After I died, my personal maid rebelled.

That's the situation.

Oswald thought that no matter what strange things happened in this life, he could accept them calmly, but then his seemingly deathrattle-like skill activated...

He poked the ugly little thing, who hadn't opened her eyes yet. After eating and drinking her fill, the little thing was just sleeping and was completely unaware of everything happening around her. Oswald, however, felt that he needed some peace and quiet.

The child's mother has passed away, and her body has been placed in a coffin for burial tomorrow.

The child's father has disappeared; his whereabouts and fate are unknown.

Finally... what's the deal with you leaving the child with me?

"Let's give her a nickname first, how about 'Little Mouse'? Look how small she is."

"Your Excellency the Duke was also a child who grew up in my arms. You see, it's very stable to hold you like this."

People's joys and sorrows are not all the same.

In contrast to the melancholy Oswald, the rest of the Duke's household were extremely excited. For some reason, the old butler became a walking cradle, carrying the child wherever he went, and proudly imparting parenting tips to Eleanor and Jenny.

Interspersed among them were the chattering of older women.

But this old man is really good at taking care of kids. No matter how much his lower body runs or jumps, his upper body is always steady and reliable, like a natural-born photographer.

While Eleanor and Jenny were still brainstorming nicknames for their child, Paul, who had consulted a vast collection of books, became their human encyclopedia.

As for Thorne's life or death, nobody cared...

Old George, who was overseeing the construction outside the city, rushed in, carrying a hammer and saw, panting heavily, and said, "Where's the wood? I'll make the cradle right now!"

"Oh dear, it's been so long! A new life has finally been born in the Duke's mansion. Let me see the baby!"

Oswald looked at the chaotic scene and couldn't help but facepalm.

That's enough, really enough.

[Lilith used Wishing Star because Thorne suffered a fatal wound during his dungeon adventure. If Lilith's Deathrattle only affects Thorne, this system speculates that Thorne was likely sent to that same dungeon.]

System... my most reliable comrade-in-arms.

Oswald was moved to tears; it was rare to find someone by his side who cared about the hero's whereabouts.

However, I always feel like nothing good ever happens in the dungeon.

(I don't remember exactly, which dungeon were they adventuring in?)

[Located in the Earl's Territory of Eileen in the southeast of the Central District, this is a dungeon that has been under development for many years and is geared towards novice adventurers. However, the final boss has remained undefeated until the hero Thorne was resurrected, at which point the boss was finally defeated, and the adventurer obtained the growth reward.]

Oswald remembered that this was a very important part of the story. Thorne only truly became a front-line fighter after gaining extraordinary reaction abilities in the dungeon.

The final boss seems to be a birdman who can unleash a slowing field and is skilled at intercepting and instantly killing.

……

In the capital, Medivh was still running around trying to resolve the calamity in the Southern Territory.

Since the last time the Mage Guild forced a group battle against Duke Oswald to protect the hero, it has been recalling its members from all over the world, seemingly adopting an attitude of seclusion.

Most magicians are inherently difficult to understand, so Medivh didn't care much. He had a period of arrogance in his youth, until he suffered a crushing defeat in the war.

Moreover, the Mage Guild is hiding too many secrets, and the cooperation between the two sides is in fact dead in name only.

But life must go on, and in order to cope with the calamity, the royal city needs a sufficient reserve of high-end combat power.

The dragon slayer is dead, the hero squad that followed has fallen apart, and the young people trained by World Tree Academy... have grown up quite quickly, but are unable to stand on their own.

"So, why do you think I can command the saintess and the paladin commander?" John, clutching a bag of pastries and covered in dregs of his beard, sighed deeply.

"Princess Leia, please make the old gentleman a cup of tea."

"oh."

Leia, who was sitting in the corner, put down the intelligence she was holding, calmly got up to make tea for the two elderly people, and then quietly shrank back to look at the news that had happened in the royal city that day.

Medivh twitched his lips, not wanting to ask the princess why she was there, and acted as if it were nothing out of the ordinary. He tried to ignore her presence and steered the conversation back on track.

"Because it would be troublesome for Duke Oswald to come here, and we need young and strong people to deal with the calamity."

Hearing this, John hesitated for a moment before nodding. "I can help you write the letter, or you can explain the situation to Oswald, but are you sure you can handle the trouble they might cause?"

Recalling his recent experience traveling with Luna, and the Eastern Territory currently engulfed in war, Medivh looked troubled and didn't know how to answer for a moment.

"Archbishop/Sir, there is a letter for you."

There was a knock on the office door, and two messengers entered, each handing a letter to Medivh and John respectively.

The two opened their respective letters. Leia, eager to see what was going on, ran over and looked at them from left to right. She didn't read much of the contents, but she noticed that the expressions of the two were becoming increasingly serious.

"Oswald told me that because Lilith's physical condition didn't allow it, they had to have the baby prematurely, and Lilith passed away shortly after giving birth..."

"But just as she passed away, a magic circle suddenly appeared and took away the hero Thorne. Thorne disappeared in the light of the magic circle. Oswald suspects that Thorne returned to the dungeon where he died in his previous life and was resurrected by Lilith, located in the territory of Earl Erin."

After revealing the information on his side, John couldn't help but cough and hurriedly picked up his teacup to take a sip of tea.

We finally managed to hand Thorne over to the Northern Territory, hoping that this time bomb would be far away from the capital, but the bomb disappeared in the Northern Territory?

Oswald also hoped he could help investigate and find out what was going on in the deepest part of the dungeon...

Are they trying to kill me? At my age, how can I possibly brave a dungeon?

After a long moment of stunned silence, Medivh came to his senses and shared the information he had gathered.

"Duke Oswald's guess was correct. The Adventurers' Guild wrote to me informing me that a monster riot had suddenly occurred in the dungeon in Earl Erin's territory. They suffered heavy losses and hope to get our help."

"Monsters are currently escaping from the dungeon. If this is not suppressed in time, the consequences could be disastrous."

After saying that, the two looked at each other, both seeing helplessness in each other's eyes.

One problem after another arises. If the hero really returns to the Central District, some lurking figures might immediately take action.

Thorne, a magical man who can make cursed beings willingly bear his children; who was inexplicably chosen as a hero many years ago; and who can collect all the holders of the Wishing Star into his harem.

Most incredibly, he actually killed Oswald in his previous life, even with the help of the demons, he still achieved this almost impossible feat.

As for the price... everyone has seen the price: what you love is your life.

"It seems we need to mobilize more manpower."

After saying that, Medivh immediately got up to leave, but John's next words made him stand still.

"If all else fails, then eliminate the hero, old man."