Chapter 52: The feared existence

Alaric massaged his temples as a headache started forming. He was contemplating if he would ever get enough rest to break through to Knight.

Seriously, what is going on with these Paragons recently?

He immediately sent a message to Evan.

"Are you safe? What exactly happened?"

Judging from how Evan could even use his communication device, he was likely safe, but Alaric still wanted to display his concern.

The reply came after a short delay.

"I’m safe, Young Lord. There hasn’t been any conflict. The Paragon Mage seems to have taken an interest in my talent and wants to take me as his disciple."

Alaric’s expression immediately darkened.

Oh fuck off.

It was bad enough that Velan had practically been stolen by Celdric right after Zephyr found him.

Sure, Alaric didn’t even know whether Velan would qualify as a Genius according to the System, but that didn’t mean he was happy about losing a talented child who could’ve potentially joined House Orlen.

Now someone wanted Evan too?

Why is everyone trying to take my people?

He conveniently ignored the fact that Mira had practically fallen into his lap during the same sequence of events.

The young girl had gotten a special power system, becoming qualified to get connected to his System.

Alaric thought for a moment before sending another message.

"Do you want to go with him?"

He already had a good idea what Evan’s answer would be.

From everything he knew about Evan, both from the novel and from his interactions after transmigrating, Evan wasn’t someone who would casually abandon a person who had helped him.

Alaric had given him resources, allowed him to leave the mandatory service of House Orlen, then still accepted him as a personal retainer and sponsored his cultivation afterward.

As expected, Evan’s answer soon arrived.

"No, Young Lord. I’ve already rejected him."

Alaric breathed out slowly, but didn’t completely relax.

Evan might have rejected the offer because of loyalty, but that didn’t mean there was no hesitation.

A Paragon Mage wanted to take him as a disciple.

That wasn’t something an ambitious Squire could just ignore.

Alaric didn’t want Evan staying beside him while constantly wondering whether he had thrown away a better opportunity.

He took a deep breath and asked something else.

"Have those memories you’ve been receiving been useful?"

This time, Evan’s reply took slightly longer.

"Yes, Young Lord. Very useful."

Then another message arrived.

"I think I’m already halfway toward obtaining Minor Mastery of the blade."

Alaric stared at the communication device.

What?

His eyebrows slowly rose.

HALFWAY?!

Minor Mastery wasn’t some basic skill level anyone could reach after training for a few months.

Even many Champion Knights never achieved Minor Mastery in their chosen weapon.

Evan already possessed Minor Mastery in swordsmanship, and now those memories were somehow helping him develop another Minor Mastery in blade techniques?

What the fuck are those memories actually giving him?

Alaric knew Evan was a genius, but even for him this speed was ridiculous.

He remained silent for a while before finally sending his reply.

"If you stop working for me, you will no longer receive those memories."

Technically, those memories weren’t under his control but something Evan would receive after completing System Quests. However, those System Quests were something only Alaric knew about.

So it was safe to say that only Alaric could give tasks to Evan which would help him receive memories afterwards.

On the other side, Evan stood silently after reading the message.

His gaze stayed fixed upon those words.

So it really was because of the Young Lord.

He had suspected it before.

The strange memories had always arrived around the time he completed the tasks given by Alaric, but he had never been completely certain.

Now he had his answer.

Evan slowly lowered the communication device.

He knew the weight of those memories better than anyone else.

The beast blood Alaric had provided him was already an absurdly generous resource, but the memories were even more valuable.

They didn’t merely contain information. They contained experiences which he could absorb in entirety without anything happening to his personality or messing with his own original memories.

Movements he had never practiced felt strangely familiar after receiving them. Mistakes that might’ve taken him months to correct became obvious.

There were even memories of himself constructing mana channels. That alone had been helping his current cultivation tremendously.

Evan glanced toward the elderly man waiting several meters away.

And why would the Young Lord keep giving me something like that if I stopped working for him?

That would be stupid.

People didn’t hand out priceless opportunities for no reason.

The fact that Alaric had sponsored a Squire who hadn’t even been raised by House Orlen was already incredibly generous of him.

If Evan left and became the disciple of some Paragon Mage, expecting Alaric to keep helping him afterward would simply be shameless.

Evan had already decided to reject the Paragon.

But after understanding this, whatever hesitation remained disappeared completely.

The old Paragon Mage noticed the change immediately.

His brows furrowed.

"Brat."

Evan looked toward him.

"I could tell that even though you rejected me, you were still somewhat uncertain. Why do you suddenly look so firm?"

Evan hesitated.

The Paragon Mage sighed.

"Who exactly are you working for? Let me speak with them."

Evan immediately shook his head.

The old man’s expression turned annoyed.

"I said speak. I’m not going to threaten anyone, kill anyone or kidnap you. Do you think I became a Paragon by randomly making enemies everywhere?"

Only after several repeated assurances did Evan finally answer.

"Young Lord Alaric Orlen, of House Orlen."

The Paragon Mage went completely silent.

A few seconds passed in silence, before the elderly man asked in a noticeably quieter voice.

"Rowena Orlen?"

Evan blinked in confusion.

What? Who is that?

He immediately sent Alaric another message asking who Rowena Orlen was, and that it was the elderly Paragon Mage who had asked about her.

Alaric stared at that question speechlessly.

Rowena Orlen is Marchioness Orlen’s, my mom’s name.

I’ve met two random Paragons till now and both of them seemed to know something about my mother and maintain a respectful attitude towards her.

Is the circle of Paragons simply that small, or is my mother the abnormal one here?

First Celdric, that Paragon who took away Velan knew about Marchioness Orlen, and now this Paragon Mage too.

Alaric told Evan that Marchioness Orlen’s real name was Rowena Orlen.

When Evan relayed the answer, the old Paragon Mage let out a long sigh.

The Squire waited for the old man to continue.

But when nothing came, he finally asked.

"Aren’t you going to speak with House Orlen?"

The old man gave him a look as if Evan was asking him to die.

"You would need to give me a hundred lives and balls made of steel to make me even consider trying to negotiate and steal talents from Rowena Orlen’s noble house."

He shook his head.

"I haven’t lived this long by being that reckless."

Evan’s eyes slowly lit up.

House Orlen was politically isolated.

That was one of the reasons he had originally wanted to leave.

But a Paragon Mage who possessed his own Magic Tower didn’t even want to risk offending Marchioness Orlen?

Have I misunderstood House Orlen this entire time?

This was apparently a House even a Paragon preferred not to provoke casually.

Evan had always looked at House Orlen through the lens of its political isolation and assumed that staying here would limit his future.

Of course, he didn’t think so anymore, since it was almost guaranteed to become a duchy but he indeed used to think in that manner.

When Evan told Alaric everything, Alaric’s eyes lit up even more.

This one talks!

Celdric had thrown out some mysterious words and refused to elaborate.

This Paragon Mage seemed far more willing to speak.

"Ask him what he knows about my mother." He hurriedly told Evan, who then relayed the words forward.

The old Paragon Mage became visibly uncomfortable when he heard the question.

For a while, he simply stared into the distance. There were clearly memories he didn’t enjoy revisiting, but eventually, he sighed.

"Let’s just say she was the cause of a major event that happened around twenty years ago in the Rathen Empire."

"What event?" Evan asked with a curious expression.

Alaric, reading through the communication device, was equally curious.

The old Paragon Mage remained silent for several seconds.

When he finally spoke, his voice contained a strange mixture of fear and amazement.

"The Fall of Hundred Paragons."