Child – Powder Keg

After joking around a bit with Sylphy and Dad about me going overboard and creating a lot of collateral damage... and after realizing that Sylphy seriously would follow through on me walking down a path of rampaging violence, I carefully steered the conversation towards the surroundings instead.

The Citadel of Roa... or just Roa for short, was essentially the capital for the Fedoa region. As a result, it was lively and bustling even with the cold winter weather.

But it was also a city primarily designed for defense, encircled by towering walls and with a castle in the center for a final line of defense.

A practical design. There were plenty of roads and alleyways to use as fallbacks to lead into the center. It was meant to be strategic, designed with everyone's safety in mind.

Over time though, the nobles and rich moved to live in the center while the common folk lived out in the perimeters. A clear stratification that was evident with the more fancy and ornate buildings we came across as we moved towards the castle in the center.

My dad noticed me looking around and laughed. "If you want to explore, you're going to have to wait, Rudy."

I looked away from some shops selling expensive jewelry and then shook my head. "I was just curious." I frowned and said, "Are all nobles like this?"

It couldn't be, right? Even if power was important in a world like this, there had to be good people out there who cared for the powerless.

"Ah..." Dad's face turned serious and he said, "This place is better than most. Since adventurers stop by a lot, Uncle Sauros and Philip run a tight ship to maintain order. Nobles here are a bit snooty, but they at least have common courtesy. ...For the most part." He looked at Sylphy and said, "At the least there won't be idiots trying to kidnap Sylphy just because she's a cute girl."

Sylphy flinched and then moved closer to me.

I held her close in a one-armed hug and then glared at my dad. "Could you *please* not tempt fate, Dad? After everything that's happened, I'd appreciate you not begging for more things to go wrong."

He held up his hands and said, "Sorry. Bad habit- Wait." He pointed at me and said, "Aren't you tempting fate by saying I'll die all the time for messing up?! Do you seriously hate your dad that much, Rudy?"

I snorted and said, "It's a figure of speech, Dad. Though if you mess up again, after what Mom and Mama Lily put you through, you'll probably wish you *were* dead." I paused and then added, "Especially if Norn and Aisha decide you're a worthless adult when they grow up."

My dad immediately collapsed on the ground and bowed his head to me. Clasping his hands together, he said, "Help your dad out, Rudy! I don't want your cute baby sisters to hate me!"

Sylphy giggled and said, "Mister Paul is really desperate these days, huh?"

I panicked and immediately grabbed my dad's arm to pull him up. "What the heck are you thinking, Dad?! Don't you have any shame!? Stop embarrassing us in public!"

My dad hopped to his feet and grinned. "So you *do* care! Great. That's all I wanted to see."

I froze and then kicked him in the shin.

"Ow!"

"Dumbass."

Sylphy gasped and said, "Rudy!"

"Ah. Right." I nodded and then stared at my dad. "Idiot."

Dad brushed the dirt and snow off his clothes and grinned. "Only once in a while. Most of the time I'm a cool swordsman, you know?"

I snorted and said, "Keep telling yourself that, Dad. Maybe it'll speak it into existence. But anyway..." I looked up at the castle.

The sun was already sinking, tingeing the castle orange with its fading rays of light.

"What's the plan? Am I just going to head in to meet this 'fiancée' of mine? Or are we going to rest up for the night first?"

Sylphy pursed her lips and then grabbed my hand. "If you're meeting this Eris girl, I'm coming with you."

I glanced at Sylphy and then nodded. "What she said. I'm not going to meet Eris without Sylphy, so... What's the plan?"

My dad frowned. "Well..." He crossed his arms and muttered, "Eris is probably super annoyed that I suddenly left this morning... But Ghyslaine's here, so it's probably fine."

"...That's not a plan, Dad."

"I know, Rudy." He frowned and said, "Just... Give your old man a bit to think."

"You had the entire trip here to think! You were just sitting there not doing anything!"

"That's not true. I was thinking. It's just..." He frowned and said, "This is more complicated than I thought."

I covered my face and groaned. "Dad. I appreciate you and all, but if I have to keep sorting out your messes like this, even I'm going to lose my patience, you know?"

My dad gave me a serious nod and he said, "I know, Rudy. But trust me this one more time. I'll make it work. And for a plan... Well, just leave the talking to me and play dumb." He laughed and then said, "Shouldn't be hard considering you've got me as an example, right?"

"That's not something you should be proud of, Dad. But... fine. I guess it's probably better to play the cards close to our chest."

We arrived at the entrance to the castle. Like at the main entrance to the city, there were two armored guards standing watch. And like before, they let us in without question.

The interior of the castle was surprisingly modest. There were a few paintings and tapestries along the walls, as well as the occasional decorative vase and ornament. But for the most part, it gave off an austere atmosphere rather than an opulent one.

In other words, it seemed more serious than flamboyant.

But before I had time to admire it, a maid approached us. One with cat ears. And a uniform that showed a deep cleavage, one that was even more clear as she bowed towards us. "Welcome back, Master Paul nya."

I blinked and then turned to look at Dad.

Sylphy turned to him as well and gave him an accusatory stare.

"H-Hey!" He held up his hands and said, "I'm not the one who hired the maids! A-And that's not the standard uniform!"

The maid straightened and then giggled. "Master Paul is as fun to tease as ever, nya."

My dad ducked behind me and pushed me forward as a shield. "I'm a married man! With kids!"

"O-Oi!" I tried squirming free and said, "What the he- heck do you think you're doing, Dad?!"

Sylphy frowned and then jabbed Dad in the ribs.

"Gah!" He winced and then clutched his side. "What was that for!?"

I managed to get free and quickly moved back to Sylphy's side, glaring at my dad.

Sylphy smiled at me, and then she turned to my dad and frowned. "That was for not acting like an adult, Mister Paul. Honestly." She sighed and said, "No wonder Miss Zenith keeps telling Rudy to not become a worthless man like his father."

My eyes widened and I turned to Sylphy. "Mom said that? When?"

My dad laughed and waved his hand. "Don't worry about it, Rudy. Your mom still loves me. That's just how she shows it these days since we got into neglect-"

"And that's officially too much information Dad. Stop."

"Right."

The maid smiled at us. But then her smile faded and she turned to my dad. "Master Philip said that he wants to talk to your son in private, nya."

My dad turned serious as well and he said, "It's already late. And we're going to head out in a bit to the city to meet someone. We're just here to drop off our belongings."

The maid nodded and said, "If it's about Mister Laws, Master Philip has already invited him as a guest, nya. He's waiting in one of the spare bedrooms, nya."

"Huh?" Dad blinked and said, "Laws is here? But I thought... Ah. Crap. If he's here... No, Philip's smart, so he probably figured out-"

I jabbed Dad in the ribs.

"Ow!"

"Explain more, talk to yourself less."

My dad coughed and said, "Right. Anyway, it looks like Philip already anticipated we'd be showing up with Sylphy and had a chat with Laws. Not sure what it's about... but that's probably what he wants to talk with you about." He paused and said, "...And that means that he probably knows what you can do considering Laws's personality."

I blinked and then covered my face. "Right. Mister Laws can't keep a secret..."

Well, he could. But silence could tell just as much if not more than actual words...

Sylphy tugged on my sleeve, frowning. "...Are you going to be okay by yourself, Rudy?"

I smiled at her and said, "Don't worry, Sylphy. If anything bad happens, we'll just blow up the city and run away together, okay?"

Sylphy's eyes lit up and she nodded. "Okay! But you have to promise to get me first!"

I held out my pinky and said, "Pinky promise."

Sylphy smiled and wrapped her pinky around mine.

My dad started to sweat. "Could you not resort to violence as a first option?"

I tilted my head and gave Dad an innocent stare. "I don't know what you're talking about, Dad. I'm just doing what you'd do."

"...You're not going to let me live down hitting you in the head, are you?"

"No. I will not."

My dad sighed.

The maid looked nervous and said, "Um... Shall I guide the young master then, nya?"

Dad looked at her and said, "Go ahead. Just be careful. He's got a bit of a temper."

I snorted and said, "That's because you keep raising my blood pressure with how many messes you cause, Dad. It's not like I'm going to suddenly snap with insane bloodlust or something."

My dad gave me a blank stare.

Sylphy frowned.

I paused, suddenly remembering what happened when I fought Ghyslaine. And the fact that Orsted said I inherited a lot of traits from the Demon God Laplace.

"...Okay, fair. I'll be careful and keep calm."

The maid started to sweat. "P-Pardon?"

It seemed like she was nervous enough to forget her verbal tic.

I laughed and said, "Don't worry about it, Miss." Doing my best to put on an innocent face, I walked up and grabbed her arm. "Please lead the way."

She relaxed when she saw my face and then let out a soft smile. "Of course, nya. Right this way, nya."

From behind, my dad muttered, "Damn. What a natural scammer."

Sylphy giggled and said, "Rudy's really good at being cute, isn't he?"

...I guess I should take that as a compliment. Not sure how I feel about that though...

-LIV-

Eris laughed and said, "See! See! I told you that I got better!"

Ghyslaine smiled. "It seems so, Ojou-sama."

Eris pouted and said, "You promised! I beat you, so you have to call me Eris, not Ojou-sama!"

Ghyslaine chuckled and said, "As you wish, Eris."

Eris beamed.

The two were walking back from the long training session in the courtyard.

Eris's clothes were drenched in sweat and her precious wooden training sword was cracked and tattered, but she didn't care. Instead, she was excited.

She did it. After a long time trying different things out, she managed to hit Ghyslaine.

It was just a grazing blow. A light tap to the Sword King's shoulder.

...Well, Eris cheated a bit. Ghyslaine was worried about hurting her, so Eris took advantage of that fact and purposefully moved to get hit.

Ghyslaine panicked and had to stop, but it let Eris hit her.

...Unlike Paul who would have just smacked Eris away before handing her a healing potion.

Stupid Paul.

But anyway, Eris did it. She felt on top of the world. The happiest and proudest she ever was. Nothing could ruin-

"Eh?"

A familiar and detestable male voice.

Eris's mood immediately dropped, along with her smile.

At the end of the hallway, opposite her and Ghyslaine, a familiar man with an annoying face appeared. Paul. He smiled and said, "You're working pretty hard, huh, Eris?"

Eris snapped and then immediately whipped her wooden sword towards Paul's face.

A surprise attack. Even if he was stupid strong and talented, he wouldn't be able to dodge that.

But Paul didn't need to.

Before the wooden sword got anywhere close, it froze in mid-air.

And not just as a figure of speech.

Frost enveloped the wooden sword before it spread into a glistening ice cube and locked the sword in place.

Eris's eyes widened. "What the heck?!"

At that time, someone stepped out from behind Paul. A young girl that Eris hadn't seen before.

Light green hair, falling to her shoulders. Slightly pointed ears.

She was dressed like a commoner, but she was pretty enough to be mistaken for a princess.

But the harsh expression on her face showed that she wasn't some dainty princess.

Eerie glowing green eyes stared at Eris, judging.

Seeing that, Eris narrowed her own eyes and swept out her hand. "What are you looking at, huh?!"

The young girl stared at Eris a bit before looking up at Paul. After that, she said, "I won't let her."

Eris stepped forward, rolling her arms up to loosen them. "Won't let me what, huh?"

Paul started to panic and he quickly moved between the girl and Eris. "C-Calm down, Sylphy. That's just how we greet each other, haha..." He looked towards Ghyslaine and said, "Help me out here, Ghyslaine. That's just the usual, right?"

"It doesn't matter." Sylphy kept staring at Eris and said, "If she's that mean to you, she's going to be mean to Rudy too. I won't let her."

Rudy.

Hearing that name, Eris's eye twitched and she growled. "Rudy this, Rudy that... I don't care! I don't need a stupid guy like that!"

"Rudy is *not* stupid!" Sylphy growled back and stepped forward. "And you need to be taught a lesson, you mean girl!"

"*I* need to be taught a lesson?!" Eris ran forward and smashed the block of ice around her wooden sword. After that, she grabbed the freed blade and ran towards Sylphy, growling.

Paul's eyes widened and he stepped forward to intercept Eris. But before he could, a gust of wind blew Paul back. At the same time, Sylphy flew forward, light flickering around her body.

-LIV-

I sat down at the table where the maid directed me and waited.

It was a small conference room with two comfy sofas. A sturdy oak table sat between the two sofas. As for the decor, it was different from the rest of the mansion. Fancy paintings, lush furs from exotic animals, porcelain... It was clearly a room to meet important guests. Probably nobles.

The maid had left me with a small bottle that she said with juice along with a cup. But I didn't touch it, leaving it on the table.

Instead, I waited, reflecting on the situation.

Philip. Full name, Philip Boreas Greyrat.

Dad's cousin, and supposedly a guy good enough at politics and plotting to where Dad was either tricked into signing the betrothal contract, or signed it because he thought it would be worth it.

I wanted to see for myself which it was.

If it was the former... Well. Related or not, he wasn't family. And considering that Dad's own brother was the source of our concerns, to say I didn't care about Dad's relatives was putting it lightly.

If it was the latter... Well, we could work with that. The problem would be making sure Being W didn't try any shenanigans, but if we could be certain that this Philip guy was an ally... And if he really was good at politics and working behind the scenes, then we could team up with Orsted too and give Being W a major headache.

At least, that was the ideal.

One person could only do so much, and allies were always good.

At that time, the door opened.

I looked over, putting on my best innocent smile and said, "Greetings-"

"So you're the brat that Paul keeps talking up."

A gruff voice. One that reminded me of a military general. A guy who didn't take any nonsense.

It wasn't Philip.

That guy was around the same age as my dad. The man who walked in was older than that.

A stern and sharp face with steely eyes. Dark brown hair that was starting to gray on the sides. A thin and twirled mustache jutting out to the sides like spears, paired with a carefully trimmed patch of hair on his chin.

Paired with his clothes that looked similar to what an actual general would wear, a buttoned up overcoat and a fancy suit, he looked every part the general he sounded like.

And he also looked annoyed- No, judging.

Lord Sauros Boreas Greyrat.

Dad's uncle, Philip's father... and the most powerful man in the Fedoa region in terms of military and political strength.

I could tell immediately.

I didn't get along with this man.

His demeanor, his words, that expression... All of it just pissed me off.

Even so, I kept on my polite smile and tilted my head. "I'm sorry? I'm not sure what Dad has said, but-"

Before I could say anything else, a fist flew towards my face. Sauros, clearing the room in a single step.

"Father, wait!"

I narrowed my eyes.