"Squeak..."
As the servants on both sides opened the doors to the banquet hall, it was revealed that quite a few people had already arrived.
These people were all lords under Earl Linde, including several viscounts and a large group of barons.
Linde's arrival didn't attract much attention. He wandered among the bustling crowd, filled with curiosity and excitement about the lively occasion. His handsome face drew the attention of many, but he paid no attention to them, simply strolling aimlessly and enjoying the rare atmosphere of joy.
Suddenly, a figure, like an elf, came into his view. It was a graceful young woman with skin as white as snow, eyes as bright as stars, and long, shimmering golden hair that gently brushed against her fair cheeks. Even more remarkable was the mysterious and captivating aura she exuded.
A strange magical fluctuation emanated from her; dressed in a gray mage's robe, this girl was clearly a magician.
Lind's gaze was drawn to the beautiful young mage. The girl turned her head and met Lind's eyes. Then she walked over quickly and performed a standard aristocratic greeting in front of Lind.
"Lord Lind, hello. I am Alice, a high-ranking mage."
The girl stood only up to Lind's shoulder, so Lind could only "look down at her".
Just as Linde was wondering why the girl knew her, the previously noisy banquet hall gradually quieted down. The old count father steadily ascended the platform, his authoritative voice echoing throughout the hall:
"Ladies and gentlemen, I have an important announcement to make today."
Everyone turned their attention to the old count on the high platform.
The old count, with a smile on his face, continued:
“My second son, Lind Truk, has come of age and is about to embark on his journey to our family’s new territory to become the new lord and bring more glory to my Truk family.”
After he finished speaking, enthusiastic applause erupted from the audience.
"To help him better manage the affairs there."
The old count cleared his throat and continued:
“I specially invited an excellent magic teacher for him—Miss Alice.”
"I'm sure some of you have heard of her. At only 18 years old, she earned the title of High-Rank Mage of the Empire. She is a rare and talented mage. From today onwards, Alice will be traveling to the new territory with Lind!"
To Linde's surprise, the girl before him was actually the magic teacher his father had specially hired! It turned out that the old count had planned this all along.
Then came the greetings and introductions from various nobles, which Linde found somewhat overwhelming. Most of the nobles' names were long and tedious, and Linde didn't remember any of them. In any case, once he arrived in the distant new territory, he wouldn't see any of these nobles again.
Amidst everyone's congratulations, Lin De spent the entire banquet in a daze, and it was already very late when he returned to his bedroom.
Holding the new noble appointment letter from the old count and a pile of documents from the House of Nobles, Lind fell into thought.
In the Kree Empire, the lands of old nobles are inherited by their eldest sons, while the second sons and illegitimate sons are either enfeoffed to become new nobles, or become the right-hand men of the new heirs, or of course, they can serve other nobles.
Linde was the luckiest one, having a very good earl father who treated him well, and everything he needed, including a fief and an army.
From now on, he is officially a new nobleman. He can design his own family mark and family name, and then report them to the House of Nobles.
The House of Nobility will record his new family, and his title and land information will be recorded in the new noble etiquette manual.
Just as Lind was troubled by his clan emblem, a girl's voice suddenly came from behind him:
"You look troubled by something."
Linde was startled. He hadn't activated his aura and had been focused on thinking, so he hadn't sensed anyone coming up behind him.
Instinctively, Linde immediately activated his Aura Concentration Mode, and the surging life force instantly increased his speed and strength.
In an instant, he pressed the girl behind him to the floor.
"Hmm? Alice?"
The girl's expression of astonishment remained on her face; she clearly hadn't yet realized what had happened.
Alice: Who am I? Where am I? What happened?
The cold floor told her the reality: she had been pinned to the ground by her lord's students. The warm touch of the hands that were holding her back made her feel ticklish.
Lind quickly helped Alice up and patted off the non-existent dust from her clothes.
What Linde didn't see was that with each pat, Alice's face turned even redder.
"Miss Alice, are you alright? I didn't notice you were here and was startled. I'm so sorry."
Lind was too embarrassed to look at Alice. If he had looked up at that moment, he would have seen that Alice's entire face was flushed red, as if it were about to drip water.
The girl realized what was happening and quickly put the large mage's hat on her head, covering herself completely.
"It's...it's my fault. I...I knocked on the door and came in when no one answered. I shouldn't have come in."
"I'm sorry! I'll come again tomorrow."
The girl ran off without looking back, leaving Lind standing there in a disheveled state.
"Ah, this..."
Indeed, the entire banquet was spent dealing with those nobles, and the "new teacher" was completely forgotten.
"Sigh, I'll go talk to her again tomorrow. She's quite pretty, with such fair skin, is it because she's learned magic...?"
Linde XP system is very diverse, I can appreciate both the big and small ones, as long as it looks good.
What Linde didn't know was that because he had just activated the activation aura and touched a mage, the mage would have a very strong... addiction to this powerful source of magic.
Alice dashed back to her room, slammed the door shut, and leaned against it, panting heavily as she tried to calm herself.
What was that feeling just now? A strange sensation coming from my hand.
Alice's mind was filled with countless thoughts and ideas, a chaotic jumble.
Alice gripped her large hood tightly:
"This is so embarrassing!"
…………
Meanwhile, in the Earl's study, the old Earl and several viscounts from his own faction were holding a secret meeting, his drunken state at the banquet making him seem like a completely different person.
"So, she's a newcomer from the academy? Can those old fogies really let such a genius roam freely among the nobility?"
"What's wrong with academics? They're short of money too. Besides, she's of noble birth and should be a noble mage by nature."
"Those old fogies won't let this go. What did the dean say?"
"What else can I say? She wants to limit the production of magical weapons because they consume too much energy."
"Alright, let's leave it at that for now." The old count stood up and stopped the discussion.
"Her being sent here was somewhat of a compromise by the dean's faction."
He sighed, turned and walked to the window:
“I sent her and Lind to the new territory to get away from the center of the struggle, after all…”
The night outside the window was silent.
"The war will not end for long."
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