Chapter 282: The Problem of the Duke’s Family (2/2)

“Though it’s a story from long ago, it’s still a story that criticizes the royal family, so people can’t openly talk about it. It can’t be helped if you didn’t know.” [Reinbach]

Reinbach-sama explained everything from the start.

First of all, King Masaharu wasn’t born to be a king. He was an orphan just like me. But the country was at war, and the situation was getting worse, so the country wanted to break the deadlock at all costs.

It was then that Masaharu’s extraordinary magical prowess caught the attention of the king. The king then took advantage of the confusion caused by the war and falsely identified him as his own bastard son and bound him to the war.

To make an orphan a prince was not something one would normally think of, but the king wasn’t actually planning on making him the next king. However, due to all sorts of reasons, from their allies betraying them, to dying in battle while encouraging their soldiers, to being assassinated… All of King Masaharu’s sons died.

The king himself even died suddenly after winning the war and pacifying the country and was never able to produce any new heir. As a result, Masaharu was the only royal member left to take the throne.

“There must have been a lot of people against it.” [Ryouma]

“Oh, for sure. Records say that some even called for his assassination. But he was someone with tremendous success against the enemy and was well known among the people as a hero, so in the end, his succession was approved for the sake of stability. It was better for them to just give him the throne than take it from him by force.” [Reinbach]

“Actually, the nobles wanted to make him a puppet. King Masaharu may have been a powerful man, but he was timid in nature. And it’s said that before he became king, he couldn’t disobey his superiors and would always listen to their instructions.” [Remilie]

But when he became king, there was no one left to stand above him, and from then on became selfish. He would monopolize the spells, treasure, and war resources looted, and he would also arbitrarily enact laws. When people objected or complained, he would show off his magical powers to silence them. Indeed, it wasn’t far-fetched to call him a tyrant.

“The nobles that wanted to make him into their puppet could do nothing but follow him while looking for a middle ground. Alas, he was the hero of the nation, a powerful magus who by himself was able to overturn the war with his great magic.

Regardless, we don’t want Elia to become anything like him. King Masaharu’s Calamity Magic might have been the most threatening thing about him, but what’s really frightening is for Elia to become isolated and become distrustful of those around her. We don’t want to see her become a person who can only threaten others to make them obey her.” [Reinbach]

There was an anguished look on Reinbach-sama’s face that I’ve never seen before. I’ve never had kids, so I can’t say I know how a grandfather would feel about his grandchild, but…

“Please rest assured. There’s almost no chance that Elia will be able to use Calamity Magic.” [Ryouma]

“What?” [Reinbach]

“Elia likely won’t be able to use Calamity Magic. Calamity Magic doesn’t actually require a special kind of talent or lineage, it’s a normal branch of magic. You guys can use it too. If aptitude is the question, well, everyone has it.” [Ryouma]

“So Calamity Magic isn’t a special kind of magic? But every one of the spells recorded, even the fact that the king made this canyon, all surpassed human understanding.” [Reinbach]

“That’s likely because of the difference in mana pool. King Masaharu possessed vast reserves of mana even among the Children of the Gods. Even if I could use the same spells as him, I still wouldn’t be able to come close to replicating his feats, and that’s despite me being a Child of God. I can’t use magic as well as King Masaharu, and I don’t think Elia could either given how her mana pool is about the same size as mine. But of course, we still have better chances than normal mages.” [Ryouma]

As I explained the situation while avoiding vague statements as much as possible, Reinbach-sama finally couldn’t hold on, and he held down his eyes with the handkerchief he received from Sebasu-san and looked down.

“I’m sorry, please excuse me for a while.” [Reinbach]

“I’ll accompany you.” [Sebasu]

Reinbach-sama’s voice shook as he excused himself and entered the tent with Sebasu-san. I was left with Remilie-san and Schieber-san, and for awhile, there was silence between us, then Schieber-san spoke.

“Thank you. Even I felt as though a weight has been lifted from my shoulders. I’m sure Reinhart and Sebasu are even more delighted.” [Schieber]

“I’m indebted to Reinbach-sama’s family, so that goes for me too.” [Ryouma]

“Even then… That’s information we couldn’t get no matter how hard we tried. Besides, you could have chosen to keep quiet about your Oracle skill or about the Calamity Magic.” [Schieber]

“I wasn’t expecting you to go that far too. Revealing that you’re a Child of God was already plenty.” [Remilie]

“That’s true… But I had information that I got by coincidence, and I knew that the people I was indebted to were suffering. If I chose to keep quiet despite that, I don’t think I could have endured it.” [Ryouma]

Even if doing so allowed me a peaceful life, I’m sure I would have regretted it. It would also make it harder for me to face them afterwards and likely made me fall into a spiral of self-hate.

Something along the lines of ‘Why didn’t I realize it sooner? I’m always like this, only able to focus on myself, never able to notice others! That’s why I’m no good!’

No, if I still had my broken mentality from my previous life, I’m sure I would have fallen into that spiral of self-hate.

I’m actually a lot more optimistic now, and I have the duke and his family to thank for that. That’s why I want to repay them if even a little.

While I was thinking that, the other two also realized that and understood.

“It’s a good thing for me, so as long as you have no regrets, then nothing could be better.” [Schieber]

“Still, be sure to carefully choose the things you reveal and the people you talk to. Of course, we’ll help too if something happens.” [Remilie]

“I pray nothing bad happens, but if something does happen, I’ll be sure to rely on you.” [Ryouma]

When Reinbach-sama and Sebasu-san returned, they thanked me again and promised that they would work with me in the future.

…I don’t know what the future holds, but right now, there are people like them helping me. So as long as I treasure these relationships, I’m sure it’ll all work out.