/KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK/

-You may… COUGH! Enter…

‘A raspy voice rang behind the well-ornated door, whoever it was, he was very old and was certainly sick.’

/Creak.../

-Father…

‘The middle-aged man with blond hair and gray eyes, gazed at his now sickly father’

-It's you, my son, come to my side…

‘Old and week, the man called for his soon in what might be their final face to face talk’

-If you are here, it means all of the preparations are complete right? Cough!...

-Yes father… I finished it last week and used one week to tie all loose ends.

‘The old man was visibly surprised’

-Good good! I knew I could count on you! You managed to finish everything three months ahead of schedule! I won't ask you any further as I trust your decision to meet me.

-If only your son had a tenth of your intelligence! Instead of losing his time with those whores and drinking! COUGH!

-Calm down father… He is just 28…

-When I was 28 I had already been trusted with territory management by my father! It took me 5 years, but in five years I doubled our gainings!

-When you were 25 I also passed the management of the territory to you. And you didn't disappoint me. Look at our progress! We are one step away from completing my father's dream...

-The dream of our Tarta family!

-And instead of representing our noble name, what did he do?!

-When he was 15 he took over the control of one of our most valuable villages and burned it to the ground like the brat he is! COUGH COUGH COUGH!...

-...

‘The middle-aged man didn't say anything because he knew his father was right. At this point in time, he had already given up on his first son, he is now thinking of passing the territory to his younger children.’

‘The problem is that his second and third oldest are girls, only the fourth and fifth are men.

But this isn't an issue since he will live for another 20 years easily, more than enough time to plan everything smoothly.’

-My only regret is not seeing one of my grandsons rise to the Lord position… My father saw me giving you the territory, but I will not be able to accomplish that…

-Father…

-Don't be sad my son, sometimes when two great people unite, the result may not be pleasant.

-And I already saw a lot, and with this action of yours, I should be able to see the start of the great plan of our Tarta family! The plan that has been in motion for 10 generations!

‘The old man looked to the side, towards a beautiful painting containing two people. An elegant young man and a pregnant woman with violet hair’

-Use your fingers to tap into the bottom left side of the painting, the final orders will be there. Burn it when you memorize it.

‘The man nodded and got up, heading towards the painting.’

‘He stared at it for a long while...’

-I also miss her son… I will soon meet her. And together we will watch your progress…

/Click!/

‘After touching the painting a few times, the middle-aged man finally heard a “click”’

‘A small scroll the size of a finger fell from a hole in the frame’

‘The men opened the envelope and read word by word. His face twisted in surprise as he read its contents

‘He read it 4 more times to make sure he had memorized it’

/Crackle/

‘The paper burned in his hands out of nowhere, this man was ,clearly, much more than just a normal noble’

-Good, if you have any questions, you may come to me. There are still a few things I should tell you…

/Knock knock/

‘They looked at each other before the middle-aged man said:’

-Treso, is that you? Didn't I tell you to not disturb me today!

‘His voice was strong but he wasn't reprimanding his butler, he knew that if he disturbed them it was because of something big’

-I am very very sorry my Lord, but the agent of the Crown is here. I tried to have him wait but…

-Already? What does he want?

-He wasn't you to give him the list of locations to collect Tax pay from, among other things.

-Arg… Can't he wait for even a moment?...

-... I will come back soon father, it's just a few moments.

-I will take this time to rest my throat a little.

‘The middle-aged man nodded towards his father and left’

…

/At the same time in another corner of the mansion/

/A young man was hearing a report from one of his subordinates/

-... The tax collector is here?

-Yes my lord

-Why did he come so soon?... Do we even have the papers dad asked of us?

-They are almost finished, my lord… We are just a little doubtful concerning a certain subject.

-Tell me, I don't have all day, they are waiting for me.

‘As he said that, a couple of female giggles resounded from behind the veil covering his bed’

-I will be brief, my lord. There are some villages that we are doubtful in regards to whether or not we should add them to the list.

-This includes ‘That’ village.

-That forgotten place… That's our family shame… My greatest mistake… I should’ve destroyed that place when I had the fucking chance.

-Hiding it will only make them suspect us… So we need to cover up until I have the time to deal with that place. Take a few Silver pieces from my vault, it should be enough to cover their Tax pay right?

-I am afraid that it will not, in the papers it is described that their last Tax pay a year ago was that of 14 Gold pieces… If we reduce it to a few Silver pieces they will certainly sniff something fishy.

-I recommend using 6-8 Gold pieces to make it consistent. We can always say they had a bad season.

-6 to 8… It's bearable… What a fucking waste!

/Crack!/

His wine glass cracked under the strength of his grip.

-Urg… I want you to find a way to finish those villagers of.. Are those bandits still in the North?

-Yes they are… Although their main group has just left under your previous orders as a means to not attract the attention of the Lord.

/CRACK!/

-Remember… I am the Lord here!

‘He almost threw the glass cup in his agent but he managed to reign in his anger

-My utmost apologies M’Lord!

-Whatever… Continue.

-There is another problem…

-Another fucking problem… What is it this time?! Did they all die or something?... No, that would be great in fact…

-It's like this, I just received a report saying that a traveling Scholar has made his way to the village as his Trial to enter the Royal Academy.

-It seems his trial is all about raising the village back to its former glory… There are a few holes in that story though...

-Royal Academy?!... Buahahaha!

-And what of it? It's just a single person. And if he actually manages to raise the state of that pathetic village back to normal wouldn't that be good?

-And if he is here, it means those people don't really care about him in the first place. Who would send a Scholar so far away from the Academy in the first place? They just want to get rid of him...

-And that brings us here, if he fails… It seems those old contacts of mine are still very much active… Prepare a letter for me! It seems I need to send some gifts!

-They gave me such a perfect way to clean myself! This way father will not be able to bother me anymore! Hahaha… So don't worry about those holes! It seems this was all made just for me!

-What a perfect gift! It seems it will be hard for me to repay them… Tsk!

-Get in contact with those bandits… No, they are not capable enough at creating a scene… When will the main group come back?

-The main opportunity will be when ‘the’ event starts.

‘Upon the mention of this event, the young man’s eyes narrowed. His expression turned serious as sweat fell from his forehead’

‘He went close to his servant and said:’

-After this, kill those bitches, you know why right?

-Of course M’Lord

-Report to me as soon as the opportunity arises.

‘He sat down in his couch and though:’

Soon… Soon I will clear that pathetic place and my name.

No one will remember me anymore as a horrible Lord and master. My chances at getting the Lord position will rise by a lot…

-In the meantime, just keep all communication with that village closed. I don’t one a single soul escaping from that place. This includes travelers…

-It shall be done.

‘A maid on the side gave him another glass full of wine’

/Sip.../

-In the rare situation that the Scholar actually manages to fix the village… Bring him to me.

If I show a fully healed village to my dad… And if I take the credit… It should be pretty easy for me to get the Lord’s position.

One thing is a Lord that can hide his secrets, another thing is one that can fix his mistakes.

To turn misfortune into a fortune! This is one of the most important traits for a Lord!

Although I don't understand it very well… No matter, just some nonsense from those old bags.

And it shouldn't be that hard to make the Scholar accept my deal and give me all credit. I can bait him with an invitation to the Academy and…

Kill him! Tying all loose ends.

-After the situation calms down and that “event” starts, go take a look at the village. If the situation is good, we could even give them some “help” to speed up the process.

The sooner I clear my name the better. Even if I have to waste some money, if I can make the ruler of that place fix things faster… I don't care who is the ruler of that pigsden, as long as I receive the final credit!

-Go now, I am tired of talking.

-I will take my leave now, master!

-Phew… Talking is so tiring. I don't know how dad can talk all day sometimes…

-Hehe… Are you all ready? I just recovered all of my stamina!

‘He jumped into the bed like a man jumping into a pool’

/KYAAA!/

‘The surprised screams of the girls were soon replaced by cries of pleasure...’

/A few minutes later In another room of the house/

-Is this information true? Asked the beautiful female girl

-Yes young Lady. I got that from the young master's own mouth.

-For the last time… Don't call that trash Young master! He is a piece of crap. A stain in our great name!

-I am sorry Miss!

-Don't be sorry for this, just make sure this doesn't repeat again. Otherwise…

‘She grabbed her servant chin while licking her own lips’

-I might have to punish you~...

‘Her servant blushed intensely. If any men were to look, they would find this situation incredibly exciting! Only those of immense will would raise their Oaks!’

-Fufufu… But let 's return to business.

-That fool has truly gotten lucky this time, hasn't he? To think that a talented young scholar would get captured by one of his contacts… Sigh, just how many lives does he plan to throw away before he is satisfied?

-What should do M’lady? Should I stop them from interfering with the village?

-That would be too direct… And father might not even appreciate that, although his methods are brutal, if he succeeds… A big stain is going to be cleared from our record.

-A Lord that can't even take good care of a village doesn't reserve the loyalty of others… So we need to clear that as soon as possible.

-Brother probably thought it was enough to hide the village… That people would eventually forget…

-But he couldn't be more wrong.

Father doesn't have the time to deal with minor problems, so it's up to us, his children to fix those mistakes.

This is a very efficient system that also works as a test so father may see who is more fit to lead the territory.

-My older sister disappeared somewhere as always, and my younger brother should be training in the Academy, the youngest is well… The youngest. He is still too little to understand what is going on.

-Keep an eye on my brother’s movements… He should be making a move once the situation has stabilized… We can't miss that time under any circumstances!

Me and my brother have been quite close in popularity recently.

Although the mere thought of being on the same level as that waste of a human being sickens my very being.

If only I wasn't a woman!... My position would be set in stone… Why are father and mother so keen on transferring the position for a man!

I know I know… It's all because of the larger picture.

Older sister is nowhere to be seen as always… She and fourth brother never really cared about this “game” in the first place. Seeking strength over anything else.

So this is more about a fight between me and that waste… I need to convince my father that I am a good option before my fourth brother grows up.

Otherwise, he might just force the position on him.

(The order is like this, First child(male) second child(older sister) Third child(This girl) Fourth child(Boy in the academy) Fifth child(Young boy))

-Is there anything else?

-Of course!

‘She took several letters from a bag’

-Don't tell me…

-Yes Young miss, these are the letters from the young Nobles that…

-Throw them away. Just a bunch of all talk men. I had enough of them a long time ago.

-Miss! You are already 21! Your father told me to make sure you read these this time!

-He what?... ARG! Fine! I don't have anything to do anyway… Might as well laugh at these man’s pathetic tries at courtship.

-...

At least she is reading… Although her attitude is a bit off… It's a start. I can't let the lady grow alone! I will promise you, I will find you a good and worthy man of your name!

-Bring me the pen… Looks like I will be here for quite a while…

-Pfft! Look at this!

“Beauty like the lit sky in December...”

-How many times have we heard that already? Is this the 11th time?

-...

Sigh… If only these men were not so… At least make my job a little easier!

-PFFT! THIS ONE! HAHAHAHA…

…

/A minute later in another house located on top of a mountain/

/Fwush!/

-Hum? Ah! It's you… How was it?

‘A beautiful middle-aged woman was watering some flowers by the window when the wind suddenly hit her face’

‘Instead of closing the window she smiled and talked to the air’

-Just like you predicted, the two will soon be fighting over to see who will clear the family name first and take the credit.

-I see…

‘She calmly watered her white flowers, they seemed to be shining under the moonlight

-I feel sorry for the person who was thrown into this mess… Who was he again? My memory isn't the same as when I was younger…

-His name is Jonathan Asmoste, 22 years old. He comes from a normal family in one of the many cities in the main territory.

-... What more do we know about him? Go into the details…

-He is a very talented Scholar, studying his entire life to better himself. He always saw competition as a way to better himself. This mindset allowed him to publish many works and together with his tutor he was promoted to a Titled Scholar.

-Unfortunately, he was too focused on his studies that he didn't notice the plots behind his back. His invitation to the Royal Academy was stolen by someone else while he was sent to this corner of the kingdom for a task he will never complete. And even if he does…

-There is no reward waiting for him… Because it never existed in the first place.

-As for the origins of this plot… We didn't have that much time to research, but it might be something to do with his great great grandparents generation.

-Oh? And why is that?

-200 years ago, his family used to hold a Noble Title, but they lost their status for some reason. It's a bit of a stretch but we could say this plot has something to do with this. Although the truth is most likely just envy from an unsuccessful Noble’s son.

-And it just so happened that this person’s interest aligned with my son’s… So he was sent here to serve as a scapegoat while that person got his invitation and got rid of the evidence right?

-... Yes.

-Oh my son… How deep are you willing to go just for this position?...

-...

-Do not interfere.

-Are you serious Madam?!

-This is their problem, and although it's wrong, our family prestige must not be tainted… Even more during these turbulent times.

-Although… If that boy manages to survive all of this, I wouldn't mind lending him a hand. Just keep an eye on those two and make sure they don't go too far against each other, they are still family at the end of the day.

I will not have my children kill themselves like those other Nobles!

-Understood miss!

/Fwush/

‘After the veiled shadow disappeared, the woman just stared at the mansion from her house in the hill, in silence’

Turbulent times are coming...