I, reincarnate as the leader of the villainous knight order

Chapter 40: The Reason for the Summons

After what seemed like a slightly closer bonding time for the Albert elder brother and son during snack time, I headed to the main mansion’s kitchen.

The purpose, of course, was for seasoning improvements.

As soon as I peeked into the kitchen, I could sense tension among the cooks.

“Relax, everyone. I brought notes on the seasoning that was well received in the Marquis de Taleraan’s border territory and the capital. Want to see?”

There are about thirty servants from the Vandière Marquis’s household, and three cooks handle their meals. The head chef, perhaps because I’ve been working at this mansion since I was a child, cautiously approached me while glancing at the notes.

“I’ll take a look.”

The head chef skimmed through the notes and blinked a few times, then looked at me.

“Where were these written? I’ve never heard of using herbs like this before.”

“These were written by the cooks in the Taleraan border territory, but I’m the one who came up with them.”

“Huh?”

“I’ll guarantee the taste, so please at least make use of this for my portion. Of course, you can taste it and serve it to everyone, that’s up to the head chef. Also, please make this for Albert’s children later; they liked it when they tried it.”

“Y-yes…”

Handing over another memo, the head chef glanced at it, then gave me a vague response with a bewildered look on his face. I understand. He probably didn’t expect me to show such concern for the children.

“Alright then, I’ll leave it to you.”

After handing over all the memos, I left promptly, as they must be busy preparing for dinner. Next, I headed to Father’s office, as I hadn’t clearly heard the reason for being summoned back.

If it’s about refusing the peerage, a letter would have sufficed. Moreover, if it was about what we talked about during lunch, there wouldn’t have been a need to summon me specifically. Standing in front of the second-floor office, I knocked on the door, and the steward opened it and stepped out.

“Ah, you’re here after all. The master is waiting for you.”

If they were waiting, they should have just called me in. What exactly are they thinking? As I entered, the steward brewed tea and placed it on the table in front of the desk. Sitting on the sofa, Father also took a seat opposite me.

“You know what this is about; you came to hear the reason for the summons?”

“Yes, as you know, the Third Knight Order is not idle. I’d like to finish the discussion early if there’s anything, as I want to head back to the capital tomorrow.”

To be honest, I’d prefer to finish this conversation and head back to the capital right away. I wanted to play with Alexei and the others a little longer.

“Hmph, you’ve changed a lot. When I first heard about it from the letter, I couldn’t believe it.”

“A letter? From whom?”

“From the Marquis de Taleraan. And also from His Majesty. Surprised? That I’ve been in contact with the Marquis?”

“To be honest, yes.”

Could it be that there was a complaint about your son causing trouble for their daughter? “From the lords you went to for rescue missions, I usually receive reports. They pointed out issues in the Taleraan border territory and apparently improved them. At first, when you arrived at the border territory, you seemed restless, but after about a month, you seemed to have changed. One of the reasons for summoning you back was to confirm if the change in you was real. Yet I heard you were put on trial and was disappointed…”

“I just wanted to make sure you weren’t causing any more trouble for the Marquis’s family, that’s all? Oh, but you mentioned one of the reasons… Well, better make it clear so I don’t get involved in anything strange.”

“Well, considering the past, it’s understandable that there would be suspicions. But from now on, I think those kinds of concerns will disappear, so please continue to leave things as they were. With Albert and Cyril as well as Alexei, there shouldn’t be any problems even if I’m not around, right? You can just consider me a non-entity.”

I said calmly and took a sip of tea.

“That won’t do. You’re a member of the Vandière Marquis’s family. …Several marriage proposals have also come in.”

“Cough! Cough! Cough! Cough! Cough!”

Oh, that was close. If I had heard a bit sooner, I would have sprayed tea all over Father’s face!

Was this the real issue?

“What’s so surprising? Despite some behavioral issues, it’s not strange for those who heard about your achievements in the Taleraan border territory to take notice. I couldn’t believe it when I first heard, but seeing you now, I’m convinced.”

“Cough… I find it hard to believe that there are fiancées willing to accept me, knowing my past behavior. I don’t want to be forced into an engagement against my will by my parents.”

I thought Father would furrow his brow at my words, but he just tilted his head inquisitively.

“What are you talking about? Among your siblings, you have the most favorable appearance. There may not be any fiancées openly expressing their admiration for you, but there’s quite a bit of popularity behind the scenes.”

“Who said that…?”

“It’s Caroline. She’s good at socializing, after all.”

“Mother!?”

I had thought she had no interest in me whatsoever, so it was surprising to hear that she had such information. Maybe she just happened to overhear it.

“Oh, she was proud that you were born resembling her. So the family that made the proposal…”

“No! I’m not ready to get married yet. Besides, isn’t Cyril still unmarried? Let’s think about it after Cyril gets married first. Right now, I’m busy re-educating those Third Knight Order guys, so marriage is out of the question.”

In noble society, I am certainly of marriageable age, but now that I remember my past life, I think it’s fine not to marry until around thirty. The person who will be my wife will surely have many chances to meet them.

I need to discipline them first so they won’t be scared when that time comes. As it is now, they would definitely tease and torment her out of curiosity or try to be mean to her.

“I see… Then I’ll decline those proposals.”

“Yes, please. Tomorrow, I’ll head to the capital after breakfast.”

“Understood.”

Since it seemed like the conversation was over, I left the office feeling relieved internally.

But I’m glad Cyril is still single. I could never tell him that though.