Paul's POV
(At the end of the 4th month of they 408K)
It has been over a month since the hunt in the forest. And life in Buena here has been peaceful, just Rudeus' curiosity growing bigger and bigger every passing day, he asks us too many questions especially, after he discovered that, Zenith yesterday reached her 18th year. He gave me a disdainful look like I'm some kind of deviant who harmed his mother, and his expression was priceless when he found out I'm 20 year old since six month ago he looked at me like I was lying and when he discovered it's impossible to lie to the adventurer card, he fell silent.
Also just Zenith finished telling her story to him, but she almost skipped her whole life. Only telling him the good parts of her life leaving many important details about all of her story out.
I'm on the other hand planning on telling him the whole truth, even if Zenith isn't agreeing with me. He needs to know the truth and never trust any of those filthy nobles. (I don't want him to be tricked by them like me).
Also I had already prepared the letters and sent the report to Philip immediately after the hunt about the monster's increase and strange behaviour. I have informed him that I will visit him on the first day of the 5th month of this year to tell him in detail about what happened, but I forgot to mention about the exhibition I had arranged to the forest. I will have to tell him this face to face. (It's better this way, because maybe I can convince him to sponsor the exhibition, by paying out the adventurers which will save a lots of funds and time this way, adventurers usually have more experience than your average knight in fighting monsters).
***
That's bring us to me now preparing the travelling gear and packs, yes, the trip doesn't take a day on foot and when I'm on Carravaggio we can go in 6 hours, but I have to take the essentials also I plan to get a new training sword for me and maybe in the future one for Rudi.
'Wait, Rudi! What about taking him with me?' All I had to do was put him on Caravaggio, and go to Roa then return home after finishing the job. Of course Zenith wouldn't mind if I took him with me, she had already told me he is bored. And this way it great way to change the pace of the day. So with the plan in mind I carried Rudi who was training on his writing again, according to Zenith now he can read and write all the letters of the human god tongue.
(Once again he pulled something out form Zenith that I couldn't do, I remember it taking me whole five years to learn how to read and write and at this rate he will take only one year to learn how to read and write).
When I carried him he pouted, because I had stopped him from reading, but when I told him I would show him something cool, he smiled and asked me what's it.
That's when I had putted him on Caravaggio's back, his smile faded immediately, and he hugged Caravaggio's neck and screamed for help. Provoking Lilla to come running and carrying him from the horse back, and when Zenith came running she saw everything. She just glared at me and told Lilla to take Rudi inside and wait until she calls her to bring some papers, ink and quill.
She scolded me for two hours straight, telling me that's on another level of stupidity, and what Rudeus did was the right thing because one wrong move and he would have broken his neck, when I tried to defend myself by saying: Caravaggio is a smart horse who will never harm Rudeus. She glared at Caravaggio making him shiver, also for some reason that made him cower inside his shed.
And after doing that she cried to saying me Caravaggio is just a horse and my son could have died at the hands of my own horse. Will she blame Caravaggio at the time or the idiot who left her son with the horse? (Caravaggio all the time was shivering inside his shed something, that I couldn't understand Caravaggio at the past joined me in many fight where we fought even saint ranked people and S-ranked monsters and he wasn't even afraid of any of them why is he scared of Zenith since when he is a coward?).
When I asked this question, I received a slap that made an echo sound in the whole village. Then she healed my face to hide the mark the slap left on my face because of the slap after that she brought a letter then called Lilla. She told me she was planning just to send a letter just to Theresse to ask about her and the family like the usual. But now she will also send another one to her family, she told me if something happens to Rudeus she will ask for divorce and take him with her if he somehow survived my stupidity, and she will to live with her family. And with her sharpest glare she threatened me, never think that's was an empty claim.
That's destroyed my mood, and Rudi looked like he sympathise me, because he kept looking at the ground like he is feeling bad for me, for instance I'm not mad at him for acting his age, but the slap is painful and the threat also hurt me Zenith is ready to end it all if something happens to Rudi.
After preparing everything and I tried to apologise to Zenith, but she just huffed without looking at my side and left the letters with me to send them through the adventurers guild. I continued to wear my gear and I putted the traveling gear above my armour before embarking towards Roa.
We reached there in six and half hours mostly because, I rested on the green creek village on the way, when I was near the village I heard many screams, then saw some of the villagers screaming and running apparently a feral wolf is attacking the village I searched for it carefully then found it about to kill a villager so with my maximum speed I cut it into two halves, after that by a second the village knight appeared out from nowhere, then thanked me gratefully and tried his best to convince me rest on his house.
(But I know too well he isn't that grateful, he just saw my Greyrat cape and he think I'm some kind of high level knight or something like that, so he is trying his best to lick my ass to get to my close circle of friends, and if remember correctly he is the same knight Mr Smith told me about, the one who castrated the reeves and treats the hunters as meat shields his name was some starts with h and he was from some noble name but I don't remember it).
I tried to be civilized as much as I could, when I gave him the cold shoulder, because I don't like the people who make you feel only nobility are humans and the rest are expendable trash, and with the way he is treating me he brings bad memories of the school. (The Asuran nobility school).
After I left him, I went straight to the villager who was about to be killed by the wolf, and told him: "Watch out and take care from now on because from the many monsters in the area and my advice is never to lower your guard in these parts again especially since the safety here is not the best." (By other means I'm declaring the knight here as incapable of doing his work right).
After that I mounted Caravaggio and went straight to Roa where the rest of the road was easy and peaceful and the moment the guards saw me this time they let me pass immediately even before carriages and caravans and all of the people bowed their heads to me immediately in respect and fear. (All of that because of that damned cape everyone treats me like some kind of deity, the same shitty feeling I felt during my noble days).
I still remember how bad those same guards treated me when I was wearing the adventurer gear last time I came with Zenith. (Ufff, thinking about it now won't change anything).
When I reached the manor and told the guards that I have an appointment with the mayor, the guards asked me to hand over my weapons. But the moment they saw my cape they bowed their heads and the one who treated me with a cold shoulder knelt down and said: sorry. I told him not to worry and show me the way to the guest's room. And I told him to take care of Caravaggio.
After 5 minutes of sitting didn't even get the chance to rest on the sofa, the manor was shaken by someone shouting and stomping, and suddenly an enormous man with a lot of muscles barged through the door and started shouting like he owns the place.
The man is Sarous Boreas Greyrat, my uncle the Duke of Fittioa region and the true owner of everything in this region.
"I KNOW IT BASTARD, I KNOW YOU WERE GOING TO MAKE A TROUBLE. BEFORE LONG IT HADN'T BEEN TWO YEARS YET! AND YOU ALREADY HERE."
I bowed my head before saying.
"It's nice to meet you too, Lord Sauros, glad you're looking well."
He looked more agitated by me bowing my head more than the trouble he thinks I created.
"DON'T GIVE ME THIS SHIT. AND WHY ARE BOWING YOU IDIOT? RAISE YOUR HEAD YOU ARE A GREYRAT. TELL ME WHAT'S THE PROBLEM YOU CREATED TO ASK FOR PHILIP'S HELP."
I sat on the sofa after he sat and the moment he sit on the opposite sofa, it's like the butler gotten whipped, the butler Thomas immediately was running to bring wine, and serving it to our cups and running left, and right to bring all of Lord Sauros is needs before he names them, because both of us know uncle Sauros never scold other people with his mouth, he always scolds people with his hands. And one punch from him is enough to send advanced level water god style users flying in the sky. (I tried it once before and it was one of the worst experiences I ever have had, it broke many bones some of my teeth shattered that I needed advanced class healer to bring me back to normal. I don't know how Philip survives his punches until now).
"Well, Lord Sauros, what happened is ..." and I explained to him what happened and how the monster's numbers and strength suddenly increased and they were strong enough to make stampedes, but thankfully I solved the problems in my lands. But the real problem is that the hunters and Reeves are not that strong to stop anything like this themselves, and I think I can say the same about the rest of the villages and small towns around the forest. Without a big exhibition group to the forest I think we will have a lot of stampedes in the region.
When I finished he looked a lot calmer and asked about details more calmer and when he looked he gathered enough about this. He closed this conversation by asking me about Zenith and how's life is at Buena and finished his questions by asking about Rudeus.
"Well, I was planning on bringing him with me today but he cried very hard when I tried to put him on Caravaggio's back." When I said this part he widened his eyes, surprised.
"But when Zenith scolded me for my idiotic behaviour he looked sorry for what happened."
"YOU IDIOT! WHAT THE HELL? WERE YOU THINKING ABOUT PUTTING YOUR ONE YEAR-OLD ON THE HORSE IS BACK? AND I WAS SAYING PHILIP IS BAD FATHER. APPARENTLY YOU AND ARAMANT ARE WORST PARENTS EVER." I frowned when he said this. (Yes, I'm not as upset with my father as I used to be, but I will never forgive or forget what he did to me and yet, he casually compares me to him. That isn't acceptable).
"I don't think what I did deserves to be compared with that man." Somehow I said this with more hostility than intended.
"All I was trying to ease his boredom, the kid is really bored these days and I was thinking about changing the pace by taking him with me." The hostility didn't go down while I was talking and in the middle of talking uncle Sauros already clenched his fist and some of his veins started to pop out in his forehead. When this happened all the people in the room other than me ran out of the room to avoid getting beaten with me. (Even the guards who were standing at the door shivered at first before running too).
Somehow when I expected a punch to the face he sighed to calm himself, and looked me straight in the eye before asking.
"TELL ME PAUL? IF YOU REALLY DON'T WANT TO BE COMPARED TO THAT MAN? WHO SUPPOSED TO BE YOUR FATHER? WHAT MAKES YOU ANY BETTER THAN HIM YOU ALMOST KILLED YOUR OWN SON? NOW I THINK ABOUT IT YOU ARE RIGHT YOU CAN'T BE COMPARED TO HIM. AT LEAST HE NEVER TRIED TO KILL YOU, HE IS FAR BETTER FATHER THAN YOU."
Whenever I tried to defend myself I couldn't, because this time his shouting was in a higher voice than any time before. (Some of the glass looked like it's about to crack and chandlers wereshaking in the celling).
"AND YOU ARE SAD BECAUSE YOUR WIFE SCOLDED YOU FOR THIS IF I WAS IN HER PLACE I WAS GOING TO BEAT YOU UNTIL THIS PIECE OF SHIT CALLED YOUR BRAIN WORK AND REALIZES HOW STUPID YOUR IDEA WAS." (I didn't tell him that she threatened to divorce me and leave to her family and of course I didn't say anything about the slap for a simple reason that I'm trying to preserve some of my dignity here).
"Lord Sauros you see Rudeus is my son of course he will be fine I don't know why are you and Zenith making a big deal of him mounting Carravaggio men are supposed to be strong. And if anything Carravaggio isn't stupid he is a smart horse and I'm sure if Rudi mounted him he will take care of Rudi well." Lord Sauros stopped talking; he just sighed the same way my father did after he declared his efforts on me were time wasting.
He didn't talk, so I continued to defend myself. "And anything is better than sitting all day reading books. I was helping the kid with his boredom. I think a true Greyrat is supposed to be strong." He didn't listen to my last sentence which is a copy of his words. His mind was focusing on another thing.
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THAT HE CAN READ BOOKS AT THIS AGE? DID YOU HAVE ANOTHER CHILD, OTHER THAN THE ONE YOUR WIFE WAS PREGNANT WITH? WHEN YOU WERE HERE ASKING PHILIP FOR JOB." He said with his eyes narrowed at me, like there's something big I'm hiding from him.
"To my knowledge Rudi is my only son." I said with a smile. (As a way to crack a joke which only provoked a growl from him and made him try to convince himself with a reason not to mingle my face with his own hands).
"No uncle Sauros Rudeus is my only child, but he is really smart like his mother, so we decided to teach him read and write early and as soon as we started to teach him he fully understands everything we teach him." (To my surprise he looked more calmer than before, .. no I'm wrong he was just preparing his hand to struck my head).
"PAUL, WHAT ARE YOU TAKING ME FOR? AN IDIOT! ARE YOU TELLING ME YOUR ONE YEAR-OLD SON IS READING BOOKS? AND YOU STARTED TEACHING HIM EARLY, BECAUSE HE LOOKED SMART ENOUGH."
"Well the truth Lord Sauros is, Rudeus is a Miko. And we had already confirmed it. At first we thought he just has self-awareness early, but he proved to us that he also has his mother's intelligence." He didn't answer so I continued explaining. (He just raised his brows).
"The truth at first if someone told me Rudi will be healthy as he is now, or at the very least he will be able to grow fast as he is now. I wouldn't have believed him and called him a liar, when Rudy was first born he was a very weak, ill child when I saw him he made me remembered mother immediately, and you know what, he had her kind demeanor too..." I stopped when I realised uncle Sauros had a teary eyes and barely holding back. (Oh shit I forgot he was the most hurt one by her death more than me).
He sighed first to calm himself down then said. "Listen well to me Paul, Rudeus your son is just smart kid who likes the drawings in the books and he isn't a special kid or a Miko you hear me. That's will be said to everyone who meets whether it's Philip or your friends or even the king himself. Your son is just barely smarter than your average kid." Before I asked what's he saying he raised his hand to me as a gesture to shut up.
"LET ME FINISH FIRST THEN TALK, Hmphf, well now as I was saying to everyone one else, your son is just smart toddler, you know Philip is ambitious enough to use him. Even if it means fighting you, not mentioning THAT BASTARD JAMES, he forget about his own family any only focused on winning to be the heir and in his way to make sure of winning he sent his own brother to the BASTARDS EUROS GREYRAT."
After that he explained to me, that if what I said about Rudi being a Miko to any other noble. It would be miracle for him to be safe with like he is now because usual Mikos as soon as the high noble around him discovers them he foster them officially and kidnap them from their family on reality and if the family even tried to say goodbye to their child he gestured with his hand heads harvested.
And before leaving the room, he asked me to see Rudi after he grows up a little, and warned me to bring him in a carriage safely or he will gave me the beating Zenith was supposed to do. And he left the room opposite of how he got here. (In deep thinking and moving calmly almost sadly).
After he left the maids, servants and guards sneakily returned to the room like they didn't escape and not even 10 minutes have passed and I found Philip smiling his calculating smile through door frame.
He entered the room then greeted me and I performed the commoners bow which he grimaced at but didn't comment, and before asking how am I doing and how is life he gestured to all in the room to leave.
"Now, tell me how are you Paul? And how is life in Buena Village? If you want my honest opinion, I didn't think I would be honoured by your report from you about troubles you made this early on." He said in playful tone with a mocking smile, like the school days when both of us were making pranks on everyone including each other.
"I'm fine Philip and life is great just extra crawling food got out of hand that I'm scared they will eat villagers instead of villagers eating them." His face turned serious when he realised I'm okay with joking but after finishing the report so he asked me what happened and try to say everything in detail.
"Well what is happening is ...."
And I explained to him that while I was doing the morning patrol day before the monthly forest hunt I realised the monster's numbers isn't right because their is more numbers than the usual so I gathered the men and we went to do a fast hunt before the actual thing, but as we started things didn't seem right to me and when I counted the monsters numbers, I realised that's the same numbers as the normal unattended areas. So I called for big hunting group in the village and made all the non-comptant men return and sent for stronger people to help us in hunting and taking care of the camp and it was this simple until the third day where we meet a mutated terminator boar leading a big group of both terminator boars and assault dogs, and after the fight I realised if we had waited on them for another month we would have stampede on Buena. So I ordered the wounded to return and send with them the strongest Reeve. And took the strongest hunter with me to search the area silently and send the rest to the camp.
And after two hours of search we found a big group of monsters in the next village domain where they are very capable of making not only stampede there but at least with their numbers they are capable of annihilate three villages or maybe small town other the village in front of them if they are not killed, and explained to him while we were preparing to take a good fighting form a mishap happened and while the hunter was jumping from tree to tree he fell on vampire treant and the treant tried to kill him which forced me to fight alone and in hurry both the monsters and the treant trying to save Laws and which I succeed in both by slim chance because he almost died and the monsters almost overwhelmed me with their numbers and sudden grow of strength.
I stopped because I found Philip widened his eyes surprised and looking at me with suspicions.
"What?"
"The truth I'm impressed from how lucky and unlucky the events fold well knowing thats your speciality. Sorry, I meant after women." The joke only got a smile from me. (Me and Philip always on the same line joke on whatever is the circumstances).
"Now focusing on the conversation, report and letter you sent from all of that I can understand that unnaturally the monsters numbers increased at least two fold the natural number in your village domain and the other village we were both lucky and unlucky that you encountered enough monsters to make stampedes and also for some strange reason there wasn't a single wolf or feral wolf or even demon wolf which means the former monsters had eaten them."
(Somehow Philip made even detailed explanation to what happened and looked at it with another perspective and tried to see a way to put it in good words).
"And that's also means the monsters you meet from the letter wasn't all of them because you were and strongest hunter were injured and couldn't continue but that's leaves the strongest Reeve and rest of the men to help so why couldn't you search don't tell me some scratches and bruises got the mighty Paul fallen if that's happened then I will rethink leaving you in this peaceful village." (Oh crap! I hadn't told him yet, about that I sent the Reeves to the other villages).
"Well the truth, there something missing I hadn't informed you about." (I said while scratching my cheek). He just rolled his eyes and looked at my direction to see what will I say.
After finishing explanation I was rewarded by wide eyed Philip who wants to scream for some reason. "I don't know why in the first place I thought you coming here will be peaceful explanation about past trouble that had been solved and you just want to meet your cousin." He said while caressing temple of his eyes.
"Is there something wrong?" I asked with awkward smile. He just sighed before answering.
"No, there's not a single thing wrong dear cousin. Except you simply sent for four villages in Milltibos region to join the real heir of the house of Notos Greyrat in a big forest hunt. While the current head pays yearly at least 100 Asuran gold coin to spies, information brokers and assassins to bring him your head or at the very least any lead to you. Not mentioning three out of the six villages. You warned them about the exhibition are not loyal to me or father but they are loyal to James. So if any of the knights or Reeves recognised you and warned either of them about your existence both you and me are in danger."
(My mind didn't comprehend all of what he said he went back and forth about Fittioa and Milltibos but the least I understand that the exhibition was a mistake because something about nobility filth).
"So what do you say Philip? It's your call." He sighed while putting his head in his hands. (And he muttered something about. "Like always make the problem then throw it at my plate"). I just smiled and kept silent.
"Okay, look first things first, I will declare the exhibition is too dangerous because of the chance of the bandits using it to attack the villages. With this we will lower number of participants to only four villages. And I will try make them send the hunters only, to help you and of course because of the past content we can't bring any adventurers to help because they will protest saying instead of adventurers we will do better job in fighting monsters and we will gain more profit this way. So if you were thinking of adventurers help that impossible now." He was stroking his chin as he was thinking.
"And as for Milltibos region I send message saying: we warned you about possible stampedes, but we won't send men to help except if you aren't men enough to do the job yourself. The way father's insult Philemon." He finished his talk with very big and long sigh.
"Wow! You solved the whole thing Philip and many fields solved, but you said only three villages knights and Reeves are loyal to you not James, this means you want only the knights from these villages right?" I tried my best to help him because he was caressing his brows heavly maybe this hard thinking gave him headache. (The opposite of what I suspected to happen is what he did).
"Don't point out the obvious and try to appear smart. Because of your stupid idea my head and your entire family heads could be cut on the hands of James and Philemon, they both are Dukes now we can even say both are high level minsters and look at us low-class knight and city mayor, without father protection we won't last a minute they can kill us in a minute James is scared of me because I'm always thinking and Philemon sees me as unnecessary nuisance, so both of them agreed that both me and you alive are nuisance to them. With the help of my information brokers in Ars I discovered that Philemon and James made a contract Philemon will help killing me and James will do the same with you the right answer to this we appear insignificant to them to forget about us and in the man time both of us increase our strength in shadows, but what you did is declare your existence by calling a big power union of knights to kill monsters like saying to them: see I can unite an army under me if I ever fell like it that will make them make hasty moves to kill you. Is that what you want? Tell me."
"Huh!" (I probably lost track of what he is saying after saying both now are Dukes because he talks about many stuff very fast but I can conclude one thing this have to do with the filthy nobles).
When Philip realised I didn't get all what he meant he almost lost his smile he just clenched his fist before sighing then very calmly saying to me: Paul you did shit and I'm trying to fix it all you had to do is when you return home is follow the orders I will tell you to do when the forest hunt begins as for now give me five minutes to calm down.
After he calmed down he asked me how is his life in Buena and how's life to me after finally stop following every moving skirt and finally focusing on one. (Which wasn't the best joke which got him a scowl from me).
After that he asked if I got boy or a girl and how is he and if in the future he or she could be a friend to his daughter (Eris) in the future.
When I told him I got a boy he had a weird smile on him. (But when I followed uncle Sauros advice and told him: about Rudeus illness he stopped smiling and his gaze was fixed towards the celling, old habit of him when he tries connect two strings or to think very hard about something).
He finished the meeting with some teasing about his sister-in-law Sophia Redcrow now married to one of the branch family of the Euros Greyrat. And before I left he told me firmly to come here once a year at least and reminded me to never take a big choice like today before asking him.
While I was grumbling because of his teasing I went straight to the stable to retrieve my dear friend Caravaggio, the moment I entered the stables I was surprised by a girl with high quality dress for nobles but the dress all dirt and rags from sleeping on the haystack and the little girl's face perfectly resembles Sophia and her sister.
(Maybe she is Philip's daughter he told me Sophia is his sister-in-law now that bastard he used me to reach Hilda Redcrow, when she was at school their parents were reluctant to trust Hilda to be by herself and Philip used the fact Sophia was visiting me twice a month and tried his luck with her and now he is married to her).
"Hey little kiddo sleeping here will wreck your neck." I said while nudging the girl to wake up.
"Eris your father is calling answer him." (I don't have anything to do with her but I used to run away like her but the only difference I escaped towards my secret garden. Zenith mustn't now about this)
"Hey Caravaggio! any ideas how to wake her up?" He just huffed to leave. (Which I can't argue with him)
"Okay, let's Caravaggio."
Before leaving I informed the guard about Lady Eris is place. (Forgive me kiddo, failled noble life isn't good what I did is for the best).