Reincarnated as a Son of the Sword Saint and the Sage

Raphael actually used his Analysis to fact-check Sergei's identity, which turned out to be the truth as he did not see any sign of manipulation or tampering on his status board. "So, by the way, Lord Raphael, can I ask why the prince of the queendom is here to congratulate my arrival on this floor?" Upon hearing that question from him, Raphael smiled. "Actually, I noticed your fast pace of exploring the dungeon, and I have been observing you for a while. Can I ask you about a little bit of your background?" "Verily. As I said earlier, my name is Sergei. I am an orphan from the Kingdom of Boulder, and I am currently in this city to make a living." "I also learned that you did not have any adventurer's card before registering here, so your mysteriousness really piqued my interest. So why don't you have any identification card before registering in this dungeon?" "Is Lord Raphael really interested in listening to my story?" "Of course, I like stories, if you don't mind." "Very well." Sensing Raphael's sincerity, Sergei began his narration. "Ever since I was a child, I already idolized adventurers as my father was one. But it changed when that time came. One day, my lovely mother was killed by an adventurer. That news devastated me. Upon hearing that, my father was in despair and trying to relieve himself by alcohol. He could not accept the death of my mother and he took his life in the end. That made me despise adventurers since then." As Sergei was saying the last line, his expression became sour, and his face contorted. "Condolences to you, Sergei." "Thank you, Lord Raphael, but it's fine now." Seeing Raphael nod, Sergei resumed. "Losing both my parents, I ended up in an orphanage. As soon as I turned fifteen, I left the country and secluded myself in the forest. While in the forest, I trained myself and made myself strong while holding my grudges against adventurers. But the more I spent my time alone, my hatred toward adventurers gradually disappeared, and I randomly decided to make myself better. So when I heard of this new dungeon, I made a decision to make it my permanent base of operations." "I am sorry for your loss, Sergei, and I am glad that you changed your view of adventurers. "..."

A minute of silence filled the air between them as they looked into each other's eyes. A moment later, Raphael was the first one to speak to break the ice. "But nevertheless, you have been going so well in the dungeon so far. Actually, in my opinion, your pace is abnormal and it has been disturbing my mind for some time. Apart from that, I heard that you had been frequently in trouble with other adventurers, duking out your conflicts. And today, I am here in front of you." "...So you are here to get rid of me since I am going so fast that you have considered me a threat." "Hm. You are half right about that. I also would think to consider you, a man of unknown origin, a threat to our family for being too fast and remarkably good at exploring this newly discovered dungeon. But I realized I have many things to consider, such as your innate talents and skills." "That means..." "Instead of getting rid of you, I am here for another reason. Why don't you join my ranks?"

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