Narsiz POV

*Tap*Tap*Tap*

Walking through the estate towards Sarah's room, I tried my best to imagine what I could say to calm her down. I sighed as I thought about her, 'She is so hot-headed, though….'

Thinking about her personality, our family was the first thing that came to my mind, as they all were weirdos.

It was partly so because we marry a lot outside of Noble's circle and primarily out of love, not because of power, wealth, or anything like that.

If you have some special Skill or Ability, you will be helped from all sides to push them to their limit, ignoring all etiquette or conduct, which is generally seen in Noble's circles.

The other way around, so to say, if they don't have any Skill or Ability, they will be given a position without any power or responsibility, wishing them a happy and peaceful life.

The problem comes with what to do with the family? Helping, of course, but how? Well, as most of them are not Noble's and have no noticeable Skills, it will be most of the time nepotism with some unimportant jobs.

If they show some Skills, we will put them through the Ox-ride by backing them as much as possible, which works most of the time.

No Baron or Knight household would help a Lord from a slightly larger village build it better up, even if he was in the same family. Let us not even talk about non-Noble families like Merchants, from whom they only take women or men as concubines ignoring their families after their engagement.

So, but why weirdos? Because they don't learn any conduct or etiquette, only concentrating on their Skills. Such practice breeds weirdos left and right.

This means that I would be called a weirdo rather than her, as she would fit perfectly with her personality.

This behavior even worsens if we talk about our military. Leonandra's are a family of military folk, mostly at least. While this doesn't say anything at first, it comes with the fact that the military respects strength and gives those who have it much more freedom.

The closer you are to the apex, the more you can be yourself – and most of the time, the crown and other high-ranking nobles just let you do what you want, as long you achieve their goals.

You need the strong, and because of this, you let them do whatever they want, as long as your personality quirks aren't something too outrageous. Thus, the Leonandra Estate can have all the quirks they desire as someone close to the very apex. At least in our region.

As a result, my family can accept hot-headed people much easier when they have greater potential, which is to be seen in the case with Sarah. It's not that I want something terrible to happen to her – I am just a pessimist, and knowing how Lorient was, I don't really want to repeat it.

Even more so since I don't know if she has the potential to be strong enough to defend herself in the future or not. Obviously, I would do everything in my power to ensure her safety and happiness, even if she had no potential.

Thinking about a Party ~3 years ago I personally attended with Lorient, a frown was building upon my face. It was an event for the children of Nobles to get to know each other, build connections, and all that stuff. This was at least the premise of that event. Too bad they had to make fun of Lorient's etiquette…

I giggled to myself as I walked toward Sarah's room. Lorient was relatively restrained when they started to make fun of her.

That all changed, then they began to make fun of our family. Even I wanted to slit the throats of those pests, but Lorient jumped at them before I could do anything.

What occurred was a brawl. Even the bodyguard of one of these brats tried to attack Lorient. Too bad that she took his shield away and bashed the shield so often against his head that she almost killed him.

I needed to drag her out, or the brawl would transform into a massacre... hehe, this was indeed an unforgettable evening.

…

Looking at the door before me, I need to change Sarah to be calmer. We already have a berserker in our row, and one is more than enough work for me.

While mentally preparing myself for it, I adjusted my attire.

*knock*knock*knock*

I tried to sound as sincere as possible, "Sarah, may I come in?"

She sounded like a harpy with her wings pulled out, "NO, GO AWAY!"

Frowning and pinching between my eyebrows, I was already annoyed… I would instantly use Skills if she were not my sister.

I tried again with a more passive approach, trying to sound more worrying, which I was in all actuality, "Sarah, I'm just here to listen to you."

"I don't wanna talk!" which also didn't work.

Furrowing my brows, I waggled my tail in annoyance. I needed to calm down. 'Try and emphasize with her.'

While thinking about how my sister felt, I heard a *ding.*

'Huh?' Opening my System Window, I saw a new Skill [Empathy]. Are you kidding me?!

I read about this Skill in a book once. It helps you feel what the other person feels. The higher the level, the better you understand the underlying circumstances. Many clerics, healers, and nurses have this kind of Skill.

Hm, never mind – not like I will use it against my own blood.

*knock*knock*knock*

"WHAT!?" it seems like the Harpy also has no legs anymore...

Sighing at the circumstances, I hoped that Sarah would lose her hotheadedness in the future, "If you give me 5 minutes, I will leave you alone afterward."

…

…

…

After a short moment, I could hear a solemn voice, "Come in…."

*clank*

I looked around the room, which was a mess. Mother and Father do not want the servants cleaning our rooms – they say we should at least do the basics of it, as it improves our Skill over time, which gives us Exp.

Afterward, should we leave for a military campaign or adventuring, having such a Skill will be a big help as we can't take some servants with us just for cleaning.

But for other Nobles, having such a skill would disgrace their honor, so we are pretty unique in this sense.

With hands behind my back, I stood in the middle of the room and thought about what to say. 'This will be a hard chat.'

Seeing how Sarah was sitting on the bed, holding her plushy and sobbing. My heart broke. I clenched my hands behind my back. 'I need to stay rational.'

...

I know exactly how she felt. I started somewhat to lament, "I have seen Father only 3 times in my whole life."

Sarah looked at me with tears in her eyes, obviously confused. I looked back at her with a sad smile and continued, "Whatever I say right now, you need to know that father loves us more than anything else in the world."

While taking a handkerchief out of my breast pocket, I didn't stop talking. "What he is doing is exactly what a Tier 3 combatant in our empire needs to do."

Coming closer to Sarah, I softly wiped her tears away with the handkerchief, "He protects all the people who can't protect themselves nor run away from monsters. Elders too old to move efficiently, children younger than you, or pregnant women."

Opening her hand, I laid the handkerchief into her hand, "If he stops, the whole east part of Moorgrel will fall into chaos, and in the end, it would not only harm our Kin or the distant family but also us."

Sarah looked at the handkerchief and back at me with her big green eyes and quietly said. "Why? I just want to meet him…."

Shaking my head, I asked her, obviously knowing the bleak answer to this, "What would happen when Father stops his campaigns against the monsters, or rather where would the monsters go, and what would they do if he is not there to fight against them?"

Sarah looked down, thinking about the repercussions which I previously pointed out. Being already saddened as she was, her voice almost cracked, "I…."

Without looking away, I answered her cold-heartedly, "Yes, the monsters will come from the west and the demons from the east."

Stuttering slightly, she asked a reasonable question. "Bu…but what about the count?"

Without holding back, my hate could be heard in every word. "In the last 15 years, the dwarves started attacking us, kidnapping our people, treating them like pets and slaves…and before asking …."

I bared my fangs as unimaginable hate overcame me, "…the Majesty is in war with multiple human kingdoms, and while we hold out just fine, that is only due to Father's effort and others sacrifices who do everything in their power, for the sake of our Kin."

Sarah clenched her hands, clearly visibly angered, like me.

I got on one knee, brought her chin up with my hand, and looked deep into her eyes. She needs to learn. "Rather than being angry with Father, hate the monsters who look like humans and dwarves, who started this..." *ding* "...hate the demons from the east, monsters from the west, and make them pay for what they did."

While looking into her eyes, I could see that she understood it – I stood up and softly caressed her head. "Don't forget who did this to us, who stole father away, and most importantly, who put him into danger."

Turning around, I was about to leave as she spoke up hastily, "Brother, wait! Your handkerchief!"

Looking back, I smiled at her. "It's yours now. It was a present from Father the last time I saw him. That was a couple of years ago."

*clank*

Closing the door, I stood there and adjusted my collar and my blouse for a moment. 'This was exhausting….'

Walking for a couple of steps, I slapped my forehead so hard you could hear it throughout the corridor. 'Totally forgot… I need to find a servant to clean the mess up in the dining room…damn.'

*****

Alexander POV

Being a baby and lying in the crib, I was more than just a bit exhausted. I sleep for around 16 hours a day, which is annoying. Since I have nothing to do in the 8 hours I am awake, all I do is level up my Skills.

While leveling up, I hit a bottleneck with [Mathematics | 25] and cannot level it up any further. Even trying to solve quadratic equations in my head, it is impossible to level it up more! I don't know what to do.

Is this the limit of doing everything in an imaginary way? Do I really need to do it more practically, maybe?

Whatever it is, it helped me quite a bit up to this point in increasing my level and knowledge of this world. I now know that they have the same numerals in this world, just that they look different.

Also, I don't know if it's the inner gamer, but gaining levels and the resulting knowledge I gained is addictive. Yes, you hold onto your knowledge without any problems when you level up the corresponding Skills.

Everything inside me screams: "more!". I remember this feeling.

When I worked on small office applications to automatize specific tasks, it was so fun that I worked 14 hours a day and made a shit ton of money. At least for a student.

But right now…I…am…so tired…working on multiple things at once is incredibly mentally taxing, but…

*Zzzzzz*

…

…

…

*Riiiiiiiing*

"Woah!"

…

'…No fucking way….'

Looking around hastily, I saw what could be called a modern class, or at least it looked like the ones in US Highschools, from '90s movies. It was colorful and really… childish, like a classroom in an elementary school.

'Did I die and was reborn again?!' This was the first thought of being in such a weird environment.

Looking more around, I saw my other classmates who represented "students. " They looked like toys. Some were mannequins, some enormous plush toys, some action figures…

'This is a nightmare….'

Observing myself, I noticed that it was not my previous self. My hands were the ones of a 10-year-old, the Alexander one. How do I know this? The tail and ears are pretty good indicators, even without having a mirror.

The problem was that I wore my old school uniform, and I could clearly feel how uncomfortable it was. This pinch on my back is really giving me some nostalgia.

Why was this a problem? This dream is mixing my previous and current life together.

'Did I go insane because of the mental exhaustion?!' My mind went full-blank for a full minute before I could catch myself and look around again.

The room was decorated with "learning material," to put it nicely. The PSE was structured in kinds of cakes. In place of noble gases, for example, were all sorts of typical American Pies, which would give you Diabetes in your 30s.

Exploring the corporal insanity around me, I found more things where it looked like the corporations won: In the poster where the SI's should be, were only 7 kinds of chocolate bars: Peanut-Choco, KitDog, Venus, Giant-Cat, Coconut, Andromeda, and Twin-choco.

Squinting my eyes, I tried to read what was written, in English, under the Andromeda section: "An Andromeda bar, the sweet measurement of comfort in every way, is a 1/300.000.000 of the speed of light in Andromeda's bar length in a second."

…

"I am officially cuckoo…."

…

While thinking about how I could off myself the quickest way with the sharpened No. 2 Pencil before me, I heard a voice, "Good morning, dear Students. Today we will have a math quiz!"

Looking where the voice came from, I saw what should be my teacher. Ignoring all the murmurs from all sides, I couldn't believe what I saw. A doll teacher… who looked like a model…

Wait? Did she just say "math quiz"? After a couple of seconds, I saw a math quiz materialize before me. 'Ok, calm down, just write it and see what happens? You are already in hell where sweets companies have already taken over the world.'

Standing before me with open arms and a big smile, she announced the beginning of the test with a clap, "Ok, you have 30 minutes. Please begin! *clap*."

I turned the math quiz around and started it. It was pretty basic stuff for the 4th grade, Algebra with a bit of fractions.

After 10 minutes, I rechecked everything at least five times before another *clap* was heard and the math quiz dematerialized. "Ok, good job!"

I suddenly heard a voice from the left. It sounded similar to someone who spoke through a helmet, almost giving me a heart attack, "How did it go for you?"

Looking to the left, I saw a mighty red hunter sitting and "looking" at me through his helmet. Twitching my lips into a crooked half-smile, I answered and tried to acquire some information, "Don't know, hopefully good… do you know where…."

Before I could finish my sentence, a *clap* was heard again. On the blackboard, in front of us, were our results displayed. Looking at it, I saw that I was in the first place.

Math-quiz results:

Alexander K. Leonandra – 100% Itch, a drawing toy – 98,3% Annoying owl – 97,1% Fast dying chick – 96,8% Big grey rectangle– 94,9%

…

Teacher Doll Model looked at me with pride, while the others in the class looked at me with envy. I could even feel killing intent coming from… a god damn drawing toy?! Dear Jesus, please let it be quick…

I blinked, and in the next second, I woke up in a panic and cried out loud. "JESUS FUCKING CHRIST!"

Looking around in panic, I saw the grid of my crib and a sleeping Sister on the rocking chair close to the French window. It was just a nightmare, good… but… it was too realistic for a dream.

I never had a dream this realistic… Wait? I heard a ding while waking up.

'System'

Opening my System, I understood what happened.

[Mathematics | 26]

This is why... but… why?! It was like a mushroom trip…fuck me…

Ok, as far as I get it, you need to do something like this for every Skill at level 25 to pass it.

Going by this logic, you also probably need to do these tests every 25 levels. There is no way that it was the last test…

Thinking about it more, I felt a headache coming…

*****

Sarah's POV

*tap*tap*tap*

Going through the corridor to the tearoom, I hastened my steps. Mama was back and sent servants to call us all in. I hoped that she could do it!

While walking, I could only think about the thing big brother said earlier today.

I know that he is right. Even Mama talked about the dwarves and humans and what they do, but… don't we all look almost the same? Why would they enslave us because we have different body parts… it makes no sense why they do it.

…

Even big sister sometimes talked about how hateful they are and said I would understand when I am older. Why couldn't she just tell me that?! So annoying!

Stomping my feet harder while walking, I came before the tearoom in no time. Opening the door carefully, I saw that everyone was already there. Mama, big sister, big brother, puppy, head butler Nori, and head maid Saly.

As I moved carefully to one of the accessible seats, everyone looked at me, making me feel incredibly uncomfortable. Sitting down quickly, I waited for Mama to start speaking.

As I looked at her, she was in her half-plate armor, had one leg over the other, and had an aura like she looked down on the world, full of pride and arrogance, 'A true Knight...'

I had nothing less than adoration for her, as she was my role like I could remember.

Clenching my fists over my knees, I tried to sit as gracefully as possible. Being just one step closer to Mama would suffice.

For now, it was not my etiquette that held me back. No, it was my power. I need more strength to protect my family and our subjects. 'But how if I even don't have my Legacy now?'

Multiple maids and butlers came in and started to serve tea, bringing me out of my headspace. I always liked to look at the maids and butlers.

They were so beautiful! Every servant in our estate was from the Butterfly-, Swan-, or Spider-race.

The Butterfly-kin's beautiful faces looked like they were painted on a canvas, while their colorful wings and eyes were like rainbows, bright with beautiful patterns, almost too perfect.

While the Swan-kins are also winged, they have beautiful white feathers and clear blue eyes instead of the playful colorfulness of Butterfly-kin. Their faces are also stunning, radiating elegance only seen on Nobles.

On the other hand, the Spider-kins are much more cute than beautiful. They all have 2 eyes like us, either red, orange, or purple, and multiple other eyes on their forehead, but they are more petite. Spider-kins are also one of the few races born with thread-making skills.

Mama said that these Kin are much weaker than us Wolf-kin, so they have a lower chance of becoming Knights, but they have other exceptional talents which are much more critical for the day-to-day basis like cooking, cleaning, sewing, gardening, farming, etc.

Some even awaken a Divinity line resembling magic and learn to use powerful lifestyle "magic" to make life more comfortable.

My brother once said that having Butterfly-kin with strong gardening Skills and a specialized Divinity line is considered a luxury even for Nobles. They can plant and care for the prettiest flowers all year round!

Some Spider-kin can also sew with tough threads that can be weighed in gold coins since their threads can be used for protective equipment.

Mama only waved her hand and nodded to dismiss the servants when they served the tea. She looked at Alex in her hands and caressed him while speaking, "I will make it short since it is getting late."

She looked at everyone before continuing in her stern tone, clearly stressed out by the meeting, "We are getting our aid, but it will be costly."

Everyone sighed in relief while I was shocked. 'What does it mean it will be costly?'

Getting all my courage together, I tried to ask, hoping it was no dumb question, "What does it mean it will be costly…?"

Everyone looked at me a little confused, and then they smiled slightly and looked towards Mama, 'What is happening?!'

Mama nodded towards Saly, who looked at me with a soft smile, "Young miss, I have done the accounting for our Leonandra family for decades, so while the Mistress said that it would be costly, knowing how much wealth we have, it will be probably not much…."

Saly and I looked back at Mama, who smiled softly. "Don't worry, Salyna, it will be doable."

Looking back at Salyna, who frowned and pinched between her eyebrows, big brother and big sister started laughing and holding their hands in front of their mouths.

Inhaling in and out loudly, she asked with a more aggravating tone, "Mistress, would you please give me a good estimate so I can plan it out?"

Sighing with a smile, Mama pointed towards the table, where stacks of paper were lying, and on top of it was a teacup. Big sister used them as a saucer.

Frowning even deeper, Saly moved towards the stack of papers, took them, and read it. After every page, her eyes became rounder and bigger. In the end, they were like plates!

Waiting for 2 to 3 minutes, I could see big brother and sister giggling more loudly, 'Why are they laughing?'

She looked at Mama and screamed, "ARE YOU MENTAL?!"

Out of the blue, big sister laughed out loud and mumbled, "That's our Salyna."

Mama frowned and looked towards big sister but didn't say anything. Saly already forgot her etiquette and just argued against Mama, 'Oh, I get it! It is funny!'

She held the papers in front of her, waving them fiercely, while her wings opened fully, "Mistress, you can't be serious about paying this much money?!"

Mama shook her head and looked towards Noriken, "Take Alexander and look after him. He already ate, so don't worry."

Nori just nodded and headed towards Mama, took the pup, and went out.

*clank*

Mama looked at us, giggling, "You three, go to your rooms. I need to discuss business with Salyna."

All three of us nodded and went out of the room.

*clank*

"YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS! DO YOU WANT TO BANKRUPT US FOR SOME SHIT-ASS SLAVES!?"

Big brother started laughing hysterically while holding his stomach. Big sister was not much better.

Looking at them, I did find the situation funny, too but not to the degree they did. While giggling and laughing, they both looked at me while I tilted my head to the side.

Narzi wished a tear away, slowly stopping laughter, clearly marveled by such a scene, "Don't be confused. This scene is scarce and needs to be enjoyed to the fullest!"

Lorient came from the side, smiling all over the place, caressing my head and sounding like some Hyena-kin, "Yeah, not everyone has the guts to call Mom mental…Hehe"

While we walked towards the kitchen for a snack, I asked them curiously, "It is funny, but…."

Before I could end my sentence, big sister interrupted me cheerily, "Hm, I know what you think, but Mom would rip anyone else a new one if they talked to her like this"

I panicked, so I raised my voice at them, "Oh! We need to help her then!"

My brother patted my head and said calmly while giggling, "Don't worry, nothing will happen to Salyna. She is an incredibly skilled Accountant. Mother would never raise her hand against her… hehe."

I was perplexed, "Why?"

This time big sister responded, "Hm, you may think that Knights or Soldiers are the most important, but…."

I interrupted her, remembering clearly all the lessons I received, "No! I know how essential others are. I am not stupid! Mama told me this a hundred times."

I stomped my feet and smacked my big brother's hand away.

Both shook their heads in unison like the stupid Monkey-kin who teased me once. This made me even more aggressive, "What now!?"

Narsi leaned against the wall, clarifying the situation, while Lorient was looking for food like some wild Racoon-Kin, "Listen, Salyna is not just any accountant – she is a Tier 3 Accountant with incredible Mystical Skills and high Skill levels. She may be weaker than any of us, but should she leave our estate, hypothetically. She could work instantly as the head chief of finance for his Majesty."

I can't believe what I am hearing! Tier 3? Majesty? "I…I…"

I could feel how big sister poked my cheek while teasing me, "If you don't close your mouth, flies will fly in, hehe."

Looking at big sister angrily and slapping her hand away, I barked at her, "No, they will not!"

…

I rotated my head back to big brother. I urged him to answer, "And what do you mean she wouldn't leave?!"

I don't know why I said that. I didn't want her to leave, but I was flabbergasted by what I heard. I could not believe it!

He scratched his chin while thinking. Big sister giggled at his performance, "Hm, good question!"

Now big sister is imitating him, "Hm, indeed a very good one!"

They are teasing me! Fletching my teeth and stomping again, I almost erupted in anger.

Big brother and sister simultaneously and mockingly raised their arms, simulating the I give up gesture. Narsi was the first to apologize and propose to move places, "Ok, ok, sorry for making fun of you, let's have a snack and talk somewhere else, alright?"

I nodded, and we went to get some jerky and a bit of water. After that, we headed toward the art room.

On the way there, we could hear screams between Mama and Saly resonating through the whole wing of our estate.

*Clank*

Sitting down, they both looked at me, and big sister was the first to ask me earnestly, "Why do you think Salyna isn't leaving our family?"

Thinking that they wanted to make fun of me again, I saw their serious expressions. I started to seriously think about this question.

Being in deep thought for a good minute, I answered them honestly, "Maybe we pay her a lot?"

Big brother shook his head while chewing some jerky, "No, try again."

Frowning, I had no idea, so I guessed, "We treat her very well?"

This time big brother nodded with a grin, while some jerky stuck out, "Very good! You are 100% right!"

Being perplexed, I blurted out what came first to mind, "What?! We treat her better than the Royalty would treat her?!"

This time big sister answered, "Yes and no, you see, we are a bit different regarding certain things."

She looked down and probably thought of something, so I waited for her.

Rocking back up, she looked at me and held one finger up, "For example, when it comes to inheriting some Noble title or the crown, everywhere but here, the potential heirs need support from different parties..."

Taking a sip of water, she continued, "...and being an extremely talented Accountant on the level of a finance minister, will bring her a lot of prestige but also a ton of pressure, everyone would want her to be on his or her side, and if not, they would probably assassinate or blackmail her, her husband or her children."

Looking at big brother, she nodded to him to take over the explanation, "This is not all, obviously, but we do everything we can to protect her family. We did it for generations – even her grandfather worked for us as an accountant."

While sitting there and thinking, they started talking again. This time, Lori babbled on, not giving me the time to think things through, "We have considerably more talented individuals in our estate and under our family name, which is quite the thing. Everyone would want her under their banner and family name."

Narsi shook his and sighed in disbelief, "Yep, the problem is that they care too much about their image."

Lori agreed with him, "Hm, you are right."

Looking back at me, big brother asked me, "You know who Salyna Leonandra's husband and Grandmother are?"

I shook my head, waiting for him to clarify, "Her husband is a common potter, and her grandmother was a common tailor – so, now the 100 mithril coin question!"

Now he was holding his finger again up, "What would happen if you were under a noble's name as a high-ranking member and fell in love with a commoner or, as they call it, a "lowly commoner"?"

Looking at him, I understood it now… "They would…"

I didn't want to end my sentence and clenched my hands into fists. Were we so much different from others? How could they discriminate against others just because of whom they love and want to marry?

Big sister interrupted me from my thoughts again, "You got the rough idea. You wouldn't know it now, but later, if you go to some Noble's parties with many other children, you will quickly understand two things."

Holding 2 fingers up, big sister looked quite solemn, "First, they are a bunch of talentless and arrogant assholes who will always use their name rather than their skills."

Big brother nodded so vigorously that it looked like his head would fall off.

"Second, the adults are the same and will backstab even their own children if it means that their favorite child gets that useless title."

Now big brother smiled wildly, "You forgot the third thing, big sister, and the most important reason why they hate us throughout the Empire."

"Oh! You are right!" Looking back at me and now holding 3 fingers up while smiling mischievously.

Her tone was heavier, "Do you know how they called us around 500 years ago?"

I shook my head, not really into history or other things alike. I barely can go through the lessons of my current teacher and am only good at fighting.

"Noble slaughterer and King decapitator"

What did I hear?! "Why?! I thought we would only kill demons?"

Both shook their heads, and big brother was now speaking, sounding as heavy as Lori before. "Yes and no actually, 500 years ago – corruption was so insanely high from the central nobility that they sold an insane number of slaves to other races, and worse yet, the crown allowed it."

You could feel killing intent oozing out from big brother, and even big sister shivered a bit while looking at him, "We did what needed to be done. We came together with other Nobles who were against it too, mainly from the north, east, and the current King, who was the third prince at that time."

A sadistic smile formed slowly on his face, making my blood freeze, "We went to the capital and annihilated the bloodlines of all those traitors."

The pressure dimmed a bit, but I could still feel the sinister energy coming from big brother, "We slaughtered more than 50 Noble families, from pups to elders, so they could not search vengeance with our progeny. Since these days, certain families, like ours, are feared and hated throughout the empire."

I looked down. Not knowing such things was clearly an embarrassment for me, "I…understand."

Big sister shook her head. "You don't, but you will when you meet that scum from the central and southern nobility…."

Smacking her forehead with her palm, she remembered something, "We went too much off-topic!"

Both giggled.

Narsi leaned slightly back and looked out of the window towards the starry sky, going back to the main topic, "All right, what was it? Why won't Salyna leave our estate even though she has tremendous talent?"

Nodding, I ate my Jerky and listened attentively while he resumed, "Well, let me give you the short version: she, like many other talents, is not interested in politics. That is pretty much it. We don't pressure them but rather disallow them to participate in, for example, the ascension for the Knight title with the "Tri-Iron" honorary of the Leonandra Estate – nobody is allowed to join our fight for it."

Lorient nodded and shrugged her shoulders, "Well, this is how we pull talents in and don't forget that we also pay them a pretty coin."

Nodding, I understood the implications of this. If talents are disinterested in power and just want wealth with a secure place to live, they wouldn't choose the palace or other Nobles who strive for more and more power. Instead, they would prefer a trading company or us though the former provides less protection.

Plus, there are freedoms in our family that they can enjoy – like not being obliged to marry other high-ranking Nobles, and they can just choose by their own will.

After some more discussion, both of them stood up, bade good night to me, and went ahead while I sat there, nabbed on some jerky, and thought about everything.

Sighing, I could only partly understand the world… Why is everyone like this?

Scratching my head in annoyance, I decided to head back to my room and call it a day.