The second chance of the uncrowned king - (Isekai)

Chap 38: First tournament? - Enjoying the local fair part 4



I can see Edd caught in a stream of thoughts, trying to respond properly to the situation. But I have nothing to lose—this is still my moment to speak.

"Hi, I'm Maki, a colleague of Edd's." I have to hold back a chuckle to maintain my composure—and the seriousness of the moment. His wife's face isn't helping; it clearly says, How can a child be working with my husband?

"You work with Edd? Aren't you a bit too young?" Her confusion shows not only on her face, but also in her words. I can't keep up the act any longer.

"No, Glady. He's not my coworker. He's the son of Baronet Jarrid." The shift in her expression nearly makes me burst into laughter. I saw it go from confusion, to surprise, to slight panic.

"My apologies, young Lord Maki." I stop her before she can bow.

"I'm just enjoying the fair like everyone else. No need to treat me differently because I'm a noble." Not wanting to bother the couple any longer, I order something similar to a hot dog and take my leave.

"Do you know them?" Sol approaches me as I return.

"Yes, I know the man. He works at a construction site in town. Thanks to him, I got my first job." The words come out naturally, but the look on her face tells me I shouldn't have said that last part. A noble working at a construction site?

"At the time, he didn't know who I was. He was just being kind when he saw me standing there watching."

"Sol's not judging you, Maki. She's just a bit surprised to hear that the son of a Baronet worked in construction," the Baron clarifies. He had been speaking with my father just a moment ago—I didn't expect him to step in.

I give Sol a few more details, and she seems to understand better. Cris has been listening quietly the whole time; his ears are with us, but his eyes are scanning the crowd.

"Cris, are you looking for something in particular?" I want to help my friend—two people searching are better than one.

"Some new game. So far, I haven't found anything we haven't already tried." His competitive spirit doesn't die—it only grows stronger.

We try a few new food dishes. Training my Imra emptied my stomach, and I'm starving again.

Hours pass without anything particularly exciting—just the fun of a family at a fair. Now we're heading toward a show at an improvised theater set up in a corner of the fair.

The show is quite entertaining. It tells the tale of how the first Marquis Timal defeated a beast-type monster, similar to a jaguar but with fox-like fur. According to the story, it was a grade-six beast. That same location later became the marquisate's capital city.

The founder of House Timal had an affinity for wind mana, and according to records, most of the family shares that affinity, though there are exceptions.

We keep looking for some new kind of game for our ongoing competition, but in the end, we give up and return to the game where it all started—archery.

After a close and exciting match, we end in a tie. This time, it wasn't six arrows but ten each. I scored 41 points, and Cris matched me exactly.

"A tie..." Cris looks down, a bit disheartened. I, on the other hand, am happy with the draw—after all, I won all the other games.

"Let's go eat burgers. I overheard someone saying there's a food stall with the best ones in the fair."

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My dad steps in with a suggestion, seeing how disappointed Cris looks. That single sentence lights a spark in him. I didn't know this about him—seems the young noble really loves burgers.

And my dad was right. The burger is absolutely delicious—definitely among the top three I've ever had, including the hundreds from my past life.

"That was amazing." Cris is satisfied, rubbing his belly and savoring the memory.

"You're such a glutton. You had two burgers after everything else you've eaten." Sol glares at her brother, clearly judging him.

"If I want to grow strong, I need to eat a lot." Cris quickly defends himself and ignores Sol's complaints. Just typical sibling banter—it reminds me of Ritmo and Sers. I wish I could've enjoyed a fair like this with them too.

We rest a few minutes after eating before continuing our little tour. In the end, we visited everything. By unanimous agreement, we head back home. We've enjoyed enough, and it's clear that the other people weren't entirely comfortable around us. They either acted overly polite or avoided eye contact altogether.

We're all sitting in a room—except for my grandmother, who excused herself for something important.

"Son, Camux mentioned your interest in participating in a tournament." Huh? I do recall mentioning that to the Baron, though it's not a deep desire. At most, I think it might be fun to meet talented people. Even though I'm not that interested, I decide to play along.

"Yes, father. My only concern is my age." I don't want to bring trouble to the family from higher-ranking nobles just because of me.

"I understand your concern—and the solution is simple." Simple? "We never officially registered you in the empire's records. All nobles know of your birth, of course—we just didn't do the paperwork. We did the same with your siblings; they were only registered when they entered school."

Wait—what? I don't exist? At least not to the empire?

"Don't be so surprised. It's common. People usually register when they move to large cities, but it's not mandatory—it's a personal choice." Thinking about it, it makes sense. If power is inherited and there are no elections, criminal organizations surely avoid registering, and I doubt there are cameras in this world to take ID photos. There's no real reason to keep a strict count of the population.

"So you could easily lie about your age when registering. You just write your name and a fake age. Simple, right?" My father's contagious smile makes it seem like it really is that easy.

"If that's the case... I guess I could participate in one soon." I'm not that enthusiastic, but I give in to the pressure.

"Sol will be in a tournament soon. We actually moved the trip up for this reason. We're heading directly to Primaver for the tournament for newly awakened youths. You could come with us—what do you think?" Camux looks at me with a triumphant expression. So this was part of his plan all along—bringing it up earlier left me with few options.

"That's a wonderful idea, Camux! Maki should go with you. What do you say, son?" My father is looking at me, hopeful for my answer.

My mother looks thoughtful—she doesn't seem opposed, though she isn't entirely convinced either. She'll likely accept whatever I decide. Sadly, my only potential savior—my grandmother—isn't here.

Sol is glowing with excitement, and Cris simply nods in agreement. I see no way out of this.

"Sure, I'll go with you and participate in the tournament like Sol. It's not a bad idea." I resign myself to it. I'm not thrilled, but I don't have anything against it either. I'll just try not to embarrass my family or cause any trouble.

Everyone cheers up at my positive response. Somehow, my dad and Baron Camux already have beer in hand, celebrating my decision to join the trip.

"Mother, where is Primaver?" I'm sure I've heard the name before, but I don't remember where.

"It's the capital of the entire marquisate, Maki. By carriage, it's a journey of many weeks. You'll probably head to the Baron's city first and then use the teleportation point."
Mother knows I lack this kind of knowledge—she answers my question and even explains the options.

I didn't know about teleportation. According to her, it's quite expensive and considered a gift from the government once someone becomes a Baron, though it can only be used a few times a year due to its cost.

As she said, Camux explains that we'll travel by carriage and then teleport.

The marquisate's capital?
Sounds exciting. It'll be my first time in a big city. I'm more motivated by the chance to explore than by the tournament itself.

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't at least a little excited. It does sound thrilling, even if I'm not big on the idea of competing.

I hope I'll meet talented people and get to measure my strength against others across the Timal marquisate.

The night passed quickly until bedtime. My parents and the Baron stayed up chatting, while all the kids went off to their rooms to rest.

"It'll be a great experience." Letting out a sigh, I try to convince myself to focus on the positives of joining the tournament.


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