The candle flame on the table swayed gently as the night breeze slipped through the gap in the window.
The dim yellow light moved with it, stretching Hera's shadow across the floor before shrinking again.
Hera stood several steps in front of the bed. Her hands were still clasped together while Zeldryn sat there, waiting for the answer to his first question.
“Tell me who I am.”
Hera went silent for a moment.
The question sounded simple, but it also felt strange for someone to ask about themselves.
However, after learning that Zeldryn had lost most of his memories, Hera no longer dared to question it.
She immediately lowered her head.
“You are Zeldryn Giorry, Lord.”
Zeldryn remained silent and let her continue.
“You are the ninth child of Marquis Zorin Giorry, the head of the Giorry family.”
Zeldryn, who had been listening calmly, suddenly froze.
The ninth child?
He almost let his surprise show, but quickly kept his expression under control.
Seriously? How many children does this guy have?
Zeldryn had already assumed that noble families probably had quite a lot of members. Political marriages were likely common in a world like this as well.
But being the ninth child was still far beyond what he had expected.
He leaned back slightly before asking in the calmest voice he could manage.
“How many children does my father have?”
Hera raised her head slightly.
“Marquis Zorin Giorry has thirteen children, Lord.”
Zeldryn froze again.
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Thirteen!?
He immediately did a rough count in his head.
With that many children, the Giorry family's main residence had to feel more like a noble boarding house than an ordinary family home.
“Why does he have so many children?”
The question slipped out before he could stop himself.
Hera looked slightly confused, as if she wasn't sure how she was supposed to answer that.
“Marquis Zorin has four wives, Lord.”
Zeldryn stared at Hera.
“Four?”
“Yes, Lord.”
Hera nodded slowly.
“Most of Marquis Zorin's children were born from his three wives who came from noble families. You, however, are the son of Lady Anna Giorry.”
Zeldryn held his breath for a moment.
Four wives. You've got to be kidding me.
But after thinking about it again, something like that probably shouldn't have surprised him too much.
This was the world of the fantasy novel he had once read. The original protagonist of that novel had been surrounded by seven to nine different heroines throughout the story.
There had been a princess, noblewomen, mages, adventurers, and all kinds of other female characters who eventually became involved with the protagonist.
So a Marquis having four wives actually felt somewhat reasonable by the standards of this world.
Still, imagining life inside a family with four mothers and more than ten children was already making Zeldryn's head hurt.
God, the political warfare inside this family must be a nightmare.
Each wife probably had her own family backing her.
Each child could also have their own ambitions, interests, and claims to the family's inheritance.
Then there were the differences in status between their mothers.
Zeldryn hadn't even met most of his half-siblings yet, but he could already imagine how messy their relationships must have been.
Even with all those thoughts filling his head, Zeldryn kept his expression calm.
He couldn't look too shocked by information about his own family.
“Then where is my mother now?”
“Lady Anna is currently at the Giorry family's main residence, Lord.”
“The main residence.”
Zeldryn repeated the words quietly.
That meant his mother lived together with Zorin, his other three wives, and most of the Giorry children.
Meanwhile, Zeldryn himself had been placed in a mansion far away from the center of the family's territory.
Zeldryn stared at the candle flame as it continued to sway.
Since morning, he had already felt as though he was being kept away from the family.
This mansion was far too quiet for the residence of a Marquis's son. No family members lived with him. Almost everyone here was either a servant or a guard.
Now, that suspicion was starting to feel even stronger.
Zeldryn looked back at Hera.
“Do I have any full siblings?”
Hera tilted her head slightly.
“You mean siblings born from the same mother, Lord?”
“That's right.”
“No, Lord.”
Hera answered immediately.
“You are the only child born to Marquis Zorin and Lady Anna.”
So I'm an only child from my mother's side.
Zeldryn gave a small nod as he stored that information away.
All of his siblings came from Zorin's other three wives.
Which meant he didn't have a single sibling who truly stood in the exact same position as him.
If conflict ever broke out within the family, he wouldn't even have a sibling from the same mother who could naturally stand on his side.
Zeldryn then thought about something else that had been bothering him for a while.
“Hera.”
“Yes, Lord?”
“Why do I feel like I've been cast out from the main residence?”