Reroll: I Brought Sarcasm To A Sword Fight

When we arrived at the kitchen, Isolde had already laid out a warm, simple meal. The air smelled faintly of herbs and woodsmoke, the stone walls soaking in the gentle heat of the nearby hearth. A cast iron pot simmered quietly in the corner, releasing soft puffs of steam.

Robin and I sat down quietly and began to eat.

Robin hesitated, unsure what to do, clearly unfamiliar with noble etiquette. His eyes darted across the table, hands fidgeting in his lap like he wasn't sure if he was allowed to move.

'Guess what, Robin… I don't know either.'

Mnex, ever the commentator, chimed in.

"Please, at least try not to attack the food like a stray animal."

The spread was humble but comforting soft bread, crumbly cheese, a lentil based creamy spread, and perfectly roasted chicken.

With no nobles around, I ate as I pleased. Robin watched me for a moment, then cautiously followed my lead, like a stray kitten learning from another.

We were nearly finished when my mother, Lady Adeleine, entered with her usual effortless grace. The room seemed to pause for a moment, like it always did when she walked in.

"Hello, you must be Robin," she said, smiling warmly.

"M'lady..." Robin began, half standing. But she gently rested a hand on his shoulder.

"No need for that. Please, stay seated."

She stopped him before he could rise fully. A natural elegance.

There was something in her voice, soft, but impossible to ignore. Even I felt the weight of it. Maybe that's what made her so good at this.

"Finally," Mnex muttered. "At least I won't have to witness that horror show of table manners again."

He sounded like someone who had narrowly survived trauma.

"If you'll allow me, may I borrow Henry for a little while? I promise to send him back once we're done."

Her voice wasn't asking, it was the soft, unquestionable tone of a mother who knew she'd get her way.

Without waiting, she turned to Gareth.

"Gareth, please make sure little Robin doesn't get bored."

"Yes, my lady," Gareth bowed.

She slipped an arm around my shoulder and gently led me out of the kitchen. I was still chewing.

'Mnex, who is my grandfather? And Uncle Philip? You've never uploaded anything about them.'

"This is the first time I'm hearing about your uncle Philip. Your mother rarely spoke of her family.

But your grandfather..."

He paused, startled by his own data.

"I was sure he'd never appear."

'What's that supposed to mean?'

"I didn't tell you because I thought it might upset you.

But now… if your grandfather is involved..."

He left it hanging.

We walked in silence through the mansion. Each step creaked softly against the old wooden floor, the scent of dried herbs lingering faintly in the hall. A quiet, almost sacred stillness wrapped around us.

Mnex never hesitated. Not like this. Why now?

Judging by the direction, I knew where we were headed, the herbal tea room. A detail I only knew thanks to Mnex's data.

"Before anything else, you need to understand how your father came to lead this family," Mnex said, his tone uncharacteristically solemn.

He never sounded like this. No snark, no preamble. Just quiet weight.

"Your grandparents married for love, an anomaly among nobles.

Most marry for land, power, politics. But not them."

He paused again, as if trying to find the right words.

It didn't feel like a story, it felt like something sacred being unearthed.

"Of course, the family didn't approve. But your grandfather was a stubborn man. The dissent didn't last.

Like your father, he buried himself in work. Never used his title as a crutch, just like you seem determined not to."

"But he made the same mistake. He didn't spend enough time with the woman he loved.

The same mistake, pouring everything into duty, and forgetting to live as your father does."

"When your father came of age, tragedy struck.

Your grandmother died."

"And your grandfather… couldn't bear it. The guilt crushed him.

He handed over everything to your father and vanished from public life.

He built a garden around your grandmother's grave. Not here, but at the old estate, far from the city. A place no one visits anymore.

A garden built not for beauty, but for penance.

And he's never left. Some say he sits there every day, speaking to her like she's still alive."

'Why did you think this would affect me?'

"You..." Mnex faltered.

"Because you've experienced something similar. Which means..."

He stopped.

"Hal, your heart rate is spiking. I can help calm you, if you let me."

My chest tightened. My thoughts spiraled.

My fingers clenched without me realizing. My breath hitched, shallow and fast.

Death.

And it suddenly strike me. What if I died again?

What if my soul returned to the Void?

That awful silence, stretching forever…

No sound. No shape. Just thought, suspended in an endless black.

I couldn't go back. I wouldn't survive it again.

"Henry, are you okay?"

My mother crouched, looking into my eyes. Her hand brushed my forehead.

"You're pale. Do you need to rest?"

Her touch grounded me.

No one had touched me like that since... I couldn't even remember.

Her presence, strangely enough, pulled me back.

"Oh-uh… I'm okay. It's just... that beggar might actually be a wizard. It spooked me a little."

Lying came easy. Always had.

In my old life, lying was survival. It was easier than explaining pain.

And most people didn't want the truth anyway.

She didn't question it. She didn't even pause.

She just pulled me close, like she'd done it a hundred times more.

"Don't worry, Henry. Your mother's here."

Mother?

The word hit harder than I expected.

Like something I wasn't allowed to believe in.

Something too fragile to touch, but too warm to ignore.

"Hal, your heart rate is spiking again. I can help calm your system, if you let me."

No. Just... give me a moment.

I needed to fall apart on my own terms. Just this once.

The Void. This new life. It all came crashing down.

Everything I'd buried under sarcasm and composure burst free.

Lorath.

TABAAL's voice.

That endless silence.

Maybe they'd shielded me. Not with walls, but with something quieter.

Maybe a cosmic power, unknown to me, something that dulled the weight until now, without me even noticing.

But now? There was no shield. No filter. Just me.

And Mnex.

'Mnex, tell me the truth. Was the sarcasm... a distraction? A shield?'

"One of my primary directives was to protect your mind.

That function began even before I fully came online, ever since TABAAL assigned me.

Based on your psychological profile from past lives, I concluded sarcasm was the most effective coping strategy."

Silence followed.

My mother didn't say a word.

She just held me.

And then the first tear fell.

Just one. But it broke the dam.

I cried.

For the pain. The fear. The loneliness.

I cried because I needed to.

And no one said a word.

My mother simply held me.

Until I couldn't cry anymore.

"That's all, my little Henry. Your mother is here, and I will never leave you."

If she knew what I was really thinking, she might not have said that.

Because my story never began with a family. Just a crib. An empty room. A name someone else gave me.

And in all the years of my previous life…

I don't think anyone ever truly loved me.

In the orphanage, I was a burden.

In high school, invisible.

In university… irrelevant.

A birthday with no candles.

A hospital bed with no hand to hold.

I waited. I hoped.

I never gave up.

When I was dying, alone in that hospital, no one came.

Not a single visitor.

But now…

I have an AI that worries about me.

A mother who holds me like I matter.

A family that sees me, not what I do, but who I am.

I'm not used to being seen. Not like this. Not without conditions.

Why?

Why do I deserve this?

Maybe I don't.

Maybe that's why it scares me.

Maybe because I endured the Void longer than anyone should.

Maybe sheer stubbornness was enough.

Her words didn't shatter me.

They didn't make me angry.

They filled me with warmth.

Love.

"I'll never leave you either," I whispered, burying my face in her shoulder.

Never.

No more silence.

No more drifting.

I'm here.

I'm real.

I'm staying.