Editor : Amethyst00



Carl, who was seated in the chair, kept his gaze lowered and made no move to stir.

Standing right in front of him was the head of the Hergin family—a family with immense influence in the northern continent and a name listed in the Hero Records.

Of course, Carl wasn't intimidated because of that social status.

He had no reason to be—most of the people he'd built close relationships with during his time at school were themselves of significant standing.

Even his best friend Leo was the youngest hero of Lumene and the founding king of Arhi.

What's more, his title as a hero was "King of Beginnings" and had been officially acknowledged as the King of the World.

To top it off, Leo was the Great Hero.

Carl himself had also achieved hero status at a young age, so he was no stranger to dealing with people of high rank.

The only reason he couldn't even lift his head in front of Elkan was for one reason only:

He was the father of Carl's girlfriend, Eliza.

'Wow. This is even more awkward, uncomfortable, and suffocating than I imagined.'

He desperately wanted to escape this situation.

And today, of all days—

Hadn't he thought he would be meeting Eliza in a private setting?

'I didn't have any lewd intentions… I mean, maybe a little. Which makes this even worse.'

With that thought, Carl forced a stiff smile and lifted his head.

"Haha. Warm weather today, isn't it?"

"It's almost winter."

"…"

Trying to make small talk had only made things worse.

Lowering his head again, Carl rolled his eyes toward the direction where Freyna stood.

'Help me.'

He mouthed the words in silent plea.

Though Freyna had initially disapproved of Carl—and had been even more wary when he started dating Eliza—their relationship had improved after the recent practical exam.

She now even supported Carl and Eliza's relationship.

So Carl hoped she might help him out here.

But Freyna turned her head sharply, ignoring his plea.

'This is beyond my help too.'

Though she wanted to help, the opponent was her own father.

Elkan was extremely protective of his daughters.

'I can't even imagine how he felt when he found out through the news that my sister was in a relationship.'

To make matters worse, Eliza hadn't contacted Elkan at all after the scandal broke.

Despite Freyna's repeated urging, Eliza had been too afraid of her father's reaction.

So, in the end, Elkan had come all the way to Lumeria City himself.

Freyna was just as suffocated by the situation.

Carl's pupils shook nervously.

'He's not going to say the successor to the Hergin family can't associate with a commoner and tell us to break up, right?'

Of course, he had no intention of breaking up with Eliza.

As long as Eliza loved him, Carl would never turn his back on that love.

At that moment, a man in a neat tailcoat approached with a tea cart.

"Oh?"

Carl exclaimed when he saw the middle-aged man.

The man smiled gently and greeted him.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Vincent, chief steward of the Hergin family."

"Uh… hello. I'm Carl Thomas."

Vincent set the tea before Elkan and then before Carl, pushing a portable table between them.

Then he turned to Freyna, who was standing awkwardly in a corner of the room.

"Miss Freyna, please join us and enjoy some tea."

"I'm fine. I'm here as a shadow to assist the family head."

Freyna emphasized that she was here as a shadow, not as a daughter, though truthfully, she just didn't want to join the table.

"I see."

With a smile, Vincent placed a plate of cookies between Elkan and Carl and spoke.

"By the way, Mr. Carl Thomas."

"Yes?"

"Has Miss Eliza ever mentioned me to you?"

"Pardon?"

"You seem to know who I am, somehow."

Carl was impressed by Vincent's perceptiveness.

As far as Carl knew, Vincent had no special abilities—just an ordinary man.

He had wondered how such a person held the important position of steward to the Hergin family—but now he understood.

Elkan twitched at Vincent's question.

"Eliza isn't the type to say such things."

She would never reveal internal details about the household, not even to a boyfriend.

Vincent knew that too, which was why he had asked.

Freyna also looked puzzled, seemingly confused by Carl's familiarity with Vincent.

'The Hergin family's steward is no joke.'

Carl clicked his tongue in admiration.

Either way, now was the perfect chance to break the awkward mood.

"During a past mission, I ended up traveling to the future."

"The future?"

"Yes. To be precise, it was an illusion created by the Fairy King's magic showing possible future events."

Elkan's eyes sparked with interest at the mention of the Fairy King's illusion magic.

As the head of a summoner family, he was naturally intrigued.

"Was that the mission where Eliza rose to the status of hero?"

"Yes. At the time, I visited the future Hergin estate and met Mr. Vincent there."

"Oh? And what was the future Hergin estate like?"

Elkan asked eagerly, and Carl clenched his fist mentally.

What came next would surely lift Elkan's mood.

"Hersia was as developed as Lumeria."

Elkan and Freyna both showed surprise at that.

Hersia, ruled by the Hergin family, was already a huge city.

But compared to Lumeria, the center of the world, it was still considered provincial.

That it could grow to match Lumeria's level was shocking.

"Hmph, as expected of my daughter."

"Well, it's Eliza we're talking about."

Carl quickly buttered him up.

"Yes, Eliza is amazing. She's bound to surpass even me—as a summoner and as the family head."

Elkan's face visibly relaxed.

He was clearly the doting father type.

"I'm sure your influence played the biggest role, father."

"Anyway, Carl Thomas."

"Yes?"

"I'd appreciate it if you refrained from casually calling me 'father' just yet."

"S-sorry."

Carl bowed his head at the cold tone.

Freyna was amazed.

To try to get close by calling him "father" so casually—Carl really did have the guts of a hero.

'Is he just bold? Or ridiculously shameless?'

While Freyna pondered this—

Vincent, who had been watching silently, smiled.

"So I'm still the steward in the future. That's truly an honour. Still, if I'm going to be steward until then… the matter of a succesor concerns me."

Vincent sighed and asked Carl,

"Mr. Carl, did you happen to see the future heir to the Hergin family?"

"No, I didn't."

"Family head, I believe Mr. Carl Thomas is lying."

"He made it up to win my favour?"

Elkan's expression hardened, but Vincent smiled.

"It's true that Hersia becomes as developed as Lumeria, but the claim that he didn't see the heir is probably a lie."

'…What is this guy?'

Carl panicked inside, staring at Vincent.

His insight was on another level.

As someone skilled in deceit and reading others, Carl was shaken to have his thoughts so easily seen through.

"Then, what you're saying is…?"

"Doesn't it mean that Mr. Carl and Miss Eliza have a child together?"

"You bastard! My daughter?!"

"Eep!"

"You came here today with impure intentions, didn't you?!"

"N-no! That's not it!"

As Elkan shot up in fury, Carl flinched in terror.

Normally, he'd run—but that would only make things worse.

So he stayed seated, bracing himself.

Elkan glared at the nervous Carl before taking a deep breath.

Crushing Carl would be easy.

Despite his hero title, Carl was no fighter.

But Elkan knew—titles like "hero" weren't handed out lightly.

Seeing Carl face his anger head-on, Elkan chuckled inwardly.

'So he is worthy of being a hero of the new era?'

"Bold of you."

"Th-thank you for the compliment."

Carl swallowed hard.

Thud—

Elkan sat back down, continuing to glare.

Carl flinched but didn't look away.

Eventually, Elkan relaxed his expression.

"No need to be so nervous. I didn't come here to harm you."

"Haha… Yes, sir."

"I simply wanted to see what kind of man my daughter had chosen."

Elkan lifted his teacup.

"I have no plans to oppose her choice or force a breakup. Rest easy."

"Truly?"

Carl looked stunned. Elkan clicked his tongue.

"Though, as a father, I would like to punish the man who seduced my precious daughter."

"…"

"But my daughter wouldn't make a wrong choice."

Relieved by those words, Carl felt his heart lighten.

"The family head came today to meet his prospective son-in-law, Mr. Carl Thomas. There's no need to be nervous."

"Prospective son-in-law?"

Freyna's eyes widened in surprise.

Elkan spoke.

"If Eliza's declared a romantic relationship, then she's probably thinking about marriage. As her father, I won't oppose it. Not that it would do any good."

Knowing his daughter well, Elkan scowled.

"Still, I had to find out about it through the newspaper?"

"S-sorry."

"Phew. It's not your fault."

Elkan shook his head, then said,

"You'll eventually become part of the Hergin family. Just remember that."

"Yes, sir."

Carl's heart pounded at the acknowledgment of his relationship with Eliza.

"Of course, if you ever cross the line as a student… I will break your spine."

"Y-yes, sir. I understand."

Carl broke into a cold sweat.

"That aside… you said you saw the future?"

"Yes."

"In that future, how many grandchildren did I have? I'd like a lot, you see."

"O-only one."

Carl swallowed nervously.

If he said there were actually seven, things might go terribly wrong—so he lied.

It wasn't even a guaranteed future, just a possibility.

"Tsk. Figures. With Eliza's personality, she wouldn't want many kids."

Elkan clicked his tongue.

Carl glanced at Vincent.

Vincent simply smiled.

He had likely seen through the lie but said nothing to Elkan.

Just as Carl let out a sigh of relief—

"Now then, shall we move on to the real reason I came to see you today?"

"Pardon?"

"In two weeks, the 'Great Families Assembly' will be held in the Lordren Empire. You've heard of it?"

"That's the meeting where the heads of powerful families gather to discuss the continent's affairs, right?"

"Correct."

Elkan nodded.

"So, why mention it…?"

"You'll be attending as my proxy."

"…Excuse me?"

Carl looked dumbfounded.

"Me?"

"Yes."

"But I'm not part of the Hergin family. Even if I were, I wouldn't be qualified to act as your proxy…"

"You're my future son-in-law, aren't you? That's qualification enough."

"Um… sir."

"Father-in-law."

"Pardon?"

"Call me father-in-law."

'…Just a moment ago, you said not to even call you "father."'