The Hero Becomes the Duke’s Eldest Son

Translator: Marctempest
Editor: Rynfinity

Episode 9

……

Aden recalled the story he had heard from the free knight Lowe in the past.

“An alchemist.”

Originally, Lowe would have been dismissed from the duke’s house around this time and wandered the streets doing any odd jobs he could find to make a living. During this process, he happened to come into contact with a female alchemist in the slums.

“She was researching a cure for mana vein syndrome.”

At the time, Lowe promised to help with her experiments in exchange for having his arm healed if she found a cure.

“Although it didn’t work out as planned.”

Aden opened the store door.

Creak.

The rusty door hinge made an unpleasant sound as it opened.

As soon as Aden entered, he frowned. The inside of the building was filled with a thick smell of smoke. It was a sweet, dizzying scent. The store was dimly lit, but numerous bottles and medicines filled the display shelves.

Lowe looked around the alchemist’s workshop curiously. His gaze then fell upon a picture.

“This is….”

It was a strange painting. In the painting, an old man in a robe held a glowing red gem in his hand, and the light from the gem was creating the world.

It formed the sky, the sea, and a golden mountain on one side. Various crawling and flying creatures were being born, and the sick were shown to be healed.

“Young master, what does this painting depict?”

Aden responded indifferently.

“It’s the Philosopher’s Stone. A superstition that only a few wizards and alchemists believe in.”

Magic and alchemy were powers created by humans. However, there were three areas in the world that were impossible for humans to control: time, space, and creation.

These three were beyond the reach of magic and alchemy, or any other kind of power.

Occasionally, holy relics imbued with divine power could partially interfere, but those belonged solely to the domain of the gods.

The Philosopher’s Stone was a mythical item that supposedly allowed humans to achieve such miracles.

Explaining this, Aden furrowed his brow with a strange feeling.

“But I crossed that impossible boundary of time.”

How it was possible was something only the gods would know.

At that moment, a female voice came from the dark, unlit interior.

“Oh my, that’s a story only a few would know. You seem well-informed.”

Aden replied nonchalantly.

“I’ve heard bits and pieces.”

In the future, the great alchemist Kalsis was a close friend of Aden.

The great mage Shawa, also a companion, occasionally spoke about the legend of the Philosopher’s Stone. Those were fond memories, until they betrayed Aden.

“Hmm, it’s been a while since we’ve had interesting guests.”

The woman’s voice was languid and sweet, like the smell of smoke.

The owner of the voice revealed herself.

“And handsome men at that.”

She was a young woman with red eyes like rubies and equally red hair. She wore a worn gray robe, but it couldn’t hide her beauty. She held a long, thin pipe to her mouth with one hand.

“Whoo.”

She slowly exhaled smoke. Her sharp eyes and languid demeanor gave off a decadent vibe.

“Are you the owner, Cassie?”

“You even know my name?”

The alchemist Cassie sat on a rocking chair, smiling as if she found it amusing.

She gave Aden a seductive smile and asked,

“What brings such a handsome young master and knight to this old shop?”

“Lowe.”

“Yes.”

Aden didn’t answer her question and instead called Lowe.

“Roll up your sleeve and show her.”

“…Yes.”

Though Lowe hesitated for a moment at Aden’s words, he soon obeyed and revealed his right arm, which had turned white and stiff like marble.

“Hmm?”

Cassie’s eyes narrowed as she looked at the arm. After a brief silence, she spoke with a subtle expression.

“…It says this isn’t a clinic, you know?”

“I know.”

Aden acknowledged her words and continued.

“And I also know that this is the only place that can heal this arm.”

Her eyes narrowed again as she looked at him.

Aden ordered Lowe.

“Lowe, wait outside for a moment.”

“Yes.”

“And if anyone tries to come in during our conversation, stop them.”

“Understood.”

Once Lowe left, Aden sat down on a nearby wooden chair without permission. He crossed his arms and legs, looking very arrogant.

“Let’s get straight to the point. Fix my knight’s arm. In return, I’ll protect you and support your research. How about it?”

Cassie looked a bit taken aback by Aden’s rapid speech.

“…Isn’t that too little explanation?”

How could he be so sure she could heal that arm, and that she needed protection and support?

“Sweet-smelling and soothing winter lily tobacco leaves.”

Instead of answering her doubts, Aden watched the pipe smoke and murmured to himself.

“The scent soothes the flow of mana and relieves pain. That’s why it’s used by those with mana vein syndrome.”

Aden had a meaningful smile on his lips.

“It’s very expensive and rare, but essential for you, isn’t it?”

Her eyes widened at his words, then she let out a hollow laugh, tapping the ashes from her pipe into an ashtray.

“I heard you’re a notorious young master, but you’re not just a spoiled brat.”

It seemed she already knew who Aden was. It made sense, given that a knight with the family’s crest was escorting him.

Even so, she spoke bluntly, showing she had quite a bit of nerve.

Aden once again recalled the words of the free knight Lowe from the future.

“She suffered from mana vein syndrome, like me.”

Her syndrome was more severe than Lowe’s.

It affected her internal organs, causing pain and coughing up blood, threatening her life.

Most people with mana vein syndrome died that way.

However, she decided to conquer it instead of succumbing, searching desperately for a cure. To buy time, she needed the winter lily tobacco leaves. But she was in a difficult situation to be active in the public eye.

“Because she’s a beastman.”

Beastmen.

A species with animal traits.

Cassie was a beastman of the feline tribe.

Beastmen mostly lived in the southeastern islands, making them rare on the western continent.

As a beastman and an alchemist, she stood out too much, often leading to trouble.

The likelihood of bad things happening was high.

Therefore, she had no choice but to live a secluded research life, trading potions with the local gang for herbs. It was safer to negotiate with the threat rather than be exposed to it.

Cassie shook her head regretfully.

“Your proposal is quite tempting, but I can’t accept it.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t know how you found out, but it’s true I’m researching a cure. But it will take a few more years to get results. I can’t heal that charming knight’s arm right now. It’s unfortunate.”

She smiled bitterly.

Aden sensed that her regretful words had a double meaning, directed both at him and at herself. Though she was surviving on winter lily tobacco leaves for now, there was no guarantee her body would hold out until then.

“In fact, she gets murdered before that.”

Before completing the cure, she was killed in a conflict with the gang she traded herbs with. It was a hollow ending, but many people met such futile ends in this world. However, Aden didn’t pity her. Soon, there would be no need for pity.

He took out a few sheets of paper from his pocket and placed them on the table with a ‘thud’.

“Read this.”

Cassie picked up the paper with curious eyes and began to read. At first, she read with a bored expression. But as she read each sentence, her complexion changed.

“This is…?”

For the first time, her relaxed demeanor broke. She looked at the paper with trembling hands, unable to believe it.

Aden smiled at her reaction. It was only natural for her to react that way. What Aden showed her was the future ‘completed mana vein syndrome cure.’

The great alchemist Kalsis loved to brag about his research achievements. Thanks to hearing about it countless times, Aden knew the general outline of the cure for mana vein syndrome.

“The problem is that I don’t know it exactly.”

They say even a dog can shoot a fireball after three years in the magic tower, but that’s not realistic.

Aden, who had never even dabbled in alchemy, couldn’t possibly know the cure in detail.

What he knew was a simplified principle of the treatment and the essential ingredients.

So, he needed someone with enough knowledge to gain insight from his incomplete information, someone who desperately needed that information, could create the cure, and wouldn’t betray him because they needed protection.

Aden spoke to Cassie, who was in a daze.

“Is it still impossible?”

“…Two weeks. I need two weeks.”

Still staring at the paper, she declared.

Two weeks. In two weeks, she could complete the cure for mana vein syndrome. She muttered in a hollow voice.

“I never thought there would be such a method. This is a real blow.”

It seemed she felt a sense of futility that the research she had devoted her life to had such a simple answer. But Aden didn’t need to care about her feelings.

“The essential ingredients listed there would be difficult to obtain with your current resources.”

“Judging by your words, you must want something.”

She smiled as she asked, and Aden nodded, pointing at her ring.

“That ring, give it to me.”

“Oh my, you’re a bad man to covet a woman’s ring.”

Cassie looked at him with playful eyes as if he was a bad person.

“Stop joking. I know exactly what that ring does.”

The ring was called the Ring of Swiftness. It could triple a person’s speed for ten seconds, three times a day.

Such an artifact was incredibly valuable in battle, providing significant advantages and potentially saving one’s life in critical moments.

It was an essential item for Aden.

In the future, Lowe took the ring as a keepsake after Cassie was killed by the gang. With the ring’s help, he annihilated the gang and avenged her.

This was the origin of the one-armed quicksilver knight.

“Handsome young master, you know how important this ring is to me, right?”

For her, the ring was a means of protecting herself from others, making it extremely important.

“That’s why I offered to protect you. I’ll let you stay as a guest in the duke’s household indefinitely.”

“Oh my, is that a proposal?”

“I don’t like women who smoke.”

“Not funny.”

After the brief banter, she spoke to Aden seriously.

“Is it okay to bring in an outsider like this? People will gossip. I’m fine as long as I can do my research.”

What she referred to as gossip meant rumors.

If it were a man, no one would say anything, but bringing in an unknown woman without status as a guest would inevitably lead to various nasty rumors. However, Aden shrugged it off lightly.

“Who cares?”

“What?”

“So what if they gossip? I’m a notorious young master. Let them talk all they want.”

From the moment Aden took over this body, he had given up on maintaining face. Seeing his genuinely indifferent expression, Cassie blinked a few times with wide eyes and then chuckled.

“You’re an interesting person. Alright.”

She took off the ring from her finger and handed it to Aden.

“The food and lodging will be better than here, right? But you better do your part.”

“I like that.”

Cassie, the alchemist, smiled languidly with a more lively expression.

* * *

Aden returned to the duke’s mansion with Lowe. They decided that in three days, Lowe would bring Cassie to the mansion.

“There’s a lot to do before I leave. I need to pack up my stuff, make extra medicine for the kids who come to me saying their parents are sick, and also make joint pain medicine for the old man next door…”

“You said this wasn’t a clinic.”

“Drives me crazy.”

Cassie sighed, resting her forehead on her hand, and continued puffing on her pipe. Aden realized that despite her decadent appearance, she had a kind-hearted nature.

Even after returning to the duke’s mansion, Lowe looked excited.

Cassie had assured him that she could complete the cure in a month and heal his arm.

Aden thought Lowe might be a little disappointed to have to wait another month, but he wasn’t.

“I’ve endured without hope, so it’s fine. And now it’s not as desperate as it was then.”

Even with his handicap, Lowe had defeated veteran knights. At least now, even if his mana vein syndrome was revealed, he wouldn’t be kicked out of the duke’s house.

* * *

Three days later, Cassie arrived at the duke’s mansion, escorted by Lowe.

“Thanks for escorting me, handsome knight.”

“…”

Lowe averted his gaze from her seductive smile, and Aden smirked, noticing Lowe’s ears turning red.

“That guy’s already caught.”

Beastmen, regardless of gender, were inherently beautiful and had a playful nature, enjoying teasing others.

If Aden hadn’t been repeatedly warned by his teacher in his previous life, he might have been caught too. It seemed Cassie saw Lowe as a mere toy. Well, they were destined to meet in the original future anyway, so there was no problem.

“Philip, show her to her room.”

Aden told his parents that he had developed an interest in alchemy and had decided to take in a poor alchemist who had nowhere else to go.

As expected, the duke and duchess believed him without any suspicion.

Carl looked at him warily, but when Aden met his gaze, Carl flinched and didn’t say a word.

As expected, there were people who gossiped and looked suspicious because Cassie was a woman. But when Aden picked up a bottle, they quickly averted their eyes and quieted down.

Being a “notorious young master” was quite convenient.

Philip bowed to Aden.

“Understood, young master. But… are you really not in that kind of relationship with her?”

“Do you want to get hit after a long time?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

Philip shrank back at the threat and quietly led Cassie to a room that could also serve as her workshop.

Time passed quickly, and a month went by.