Chapter 2: Chapter 2 : Jar that Leaked Water

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I’m fucked.

That was my first thought as I sat down at the table, my legs shaking nervously under the table as I forced a smile onto my face. My heart pounded like hoofbeats, almost leaping out of my chest. With my hands clasped on the table, I cast a quick glance across at the man sitting opposite me. He was a middle-aged gentleman with a classic Van Dyke goatee around his mouth and platinum hair styled in a pompadour, but it was his oppressive crimson gaze that suffocated the air and made me feel as if an invisible noose was tightening around my neck. I gulped, feeling a sense of fear wash over me.

Glancing to the left, I saw two males seated at the table, one my age and the other slightly older. The younger boy had a slender frame and unruly black hair, his brows angled downward and a scowl etched on his face. His lips moved slowly, making a silent clucking noise. The older boy, on the other hand, was emotionless. His neat side part and pale complexion gave him a ghostly appearance, and his hollow crimson eyes seemed to bore into my very soul.

Turning my gaze to the right, I noticed a young girl and a woman seated across from me. The woman, dressed extravagantly in a navy blue frock with frills, arched an eyebrow and turned away. The girl, however, cocked her head, and to my surprise, her previously perplexed face lit up with a radiant smile. Those red eyes seemed to follow me wherever I went.

A low voice echoed. “Is there something you want to tell me, Lucas?”

I quickly turned my attention to him and straightened my spine, steeling myself for what was to come. “No... Father,” I replied.

For a brief moment, silence reigned.

Allistair resumed his speech. “I have requested all of your presence this morning in order to make an important announcement. The day after tomorrow, I'll be leading our main troops to southern borders, to Greia, as per Kaiser's order to guard against those vile barbarian's forces. Without my presence here, I'll delegate guard duty to Lucius.” He turned his head to the expressionless teenager.

"Yes, Father. As you wish," Lucius replied, his tone flat.

Not a second later…

“Father!” The black-haired boy shouted. “Give the guard duty to me instead of Lucius! I’m stronger than him. Besides, I’ve already formed my second mana circle.”

The kid's outburst caught my attention. Mana, if I remember… was a supernatural force that existed in this world. Simply said, a fuel for magic.

While this body was naturally gifted with a big mana pool, the eventual discovery of his flawed constitution at the age of five had quashed whatever possibility of utilizing his only talent. To summarize, his defective constitution had made it impossible for him to store mana permanently within his body.

The hired priests that failed to heal his constitution all labeled him as a jar with leaking holes—or in other words, magicless. After this incident, his life had flipped from being a prospect prodigy to a loser in one night. Basically, a mundanity in Arrendhart’s family, a family full of accomplished magic warriors for generations. However, this didn’t mean my life was or would be peaceful in the future. Lucas himself knew that too. In fact, not being able to use magic made it harder for me to become a wallpaper character.

“Leon, I’ve made my decision.” Allistair’s voice interrupted my thoughts.

"But-" Leon tried to speak up.

"Enough!" The man's roar echoed through the air. No one had ever dared to challenge the iron will of Allistair von Arrendhart, especially not a man with five diamonds on his epaulet and unfathomable strength. But it was strange, I couldn't help but wonder how Lucas had managed to kill him in the novel. A magicless brat like him killing a supreme magic swordsman seemed far-fetched. And that damn author, with his lack of details and endless plot holes, couldn't even instill a basic sense of logic into his writings!

Allistair continued, ignoring Leon's disapproval. "I hope the rest of you continue your magic and knight training while I'm not here. Especially you, Lucas. Don't disappoint me." As he finished speaking, his ominous gaze landed on me.

I swallowed hard, meeting my father's gaze. "Yes, Father. I won't," I replied.

What a terrifying man.

After that, there was an awkward hour of silence punctuated by the occasional clatter of silverware on plates. As the master of the house left, everyone got up from their seats, ending what I could only describe as the most uncomfortable breakfast I've ever had in my life.

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“Brother, it appears father has a soft spot for you after all,” a honeyed voice rang seconds later.

“Lilia.” I faced her. “I don't know what you mean.”

This is bad. Without the slightest memory of the original Lucas while I was in his body, I had to be careful with every word I said. Screw whatever god spawned me here in this world.

Her eyebrows drew together into crescents as she said, “I guess magic was not the only thing you lacked.”

In the corner of my eyes, I saw Leon approaching us with his hands firmly in his pockets. As he neared closer, I realized that his eye color was golden hues instead of red. This led me to believe Leon and Lilia were siblings born of the black-haired woman. That woman, too, had golden eyes.

“Lilia. Father would never do such a thing. Especially for a scumbag like him,” his lip curled. Cynical apparent on his face. “After all, everyone in this house knows he still couldn't make a single mana circle! A defective product, unworthy of Arrendhart's blood.”

In all honesty, I couldn’t recall Leon being mentioned at any point in the book. While the novel's official timeline began when Lucas was eleven, which was three years from now—the only other siblings mentioned were Luther, Lucius, and Lilia. A good guess would be that he's dead, sometime in the next three years.

Right then, an icy palm dropped onto my left shoulder. Lucius towered over me at least by a head.

“Leon, both you and Lucas are the same age. It's best if you all can get along. We're all brothers, anyway.”

“Brothers? Lucius, you ought to know that your blood is the most tainted out of all of us here!”

No wonder this brat died before me. The snobbery in his attitude surprised me.

“My blood may be murky, as you say, but father seemed to trust me more than you, Leon.”

The hue of Leon's cheeks deepened as he clenched his teeth, his fury mounting. With a fierce slam, he threw open the door and stormed out of the dining hall.

Lilia, meanwhile, hid her slender lips behind her hand. "You are as cold-hearted as ever, brother Lucius," she said before also departing the room.

"Lucas," Lucius called my name, leaning in close to my ear as I turned to him. "Beware the shifting shadows," he whispered before slipping out of the room like a wraith.

I was left standing alone in the grand, muted blue dining hall, my mind awhirl with confusion at Lucius' cryptic warning. My servant George stood by the entrance, his usual somber expression unchanged.

I took a few steps forward, drawn to a mural painted on the tapestry on the wall. It depicted a solitary white wolf, its head standing out against the pastoral landscape of meadows. A glint of red caught my eye, causing my thoughts to wander.

In just mere 4 hours, I had become Lucas and transmigrated three years prior to the novel's timeline. To top it off, almost everybody in this house was at each other's throats, and most importantly, I might be in constant danger simply by breathing.

Another sigh escaped from my mouth.

Please, give me a break! I just want my comfortable life back!

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• Aeir (Main fiefdom of Arrendhart). There are other fiefs under Arrendhart's rule.
• Sarkaz (Southern barbarians)

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