I Died and Became a Noble's Heir

Chapter 369: Request from the King

Jack climbed the manor’s stairs with Seraphina trailing a respectful three paces behind, his torn clothing and disheveled appearance drawing no comment from the servants they passed.

Everyone in the household had learned quickly that Master Jack’s business was his own, and questions were neither welcome nor necessary.

The divine power had entirely faded now, leaving behind the familiar warmth of his red lightning and a bone-deep exhaustion that even his absurd regeneration couldn’t immediately erase.

But the satisfaction remained.

A system notification blazed across his vision as he reached the second-floor landing:

[NEW TITLE ACQUIRED]

[SPIRIT HUNTER]

[Effect: +10% damage against all spirit-type entities]

[Description: You have defeated a Mythical-rank spirit in single combat. The spirits recognize you as one who hunts their kind, and your attacks carry weight beyond mere physical force.]

Jack’s eyebrows rose slightly. ’Ten percent against all spirits. This could come in handy later.’

He dismissed the notification and continued toward his room, already anticipating the hot shower and clean clothes waiting....

That was until he saw some familiar faces.

Three figures stood in the hallway outside his door.

King Eric, resplendent in his royal regalia. Aurelius, the king’s chosen one, his expression carrying that familiar mixture of arrogance. And Lyra, the chained chose one whose leash was tight as a vice.

Jack stopped perhaps ten feet away, his red eyes meeting Eric’s gaze with no particular hostility but zero warmth. ”Your Majesty. To what do I owe the unexpected presence of royalty in the private quarters of my home?”

”Jack Kaiser,” Eric began, his tone carrying diplomatic warmth that didn’t quite reach his eyes. ”That was a remarkable display. The kingdom is fortunate to have someone of your caliber among its citizens.”

”Is that what I am?” Jack asked mildly. ”A citizen? Last I checked, I was the heir to a duchy who’d made it abundantly clear I operated on my own terms.”

Aurelius opened his mouth, likely to deliver some pompous response about respect and station....

A streak of red lightning passed within an inch of his head, the electrical discharge close enough that it singed his ear and left the smell of burned flesh hanging in the air.

The chosen one froze, his hand halfway to the injured ear, his expression caught between outrage and genuine fear.

”I don’t recall giving you permission to speak,” Jack said nonchalantly, his hand still extended from the lightning throw. ”In fact, I don’t recall inviting any of you to be standing outside my room. So perhaps someone could explain why you’re trespassing in my home.”

King Eric’s expression remained carefully neutral, but something flickered in his eyes. He recognized that the young man before him had grown since the last time he saw him. And now... he was even stronger than before.

Alaric’s voice came from the stairs behind Jack, carrying genuine amusement rather than reprimand. ”You are definitely my son.”

Jack glanced back to see his father ascending with Lady Genevieve. They knew this was coming and came to mediate the situation.

Eric turned his attention to Alaric with a slight smile. ”Your boy has spirit. I respect that, even if his methods are hostile.”

”Hostile is one word for it,” Alaric agreed, coming to stand beside Jack. ”What brings you to our home’s private quarters, Eric? Surely official business could have been conducted in more appropriate settings.”

”I wanted to speak with Jack privately,” Eric replied, his tone shifting to something more genuine. ”Not as king to subject, but as one leader to another. I have a request. Not an order, not an invocation of obligation, but a favor I’m asking him to consider.”

Jack’s eyebrows rose fractionally. ’A request, not a demand. He’s being careful with the wording. That means whatever he wants is significant enough that he can’t afford to alienate me by pulling rank.’

”What kind of request?” Jack asked directly.

”The kind that requires privacy and discretion,” Eric replied. ”And ideally, a conversation when you’re not...” he gestured vaguely at Jack’s torn, bloodstained clothing, ”such a mess.”

”Fair point,” Jack conceded. ”I need to clean up anyway. Give me an hour. We can talk in my study, it’s warded for my privacy.”

”Your study works perfectly,” Eric agreed immediately. ”And Jack? I appreciate your willingness to hear me out. What I’m about to ask... It’s not something I request lightly, and you have every right to refuse. I want that understood from the start.”

The careful clarification told Jack everything he needed to know about the nature of the request. Eric was making it explicitly clear that Jack had autonomy, that this was a favor being asked rather than authority being invoked.

This meant the task was either too dangerous or too politically sensitive for forcing compliance to be effective.

’He needs me to want to do this,’ Jack realized. ’That’s... interesting.’

”One hour,” Jack repeated. ”My study. Just you. If you want a private conversation, let’s actually keep it private.”

Eric glanced at Aurelius, whose expression had darkened considerably at being excluded. ”Agreed. Just the two of us.”

”Three,” Alaric interjected smoothly. ”Jack is still my heir, and any agreement he makes has implications for our house. I’ll be present as well.”

Eric studied Alaric’s face for a long moment, then nodded. ”Fair enough. The three of us, then. One hour.”

The king departed with Aurelius and Lyra trailing behind, the chosen one’s hand still pressed against his singed ear with rage boiling up to his center.

Lyra paused at the stairs, glancing back at Jack with a soft expression. It was rare for Lyra to show such expressions because she was such a caged animal. ”That was impressive. The fight, I mean. I’ve never seen anyone use lightning like that.”

”Thank you,” Jack replied neutrally, offering nothing more.

She smiled slightly and followed her King and Aurelius down the stairs, leaving Jack alone with Alaric, Genevieve, and Seraphina.

Alaric waited until the royals were completely out of earshot before speaking. ”He’s going to ask you to do something dangerous.”

”Obviously,” Jack replied. ”The question is what’s dangerous enough that he needs to frame it as a request rather than a royal command.”

”Only one way to find out,” Alaric said. ”Get cleaned up. I’ll make sure your study is properly warded and that we won’t be interrupted. Whatever Eric wants, we listen carefully and negotiate from strength.”

”Agreed,” Jack continued toward his room, his mind already running through potential scenarios.

Lady Genevieve touched Alaric’s arm gently. ”Do you think he’ll say yes? To whatever Eric asks?”

”Depends on what Eric offers in return,” Alaric replied quietly. ”Jack doesn’t do anything without calculating the cost and benefit. If the king wants his cooperation, he’ll need to make it worth Jack’s time.”

Jack pushed open his door, already planning the negotiation strategy while Seraphina moved to prepare his shoqer. His mind cycled through possibilities. What could be dangerous enough, sensitive enough, or valuable enough that a king would frame it as a personal request rather than a royal command?

’Border conflicts? Unlikely... he’d use his army.’ Jack’s thoughts raced as he began removing his torn, bloodstained shirt. ’Internal threats? Possible, but he has Aurelius for that. Foreign diplomacy? No, that’s not my skillset.’

The hot water began running in the adjacent room, steam drifting through the doorway.

’Something he can’t risk his own chosen ones on,’ Jack concluded, dropping the ruined clothing into a pile. ’Something where failure would be politically catastrophic if tied directly to the crown. He needs plausible deniability.’

Seraphina appeared in the doorway. ”Your showers is ready, Young Master. I’ve also prepared clean formal attire for the meeting.”

Jack paused at the threshold, glancing back at his attendant. ”What does a king ask for when he can’t command it?”

Seraphina’s eyes met his with the sharp intelligence that made her invaluable beyond her official role. ”Something that requires absolute discretion, exceptional capability, and complete autonomy of action. Tasks where official involvement would create complications worse than the original problem.”

”Assassination, then,” Jack said bluntly. ”Or something close to it.”

”Likely,” Seraphina agreed without flinching. ”The question is whether the target justifies the risk you’d be taking.”