I slowly open my eyes, feeling a numbing pain course through my body as I do so.
I'm paralyzed.
My body feels as though a heavy boulder has been placed on it, rendering it immobile. The most I can do is shift my face and move a few fingers, but for the most part… I am completely helpless in this situation.
If anyone came after my life right now, I would be too powerless to stop them.
Thankfully, my facial muscles aren't compromised, so I can still call for help in such a scenario.
'What a predicament…' I smile softly and let out a sigh. 'Looks like father really went overboard. I almost died back then.'
The thing is, I know Father wouldn't have killed me.
He is an experienced warrior, far stronger than I was in my prime. Even I know when a person has reached their limits, and I certainly know where to target to ensure my opponent doesn't lose their life immediately while they experience the highest amount of pain.
My father took this approach with me—it's clear what his intentions were.
'He wanted to drive the fear of death in me. It's too bad for him that I've already died once. I no longer fear death…'
As long as I do what I want and live life to the best of my ability—unrestrained by the opinions and restrictions of the world—I will have no regrets, even if I die.
Thanks to this mindset, my resolve has taken a significant leap forward.
Nothing can stop me!
'I took a big risk standing up to father, but the results speak for themselves. Even though I ended up like this… it turns out I'm the biggest winner in this situation, after all!' I grin to myself, licking my lips in joy.
'I achieved my victory in that battle! Now, father can't threaten me with the Heir Position anymore.'
This is very advantageous for multiple reasons.
For one, the Heir has too many privileges that I can't dare to pass up on.
One of those is priority in terms of education!
Unlike with High Nobility and Royals, Lesser Nobility, Knights, and the Clergy can only send one person per generation to the Royal Academy. Usually, the second-born in a Knight Family undertakes this task, since the firstborn, and Heir, attends the Knight Academy. However, if the Heir refuses the Knight Academy, he technically has priority for the Royal Academy.
Such are the customs of the Randalorion Kingdom.
In essence… as long as I can afford it, I can make my application to the Royal Academy with no problems at all.
The problem is how to leave the Aditi Estate.
'I'm unable to move properly right now. But even if I were able to, I doubt my parents will let me set a single foot outside our compound. Because of the stunt I pulled, a lot of attention is certainly being drawn to me right now. For my own safety, and the sake of the Main Family, they'll prevent me from leaving.'
Why?
Since I am pretty much already the official Heir, there's no way the Minor Family won't have gotten the information through their spies in our Estate.
That means they'll be making their moves very soon, one of which will be to target me.
Leaving the Estate at such a sensitive time can be quite dangerous, since they'll take it as a perfect opportunity to attack me. This is actually one of the reasons why the official Heir position isn't announced until the Coming-of-Age Ceremony.
It is all to protect the Heir by introducing them to powerful people and allowing them to form connections, making it harder for them to be eliminated.
'But right now, I haven't had the opportunity to do that. I'm meat on the chopping block for them…' A twisted smile forms on my lips, and I snicker in amusement. 'Well, at least that is what they think.'
It's too bad that they don't know anything about my past life.
They truly have no idea who they plan on messing with.
'In any case, I've been unconscious for quite some time. What day is it?' My eyes sparkle with curiosity as I take a look around me and find out I am currently in my room.
My body is coated in bandages; it radiates with the sweet aroma of all manner of ointments. Incense smoke dances in the air, though everything else is hard to see due to the low level of light that radiates within my room.
"Is anyone out there? Leon?" I yell out, hoping to get a response.
I know they won't leave me by myself—not in this situation—so I make my voice louder and repeat myself.
Thankfully, this time, I get an answer.
A knock, followed by the door swinging open, and a young man with ordinary brown hair walks in. His dark eyes flicker with concern, as his sheepish posture gives away his nervousness in no time at all.
My aide, Leon, enters the scene.
"Oh, good… you're here." I smile at him, beckoning at him to close the door. "When did you get back?"
"Yesterday, Young Master."
I nod and smile.
"Excellent. And how did it go? Were you able to deliver what I asked?"
"Yes, Young Master."
My smile grows broader.
Looks like yet another one of my plans was successful.
The reason Leon wasn't with me throughout that day, before I got attacked by my father, is that he was on an errand for me. I sent him out of the Estate to deliver a letter to a certain someone.
It seems he succeeded.
"What day is it? How long has it been since I've been unconscious?"
"A-ah, you've been unconscious for an entire day, Young Master," Leon tells me, his face still flushing with anxiety.
'An entire day? That's much shorter than I thought. And my wounds are also in a far better situation than I expected. It should have taken at least a week for me to even reach this level of progress. Unless…' My eyes widen in realization. 'Did my father use a Grade 2 Potion on me? He'd use something that valuable? I guess he really was worried I might die. Maybe mother was the one responsible… but the decision would have been left to him.'
I nearly laugh to myself.
In the end, it seems my father lost even more than I initially estimated.
Grade 1 Potions would have helped stabilize my situation and quicken my recovery rate, but it would still take at least a month for me to fully recover from all the lacerations, bruises, and much more. This is also in addition to the other treatments—like the incense meant to soothe my mind, and the ointments meant to lessen the pain and give me a feeling of numbness.
To quicken the process, a higher-grade Potion is needed.
'With Grade 2, I should be fully healed within a week.' I smile in relief, happy that things have progressed better than my expectations.
The Aditi Household also has access to a Grade 3 Potion, but it's treated as an heirloom and can only be used by the Head of Household. However, more often than not, the Heads would refuse to use it due to how rare such an item is and how expensive it would be to replace.
Even I never used it, and it was never sold.
It remained a part of our Aditi Household's foundations until I perished in my past life.
'If I had used it, I would have recovered from all my injuries within a day…' A wry smile forms on my face as I recognize that's nothing but a faraway dream.
"Y-young Master, are you alright?" Leon asks me with a shaky voice. "I was told to inform the Lady once you awoke. We need to get the physician to check on your condition and see if there are any complications. Also…"
Leon keeps skipping around as he continues to yammer on.
I nearly roll my eyes at this, but I contain my exasperation. It's nice seeing someone fret so much about my health, but it also feels a little embarrassing.
I wish he could just calm down already, but I understand his reaction.
He must have been very worried about me.
… And about himself.
After all, he wasn't by my side when the whole incident happened.
I'm sure that must have gotten him into a lot of trouble. He would have been questioned regarding where he was at the time, which means there's a chance that my father already knows about the little errand I sent him on.
'… Or perhaps he doesn't.'
"What did you tell my father when you were asked about the reason behind your absence?"
I stare at him with utter seriousness, waiting for his response.
Leon appears to be a very honest man.
If he lies, I'll know.
But that also means my father will know.
Back when I sent him on the errand, I told him it was a secret one, and he shouldn't tell anyone about it. I want to know if he cracked under pressure from my father, or if he didn't.
'If it's the latter, I know I'll be able to trust him with future tasks. He isn't as competent as the Leon of the future, but at least I'd have his loyalty…'
"I… didn't tell him anything."
"Hm?" I arch my brow as I stare at him. "Nothing at all? Surely, he must have demanded a response."
"W-well, he did… but you told me to keep it a secret. I didn't want to betray you, Young Master, but I also couldn't lie to the Head of the Household."
"So you chose to remain silent?"
"Y-yes."
"But wouldn't that count as disobeying my father? Especially if he specifically asked for a response…"
"Ahh… I didn't think about that!"
At this point, Leon begins to panic. I really feel bad for him—such a lad, honest to a fault.
'Or so it seems…' I snicker silently and smile. 'Leon told my father everything. He must actually be working for him, and catering to my needs is simply one of the orders he was given.'
In essence, Leon isn't loyal to me—at least, the current me—at all.
He is only loyal to the Head of the Aditi Household.
'I'm not that surprised or disappointed. It's only natural that he would be like this, considering the kind of man my father is…'
Leon must have been told to pretend as if he is this honest-to-a-fault person when attending to me. He was also told to lie about telling my father or anyone else anything. He told the lie well, and his pretense is truly superb.
It seems he is far more competent than I initially gave him credit for.
But he can't fool me.
I don't look it, but I am actually older than my father, and I'm far more experienced when it comes to handling Leon. Things like this can't deceive me.
'But this changes nothing. Even if my father knows about the letter I sent, he doesn't know the content. I made sure Leon went straight to his destination once I gave him the letter, so he couldn't have gone by my father's place to report it first. He also couldn't have opened it himself, since that would be a severe breach of our family's honor. Even if he did that, the recipient of the letter would know. In conclusion, my father might know I sent a letter to my dear benefactor… but he has no idea what it is about.'
That means he'll undoubtedly try to pry it out of me—either through Leon, or through some indirect way.
He won't act by himself, because he won't want his relationship with Leon to be exposed.
Regardless, he won't be getting anything out of me.
'Right now, there are three urgent aspects of my life that I need to focus on. One is getting into the Royal Academy, two is avoiding the Knight Academy, and three… is to ensure my siblings are pursuing their respective paths.'
While doing all of these things, I must ensure my father remains in the dark.
'I'm sure he's gotten very occupied dealing with the problems that the Minor Families have started to cause. That should keep him busy for now, while I make my moves and also prepare for my special visitation.'
Of course, I have to be very cautious with my actions, but I'm very confident about them.
This isn't combat, where my father holds the superior cards and I'm constantly treading on thin ice. It involves scheming, and as someone who was Head of Household in a rather tumultuous period of the Randalorion Kingdom, doing something of this level isn't too difficult.
'Father is an impressive man, but that mainly applies to his combative skills. When it comes to deep scheming, which is my specialty…' A more relaxed smile graces my face as I close my eyes and sigh.
'… He cannot compare to me.'