Chapter 4 - Settling Down (1)

After Theodore agreed to become Nathan's disciple, he walked to his room with a maid to pack his belongings.

Nathan wanted to go with Theodore, but Dante stopped him by bringing up the news about his brother, Farrell. Dante really could not let Nathan see Theodore's current living situation.

"Did my brother leave a letter for you?" Dante opened the conversation by asking Nathan an obvious question; if his brother did not leave a letter behind, how could Nathan appear here?

Nathan understood Dante's intention, so he nodded before taking out the letter he had received. He replied, "This is the letter."

Dante took the letter to read before handing it back to Nathan, thinking his brother was still as selfish as before.

"It seems that Master Nathan still does not know the real situation of the Hale family." Dante smiled; the letter left by his brother had many contents missing.

์"In recent years, it is not just Farrell that was disappearing. The Hale family is now exhausted, with only Theodore and me remaining as the direct descendant." Dante continued to explain.

Nathan's brow furrowed; this situation was uncommon. Even if there were great hostility, no noble would kill the entire lineage of the opponent. The case was unusual, signaling that there might be a more extraordinary story behind it.

"Did you report to the kingdom?" Nathan asked. If the noble family suffered unjustly, they could report back to the royal family of the Sorrel kingdom.

"Their dead and disappearance were either accidents or unsolved cases. The investigation results in nothing." Dante clarified the situation.

Nathan nodded in understanding but did not plan to change his mind regarding accepting Theodore as his disciple.

He returned to the Sorrel kingdom because of his problem and because he would not live long. He did not believe that the crisis of the Hale family would be more significant than his.

He was dying; he did not intend to leave this world with regret. With this thought, he no longer had any more hesitation. The trouble of the Hale family was real so was the mistreatment of Theodore.

Nathan then continued the conversation with Dante. Mainly, Nathan was inquiring while Dante was answering.

...

At this time, Theodore was packing his belongings in his room.

He brought his clothes and the gift given by his parent previously, all of which were precious items he had hidden. Theodore planned to sell them if he needed money.

In his previous life, he also did a similar action. Leaving these items behind would only benefit his uncle's man once found.

After Theodore finished, he looked at his room for the last time before walking out.

The maid who came with him was waiting outside as he requested. Some people would still listen to him if it did not conflict with his uncle's order.

Seeing Theodore carrying a big bag, the maid stepped forward to help. She still could not disrespect Theodore when there was a guest; Dante would not blame her for doing so.

Theodore was a little conflicted; he did not forgive them, but he did not resent these people, not all of them. They all did it for survival. Before working in the Hale mansion, most were regular citizens of Colond city.

Their lack of respect was real, and so was their lack of responsibility. However, they never crossed his bottom line, and they had to do so to show his uncle their attitude.

In the past, he always thought that he would get back at them a hundredfold when he could, but his thought changed slightly.

Perhaps his grudge reduced after recalling the future and seeing them all die once; it seemed that his extra memory affected him more than he thought.

'What am I thinking?' Theodore could not help but laugh at himself. The current him could not do anything, and he should focus more on improving himself as soon as possible.

...

It did not take long for Theodore to arrive at the reception hall where Nathan and Dante were again.

After Nathan and Theodore bid farewell to Dante, they left the Hale mansion.

Nathan took Theodore to a carriage for traveling. Along the way, Theodore kept looking outside. He felt fortunate to see that the people in the city were still alive.

They still stayed in Colond city; Nathan brought Theodore to a simple house with a courtyard. This place was the heritage left behind by Theodore's father, Farrell.

Farrell secretly left the location in the letter; only a few knew the decoding method. Nathan also erased the trace before giving the letter to Dante.

After arriving, Nathan used his mana to investigate the situation of the mansion. Seeing that it was safe, Nathan brought Theodore in and signaled the driver to carry Theodore's bag in.

When they reached the living room, and the driver left, Nathan asked Theodore to speak, seeing that he was reluctant to say something. Nathan said gently, "Do you have anything you want to talk to me?"

Theodore hesitated but asked, "Teacher, what is today's date?"

He did not ask this mindlessly or to get Nathan's pity; he tried to compare this date to the one he knew from his future memory.

Nathan was happy with Theodore calling him 'teacher' but still misunderstood.

He thought that Theodore really did suffer a lot and felt sorrow for him even more. Nathan replied, "Today is the 23rd day of the 3rd month in the year 3296 of the founding calendar."

The recognized version of the date for humans was to separate a year into sixteen months; each month had twenty-five days.

There were also four seasons in a year; each had four months corresponding to the earth, fire, wind, and water element.

"Thank you, teacher." Theodore expressed his gratitude and lowered his head to hide the joy in his eye.

The date was correct; his previous self also met Nathan on this day. In this way, he could be more sure of his insight into the future.

He was confident that the memory he suddenly had belonged to himself; the experience seemed too real as if he had gone through the incidents once before. However, he always suspected whether it was genuine due to its suddenness and dubious origin.

His doubt would remain, but at least he could be more assured when he relied on the future memory he had later.