The Story Of The Second Son Of The Baron Family [EN]: Chapter 104

Baron’s Family Second Son – 104

Oslon.

I had only visited once before, but two things remained vivid in my memory.

One was meeting JoJo.

When I was still inexperienced, I came to Oslon to broaden my horizons and seek opportunities. At that time, he was also just starting out, having left his hometown to inform me of his teacher’s accomplishments. It was a coincidence, but in a way, an inevitable meeting.

The relationship formed that day has continued to this day and has been of great help. Without his assistance, I wouldn’t have reached the 6th Circle [a high level of magical proficiency], overcome the magical power saturation phenomenon after catching the dragon, and the development of the Titan would have been far more difficult. In that sense, Oslon holds a special place in my heart.

Kee-look, kee-look-

Chwaak, chwaak-

The other is the sea.

A blue sea shimmering, untouched by pollution, stretching endlessly beyond the horizon. As the empire’s largest port city, the harbor teemed with ships. If I wanted to show someone the sea, I could confidently say there was no better place.

So, it was an excellent choice that she, who had never seen the sea with her own eyes, experienced it for the first time in Oslon, in the northeast of the empire, rather than anywhere else.

“······.”

“Isn’t it beautiful?”

“Yes. It’s on a different level than what I saw in the video······.”

She stared blankly at the sea.

It would be different. It had to be different. It was bound to be different from a video. No matter how well a video is captured, it can’t convey the atmosphere of a port city, the salty smell of the sea, its vastness, and the romance that can only be felt in person.

“Have you ever been to the Caspian Sea?”

“······No.”

It’s the largest lake on the continent, located in the southern part of the empire, not that far from the Zeke Territory. It was a distance easily traveled if one set their mind to it. But she hadn’t even been there. There was only one thing I could do for her.

“Shall we take a closer look?”

#

We strolled slowly along the sandy beach. Her usual calm demeanor, with little emotional expression, was gone, replaced by excitement and happiness. Besides, there were many new things to see here, unlike her hometown.

“Did you call me?”

“Can you recommend some popular attractions for visitors?”

Jjalgeurak-

“Of course! I know this area inside and out, so just leave it to me!”

We toured the attractions around Oslon comfortably and efficiently by giving a child some money. It wasn’t my first time in Oslon, but it was my first time sightseeing, so leisurely, comfortably, and without being chased by anything. It was quite enjoyable.

‘I’ve been wandering around here and there, but this is my first time actually sightseeing.’

I’ve been too busy. It’s good to have some time now. This was all possible because I had achieved my primary goal – avenging my seniors and colleagues by killing the dragon – and I was confident that I was steadily moving towards my secondary goal – eradicating the monsters in the northern part of the Terra Barrier [a magical defense line]. I judged that this goal could be achieved without rushing.

“It was really fun.”

“Me too.”

“Can we come again next time?”

I decided to say what I had been thinking about, deliberately putting off, to her as she looked back with a hint of regret.

“······Of course. And······.”

It’s quite embarrassing to say this now. It was something I could say because we were a couple, but still. Hesitating, I trailed off and said in a voice so quiet only she could hear.

“Let’s come with three people next time.”

“!”

“I-I don’t necessarily mean that we *have* to come with three people, more than that is fine too, and I definitely don’t mean that we *shouldn’t* come with two people······.”

“······I’m happy.”

Pooh-ook

She slowly approached and hugged me as I rambled in embarrassment, and we leaned on each other in silence for a while.

“It won’t be long.”

“I’ll be waiting.”

#

After spending a few days finishing our tour, we left Oslon with the utmost satisfaction. Unfortunately, befitting its nature as a port city, there was no terrain around Oslon suitable for a mine. I had hoped, but hope was always as expected.

As we headed southeast to the Caspian Sea and northeast to the Roche Mountains, sightseeing and the initial purpose of finding mines began to intertwine.

Most potential sites fell into two categories: the size of the mine was adequate, but proper mining was difficult with the current technology, or the reserves were small, making mining insignificant. Only a handful of mines had adequate size and productivity, but even then, less than half were the iron mines I desperately wanted.

‘I’m getting too little in return for the effort I’m putting in.’

If this trip hadn’t been combined with a tour with my wife, I wouldn’t have felt good. Because inefficiency is what I hate the most. Of course, my wife was by my side now, so it was by no means inefficient.

“If we go a little further, we’ll be at the Zeke Territory.”

We arrived at the Zeke Territory, which could be considered the last destination, the end point of the trip. She seemed excited because it was her hometown after a long time. At the same time, she seemed to regret that it was the end of the trip.

“Haha! Brother-in-law! Long time no see. The rumors are all over the place?”

“Did the rumors spread this far?”

“Of course. I was wondering when you would come to visit.”

The rumor wasn’t just any rumor. As I toured the south and discovered mines – regardless of their value – a rumor spread that a mine that would bring great profits would be created if I just visited. So, quite a few nobles were eagerly anticipating my arrival.

“It’s better not to have too high expectations. It’s not like I’m creating something out of nothing, and there haven’t been many decent mines I’ve found so far.”

“The important thing is that you found them at all.”

After exchanging simple greetings with my brother-in-law, whom I hadn’t seen in a long time, an unusual, unfamiliar sight caught my eye.

“Oh, by the way······.”

My nephew, growing up and starting to lose his boyish features, and my aunt, supporting herself with her son’s help, weren’t unusual. However, what felt unfamiliar was my aunt’s belly, swollen enough to be recognized at a glance.

“Could it be?”

“Haha. That’s right. If you were in the Imperial Capital, I could have told you sooner, but I was late in delivering the news because you were traveling. I’m sorry.”

“Why would my brother feel sorry? I sincerely congratulate you.”

It was an event to be celebrated. It wasn’t that there was no child to continue the family line, but accidents happen when you least expect them, and the Zeke family was a family of knights that had produced outstanding knights for generations.

If we followed that tradition, my nephew would be training to become a knight unless he was terribly untalented. Of course, the security would be strict because of his position, but there’s no such thing as absolute safety in battle.

In that sense, the second pregnancy was something to celebrate in many ways, as long as there’s no fighting between siblings. There were cases like me and my brother who maintained our friendship and went our separate ways, but even the current emperor killed his brothers and seized power.

“Come on, let’s go inside and talk more.”

#

After we finished talking in a friendly atmosphere, only my brother and I remained, and my brother led me somewhere. It was a training ground where knights were training, but it wasn’t a knight wielding a sword there.

Whoong- Whoong-

Even though I was quite far away, I could feel the sound of the wind splitting and the resulting wind pressure slightly. No matter how skilled a knight was, it would be impossible unless done intentionally, but it was a different story when Glory [likely a magical construct or weapon] was wielding the sword.

“It seems that there is no particular problem with production even without me.”

“It would be a problem if there *was* a problem. I’m not going to be holding on to that forever.”

Still, I had to go back soon. The cores that I had made in advance before leaving on the trip had run out a long time ago. There were probably quite a few Titans waiting for me to come. Nevertheless, as I watched several Glorys wielding swords in the wide training ground, I could feel that the destination was not far away, so I could feel the opposite of leisure.

“It’s an amazing performance. As you sometimes said, it wouldn’t be impossible to turn the land of monsters into human land. It will take some time, though.”

“That’s what I wanted to hear.”

“Tell me anytime if you need my help. I can’t say it’s not related, and my father won’t leave the Terra Barrier unless he has to, but if the Terra Barrier’s reason for existence disappears, he’ll come down to the territory.”

The conversation that started with that topic gradually shifted to a personal conversation that couldn’t be had at the table just now as time went by.

“But you guys still don’t have any news?”

News.

It was a word that contained many meanings. But I wasn’t so dull that I didn’t know what my brother meant by saying that.

Why wouldn’t I want to see my child? There was only one reason why I had been putting it off.

As soon as I was ready, I would be heading to the land of monsters.

Just as I was worried about my nephew and thought that there was no such thing as absolute safety in battle, the path I had to walk was also fraught with battles, so it was a path where an ‘unexpected accident’ could happen at any time. It was an expression of my desire not to leave her with more pain.

But my mind changed slightly as I traveled with her this time. There were realistic limitations, and in order to achieve my goal, I had to take at least a few years, usually more than ten years.

By that time, my wife would be over forty, and the risk would inevitably increase. I was also worried about her suffering alone for that long.

“······I will try to work together so that I can give you good news soon.”

So now I decided to think differently. Let’s live more desperately for two people, not one. As the number of people I have to take responsibility for has doubled, wouldn’t the unknown power that erupts in times of crisis also double?

“Tell that to my sister too. She’ll be very happy.”

“I told her a while ago anyway.”

“Oh, dear, I was meddling unnecessarily. You two are doing well.”

Baron’s Family Second Son – 104 End