"The Talented Dragon Hides Its Claws" ~ The Eldest Son of the Baron Family, Called Useless, is Actually One of the World's Strongest ~ - Episode 4

“Huh!!”

The coachman cracked his whip with a shout, and the carriage carrying the head of the household finally began to cross the bridge in question.

The carriage rattled and shook, but the head of the household and the others paid it no mind, instead getting worked up over their insults towards Ryu.

“Hey, hey, Lord Gray, by the way, what is the eldest son of the baron family doing now?”

“Ah… that useless guy, huh? He’s been doing nothing but playing outside the house every day without making any effort since forever. He’s probably still playing tag with wild boars in the forest right now, isn’t he?”

“Pfft, ahahaha!!”

The lord, having had some drinks, was in high spirits and continued to curse.

“Hehehe. There’s no way I’m letting him inherit the family headship…”

However, at that moment.

Boom!!!

A dull impact sound echoed.

「「「？？？」」」

Soon, the voices of the knights could be heard from outside the window, but…

“Master, the bridge is about to collapse! Evacuate immediately!”

Crack crack crack!!!

That was instantly drowned out by the sound of the bridge collapsing.

The carriage and the knights, unable to do anything, surrendered themselves to gravity.

Of course, the heads inside are no exception either.

“Ahhh!!!”

“Lord Gray, help me!!! I don’t want to die!!!”

“Get out of the way!! You’re in the way, you damn bitches!!”

First, I need to get outside or I’ll die! Somehow, just me…!

The lord pushed the women aside and desperately tried to get outside, but there was no way to move properly inside the falling carriage. Still, he struggled and somehow reached the door, but in the end, he couldn’t open it.

The last scene the lord saw from the window was the majestically towering canyon, with a cold expression looking down from above…

Ryu??? Could the culprit really be him!?!?!

“Ryuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu”

The carriage was violently slammed onto the water’s surface, and the sound echoed through the valley along with the lord’s dying scream. In an instant, the corpses and debris were swallowed by the muddy torrent, becoming mere flotsam in the river.

At that time, as for the actual culprit, Ryu…

“Oh, that made quite a nice sound.”

I was leisurely watching the scene from above the valley.

“Well, I do feel a bit sorry for anyone other than that bastard father and his mistress, but this is also a necessary sacrifice.”

In this cruel world, it is utterly impossible to save everyone. It is best to coldly cut off anyone who is not someone you absolutely want to protect. If you show hesitation every time, you will inevitably be betrayed.

Ryu muttered that and turned on his heel.

Such lightning surged from his fist.

That evening.

Ryu, as usual, returned home to the old mansion with his prey slung over his back. After greeting his mother and sister and handing the ingredients to Sebas, he took a bath.

Up until now, Sebas and Ryu haven’t had any particular conversations about the plan. The fact that Ryu is living his life as usual means, in other words, “that’s how it is.”

After that, while the three of us were having a meal in my mother’s room…

“Iris-sama!!! Ryu-sama!!! Rena-sama!!!”

Sebas entered the room with a flustered expression.

My mother asks calmly.

“Calm down, Sebas. What happened?”

“Earlier today, around noon, a carriage inspecting the territory was caught in the bridge collapse…”

“Y-yeah”

At this moment, the three of them swallow hard.

“It seems that a total of seven people, including the baron, have lost their lives.”

「「「！？！？！？」」」

I was astonished by the sudden event.

“Wha, what… that person…?”

“Hey, Dad…”

“Father…”

As for Ryu, Iris has loved Gray for many years and they have had two children together, so even if she is being treated this way now, her sorrow will outweigh her anger when he passes away. Lena, who is gentle like her mother, also has a somber expression.

Sebas continues.

“Currently, an investigation into the perpetrator is being conducted just in case, but according to the village chief near the bridge, the possibility of collapse due to aging is very high.”

“Indeed, even before we were driven here, there were frequent discussions among the locals about the bridge repairs…”

“Considering the current situation, it seems that the Baron has not been active, has he…?”

“One could say it’s karma, but this is just too sudden.”

You are absolutely right.

A few minutes later.

“Are you both okay now?”

“Yeah. Sorry for getting all worked up.”

“I’m calm now too.”

“Then, let me talk about the future.”

Ryu took a breath.

“To put it bluntly, now that Dad is dead, the head of the family automatically passes to me. It’s a rule in the Arden family that the eldest son takes charge.”

“That’s correct.”

In the empire, there is no ridiculous law that requires the head of a noble family to always be a man. Some families have been succeeded by men for generations, while others have been succeeded by women. Additionally, there are families that operate on a merit-based system regardless of gender. In short, the decision regarding these matters is left to each family. In fact, the current emperor is a woman.

In the case of the Arden family, it has been a tradition for generations that the male heir succeeds. However, Ryu originally wanted his mother to take over. Considering her health, he reluctantly chose to become the head of the family himself.

“So, let’s all go back together. To ‘our true home.'”

At those words, everyone nodded in silence.