Chapter 20. Back to Azureocean Castle
While they were on the train heading back to Azureocean Castle, another passenger boarded. It was Caron's father, Fayle.
"Father, what brings you here?" Caron asked in surprise.
"Uncle Fayle! How have you been?" Leo chimed in.
Fayle greeted his son and nephew with a warm smile and said, "It's been a while. It's good to see you both."
Sabina looked at Fayle and said, "My dear nephew is working so hard because of you two. Aren't you, Fayle?"
"Haha… Aunt Sabina, I'm happy and proud. These children are already striving for the honor of the Leston Duchy. It's wonderful to see," Fayle said as he laughed and shook his head.
The reason Fayle had been called away from managing business in the domain was due to the subject Caron had brought up: The development of the mana stone mine in Belrus Barony and the subsequent political issues that would follow. They were heading to Azureocean Castle to discuss all these matters.
Fayle smiled broadly at Caron. When he first sent his son to Azureocean Castle, he had been overwhelmed with worry. But now, his son had grown enough to carry out missions and even become a favorite of Sabina, one of the family's most respected members. And it wasn't just that…
He seems to get along well with Leo too, Fayle noted with satisfaction. Despite their rocky start, in which Caron had initially assaulted Leo, the two now appeared to be on good terms.
Caron was the apple of Fayle's eye. He felt a deep sense of pride as he saw his son adapt so well, even gaining recognition from the Azure Wolves of the Oceanwolf Knight Order.
After Fayle patted Caron's head affectionately, he turned to Sabina and asked, "Aunt Sabina, isn't Father still in the capital?"
"He's on his way back right now. I don't think his discussion with the emperor was satisfactory. Oh well, what can you expect from an emperor who's practically a scarecrow? He had other meetings with the dukes scheduled, but he canceled them all," Sabina answered.
"The situation doesn't look good," Fayle commented.
Sabina nodded and said, "Fayle, since it was your role to handle our connections with central politics, you must have sensed that things were amiss."
Fayle sighed and nodded with a serious expression. He had indeed noticed that things weren't going well. The key powers, excluding the Leston Duchy, were consolidating quickly. The most prominent among them were Duke Salmon[1] and Marquis Diaz.
They were the meritorious subjects who had dethroned the Malevolent Emperor and installed the emperor who sat on the throne today. Those people were the real powers behind the regime. Recently, their movements had been peculiar.
Fayle had gone to the capital to figure out their intentions firsthand, but his quick return indicated that things hadn't gone well.
"We need to start taking action," Fayle said decisively.
Remaining passive in such a situation would be foolish. After the Malevolent Emperor was deposed, Fayle had focused solely on restoring order, stepping back from central power. He had wanted to do so himself, and also thought that it was truly for the sake of the empire.
However, the order he had maintained was now starting to crumble, and cracks were appearing in places. The era of peace was nearing its end, and power-hungry individuals were forming alliances across the land. Whether they liked it or not, it was time for the Leston Duchy to make an official move.
"Father," Caron began.
"Yes, son?" Fayle answered.
"This is my first gift to Grandfather. If I give him a present, maybe he'll be more forgiving if I make mistakes later on," Caron said.
Caron was smart. He had likely sensed these shifts early on and understood what they needed now. What they needed was justification, a legitimate reason to project their influence. Stationing troops in another's territory without cause was outright tyranny. However, if they formed a business partnership and deployed troops to protect that venture, that would be a legitimate pretext.
"All of this is thanks to your son; you've raised him well," Sabina said to Fayle.
"It's because you've guided Caron down the right path, Aunt Sabina," Fayle replied humbly.
"Don't pretend to be humble. Your smile says it all," Sabina teased.
"Lady Sabina, please don't tease my father," Caron interjected.
"He may be your father, but he's my nephew."
"If you want to nag, do it to Uncle Raphael."
"Hey! Why are you dragging my father into this?" Leo protested.
"Because Uncle Raphael isn't my father," Caron retorted.
Fayle watched them banter with a smile.
I hope nothing bad will happen to Caron, he silently hoped.
In this rapidly changing world, Fayle's sole concern was his son's safety.
***
They soon arrived at Azureocean Castle. As soon as they did, Sabina excused herself, saying she had matters to attend to. Meanwhile, Fayle was summoned by his brothers and headed straight to the reception room. Left alone, the first thing Caron and Leo did was hand over the deserter boss, Michael, to the Oceanwolf Knight Order.
"We'll conduct the interrogation, ensuring he's kept just barely alive. We'll extract every bit of information he has, so don't worry, Young Master Caron," a knight assured Caron.
"Thank you," Caron replied.
Urhan, who had also been brought along, found himself in the same situation. With his hands bound, he desperately called out to Caron, "Young Master, please spare me. I've told you everything I know. Please, just let me live…"
Caron glanced at Urhan with a bored expression and waved his hand dismissively. He said, "He's just a common lackey. If he doesn't have much to offer, feel free to release him."
"Hmm… Then why did you bring him?" one of the knights asked, puzzled.
"How should I address him… Ah, he's an informant. Thanks to his cooperation, our mission went smoothly," Caron explained.
"Thank you, Young Master—" Urhan started, hope flickering in his eyes.
"Although he wasn't particularly useful," Caron interrupted.
"... Young Master?" Urhan was puzzled.
The knight, who roughly understood Caron's playful tone, smirked and nodded. He then said, "We'll give him a light punishment and release him."
"I'm thinking of using him as my personal servant. Since he's a trained elite soldier, he should be quite strong," Caron mused.
"Alright, Young Master," the knight answered.
Caron figured Urhan would make a strong servant. Initially, he had thought about leaving Urhan's fate to the Belrus Baron. But after the captives who had been taken to the bandit camp pleaded for leniency, he'd changed his mind.
Urhan probably wasn't a bad person at heart. Since he was from an elite military background, Caron thought it would be fine to have him trained at Azureocean Castle, then send him to his parents.
After handing over Michael and Urhan, they proceeded to the main building of Azureocean Castle. The first person to greet them was Zerath, who had been informed of their arrival.
"Well done. You have both successfully completed your mission," said Zerath.
"Eh, it wasn't a difficult mission. Right, Leo?" Caron responded.
"Uh, I guess?" Leo replied hesitantly.
"Of course it was easy. All you did was smash heads of a few skeletons while I handled the tough part. Being the younger one is bad, isn't it, Sir Zerath?" Caron remarked.
Zerath sighed deeply and shook his head. He had hoped the completion of their first mission would make them more mature, but it seemed nothing had changed in that respect.
"Since you've successfully completed your first mission, you two are now official Azure Wolves of the Oceanwolf Knight Order," Zerath said.
They had still proven themselves. Though Sabina was there to protect them, knowing her personality, she likely hadn't provided any practical help.
"However, your mission is not yet complete. There is one more step to finish," Zerath continued.
"Huh?" Caron and Leo both looked puzzled.
"You need to write a mission report. Only after submitting the report will your mission be considered fully complete," Zerath informed them.
Such reports documented the mission, evaluated what went wrong, and provided a chance to learn from one's mistakes. It was a tradition of the Azure Wolves that had continued for a long time.
Caron nodded cheerfully and said, "Of course I was planning to write the report. But, Sir Zerath, do we each have to write one separately?"
"No, but it would be easier if you did it together," Zerath replied.
With a wide smile, Caron turned to Leo and said, "Hey, Leo, since I did all the hard work, how about you handle this report?"
"Well, working together would be quicker and better—" Leo started.
"What a pity. I was trying to give you a great opportunity," Caron interrupted.
Leo eyed Caron's mouth suspiciously. He wondered what could possibly come out of that devilish mouth next. He knew better than to be swayed by it.
"Listen, Leo. Write the report from your perspective. Detail all the heroic actions you took. Sir Zerath, Uncle Raphael will see the report too, right?" Caron asked.
"Of course. The report gets reviewed," Zerath confirmed.
"See, Leo? It's a perfect chance to impress Uncle Raphael," Caron said.
Leo tried to resist. He knew that if he agreed with Caron, it would mean he had to handle the tedious task alone. Despite that, however, he found himself nodding before asking, "Can I really write it however I want?"
"Young Master Leo, the report should be factual and objective," Zerath reminded him.
"Exactly, Sir Zerath. Just objectively detail your contributions. What do you say, Leo? Is it tempting you?" Caron asked.
Leo closed his eyes as he wrestled with the decision. He had promised himself not to fall for Caron's tricks again. But in the end, he gave in once again and said, "...Alright, I'll write it."
The idea of impressing his father with his achievements had broken Leo's resistance. Caron smiled contentedly and patted Leo's shoulder, remarking, "I'm really doing you a big favor here. You owe me, alright?"
"Hey, I'm the one writing the report for you," Leo retorted.
"It's all for your sake, trust me," Caron said.
At this point, it was hard to tell who was the elder brother and who was the younger. Zerath shook his head as he watched the fraud unfolding before his eyes.
"If the report is exaggerated or incomplete, you'll have to rewrite it. Keep that in mind," Zerath warned.
"You heard him, Leo. Make sure it's good," Caron said.
"Okay, Sir Zerath," Leo replied.
Zerath glanced at the setting sun and realized that they had completed their mission in just a day. Excluding the travel time, that meant the mission was wrapped up in practically no time.
"It must have been a tiring day. Go rest, and please submit the report by the end of the week," Zerath instructed.
Even though they looked fine outwardly, Zerath knew they would no doubt be exhausted. Perhaps they were excited from the success of the mission at the moment, but once the excitement wore off, exhaustion was bound to come, leaving them drained.
"When will Grandfather arrive?" Caron asked Zerath.
"He should be here in about an hour," Zerath answered.
Once Halo arrived, a meeting would be convened to decide the future course of action for Azureocean Castle. Caron wondered what choice he would make. Halo was like a giant, and when a giant took a step, the world inevitably trembled.
Exciting events lay ahead. Opportunities for Caron to become a headache for Halo would begin to appear here and there. From that point on, it would be like a feast. After setting the table with delicious dishes, Caron could finally indulge and let loose.
Caron grinned and patted Leo's back, then said, "Alright, Leo. Make sure you write the report well. Don't just write about yourself. You know what I mean? I'm heading to the training hall now."
"The training hall? Why are you going there all of a sudden?" Leo asked.
"I used a lot of mana today," Caron replied.
With a casual wave, he headed towards the annex, leaving Leo behind.
***
Caron arrived at the training hall. He had strained his mana pathways while capturing Michael. At times like this, it was beneficial to manage his mana properly to recover.
At least I can use the training hall alone now, he thought with satisfaction. After he reached 4-Star in the Ocean Dominance Arts, the restriction of requiring a guardian's presence had been lifted. This privilege had also been granted by Halo upon Sabina's personal request.
Caron took a deep breath and focused his mind.
Whoosh.
Four vast seas resonated, creating violent waves. Caron's ocean of mana was still wild; waves crashed ceaselessly, ready to devour everything around them.
Soon, however, the turbulent ocean moved according to Caron's will. He mended the scars in his mana pathways, spreading the energy evenly throughout himself.
The waves now listen to me well, Caron thought.
Despite his ocean being so wild and unpredictable, he had always liked it. It had been that way since he first learned the Ocean Dominance Arts. Caron felt that this ocean resembled him.
He was curious about what lay at the end of it, however. Perhaps it was the realm Halo had reached. He also wondered what was beyond that. It was a longing for a level he had never achieved in his previous life, and at the same time, it was a desire he wanted to achieve in this lifetime.
Lost in the depths of his ocean, Caron didn't realize how much time had passed.
"Ah," Caron sighed contentedly as he slowly opened his eyes, feeling his mana replenished.
"You're done," Zerath remarked as he stood nearby.
"Sir Zerath? How long have you been here?" Caron asked.
"Not long, maybe about thirty minutes? But you've been training for two hours," Zerath answered.
As the captain of the Oceanwolf Knight Order, Zerath had the authority to enter the training hall.
Caron smiled faintly, then asked, "Did you come to check on me?"
Zerath shook his head firmly and said, "Not at all."
He wasn't worried about Caron, although he was slightly concerned about Leo writing the report alone in his room.
"That's disappointing. I'm still a kid, you know," Caron said.
"Normal kids don't call themselves children. They're eager to grow up," Zerath replied.
"I don't get why all the kids want to grow up so fast. Adulthood is full of responsibilities. Anyway, what brings you here? Grandfather must have arrived by now," Caron said.
Zerath nodded and said, "He has arrived already, and is in his office."
"Then the meeting must be underway," Caron said.
"Your grandfather has requested your presence," Zerath added.
"Grandfather wants to see me? Why?" Caron asked.
Zerath paused and sighed. Then he looked at Caron's bright eyes and sighed again before replying, "It seems you need to visit the capital. He will explain the details himself."
Caron's face lit up with a wide smile. The opportunity he'd been waiting for had arrived sooner than he expected.
1. The hangul is 살몬, which is literally how "salmon" would be written. ☜
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