"—I was wrong!"
One week after that incident, in the Frenbreed Marquis House's office.
Standing in the very place where he had once been exiled—five years later—was Ermes. And before him, his father Zenos was prostrate on the floor.
"I'm sorry, Ermes! To think I would cast out someone as talented as you! My eyes were nothing but blind holes!"
"……"
"But I had no choice! Once His Highness Aster gave the order, what could I have done to defy him? It pained me to no end, you know—to inflict such cruelty on the son I love!"
"……I'm afraid that's not quite convincing, Father."
Ermes replied without a trace of emotion.
"You do understand that, emotionally speaking, I have absolutely no desire to return to this household?"
"Don't say things like that, son! Look—I'm doing this!"
He bowed, apologized, pleaded, cajoled—but utterly refused to accept any rejection. Every bit of it was written plainly on his face as he tried every trick to keep Ermes there.
"I'll guarantee you the position of next head of the house, of course! You're far more suited than that useless Chris! You could become the heir to a marquis house! No—with your recent accomplishments, there's no reason you couldn't reclaim a duchy! What could you possibly have to complain about?!"
Zenos's own desires were beginning to leak through.
"T-tell me what you're unhappy about! I'll do anything in my power! So—"
"……Very well, then. Just one thing."
Predictable as ever, Ermes proceeded with the proposal he had prepared in advance.
Sensing the softening of his attitude, Zenos shifted to an overtly fawning tone.
"Oh, yes! Name it—don't hold back—"
"I would like you to
relinquish
your position."
Zenos froze.
"…W-what?"
"Relinquish your position. You will be expelled from the Frenbreed household and permanently barred from having any involvement with it."
"Th-that's tyranny! You can't possibly—"
"I can. It's the same thing you did to me five years ago… Actually, it should be even easier than that, since I won't be stripping you of your rights as a noble."
"Ngh—!"
Zenos bit down on his lip, and the sound of grinding teeth echoed through the room.
Far from tyranny, Ermes considered it a perfectly reasonable judgment given his standing. If anything, given what Zenos had done, this was getting off easy.
"You—you'd be in trouble too! After five years away from noble society, trying to run a marquis house without my support—"
"That won't be an issue. If it comes to that, I intend to seek advice from the Trackia house."
"Wh-what!? You'd place yourself under the Trackia house's umbrella!? Have you no pride as an independent noble?!"
"Pride? I wouldn't say it's meaningless, but—if flaunting it only breeds conflict among people and causes them to neglect dealing with the monsters that threaten the common folk, then I'd rather do without it."
In fact, it would be far more constructive to entrust territorial management to a house that excelled at it, while focusing their own efforts on subjugating monsters.
Of course, nothing was ever that simple, but at least in this case, the Trackia house would undoubtedly handle things far better than the man standing before him.
"B-but still. Without me there… that is to say…"
"……I'd rather not spell it out, but—could you please just be honest for once?"
Zenos tried to wriggle out with yet another excuse, but Ermes cut him off with an icy gaze.
"—'I want to steal the credit for my accomplishments this time and waltz back to the center of noble society to lord it over everyone again.'"
"Wh—that's not—I was thinking of your—"
"Yes, I'm sure. You're thinking of me—the person who, if I returned to the marquis house, would certainly bring you personal benefit. I'd say that qualifies as self-interest, wouldn't you?"
Otherwise, he would not have responded with such violent rejection to Ermes's statement that he could come back, but Zenos must have nothing to do with the Frenbreed household.
"Let me summarize. If I return to the Frenbreed household, you will be expelled from it. I'll leave your noble status intact, and I can arrange a new posting for you. …What will it be?"
"Th-that's—!"
Zenos clutched his head in a mask of anguish, bowing it low.
Judging by Ermes's attitude, he had clearly concluded that no further concessions could be extracted.
When Zenos finally looked up, having understood this, his face wore an expression of unmistakable resentment and ill will.
"Why… after I've gone so far as to humble myself and apologize with every sincerity…!"
"……Someone who is truly, sincerely apologizing doesn't describe themselves as 'humble-ing themselves and apologizing.'"
"Silence! You—you owe me a debt! Who was it that raised you with the utmost care until you were seven years old!?"
"Yes, and I hold equally strong resentment. Who was it that treated me so horribly after I turned seven that it broke my heart?"
Thrown back at him in exactly the same tone, Zenos fell silent once more.
Ermes returned his resentful glare with a clear, transparent gaze—one that seemed to carry no particular emotion, and for that very reason simply reflected the other person's own image back at them.
To Zenos, it looked as though Ermes were mocking and looking down on his fall from grace—the exact look he himself would have worn, had their positions been reversed.
In the end, that must have been what he could not endure.
"—Enough! I was a fool for trying to show you mercy! Spend the rest of your life as a commoner—go wherever you like!!"
Ermes had no idea what "mercy" he was referring to, but the words of rejection were unmistakable.
"……Very well. Then."
Ermes gave a slight bow and turned toward the door.
—Addressing the person he knew would be waiting there.
"—Your Grace. Thank you for your patience."
"Oh, all done already?"
"…………Excuse me?"
A cool reply came through, followed by Zenos's startled shout as the door swung open.
From beyond it stepped a slender man with neatly groomed purple hair.
"Tra—Trackia!?"
"Hello. It's been a while, Marquis Frenbreed."
"What—what business do you have!? I'm in the middle of a private conversation with my son!"
"Ermes judged that conversation to be over, so I came in. Was he wrong?"
The man—Yurugen—approached Zenos with his usual nonchalant air.
"Now then, business. …Naturally, I'm here to put you on trial. Minister of Justice Yurugen von Trackia, at your service."
"!!?"
His expression shifted in an instant, and he leveled a gaze so sharp it could cut at Zenos head-on. Zenos drew a sharp breath.
"T-trial!? For what, exactly—"
"Oh, come on—you can't seriously claim you have no idea. Embezzlement, extravagance, abuse of authority, illegal trade. All the things you've done while hiding behind His Highness the Second Prince's power—and to top it all off, you injured Baron Hartmann's daughter and tried to pin the blame on Katia."
"!! Th-that was His Highness's—"
"I'm afraid His Highness is currently being prosecuted himself. In truth, he no longer has the kind of influence he once did. You'd best not count on escaping either."
While Ermes and Katia had been on the run, Yurugen had been working tirelessly behind the scenes. With every piece of evidence he had gathered, he was now closing in on Zenos.
"Ermes—from the look on your face, I think I can guess—but you won't be returning to this household, correct?"
"That's right."
"Good. Then I won't hold back. …Come along, will you, Marquis Frenbreed? The crimes you've committed are utterly unforgivable. Your territory will almost certainly be confiscated, and you yourself will lose your title—and all the rights of nobility that come with it. I'd even advise you to prepare yourself for imprisonment as a criminal, because at the very least, that is precisely what I intend to do."
"!!"
"Had Ermes chosen to return, his accomplishments might have earned you enough clemency to keep your noble status… but personally, I'm rather glad it came to this."
Only now did Zenos finally understand.
The conditions Ermes had offered moments ago—that was the absolute limit of his mercy.
"Could it be you didn't realize? Did you truly never consider that you yourself might face criminal charges?"
"E-Ermes! I—I was wrong—"
"Now, now—pleading for help at this point is against the rules. I knew you'd try it, which is why I had Ermes take care of his business first."
With strength that belied his slender frame, Yurugen effortlessly restrained Zenos as he tried to cling to Ermes.
"Come now, Ermes. The ugly proceedings from here on are adult work. I've had a carriage waiting outside. You should go."
"……Thank you. I appreciate everything."
He cast one final glance at the pathetic expression of his father begging for his help, then turned his back and closed the door.
In the home where he had once been exiled, at the very spot where he had once been expelled—Ermes now finally said his farewell.