Chapter 2

Chapter 2: This Disregard, It Feels Familiar (2)

Ghislain, momentarily dumbfounded by the word “Grand Duke,” frowned and spoke.

“Grand Duke? Are you mistaking the King of Mercenaries for someone else and daring to lock me up here?”

“Hah, where in the world is there such a king? Are you playing king this time? What is it that you’re so dissatisfied with again?”

Overwhelmed for a moment by the soldier’s irritated tone, Ghislain unwittingly spoke his honest thoughts.

“... I don’t like being here.”

“Ah, then please, just leave! You were napping, so why are you suddenly acting like this?”

“Just leave? You’re telling me that someone like you has the authority to release me?”

“No, what authority! You followed us of your own accord, didn’t you? You can just leave whenever you want!”

The voice was far too sincere to be an act. Only then did Ghislain sense something was wrong and cautiously asked.

“...Where are we?”

“Where? We’re here to exterminate the orcs that appeared near the estate, aren’t we?”

Something seemed to tickle the back of his neck, like a memory trying to surface.

“...How did you suppress my mana?”

At that, the soldier let out an incredulous chuckle.

“What mana? You don’t even train. Do you even know what mana is?”

“...”

Even this blatant disrespect felt strangely familiar. Startled, Ghislain began to look around his surroundings again. Then, he spotted a flag hanging on one side of the tent and widened his eyes.

A black background with a white wolf emblem.

Why was the banner of Ferdium, a family that had already fallen, hanging here?

“Why is that here? Is this some kind of joke? Are you mocking me, waiting to see my reaction?”

The soldier, now too fed up to even respond, pushed Ghislain’s arm away and shoved the sword aside.

As Ghislain helplessly let the soldier have his way, his own hand came into view.

“What the hell... What happened to my hand?”

The hand, which had once been covered in unsightly scars, was now white and smooth. It looked like the hand of someone who had never trained a day in his life.

Astonished, Ghislain stared at his hand and then hurried over to a water basin in the corner.

“What? What?”

He gasped in horror at the reflection in the water.

Lustrous golden hair, fair and transparent skin, delicate features.

This was not the face of the Mercenary King, whose face was permanently scarred, and his eyes were sunken from alcohol.

“Aaaahhh!”

As Ghislain screamed, startled by his own reflection, the soldier clicked his tongue.

“He’s lost it. Finally, he’s completely lost it. I knew this day would come.”

Ghislain took a step back, shocked at his own face. He cautiously looked into the basin again, only to be shocked again.

Sure, the Grand Duke was a good-looking man, but being this surprised by his own face seemed like a bit much. It was clearly too much self-admiration.

But Ghislain was too busy examining his reflection to care about the soldier’s thoughts.

“......I’ve gotten younger, haven’t I?”

No matter how much I checked, I looked no older than my late teens. Could this be a dream? Ghislain pinched his arm slightly. The sharp pain snapped him back to reality.

‘It’s not a dream!’

Then, was it the memory of becoming the King of Mercenaries that was a dream? He shook his head internally. It was far too vivid and brutal to have been a dream.

‘It couldn’t have been a dream.’

Every sense was screaming that this situation was real. Everything was real, not a dream. I had returned to the past with the memories of a life lived in the future.

“Hah!”

With a dazed expression, Ghislain looked at the soldier and then covered his mouth with his hand. The soldier’s attire and insignia were undoubtedly from the Ferdium Estate.

Pointing at the soldier with trembling fingers, Ghislain’s lips flapped without producing any sound until he finally let out one word of admiration.

“Wow.”

The soldier sighed, looking up at the ceiling with an exasperated expression.

“Please eat and return to the castle. You don’t look well.”

The soldier turned as if to leave, but Ghislain hurriedly grabbed him.

“Wait! Wait!”

“What is it?”

“Uh, so... right, what’s your name?”

“Ricardo.”

“Hmm, that’s a cool name. You’ve got a pretty handsome face, too.”

“Yes, yes, thank you. You’re handsome as well, Grand Duke.”

At that, Ghislain waved his hand awkwardly and laughed.

“Ah, it’s been a while since I’ve heard that. After I got all these scars on my face, no one called me handsome.”

“.......”

Ricardo stared at Ghislain’s smooth, white face, momentarily lost in thought. This guy doesn’t even train properly, complaining about calluses on his hands—so what’s all this about scars on his face?

‘I need to prepare immediately.’

The orcs had charged in before sunset.

At this rate, the orcs would appear soon.

‘They didn’t plan the attack either, so I still have a chance.’

The orcs had attacked the subjugation force merely by chance after encountering them.

As long as he prepared in advance, they wouldn’t suffer the same heavy losses as they did in his past life.

‘If I was going to return to the past, couldn’t it have been a little earlier!’

Ghislain grumbled inwardly.

Being suddenly thrown back to the past left him bewildered and disoriented.

He hadn’t even adjusted to the current situation, and now he had to deal with orcs immediately.

‘Not like I can avoid it, though.’

In his previous life, many people had died here because of him.

Although he had barely survived, he couldn’t escape the blame. It was one of the reasons he had decided to leave his family.

Now, he had a chance to correct the starting point of all those regrets. Avoiding it would only be foolish.

‘Alright, let’s think of it positively. This is the first step toward changing the future.’

From this day forward, the territory’s future would be completely different from his past life.

When Ghislain raised his head, there was no more confusion on his face. Only firm resolve remained.

“Well then, I suppose I should tell them there are twenty orcs, not just three...”

Ghislain, who had been walking to find the commander of the subjugation force, stopped momentarily.

At this time, he was considered the northern region’s scoundrel and a piece of trash.

If he suddenly claimed that there were more orcs and they needed to prepare, they’d just dismiss it as another one of his insane ramblings.

“What should I do? I doubt they’ll listen to reason.”

Persuasion only works when there’s a basis and trust.

In his current state, he would obviously be ignored, no matter what he said.

After contemplating briefly, Ghislain came up with a clear solution.

“I have no choice. I’ll just have to take command myself. That’s the only way.”

It left him feeling a bit uneasy, as it wasn’t much different from his past life, but there was no other option.

“How did I take command back then?”

Ghislain carefully searched his memory. He vaguely recalled what had happened.

— “I’ll take command! There are only three orcs!”

— “You think you’ll get away with defying me? Once I inherit the territory, do you think I’ll let you live?”

— “Are you looking down on me? I can do it! Just give it to me!”

...He had simply thrown a tantrum.

“Haha... I really acted like a brat.”

Ghislain let out a self-deprecating laugh.

He had been so desperate not to be ignored despite lacking any real ability. It was the kind of thing that would make him kick his blankets in embarrassment later on.

“Hmph, there’s no need to go that far.”

He still had to seize command, but he had no intention of behaving childishly like before.

Unlike then, he had matured and gained a lot of experience.

“Alright, let’s approach this politely and with dignity. I’m an adult now.”

With a lighter step, Ghislain went to find the knight leading the subjugation force.

The knight immediately displayed his displeasure upon seeing Ghislain.

“What brings you here?”

Ghislain calmed himself with a cough at the blatant look of disdain.

‘Wow, it’s been a while since someone looked at me like that. Not used to it. But still, I should speak softly and kindly.’

“Ahem, well... um, what was your name again?”

“It’s Skovan.”

Skovan clicked his tongue inwardly.

How could someone who was supposed to be the Grand Duke of the territory not even know the name of one of his family’s knights?

This man clearly had no qualifications.

Unaware of Skovan’s thoughts, Ghislain raised his voice deliberately.

“Oh, right. Sir Skovan, I came to talk about something important.”

“What is it?”

Despite Skovan’s blunt tone, Ghislain didn’t lose his smile.

‘I need to speak politely, very politely... but wait, shouldn’t he just give it to me if I ask?’

“Give it to me.”

“What?”

At the abrupt demand, Skovan looked puzzled. Ghislain answered firmly.

“The command. Hand it over.”

To Ghislain, this was polite enough.

After all, he wasn’t hitting anyone.