[Translator - Kiteretsu]

[Proofreader - Kyros]

Chapter 31

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Ruhos couldn’t believe the current situation.

“Young Master……”

Zaik Baldur.

The eldest son of the current head of the Baldur family and a renowned genius magician. No one doubted the brilliant future that lay ahead of him, and many strove to align themselves with him in any way possible.

Ruhos was no exception.

Though they shared the Baldur surname...

There was a vast difference between Zaik, a direct descendant, and Ruhos, a branch family member. Believing that gaining Zaik’s favor would lead to rapid advancement, Ruhos had been assisting him for the past 10 years.

He had thought he’d reached a position where he could be called one of Zaik’s close aides.

And after handling the Kaylen matter, he expected to gain even more trust.

But…

“Everything is ruined.”

Ruhos stared blankly at Kaylen.

Kaylen, who had shown an unbelievable feat against the mana suit.

A magician defeating a mana suit in close combat.

If someone were to hear of this, they would call it absurd and dismiss it as nonsense.

“You, you bastard! Do you think you’ll get away with this?”

“And what will you do about it?”

As Ruhos shouted in frustration, Kaylen shrugged.

“This brat! Do you think the Starn family will remain unscathed? How dare a vassal family…”

A vassal family.

Originally, the term referred to lower nobles serving under higher nobles…

But after the emergence of dungeons, it took on another meaning.

Lower nobles depended on higher nobles for the right to survival.

Higher nobles used their Meisters to assist in subjugating dungeons that appeared within the territories of their vassals, while lower nobles became completely subordinate to them.

Land usage rights, taxation, and even personnel decisions within the family.

A vassal family could never go against the will of the higher noble family.

Because otherwise, they wouldn’t survive in this age of rampant dungeons.

It was better to be fully subjugated under them.

To seek survival that way.

This was how the lower nobles of this era lived.

The Starn family, in particular, was in no position to oppose the Baldur family.

Without the Meisters dispatched by the Baldur family, even maintaining their territory was difficult.

More than half of their family’s resources were already taken over.

For survival.

To stay alive, they had no choice.

The Starn family needed a backer to protect them.

“Go ahead and try.”

But that was the Starn family’s concern.

Kaylen didn’t care in the slightest.

From the beginning, his goal of rebuilding Meier made the Starn family irrelevant…

Even from Kaylen’s own bodily perspective, the Starn family was insignificant.

“Because of that bastard, I remembered.”

Kaylen Starn.

The eldest son of the Starn family.

He possessed some notable magical talent, enough to enter the Magic Academy.

But…

Because his father’s second wife was from a higher noble family, his position within the family was terrible.

No, it wasn’t just terrible.

Kaylen’s position within the family was nonexistent.

“Ruhos, who is the successor of the Starn family?”

“That would be…”

At Kaylen’s question, Ruhos fell silent.

The successor of the Starn family.

Originally, it was the eldest son, Kaylen.

“But now, it’s your nephew, isn’t it? Your stepmother’s son. My half-brother.”

Kaylen remembered.

The day he saw Ruhos Baldur’s face, Kaylen was forced to recall memories he had locked away.

After Kaylen’s father remarried.

When a son was born from that marriage…

Around the time Kaylen’s position began to waver.

- Kaylen, now that you’ve become an uncle, let me give you some advice.

Balding Ruhos spoke with a benevolent smile.

- How long do you plan to let your talent rot away in the countryside?

Back when Kaylen was still with the Starn family, he undoubtedly had talent for magic.

But compared to the entire kingdom, it wasn’t a talent that could be called exceptional.

To be precise, he wasn’t gifted enough to qualify for a scholarship at the Magic Academy.

Thus, he needed money to attend the academy.

But the Starn family didn’t have that kind of money...

- I’ll pay for your tuition.

The Baldur family, to which the Starn family’s matriarch belonged, had money.

Ruhos took advantage of this.

- In return, I have a favor to ask.

Still wearing his benevolent smile, he spoke of a “favor.”

It was a request that young Kaylen could never refuse.

“Ruhos, you’re the one who told me to give up my position as the family successor.”

Kaylen lost his rights.

Under the pretext of covering his tuition for the academy.

The position of the eldest son and heir of the Starn family.

The family’s inheritance.

He was forced to give it all up.

On the surface, it seemed like a peaceful arrangement.

To expel the eldest son with a commoner-born mother, the Baldur family provided financial support for his education.

In return, he relinquished his rights as a successor.

Kaylen was sent to the capital, while the Starn family’s estate in the countryside…

Was handed over to the younger son, who, while a branch member, had a mother from the Baldur family.

-No... I don’t want this.

At first, young Kaylen refused.

Although he loved magic, he didn’t want to study abroad at the cost of giving up his position as the family heir.

He vaguely understood his talent.

It might have been impressive in the countryside, but it wouldn’t stand out at the academy in the capital.

He simply wanted to stay in his hometown, develop it, and succeed his family.

-What’s so great about staying in this backwater? A land that can’t even subjugate its own dungeons and is falling into decline.

-Then why are you targeting this place, Uncle?

Young Kaylen, in a rare moment of boldness, questioned Ruhos.

Ruhos responded with a chilling smile.

- You don’t need to know that.

- I’ll hold my ground.

- Hah. I guarantee you won’t be able to.

As Ruhos had predicted, Kaylen couldn’t hold his ground.

His father, the head of the Starn family, began to thoroughly turn his back on him.

- Kaylen, leave.

- Father…

- It’s the best way for the family.

- I can’t do that!

- You must.

After the patriarch’s advice, the maid and knight assigned to Kaylen were dismissed, and he was entirely excluded from family meals.

The patriarch abandoned Kaylen as though Ruhos Baldur’s will was his own.

- Relinquish your succession rights and go to the capital, Kaylen. And… never return here.

From that day onward, the Starn family lost all meaning to Kaylen.

And the memories buried deep in his heart began to resurface after seeing Ruhos again.

The memories that returned to him last night felt like a nightmare.

Kaylen’s reflection on those memories was simple.

“It’s a common tale.”

In noble families, where numerous vassals served and countless affairs were handled, the unified empire’s emperor, Ernstine, had often seen this.

Talented individuals lost their way, wandering aimlessly due to family circumstances.

Some, abandoned by their families, harbored vengeful spirits…

Others, plunged into despair, viewed life with hopelessness.

To those people, Ernstine would always say:

- Your family? Your position within it? Those things mean nothing to me. What matters is your ability. Prove your worth.

The emperor’s words dismissed family ties, emphasizing only competence.

But…

That standard of ability was based entirely on the emperor’s own perception, far exceeding normal expectations.

After all, surpassing one’s family required extraordinary talent, something the average person couldn’t possess.

“And I, Kaylen, didn’t have that level of talent.”

He might have been a genius magician in the countryside.

But in the broader world, he was nothing more than an average talent.

Feeling the limits of his abilities in the capital, despairing at his increasingly overweight body, and falling head over heels for Lina, Kaylen became a bottom-rank student, left behind in the academy.

That was who Kaylen was.

“In a way, it made things easier for me.”

His position within the family was nonexistent.

The Starn family had effectively cast him out first, so he no longer had to cling to his original family.

“Though I still don’t understand why Ruhos is targeting the Starn family.”

One question lingered.

Why was Ruhos Baldur targeting the Starn family?

In this era, where everything had become concentrated in the capital after the dungeon upheaval, it was said that even a prosperous commoner merchant in the capital was better off than a provincial noble family.

Moreover, the Starn family’s territory was one of the most remote backwaters.

The land wasn’t fertile, nor did it have any noteworthy specialties.

The Starn family’s territory was one of the most remote regions, farthest from the kingdom’s capital—a place so desolate that even the Order of Mounted Knights rarely ventured there.

The Starn family held only a meaningless noble title, a hollow remnant of its former glory.

Even for a branch family member, a woman from the Baldur family could have married into a better household. So why forge a connection with the Starn family?

There had to be a reason.

“I’ll figure that out later.”

For now, what mattered was Kaylen’s current situation.

Since it was confirmed that Kaylen had severed ties with his family, he had no reservations about utterly demolishing Zaik Baldur.

“You…! I went out of my way to solve this peacefully, even paying your academy fees…! And yet, a mere vassal dares to defy their station?!”

Even as Zaik was carried away by the medical team, Ruhos angrily berated Kaylen, his veins bulging with fury.

But his words held no sway over Kaylen.

“Ruhos, you know as well as I do—I’m no longer part of the Starn family.”

“…Tch! You may no longer be the heir, but you’re still a Starn!”

A noble family’s eldest son, forcibly ousted from his rightful position, still tied to that same family? How convenient.

Kaylen smirked bitterly. Was this their way of trying to reclaim him now that his worth was apparent?

“That’s for me to decide. I’m not a Starn anymore.”

Kaylen pointed a thumb at himself.

“I’m starting fresh.”

“What…?!”

Whatever the Starn family had to offer, it no longer mattered.

Since the family was the first to abandon him, there were no obstacles to starting anew.

“For now, I’ll live as commoner Kaylen. Soon enough, during the Meister Examination, I’ll prove my value to the world.”

“Y-you…!”

Kaylen casually glanced around at the scouts in attendance.

Ruhos’ gaze involuntarily followed his.

“So… he’s no longer bound to the Starn family?”

“Then we don’t need to consult his family’s wishes.”

The scouts were completely engrossed, jotting down every word exchanged.

“How did he manage to subdue a Meister in a mana suit barehanded? Even seeing it, I can hardly believe it.”

“And that final blow with his fist… What is he? No knight could manage that.”

“His magic is exceptional, too. He manipulated every element with ease. Maybe he has talent for all attributes… Could he be a true Meister-level genius?”

“A once-in-a-century prodigy!”

Shock and praise for Kaylen spread like wildfire.

On the other hand…

“We need to revise our assessment of Zaik Baldur.”

“Even under pressure, he couldn’t even throw a punch and ended up deactivating his own mana suit? Tsk tsk.”

“His mental fortitude is lacking. Just another spoiled noble brat.”

The scouts openly criticized Zaik.

Ruhos’ face darkened to a deep crimson as he heard their scathing remarks.

“These fools…!”

Zaik, as a Baldur family member, was never in a position to seek recruitment. But the debacle had tarnished his reputation in the industry, and Ruhos knew it.

The losses from today were incalculable.

“Well then, take good care of your young master.”

With a grin, Kaylen descended the arena stairs.

The scouts leapt to their feet and began following him in droves.

“Kaylen! Please, wait a moment!”

“Sir Kaylen, a word!”

Effortlessly dodging the approaching crowd, Kaylen weaved his way out of sight.

Meanwhile, from a VIP box overlooking the arena, a pair of eyes intently followed his every move.

“That man is fascinating. How does someone like him emerge among humans?”

“...Indeed.”

The voices belonged to two non-human observers.

[Translator - Kiteretsu]

[Proofreader - Kyros]