RTTFW CH 2.4

Ent already knew Izel was suspicious of him. He didn’t know exactly what he’d done to seem so suspicious, but he wasn’t oblivious to the way Izel sometimes gave him that peculiar look.

“Um, Izel. Can’t I just stay inside my room instead of going out?”
“Izel! Don’t I have to go to the academy? Is it okay for me to just stay here like this?”
“Wait… how old am I again? Ha, ha ha.”

So, figuring he was already under suspicion and having no one to get information from, he just put on a thick face and bombarded him with absurd questions.

Ent secretly thought Izel might dismiss him as some kind of idiot young master, but surprisingly, Izel answered him quite earnestly.

“… Well, drinking that poison has certainly caused quite a bit of memory confusion, hasn’t it?”

Of course, receiving an utterly icy stare was unavoidable.

“Ha, ha ha…”

Still, thanks to Izel, Ent was able to grasp his situation fairly quickly. Currently, Ent was taking a break from the Academy, and he had already earned the nickname ‘Demon Pig Young Master’ there. It was said he had suddenly returned from the Academy without a word and hadn’t gone back for nearly a year.

‘What part of me is a pig?’

Ent, who had hoped his surprisingly lean frame wouldn’t lead to the same fate as the book’s contents, couldn’t help but look dissatisfied. He certainly wasn’t in a state to earn the title of pig, yet in the end, his reputation matched the infamous one he’d seen in the book. He couldn’t help but wonder if this was fate, and it left him utterly dumbfounded.

Ent was currently fourteen years old. It meant there were still two whole years left before the true hero, Fade, arrived to save the world.

‘… So in those two years, I’m supposed to just suddenly become this huge, fat body?’

There were more than a few puzzling aspects. To begin with, it had been five days since he’d eaten the poison and opened his eyes, yet he was still only getting watered-down soup for all three meals. He couldn’t quite grasp how he was supposed to gain weight like this. The already meager meals made him feel like he was getting thinner by the day.

‘Come to think of it, why do they keep serving this tasteless, watery soup?’

Though Izel didn’t seem the type to do such a thing, perhaps tormenting him had become a popular pastime among the servants.

Ent ate a reasonable portion of the watery soup that was lunch and set down his spoon. It was so tasteless that it made his stomach churn every time he ate it.

“Lord Ent, you left more than usual.”
“Ugh… I just can’t finish it.”
“… Yes, I’ll clear it away.”

Ent tilted his head in puzzlement at Izel, who seemed somehow dissatisfied.

‘Why is he like that?’

Was leaving a bit of watered-down soup really something to complain about? Shrugging his shoulders, thinking it hardly mattered, Ent had something far more important on his mind. He stopped Izel, who was about to clear the dishes.

“Ah, Izel. How do I get to the temple?”
“The temple of Lord Satra is within the domain.”

‘… Satra?’

The unexpected name of a God made Ent pause. Satra was definitely a name he’d seen in the book he’d read yesterday.

“The God of the Earth?”
“Yes.”

Why the sudden mention of Satra, the God of the Earth? And why was Satra’s temple in the Harbilta domain? Ent was certain there had been no temple to any god in the Harbilta domain in his memory. Of course, it was possible it had been built without him knowing, but then why Satra and not Omb?

Omb was undoubtedly the God with the most followers in the Empire. Since Omb was the God featured in the founding myth of the Alcont Empire itself, it was inconceivable that any other God could have become more mainstream than Omb.

“Um, about Omb… I’m talking about His temple.”

At Ent’s words, Izel’s expression stiffened. Ent knew Izel had a somewhat cold personality to begin with, but this was the first time he’d seen him look so stern.

When Ent flinched and leaned back, Izel composed his expression and let out a short sigh.

“The temple of Lord Omb is in the capital.”
“Ah.”

At Izel’s reply, Ent nodded, thinking, ‘Of course.’ The fact that the temple in the capital was intact meant there was no absurd notion of Omb becoming a fallen God. Though Ent couldn’t understand Izel’s stern face. He really didn’t want to go out, but it couldn’t be helped.

If he wanted to learn anything, he couldn’t just stay holed up in his room. He refused to waste time like this and end up handing his neck to Fade.

“Lord Ent.”
“Hmm?”
“I have no right to say anything about Lord Ent visiting Omb’s temple.”

Ent tilted his head at Izel’s words. Well, if he was going to the temple, he was going. What on earth was that supposed to mean? Ent, unable to grasp the meaning, stared blankly at Izel without reply. Izel quietly swallowed a sigh.

“If you absolutely wish to visit Lord Omb’s temple, you’ll need to seek permission directly from Count Evant and Viscount Bernil.”

At Izel’s next words, Ent was so startled his heart seemed to drop. Seeing Ent gaping in shock, Izel felt a strange sense of guilt, as if he’d done something terrible.

“… In any case, since you must go to the capital, my authority ends here.”

Despite this, Ent finally closed his gaping mouth and bowed his head deeply at Izel’s resolute words.

‘Oh, so that’s it… Damn it.’

Well, he should have braced himself for this from the moment he said he was going to the Temple of Omb. What possible way did he have to get to the capital alone? He had no choice but to seek permission from his family’s head and travel in the family carriage.

“… Yeah.”

Ent’s voice trailed off.

Even so, he had to meet his father and brother. He had to get permission by saying something utterly ridiculous like, “I’m suddenly going to the capital, so can I ride in the carriage?” Ent suddenly felt all the energy drain from his body.

‘Father and… brother.’

Ent quietly chewed on those unfamiliar titles alone. How long had it been since he’d seen their faces? This body of Ent Harbilta was only fourteen, but he had actually lived until twenty in Jaeyoon’s body. Could family who hadn’t seen each other’s faces for such a long time still be called family?

Fear crept along Ent’s shoulders.

‘… Do they even consider me family?’

Though Ent didn’t know the exact details of how the real Park Jaeyoon had lived in his body, he could tell the book’s contents differed slightly from reality. Even so, Ent knew he hadn’t lived a particularly admirable life. The nickname ‘demonic pig young master’ still stuck.

Even after the son who’d drunk poison and remained unconscious for a week finally woke, neither of them showed their faces once. They didn’t even call him over to greet them.

‘They’re just treating me like I don’t exist, aren’t they?’

Ent couldn’t help but let out a bitter laugh.

Well, hadn’t it been the same even before Park Jaeyoon possessed his body? A talentless child was nothing but a disgrace to the Harbilta family.

“… Then, to see the two of them.”

But what could he do? Ent had no choice.

‘Alright, let’s face it head-on.’

He couldn’t keep avoiding it forever. Ent had always believed that even if he couldn’t become close with his family, he should at least establish a polite, distant relationship. That was the only way to avoid ending up with his head on a platter at the castle gates.

“The only time both of them are together is during dinner.”
“… Then, I suppose I can join them for dinner tonight?”

At those words, Izel looked at Ent with slightly surprised eyes. For some reason, Ent thought it was the most human-like expression he’d seen on Izel since meeting him.

“Yes, that’s fine. I’ll inform the head chef beforehand.”
“Uh-huh.”
“… But, are you sure it’s alright?”

Ent’s eyes widened in slight surprise at the unusually cautious tone, unlike the usual Izel.

‘So Izel does worry after all.’

With his perpetually expressionless face, Ent had never dreamed he’d worry about him. Of course, meeting his father and brother wouldn’t be easy for Ent either, but he couldn’t very well tell the family’s loyal servant, ‘I’m so nervous I could die.’

It was just as Ent was about to nod his head to show he was fine…

“Would it be alright for you to eat?”
“Huh?”

Ent flinched at Izel’s sudden question. Wait, wasn’t the ‘are you alright’ supposed to be for him? Ent scratched his cheek, unable to hide his flustered state.

“Uh, yeah. I’m fine.”

How could it not be okay? In fact, the real torment was having to eat only that thin, churning soup for five days straight. Even considering he’d poisoned himself and gone a week without food or drink, it felt like torture.

“… Then I’ll take that as your answer. I’ll come to escort you to the dining hall this evening.”

Izel left the room carrying the cleared dishes, his expression distinctly uneasy. Ent pressed firmly on the spot on his palm that helped aid digestion, trying to soothe his unsettled stomach.

‘Brace yourself.’

Ugh, a groan escaped Ent’s lips involuntarily. It was unavoidable, but the dread was also unavoidable. It was none other than Count Evant Harbilta and Viscount Bernil Harbilta.

Ent was about to face a dinner table with two demons bearing the titles of ‘my father’ and ‘my brother’.