I Was Reborn in Another World, but Hold On – No Parents? Was I Abandoned? - Chapter 6

Chapter 6: A Fresh Start! Dad’s Strong!!

“Wake up… big brother.”

In response to the voice, my eyes opened, and there stood a girl with beautiful, long, golden hair and cobalt blue eyes…?

A young girl…?

“Mel… good morning.”

As a gesture of gratitude for waking me up, I gently stroked the head of my newly made two years younger sister, who closed her eyes with a faint smile.

She had that cat-like quality.

Several months had passed since I became the adopted child of Keires Reynard, whom I met in the forest.

Despite initially stating that I was adopted, on that particular day, Keires warned his subordinates with, “Maintain absolute silence, even if it costs you your life! Carry it to the grave!”

Later, I learned that he publicly acknowledged me as his biological son.

Keires’ wife, Marie—my mother—had short, bright chestnut hair, jewel-like blue eyes, and charming dimples when she smiled.

Initially perplexed, she looked at me while Keires explained the situation, and with a faint teardrop in her eye, she embraced me kindly and accepted me.

My sister was thrilled to have a big brother.

She was so attached that my parents were surprised by how much she stayed by my side.

Keires was a bit of a fool, truly earnest and pure-hearted.

At times, I found myself wondering if he was alright.

Later, I learned that he was, in fact, one of the prominent figures in the country’s military, counted among the youngest generals.

His face was handsome, and his beautiful, long, golden hair suited him incredibly well.

He was serious, kind, good-natured, strong, and smart… almost perfect, wasn’t he?

Well, he did have some quirks…

Regardless, with all that said, I was leading a fulfilling life that I couldn’t have imagined during my early days in the forest.

“Oh, Arus, good morning! Come on, sit down! Let’s have breakfast.”

Guided by Mel into the living room, which felt surprisingly spacious for our small family of four, I heard my mother’s voice calling from the kitchen.

“Oh, good morning!”

After exchanging morning greetings, I made my way to the table, took a seat, and my sister settled into the chair beside me.

Shortly after, Keires, my father, emerged from the large window on the garden side of the living room, wiping sweat with a towel. It was a familiar scene.

His daily routine included morning training.

“Oh! Arus, you’re awake! Good morning, Mel too!”

My father greeted me with a volume that didn’t match the usual morning, and I returned the greeting with a slight wry smile.

“Good morning.”

“Can’t you drop the formalities? You’re already our son, right? Mom was lamenting about feeling lonely! Haven’t you ever called us Dad and Mom even once!”

As soon as he sat down, my stepfather leaned forward on the table, supporting his chin with his hands, and began talking.

“That’s right! How about calling us Mom and Dad huh? It’d be nice if you could address us properly, okay?”

Joining in, my mother appeared from the kitchen, carrying a plate with various side dishes.

Mom… Dad… It’s a bit challenging.

Even though I vaguely recall being an adult in my past life, the memories are not entirely clear…

But still…
Well, not really, but yeah…

At this rate, the distance won’t close anytime soon.

“S-so, Dad… Mom.”

“Aww, cute!”

“Oh, that suits quite well.”

“Big brother, you’re cute!”

Ugh… that was awkward.

Anyway, the food here is amazing.

My mom… She’s really skilled in the kitchen.

And my dad appears to be a noble, and on top of that, he’s the head of the Reynard Count’s family.

Besides earning a substantial salary as a general in the national army, he also possesses vast lands.

Thanks to Mother’s efficient management of the estate, we have quite a fortune.

Therefore, in our home, which is more like a castle than a house, we have a considerable number of butlers and maids, befitting such status.

However, Mom takes care of the cooking herself.

According to her, love doesn’t really get through unless you raise someone with homemade meals… or so she claims.

Hahaha… Today’s meal was fantastic once again.

It’s no exaggeration to say it’s a divine feast compared to the dried meat from the forest.

Well, I’m really grateful for that.

“I have a day off today. Arus, it’s been a while… wanna practice? You catch on quickly, and by now, you should be getting the hang of the sword, right?”

Since I arrived here, my father has been teaching me various combat techniques, but just a month ago, sword training began.

With a smile, he remarked, “Well, finally the time has come to teach my son the sword,” bringing a child-sized practice sword from a renowned weapon shop in the city.

It wasn’t an atmosphere where I could refuse…

“For now, until you get used to it, there’s no other training, so if you have free time, give it a swing!”

He said, and reluctantly, I’ve been swinging the sword every day.

However, swordsmanship is undoubtedly a boy’s dream, and I’m no exception.

So, secretly, I happily practiced, experimenting, and giving it my best shot.

If I were to tell him, he’d probably be overjoyed and might even suggest training without sleep.

In my past life, I didn’t consider myself particularly athletic, but in this world, my body seemed to possess exceptional reflexes, perhaps due to leveling up.

In addition to swordsmanship, I quickly mastered various combat techniques taught by my father: boxing, judo, military-style hand-to-hand combat, and more, surprising him with my rapid progress.

However, I soon realized that the sword was a different challenge altogether.

After about a week of daily practice, swinging the sword 5,000 times as decided…

I noticed it was challenging when my body was tense all the time.

In the second week, I consciously tried to release tension, applying force where necessary and reapplying it.

By the third week, I explored delivering strikes not only from an upper stance but also from various angles.

And after a month, I was finally starting to form some semblance of skill.

Now, with some advice, I should be able to improve even further.

“Yes! Dad! Let’s do it!”

“Oh, you’ve finally embraced the sword, huh?”

Facing my father in the courtyard, spacious enough to accommodate most ball games from my past life, we stood across from each other.

Nearby, stationed in the mansion for emergencies, were a doctor, butlers, and maids.

Both my father’s sword and the one I held were practice swords with dull blades, but given my father’s skill, they still possessed the ability to cut through something.

Considering his opponent is a child, the doctor understandably felt uneasy.

“Will young Master Arus once again showcase his incredible talent…”

One of the maids murmured.

“From hand-to-hand combat to judo, military-style hand-to-hand combat… It’s been impressive so far.”

Other maids joined in.

“It’s not only combat skills… Lord Arus effortlessly handles imperial studies, mathematics, geography, foreign languages, history—everything. Well, it seems the Reynard family will be in good hands for a while longer.”

The elderly butler, overseeing things, maintained a stoic expression, his eyes conveying a calm assessment as he spoke.

The others listened in silence, watching the duel in front of them.

“At first, feel free to swing as you please.”

Keires had thought that, after all, he hadn’t taught anything yet, just handed him a sword.

It’s different from other martial arts!

Finally, he could maintain the dignity of being a father and teach him step by step!

“Well, I’ll take advantage of your words…”

Arus had thought, at least for the first time, I’ll surprise him! Arus momentarily lowered his hips, then suddenly relaxed.

Concentrating his qi throughout his body, especially at his feet, he intended to crush the ground while pushing, rapidly closing the distance to Keires as if planning to shatter the ground in front of him.

Keires widened his eyes, hastily preparing his sword to block Arus’ upward strike.

No, that’s not it! Sensing something from experience, Keires quickly changed the direction of his sword, holding it vertically in a reversed position to protect his left side.

As expected of Dad!

He noticed, but this is where strength comes in…

Arus leaped in front of Keires, feigning a strike from above, then released the strength in his arms, lowering the sword with the weight and a pulling force, quickly repositioning in mid-air to unleash a powerful horizontal strike…

Alright, wait… huh??

Keires intercepted it with his sword, rotating his body to divert the momentum, adding centrifugal force, and slashing at Arus’s torso in a diagonal cut…

What?

With a resounding impact, Arus was propelled towards the outer edge of the courtyard, where the tall trees were situated.

Keires, astonished and dumbfounded, watched him in disbelief.

What just happened?

The audience stared wide-eyed.

Then, recovering from the shock, Arus quickly got up.

“Wow! Dad, you’re amazing!”

That was a serious strike!

I definitely intended to blow him away with that attack… but instead, he used that force and bounced it back…

As Arus was excited, the faces of his approaching father, doctor, maids, and butlers turned pale.

“A-Are you okay??? Sorry!! Your strike was so impressive that I reflexively returned it seriously… Is your body okay? Can you stand? Doctor, please take a look.”

Father looked at me with a face that seemed like he was about to cry…

What is he apologizing so much for?

Certainly, I was surprised by the tremendous counterattack, but it’s not like I’m about to die or anything…

The doctor approached, examining my body.

“N-Nothing’s broken… You’ll probably get some bruises… but you’re nearly unharmed. How resilient…”

Well, I do have a high defense…

And the sword wasn’t sharp…

Ignoring the wide-eyed stares from the surrounding adults after hearing the doctor’s words, I turned to my father.

“Well, it was a splendid strike! I seriously intended to blow you away, you know? To effortlessly deflect that and counterattack in an instant… Father, you truly have exceptional strength.”

I was genuinely impressed up to this point, but it would be a bit embarrassing to praise him further, so I decided to stop.

“W-Well, you’re quite…”

I was underestimating him for being a child, I must admit, he was quite something.

To be honest, there was even a possibility that I could have been blown away if I made a wrong move.

As my son, he’s truly frightening.

To receive that strike and come out nearly unharmed…

I sensed a disapproving gaze from those observing us.

For now, the training wrapped up for the day.

However, afterward, it seems I received a severe scolding from my wife that shook the mansion to its core…

I’m really sorry about that.