Chapter 104

I spent Saturday morning having Nacius and Henry draw pictures and practice their dancing and Hanon exercises.

“Alright, that’s enough studying for today. Let’s go check on the strawberries in the greenhouse.”

They haven’t grown large enough to bear fruit yet. I think I’ll give them a small magical nudge.

“I can’t wait to eat the strawberries,” Henry beamed. Just wait a little longer, Henry.

I also took the opportunity to accelerate the growth of the roses. Spending time with my younger brothers like this genuinely sets my mind at ease.

Our lunch was packed with nutrition as well: Romano lettuce soup, soft bread, and Salisbury steak. Yes, because it’s an excellent way to stretch a small amount of meat, it has become a staple dish for the Granger household.

Last night, the only detail Father shared regarding the Queen’s letter was that she praised me highly. However, it’s rather strange since she had explicitly mentioned granting a gift of apology. Could it be that it contained a cheque, similar to Aunt Liliana’s gift? I have a feeling it’s something else. I want to query him, but Patience’s instincts warn me that prying is a bad idea. Well, I’m sure he’ll fill me in eventually.

Today, Sir Salyer is dropping by to give my brothers swordsmanship instruction. Since the Queen generously gifted us plenty of eggs, butter, and sugar yesterday, I asked Eva to bake a pound cake as a token of our gratitude. And some egg sandwiches too, since I’ve already taught Eva the proper method for making mayonnaise.

With that, our preparations for hosting Sir Salyer are absolute perfection. I think I’ll play some new pieces in the drawing room while I wait. Chopin truly was a piano genius, wasn’t he? Now, what should I play?

Relying on my memory, I try playing ‘Waltz of the Young Cat’ (Op. 64, No. 5), ‘Heroic Polonaise’, ‘Mazurka’, ‘Barcarolle’, and ‘Nocturne’. While I remember the core melody lines, I’ve forgotten a significant portion of the accompaniment parts, so transcribing them onto sheet music is going to be quite a chore.

“My lady, Sir Salyer and Lord Percival Moran have arrived.”

Eh? So it isn’t just Sir Salyer. I wonder if he brought along a fellow knight from the First Order? I had completely forgotten about the boys from the knights club whom the young ladies were swooning over during the Aoba Festival, but the moment I saw his face, it clicked.

“Patience, this is my cousin, Percival Moran. My father’s younger sister married into the House of Earl Moran. Furthermore, the previous Countess was originally a daughter of the Granger family, so that makes you second cousins.”

Percival offered a perfectly polite bow. However, dropping by without any prior notice is quite a breach of etiquette, isn’t it?

“Viscount Granger, Lady Patience, please forgive my intrusion. When I heard Sir Salyer was heading to the Granger estate to offer swordsmanship instruction, I simply couldn’t resist tagging along.”

“Nonsense. Sir Salyer, Lord Percival, I am deeply grateful to you both for going out of your way to instruct my sons,” Father replied gracefully, offering his thanks before retreating to his study.

While I was caught entirely off guard, Nacius and Henry were thrilled to have two instructors for their swordsmanship lesson. I’m well aware that the knights club is currently harboring some internal issues, but I belong to the music club, after all. It really shouldn’t have anything to do with me.

Regardless, Lord Percival truly does possess a remarkably handsome face.

Though, as far as my personal preferences go, he’s a bit too grown-up. The ones who hit my absolute type are Nacius and Henry, who are currently swinging their wooden swords with everything they have—pure, adorable younger boys.

Because of the cold, I only watched their practice for a short while before returning to my room to fill out my course registration form. Since Mr. Cuthbert is entirely unreliable, I double-check everything myself to ensure I haven’t omitted any mandatory subjects and that my elective credit count is sufficient. As expected, Pharmacy II didn’t have an available slot during my free periods, so I’ll take advantage of Ms. Machias’s kind offer and attend during the Pharmacy I slot.

Day 1st Period 2nd Period 3rd Period
Mon Diplomacy World History Alchemy II
Tue Geography Foreign Language Sewing
Wed. Business Management Magic Arrays Pharmacy II
Thu Administration ? Penmanship
Fri Law Economics Etiquette II
….

“I’m registering for Diplomacy, World History, and Geography without ever attending a single lecture. I have no choice but to trust Senior Rupert’s recommendations blindly. I also skipped the mandatory Sewing class, and I haven’t tried Herbology yet. Yep, I’m playing this entirely by ear.”

Well, even so, having it finalized sets my mind at ease.

“Their practice should be wrapping up about now.”

When I headed downstairs, my brothers, Sir Salyer, and Percival were just stepping back into the estate.

“Thank you very much!” my brothers chimed in, offering their bows.

“Sir Salyer, Lord Percival, thank you for your hard work. Would you care for some tea?”

I privately wished my brothers could join us to eat, but the barrier of ten years old is absolute. In this fantasy world, children under ten are never permitted to share tea with formal guests.

I invited them for tea with a warm smile, though my heart was pounding in anticipation of whatever business Percival had brought with him. I served up the egg sandwiches as well.

“Oh, these sandwiches are absolutely magnificent!”

They ate with a wonderfully hearty appetite. I made sure to have sandwiches sent to the children’s room too, so Nacius and Henry could enjoy them. In no time at all, the entire platter vanished completely into the stomachs of Sir Salyer and Percival.

“Patience, I’m sure you’re wondering why I brought Percival along with me today.”

Sir Salyer possesses a remarkably straightforward personality. However, tossing such a direct fastball makes it rather awkward to respond.

“Please, have a slice of pound cake,” I replied, deliberately changing the subject. After all, I had a feeling whatever they wanted to discuss was going to be a massive headache.

Given the invitation, the two reluctantly took a bite of the pound cake. I understand—the cakes in this world are usually packed with a gritty, excessive amount of sugar, after all.

“Wait, this is delicious!” Sir Salyer exclaimed. He truly is hilariously honest.

“Please, have another slice. Furthermore, I’ve prepared some pound cake as a souvenir for Aunt Amalia, so please take it with you. I had it baked using a recipe we received from the Queen’s personal chef.”

After Sir Salyer enjoyed two slices and Percival finished one, they finally set down their forks. Ah, it looks like I can’t delay the inevitable any longer.

“Patience, the reason I brought Percival today is because we desperately need to discuss the knights club. Have you happened to catch any unusual rumors regarding them?”

Faced with Sir Salyer’s earnest sincerity and the intense gaze of Percival’s blue eyes, I finally yielded.

“I’ve heard whispers that the magic club and the riding club are gradually being turned into subordinate organizations under the knights club. However, I belong to the music club, so I don’t possess any detailed information.”

Sir Salyer’s face twisted into a bitter expression. Percival clenched his fists tightly, desperately reining in his fury. Ah, he actually looks rather charming right now. Perhaps fourteen years old is well within boundaries? The defensive radius for my appreciation of cute younger boys truly is vast.

“Why exactly did you come to query me? I am not affiliated with the knights club at all.”

Percival paused before speaking with a heavy voice.

“Ever since President Eric graduated and President Hammond took over, the knights club has completely lost its way. It began with forcing the magic club to participate in our training. At first, it seemed like a marvelous idea—it allowed us to coordinate our offensive maneuvers and provided immediate healing on standby.”

That makes perfect sense. For the knights club, it was an incredibly sweet deal. Though, for the students in the magic club, it must have been a massive nuisance. Take Bryce, for instance.

“That wasn’t the end of it, was it? Speak up, Percival,” Sir Salyer urged.

I wonder if it involves the riding club?

“President Hammond intends to field elementary division students during this year’s Aoba Festival tournament. It has always been strictly decreed that elementary students are barred from participating because their bodies haven’t fully matured yet… It feels as if he is shamelessly trying to curry favor with Prince Keith.”

Ah, don’t tell me they came all the way to my estate just to query me on that? I have absolutely nothing to do with it.

“I know absolutely nothing about a matter like that, my lords.”

Yet, Percival pressed on.

“You constantly share your lunches with Prince Keith, do you not? I thought you might have overheard something. Has Prince Keith mentioned anything at all regarding the knights club?”

“He hasn’t uttered a single word about it. The only details I know are from the mage track, where people are grumbling that the magic club’s recent activities have been bizarre. Furthermore, my cousin Samuel, who enrolled this year, mentioned he declined to join the riding club because they were forcing the members to take care of the knights club’s horses as well.”

Hearing that, Sir Salyer flew into a rage.

“A knight refusing to take care of his own mount?! Preposterous! They’ve gone completely soft! Right then, Percival—gather the knights. We are going to beat some proper discipline back into Hammond and his cronies!”

Oh dear, this is going to turn into a massive uproar.

“Please compose yourself, Sir Salyer. President Albert of the music club explicitly stated he intends to raise this very issue at the upcoming club presidents’ meeting. If graduates swoop in to intervene directly, it will only complicate the situation further. It would be best to leave the matter to the student council.”

Sir Salyer sank back into his chair looking rather sheepish. I poured him another cup of tea to help him cool his head.

“I shall pull some strings behind the scenes to overhaul the joint training with the magic club,” Percival noted thoughtfully. “There are plenty of members within the knights club who feel something is amiss. Furthermore, I was completely unaware of the situation regarding the riding club. Up until now, the horse grooming was entirely handled by the elementary division members. I shall bring this up for a formal discussion within the club; I’m certain a significant portion of the membership is just as oblivious as I was.”

In other words, the core of the problem lies with the Aoba Festival. Last year, Prince Keith was practically begging Prince Richard to let him participate, after all. President Hammond must have been fully aware of that.

“Is the authority to determine tournament participants for the Aoba Festival not strictly vested in the club president? Prince Richard explicitly stated so last year,” I recalled.

The two fell into a heavy silence. It was clear that President Hammond was merely exploiting that authority to curry favor with Prince Keith.

“We can’t exactly ask Patience to speak with Prince Keith directly, can we?” Percival murmured.

Absolutely not! I shook my head vigorously.

“Why don’t you try consulting with Prince Richard instead?” I suggested.

It was a brilliant plan, but the real hurdle was determining who would actually approach him.

“Does anyone here happen to have a contact at Romano University? The age gap between me and the current students is far too wide,” Sir Salyer mused.

Percival crossed his arms, letting out a low hum of frustration, before his face suddenly snapped up.

“My cousin, Michel, is currently a third-year student at Romano University. We can ask him to pass along the message.”

“Michel Owen, is it? Yes, I know him well,” Sir Salyer nodded.

“Thank you, Patience. We shall take our leave!”

“Thank you very much, Lady Patience. Please excuse us.”

The two dashed out of the estate like a passing hurricane. Wyatt had to scramble just to hand them the pound cake souvenir for Aunt Amalia. Honestly, they really should have just gone straight to see their cousin Michel before barging into my estate. Good grief.