Regressor, Possessor, Reincarnator - Chapter 2
Chapter 2
Allen glared into his father’s eyes.
“Can’t you see there’s something wrong with him?!”
Bang!
“He uses the codex no one in our family could use! He acts as if he had forgotten all court manners! He says he lost his memory, yet he has so many biases!”
Allen reenacted his past actions and slammed the table.
“I know you notice it!”
Same date, same actions.
“Allen. Are you Allen Reinhart, or my son Allen?”
The same question again. The same uncanny question.
“…Your son Allen is me, just like Allen Reinhart is me.”
“Right.”
His father grinned cynically.
Allen wondered why his father came to such a conclusion. He looked up at his father’s face. He was far younger than the last time Allen had seen him, but he had the same cold eyes.
“In that case, if the two can’t be differentiated… Does it matter which one it is?”
“I don’t underst…”
Allen already knew how this conversation would end, but he couldn’t stop asking and answering the same thing.
“You see…”
His father spoke with a soft smirk.
Allen wondered what amused him. Perhaps he was laughing at himself for remaining silent? Or perhaps he was pleased with the power he would acquire in the future? Allen couldn’t understand his father, nor did he want to.
“I am willing to do anything for the success of this family. Even if that means…”
‘The success of the family? Hah.’ Allen smirked bitterly.
“…The devil takes over my son’s body.”
‘Would he smile this time too?‘
Allen could have checked if he wanted, but he chose not to.
“Even if it’s…”
Instead, he forced out the question.
“…Your son?”
Father answered somberly.
“…Yes.”
There were many things Allen wanted to say. Such as his father being a hypocrite for being willing to sacrifice family for the success of the family. And that Julius truly belongs in this family.
However…
“…Understood.”
He didn’t say anything.
Because he knew it would be like talking to a wall.
“Then, I hope you won’t interfere with my actions from now on.”
‘Since no words would get through to you, I’ll show you instead.’
“…”
His father didn’t reply.
* * *
Creak.
Allen walked out of his father’s office. Contrasted with his violent movements, his eyes were tranquil. It had already been about two weeks since he had regressed into the past. He couldn’t believe it initially. Actually, who possibly could?
To observe the differences between the past and present, Allen spoke and acted slightly differently than he remembered he had. And he finally reached a conclusion.
“Regression, huh…”
His high and immature voice proved it.
Allen himself couldn’t believe it, but he had to admit that he had regressed into the past. The outcomes turned out a little different than he remembered. Words, actions, facial expressions.
“But Father is still the same.”
Allen had looked forward to this day in hopes of seeing a change in his father.
But he was the same as always. A father who wished more than he could bear, a father who put power before family, and a father who would give up his son for it.
“What did I even expect…”
Allen let out a bitter scoff and turned away. There wasn’t enough time, and there was so much to do. This was no time to get sentimental.
There was a rumor spreading in the Reinhart manor.
“Hey, have you heard? The scoundrel lord apparently changed…?”
“He’s been pretending the whole time.”
Even between maids.
“The young lord finally came to his senses…”
“I heard he even quit drinking!”
Even between servants.
“It’s a relief… The lord and lady have been worried sick.”
“Seems like he finally decided to improve.”
As Allen wandered through the manor, his feelings got more complicated. The people of the manor were heartened by the ‘new Julius’.
Even though it wasn’t the real him.
‘I already felt this emotion before, but… it’s still as nauseating.’
Allen knew that they did nothing wrong. In fact, they had had to bear with Julius’s violence before he changed, so they had every right to be glad.
But even so…
“…”
They had seen him ever since he was a child. Yet how could they not know? Not even notice?
“The young lord…”
Step.
He could hear a maid speaking on the other side of the corridor. When he turned to her, she saw him and shut her mouth. Allen immediately turned a corner and hid.
A ring started spinning in front of his chest. When the ring stopped spinning, his hearing senses enhanced. Any sound within three meters from the ring could be heard clearly.
“Is he gone?”
“I don’t hear his footsteps, so I think so?”
Allen closed his eyes and focused.
“Then continue the story. What about the young lord?”
“…Well, don’t you think the young lord is like a totally different person now?”
“What do you mean?”
The servant beside her hurried the maid.
“Even if he had lost his memories, there’s this energy, you know? Like that person’s temperament.”
“Enough with the difficult words. What are you suggesting?”
“You’ve been working here long enough, so you’d know too. How Young Lord Julius was like before. He used to be a kind and gentle man…”
“Right.”
“But now it’s like… he’s pretending? As if it’s not really him, but he’s possessed by something—”
“Whoa, are you out of your mind?”
The servant hurriedly shushed her.
“No, but really…”
The maid retaliated, but the servant refused to hear any of it.
“Then you want the old young lord back? Get beaten when he’s bored, constantly living in fear of his next move?”
“No…”
“If so, shut your mouth and convince yourself that he ‘found’ his old self again. If there is truly something wrong with the young lord, the lord would have done something about it.”
“That’s true.”
The maid nodded and together with the servant, left. After they had left, Allen leaned on the wall.
“Changed…”
They just want to believe that the scoundrel young lord finally got back to being his old, benevolent self. And that it was the only reason he had ‘changed’. They didn’t want to live in discomfort, so they refused to think any further. Allen didn’t think to punish them in any way.
If anything, he was just a little…
“…”
…Disheartened.
* * *
Allen walked aimlessly and arrived at the training ground. There were many servants and maids gathered at the entrance, all looking at something. The loud noises brought Allen back to his senses, and he started walking towards the crowd.
“So, look there… Gasp!”
When Allen approached, the servants’ faces dropped. They were uneasy since it looked like they were slacking off. He reassured them with a smile.
“It’s alright. I won’t punish anyone.”
Their faces were still uneasy.
“What are you all here for?”
“Uh… We heard Young Lord Julius was challenged by a probationary knight.”
“Julius? With a knight?”
‘Right. I remember this.’
Allen nodded to the servant and answered.
“I understand that you would be curious about the battle. So, I’ll allow you all to watch. But once it’s over, you will all return to your duties. All right?”
“Yes, milord. Understood.”
Allen slid past the servants and entered the training ground. The battle hadn’t started yet, but the atmosphere was getting heated. Only two men stood at the center.
“My Lord, if I win, you must apologize for insulting the knights.”
“Fine. Then if I win, you will serve under my command.”
One was a bright-blue-haired chubby boy, and another was a probationary knight that had been training ever since he was a child. The probationary knight proclaimed with seriousness, but the chubby boy answered naughtily.
Allen frowned, sensing Julius’s magic power.
It was incredible.
Whoever that was inside Julius grew Julius’s power at an unbelievable rate.
The probationary knight, along with the other young knights, probably couldn’t sense it, which was most likely why they challenged him in the first place.
However, the knight commanders and Allen watched their battle solemnly. Since the outcome of the battle was too obvious, Allen walked away.
He didn’t bother to watch any longer, since he already knew.
‘That probationary knight becomes one of Julius’s most loyal servants, right? Julius will act like he barely won and will apologize despite winning.’
The servants and maids would all praise his sportsmanship and believe Julius was finally his old self. The knights would then start looking at him differently, and that probationary knight would soon genuinely follow him.
Their father would constantly test him and he would pass it every single time, increasing his fame over and over again.
“Is it that day soon?”
The first incident he would become renowned for.
‘I already decided what I’ll do.’
“Wow!”
Allen shut his eyes at the cheering. This was an act everyone agreed to play along with.
One which they all wished wouldn’t end.
