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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Yuziro
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Thanks to the hurried pace,It didn’t take much time to arrive at Lagnis’ residence after entrusting the repair of the equipment.
While I simply needed to become stronger, Lagnis had so many things to learn in such a short time, unlike me.
The only help I could offer at the time was to resolve the task as quickly as possible to prevent wasting her time.
Lagnis’ residence was originally a villa her family used when visiting the capital, so it wasn’t very large.
Although it was designed to suit the tastes of nobility, it seemed quite modest to my senses.
My last memory was of Lagnis living there with only a handful of servants.
“It’s a guest the Margrave has summoned. Don’t let anyone else in until further instructions.”
“Understood, Miss Renisa.”
However, things were quite different now.
Just ten steps from the gate, two guards were stationed at both the outer and inner gates, with additional troops patrolling outside the brick walls.
The sheer number of soldiers made it look like they were guarding a military command post, causing me to feel slightly intimidated.
“What’s going on? The atmosphere is quite different from my last time here.”
I asked Renisa as I passed the stern and solemn guards, but I didn’t receive a satisfactory answer.
“There have been various matters that drew attention recently. The Margrave will likely want to discuss the details directly.”
After passing the familiar servants and maids, Renisa stopped in front of the study on the second floor.
“The Margrave instructed me to guide you here. Well then.”
She showed the courtesy due to a guest, but had no intention of answering any questions about carrying out her orders.
Before I could properly respond, Renisa bowed and turned back the way she came, alone.
Her rigid demeanor was more uncomfortable than any knight I had seen recently, but perhaps that was for the best.
As I knocked on the door, it opened immediately.
“Come in… Why did you bother knocking if you were going to do that?”
“To show that the mere door cannot stop Eldmian Egga.”
“Really… Even after all this time, you still start with nonsense.”
With an exasperated expression, Lagnis let out a rueful laugh as she set aside the work she had been doing and stood up from her seat.
The modest yet exquisite red dress matched perfectly with her long hair, which she had grown out since coming to the capital.
Apart from the matching ensemble, I couldn’t help but point at her corset and offer some advice, thinking that working at a desk while wearing such attire must be quite laborious.
“Hey. Don’t wear a corset. It’ll mess up your ribs.”
“My, what are you saying as soon as we meet? For nobles, maintaining beauty is part of the job.”
“That alone won’t make a difference in your beauty, so I recommend taking it off.”
“…Heh, heheh. So you’re saying I’m pretty even without it?”
“Yep.”
She was no longer the malnourished Lagnis of the past.
Although it hadn’t been that long, she had already undergone extensive care to improve her health and beauty, to the point where she was now an undeniable noble lady.
It would be an understatement to say that wearing or removing a corset wouldn’t make a difference at her current level of beauty.
“Heh, heheh. W-Well, I’ll get rid of it all later then.”
“Do that. It really can harm your body, so get rid of it all.”
Considering the potential side effects like hernias and internal bleeding, I couldn’t help but frown at the thought of a friend wearing such a dangerous item, even in a world with healers.
However, seeing her make a wise decision as expected put my mind at ease, so I sat on the sofa and moved on to the main topic.
“Anyway, it’s been a long time since we had time like this. What’s the reason for summoning me?”
“As you said, it’s been a while. I wanted to see your face and also discuss the major events that have occurred recently.”
As she sat on the opposite sofa and rang the bell on the table, Lagnis stretched and continued speaking.
“My studies were going smoothly, but I’ve been too busy lately due to the Imperial Holy See causing a stir.”
“The Imperial Holy See? I didn’t expect to hear that name. Why them?”
The only time I had heard about the Imperial Holy See was when Asirye mentioned the story of a hero being chosen through divination.
Although that meant they had the ability to directly divine heroes through revelation, I was still surprised to hear that they were connected to Lagnis in some way.
“One of my master’s disciples went to the Empire to train the hero, and it seems my name came up there.”
“What could they have talked about you for? Were they comparing pretty girls or something?”
“Heh! Heheh. It seems Eldmia’s manners have improved a bit.”
“That’s quite the laugh. But anyway, why did your name come up?”
“Apparently, the hero’s magical talent is similar to mine.”
Hm? That sounded like an oddly unremarkable statement.
Let me think about this calmly.
When discussing the talent of a hero, there’s a higher chance of praising an exceptionally talented individual by name rather than mentioning an ordinary person and saying, “Your talent is quite ordinary.”
If that’s the case, doesn’t that mean Lagnis’ talent is being praised as exceptional?
Unsure about the conclusion I had drawn, I asked Lagnis again.
In response, she puffed out her cheeks and crossed her arms, as if her pride had been hurt.
“Why is it like this? I’m a disciple of Radnelband Vandess Acrisan, you know? Although I couldn’t be of much help when I was in Ogwen since I didn’t learn proper magic, my master was amazed by my mana control and magical theory.”
“Wasn’t that person just a physical magic specialist who enjoyed taking on disciples?”
“I don’t know what kind of mage that is, but my master is renowned as one of the most famous in the kingdom.”
“Well, if they’re as strong as a battle mage, I can understand why they’d be famous…”
“That’s not all. My master is someone who has surpassed the barriers that even ordinary mages struggle to overcome. They don’t just accept any disciple; they only take those they personally deem to have potential.”
Wow.
It seemed that not only Ekaf, but also Radnel Vandess was an exceptionally remarkable individual.
And this remarkable person was amazed by the talent possessed by Lagnis?
“Eldmia, you really seem to lack awareness or knowledge about certain things.”
“I probably wouldn’t have paid attention at other times, but this time it does seem that way.”
Was it because I didn’t pay enough attention to the world around me? I should probably buy and read newspapers regularly from now on.
“Putting that aside, are you saying the hero’s magical abilities are being compared to yours? But why is that?”
“Well… when the educators gathered to discuss the hero’s training, the idea of arranging meetings with talented individuals who could benefit the hero’s growth came up.”
What, like some kind of matchmaking app? They want to arrange meetings?
“Apparently, the thinking was that having exceptionally talented individuals of similar ages learn together could provide greater progress in the hero’s education by stimulating their growth.”
Were they trying to encourage a competitive spirit? It was a reasonable idea.
But it didn’t seem like the hero was in a situation that required such competitive motivation.
The educators might have been approaching it from too ordinary of a perspective.
“So you’ve been busy because they actually asked you to come in that manner?”
“Yes. They didn’t care about my circumstances at all and sent a letter as if it was strange if I didn’t come, causing quite a commotion with my master.”
“It seems there aren’t any normal people among those Imperial fellows.”
To suddenly summon someone working tirelessly day and night to rebuild their crumbling household, as if they were going on a casual training trip, was rather inconsiderate.
Weren’t they underestimating the situation too much?
Of course, given that it involved the hero and the Demon Lord’s forces that could wipe everything out, leaving nothing behind, their approach was somewhat understandable…
“When was this guy chosen as the hero? It’s been a while since I heard the rumors about them being chosen around when I was 8 or 9 years old.”
If it had been 6 or 7 years since then, and they were only now trying to utilize the effect of having peers around, it seemed odd.
“Hold on, Lagnis. Are you sure this is really for the purpose of the hero’s education?”
Upon thinking about it, it seemed strange.
The hero doesn’t just fight alone.
Just like a party in a game, the hero advances toward the Demon Lord while working together with those considered the most exceptional of that era.
So if they were truly considering the hero’s education, instead of now gathering exceptional talents from elsewhere to provide stimulation, it would have been more beneficial to have an academy-style system from the start where they all studied together.
Since the hero needs comrades.
If they were going to gather outstanding tutors anyway, it would have been more advantageous to find potential future comrades and educate them together with the hero from the beginning, with the mindset of training companions.
Even if not chosen as the hero’s actual comrades, the candidates would have acquired greater abilities than now by going through the same training process as the hero. Then they could more easily participate in the battles.
However, the Imperial Holy See did not make that choice.
“This is just an occasion to boast the hero’s power, isn’t it?”
Lagnis’ eyes widened slightly.
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Lmao, Eldmia sounds more Aristocratic than she does.