The Hero Becomes the Duke's Eldest Son

Translator: Marctempest

Editor: Rynfinity

Chapter 200

Numerous statues stood tall.

At the base of each one, the following inscriptions were engraved:

[The Remes Prince Who Defended the Fortress from the Troll Army]

[Aden Remes Rescuing the Saintess from the Den of Evil]

[Aden Remes, the Pride of the Territory, Defeating the Winter Queen]

[Aden Remes Ending the Holy War of the Slaughter Tower!]

[Aden Who Saved the Dwarf Kingdom...]

Each statue depicted the achievements Aden had accomplished thus far.

Of course, Aden had never struck the embarrassing poses shown by the statues, nor had he ever made such a sentimental expression as if he was resolutely determined to "fight against all the evil in the world and save it!"

Aden felt as if he might vomit.

“Please, let the child born this time grow up to be as great as the Prince...!”

“I hope everything I do this month goes well...”

When Aden saw that there were even citizens of the territory praying to the statue as if it were some guardian deity, he felt a wave of dizziness, his head spinning.

“Dad, you're amazing! So cool!”

Well, he was indeed quite amazing, but, Leo, please just be quiet for now.

—Now that I look at it, you’re really popular, huh? But isn’t it a bit embarrassing?

Yes, now shut up, cat.

Fenrir’s eyes gleamed.

“As expected of the descendant of my previous master. You’ve already achieved so many feats and garnered so many followers...!”

That’s not what this is, so please stop.

Etz, who was now almost a permanent resident of the Remes household, explained the statues to Aden.

“Whenever astonishing rumors about the Chieftain surface, these are the statues his father has erected.”

That father, obsessed with bragging about his son!

Aden silently screamed.

He should have realized that something was wrong with this duchy when his father held a week-long "son-bragging festival" after Aden captured the High Troll Shaman.

Aden couldn't even lift his face from within the carriage until they arrived at the Remes Ducal Estate.

Finally, Aden’s party arrived at the Remes Ducal Estate.

“Son...!”

“Father! Please, compose yourself!”

“Prrriiinnnccceee!”

Leading the charge were the Duke and Duchess, Carl, the members of the Remes Knights, and the entire household, all rushing out.

It had been a long time since Aden had seen Duke Fried Remes, who now approached him.

For the moment, Aden pushed aside the overwhelming shame threatening to make him faint and greeted the Duke.

“It’s been a while, Father.”

“Son! You should have sent word ahead! We would have prepared a grand celebration.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t think of that.”

Aden thought it was truly fortunate he hadn’t informed them in advance.

The Duke, though scolding Aden, was all smiles.

“Haha! I’ve heard a lot about you during your absence.”

“...It certainly seems that way.”

Just by looking at those statues, it was evident how much attention had been given to Aden's deeds.

“Brother, it’s been a while.”

“Carl.”

“You seem to be doing well.”

“Well, you look like you’ve grown gaunt since I last saw you.”

Aden’s younger brother, Carl, had grown taller, but dark circles under his eyes hinted at his exhaustion.

“Thanks to someone, the territory has grown rapidly in a short time, so there's a mountain of work to do.”

“That must have been tough.”

Aden said sincerely.

In just half a year, the small town on the outskirts had expanded into a large city, so there must have been many tasks to handle.

“As long as you understand.”

Carl frowned and complained, but there was a look of satisfaction on his face.

Seeing the territory grow more lively and change day by day was a challenging but also enjoyable experience.

“Please give me guidance again when you have time!”

“Welcome back to the Ducal Estate, Young Master!”

The members of the Remes Knights greeted Aden cheerfully.

It was a spectacle one would never see in a typical noble household.

“Haha...”

Aden felt his face flush with embarrassment.

‘Well, whatever happens, happens.’

Aden gave up on thinking any further.

However, a small smile appeared on his lips.

Somehow, he finally felt like he had returned to the Remes Ducal Estate.

He realized that this place was his home.

He was no longer a stranger who had intruded into an unfamiliar house but was now someone who was born and raised as a member of this family.

Home, family.

These were things that ‘Aden Albireo’ could never have hoped to attain during his mercenary days, but they were now something that ‘Aden Remes’ possessed.

This realization suddenly hit him.

“Ellie!”

“Daddy!”

On one side, Joseph, the Priest of the Solar Sect, was hugging Elise, overjoyed.

“My daughter, you’ve grown so much! Was the journey difficult?”

“No! It was fun!”

Elise probably had the roughest pilgrimage of any saintess, but it seemed she found the entire experience enjoyable.

“It’s been a while, Joseph.”

“Prince Aden.”

As Aden approached, Joseph bowed his head as if ashamed.

“Thank you. For accompanying my daughter on her pilgrimage and enduring all the hardships you didn’t need to...”

“There’s no need to worry about it.”

In the first place, using Elise’s pilgrimage as a pretext, Aden had gained quite a lot while traveling around.

In fact, Aden should be the one thanking Elise.

As the warm welcomes continued, Duke Fried suddenly spoke, noticing some unfamiliar faces.

“By the way, there are some new faces. And this lady is...?”

As the Duke pointed to Fenrir, she spoke.

“So, you are the father of the Great Master. My name is Fenrir, and I serve my Master, Lord Aden.”

“M-Master...?”

The Duke’s expression stiffened.

Others’ expressions also turned peculiar.

In her human polymorph form, Fenrir’s overwhelming beauty and the unique aura she exuded created an air of mystery.

Such a beautiful woman calling Aden ‘Master’ was naturally shocking.

Noticing this, Aden hastily tried to gloss over the situation.

“She’s an employee I hired during my travels. I’ll explain later.”

“I-I see. And who is this child?”

Still feeling something was off, the Duke didn’t pry further and instead pointed to Leo.

“Ah, this child...”

Just as Aden was about to explain.

Leo, who was in the form of a human boy, blinked his eyes and then cheerfully exclaimed.

“Wow! He looks just like Daddy!”

“...”

“...”

A heavy silence fell.

It took a long time to clear up the misunderstanding.

\* \* \*

After defeating Kalsis and preparing for the opening of the Hell Gate, there was a matter that Aden had to address first.

So Aden decided to solve that problem first.

A few days later, Aden met with Niketa, the leader of the Flames of Florence, at the Ducal Estate.

“Lord, how have you been? What brings you here today...?”

“I’m not a lord.”

“...Pardon?”

“Curse, reveal yourself.”

“Hmm, I apologize for the late greeting, my distant descendant.”

“O-Oh...?”

Niketa’s pupils trembled as she saw Curse.

\* \* \*

Niketa had been gravely mistaken about Aden.

‘Up until now, there hasn’t been any particular reason to correct that misconception.’

To correct the misconception would inevitably require an explanation of Curse’s true identity and Aden’s regression.

And even if everything was explained, Aden couldn’t be sure how she would react.

In the worst case, she might even become hostile toward Aden.

Niketa was a master-level warlock, and considering the absolute power she wielded over the undead, she was as powerful as an advanced sword master.

Because of this, Aden, who was still inferior to the Silver Witch in skill, had decided to maintain the misconception.

‘But the situation has changed now.’

Aden had reached the level of an advanced sword master and had gained the power to handle the worst-case scenario.

And to deal with Kalsis and the disaster ahead, her help was indispensable.

So Aden decided to reveal everything to her.

He told her about his previous life as Aden Albireo, the things he had done after being reborn as Aden Remes, and what he had learned about the disaster that would occur in the future.

“...”

After hearing the entire story, she remained silent for a while.

Aden, uncharacteristically, couldn’t help but feel nervous in that silence.

How would she react?

After a long moment of silence, she finally spoke.

“I see. I understand everything.”

“...What?”

“Somehow, I couldn’t understand the actions of those Chaos creatures, but now that you’ve explained the reasons, it all makes sense.”

Her reaction, however, was far more composed than Aden had expected.

She murmured to herself as she sorted through her thoughts.

“For now, I’ll have to recall all the children I sent out and prepare them in Shamim. And there are other preparations to make...”

“...Is that all?”

“Hmm? Did I miss something?”

She blinked her eyes, tilting her head in confusion.

It was a bit out of place, but even that looked cute on her, as expected of Niketa.

No, that wasn’t the issue; something didn’t seem to align.

“That’s not it. You really understood everything? Really?”

Aden was a regressor who had defeated the Mad Dragon and the Demon Lord, the Empire’s second prince possessed the Demon God’s consciousness, and the Hell Gate would open within a year, turning the world upside down.

Honestly, even though he was the one who said it, it all sounded incredibly far-fetched.

Yet her reaction was so calm.

Niketa gave a wry smile.

“Well, that’s because I’ve been watching you all this time.”

To be honest, she had been growing increasingly suspicious while observing Aden.

Aden’s actions and the information he provided were things that could only be known if he had foreknowledge of the future.

Even if he were an incarnation of the Underlord, it was impossible for him to know everything to that extent.

“And besides, from my perspective, nothing has really changed.”

So what if Aden had been her enemy in the previous world and had killed her, earning the title of ‘Witch Slayer’? What would change?

That was all part of an erased future, and to her, who had no memory of it, Aden’s story was essentially an ‘event that never happened.’

Niketa decided to focus on what she knew rather than stories she was unaware of.

“So, you’re saying that this man is my ancestor, the Underlord, and that you, Prince Aden, are housing him within your body? And you’re acting on his behalf?”

“...Essentially, yes?”

Aden’s goal was to eliminate Kalsis, and Curse’s goal was to prevent the resurrection of the Demon God.

“And Prince Aden and the Lord wish for the Flames of Florence to properly take root in the Western Continent. Isn’t that right?”

“...That’s also correct.”

Since the Warlocks’ abilities, which deal with dark magic, would be effective against the beings from the Underworld, the presence of good warlocks recognized by the Western Continent was essential to end the Talos War early and with minimal damage.

Hearing Aden’s answer, she smiled faintly.

“Then nothing has really changed.”

“Ha...”

Nothing had changed at all.

At her words, Aden felt the tension drain from his body.

Her straightforward response was so refreshing that it was almost difficult for him to keep up.

‘No, maybe I was the one thinking too seriously about all of this.’

About remembering a vanished past and living within it.

“Here.”

“Hmm?”

At that moment, Niketa suddenly extended her hand to Aden.

“It’s... a gesture to say we should do well together from now on. Since we’re in the same boat.”

Even though she offered her hand, she seemed a little awkward, avoiding eye contact.

For someone like her, who leads the Flames of Florence, there wouldn’t have been many people who would genuinely extend such a gesture of closeness.

Suddenly, Aden recalled what Niketa had said to him in his previous life.

“Mercenary Aden, I like you. I think we might have become friends if we had met under different circumstances.”

He smirked.

For some reason, when that memory surfaced, a satisfied smile appeared on his face.

“Alright.”

Aden took her hand and shook it.

The Witch Slayer shaking hands with the Silver Witch—this was something he could never have imagined in his previous life.

‘These are the changes I’ve made...’

It was merely a light handshake, but Aden realized that this was the result of the future he had changed.

And because of that, he couldn’t help but realize something once more.

The fact that the name ‘Witch Slayer’ would never again be associated with him in this world.

Somehow, that realization brought him a sense of joy.

—The God of Slaughter and Death says, “Nya-nya-nya!”

—The God of Justice and Law scolds the God of Slaughter, saying you’ve ruined the mood, so take responsibility.

—The Lord of the Sacred Fire asks if you’re just going to stop at holding hands.

Shut up, you voyeuristic gods.

Aden seriously considered finding a way to block the messages from the gods.