Chapter 4: Count is leaving

His stepmother looked at Lily for a few seconds, and then she smiled.

"Lily, is that our little Leon?" She had a bright smile as she came closer.

’Your little Leon? How? You did not birth me, woman. Do not come closer.’ Leon shot her a dirty glare, but she did not see that. She simply got closer and leaned in.

"I really hope both of our kids can be real brothers when they grow older," she said with a smile.

Lily looked at her with a soft smile as well. "I hope so as well," she responded before turning to enter the dining room. It was a pretty large dining room.

The floors were made of glossy marble, the entire place scented with old burned wood, flowers, and lots of food. Leon was salivating already, but he knew that he could not eat now as a child.

His eyes wandered fast, eager to see who was there and get an understanding about the family scale. His eyes landed at the head of the table, where the Count sat.

He was a man that demanded respect even in his silence. His posture spoke volumes about his character and who he was. Black hair that framed his face, sharp eyes and jawline, clear skin, and a massive frame.

’Well, that’s one good-looking father if I do say so myself.’

His eyes drifted to the rest of the table. He saw three girls seated. One looked to be ten, the other eight, and the last no more than four at best. The eldest one had blood-red hair, which let Leon know that she was his stepsister. As for the other two, they had brown hair, which meant they were his blood-related sisters.

"This dude’s genes did not even put up a fight," he thought as he looked at the Count. His mother walked to the chair and had her seat right beside her youngest daughter, while the first wife took the chair opposite the head chair of the table, showing her stance as the first wife of the family.

The maids came out a few seconds later and began dishing out the food, while the babies simply watched. Leon looked at his half-brother for a bit. He was quite literally a baby and had no real importance to him now, so he turned his attention to the Count.

He stared at the Count for a long while until the Count had no option but to speak.

"He is staring at me," he said while looking at Lily. She smiled and responded. "That’s how he is. He is sharp and attentive. This is his first time seeing you, so he is trying to get accustomed to your face."

"Hmm, I see. That’s good then. Make sure he grows to keep that. A sharp eye is needed as a noble," he replied and faced his food.

The first wife squeezed on her fork when she heard that interaction. She forced herself to calm down and focus.

’Well, I have learnt a few things from here already, and that is, my father is a nonchalant asshole, my stepmom will probably try to kill me in the future. Hmm, that’s something.’

"I’ll be leaving soon," the Count said. He raised his head from his food and looked at everyone. They stared back at him.

"Leaving to where, my lord?" The first wife asked.

"To battle. The demonic beasts have been making major moves over the past months, and the emperor has ordered that we handle this situation. As one of the sword masters and a noble, I have to show up.

"It may take a few seasons before I return, or maybe even a few years. I have set everything so that our territory can run fully well while I am gone, so you do not have to worry.

"I shall be leaving after breakfast. I held up on the news for as long as I could, but yesterday night, I got a letter from the emperor that said to drop all and come join the fight."

He explained in detail what was happening.

’I could not understand all of that, but I understood the part about demonic monsters. They were what happened when monsters mixed with demonic energy, used by demons as their pets.

I thought they were wiped out after the archmage did all that to save the world. Guess they are still around.’

The whole table went silent for a moment as they finished hearing what the Count said. There was no stopping him at all. This was a command from the king, and he had to answer to the king no matter what.

Breakfast ended faster than it normally would, and when it was done, the Count headed out to get into the carriage. The whole family followed him outside. Two carriages were there waiting for him, one to act as a decoy. His own personal guards were with him as well, and they entered the first carriage after he did. A few other knights entered the decoy carriage.

Over fifty fully armed knights were with him as well, each one carrying the crest of the Count on their chest, the face of a leopard engraved into the metal.

When everyone was ready and on their horses, two figures stepped out as well, both draped in full robes, an older lady with white hair and a middle-aged man. They were both the mages that belonged to the Count.

They bowed to the two wives before walking past and entering the carriage as well.

’I’m guessing those are my dad’s mages. I wish I could see some of their magic before they could leave so that I could learn it,’ Leon thought as he watched the carriage start moving and all the knights on their horses followed. In a few seconds, they left the large compound and vanished from sight.

The moment they were gone, the first wife turned around and walked in, her daughter followed her in.

Leon’s sisters stayed beside their mom, but then she asked them to go in. They listened and went in while she began strolling around the compound.

"You have not gotten the chance to see your home properly, so I’ll let you see it today, my little Leon," she spoke in a calm voice while walking through one of the paths.

Leon saw knights training in the training ground, their swords clashing against each other as they honed their skills.

They kept moving until Leon spotted someone doing something that caught his attention fully.