"He wakes up once in the afternoon, but his condition isn't good, so it will be difficult to see him for long."
"We're only here to pay our respects."
"Let's go in and wait for now."
Eugene, Galfredic, and Pellid entered lord Tiwyn's bedroom in the main building together with Kamara.
The bedroom, where several maids stood with their heads lowered, was dark.
'That smell…'
Eugene frowned without realizing it.
It wasn't just unpleasant.
As a vampire, Eugene instinctively sensed the scent of 'death' coming from the bed where lord Tywin lay.
As the rumors said, lord Tiwyn no longer seemed to have any hope left.
"How is Father?"
At Kamara's question, the doctor of Rose Castle—the one who had bandaged Eugene—answered with a grim face.
"I administered his medicine a short while ago, so he will awaken briefly. And… as I told you before, it would be best to prepare your heart now. Even if he continues to take mana stones, it only keeps him barely breathing. It would be kinder to send him peacefully into the arms of the gods."
"Tsk. I understand."
At Kamara's response, the doctor bowed deeply and left.
Eugene looked at the lord lying on the bed—lord Tywin.
The old man's bluish face, covered in dark age spots, already looked like that of a corpse.
It was impossible to believe that until about twenty years ago he had been counted among the top five knights of this region.
"Even though I lacked talent, do you know why I abandoned the path of knighthood so early?" kamara asked in a low voice.
Eugene turned his head toward him.
"I didn't want to end up like that. And I never will. I will absolutely never become like that."
As Kamara stared at lord Tywin, flames seemed to flicker in his eyes.
Seeing this side of Kamara for the first time, Eugene was a little surprised. He didn't seem to be merely an arrogant heir of a small fief.
"You may not know this, but even when I was a child, there were already signs that Father would end up like this. Living a life soaked in alcohol and violence under the pretense of 'knightly conduct'—this is the natural result. If he had been good at climbing the right ladders, it might've been different. But he only knew how to put on armor, mount a horse, and go fight."
"That's how all knights live," Galfredic said.
Kamara turned his gaze to him and grinned.
"True. I'm not saying that's wrong. Our territory itself was built with the money Father earned from demon realm hunts and battlefields. But still."
Kamara's voice grew grave.
"Even this small territory wasn't managed properly. Leaving aside the nobles who coveted it, even those who used Father so thoroughly began scheming the moment the dungeon was discovered. If you hadn't succeeded in opening the dungeon, we wouldn't have lasted more than a few months before going bankrupt. Do you know what that means?"
Kamara's smile deepened.
"Father both built this domain—and ruined it. lord Tywin himself. Well, surviving for about twenty years—does that count as a long time?"
"Isn't it the role of the eldest son and heir to overcome that? The Gate-Opening Subjugation succeeded, so now all that's left is for you to manage things well, isn't it?"
"Heh! I want to. And I'll pour all my effort into doing so. But if it were as easy as words make it sound, why would dozens of small fiefs like ours change hands so often?"
"..."
"Without power, everything is meaningless. The by-products and mana stones we obtained this time? After paying your success rewards and settling part of our debts, there won't be much left. Then it'll be another debt festival. Still, since the Gate-Opening succeeded, maybe the Phaelin Merchant Guild will lend to us a little more easily? Heh."
At Kamara's self-mockery, Eugene suddenly realized something.
No matter how much of a lord one was, without power it meant nothing, and calling oneself the ruler of a small frontier territory wasn't particularly impressive either.
If the Tywin territory had possessed real strength, it wouldn't have needed the power of an unknown knight like him or the money of the Phaelin Merchant Guild.
'Wait… if I make good use of this…?'
Just then, the eyelids of lord Tywin, who had been lying like a corpse, trembled faintly.
"It seems Father is waking up."
"Who is it…?"
As lord Tywin barely opened his eyes, Kamara stepped closer.
"Father, it's me. Kamara. I brought the two knights who succeeded in the Gate-Opening Subjugation to meet you."
"Is that so… I need to…."
As lord Tywin raised his hand, Kamara quickly supported him.
Propped up against a pillow at last, lord Tywin's lifeless gaze met Pellid's.
"That boy… oh, right. The son Vera bore. My youngest. Heh…"
"My lord."
"You may call me Father… I'm going to die soon anyway—if you don't call me now, when will you? Heh."
After patting Pellid's shoulder, lord Tywin looked at Eugene and Galfredic.
"You succeeded in the Gate-Opening… Subjugation?"
"Yes, lord Tywin. It is an honor to meet you. I am Krema, third son of Galfredic."
"I am Yan, eldest son of Eugene."
Following Galfredic, Eugene placed his hand on his pommel and bowed lightly.
"I see… You must have suffered greatly. And… your name was Sir Eugene, wasn't it?"
"Yes, lord Tywin."
"You brought my youngest back. It seems you desire something… what is it?"
Eugene wishes to have his status officially recognized, Father. I mentioned it briefly before."
"Oh, yes… that's right."
As lord Tiwin made a small gesture, Kamara hurriedly handed him something.
It was a document certifying Eugene's status, prepared in advance by Kamara.
Pressing the large signet ring on his middle finger onto the bottom of the parchment, lord Tywin spoke with effort.
"I wonder how much help this will be to a knight who's already succeeded in a Gate-Opening Subjugation… Still, within this region, it will fully guarantee your status. Yan of House Eugene."
"Thank you."
Though he had achieved one of his main purposes for bringing Pellid to Rose Castle, Eugene remained calm.
Lord Tywin, slowly nodding, shifted his gaze to Kamara.
After staring quietly at his eldest son with eyes filled with mixed emotions, lord Tywin brushed Kamara's hand with his rough, skeletal fingers.
"You've… worked hard."
"I only did what I had to do."
"No. It wasn't easy… you know it as well as I do. Cough, cough!"
After coughing dryly, lord Tywin tightly grasped Kamara's hand.
Kamara's eyes widened slightly.
"Father, this is—"
"From now on… you are the master of this domain. Please, not as a knight… but as a lord Tywin…"
Leaving the signet ring with his eldest son, lord Tywin let his head fall.
"Oh, Father.This is...''
The flustered voices of Kamara and Pellid echoed through the room.
Though he had been a poor lord, lord Tywin—who had once been a knight of some renown—thus passed away.
"I'm sorry I couldn't stay to see the funeral."
"It's all right. Seeing a brave knight like you before he passed must have satisfied my father as well."
Shaking hands with Kamara, Galfredic turned to Eugene.
"Take care. I don't know when it'll be, but if we meet again, I hope we'll still be on the same side then."
"Hmm."
Eugene shook hands with Galfredic, the man who had changed his prejudice about knights.
He had never spared himself in battle, and he was a man who understood honor and promises.
"Then the second son as well—"
Just as Galfredic tried to greet Bertel, he gave a snort.
Whatever displeased him, Bertel wouldn't even look this way.
"A grown man sulking like a child. Tsk, tsk."
Galfredic clicked his tongue openly, but Bertel merely flinched and didn't dare retort.
"Then farewell!"
Mounting his horse, Galfredic rode off.
Even alone, no madman would dare attack a knight clad in full plate mail, laden with a longsword, a battle axe, and even a personal spear.
"Now! Let's go inside. We must prepare for the funeral."
"Yes, lord Tywin!"
At Kamara's words, the people of Rose Castle bowed low. As of today, Kamara had become the new 'lord Tywin,' and this castle was now his.
"Then, Eugene, I look forward to working with you."
"Since it will benefit us both, I'll do my best."
"Oh! That will never happen, absolutely not. By the way, the funeral—"
"You already saw what he looked like when he passed, didn't you? That's enough."
"Yes… lord Tywin."
"I told you to call me brother."
"Ah, yes. Brother."
Kamara awkwardly patted Pellid on the shoulder, then walked toward the main building.
Bertel, who had been glaring at Eugene and Pellid as if he wanted to devour them, also followed behind his brother.
"That cold-hearted bastard! I really can't stand him! Should I sneak over tonight and just slit his throat?"
As always, Eugene ignored Mirian's nonsense and continued walking with Pellid.
"Um, but Master."
"Hm?"
"Why did you insist on taking me along too? Before, you said you had no intention of traveling with me…"
"Well, that's true. But I've got a job for you."
"Yes?"
Pellid tilted his head in confusion. Then his face suddenly brightened.
"Mr. Partek!"
"Good day, young master."
Partek, Glad, and Raban, who had been waiting at the end of the drawbridge, bowed politely to Pellid.
"What brings you here?"
Partek answered only with a faint smile, then spoke to Eugene.
"We're all ready, Eugene."
"What about the mercenaries we hired yesterday?"
"I told them to stay put in the village until you return, Sir Eugene, and they followed without a complaint."
"Good. Let's go."
"Master? Aren't we supposed to be staying in the lower town?"
Eugene turned his head at the hurriedly following Pellid.
"You've suddenly become very talkative. Isn't it proper for a servant to follow silently whatever a knight does?"
"Oh, yes, sir."
Pellid, newly reminded of his status, shut his mouth.
Raban sidled up next to him and spoke quietly.
"We're heading to Brams now, young master."
"Brams? Why there…?"
"For now, to buy a horse for Eugene."
"Oh…"
"But Brams isn't our final destination."
"What? What do you mean by that?"
Seeing Pellid frown in confusion, Raban gave a meaningful smile.
"We'll buy a horse in Brams, then we're going to Maren."
"Maren… you mean—gasp!"
At the name of the largest commercial city in the region, a place that took ten full days just to reach, the eyes of the country bumpkin bastard from Broadwin grew as wide as lanterns.
'That was one big hit to my wallet.'
Eugene looked regretfully at his now-lighter coin pouch and tucked it back into his clothes.
Because he had bought a wagon pulled by a pack horse in Martella, the lower town of Rose Castle, fully half of the payment he had received from the Tiwyn family was gone.
The wagon was essential for transporting monster byproducts, and since he planned to sell it again as soon as they reached Maren, it was still worth it—but that didn't mean he didn't feel the loss.
"It would've been nice if we could get a warhorse too, wouldn't it, Eugene?"
"In a town with only one knight, having a warhorse would be stranger, wouldn't it?"
"There should be some decent horses in Brams."
At Partek's words, Eugene nodded.
But human desire is fickle, and once he had a bit of money in hand, a hint of greed crept in.
"But wouldn't Maren have even better horses? Real warhorses, I mean."
"That's true. Maren's such a huge city that comparing it to Brams almost feels unfair. Then shall we skip Brams and go straight to Maren?"
After a brief moment of thought, Eugene nodded.
"That would be better."
Even though the next subjugation mission was still over a month away, a round trip between Rose Castle and Maren alone would take more than half a month.
If he could buy a much better horse in Maren, there was no reason to waste even a single extra day.
"By the way, aren't you going to ride in the wagon? Since only we're taking turns riding, it feels a little…"
"I don't mind."
Thanks to absorbing the blood of monsters evenly in the dungeon, Eugene's physical condition was now at its peak.
Monster blood was on a completely different level compared to animal blood.
Back when he lived in Broadwin, he had to drink blood at least once every ten days just to survive. Now, it felt like he could go for several months without feeding.
That was how powerful the blood of monsters—especially mid-grade and higher monsters—was.
'Still, just in case, I should feed once every couple of months.'
Being unprepared or complacent was absolutely unacceptable. For the sake of "just in case," he had to keep his body in perfect condition at all times.
As Eugene reaffirmed his resolve, Pellid, who had been sitting on the back of the wagon, quietly hopped down and approached him.
"Um, Master."
"What is it?"
"I'm really sorry to keep asking this… but what exactly is the job I'm supposed to do? No matter how much I think about it, I can't figure out what someone like me could possibly be useful for."
There was no real reason for Pellid to be involved in selling monster byproducts.
The party already included three mercenaries who had survived the dungeon breach and a knight who had even torn off a troll's head, so they certainly weren't lacking escorts.
As for menial labor, he had no value there either—Eugene and the mercenaries all took care of their own tasks, and Raban handled all the odd jobs.
In other words, the man named Pellid Tiwyn had no real place in this group.
"When we get to Maren, you'll have your job."
"In Maren?"
Eugene nodded at the startled Pellid.
"Yes. You'll be managing everything that comes out of the dungeon, as a representative of the Tiwyn family."
"...!"
Pellid's mouth fell wide open.
After exchanging a look with Eugene, Kamara turned to Pellid.
"It's only for a short while, but take care. And don't badmouth us too much to your master."
(To be continued in the next chapter)