Chapter 4 : Regression (3)

Glenn had changed.

It wasn’t just his family who noticed.

Even the maids and knights who served him all whispered the same thing:
Young Master Glenn is completely different from before.

There had been an incident once, when a maid dropped a plate in front of him.

In the past, he would have exploded, accusing her of daring to mock him and throwing a furious tantrum.

“F-Forgive me, Young Master! Please, I beg your pardon—!”

Terrified more at her own blunder than anything else, the maid instantly fell to the ground, trembling.

Everyone knew how sensitive Glenn was to the slightest mistake of those beneath him. Among all servants, he had been their greatest source of fear.

As the pale-faced girl wept, the others around them held their breath.

But to their shock, Glenn only looked on with an indifferent expression.

“What was your name again?”

His voice was flat, not particularly angry—just dry and curt.

“L-Lily, Young Master.”

“Right, Lily. Lift your head.”

He bent down, picked up a shard of the broken plate, and held it out to her.

“I’ll give you this shard as a keepsake. Carry it with you, so that you’ll remember today and never repeat the same mistake.”

“…Excuse me?”

“Take it. Quickly.”

When his brow furrowed, Lily flinched in panic and accepted the shard with both hands.

Still confused by what had just happened, she couldn’t help but blurt out, “Th-Then… my punishment is…?”

This time his expression truly soured.

“A punishment? For something like this? Don’t be ridiculous.”

Muttering as though it was hardly worth the trouble, he added,
“Ah, yes. As punishment, make sure you clean up the broken pieces properly.”

With that, he turned on his heel and strode down the corridor without another word.

The faces of those who had been watching were frozen in bewilderment.

Unthinkable. Completely unthinkable, had this been the Glen they knew.

Lily and the other maids could only blink blankly, staring after his retreating figure.

And as time passed, they all realized it:
The Young Master had changed.

To be precise, ever since he rose from his sickbed, he had become someone else entirely.

The tantrums, the aimless bursts of anger—they had all vanished.

The arrogance was still there, yes. But the contempt and scorn he once showered on those below him were gone.

Instead, he listened when spoken to. He even took the initiative to greet others, at times.

“What on earth happened to him? He was never like this before.”

“I even saw him trying to remember all our names…”

Some whispered that he had finally matured. Others said the Duke must have punished him harshly.

But regardless of the reason, everyone agreed: this change was for the better.

The most difficult man in the household to deal with… had become just a little easier to breathe around.

***

“Is that truly what happened?”

Glenn’s mother, Lady Marie Lepent, blinked in surprise.

The head maid bowed and confirmed, “Yes, my Lady. I saw it myself. Not a word of falsehood.”

“You’re telling me… that my son simply let the matter go?”

“That is correct.”

“He didn’t summon her later in secret to… take it out on her?”

Marie’s eyes darkened.

He was still her beloved son, but for someone’s nature to change overnight was another matter entirely.

It was like a child who had failed every exam suddenly bringing home perfect scores.

“…Shall I summon the maid, Lily, and have her confirm again?”

“Yes. No—bring her to me. I’ll hear it directly from her.”

Soon, a young maid entered timidly. Her head was lowered, her shoulders slumped, like a soaked puppy dragged in from the rain.

“Y-You summoned me, Duchess?”

“That’s right. I wish to ask about what happened with Glenn. You broke a plate before him, did you not?”

“I-I’m terribly sorry!”

Lily instantly dropped to the floor in reflex.

Marie sighed softly.

“I’m not here to scold you. Lift your head.”

“B-But…”

“Do you intend to waste my time? Raise it. Now.”

Flinching, Lily reluctantly lifted her head—revealing a crude necklace around her neck. It looked as if a shard of glass had been polished and strung with thread.

“That necklace… don’t tell me Glen gave it to you?”

“Yes, my Lady! He said I must always keep it with me… so that I won’t make the same mistake again.”

“He never called you later? Never mistreated you in private?”

“Eh? N-No, never!”

Marie frowned slightly, and Lily hurriedly added, “Truly, my Lady! In fact… Young Master has changed a great deal recently. He no longer snaps at us or lashes out. He even responds kindly when we greet him.”

“…Is that so.”

Marie was silent for a long moment.

She had heard reports that her son now woke at dawn each day to train with the sword.

That alone was believable enough—after all, he had always been talented in swordsmanship.

But his temper, his arrogance, his willful disregard for advice—that, she had always thought, was ingrained.

No amount of scolding, even from his parents, had ever reached him.

Of course, she had hoped he would mellow as he aged. But to change in a single day? That was unheard of.

Even she, as his mother, found it hard to believe.

Still, Lily showed no sign of lying.

A mere apprentice maid wouldn’t dare invent such a story.

“…You may leave. You’ve done well.”

“Th-Thank you, my Lady!”

Lily bowed deeply and scurried out.

The head maid, who had been waiting, quickly stepped forward and lowered her head as well.

“My apologies, Duchess. I will see to it she is better trained.”

“There’s no need. Glenn forgave her. If I were to punish her now, what would that make of his judgment? See that she is not punished again.”

“…Yes, my Lady.”

“Where is Glenn now?”

“He should be at the training grounds. He has been there every day of late.”

“How long has this been?”

“Just over a week.”

Marie’s eyes widened slightly.

“A week? He rose from his sickbed and immediately began training?”

“Yes… it surprised even me.”

The month Glenn had spent bedridden had been torment for her—a month of helplessness, of fearing she would lose her child forever.

That he had risen at all felt like a blessing from the Goddess. She still remembered clutching him in her arms, sobbing when he opened his eyes.

She never wanted to live through that nightmare again.

“…And his body? It isn’t strained?”

“On the contrary, Young Master says it feels far better to move than to remain lying down.”

Marie exhaled softly, her heart still unsettled.

“No… I won’t drag him back out of motherly worry. Let him be. But make sure the physician checks on him frequently.”

“Yes, my Lady.”

Marie turned her gaze toward the window, her eyes heavy with thought.

***

Even the knights had begun to view Glenn with astonishment.

Since leaving his sickbed, not a day had passed without him rising before dawn and heading straight to the training grounds.

He would warm up by running laps and stretching, gradually pushing his recovering body harder.

When his sword instructor, Sir Nedian, arrived, Glenn listened intently, absorbing every lesson with startling speed.

“Ha. Let’s see how long this lasts.”

“Indeed. How many times has he given up before?”

Some knights still mocked him behind his back, wagering that he wouldn’t last a week.

But when his diligence stretched beyond a month, then two… even they were forced to admit it.

The Glenn they had known was gone.

He had changed. Truly, undeniably.

No one was more shocked than Sir Nedian himself.

At first, he had dreaded being assigned as the spoiled Young Master’s sword tutor. He had expected to waste time, to watch Glenn quit after a few complaints.

Yet it wasn’t long before he realized he had been utterly wrong.

“Remarkable progress. Or rather… it feels less like he’s learning anew, and more as if he’s remembering something he once knew.”

Nedain had once been hailed as a prodigy himself—the youngest vice-captain of the Lion Knights. Even with his keen eye, Glenn’s talent was overwhelming.

“…Flattery, is it?”

But Glenn only responded with his usual dry expression.

Nedain chuckled, understanding. True talent often reacted this way. For those who possessed it, the astonishment of others was nothing out of the ordinary, it was simply natural.

“Not flattery, my Lord. I once thought myself a genius. But seeing you, I realize I was mistaken. Still…”

He leaned closer, lowering his voice.

“This may sound strange, but… have you ever learned Aura before?”

“…Aura?”

“Yes. When I watch your swordsmanship, it feels almost as though you’re already familiar with channeling Aura.”

“…You jest.”

“I only wondered. Forgive me, hahaha.”

Sharp.

Glenn kept his face blank, but inwardly he stiffened.

In his past life, after losing the ability to wield mana, he had developed Blood Magic, fighting by cloaking himself in blood-force akin to Aura.

Of course, he couldn’t reveal that here.

“You overestimate me. I’m still just a trainee knight.”

When Glenn laughed lightly at his own words, Nedian was left speechless.

A “trainee knight”? No—no trainee could stand against this youth. In fact, Nedain doubted even a full-fledged knight could match him. Perhaps not even two or three together.

“…Then it’s about time you shed that trainee title, is it not?”

“I shall recommend it to the Duke immediately.”

Not long after, Glenn’s promotion test was held—and he passed with ease.

He was only eighteen.

Normally, one became a full knight around twenty. To achieve it two years early was unusual, but the Duke showed no surprise.

To him, it was only natural—perhaps even a little late. After all, he himself had become a knight at sixteen.

***

Shortly after Glenn’s promotion, inside the Duke’s office:
“Surely you must be pleased, my Lord?”

The man who spoke wore no smile himself—just the same stoic expression as always.

Looking at the taciturn Knight Commander before him, the Duke let out a faint snort.

“He’s only now done what was expected of him. Is that worth rejoicing over?”

“Still, he has grown far beyond his past self. Sir Nedian himself admitted that the Young Master’s talent surpassed even his own.”

“Hmph. He is of Lepent blood. If he had no such talent, that would be a tragedy.”

“Even Young Master Ian has been inspired. He’s training harder than ever. At this rate, he may be ready for his own promotion within a year or two.”

“That boy will do well enough on his own.”

A rare smile tugged at the Knight Commander’s lips.

Though he said otherwise, he clearly shared the Duke’s pride. And as a father, the Duke could not deny the warmth stirring within him.

“…It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you smile.”

“…It’s nothing.”

“Enough of this talk. Have our guests arrived?”

“They should be arriving as we speak.”

As if on cue, a servant burst through the door.

“My Lord! An envoy from the Empire has arrived!”

The servant’s voice was tense. The entire household, in fact, would be on edge. For the Empire was no trivial visitor.

“…So. The unwelcome guests have finally come.”

***

News of the Imperial envoys spread swiftly throughout the estate.

Glenn, too, heard of it.

When the maid informed him, his expression hardened.

“So it begins.”

This was the moment when the Empire would slip its leash around the Duchy’s neck.

The first domino in a chain of events that—
in his past life—had led the Lepent Duchy down the road to ruin.

The storm had arrived.