News that Viscountess Tanasia had recovered from her sickbed spread rapidly throughout the entire territory.
At first, I thought either Mary or Biz had let it slip.
As it turned out, the source of the rumor was my father, Viscount Dmitri Ferdalos.
Father had once been a soldier before being elevated to the nobility in recognition of his service, and he was hopeless at hiding his emotions in many respects.
Naturally, he had been one of the people most overjoyed by the news that his beloved wife had recovered.
The corners of Viscount Ferdalos's mouth, which had drooped for years, practically reached his ears and refused to come down.
There had never been any hope of concealing Mother's recovery in the first place.
After someone belatedly advised him that it was best not to display family matters to outsiders, Father tried to resume his usual stern expression.
By then, however, rumors of Viscountess Tanasia's recovery had already spread among not only the servants, but the people of the territory as well.
Naturally, all sorts of stories also circulated about me, the one who had restored Mother's health.
Even the servants openly called me things like ‘the next lord of Ferdalos, as expected’ and ‘the genius young master who cured an incurable disease’ right to my face.
Even I found it rather difficult to brazenly accept such titles.
It was not as though I could silence every butler and maid.
Rumors were not something that could be stopped that way in any case.
Most importantly, the source of those burdensome titles was Father, the master of the manor. The matter had already gone beyond anything I could stop.
That morning's breakfast began, as usual, with more of Father's unabashed praise.
“Thanks to our genius son Conrad, the House of Ferdalos has truly come alive again! Ahahaha!”
Feeling somewhat embarrassed by Father repeating the same thing at every meal, I timidly expressed my discomfort as always.
“Father, how many times have you said that already? And as long as they knew the method, anyone could have performed that treatment. It did not have to be me.”
“Even so, you were the one who found the method yourself, weren't you? I'm proud of you, my son.”
“Mother is right, Brother. No matter how hard you try to hide it behind modesty, it does not change the fact that what you accomplished saved Mother's life.”
Of course, whenever I protested, Mother and my younger sister immediately joined in and continued showering me with embarrassing praise.
This atmosphere would probably continue for some time.
I had no choice but to accept it quietly and trust that it would eventually die down.
“Now that I've recovered thanks to our son, I should start paying attention to managing the territory again.”
“Will you be all right, Tanasia? I still think it would be better for you to rest a little longer.”
“It has already been a week since my mana circuits recovered, Dmitri. And we cannot leave Delphina to handle the entire territory forever, can we?”
“Ahem. Well, that is true, but....”
Father had rendered distinguished service in the war against the Kingdom of Longrias.
For that achievement, he had been awarded a medal and the title of viscount, becoming what was known as a ‘decorated noble.’
As a result, he tended to be somewhat less capable in matters of administration and politics than the head of an ordinary noble house.
Mother, by contrast, had been raised from childhood with all the education expected of a noble lady of the comital House of Aelias, and was far more knowledgeable in those fields.
Naturally, Viscountess Tanasia had overseen the overall management of Ferdalos before she collapsed.
After her mana circuits were ruined and she was confined to bed, Delphina and I somehow ended up managing it instead.
To make matters worse, I reached the age to enter the academy last year.
For all practical purposes, Delphina had handled nearly all the territory's administration by herself for the past year.
The sooner Mother returned to her duties, the sooner my younger sister's burden would be eased.
“I also support Mother's return.
Delphina will be old enough to enter the academy next year. We cannot leave everything to my younger sister forever.”
“I agree with Brother. I had already been feeling that it was a little too much for me to handle alone.”
“Ahem. W-Well, if all of you feel that way, I suppose it cannot be helped.”
Viscount Dmitri Ferdalos readily accepted the opinions of his wife and children.
Some might judge him as lacking a little dignity for a nobleman.
But as a husband and father, there was no doubt that he was a good man.
Perhaps Mother's recovery from her sickbed had simply given him room to breathe again.
Had I failed to discover the treatment and left Mother as she was, her condition would probably have continued to worsen.
She would have passed away in pain and suffering before surviving even another year.
The mood of the entire household would then have plunged into gloom.
Father's taciturn nature would also have hardened completely.
By preventing that alone, I had effectively completed everything I needed to do in the territory that winter.
“Father, Mother.”
“What is it, my son?”
“Although it is a little early, I intend to return to the academy in one week.”
Father and Delphina stared at me with widened eyes.
Mother merely nodded in silence, her expression calm.
“Already, Brother? Has it not been less than a month since you came home?”
“Why not rest a little longer before going back?”
“There is something I still need to do before heading to the imperial capital. I think I will need a little more time if I am to finish it before returning.”
“You know how busy the academy's Department of Magic is, Dmitri.”
“...Hmm. That is true.”
Come to think of it, Father and Mother had said they first met at the academy.
Judging by how readily Father accepted Mother's explanation, she must also have led quite a busy life during her academy days.
Of course, my reason for returning to the academy a little early had nothing to do with magical research or independent study.
Most of my magical knowledge remained in memories accumulated over nearly ten years, so that posed no particular problem.
All I had to do was unlock my next Circle whenever the opportunity arose and regain my power.
My reason for leaving a little ahead of schedule was entirely different from what my parents assumed.
“Life as a student in the Department of Magic is rather busy.”
But there was no reason to tell them and give them something to worry about.
After that, they asked about how I had been doing at the academy and where I had learned the treatment.
I answered my family's questions with suitable responses until breakfast came to an end.
It was a scene I had dearly missed, like an old memory: all four members of our family sharing a meal at one table.
***
There were two days left before I departed the Ferdalos territory for the imperial capital.
It was still a little early to go to bed, and my steps carried me outside rather than deeper into the manor.
A small tea table stood in the garden of the Ferdalos manor.
Ordinarily, Mother used it to entertain the noblewomen who visited the manor,
or Delphina occasionally used it to enjoy light refreshments and clear her head.
But the person waiting for me at that table today was neither Mother nor Delphina.
And the drinks set out were certainly not light teas such as black tea or herbal tea.
“...You came, Conrad.”
“Yes.”
Father had already downed around two glasses of whiskey.
I sat across from him, immediately picked up a glass, filled it, and lightly clinked it against his.
Clink.
After exchanging the bottled chime with the man seated across from me, I swallowed half of my first glass in one go.
The instant the alcohol entered my body, I felt myself grow slightly warm.
“...How have things been at the academy lately?”
“It has been ordinary, for the most part.”
I assumed it was the same perfunctory question he always asked and intended to let it pass without much thought.
Unexpectedly, Father's next words were nothing like the response I had anticipated.
“Ordinary, you say? How does someone living an ordinary life learn the elves' secret method of controlling mana?”
“...You knew?”
“Yes.”
“How did you know?”
“When a war drags on, you meet all kinds of people and form small connections with all kinds of races.
Every so often, you might even end up rescuing an elven slave being forced to labor in the manor of some corrupt noble.”
It was a story from Father's past that I had almost never heard, even in my previous life.
He had despised speaking about his days as a war hero so much that he had barely mentioned them even to his own children.
Mother's recovery must have changed his state of mind considerably.
“Before the elf I rescued returned to the forest, they repaid the favor by treating a battlemage in exactly the same way you did, then disappeared.”
“Then did you already know why Mother was so ill?”
“Yes. That was why I searched everywhere for someone who knew the treatment. It would have been especially good if I could have found the elf I met back then. Even if they had already repaid the favor, we could still be said to have had some connection.
But the elves had grown deeply wary because of the war. They shut themselves away in the World Tree Forest, closed their borders, and refused to take even a single step outside. What else could I do? That treatment is a secret art passed down only among elves.”
“...I suppose so.”
“It might have been different if I could have taken your mother to that forest. But in her condition, the instant she passed through a Warp Gate, the mana throughout her entire body would have become severely tangled.
Traveling by carriage would have taken more than two months. That was far too long. Nor could I leave the territory solely in Delphina's hands for all that time.”
“......”
“I can tell you do not wish to say how you obtained it, so I will not ask any further. But I want to make one thing perfectly clear.
Thank you. Truly. Thank you for saving Tanasia, Conrad.”
“She is my irreplaceable mother as well. I merely did what I had to do.”
Father shook his head at my answer and offered an honest confession.
“It may be foolish for a man my age to say this, but Tanasia is more precious to me than my own life.
Look at it that way, Conrad, and you have saved my life as well.”
“You are quite drunk, Father.”
“...Yes. I suppose I am.”
His face flushed red, Viscount Dmitri Ferdalos pushed his chair back and slowly rose.
“Drink the rest yourself. It is expensive, so do not throw it away.”
“Good night, Father.”
“Yes. It is good to know I can sleep with peace of mind thanks to the son I raised so well.
For the past three years, I went to bed every night afraid that when morning came, Tanasia might not open her eyes.”
I sent Father off with a slight nod as I watched his back disappear into the manor.
Then I poured all the remaining whiskey from the bottle with its obviously expensive label into my glass.
I spent the next hour sipping it, with the moonlight and Father's smile as the only accompaniments to my drink.
***
Two days passed after the night when Father and I shared a somewhat more honest conversation than usual.
The morning of my return to the academy arrived.
The liquor we had drunk the day before yesterday must have been rather strong. I had remained in such a groggy, half-awake state that I did not properly come to my senses until yesterday afternoon.
By today, however, I had recovered to some extent.
After eating breakfast a little more leisurely than usual and talking with my family, I exchanged final farewells with them in front of the manor.
“Take care on your way.”
“Yes, Father.”
“When you next come home, make sure you have reached at least Fourth Circle.”
“I will try to achieve even more than that.”
“Please tell me if you think you might run short of living expenses. The territory's businesses have been doing well lately, so we can afford to send you some extra money.”
“Thank you for offering, Delphina.”
After saying goodbye to each member of my family, I boarded the carriage I had arranged in time.
To travel from the Ferdalos territory to the imperial capital, I first had to spend a full day by carriage reaching the Highgarden Margraviate.
The carriage set out eastward, carrying me and the bare minimum of luggage, little enough to fit into a single backpack.
I leaned back against the carriage seat and took a brief rest.
Considering that I would need to exert myself again in a few hours, I had to rest as much as possible now.