**Chapter 21: Crisis**

"Radnor, where's Eck?" Linton asked as soon as he walked in, noticing that Eck was nowhere to be found.

"Master Eck... is ill. He's over at Doran's place right now," Radnor replied.

Linton knew Doran; he was the only person in the small town with some medical knowledge. Not exactly a doctor, but in a place like this, someone with even basic medical skills was considered a miracle worker.

"What illness?" Linton asked. "Is it serious?"

"Uh..." Radnor hesitated. "My guess is that Master Eck... isn't actually sick."

"Huh?" Linton was taken aback.

"Since you disappeared, Master Eck probably faked being sick to avoid getting dragged into the mess," Radnor explained. "Though I must admit, he's putting on quite a convincing act."

Linton was speechless. This world was a classic feudal society, and Eck was one of Linton's servants. If something happened to Linton, naturally, his servants would be held responsible—especially since Eck had gone missing when Linton was in danger, which was clearly dereliction of duty. Linton understood Eck's character; the old rascal was definitely capable of pulling off something like this.

"How long have I been missing?" Linton asked.

"Two days, young master," Radnor quickly responded.

"Two days?" Linton was surprised. He had spent at least eight or nine days in the other place, but only two days had passed here. It seemed the flow of time in the two worlds was different.

"Where exactly did you go, young master?" Radnor asked urgently.

"I was ambushed, chased into the nearby forest, and got lost for two days," Linton answered briefly. The area around the town was mostly wilderness, so being missing for two days could be explained easily enough.

"Were you injured?" Radnor asked, noticing the bloodstains on Linton's clothes.

"No, this isn't my blood," Linton lied casually. It was, in fact, all his blood, but his body bore no visible wounds now.

"Well, as long as you're okay," Radnor sighed in relief.

Seeing Radnor's concern touched Linton a little. After all, Radnor wasn't his servant; their relationship was more like employer and employee. Radnor was part of the town's guard, previously under Captain Chiora, the man Linton had beaten up. So why was Radnor in Linton's home? The town was short on funds, and it couldn't even afford to support the 12-member town guard. The mayor had discussed the issue with Linton, sending one of the guards to "protect" him, but in reality, it was just to live off Linton's food.

"What about the assassin?" Linton asked.

"Well... after you were attacked, the town guard searched for both you and the assassin, but neither was found," Radnor replied. "The mayor also organized a search party during the day, but after two days of looking, we feared you had..."

Linton could understand. The assassin who had attacked him was a master of combat energy, something no one in this town could even begin to wield. Even if they encountered him, they wouldn't stand a chance. But who had sent the assassin? It was likely connected to his family; after all, the assassin had referred to him as the fourth son of the Merlotway family.

Linton didn't know much about his family. After all, he had only been in this world for a month, and most of what he knew came from Eck. If anyone knew more about the situation, it would probably be the mayor. This town was part of the Merlotway family's domain, and the mayor, as the local administrator, would have ties to the family.

Linton decided to ask the mayor about it. However, since it was already late, he gave Radnor a few instructions and let him go to rest. The second floor of the house was still in ruins, but since Eck wasn't around, Linton slept in Eck's bed for the night.

The next day, as Linton was still sleeping, someone came knocking on the door.

"Young Master Linton, I'm so relieved to see you safe!" The visitor was a slightly overweight middle-aged man with curly hair and a rather greasy appearance. This man was Tyrwin, the mayor of the town.

"Lord Tyrwin," Linton greeted him, after washing his face to look somewhat presentable. "It was a close call. Thankfully, the assassin wasn't familiar with the local terrain, so I managed to escape."

"Oh." Tyrwin nodded, though he found it a bit odd. Linton hadn't been in the area for long, and even Tyrwin, who had been mayor for over ten years, didn't know the local wilderness well. Linton's escape was nothing short of miraculous. Still, Tyrwin didn't press the issue and instead asked about the assassin.

"Unfortunately, I don't have much information to provide," Linton said. "I only know it was a man, slender, and masked, so I couldn't tell his age. From his speech, I'd guess he was a professional assassin or a death soldier, likely hired by someone."

Tyrwin was silent for a moment.

"What's wrong?" Linton asked, noticing that Tyrwin seemed to have something on his mind.

"You may not know this, but I wanted to discuss a few things with you before you were attacked," Tyrwin said.

Linton remembered. Eck had mentioned that the mayor wanted to speak with him, but then the attack happened. "What did you want to talk about, Lord Tyrwin?"

"One of the matters... is that your second brother passed away recently," Tyrwin revealed.

"My second brother?" Linton paused, recalling his second brother's name. "Randner? How did he die?"

"I heard... he was assassinated," Tyrwin said in a lowered voice.

"Assassinated?" Linton was stunned. He had also just survived an assassination attempt. So his second brother was already dead, and now he was next? This was definitely a targeted attack against the Merlotway family.

"Yes, I suspect that the same person behind your brother's assassination also sent the assassin after you," Tyrwin said, following a reasonable line of thought.

"So someone is targeting the Merlotway family?" Linton asked. "What about my eldest brother? Has he said anything?"

"Well... I haven't heard anything. I wouldn't be privy to that sort of information. I only learned about Randner's death through rumors," Tyrwin admitted.

"Hmm..." Linton nodded slightly. Normally, he might have panicked, but now he had strengthened himself considerably and was eager to test his newfound abilities.

Tyrwin observed Linton, noticing that he seemed more composed than before. The first time he had met Linton, the boy had seemed withdrawn, almost like a shy child. Now, he appeared much more grounded. Could it be that he had awakened his combat energy? After all, Tyrwin had heard about Linton defeating Captain Chiora.

Linton's inability to awaken his combat energy had been his biggest source of frustration—or so Tyrwin thought. If he had finally awakened it, a change in demeanor would make sense, so Tyrwin didn't question Linton's transformation any further.

"You mentioned one issue, but you said there was another?" Linton asked.

"The other important matter is that the baron has requested your return," Tyrwin replied.

"Oh?" Linton was slightly surprised. The baron referred to his eldest brother, Jorlab Merlotway. The Merlotway family held a hereditary barony, which had been passed down to Linton's brother after their father's death earlier in the year.

According to the law of primogeniture, Jorlab had inherited all the family assets, leaving his siblings with nothing. If Jorlab cared for family bonds, he might give his siblings something, but in Linton's case... he was the family disgrace, so no one cared about him.

Yes, at 19 years old and still unable to awaken combat energy, he was considered a failure. For a commoner, this might be acceptable, but in noble circles, it made him a laughingstock. Linton's brothers had never had a good relationship with him, and after their father's death, he had been sent to this remote town, effectively exiled.

That was the previous Linton's situation. Since Linton had taken over, he had been stuck here ever since.

The old Linton had always wondered why his eldest brother would bother leaving him anything at all. But the new Linton had already figured it out—he still had one use: his bloodline.

Yes, though he was seen as worthless, he was still a member of the Merlotway family, and that meant he could be used for marriage. Of course, it was unlikely to be a good match—probably some old widow, an ugly woman no one wanted, or maybe even someone with mental issues.

At 19, Linton was already past the age for marriage (people could marry at 15 here), and the only reason he wasn't married off yet was because no one wanted him. When his father was alive, he had spared Linton from this, but now that his brother was in charge, Linton had become nothing more than a bargaining chip for the family's political alliances.

Naturally, when Linton heard that his brother had summoned him back, his first concern was that it was related to a marriage arrangement.