I've Inherited the Summoning Skill, So I'm Going to Try to Master It! - Episode 143: In Other Words, Keep Moving Forward

Episode 143: In Other Words, Keep Moving Forward 

I had somehow (?) managed to finish my greeting with Mother. I stumbled out of the salon, completely drained. It seemed like Brother Leonard was feeling the same way—his usual youthful aura was nowhere to be seen. 

“Brother Leonard, I’m going back to my room.” 

“That’s a good idea. I was thinking the same.” 

We exchanged glances and nodded at each other. What exactly was Mother planning? I had no idea. I just hoped that whatever it was, it wouldn’t involve me. If it had to involve someone, let it be Brother Leonard. 

As soon as I returned to my room, I called everyone over. I needed my fluffy companions to heal my weary heart. 

While they gathered, I filled Balt and Ray in on what had happened with Mother. 

“I have no idea what she’s thinking.” 

“Mothers are beings who care more about their children than anything else. It is the same for you, Master. And for your elder brother as well.” 

Lagios narrowed its eyes as I scratched under its chin. It seemed to like it. Meanwhile, Cayenne tilted its head in curiosity. 

“However, Young Master, your brother left the castle without Mother’s permission, correct? I have a bad feeling about this.” 

“Cayenne thinks so too~! Me too, me too! I have a feeling something fun is about to happen!” 

“Stop it, Tia. Don’t jinx it.” 

When Tia says something is going to be “fun”, that usually means someone is about to be pranked. This time, it looked like Mother was going to pull something on Brother Gilliam. Would he be okay? I really hoped this was the kind of thing that could be laughed off later. 

“Pii-chan!” 

“Bear.” 

“Yeah, I know. There’s nothing I can do about it at this point.” 

“I think it would be wise for you to focus on not causing any more trouble, Rufus-sama…” 

“Hey, Balt! I mean, you’re not wrong, but could you phrase it a little differently?!” 

It’s not like I wanted to blow up mountains, discover ancient ruins, or create pseudo-magical ore! 

Mother hadn’t said anything about it earlier. But using that unknown magic tool probably wasn’t a good idea either. If word of that reached His Majesty… 

Yikes. That thought alone made me want to dive under my blankets. But I hadn’t eaten dinner or taken a bath yet. 

As I rested in my room, a servant came to inform me that dinner was ready. Apparently, tonight was a small banquet to celebrate our safe return. 

However, there were no other guests. The dining room we were led to was reserved exclusively for the royal family. 

“Apologies for being late.” 

“Think nothing of it. You must be exhausted from the long journey, Rufus.” 

Waiting for us inside was His Majesty, smiling brightly, and Mother… who looked like a Tibetan fox with completely dead eyes. 

What happened? What *exactly* had happened? I was afraid to ask. 

Mother looking like that meant something serious had gone down. 

As I hesitated, Brother Leonard arrived. He glanced between His Majesty, Mother, and then finally, me. 

“Rufus, what did you do?” 

“I didn’t do anything!” 

How rude. If we had arrived in reverse order, I would’ve thrown that question right back at him. Truly a shame. 

Dinner began. Instead of a course meal served one dish at a time, all the food was already arranged on the table. That was unusual. 

Once the servants had finished setting the table, they left the dining room. The only people present were members of the royal family. The guards were stationed at the doors. 

“Now then, let’s begin our meal. A toast—to Rufus’ accomplishments!” 

“…A toast to Rufus’ accomplishments.” 

“Uh… a toast.” 

“Wait, what? A t-toast?” 

Why were they toasting to me? I had no idea. But Brother Leonard was looking at me like, “I knew it was you all along.” 

I swear I’m innocent. 

As dinner continued, I enjoyed the familiar taste of the royal palace’s cuisine. It had been a while since I last had it. And it was as delicious as ever. It seemed I was becoming a true member of the royal family—my taste buds were getting more refined. 

“Rufus, I heard you made quite a few discoveries in Liberia?” 

“I suppose you could say that.”

“I would love to hear all about it.” 

Ah, I see. So *that’s* why Mother had those dead-fish eyes. It seemed that the recent ancient ruins investigation had been an earth-shattering revelation for His Majesty. Even Mother hadn’t been able to stop it. 

No, wait. Maybe she had actually told him, “You can talk about it all you want during dinner. But for now, get back to work.” That seemed like the more likely scenario. 

Just in case, I glanced at Mother’s expression. She gave me a nod. Looks like she had already approved of this discussion. Well, in that case, I guess it was fine. 

Dragging Brother Leonard into it with me, I started explaining our findings regarding the ancient ruins. The part that got the most attention was when I mentioned “finding Demons using a tablet.” Naturally, it wasn’t just His Majesty who was interested—Mother was as well. 

When I explained that the nearest Demons were at the far western edge of the continent and posed no threat to the Kingdom of Eladoria, Mother visibly relaxed. 

If she had heard that we actually fought Demons, she might have fainted on the spot. Though in reality, Lagios had taken care of them in an instant. So we hadn’t even seen them ourselves. 

…Honestly, at this point, wouldn’t it be fine to just leave everything to Lagios?