I Reincarnated As the Third Son of a Count’s Family, Only To Find a Series of Funerals

19 – Between Croft

After the war with West Berne (which was actually Camus), peace finally came to Silverwood Viscounty.

“Hey! Can you hold it there at the back?”

“Here, is this a horse? One, two! Hmph!”

“I can’t take anymore!”

“Here it is!”

Thud thud.

Wherever you go in Viscountcy, the sound of hammers and nails is heard.

Thanks to the support of Lord Lurein, who was their grandpa, the entire Viscountcy, which had been destroyed, began to come alive again.

“It feels good just to see it, even though I’m just looking.”

“I’m glad the Viscounty is coming back to life again.”

As I mumbled to myself while looking out the window of the castle, Eilen came up from behind.

“It’s all thanks to Lord Lurein, isn’t it?”

“Of course, it’s probably because Lord Lurein supported us. But Count Bergol also had a big impact.”

Eilen shook her head and said in response to my words.

“I don’t think I did anything…”

“It’s because the citizens of the territory know what kind of person the Viscount is that they work so hard like that.”

She knows what kind of person I am. What does she mean?

Whether or not she sensed the doubt on my face, Eilen continued.

“The Viscount showed us during this war that he cares for and loves the citizens of his territory. That’s why the residents of the territory can focus on rebuilding their lives without worrying about anything else.”

“…is that so?”

I gave a bitter smile in response to Eilen’s words.

Of course, I tried to protect the villagers of my territory as much as possible, and despite the imminent riot, I showed leniency by not punishing anyone except for the spy who was an agitator.

But, if it weren’t for my great-grandfather’s support, could I have been a good lord even after the war?

First of all, even just building houses would have taken time since I didn’t have money, and without mercenaries due to lack of funds, the territory would have been defenseless for a while. It would have taken a long time to bring in priests as well. If I wanted to arrange something somehow, I would have had to impose harsh taxes on the villagers who had nothing, squeezing dry rags out of them.

Now that I think about it, if it weren’t for our great-grandfather, we wouldn’t have had any resources at all. It becomes pitch black in front of my eyes.

So, what I want to say is that I still don’t know if I am a great lord to the people of my territory. Would they have thought highly of me even if I didn’t have the money, materials, tools, and food provided by our great-grandfather?

But even if I don’t know anything else, honestly, in terms of character, I seem to be top class compared to other lords. No one touched those scoundrels who dared to betray me.

“I still don’t know if I’m a good lord.”

“…My Lord.”

“But hey, it’s funny to ask whether I’m already a good or bad lord now that I’ve become a viscount. Don’t you think so?”

“Well, yes.”

Eilen and I laughed softly. Then I approached Eilen and placed my hand on her shoulder. Eilen blushed and slightly lowered her head, seemingly surprised by my sudden action.

“I have to prove myself enough for me to be convinced if I am a good lord or not.”

“…”

“But come to think of it, being the grandson of a duke is also a condition for being a good lord… If bloodline is also an ability, then isn’t it an ability too?”

I laughed heartily. Eilen also smiled back at me when she saw me laughing.

Today, the sky felt bluer than usual.

**

While doing my official duties inside the castle, Chief Advisor Robert knocked on the door of my office.

“My Lord, are you there?”

“What’s the matter?”

“Duke Lurain has summoned you, my Lord.”

Upon hearing the chief advisor’s words, I quickly rearranged my outer garment that I had casually discarded and stood up from my seat.

I opened the door and spoke to the chief advisor who was waiting in front of the door.

“Let’s go quickly. Lead the way.”

“Yes, my Lord.”

Following the path led by the chief advisor, I finally arrived at the reception room where the guests were received. The guest room was being used by my great-grandfather while he stayed in Silverwood.

I knocked on the door of the guest room and spoke.

“Great-grandfather, it’s your grandson. I heard that you called for me.”

“Oh, yes. Come in.”

Duke Lurain, my great-grandfather, was diligently reading the script written on the parchment with his magnifying glass made of crystal.

When he saw me coming in, Grandpa took off his glasses and smiled as he spoke:

“Welcome! Edrick, have you eaten?”

“I just quickly had some bread with stew earlier,” I said.

“Tsk tsk. You should eat meat and vegetables at your age if you want to grow up with a muscular body like a real man when you’re around twenty. Bread and stew aren’t bad, but you should eat something more substantial.”

Seeing my Grandpa nagging at me like my hometown grandma during holidays, I thought to myself,

“He’s a completely different person from the one he shows in public.”

I already had a hint of this feeling, but now it was crystal clear. The proud leader who wore armor and commanded his subordinates in front of others, Noikjang, seemed to disappear. Instead, there was my grandpa with a humble outfit, sitting upright, struggling to read a paper on which he used a magnifying glass. He reminded me of a typical grandfather reading a newspaper on the living room sofa in his previous life.

Looking at the gap between Grandpa’s usual appearance, I felt an unexplainable longing.

“Anyway, you need to study what you haven’t learned yet.”

“Huh…”

What, is he really going to lecture me like it’s the holidays?

“There’s no need to do it right now… Even if it’s writing, I write pretty well in Yumania…”

“Just knowing how to write words doesn’t mean you are good enough. And besides, you’ll become a nobleman and have to learn Lutinian language.”

Grandpa said sternly.

“Some stubborn people say, ‘Knights don’t need to know how to read,’ but they are usually those who cannot have their own territory for their whole lives. They spend their entire lives fighting for others, spending all their property on liquor and women, only to end up alone on the street suffering from diseases in old age. They are like a family that is no different than mercenaries.”

“Oh…”

Isn’t it too harsh to denigrate the mercenaries? Our Red Rose Mercenaries based in our castle will feel offended.

“But we, as nobles, should never be like them. Martial arts are important, but if you want to run your territory well, you need knowledge and wisdom. I am going to teach you how to deal with the laws of the world, not just simple reading and math.”

“Laws of the world?”

“Have you ever thought about why we need to study?”

“…I don’t really think I’ve thought about it thoroughly.”

If I were ordinary me from a previous life, I would have responded with “I’m going to a good college” or “I want to work in a good place later” with annoyance. But as the Silverwood Count, I found it difficult to answer Grandpa’s question.

“The reason why we study is to broaden our views on how the world works and utilize and apply its principles in reality to create a better world than before.”

Grandpa still smiled as if seeing that I still didn’t understand,

“Simply put, if you have to count how many numerous things there are and can only do addition when you know it, you have to sit down and count one by one. However, if you learn multiplication, you can calculate five or ten at a time, so you can easily count five or ten times faster than adding up things one by one.”

“I see.”

“What I mean is that by studying, we can make things that seem impossible or difficult much simpler and possible, as I said before. We, as nobles, experience many physical, social, and diplomatic obstacles in running our territories and armies, but through the knowledge and wisdom gained through study, we can overcome them.”

“…”

“In short, if you were in a situation where you had to impress the king to achieve something, would you be able to get what you want if you didn’t study etiquette and act politely to the king?”

“Well, I guess not…”

“Will I be able to sing ballads without studying numerous poems and literature just to captivate the young lady who has a mole? If you don’t study Lutetian, how will you hear and keep the commandments of our almighty god? All studies are helpful for your life. So stop murmuring and study as this old man commands.”

“…Yes.”

Unable to refute Grandfather’s words, I finally gave in obediently. Even if singing ballads or whatever it may be was a stretch, the rest of his words were all true.

“Once you find out how much I spent on hiring a private tutor for you, you’ll probably be flabbergasted.”

“If that money had been used for land development instead…”

“Oh! Shut your mouth before I take away what little you have!”

Shocked by Grandfather’s threatening manner, I cowered…

Wiping the cold sweat from my forehead, I sighed and spoke, “I’ll be quite busy studying for a while…”

“You should also practice martial arts, my lord.”

“Ah!”

Suddenly, someone grabbed my shoulder and began speaking, jolting me.

Turning around, I saw Master Gerald staring at me with a menacing smile.

“Now that the war is over, you must receive proper knight training. You’re not a young lord anymore; you are a viscount and will be held to a higher standard.”

“Oh, no..!”

“Yes!”

And so, I found myself caught in the quagmire of study and training…

**

“Is this Silverwood?”

A woman, wearing a broad hat with a long pointy top pressed down, approached the central gate of a wooden castle wall with many scars here and there.

The guard standing watch at the gate stopped her.

“What business do you have at Silverwood?”

Looking at the woman, dressed in fine clothes and carrying a well-carved long wooden staff, the guard raised his voice as he asked the question.

The woman rolled her eyes upward for a moment and made a sound like ‘hmm’ as she tapped her index finger near her lips.

Finally, as if she remembered something, she clapped her hands together and replied to the guard, “I’ve been invited as a private tutor for someone named ‘Edric’ at Silverwood!”

“Are you referring to the Viscount’s private tutor..? May I ask your name..?”

The guard asked the woman for her name, just to be sure. It was then that the woman brushed her hair to the side with her hand, revealing her long, pointed ear that had been hidden under her hair until then.

“My name is ‘Nirsera’!”

An elf had arrived at Silverwood.