episode_0056

In the past, Regulus Serion was born with outstanding talent, even compared to any other generation within the Serion family which emphasized talent.

From the first time he held a sword as a child, he could face robust soldiers, and by the time he reached maturity, he didn’t lose even in sparring with average knights.

In addition, he was an only son with no siblings, and his father never took a concubine, so there was no need for a succession struggle.

Thanks to this, the family also didn’t interfere with him much, and he freely unleashed his innate talent and accumulated skill, raising his and the family’s reputation.

His life, like that, could be called a smoothly proceeding highway.

But one day, an event occurred that gave a turning point to his life.

It was precisely the matter of his master, dubbed Sword Saint Sargeras, visiting the Serion family.

Why he, a wanderer drifting aimlessly across the continent, came to his family, Serion, is unknown.

And even more so, by what whim on earth he settled down like that and taught that swordsmanship.

Regulus accepted this as good news.

Considering his reputation, called Sword Saint, he surely would lead him to a higher place.

Even if the reason he visited the family was whatever, there is no reason to refuse the favor of the person willing to teach him anyway.

And as he thought, he could learn many things from Sargeras and could grow, but one problem occurred.

It was precisely because his growth began to stagnate from a certain point.

In a situation just one step, just one step away, he could not reach the master’s level, that is, the level of Sword Saint.

It was the first wall to appear in his life that had proceeded without hindrance.

Upon this, Regulus tried increasing his training time alone and actively requested sparring with his master.

But despite such efforts, he absolutely could not overcome the wall he first faced.

In the end, until his first and last master died, he couldn’t reach the same level as him, nor show it.

Because of that, Regulus agonizingly pondered.

Even when his master was alive, he had devoted himself to training every moment.

Sometimes, giving up eating and drinking, and throwing aside family matters, he strove.

Ultimately fed up with his state like that, even friends and love around him, until they all left him.

But why couldn’t he overcome that wall that suddenly appeared in a life where there had been nothing blocking him until now?

And soon, he could only judge like this.

His talent was insufficient.

Because even though he also didn’t neglect effort, he couldn’t reach it,

he judged that the problem wasn’t effort but was in the difference in innate talent.

If it wasn’t that, there was no way to explain it.

So, he could only obsess about his children’s talent.

Because he thought that if it was to reach the level he couldn’t reach, naturally only a possessor of talent superior to his was possible.

And at the same time, it was also to prevent a child born without talent from making futile efforts and losing time and relationships.

Just then, because the eldest son to the youngest daughter had seen the sword level his master had shown before he died, all three were dreaming of becoming a Sword Saint.

Even just at this time, although he was grateful for the fact that his children could witness his master’s technique even for a moment, later he would resent this fact.

The reason was above all in his eldest son.

The eldest son, Richard Serion, had a handsome appearance, was intelligent, and was a guy with quick wit.

Also, because his character was upright and correct, he mediated well between his siblings and made them form friendly relationships.

Although sometimes, because of that kind character, there were times he was backstabbed, that is.

In addition, with tremendous loyalty to the family and love for that swordsmanship, declaring he would reach the level of the master, Sargeras, whom his father could not reach, he was a figure perfect for succeeding the family.

But just one thing, he also had a flaw, which was that he was a possessor of skill almost completely devoid of talent in swordsmanship.

Even though he was his own son and of Serion bloodline, his sword, even when seen by servants ignorant of swordsmanship, was absolutely difficult to see as having talent.

Not only Regulus himself, but also lieutenants from the knight order who were in charge of education, and even servants, were to the extent of advising him to give up the path of swordsmanship.

However, Richard Serion, despite these recommendations from those around him, rather, burning that passion, accelerated even more in swordsmanship practice.

Regulus could only agonize.

If his son were a good-for-nothing who indulged in profligate living with women, perhaps it wouldn’t matter, but like this, his son at a young age will waste time futilely.

Like he did, with the talent he possessed, he would end up wasting futile steps to a place absolutely unreachable.

If it becomes like that, he would lose everything: relationships around him, love, and other paths that would be buried in the flowing time.

He as a father didn’t want to make his own son make such a choice.

Therefore, he took strong measures and prohibited him from wielding a sword.

By sparring directly to make him give up his will, he overwhelmed and handled him, and at times, he even prohibited him from holding swords used by the family.

As he grew older and it was time to go to the academy, by taking precautions beforehand, he even went so far as to secretly remove the application for admission to the Academy’s Department of Knights that he sent.

However, despite this, Richard Serion did not break that will.

And then, to enroll in the Academy’s Department of Knights himself, holding the application himself, he left on a journey.

Not accompanied by any Serion escort, by himself, that is.

As a result, this ended up leading to tragedy.

Because there was no contact for a long time after Richard left on his journey, Regulus, who became worried, accompanied by the knight order, left on a journey to find him.

Although it might have been defiance towards the family, it was because he had an uneasy premonition, just in case.

And unfortunately, that premonition ended up being correct.

Not only the academy, but after searching all the commercial streets and inns surrounding it, he could not find his son.

Regulus, who realized the seriousness belatedly, even spending his private funds to hire people, asked about his son’s whereabouts.

That son finally found was discovered as a horrific corpse in a corner of the forest on the way from the Serion family to the academy.

When he first saw this, he didn’t think it was his son. No, he didn’t want to believe it.

The state of his corpse, which had become a skeleton, indicating how much time had passed since the tragedy.

Whether it was bandits or wild animals, or if it was attacked by a magic beast driven wild by magic power, the traces of damage were also severe.

Even though time had passed, Regulus’s seasoned experience could roughly see the flow of events that had happened, just by looking at the state of the corpse and the traces around it.

The image of his son desperately resisting was drawn: after being struck by an overwhelming strong opponent, with bones broken in many places, in a state where he couldn’t even control his body.

Regulus earnestly wanted to deny once again that this wasn’t his son, but unfortunately, a necklace engraved with the Serion crest was shining from the corpse’s neck.

It was his item, which he hadn’t discarded even on the road leaving home, even though his feelings towards the family had gradually faded.

Crucially, a crudely shaped greatsword which the corpse hadn’t let go of from its hand until the very end.

It was a crude greatsword that Richard, who was prohibited from holding Serion swords, had forged himself, which only he could possess.

This day, Regulus for the first time cried his heart out and wailed.

He, who always maintained his dignity, without caring about others around him, uglily shed tears and sobbed.

And then, without even noticing the sun setting, repeatedly hitting the ground, he wailed.

Since that day, he lost his smile and became infinitely cold.

Towards his two remaining children, he became stricter, and his obsession towards innate talent ended up becoming even more severe.

At the end of a long period of sorrow, he had vowed.

That from now on, he would be more thorough.

That he would prevent this kind of tragedy from continuing to his remaining children, and furthermore, even to the generations after that.

That he would make it so that someone without talent wouldn’t even dare to dream of throwing themselves towards a dream they cannot reach.

His second son, Rinardo Serion, unable to bear this, left home, but rather, that is good.

Like the eldest, floundering towards a futile dream, he wouldn’t sink.

His youngest daughter, Seraphina Serion, because she was born with talent superior to his own, thoroughly excluding factors unrelated to growth, treated her even more strictly.

Then, because he found a possessor of talent superior to hers, without regret, he abandoned her.

And then, to tell her that her dream was futile, he tried to educate her thoroughly.

Because he didn’t want to make her struggle for a dream she cannot reach anymore.

…It should have been like that.

Today, his own daughter, Seraphina, showed and proved.

That level he pursued was not decided by talent.

Because it was him who had seen his master’s sword for a long time, he could not fail to recognize that the strike that split the sky, which she used to finish off Mark, was his master’s technique.

If that is the case, there is only one conclusion.

…

Leaving behind the training ground where the test was in full swing, Regulus Serion, with a blank face, was wandering around the academy without purpose.

Because now, things like that result weren’t important anymore.

Although a considerable amount of time had passed, he did not stop his steps.

And before he knew it, that place where his steps stopped was a secluded place with a good view, where the Department of Knights building is visible.

It was the place where the gravestone of the eldest son, Richard Serion, is.

Although the gravestone of the eldest son Richard exists at the main house, his corpse is buried here.

Although he doesn’t know the truth, because he thought his son surely would have died resenting him and the family until the very end.

Through his connection with the Academy Principal Rium Kitokal, asking him, he had buried him here in this place where the Department of Knights is visible, where he himself had wanted to go as a last resort.

Regulus stopped his steps just like that and collapsed onto his knees in front of the gravestone.

Not because he thought of something, but it was an instinctive judgment that he had to do it like that.

…

Today, the sight his own daughter, whom he had abandoned, showed.

Even without talent, she reached the level of Sword Saint.

Upon this, Regulus also could finally be certain.

He was wrong.

Until now, he had been continuously wrong.

The matter of stopping his eldest son also was a wrong decision.

…He was wrong.

“I’m sorry.. I’m sorry…! I.. I was wrong…”

Pat pat, tears that he hadn’t shed even once since that day fall once again.

“It’s my fault… It’s my fault..! This father was incompetent..! Truly.. truly…!”

And then, clutching and tearing at the ground, he cried his heart out.

Like that day he had seen his son’s corpse for the first time.

No, perhaps even more severely than that day.