My Grandfather Was Darius

After the ceremony conferring the title of apprentice knight, I followed my teacher back to the castle. At four years old, I could already use advanced magic, and my Water God Style swordsmanship had reached the intermediate level. In my teacher's eyes, these were skills that ordinary people needed more than a decade to learn.

I had learned them in less than two and a half years. Once again, I heard him mutter something like, "As expected of a Godchild."

It seemed that outsiders attributed all my abnormalities to the talent of a Godchild. That was fine by me. As long as I wasn't locked up and studied like some monster, I was satisfied. If they wanted to misunderstand me as a Godchild, then let them. I could just pretend I didn't know. Hehe!

That evening, my father summoned me through the butler and told me to go to his study. This was forbidden ground for me, a room I had never been allowed to enter since childhood. After I entered, my father sat behind a broad oval mahogany desk, and I was led to stand before him.

Father got straight to the point. "Dolin, your grandfather wants to take you to Ars, the royal capital of the Asura Kingdom. He intends to raise you personally there. Though I argued against it as hard as I could, I wasn't able to change his mind."

"Father, what kind of person is Grandfather? Why do you look so troubled? We're not never going to see each other again, are we?"

"What are you saying, silly child? Although I usually have to manage Loman City and cannot go to Ars, I will bring your mother to the royal capital for your fifth, tenth, and fifteenth birthdays. You and I are both first in line to inherit the Prodia Family. Unlike my elder brothers, who can only remain confined to a single city, we have the duty of inheriting the family, and can live freer lives.

"As for your grandfather, his name is Darius Prodia Greyrat. He is currently the most powerful high-ranking minister at court, and the most important ally of the current king, Arthur Anemoi Asura. When he was young, your grandfather shared a deep friendship with the current King of Asura. He wields tremendous power in the kingdom, and he is the main reason why our Prodia Family has become so powerful.

"However, he also has a few... little problems. I won't go into detail about those. Once you arrive in Ars, obey your grandfather's orders and work hard to improve yourself. You must not slack off. Cause less trouble, and do not involve yourself in matters you should not be involved in. Your grandfather has a good impression of you, so he will not be too strict. Go without worry."

After listening to Father, I bowed and left his study, returning to my room with my mind filled with the information I had received.

My grandfather was actually that infamous Darius—the fat man Ghislaine would later cut down with a single stroke. This was far too awkward. That scumbag, that child trafficker, was actually my grandfather. But when I remembered that he was also a member of the Prodia Tribe, I suddenly felt at ease.

Still, as Darius's grandson, would our family be purged when Ariel returned to seize the throne in the future? It felt highly possible. The Dragon God would definitely intervene in Ariel's ascension, and if we stood on the opposing side, we would be purged. This was too awkward. No matter how hard I tried, I probably couldn't defeat Orsted. After all, he was an ancient monster who had lived through who knew how many loops. More importantly, I could not get dragged into the conflict between Hitogami and the Dragon God.

That would draw Hitogami's attention. He paid attention to people who changed the history of his conflict of fate with the Dragon God. In other words, whether I supported First Prince Gravel Zaffin Asura or Second Princess Ariel Anemoi Asura, I would attract Hitogami's attention. Then my life would become one of being controlled and toyed with. I had not been noticed yet because I posed no threat to Hitogami, just like Rudeus before the displacement. As long as the course of history did not threaten him, he would not be noticed. In any case, there was still much to do.

If it really came down to it, once I was a little older, I should probably leave the Asura Kingdom. I had no interest in becoming a noble lord anyway. Daily balls, and whenever there was nothing to do, either stealing someone else's wife or having your own wife stolen—I had no interest in that whatsoever. Since I had come to this world, I should live a more exciting life. Maybe I could even meet a few beautiful elf or beastfolk girls in an adventurer party. I had come to another world, after all.

So far, the only nonhuman race I had seen was the Dwarf-kin, who looked just like children. That was far too much of a loss. First, I needed to improve myself, at least enough to protect myself. Then I had to do everything I could to avoid getting involved in the muddy waters between Hitogami and the Dragon God. Avoiding their attention was my greatest goal. This world was so vast, and with my foreknowledge of history, wouldn't it be easy to soar freely through the skies? After thinking about so much, I finally drifted off to sleep.

At noon the next day, after saying goodbye to Father and Mother, I set off for Ars. Thinking of Mother's face as she nearly cried herself to pieces when she saw me leaving, I felt a little moved. Four of my maids rode with me in an enormous carriage, while male servants rode outside, and three hundred knights escorted us. It should have been safe enough, right?

Come to think of it, I understood why the common people of Loman City hated our family so much. It was probably connected to my grandfather. He loved trafficking children so much—what city's commoners wouldn't hate him? Hopefully things would be better in Ars. I did not want to take the blame for that scumbag grandfather and get stabbed to death by some stranger on the road. After leaving Loman City and traveling for half a month, we finally arrived at Ars, the royal capital.

Ars was an enormous city. Its walls alone stood more than ten meters higher than Loman's. As expected of walls capable of defending against stray dragons, they looked exceptionally sturdy.

Ars, the royal capital. The largest city in the world. A city named after the hero who led humanity to victory in the war between humans and demons. Those who saw this city with their own eyes for the first time often found themselves unable to conceal their astonishment.

The majestic royal castle rising above the hills—the Silver Palace. The vast mansions surrounding the castle, inhabited by high-ranking nobles. Then there were the fortress-like walls encircling them, and the broad streets stretching endlessly outward from there. A massive arena. Luxurious training grounds for knight orders. The beautiful cathedral of the Saint Millis Order. Overpasses spread throughout the city. The headquarters of the world's largest trading company. The main dojo of the Water God Style. An opera district lined with theaters. A pleasure district exuding feminine, seductive charm. A gate built to commemorate victory in the Laplace Campaign. The city stretched endlessly into the distance, too vast to take in at a glance. Crossing the mother-like Altier River, it spread boundlessly, vast beyond measure. This was the oldest human city in history, praised as a place that possessed everything in the world. The passage above came from Travels Across the World, which I had read.

After arriving in the city, I found that ordinary people treated our convoy reasonably well. There was none of the hostility we had faced in Loman City, though neither were people lining the streets to welcome us. I supposed they simply felt indifferent.

With knights clearing the way, naturally no one dared block the road. After traveling for a little over an hour, we entered the noble district. The noble district here was much like Loman City's. Occasionally, I saw groups of armored men marching in formation along the streets. They were likely kingdom knights on patrol. Come to think of it, knight orders could only be seen at the city walls and in the noble district. How was public security maintained in the commoner districts? Did they have police here too?

After another hour or so through the noble district, we finally arrived near the Silver Palace. Before us lay a gigantic garden nearly the size of a golf course. After entering the gates, we followed a stone path for around ten more minutes before reaching the villa where my grandfather currently lived. The entire villa covered roughly 1,300 square meters, about the size of two standard basketball courts. The front and rear buildings were symmetrically arranged, connected by a twenty-meter-long landscaped corridor. The villa directly ahead was built in a neoclassical style, with a white marble facade, Roman columns, curved balconies, floor-to-ceiling windows set in gilded frames, and blue-gray glazed tiles covering the roof.

The overall impression was elegant and solemn. The villa behind it was in the Gothic Revival style, with dark gray limestone walls, pointed arched windows, flying buttresses, and rose windows decorating the facade. Ivy clung to its tower, giving it an air of mystery. It was my grandfather's private villa. According to the butler, no one was allowed to set foot in the rear villa without Grandfather's permission. There were also many visible guards and hidden sentries protecting the estate. Naturally, the butler introduced me to these guards as well. At the very least, as long as I did not go to the rear villa in the future, I should not have any safety issues.

After arriving at the estate, I was assigned a room of about 150 square meters. It was far too large. After my maids moved my luggage inside, the old butler informed me that Grandfather Darius was still at the royal castle, assisting the king with state affairs. He was expected to return to the villa that evening and meet me then. I took the chance to familiarize myself with my new home. Hopefully there would not be too many problems.

Near evening, my grandfather returned to the villa and received me. He was somewhat different from how I had imagined him. Though he was very fat, he did not look particularly greasy, and his face carried a great deal of authority. When he saw me, he remained stern and unsmiling.

Still, he gave me a symbolic hug, since I was his grandson after all. He was not depraved enough to lay hands on his own grandson. The Prodia Family liked young girls, not young boys.

Grandfather said to me, "I called you here because I found you a better magic teacher. You are to become her disciple and study magic diligently. Strive to produce a Saint-ranked or King-ranked master magician for the family. That way, our family will have greater influence and strength in the Asura Kingdom.

"Additionally, I want you to make contact with the Asura king's eldest son, Gravel Zaffin Asura. Although this prince is already twelve years old, as long as your statuses are not too far apart, you can interact normally." So it really was about making contact with the First Prince. I absolutely could not accept this task. He was at the center of the storm—I could not draw attention to myself. I silently reminded myself.

But of course, I agreed readily out loud. I was only a little over four years old, after all. How much could anyone realistically expect a normal four-year-old to accomplish? If I acted more like a four-year-old, I should be able to muddle through this matter.

I also asked Grandfather Darius for permission to study under a master at the Water God Style dojo. After all, having too many skills never hurt. Naturally, such an ambitious request earned Grandfather's approval. What elder would not want their descendants to learn more skills? Though he probably would not like me spending every day playing with women. Even if he was that sort of person himself.

And so, after having a lavish dinner with me, he left the room and went to the rear villa.

At around seven or eight that night, as I was going to sleep, I vaguely heard the sounds of whipping and a woman's wails. My whole body shuddered. What that old pervert was doing over there went without saying. Truly terrifying.