Suddenly, Become the Hero's Father

Kelith Archer isn't Duke Archer. The Duke Archer is Kelith's older brother, Alois Archer. However, Kelith also acts as Alois's right-hand man, sharing duties with him.

Kelith is also the second youngest of the four siblings in the Archer family. Their father died in a horse carriage accident, so Alois rightfully assumed the Duke's position. The title of Duchess was then passed down to Alois's wife, stripping the former Duchess of his authority.

At the time, Kelith was 22 years old when he adopted Dillian, who was thirteen years old. The nine-year age gap should have helped them quickly bond. However, Kelith had a darker side. After adopting Dillian, he neglected him, showing no affection or attention. Kelith's demeanor towards Dillian was cold and distant, as if he were meeting a stranger.

Dillian was confused by Kelith's behavior. Despite now having a family and home, he wondered if everyone would treat him the same. Despite being ignored, Dillian attempted to approach Kelith with warmth and kindness. Unfortunately, Kelith rebuffed his attempts, stating it was a waste of time for Dillian to be polite to him.

Similar to other members of the Archer family, Dillian suffered verbal and physical abuse, leaving him powerless to retaliate. Despite carrying the Archer surname, Dillian was helpless. After enduring years of suffering, Dillian mustered the courage to massacre the entire Archer family, taking their lives one by one before assuming the Duke's seat.

I sighed and massaged my forehead, feeling slightly dizzy. Just moments ago, i had been summarizing the prologue of the novel "Becoming the Most Popular Hero is Hard" on a piece of paper. The language in this world differs from my native tongue, so i wrote in my native language to keep my notes private.

I felt quite stressed this time. How could i not? Dillian slaughtered his family at seventeen, meaning Kelith was 26. Upon awakening in this unfamiliar world, i bombarded a male servant with questions, eager to absorb all the information.

First, the good news, after the servant answered my inquiries, Kelith's original memories flooded my mind, providing me with some understanding of this world. However, Kelith's memories were incomplete, consisting of interactions with his siblings, meeting Dillian, and grasping the language of the Adria Kingdom.

Strangely, Kelith omitted details about his whereabouts. Even in this residence, every room felt foreign to me. Was Kelith trying to deceive me in this world?

Now, the second piece of bad news: Kelith is currently 26. Understandably, Kelith's demise at the same age signals the end of my life in a matter of days or months.

Hence, i'm deducing when the massacre will occur. Although the prologue of the novel lacks a specific date for the massacre, my analytical skills allow me to estimate it will happen in two weeks.Two weeks from now, no matter what, i have to live. Because life is precious. No matter how wealthy i am, if i perish, it will all be for nothing.

Knock, knock, knock.

I flinched slightly as the soft sound of the door being knocked startled me. Typically lost in my own thoughts, the gentle sound always catches me off guard.

I cleared my throat briefly,"come in."

The creaking of the door echoed, and a male servant entered the room. Standing a meter away from the door, he then spoke,"Master Kelith, your breakfast is ready."

"Oh,"i still felt a bit uncomfortable being addressed as "Master Kelith" as if it bestowed great honor, but I had to acclimate because i am Kelith Archer now. I nodded briefly. "I'll be there, lead the way."

"Very well, sir, please follow me."

I rose from my chair after stowing away the notes in the drawer and locking it. It would be disastrous if another servant came to clean this room and stumbled upon an unfamiliar language, i might be suspected, causing significant trouble.

Putting the drawer key in my pocket, i approached the servant and stopped in front of him.

We stood in silence facing each other. The atmosphere was awkward as the servant didn't say anything and just looked at me respectfully. I also remained silent, heightening the discomfort.

"Sir?"finally, after a few awkward seconds, the servant spoke up. "Please, go ahead. It's not polite for me to walk in front of you."

Suddenly, i felt embarrassed. Okay, this is really awkward.

When i instructed the servant to lead the way to the dining room, i genuinely thought he would walk ahead and guide me. Because Kelith didn't inherit memories of the details of this residence, i had no idea where the dining room was.

If i asked where the dining room was, right? Maybe the servant would suspect that something was wrong with Kelith. How could he forget the dining room in his own residence? So, to minimize embarrassing mistakes, i asked the servant to lead the way. However, it led to this awkward incident.

I then began to sharpen my gaze, putting on a cold expression, attempting to mimic Kelith's original demeanor. "No, you go ahead,"i said firmly.

The servant looked at me with fear in his eyes. "But, Master Kelith..."

"Go on, or i'll dismiss you."

The servant became even more frightened and nodded quickly, then led the way without further protest.

As i followed behind the servant, i breathed a sigh of relief and neutralized my facial expression. Fortunately, this servant could be slightly intimidated by Kelith's stern demeanor, so i wouldn't encounter major trouble.

But really, this residence is so vast. I don't know how many turns i've made in this enormous hallway or how many meters of marble i've traversed. I feel like i've been walking for ages, yet the intended room hasn't appeared. With a residence this extensive, wouldn't i starve before being killed by Dillian?After a lengthy journey, the servant finally halted at a door intricately carved and painted white. Two servants guarded either side of the door, promptly opening it upon my arrival. The male servant leading the way bowed respectfully to me.

I mentally braced myself before adjusting my posture, aiming to exude confidence before entering the dining room.

I blinked. Was that a buffet table before me? It stretched endlessly! The white tablecloth cascaded to the floor, but it wasn't the cloth that caught my eye; rather, it was the array of dishes atop the table. Truly, a lavish spread. From one end to the other, there were countless dishes of meat, fish, pastries, vegetables, and more. The chairs boasted classical carvings and plush velvet.

"Hey, Kelith!"

I turned my attention from the buffet table to the person calling my name.

"Hurry up and sit down! You're so late, we're starving!"continued the figure, Iverion Archer, Kelith's younger brother.

"Iverion is right, why are you late for breakfast this morning, Kelith?"the one addressing me now was Alois Archer, Duke Archer, Kelith's older brother. He sat at the head of the table, asserting his authority.

Sitting on Alois's right was a woman whom i presumed to be the Duchess, Alois's wife. On the Duchess's side, there was another woman of similar age, along with children ranging from ten to five years old.

Noticing the empty chair on Alois's left, adjacent to a woman with wrinkles indicating old age, it seemed to be my place. With determined steps, i approached the chair.

The servant behind the chair promptly pulled it out for me to sit down.

I offered a small smile after settling into the chair. Kelith, though cold towards Dillian and others, cherished his family, especially his older brother.

"Forgive me, Brother Alois, Ive,"j said. "I was just occupied with something in my room, so i was a little late."

"What were you doing?"asked Iverion, seated next to me. "Were you perusing matchmaking portraits? Interested in a girl?"

I shook my head,"of course not."

Iverion frowned. "What's the harm, Brother? You're already 26 years old, you should marry soon! You're lagging behind me, who got married four years ago."

"Marriage isn't a competition, Ive."

How am i able to casually converse with deceased characters in the novel? It's because i inherited Kelith's memories, making my analytical skills invaluable. I'm currently witnessing Kelith's interactions with his family, analyzing them. Does he resent his family? What's his demeanor when speaking to his siblings? Does he smile? What are his emotions? Afterward, i put this into practice.

"Enough, enough,"the woman on my right side interjected. She must be the former Duchess, Beth Archer, Kelith's mother. "Kelith, Ive, no chatting at the dining table. That's the rule of this family, isn't it?"

"Forgive me, Mother,"i said.

"Yes, Mother, sorry."

Beth Archer had a gentle face that remained unaffected despite the passage of time. She smiled. "Servants, serve the food,"she said.

Shortly after, the servants behind us began serving the food on each plate. The food not only emphasized its aesthetic beauty but also its healthiness. They did it very skillfully, without any mistakes.

While the servants were doing their job, i scanned the faces at the dining table.

First, of course, there were Alois and Iverion. The four Archer brothers had the same distinctive features, with honey silver hair and blue eyes, making it easy for me to identify the fourth brother. My gaze then fell on the young man sitting next to Iverion. Claude Archer, the fourth brother who was currently nineteen years old. His face was calm, and his gaze was steady.

Ignoring Claude, i looked ahead. The woman had ordinary brown hair, she was Belle, Iverion's wife. Glancing beside Belle, there was Duchess Archer, Asterope Archer.

She had striking hair color among the family, dark violet with green eyes. Her face was beautiful, so when i saw the little girl next to Belle, i immediately knew that she was the daughter of Alois and Asterope, Thalitha. Not only that, there were two other boys besides Thalitha. My memory told me that Alois's second son, Julian, sat next to Thalitha, while Everett, Iverion's son, sat next to Julian.

These faces were quite familiar due to Kelith's memories. But didn't the Archer family lose a member?

After the servants finished serving the food and returned to their places, the other members of the Archer family prepared to enjoy their breakfast before i interrupted,"where's Ian?"

Dillian Archer, called Ian by Kelith, was not here.