The Medieval-Modern Man with a Gamer Mindset

14. I’ve Never Been Married

Returning to my room after meeting with Miriam, I was greeted by an unexpected visitor.

A man with the keen gaze of a hawk, a sharp nose, and a thick beard, his muscular physique outlined beneath his clothes. I racked my brain to remember who this man was.

As soon as he saw me, he filled the room with his vigorous and spirited voice.

“Narba! Have you been feeling neglected lately? Dismiss the maid. We need to talk, man to man.”

Terbear, the right hand of Streagos Glerio Forwis.

My second brother and the second son of our Duchy of Forwis, a knight in every sense, repelling marauders with his exceptional martial skills and the trust of his subordinates. Given his heavy responsibilities, it was natural that we hadn’t met until now.

Even when only close family gathered for a modest wedding ceremony, he was too busy fighting marauders to attend. I had erased him from my mind, thinking we’d never meet…

No matter how hard I thought, I couldn’t fathom why he would be here. I nodded to Edwina, and she had no choice but to leave.

To save time for Edwina, who would be standing outside, I asked directly and frankly from the start.

“Weren’t you busy?”

“Busy? The marauders by the coast are too busy fleeing on their ships when chased on horseback. But taking care of my younger sibling is more urgent!”

After exchanging a few words with Terbear, I learned a shocking truth. He really had come for that reason. I had thought something monumental must have happened for him to abandon his duty guarding the coastline and come here.

“Brother, are you sure it’s alright? If you leave your post, the raiders will come plundering.”

“Narba… Are you worried about me? You ungrateful rascal. You’re finally showing some manliness.”

I was afraid to ask what Terbear thought a man should be. Regardless, I couldn’t ignore someone who had abandoned his duties out of concern for me. I was held captive by Terbear’s persuasion for a long time.

Especially when I mentioned my intention to pursue a clerical path, he was taken aback, and his reasons were quite something.

“Narba! To devote yourself to the clergy, what are you saying as a noble son! To forget the childhood oath to become a great knight and elevate our family’s honor on the battlefield with me!”

“That’s…”

I almost made an excuse before giving it some serious thought. I had inherited all the memories of the body’s original owner. Instead of memories of valor and chivalry, all I had were memories of crying at the mere touch of a sword hilt.

Eventually, I had to hide away from Terbear, who promised to forge me into a great knight. Before being a great knight, I couldn’t even be a diligent servant. I questioned to clarify the facts.

“I don’t recall ever saying I wanted to be a knight?”

“What weight do words carry? You don’t need to say anything. Every noble son swears in his heart to become a great knight!!!”

“Ah…”

Perhaps the reason our succession was stable was not because the second son was a hopeless case. Terbear was a person who should remain a mere knight for everyone’s benefit. His bizarre certainty made him very tiresome to deal with.

“I know your concerns well, Narba. The petty insult committed by Yubas was enough to wound a man’s pride. But that’s no reason to give up on the dream of knighthood. As a knight of Forwis, I assert this: you have talent!”

Every nobleman should become a knight and go to battle. It’s ingrained like the common sense that the sun rises, and it was impossible to persuade otherwise. But I won’t lose to prejudice and stubbornness.

Especially after my first possession, which I thought was a dream, I encountered the race of knights and even acquired an unchanging conviction. That most of the knights who cry out chivalry are nothing but despicable trash.

I’ve added the name Terbear to the list of people I don’t want as my subordinates or colleagues in my heart. Of course, instead of saying I disliked my brother, I fleshed out the reasons for wanting to join the clergy.

“I’ve learned a lot from this experience. Above all, I realized I’ve been living too idle a life.”

“Oh, is that so? Then how about joining me for morning training…”

“I’ve been quite irritable even towards the servants. I see it as evidence of losing my composure. Even if you were to help me hone my skills, brother, it wouldn’t allow for such spiritual cultivation.”

“Narba, is the place you’re thinking of the Knightly Order?”

At this point, Terbear, who had been consistently negative about the clergy, changed his attitude for the first time. In fact, it was he who had brought up the Knightly Order, and now his eyes were sparkling with excitement.

I nodded slowly, affirming his words.

“For now, I aim to join the local monastery and seek the abbot’s recommendation. The Knightly Order doesn’t just accept anyone.”

“Hmm. That’s true. It’s not a place for just anyone.”

Where had the man gone who was just now confident he would train me strictly? Terbear began to boast about the strict rules of the Knightly Order, which I hadn’t even asked about, shrugging his shoulders with pride.

“It’s a place that won’t accept you without exceptional skill or a strong spirit. If you lack either, it’s hard to endure. Unlike the clumsy nobles who strut around as knights just because they’ve got some land, it’s filled with those who have consistently trained and truly honed both body and mind in real combat.”

“When did you say that every nobleman should be a knight?”

“You need to know how to ride a horse and wield a sword to be a noble! Narba, I thought you were content to live like those serf peasants, unable to even properly throw a spear. But to think you had the Knightly Order in your heart…”

He cries. Not jokingly, but truly crying. Terbear wiped away the tears welling up with his index finger, sniffling.

“How did you know to volunteer to do what this brother couldn’t? Ahem, ahem!”

“What? Were you rejected from joining? Why?”

Terbear is simple-minded, but he’s a decent person. He was an outstanding knight, proven by his many victories against raiders washed up on the shore.

If even Terbear was rejected, how stringent must the standards be? I felt the shock of a high school student who had vaguely dreamed of going to Seoul National University and then faced reality.

Then, watching my shocked reaction, Terbear suddenly stopped crying. He turned his head slightly and began to fiddle with his beard.

“The thing is, during my vigorous youth, I frequented the red-light district, and the rumor spread so far that…”

“…”

“Narba, I can explain. Listen before you tell my family. I only sought out craftsmen with exceptional skills.”

Terbear’s excuse went like this:

The life of a knight full of vigor. If you can’t soothe the heat that rises on the battlefield, you can’t sleep properly. And you can’t just call your wife who’s not here right now.

But whispering love and embracing any woman would be betraying my wife. So I sought out professional experts in s*xual technique, who were committed to their job ethics without any personal feelings involved.

I immediately noticed the flaw in his excuse.

“How often did you go there that the Knightly Order refused your membership?”

“…three times.”

“Just three times? That can’t be.”

“Three times a day. Well, of course, that was back in my prime, so it’s a story of no consequence now.”

Sigh. I couldn’t bear to listen to Terbere’s excuses any longer and covered my face with my hands. Perhaps our family line won’t come to an end after all.

…Or so I’d like to think.

Thanks to this, convincing Terbere turned out to be much easier than expected. When I mentioned targeting the Knights’ Monastery, he even encouraged our younger brother to do whatever he wished.

Moreover, Terbere’s affection for his family was profound. With a heart full of love for his sibling, he boldly promised to grant a favor.

“Narba, whatever happens, I’ll help you once, but you must never tell anyone else, especially your sister-in-law or your nephews. Understand? Never!”

“Brother, then please visit the monastery if I send a letter. There’s a hierarchy even within, and I’m worried about harassment amidst the bad rumors since I decided to join.”

“What’s this, Narba… I thought you were being unreasonable. But there’s no need to ask for what’s already expected. Don’t worry, just send the letter. I’ll come right away and teach a lesson to those who dare insult my brother and our lineage!”

Yes, everyone has flaws. Amidst his busy life, to care for his brother like this, where would one find such a sibling? It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say this brotherly love ranks in the top 10% of the medieval era.

“But don’t rely too much on me being there. If you’ve chosen a tough path, try to endure as much as you can. Got it? I’ll be cheering for you from the battlefield whenever I get the chance.”

“Yes, brother.”

With that, Terbere left as suddenly as he had appeared, with a pure smile of delight for his brother’s growth.

***

After that, everything proceeded swiftly. Even the unexpected opponent, Terbere, changed his mind after hearing my resolve.

With the last objector gone, there was no hesitation. The moment Prince Aeselton announced the revocation of my inheritance rights, disownment from the family, and subsequent dispatch to the monastery, all the vassals and retainers unanimously agreed.

The vehement protest that Yubas was about to reveal was resolved by the pressure from the church, which had joined hands with me. It was because the Bishop of Eleniput, who had been absent from Yubas’s side during the Feast of Saint Elenio, stepped forward.

[Miriam of Yubas’s chastity had been doubted before, and the church also considered it a valid question, though they turned a blind eye to the injustice out of pity for the child in the womb. However, they were appalled by the cruel actions of her husband, Narba of Streagos Gleryo Forwis, and decided to protect the mother and child.]

The conclusion drawn by the Bishop of Eleniput regarding this incident was as follows:

[The church is confident that there has never been a union of light between them and declares the marriage null and void.]

With this, the marriage record was erased. I was no longer a twelve-year-old married man but reverted to a clean boy who had never been married. I could finally smile with satisfaction after hearing the news through Edwina.

“I’ve shed a heavy burden.”

“Do you plan to stay at the monastery for a while?”

“Well, I’m not sure if I can stay for long.”

“…?”

Edwina tilted her head with a question mark. I couldn’t help but give a bitter smile as I looked at her. The Bishop of Eleniput clearly harbored resentment towards Yubas. His readiness to show such a stern stance at the first opportunity was proof.

My concern was elsewhere.

The church in this world is similar to a fantasy genre religious group. Each diocese has a bishop, and under him, priests, and so on. Eleniput’s strong influence, despite its small territory, is because it’s directly under the Vatican.

The problem is the bishops of other dioceses. For example, the bishops in each duchy. Yubas’s bishop could have his neck sliced if he spoke ill, but what about the others? They might not care, but I understand…

“I think there’s one more enemy.”

Even the bishop of our Powys Duchy didn’t say anything, which felt a little strange.