Chapter 2: For Now, I Go Astray (2)

The next day, Simon slept in late. It was, quite literally, blissful sleep.

How long has it been since I was able to rest with such peace of mind?

It was the first time he had realized that doing absolutely nothing and simply sleeping could be such a source of happiness.

As befitted a family that revered martial prowess, everything in the Arcturus Family was strict.

He had to rise at exactly six in the morning and undergo training.

And “morning training” did not end with a few laps around the drill grounds. Before one was even fully awake, sparring matches with life-and-death stakes would already be underway.

There’s no need for me to train so diligently now. I can just build my aura circles again, and as for swordsmanship, I know techniques far better than what’s used in this era.

In the past, Simon had been revered as the man who had elevated Arcturus swordsmanship to an entirely new level.

He could not display the might he once wielded in his Sword Master days with this young body, but that did not concern him overmuch. A body could always be forged anew.

Still, I should be able to see him properly today, shouldn’t I?

Returning to the past had brought many good things with it.

The best of them all was that he could see again the old ties he had once dearly missed.

Calling in the knight order yesterday had, in its own way, been a calculated move.

If he caused such a commotion, there was bound to be someone who would come and speak plainly to him.

“Young Master.”

A maid entered carefully and bowed her head.

“Has Ranieri come to see me?”

“How did you know?”

The maid’s eyes widened in surprise. Simon forcibly suppressed the smile tugging at the corners of his mouth and ordered her to admit the visitor.

A moment later, a young man in an elegant formal uniform stepped inside.

“I pay my respects to the Young Master.”

Ranieri Betelgeuse.

A vassal and strategist of the Arcturus Marquis Family, a man who had devoted his entire life to them.

But his final years had not been kind.

He had been driven out of the mainstream by all manner of false accusations, and in the end he had returned to the countryside, where he lived out the rest of his days in loneliness.

That knowledge alone made Simon feel all the more delighted to see him.

This is one of the first things I have to set right. I have to make sure your injustice is never repeated.

Ranieri, now standing close before him, gazed fixedly at Simon.

“It seems the aftereffects of your fever were indeed severe. I heard you summoned the knight order in the middle of the night.”

His voice was crisp and intelligent.

He was handsome as well, and quite popular with women. Even so, he had remained a lifelong bachelor.

Ranieri was also the sort of man who never hesitated to speak the truth.

Thus, he offered frank criticism about last night’s summoning of the knights.

“We meet again after so long, and that’s all you have to say?”

“After so long?”

Ranieri merely tilted his head. He seemed to sense that something was different.

“Are you still unwell? This seems somewhat at odds with the physician’s opinion.”

“In what way?”

“You seem changed somehow. Excited, perhaps? You are much brighter than before.”

Simon stared at Ranieri for a moment, then spoke.

“I’m about to sound like a madman, but let me say just one thing.”

“Please, go ahead.”

“I’m truly glad to see you again, Ranieri. Back then, I was sorry.”

It was a strange thing to say, and yet it sounded utterly sincere.

Still, Ranieri could not help but feel a certain dissonance. The master he served was not someone given to such warmth.

Of course he wasn’t.

How could he be, when the timeline of his life had turned out so differently? How could Simon ever begin to speak of everything that had accumulated in the meantime?

“I think I understand the part about being glad to see me, more or less, but what is this thing you were sorry for?”

“Just… something like that happened.”

That he had failed to protect him from the slander of the vassals.

That regret had remained with him until the very end.

More than merely a strategist, Ranieri had been the only friend with whom he could truly unburden his heart.

“From now on, I won’t create anything else to be sorry to you for. I swear it.”

“In that case, this will be a short conversation. The bell in your room was installed to prevent emergencies. It is not to be used for training purposes.”

“Isn’t it good to keep people tense once in a while?”

“Not in the least.”

A sigh escaped him. From the look on his face, it seemed he had already guessed the real reason Simon had rung the bell.

“If turning off the lights is such a bother, you should have the maids do it.”

“I called, but they didn’t come.”

At that, Ranieri turned a sharp glare on the maid. Startled, she flinched and lowered her head.

“She did nothing wrong. I told her to step out for a while.”

“The knights are the core military strength of the territory. They are not people to be mobilized for such things. If word of this spreads, the family’s honor will sink through the earth and reach hell itself.”

“Why are you dragging hell into this? Just scold me. Don’t keep circling around it like that.”

“Why on earth are you acting like this?”

“Because I returned to the past.”

His words left Ranieri speechless. Clearly, he had never imagined Simon would say such a thing.

“Look at that expression. Hahaha. It’s true. When I died, I found myself back in the past. Right after I recovered from the fever. And I realized it two days later.”

“The aftereffects are severe indeed. I shall summon the physician at once.”

“I’m telling you, it’s true.”

He had said it without ever expecting to be believed in the first place. Either way, it did not matter.

At times, acting a little unhinged could be helpful.

“Ranieri. This may sound sudden, but there was once a time when I truly believed another person’s misery was my happiness.”

Ranieri adjusted his glasses and looked at him fixedly. The atmosphere turned solemn.

“For my happiness and the family’s honor, I had to trample on other people. Over the course of my previous life, there were countless times like that. But I think it was wrong.”

“Is that so?”

“Oh, so now you finally believe I returned to the past?”

“No.”

At Ranieri’s flat response, Simon looked thoroughly deflated. Even so, for some reason, he felt like laughing.

“What is certain is only this: it seems that, after your fever, your mindset has changed in some way, Young Master. However, what you did yesterday was still wrong. Sir Hans was deeply discouraged. He is an important asset to the knight order.”

“A knight ought to grow stronger.”

“You must one day lead the Arcturus Family. It would not hurt to show a more human side of yourself from time to time.”

Simon waved his hand, dismissing the maid from the room. Once he and Ranieri were alone, he said,

“I have no intention of doing that.”

“I did not say it expecting much in the first place. Apologies and praise are the things you are worst at, Young Master.”

“No, not that. I mean the heir’s position. I’m not going to be the heir.”

It was a declaration so shocking that even the logical and cold-headed Ranieri fell silent.

“What do you mean by that? Has your heart grown weak because of the fever?”

“No. More importantly, let me ask you one thing. If I don’t become head of the family, are you planning not to associate with me?”

“That is not the case, but……”

“Then that settles it.”

That was Simon’s genuine feeling.

If he wanted to do the things he truly wished to do, then he had to relinquish the position of heir.

I’ll go down to some quiet place and live out the rest of my life there. Together with the people I cherish.

Simon was confident he could live well.

All knowledge of the future was engraved in his mind.

“Have you said this to the lord of the family as well?”

“I’m about to. We’re having lunch together today. He’ll probably tell me to stop talking nonsense and swing my sword instead, but I’ll just have to persuade him somehow.”

Ranieri sank into thought for a moment, then spoke carefully.

“The Second Young Master has no particular interest in the succession. And it is not as though the Young Lady is in a position to inherit the family either. In this situation, declaring that you will not carry on the family is a reckless move.”

It could bring turmoil upon the family.

Just as Ranieri had said, Kenard, the second young master, was a younger brother with absolutely no interest in succession. Rather, he was someone who had devoted his whole life to honing his swordsmanship in order to be of even the slightest help to the family.

I realized the sincerity of that too late, though….

There were regrets piled up between him and his younger brother as well. One of Simon’s tasks now was to resolve them properly and make sure they were never repeated.

“Everything will unfold according to my plan. You only need to stay by my side and support me properly. There’s nothing to worry about.”

“How can you be so certain? This is no trivial matter. It concerns the succession.”

“Because I returned to the past. I know everything that’s going to happen.”

“Young Master!”

“I told you not to worry.”

Simon sounded so utterly certain that Ranieri chose to step back for the moment.

“Please rest for now. I will come see you again later.”

“Before that, there’s one thing you need to do for me. Bring me a teddy bear. A pretty one. Something Ioline would like.”

Ranieri did not voice his doubts. He simply bowed calmly.

***

After Ranieri left, many people came to see him. Simon had permitted visitors, after all.

Among them, the other ties he had been waiting for were his family.

The first to come running were his younger siblings.

“Brother! Are you feeling better now? I was very worried.”

“So was I, Brother.”

Kenard’s face was covered in small cuts and bruises. Since they had not yet fully healed, it looked as though he had come straight from rolling around the training grounds.

Simon turned his gaze to the side.

A cute child clutching a teddy bear was looking at him, half with worry, half with fear.

“I’m all right now. Kenard, Ioline. Thank you for worrying about me.”

“That’s truly a relief. I was sincerely very worried, Brother!”

Kenard even sounded tearful.

Simon patted Kenard on the shoulder and stroked Ioline’s head.

The two of them were startled.

It was the first time they had ever seen him show such affection.

Ioline, in particular, had feared him all the way into adulthood. Part of it was her timid nature, but it was also because they were half-siblings.

Back then, I never understood how sincere they were. I was too cold myself.

The fact that he had never been a good elder brother came back to him once more.

But now it was all right.

He had been given a chance to set everything right.

“That doll is too worn out, Ioline. From now on, play with this one instead.”

“Ah…….”

Simon handed Ioline the doll Ranieri had brought. It felt as though some of the fear and worry faded from his sister’s expression.

“Th-thank you, Brother. I’m really happy.”

“You don’t look all that happy.”

“No!”

Realizing she had spoken too loudly, Ioline hurriedly covered her mouth. Smiling, Simon ruffled her hair.

“You can be more at ease from now on. We’re siblings, so we shouldn’t act like strangers. And Kenard.”

“Yes!”

Kenard straightened up as though receiving an order from a superior. Then again, even in his previous life, his younger brother had been a model knight and a swordsmanship fool who knew nothing but training.

“Once my condition improves, let’s have a little dance with blades together sometime soon.”

“You mean it, Brother?”

“I do.”

Kenard’s eyes shone brightly. The very thought of crossing swords with the elder brother he admired filled him with unending exhilaration.

Of course, Simon had another plan in mind.

I need to raise you up quickly so I can hand the heir’s position over to you.

Unaware of that, Kenard clenched both fists tightly. He thought this was a splendid chance to earn his brother’s approval.

“I’m hungry. Shall we go eat now?”

“Let us go, Brother. I’ll attend you.”

“Don’t say ‘attend.’ We’re going together. We’re family.”

Simon and his two younger siblings made their way to the dining hall.

There, Deneuve, the head of the Arcturus Marquis Family, was waiting for Simon.