Chapter 2: New Heir

Star Fantasy or better known as the grandfather of the RPG genre was a game that released over a decade ago. At first not much was known about the game. Not many people played it on launch day.

No one wanted to waste their time on a game that might've flopped in a few years.

Liam, however, had plenty of time when he was a high school kid. He always bunked school and never did his homework. To him it didn't matter whether he passed or failed. He was the kind of person who lived in the now.

What better way to waste your time than play a small game that just released?

He, and some of his friends built their own computer from the ground up so it was able to handle the game fairly well. They didn't seem interested in first but it wasn't the same for Liam.

He was a fan of fantasy games. The kind that could serve as escapism.

It was his favorite genre. As for most teenagers and young adults.

He instantly fell in love with the game. He stayed out of school for days, weeks and finally months. He had no family so no one was around to nag him to go to school.

It was only a few months after that that he got bored.

This game is so basic now. I've seen everything.

Liam would always complain about that. He even streamed the game every now and then to see if anything changed.

Sadly, not much changed in the next couple of months since launch day. They would update the game every now and then but nothing major.

That was until a year later that the game released.

As a perk for being a Day One Player, Liam received countless gifts from the company. If it wasn't for him streaming their game then no one would've wanted to play it.

It was only a small game at first, after all.

We would like you to test out our prototype.

That was the email he received, along with a code for a certain something.

Dunfer. One of the first flying battleships in the game.

Needless to say, he was a monster with this ship. He raided other players' bases and stole their loot. He was literally a villain in the eyes of the newbies.

Liam continued to attack many more players out of pure enjoyment. He was like a god.

Millions of views came rolling in when they heard the first battleship was being tested by a high school kid.

But that wasn't all. He didn't just attract the eyes of the average viewers, but of the other DOP(Day One Players) as well.

One day, he was thinking of raiding a small battleship that was about to pass by his territory. He thought they would be chumps like all the others.

How wrong he was.

Alecs, a swordsman who was also at the level cap of the game challenged him to a duel. In duels, battleships are not allowed so Liam had to fight him using his own power. Mages are typically at a disadvantage against swordsmen. They were more powerful but far slower than swordsmen. That depended on the other party's stats.

At his level he could beat a mid level cap(50) swordsman without breaking a sweat.

There was nothing to worry about.

After all, there were only a few players who reached the level cap.

I have these items! Kukuku! When I win, you become my servant! Kyahaha!

Very well, great magic caster.

He had so many star ranked artifacts that he didn't know what to do with them. The developers must've appreciated his support a lot.

Eh!?

But what he didn't expect was that his opponent was just like him.

Alecs defeated Liam with a Sanctity Sword Strike. One of the most powerful moves in the game. It was one strike.

One.

It was humiliating.

I…accept defeat…I will follow you as your servant…

No. I wish to have you as my partner.

Eh?

◇

'I wonder how you're doing, Alecs…'

Arnold sat down on the chair and crossed his legs. His posture wasn't upright and polite, rather it was that of a hooligan.

A vein bulged on Sebastian's temple. He was about to shout at Arnold for his rudeness but the duke raised his hand.

He stepped back and nodded his head.

Marcus crossed his fingers and looked at his son. He was a man with a towering build. Strong cheekbones and a chiseled face. His beard was well-groomed and his hair was swept neatly to the side. Despite being over 50 years old, Marcus was still a handsome man.

"Arnold, do you know why I called you here immediately after I arrived at home?" Marcus spoke after a brief moment of silence.

"To nag, probably?"

"Young master-!" Sebastian had a twisted look on his face as he glared at Arnold. The latter almost fell from his chair from fright.

But he pretended he wasn't scared and only harrumphed.

"Calm down, Sebas. Or would you like to leave the room?"

"Haa… I will be as silent as the night. Excuse my rudeness." He looked down in apology. Marcus only nodded.

"True; I am going to nag you. However, that won't change anything. Just like it hasn't for years now." His father said. "I have been visiting the nearby fief lords and heard quite a lot of things from them. How my son has been annoying their daughters, burning their fields, and harassing their knights out of pure enjoyment."

"Uh, huh. That it?"

Marcus sighed. "I heard that you impregnated a village girl. She came forward and said that it happened two months ago. Tell me, son. Do you not see a woman when you look at a female? Are they all just tools to vent your lust out on? The girl was in tears when she told me what you did. She was unwilling to bear your child. Yet you didn't listen."

Arnold sighed exaggeratedly, "She should've said no in the first place. Besides, contraceptives exist."

'Shouldn't this mysterious girl have come to my father when I was present?' that way he would be able to confirm whether or not he slept the person. He could also make Victoria verify since he didn't really remember anything Arnold did in the past.

"They are not cheap. You know that as much as I do." Marcus took off his tie and creaked his neck. "I was looking forward to retiring after your wedding but that is now impossible. I'm getting old now, son."

Arnold was expected to marry Olivia and connect their two families. This was something both Marcus and the emperor were looking forward to.

This would hinder the foreign nation royalties from using marriage as a means of gaining power of the imperial family of this empire. If one looked at the surface, it seemed like a good idea.

However, Arnold already knew that it was a bad idea to engage the two of them.

"Can I leave now, old man?"

"Arnold." Marcus' face changed from its usual calmness. There was now a piercing cold glint in his eyes. "Sit down. Now."

He was serious about this.

"…." Arnold sat down silently. Marcus wasn't the type of guy to be hard on his family even if they caused trouble for him. However, Arnold could see that the line had been crossed with his shenanigans.

"I have been thinking of selecting another heir to fill your role."

"Huh…?" Sebastian looked towards Marcus in surprise. This was the first time he had heard of such a thing.

"I apologize for not telling you, Sebas. However, this was necessary. This has been put on hold for years now. I waited to see if my son would change. But alas…." Marcus leaned back on his chair. "Starting tomorrow, you are no longer the heir of the Berkley ducal household. The duchy will also be given to the new heir."

"WHAT!?" Arnold shouted. "How can you make this decision without consulting me first!? You can't just give our lineage that has lasted for hunndreds of years to some miscreant!" Arnold hit his father's desk. A large dent formed on the surface.

"Consulting you first?" Marcus stood up and glared into Arnold's eyes, "This is my decision. Isn't it obvious that I should select the most favorable route to ensure my family survives?"  

"Master, I do not understand. I thought where wasn't any trouble if young master Arnold became the patriarch?" Sebastian said.

"You were wrong about that, Sebas. If I'm being honest, Arnold succeeding me would be the worst outcome at present. I thought things would change when Olivia marries him. We would gain the support of the imperial family so all our opponents would forget about trying to take us down."

"So this is why you want the marriage to be over and done with… Nobles usually wait until they are 20 before they marry each other but you said that it was fine if the two married at 17 years old. Now I why you said that."

"Exactly, Sebas. I discussed this with his mother and she has given me her blessing," Marcus looked at Arnold, "Son, you should understand that the world of the aristocracy is a cruel world. Sometimes we have to make decisions even if they upset others. Because—"

"It's to ensure our survival…?" Arnold finished his father's words.

"This is for the best. Please understand."

"Yes, father…"

'Well, I don't really care…' Arnold—no, Liam was only acting. Why the heck would he care about the position? All that awaited the heir was hardships and even more assassinations.

He would much rather not be at the end of someone's blade. He was an average gamer just a day ago. What would he know about fighting nobles and surviving in the political world.  

"I'm grateful that you understand the merits. I'm too old for stressing this much. I want to take my wife and have vacation for an entire year." Marcus muttered with a sigh.

Arnold asked with feigned ignorance "So who is the next heir? Is it Jack?"

"No. It's impossible for me to wait until Jack matures. He is still only ten years old." Marcus denied Arnold's question.

Of course, Arnold knew who it was.

"So he's another noble's son who you adopted."

"Well, I did adopt him. You're half right about that," Marcus said vaguely. He looked towards the door, "Come in, Luke. My son."

"I-I'm sorry for eavesdropping, sir…" A timid, shy voice came through the door when it opened. A boy with blonde hair and blue eyes entered.

"What the… Who's this little pipsqueak?"

Arnold stood in front of Luke like a towering mountain. The 14 year old boy's legs were shivering.

"U-Um, I'm…"

"This is Luke. I met him a year ago when I had meetings with my subordinates to solve the crop  decline." Marcus stepped between the two. He could tell that Arnold was trying to intimidate Luke.

"He'll be my replacement? Look at him!" Arnold grabbed Luke's arm. It was so soft and small like a twig.

"He's so damn delicate and tiny. How is he supposed to succeed this me!?" Arnold let go of his hand and bent down. His blue eyes glared at Luke. "Oi."

"Y-Yes…sir?" Luke answered politely while rubbing his hand.

"You and me. Fight. Right now."

"E-Eh?" Luke looked at Marcus and Sebastian and saw both of them shake their heads.

Both had the same thoughts judging from their expresssions.

'Not again.'

◇

"Kyaah! Who's that cute boy!?"

"I don't know. Oh, no! The young master is dragging him to the training grounds."

Nearby maids noticed Arnold dragging Luke by the arm down the corridor. The duke and the head butler were silently following behind. Both were poker faced.

"What's going on?" Another servant asked.

"It seems the young master is taking that boy to do the ritual."

The ritual referred to when Arnold tests the power of those that interest him. He would usually flaunt his power to new knight recruits. There were even some of the senior knights who faced him as well.

Not many of them were strong enough to face him back then.

 "Y-Young master…" Luke was trying his best to escape Arnold's grip. It was way harder than before.

"Shut up. I'm going to show my old man that you're nothing. A nobody. How the hell can he think that a little kid like you can become a better heir than me?"  

After walking for a while, they arrived at the backyard where the training grounds were. It was an open grass plain. The forest was further down the hill. There was a small river as well. That was where Arnold and Olivia used to play when they were kids.

"Take up your arms." Arnold said and glanced at the servants. They brought over a racket filled with weapons of different kinds. As usual, he selected a double edged sword.

'Let me taste the power of the hero.'