Duke Tain's first child? Who was that again?

In his previous life, Tain's ducal family had faithfully kept their children low-key until Yuder's death, so his memory of the children was exceedingly faint. It wasn't a situation where noise erupted like in the case of Apeto's succession, nor was it a house closely connected with Emperor Katchian like Diarca's family, so it was all the more so. It was only after Yuder had fumbled with his memory for quite some time that he succeeded in recalling that Duke Tain had about four children.

...but I don't think the successor was a duke's child.

According to Yuder's memory, Duke Tain's successor was a Duchess. Even though usually the first child takes the position of the successor, there were plenty of cases like Lenore Shand Apeto from his previous life where the younger children became the successor, so it wasn't that strange.

Did he die young? Or did he give up himself?

Either way, it was impossible to know now, but Yuder was extremely curious as to why the Duke's first child, who did not become the successor in the previous life of the Tain's ducal house, had come this far at this time.

Yuder tried to recall more about the first child of the Tain family but finally gave up and left the room. Heading towards the reception room where the members often gathered, Ever jumped up to greet him.

"Yuder! Did the conversation end well?"

As most of the members had gone outside, the reception room was quiet. Yuder opened his mouth to answer after confirming the absence of the servants from the Willhem family.

"Yes."

"Nothing went wrong, right?"

"The Tain's family side is showing interest in me and told me to think about it," he said.

He had easily violated Willhem's instructions to not tell even the Commander why he had come.

"From the Tain's ducal family? Is everything okay?"

"It's something the Commander already anticipated. I have no intention of accepting it, so it's fine."

Ever, who had probably guessed why they were showing interest in Yuder, did not remove her furrowed face even after hearing it was fine.

"Still... be careful, Yuder. Don't forget to report to the Commander as well."

"Yes."

"I have to go to the security management team in Tainu now."

According to Ever, all the guards and knights staying in Tainu were at a place called the security management team, where they imprisoned and decided the punishment for the criminals.

"Have you found a way in?"

"When I asked the Commander for permission, he said I could use his name freely. So I'm planning to go there on the pretext that the Commander wants to hear opinions related to the knight murder in Great Sarain Forest and take a look at the prison."

"That's a good plan."

"Isn't it? I realized thanks to the Commander that to do this kind of work well, one must act as brazenly as possible."

Ever grinned.

"It would have been reassuring if Yuder had come with me, that's the only regret."

After Ever left, the annex felt even emptier. Yuder moved to Enon's room, looking for him, who had not come out to the reception room. As expected, he was inside his quarters.

"Are you taking a rest today and not following the Commander? Is your body feeling that unwell?"

"..."

Hearing the words spat out as soon as he saw his face, he realized that rumors spread incredibly well. Yuder briefly explained the anomaly in his body's condition that had started the night before.

"I've been having a fever since I took the medicine you gave me."

"I told you that would happen. Is it because your body temperature has risen too much?"

"It's not that kind of fever."

"What fever is it then, if not that one?"

Seeing that the other party was about to measure the temperature, Yuder raised a hand to stop Enon, who was approaching. He hesitated rarely, looked down towards his stomach, and muttered,

"When my sexual desire surges... I keep feeling this kind of heat."

"...What desire?"

"Sexual desire."

Enon lowered his hand again. He looked at Yuder with a skeptical expression, as if he was extremely dubious about what he had just heard.

"...That symptom shouldn't occur just because you took it, should it?"

"Are you sure?"

"I can't completely guarantee it, but usually, that's the case. Do you think I would give you something containing an aphrodisiac?"

Yuder, who had been believing that the fever and strange dreams he'd had since yesterday were somewhat caused by the medicine, kept silent for a moment. He didn't think that Enon was lying, but there could be unforeseen consequences, even unknown to the one who caused them.

"So, is there a chance that I had a strange reaction because my physical condition is different from that of ordinary people?"

"If I knew that, I wouldn't be listening to this nonsense!"

Enon, raising his voice in anger, grabbed Yuder's clothes and forcibly sat him down. After measuring the heat of Yuder's neck and forehead, he declared with a scrunched-up face that there was currently no problem with Yuder's body temperature.

"Your body temperature is normal, but do you still feel that heat?"

"No, I don't feel anything wrong right now."

"What about strength recovery or other aspects?"

"My strength seems a bit more restored than before I ate, but my eyes still can't see."

"Okay, so when did you feel this sexual desire?"

Yuder, once again drawing out a moment of silence, opened his dry lips.

"Do I really need to discuss this?"

"If you felt it towards me, don't tell me."

"It's not that."

Enon, who had wriggled the end of his lips upon receiving a firm answer, took a deep breath.

"That's a relief, but if you're claiming that sudden sexual desire arose due to the medicine I gave you, you'll have to explain why, when, and how it happened. Eh? Do you think I want to hear such a thing? I need to know to judge if there's a real problem!"

He was right. In the end, Yuder had to provide a proper answer.

"It happened when I encountered a specific person. And... it also happened after dreaming in the morning."

"What kind of dream? An erotic one? Did that specific person even appear in it?"

Although it was not something that could be explained lightly, Enon's expression wasn't entirely wrong. Yuder fell silent, and Enon furrowed his brows even more.

"...Is it true?"

He uttered in astonishment, then fell silent for a while.

"...Let's make this clear. It's not because of the medicine. It might feel that way if your body temperature rises more than usual when you're excited, but it's not acting as an aphrodisiac. That's certain."

"But before this, I never suddenly felt a surge of heat or had such dreams."

"I'm not sure if I have to be the one to tell you this, but humans tend to react that way when a target for their sexual desire appears, even if it's unexpected."

"...Who says?"

"Who cares who? Anyway, your condition proves it, doesn't it!"

"But before..."

"Just because it didn't happen before doesn't mean it must be the same this time. The guy who claimed he'd change the future is now refusing to accept that he himself has changed and is blaming the poor medicine!"

At such a direct statement, Yuder closed his mouth.

"Anyway, such things don't just happen without any signs. You should recognize that yourself and deal with it appropriately. I can't heal you from such a problem."

"...I understand. I've properly grasped that the medicine isn't the issue, so I'll handle the rest on my own."

Yuder stood up from his seat.

"Hold on. But you, that person you're talking about..."

Enon, who had been mumbling, lowered his voice as his eyes met Yuder's and eventually stopped speaking. He stared at Yuder without blinking and, moments later, let out an exasperated yell, tousling his hair.

"No, never mind. Go, just go."

"Why are you acting like that?"

"I'll dislike it if I'm right, and I'll dislike it even more if I'm wrong. Get out."

The door closed roughly in front of him. Staring blankly at the closed door, moments later, it opened again, and Enon forcibly placed several pills in Yuder's hand.

"Take these!"

"You should tell me what these are."

"An aphrodisiac suppressant."

And the door closed again. Yuder looked down at the pills designed to be swallowed without water and placed them in his pocket.

Kishiar's residence was still unoccupied by its owner. However, in his stead, there stood an unknown and uninvited guest who had been waiting. As Yuder returned to the dwelling, the visitor opened his eyes wide and stood upright.

"Are you Yuder Aile?"

"Yes, but... who are you?"

Yuder examined the stranger warily. He appeared to be about the same age as him but was a bit taller. Seeing the golden-red hair and much darker crimson eyes than Kishiar's, he felt as if he somehow knew who the person was.

"I am Pruelle van Tain. I came to ask about joining the Cavalry."

There was only one person who could have the surname van Tain and appear so suddenly. Yuder looked at the first son of the Tain family, whom he was seeing for the first time in both his previous and current life, and thought that today seemed to be a day filled with unexpected encounters.

"...Did you come alone by any chance?"

"Did you wish me to bring my servants? I thought it would be more convenient to talk if I came alone."

"No."

Yuder, who was looking at the young stranger that seemed to possess a slightly different personality than he had guessed, let out a brief sigh.

"Come in, for now."