The Start of the Interduchy Tournament (Year Two)

For the preparations of the Interduchy Tournament, my role was in the civil official track, but the one truly giving orders was Hartmut, the upper-noble senior student. I spent most of my time taking notes on Hartmut's work methods so I could put them to use next year.

The way he efficiently delegated tasks and followed up on progress clearly showed the strong influence of both the Chief Priest and Justus. When I pointed this out, Hartmut's face lit up with delight.

"Last year, Lord Ferdinand and Lord Justus gave me all sorts of advice. To have you, Lady Rozemyne, who knows them both so well, say that my work style resembles theirs — that is extremely flattering."

Having the three lord candidates divide the command structure between them made preparations go very smoothly. Being able to focus on what the apprentice attendants were doing without worrying about other things, and getting a firsthand look at the level of Wilfried and Charlotte's personal attendants — those were the biggest gains for me.

...Conclusion: the civil officials our Chief Priest has been grinding are seriously capable.

Of course, being capable meant they were under a corresponding level of strain, but the difference in usability was enormous. Especially Philine — being a lower noble, watching her dart around as Hartmut's assistant really drove home just how remarkable her growth had been.

Watching Philine with anxious eyes was Roderich, who had only recently joined as an attendant. Even with a small amount of handover work keeping him busy alongside Hartmut, his pace was still far behind the other two.

"I must work harder to keep up."

Since Roderich was so motivated, I encouraged him: "Spend a year at the Temple being ground down by Lord Ferdinand, and you'll grow whether you like it or not."

Charlotte, who had entered the academy this year, was honestly following the advice of her own attendants and Brunhilde and the others who were helping with preparations. Wilfried was busy acting as my guard knight and covering for the apprentice knights who couldn't attend practice or strategy meetings. We only needed to check in on progress from time to time, and preparations advanced without any particular problems.

"Then, let's start transporting supplies to the venue. The procedure is the same as what we discussed yesterday."

"Understood."

Before I knew it, the day of the Interduchy Tournament had arrived. After finishing breakfast early in the morning, we immediately began setting up. The apprentice attendants sprang into action at my words.

"Brunhilde, is everything going smoothly over there?"

"Yes, Lady Rozemyne. The quatre-quarts from the Otmar Trading Company have arrived from Ehrenfest, and the kitchen is baking sweets for hospitality one after another."

Just as Brunhilde said, the dormitory was filled with a sickly sweet smell. Charlotte seemed to be checking tea sets and giving directions for their transport. I couldn't see the apprentice knights anywhere, and as I was vaguely looking around for them, Cornelius — serving as my guard knight — told me.

"Lord Wilfried and the apprentice knights are making final confirmations of weaknesses and strategies for the magical beasts likely to appear as opponents, as well as distributing recovery potions for Magic Power replenishment."

"Cornelius, don't you need to be at the final confirmation?"

When I looked up at my brother Cornelius and asked, he flashed a powerful grin. "I'm fine."

"We've already done plenty of practice, and I've memorized the weaknesses and strategies. All that's left is to attack as instructed."

"Doesn't that mean you and Leonore are so in sync you don't even need to have strategy meetings? Isn't that just a lovey-dovey brag?"

"That's not it at all! How could you possibly arrive at that conclusion from what I said!?"

...Hmm? That was totally a lovey-dovey brag.

With Cornelius as my guard knight and Rihyarda as my attendant, I headed to the venue with the civil officials. The Interduchy Tournament was held in the largest training grounds in the knights' building.

The oval-shaped training ground, designed for combat on riding beasts, was the same type as the one used in last year's Ditter match. The sky, covered in grey clouds with scattered snow, was visible overhead, making it look like an outdoor arena — yet you couldn't feel the slightest bit of wind or snow. It was just like having a transparent roof, which was the same as last time. But the size was different. Last time the arena had been nearly circular; this time, two circles fit inside it, making the whole thing oval-shaped.

Surrounding this oval arena was a spectator area. It was positioned significantly higher than the competition floor and was flat — just like last time. I had thought it was hard to see since it wasn't tiered or slanted, but learning that social tea parties and research presentations were held here, I understood why it needed to be flat.

"You see these lines here? From here to that line over there is Ehrenfest's allotted area."

While the civil officials began setting up with practiced ease, my brother Cornelius explained the arena to me. The floor was the same white material as the building. Red lines had been drawn on it, and the walls were covered with fabric in the same color as each duchy's mantle. That way, you could tell which duchy had seating where.

"The broad, easy-to-see areas in the middle belong to the upper duchies, right?"

"Ehrenfest has risen to tenth place, so our spot is much better than it used to be. When I was a first-year, we were over there."

Cornelius shrugged as he pointed toward a corner where many small duchies were clustered. Since the size of the viewing area changed with ranking, back when Ehrenfest was a middle duchy shoulder-to-shoulder with the small duchies, it must have been quite cramped. Now it was in a position befitting a middle duchy.

Students from other duchies were arriving one after another, each making their own preparations. Mantles of various colors moved busily in and out — quite colorful.

And presumably coordinating with their respective dormitories, ordnanz birds were flying back and forth everywhere, which was also interesting to watch. As I was observing this, an ordnanz flew right up to me. When my brother Cornelius extended his arm in front of me, it landed there and began speaking in Lielzerdia's voice.

"Lady Rozemyne, the Aub has arrived. He says he wishes to have a prior meeting. Please return immediately."

After the ordnanz repeated the message three times and reverted to a magic stone, I tapped it lightly with my staff to send back an acknowledgment.

"Hartmut, I've been summoned by the Aub, so I'm heading back. Once the setup here is complete, please help the attendants."

"Understood."

Hurrying back to the dormitory on my own legs would have been too slow, so as soon as I left the training grounds, I mounted a riding beast and flew back through the air. In the vast Noble Academy grounds, I had absolutely no idea where our dormitory was, but Rihyarda knew perfectly well.

"In the old days, it was commonplace to fly overhead during the treasure-stealing Ditter, you know."

It was quite far from the knights' building, but since we could use riding beasts, it was faster than if I had walked to the Central Building's entrance, and I didn't get tired.

"Lady Rozemyne, the Aub is waiting for you in this meeting room."

The moment we returned to the dormitory, I was immediately led to the meeting room by my father's attendant. Inside, I could see my adoptive father, my adoptive mother, the Chief Priest, brother Wilfried, and Charlotte. My eyes immediately went to the Chief Priest. Today, he was dressed like a noble, wearing Ehrenfest's bright yellow-brown mantle.

"Lord Ferdinand, it's the first time I've seen you wearing a mantle in Ehrenfest's colors. Is it because you don't normally wear one? It looks surprisingly new."

"I only just received it today."

"Huh?"

He had apparently intended to come as usual wearing a blue mantle, but my adoptive father told him, "You'll be mistaken for someone from Dunkelfelger. At least today, wear Ehrenfest's colors."

"Unfortunately, I didn't have one. The mantle my father gave me at the baptism ceremony was taken away by your mother when I decided to enter the Temple — she said a Priest didn't need one."

"Then say that sort of thing sooner!"

"I told you I would forgive you if you didn't bring up matters regarding your mother."

After that exchange, the Chief Priest had apparently acquired a new Ehrenfest mantle. He was complaining that "it's unsettling with no defensive magic circles," but he didn't look entirely displeased, so he was probably happy about it. The blue mantle had been brought along with the luggage by Justus.

"So, what is this meeting about?"

"I heard from Wilfried that you each decided on your own roles..."

"Yes. Thanks to brother Wilfried's proposal, we were able to proceed very smoothly with preparations."

"I see. That may have been fine for the preparation stage. However, the job of a lord candidate during the Interduchy Tournament is socializing."

Apparently, the Interduchy Tournament served as a rehearsal for future lord conferences. We also had to make connections with lords from other duchies, and all lord candidates were required to handle the socializing. That was completely unexpected. I immediately sent an ordnanz message informing them that all lord candidates would be handling socializing themselves and that Hartmut would be in charge of the apprentice attendants. That should take care of things.

"Also, about the lord candidates' seating arrangement..."

Last year, the Aub and his wife and Wilfried had split the seating, assigning different people to handle guests depending on importance. This year, more guests — and from upper duchies — were expected than last year. Ideally, it would be best to have people who could handle both men's and women's socializing.

"I think it would be best to split into Wilfried and Rozemyne, and Charlotte and Ferdinand, so we can have more people who can cover things."

"With Rozemyne...?"

When Wilfried voiced his concern, my adoptive mother let out a soft sigh.

"Now that you're engaged, pairing you with Rozemyne would serve as a kind of public debut, and that would be ideal. But Wilfried, are you confident you can handle socializing while assisting Rozemyne?"

"That's..."

"Wilfried, please be honest here. Success and failure in socializing during the Interduchy Tournament will have repercussions for a long time to come."

This was different from the children's socializing within the Noble Academy. The eyes of other duchies' Aub and their entourages would be watching. When my adoptive mother gently pressed him for an answer, Wilfried opened his mouth with evident difficulty.

"...As long as books aren't involved, I'll be fine."

"Brother, very few conversations don't involve books. At least among women, they come up frequently."

Hearing Charlotte's words, Wilfried looked at me with a thoroughly troubled expression. My adoptive mother probably guessed the general situation from that look. She smiled softly.

"Then let's pair Wilfried and Charlotte, and leave Rozemyne to her guardian, Lord Ferdinand. That would be the safest option. The fewer factors that could cause failure on a stage as large as the Interduchy Tournament, the better."

It was better to choose the option less likely to fail on a big stage. With my adoptive mother's words, the socializing pairings were decided. As always, the Chief Priest would be assigned as my supervisor.

"Wilfried, Charlotte. Look over Rozemyne's reports before the deadline. They contain well-organized important information."

My reports had apparently been copied out by the civil officials. My adoptive father handed one to each of them. Wilfried and Charlotte read through them, then looked at me with surprised expressions.

"...Did Rozemyne write these reports?"

"They asked me for work reports instead of letters, so I formatted them the way we do at the Temple. Lord Ferdinand, how about it? No complaints this time, right?"

When I puffed out my chest with a smug little laugh, the Chief Priest's expression softened slightly and he praised me with "Very satisfactory." My adoptive father and father both smiled wryly.

"Ah, there's no room for complaint. The gap between these and your previous reports is remarkable. Ferdinand, no wonder you're valued at the Temple. Won't you work at the castle too?"

"I have no need for more. Rather, please reduce what I already have."

As we exchanged light banter, it apparently became time for the apprentice knights to depart. An attendant came to summon me.

"Lady Rozemyne, the apprentice knights would like to receive a blessing, just like last year."

I bestowed upon the apprentice knights, who knelt with my brother Cornelius at their head, the divine protection of Angriff, God of War, and saw them off before heading to the venue myself. Considering my walking speed, only the Chief Priest, his attendant, and I would ride to the venue on riding beasts.

The Interduchy Tournament began simultaneously with the declaration of Ditter's start. The lord candidate from Klassenberg made the opening announcement, and the duchies conducting Ditter were called in order. In the first half, the lower duchies were called randomly. Apparently, Ehrenfest was in the second half for the first time.

"Rank fifteen — Frebelstag!"

With that call, a cheer rose from Frebelstag's area, and apprentice knights in light blue mantles descended one after another on their riding beasts into the arena. They galloped around the entire arena, took their positions, and waited for the magical beasts to appear.

A teacher descended into the arena on a riding beast, poured Magic Power into the magic circle, and with a brilliant flash, a large magical beast appeared. It looked like a massive feline.

"Is that a Gorze, perhaps?"

"No, it's a Zirze, one rank below. Never mind that. Rozemyne, take your seat."

Just as an exciting match was about to begin, I was summoned by the Chief Priest and pulled a face. When one's own duchy was fighting, you could get up from your seat to watch, but apparently, as a general rule, lord candidates were better off staying put.

...If I sit here, I can't see the Ditter at all. Kind of boring.

I was puffing out my lips in displeasure, but soon it was no time to be saying things like "boring." The start of Ditter meant the start of the Interduchy Tournament, and with the start came the guests. Nobles who had missed out on the quatre-quarts during last year's Interduchy Tournament had come back this year, determined not to let it slip by again.

"We received some at the lord conference, but we were hoping to sample other varieties as well..."

"We've been looking forward to it for days now."

...Their words are elegant, but the gleam in their eyes as they zero in on a limited product is exactly like my aunts at a bargain sale!

For those who were there just for the sweets, I handed them some as souvenirs and guided them to eat at their own duchy's seating. For those hoping to make deals, I directed them to Wilfried and Charlotte's seats. Guiding people to the Aub's seat was only necessary for the upper duchies.

Just as I was thinking this, the people heading my way suddenly stopped and began clearing a path, stepping aside. Wondering what was going on, I blinked — and saw the Goddess of Light herself walking down the path they had created. Her luminous golden hair was intricately styled, and what set it off beautifully was a red coral hair ornament. She smiled gently, exchanging light words with those around her as she made her way toward us. She looked far more mature and beautiful than last year.

"Lady Eglantine! And Prince Anastasius! What an honor for you to come all this way."

I felt a light smack on my thigh from the Chief Priest. He had noticed that I hadn't spotted Anastasius. After exchanging noble greetings and attempting to guide them to the Aub's seat, Anastasius shook his head and sat down at our table.

"I have something to discuss with you, Rozemyne."

Eglantine gracefully took a seat as well. Her attendants immediately moved to prepare tea. I ate a bite each of the cookies and quatre-quarts — the first treats we had sent to the Noble Academy this year — to show them, and offered some to the pair.

Anastasius seemed intrigued by the novel items and reached for a cookie, while Eglantine asked for the quatre-quarts. An attendant skillfully plated the treats.

"Rozemyne, what is this research on the prayers of the Holy Book? It's being displayed under someone else's name, but it's your research, isn't it? You were raised in the Temple, after all."

When Anastasius questioned me, I turned my gaze to the Chief Priest, who had proposed the whole thing. It was more accurate to call it his research than mine. The Chief Priest regarded Anastasius with a noble smile.

"When we were verifying the Holy Book, the professors declined to participate, so this was at least a small gesture of compensation."

"So you're the ringleader. The distance between the Church and the royal family had appeared to narrow somewhat over time, but now it's grown wider again, and there are even those who would await the Saint's prayers. What do you have to say about that?"

"We merely followed His Majesty's orders."

"...I wonder just how far that pious attitude of yours will carry you."

Anastasius snorted. He and the Chief Priest seemed to understand each other, but it was all beyond me. I left the Chief Priest to handle Anastasius, letting their exchange wash over me, and smiled at Eglantine.

"I'm so happy to see you, Lady Eglantine."

"I'm happy as well. I hear Lady Rozemyne has created yet another new trend?"

"Yes! These are new Lowere quatre-quarts. I received some from Lady Hannalore of Dunkelfelger and immediately tried making them. Would you like to try one?"

I had dried Lowere, soaked them in liquor, and made quatre-quarts with them. It turned out quite nice.

"It's absolutely delicious. If each duchy can incorporate their specialties like this, it seems all sorts of unique quatre-quarts could be made. I very much regret having graduated."

Eglantine remarked that visiting the Noble Academy after graduation felt quite lonely. Having experienced graduation in my previous life, I understood that feeling all too well.

...Being unable to enter the library without permission had made me feel so distant. Yep, yep.

"Oh, and I heard there's a fun new story being created in Ehrenfest this year. Are you going to make books the next trend?"

"Yes! They were made in Ehrenfest, and everyone has been enjoying them. Romance stories are especially popular. If possible, I'd love for you to enjoy them too, Lady Eglantine, but I don't have any on hand right now..."

I was quietly scolded by the Chief Priest to "calm down a bit," and I snapped upright. Eglantine giggled.

"Is this Lord Ferdinand, I wonder?"

When she added "That legendary..." in a small voice, I cautiously glanced at the Chief Priest. He was wearing his noble smile, but his eyes — his eyes were angry.

...Oh no. I totally forgot about the Chief Priest legend.

"Rumors passed through the grapevine are always exaggerated. They're not worth believing."

Eglantine nodded at the Chief Priest's words, then suddenly looked at me with concern.

"Whether Lady Rozemyne's rumors are exaggerated or simply the truth, I cannot say. But I am worried that you may be tossed about by the Goddess of Time."

"Lady Eglantine?"

"Please do take care."

Anastasius and Eglantine departed, saying they had other places they needed to visit.

"What did she mean by that?"

"Exactly what Prince Anastasius said. Were you not listening?"

"I was listening, but I didn't really understand."

The Chief Priest let out a sigh, then produced a Magical Tool for preventing eavesdropping. Seeing me grip it, he began to speak.

"That verification of the Holy Book has widened the rift between the Central Temple and the royal family. Apparently, there are those who say that for the royal star-binding ceremonies, they should not summon the High Priest of the Central Temple, but instead summon Ehrenfest's Saint. I asked you what you intended to do about this, remember?"

Listening to the Chief Priest's explanation, it sounded like an extremely serious situation. But since the Chief Priest's expression hadn't changed at all, I couldn't tell just how serious it actually was.

"...Um, this is a serious situation, right?"

"For the royal family, yes. But the one who convened the verification and carried it out was acting on the King's wishes. However the situation unfolds, it is not our responsibility. You, however, will inevitably be caught up in it."

"Wait a moment. Why are you being so calm about this? You're my guardian, so wouldn't you be completely dragged into this as well, Lord Ferdinand?"

The Chief Priest, who had been letting my words wash over him, suddenly made a face like he'd bitten into a bitter bug.

"With the King's words, the situation can change in any direction. Panicking now won't help. Right now, rather than worrying about that, you should think about how to handle *those people*. Judging from the stack of papers in your hand, those are your guests."

In the blink of an eye, the Chief Priest had reverted to his noble smile. His gaze was fixed on a group in blue mantles. There appeared to be over thirty of them, but the only one I recognized was Hannalore. Judging from how she kept glancing at the large man walking beside her — who was presumably carrying the modern-language translated manuscripts — the large man was likely the Aub of Dunkelfelger.

...Still, for two personal attendants, that's a rather large entourage, isn't it?

As I tilted my head in puzzlement, I noticed that the Dunkelfelger knights' gazes were directed not at me, but clearly at the Chief Priest. Come to think of it, the Chief Priest had apparently thrashed Dunkelfelger senseless during his student days.

...Could this possibly be trouble!?

I looked toward my adoptive father's table for help, but he was deep in conversation with Aub Drevenhach. When I glanced toward Wilfried and Charlotte, I could see they were surrounded by a crowd of unfamiliar nobles. There was no chance of getting help from them.

"Haishitse is here too. How troublesome..."

I tilted my head at the Chief Priest's mutter. It was a name I had never heard before.

"Who is Haishitse? A friend of yours, Lord Ferdinand?"

"Not a friend — the original owner of the blue mantle."

Apparently, he had surrendered his mantle as a trophy of defeat, only to challenge the Chief Priest obsessively over and over again trying to win it back — making him several times more troublesome than Lueuradi. In the end, Haishitse never managed to beat the Chief Priest before graduating, and never recovered his blue mantle.

"He won't try to challenge me to another match, will he..."

Just as that mutter trailed off, the Dunkelfelger entourage lined up in a row before our table. The man who appeared to be Aub Dunkelfelger stepped forward. He was large and powerfully built, with a presence that perfectly suited leading Dunkelfelger's knights.

"Are you the lord candidate Rozemyne who asked Hannalore to translate Dunkelfelger's historical texts into modern language and publish them as books?"

I instinctively started to lean forward with "Yes, sir!" but the Chief Priest smacked my thigh to stop me. Careful now — the other party was the Aub of a greater duchy. I had to remember elegance and composure.

"Yes. I am Rozemyne. Would you grant me your permission?"

As politely as I could manage, I asked — and Aub Dunkelfelger flashed me a wide grin.

"If you win, I'll grant it. If I win, I take this manuscript, and Dunkelfelger will publish it instead."

"...Excuse me?"

"I challenge you to a Ditter match!"

The manuscript slammed down on the table, and Hannalore's shriek of "Father! What are you suddenly saying!?" was drowned out by the thunderous battle cry of "Ohhhhh!" from the surrounding knights.

...Elegance and composure weren't needed against Dunkelfelger! What was needed was Ditter!

--- Preparations in order — it's Rozemyne's first Interduchy Tournament.

Socializing takes priority over watching Ditter.

Anastasius and Eglantine have arrived.

And the Dunkelfelger entourage. A match for the publication rights!

Next time — the Ditter match.