Reset Life – Chapter 51

Chapter 51: The Rumors Were True? (1)

Imperial Year 372, November 4th.

The entire month of October was incredibly busy.

After my victory in the duel against Pilledvan, I received invitations to numerous social gatherings, both large and small. To expand my sphere of influence, I had to attend each and every one of them.

Father seemed to approve. As always, he was more concerned with the benefits these connections would bring to our family than my personal well-being.

Thanks to the success of the diplomatic mission, which I’m too tired to even talk about now, I was inundated with offers from pro-Azot nobles. I was practically worn out from the unprecedented popularity.

The only problem was that all of them required a partner.

Frankly, I’d be curious too.

A man who challenges another to a duel to protect a lady’s honor is, well, quite impressive even from a man’s perspective. It’s only natural that people would be curious about the woman protected by such a dashing man (I’m quite embarrassed to say it myself).

However, people don’t know.

That she is the ‘mighty’ Sword King Levidian, who doesn’t need my protection in the first place.

Naturally, I wouldn’t have taken her, who needs neither my protection nor my escort, to these gatherings. Besides, she’s somewhat allergic to social events.

“Thanks to you, I had a great time sightseeing in the capital. Good food, good sights. Though I’m not too happy about being treated like a second choice.”

“Where’s the first choice then?”

I glared at Aila with a grumpy expression.

It was already late autumn, and the Hind family had long since returned to Dakard Barony. After the vassals from Orknesia also departed, our mansion became quiet again.

Those who remained were our family, my younger sister, my teacher, Aila, and Namia.

I don’t know how it happened, but Aila seems to emit some kind of pheromone that makes people like her. Mother, Sera, and even my brother (Oh, dear!) welcomed her continued stay.

The pheromone-emitting girl spoke nonchalantly.

“People probably think your first choice is Ibi-unni. Thanks to me stepping in, people’s curiosity is skyrocketing. And thanks to you, I’ve become accustomed to the looks of people settling for second best.”

“Tsk. I can’t argue with that.”

I scratched my head.

Since I couldn’t attend the gatherings with Levidian, I had to find another partner.

My cousin Eri would have been a suitable candidate, but it’s a social rule not to interfere with someone being ardently courted.

It’s common to bring a family member if you don’t have a partner, but my sister Sera was too young.

That meant I had to choose from among guests or acquaintances, and of the two remaining possibilities, Namia was a priestess.

In the end, Aila was the only option.

Oh, for her honor’s sake, let me clarify that it wasn’t that she was unsuitable or that I brought her out of desperation.

While it was true that I couldn’t exclude her, aside from her eccentric speech, unconventional personality, and peculiar behavior, she was a fine lady and a good dance partner.

She always brought laughter to the gatherings and balls, and as a result, she had been receiving more and more invitations lately.

My only complaint was that her presence had only intensified the curiosity surrounding Levidian.

I tossed the fundamental question of why she was still here across the Sair River. It was pointless to dwell on it.

Aila traced the rim of her teacup with her finger and spoke with a knowing look.

“Hmm, but what can you do? The second son of the Herduke family has already been abandoned by an older woman.”

What are you trying to say?

“Abandoned? That’s not true.”

“Oh, come on. You have the face of a mature child who can’t complain even after having his toy taken away. What else could it be?”

She giggled, her golden eyes sparkling with mischief. I decided to ignore her playful mood. Honestly, it wasn’t entirely untrue.

Lately, Levidian has been strangely indifferent towards me. No, it wasn’t even strange; she was completely ignoring me.

That’s because she was currently preoccupied with teaching her new disciple.

Virean Orcanto.

Nicknamed ‘Lea’, he was one of the Eight Strongest on the continent before my death, and the true disciple to whom the Sword King decided to pass on all of her skills.

Including me, Levidian had 134 disciples, but those were disciples in the sense of ‘teacher and student’. However, Lea was a disciple in the sense of ‘master and disciple’.

While the meaning might be similar, the application was different.

A ‘teacher’s disciple’ was like sowing seeds in a field for a large-scale harvest, while a ‘master’s disciple’ was like meticulously caring for and nurturing a bonsai tree.

Since I had my family’s swordsmanship, there was no need for me to inherit her skills, and the same went for the 133 others she had taught so far.

They were all ‘teacher’s disciples’. But Lea was a ‘master’s disciple’.

Naturally, the effort and time invested were different. Thanks to that, I had become quite free, quite empty, and quite resentful.

“It can’t be helped. She finally found a disciple to pass everything on to. And I was the one who introduced him after she asked me to search for him.”

Jay. I applaud you for completing the task quickly and efficiently. But did you have to do it so perfectly? Ugh.

I sighed deeply, and Aila said with a mischievous grin.

“So you can’t say anything. It wouldn’t be appropriate to ask ‘Why have you become so distant?’ now. I see the sadness in your eyes. What to do……”

Aila spoke sympathetically, but her face didn’t lose its playful glint. I felt a surge of annoyance, but I had cultivated my patience. I was already used to Aila’s teasing.

I put on a truly hurt expression and said.

“Yeah, what can I do? I can’t be jealous of a thirteen-year-old, and it’s absurd to resent Teacher. Honestly, I’m a bit disappointed. Lea is talented, but I didn’t expect to be treated like an old shoe in just two days.”

“Oh? Um, w-well, it’s okay. Cheer up. Ibi-unni will come around eventually. You know how she gets. When she starts something, she becomes incredibly focused and ignores everything else until a certain point. Ibi-unni is probably like that right now. Besides, thanks to you, Ibi-unni is having a lot of fun. So think positively. Okay?”

Usually, Aila and I only bickered, but when I opened up to her, she became flustered and showed her genuine side. I only recently realized that if she sensed the other person was being serious, she would respond in kind.

I smiled bitterly and nodded.

“Sigh, I guess so. By the way, what has Namia been up to lately?”

“She’s been in contact with the Light of Origin. You haven’t changed since seeing Artshever during the duel. Speaking of which, he hasn’t been appearing in social circles, has he? But why did he show up at your duel?”

“I don’t know.”

I shrugged and lifted my teacup, lost in thought.

Artshever’s appearance at the duel two months ago was a ploy to taunt me. However, how Pilledvan gained his monstrous strength remained a mystery.

For the record, after losing the duel, Pilledvan suffered from full-body muscle pain and nervous breakdown that couldn’t be cured even by priests. He hadn’t been able to leave his house for a month.

I knew it from the moment he was acting all smug, you fool.

Still, out of courtesy, I sent him a letter wishing him a speedy recovery along with a get-well gift.

I didn’t mention in the letter that the gift was purchased with a portion of the compensation I received from the Salain family, but he would probably understand the meaning since it was sent right after the compensation arrived.

This is the epitome of a well-mannered noble. We call each other ‘enemies’ but read it as ‘friends’, striving to improve ourselves through competition. Mwahahaha!

Ha, it’s like something out of an old novel.

“Anyway, you must be free these days, right?”

“More or less. No grueling training, no one picking fights with me.”

That was only during the day.

At night, I met with Jay and Old Man almost every other day, plotting to take over the nightlife of Nek. I felt like I was becoming some kind of evil mastermind from a story.

Of course, my family was unaware of this. If they looked closely, they might notice that the secret passage in my room was being used frequently, but Father, my brother, and everyone else were only concerned with my daytime activities.

Levidian pretended not to know, and Joey was completely oblivious, so the only one left was Aila.

She didn’t show any knowing glances, subtle smiles, or anything of the sort, just nodding nonchalantly.

“Hmm. I see. What are you going to do with all that free time?”

“I don’t know.”

Was Aila becoming indifferent towards me too? I felt like a child who had been showered with parental love, only to have their parents’ attention diverted by a newly born sibling.

As Aila said, my days were frighteningly free.

Actually, my nights were the same.

Before the duel, I had given Old Man an order. True to his meticulous nature, he had perfectly understood my command.

Ah, it’s important to note, ‘understood’, not ‘carried out’.

Simply put, Old Man realized that what I needed wasn’t a mage, but a skilled accountant and clerk who could be put to good use.

Of course, his meticulous personality wouldn’t allow him to interpret and apply my orders on his own, unlike Jay. The problem was that when he contacted the Mage’s Guild, the mage named ‘Kersilla Creon’ was unavailable, and his hiring fee was exorbitant.

Therefore, Old Man interpreted my orders based on this situation and carried them out. As a result, our organization acquired a few highly skilled accountants and legal professionals.

When I questioned the importance of a mage, Old Man’s reply was this:

‘If what you need is magical ability, I believe it’s unnecessary for the organization at this time. This is the report that supports my conclusion. Now is not the time.’

Looking at the 30-page document he handed me, I raised my hands in surrender. It was a shame to lose one of the future Eight Strongest of the continent, but how could I recruit him if I didn’t even know where he was?

In the end, I decided to postpone the mage issue.

However, Old Man had brilliantly carried out my other orders. He swiftly purchased and sold the salt farm land, which was about to become entangled in a dispute between three families.

Thanks to my victory in the duel, the Lorand family agreed to lend money to Baron Dakard, and I sold the salt farm land to Baron Dakard for 12 times the public price.

That Baron Dakard was Aila’s father, but all of this was done in secret. It seemed that even the cute girl with ashen hair and golden eyes hadn’t noticed.

Thus, with the funds earned from the tournament during the festival and various other additions, Jay seriously considered venturing into the loan shark business. If we had the time, we might have actually started operating a loan business.

In conclusion, while everyone around me was incredibly busy, I was the only one left out.

The past month, which felt like it would drive me crazy with its busyness, now felt like a distant dream.

“Artshever seems to be quiet too……What did he do to become an enemy of the Lynin Religion?”

“Namia is keeping quiet about that too.”

I replied nonchalantly and lifted my teacup.

Artshever hadn’t made any noticeable moves after the duel, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that he might be plotting something behind the scenes, just like I was scheming to control the nightlife of Nek.

During the past month, I had casually inquired about Artshever while meeting with various people. Many of them mentioned having met him alongside Duke Mujaindos.

Most of them had favorable opinions of Artshever.

While not many rumors about him circulated in social circles, word had begun to spread among the guests visiting the Salain family that there was a ‘rather pleasant gentleman’ present.

Based on his outward behavior, Artshever truly was a gentleman.

It is said that he possesses quite a profound judgment, even though he doesn’t involve himself in politics or economics, and that he has a unique perspective, a little different from others.

Moreover, in terms of etiquette and refinement, it is said that even the sons of other noble families nod their heads in acknowledgment. Considering only the rumors I’ve heard, if I had known nothing, I too would have treated him favorably.

However, he also has a weakness. His origins are unclear. Because of this, the Salain family likely doesn’t invite him to social gatherings outside the family.

Although he seems to have enough reputation within the Salain family to act as a witness for a duel, gaining the trust of the Duke’s family alone is not enough to overcome the weakness of his unclear origins.

High society is not an easy place to navigate, relying solely on a strong background.

That has now become his weapon.

It is extremely difficult to have a power struggle with an opponent who thoroughly hides themselves, and is in a situation where they have no choice but to hide. Even the groundwork alone is proving to be quite challenging.

With a tired expression, I lifted my teacup. At that moment, Aila, who had been sitting with her elbows on the table and her chin resting on her fists, a posture far from ladylike, suddenly spoke.

“How about hosting a ball?”

“A ball?”

“Yes. You seem bored. You’ve been invited to so many, so it’s about time you invited people yourself. The preparations alone will keep you busy, so think of it as a way to pass the time. The Herduke family hasn’t hosted a ball since the last festival, right? The Duke and your brother have been busy ever since.”

“That’s true.”

It would be a mistake to think that Father and my brother’s visits to their territories were simply about asserting their authority over their subjects.

The true purpose of these visits was tax collection, final review, and approval of various documents related to the past year’s affairs in their territories.

The problem was that this work didn’t end during their visits, and as a result, Father and my brother earned the ire of the women in our family. As the old saying goes, ‘Don’t bring other women and work into your home.’

To summarize:

After the festival, Father and my brother were groaning under the weight of their work.

How could they possibly have the time to host a ball or any other social gathering? Fortunately, they had finally finished their work and were enjoying a well-deserved break. In other words, they had no plans to start anything new. This meant that now was the perfect time to host a ball.

Aila smiled brightly and continued, still in her unrefined but cute posture.

“So, why don’t you host a ball? You can invite quite a few people now, and I’m sure many would be asking for invitations.”

“Hmm, that’s a good idea. But what would be the occasion for the ball? There’s nothing as pointless as a ball with the theme ‘Let’s just get together and have fun!’. That would only lead to rumors about me trying to build my power base at a young age, trying to expand my influence, and so on.”

In the worst-case scenario, there would be those who would claim that I was trying to flaunt my power in a bid for the right of succession. Even worse, my brother or father might think the same.

As if she had anticipated this, Aila grinned and said.

“What day is November 14th?”

The answer came to me instantly.

“Saint Mars Cuerad’s Day. Ah! A masquerade ball?!”

“Ding-dong! Correct!”

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