Coming of Age Ceremony (2)
Not only the Four Great Houses and their vassals had gathered, but renowned scholars and magnates from every corner of the realm—even nobles from the smallest frontier territories—had flocked to the estate.
Of all the Blædwin family’s coming-of-age ceremonies held so far, this was by far the grandest and most lavish banquet.
It was more than a simple celebration of Wendy Blædwin reaching adulthood. Purpose ran through every toast and smile.
Under the perfectly respectable pretext of congratulating Wendy, nobles from every region had assembled to exchange cups and weave their own webs of alliance.
The evening began with the knighting ceremony.
It was the rite that formally recognized the newly adult Wendy Blædwin as a true knight of the house.
Dressed in full knightly regalia, Wendy received the family sword from her father and recited the knight’s oath.
“As a knight of House Blædwin, I shall never lose my pride…”
Wendy accepted the ancestral blade, and the interminable ceremony finally ended. The banquet proper began at once.
I had tucked myself into a corner of the second-floor gallery, doing nothing more than reading the room.
Ugh. This is pure hell.
An arena of deception where everyone wore invisible masks, hid their true intentions, and laughed “ha-ha, ho-ho.” Factions forming and dissolving, invisible boundary lines drawn in the air. Just watching it drained my energy and made my head throb.
“What are you doing up here?”
Gain approached and hauled me to my feet.
“Brother? How did you find me?”
“Get downstairs. Now.”
“Wait—hold on a second.”
“Why?”
“These gatherings make me uncomfortable.”
“I know. But don’t you think it’s time you got used to them?”
Rachel had told me they never even invited me to banquets before.
“Father ordered me to bring you. Everyone is looking for you.”
That’s exactly why I don’t want to go, Brother.
“Wendy’s the star of the night. Why me?”
Gain gave a short snort of laughter.
“You already know the answer to that.”
The moment I removed my figurative mask and stepped down to the first floor, sharp gazes stabbed at me from every direction. It felt as though holes were being burned through my face.
Familiar faces dotted the crowd. Father, who always claimed to hate these affairs, was mingling with the nobles as if he had been born to it.
“A pleasure. Would you be the most talked-about man of late—Robon Blædwin?”
A young man with golden hair approached and struck up conversation.
I forced unused facial muscles into an awkward smile.
“And you are…?”
Lines creased the corners of his eyes.
“Well now. So the rumors were true—you bury yourself in research and never look outside… I am of House Baker—”
“Robon! Where have you been? I’ve been running myself ragged looking for you!”
Erdin plowed through the crowd like a savior and dragged me away.
“Thanks, man.”
“Don’t mention it. I only came over because that greasy-looking bastard started talking to you. I was going to leave you to him at first.”
“He’s from the Baker family?”
“Yeah. That guy’s reputation is garbage. He’s so money-mad he’ll commit any illegal act under the sun.”
“And he hasn’t been arrested?”
“He greases palms everywhere he goes, I guess. Plus the really damning evidence never seems to stick.”
I looked back at the Baker man. Flowing blond hair, tall and handsome—he looked like a prince out of a comic. That was the type?
“Suddenly he looks completely different.”
“Right?”
I clinked glasses with Erdin. I could feel the gazes of people who desperately wanted to approach us.
Even while talking to someone else, they kept darting glances our way—painfully obvious.
The problem was that Erdin and I both belonged to the Four Great Houses. Ordinary nobles lacked the guts to insert themselves between us.
…Or so I thought.
“My goodness! Young Master Robon, here you are!”
Baron Penri strode over and greeted me with exaggerated warmth.
Clink.
He bumped his glass against mine without warning and downed his wine in greedy gulps.
Anyone watching would have sworn we were old friends.
“Ahhh…! Excellent stuff.”
“Isn’t it? It would be even better if a certain someone weren’t here, though.”
“Pardon? Who could possibly be so disagreeable? Everyone here is so beautiful and dashing! Hahaha!”
Was this man truly oblivious, or only pretending?
On second thought, having Baron Penri around might not be so bad. His social skills were legendary. For someone as awkward as me, he made the perfect wingman.
“Have you spoken with many people?”
“Of course. I believe I’ve exchanged greetings with everyone present at least once.”
The banquet had only just started. Already?
“Heh-heh-heh…”
He flicked his inward-curled mustache with thumb and forefinger and laughed. Why did that get under my skin so much?
“So you’ve spoken with the minor-territory nobles as well?”
“Naturally! Why do you ask? Spot a pretty young lady, perhaps?”
“Nothing like that. Anyone… special?”
“Oh, plenty of special people. That young lady over there is the youngest daughter of House Askal, renowned as the greatest beauty in all of Mardan Principality—”
“Not that kind of special. Someone who might be useful to me. Useful for research.”
“Ah, that sort of person. Hmm…”
Baron Penri stroked his mustache and pursed his lips.
“I’m rather ignorant when it comes to magic engineering. Tell you what—I’ll introduce you to a few promising individuals. Shall we go together?”
“Deal.”
With his social gravity, the conversations wouldn’t feel too awkward.
“Should I come too?”
“Why bother? Go on. This is enough.”
I knew exactly why the guy wanted to stick close. He wanted every noble to see: Look how close I am to Robon Blædwin!
It was an effective tactic. Nothing raised one’s status more cheaply or easily than flaunting connections.
“Sharp little bastard.”
“Off you go.”
“All right. See you later.”
Hot-tempered, stubborn, and often looking like a fool—yet he had survived long enough in this world to know how to play the game.
In that respect, he was better than me.
Erdin left, and I accompanied Penri as he introduced me to nobles from house after house.
Among them was His Grace the Grand Duke himself, who had personally traveled all the way here.
“You made something quite remarkable with my money.”
“……”
The blunt opening left me speechless.
“Just a joke. Hah!”
It did not sound like a joke at all.
I distinctly heard the unspoken clause: Since I paid for it, bring it to the Principality.
“I am researching ways to supply it throughout the entire Principality. At present, funds and manpower are…”
“Is that so? Hmm. Would increased support make it feasible?”
“If Your Grace would be so generous…”
“Very well. I shall consider it once I return.”
Even with extra funding it would not be easy. Without the proper knowledge, managing the technology remained difficult.
The school proposal… I’ll bring that up later. We’re not ready yet.
I continued meeting nobles from other houses.
In truth, I was the one who had suggested inviting even the lesser nobles to this coming-of-age ceremony. I wanted as much information as possible.
I need new minerals and resources.
That meant listening to the stories of minor lords scattered across the land. Unexpected leads could surface anywhere.
Until now I had been locked inside the laboratory day after day, completely cut off from news of the outside world.
There were no newspapers here, no telephones, no internet.
People in one region often had no idea what was happening in the next village over.
“This gentleman is the lord of Winzer, at the northwestern tip of the Valces Mountains—Count Lüntgen.”
“A pleasure. Lüntgen Armoir.”
“Robon Blædwin.”
Short black hair, a square jaw, strong features.
One glance told you he was the sort of middle-aged man who belonged on the front lines as a fortress commander.
“The entire manor is blazing with light. All your inventions, I hear?”
“Yes. Electric light bulbs that use electricity as energy.”
“Truly… remarkable. How does one even conceive of such a thing?”
“I got lucky. Haha.”
“If Winzer had light like that, our soldiers would have a far easier time fighting the monsters.”
“I am researching as hard as I can so that we can supply every place in the Principality that needs it. I will do my utmost to get the lights to Winzer Fortress as quickly as possible, Count Lüntgen.”
“I am grateful. I shall look forward to that day.”
Starting with Count Lüntgen, I spoke with noble after noble. Most faces were completely new; I must have talked with around thirty of them.
Everywhere I went they poured praise on me and peppered me with questions. Answering each one left me on the verge of mental collapse.
The silver lining was that I managed to discuss investment possibilities with a few houses and exchange useful information.
I gathered several promising leads—assuming any of them proved true. Even one solid find would make the evening worthwhile.
“Have you spoken with that person yet?”
A woman sat alone in a corner, sipping wine. She kept glancing at me, then looking away.
It was starting to bother me, so I asked.
“Ah! That lady is the lord of Rodheim. The previous head of the house passed away young, so she took over the territory at a tender age and has been governing it ever since.”
“Is that so? Someone you already know?”
“No. She looked so restless, as if searching for someone, that I went over and asked if she was looking for a particular person.”
Baron Penri’s busybody nature truly knew no bounds. The man could not stay still or keep his mouth shut for a second. Didn’t his jaw ever hurt?
“And?”
“She was looking for you, of course, Young Master. When I asked why, she said she had something she absolutely had to tell you—something you would like.”
“Really? Then why does she look away every time our eyes meet?”
“From what I can tell, the lady is extremely shy. Even shier than you, Young Master!”
This guy. Had he ever considered that maybe he himself had zero shame?
“I should speak with her last.”
“Understood.”
Baron Penri strode straight up to her and struck up conversation as if they were old acquaintances.
“A pleasure to see you again, Baroness Felice. Still here, I see!”
He claimed they had only spoken briefly earlier, yet anyone watching would have thought they were lifelong friends.
Look at her flustered face. Was this what happened when an extreme introvert met an extreme extrovert?
“I have brought Young Master Robon.”
“Hello, Lady Felice.”
“Ah… Hello. I’m Felice Rodheim.”
“Robon Blædwin.”
“I know.”
I nodded.
Then silence settled over the three of us.
This can’t be happening.
I glanced sideways. Baron Penri had already vanished into the distance and was chatting with another group of nobles.
He couldn’t even wait a few minutes before running off to talk to someone else? Great. Now I was stuck with someone just as socially awkward as me.
“Hahaha…”
I forced an awkward laugh to break the silence.
“……”
“……”
Damn. Still awkward.
“Ahem. I heard you had something you wished to tell me.”
“Ah, yes. Well…”
I could hardly believe someone this shy was running an entire territory. Was she really the head of her house?
“I’ve heard so many stories about you, Lord Robon. You’re someone I truly respect and want to emulate!”
She looked five or six years older than me, which made the praise feel even stranger.
“I’ve been trying all sorts of things for the convenience of my people as well. But nothing ever seems to work out…”
Fortunately her words were picking up speed; the tension was easing.
“Is that so? What hasn’t worked?”
“Actually, this is what I wanted to show you…”
She drew a blue mineral slightly smaller than her palm from her pocket and held it out to me.
“What is this?”
“It’s a crystal called Blumilite. Named for its blue glow.”
It really was a luxurious crystal, a blend of sky-blue and deep azure. Whenever the light from the ceiling struck it, the faint luminescence shifted with the angle.
A hexagonal prism with sharply pointed ends. The precise, symmetrical crystal faces caught the eye at once.
“It’s a mineral never discovered before. I wanted to give it to you, Lord Robon.”
“Why me?”
“I already told you. Because I respect you.”
She twisted her body in embarrassment.
“I thought it might be of some small help.”
“Thank you.”
When I clasped her hand, her face flushed scarlet as if it might burst.
“May I ask where you obtained it?”
“F-from a… a mine on my territory where Blumilite is buried.”
“Oh? Have you discovered any particular properties so far?”
“All I know is that it holds mana.”
Nice!
This was exactly what I had been hunting for. A new mineral—one that existed only in this world!
After mana stones, this was only the second mineral that conducted mana. Energy surged through my exhausted body. I had to forcibly restrain myself from bolting straight to the laboratory.
“Do any other nobles know about this?”
“No… They don’t. It’s an important resource, after all.”
“You trust me?”
“…Yes. I looked at the faces of the people in Iron Hall and the retainers of House Blædwin. I decided that anyone who can make people that happy is someone I can trust.”
“Thank you. Is there anything else? Even something trivial.”
My barrage of questions left her flustered. I felt the stares of people around us but paid them no mind.
After extracting every scrap of information she had about the crystal, I slipped out of the banquet hall.
This is definitely worth researching.
I had stepped outside to organize my thoughts, and there—right on cue—stood a familiar face.
She was alone in the garden, gazing up at the moonlight. When she spotted me she flinched.
I hadn’t expected her to come. I was about to turn away, still uncomfortable, when she strode purposefully toward me.
“I’m sorry about last time.”
I hadn’t expected such a direct apology. She had looked thoroughly wounded in her pride back then.
“An apology isn’t enough to brush that aside. Andersen nearly died because of you people.”
“…We didn’t intend to kill him.”
“How am I supposed to know that? And he was already on the brink of death.”
She squeezed her eyes shut, then exhaled a long breath.
“I’m truly sorry. That was our mistake.”
“…Forget it. It’s in the past.”
I tried to walk past, not wanting any further entanglement, but she caught my wrist.
“Demon worshippers may still be targeting that mage.”
My feet stopped.
“House Lahen has caught their trail. If we step in, they won’t be able to touch him.”
“……”
My expression twisted. I wanted nothing more than to walk away this instant, yet Andersen’s safety hung in the balance.
“So?”
“Please accept House Lahen’s apology for the previous incident. That’s all.”
“…In exchange you’ll catch those bastards for Andersen’s sake—”
“No. There is no need for that.”
Andersen’s sudden voice made me turn.
“Magic Advisor?”
His face was set in grim lines. A chill radiated from the gaze he fixed on Elin Lahen.
“Do not apologize on my account.”
“But still…”
“From this day forward, never bow your head, never yield, and never step back for my sake.”
A cold wind stirred around Andersen. At the same time Elin Lahen’s eyes widened and the hem of her dress fluttered.
“I have no need of House Lahen’s help. I can handle that much alone.”
At Andersen’s declaration, the furrow between her brows deepened in real time.