Precedence System: I Take My Rewards In Advance

The Crown Marshal had his eyes glued to Zishan’s face as soon as he stepped inside his office. He recognized something about the kid. It was strange.

Meanwhile, Zishan felt deeply uncomfortable being stared at, especially after learning the man before him could hear what he had been yapping about outside. Also, there was something different about the man’s stare. He got a different feeling from when the man approved his promotion to Captain.

’Wait! Don’t tell me this man is interested in me?! Hell nah! I’m not into any type of old man homo!’

If only Ernest knew what the kid was thinking, he would have smacked him to death already. No one would have misunderstood him that way.

Towering over his table, Ernest looked at the name registered under the kid’s military record.

’Zishan Walker,’ the man read and stared back at Zishan. ”Are you from the Marquess House Walker?”

Zishan’s eyes widened.

”Marquess? House Walker?” He pointed at himself. ”What do you mean? Do you mean I’m a noble?”

Ernest stared at him for several seconds without responding.

Elinox looked toward Zishan as well.

”Did you forget somehow?” Ernest was somewhat speechless and stared at his niece. ”Care to explain?”

Elinox nodded. ”He forgot almost everything about his life before waking up on the battlefield. He knows his name and remembers some basic things, but he doesn’t remember where he lived, who his family was, why he joined the military, or even how he ended up with the Eastern Formation in the first place.”

Zishan crossed his arms. ”That explanation makes me sound like somebody hit me in the head with a hammer.”

”You don’t remember whether somebody did.”

”Also fair...”

Elinox continued, ”When I first met him, I thought he was hiding something. There were too many things he couldn’t explain, so I questioned him more than once. He really doesn’t remember. His earliest clear memories started after he woke up on the battlefield.”

Ernest looked at Zishan again. ”So... you forgot everything...”

”Before waking up there? Yeah.” Zishan scratched the side of his head. ”I know my name is Zishan Walker, but I thought Walker was just... you know, my surname.”

Ernest’s brows rose. ”What else would you think it was?”

”I don’t know. A surname?”

Elinox covered part of her mouth.

Zishan looked at her with a raised brow. ”Why are you smiling?”

Elinox coughed and quickly replied, ”I’m not.”

Ernest shook his head before pointing toward the office. ”You soldiers outside, come inside.”

He then glanced at Zishan once more and said, ”Sit down properly. If you really don’t remember House Walker, there are several things you should probably know.”

Zishan walked farther into the room. ’Several things? That doesn’t sound good.’

[The Host has discovered that his surname may be connected to nobility.]

’I heard him.’

[The System is merely confirming that the Host possesses functional hearing.]

’Shut up.’

Elinox sat on one of the chairs near Ernest’s desk while Zishan took another one. Ernest remained standing for a while, still studying him like he was trying to match Zishan’s face to somebody he remembered.

”Your face is familiar,” Ernest said.

Zishan touched his cheek. ”Good familiar or bad familiar?”

”I’ve seen portraits of members of House Walker before. You don’t resemble Marquess Walker much.”

Zishan shrugged. ”That sounds like a bad start.”

”It isn’t. If anything, it explains something,” Ernest replied as he briefly wondered how the kid’s brain was wired. Probably, his brain was affected by him forgetting his memories. Intellectually impaired—that was the first thought that came to mind. After all, earlier, the kid feared... but now, all of that fear disappeared all of a sudden.

Ernest brushed those thoughts aside and sat back down. He opened the military register he had used earlier for Zishan’s promotion and pressed his palm against the page.

”Zishan Walker.”

Mana moved through the register, and several records tied to the name revealed themselves.

Zishan leaned forward, and somehow, when he saw his records... it felt strange.

He had spent so much time in Cyrune knowing almost nothing about the person whose body he had inherited that seeing something official connected to the old Zishan Walker made him feel like he was looking at somebody else’s life.

Ernest fed a trace of Mana into the register, and the entries connected to Zishan Walker rearranged themselves across the page.

”Zishan Walker. Nineteen. Registered under House Walker.” He paused. ”Adopted son.”

Zishan blinked. ”Adopted?”

”Yes.”

”So I’m really a noble?”

”Legally, yes.”

Zishan leaned back. ’Holy shit.’

[The Host has discovered that he was born—]

’Adopted.’

[—legally raised within a noble family.] ℴ

’That’s better.’

Elinox glanced at him. ”You’re taking this rather well.”

”I’m trying to understand whether I woke up in another world rich.”

Ernest looked at him.

Zishan raised both hands. ”What? That’s an important question.”

”You were a recognized son of a Marquess House.”

”So, rich, right???”

Ernest nodded and replied, ”House Walker possesses large estates, so that sums it.”

Zishan’s eyes brightened as he clasped his hands together.

Elinox sighed. ”Don’t get excited yet.”

”Why shouldn’t I? I just found out I might have money.”

Ernest’s next expression made the excitement disappear.

Zishan slowly lowered his hands. ”There’s a problem.”

”A rather strange one.” Ernest opened another record.

This one belonged to House Walker’s civil registry.

The military and noble civil registries were maintained separately. A person’s House affiliation could be recorded when they entered military service, but later changes to the civil registry did not automatically alter their military record.

Several names appeared beneath the House designation. Zishan recognized none of them. There was Marquess Walker himself, followed by the Marchioness, several children, and other registered members of the household.

Then, he saw his own name.

ZISHAN WALKER

ADOPTED SON

He stared at the words for several seconds. ”So I really was adopted.”

”Yes,” Ernest said.

Zishan frowned as another memory surfaced. ”Wait. When I first got back to our side, one of the soldiers reacted when I told them my name. He repeated it like he recognized it.”

Ernest’s eyes narrowed slightly. ”Only one?”

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