Ascendance of a Bookworm

The starbinding ceremony concluded safely, and as planned, I fell ill afterward.

When I woke up, the high priest told me that the children of the old Veronica faction had struggled valiantly, preventing the attack beforehand.

“Most likely, the attackers thought the priests would be moving by carriage. The knights reported sensing several presences in the forest along the highway.”

“Along the highway’s forest? For what purpose? Since we have mounts, we’re not bound to travel along the highway, right?”

The best thing about mounts is that they can go straight to the destination even if there’s no road. They wouldn’t bother running along the highway. So, what were the attackers thinking?

Tilting my head in puzzlement, the high priest sighed.

“They probably didn’t expect you to carry everything on your own mount. Only a few nobles know that your mount can freely change size, and no other noble besides you would put gray priests on their mounts.”

“In other words, it was my flexible way of thinking that won the day.”

“Call it breaking the mold.”

According to the high priest, the attackers lost sight of their target because my behavior as a noble was unimaginable to them. Imagining attackers waiting foolishly inside the forest for a carriage to pass by is quite amusing.

The attackers were said to possess such weak mana that it was difficult for the knights to find them. As soon as the knights began searching, they scattered and vanished their mana. The knights, relying on faint mana traces, lost their target and decided to strengthen the boundary gate’s security.

“The result was that nothing happened. But it’s true that the old Veronica faction children knew about the plan and tried hard to contact us beforehand. Thanks to their report, we became aware of the attackers hiding in the forest. Your efforts to encourage cooperation beyond factions within the noble academy have started to bear fruit. Yes, that’s what Richarda said.”

Since I started this effort because I disliked tension around me, and since cooperation would likely end once we returned to Ehrenfest due to parental involvement, this was a pleasant surprise.

I had planned to draw them in when we became adults and could freely choose factions, but the old Veronica faction children are quite progressive.

“By bravely taking action, Roderich and the others showed their loyalty to the lord. Your foster father knows well how difficult it is to oppose one’s parents, so please ask the high priest to help skillfully win over the children.”

In noble society, deciding to separate from your parents before adulthood undermines your own base. Without another protector, their futures darken. Apprenticeships are done under relatives, so they could easily be crushed.

“… They were desperate to inform you, but won’t you be the one to win them over?”

“Huh? You mean appointing them as my close aides? I do have people I want to appoint. But if I’m the first to win over the old Veronica faction, wouldn’t that be frowned upon?”

I think it’s better if my foster father and Wilfried, the next lord, who still have shaky bases, win them over first. Of course, if I, backed by Reizegang, can be more effective at winning them over, I intend to do so.

“Instead of rewarding them or giving gifts, you want to appoint them as close aides? You’re still too hasty. Judging them from just this and suddenly making them close aides is dangerous.”

“I observed their work at the noble academy, so it’s not sudden. When Hartmut and Brynhildr were summoned as aides with no prior acquaintance, that was much more sudden.”

My close aide candidates had been filtered by their guardians beforehand, so it might not have seemed sudden to the guardians. But to me, it was almost a first meeting—I didn’t even know their personalities when I chose them.

Compared to that, the old Veronica faction children’s behavior over a whole season at the academy has been observed.

At first, they hesitated to cooperate beyond factions, but once grouped and studying began, they united and started sharing materials and teaching each other. They even worked hard to obtain information from Arensbach that only their faction could get, to earn money through information gathering. Their preparations for the territory competition were well thought out by placing people where they fit best.