This Bastard is Too Competent

Chapter 32: I Will Prove It

“The new star of Kaistein, Prince Ian, the Seventh Prince, is entering!”

At the announcement of the attendant, Ian leisurely and proudly walked toward the ceremony hall.

The nobles looked at him with astonished eyes.

"What? Wasn’t he a serf?”

He came from a humble background, so they thought he would not be able to walk properly.

But this was beyond their expectations.

Ian's steps were as confident as a royal should be, and he was acting faithfully to the royal etiquette.

It was so perfect that they couldn't even find a flaw in him.

Not only that, his skin was fair and smooth as if he only ate good food.

But it wasn't just Ian's appearance that surprised the nobles.

The person who showed up next to him.

“His Excellency Duke Lavaltor is entering!”

It was no wonder that everyone's eyes widened in shock.

Lavaltor and Garcia were natural enemies.

But the Seventh Prince, who was under Garcia’s wing, entered the hall with his enemy.

“Wh-what? We are obviously in charge of the Seventh Prince…!”

The nobles’ eyes quickly turned to Garcia. In particular, Heinley, the second son of Duke Garcia, was yelling in agitation.

"Father! How the hell did this happen…”

But he couldn't finish his words.

‘If I talk to him now… I will die.’

Duke Garcia's face looked the same as usual. But the atmosphere Heinley felt was completely different.

‘You will even kill your own son without mercy.’

Even the nobles around them swallowed back their saliva at the sharp aura, but this was still a very serious matter.

They shuffled silently and whispered.

“What happened? Duke Lavaltor…!"

“That’s what I’m saying. Why is the person who supports His Highness the Second Prince with the Seventh Prince…”

“Then, does that mean Duke Lavaltor is joining hands with the Seventh Prince?”

"What?! Why would he? The Second Prince’s power is still as strong as ever, isn’t it?”

“But if that’s not the case, isn’t it strange that the Second Prince is not present in a place like this…”

“Then maybe…”

The nobles gasped and turned to look at Duke Garcia.

However, Duke Garcia had a completely different idea.

‘There's no way that fastidious wild boar will engage in politics like this.'

It must have been the trick of Ian, the Seventh Prince.

And as he was thinking so.

“Ah, there you are.”

Before he knew it, Ian had arrived with Lavaltor.

***

Ian looked at the Duke and smiled broadly.

It was only natural.

‘You must be furious.’

Ian knew Garcia's expression well. He had always been cold-blooded, but when he got extremely angry, he became even more cold-blooded.

That was Garcia's true face.

Any ordinary nobleman would have to be careful not to catch his eyes.

But Ian was different.

‘It’s worth waiting for Duke Lavaltor on purpose.’

It was already a well-known fact that Lavaltor was an upright man. And Ian took advantage of this trait.

He was a chivalrous man, especially to children and women.

Then, Ian found Duke Lavaltor and his son about to enter the hall.

After all, their entrance was right after them by order.

Ian approached them.

“Duke Lavaltor, correct? It's my first time attending an event like this, so I'm worried that I might make a mistake with the distinguished guests. Is it alright with you if we enter together?”

Duke Lavaltor seemed to understand Ian's intentions right away.

As Ian was currently a minor, he was to enter with his attendants. Of course, the best thing was that duke-level aristocrats followed along with the royal family.

In the past, it was often seen in the legitimation ceremonies of young princes and princesses.

But Duke Lavaltor refused to do so. He knew well what it meant to enter with Ian.

He had an unpleasant look on his face as if telling Ian to ask Duke Garcia instead of him.

However, the eldest son of Duke Lavaltor stopped him.

“Alright, we will enter with you, Prince.”

Unlike the upright Duke Lavaltor, his eldest son possessed a flexible mindset.

He seemed to have a plan of his own. Anyway, Ian was able to enter with Duke Lavaltor as he wished.

In the meantime, Lavaltor's eldest son whispered to Ian.

“So, when do you plan to visit my father?”

“I will visit him as soon as the ceremony is over.”

He was aware of the promise Ian had made with a Lavaltor knight in exchange for the Second Prince’s life.

Hearing Ian's promise to visit them, he smiled.

“This time I am helping you, but next time you will have to convince my father yourself, Prince.”

This was the mistake of a knight belonging to the Lavaltor family. He even laughed at whether the price of Chris' life was enough.

Ian was pretty amazing.

‘Strange. It was never like this before.'

Neither Duke Lavaltor nor the attitude of his eldest son was what Ian experienced in his first lifetime.

Anyway, it wasn't a bad thing.

He was simply entering with them, but there were several benefits just by doing so.

One of them was.

Murmur.

The nobles were murmuring in their own respective places. This was to show them that he was not Garcia's puppet.

Ian succeeded in showing them that he communicated enough with other nobles.

‘It was difficult in many ways because they thought I was being held tight by Garcia.’

There was not a single noble left to help him at the crucial moment.

And another benefit of it…

"It surprised me, Your Highness."

It was simply to provoke Garcia.

Of course, it wasn't just to offend Garcia.

To make sure they couldn’t hide in the corner as in the past, he needed to create a situation where they had no choice but to engage in an all-out war.

‘The more they move, the more I can use them. I might find out the secrets they hid in the past.'

And Garcia couldn't stand Lavaltor being in the center of attention.

It had always been Duke Garcia's wish to have his family become the number one family in the kingdom, be it in the past or the future.

It was unknown whether he was aware of Ian's real intentions or not.

Concealing his thoughts, Duke Garcia smiled as if nothing had happened.

But the same couldn’t be said for the other duke.

Fwip.

Duke Lavaltor left immediately.

It was apparent at a glance that his mood soured as if being in the same place as something disgusting.

Seeing that, bloodthirst spewed from Garcia’s eyes.

But it was only for a moment, and then Duke Garcia said, “You two seem to get along well. Did you contact him secretly?”

“How is it possible? We met at the entrance.”

“…”

Garcia's cold eyes scrutinized Ian.

"Is that so? So, what do you think of Duke Lavaltor that you have seen in person?”

“He certainly deserves to be called the best in the kingdom.”

In an instant, the air around him chilled.

Eventually, Heinley couldn't stand it anymore.

“Say the truth!”

"What?"

“How could you be so disrespectful in front of my father—”

“My dream when I was younger was to be a knight. I’m just saying that it was cool to see the knight respected by even the royal knights in real life. Do you have any problems?"

Heinley was about to explode in anger. The Duke replied indifferently.

“The prince is right. He is undoubtedly the best knight the royal family has.”

"Father!"

“You cannot say what's right is wrong. Garcia is on an equal footing with Lavaltor. Never forget that fact and pride, Heinley.”

The Duke flashed a thin smile as if he didn’t mind it.

Knights might look cool in the eyes of young kids, but Garcia was different from Lavaltor in essence.

Unlike Lavaltor, Garcia had the power to make what was right wrong.

Money moves the mare, after all.

No one could argue the truth in front of his gold coins.

But the Duke could only swallow back his words. Then he smiled at Ian.

“You are broadening your knowledge by meeting many nobles. It’s reassuring for me as well.”

“Then I will have to meet more nobles as you said.”

‘Brazen lad, aren’t you?'

At Ian's bright smile, Garcia burst into laughter.

It was because Ian, who was watching as if there was a tug-of-war between Garcia and Lavaltor, was cute.

But.

‘Can he keep up his act in the presence of His Majesty?’

He didn't say it on purpose, but this place was actually a test from the king.

Although the scale had grown, it was a place where a rather more sober judgment should be made.

As the Duke thought so.

“The one and only sun of Kaistein, His Majesty Eloin Kaistein is entering!”

Ian's eyes changed at the voice of the chamberlain.

***

Eloin Kaistein.

He was indeed a man of dignity worthy of the throne. When the king entered, everyone stood up and bowed their heads.

“I greet the sun of Kaistein.”

In an instant, the atmosphere of the ceremony hall changed.

But the impression Ian felt as soon as he saw him…

A bored lion.

Even though he had great power, he was an absolute figure who never moved first.

He even appeared to be yawning in boredom because there was no one worthy to deal with.

Ian went before the king and fell to his knees.

The king propped his chin at the sight and commanded.

“Start the ceremony.”

The nobles whispered softly as the chamberlain approached Ian.

“Oh my, he looks so much like His Majesty. Especially those golden eyes.”

The royal family was startled by those words.

Ian's brothers. They were handsome and beautiful and each had their own charms, so they were wary of their younger brother's appearance when they saw for the first time.

Ian's appearance resembled the king more than they thought. The golden eyes were akin to the sun.

But they didn't show their displeasure.

“Are you saying that kid is my brother? I heard he cut off Second Brother's arm. It’s not that big a deal, is it?"

“It would be better not to look down on him, Little Brother. Our youngest is quite a rascal.”

As the others were about to retort what the Third Prince said.

Beep—

A blue light lit up in the [Blood Identifier Device].

The chamberlain bowed his head toward the king.

“Your Majesty and Prince Ian are of the same bloodline! Congratulations, Your Majesty!"

The expression of the brothers changed at that cry, and the king nodded lightly once as if it was a natural result.

Duke Garcia had meticulously prepared this. There was absolutely no way to lie and present a fake.

The nobles made a bored expression.

As the power of the nobles grew stronger, the authority of the royal family fell a lot as compared to the past, but the king of Kaistein was still a monarch they could not recklessly disrespect.

They just found it regrettable to miss the opportunity to see the wrath of the monarch.

“In the end, it’s like this. A new prince has been born.”

“Then, today’s event will be over once he gets the seal, right? Let's go for a drink. We'll be busy for a while."

But something was strange.

“What is the chamberlain doing? Why doesn't he bring out the royal seal?"

“Are there any more ceremonial events left?”

“That’s absurd.”

As everyone fell into confusion.

“You who claim to be the bloodline of Eloin Kaistein.”

“!”

Everyone was startled by the voice from the throne.

It was none other than the king who opened his mouth. But his words were not over yet.

“Will you prove your blood through the trial?”

The nobles and royals doubted their ears for a moment at the familiar phrase.

There’s no way they didn't know what that pledge meant.

‘That can't be…!'

In particular, the expressions of the successors in the royal seat changed drastically.

‘Don’t tell me, the treasury…!’

At the same time, the nobles were also buzzing.

"Trial? Is he going to take the trial right now?”

“Isn't it only possible for children recognized by His Majesty to challenge the trial? So does that mean he has already been acknowledged?"

"Oh my God. Even the Third Prince, who was said to be the earliest, challenged the trial when he turned 16…!"

Lavaltor and Garcia also narrowed their brows and looked at Ian.

It was still too early for Ian.

In fact, some of the princes were against it.

For a long time, they had barely managed to get the approval of their father to enter that place. And their father was about to give it to the kid who just finished his legitimation ceremony.

It wasn't only that.

The thing he obtained from the trial would also be a problem.

This trial, an event akin to a representation of one’s future, was a place where the worth of a royal would be evaluated. The evaluation would be different depending on what was brought from inside.

The usual standard would be to bring ancient relics.

For example, an item left behind by the first king of Kaistein. Those who brought it had become such great figures that they left a name among the successive Kaisteins.

Just like Eloin Kaistein before them.

Then the king glanced at the <Seal of Trials> in Ian’s hand and asked.

“Will Ian Kaistein prove his qualifications?”

The royals crumpled their faces and looked at Ian.

Of course, Ian didn't deserve it, and they believed that that little kid couldn't even accept it.

But.

“I will prove it.”

The royal family held their breath at Ian's words.

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