

A demonic whisper.

I've heard it before, on the Night of Slaughter.

Tragedy had struck… and he had lost what he held dear, but somehow he had endured.

He knew that if he fell apart, everything would fall apart.

He pushed his son harder.

He was harder on his children, rougher on them.

He didn't care if bad things were said about him.

If I don't do that, it's because I think it's not possible.

But....

I didn't think all that behavior would come back to haunt me.

'So, Nox hates me after all. I'm his enemy for failing to protect his mother. No wonder.'

I vaguely guessed.

He struggled within the depth of hell and has now emerged.

That it was to kill him.

It was, and now I must understand.

Fatherhood is a dark place.

Because that's an emotion that doesn't belong in House Reinhafer.

"Rodwell."

"Yes. My lord."

"How long do you think this will take?"

"What… are you… talking about…?"

"Nox. Until he plunges his sword into my heart and becomes Lord Patriarch. I'm asking how long you think it will take."

"...Patriarch."

Rodwell's voice trembled.

He had just returned from his latest mission.

He had always suffered with Theo at times like this.

The only one he knew could never touch his heart, and he knew it would end in death.

"I don't know, but... I'm guessing it's going to be a lot sooner than expected, or so I'm led to believe."

"I see. That means it's not long now."

Theo stood up from his seat and stared out into the darkness.

He stared out the window.

Rain poured down.

It wasn't unusual, but the timing was.

It was an unusually heavy downpour, enough to make him think.

Theo had been lost in his own thoughts.

He closed his eyes silently, remembering his dead wife.

* * *

After speaking an answer that no one but Theo could hear.

I slipped out of the room.

In front of me stood the demon Gremory.

She shook her head in disbelief.

"How the hell can you be so callous to a subject that is your father...."

"Shut up."

I replied, not wanting to hear more, and then demanded.

"Just give me the reward."

"Oh, okay."

Gremory soon pulled an artifact out of subspace and handed it to me, noticing the slight edge in my voice.

It was pitch-black and dark, but once in my hands, it quickly revealed itself. The expected artifact had appeared.

[You have acquired the artifact 'Mirror of Sealing'].

__________________

[Basic Info]

Name: Mirror of Sealing

Category: Other

Rank: Supreme

Properties: None

Stats: -.

Wear Restrictions: –

Special Effects: Seals the surrendered target in a world of mirrors. The target is diminished in power and can never leave until the wielder allows it.

__________________

"Mirror of Sealing. This is an object that can seal even the strongest of beings within it, once they have been subdued. Plus, it can be used to create all sorts of interesting situations.

I looked up, a faint smile tugging at the corners of my mouth.

Then I felt Gremory flinch and take an unnecessary step back.

She must have sensed something ominous....

It was too late. 

"Wait, wait, wait… No, that's not right, that's… dangerous, you have to be careful."

"Active Mirror of Sealing. The target is the 72nd Demon, the Archduke. Gremory, the demon of honesty and heartbreak. That is you."

"Uh, uh, uh, uh! Cra, crazy!"

("eo, eoeoeoeo!? mi, michin!")

[Artifact activated].

['Mirror of Sealing' seals the targeted Gremory].

"Yaaaaaaaah!!!"

[72 Demon, Archduke 'Gremory' has already been defeated].

[You have gained 131 days of life from the use of the artifact].

[Your remaining life is now 145 days].

[The negative trait 'Dead Count' is removed].

"Okay, with that, we got Gremory...."

I returned to my companions cheerfully, like a child with a bug catcher's net.

The three look at the mirror in my hand and scratch their heads.

Kushan Adrian was the first to speak up.

"I… Nox-nim, what is that...."

"It's a piece of trash that almost destroyed your kingdom. In the future, she'll be your chief deputy in slaying demons."

"Aaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

Hearing a loud noise from within, I lightly slapped the mirror once, and the noise was soon silenced.

It must have felt like the world was spinning.

If it were Marin, she would have been very sick.

I nodded lightly to myself, but Christopher looked worried. He looked at me with a confused expression and asked.

"Young Master…? Isn't a demon a dangerous creature to say the least? If you take it back to the mansion with you, I don't know what kind of trouble you'll get into. Even if the patriarch disposes of it immediately...."

"If you don't get caught, that's it. Let's end this conversation here."

"I, I believe in anything you do…!"

"That's the same for me."

Kushan replied, perhaps sensing a strange sense of competition.

Elena clenches her fists again.

Now she had a life, and she had captured this damned demon.

Of course, its power has been downgraded, and it won't be much help in battle, now that it's stuck in a mirror and unable to do anything.

But it doesn't matter. I'm going to use him as a radar, a compass for demon slaying.

Did I ever tell you?

'The best use of the Black Basalt ring in Inner Lunatic is to keep the demons at bay.

Demons.

It is said that slaying them will give you the greatest amount of life.

'That should ease my worries a bit for the time being.'

Hearing Gremory's screams, I ended the hunt satisfied.

Not a bad harvest. Now it was time to return to the estate.

"Kushan, Arya, you and Liese will stabilize Tahalin for the time being, while I attend to the House, and I'll return to Eldain as soon as possible. As for the other matters, I'll let Grine take care of them first. He's got his work cut out for him, so you won't have to worry."

"Yes, sir."

I was going to take all three of them into my unit anyway.

Plus.

I'm also planning to bring Elena and a few others into Eldain.

There are only three tickets per family, but that's just for the family.

After all, nobles have a lot of money, and they can come up with all sorts of tricks. Especially if you're a high noble.

"Let's go back now, I can finally get some rest."

I prepared to leave the desert, grateful to finally be able to sleep in a comfortable bed.

Whoa, I'm finally going to get some rest.

* * *

Embarrassed by what I thought was ..., I was in for a serious surprise when I returned.

It was an unexpected person who was waiting for me when I returned to the estate after leaving Tahalin's oversight to Kushan Adrian, Arya, and Liese.

"Eh… that is… Hey, how are you?"

Caught, red-eyed girl. Talia.

One, why is she here?

Her knighting lesson ended a while ago, and there's no reason for her to be here....

"You must be that Nox von Reinhafer who bewitched my daughter. You're certainly handsome, I think I recognize the old me."

At that moment, a familiar figure burst into the room.

Robert von Steiner.

Talia's father, the patriarch of the Steiner family, was here.

A chill runs down my spine and goosebumps rise.

No way… right?

"...Dad, that looks like a scrape...."

"Well, you dared my daughter to tie a tie, so you'll have to take responsibility. I will arrange for your marriage to my daughter to take place regardless of the empress's affairs. I mean 'somehow'… … ."

"I… Lord Robert, that's something you should discuss with my lord, not me."

I plead, desperate to create a corner to get out of.

Zitri and Elena are looking at me with a bit of suspicion.

Here we go again, they say.

But I'm innocent.

I'm not guilty of anything.

...Just being handsome?

That's not my sin either.

Nox, what do you expect me to do about this asshole being handsome....

I feel a little bad that I only use him as my face when it's convenient for me, but it's not really my fault. This is the one.

Just as I was thinking about it, Robert laughed with roguish smile.

"I'm already done talking to my best friend Theo. So it's safe to say that there's no... way out, isn't there, daughter?"

"Ah, ah… well, I didn't have a choice..., really."

....

She's lying.

Talia is definitely lying right now.

Damn it.

(jegilal.) 

How the hell am I going to get out of this?