Chapter 25

An Embarrassing Return

  Hans was feeling dizzy, not knowing what was happening, a lot of people were running around him and they carried him inside the building, which appeared more like a mansion from the fairytale, but he was not conscious enough to look around clearly.

  A young woman came running at Hans with a bowl of water and requested Hans to rinse his mouth. Another one came with some warm water and politely asked him to take it in with small sips.

  Hans just did as others told him, and when he regained his composure, he found everyone was staring at him. An elderly man's coughing sound signalled everyone and all of them lowered their gazes. This act made Hans look at the elderly man who was coming to him. when the elder reached him, he sat on one knee in front of him and asked with concern,

Are you okay, young Lord?

Hans's vision searched for Sierra, who was sitting just right by his sides. She replied to his gaze.

This is our home in Grimgar. These people are servants of the house.

  She said to the servants who were also curious about the child that they came with their lord and lady. Most of them were relatively new and did not know Samson. so there was no need to elaborate.

He is our grandson and your young Lord. Give him some time to adjust.

  She dismissed everyone, and the servant went to do their work. The place was way livelier and fancy than their home in Ghost Isles, and Hans was silently enjoying the significant upgrade in his living standard. There were only two people remaining in the hall, the knight named Aldrich and the elder, who silenced the servants with just a signal. The elderly man said to Rudolf,

It's late but welcome back Count Edenberg.

Skip the formalities, Hodges.

Then lord, pardon, but who is the child? I didn't know that lord Sam had one.

  Aldrich was also curious about this, so he was also waiting to hear the answer. Rudolf and Sierra prepared a story ahead to explain the situation about Hans. Rudolf introduced Hans to others.

He is Sam’s son. I don't know about his mother, but we got him after Sam's death and since it was dangerous for him to stay here; we left for the Ghost Isles.

The elderly man responded to him,

I was wondering why you left. I almost thought you have forsaken your duties after lord Sam...

  He stopped and looked at Hans, who was also feeling surprised, like others. He didn't know that Rudolf was going with this setup. The elderly man politely bowed to him and said,

Oh, dear, where are my manners? I am Benedict Hodges, head butler of the Edenberg household. You can call me Hodges, young Lord.

Hans knows from the stories that people here were treating him as a prince, so he imitated the prince in stories and said with arrogance,

I am called Hans.

  Sierra almost burst into laughter, but Rudolf couldn't hold himself back from laughing. Hans got pissed looking that his grampa was ruining his first impression and glared at the old man. Rudolf got the meaning of his glare and said,

Oh, don't worry, you already spoiled your image when you threw up right in front of everyone…

  A fast SeedBullet got fired right at the face of Rudolf, which he quickly dodged by slightly turning his neck. The bullet struck the pillar, making a loud sound of impact, and affixed itself to the pillar like a nail on the wall.

  Hans had become very quick at casting SeedBullet in short ranges. Both Aldrich and Benedict got surprised. The swift attack was one thing, but he aimed it at Rudolf. They never saw someone survive after acting this way, but Rudolf’s calmed demeanour suggested it was a regular thing.

Sierra chided Hans lightly,

Hans, I told you to not act like this.

But gramps was making fun of me.

Sierra turned to Rudolf and scold him too,

I told you too, not to provoke him.

  Both of them just pouted. The scene was unbelievable for Benedict and Aldrich. They didn't know what happened in the past ten years, but Rudolf was betraying his reputation as Alastor.

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Rudolf turned to Benedict and said,

You see, that's my position in this family. The brat knows nothing about manners. So arrange someone to teach him about civilised life.

Another SeedBullet flew past Rudolf and the old knight shouted Hans,

Hey give it a rest, will you?

Hans pouted and turned his face to the sides. Benedict smiled politely and said,

I thought he was quite different from his father, but he sure inherited his temper.

Rudolf answered,

I would be glad if he also inherited his skills…

Hans interrupted him.

You wanna have a go, old man.

Rudolf mocked him again,

See, he is all talk.

Hans stood aggressively and said,

That's it...

Sierra patted the table with enough force to make a loud voice.

Quiet down, you two.

She said to everyone,

I feel like I am raising two children. Rudolf, stop acting like a child and Hans if you wanna be respected, then act a little mature.

Sierra sighed and asked Aldrich,

Aldrich.

Yes, lady Sierra,

You would have heard that we will be in Concordia for next year and Hans would be studying there as an early admission, but being the son of the Parvian king will do him no good, so I want him to enrol as your ward.

Yes, I understand, my lady. Associating with Lord Sam will bring nothing but trouble for the young Lord right now.

So we are on the same page.

Of course.

I remember you had a daughter, right? Where is she, in Concordia?

  The smile on Aldrich’s face vanished when his daughter was mentioned. The change in his expression was so significant that even Hans caught it. Instead of him, Benedict replied to her,

My lady, will you please follow me?

  Both Aldrich and Benedict’s expression was so grim that the atmosphere became quite tense and all of them visited a room that was isolated inside the mansion. The servants were also looking at them.

  Hodges opened the door and all three witnessed a frail young lady with her hands and legs tied. She was covered in bandages, but those cannot clearly hide her rotten skin. The wounds were mostly self-inflicted by intensely scratching herself. In short, she was in terrible condition.

  The dense smell of medicinal herbs reached Hans’s nose, and he covered it with his hand. Sierra looked pitifully at the girl. She was quite a cheerful person who followed them around everywhere in her toddler days. She looked at Aldrich and asked him,

If the situation was this bad, why didn't you send for me earlier,

Aldrich said in frustration,

Because mana doesn't work for her, but I can't lose her, my lady, so please help her. I am...

Sierra already started before his words ended.

God’sGrace

A golden light collected in Sierra’s hand, which slowly reached the bedridden girl shrouding her. The wounds on her skin were visibly healing and hope returned in Aldrich’s face, but it was short-lived since the wounds reverted instantly, crushing the newfound hope for the girl.

  He already knew that it might happen, but still, Sierra was the most powerful healing mage in existence and he had hoped she could help her daughter. With strong herbs, it was possible for his daughter to bear the pain, but she was living the life of a living corpse. She already lost her sanity a long time ago and now the only thing he could do is to let her go peacefully.

  He was wallowing on his knees, but Sierra didn't give up and tried everything she could do. Benedict politely took Hans away. A father helplessly agonizing over his daughter was not a scene he wanted a child to witness. Hans asked the head butler while strolling away from the room.

Is she Mr Aldrich’s daughter?

Yes, my lord, you could call me Benedict.

No, no, gramps will say again that I lack manners.

He smiled warmly, but Hans could tell it was a fake smile. He asked again,

What happened to her?

Benedict remained silent, so Hans asked him again, but he emphasised his words like a command,

You call me young Lord, then you won't answer me. Isn't it hypocrisy?

Sorry young Lord but...

Should I command you to tell me about her?

  Hans's tone and demeanour were different this time, with an undaunting gait, eyes that peered downwards and an adequately relaxed expression that not suited a child. The only thought that came to Benedict's mind was that this child was accustomed to the life of a strong person. It had been a long time since he felt this much pressure from noble.

Hodges looked at his hands, which were perspiring. He understood that blood cannot betray and answered.

She is sir Aldrich’s daughter, her name is Vanessa. She was a student at Concordia...

So what happened to her?

She failed in her graduation and came back as a person you just saw, she lost both her mana and sanity. At that time, she was badly injured. Concordia did everything, but she could not recover.

Was she a good person?

She was smart, and her way of thinking reminded me of Lady Sierra. She cherished the people who were kind to her and sought justice if they were wronged. So yes, young Lord, she was a good person.

***