The Villainous Noble’s Father - Chapter 8

My son is… strange. First off, his abilities are just plain bizarre. 

Yesterday morning, before I left for work, I gave him a quick intro to a military-grade physical enhancement magic spell. By that same evening, he had already mastered it.

That’s not normal.

Sure, once you get the hang of controlling it, it’s not too difficult. But getting the hang of it in the first place takes effort. It’s kind of like riding a bike. For beginners, bikes are more stable the faster you go, but pedaling at full speed right away? That’s tough.

The same goes for this spell. In the beginning, the trick is to forget fine control and just let the magic flow at full power. But spinning your magical energy at full throttle from the get-go? That’s extremely hard.

Even for quick learners, it usually takes days of practice to actually get it right. So how the heck did he pull it off in just half a day?

I’ll admit it, I’ve always been a bit of a doting father.

When I’d hear from his tutors about how smart Leonard was, I’d just think, “Wow, my kid’s amazing!” and leave it at that.

But now that I stop and think about it, isn’t it weird that a six-year-old can do advanced calculations involving millions, based on historical tax records from our territory?

Apparently, he wanted to learn more about my work, so he tried really hard. At the time, I thought, What a sweet, hardworking boy and did a little happy dance in my head.

But seriously, this is like a first-grader understanding a Fortune 500 company’s accounting ledgers.

Could my son actually be some kind of genius? Or maybe he has memories of a past life?

Nah, the past life theory seems unlikely.

Right after he was born, I spoke to him in every language I knew, saying, “I know you’re a reincarnated soul!”

And how did baby Leonard react? He just laughed and giggled the whole time. He was so cute back then.

Ahem. Anyway, there’s nothing wrong with Leonard being talented. The problem is what I’m watching unfold in front of me right now.

“L-Leonard-sama! Please, use a new fork!”

“What are you talking about, Yulia? This one’s only a little bent.”

“No! I can’t let you use something like that!”

“Hmph. Well, if you insist, I guess I’ll have to change it…”

What is this saccharine scene!? It’s giving me heartburn first thing in the morning!

Leonard might have learned the military enhancement spell, better known as “Red Eye,” but his control over it is still shaky. As part of his training, I told him to stay in that state throughout the day. Compared to older enhancement spells, Red Eye is way more efficient. Eventually, you can maintain it constantly.

But right now, his magic output is way too high, everything he touches breaks. At this point, I’ve lost count of how many pieces of silverware he’s crushed. And yet, who’s been patiently supporting him this whole time? 

Yulia Sederholm, that’s who.

“Here, Leonard-sama! A new fork. Please use this one!”

“Thanks, Yulia. But… could you set it down instead of handing it to me?”

“Huh? Oh, I’m sorry! Was that rude of me!?”

“No, not at all. I’m just not confident in my control yet… I don’t want to accidentally hurt you.”

“Leonard-sama…”

Are you two… about to start dating or something? Why is this father being forced to watch his son flirt over breakfast!? I did try to be considerate yesterday, you know? Since Leonard hadn’t apologized to Miss Sederholm yet, I gave them time to talk.

Sure, she’s working here now, but she’s not officially employed. She’s just here to learn etiquette, a proper noblewoman. It wouldn’t look good for our house if Leonard didn’t apologize, and it wouldn’t be good for his character either.

But still! Why are they suddenly so close!? Do kids these days fall in love instantly!?

Shouldn’t it have gone like, “How dare you accuse me! You chubby jerk! I don’t care if you apologize, I’ll never forgive you!”

Isn’t that the usual reaction? And yet she’s blushing, happily helping him like nothing happened!? Is Miss Sederholm into chubby geniuses or something!?

…Well, whatever. That’s not today’s main issue.

The real problem is this, Leonard is way too strong now. How the heck is he supposed to have a proper duel!? 

This world is likely based on a game I played in my previous life. But no matter how hard I think, I don’t remember anything like the Red Eye spell in the original game. There were no terms like “Mana Veil mode” or “Critical Mana” either.

Honestly, after 36 years in this world, I’m almost certain I’ve completely derailed the game’s original plotline. I wasn’t even in the original story, just a background NPC.

Looks like I accidentally did one of those “side character messes up the plot” things.

So, should I just let Leonard crush the game’s protagonist? I could… but there are two big problems with that.

1. We’d lose the chance to use this duel as a way to ease tensions between nobles and magic-wielding commoners.
2. And more importantly, this world does have a story, and we can’t ignore that.

The game’s story is super simple.

A commoner protagonist earns everyone’s respect, finds the Hero’s Sword, and defeats the Demon King. It’s basically a fairytale-level plot.

But yes, the Demon King exists in this world. And the Hero’s Sword is a real, exclusive weapon only the protagonist can use.

Could someone else beat the Demon King without that sword? Maybe. But what if they can’t? As part of this country’s leadership, I’m not willing to gamble the world’s safety on that. That’s why, like it or not, we need the commoner protagonist to get stronger.

And like I told Leonard before, we also have to make sure this doesn’t spark conflict between magic-wielding commoners and the nobility.

Based on what I’ve seen in wartime, someone in the Red Eye state is roughly on par with a high-ranking demon.

There might’ve been a game mechanic explaining that, but who cares now?

So what we’re looking at is, my superpowered son vs. the protagonist still stuck at level 1. How do we make that into an exciting duel?

Here are the only options I can think of.

1. The handsome protagonist suddenly awakens hidden power.

2. His friends jump in to help.

3. He just loses. Brutally. Because life is harsh.

Number 2 is off the table, it’s a duel, number 1 is wishful thinking. Thankfully, the school’s entrance ceremony isn’t until April. It’s early February now, so we’ve got nearly two months to work with.

(Side note: the calendar’s the same as my old world. Super convenient!)

So if we’re going to do anything, now’s the time.

“Leonard. I need to talk to you.”

“M-Me, Father!?”

As Leonard panics, Yulia and the rest of the staff read the room and say, “We’ll go clean up the broken dishes,” before quickly leaving.

Once we’re alone, I get straight to the point.

“I’m going to meet that commoner boy. I’m planning to teach him Red Eye too, just like you.”

“Wha—!? You? Teaching him!?”

Startled, Leonard crushes yet another fork in his hand.

“Yeah. About that duel, with the way things are now, there’s no way it’ll be a fair fight between you and him. You understand, right?”

“…Yes. After learning to use Red Eye, or more accurately, Critical Mana, I realized something. Everything I used to think of as magic was just child’s play. This is a whole different level.”

Exactly. There’s a massive gap between those who can use Critical Mana and those who can’t. It’s one of the key reasons we were able to win that brutal war, even when outnumbered ten-to-one.

“But… couldn’t I just go easy on him?”

“You know better. This duel isn’t just about you, it’s a statement. It’s our presentation to the world about what magic-wielding commoners are capable of.”

That’s the official reason. But it’s also a very real problem we’re facing.

In this world, unlike my previous one, the divide between nobles and commoners used to be marked by magic. That wall was shattered in the war, and now the change can’t be stopped.

This duel is part of our plan to help society adjust to that change smoothly. A weak, boring fight won’t help anyone. We need to show the younger generation of nobles that there are impressive commoners out there too.

“This is a direct order. Go bring that commoner boy here, be respectful. We need him on our side.”

Q: My son is destined to get wrecked in a duel by a commoner. What should I do?

A: Rope in the commoner and stage the whole thing. Full-blown rigged match.