Silence reigned over the study as I stared at Grand Duke Kaltbrand, unable to come to terms with his ridiculous request.
“What?” Knight Commander Bardin said, breaking the silence. She gave the grand duke an incredulous look.
“Have you lost your mind?” she asked, grabbing him by the shoulders and shaking him.
Her cheeks were red. This was my first time seeing her so flustered, and I found it rather endearing. I would never say that out loud, however. That would be disrespectful.
“I wouldn’t dare be so informal with Teacher.” I said. “Besides, I thought we were only giving the impression that Teacher was my mother.”
Grand Duke Kaltbrand lifted his hands up in surrender.
“Fine, fine,” he said. “I give up. Wulfe doesn’t have to call you ‘Mom’, Sofie. I’ll settle for him calling me, ‘Dad.’”
I cleared my throat.
“What did you wish to discuss with me?” The grand duke gave me an expectant look. I sighed. “Dad.”
Grand Duke Kaltbrand grinned at me.
“There is someone else I wish to introduce to you. If Sofie is my right hand, then he is my left hand.” He looked at a corner of the study. “Isn’t that right, Claus?”
I followed the grand duke’s gaze. The air in the corner rippled, before a man appeared out of nowhere. Everything about the man appeared bland and plain. He had pale skin, average features, and brown eyes. It was difficult to determine his hair color. Sometimes it seemed brown, sometimes it seemed black, sometimes it seemed a dark red. He wore a servant’s outfit. If I ever saw him in public, I wouldn’t pay him much attention. That was how little presence he had. However, he had the mana signature of a Sage. There was also something timeless about the man, making it difficult to guess his age.
I narrowed my eyes at the man. While there were generalists, most magicians tended to specialize. For example, Emmerich Guld focused on mental magic. It was how he recovered his memories. Others focused on combat, like the Imperial Battle Mages, the magician counterpart to the Imperial Guard. This man before us seemed to specialize in stealth.
“Yes, Your Grace.” the man said, bowing to the grand duke. He had a soft and quiet voice. “I am always at your service.”
“Wulfe, this is Claus,” Grand Duke Kaltbrand said. “He is the leader of the Blue Shadows, House Kaltbrand’s eyes and ears.”
I gave Claus a slight bow.
“I greet you, Clause.” I said.
He returned my bow with one of his own.
“You’ll be working a lot with Claus.” the grand duke said. “Or rather, with his subordinates. I thought it would be a good idea to introduce you two now, rather than risk a potential misunderstanding later on.”
“He is also the one who looked into your background for me.” Knight Commander Bardin said.
I raised an eyebrow at that.
“Yes.” Claus said, giving me a faint smile. “You turned out to be a far more intriguing puzzle than I anticipated, Wulfe. Imagine my surprise when you turned out to be House Guld’s missing adopted son.”
“Who else knows?” I asked.
I didn’t want House Guld finding me until I was ready to meet with them. The less people who knew about my past, the better.
“Just a few select members of the Blue Shadows, His Grace, and Knight Commander Bardin.” Claus said in his soft voice. “No one else.”
That was better than I feared, though I was still unhappy about it.
“You can trust the Blue Shadows.” Grand Duke Kaltbrand said. “They will never betray your secrets.”
I nodded.
“Claus, I want you to assign some of your people to act as Wulfe’s eyes and ears.” the grand duke said. “I have a feeling he’s going to need them.” He gave Claus a hard look. “I want them to be loyal to him first and foremost. For them, his orders supersede mine. Do you understand?”
Once again, I felt as if the grand duke was taking things too far in my favor. While having my own spies was useful, I didn’t think they were necessary for this job. However, at this point, I had given up on trying to convince him otherwise. If today’s events had taught me anything, it was that Grand Duke Kaltbrand would have his way regardless of my protests.
“I understand.” Claus said, before turning towards me. “Would you prefer familiar faces, Wulfe? Or would you like someone new?”
I frowned at him.
“What do you mean?”
“Ewald is one of my informants, and his employees work for me. I can have them reassigned to serve you instead.”
My eyes widened. It never occurred to me that Ewald, the mercenary broker, would be an informant for House Kaltbrand. However, it made sense when viewed from a certain perspective.
“That would explain a few things,” I muttered. “Including how a number of mercenaries who worked with Ewald ended up joining the Order of the Coldsteel Blade.”
“Yes, Knight Commander Bardin asked me to keep an eye out for suitable talent, and I obliged.”
I glanced over at the knight commander and she nodded.
“Familiar faces then.” I said after giving it some thought. “I’d rather work with people I know.”
Claus nodded, before turning towards Grand Duke Kaltbrand.
“Is there anything else you need from me, Your Grace?” he asked.
The grand duke shook his head.
“No, you may go now, Claus.”
The man nodded, before the air around him rippled and he disappeared from sight. No trace of his presence remained, not even his mana signature. Impressive, if a bit unnerving.
“I don’t think I will ever get used to that.” I said, staring at the spot where Claus used to be. “How do you know when he is watching you or when he is not?”
“I don’t.” Grand Duke Kaltbrand admitted. “I just always assume he’s around, and so far he’s proven me right.”
I stared at the grand duke for a moment, before shaking my head.
“If that is all, Your Gra-…” He glared at me. “If that is all, Dad, then I’ll take my leave. Today is going to be a busy day for me.”
“You may go.” the grand duke said with a nod.
I bowed to him and Knight Commander Bardin, before leaving the study.
----------------------------------------
I spent the rest of the day familiarizing myself with Kaltbrand Castle, with its many nooks and crannies. My explorations also gave the servants a chance to catch a glimpse of me. Unlike earlier that morning, they all treated me with deference and respect. It seemed that Grand Duke Kaltbrand’s idea to go through the lineage test worked. Everyone now knew that I was Grand Duke Kaltbrand’s son and heir.
In the evening, I had dinner with the grand duke and Knight Commander Bardin. This surprised me. As his son, it made sense for me to dine with His Grace. On the other hand, the inclusion of Knight Commander Bardin was an unusual choice. She was a countess, so that wasn’t a problem. However, she was still a vassal of House Kaltbrand and vassals weren’t usually invited to private family dinners. It didn’t take me long to figure out that this was what Grand Duke Kaltbrand intended. It was his way of implying that the three of us were family without outright saying it.
I enjoyed the dinner itself. While Grand Duke Kaltbrand and Knight Commander Bardin were legendary figures, they were also people. Sitting down and dining with them gave me a chance to know them as people, rather than just my client and my teacher. It felt nice, and I almost wished they were my actual birth parents.
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The next day, I met with the personal servants Viscount Holtz assigned to me. They were also the Blue Shadows that Claus had assigned to be my eyes and ears: Rosaline and Maria. They arrived earlier than I expected. They must have used the warp gate network to reach Kaltbrand Castle this soon.
The two of them were stout, for lack of a better word, which was unusual in the Barrens. Most people here tended towards lean and muscular. Both were pale skinned, with long brown hair and amber eyes. They were pretty, but not beautiful. This had served them well when they both worked for Ewald, since it prevented them from attracting too much attention. The twins wore maid uniforms, which seemed odd to me since I was so used to seeing them dressed as barmaids.
We were in the sitting room of my quarters. Like my bedroom, it was large and well-furnished. However, there was an air of disuse to it, as if it hadn’t seen much use until now. It also lacked any personal touches, which I planned to rectify. I would only live here for the next year, but even so I would make this place mine.
“We greet you, Lord Wulfe.” the twins said in unison, bowing to me. They wore polite expressions on their faces. “We are the servants assigned to care for you.”
It felt strange to see them act so formal with me, when they treated me far more casually not too long ago. Now we were master and servant rather than equals. It made me a little sad. Of course, that might change once we were in private. Right now, we had company.
“My name is Rosaline.” Maria said.
“My name is Maria.” Rosaline said.
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. The twins always tried to pull tricks like this. They often swapped names and pretended they were the other twin in order to prank the mercenaries who frequented Ewald’s tavern, though this never worked on me. I always knew which twin was which, regardless of their attempts to trick me.
“Greetings,” I told them, giving them both a nod. “I’ll be in your care.”
After greeting the twins, I turned to face my personal bodyguards, who arrived right after the twins had. There was no need for introductions, since I already knew who they were.
“I greet you, Lord Wulfe.” Sir Kane said. He wore a rigid expression on his face. “My name is Kane, a knight of common birth.” He gestured to the other knights. “These are my companions, Sir Viktor and Dame Elise Meyers. From this day forward, the three of us will be your bodyguards.”
I raised an eyebrow at him.
“You know, there is no need to be so formal with me, Sir Kane,” I said. “The two of us have known each other for some time now.”
“That was before I knew of your origins, Lord Wulfe.”
I sighed.
“You’re upset with me, aren’t you?”
Sir Kane shook his head.
“I wouldn’t dare, my lord.”
I glanced at the other two knights. Viktor looked like he had swallowed a lemon, while Dame Elise wore a polite expression on her face.
“Leave us.” I commanded. “All of you. I wish to speak with Sir Kane in private.”
Viktor and Elise saluted before exiting the sitting room. Before he left, Viktor gave Sir Kane a worried look. Rosaline and Maria bowed, before leaving the room as well.
“Well then,” I said, gesturing to Sir Kane. “Go ahead. Say your piece.”
Sir Kane shook his head once more.
“There is nothing to say, Lord Wulfe,” he said.
I let out another sigh.
“Do I have to make it an order?” I asked.
Sir Kane clenched his jaw and nodded. I pinched the bridge and closed my eyes. I knew he could be stubborn at times, but not to this degree. I was almost tempted to ask Knight Commander Bardin to assign another knight to protect me. However, doing so would shame Sir Kane, which I didn’t want to do.
“Sir Kane,” I said, opening my eyes again. “Regardless of my origins, I consider you a friend. You have my permission to treat me as you have in the past. At the very least, you can be less formal with me. Please.”
Several seconds passed, before Sir Kane dropped the act and outright glared at me.
“Are you really His Grace’s son?” he asked.
I wasn’t surprised by his question. Out of everyone in Kaltbrand Castle, and the Barrens as a whole, Sir Kane knew me the best. Grand Duke Kaltbrand, Knight Commander Bardin, Claus, and a whole host of others might know details about me. However, Sir Kane was the one who knew me the best as a person. Of course he would be suspicious. Before last night, I gave no indication that I was in any way related to Grand Duke Kaltbrand. My former goal of joining the Coldsteel Knights in order to earn a title just made things worse.
I didn’t want to lie to Sir Kane, yet the contract I signed last night forbade me from telling anyone about the job. This was one of those moments where my personal feelings warred with my professional integrity. No matter which I picked, it wouldn’t end well. Friendship or duty?
In the end, I chose duty. As a knight, I knew that Sir Kane would understand my decision, once he learned of the truth. This charade was only supposed to last for the next year. Whether or not he forgave me afterwards…Well, that remained to be seen. Understanding and forgiveness were two separate matters. Regardless, given what I knew about him, it would be a long time before Sir Kane forgave me once he learned of my deception, if he forgave me at all.
“Yes.” I said without batting an eyelid.
From the look on his face, it was clear that Sir Kane didn’t believe me.
“How?” he said. “If you really were His Grace’s son, then why did you work as a mercenary for the past three years? Why didn’t either of you give any indication that you two were related at all? And why is he claiming you as his son now? None of this makes sense.”
I resisted the urge to sigh. This would take some careful finessing on my part. One wrong word, and I would destroy our friendship.
“As a knight, you should know how nobles view illegitimate children.” I told him.
The nobility looked down on bastards. Marriage was a sacred union between two people, and children born out of wedlock were considered lesser. When it came to inheritance, illegitimate children were the last in the line of succession. Even so, they were still potential heirs, so a noble’s legitimate children considered any bastard siblings they might have as threats and rivals. Unless they were given no other choice, many nobles preferred not to acknowledge the existence of an illegitimate child at all.
However, as with anything, there were exceptions. There were two ways an illegitimate child could be legitimized. The first, and easiest, was if the child’s parents married. The second, and more difficult method, was if the emperor and the Grand Priest, the head of the Church of Light and Darkness, gave their blessing. This almost never happened.
The former was often done in order to secure a noble house’s succession, if the head of the house chose an illegitimate child as their heir. While it wasn’t necessary, it helped strengthen the illegitimate child’s position. If I really were the lovechild of Grand Duke Kaltbrand and Knight Commander Bardin, this would be the best course of action. However, since I wasn’t, it was unnecessary.
“Dad kept my existence a secret to protect the prestige of House Kaltbrand,” I said. “And it wasn’t as if I could reveal the secret of my birth.”
“Then why did you work as a mercenary in order to join the Order of the Coldsteel Blade?”
I snorted.
“Just because Dad wanted to keep my birth a secret didn’t mean I was going to sit back and do nothing.” I said. “As I told you, I wanted to earn a title. Doing so would help elevate my standing. Besides, what child wouldn’t want to grow closer to their parents?”
This wasn’t a lie exactly. I did want a title in order to elevate my standing and grow closer to my parents, though not in the way I presented to Sir Kane.
“I also grew up outside of the Barrens.” I continued. “Working as a mercenary and becoming a Coldsteel Knight would give me a chance to learn more about my homeland. Learning from books and hearsay aren’t enough.”
Again, not a lie. I didn’t know where I was born. My earliest memories consisted of growing in that orphanage in Towerton. However, there was a good chance that I was from the Barrens.
Years ago, right around the time I was born, a large horde of demonic beasts threatened to sweep through the Reichwald Empire. Many in the Barrens chose to flee south in order to escape the onslaught. It was a time of chaos and confusion. Many children lost their parents during that time and ended up as orphans. I suspected I was one of those orphans, though it was impossible to know for sure. While I was curious about my birth parents, they were more than likely dead. Even if they were alive, I had no idea how I would go about finding them.
This was also when Knight Commander Bardin made a name for herself and earned her current position as the leader of the Coldsteel Knights as well as the title of countess. Before this point, she had just been a knight of common birth. From what I knew, she hadn’t even been in the Coldsteel Knights long enough to earn the title of baron. Her history before that was a mystery to me.
Sir Kane studied me for several seconds, before sighing and shaking his head.
“If all of that is true,” he said. “Then why did His Grace acknowledge you as his son now of all times? What changed?”
“He had no other choice.” I said. “The political situation of the Barrens is unstable. He has no other children, and none of his other potential heirs are suitable. I’m the only one qualified to become the next head of House Kaltbrand.” I shrugged. “Or so Dad said. Frankly, I’m not so sure. It’s not as if I know much about the other potential heirs.”
Though I intended to rectify that as soon as possible. The more I knew about my “rivals” the better. One of the reasons Grand Duke Kaltbrand hired me was to give his actual heir more time to get ready. If I dealt with the real heir’s rivals, that would make things much easier for them.
“Sir Kane,” I said, putting my hand on his shoulder. He didn’t shrug it off, which I considered a good sign. “I know this is all so sudden and confusing. Just yesterday, I was a mercenary aiming to become a Coldsteel Knight. Today, I’m the heir to House Kaltbrand. However, I’m still the same Wulfe you know. I’m still your friend. That hasn’t changed.” I gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze. “Things are going to become dangerous for the foreseeable and I need people to watch my back, people I can trust and rely on. I’m hoping that you’ll be one of those people.”
Sir Kane let out a bitter chuckle.
“You don’t need me to watch your back.” he said. “You’re the heir to House Kaltbrand and an Aura Master. I’m just a knight of common birth. Why would you need someone like me?”
Ah, I see what the problem was now. Our friendship had been uneven from the start. Disregarding my supposed heritage, I was an Aura Master. However, I had hidden my true strength this entire time. From Sir Kane’s perspective, I went from his friend and equal to someone far above him in status and power. It was as if he had never known the real me. Of course he would be upset. And he was right to be upset. After all, I had deceived him this entire time.
“I’m sorry I never told you the truth.” I said, and I meant it. “I wanted to keep my strength a secret in order to avoid undue attention.” I let go of his shoulder. “And there is nothing wrong with being a knight of common birth. Look at Teacher. She was born a commoner, and she’s regarded as one of the strongest, if not the strongest, warrior in the entire empire.”
Sir Kane didn’t respond right away.
“Very well.” he said. “It will take me some time to come to terms with…everything. However, I’m willing to give it a try.”
I gave him a smile, ignoring the pain in my heart.
“Thank you, Sir Kane. I appreciate it.”