Chapter Thirteen: Blending into the Paul Family, Yet Rudy Harbors Doubts

After a long moment, Paul noticed that Allen remained silent, so he carefully spoke up.

“Allen, um, this letter was received last year... I know this might be hard for you to accept, but in fact, your father really is...”

“I know James is not my biological father.”

Paul was taken aback and looked at Allen, who wore a calm expression.

“That’s great. I’ll write to Philip right away to tell him I’ve found you, so you can return to Roya...”

“That won’t work.”

Paul stared at Allen in surprise. Allen gave him a smile.

“Uncle, please sit down and listen.”

Saying this, Allen pushed Paul into a chair and went to fetch another chair by the door. Paul blinked, looking at him somewhat bewildered.

“First, the information about the disappearance is true, but my so-called ‘biological father’ concealed the preceding events.”

Allen walked to the door and rested his hand on the back of the chair. The rough texture of the wood rubbed against his skin.

“When I passed through the Red Dragon’s Upper Jaw, I was ambushed.”

Paul sprang to his feet with a start.

Allen lifted the chair and turned to face Paul.

“The ‘assassination’ was deliberately arranged by me because I had long realized I wasn’t James’s biological son. By calculating backwards from the birthdays of my siblings, I figured out my gestation period. I should never have existed in the Boreas family of the royal capital. Another brother was in the same situation but died of illness at five... Until the end of last year, I secretly hired a band of thieves to stage a ruse, intending to escape the Boreas family and come to the Fitoia territory.”

Paul exhaled deeply and sat down again. He had been misled by Allen, subconsciously thinking this choice was to return to his biological father’s side.

Allen approached Paul, narrowing his eyes.

“But the ‘assassination’ went wrong. The actual number of attackers was different from the five intermediate swordsmen the thieves were supposed to send—only a light attempt, with everyone supposed to survive, ending with me falling off a cliff and disappearing. But what I actually faced were eight skilled swordsmen. If I’m not mistaken, two were senior swordsmen of the Water God style, and there was also a magician...”

“They struck to kill.”

Paul jumped up again.

Allen stood before him, looking at him with a casual smile.

“So, they died.”

Paul breathed out slowly and sat down once more.

Allen sat opposite him, locking eyes.

“Afterwards, I sneaked through the Red Dragon’s Upper Jaw into the forest, first faked my northward tracks, then spent over four months circumventing to reach Buena Village. I’d heard of Uncle Paul’s ‘heroic deeds’ in the royal capital before. I figured you wouldn’t have a high opinion of noble children, and Buena Village is secluded—perfect for hiding—so I came to seek refuge with you... But I only learned today that news of my disappearance had spread. It seems James must believe I successfully left the Asra Kingdom and thus released that information.”

Paul blinked.

“Heroic deeds? Oh? I didn’t expect there to be legends about me in the royal capital...”

Allen spoke rapidly, blurting out a dozen words in an instant.

“A ten-year-old who innocently graduated from a noble school and messed around with various women, then got found out by the victims and his father...”

“Stop!”

Paul immediately stood and covered Allen’s mouth. Allen smiled and pulled Paul’s hand away.

“I suspect those thieves betrayed me to James, and James has always been wary of Philip. So he probably guessed I’d sneak back to help Philip, and thus staged the assassination to eliminate me as a threat.”

Paul’s embarrassed face instantly turned serious. He realized that Allen never referred to either James or Philip as father. After opening and closing his mouth several times, he recalled the scene of leaving after arguing with his father and sighed deeply.

...The apparent biological father tried to kill me, while the real father has never met me... So neither ‘father’ feels like family...

“Then... secretly returning to Roya City could work, right? Just keeping a low profile and only meeting with Philip...”

“No.”

“First, Shaoros has a strong hold over the Fitoia territory. He would definitely notice and disapprove of my actions. Most likely, according to the Boreas family tradition, I’d be sent back to James. My situation in the royal capital would become even more dangerous.”

“Second, James must have spies in Roya City secretly monitoring Philip.”

Allen lowered his head and spoke earnestly to Paul.

“So I earnestly ask Uncle Paul to take me in. To make up for this, I promise to safeguard Rudy’s future. After all, you can’t always be with him. We’re close in age, so we could even become friends someday.”

Paul looked at the letter he had placed back on the table. After a moment, he could only nod.

Allen continued.

“Once the heat dies down in two years and my body and appearance mature a bit more, I’ll shave my eyebrows to look kinder, and change to a gloomy hairstyle with bangs. Even if someone who has seen me before stands before me, they probably wouldn’t recognize me.”

Unlike the information age Allen came from, where news spreads instantly, this world’s information delay has its advantages. Also, magical items that preserve one’s image are extremely rare... Like Regelud, a fierce man who can enter a city just by changing his hair color... Two years is more than enough time for me to learn from Paul and raise my swordsmanship to at least a high intermediate level in three styles.

“Of course, James and the family in the royal capital, who have watched me grow, should recognize me. But as long as I avoid meeting them, it should be fine.”

Paul glanced at Allen and sighed inwardly. He instinctively believed Philip would recognize him but did not voice any objection.

“That’s true. And by then your strength will have increased further. Aside from a few top-tier Sword Kings and Sword Emperors, no one will pose a mortal threat to you. And your current official story is just ‘missing.’ Even if they recognize you, they can only send people to assassinate you—they can’t openly turn against you... that’s the nobility of the Asra Kingdom.”

Allen nodded.

“Yes.”

Just then, footsteps came from outside. Paul and Allen fell silent, and the door was knocked three times.

Lilia opened the door and peeked in, appraising Allen from head to toe before speaking.

“Master, dinner is ready. Come and eat.”

——

Sure enough, Senis’s cooking matches her size.

Magnificent.

Allen looked at the steaming soup and rice on the table, along with a dough-based dish resembling pizza. In the center was a pot of tender stewed meat emitting a rich aroma.

Rudius sat directly opposite Allen, studying him through the swirling steam.

Allen smiled involuntarily.

Rudi immediately closed his eyes and turned away.

Allen’s mouth twitched.

At that moment, Paul tapped the table with his fingers and cleared his throat.

“Alright, after our discussion, I’ve confirmed Allen has the ability to train Rudius, so there’s no need for a trial period. He will be Rudi’s swordsmanship teacher from now on. Please treat him like family and don’t underestimate his role at home just because of my swordsmanship rank.”

Lilia, serving nearby, was the first to applaud. Although she thought hiring another swordsmanship teacher unnecessary, as the daughter of a former sword dojo master, she had no objection to Allen’s demonstration of the Water God style. With his skill, he could easily serve as a palace guard—an elite one at that.

Senis clasped her hands together in front of her face and smiled warmly.

“Since the head of the household has decided, I naturally welcome Allen. I’m sure Lilia won’t look down on him just because of his age.”

With that, she busied herself serving the food, placing a portion in front of Allen.

Paul then clapped Allen on the shoulder with a cheerful grin and introduced him to the three with many flattering words.

Senis nodded frequently, smiling kindly.

It was completely different from the cold, indifferent daily life with so-called relatives in the royal capital...

Having never truly experienced family warmth in either life, Allen felt somewhat uneasy under their gaze. He instinctively lowered his head, the aroma of the food wafting toward him.

Steam mixed with faint wisps of smoke rose against his face.

[Current stage: Childhood. Cumulative involvement score: 40 points. You have initially integrated into Paul’s family, but Rudius himself holds a somewhat different view of you.]

[Pending immediate task: Gain Rudius’s favor.]

[Rudius: Countdown: 77:38:47]