Chapter 31: Are You Truly My Son? (1)

Jacques, Keter’s personal butler, joined him for lunch once again, just like the day before, with an exhausted look in his eyes. As Keter enjoyed his meal leisurely, he glanced at Jacques.

“Did someone die? Why the long face?”

“How are you able to eat right now, my lord?”

“It’s freshly baked and soft, so it’s really good.”

“Ugh! Soft or not, I heard you fought with Mr. Ultima. That's just a rumor, right? Surely even you wouldn't have done something like that.”

“Of course, it's a rumor. We didn't fight. I just beat him up one-sidedly.”

“...Do you even know who Ultima is? Is that why you're acting this calm?”

“He’s a mere commoner merchant.”

Keter kept eating without pause, even during the conversation. Unable to stand it any longer, Jacques snatched the roasted chicken leg Keter was about to eat.

“Please stop eating for a moment and realize how serious this situation is...?”

“Thanks for deboning it.”

All that was left in Jacques' hand was a bare bone.

Clang

.

Though he was about to toss the bone away, Jacques gently placed it in the bone dish and switched to a pleading approach.

“The head of the family may be a kind and merciful person, but he won't just overlook this incident. No matter what anyone says, I'm on your side, my lord. So, let's discuss how we should go about apologizing. There’s no other solution!”

“What nonsense are you talking about? Who exactly should I be apologizing to?”

“To Mr. Ultima, of course! It will be a huge loss if he cuts off trade with the Sefira family. Even if the patriarch protects you, Elder Panir won’t let you off the hook.”

Jacques began delivering a lengthy lecture on why Keter should apologize. However, Keter simply smiled.

No need to worry, Gramps. Ultima won't sever the deal.

Ultima had accepted my offer to betray the high nobles. But that didn't mean he was just going to blindly help Sefira. He wasn’t foolish enough to make his betrayal obvious. Ultima would continue pressuring Sefira as he always did. But that would merely be a deception. When the crucial moment came, Ultima would abandon the high nobles and side with Sefira.

And that moment would be created by Keter himself.

I've bought time. I’ve deceived the entire world by staging that beating.

Not only that, Keter received a glass bead, a signaling device, as a symbol of trust.

“Break this if you ever need the help of the Ultima Merchant Company. No matter where you are, a rescue team will find you.”

“If I'm on the verge of death, you can finish me off while you’re at it. Two birds with one stone, right?”

“I won't deny it. So show me for sure. Prove you're not just a lunatic, but a lunatic who's incredibly strong.”

On top of that, Keter pocketed a commission fee of twenty thousand gold, an amount so jaw-dropping that it basically dislocated. Honestly, it was enough for Keter to retire right now and live leisurely in a big city. They say if a person is too greedy, their stomach would burst...

But I’m still hungry.

𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Crunch!

Keter bit into a peach, skin and all, and gazed out the window.

What a ridiculously huge family. Even ten million gold wouldn’t be enough to revive this family with money alone. Of course, the money I make is mine. They'll have to fend for themselves while I have my share.

As Keter stood up, Jacques followed suit.

“My lord, you're finally listening to me?”

“Hm? I just stood up to go to the bathroom.”

“...The knights will be here soon. They're probably coming to take you. Please, just stay calm when that happens. I'll take care of it.”

“Sounds good to me.”

Jacques didn’t bother following Keter to the bathroom, which was a sign that he hadn’t fully learned his lesson yet. The dining room didn’t only have the main entrance; there was a back door for the workers to use. Instead of heading to the bathroom, Keter slipped out through the back.

“Being dragged off just isn't my style.”

Jacques was right; Besil wouldn't tolerate this any longer. Even if it wasn’t out of personal feelings, allowing Keter to run wild like this would only fuel internal frustration beyond control.

I didn’t exactly intend for this, but it looks like he really couldn’t hold out for more than two days.

At this hour, Besil would only be in one place—his office. If Keter was summoned, it would be there. Keter headed directly toward Besil's office.

Meanwhile, chaos erupted in the dining room, as Keter had vanished. Jacques tried to stall, saying he was in the bathroom, but of course, Keter wasn’t there.

“Did he run off out of fear of being reprimanded? Damn it!” shouted the knight who came to get Keter, gritting his teeth. “Get the soldiers out! He couldn’t have gone far!”

“W-wait! I know Lord Keter does whatever he wants, but I’m sure he didn’t run away!”

Jacques tried to stop the knights, but they refused to listen to him, already having a prejudice against Keter. Like that, Keter inadvertently revitalized the Sefira family.

* * *

Besil was writing a letter, waiting for Keter to arrive.

—Dear Elder Reganon El Sefira. Please understand that I could not address you as my father-in-law. As you know, Keter, my son who I was unaware of, has joined the family. While I am grateful that he has grown up healthy, his behavior has been troubling me...

Scratch, scratch...

Besil, who had been focused on writing, suddenly put down his pen. At the same time, the cloak he was wearing transformed into a bow and arrows—it was the Doppelgänger, Sefira's family treasure. In an instant, Besil aimed toward the window.

“Show your face,” he said calmly.

There was nothing at the window. Even the idea of an enemy outside the window was absurd, as Besil’s office was on the seventh floor, and the building’s outer walls were as smooth as glass. On top of that, knights were monitoring every blind spot.

Yet, Besil had sensed someone’s presence outside the window. He would have immediately shot an arrow if the intruder had shown any sign of hostility or intent to kill, but since there was none, he refrained from shooting.

Swish.

The intruder revealed themselves outside the window, hanging upside down. Besil didn’t immediately recognize them. After all, they were upside down, and it was a face he'd never seen before. But upon closer inspection, he soon realized who it was.

“K... Keter?”

“Correct.”

Creak.

Keter casually opened the window and entered the office. Besil remained silent as he watched him.

The windows would have been locked. And yet, he was hanging upside down at this height, showing no signs of fear or hesitation as he jumped.

Even a highly trained knight would shatter their legs jumping from the seventh floor. And Keter had been hanging upside down; one small mistake during the landing, and he would die instantly without question. Yet, Keter risked such a dangerous move without a second thought and broke into his office.

Besil pointed toward the door and said, “You ignored a perfectly good door.”

“That wouldn't be fun,” Keter replied.

“Where are the knights sent to fetch you? Did you come here alone?“

“Looks like we missed each other. I figured you'd call, so I came early.”

As soon as Keter finished speaking, the door to the office swung open, and Navakin entered.

“Lord Besil! Keter has escaped! We've released the soldiers and hounds, so we’ll catch him any moment now... Huh?”

Navakin noticed Keter standing by the window of the office. Keter waved at him, while Besil licked his lower lip in frustration.

What kind of chaos is this?

For a moment, Besil wasn't sure where to even begin. But despite the confusion, he addressed Navakin.

“As you can see, Keter is here. Call off the search.”

“Ah... Yes, my lord!”

Navakin, who was blinking in surprise, snapped out of his shock and saluted before leaving the office.

“

Sigh.

”

Besil reverted the Doppelgänger back into his cloak form and placed his hand on the table.

Thud.

Hearing a noise from behind, Besil turned around. Keter had sat himself down on the sofa, even though the patriarch, his father, was standing.

“...”

Besil, dumbfounded, stared at Keter, who then gestured to the sofa across from him and said, “Why don't you sit down?”

Why are you the one saying that? If you weren’t my son...

Besil was surprised by his own thoughts.

Calm down. Keter probably thinks I abandoned him. Once we clear the misunderstanding, he'll show proper respect.

It was a level of patience befitting for someone responsible for an entire family. Besil decided to show the grace of an adult.

“One shouldn't sit before their elder does, Keter.”

“They didn't do that in Liqueur.”

“This is Sefira, so you should follow Sefira’s rules.”

“I'll keep that in mind for next time.”

Besil clenched his fist.

“Yes, make sure you don't repeat the mistake next time.”

Feeling that telling him to stand up again would make him seem petty, Besil sat down across from Keter. Finally, they were on the same level, their eyes meeting. Both stared intently at each other. Besil was the first to break the silence.

“You’re the spitting image of your mother.”

“She must be quite beautiful, then?”

“Have you never seen her?”

“Thanks to you, I was raised by an old petty thief.”

“We need to clear up the misunderstanding. I didn't know about your existence either. If I had known, I wouldn't have left you behind. The fact that you're here in front of me now is proof of that.“

“It doesn't seem like you brought me here out of affection.”

“...”

For a moment, Besil almost denied it. The truth was that Keter had been summoned because of the trouble he'd caused; that was the main point. Straightening his posture, Besil spoke in a slightly stiff tone.

“Yes, you're right. I summoned you as the patriarch of the Sefira family. Keter, you know what you've done wrong, don't you?”

“If being brilliant is a crime, I guess I'm due for the gallows.“

“I can understand your rudeness. You lived your whole life in the lawless city of Liqueur, so it's understandable you wouldn't know the rules of the outside world. But I can't forgive your mistakes.“

“And what exactly have I done so wrong?”

Keter's genuinely innocent look made Besil think how shameless his son was, even though he was his own child.

“Let me remind you of what you did in just one day. First, you went to Anis and picked a fight.”

“Anis threw the first punch, so it was self-defense. We even settled it.”

“And what about taking the Demon Bow Amaranth without permission?”

“The weapon chose its owner. I want to return it, but it doesn’t seem to want to leave me.”

Though it was blatant Keter was lying, Besil couldn't tell for sure whether it was true or false.

“I heard you gave Taragon some advice, telling him to run around the training grounds all day. That doesn't align with Sefira's training methods.”

“If Taragon doesn't want to do it, I’m not going to force him to. It's his choice.”

Talking back at every single point.

Besil glared at Keter. From Keter’s responses, an outsider would think that he didn’t do anything wrong. But his brazen attitude was what annoyed Besil the most.

But you won’t have an excuse for what happened with Ultima.

That was, in fact, the main reason Besil had summoned Keter. Of all the things Keter had done, the issue with the only trading partner they had wasn’t just an inconvenience—it was much more serious.

“I'm curious how you’ll explain why you hit Mr. Ultima from the merchant company today.”

“I hit him because he annoyed me.”

“...What?”

“That lowly commoner merchant should consider it an honor to do business with the Sefira family, but he didn’t know his place. So, I taught him a lesson on behalf of the family.”

“Sounds like you're interpreting everything to your own advantage.”

“I'm a bit selfish. Must’ve inherited it from someone.”

“Keter.”

Besil stood up. His gaze, cold and heavy, was fixed on Keter. Keter also rose from his seat, meeting Besil’s eyes.

After a pause, Besil slowly opened his mouth.

“The reason you've come to the Sefira family... Could it be that you want revenge? Do you resent me and this family for abandoning you, and is that why you're acting this way on purpose?”

It was a question that could decide Keter's fate, depending on his answer. Most would hesitate, but Keter replied immediately.

“I used to think that way, but not anymore.”

“Not anymore, you say?”

“Allow me to introduce myself, then.”

Keter pulled out a business card from his coat and, with both hands, politely handed it to Besil.

“Keter, the Solver from Liqueur. I solve problems for prices that aren’t exactly reasonable.”