The Lazy Swordmaster Chapter 129:
The one who was confirmed to be the successor was not Ryan, who had accomplished numerous exploits, or Riley, who received medal of honor from Solia Castle recently and had a skilled maid by his side .
“Lloyd, come forward . ”
Of all people gathered at the garden, Stein looked directly at where Lloyd was standing . Stein peeked a smile and gestured toward him to call him to the stage .
“B… But…”
Having heard his father, Lloyd look around and hesitated, not knowing what to do . Iris looked at Lloyd and nodded with bright smile .
“That is, how could… I…”
Although Iris looked at him and nodded, Lloyd was not able to start walking . When he was being hesitant like that, he could hear someone clapping slowly .
“Uh? Uh?”
Clap, clap, clap…
It started at a corner of the garden . Smiling in response, Iris also raised her hands and clapped .
Sound of claps, which started with just one person, became two, and it spread as if it was infecting others . The number of people clapping grew to four, five and continued to grow .
“No, I… I don’t…”
Overwhelmed by the applause, Lloyd looked left and right, not knowing what to do . Someone came behind him and pushed his back lightly to make him move forward .
“Uuuaa . Ah?”
Wondering who it was, Lloyd turned his head around to see his back, but there was nobody there . He turned to look at the platform again .
“Come on up . ”
Stein was telling Lloyd to come up . Lloyd looked at Stein’s eyes and then redirected his gaze again to a group of people at the garden .
“…”
There were Ryan, his fiancée Anabel, and other nobilities who were supporting him . They had look of disbelief . Lloyd, feeling awkward about it, turned his gaze away .
‘Where’s Riley?’
Lloyd could not find Riley at the garden . Lloyd was still just standing there vacantly . As if Stein couldn’t stand to wait anymore, he extended his arm and called his second born son .
“Lloyd . ”
“Ah, yes?!”
“How long are you going to make us wait?”
Having heard his father, Lloyd tumbled and started to walk . He finally got up to the stage .
With many people’s gazes directed at him, Lloyd stood on the stage . He shriveled after running into Ryan’s glaring eyes . However, Stein wrapped his arm around Lloyd’s shoulder and said,
“There might be many people who are not able to accept this result, so I would like to tell you this . ”
Stein looked around at the people gathered at the garden . He put his hand inside the pocket and brought out a medal to show to people .
“This is the medal of honor that Lloyd brought home . ”
Looking at the medal, the nobilities gathered at the garden started to mumble .
It seemed some already figured out how Lloyd got the medal . Some nobilities were talking quietly to each other with their mouths covered .
“A while ago, the unsavory incident that happened at the Solia Castle… I’m sure most of you are aware of them . This medal of honor is what Lloyd earned for his active part in subduing that incident . ”
Lloyd merely kept his mouth closed while Stein talked . The people at the garden, who were looking up at the platform, started to mumble amongst themselves again .
“Now that I think about it, I think I’ve heard about this…”
“The riot by the holy temple’s fanatics was subdued by a brave nobleman and mercenaries, so Prince Daniel bestowed him a medal of honor . I heard about this . ”
“The situation was in such a disarray at the time, so it was not told in detail… So, that was Young Master Lloyd?”
People were talking about it, and Stein was making a speech about how proud he was of Lloyd . Meanwhile, Ryan, who was standing quietly and looking at the stage, just tightened his fist .
“…”
* * *
“Young Master, will you be all right?”
At the mansion’s corridor, having heard that Lloyd became the successor, Ian came to ask Riley . Having heard Ian’s voice from his back, Riley nodded and asked,
“What about you? You had been up in arms and saying I should be the one to become the successor . It’s not like you? You look rather calm?”
“I’m just pretending to be calm . ”
“Is that so?”
“The medal of honor that Young Master Lloyd received… It should’ve been you that received it . ”
It was Riley who asked Nara’s group to divert Lloyd, who was tailing Riley, to the Solia Castle during the day of the incident at Solia .
“Is there a need to put it like that? Nara said it too, didn’t he? Lloyd ran around all over the place to save people . ”
“… That is…”
“Ian, I’m going to say this again, but I’m not interested in inheriting the position of the successor . I can actually say I hate the idea . ”
It was because it was going to bring him even more annoying things to deal with if he was seated at the successorship .
To start with, there were things he had to learn as the successor . Also, there was the problem of mountain of paperworks . He would be summoned often by the Solia Castle . Finally, he even had to keep up the appearances and formalities with other nobilities .
It was impossible for Riley .
“My mother knew that as she clapped . ”
“Wasn’t it you that clapped first?”
“I’m saying that my mother agreed . Are you going to nitpick on everything?”
It seemed Ian was telling the truth when he said he was just pretending to be calm . He kept on nitpicking at everything Riley said . Riley growled at Ian, but he stopped walking after hearing a voice coming from over the corner .
“… Why!!”
‘Um?’
Because Riley stopped, Ian also stopped walking . Also having noticed the voice, Ian tilted his head .
“I think that’s Young Master Ryan’s voice?”
Ian whispered quietly so only Riley could hear it . Riley killed his presence and got close to the end of the corner . He stuck close to the wall and started to listen in to the conversation .
“Why did Lloyd get it instead of me?!”
“Lower your voice, Ryan . There are guests still at the mansion . ”
“Please tell me!”
It seemed Ryan was not the only one over there . Stein’s voice could be also heard .
“Why did Lloyd become the successor instead of me? I… I cannot accept this . ”
“As I said earlier, he received a medal…”
“Father!”
“…”
Stein was about to talk about the medal . Ryan interrupted his words in the middle and raised the voice .
“If that’s the case, that makes me unable to accept the outcome even more! That medal has nothing to do with this successorship competition! I… I save more villages than anyone!”
Hearing Ryan’s shouting, Riley, who was hiding behind the corner, also became certain Ryan was unfit to be the successor .
“Ryan . ”
“…”
At the same time, Stein called his son’s name in deadly tone of voice .
“While I was going over the results of the work I have given you all, what I looked most closely was the differences . What do you think is the difference between you and Lloyd that made me decided to choose Lloyd as the successor?”
“Difference?”
Ryan could tell his father’s voice was agitated . Ryan slowly bit his lips . He cautiously said,
“Is it the medal?”
“No . ”
“In that case, is it the difference in swordsmanship?”
“No . ”
Stein said no to both answers . With serious look on his eyes, Stein explained the biggest difference .
“It’s the heart . ”
Ryan’s shoulder flinched .
Stein glared at his eldest son and said,
“There is a saying that states one should become a human being before wielding a sword . Ryan, I’ll ask you this . I am not asking this to a son . I am asking this to you as a man to man . ”
“Father?”
“Why did you do what you did during the successorship competition?”
In light of his father’s gaze, Ryan was petrified . He was not able to answer right away . Ryan merely moved his lips around without words .
“Did you swing your swords just to get the successorship or did you do it to save people and villages?”
Stein was asking what came first as his motivation .
Stunned, Ryan was not able to say anything .
“I know you are brilliant . Your swordsmanship is superior to Lloyd and Riley, and I also know you had been working several times harder than them . ”
“…”
“However, your sword… You had been wielding them for the sake of obtaining the successorship instead of the people, isn’t that right?”
“That is…”
“I had told Lloyd before the announcement . ”
Surprised, Ryan dithered around . Stein continued .
“Last night, I asked him to come to the office . I told him I needed to have a long discussion with him . It was about the successorship . ”
Riley and Ian were both new this . They perked up their ears and listened in to what Stein said .
“I told Lloyd that I’ll be giving him the successorship . When I told him this, do you know what Lloyd said?”
Lloyd’s response today during the announcement was that of someone who was not expecting it . Riley was finding this to be contradictory, so he listened carefully to what Stein said next .
“Lloyd said that the medal should be given to Riley instead of himself . ”
“…?”
“Lloyd said he came to Solia in middle of the successorship competition because of Riley . Lloyd said Riley would be better suited for the position than himself . That’s what Lloyd said . ”
Riley ground his teeth big time and also face palmed with one hand . Ian killed his breathing and started to snicker .
“Lloyd… said that?”
Ryan’s face crumpled out of feeling betrayed . Stein steadily glared at Ryan’s face and nodded .
“Lloyd recommended Riley instead of himself, but I still choose Lloyd as the successor . Why do you think I did that?”
“…“
“This was also because… As I said earlier, his mindset was different . He had the desire to save people . Also, he understood well what it meant to be humble and courteous . ”
Stein looked at Ryan and said with cold voice,
“Look at your own face now . You… you are resenting Lloyd right now, are you not?”
“…”
Having heard Stein’s question, Ryan fell to silence .
“Why are you resenting your own younger brother? Had he not been supporting you and wishing you to become the successor all this time?”
“…”
“In that case, I must tell you even more clearly that I cannot give you the position of the successor . ”
Stein added that a person who lacks the heart and righteousness cannot inherit the Iphalleta name . As if he had no further business with Ryan, Stein just quickly turned around .
“Why…”
Riley had only been listening in . Now, he slightly peeked his face beyond the corner to look at Ryan who was flinching his shoulders .
“… I cannot accept this . ”
Despite Ryan’s mumbling, Stein didn’t stop walking away . Ryan was breathing heavy in anger, and his eyes started to show deadly intent .
“I…”
Ryan’s fingers moved once . He slowly brought his hand toward his waist . Ian followed Riley and peeked out of the corner, and Ian opened his eyes big .
“… I…!”
Ryan’s right hand grabbed on to the handle of the sword he was carrying . Having noticed this, Ian opened his eyes big, and Stein, who was walking away, casually turned his head to look back, wondering what all the noise was about .
“…?!”
Sururuurng…
Sound of a sword being pulled from the sheath could be heard . Stein opened his eyes wide just like Ian .
It looked like he never expected that his own son would draw sword against him .
‘Kuk?!’
If it was like his usual self in the past, Stein would have been able to easily subdue his first born son regardless of how skilled Ryan was . However… this was no longer the case .
‘My arm…’
It was because he was missing an arm at the moment .
“Count! Look out…!”
With a shocking development happening in front of him, Ian quickly came out of the corner and tried to charge at Ryan . At that moment, Riley, who was still sticking close to the corner’s wall, said in a low voice,
“Ian . I’ll borrow this for a moment . ”
“…?”
Ian’s waist felt lighter after Riley’s voice was heard . Ian was charging toward Ryan, but he looked down at his waist and was shocked .
Before he realized, the sword that was on his waist was gone .
“ . . I cannot accept this!”
For the sake of obtaining the Iphalleta house’s successorship, Ryan had been diligent and even abandoned his own mother . Now, as if he was letting everything he had been holding down finally explode, Ryan screamed out loudly and swung the sword .
“Kuk!”
Looking at the sword raised up high, Stein resigned himself to the fate . However, he could hear something flying in from the back .
“…?”
Shooook .
The something that came flying made a sound . Stein looked at the sword that Ryan raised up and blinked .
‘Sheath?’
Only a moment ago, Ryan’s sword, which was drawn from his sheath, was exuding light from its edge . For some reason, now, it had its sheath on it again .