TLN: I'm not very knowledgeable about these noble' titles/ranks. So If you found any incorrect terms, please feel free to comment below.

As the carriage rattled along, Louis looked at Monica sitting across from him and opened his mouth.

"The first question, please answer in order from top to bottom the rank of nobility in our kingdom."

"…B, Baron, Marquis, Duke, Earl?"

As Monica replied unsurely, Louis gave her a beautiful smile and called her a "stupid girl."

"Not only does none of it correct, but also, where did the Viscount go?"

"Hiien…"

Now, in the carriage, Louis was giving a brief lecture about nobility.

Even though the lecture was covered on nobility, he didn't teach her how their manner or behaving.

In fact, before teaching her some manners, he would teach her some general knowledge.

———And the whole thing started with a simple question from Monica.

＊ ＊ ＊

"We will now head to my house in the royal capital. There, we will meet up with the daughter of Count Kerbeck, Young Miss Isabelle Norton, to complete the admission procedures…"

After getting into the carriage, Louis explained to Monica what they were going to do. However, Monica was more interested in what Louis was saying than what he was doing.

This time, Isabelle Norton, the daughter of Count Kerbeck, will be Monica's collaborator.

"Um, I thought Kerbeckwas a family name?"

"Excuse me?"

Monica said that while fidgeted with her fingers to Louis, who looked as if he didn't understand what she was saying.

"Well, I thought her name was Isabelle Kerbeck because she was the daughter of Count Kerbeck."

"Kerbeck is their title. Those who have a title above count usually referred to by their title."

"??"

When Monica's eyes went blank, Louis felt his cheeks twitching.

"My colleague, how much do you know about the nobility?"

Monica shook her head mutely, and the smile finally disappeared from Louis's face.

Thus began Teacher Louis' (not) fun lesson on nobility.

＊ ＊ ＊

"The first thing to do is to get this into your head. In our kingdom, the ranks of nobility are, in order from the top, duke, marquis, count, viscount, and baron. There are also quasi-aristocrats below these, but I won't go into that here. In any case, if you encounter a duke-class person, just consider him or her to be related to the royal family."

With Louis's words etched in her mind, Monica blurted out.

"…Count is a surprisingly high position, isn't it?"

To tell the truth, Monica had thought that the lowest rank of nobility was count.

At Monica's murmur, Louis opened his eyes to the limit and stared at Monica as if he were looking at something incredible.

"My colleague? You have your own title, don't you?"

The Seven Sages were granted a special status of the count of magic, which was equivalent to the rank of count.

In other words, Monica was a member of the nobility and was also one of the few women in the kingdom that held a title of nobility, but… for the past two years, Monica has been cooped up in her cabin, unaware of her status as a member of the nobility.

Thinking back, she did remember receiving proof of peerage, a ring, and other things when she became one of the Seven Sages, but she couldn't remember where she had put them. It was probably buried somewhere in a stack of papers in her cabin.

When Monica honestly confessed that, Louis brushed his fingers over the crease between his eyebrows and exhaled deeply.

"To start with, let's talk about Counts. In general, a count who owns a territory receives their title directly from that territory. For example, Lord Azure Norton is Count Kerbeck, who rules over the territory of Count Kerbeck. This also applies to dukes and marquises."

"Are there some counts who have no territory?"

"There are. Or rather, we are the ones, you stupid girl."

Counts who did not have their own territories were referred to as count palatine. And the count of magic was one of them.

"In the case of a count who doesn't have a territory, you might add "count" to their family name. In your case, you will be called Count Everett."

Even people born as commoners can receive a peerage depending on their achievements.

Among them, it would not be an exaggeration to say that the count of magic is the highest position they could achieve.

"To be honest, there are many different types of a count. There are those who are on the verge of downfall and are living the same life as commoners. They may have the same title as a count, but their influence is very different."

Among such a count, the count of magic was said to have a very high position. After all, the Seven Sages were in a position where they could directly express their opinions to His Majesty the King.

However, Monica has never met the king outside of ceremonies. This was because Monica, who was basically cooped up in her mountain cabin, was absent from most of the meetings of the Seven Sages where the king would occasionally show up.

In principle, the Seven Sages were not obliged to show up at social gatherings, but… Since magical research would need patrons, the overwhelming majority of the Seven Sages actively involved in the social circles.

A shut-in like Monica was a rarity.

"The count of magic is relatively influential among the counts, but it is a non-heredity title that holds no territory. Once you step down as one of the Seven Sages, you lose your title. That's why everyone is so eager to maintain their position."

"Are you too like that, Louis?"

"Isn't that obvious?"

Louis answered immediately and looked at Monica with sharp, grimacing eyes.

"I have no intention of throwing away my current position. That's why I have to make sure this secret mission succeeds."

In the midst of the rattling carriage, Louis stretched out his arm without losing his balance and placed his finger perfectly between Monica's eyes.

"Failure is not an option, my colleague."

That one word had nailed Monica who was not attached to her position as count of magic in her coffin.

If Monica failed to protect the prince, it would also be a failure for Louis.

If that happens, what will Louis do to her is something she doesn't want to see…

Just thinking about it makes me want to throw up.

As Monica turned pale and held her stomach, Louis said, "Oh, are you getting carriage sickness?" in a concerned tone.

＊ ＊ ＊

By the time Monica and her group arrived at Louis' mansion in the royal capital after an early morning carriage ride, the sun of summer was beginning to set a little.

After a long ride in the carriage and being drilled with knowledge about the nobility by Louis, Monica was walking unsteadily behind him. If it weren't for Lynn's support to assist her, she would have fallen to the ground long ago.

"Rosalie, I'm back."

As soon as Louis said this in a hearty voice, his wife, Rosalie Miller, immediately greeted the group.

"Welcome home."

Compared to the gorgeous Louis, she seemed to be a rather modest-looking woman. She wore simple clothes with few ornaments, and her dark brown hair was tied up in a single bun.

Unlike Louis, who was expressing with every fiber of his being that he missed his wife, Rosalie's attitude was nonchalant.

When Louis dropped a kiss on Rosalie's cheek, she didn't move an eyebrow and stared at Monica.

"She is?"

"Like me, she is the Seven Sages of the Silent Witch, Miss Monica Everett."

Rosalie was a bit taken aback, looking at Monica.

She was too young to be the Seven Sages, but more than that, Monica's outfit was probably the reason why she was so surprised.

With her small, skinny body, worn-out robe, and shaggy pigtails, she could be mistaken for a vagrant if she were not dressed properly.

However, Rosalie quickly straightened up and bowed to Monica.

"My deepest apologies, Lady [Silent Witch]. I'm Rosalie Miller, wife of the [Barrier Magician], Louis Miller. Please allow me to thank you for the care you've given my husband."

"Pl-Ple-Please… T-To meet… y-you…"

Monica also hurriedly bowed her head, but she could barely manage to say this in a strained voice. As a shy person, greeting new people was always something that Monica had a hard time doing with.

When she was bowing in a stiff manner, Louis grabbed Monica by the scruff of her neck and forced her to look up.

"Rosalie, I apologize for coming home so early, but… could you please turn back this into a human being?"

"I-I a-am a human."

At Monica's rebuttal in a mosquito-like voice, Louis snickered as he grabbed Monica by her scruff.

"Do you know, my colleague? Right now, you look like a straw doll in rags. If you were to stand in a wheat field, you would surely be mistaken for a scarecrow."

"S-So mean…"

When Monica was sniffling, Louis gave her a cold look and said.

"If you have a problem with that, why don't you evolve into a human being and come back later? I have no interest in questioning a scarecrow."