Chapter 14 – “Father’s Conflict and Determination”

~Side Randall~

My name is Randall von Marbert. I’m the first generation head of the Malbert family.

Even though I’m the first generation, the history of the Malbert family hasn’t passed that many years. In fact, it has only just begun.

Because of my military achievements in the last war, I was fortunate enough to receive the title of Baron and the land of Malbert, which was still a weak territory in the process of development.

The number of people in the territory was still barely 500, and compared to the neighboring territory of Byreus, there was a difference between heaven and earth.

I’d been blessed with three children with my beloved wife, and I was fully relieved to have an heir, but then a problem arose.

My son, Roland, has lost his mind and has started to act foolishly at every opportunity.

— I spent many days wondering where I had gone wrong in my education, but then a ray of sunshine appeared.

My other son, Mark, began to develop a variety of talents.

He learned to read and write at the age of only five, and when I taught him swordsmanship and magic, he quickly mastered them.

Even I, his parent, was jealous of his sheer talent.

But that was why I couldn’t make the wrong choice. That choice is…… yes, the choice of who would be my successor.

When Roland was born, he was supposed to be my successor as the eldest son. However, Roland’s repeated foolishness caused the trust of the servants of the mansion and the people of the village to fall to the ground.

Mark, on the other hand, was so well-liked by the people for his unparalleled excellence and gentle nature that it was now rumored that Mark will be the next successor.

As the head of the family, it was up to me to make the final decision on the successor, but I also believe that it was important to value the opinions of the people around me.

At such a time, I had an opportunity to be visited by the Margrave of Byreus from a neighboring territory for an inspection. The purpose of his visit was probably to determine who would succeed me.

Even in the eyes of Margrave Byreus, my eldest son, Roland, would be considered an unsuitable successor. After all, even I, his parent, think so too. He’s my son, but I had felt a pain in my head.

“Randall-dono?”

As I was thinking about this in my head, Margrave Byreus must have been suspicious of my silence before I knew it. Margrave Byreus called out my name wonderingly.

Just as I was about to open my mouth to apologize for my behavior, Margrave Byreus spoke up first.

“Are you worried about your successor?”

“……!?”

I delayed my reaction for a few moments as he spoke what was on my mind. The words of Margrave Byreus had become such a big problem for me that I could not react fast enough.

Unable to keep it a secret any longer, I told him my thoughts.

“What am I supposed to do?”

“That’s not really my business.”

I turned my face down at his plausible words. But Margrave Byreus continued to speak

“I don’t know about you, but if I were in Lord Randall’s position…… I’d choose Mark without hesitation.”

“May I ask why?”

“It’s because aristocrats have always been an existence with excellent people serving as the head of the family. Recently, the nobles in the capital have been using their power to line their pockets and impose heavy taxes on the people. It was really a foolish act.”

As he spoke, he struck a large tree nearby with his fist. The tree creaked as if it was about to snap from the impact.

Unlike me who was a commoner, the Byreus family had its own history, and I heard that the current head of the family was the sixth generation.

I’d heard rumors that the fourth generation of the Byreus family, or the second generation of the Byreus family, behaved badly from an early age and acted exactly like Roland.

As soon as he was replaced by the second generation, the management of the estate became untenable, and the one who managed to keep it afloat was his talented younger brother.

His younger brother, the future third generation, who could not bear to see his brother’s bad behavior, repeatedly admonished him, but he did not listen to his brother’s words and went on with his tyranny.

In the midst of all this, an inspector from the royal capital finally came to inspect the estate and announced that if the management of the estate did not improve any further, they would take away the title and the estate.

The third generation finally decided to give up on his older brother, the second generation and started his own business as the new head of the family, but naturally, the second generation did not take kindly to this and a succession struggle between the two brothers developed.

After a fierce and bloody battle, the younger brother finally won and took the position of the head of the family.

Then, under the new ruler’s regime, reforms were carried out to improve the management, and he managed to rebuild the territory in the past.

From the third generation onward, the words, “Never be arrogant, always be humble”, were added to the family motto of the Byreus family.

This story has become quite famous in the history of Byreus, and it was well-known throughout the Kingdom of Sheruzu as a story that was often told to children.

He must be worried that my current situation resembles the situation of the Byreus family in the past. I could feel the concern of Margrave Byreus.

“Well, whatever. It’s up to you, Randall-dono, to make the final decision. Make sure you have no regrets.”

“Thank you for your concern.”

In the end, the final decision was mine. That was why Margrave Byreus expressed his own opinion, but he didn’t force it on me.

When the time finally comes for me to choose between Roland and Mark, I had made up my mind that I wouldn’t regret my decision, no matter which one I choose.

When I returned to the mansion after the inspection was over, I found the servants of the mansion in a hectic state.

As I was wondering what was going on, one of the maids came running up to me. I didn’t remember her face, so she must be a servant from House Byreus.

“Master, we have a problem!”

“What is it, Lilin?”

“My lady. I don’t know where Young Lady Lauren is.”

“What!?”

The Margrave was unusually flustered, but he quickly regained his composure and ordered his maids to continue searching for his daughter.

I also ordered the nearby servants to search the area with as many people as possible.

“Randall-dono, I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to put my inspection on hold.”

“I understand. We’ll send out as many people as possible to search the area.”

“I’m sorry.”

He and I looked around the house for a while, but we couldn’t find Miss Lauren. Just as the sun was about to set, we saw several figures coming out of the forest behind the house.

I turned my head to find out who they were. There they were, Miss Lauren, Roland, Mark, and Laura, the four people we were looking for.

I wondered why the four of them were together, but judging from the mud on Miss Lauren’s dress, I was sure that something had happened in the forest.

In order to grasp the situation, I decided to ask them what had happened.