After I died, Everything Changed - Chapter 43

* * *

There was good news at the estate.

Just as Chloe had said, Nehrzhu had returned.

“He sure knows how to make an entrance.”

I stood near the front gate, watching Nehrzhu and his entourage loudly announce their return.

It was hard to tell whether he’d gone off to study or to trade—two large wagons trailed behind him either way.

Many from the estate rushed out to greet him warmly.

“Nehrzhu, have you been well?”

The one who looked the most delighted was, of course, Chloe.

You’d think he’d just come back from a battlefield.

Even Abel—who actually had returned from war—didn’t get this kind of welcome.

Then again, he’d been busy burying me at the time.

I glanced across the crowd to where Abel was standing.

Grandfather stood beside him, hands clasped behind his back, quietly watching Nehrzhu.

“My Lord, I hope you’ve been well.”

Nehrzhu bowed respectfully to Grandfather.

Standing beside him, Chloe quickly chimed in.

“Doesn’t he look so thin? You wouldn’t believe how hard he’s been studying.”

“…I see. You’ve had a long journey. Go get some rest.”

“Yes, Grandfather.”

That was all Grandfather said before turning and walking away.

As Nehrzhu watched him go, his gaze shifted—straight to me.

It had been a while.

That same defiant look in his eyes hadn’t changed.

“Have you been well?” I greeted him.

At my words, Nehrzhu instantly frowned.

“I suppose I’m not welcome, then.”

Did he really hate Irene that much?

His reaction was so openly hostile, I had to wonder.

It reminded me of how Abel had confronted me the moment he returned to the estate.

“Still, welcome back, Nehrzhu. To the house of Mergen.”

I spread both hands slightly, offering a formal, almost theatrical welcome.

Whatever deep-seated inferiority Nehrzhu had about the Mergen name, it wasn’t my concern.

“Come on, let’s go inside, Nehrzhu.”

Chloe gently tugged at his arm.

In the end, Nehrzhu turned and walked away without so much as a single word in return.

So much for family warmth.

I had expected the estate to get noisier once Nehrzhu returned.

What I hadn’t expected was that I’d underestimated him.

“This isn’t your room. Did you forget the layout while you were away?”

Nehrzhu was louder—and far more irritating—than I remembered.

“Unbelievable. The idiot Irene actually has her own office now?”

He had stormed into my office uninvited and was now casually flicking at the ornaments on display like a spoiled child.

“Please don’t touch that! You’ll break it—oh no!”

Karlin looked completely flustered by the sudden appearance of this walking disaster.

So the first thing he does upon returning to Mergen… is threaten me?

It seems even the Royal Academy had failed to teach him anything useful.

“Even back at the academy, people were talking. Word was that Mergen had started to fall apart.”

“…”

“If they’re leaving the family’s affairs in your hands… well, that says everything, doesn’t it?”

I quietly set the quill I was holding down and looked straight at Nehrzhu.

* * *

A familiar flash of silver hair caught my eye.

Like Abel, Nehrzhu was tall and striking.

Compared to Abel, though, his eyes slanted up just enough to make his gaze feel sharper—almost cutting.

He used to have a few endearing qualities when he was little.
Now? He was nothing more than a spoiled, arrogant brat. Not even a little less.

“Got something you want to say?”

“Hah. You used to flinch just making eye contact with me. Now you’re staring me down?”

A hundred ways to deal with him flickered through my mind.

Honestly, a good slap might be the fastest.

“Do you not like my eyes?”

I idly played with the tip of my quill, watching Nehrzhu’s every move.

“It’s you I don’t like. You’re creepy. You give me the chills.”

Yeah, he’d definitely come just to pick a fight.

“And look at that. Sitting in a spot I haven’t even been given yet.”

“So… you want the office?”

I tried to figure out what exactly had him so riled up.

Irene used to be just as invisible in this family as Nehrzhu.
Now, she had an actual office, authority… no wonder he was bitter.

“And what’s with your tone? You sound just like Deborah.”

Right. That would be me.

“You’ve only picked up the worst parts of her.”

Let me correct that again.

Yes. I’m that miserable Deborah.

“If there’s something you want, why don’t you go out and earn it?”

“Earn it? Please.”

Nehrzhu let out a loud, mocking snort.

“Grandfather’s birthday is coming up. You could always start by picking out a thoughtful gift.”

His brow twitched—just slightly.

Looks like I had his attention.

“Are you getting him something?”

“Of course.”

“Hmph! Then I’ll prepare something way better than whatever you bring.”

“…”

Where this sudden competitive streak came from, I didn’t know.

But at least I’d successfully redirected it away from me.

“Go for it. Do your best.”

When a child’s fixated on something annoying, the easiest fix is to toss them something shinier.

Clearly, Nehrzhu hadn’t grown up much.

I watched him bounce away with exaggerated confidence, and gave him a small wave.

“There. They’re coming.”

Abel stood at the front, armored and ready, with his knights behind him in formation.

“One war ends, and another kind of hell begins.”

One of the knights muttered as a wave of monsters approached.

Mergen’s vast lands bordered areas where the creatures had started to reappear.

Long ago, there were three powerful families known for protecting the world from these beasts:

Mergen, who drew strength from the forest.
Bahel, who commanded the sea.
And Lutetia, blessed by the skies and chosen to rule.

When the world had been overrun with monsters, it was these three who brought peace.
They formed a pact to protect the continent, and from among them, Lutetia took the throne and became emperor.

As centuries passed, their powers faded, becoming little more than myths.
Still, Mergen guarded the land.
Bahel ruled the seas.
And Lutetia upheld order.

So now, with monsters returning to the land, it was Mergen’s duty to face them.

“Feels like the end times… Seeing something out of legend with our own eyes.”

“…Maybe it is.”

Abel tightened his grip on his sword and swung it at the approaching beast.

Slash!

A spray of green blood splattered onto the ground.

“But if this is all they’ve got, they’re no real threat. These things are barely more than animals. Just proves the stories were exaggerated.”

The knights made quick work of the monsters.

These low-level creatures, hardly more evolved than wild beasts, weren’t much of a challenge.

“Don’t drop your guard. This is only the beginning.”

“Yes, sir!”
“Understood!”

The knights answered with firm voices.

Abel, still expressionless, pulled his blade from the monster’s fallen body.

Drip. Drip.

Thick, sickly green blood ran slowly down the sword’s edge.

He stared at the blood staining his hand…

Then curled his fingers into a tight fist.

“…Something’s definitely beginning.”

The wind blew.

But in that wind… there was no sound of the forest.

Grandfather’s birthday was just around the corner.

He had asked for a smaller celebration this year, saying the family had faced enough trouble lately.
But, as always, the estate was bustling with preparations.

“Even with all the noise from the party prep, Nehrzhu still manages to steal the spotlight.”

Arms crossed, I watched as Nehrzhu swung a sword around out in the open for everyone to see.

How was he always the center of attention?

What had he even learned at the academy?

“Hyah!”

He really had no self-awareness.

Even with everything the estate had gone through recently, he acted like nothing had happened.

In this, he couldn’t have been more different from Abel.

“Well? Impressed with my swordsmanship?”

“You’ve improved a lot, Lord Nehrzhu.”

He puffed up even more at the praise, looking like a bear performing tricks.

While I was still watching, our eyes met.

Nehrzhu grinned and swaggered over, proud as ever.

“You saw that, didn’t you?”

“…Well, with all that noise, it’s harder not to notice you.”

“So? Pretty impressive, right? At this rate, I’ll be earning glory in battle and becoming a hero like Abel soon enough!”

“You want to be like Abel?”

“Wh—! Like him? No way! I just… want to be useful too, that’s all!”

“Hmm.”

So Nehrzhu thinks Abel is cool.

“Do you even know what war is really like?”

“What’s with that arrogant tone? As if you know what war is!”

“How would I? I’m just Irene Mergen—the kind of girl who knows how to embroider from the safety of her room.”

“Tch. And yet you act like you’re something special. My uncle says you’ve gone mad, but I guess you do still know your place.”

Nehrzhu really was an amusing one.

Well—maybe not a child anymore, technically, since he had grown taller than me.

“Actually, speaking of the party… how about you go out and bring back a wild boar for the feast?”

“…What? A boar?”

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