“… Sir Orn Zukran.”
“Ah, please say it.”
“Tha, that… about the young lord, you see…”
“Do you want to ask if the rumors are true?”
Orn Zukran, an old knight of the Pareira estate, looked at the knight who had just joined the family.
No other people denied it, nor did he himself deny it.
People who have been here since the days of the ‘Lazy Prince’, including those who came in when Airn was trapped in the sorcery world.
From their point of view, Airn’s past was unbelievable.
‘I can’t believe it either.’
However, this was true for Orn Zukran as well.
A clumsy family member, and a child ridiculed by the entire kingdom.
One day, that being suddenly moved and grew up in an instant.
‘And for a person like me… even making eye contact with a Master is hard.’
He smiled bitterly.
Orn Zukran too was one of the people who hated Airn, despite not saying it out loud.
But he showed it without words, and gave a nasty look at the young lord whenever he came out.
However, not everyone was like that.
Marcus, who had been in charge of the young lord since Airn was young, didn’t show dislike to him.
Kirill Pareira loved him despite them being step-siblings.
Although it must have been harder than anyone else, Harun Pareira and his wife took good care of the kids.
‘To such people, the young lord’s current appearance is… a blessing.’
“… why does the past matter? The fact that he is a Sword Master now is what is important.”
Orn Zukran replied.
He looked at the family which entered inside.
How much joy would Airn Pareira bring to the Baron?
Despite having children, he couldn’t dare imagine it so easily.
“Re-really?”
“Yes, why would I lie in front of my father? I really met Lady Ignet Crescentia…”
After 2 years, Harun Pareira, Amelia Pareira, Kirill Pareira and Airn were sitting in the same place.
The three of them were talking without knowing the passage of time.
The topic was, of course, the two-year journey of Airn Pareira.
As he went through things that other people wouldn’t have experienced in their whole lives, there was no shortage of stories to tell.
Of course, the story of the devil was hidden.
Which was why Lulu wasn’t present.
She couldn’t imagine how much the parents would worry if he spoke about the clown devil, so he didn’t say it.
Thanks to that, the story felt creaky, but Harun Pareira and his wife didn’t notice it. For that reason, topics other than the devil were also exciting.
“Haha. To hear that you received an offer from Dame Ignet Crescentia, the greatest genius on the continent… besides, you learned how to operate something from the orc tribe?”
“They call it the Five Spirits Divine Technique.”
“Huh… I need to have a little alcohol with this.”
Pareira was someone who didn’t usually drink.
It was all good now, but there were pretty painful times in the past. They were all controlling their emotions for quite some time thinking that if they drank a sip of alcohol, they might collapse.
But now they couldn’t stand it.
No, there was no need to control anymore.
The one they loved the most, Airn Pareira.
The story of a child who had been constrained all the time, finally spread open his wings and decided to ascend to the sky.
And that was the happiest thing for his parents.
‘I didn’t have to keep my emotions in check on such a happy day!’
After a long time, a true smile formed on Harun Pareira’s face, and it grew wider and wider.
“Lord Lloyd, he is a great person.”
Baron Pareira wasn't the only one feeling good.
Amelia Pareira, who listened to it quietly, had no choice but to show a strong reaction when she heard that her son talked with Lord Lloyd.
External growth was one thing and she already acknowledged it when she heard that Airn subjugated the demons.
But internal growth was a different story.
Seeing her son, who was still wandering despite doing a great job in subjugation of demons, Amelia exhaled in relief.
During the journey, which she expected to be long, she was worried that his fragile heart would break.
‘There was no need to worry.’
His son wasn’t the same as before.
He still had a few shortcomings, but he at least had the courage to move in the right direction.
There were always good people who genuinely helped their son.
A son who wasn’t strong on the outside and had a stable and healthy mind and heart was much better than the opposite.
And Amelia ended up crying as she remembered how many years it took for this to happen.
“Darling, are you fine?”
“Yes, I am fine.”
“No, Kirill, you too…”
“Ah! I am not! I just yawned and tears came out… ah! Maybe dust hit my eyes? They keep coming down!!”
In the end even Kirill cried.
In the midst of that, Harun Pareira and Airn Pareira didn’t stop their faces from turning red.
The father wanted to show a strong image and the son only wanted to show a bright side.
Because they hadn’t done this in a long time.
Because for so long they couldn’t hold the hand despite it being the closest to them.
‘But not anymore.’
The mistakes of the past cannot be erased because it had already happened. Therefore, no one intended to look back on those painful feelings.
‘… I will work hard in the future, to show the filial piety I couldn’t do before.’
With that thought in mind, he returned to his room after a long but short break.
Knock.
Kirill, cheerfully knocked on the door and entered.
“Brother, you are going to work hard in the future too, right?”
“Uh? Yes, I need to.”
“Do you have something in mind?”
“Uh…”
He sat there in thought.
However, there was no grand plan.
In the past, he had never talked to anyone and had confined himself to the room, so from now, he wanted to talk more often to his parents.
“Um. Well, it’s not a bad thought. You definitely need to spend more time with our parents. They will probably like it.”
“Yes. Right. I couldn’t do it much before…”
“But rather than that, why not hold an event?”
“Event?”
“Yes, event. The lazy prince of the Pareira family is back as a Sword Master. Since the change was so great… you should hold an event and do it proudly.”
“No, that is a bit…”
Airn was a bit confused. He didn’t like such things. The reason he was holding the sword was also not for fame.
Even if no one recognized him, Airn would silently do the job.
Just like the paladins of the Purification teams, who were wandering the continent despite officially retiring from work long ago.
However, at Kirill's next words, he couldn’t refute her suggestion.
“I didn’t mean that for brother to brag about how good you are.”
“Uh?”
“It is for our parents to brag about.”
“…”
“People want to show off only their expensive accessories, imagine how greatly they can talk about their handsome son who is a master in his early 20s? Don’t you think the same?”
“…”
Airn remained silent for a while.
And remembered his parents.
He thought that neither of his parents were stern with him, they were benevolent and kind and quiet, and didn’t have anything to speak about.
But,
‘… it is the same with Joshua Lindsay.’
Not just him.
The Lloyd family too.
Karakum too.
All of them looked dignified, but their love for their children was greater than their own achievements.
Airn, who thought that, recalled the past.
When he stayed idle and didn’t move.
The ignorance and ridicule which was directed at him didn’t just bother him, it even hurt his parents.
Even then, neither of his parents pulled him out of his room, and they always showed a strong figure to him…
“… okay. Let’s do it.”
… he thought that this event mentioned by Kirill would be a good gift to them.
“Great. It isn’t difficult to plan it, as long as it is allowed. Let’s set up a place to show off the most handsome son on the continent…”
“Most handsome on the continent is a bit…”
“Correct that mindset! For your parents, if you aren’t the best, then who will be the best? Ah! Of course, I do cute little things and my abilities are good as a brother, but…”
This time, her brother was going to be the main character.
“Be proud of who you are! Okay?”
Airn nodded at the words which kept flowing out.
At the same time, a question arose.
So, what the hell was this event going to be?
Upon hearing this question, Kirill laughed and answered.
“A special swordsmanship lecture by a Sword Master in his 20s for the surrounding estates… how is it? Just this is enough, and I think you can brag about it in style.”
Sword Master Airn returned to his family.
The news had spread across the Hale Kingdom in an instant. It wasn’t just the six southern families.
At no point in the social world did Airn’s name not be mentioned.
“Finally, there is a Sword Master in our kingdom…”
“That too in his 20s! it is amazing!”
“I wasn’t the only one who was annoyed with the other kingdoms right? But now we can brag about ours!”
“I heard he has a handsome face?”
“If we invite him to a banquet, will he come?”
Most of it was praise, admiration or envy.
However, not everyone welcomed this.
“Hmm.”
“There is too much talk about Airn Pareira these days…”
Some nobles who had used the term ‘lazy prince’ to joke about the man, had come too far to change their stance and praise him.
Therefore, their reactions weren’t good since the moment Airn subjugated the demon.
So, they thought that the performance was inflated and thought of them as rumors.
But they couldn’t think like that anymore.
When it was confirmed that he was the champion of the Land of Proof, Airn’s reputation had already risen to a level that couldn’t be damaged anymore.
The only things the nobles could do was change their stance.
However, the news of a special event held by the Pareira family spread.
“Did you hear? The Pareira family is giving a special swordsmanship class!”
“What? A Sword Master is teaching?”
“Yes! Of course, it is only for two days, but who even teaches these days! Our eldest son is good with swords, so we are going to send him.”
“E-even my son is quite interested in swords…”
“…”
Still, the curiosity about Airn Pareira kept skyrocketing.
The thought of wanting to make good connections with him.
In the midst of that, everyone began to write letters about it.
“… did you hear about it?”
“I did.”
“What will you do? Our kid also wants to be a knight.”
“…”
“Say something! Are you going to pass up this chance?”
“No…”
“Then do something and apologize for what happened in the past and move with sincerity!”
“Hm…”
Even those who despised Airn were pushed to get close to him.
No, they struggled for it. The nobles were known to be proud and arrogant, yet for the sake of their kids they bowed their heads.
“Huhu, huhuhu.”
Baron Harun Pareira, feeling the change, couldn't help but laugh.
It was a bit embarrassing, but a greater sense of pride filled his heart.
Thinking of his son, who grew up so much, he mumbled.
“Is this what having a Sword Master as a son feels like?”
Baron Pareira, who was very happy, smiled brightly.
