Part 1

I was captured…

… Before I was captured:

“Oh, so you barely went outside?”

Rose tilted her head to the side, towards Elaina.

“You’re wrong, I didn’t go outside at all.”

Elaina puffed her chest out, saying something like that as if it was something to be proud of.

“That’s definitely not something to be proud of.”

I smirked and gave a sly comment, shrugging my shoulders.

“Oh yeah? Then what do you think of this?”

Elaina punched me from behind.

That hurt.

Ignoring this, Rose replied:

“Why wouldn’t you want to go outside? What’s so fun being inside?”

“Sleep and food.”

Elaina replied almost immediately.

She was lying on the grass on her sides, resting her elbow on the grass, keeping her head up with her palm.

A truly indolent and lazy pose.

But before I could comment on it, I heard a voice coming from the gates of the Tyrat Estate.

“Rose! Rose! Where are you? Are you safe?”

A man with a deep and masculine voice but speaking very femininely when referring to “Rose” came from the gates.

“Papa?”

Hearing this, Rose stood up and jogged towards the gates.

We weren’t far from the gates.

“Oh? What’s this, you made some friends?”

This man was Rose’s father, he looked like a man with spiked-up brown hair and definitely younger than Papa, maybe 20 to 25.

He was well-dressed in the same style of outfit of a butler.

Like Rose, he has yellow eyes.

He hugged Rose and carried her up.

“Papa, stop it, you’re embarrassing me.”

The father put Rose down and glanced at us.

“Good evening-“

He suddenly stopped with his greeting, halting midway.

Not long after, his eyes ran from my feet to my face.

His face contorted into a sceptical frown.

What was the problem?

“Rose, get inside.”

The father tapped Rose’s back, urging her to go inside.

“Papa? What’s happeni-“

“Get inside, now!”

The father shouted.

Startled by this, Rose quickly jogged inside, and with that, the man looked at us again.

This is weird, why is he glaring at us menacingly?

…Ah, I get it.

Goddamn it.

“To think the target just fell right into my hands, right beside my daughter too. Well-“

Without a pause, the man lunged towards me.

But before he could grab ahold of me, Aerich stepped forward and unsheathed his blade, pointing it towards the man.

This would stop him from lunging even further.

“-A child with a sword? You remind me of myself when I was younger.”

The man stomped his foot in front of Aerich, pushing himself back.

“[Earth: Blade]”

He’s a magician? Eh? That doesn’t make sense, why is he getting into close combat?

He made a blade too…

After creating a blade, he swung it at Aerich, who blocked it.

“Ah, man, this technique, are you High-Class? You seriously remind me of myself when I was younger.”

The man smirked as he ran around Aerich, moving his sword in a stabbing motion.

“That’s enough!”

Aerich jumped back and lunged forward, swinging towards him.

I was watching this fight from the sidelines.

Wait, more importantly:

“Elaina, you have to run! Call Papa and Lord Runo!”

“R-Right!”

Elaina dropped what she bought from the Magical Item Shop and bolted towards the Aran Estate.

“She’s running away? That shitty boss told me to get her too, oh well, I’ll just pretend I didn’t see that.”

As the man clashed blades with Aerich, he muttered under his breath.

The sword battle between Aerich and the man looked really cool.

The way they carried their steps, the adroitness of their manoeuvring, the dexterity with the blade.

There wasn’t a single mistake between the two.

Just watching them clash their blades made me feel excited.

Wait, this wasn’t the time to just watch.

“[Earth: Bullet]!”

I cast a spell at the man.

Sensing this, the man quickly ducked.

Which gave Aerich a chance to stab at him.

“You might be a tiny bit talented for your age, but you’re green as hell.”

The man dropped his blade and grabbed Aerich’s, gripping it and pulling it toward the side.

And with his other hand, landed a punch into Aerich’s abdomen.

Coughing out blood, Aerich staggered backwards.

Taking this chance, the man followed up with an immobilising palm cut on Aerich’s wrist.

The metallic sounds of his sword dropping on the concrete resounded throughout the street.

“What-“

Aerich was left in a daze of confusion, but that quickly ended when the man skilfully stepped behind him, knocking a devastating blow behind his head.

Aerich fell, hitting his head on the concrete path.

He was unconscious, and had lost.

Everything around me began to slow down. The blood drained from my face and fingers.

My body felt tense. My mind dissipated into sand, vision blurring as my eyes wavered.

My… My mind isn’t thinking.

“…”

What’s this?

I can’t move at all. I can’t move. I know a lot of spells, so why can’t I move? I can just cast a super-strong spell and end this, right?

Why aren’t I thinking properly? Everything feels… Light and unstable, I can’t think straight.

No, more importantly, why am I not doing anything?

I tried to force my fingers to even clench. But the numbness of my head prevented me from doing that.

Aerich lost, no, that blow to the head when he fell, he’s injured severely.

I understand, now let’s do this!

“…”

Why aren’t I moving?

Why does it feel like my body is holding me back?

“Reign Osoric Cinage, I heard rumours of a child magician, I guess it was true. Though your power was immensely exaggerated. I was told you could cast spells towards High-Class. Aren’t you going to do anything?”

After dealing with Aerich, the man turned towards me and spoke.

Aerich’s hurt, he’s down, I have to do something.

God dammit, god dammit, god dammit!

Why does my body not want to move?

Move, you idiot!

Stop being useless!

Do something, do something!

Why does my body not want to move?!

My body trembled, my knees felt weak and the muscles on my face felt hollow.

But I did try to do something, at least:

“[E-E-Eart-Argggh”

Until the man swiftly knocked me unconscious.

…

Part 2

It was dark, I couldn’t see a thing. I felt my body heat escape as my face leaned on the hard cold concrete floor.

What happened? …Ah.

Both Aerich and myself were knocked out by a servant of the Tyrat House, he was tremendously strong.

Where’s Aerich now?

I sat up and took a look around.

It was dark and I couldn’t see a thing, though I sensed metal bars.

But still.

“…I’m useless.”

I’m useless.

I couldn’t do a thing as Aerich was put down, and I didn’t do a thing as I was also put down. There were many openings and many spells to use, but I didn’t do anything. I had a wand, but didn’t even think to use it.

My mind was blank, my body was tense and my eyes circling.

It was my fault, it was my fault that it ended this way.

I’m never decisive when it’s most important like when Aerich was stabbed by Aethet, I also didn’t do a thing.

I just stood there, like an idiot. Then, and now.

What the hell am I doing, aren’t I supposed to be blessed with a high magical attribute? Why couldn’t I move?

Why didn’t I do anything?

…It’s simple, really, if you have all the information.

I’m just a fool, a fool that got too overconfident and ahead of himself.

Just because I’m a son of a prestigious noble house, just because I have a strong friend, just because I have high magical attributes.

It’s all my fault.

…It’s my fault.

It’s my fault for just standing there and doing nothing. I’m a genius? Which idiot told me that? I’m a prodigy? Go to hell. No genius would stand and watch at the most important moment.

I’m nothing but an idiot.

“Damn it.”

I curled up, hugging my knees with my arms, burying my head. The energy from my lower body faded as my eyes collected it, bursting out something.

Head-shaking sobs erupted, each coming in waves. My hands clenched my elbows, offering some sort of rapport of support.

“It’s my fault, isn’t it? I could have done something…!”

I screamed into my chest, which made my spine shudder and my arms squeeze even further.

Where my vision was, it was all pitch black.

For some reason, my heart felt the same.

The cracked heart burst inside me, rupturing a wave of emptiness and feelings of worthlessness to fill up my body in one huge wave.

Unable to hold it anymore, I rolled myself onto my side as waves of tears switched their trajectory, following gravity.

As I was sobbing, a bright light along with a metallic sound of a gate opening echoed into the room.

“…You’re broken already? Being the one to break you first would have made me happy.”

With the yellow light coming from behind him, I could barely make out his description.

But his voice was old and middle-aged.

…I already know who this is, even without thinking.

He should… He should be the Head of the Tyrat House.

Iwrys Fynn Tyrat

I don’t feel like explaining how I got to that…

He clicked his fingers, in which the room suddenly was covered in white light.

He looked as expected too, over-sagged leggings and weird noble clothing with vibrant colours. He had strands of grey hairs on his combed-back brown hair.

His face was shaven… I don’t care anymore.

I didn’t respond to his words.

Iwrys took a few steps and roughly grabbed my chin with his hands, pointing my face up and towards him.

“A face of despair and grief, there’s no life in his eyes. That damned Head Servant, I was supposed to be the one to give him this face, so why does he have it already?!”

A face of despair and grief?

I guess you could call it that.

“…”

I didn’t say anything.

“Oh well, it doesn’t matter. Well, it’s not every day that you’re able to kidnap the family of that damned Cinage House, so I’m going to savour this.”

Savour?

“I like that look of dead confusion on your face, fine, I’ll explain: I have nothing left to lose-”

He continued:

“-That Head Servant let a witness escape, so it’ll soon be known that I’ve kidnapped the son of the Cinage House. I’m sure you understand the rest.”

“I don’t want to understand. Hold me ransom already.”

“So you’re finally speaking, and hold you ransom? I just said I had nothing left to lose.”

With that, he used the same hand that was holding my chin up to cup my skull.

A blunting pain hit my forehead, he had just smashed my head into the concrete ground.

“Hahaha! Take that! Take that you Cinage bastards!”

After doing it once, I felt his fingers regrip themselves into my hair.

He pulled my head up again with my hair and smashed it down again.

“Argggh!!”

He did this again and again.

My head was numb, besides the pain, all I felt was the blood dripping from my chin onto the floor.

Satisfied with this, Iwrys stood up and planted his foot onto my head.

“Aah, beating the grandson of the stupid Segast Cinage bastard…”

He sighed in satisfaction, covering his mouth with his hands as he looked unto the ceiling.

“Cough, cough… D-Does it make you happy? Beating a defenceless kid like this?“

I let out a protest, though my body didn’t move.

Blood was splattered all over my face.

Iwrys knelt down and grabbed me by the hair, raising my face up.

“As long as they belong to the Cinage House, I’d be happy to do it to anyone.”

He chuckled, wiping the blood from his hands onto his clothing.

“B-Bastard.”

After I said that, with power even stronger than before, he smashed my face, nose fist, onto the ground.

The blood splattered from my nose, my head was held down as I struggled to find space to cough out blood.

And my mind was numb from the pain.

“You know, I’m happy to be the first person in the world to punish those Cinage bastards, even if it’s a child.”

“Uuu.”

My chest rose and fell as my lungs struggled to collect even the minimal amount of air, I had to manually and consciously breathe because my mind was more focused on the numbing pain than the essential force of breathing.”

I raised my arms.

I was going to cast a spell.

“[E-Earth: B-Bullet]”

…

What?

My arm was stretched out with my palms showing, I tried to cast the spell again.

But nothing happened.

What’s the meaning of this?

“Hm? I didn’t really believe it at first but, you could actually cast spells? Well, that’s too bad, there’s a magical barrier surrounding the cell that cuts off all magical supply. But never mind that, let’s get back to work.”

Iwrys clicked his fingers, and two men entered the room.

They approached me with pitying gazes, but they bit their lips as they grabbed my arms, hanging me up.

Iwrys pulled something from his pocket, something shiny. After cracking his knuckles he put on some brass knuckles.

“It’s time for the beating of my lifetime, I won’t be able to experience something like this ever again. This is payback, Cinage bastards.”

...I don't understand... Why?

I could hear one of the men from my sides audibly cringe, but even so, they didn’t do anything.

For the next few hours, shouts and screams, along with shudders of punching and beatings echoed the cell room.

Part 2

I stood outside the cell room, cupping my chin with my hand.

“Ah, I feel bad for him.”

I leaned back onto the wall as I said out loud.

“-But it has to be that way, or else freedom won’t come to me.”

Simply put, everything’s going according to plan.

To escape from this stupid Tyrat House with my daughter, Rose.

It was a surprise meeting the kid of the Cinage House outside the Tyrat Estate, an even bigger one to realise he was a magician with a kid swordsman with him.

But meeting them cut off about 90% of the plan.

The plan was to simply put: Destroy the Tyrat House.

If I can’t escape it, destroy it.

How?

I let the girl escape to tell the Cinage House bosses what happened, I even heard the Head of the Cinage House was residing in the Aran Estate for now.

Once they get word of this and realise that their kids haven’t returned, it’ll be direct warfare.

Or at least, a heavily political one.

The Cinage House should gather all of its branches and demand the child back, but unfortunately, the idiot is beating him up right now.

Actually, Lukyus and Radyn would just barge in here and take them back by force, which is the main thing.

But when they see the conditions of Reign, the Tyrat boss should be captured or killed, if they’re able to hold their temper.

But we have at least a day to wait for those two monsters to attack or for the Cinage House to demand the child back.

Only a day because I sent some of the house servants to stop the girl for a few hours, but they’ll let her go to inform the Cinage House.

They looked at me reluctantly but when they realised they weren’t really kidnapping, they went on with it.

Seriously, the plan to hold the child ransom was stupid in the first place.

Was the boss so mad that he couldn’t think straight?

Shouldn’t it be clear that your house will fall if you provoke the Cinage folks?

Well, I’m assuming he was blind with rage and a sense of opportunity to do something to a Cinage blood-born.

No one has ever touched a Cinage family member, or at least, gotten away with it.

His hatred must stem deep for the Head of the Cinage House.

Though still, stupid move, but a brilliant addition to my escape plan.

Either way, direct or indirect, the Tyrat House will fall against the full power of the Cinage House.

And then, all I have to say is that: “I was just following orders” and I’ll be free.

Then Rose and will be able to live somewhere safe, maybe in the countryside.

“…Uwah.”

I looked over to my side, the clothes and the things the boy had sat there neatly packed.

“He even had a wand and some money.”

Trying to think of something good about the kid was useless because his screams of pain echoed across the hallway.

We were in the basement of the Estate, and I sat outside of the cell rooms, which contrasted greatly in quality.

For example, the floor here was wood and it was insulated.

But in the cell rooms, it was all concrete and bricks, and extremely cold.

“Ah, I should get ready to send the kid somewhere after the boss is satisfied.”

Since the boss is petty, he won’t return the kid even though he knows he’ll lose.

So he’ll just throw the kid away all hurt and scathed in a town far away, according to my orders.

Seriously, how far are you going to derail from your ransom plan?

Iwrys Fyrell Tyrat, the stupidest man I’ve ever met.

It’s only because of his advisor that he’s lasted this long, though that advisor is dead now.

But he still believes all the exploits of the Tyrat House were spearheaded by himself, and not the advisor.

“Seriously, what a fool.”

I put my hands into my pocket and blocked my ears.

From the cell, the boy yelled, he screamed, he shouted.

The pained voice, filled with the red mist of blood rung throughout the room.

Alright, that should be enough.

“Boss! That’s enough!”

I ran into the cell room and smashed the door open.

What I was met with hurt even my eyes.

Two men, with pity in their expressions, two men I knew were holding the kid up from his arms and shoulders.

In front was the boss, wearing brass knuckles.

And the kid, wearing nothing but shorts.

He hung there, his arms held by the men lifelessly, his chin touched his chest.

There were bruises all around his body, blood scattered everywhere and dripping from his face.

His dead eyes, void of life, glared at his feet.

…In just a few hours, he’s changed.

And boss, you really are a shitty man.

“Huh? What’s the meaning of this? I’m enjoying myself here, don’t interrupt."

I lowered my head and replied:

“Boss, it’s almost time to sleep, and the boy's all beat. Shouldn't this be enough to satisfy you?”

“No, it’s not, those Cinage bastards deserve this.”

“But please spare sympathy, especially for a child.”

I didn’t want to hear the screams of pain coming from a kid.

It’d be fine if it was from a man, but not a kid.

The boss sighed and dropped his hands before looking at me listlessly.

“Fine, but it’s only because that you’re asking this that I’m accepting."

The boss said as he pointed towards the two men holding the kid up.

Boss, your words are making me cringe.

It’s good to hear that the men I’ve been working with have morals.

“I can’t express my gratitude, boss.”

Part 3

With that said, the boss dropped his brass knuckles and stomped out of the cell.

The men then slowly put the boy down.

After confirming that he was truly gone from the basement, I looked over to one of the men.

“Oi, turn off the anti-magic circle. I need to heal the boy.”

“Yes!”

One of the men, initially holding the boy rushed out of the room with the other checking his condition.

I dropped onto my knees and carried the kid out into a warmer place.

“[Water: High Heal]!”

After waiting a while for the anti-magic circle to shut down, I cast a High-Class Heal spell on him.

The bruises that covered his entire body disappeared, the blood also turned into natural mana, disappearing into the air.

The broken bones and the bleeding were all healed.

But he was still unconscious.

“Is he going to be alright?”

“Yes, it was a High-Class Heal, he should be fine.”

I replied to the man, who stood beside the boy with a bandage prepared, though he didn’t need to use it.

“I hope so, that was really horrible of the boss. I can’t imagine what the boss would do if he was a girl-”

“Don’t even think about it.”

I cut the man off as I further examined the boy’s conditions.

After a minute, I spoke:

“Alright, we’re leaving.”

“W-What? Where?”

“The boss ordered me to throw the kid away somewhere in a different town, didn’t you see the carriage outside?”

I put the boy into his clothes and took his wand and bag of money.

With that, I carried him outside.

It’s time to fulfil my last order for the Tyrat House.