Chapter 12. Hehehe. Yes, you look expensive at a glance (2)
The Saber Tiger's hide was spread out long in the reception room of the lord's mansion.
And Patrick said.
“So, how much do you think this is worth?”
The man who was asked the question was Lawrence, the butler who had been managing the Schneider family's finances.
Lawrence was astonished to see the Saber Tiger's hide spread out, filling the reception room.
“This…. Did you catch this, Young Master?”
“Of course.”
“Isn't this a Saber Tiger?”
“I know. It's expensive, right?”
“This can't be…. Hohoho….”
Lawrence knew that Patrick was an extraordinary genius.
After all, he knew the fact that he had crushed Brian and beaten the two hundred soldiers of the fiefdom like a pack of dogs.
But this was on another level.
To think he would catch a Saber Tiger….
He barely managed to calm himself and said.
“The condition of the hide is truly top-notch. I don't know what you caught it with, but there are no holes or cut parts at all.”
“I beat it to death with my fists.”
“Hahaha. A pleasant joke, sir.”
‘Right. Don't believe me. Don't believe me.’
In any case, what was important was the condition and price of the item.
“So, how much can I get for it?”
At Patrick's question, Lawrence made a troubled expression and said.
“There are merchants who periodically visit our fiefdom to purchase monster byproducts. However….”
“However?”
“We have never sold an item of such high value. Usually, it was just kobold hides or the crude iron weapons that goblins carry.”
“Hmmmm….”
“We will have to negotiate with the merchants to know the detailed price. This is not an item that I can appraise.”
“Can't you even estimate a rough price?”
“No, sir. The item itself is not readily available on the market.”
“Right. So that's how it is.”
The Saber Tiger's hide and fangs were far more valuable items than Patrick had expected.
If so, it would be a waste to just dispose of such an item.
‘To sell an expensive item at a high price, one must create the right situation for it.’
As Patrick was having such thoughts, the door opened and someone came in.
“Patrick! You rascaaaal!”
“Fath—er and Mother?”
The moment he saw the two people who opened the door and entered, Patrick flinched.
He had known Baron Schneider would come.
But he hadn't expected his mother to come as well.
At that moment, Baron Schneider said with a face full of anger.
“You rascaaaal!”
“Ah, why? Why are you getting angry right away?”
“Are you saying you don't know what you've done wrong?”
“Yes.”
Baron Schneider ground his teeth at Patrick, who had a very calm expression on his face, as if to say, ‘I really don't know.’
Then he pointed to the Saber Tiger hide in front of the butler and said.
“That thing. That!”
“What about it?”
“Are you really asking because you don't know?”
“Ah, I said I don't know. Just tell me frankly. Nagging me by saying, ‘You know your sins,’ without getting to the point is the twenty-fifth thing I hate.”
My kid sure hates a lot of things.
Baron Schneider, who was having such a thought, gritted his teeth and said.
“How could you think of fighting a Saber Tiger unless you were mad? A person who is the heir to the fiefdom doesn't know the value of his own life and dangerously hunts monsters!?”
“Ah! That? You were worried about that?”
Patrick nonchalantly dug his ear with his little finger and said with a calm expression.
“You don't need to worry about that at all, Father.”
“What do you mean?”
“Think about it. Why is monster hunting dangerous?”
“Are you asking because you don't know? That's obviously….”
“Because people are weaker than monsters, right?”
“…That's true.”
“Right. But I'm strong, aren't I?”
“Umm….”
“I caught the monster because I'm stronger than it. What's the problem?”
At Patrick's words, Baron Schneider momentarily thought, ‘Is that so?’ but soon came to his senses and said.
“No. No. That's not it.”
“What else?”
“You are still young.”
“But I'm strong.”
“Even a skilled knight can die fighting against a monster.”
“That's because they're X-suckers.”
“Keeeeuk….”
At his son's words, who retorted without missing a beat, Baron Schneider finally grabbed the back of his neck.
How could the words and actions of the one and only heir to the fiefdom be no different from a back-alley thug?
He swore he had never taught him such words, so where did he learn them?
As a parent, he couldn't help but feel a sense of self-reproach, thinking, ‘Did I really raise my child like this?’
To that Baron, Patrick said with perfect composure.
“So don't worry. I'll take care of everything.”
“Patrick Schneideeeeer!!!”
“What is iiiiiiiit!!!”
Here is a son who doesn't back down one bit.
At that moment, an elegant noblewoman with a slender figure stepped in between the shouting father and son.
“Now, both of you, calm down for a moment. Calm down.”
She was a woman of such beautiful looks that one would believe her even if she were called a goddess.
Snow-white skin and lustrous brown hair.
A woman who exuded a jewel-like radiance, even though she wasn't wearing an expensive dress.
Who would think of her as a child's mother and the wife of a rural Baron?
Patrick's mother, Ava Schneider, was dazzlingly beautiful.
And above all….
‘She's healthy now.’
Thanks to consistently practicing the Aura Blessing that Patrick had passed on to her, she had also become completely healthy.
Thanks to that, her beauty blossomed even more.
Such a woman stepped in between her husband and son.
“Darling.”
“Hmph, what is it, dear.”
“I know you are worried about our child, but please don't be so angry. We already know that Patrick is a special child, don't we?”
“That's….”
He knew.
A ten-year-old kid beat up a 2-star knight, so of course he had to be special.
But he didn't know his personality would be this ‘special’ too.
To the sullen-faced Baron Schneider, she said in a gentle voice.
“Patrick must have his reasons. Let's trust our child for now and listen to what he has to say first.”
At his wife's calm and logical words, Baron Schneider's anger subsided for the time being.
And she then turned to her son with a soft smile and said.
“Patrick.”
“…Yes, Mother.”
Unlike his father, who he had gotten quite used to because he resembled his Master from his past life, his mother, who poured unconditional love and devotion on him, was still a difficult person for Patrick to deal with.
To the cautiously replying Patrick, she said.
“Since you're the one doing it, there must be a reason.”
“That's right.”
“But don't you think it's wrong to handle things on your own without even telling your father, who is the lord and person in charge of this fiefdom, what it is?”
“That's because Father is….”
“Father is?”
“…well…. because he's Father.”
He wanted to say, ‘because he's a pushover,’ but looking at his mother's loving gaze, he couldn't bring himself to say it.
And even if Patrick didn't say it, Baroness Schneider already seemed to have guessed his words.
She smiled softly and said.
“I'm sorry that we are such unreliable parents.”
“N-…. No, Mother.”
If you apologize for that too, it makes me the bad guy, doesn't it?
To Patrick, who was thinking that, the Baroness delivered an additional blow to his tiny little conscience.
“But son. Can't you trust us just a little bit? We are your parents.”
“Yes…. I know.”
“No matter how amazing you are, you're still just a ten-year-old child, aren't you?”
“Well, that's….”
“Are we so unreliable that our young son can't even open his heart to us, let alone act spoiled?”
“No, that's not it….”
“Then can you tell me your inner thoughts honestly?”
Patrick bit his lip hard.
This is why having a severed meridian constitution is a cheat.
Once you cure it, your appearance becomes beautiful, your insight greatly matures, and you become smart.
As she pointed things out one by one logically and came at him from a parent's position, Patrick found it difficult to deal with.
‘Haaaah. It can't be helped. I was trying to proceed without Father knowing.’
He had no choice but to confess everything….
“So, you see. First of all, the first reason I'm hunting monsters is for the safety of the fiefdom.”
“The safety of the fiefdom?”
“Yes. The biggest headache for our fiefdom is, after all, the monsters that attack the residents. I believe that by regularly patrolling the area around the fiefdom and dealing with the monsters in advance, we can reduce the damage to the residents.”
“Hmm…. But isn't that what the soldiers were doing? It's not something for you to do alone.”
At Baron Schneider's words, Patrick sighed and said.
“Father, do you really think the soldiers can do that job? The soldiers who can't even catch a troll, the weakest of the large-type monsters, and can only manage to chase it away.”
“That's….”
“If the Saber Tiger I caught this time had entered a village, what could the soldiers have done?”
“…….”
Baron Schneider shut his mouth.
It was a Saber Tiger, no less.
Even if he mobilized Brian, whom he had demoted, and had all the fiefdom's forces attack it, he was not confident they could stop it.
Patrick looked at Baron Schneider and said.
“As you know, Father, I am currently training the soldiers. And if they complete my training to the end, the soldiers will undoubtedly become stronger.”
“I know that.”
It was the lord, Baron Schneider, who had given Patrick permission to train the soldiers.
It might be strange for a ten-year-old kid to train soldiers, but at the point where he had crushed the knight Brian, such things were meaningless.
And Patrick said.
“The soldiers will become stronger, but it will take time. And during that time, there is a high possibility that the soldiers will not be able to guard the fiefdom's borders properly. Therefore, it is most efficient for me to patrol the area around the fiefdom alone and hunt monsters.”
“If that's the case…. wouldn't it be better to take at least a few soldiers with you? They'd be more help than nothing, wouldn't they?”
“No. At our soldiers' current level, they would just be a hindrance.”
At Patrick's firm denial, Baron Schneider was slightly hurt.
What lord would be happy to hear that his fiefdom's soldiers were weak?
At that moment, the Baroness, who was standing beside him, said.
“But son. The fact that you skinned the Saber Tiger and brought it back suggests that it wasn't just for the safety of the residents, doesn't it?”
“Yes. As you guessed, Mother, I intend to earn some money with the byproducts from hunting monsters.”
“I see. I thought so.”
The Baroness said as if she had expected it to some extent.
And the Baron Schneider next to her said.
“Son. Our fiefdom is not so poor that you have to worry about money.”
“No, Father. We must grasp the situation coolly and accurately.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean we must look at reality accurately. To put it bluntly, our fiefdom is dirt poor.”
“It's not that dirty….”
“Then shall I say we're broke?”
“…….”
Aren't they both the same thing?
To the Baron, who was thinking that, the Baroness next to him said with a smile.
“Hmm, he's not wrong.”
“As expected of you, Mother. You grasp the situation accurately.”
Unlike my pushover father?
He wanted to say that too, but he held back, afraid he would be scolded for being rude.
‘Ah, I'm too nice.’
It was a preposterous remark that would make several people spit blood if said out loud.