How To Live As A Third Son Of A Failure [EN]: Chapter 18

Living as the Third Son of a Failed Novel – Episode 18

Chapter 6. Memories of the Past, Power of the Past

What a feeling it is to wake up in a fluffy blanket with warm sunlight shining through.

The month-long journey felt incredibly long.

Especially since the journey involved sleeping outdoors.

“Did you cough, young master?”

I’ve become so used to it that I now accept the water glass offered by the maid without any resistance.

“Prepare me for going out.”

“Understood. Is there anything else you need?”

“I don’t need anything else, but how is Leo?”

Leo’s body was in bad shape due to the hardships he had suffered. Of course, with my strong insistence, a dedicated physician is treating him.

“He has improved a lot.”

“Good.”

As I handed over the empty glass and got up, the maids began to dress me.

Perhaps it was thanks to my usual instructions, but they brought me simple clothes that I usually wear, not extravagant ones.

But today is different.

“Bring the formal attire.”

I had to dress in formal attire, even if it was uncomfortable, because of the appointment with the Count scheduled for noon.

“Pardon?”

“I said bring the formal attire.”

Questioning a nobleman’s words is a serious mistake.

I patted the shoulder of the young maid who was trembling with her head bowed.

“It’s okay, just bring it. Oh, and what about what I asked you to look into?”

“…Ah! Are you referring to what you ordered from the magic shop?”

There was something I had ordered a month ago, before leaving for the Boloom Mountains, in preparation for today.

“Yes.”

“It has been confirmed. It arrived a few days ago.”

They said it would take a few weeks, but it arrived a few days ago? I almost missed the timing.

“Have a carriage ready as well. I need to stop by there briefly before noon.”

There’s something I need to prepare before going to the secret library.

“I will inform them immediately.”

“Okay.”

After the maid left the room, I went straight to the window.

“The weather is nice.”

The sunlight felt particularly warm today, as if it would be a pleasant day.

* * *

A few minutes before noon.

The place where the Count was waiting was the tallest and most massive spire in the castle.

Accompanied by a few guards and the chief butler, I tidied up my attire one last time in front of the door leading to the spire.

‘It’s definitely uncomfortable, though.’

A long coat made of silk with gold embroidery. The family crest, a gray hawk, was emblazoned on the back, giving it a truly imposing presence.

The butler, seeing me in that attire, gave a gentle smile.

“You seem to carry it with more style than before, young master.”

“Really?”

“Have you been training or exercising recently?”

“Huh?”

“You seem to have gained more muscle than a month ago.”

“Is that so? I just wandered around for a month.”

“Is that so?”

This old man is quite sharp.

“Shall we go in when you’re ready?”

“Let’s.”

The butler knocked on the door first.

“Lord, the third son has arrived.”

“Enter.”

At the Count’s command, the butler and guards quietly stepped back and stood by the door.

I guess that means I have to go in alone.

Ahem, I cleared my throat and opened the door.

“You’ve come.”

The Count, who had been waiting inside, turned to look at me.

The Count was also dressed in formal attire, not the usual simplified armor he wore.

“Yes.”

“What is that bag?”

The Count asked, looking at the small bag I was carrying.

“It’s a lunch box.”

“A lunch box?”

“I only have one chance, so I can’t come out because I’m hungry, can I?”

“That’s true.”

The Count smiled faintly and turned around.

“Follow me.”

Passing through a door, we ascended the spiral staircase leading to the top of the spire.

After climbing in silence for a while, the Count spoke.

“That place holds our family’s history.”

“I know.”

“I remember when I first went there.”

“…….”

“I felt viscerally how much blood had been shed to bring me to where I am now, and how much responsibility it demands to inherit it.”

“Is that so.”

“You will be able to feel it too.”

Soon, a massive corridor appeared, connecting the upper parts of the two spires.

To enter, we had to pass through a huge door, but strangely, there was no handle visible.

The question was quickly resolved. The Count, who had gone ahead, placed his hand on a crystal ball in front of the door.

Rumble…

Then, the massive door slowly began to open.

“Go in.”

Alone?

“It would be better if I weren’t there.”

“…It’s not necessarily the case.”

“You’re saying things you don’t mean. Anyway, I’ll come back at this time tomorrow. I don’t know what you’re looking for, but I hope you have some success.”

It’s a bit *b담스러운데* [burdensome/uncomfortable] to go in alone.

Well, what can I do?

I bowed lightly to the Count and stepped forward.

Squeak- Thud!

As I entered, the massive door closed automatically.

And the sight that unfolded before my eyes.

It was a festival of history.

It was similar to what I had seen in Kerwyn’s residence.

Orcs, goblins, and trolls were basic, and even two-headed ogres and minotaurs with bull heads were present.

Wyverns, griffons, and hippogriffs filled the sky, and in the center, a drake with outstretched wings was breathing fire.

‘The subjugation war that took place in the north.’

The north, which was headed to expand the human territory.

At the forefront of the subjugation war was Emperor Belankas, followed by Bain Lindaier, the founder of the Count family.

The war that soldiers, knights, and mages fought together with monsters. The magnificent sight unfolded before my eyes in stained glass, and I was lost in thought for a moment.

‘This is not the time to do this.’

I regained my senses and moved on.

As I went further, there were bookshelves lined with the history of the Lindaier Count family.

It would take at least a few weeks to read them all.

Of course, I had no intention of reading them all.

Following the well-organized table by year, I headed to the oldest section.

As expected. There, countless battle records compiled by the historians of the era were left.

I grabbed one at random and blew the dust off with my mouth.

[The Siege of Mirorn Fortress]

A battle I don’t remember.

However, that doesn’t mean its value is useless. This is also a battle in which countless blood was shed.

When I opened it, a list of nobles and knights who participated in the siege appeared.

Turning further, there was an outline of the siege, followed by a table of contents according to the date, and below that, the tactics and strategies used were recorded in detail.

And at the end, the achievements of the era recorded by historians were written.

It was like a short story.

The recorded feats of the heroes made the reader feel awe.

‘This is enough.’

After roughly grasping the situation, I put the book back and went back further in time.

And soon, I found a record.

[The Great Battle of the Palemore Plains]

A decisive battle for the hegemony of the north.

With this victory, the north became human’s.

The greatest battle on earth that the author took the trouble to describe in a separate side story, which expanded the kingdom’s territory to the north.

It was also the reason why I came to this library.

Clack!

I took out the book and stood in the middle of the wide hall.

Looking around again to make sure no one was there, I opened the bag I had brought.

Then, I took out the lunch box and opened it.

Of course, it didn’t contain food, but magic items I had purchased before coming here.

‘Nightmare’s essence, top-grade mana stone, top-grade magic powder, sleep grass…’

They were top-quality materials that cost at least a few jewels to buy.

After carefully checking each one, I took a deep breath, confirming that I had brought everything properly.

‘Shall we begin?’

What I’m about to do now.

It is to bring history into reality.

I don’t want all of history.

What I want are the stories of heroes.

Those called Saga, or *武勳錄* [Military Exploits Record], the title of the novel, Midland Saga.

That’s why I came to the Lindaier family’s secret library, which was created through war.

It is also clear what to do with what I have drawn out.

[Materialization of Lingering (言靈) [Kotodama/The Power of Words]].

Lingering. The supernatural power contained in language.

Lingering has already vaguely taken root in Midland. The spells that mages chant are an example.

‘Ice, pierce the enemy! Ice Spear!’

It is the spell that Fleta chanted when using Ice Spear.

A master who can be called a great mage does not need such a spell.

They just think of it in their head and use it.

However, mages with insufficient skills more easily manifest through Lingering, that is, the power contained in words.

So they came up with it.

[We have confirmed the power of Lingering with magic. Then, can’t we apply it to swordsmanship in reverse?]

The result of the Royal Knights Commander and the Chief Court Mage putting their heads together was.

[It’s worth a try.]

Zillion Highclance, the Royal Knights Commander 13 years from now.

He wanted to borrow the power of the past to reverse the worsening war, and even ventured to become a test subject himself.

And as a result.

He was able to summon incarnations into the present world using the Saga, the achievements of heroes.

‘Preparation is complete.’

The method was explained in detail through the novel, so it was not difficult to recall.

The big picture was simple.

Borrow the power of Nightmare to experience the achievements in the Saga and make them your own.

The problem is that Nightmare is also a clear demon.

As such, the experience was bound to be a vicious and gloomy nightmare. Even more so because the subject is war.

I will probably cut down lives, get covered in blood, and witness the crumbling of my comrades.

I may get PTSD [Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder]. As a soldier, I was fully educated about the danger. It would be a lie if I said I wasn’t afraid.

Not all heroes have happy endings.

It was all too clear that even in the real world, veteran heroes do not always have a good end of life.

Deing!

The bell hanging on the spire erased my thoughts.

‘What’s the point of worrying?’

It’s a war that will happen in ten years.

Will I be able to steadily train and gain strength by then?

It’s absurd.

I don’t have the ability to unite the entire continent by exerting political power.

I might be able to get help from those around me, but what would they see in me to lend me their strength?

First of all, cultivating my inherent strength is the top priority, and this method will be a shortcut.

‘I have to do it. No, I will do it.’

At the same time as the decision, I put it into action.

Pzzzz!

When I split the top-grade mana stone, the mana that was released in an instant filled the hall.

Following that, when I sprinkled the top-grade magic powder mixed with Nightmare’s essence, it scattered like a mirage and covered the book.

Squeak…….

The aura of Nightmare momentarily gained a limited lifespan in the high-purity mana that filled the hall.

Squeak, Kkyaaaa…….

After that, it instinctively struggled to find a living host, not the Saga.

Chi-ik!

I didn’t delay and lit the sleep grass with a match and brought it to my nose.

‘Come.’

The effect was fast.

As my eyes slowly closed, the last thing I saw was the black energy rushing towards my nose.

* * *

Boom! Boom! Boom!

My heart beat irregularly to the sound of the drums of war.

The grating sound of blades clashing pierced my ears, followed by screams, groans, and bizarre noises.

“…Lin…dia…ier, Lord!”

A soldier desperately trying to stuff his intestines back into his torn lower abdomen.

A knight being cut in half along with his horse by the great axe wielded by a minotaur.

A mage whose skull was crushed by a wyvern’s beak while trying to chant a spell.

What unfolded before my eyes was a living hell.

“Linda…ier, Lord! …What…are you…doing now!”

The first thing I faced after my five senses fully returned to normal was a man grabbing my collar and shaking me.

“Lord Lindaier! Get a hold of yourself!”

The man with blood-soaked, reddened hair forcibly placed a sword in my hand.

“We must clear the way for the Grand Duke to advance towards that vicious magic dragon! To do that, you must step forward, but what are you doing now!”

“…….”

“How can I understand your feelings after witnessing the death of your lover! But if you sit there like that, even that death will be in vain!”

The female mage who had just been killed by the wyvern was my lover.

When I turned my gaze, I saw Grand Duke Belankas, emitting aura from his whole body to face the monster horde like a tsunami.

And behind that wave of monsters.

A black drake, the Magic Dragon, looking down arrogantly at the battlefield from the sky, was visible.

‘Ah…….’

Fear, horror, despair.

Soon, anger that overwhelmed everything consumed my body.

I was neither a 21st-century Earthling nor Cain Lindaier, the third son I possessed.

A hero standing at the center of the Great Battle of the Palemore Plains.

Bain Lindaier, the Knight of the North Wind.