Chapter 3: Chapter 2- The Duke Grimm

Raise a glass for the light of Havern, Sword Sorceress Aisha Grimm!”

“Aye Aye!”

“Ah! She’s so pretty! To stand within even a yard of her presence is an honor in itself! An icon of greatness to all women!”

“Such a noble saint! It makes you jealous of the duke!”

“Jealous? Don’t make us laugh! The duke could never hold a candle to his sister! Could one even compare such a fly to a beautiful swan?”

Tch. I could hear you idiots you know!

Just because I don’t possess her kind of power doesn’t mean I don’t have power! Lest I remind you that I am the man that nurses this city!

Nonetheless, they aren’t completely wrong. It’s a fact that I do not hold any power that is comparable to that of my sister.

With honesty, it makes me envious. Full of jealousy and anger. 

However, as the duke of this city and the owner of the responsibility of everyone that lives here, I mustn't plague myself with such childish thoughts.

To the best of my ability, I can only properly manage this town as my sister rakes in funds as the breadwinner of the family.

Deciding that I had enough of the just hatred directed toward me, I traveled back to the mansion I call home.

What greeted me were loyal servants all around. Fortunately, a majority of the workers here have been employed in the household nearly as long as I’ve lived, so they have a sense of the truth and compassion for me.

“Your bedroom has already been made ready, my lord.”

“Thank you.”

I trust that my servants have already gotten accustomed to my schedule and have been working to fit so.

“Ah, my lord! I am afraid the papers you ordered for your office have just arrived, so you’ll have to postpone your bedtime. And again, I apologize.”

“That’s all right Henry.”

Henry. My most trusted servant who has been working since my father was a teenager.

I quickly reviewed the papers that were left in my office and headed for sleep.

The next day, I found an unsightly beginning to my day.

“Hey there, brother!”

“Oh. Aisha…”

“Hm? What’s this? You don’t seem pleased to see your sister after 2 grueling months?”

“What are you rambling about? Look at my face- I’m so~ happy to finally see you again.”, I responded with a sarcastic line.

My sister’s hair which would usually be tied into a ponytail had been let down as a sign of comfort and familiarity in her home.

“Is father well?”

“The two of us already know that answer as much as everyone else in the household does.”

Our conversation while walking toward my office was interrupted by my hand as it pointed toward the door that sealed my pathetic excuse of a father.

It has been years since our father has taken any actions as the man responsible with the title of duke, so in his stead, I was forced to take his position and care for our beloved city of Havern.

Nowadays, father only ventures outside to relieve himself or to gather supplies for seclusion. In his room, he wraps himself up in depressing literature and a hobby of painting with only a pencil.

Since it’s been like this for a while now, the people resorted to relying on me and my sister in his stead.

Aisha and I had to pick up the torch that my father ungraciously threw away when our mother…

When our mother died years ago.

Besides my father, I mentally suffered the most in the wake of her demise.

I was closer to her than my sister, and so when she passed away, I had gone into a state of depression similar to our father.

But when my sister awakened as a ray of hope- I decided that even without any power such as Aisha’s- I too, have to put the past behind me and focus on the path that lay ahead.

Since then, the two of us have been managing the dukedom, though only scraping by.

“Unfortunately, I cannot stay here long.”

“What a tragedy!”

“Stop it, brother. I’m being serious. I have to leave for the meeting between the guard commanders.”

“Ah, that’s right- you’re special now!”

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My sister kept a stern face before she left with the usual parting words.

“Once more- I entrust Havern to you brother.”

She then strolled toward me and-

Bonk!

“If you hear anyone insulting you, let me remind you that you have the authority to take it as an insult against the entire Grimm dukedom and that you have the power to punish those as you see fit.”

“Yes, yes. Goodbye now. See you, who knows when~”.

“Goodbye for now Ashford.”

And so, she left with her dignity and left behind an air of awkward silence.

***

After Aisha left, I took it upon myself to see to her words properly. 

I took care of the daily quota before tending to the more significant problems.

The increasing need for resources in the dry lands to the east, the rising presence of monsters in the mountainous areas to the north- and the civil unrest taking place here in the city.

Ever since the honor of the Grimm family disappeared with a war that took place a decade ago, the state of Havern has deteriorated.

Currently, I am the only one trying to repair the wall that stands between Havern and ruin. 

Even if I don’t possess any extraordinary powers, I still have the power of the dukedom, along with authority over the Grimm territory as the only competent Grimm in Havern.

It’s my duty and mine alone to bring the family back up to what it once was.

Once it had gotten late, I decided to take some time to relax after a day of hard work.

After I inherited control of the household, I monopolized the one room in the manor where I felt the most comfortable and warm inside: the library.

As a child, books were my greatest companion.

While my father was absent, books had become his substitute, and I had obtained my intelligence from each word on each delicate paper held together by leather, stored away delicately on rows and rows of shelves.

As Duke Grimm, the library has become as heavenly to me as my bedroom.

Literature is my life and I intend to cherish it for life.

For the first time in nearly a week, I entered the library that I had devoted nearly all of my childhood to and breathed in the familiar scents of wood and old leather-back and paper-covered texts. 

This is the place where I could clean myself of doubt, regret, and fear.

I’ve read about nearly every book in this library-

Except for one.

That one empty slot where a book about two inches thick should be.

A book that’s been missing for years.

I’ve only seen it once. In my father’s office. 

Of course, that office is now mine. However, I could not find it there either.

The only place it could be…

If it is where I think it is, then I would probably never be able to get it for a while.

The person who would most likely possess the book is not someone I continue to concern myself about.

The only times I see him he is unrecognizable with an unfamiliar scruffy long beard with unkempt hair.

Looks like the legend shall continue…

 That’s right. The case of the missing book is so infamous amongst the household that it’s become a legend that’s spread even to the city.

Just then, the sound of a door being opened intensely intrigued my ears.

“M-My lord! I apologize for intruding but I’m afraid I have news!”

“That’s alright. If it’s urgent then that is enough reason.”

“Y-Yes. As for the message sir- it’s your father.”

“He wishes to see you immediately.”

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