The Rackton Heir (3)
I was a bit taken aback for a moment, but maybe it wasn't that surprising. Still, the conversation with Claire must have gotten incredibly awkward.
"The second son is still alive, right?"
"Yes."
"In that case, since the eldest is dead, why not bring the second son out of the monastery?"
It wouldn't be particularly honorable, but it wasn't something to be heavily criticized either. Wouldn't it be better than breaking up the monastery and putting the second son on the throne? If they were tearing their hair out over the succession issue, this was the simplest solution.
"That's not possible. He'd refuse it himself."
"Why? You said he lost out in a power struggle."
"You'll understand once you hear the whole story. The third son died at age four. And shortly after that, the second son entered the monastery. What do you think?"
Did the eldest kill the third and blackmail the second? No, that wouldn't explain why he couldn't come back now. So the second son assassinated the third. He got caught, got excluded from the succession as a result. The family covered it up out of shame and sent him to the monastery. They couldn't bring back a kinslayer and make him the head. What a complete mess.
Do all noble families end up like this?
"But a grown second son going that far to check a little kid brother?"
"That's why it's even more shameful."
"Hmm... not a very pleasant story."
"Exactly. That's why Stella blocked you."
I should have felt grateful to Stella for sparing me that awkward situation, but I didn't at all. Because the reason I'd almost asked such a rude question was Stella herself! If it weren't for her, I wouldn't have asked anything like that. She went on so casually and happily about her family that I assumed they all got along great! Well, I didn't even know there were three brothers to begin with.
Her name coming up reminded me that not all my questions had been answered yet.
"But even so, why make the second daughter the heir?"
"More precisely, the designated heir. They haven't officially named her yet. No justification for it."
"So why push a successor with no justification or common sense behind it? There's a perfectly fine eldest daughter with no disqualifying issues."
Stella wasn't perfectly fine. Almost slipped up there. But it was true she had no real flaws to exclude her from succession. On the contrary, as a mage, her talents were outstanding, and her affability made her solid material for a female lord.
"No one could have predicted ten years ago that the succession would get this tangled."
"And?"
"So Stella has a fiancé promised long ago. The second son of the Camid Duke's family."
A political marriage? What was the problem with that? Nobles did it all the time—didn't see why a future heir couldn't.
"What's the issue with that? A duke's family isn't some inadequate match."
"The problem isn't the next heir—it's the one after."
The department head seemed about to spin a long, complicated tale.
"Then the Honlake countship goes to Stella's child."
"...And?"
He looked exasperated at my indifferent attitude.
"Stella's child will take the Camid name and become the Camid count. That means the Rackton count is gone! It's as good as being absorbed by the duchy."
"Is that such a big deal? It's still continuing the bloodline, isn't it?"
I didn't get it. Was that really so important? I'd heard nobles deliberately merged houses sometimes. Noble logic was hard to follow. I was nominally noble myself, but with a non-hereditary title, my perspective was different.
"Do all nobles act like that?"
"In the old days, maybe not to this extent. But these days, bringing in sons-in-law is common. Lately, even when passing the house to a daughter, they try to keep the family name."
What sparked that trend? I didn't know, and asking would just drag the story out, so I let it slide.
"So they're passing it to Claire Rackton, then bringing in a son-in-law to continue the Rackton countship?"
"That's right."
"The problem is no justification for making the second daughter the heir."
It was all so transparent. Sure, there was face to save, but they probably didn't want to look bad to their in-laws either. Mess it up, and rumors might spread that something was wrong with the eldest daughter.
"So they want to boost her position somehow. Pour in investments quietly, build her name or achievements."
"Spot on. They don't want to break the betrothal with Camid. Openly fighting with the place their eldest is marrying into doesn't make sense."
They needed some justification to put her forward. If I were the Camid duke, no excuse would satisfy me. But had Claire been betrothed? They'd prioritize the eldest's match, right? Or maybe they did care, which is why they hooked her up with a duke's son. Noble entanglements weren't worth my headache.
Best to ask the noble in front of me.
"They're around the same age, but only one got betrothed. That's unusual."
"Couldn't arrange it for her. Claire's been stubborn and disobedient since childhood, they say."
She didn't seem like that type. If anything, Stella struck me as the one who'd bulldoze a marriage with her own opinions.
"You sure you didn't mix up the names?"
"She skipped studies, swung a sword all day, ignored the family's pleas, and ran off to join the knights. Spent a few years as an adventurer first, then enlisted."
"And Stella?"
"Hard to imagine now, but she was incredibly meek and obedient as a child."
Couldn't picture it at all. A docile, submissive Stella Rackton! More than that, the "sword-obsessed family" Stella mentioned must be Claire. Anyway, most of my lingering questions were cleared up. Her approaching me was ultimately for stable succession. What she really wanted wasn't the sword itself, but ties with me.
So Stella entering magic university at a late age—was that just an excuse to delay the wedding under the guise of studies?
"But does Stella have no complaints about this treatment?"
"What complaints?"
"No matter the family situation, she's suddenly pushed out of succession. And she's got no issues herself. From her view, wouldn't she prefer her own child inheriting over obsessing about the family's name?"
"No idea. But looking at her now, doesn't seem like she's here against her will. She never had much chance at heir anyway—not like Claire."
"True enough. Guess the fiancé really rubs her the wrong way."
"Dunno about that. Maybe she just wants to keep studying. And she's watched a family she loved get torn apart over that title."
Enough to kill any romance. Or maybe she just loves studying that much. Well... I got the situation. Felt a bit sympathetic, even wanted to root for her, but being used left a bad taste. Now the absurd commission fee and advance made sense. Just wanted to flaunt ties with me. No one hearing about this job and the amount would think it normal. They'd assume the Rackton family was sponsoring me. Not officially announced, of course—the Racktons weren't that shameless.
'We won't let you take any heat, so could you stick around a bit? No need to act—just let us handle it, and once the heir designation's done, we'll clean up the rumors.'
Something like that, probably. But tacit approval was still endorsement. Whatever happened later, I'd look like I was in the count's camp. And I wasn't someone who needed a count's nominal protection.
More than that, did they think one connection with me would silence the Camid duke? The amount suggested the Rackton count expected something... but it wasn't a wise investment from the start.
Leaving the department head's office, the person I went to see wasn't Claire or Stella.
*
After class ended and Arienael returned, I told her what happened today. She was utterly baffled. The sudden commission, the huge sum, the Rackton family's dark secrets. Complicated even for a human like me—what must an elf think?
But what really floored Arienael was something else.
"So you just accepted it? Without a second thought?"
"Not without thought..."
"You accepted first and thought later!"
She was right—I'd agreed without knowing any of this. No defense there. Getting blinded by 50 gold coins. I could've saved up that much gradually with projects, but I rushed it.
"How could you? Agreeing without knowing the details? You drilled into me to think deeply, be cautious—my ears are worn out from it."
"Well... at least we secured research funds. Think positive. Your research needs money too—not a bad thing for you."
"Doubt you were thinking of me then."
Of course not. Still, 50 gold was ten years' salary for her now. Securing that much should earn some leniency, right?
"Fine, I got duped."
"Hard to say the Racktons tricked you, Professor. They didn't spell it out, but they laid their intentions bare right away."
Why was I getting scolded by my grad student? This wasn't why I became a professor.
"Water under the bridge. I'll find a way out."
"A way out? Without breaking the contract?"
"Breaking it would cause bigger issues. And this isn't breakable anyway. They promised 20 coins upfront, success or not. Taking 20 for nothing would make me a real patron."
"So what now?"
"Research."
Arienael stared at me like what? No trust or respect in those eyes.
"Simple. The problem is taking too much money for the item from the Racktons. So flip it—give them something worth dozens of gold coins."
"Will one enchanted sword be worth that?"
"That's why we research. Current methods won't cut it. Need new ones. It'll be tough."
Back to magic research, and a flicker of trust returned to her face. She looked a bit relieved. We'd muddle through somehow. Worst case, no real loss for me. Just minor annoyance at being used, plus apology for the unearned advance.
"At least that's good. Means you'll focus on research."
"I'm not someone who gets dragged into noble power games and drops research."
The Racktons would be a bit awkward. They never planned to buy their daughter a 50-gold sword. And Claire's future was now countess, not knight captain. Cash was already tight.
"Kinda ironic, huh? The way to avoid playing their game is doing the commission properly."
"Yeah. Reverse thinking, in a way. The righteous path is always fastest and most efficient. Nearly did something stupid in a daze, but we can fix it."
Arienael wouldn't grill me more over this. Or so I thought. My prediction missed.
She wouldn't miss a chance to chide me.
"'Nearly'?"
Am I not the senior here?