Lucius Sheffield

"Young Master Lucius, according to custom, tomorrow you'll need to go to the naval port in person to bring your father's remains home. I'll stay at the estate to make the arrangements for the Memorial Service."

"Once everything is ready, the Memorial Service will officially begin the following day."

"I've already written the invitations for the Memorial Service. I've invited friends and colleagues who were close to your father, among others. Would you like to add anyone?"

After taking the invitation template from his butler, Hahn Clayton, the "original owner," Wang Xu—no, Lucius—gave it a quick look and said:

"Hahn, the invitations are fine as you've written them. I'll leave as planned tomorrow and bring Father's remains home."

Hahn was visibly grief-stricken when he heard Lucius's words. He tried to comfort him:

"Young Master Lucius, what's happened has happened, and it's beyond remedy. We should look to the future..."

Lucius nodded at Hahn's words of comfort and said:

"I understand. Hahn, you may go. I'd like to be alone for a while."

"Then good night, Young Master Lucius."

"Good night, Butler Hahn Clayton."

After Butler Hahn Clayton left the room,

"Wang Xu"—no, Lucius Sheffield—fell back into his thoughts.

Lucius Sheffield's original name was Wang Xu. He had just graduated from university and was an ordinary student taking his first steps into the working world.

Since he had only just graduated and hadn't done particularly well in his studies, he'd managed to find only an ordinary job—at least enough to keep himself fed.

But things were different now. An hour ago, his soul had taken over the body of a Loen Kingdom baron's son.

There was no need to say more. He had obviously transmigrated. As for why, he had no idea.

All he remembered was finishing a night shift, going home, and going to bed as usual. When he woke up again, he had already transmigrated.

He had no memories of how the original owner had died, either.

After he transmigrated, fragments of the original owner's memories began to surface. After spending more than half an hour piecing them together, he had a rough idea of where he'd ended up.

He kept cursing inwardly. Damn it, how did I end up in the world of Lord of the Mysteries?

As one of the hottest Western fantasy novels in recent years, Lord of the Mysteries combined elements of steampunk, Lovecraftian fiction, and more. Lucius had naturally read it, and had been especially interested in its most fascinating feature: Potions.

But liking the story was one thing. If he'd been given the choice to transmigrate, he definitely wouldn't have chosen to come here.

This world was among the most dangerous in all the myriad worlds—perhaps a little less dangerous than the world where you became the Emperor's bitcoin.

But hating it wouldn't help. He was already here. What else could he do?

Since he was here, he had to get involved with the twenty-two Paths of the Divine, one way or another. Becoming a Beyonder meant risking losing control, but at least it gave him the power to protect himself.

He wouldn't be just some nobody on the roadside, kicked to death with a single blow. This wasn't an ordinary world, after all.

As for his choice...

He had none. He was naturally half a Sequence Nine of the Assassin pathway.

How did he know he was on the Assassin pathway?

Because it wasn't just his appearance that seemed feminine—his body was soft, he had night vision, and he even felt he might have inherited some linguistic abilities.

How could he be half a Sequence Nine, and on the Assassin pathway at that?

He was certain it hadn't come from his father. According to the original owner's memories, his father should have been a High Sequence Beyonder of the Hunter Pathway.

As for his mother, that was strange. He had no memories of her at all.

With his father on the Hunter Pathway and no memories of his mother, he could only conclude that this had come from his "mother."

How a Hunter and a Demoness had gotten together, married, and had a child wasn't something he could figure out right now.

He was just an ordinary person, and he had no clues. He could only wait until he grew stronger before investigating.

Still, Lucius thought the situation made a certain amount of sense. The original owner's father was a handsome, single man with a noble title. It was hardly surprising that a Demoness had taken an interest in him.

Never mind. Why should he concern himself with the previous generation's problems? He could think about them once he had the strength.

"Lucius Sheffield" was the original owner's name. He was a fifteen-year-old son of a baron in the Loen Kingdom.

According to the original owner's memories, the Sheffield Family had originated in 683 of the Fifth Epoch.

At the time, the impoverished First Generation Sheffield had joined the Loen Kingdom's army simply to make a living.

He had happened to arrive just as the nations of the North Continent were plunged into the Battle of Oathbreaking over matters of faith. Thanks to his contributions, he became a Beyonder early in the conflict and a High Sequence powerhouse midway through it. When the Battle of Oathbreaking ended, he was rewarded with a baronial title.

In that era, he could be called a protagonist in his own right: starting as a poor commoner who could barely get enough to eat, he had fought his way to becoming a Beyonder and then a noble baron.

Thanks to First Generation Sheffield's arrangements, the family later became closely tied to the Empire's military. Almost every Sheffield joined the army for training upon reaching adulthood.

This was one reason the family had so few members. It was practically a family of only children. At least, in the original owner's memories, the family had always passed down through a single heir each generation.

There were pros and cons. At the very least, the family had survived for 660 years. Though this arrangement hadn't made every generation a family of exceptional talent, the foundation laid by First Generation Sheffield had remained intact. Each successive family head had made some contribution to the family's assets.

The family's greatest loss was missing out on the wave of the Industrial Revolution after Roselle Gustav (Huang Tao) invented the Steam Engine.

Lucius could understand, though. The Industrial Revolution hadn't begun in the Loen Kingdom, but in the Intis Kingdom.

By the time Loen heard the news, Roselle had already propelled Intis to great heights. It was lucky the family hadn't been wiped out by Intis's "bullets."

With his knowledge of the Method of Acting for Potions in the world of Lord of the Mysteries, Lucius thought his ancestors had probably joined the army to "act" and digest their Potions.

After all, the Sheffield Family had risen to prominence through Potions, so each generation of family heads should have been influenced to take them as well.

Fortunately, it was now April 13, 1346, and Klein wouldn't descend for another three years. He had at least three years to develop ahead of time.

The next day, before sunlight had even reached Lucius's room, a servant called from outside his door.

"Young Master Lucius, you should get up and wash."

"Young Master Lucius?"

The voice at the door roused Lucius on instinct. Half-asleep, he mumbled, "I know, I know. Let me sleep a little longer."

No one knew how much time passed before a loud pounding sounded at the door.

Bang! Bang!

"Young Master Lucius, it's getting late."

"Young Master Lucius?"

Unable to fall asleep again after being woken, Lucius reluctantly opened the door and yawned. "Hahn, what time is it? I feel like I've barely slept."

Looking at the yawning Lucius, Hahn replied helplessly, "It's six in the morning, Young Master Lucius."

Hearing this, Lucius jolted awake and asked in disbelief, "It's only six?"

After saying that, he turned and headed straight back to bed.

Seeing Lucius heading back to bed, Hahn hurriedly explained, "Young Master, you can't go back to sleep. You have to get up now. There's a lot you need to do today."

"You need to get up, wash, eat, and then go to the port."

"You have to get there before everyone else. That will better show that you and your father were close, and help you make a good impression on the other nobles."

"Because the Loen Kingdom Army won the war in the South Continent, there won't just be soldiers at the port today. Nobles from all sides will be there, and even His Majesty George III will attend to commemorate the victory and the soldiers who died in battle."

Lucius listened to Hahn's explanation and remarked with a sigh,

"That's right! A victory in a large-scale war."

"Lots of nobles must have made a fortune from this victory..."

Since he had stayed up thinking until well past midnight, Lucius had no energy at all.

Seeing that Lucius was fully awake, Hahn said,

"Young Master Lucius, I'll be going with you to the port shortly."

Hearing this, Lucius asked in confusion,

"Weren't you saying I should go alone?"

At Lucius's puzzled expression, Hahn sighed.

"According to the original plan, you were supposed to go by yourself. But last night, we suddenly received word that His Majesty the King would be attending as well, and that there'd be a brief commemoration and tribute at the port."

"So I'll accompany you this time. You can attend the banquet while I go to collect your father's remains. Just as Emperor Roselle famously said: plans never keep up with change."

"Now it's no longer just a matter of going to the port to bring your father's remains home. You'll need to meet with the Army High Command—and perhaps even His Majesty the King."

Lucius could only grumble inwardly, What a hassle! This was supposed to be a simple matter, but now that the King is involved, it's become complicated.

Lucius quickly said,

"Hahn, let's go."

"We'll set out and bring Father's remains home."

Seeing Lucius like this, Hahn hurriedly said,

"Young Master, you've only just gotten up. You haven't washed or eaten yet."