Since When Did You Have The Illusion That You Don’t Have Magical Powers?! - CH 51

Characters in this chapter:

Sapphiras Perfectio, 2nd son of the Earl of Aldridge

Percival Belisario, 3rd son of Margrave of Vanderwall on the Eastern Frontier

Theodore Belisario, 1st son of Margrave of Vanderwall on the Eastern Frontier

Bruno Kingsleigh, Commander of the Kingsleigh unit

“How about this?”

Sapphiras sprinkled a large amount of water on the training ground and turned the whole area into a muddy mess. He then dexterously expelled the water from the soil and blew hot air, which quickly returned the training ground into a flat state. The soldiers exclaimed in admiration of the restored training ground.

“This is magnificent! The control of the magic is truly exquisite!”

Kingsleigh-dono tried to slap Sapphiras on the back with all his might again, so I pulled Sapphiras closer to me without a second thought. Kingsleigh-dono acted out of affection, but he was not skilful enough to adjust his strength according to the opponent. If he hits Sapphiras’ thin body with the same degree of force as he does mine, he will injure him. His magic ability is very high, but his body is slender and fragile.

“Percival-sama, the madam is waiting for you in the salon.”

When I was looking at the completely clean and tidy practice area, one of the servants called out to me.

“Mother?”

What on earth does she want? I told Sapphiras that I would show him around the castle today. As I hesitated, wondering if I should ask my mother to wait for me, Sapphiras looked up at me.

“Don’t worry about me. I’ll be here observing. Is that all right, Kingsleigh-san?”

“Yes, of course. You can leave Sapphiras-dono in my care.”

“……Then I’ll leave it to you…….Sorry, Sapphiras.”

“It’s alright, it’s alright!”

Saying that, Sapphiras immediately asked Kingsleigh-dono a question. It seems that Kingsleigh-dono answered the question firmly, so it will be fine even if I leave this place. Kingsleigh-dono is a bit of a difficult person, but he seems to have accepted Sapphiras during the training just now. Relieved, I headed to the salon where my mother was waiting.

“Mother, you wanted to see me?”

“Yes. Sit down there, Percy.”

“Yes.”

At the round table, my brother and sister-in-law are also present. Is there something important? I sit down with some tension.

“First of all, Percy, what do you think about Sapphiras-san?”

“……What do you mean?”

I was confused by the unexpected question. I don’t know why Sapphiras name came up in this place. What on earth is Mother trying to talk about?

“There’s a lot going on, isn’t there? Or have you at least told him how you feel already?”

“Mother,”

Brother interrupted mother’s words, but what exactly are these feelings?

“Theo, you can’t ask these things in a roundabout way. We must be clear, or the Belisario family will not be able to make a move.”

“No, Mother, these talks are very sensitive. It’s not something you should just ask straight out.”

“Well, Theo. I never expected you to tell me the subtleties of the heart.”

The Belisario family? Subtlety? What on earth are we talking about? I can’t see anything from Brother and Mother, so I look at my sister-in-law, who is calmly drinking tea.

“Percival. Your mother is very fond of Sapphiras-dono……that is to say, she would like to welcome him into her house as her son if possible.”

“……Does that mean you want to adopt Sapphiras?”

“Look! Look! Look at him! This child won’t understand unless you say it clearly. Percy, I am asking you if you are willing to take Sapphiras-san as your spouse and welcome him into our Belisario family.”

“Ha, spouse?”

Mother’s momentum, as if she were leaning forward, made me involuntarily lean back. I was more interested in the question of how long they had been talking about it. I thought I had clearly stated in my letter that Sapphiras is a friend.

“I should have told you that Sapphiras is a friend.”

“……Do you really think that? You wouldn’t think anything if that boy is being taken by the royal family or the ducal family?”

The Royals? Duke? What on earth has happened to Mother? Unexpectedly, she turns her gaze to Brother. Instead of Brother, who let out a deep sigh, my sister-in-law, who put the cup back on the saucer with an elegant gesture, carefully explained Mother’s thoughts to me. I thought she was in a strange mood, but I had no idea that there had been such a misunderstanding from day one. I wonder if Sapphiras would be offended to hear it.

“……Where is he from in the first place? He’s not a commoner originally, is he?”

“I cannot go into the details of Sapphiras’s personal circumstances, but he was certainly a nobleman. The second son of the Earl of Aldridge, Sapphiras Perfectio. That was his original name.”

“What? I’ve heard that the second son of the Magical Earl doesn’t have magical powers. But I’ve just heard from Theo that Kingsleigh unit was defeated before Sapphiras-san’s magical prowess. That’s quite a different story.”

The story of the second son of the Earl of Aldridge had been heard all the way to this frontier territory. It’s only natural for Mother to be surprised.

“Yes, but it is different in reality.

“What do you mean?”

Brother’s expression turns stern. Aristocratic society is complicated. It is natural to be cautious about people who might be in trouble.

“He didn’t seem to have used magic while he was with the Earl of Aldridge.”

“Why would he do that?”

“I don’t know that either. But it seems that Sapphiras wants to become an adventurer. If he were to be expelled from the Earl’s family, he was planning to quit the academy and register with the Guild.”

“But you have to be 16 to register with the Guild, right?”

“He didn’t have that knowledge……Then the daughter of the Duke of Bloomfield reached out to him.”

“Well, why didn’t Percy reach out to him there! Our family can afford to assist at least one academy student!”

“Mother, you mustn’t ask too much.”

Brother soothes Mother, who is about to get up from her seat again. I wonder if today’s Mother is getting a little too emotional.

“……So, what does the Ducal family think of Sapphiras’s future?”

“I don’t know.”

“What about the royal family?”

“I don’t know that either, but His Royal Highness the Crown Prince seemed to be trying to determine what Sapphiras is capable of.”

“……The second prince was not expelled, was he?”

With these words, I finally realised why Mother was so concerned about the royal family. Officially, Crown Prince Clawis-dono took command and suppressed the rebel army, but in reality, it was Sapphiras who suppressed the Worstitters’ rebel army.

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince Melchior is a shrewd man. I don’t like to think about it, but it wouldn’t be surprising if he was thinking of bringing Sapphiras into the royal family as a companion for the second prince. An indescribable, seething anger welled up in the pit of my stomach. Sapphiras wants his freedom. No one, no matter who they are, can take away his future.

“I won’t let that happen.”

By the time I realised it, I found myself saying it.

“Oh, what does that mean?”

Mother’s sharp gaze turns to me.

“Sapphiras has long wanted his freedom. He has finally been freed from Earl Aldridge’s house and has regained his true form. How could they do such a terrible thing as to bind him again and deprive him of his freedom?”

“Yes. So what will Percy do?”

“I……want to fulfil Sapphiras’ wishes. If he becomes an adventurer, I’m thinking of following the same path as him. I want to aim for what he’s aiming for together. I am prepared to give up the name Belisario for that.”

“Well said! Fine. If you are prepared to go that far, then the Belisario family will move with that in mind.”

Mother, who had been wearing a stern expression, smiled deeply. At the very least, she seems to have approved of me becoming an adventurer. Abandoning my family name and aiming to become an adventurer is like abandoning the responsibility of being born into the Belisario family, and it’s painful, but I want to walk with Sapphiras. More than anything else, my intuition is telling me to do so.

melon: I’m back from my trip! Sorry for the delay, I took another few days break because I was so tired and had so many things to unpack

I’ll try to keep the updates to every 2 days but I do have some work I have to finish asap since I was unable to finish it before I left for vacation so please excuse me if I update late.