The Hero Becomes the Duke’s Eldest Son

Translator: Marctempest
Editor: Rynfinity

Chapter 5

……

Aden looked at the knight who seemed familiar.

Judging by his attire, he appeared to be an apprentice knight, much like Bazan whom he had faced before.

The man had dark skin overall. He had brown hair, but his bangs were partially white.

The knight appeared to be a young man, only two or three years older than Aden.

Aden frowned, trying to recall.

‘That unique hair… I feel like I’ve seen it in my past life.’

But his memory was hazy, and he couldn’t quite remember.

“Haap!”

The young knight was training, swinging his sword with a shout like the other knights.

He practiced downward strikes, diagonal cuts, spinning slashes, and thrusts in a continuous flow. However, his movements had a noticeable delay compared to the other knights.

Perhaps others had noticed it too, as a senior knight scolded him.

“Hey, Lowe! Put more strength in your lower body and swing harder!”

“Yes, sir!”

“You’ve been lagging behind the other apprentice knights lately. If you keep this up, you’ll end up failing. Put in more effort.”

“I will correct it, sir!”

The apprentice knight named ‘Lowe’ gritted his teeth and swung his sword again.

The moment Aden heard the apprentice knight’s name, it felt like a fog had lifted from his mind.

‘Ah, yes, free knight Lowe. It was him.’

Free knight Lowe. He was someone Aden knew from his past life when he worked as a mercenary.

He hadn’t recognized him at all, as his appearance was completely different. There were no scars on his face, and he still had a youthful look. His face appeared kind and innocent, a stark contrast to the cold and grim atmosphere Aden remembered.

But he was definitely the same person Aden knew.

‘That guy was here before becoming a mercenary.’

Despite the title of a free knight, Lowe was actually a mercenary. He was a peculiar guy who valued chivalry even as a mercenary.

‘He even had a rank in the mercenary guild.’

That rank was S-class.

There were less than a hundred such strong mercenaries across the entire empire. However, his knight-like behavior caused him to clash with other mercenaries.

Typically, mercenaries pursued profit over duty.

‘So the nickname “free knight” was a mocking title.’

Aden had met Lowe about seven years later in the future.

They weren’t particularly close, in fact, they snarled at each other whenever they met by chance.

They looked down on each other, calling each other annoying and greedy.

Even so, they had saved each other’s lives a few times while performing the same commissions, forming a kind of antagonistic friendship.

‘I thought the next time I’d see your face would be in the afterlife…’

He was one of the many people Aden remembered who had died. Lowe had died ten years from now, in a battle against one of the minions of the mad dragon attacking a city. Aden had participated in that battle and witnessed his final moments with his own eyes.

Aden felt a fresh sense of realization.

‘It’s true that I’ve come back to the past.’

That fact felt newly significant to him.

“Master?”

Philip called out to Aden, who had stopped and remained silent. Aden’s reverie was broken.

‘Is this what they call fate?’

Aden approached Lowe and called out to him.

“Hey.”

At the sudden voice…

Swish.

Lowe lowered the sword he was swinging and looked to the side. When he saw Aden, he paused and then bowed his head.

“Apprentice knight Lowe greets Young Master Aden. What brings you here?”

Ha. It was amusing to receive such a polite greeting from this guy.

Aden almost laughed but held it back. It was funny to see the guy who had been so annoying acting this way.

Incidentally, stating just his name without a family name indicated he was a commoner knight without a title.

“So, you’re Lowe? How long have you been at the Duke’s house?”

“It’s been a year now.”

Lowe’s attitude was respectful, but he seemed a bit annoyed by Aden.

Well, having someone interrupt during training would hardly be pleasant.

Especially if that someone was the infamous spoiled young master. If the Duke didn’t favor Aden, everyone in the Duke’s household would likely have turned their backs on him by now.

‘Well, I don’t care because I’ll leave when the time comes.’

He would leave after taking advantage of everything he could, never to see this place again.

“Come to the training hall I use tonight.”

Lowe’s eyebrows furrowed slightly in confusion at Aden’s words.

“Can you tell me what it’s about?”

Instead of answering immediately, Aden took a moment to look at Lowe, whose face seemed both familiar and different from his memory.

‘I’ll give you a small gift since we met this way.’

Before he became strong enough to defeat the dragon, Aden had been saved by Lowe several times. Though he had also saved Lowe, in the end, he couldn’t save him in the final battle. He intended to repay that debt a little.

Aden approached Lowe and whispered something in a low voice.

“…Do you understand?”

Lowe’s face hardened after hearing Aden’s words.

“What on earth…?”

Aden lightly waved his hand, signaling to discuss it later.

“Philip, let’s go.”

“Yes, young master.”

Then, Aden left the knights’ training ground.

Walking alongside Aden, Philip showed curiosity.

“But young master, what did you talk about with that friend? Can you tell me?”

“No, it’s a secret.”

Philip groaned with curiosity but Aden ignored him.

Aden recalled the expression Lowe had made at the end.

The guy was completely pale. He really was something, even when Aden tried to do him a favor.

‘I’m trying to help you get rid of a nickname you hate.’

In the future, besides the title ‘free knight,’ Lowe had another nickname he hated.

One-armed Swift.

—

The family’s dinner was held every morning and evening. The Duke, the Duchess, Carl, and Aden sat together for dinner.

The Duke looked at Aden with admiration during the meal.

“You’ve gotten in good shape, son.”

His previously skinny limbs had become quite muscular, and the changes were evident even from the collarbone and neck visible through his shirt. He seemed a bit taller too.

“Just a bit of exercise does wonders.”

Aden gestured as if he was surprised himself and took a bite of apple pie.

Dinner had long been over, and he was on his third slice of pie.

Carl, on the other hand, looked at Aden as if he were a starving beggar.

Carl hadn’t even finished half of his food yet. He glanced sideways at Aden, then reluctantly moved his silver fork to the soup and meat in front of him, eating half-heartedly.

The Duke spoke to Carl.

“Carl, you should eat more. You need to eat well to serve as a knight.”

“…Thank you for your concern.”

Around that time, the Duchess asked Aden with a concerned look.

“By the way, Aden, I heard a rumor…”

She spoke with a mix of worry and suspicion.

“I heard our eldest child is collecting poisonous plants…?”

Thud.

Carl dropped the piece of bread he was holding. Aden, unaware of Carl’s reaction, simply said,

“One more plate, please.”

“Yes, sir.”

He took another plate of steak from the servant and, holding his knife and fork, said nonchalantly,

“It’s a hobby.”

“Collecting poisonous plants, you say?”

“Yes.”

This time, it was the Duke’s question. Aden knew they would ask him about it sooner or later, and he wasn’t particularly worried.

“Poisonous plants aren’t a problem if managed properly. I’ve even prepared the best holy potion for emergencies.”

“Even so, poisonous plants are dangerous.”

But they couldn’t bring themselves to tell him to stop.

They loved him and couldn’t strongly oppose what he was interested in.

They couldn’t imagine him doing anything dangerous with the poison.

They could only ask because they didn’t understand.

“Why did you suddenly become interested in such things?”

Aden answered calmly.

“Poisonous plants are quite fascinating.”

He continued while holding the steak with his fork.

“Plants are weak. They live at the bottom of the food chain, constantly being eaten by the strong.”

He cut the steak with his knife.

“But the strong foolishly overlook the poison these plants hide.”

Just like he had overlooked the betrayal of his comrades.

He hadn’t realized they harbored the poison of betrayal.

“The strong, deceived by the plants’ beauty and frailty, eat them without suspicion.”

Just like he had been deceived by their appearance of friendship and love.

Clink.

Aden stabbed the cut steak with his fork.

“And the moment they enter their mouths, the poison spreads, killing the strong.”

Just like he had been imprisoned without resistance.

“That’s why I want to learn more about poisonous plants. The knives they hide behind their beauty.”

In this miraculous second life, he would uncover the truths they hid.

Those who had used and discarded him without hesitation had many secrets.

He would become strong.

Strong enough to uncover everything they had hidden.

The dirty truths they kept.

They didn’t know him.

He would use their ignorance, get close to them, and destroy them from within.

“That’s why I thought… I want to become like those poisonous plants.”

Aden ate the steak piece.

Then, with a chilling smile on his lips, he added,

“I want to be like those poisonous plants.”

He would become the poison.

The deadly poison that would bring the heroes to ruin.

—

After dinner, Aden asked Carl for a favor.

‘The ranking list of the knights’ skills.’

Aden decided to spar with the knights.

Strength wasn’t just about accumulating mana and building muscle in a room.

He needed experience fighting against people to handle the practical combat skills he had learned in his mind.

Sparring with the knights would be a good foundation.

‘If I do well, I might gain achievements.’

Achievements.

They were a kind of blessing from the world for the specific actions of the system’s owner.

The more achievements done and the harder they are, the stronger the system’s owner could become.

It was the driving force that had allowed Aden to grow rapidly after slaying the dragon in his past life.

‘By the way, I thought Carl would question what I was up to.’

Carl had accepted Aden’s troublesome request without complaint, even though he had been pale after dinner.

‘Maybe he ate something bad?’

Carl was precious, being the one to manage the Duke’s household in his place.

He thought he should tell the servant to bring him some sparkling water and then dismissed the thought.

After dinner, Aden went somewhere alone.

The servant tried to follow, but Aden dismissed him with a threat.

Aden stopped at his personal training hall. Someone was waiting there besides Aden.

“I hope I didn’t keep you waiting too long. Did you eat, Lowe?”

“…Not yet, young master.”

It was the apprentice knight Lowe.

“Now will you tell me?”

Lowe’s face was still hardened, just as it had been when they last parted. His eyes were trembling intensely.

He recalled Aden’s whispered words.

‘Your right arm is stiffening, isn’t it?’

A secret he had kept from everyone.

He had realized about six months ago that one arm was gradually becoming stiff and difficult to move. He didn’t know the cause.

For a swordsman, having an arm stiffen was tantamount to death.

He had kept it hidden.

Coming from a poor commoner background, he had worked his way up to become an apprentice knight at the Duke’s house.

If anyone knew about his arm, he would undoubtedly be dismissed.

He had tried to compensate by increasing the strength in his left arm, keeping up with the others. But now it was becoming noticeable that he was falling behind.

Within another six months, or perhaps even three, he wouldn’t be able to hide it anymore.

Lowe had recently fallen into a growing despair over this.

“How did you know my secret…? No, more importantly.”

Lowe looked at Aden with a mix of suspicion and desperate hope.

“Can you really heal my arm, young master?”