Ascendance of a Bookworm (LN) - Volume 5.4 - Chapter Pr

Prologue

The blizzards stopped after the Lord of Winter was slain, allowing the sun to finally show itself and brighten the hallways. Just seeing all the light streaming in brightened Lamprecht’s mood as he hurried to the knight commander’s office.

Hopefully this is about giving me time off.

Having to manage the purge on top of the Lord of Winter hunt had made the start of the season busier than ever. Knights of the Order had needed to be involved in both, so most of them had barely even had a chance to visit home. Lamprecht in particular was being worked to the bone by his father, since he was a guard for the archducal family and apparently had “plenty of time” on his hands while his lord was at the Royal Academy.

The only knights who weren’t working to such a ruthless schedule were those serving Rozemyne. They were still being allowed time off, meaning there were days when Lamprecht didn’t even see them.

Meanwhile, I was only allowed to go home when my wife was giving birth.

Because his lord was away at the Royal Academy, it should have been easier for Lamprecht to secure days off... but that hadn’t been the case at all this year. The purge had been carried out at the start of winter rather than the end, and the Lord of Winter hunt had needed to be done by a much smaller force than usual. It had been a cruel season as a result.

Now that the hunt was over, the knights were gradually being allocated time away from work—but, as this was happening in order of status, starting with the laynobles, Lamprecht still wasn’t able to return home.

“Excuse me,” Lamprecht said as he entered the office. Karstedt was waiting inside and holding a board, which he waved at his son with a look of exhaustion.

“Lamprecht, take this to the northern building. I am giving you two days off starting tomorrow. It isn’t much, but spend it with your family.”

“Yes, sir!”

The board was an official directive from the Knight’s Order, instructing Lamprecht to take some downtime. He accepted it, then looked at Karstedt with somewhat resentful eyes and said, “Why did you give Rozemyne’s guard knights so much more time off than the rest of us? I wanted breaks too.”

“Idiot. Cornelius and the others were only exempt from training because they had to stay in the temple. They were responding to a call for aid from Aub Ehrenfest and Hartmut, the High Priest. It wasn’t time off.”

Rozemyne was staying at the Royal Academy this term, so Lamprecht had assumed that her knights wouldn’t need to go to the temple. In truth, however, her retainers were having to fill the gap left by her absence.

“Can’t really announce that archducal retainers are doing the work of blue priests, can we?” Karstedt said. “That’s why I said they were exempt from training—but that’s had its own problems. If people think I’m showing favoritism toward Rozemyne’s guard knights or giving them more time off than anyone else, it’ll undermine my authority going forward.” He started massaging his brow. “What a headache... Though maybe it won’t be so bad now that the Zent recognized the utility of rituals.”

Lamprecht remembered the attendants’ complaining when they were asked to prepare ceremonial robes for Lord Wilfried. Reports from the Royal Academy had said that Rozemyne’s rampage was especially bad this year.

So... Father’s trying to manage her craziness as well as the Knight’s Order. That must be rough.

For the first time, Lamprecht took a closer look at his father’s face. It was weary from fatigue. His decision to start with the laynobles when allocating leave meant he had probably taken less time off than anyone. He had probably found at least some time to rest in the knight dorms, but he certainly hadn’t been able to go home.

“I hope you get some time off soon, Commander,” Lamprecht said.

“Mm. Would be nice to get a break before the Interduchy Tournament... I’m looking forward to going home.” It seemed that he was particularly eager to meet his first grandchild.

Smiling at that last remark, Lamprecht left the commander’s office with the board in hand and went straight to the northern building.

“Got some time off at last, Lamprecht? That’s great.”

“Make sure you rest up.”

After arriving at the retainers’ room, Lamprecht had shown the board to the others in Wilfried’s service—and they had all congratulated him without missing a beat. The attendants and scholars had found it much easier to secure time away from work.

Lamprecht completed the necessary arrangements, then gave the other retainers a satisfied grin. From there, he sent ordonnanzes to his mother, Elvira, and wife, Aurelia, to inform them of the good news. They replied immediately.

“This is Elvira. Aurelia is currently in my care. Return to the main building today—though only after you have thoroughly cleansed yourself and changed your clothes. I do not want the stench of blood and battle sullying my estate.”

“This is Aurelia. I await your return.”

The other retainers let out whistles and exchanged intimidated glances; they had been listening to the ordonnanzes as well. “Lady Elvira sure is scary...” one said. “She took her son’s wife from Ahrensbach into her care...?”

“She doesn’t like the smell of blood, huh?” added another. “Even though she’s the first wife of the knight commander?”

Lamprecht sighed. “It may seem as if she’s trying to get more power over Aurelia, but she’s actually working to ease everyone’s suspicions about her being from Ahrensbach.”

Bettina had married into Ehrenfest at the same time as Aurelia and was espoused to the son of Giebe Wiltord—but when it was revealed that her in-laws had given their names to Georgine and that Bettina herself was communicating with Georgine through her home family in Ahrensbach, she was captured and executed.

Aurelia had been under Elvira’s care ever since marrying into Ehrenfest. She trusted Elvira to pick whom she interacted with, so she had never ended up socializing with Ahrensbach or nobles of the former Veronica faction. As a result, during the purge, she hadn’t even been taken away for questioning.

Incidentally, Mother’s request not to bring the stench of blood into the house must be because of the baby.

Thanks to Lamprecht, Elvira was now a grandmother. It was clear that she was fighting hard to protect Aurelia and the newborn.

“That seems pretty overcautious,” one of the retainers said. “Nobody’s going to imprison your wife, Lamprecht. You’re a guard knight serving Lord Wilfried, the next archduke. We could have been arrested for what we did for Lady Veronica, but you can see for yourself that none of us were.”

Several of the archducal couple’s retainers had already been relieved of duty or imprisoned and punished, whereas Wilfried’s retainers were completely undisturbed. Either out of optimism or a deliberate attempt to avoid reality, they were all trusting their lord to keep their families safe.

But retainers can’t be relieved of duty until their lord or lady returns. If there are any criminals among us, they won’t be punished before Lord Wilfried comes back.

Lamprecht couldn’t bring himself to be anywhere near as hopeful, though he kept that fact to himself. He didn’t want to inspire chaos or cause anyone to run away.

Following his mother’s instructions, Lamprecht cleansed himself and changed clothes in the dormitory before flying off on his highbeast. The cold winter air pricked his skin like tiny daggers, but the sunlight was warm. He felt good for the first time in a while.

“Welcome home,” Aurelia said upon his return. Elvira was with her.

“It’s good to be back...” Lamprecht replied. “Oh? You aren’t wearing your veil.”

“I was told in no uncertain terms that our child must be able to see his mother’s face...”

“I see. And where is our little boy?” Lamprecht hadn’t been home since attending the birth. He was looking forward to seeing his baby’s face, so not spotting him here made him anxious.

“I understand how you feel, but wait until after we’ve had dinner,” Elvira said chidingly. “A lot of arrangements were made so that you could eat with Aurelia. Do not let her nurses’ efforts or her own go to waste.”

Because a baby’s mana was so dependent on its mother, it was her duty to feed it—Lamprecht understood that much. But he hadn’t understood how much work was necessary for something as simple as him sharing a meal with his wife.

“You may rest easy,” Elvira continued. “Our house’s successor is growing steadily. Now, to the dining hall. We must hurry and eat.”

Eckhart’s move to Ahrensbach had required him to choose either Lamprecht or Cornelius to take over in his stead and temporarily manage his things. The two brothers had thus needed to discuss which one of them would leave the house.

Cornelius’s marriage to Leonore would be exceptionally beneficial to the Leisegangs, so the family wanted them as the house’s successors. Many also rejected the idea of a first wife from Ahrensbach becoming the future head of the estate. Lamprecht had no real interest in taking over—he knew that Aurelia would struggle when socializing with the less accepting members of their family—so he had suggested that they both leave and that Cornelius and Leonore move into a side building.

However, Elvira had refused the idea outright. “After the purge, how the public sees Aurelia will change immensely depending on if she resides in the estate of the knight commander,” she had said. “It makes no difference to our house whether you or Cornelius become its successor, so prioritize your pregnant wife from another duchy and secure a safe place for her to live.”

It would have been easy for Elvira to send Lamprecht and Aurelia out of the estate, and it would have satisfied their extended family. Despite that, she had chosen to put the safety of Aurelia and the baby above all else. It had warmed Lamprecht’s heart, and the knowledge that his mother was looking after his wife had put him at ease even when he was unable to return home because of the purge and the Lord of Winter hunt.

“I did not think she would be staying in one of the main building’s guest rooms...” Lamprecht said.

“Putting her in a side building would have been too dangerous,” Elvira replied simply.

Because she was from Ahrensbach, Aurelia often received meeting requests from punished members of the former Veronica faction and those with close ties to Georgine. The smallest spark of controversy had the potential to make her a suspect, which was why Elvira had moved her to the main building and rejected all of the letters under her own name.

“Have you felt safe here, Aurelia?” Lamprecht asked.

“Indeed. Our son and I have been at peace, and there has been nary a moment of unease. Under normal circumstances, I would have been questioned by the Knight’s Order immediately after giving birth, but Lady Elvira stopped even that for my sake. Please be sure to show her your gratitude.”

Aurelia had managed to avoid a summons from the Knight’s Order by putting her social life—and everything else, for that matter—entirely in Elvira’s hands. Karstedt knew about Aurelia’s circumstances as well and had broken his back trying to assist her, even going as far as to very slightly abuse his authority.

Lamprecht sighed in relief and thanked Elvira, well aware of the situation.

“There’s no need for that,” Elvira replied. “You are aware that the purge has turned the public against the former Veronica faction and those from Ahrensbach, correct?”

“Correct. I heard that even some of the archducal couple’s retainers were imprisoned.”

“Indeed. Such is the fate of criminals, though their loved ones and close friends are going to struggle as well. In truth, Trudeliede was also detained; she took great pride in her time as Lady Veronica’s attendant and did a little too much work for her in the shadows.”

Trudeliede was Karstedt’s second wife, whom he had married at Veronica’s orders. Elvira, his first wife, had disapproved of the way she acted, so she had taken advantage of the purge to give the Knight’s Order evidence of the crimes Trudeliede had committed for Veronica.

“Her son, Nikolaus, is staying at the castle for now,” Elvira continued. “Keep a close eye on him so that he does not approach Rozemyne as her paternal half-brother. Cornelius tells me she has a soft spot for those younger than her; I do not want her asking us to save Trudeliede or reduce her punishment for her son’s sake, nor do I want her asking for him to be moved to the main building.”

Rozemyne had a tendency to rush to the aid of anyone in trouble—and, if a noble of the former Veronica faction exploited that, the end result would never be good. That said, guiding Rozemyne was supposed to be the duty of her retainers; Lamprecht rarely interacted with her.

“I was Lady Detlinde’s guard knight before my marriage,” Aurelia said. “Back then, when I was in peak form, a child yet to join the Royal Academy wouldn’t have been a threat. But right now... Well...”

“You don’t need to force yourself,” Lamprecht replied. “I’ll warn Rozemyne. I don’t want Nikolaus in the main building either.”

Nikolaus had started training as an apprentice knight and was taller and stronger than most others his age. Lamprecht didn’t want him near Aurelia, who hadn’t yet recovered from giving birth, or their newborn baby.

“Further,” Elvira said, “we have closed down the building where Trudeliede was living. All those who served there have now been dispersed, and not a single one of them is allowed into the main building.”

“Has that abrupt dismissal not put them in a very troublesome position?” Lamprecht asked. The commoner servants who had planned to spend the entire winter with Trudeliede had surely not made any winter preparations of their own. Lamprecht felt bad that they had all been forced out into the cold, but Elvira just sighed.

“What else could be done? I suggested that they seek work with the Knight’s Order, which was hiring servants to look after the detained nobles, and that is the most I will do for them. My duty is to protect this estate, my son’s wife, and my new grandson. Thus, I cannot let those who served Trudeliede into the main building.”

Elvira had made her priorities clear, and she would eliminate anyone who posed even the slightest threat to them. It seemed a little harsh, but as the knight commander’s first wife, she had a sharp nose for danger.

She continued, “Because of these circumstances, I am keeping the baby’s existence hidden from even our family. I realize this is unfortunate—both for you and Aurelia and for the newborn—but any celebrations will need to wait until your son’s baptism.”

After a baby’s mana was checked, it was customary to inform one’s closest family and celebrate the birth, but none of that was going to happen this time. Lamprecht thought that Elvira was being excessively cautious, but her vigilance was also the reason he had been so comfortable leaving his wife in her care.

“Lord Lamprecht, might I ask you to at least inform Lady Rozemyne?” Aurelia asked in a quiet voice. “She has treated me well and was very much looking forward to the birth of our child. Do tell her personally.”

Lamprecht already knew the reason for his wife’s request: Rozemyne had done so much to make Aurelia feel comfortable in her new home. She had spoken to her when she first married into Ehrenfest, stayed with her when making a new cloth trend, and prepared an Ahrensbach dish for her when she was pregnant.

“I could secretly inform Rozemyne at the castle,” Lamprecht said, his gaze wandering to Elvira, “but would it not be better for Mother to summon her here? I doubt anyone will suspect we’ve had a baby from that alone.”

“No,” Elvira replied simply and with a smile. “We must keep her away from here for the time being—so that nobles of the former Veronica faction do not realize she is close to Aurelia and so that the Leisegangs trying to make her into the next aub do not become unnecessarily hopeful.”

The first reason was fair enough, but the second made Lamprecht’s eyes widen in shock. “How are the Leisegangs still a concern?” he asked. “Hasn’t the engagement made it clear that Lord Wilfried is going to be the next aub and Rozemyne his first wife?”

“The purge swept away the lust for revenge that was clouding Giebe Leisegang Emeritus’s heart,” Elvira said. “Finally at peace, he recently climbed the towering stairway.”

“Great-Grandfather...?”

As an archducal guard knight, Lamprecht had been told the names of those who were executed or punished, but he hadn’t known about any deaths beyond that. The fact that he was only hearing this now made it all the more tragic; there really hadn’t been much time for him to socialize this winter.

“But... Great-Grandfather hated the thought of Lord Wilfried becoming the next aub more than anyone!” Lamprecht exclaimed. “How does his passing change anything?!”

Elvira heaved a frustrated sigh. “He saw the purge as an act of revenge that would eliminate his enemies. Little wonder, then, that his dying wish was for Rozemyne to become the next aub. The unified elders are working to make that happen as we speak. Some are even trying to regain what Lady Veronica took from them.”

Their efforts to make Rozemyne the next aub weren’t going to include her parents, since they wouldn’t respond positively to the Leisegangs’ demands.

“Still, the crimes committed by Lady Veronica and her lackeys have nothing to do with Lord Wilfried and the aub, do they? I understand that Lady Veronica abused the Leisegangs, but the archducal family can’t be tarred with the same brush—not when they cast aside their own faction for the benefit of the duchy.”

Elvira merely laughed off such an obvious protest. “Goodness, what are you saying? During the purge, so many innocent people were detained and punished for the crimes of their relatives.”

Those attending the Royal Academy had managed to escape punishment by giving their names, but the adults hadn’t been so fortunate. Not all of them had been executed, but many had received punishments of varying severities. According to Elvira, the Leisegangs expected the archducal family—Veronica’s own blood—to be treated similarly.

“But years have passed since Lady Veronica was—”

“You would do well to realize that elders perceive time differently than you do,” Elvira said, her eyes sharp. “Two years to you is six to them.”

On top of that, Veronica had put them through more than three decades of misery. Lamprecht had yet to be born when it all started, and his head spun as he finally understood the extent of their suffering and the depth of their fury.

Elvira continued, “It might have been another story if Lord Sylvester had detained Lady Veronica immediately upon coming into power, but instead he remained inactive for the longest time. Consider also that she took charge of Lord Wilfried’s baptism. It should come as no surprise that so few nobles can separate the three in their mind.”

In all his time spent serving Wilfried, Lamprecht had never once considered such points. He had been targeted by Veronica before, but maybe due to how quickly it had passed or his own optimism, he hadn’t been able to understand what would inspire the Leisegangs to cling to their hatred so fervently and for so long.

“Putting his past actions aside,” Elvira said, “I praise the aub for having carried out the recent purge even at the cost of destroying his own faction. However, this has also made Leisegang the dominant force in both strength and numbers, meaning its influence will be considerably harder to resist. The archducal family will need to become a tight-knit unit going forward.”

As far as Lamprecht was concerned, the archducal family was already as close as could be. Was there even much else for them to do? As he racked his brain for ideas, he remembered having discussed the matter with his fellow retainers.

“The passage of time will not be enough for Lord Wilfried and the aub to escape Lady Veronica’s shadow,” Elvira said. “Likewise, no matter how great a wedge we try to drive between them, Rozemyne will always have a connection to Leisegang.”

“In that case, we should just get Rozemyne to gather the Leisegangs under her and...” Lamprecht was repeating verbatim what his fellow retainers had said to him, but he must not have paid enough attention to what he was saying. Elvira’s eyes sharpened, and she swiftly cut him off.

“Do not be foolish. How can you expect so much from her when the aub and we have kept her from socializing with them, fearing that they might absorb her even now that she’s been adopted into the archducal family? It would not be possible, especially considering her upbringing in the temple.”

His proposal in tatters, Lamprecht desperately searched for the words needed to avoid his mother’s wrath. He knew from experience that the last thing he wanted to do was displease her and put her in an uncooperative mood. Without her assistance, it would be much harder for him to gain information on the Leisegangs and work for the sake of his lord.

“Er, well... I mean... The printing industry she’s leading might have had its start in the province of her former retainer Brigitte, but its recent expansions have all been in provinces belonging to giebes in her family. I thought she might have been using that as an opportunity to socialize with them.”

“Then you could say that Rozemyne is socializing with the Leisegangs exactly as often as Lord Wilfried, who visits each province as a representative of the printing industry. And you accompanied him as his guard knight, did you not? I can only imagine how deep your bonds with our family must be.”

This time, Lamprecht fell completely silent. He had indeed traveled to various provinces with Wilfried to make sure preparations for the printing industry were complete, but he hadn’t socialized with any of the giebes as family.

So... Rozemyne’s the same way?

“Good grief...” Elvira said. “You have been socializing with our family since you were but a child, Lamprecht, so you are much closer to them than Rozemyne is. Even if your lord asks her to lead the Leisegangs, do not allow it. Shield her from them, if anything.”

Lamprecht hadn’t really socialized with his Leisegang family since he had started serving Wilfried—doubly so since he had married Aurelia from Ahrensbach. Being told to shield Rozemyne felt unreasonable as a result, but he couldn’t say something so weak in front of his wife; she was probably worrying that their marriage had caused all of these problems in the first place.

“We kept Rozemyne away from her family so that she would not become the next aub,” Elvira concluded. “If you or anyone else serving Lord Wilfried wishes to close the distance we have so carefully established, then you are still outrageous fools without the slightest talent for gathering intelligence.”

“Er, I mean...”

It was precisely as Elvira had said—now that Wilfried was engaged and guaranteed to become the next archduke, his retainers were becoming too lax when it came to gathering information. Still, he couldn’t bring himself to just nod in agreement.

“How you gather intelligence and serve your lord is up to you,” Elvira remarked. “However, with the former Veronica faction now in such dire straits, you must be in a very tough position. Be as considerate about Lord Wilfried as you wish, but he always favors the former Veronica faction.”

“My lord would not be foolish enough to do that,” Lamprecht said flatly. “He also has an honest personality and listens to the opinions of others.”

Although the nobles all treated Wilfried as a member of the former Veronica faction, he had been torn away from Veronica just after his baptism—and the six years since then he had spent living by the rules of the archducal couple. He also wasn’t the kind of person to show favoritism when it came to factions.

“I see,” Elvira muttered with a heavy sigh. “Then I shall leave convincing him to you. Rozemyne cannot be made to control the Leisegangs as it will only create an opening for them to exploit.”

After that final nail in his coffin, Lamprecht felt an overwhelming urge to sigh. He would need to discuss matters with Cornelius and Rozemyne so they could work with him without Elvira knowing.

“You must be careful,” Elvira warned. “Most troublesome of all is that the Leisegangs almost have Lord Bonifatius on their side. It seems he strongly disapproves of Rozemyne being involved with the temple...”

“Grandfather does?”

“Yes, and securing his help will make the extremist faction more than capable of eliminating Lord Wilfried. The Ivory Tower incident has not been forgotten, and the only reason your lord can still become the next aub is because he is engaged to Rozemyne. Everyone knows she would be the obvious choice to rule if he did not exist, and what follows from that logic need not even be stated.”

Lamprecht broke out in a cold sweat. It had never even crossed his mind that Bonifatius might become their enemy. The very idea was disastrous.

“You should inform Lord Wilfried that the absolute last thing he wants to do right now is provoke the Leisegangs. At the very least, he should wait until the archducal couple has finished meting out punishment and rearranging its retainers—or until after he is married and the Leisegangs have been forced to give up.”

Lamprecht nodded at his mother’s warning. It wouldn’t take too long for the archducal couple to reform its retainers.

“Lady Aurelia, may I have a moment?” a nurse asked, interrupting their meal. “The baby is hungry.”

Aurelia apologized and took her leave. It seemed that she wouldn’t be able to enjoy her dinner after all.

“A mother’s life revolves around her child,” Elvira said, fixing her own son with a glare. “Although this is your first holiday in some time, you must not let Aurelia tend to you. Instead, you should tend to her.”

She went on to speak at length about the difficulties a woman faced after giving birth, drawing generously from her own experiences. Lamprecht was pretty certain that her lectures had gotten even longer than usual, maybe because she was writing so many stories as of late.

“Aurelia could not summon her family for this birth,” Elvira continued, “and the purge has required her to move from the side building to the main one. Not even I can say how tense she must be at the current moment. Plus, even when I am working my hardest, there is only so much I can do as her mother-in-law; she needs her husband to support her too. Now, in my case, Karstedt would—”

“Then as you suggest, Mother, I will act entirely for her sake,” Lamprecht interrupted, having sensed that there would be no end to her rant. He had listened to her go on about what had happened after his birth more times than he could count and was far more interested in seeing his newborn baby.

After more or less fleeing the room, Lamprecht had one of the attendants guide him to where his wife and son were staying. Along the way, he was reminded of the fact that they were living in a guest room.

“I assumed she would use my room, if any...”

“Your room is filled with magic weaponry, Lord Lamprecht. It would have been much too dangerous for your wife and child to stay there. Lady Aurelia was also opposed to changing or moving furniture so soon after giving birth.”

Aurelia had apparently said that she wanted to avoid any unnecessary hassle, which was why she had instead moved to a room furnished with everything she would need. It was an understandable decision—and one that was very much like her.

“The baby is currently being fed,” the attendant noted. “Enter quietly so as not to startle him.”

Lamprecht carefully entered the room, and there he was—his baby boy. As he recalled, his son’s face had been so red and mushy when he was first born that he’d actually looked more like a tiny animal with human features. He had also been small enough for Lamprecht to hold in his hands, but now he would need to be cradled in both arms. His chubby little body looked soft to the touch.

As he watched the baby eagerly breastfeed, Lamprecht felt a wave of emotion wash over him. “He’s getting bigger,” he said.

“Indeed,” Aurelia replied with a giggle. “I am sure he grows heavier with each passing day.”

“How’s life in the main building? Is it, er... tough living in Mother’s care?”

“Not in the least,” she said. “She has been refusing all invitations on my behalf and spoke with Lord Karstedt so that I would not have to visit the Knight’s Order so soon after giving birth. She also secured me a trustworthy nurse and is preventing any suspicious individuals from infiltrating the building. It is thanks to her that I can focus on caring for our baby.” Seeing the peaceful smile on his wife’s face was enough for Lamprecht to confirm that she was speaking from the heart.

Aurelia continued, “My birth mother is no longer with us, I do not have a good relationship with my little sister, and I do not think my father’s first wife would have treated me so lovingly if I had married within Ahrensbach. Lady Elvira truly is the reason we can be so comfortable. Please thank her on behalf of us both.”

Upon learning that Trudeliede was imprisoned as part of the purge, Aurelia had assumed that she would suffer an even worse fate, considering that she was from Ahrensbach. However, Elvira had dealt with the Knight’s Order for her and even advised her to retreat to the main building.

“Our marriage has put you in a difficult position, hasn’t it?” Aurelia asked. “It pains me to know that I am the reason you cannot even debut your child to your family.”

“You don’t need to worry about that. Really, I’m the one who feels bad. You’re in such a scary situation right now, but I haven’t been here for you when you’ve needed me most.” Lamprecht looked carefully at his son. He wanted to be around to see him grow, and that thought instilled in him a strong fatherly urge to protect this little being.

“An archducal retainer needs to prioritize their lord above all else—I understand that much,” Aurelia replied. “It was only for a short time, but I did serve Lady Detlinde.”

Lamprecht wasn’t serving Rozemyne; instead, he was a guard knight for Wilfried, whose retinue was full of people from the faction that had just been purged. He could somewhat predict what his position among them was going to be in the future.

“Lord Wilfried isn’t as fixated on factions as people think,” he said. “It shouldn’t take much for him to listen to reason.”

“I am worried about Lady Rozemyne too. She was concerned about me when I was pregnant and made various considerate arrangements for my sake, remember? I do not want to be the reason she is embroiled in family troubles.”

Aurelia had chosen the knight course on her father’s order. Then, after Alstede’s demotion to the rank of archnoble, she had been made to serve Detlinde to get close to Georgine. It had ended up being a terrible experience, and she didn’t want Rozemyne going through the same thing.

“Mother’s thinking ahead and worrying about all sorts of things. That’s just the kind of person she is, but at the same time... it means she has a bunch of plans. Rozemyne doesn’t intend to be the next aub, and that fact won’t change no matter what the elders in Leisegang say. Not to mention, the archduke candidates are all on good terms and working around Lord Wilfried.” He smiled and added, “A small matter like this won’t even strain their relationship.”

At that moment, the baby opened its tiny mouth with an equally small pop. Lamprecht watched closely as Aurelia picked up their son and patted him on the back. The infant gazed up at his father, looking him straight in the eye—and then burped.

“He’s smiling...” Lamprecht said. “He must be satisfied from eating so much.”

“Oh my. Can you recognize your father, little one?” Aurelia asked, holding the baby’s teeny hand. “Let’s ask him to hurry up and think of a name for you, then.”

Lamprecht smiled. “I came up with a lot of names while we were apart. My first choice would be Siegrecht.”

During those peaceful days with his wife and child, Lamprecht was unaware of the trouble to come. He didn’t know that Wilfried would swallow Ortwin’s words wholesale and return from the Royal Academy mistrusting Rozemyne, or that there was someone among Wilfried’s retainers actively fanning the flames of that discord...