"Master, please wake up!" Edric heard a soft voice calling out to him.
Opening his eyes, he was greeted by the familiar face of his maid, Mara. She had been serving him faithfully since he was five years old.
"Master, your honorable mother is waiting for you; please wash up and dress up as soon as possible!" Mara urged, her tone carrying a mix of respect and urgency.
"What time is it?" Edric groaned as he sat up in his bed, stretching his limbs. He had become a knight yesterday, but only his body had improved; his sleepiness and his need for sleep were not affected.
"It's already noon!" Mara replied.
"What?" Edric shot out of bed in a panic. He quickly washed up, dressed, and left his chambers with Mara trailing behind him. Upsetting his mother was the last thing he could afford.
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Countess Lyria Windwalker is an 80-year-old Silver Knight. Despite her age, she looks astonishingly youthful—no older than 20. This youthful appearance is thanks to the longevity of Silver Knights, who can live up to 250 years. Lyria's talent in knight training is nothing short of extraordinary; she achieved the Silver Knight rank at just 70, a feat considered among the best in the Bloodstone Kingdom, if not the entire Silver Flower Island.
Having a mother of such caliber brings both advantages and challenges for Edric. On one hand, he has inherited her remarkable talent, and her status provides him with a powerful backer. Few dare to take him lightly, knowing his mother is both a Silver Knight and a Countess.
On the other hand, her domineering nature is a constant source of frustration. Lyria interferes in every aspect of his life. While other 15-year-old nobles live leisurely, indulging in frivolities, Edric has no such freedom. His mother ensures he adheres to a strict regimen, and any sign of slacking off is met with harsh reprimands—or worse. The original owner of Edric’s body suffered greatly under her rule, harboring deep resentment toward her strict ways.
After being transmigrated into this body, Edric was shocked to discover just how deeply the original owner resented and even feared his mother. Reviewing the memories, he realized Lyria had a habit of punishing Edric harshly for every mistake from a very young age. Most of his memories of her are filled with beatings and scoldings.
The original Edric inherited his mother's talent in knight training but lacked her disciplined nature. He rarely trained willingly as a knight. His progress came solely because Lyria allowed him to do little else. If his progress slowed, she would beat him until he promised to work harder.
For now, Edric has no choice but to obey her every command. The power gap between them is too vast for resistance. However, with the help of the system, Edric is confident he will reach the Silver Knight realm soon. Once he matches her strength, he plans to assert his autonomy and stand against her overbearing attitude.
Although Edric no longer resents Lyria after his transmigration—recognizing that her actions ultimately stem from a desire to help him—he is far from comfortable with her controlling every aspect of his life.
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Edric’s appearance was striking. He had fiery red hair, pale skin, vivid green eyes, and a clear, delicate face. Even after breaking through as a knight and developing strong, defined muscles, his face retained its gentle features. If someone saw only his face, they might not believe he was a knight.
Lyria, his mother, shared the same vibrant red hair and green eyes. Their resemblance was undeniable; anyone who saw them together could immediately tell they were related. However, due to her youthful appearance, no one would ever guess they were mother and son. Her figure was fit and graceful, lacking the bulk one might associate with knights of her caliber.
Silver Knights are different from Knights and Great Knights. When Lyria was a Great Knight, she was famous as the most muscular woman in the territory, but after becoming a Silver Knight, the quality of her internal energy improved, and her muscles condensed, so even though she now looks much slimmer, her strength is much higher than when she was outwardly muscular.
After breaking through to Silver Knight, one could no longer determine one's strength based on physical appearance alone; even a slim and thin person may be strong enough to defeat a muscular man using just one finger.
...
Sitting across the grand dining table, Edric studied his mother as she sipped her tea. After the servants left the room, he decided there was no point hiding his achievement.
"Mother, I finally broke through!" he declared, his voice steady but filled with excitement. "I am now a knight!"
Lyria’s hand, holding the cup, paused mid-air, her piercing gaze locking onto him. Her green eyes studied him intently as though trying to discern the truth. Even as a Silver Knight, she couldn’t assess someone’s strength just by looking. There are spells capable of that; however, Lyria is not a mage and cannot cast any spells.
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"Are you lying to me, Eddie?" she asked, her tone sharp. "The last time I checked, you were far from breaking through!"
Rising from her seat, she extended her hand toward him. "Take my hand and pull it to your side with all your might," she commanded.
Edric knew his mother didn’t entirely believe him; she was right not to trust him completely; the old Edric had many times lied to his mother to escape her regular beatings. He nodded without being offended, took Lyria’s hand, and pulled with all his might. As expected, he couldn’t move her hand even an inch—the difference in strength was far too significant.
However, the strength he displayed was enough to confirm his breakthrough into the rank of knight. Without a word, Lyria returned to her seat on the other side of the table and resumed drinking her tea, her expression unreadable.
Edric was accustomed to his mother’s behavior. She always carried herself in a way that made her thoughts and intentions impossible to decipher.
After finishing her tea, she finally looked at Edric, her emerald eyes meeting his. “I’m proud of you, Eddie,” she said, her tone calm but sincere. “I only broke through to the knight stage when I was 15 years and six months old. It was a record that shocked everyone. But now, you, my son, have managed to break my record.”
A faint smile crossed Lyria’s lips. She didn’t seem upset that her record had been surpassed.
Hearing this, Edric smiled without even realizing it; this was the first time in his memory that Lyria had ever said such a thing; the original Edric would have most likely cried hearing this.
“Thank you, Mother, it's all thanks to you,” Edric replied with a smile of his own; he didn't mind giving all the credit to his mother; after all, improving his relationship with Lyria could only be beneficial. Furthermore, there was no way he could explain this sudden strength gain without revealing the system; as a transmigrator, like all other transmigrators, Edric had no plans of revealing the system to Lyria, so giving her credit for his recent breakthrough was the most rational choice.
Edric’s father had passed away long ago, but his absence was never truly felt. His mother’s discipline and stern guidance filled that role, perhaps more than it should. Instead, he missed the warmth and love of a maternal presence. His maid, Mara, had tried to provide some of that affection, but no servant could fully replace a mother.
“Eddie, my smart boy,” Lyria said, her tone turning serious. “We must keep your breakthrough a secret. If word gets out, they’ll target you even more aggressively. Being too talented is often not a blessing but a curse.”
“I understand, Mother. Can I train with Sir Baldwin?” Edric asked.
Lyria shook her head. “No, my dear. You cannot. There are spies within this castle. If you train with him, they will undoubtedly discover your breakthrough. Come to my mansion instead, and I will personally teach you.”
Edric was astonished at the massive shift in tone Lyria showed. Never in the last 15 years had he remembered being called 'my smart boy' or 'my dear'; the difference was between heaven and hell.
Ignoring the disturbing shift in her tone, Edric nodded, excitement flickering in his chest. Being taught by a Silver Knight was a rare privilege. For his predecessor, this offer might have been daunting; the old Edric had feared his mother. However, he no longer feared her after the fusion of his soul from Earth with this world’s Edric.
Feeling emboldened by his mother’s good mood, Edric decided to broach another matter. “Mother, I cannot wait three months for my marriage. I want a mistress!”
Even though officially frowned upon, many male nobles had other women besides their wives; in some rare cases, even powerful female nobles had 'gentlemen' beside their husbands, though it was extremely controversial and scandalous.
Those are just the nobles who dare to act openly; in practice, an overwhelming majority of male and female nobles have other partners besides their wives and husbands; after all, the marriage of nobles is mostly political, so it is not rare for noble couples to actually hate each other.
Hearing Edric's request, Lyria wasn't surprised; after all, it's absolutely normal for boys of Edric's age to have these thoughts. Until now, she had prevented it because she had seen many who wasted so much time on enjoyment and neglected their knight training, but now, since he had broken through, things were different. She nodded slowly as she smiled and said, “Don’t worry. Now that you’re a knight, you deserve this. I’ll ask Mara to find someone for you,” Lyria said with a small smile.
Edric quickly added, “I promise to give you many grandchildren in nine months!”
Saying those words felt awkward. His relationship with his mother wasn’t close enough for such discussions to feel natural, but he had no other choice. Completing the system task was paramount.
Lyria started thinking, frowning; she considered instructing Mara to ensure the woman wouldn’t conceive, but after hearing what Edric said, she ultimately decided against it. After all, it wasn’t uncommon for nobles to have illegitimate children. For Edric, who showed talent to surpass even her, having more children could only be beneficial.
His ability to break through to the knight realm sooner than her impressed her deeply. In a good mood, she said, "I would be happy to see my grandchildren in nine months; ask Mara whatever you want, and she will provide it."
Edric was shocked once again to hear this. All these years, she had never allowed him to, in her words, 'waste his time' by having a female companion; now, all of a sudden, she agreed to his request of having multiple mistresses.
Standing up, Lyria smoothed her dress and prepared to leave. “You have seven days to rest and clear your mind. After that, come to me; I will teach you everything you need to know about being a knight,” she said.
As the Countess, her responsibilities were vast. The escalating tensions with the Darkwind family demanded her immediate attention, leaving little time for leisurely conversations with Edric.
Edric, having achieved his aim, returned to his room. All he had to do was ask Mara and wait for her to bring his partners. As for who the women would be, he didn’t care; he only cared about completing the system task; if it wasn’t for the task, having a mistress wouldn’t have been in his top 10 priorities. In any case, he trusted Mara to find individuals who were reasonably beautiful and healthy and who could help him fulfill the system task within nine months.
As the talented heir of Countess Lyria, Edric is extremely popular; Mara would have no trouble finding qualified, willing candidates.