''Ah, this is the arrival of new trouble,'' I immediately thought, because the man who appeared had a face full of arrogance.

　I've seen that kind of facial expression so many times before that I've already started to pinpoint it at a glance.

　Starting with Bashvaza......... Noltiya, Pigalo and Roselwy.

　Mostly common. For some reason, the cloudiness in their eyes as if they unreasonably assumed they were special and looked down on the people around them.

'Father, if you have fallen, please inform me immediately.

　The man advances into the room with a zipper.

'Your departure requires me to act immediately. I'm not the only one. There are many who are waiting for you to leave. In order to get ahead of them, wouldn't it be a father's affection to hand the information to me, his closest relative, first?
That's a lot of filial piety for a man whose first words were to visit his son...

　Chancellor, letting out a weary sigh.

'You see, my granddaughter-in-law? This is my rightful successor in form. Why should I trust him with my successor's job when he is such a fool? If this continues, my family will fall with my retirement. That must be avoided at all costs.
What do you mean, father?

　The man says, without color.

'You, Gandomirahu, I have trained you well. As your son, I have trained myself sufficiently to be your son. He is clear in mind and body, and I am proud to say that he is capable of running the Center Guild Board of Directors right now.
He says it's your lack of perspective that worries him.

　It seems that it is not only because of his illness that Mr. Chancellor is looking weak in bed.

　He must be feeling anxious about the future that this successor will inherit, and his heart must be emaciated.

''And this person...?

　The chancellor said, looking heartily disgusted at my demand for an explanation.

'This is Gandomirahu, one of my sons.
Son...?

　Well, Mr. Chancellor is at his age.
　It's no wonder that he has a son who is a grown man.

　And even more so when there are two or three children of good age........

''Ah.''

　Come to think of it, your mother-in-law........Marika's mother was also the daughter of the Chancellor.
　It's because of this connection that I came to visit her that I also came to visit her, so does that mean that this man in front of me is my mother-in-law and her brother and sister?

I have nearly ten children, including illegitimate children. I don't know why they've all given up on me.
Isn't that what you do every day?

　And my mother-in-law is the same way.
　Wasn't she particularly strict?

To make matters worse, he was the only one left under me. I could see the wealth and power that I had built up even after being abandoned by my family being eaten up by the second generation of the clowns. Is this also the punishment that the heavens have given me?

　I'm feeling weak.
　In addition to old age, his health is also weakened by illness, which can weaken his spirits.

"Don't worry, father!　I will take over your entire legacy and make it even bigger!　Let me take care of everything in the future and rest easy!
You sound like you want to die quickly.

　Indeed.
　After continuing to run for power with all his might........
　All that's left are his humble relatives who are only after his inheritance.

　It's sad to think that this is the last years of a powerful man's life.

"That's not where you come in, Master Dariel.
Me?
It's true that I have done a lot of crazy things to gain power. And in return, I will be dismissed by my family and I'll end up rotting away on my own.

　He said he would accept it gracefully.

'But that's why I can't bear to see the power I've built up over the loss of my family crumble with my death!　We need someone to take over this power!　That's what I'm asking you to do!
No!

　Power is a demon.
　It can drive people crazy without them even knowing it.
　I know that, and that's why I don't want to get close to it.

"Rest assured, Father.

　A middle-aged man interrupts him unceremoniously.

'Your father's power will be shown to you by this Gandomirahu, who will inherit it beautifully!　So please announce your retirement from the Guild Board of Directors at the end of this term, right now!　And may you appoint me as your successor!
I'm sure he sees his father's health problems as an opportunity to get ahead.

　As expected, I'm starting to feel sorry for Mr. Chancellor.

　I'm not going to be like that. If I die, I'll live my life with compassion so that I'll be spared by everyone and leave the world.

I will never choose you to be my successor, stupid son. If you really want to get ahead in the world, you can do it on your own.
What do you mean?　I am the only one to inherit your father's aspirations and your father's power!　I am your biological son, your blood, and your firstborn son.
Really, it's an abomination.

　But the Center Guild Directors are not hereditary. Regardless of their actual status, they are formally decided by nomination and majority vote.

　Well, you'll need financial power and connections to get that vote....

"I'd rather have a monkey take over the power base than you," he said. Of course, there are plenty of better successors than Ape.
Father, don't be so selfish.
For now, my first choice to succeed me is Dariel here. If you are my son, you will help him succeed according to his father's decision.
What?

　The man's gaze finally turned to me here.
　Until then, I guess it was just part of the background, like it was out of my sight.

I'm not sure who is this guy?　Did your father lose his temper to make this young man the successor of my eldest son?
It would be more impolite to make you his successor. Didn't you hear me?　Your sister Elika. And this is Dariel, whose daughter I took as my wife.
Hmm?　What...?
I'm the leader of a distant village called Rax. Do you know what that means?
"Lux village?　........ah!

　That's when it finally hit me.
　As for me, I didn't want it to come to my mind because it would be a hassle to get involved, but I didn't want it to come to my mind.

It's a good thing that you're able to get a good idea of what you're looking for.　You say you've suddenly gone from strength to strength lately?
That's all you can remember, isn't it, boy?
'Oh, my God, I didn't know my people were in on it!　...That's fine, dude!

　They called me something.

'My name is Gandomirahu!　Who should eventually follow in his father's footsteps and become the President of the Center Guild!　If you are going to join my clan, then support me with all your might and push me to the top of power!
What are you saying?
All right, let's start with the financing. Fifty percent of your mithril sales will go to you!　If you throw away that money, not only will you not be on the board of directors, but you'll be president of the board in a heartbeat!　Then I'll ask to see a list of Mithril trading clients. I'll pick out the best of them and get them to promise to cooperate!　Threaten to sell them no more Mithril products if they don't cooperate!　Hahahahahahaha!　I'm starting to get lucky, I didn't know I'd get such a usable handful on the verge of becoming a Center Guild Director!　The heavens are telling me to rise to the top!　Gubufuugh?!

　I punched him.
　My fist is plunged into the face of Mr. Gandomirahu and his friends.

What?　What's going on?　What?　What?

　He grabs you by the scruff of your neck and drags you into the corner of the room and throws you out the window.
　I'm on the second floor, but I don't mind.

　I'm not going to be able to get a good idea of what I'm talking about.

You are also Arantzill's son," he said. You have the same speed as your father.

　He didn't care about the tyranny of his son and smiled.

I've learned from experience that words won't reach that kind of scum. But it's tough, isn't it, Chancellor? To have a man like that as your eldest son.
Hello?　I wouldn't want to die trying to put up a guy like that as my successor, but at this rate, he'll almost certainly inherit the estate. After all, the eldest son's position is strong.

　Yes.

And that's bad news for all of you, isn't it?　To him, everything about his own people is just a tool to serve himself. He will not think of your village as any more than a bodacious money-making tree. He will come to you at every turn.

　That's a problem.
　It's easy to silence him with goofballs now, but it will be extremely troublesome if he eventually takes over from Mr. Chancellor and wields the power as the director of the Center Guild.

It's a good idea to have a good time," he said, "but if you hit a member of the board of directors, it would be a rebellion against the Center Guild itself. That's going to be something of a hassle.
The only way for you to continue to run your village in good health is to get rid of Gandomirahu. What are you going to do now?

　Assassination?
　I'm sure that Chancellor is trying to get me to take his place, but I don't want to take on such a troublesome role either.

　I'm sure that Chancellor-san is trying to make me take his place, but I don't want to take on such a troublesome role either.

　So what's the best way to go about it?

　It's not me, and it's not my stupid eldest son.

　The best thing to do is to find a reliable person to take over Mr. Chancellor's position.