Chapter 6
“What a strange world.”
Joon-young expressed his thoughts as he watched hot water pour out from the sink. In the old world, science was what brought the human civilization to its peak. In this world however, it was magic. Reading a setting where magic reached similar heights as modern science was common in fantasy genres, but experiencing it in person was a different thing.
When Joon-young looked into the mirror, a scrawny child looked back at him. When Joon-young smiled, the child smiled too, and the same happened when he made a sigh.
“Are you confused? I’m confused too.”
After having a quick wash, he went back to his room. The room was quite extravagant for a hospital. He relaxed on the chair and intentionally emptied his mind. Slowly, Isaac’s memories seeped into his head. He didn’t know why, but Joon-young’s consciousness took place in Isaac’s body, and Isaac’s memories were filling in the blanks for him. Thanks to that, Joon-young didn’t have the problem of learning the language and culture of the new world. It also helped to keep his sense of identity through the sudden change in the environment after his death. However, this only happened when his mind was blank. It forced him to empty his mind as often as possible, making him look as if he’s about to lose his mind. The staff in the hospital mistook that behaviour as PTSD after the recent massacre and left him alone, giving plenty of opportunities for Joon-young to work through Isaac’s memories with haste.
“Tsk. I can’t tell if this is good or bad.”
Joon-young snickered as he remembered Isaac’s childhood. On one side, he was lucky; on the other, he was pitiful.
He was the firstborn son of the Rondart Family, which held the title of Baron. This fact alone would set him up for an easy life as a noble. Unless, of course, you were the son of a concubine. The problem started when his father met his mother, a commoner, during his vacation and fell in love at first sight. If it was just a one-night stand, a cover up could have taken place to hide it. But his father was so persistent that the only way to silence him was to marry her. The position of wife was impossible due to her birth status, so she ended up as a concubine, and Isaac was born between them.
Although his father and mother were deeply in love, the family’s elders and vassals pressured his father into remarrying. The woman was the daughter of a Count. This marriage happened when Isaac was 1 year old.
Obviously, the new wife wasn’t so happy about the existence of Isaac and his mother. When she gave birth to 2 sons of her own, she acted as if Isaac and his mother didn’t even exist. At this point, this would have been a common family problem within a noble’s family. The successor to the name of Baron would go to the legitimate son from the wife instead of Isaac, while Isaac gets to live as the ‘son’ of Baron. It was a good compromise for both sides. But it all crumbled when the current emperor came into power.
The current emperor was also the eldest son who was born from a concubine. He also had a younger brother who was born from the Empress, but it was clear those two cared more for each other than Isaac and his brothers. When their father passed away, his brother willingly gave the throne to him. He stated that, according to tradition, the eldest must take the throne. The 2nd prince forfeited his claim to the throne and the eldest prince, born from a concubine, took the throne without any issues.
If a mere Baron were to elect their second son as heir due to the bloodline of the firstborn, it would be taken as public insult to the emperor himself. It is at this moment that the wife’s harassments began, and her sons soon followed in the bitch’s actions.
On Isaac’s 10th birthday, his mother and father passed away from an accident, destroying his life completely. Since the lord of at the center the feud died, an heir to the title must be declared, but all the candidates were too young to take the title. Following the rule of crown to the eldest, Isaac should have been declared heir, but no one would try to support Isaac, who had neither power nor lineage. In fact the vassals tried to make his existence a secret.
And so, without proper education and at the mercy of even the servants working in the mansion, he grew to the age of 15. It was on this day that his life turned around.
All sons and daughters of nobles are automatically enrolled to the Empire’s greatest educational facility, the Campus. The capable officials of the empire pointed out Isaac’s status of imprisonment in his own home and continued to ask Isaac to attend for 5 years. But the Baron’s family even used the Count’s power to delay it as long as possible. What they wanted was the loss of Isaac’s title as the legitimate successor.
‘We were too embarrassed to send him as he isn’t so bright, but you can try your best.’ That was all they needed to say at this point. The age of 15 was too late to learn anything. Only a genius or extreme effort could catch up to those who had 5 years of head start.
Not only that, but the second son of the Baron, Isaac’s little brother, managed to enroll in the College. This was an honour only given to the brightest minds and talents within the Campus.
‘Our first son is a little dim. But look at the second son, he’s bright enough to attend the College. So for the future of our family, we have no choice but to declare the second son as heir.’ This was their plan.
Joon-young wondered why they had this completely unnecessary plan when they could have simply killed him in an accident or poison him, but it seemed that the investigation bureau in the Empire held incredible power.
They would scour the Empire for any information when it came to succession of power, making it difficult to forge any incidents. There was a case of a Family of a Viscount who had an issue similar to Isaac’s situation. When it was found out that the death of the eldest son was a murder orchestrated by his brother and his relatives, the entire family was confiscated of all their possessions, while their family’s name was removed from the nobility. This made it difficult for Isaac’s family to scheme any plots against him, resulting in his isolation.
But the family also had no interest in making Isaac’s travel comfortable either. Isaac, was shoved into a wandering merchant’s wagon like luggage to be transported to the Campus, as the family saw no reason to organise a convoy for his travel. This band of merchants was the victim of the first monster attack in 10 years, taking everyone but Isaac’s lives. As soon as the combat started, Isaac hid under the wagon, cowering in fear then fainting when something knocked him in the head.
“Then I came about.”
After the quick review of the memories, Joon-young, no, Isaac sighed briefly. It was a fresh start, albeit a problematic one. The biggest problem was his future.
“First of all, am I really Joon-young? Or am I Isaac with Joon-young’s memories?”
After a brief search for his own identity, he snickered.
“Whatever it is, I have to live on again.”
There were countless ways to kill himself if he wanted it. But he couldn’t do that. Those who died before him acted as shackles to keep him going. But he had no reason to live to his fullest either. Experiencing so much death in the battlefield had left him empty inside. He would try to live on as a husk, only because he can’t die.
“A new life… I don’t know why I got dropped into this place but I’ll take it as my vacation.”
Joon-young, no, Isaac’s empty eyes looked up into the sky. Whether it was god or the devil who dropped him into this world, he would simply live on for now.
Brief report on surveillance target 728
Surveillance level 4
It has been declared the target is currently suffering from PTSD after the incident, but it is unsure whether this is due to the shock from the incident or due to Type 3 invasion.
His fluency with language is acceptable, and the records of his past do not provide enough evidence to prove whether his personality has changed. Requesting for further investigation.
Although he needs continued surveillance, surveillance level will be dropped to Level 5, considering his age and the teaching schedules of the Campus.